"It spins?"
"Yes, it spins! Round and round" the wizard gave a little twirl with his finger, as if somehow that would help Uvlius understand better.
"But why does it spin? What's the purpose?" Uvlius was bewildered.
"Listen old man, you want the stuff or not? I've got loads of other people lined up to buy it, so it's your call." The traveller tapped his foot, impatiently. Pan had travelled a long while to be here. “We spent weeks gathering all these trinkets for you from the Bibliotheca, and brought them to you, because we respect the scientific & cultural value they hold!”
With a bit of a dramatic flare, Uvlius leaned forward over his massive desk and looked behind his guest, then looked to his left & right as if searching for someone he expected to see. "Where's the line up, exactly?" Wizard #9587 grunted in a huff. Uvlius settled back into his chair and picked up the hue masters top, turning it over in his hand. Then tried and failed to make the top spin. "Listen it's a neat pile of bits and bobs, but I just can't pay what you're asking... I'm sorry. And if you'll excuse me, I believe lunch should be coming around soon, and I'm quite hungry..."
For his front of being patient the grandfather clock now said 1:30pm and hunger was getting the best of him. He sat down and pretended to bury himself in his large time, hoping his haggling guest would leave on his own.
From a small bag, Pan pulled a tray. Peering over the top of the book, Uvlius tried to look without obviously showing interest. The stranger brought out another small chilled tin container and, using chop sticks, began assembling an immaculate plate of fresh sushi. The Pan took his time laying out the platter, as an artist takes their time with a canvas. Uvlius's mouth began to water. He was could smell the aroma of the soy and the crisp crunch of the shredded radish.
"You can join me, rather than just starring." Pan casually mused as he used the chopsticks to pick up a piece of sashimi and delicately popped it into his mouth. Without looking up he flipped a second pair of chopsticks over in his knuckles and offered them to Uvlius.
He couldn't help himself. It just looked so good, Uvlius took the chopsticks and leaned in towards the tray. "I always enjoy sharing a meal with those I trade with." The Pan smiled through his hood. Uvlius knew he'd been got.
"Ahhh alright fine, I'll pay what you ask! Damn near piracy though! Just unfair!" He tapped his chopsticks on the desk and a drawer jumped open. He opened a small purse, shook out a few coins which he left in the drawer, then tossed the remainder of the pouch to Pan. With remarkable dexterity, Pan deftly pinched the purse, mid air, with his chopsticks, opened a secret pocket in his robe and dropped the pouch in.
"The bugbears bounty to you!" The stranger spoke as he excused himself from the desk, leaving the exquisite feast for his host. "Enjoy the trinkets as you will the food!" The stranger spoke as he walked down the hall.
Uvlius, still feeling swindled, just grunted as he chewed. Damn the sushi was good...
Uvlius reviewed the table of new items for the Athenaeum. "I think I might keep this one..." He mumbled to himself as he turned the hue master top over in his hands again, giving it another spin. To his astonishment, the top spun, exquisitely, dancing & twirling. There was magic here. Real magic.
A smile spread across his face and Uvlius savoured the rest of his lunch, joyful as he did.
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Uvlius and the Hint from the Youngling
A tale from the Great Library
Uvlius sat in his usual place—deep in the Stacks, buried beneath scroll towers, loose papers, and glowing runes that refused to behave. His great wooden desk looked more like a storm-blasted shrine than a workspace, but the old librarian-wizard hardly noticed. He’d been at this project for weeks, muttering to himself as he cataloged and re-cataloged the Runes.
“Odd results… odd again… and still odd,” he grumbled, scribbling another failed notation. “These runes should not be humming, spinning, glowing, or doing whatever that is…”
A nearby rune wobbled like jelly. Uvlius ignored it.
Just then, light footsteps pattered down the aisle.
A young wizard-in-training—robe too big, satchel too heavy, eyes bright with curiosity—peeked around a shelf.
“Master Uvlius?” the child asked. “Are you still studying the runes?”
Uvlius blinked over his spectacles. “Still? My dear, at this point I’ve become a fixture. You may start shelving books on me if I don’t crack this soon.”
The child giggled and stepped closer, peering at the runes spread across the desk. “They look like they’re… trying to tell you something.”
“Oh they’re telling me plenty,” Uvlius sighed. “Unfortunately, none of it makes any sense. There are references to places I’ve never heard of, fruits that I've never heard of, and symbols that react together when they absolutely shouldn’t.”
The young wizard tilted their head. “Maybe… maybe they’re not wrong. Maybe they’re clues. Like a puzzle! Or a pattern! You know—like the ones we get in Academy lessons?”
Uvlius froze.
A puzzle.
A pattern.
He slowly turned toward the runes, eyes narrowing as if seeing them for the first time.
“A pattern…” he whispered. He shuffled three runes together. They glowed in sequence.
He added a fourth. The glow repeated—brighter now.
He looked at the eight Runes still on the desk that needed to fit in somehow.
Uvlius inhaled sharply.
“Oh. Oh! Blue Wizards Beard... —child, you’ve done it!” He leapt to his feet, sending parchment flying everywhere. “They aren’t misbehaving at all! They’re guiding us! A riddle hidden inside the reactions…”
The child beamed. “So there is something there!”
Uvlius nodded quickly, already reaching for quill and scrap parchment. “Yes. Yes indeed. And if the pattern holds—why, it may lead to something quite important… something meant to be found.. someone meant to be found!”
He scribbled furiously as the runes shimmered, almost proudly.
Then he looked up, eyes sparkling.
“A puzzle for clever minds,” he said. “And I daresay certain children may solve it even before I do.”
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