Discord
You head to the switch panel first.
Roux follows you, looking particularly anxious.
You find three switches on the panel, each with a different label: 'MAIN LIGHTS', 'MUSIC', and 'SECURITY GATES'. There's a hard plastic covering over the switches, though; a keyhole that presumably opens the cover just beside it.
"Just need to find a key, then.
...Somewhere." They sigh.
"I'd say we're fairly likely to find it."
"I'm not holding my breath.
But still worth looking, I guess.
Let's check these stores. Look for any ways in, and keep an eye out for the key. Maybe it's around, but I doubt it."
"I was about to suggest the same. Make note of anything useful for later, in the event we do find the key."
"Yeah."
You and Roux perform a thorough search of the atrium, and you mentally catalogue your findings:
-The sporting goods shop did indeed have plenty of weapons. Various bats, golf clubs, croquet mallets; just about anything that's good for hitting things.
-The camping and outdoors store had another crossbow inside, as well as a hunting rifle towards the back. Roux additionally pointed the many large backpacks. "We're going to want more supplies. More supplies means more to carry, so a good bag or two is about the most useful thing we could find."
-Unsurprisingly, climbing gear could be seen within the rock climbing store, along with some warm clothes.
-The shoe store, inexplicably, had shoes. And nothing else.
-You learned the book store also housed a coffee shop within it, but couldn't determine much else by looking inside. Roux pointed out "Books on first aid could help if one of us gets hurt. ...Could be something similar for construct injuries."
-Roux searched the playground for the panel key, but only succeeded in getting briefly stuck after crawling under one of the slides, requiring your help to dislodge them. "I could've got out by myself." They seemed embarrassed.
-You checked the exit, but there wasn't a way around the gate in front of it. "No door has led where it's supposed to, so I doubt this one's actually a way out."
-Two other stores had holes in their security gates: The robotics and electronic parts store - which had no label nearby to identify what was taken - and the apothecary, which you were currently investigating.
The hole here was larger than the other two, and a nearby shelf had been overturned inside, now leaning sideways against the window display. Broken bottles were scattered along the floor in front of it.
"Looks like they made a bigger hole here so they could reach that shelf. Can't tell what they got, but there might be something useful in here.
Hang on."
The chorosy tried to squeeze their way inside, but couldn't quite fit.
"Nope." They stepped back, looking over the scene inside.
"Whoever made these... they could've just busted all the way in, but they made holes just big enough to get what they wanted without letting anyone else use them to get in.
No way that wasn't on purpose."
They stepped aside, glancing around the atrium.
"Okay.
Alright.
There's... Probably a way forward with one of those doors in the corner."
"One of them is unlocked."
"...You checked?"
You tap your forehead. "Mental map."
"Wait, you can just... tell?"
You nod.
"Huh. ...Weird, but that's good, if it works.
So, we've got..."
They trailed off, pacing another few steps before leaning back against a nearby wall.
"We don't know if we'll find the key up ahead. And if someone's running around with a crossbow, might be safer to double back. We didn't pass anyone on our way here, so maybe it's-- ...except for that aerosoul you saw, which... isn't..." Roux raked a hand down their face, exhaling.
"Yeah, I don't know." They slid their back down the wall until they were sitting on the floor.
"We've got two options. Neither's great.
We find that key, we can get weapons. Plenty of other things, too. But if we run into whoever took that crossbow before then, this," They waggled their knife. "...sure isn't gonna make a difference."
"If we double back, we'd have to find some other route neither of us have taken yet, otherwise we'd just be going in circles and wasting time. And we could run into your purple friend. Which, if they're an aerosoul..." They looked up from the floor. "How big were they?"
"Taller than you, I think. Definitely bigger."
"Yeah, no. Don't like our odds at all."
They shrugged, letting their hands drop to their sides after.
"No idea. Your call.
Otherwise I'd just obsess over the decision and die of old age in this mall."
Roux follows you, looking particularly anxious.
You find three switches on the panel, each with a different label: 'MAIN LIGHTS', 'MUSIC', and 'SECURITY GATES'. There's a hard plastic covering over the switches, though; a keyhole that presumably opens the cover just beside it.
"Just need to find a key, then.
...Somewhere." They sigh.
"I'd say we're fairly likely to find it."
"I'm not holding my breath.
But still worth looking, I guess.
Let's check these stores. Look for any ways in, and keep an eye out for the key. Maybe it's around, but I doubt it."
"I was about to suggest the same. Make note of anything useful for later, in the event we do find the key."
"Yeah."
You and Roux perform a thorough search of the atrium, and you mentally catalogue your findings:
-The sporting goods shop did indeed have plenty of weapons. Various bats, golf clubs, croquet mallets; just about anything that's good for hitting things.
-The camping and outdoors store had another crossbow inside, as well as a hunting rifle towards the back. Roux additionally pointed the many large backpacks. "We're going to want more supplies. More supplies means more to carry, so a good bag or two is about the most useful thing we could find."
-Unsurprisingly, climbing gear could be seen within the rock climbing store, along with some warm clothes.
-The shoe store, inexplicably, had shoes. And nothing else.
-You learned the book store also housed a coffee shop within it, but couldn't determine much else by looking inside. Roux pointed out "Books on first aid could help if one of us gets hurt. ...Could be something similar for construct injuries."
-Roux searched the playground for the panel key, but only succeeded in getting briefly stuck after crawling under one of the slides, requiring your help to dislodge them. "I could've got out by myself." They seemed embarrassed.
-You checked the exit, but there wasn't a way around the gate in front of it. "No door has led where it's supposed to, so I doubt this one's actually a way out."
-Two other stores had holes in their security gates: The robotics and electronic parts store - which had no label nearby to identify what was taken - and the apothecary, which you were currently investigating.
The hole here was larger than the other two, and a nearby shelf had been overturned inside, now leaning sideways against the window display. Broken bottles were scattered along the floor in front of it.
"Looks like they made a bigger hole here so they could reach that shelf. Can't tell what they got, but there might be something useful in here.
Hang on."
The chorosy tried to squeeze their way inside, but couldn't quite fit.
"Nope." They stepped back, looking over the scene inside.
"Whoever made these... they could've just busted all the way in, but they made holes just big enough to get what they wanted without letting anyone else use them to get in.
No way that wasn't on purpose."
They stepped aside, glancing around the atrium.
"Okay.
Alright.
There's... Probably a way forward with one of those doors in the corner."
"One of them is unlocked."
"...You checked?"
You tap your forehead. "Mental map."
"Wait, you can just... tell?"
You nod.
"Huh. ...Weird, but that's good, if it works.
So, we've got..."
They trailed off, pacing another few steps before leaning back against a nearby wall.
"We don't know if we'll find the key up ahead. And if someone's running around with a crossbow, might be safer to double back. We didn't pass anyone on our way here, so maybe it's-- ...except for that aerosoul you saw, which... isn't..." Roux raked a hand down their face, exhaling.
"Yeah, I don't know." They slid their back down the wall until they were sitting on the floor.
"We've got two options. Neither's great.
We find that key, we can get weapons. Plenty of other things, too. But if we run into whoever took that crossbow before then, this," They waggled their knife. "...sure isn't gonna make a difference."
"If we double back, we'd have to find some other route neither of us have taken yet, otherwise we'd just be going in circles and wasting time. And we could run into your purple friend. Which, if they're an aerosoul..." They looked up from the floor. "How big were they?"
"Taller than you, I think. Definitely bigger."
"Yeah, no. Don't like our odds at all."
They shrugged, letting their hands drop to their sides after.
"No idea. Your call.
Otherwise I'd just obsess over the decision and die of old age in this mall."
MAP:
![[Image: DFjPcTz.gif]](https://i.imgur.com/DFjPcTz.gif)
