Weird Wares Pawn Shop
HowlSpace Quest 7: Return to the Weird Wares Pawn Shop – {Interface}: You have received a new message from Russel Spectre.
Russel Spectre: Hi, again! I don’t think we’re
really any closer to figuring out the story about those Slenderman rumors, but
I do think there might be one lead that we could follow. I was looking into
that pawn shop in downtown that everyone seems to be talking about, and it has
this display called, what was it? Museum of the Multiverse. That’s it. I think
we need to look into that. {Go to Next Guest Options}
{Guest Options}:
· {Option 1} What are we looking for?
· {Option 2} The store is closed right now.
Russel Spectre: {Option 1} I can’t say that I have
anything more than passing knowledge of what a multiverse is, or what it’s
supposed to be, but I’m wondering if Slenderman has something to do with
it. Let the app know when you’re in the store. {Go to
Objective Screen}
Russel Spectre: {Option 2} It is? I’ll try to
figure out another lead that we could pick up on but hang tight. I’ll be in contact
with you later. {Go to Quest Screen}
Objective Screen {from Option 1} Go Visit Weird
Wares Pawn Shop.
{Guest} steps inside of Weird Wares Pawn Shop and
confirms.
If tourists want something really unusual to commemorate their visit to Howling Hollow, this pawn shop displays strange and unusual finds in its so-called Museum of the Multiverse, including a two-headed chimera cat, imagination as a form of matter, a somewhat melted but oddly polished laser shoulder cannon, a charred bunny plush with a burnt-out battery box, a newspaper declaring that Patrick and Jamie Hooligans are married, an electronic cat toy that acts like it wants to rule the world, a patch for the People’s Liberation Front of Wàn Qian Chéng in China, an envelope addressed to Lord Sam Sinister regarding Project: Solarum, a World War 2-era plasma-burst rifle, a menu from a soup kitchen run by Amanda Remous, and a giant bronze sculpture of the face of former U.S. President Richard Nixon. For sale are some less-unusual collectibles, including t-shirts depicting the town’s weirder sights, hats, collectible coins, pins, magnets, backpacks, bags, planks of wood from the town’s former buildings, mutant kudzu terrariums (do not open for any reason), desk fans in the shape of the Windmill Villa, books on the town’s conspiracy theories, and books on ghost stories. Located behind the front counter is a door that is marked as being used to access the far reaches of the multiverse to collect new merchandise.
{Interface}: You have received a new message from
Connie Craft.
Connie Craft: Oh, hey. It’s you again. Wasn’t sure
if you were going to get back to me. So, what brings you into my store? {Go to
Next Guest Options}
{Guest Options}:
· {Option 1} What are you selling?
· {Option 2} What is a multiverse?
Connie Craft: {Option 1} Mostly, it’s weird stuff
that have been brought in over the years, plus some silly novelties that the
tourists want. Want a desk fan that looks like our local windmill? {Return to
Guest Options}
Connie Craft: {Option 2} Multiverse, eh? Now
you’re speaking my language. I could totally go on all day about the multiverse,
and I even touched on it earlier, but to keep things short, it’s basically a
collection of universes where differences in history have led to very different
realities. There are realities where everyone is the opposite sex, or the world
has gone to diesel punk. I think the best way to describe it is to visit my
little museum of sorts. It’s in the back of the store. {Go to Objective Screen}
Objective Screen {from Option 2} Go to Museum of
the Multiverse.
{Guest} steps up to the Museum of the Multiverse
and confirms.
{Interface}: New Feature: Time Dilation
Manipulator – Use your device’s camera to scan for temporal anomalies. If you
detect one, hone into it by matching the anomaly’s wavelength, allowing you to
control it. Use this feature to detect anything unusual about these artifacts.
The artifacts in question are indeed unusual on their own, with some of them originating from realities far removed from our own.
 |
| Cosmotronic Ray Tonal Sketches. Like I mentioned before, some of the land's elements had to make the jump from being LEGO-based designs to ones that could exist in the real world. This is another example of that, as this weapon originated from the LEGO Dino Attack theme, which inspired the fan-created Dino Attack RPG and the alternate ending short story 12/21/10. When translating something intentionally basic into something more complex for the real world, I realized that I had plenty of room to play around here. So, in making this LEGO weapon look "real," I took inspiration from hand-held rocket launchers and science fiction. |
{Guest} scans Museum artifacts for anomalies. One appears over the Cosmotronic Ray. Guest confirms and plays tuning minigame. Completing the game activates lights and sound on the artifact.
 |
| Electronic Cat Toy Sketches. Oh, boy. I think I may have added a huge spoiler for the upcoming book Tales Across The World: A Short Story Collection, but this cat toy's most unique feature is that it contains the consciousness of an evil megalomaniac that can't do anything because of the toy's limitations. I don't want to elaborate on this one too much due to spoilers, but with a multiverse museum that is generally very serious and dour, this silly juxtaposition was a way to bring some humor into this corner of the store. |
{Guest} scans Museum artifacts for anomalies. One
appears over the Cat Toy. Guest confirms and plays tuning minigame. Completing
the game activates motion, lights, and sound on the artifact.
Variant Ogel: Soon, I will be free from these
confines! Then, I will rule…rule…your {Static}
Cat Toy: Miau Miau! Kitty will spielen!
 |
| Charred Bunny Plush and Lighter Sketches. There's a reference to the story Alpha Team 2: The Dino Attack in this land!?! This sketch reinterprets one of the gags from the story in a lawyer-friendly way (I won't bore you with the details) and includes the items to add some diversity to the Museum of the Multiverse. Because the gag revolved around smoking, I decided to make this reference as oddball and silly as possible, therefore also adding to the lore of Dimension 201. For the record, the Time Dilation Manipulator cannot interact with this artifact. |
 |
| Orb of Creativity Sketches. Probably the most explicit connection to the Dino Attack RPG in the land is this artifact. Not many changes were made here to make this artifact fit into the look of the land, as it really is just a ball of energy. While I played around with how to present the effect visually, the general overall silhouette stayed pretty much the same. |
{Guest} scans Museum artifacts for anomalies. One
appears over the Electro-Pulse Ray Gun. Guest confirms and plays tuning
minigame. Completing the game activates lights and sound on the artifact.
{Guest} scans Museum artifacts for anomalies. One
appears over the Amber Necklace. Guest confirms and plays tuning minigame.
Completing the game activates lights and sound on the artifact.
{Guest} scans Museum artifacts for anomalies. One
appears over the Time Music Tuner. Guest confirms and plays tuning minigame.
Completing the game activates lights and sound on the artifact.
Spirit: This Place… Mystery and Lies… Lies
Everywhere… Secrets… Promises… Broken… Beware the Pale Fiend… True Horror… He
Lies… Lies… Lies…
{Interface}: You have received a new message from
Russel Spectre.
Russel Spectre: I’ve been doing some research into
this little “museum,” and it seems a bit… strange. Were you able to find
anything? {Go to Next Guest Options}
{Guest Options}:
· {Option 1} I don’t think Slenderman is connected to the multiverse.
· {Option 2} You’re right. This is weird.
· {Option 3} Something called the Time Music Tuner may have come into contact with Slenderman.
Russel Spectre: {Option 1} Hmm. I’m tempted to
call this a dead end, but there has to be something else here. Anything else? {Return
to Guest Options}
Russel Spectre: {Option 2} That makes two of us.
Anything else? {Return to Guest Options}
Russel Spectre: {Option 3} The…Time Music Tuner?
Well, any lead is better than nothing. Gather everything that you can about
that artifact and send it my way. {Go to Objective Screen}
Objective Screen {from Option 3} Gather
Information about the Time Music Tuner.
{Interface}: New Feature: Sound Recorder – Use
your device’s microphone to record unearthly and supernatural sounds. You can
also use this feature to listen to conversations.
{Guest} scans Time Music Tuner again. Guest
confirms and plays tuning minigame. Completing the game activates lights and
sound on the artifact. {Guest} records sound.
Spirit: This Place… Mystery and Lies… Lies
Everywhere… Secrets… Promises… Broken… Beware the Pale Fiend… True Horror… He
Lies… Lies… Lies…
{Interface}: You have received a new message from
Connie Craft.
Connie Craft: I’ve heard from some of my employees
that you’re interested in one of my artifacts? {Go to Next Guest Options}
{Guest Options}:
· {Option 1} What is a Time Music Tuner?
· {Option 2} What universe does it come from?
· {Option 3} How does the Time Music Tuner work?
· {Option 4} What are the mysteries and lies that I keep hearing?
· {Option 5} Thank you for your time.
Connie Craft: {Option 1} It’s this really weird
sound amplifier that can apparently tune in to the hidden sounds of the Earth.
It’s made from a mix of mechanical parts and living tissue and, as far as I can
tell, can only be built in its home universe. {Return to Guest Options}
Connie Craft: {Option 2} According to what I’ve
read of Dr. Bradford Rant, it comes from a reality where everything is
completely inversed. Mechanical beings make organic technology, the two are
fused together for more advanced tech, animals are rooted, plants move, the
sky is orange, rocks are blue… it’s basically the cover of a heavy metal album.
{Return to Guest Options}
Connie Craft: {Option 3} I don’t really know. I
mean, its home world is so weird, I’m surprised it even works here. I think
it’s a synthetic creature or whatnot that speaks by tuning into the air or
something. Sometimes, when I’m closing up the shop alone, I’ll hear it echo my
thoughts in the air. It’s really creepy. {Return to Guest Options}
Connie Craft: {Option 4} Huh? I mean, yeah, I know
it works on different logic and stuff, but I think it echoes what it hears. If
it’s saying something about lies, that must be coming from somewhere… else
around here. Can’t say I know anything. {Return to Guest Options}
Connie Craft: {Option 5} Good chatting with you
again. And if you want to talk about the multiverse again or pick up a
taxidermy Mongolian Death Worm, stop by and give me a message.
{Interface}: You have received a new message from
Russel Spectre.
Russel Spectre: What did you learn? Do you have
anything to share? {Go to Next Guest Options}
{Guest Options}:
· {Option 1} Here’s an audio recording.
Russel Spectre: {Option 1} Weird. I’m going to
have to get in touch with the store myself. I’ll get back in touch as soon as
I’m done. I’ll talk to you later. {Go to Quest Screen}
Up Next: The Hunter Society's Barbecue, Washboard Suites, and a Showering Pig
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