(Scars do not appear to be cause of death –shock ... - Bad Request

She smiles as she pulls out a small cube, "In time I took odd jobs here and
about. Fetching this for a wizard, that for a sage. I stole an enchanted
hourglass that told time in blood for one magus, then assassinated him for
the very rival I stole it from."
For one who had no taste for storytelling, Scii was more than proficient. A
tilt of the head accompanied every sly word, and sharp blue eyes glinted
mischievously with her dark confession.
"I had spent three weeks in a verdant grove, searching for a strange
puzzle-box for an aged sorceror. I found it in a long-abandoned den, buried
under age-old bedding of straw and twigs. When I returned to claim my
prize, it turned out that the old man had died in his sleep. I kept the box for
payment and as a reminder to claim at least part of the reward for my work
beforehand in the future. At the time I had thought it was some odd,
meaningless trinket.
"Over time, however, I began tinkering with it. A press here, a twist there.
Some runes would seem to shift along the carved stone while others
remained in place. Soon I became entranced, toying with it at night, coated
with the dust of the day's work. Those who made clever remarks of a
warrior working out a puzzle more often than not I left bleeding in the
streets."
She smirks, and licks her lips as if suddenly thirsty for the savor of blood as
well, "Soon though, I discovered the pattern." Scii twists the box in her
hands as she speaks, pressing points here and there just so. The puzzle-box
clicked with each deft flick of her fingers, which danced across the surface
with a practiced precision. "And with each new face I unlocked, the
puzzle-box told a new chapter of a story, beginning with a journey into a
land where walls were piled high with refuse."
As the box twists in her hands, from a distance the surface of the puzzle
seems to writhe, as if hundreds of ants were crawling over the smooth
gray-green faces. With a satisfied nod, Scii-tavakis holds up the puzzle-box
for all to see, the odd runes now arranged in clear, distinct lines encircling
the surface and crawling at a readable pace.
"Thus continues the tale of the Nameless One..."
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