When Past and Present Collide

Chapter 9: Solving Riddles

"What do you mean you don't have a group?" Mumbo asked. "Here - let me see your book."

"No - Mumbo, I don't have one. No group, no book, no nothing," Grian clarified.

"Why on earth not?"

"Good question." Grian ran a hand through his hair. "I'll have to ask them," he muttered under his breath.

"What was that?"

Grian cleared his throat. "I said I wish i knew. Anyway, you should probably head back so you all can figure out your clue."

Mumbo nodded. "Yeah, probably." He started to turn to leave, but hesitated a moment. "Grian? Are you sure you're okay?"

Grian forced himself to give Mumbo a weak smile. "I'm fine. Really. Now go. Your team needs you."

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"Okay, who do we have here?" Iskall wondered to himself as he looked over the rest of the group. "Looks like we've got...Doc...I - I think that's Scar...and - is - is that -?" He took a closer look. "Cleo?! Is that you?!"

He was met with an unholy gurgling sound in response, but from the red hair, there was no mistaking her identity. Her skin, though, was far greener than he remembered. He could have sworn it was more of a blue-grey. But the woman - if you could still call her that - before him was certainly green. Of course, that only applied to the skin left on her body. And he didn't understand why, but she was muzzled with her hands tied behind her back with a short length of rope, the excess of which was currently held by Tango, though he thought he saw Joe holding a lead earlier. He shook himself from his thoughts when someone spoke up.

"So, uh, what does everyone have? I have 'North-North-West'." It was Scar, Iskall confirmed.

"I've just got '5K'," Bdubs replied.

"And I've got '12K'," Tango added, and, when Cleo let out a groan, he glanced in her book. "Oh, and Cleo has 'distance'."

"I have direction'." The voice was xB's, but Iskall couldn't see him. Given the floating book, though, he assumed he was just invisible.

"I have got - let's see here -" Iskall double-checked his book. "- 'Pythagoras'."

The group turned to Wels expectantly, but, seeing as he couldn't communicate, he passed his book to Scar, the closest Hermit to him.

"Alright, it looks like Wels has got 'point your compass'. Oh, hey! It matches mine," he observed. He glanced to the last member of the group. "What about you, Doc?"

"It sseemsss I have the entire resst of the clue." He handed it to Scar, who appeared to be running point.

"Oh, uh, yeah, it certainly looks that way. Doc, you want me to read it?"

He shrugged in indifference. "Nobody'ssstopping you."

"If you've learned blank

Then surely you'll know

The blank that you eight

All ought to go

For A put blank

With blank for B

Just do the last step

And then you'll have C

As for your blank