Investigation #3 - Veggie Trail

When a specific book is placed in the right bookcase of Valerian’s library, a secret tunnel to the unknown appears.

Investigative Summary

Valerian Preparatory Institute may be perceived as the pinnacle of academic prestige, but deep within it’s pearly gates lies an web of secrecy unknown to many of it’s naive occupants.

After Zayshawn and his group fail to procure a clubroom for the Castles and Cryptids club, an unexpected stroke of luck leads them down an educational passage on fruits and veggies.

Item of Interest

3.1 Access Denied

Zayshawn convinced Miranda and Zaire to join the Castles and Cryptids Club, meaning he had enough members to officially be added to the Valerian Club Registry and get an exclusive clubroom.

Valerian Disciplinary Committee Head Avram Scotch offered Zayshawn’s group a tour around Valerian to showcase the many clubroom options they could inquire about before going to the registration office. All of the rooms were extravagantly furnished with accommodations for full customization.

While things was looking good for Zayshawn, everything took a turn for the worse once he reached the approval office. Today’s instructor managing approvals was Professor Garnaquill, a school-wide nuisance known only for making the student’s lives harder.

With no explanation given, Zayshawn’s C&C club was denied for approval, removing all possibilities to reapply until the following school year. Even with Avram confirming that all approval criteria was met, the denial was stamped and forwarded through school system.

3.2 Study Session

Although Zayshawn was extremely depressed about his club being denied, that didn’t get rid of the months of schoolwork he missed while hospitalized during Investigation 1 – Gorenament. He would need to study nonstop in order to catch up to his advancing sophmore classmates.

Seeing how bad Zayshawn was struggling, Miranda suggested a group study session to help Zayshawn get back on track. Anya used their van to pick up the Miranda and Zaire (Zaire being forced to supervise Zayshawn on their parent’s behalf) and they all met in the Valerian East-Wing Library.

3.3 Pop Quiz

Due to Zaire’s intense “teaching methods”, the group attracted the attention of Professor Tomoe for being too loud in the Library. Professor Tomoe is known for punishing rule-breaking students with pop-quizzes, and as such gave Zayshawn’s group a open-book quiz on fruits and vegetables.

The group would not be allowed to leave the library until they each completed the pop quiz with a Perfect 100 Score. If they failed, they would need to retake the quiz with an entirely new set of questions.

3.4 Shelf Improvement

After a long, agonizing session of studying produce, the group finally succeeded on passing Professor Tomoe’s pop quiz punishment. All the group had to do was return the book to its respective shelf and they could finally leave the library.

The study group eventually found the dedicated bookshelf for the fruits/vegetable book. Everyone sighed in relief as Miranda went to put the book on the shelf, but was surprised when the entire bookshelf shifted once the book was placed (Miranda falling face-first due to being off balance).

Together they all stared at the mysterious passage to the unknown that had opened before them, unsure if they should proceed forward. With the group being tired from all the studying, they all agreed to return on the weekend after resting and grabbing the proper gear.

Once Miranda removed the book from the shelf, the bookcase door automatically closed and locked itself. The group checked the book out of the library in order to maintain their only known ticket inside.

3.5 Spinal Staircase

Fully rested, the group was now ready to venture into the unknown. With his homemade wizarding attire, a pack full of snacks, and freshly charged flashlights, Zayshawn prepares to lead everyone behind the bookshelf.

As the shelf reopens using the fruit/vegetable book key, a gentle breeze blows from the inside as the group approaches a deep, spiraling staircase that vanishes downwards towards an unseen bottom floor. The group collects themselves and plunges down into the web-filled tunnel.

3.6 Test Your Bite

At the bottom of the staircase resided a singular locked door. Though it seemed flimsy, the door would not budge no matter how much it was kicked in by the group. There was also no sign of a key or key hole, only a basketball-sized hole in the wall that protruded outward like at tube. The inside felt cavernous, with no interior surfuce that could be felt once a hand was put inside (even against the wall that was right in front of them).

The only clue to opening the door was the various scrambled numbers and letters around the room which acted as a puzzle. With the assistance of people online, the teams was able to able to unlock the door by doing the following

Combine the Sudoku Puzzles to acquire the missing numbers “6554“
Convert the Numbers “6554” into the word “Feed” by using their placements in the alphabet
Use the word “Feed” as a keyword for the Vigenère Cipher above to get “Big, Blood-Dyed City“
Referenced the Fruits and Vegetable book to associate New York City (Known as “The Big Apple”) with Red Apples.
Feed a Red Apple into the Feeding Hole.

3.7 Edible Arrangements

The group could not believe their eyes when the door opened. Not only was it a lavish 2-level room, but it was filled with Castles and Cryptids accessories. A custom 4K Touchscreen Tabletop, hundreds of handmade cyptid minis, and even the entire collection of adventurer manuals (including the banned editions). Zayshawn almost fainted.

Miranda voiced what everyone was thinking; “So this is our new clubroom, right? It’s gotta be!”. Although it seemed like the perfect opportunity for Zayshawn to defy Valerian and create a secret club, stealing someone else’s space just wouldn’t be as satisfying to him as having an actual school-recognized space.

And so, after heavy thinking, Zayshawn decided he would not be claiming the space for the C&C Club. Only after he has been granted permission from the owners will he take over.

3.8 The Archive

Anya wasn’t drawn to the obvious. While others basked in the mundane, Anya was captivated by a secluded door, its faint mechanical humming a siren song.

Within, a chilling sight unfurled: towering glass cylinders, some shattered, others holding enigmatic forms. These weren’t the fantastical beasts of the tabletop games, but something disturbingly close. Poppy Valley, seemingly ordinary, now riddled with hidden potential for discovery. Driven by this relentless curiosity, Anya founded the “Capture, Contain, Guard” Cryptid Research Group (CCG) as a sole soldier fighting a war against the unknown, but yet they still longed for allies.

In Zayshawn, Anya saw that potential. Zayshawn’s passion for the C&C game could fuel their quest by providing him with exclusive knowledge to transform his fictional campaigns into chilling echoes of reality. Similarly, Anya is defined by their insatiable curiosity; gazing far beyond the surface and being drawn to the shadows where impossible creatures may reside. An unwavering determination glimmering from their past that fuels their relentless pursuit of documenting the unexplained. A potential collaboration was forming.

3.9 ACCESS GRANTED

With a confused expression, Zaire called everyone to the top of the staircase near the apple tree. She pointed into the leaves where you would expect to see another apple, but instead there was a strange note attached to the tree. The paper was not simply tossed into the tree, its corner was protruding directly from a branch as if it was grown organically. The paper read “Enjoy the clubroom, Zayshawn. – MKB“

This was direct confirmation; The room was being given to Zayshawn as a club space. As to who it belonged to or why they’ve helped out, that would remain a mystery for another day.