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Full descriptions of programs will go up on January 1.
Thoth, the Egyptian moon god of wisdom, sent our detectives to Alexandria, in search of the legendary Book of Thoth. Stories about this book were kept in the library at Alexandria, and have come down to us in modern times.
In our story, shadowy serpents were attacking the Crossroads of Knowledge--the network of golden orbs and filaments that connect one library to another across time and space. The filaments were breaking, and a few of the libraries went dark, so our team went on a mission to repair these delicate connections. The only clue to the immortal causing the problems was the serpents referred to them as a "he."
They needed the Golden Orbs kept by the muses from each of four libraries that lie roughly north, west, east, and south of Alexandria.. The muse of Alexandria's library was an Owl named Uma. He gave our detectives a Bookwyrm for traveling from library to library.
The Salmon of Knowledge, Columba's muse, was imprisoned by one of the Black Serpents, so the saint had a touch of writer's block. Fortunately, our team was able to rescue the Salmon with a quick game of Blind Magician. The Salmon of Knowledge provided the first of the Golden Orbs, and gave the team a clue about the blood moon coming on Friday.
Our team had a long list of suspects from the Egyptian pantheon -- Geb, Ra, Seth, Apep, Heru Wer and Ammit were all on that list as male deities who work with serpents or are serpents.
The second Golden Orb was from the East, where our team visited the Saraswathi Mahal Library in Thanjavur, India. This beautiful library dates to the 16th century. We visited in 1830, during the final days of the reign of King Serfoji II. He was a great scholar and patron of the library, who believed in freedom of religion and spoke many languages, including English. That served him well in our encounter -- he was able to read the detectives' IDs to learn who they were.
The third library was in the West at the Durham Community School in Durham, ME. Laura Dunbar, the librarian, turned out to have some secrets that surprised the detectives who knew her. She showed the team the white owl that is her library's muse. It's name is Hedwig. The team left with the Golden Orb of Durham, ME -- and a clue that the black serpents were talking about someone called "the traveller."
This clinched the choice for our team -- they were pretty sure the Egyptian god behind the troubles was Khonsu. He was a moon god who was a serpent at one time, a child at another, and an old man. He wanted all knowledge to himself, and his name mean "The Traveller." He was also mad at Thoth, because Thoth won a game that gave Thoth the power to create five extra days of the year.
The detectives met with the Abba who showed them some of the reliquaries he kept there. The muse turned out to be a Hornbill with a good friend, a tiny White Rhino. The Hornbill and that Abba was pleased that our heroes were going to deal with the shadowy black serpents -- they had been fighting them off all week.
The detectives returned to Alexandria, to find Oma the owl. He had the final orb -- the largest and most central one from Alexandria. They traveled into the Dreamtime to meet with Thoth, to draw up the Book of Thoth.
The black serpents tried to intervene. Our heroes talked with them about Snake's Rights -- and convinced them to petition Khonsu for vacations and other rights. (Granting Serpents vacation rights has been a them since February's adventure). They also learned that the black serpents were in awe of the Ororborus, who is an Egyptian god named Mehen who brings the Serpent Roads to every mystery.
I can't reveal all the secrets of the week -- but our heroes managed to turn things around before the blood moon took full effect. The exhausted toddler Khonsu fell fast asleep behind a wall of books the detectives gave him, with his brand new library card flying as a white flag of surrender.
Thoth and our team called up the Book of Thoth only to find it locked even to the great god of knowledge. Thoth's sister Seshet came to explain -- she was tired of Thoth and Khonsu fighting again and again. Surely they could work out their differences in a more peaceful way?
She unlocked the Book of Thoth and revealed it layer by layer. Let's just say there was one last surprise. Seshat smiled her Mona Lisa smile as the Crossroads of Knowledge came to its end.
Thank you to Rick Riordan, who made a special donation to each library we visited! May his works long be remembered! Thank you to the Broadwinged hawk who played the sun god Ra, and thank you to the clouds, who offered a very nice Serpent for our game.
Thank you to Laura Durham, who played herself as an augmented immortal sage blessing the community with her skills as a librarian. I've had the pleasure of seeing her in action with all ages visiting the library on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and it has been a pleasure to make her acquaintance!
Thank you, also, to Elisabeth Kelly, my amazing assistant this week -- and for the last three adventures! She played Sarasvati and Seshat with elegant perfection this week! This may be one of the few jobs that requires performances as a shadow serpent, various guards, a white ibis, and a baboon in the space of five days.
Thank you also to Missy Heald for yet another Moonrabbit rescue. We've had a lovely time at the Durham Community School, and Missy and her team of custodians have helped us each week!
Finally, thank you to Chris Guerette from RSU5 Community Programs, for providing a home for Dragon's Eye Adventures! I am most grateful to be one of many fine programs the Freeport and Durham communities offer to families!
Photos of the Bookwyrms the children made are on the Dragon's Eye Adventures Facebook page.
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| Photo by Elisabeth Kelly |
Ghostly shades were clustering around a boat inside the Underworld, and the line extended all the way to the entrance and out into the Mortal Realms. There were Shadow Serpents and a mysterious Night Wanderer (the Black-Veiled Person or BVP) in the dream, both walking a Path of Chaos and Shadows.
Our team was able to decipher some of the clues from the dream to identify the location of the entrance. It was a famous cave near Lake Avernus, near Cumae, Italy. The Cumaean sibyl presided over the Oracle of Apollo there, when Cumae was a Greek colony. Odysseus and Aeneas entered the Underworld from this location, two of the few mortals who undertook this dangerous journey.
Our courageous detectives wasted no time in traveling to Lake Avernus. The shades were not happy to see them, but the doors leading into the Underworld were unlocked. They faced the Floating Eyeballs ("Why is it always eyeballs?" I have no good answer, other than I like floating eyeballs ...) in the Forest of Persephone.
They moved through the line of shades toward the boat that should have ferried the deceased across the River Acheron, but no one was there. Only a pole resting against the boat, and note in a cipher using Greek letters. As our team deciphered the note, the laughter rippled around the room as they each learned that it read: Gone camping.
Charon the Ferryman of the Greek Underworld had gone camping.
Cerberus was missing as well. No one was guarding the Gates to the Palace of Hades.
The Night Wanderer appeared in the distance, watching our team, while on the other side of the Underworld a huge orb of Dream Magic came from a cave. A perfect place for the cliffhangers we so love in our mysteries.
The next day, the team split into two groups. One would meet the Dream Orb, while the other stayed away, in case the Dream Orb was a trap. The orb turned out to be Morpheus the Greek god of Dreams, coming to greet the Heroes of the Dragon's Eyes. He is a Friend of Dragons, from the mystery called "The Mask of Dreams" -- so he recognized a few of the detectives.
He warned them about more trouble brewing even deeper within the Underworld, from the realm known as Tartarus. Our detectives are very familiar with the dangers lurking in Tartarus, including many of the Titans, the Hundred Handed Ones, and other monsters. Morpheus recommended that the detectives head to Hades' Palace, to get his permission and perhaps, his help.
The team reunited and headed to the Palace of Hades. They were intercepted by the Night Wanderer (BVP), who now had a black star with blue tips. This surprised our detectives -- a changing star in an immortal's shadow is not common. The color showed that the Night Wanderer was now on a Path of Shadows and Order.
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| Hecate, Goddess of the Crossroads |
Shadow dragonflies kept our team from escaping, but a door soon opened with a guard, who escorted the detectives into the presence of Hades. Elisabeth played Hades -- a very stern god who was concerned about the mortals traveling through his Underworld. He was resting in the palace, unaware of the troubles.
Hades had a guest, a teacup troll named Agni, who had brought some lovely troll tea, including a nice swirl of slug slime. Some of the detectives knew Agni, from "The Teacup Trolls." They were the ones who taught him about "vacations" and "breaks."
Persephone was in the Mortal Realms at her Summer house, but she and Hades were conversing via Zoom. As the detectives described the troubles they were finding in the Underworld, the cause of the troubles soon became apparent.
Agni was so excited about his vacation, that he was telling everyone about vacations and breaks ... and the Serpent Locks of the Greek Underworld wanted vacations, too. Word spread, and soon, even Charon learned about vacations -- and he is well-known for trying to take a break, so he took off with Cerberus.
Our detectives were sure that Hecate must be behind the troubles, but Persephone explained that Hecate was her best friend. She was the ancient goddess of the Tripart Year, and much revered by the Olympians and Titans. Her symbols of Goat, Lion and Serpent represent the three parts of the year. She came to the Underworld to protect Persephone and escorts her to and from the Underworld as the seasons change -- and she must have returned and discover the locks abandoned and the doors and gates all open.
Sending living mortals in the Underworld to Hades and Persephone is part of her job as Protector of the Realm. As the goddess of Crossroads and Gateways, she also has an interest in locks that work, so she often acts as the Night Wanderer, checking the sacred entrances and exits.
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| Hades, God of the Underworld |
Their next step was a meeting with Hecate, the Night Wanderer in one of the smaller Groves of Persephone. Hecate apologized for her haste, explaining that she had to get to Tarturus to examine the locks there. The Shadow Serpents were slithering out from under those gates, and it was clear that some force inside Tartarus was working powerful magic, trying to undo those massive locks.
Our team did some research on the prisoners of Tartarus who work with Serpents. Achlys, goddess of Misery, and Nyx, goddess of Night, were on that list, as were some of Nyx's many children.
Hecate bestowed a gift to each of the detectives -- a Pocket Deity representing their favorite Greek god or goddess. They worked together to devise a plan to call upon each deity for a boon that would enhance their magical battle with the Shadow Serpents -- and whoever was leading this attempted outbreak.
Our detective used many of their jewels to pull up a very powerful scrying spell: A Dream from Morpheus that could reveal which prisoner in Tartarus was dreaming of vacations and world-ending chaos. The random magic went awry, and a little final bit of random magic came from Hecate, so the heroes won the toss of the die. The culprit turned out to be Eris, goddess of Strife.
Hecate explained that Eris has a good side and a negative side. The detectives knew all about the golden apple she tossed that started the Trojan War. That's the kind of mischief she loves -- if it draws in her brother Ares, she's even more excited. When her star turns from Red (Chaos) to Blue (Order), the striving she creates becomes productive -- artists work hard sewing their pouches and dolls, writers dig deep to come up with endings to their stories, and workers all over the world achieve all kinds of amazing things. |
| Artemis, Goddess of Moon & the Hunt |
There were yarnballs flying as Freezing Fire from the Shades conjured by our three Hades -- they took down each serpent by 2 points. There were the foam frisbee "arrows" flying from Apollo and Artemis, worth three points each. Half the team played the Shadow Serpents, while the other half brought in their deities. Asclepius moved through the game, healing players with his serpent magic and staff.
Elisabeth played Eris, with her Shadow Serpents. She was wonderfully cool, laughing quietly as the battle commenced. She didn't mind that the Shadow Serpents were slowly dwindling. She simply conjured a second wave of them.
A detective summoned Aries. This was a risky move, as Hecate warned them, but the detective wisely asked Aries to remove the magical boundary separating the two sides. Aries did this with great glee. Another detective called upon Athena to make a new border, pushing the Shadow Serpents back towards the gates of Tartarus.
A second boon from Artemis called her back for a second round of foam frisbee arrows. Hera was summoned for three powerful zaps -- her zaps sent a Shadow Serpent out of the game, no matter how many hitpoints they had left! A detective called upon Hecate, so she split into two of her three aspects. Hecate 2 healed, while Hecate 1 kept up the boundaries, preventing anyone from escaping. Hecate 2 also had one powerful zap like Hera's. She used it to remove the last of the Shadow Serpents from the game.
Finally, only Eris was left.
Our heroes pelted her with yarnballs, but she only laughed -- and grew larger and stronger. Some detectives called for their friends to stop, but the yarnballs kept coming. Eris grew stronger and stronger. Hecate revealed that Strife grows stronger when you fight against it.
Fortunately, one member of our team remembered the Circle of Stillness from adventures of the past. They created a Circle and went still, closing eyes and refraining from looking at Eris as she split into two parts. The two parts circled around, growing stronger when someone looked at them or giggled or moved in any way. Eventually, the Circle began to grow quietly stronger and stronger-- and Eris slowly melded into the single Eris, small and quiet, with a Blue Star of Order.
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| Athena, Goddess of Wisdom |
She asked Eris why she had done what she had done. "It was fun." said Eris. "So worth it."
Athena asked Nyx, Eris' mother, to create the punishment for her daughter. "I'm not angry," said Nyx, "Just a little disappointed." [Quote of the week.] She sent her daughter to her room in Tartarus, grounding her for the next millenia or two.
Hecate invited our heroes back to the Palace of Hades for the after-party celebration, complete with fireworks. Hera sent food from the Upperworld, so our team could have pizza and other delectables without endangering their mortal lives. The Detectives asked Hades to provide vacations and breaks to his Underworld workers, and Hades agreed to draw up a planned rotation, so respite could be had without leaving the gates open.
That night, the dragons came to them in their sleep, and flew into the heavens. Morpheus, god of Dreams, joined them for a romp through the heavens.
Thank you to the detective who conjured up the idea of offering Serpent Locks to the Cailleach's shadowserpents. The detectives have been offering these in each mystery since February -- and my writing took a turn that was truly fun! Eris and her breakout were the original plan, but having the detectives cause said breakout was just too priceless to ignore!
Thank you to Elisabeth for spot-on depictions of Hades and Eris. She and I agreed that Hades in the Greek world is not as evil as he is depicted in many modern books and movies. Her Eris was delightfully understated -- and somehow more ominous because of that!
To view all of the detectives' beautiful artwork, visit the Dragon's Eye Adventures Facebook page. The work that they each put into their Pocket Deities is remarkable!
The story of the Sun Ravens is well-known, with many books and videos that tell the story. The story of the Moonrabbits stops with the names of the twelve daughters and their parents. So this week filled in the gaps, with some imaginings of our own.
Our story began with the Three-Penny Dream from Madame Drak. In the dream, they visited a beautiful Chinese garden with a moon gate. They looked through a stone lantern with their Dragon's Eyes open, and saw the Moon under attack by fingery cloud-like beings.
Cai the Moonrabbit showed up with a chewed up issue of The Celestial Snews, a newspaper popular with the Celestial Beings of the Immortal world. Our clever team found a coded message hidden within the articles. This led them to the Moon and the palace of Chang'e, the Moon Fairy.
Magistrate was very concerned by the news they brought. He didn't believe them at first, but his books showed that they were right -- the story of the Moonrabbits was disappearing from the page as they read. If they didn't act fast, even the memory of their names would soon vanish.
Magistrate checked through his Book of Heroes for someone to undertake the saving of the Moon, but his heroes were pretty busy that day. Our detectives kindly offered their services ("I think he's talking about us," said one detective to the others), and a crack team of Celestial Heroes was born.
Our team accepted their secret mission and headed off to Madame Wu, the most ancient of the ancient Storytellers. They found her in the garden from their dreams, sitting by a pool where she was watching their story unfold. She already knew who they were, knew why they came.
Madame Wu taught the detectives about the Wuxing, the Five Agents. She also revealed the names of the Twelve Moondaughters and their relationship to the Five Agents. The most ancient stories were being forgotten, and the Cloud Wraiths were unraveling the little bits that remained. She also had some magic to help them retrieve their Starbowl, which they accidentally left behind them.
The spell to retrieve the Starbowl took the strength and magic of three Secret Keepers -- a Teacup Troll for Water and Earth elemental magic, a Shadow Demon for Fire and Metal elemental magic, and a Fairy Dragon for Wood elemental magic.
In the South, the Cloud Wraiths fought them and lost, so they freed Ssu, Wu, and Wei, the Rabbits of the Summer's Full Moon. The Red Bird of the South admired their courage.
In the West, they fought the Serpent Cloud, the leader of the Cloud Wraiths. He also lost, and Shen, Yu and Hsu were freed, the Rabbits of the Third Quarter Moon and Autumn. The White Tiger admired their Wisdom, and said hello to the two detectives who met him in April. He named the cub they gave him Peaseblossom.
In the North, they met General Tiger, the Tai Sui of Friday, July 20. He was the General who sent the Cloud Wraiths, and he was not happy about the interference the detectives were creating. He left to report to the Grand Duke. The team freed Hai, Tzu and Ch'ou, the Rabbits of the Dark and New Moon, and the Winter. The Black Warrior admired their Compassion.
The team headed off to the Eastern Sky, and found the Asure Dragon there. He turned out to be the Duke of Jupiter, who ordered his sixty Generals to chase the Moonrabbits from the Gardens of Jupiter. He was not happy that the Heroes of the Dragon's Eye were interfering with his plans, so he wrapped them up in wispy cloud filaments.
The Bailiff called the court to Order, and the case of the Duke of Jupiter vs the Dragon's Eye Detectives began. Everyone had their say, and the Yellow Emperor asked questions of Plaintiff and Defendants. The Jury was very amused and kept giggling as the story of the rabbit's mischief all around the Celestial Heavens was told.
They dug holes from Here to There everywhere, even in the Palace of the Sun.
They ate the buds off the Chrysanthemums of Longevity from the Duke of Jupiter's gardens.
They poured Magic Moon Dust into the Old Toad's Moon Pool and turned him half purple.
The list was long.
The Yellow Emperor summoned the Daughters of Di Jun and Changxi to the court, and the detectives brought forward the lovely rabbits. But something was very strange. The detectives had already noticed the robot-like actions and words of the Moondaughters -- but now it was revealed that the trapped rabbits were actually AI Bots, complete fakes that the daughters had left behind when they escaped from the traps.
So where were the naughty Moonrabbits?
Let me just say that they were revealed at last, their mischief unveiled, and appropriate actions were taken. The great Huang Di sentenced them to work with the Duke of Jupiter, rebuilding his beautiful gardens, to be followed by a round of apologies and reparations. The daughters agreed to tone down the mischief, and the Duke agreed that maybe his Generals and their Cloud Wraiths went a bit too far in their revenge.
The Detectives made a good case for the Moon's significance to the Earth. And Huang Di found them blameless in all of this mischief -- they were, in fact, true Heroes, helping to bring balance to the chaos and order of the Celestial Realms.
The judge requested their autographs, which they happily provided. The Celestial Snews went viral with the new story of the Mortal Children who saved the Moon. And the after parties were wonderful, with plenty of jewels left over for a grand showing of fireworks.
Photos of the children's drawings and their beautiful Moonrabbits are on the Dragon's Eye Adventures Facebook page! The creativity of our detectives was amazing this week.
Thank you, also, to Missy Heald and Krystal Hoehling for the rescue of one of our Moonrabbits. Its trip to the Moon missed slightly and it landed in the lights of the Maker's Room.
Now, she is returning as my Program Assistant, bringing her wisdom and insight to a new roll as Dragonmage for the last three adventures of the summer. She also brings 75 hours of volunteer work as a CIT (Counselor in Training) at Cathance River Educational Alliance in Topsham, ME.
Elisabeth is a thoughtful person who likes to express herself through singing, sketching, and design. Her skills as an artist have been amazing us for years -- see below for a few of her lovely designs.
Elisabeth will be a senior at Mt Ararat High School this fall. She is involved in leadership activities such as the National Honor Society and PALS (Peers Assisting and Listening to Students) through her school. Her extracurricular activities include ensemble theater roles and stage crew for the Mt. Ararat Stage Company. In 2022, a short story she wrote was selected for publication in the Twisted Tales writing contest.
She enjoys playing tennis, rock climbing, reading dystopian novels, and playing open-world adventure games. Elisabeth is eager to come back for another summer of adventures, and I am delighted to welcome a new Dragonmage to our team!
This summer, a special convocation of the fair was held to celebrate the merging of two stars. The fair-goers were excited to welcome Professor Flummery, a famous sorcerer and merchant of the rarest of the rare creatures.
Our detectives were not so excited. They met Professor Flummery, and his darling rabbit, Caisearbhan (Ky-sheer-vawn). He took off with their baby dragons, and a precious seahorse and magical dove. Cai wasn't so certain about that, so she whispered a secret to a certain Mr. M, who sent a letter to a certain detective whose secret identity is safe with us. So the team learned where the Professor was headed: Dunraven Fair.
After the sorcerer's apparent treachery, the team befriended his shadow lion by feeding him conjured zebra meat. The team dubbed him Cupcake (that's "Coop-caw-cuh" said the Shadow Lion.) Out of game, the detectives have declared this cannon, so the name shall remain for future encounters with Professor Flummery.
The dream from Madame Drak guided our team to the Dunraven Castle ruins. They performed some magic to go back in time to the mythical realms of the Raven King and his shadowy underworld palace. He gave them permission to enter the fair and even provided a magical amulet that would deter anyone who sensed the presence of their mortal souls.
This amulet proved very useful against the floating eyeballs that guard the woods surrounding the fair. Their job is to prevent mortals from trying to sneak into the fair. The Eyes did a very poor job on this particular night. They found a few mortals, for sure, but something made their minds stray ... what was that? A sound way over there? I must go investigate ...
The Raven King also gave our brave detectives disguises that would fool even the magical beings at the fair. When they arrived, they blended in beautifully -- I mean, horribly -- with the denizens of the fair. Visit the Dragon's Eye Facebook page for images of their visit.
Out of game, the team made tiny dolls representing their costumes. They are fabulous! We had a lovely fortune teller with golden hair, a pink and lavender fairy dragon, a chic goblin in an outfit that was to die for, a club-wielding goblin that you wouldn't want to upset, and a faceless demon with shadow magic swirling around him. See them close up on Facebook, here.
Each merchant shared a secret about how to reach Professor Flummery's famous secret booth. How can something be famous and secret at once? That's part of the magic of the Dunraven Fair -- and the Professor's special blend of magic.
Let's just say that our detectives managed to locate this famous secret place. They handled the sticky webs like pros, and made it past the giant spider guarding the way. Finally, they came face to face with their nemesis, Professor Flummery.
Let me just say that all's well that ends well, as so often happens with our cases. The dragonlings were returned to the detectives, along with the other magical creatures. The detectives had fun choosing a new creature for more trading, this time with the Professor.
Our team had some OOG challenges, but pulled together in the end. It's not easy squeezing an adventure into three days, but we managed. On Friday, four of the team members returned. They made up games for the fair and we played them in the gym.
A special thank you goes to Adam Shaughnessy, visiting Dragonmage. Learn more about him here. He did a wonderful job bringing Professor Flummery, the Shadow Lion and the Spider to life. A very special thanks to Mr. M as well, and to a certain young detective for sharing her story about Mr. M. Thank you to the detectives, for their high courage, their persistence, and their sewing skills, which were put to good use this week!
Let me assure all that "no zebras were harmed in this adventure."
Adam moved on to teach in
CT elementary schools. During summers, he directed Red Dragon Adventures
to showcase the live roleplaying mysteries he was writing. He eventually moved
into grants writing for non-profits, as he turned his hand to writing children's books.
One of his mysteries grew into a delightful series called The Unbelievable FIB. I
recommend this series to our readers -- and can say that I was there
when Mr. Fox began his enigmatic journey. I still have a copy of the mysteries Adam wrote in 1997, and am very proud to have played a role in his creative journey.
The illustration above shows
how the FIB (Fantasy Investigation Bureau) first began, as a spoof of
the TV series The X Files. Adam drew this in 1997 for our program, as a self-portrait for the Kids' First summer program. We offered ten adventures that summer!
Adam's website is here for more information!
As a fellow Dragonmage, Adam will be teaming up with me to play various characters in our mystery. His daughter May will be joining our small group of detectives to enter the Dunraven Fair.
My portrait from the 1997 summer of adventures is posted here, too, for your entertainment. This was before Dragon's Eye became Dragon's Eye, which happened around 1998 or 1999. Dragons were still front and center in my concept of adventure play, and this self-portrait shows that the Asian dragons of water and wind have always been foremost in my mind.
Our crafts this week include tiny dolls that represent the disguises our team will don as they enter the fair. They may go as goblins, fairies, Tomtes, elves, dwarves, wizards, witches or other magical beings. The trade fair is known for its danger to humans, so we'll be dodging freezing yarnballs and mortal traps as we make our way to the trading grounds.
Our day begins at 9 AM, with pick up at 4:00 PM. After hours run from 4 to 5:15 PM on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of this week. There are no after hours on Fridays.
This is a short week, with a break on Thursday for the July 4 holiday. The main portion of the mystery, including the trading, will finish by Wednesday at 4. Everyone will end the week with one artifact they made and two that they traded. Those who come on Friday will have the opportunity to trade or make one more artifact!
Please visit the "First Day Reminders" tab to review what's needed for each week! The address of the school is listed there, as well as things the children will need each day.
Dun Raven Fair (Session II) is a four-day adventure taking place from July 1-3 and 5. The detectives will visit a goblin fair in Dun Raven, Wales, to trade for magical artifacts with the merchants at the fair. Here is a link for more information about the story.
Here is the Raven King, who rules over the fair from the ghostly ruin of an old castle. He is a shapeshifting master of all magics and ruler of the twilight realms. Past detectives have met with the Raven King, who is fond of a magical cup of tea.
Our detectives will meet teacup trolls, Tomtes, fairies, goblins, fire-juggling skeletons and all kinds of other magical beings at the fair. We will be making and trading artifacts with the merchants at the fair, so this will be a very special week.
Making twelve main characters takes a bit of work, so I have been making one or two a day. The detectives will make their own Moonrabbit during the week -- so we should have a wonderful shot of all of those chaotic rabbits by the end of our week -- assuming we can get them to hold still for the photo!
The Dragon's Eye Adventures Facebook page will have a few more shots of the Raven King and the Moonrabbits. Visit that here.
Trolls as tiny as teacups, desperately using shadowpuppets to make themselves look big and fierce.
A parlay soon commenced, and the team discovered the trolls were in need of their help. The old ettin, oldest of the old, was in need of a special tea to keep her from falling into an enchanted sleep. Losing the Oldest of the Old would slowly unravel all of the ancient troll magics keeping the land and all of nature safe, so saving Crona became the new quest of the week.
The detectives set out to find the ingredients for this special brew of tea, led by the visions of Mica the Teacup Troll.
We had a week of hilarious encounters with infamous tea drinkers, plagued by little clouds that seemed to follow the team wherever they went. Flaming arrows surrounded our detectives so many times, they jumped into the round pit on the playground any time we went outside.
The Troll Hunters weren't the only ones using clouds and flaming arrows, though. Susanno-o, the kami of storms, challenged the detectives as they tried to meet his sister, Amaterasu the sun goddess. Dian Mu, the Mother of Lightning challenged them at the garden of Baihu the White Tiger from China. Zephirino the Gentle Wind of the West brought them an unexpected boon from his Grecian home.
Our team bravely tried a variety of (decaffeinated) teas -- a lovely lemon-infused green tea with Bodhidarma Daruma in Japan, a spiced ginger green tea with Baihu, a warm cuppa Chai with the Rat Queen and her Bees.
All of this came together at the peak of the highest mountain in Norway. Of course, one last cloud came to bother them first, followed by three smaller and smaller clouds. Our brotherly Troll Hunters brought their mom -- and she wasn't happy that the detectives had defeated her sons. The team had to meet her challenge as well, before they could convince her to reconsider her troll-hunting traditions.
It turns out that cute trumps everything when it comes to hunting trolls. Our team showed Gria that trolls are sentient beings with warm hearts and sweet dispositions. Mica and Flint invited her to tea, and the melting of hearts commenced for three brothers and their mom.
In game (IG), the tiny trolls were so grateful for the detectives' help saving Crona that they followed them home, teacup and all. They may return for future adventures, providing a spot of troll magic, tea and travel by whirlpool. That spoon they collected creates the perfect whorl for travel.
I am enjoying the needlefelting. It works well with the felt sewing we already do at Dragon's Eye. I am not sure how kid-friendly the art is, due to the extra-sharp, barbed needles that break.
My team and I will work on slow, careful work -- hopefully producing both patience jewels and successful trolls! I will have backup patterns, though.Some of the other characters for the story are also under development this week. The Rat Queen from the sewers of London (from the case called "The Market at Wits' End") will be joining us. She heard there was tea in this adventure and just insisted on joining us.
Two of the Queen's Guards will be joining her entourage. I have a bearskin hat that was given to me by a dear friend, many years ago, so it was useful in gaining the slightly shaggy yet orderly look of the hats. The first layer of the hats were felted, and then the fur was applied, taking my new-found skills to the next level. This is promising for future Dragon's Eye fur-babies.
This April, this note will become a full-blown adventure for detectives in grades 3 through 8. We will be running the mystery at Durham Community School, in the Art and Makers rooms. The program runs from Monday through Friday, April 15-19, from 9 AM to 4 PM. There is still room to enroll in the program!
This week, I have been designing the trolls for our adventure. My goal was to create trolls that look like stones that awoke and walked out of the forest, down the mountain, or up from the sea. We will be trying our hand at needle felting -- a craft I've been intending to explore for some time. I'm pleased with the design so far. She fits perfectly into the palm of the hand -- or a teacup. She's a bit mossy from her time of sleep. And she has runic designs carved into the "stone." Add some tusks and a tail, a few hagstones, and she'll be ready to meet our detectives!
Over the four days of our adventure, the detectives examined multiple versions of the stories about the Cailleach Bheura (Ky-lee-ach Vee-reh), the Winter Queen, and her eight sisters, who are also Cailleachs. In some stories, the Cailleach is a wise old woman who helps her community. In others, she and her sisters are fierce storm goddesses, who live half the year as raging winter queens and the other half as white serpents who bring spring flowers and summer and fall harvests.
As is the case with so many of the myths I love, this is another story about the constellations Orion and Scorpio. The year is divided into two halves--winter and summer -- with each constellation ruling the sky in their respective season.
If you rise at 4 AM in Feb, you will see Scorpio in the southern skies of Maine, with the red star Antares sparkling between the trees on the horizon. Scorpio will rise earlier and earlier, ruling the summer skies the way Orion rules the fall and winter.
Our Ground Hog's Day was originally a day dedicated to the White Serpent -- who gradually became the Summer Queen known as St. Bride (Bree-deh) in Scotland, and St. Bridget in Ireland. Her response to the sun determined and early or late spring, in the same way as the Ground Hog.
Later versions of this story introduce Angus Og as the Summer King searching for the imprisoned Bride. In other versions, there is a Winter and Summer King who fight over Bride, with the Summer Queen winning her hand at Beltane. Our story focused on the earlier story of the two queens.
She led them to the mountain top, where they saw the swirling storm of the eight Cailleachs and the nine Storm Wolves, circling the mountain again and again and again. A powerful spell kept them guarding the Cailleach's winter abode, where she kept her summer prisoner.
An white-tailed sea eagle named Albi (played by James) was blown back to the detectives by the storm wolves. Our team healed the eagle and soon gained its trust, learning about a secret tunnel accessed by the Corryvreckan Whirlpool off to the southwest.
This is not the first time our detectives have traveled via whirlpool! It will not be the last, either, with trolls on the agenda for April vacation.
One of the more hilarious encounters of the week was with a Serpent lock inside the tunnels, guarding a door. This off-the-page moment involved a question by the detectives that took the serpent by surprise: Had the serpent ever had a break.
Breaks were a point of discussion for our group this week. James had his first job as a Program Assistant, and getting breaks is important for staff but puzzling to those who just want to hang out with one another during our breaks.
This serpent was already puzzled by the detectives. When puzzled or confused, the serpent grew another head, so it could consider the situation with more care. Before we knew it, the serpent lock had a thousand heads puzzling over this idea of a break, and something called a vacation.
Needless to say, the detectives had discovered a very effective bargaining chip. Let them through, and they would take up the cause of breaks with the Cailleach, promising the serpent something it had never had (along with a thank you card, and a trophy for guarding the door so effectively for thousands of years).
Their paper airplanes soured to great heights (and didn't come down). The dice and crackers were stacked to great heights, and the wands balanced magically on one end.
This wasn't on the page (i.e. anywhere in the adventure) -- just our fun during free time! We had a great week, full of sewing, games and story -- and laughter. I'm always delighted by how much we laugh at the funny things that happen along the way.
It felt amazing to be back, telling stories to detectives who dive right into the mystery with the same enthusiasm James and I have. It's really special, this funny little program. I traveled all the way to New Orleans for a national conference on Out of School Time, and didn't find another like it.
There are a few, but ours is extra special. And I thank each and every detective, each family, each staff member for joining me once again in this delightful conjuration of story and fun. James was wonderful as a Dragonmage. His years of experience allowed him to enter into the magic-making side of things seemlessly, and his relationships with our detectives made the week extra special.
Thank you to Chris Guerette from RSU5 Community Programs! Thank you to the Durham Community School for the creative spaces -- we were very much at home in the art and STEM rooms. Visit the Dragon's Eye Adventures Facebook page for images of the Ice Crowns and balancing tricks!
James is fifteen years old. He was born right here in Maine. All his life, he has taken care of his brothers and his friends, keeping an eye on them, playing with them and just having a good time with them. James has been good with kids his whole life, and is very patient with them.
He also knows a lot about Dragon's Eye. He first went to Dragon's Eye when he was in first grade, and has been going ever since.
Here are some of my observations about James, which support everything he has written about himself.
He has been a valuable team member, with a wonderful sense of humor and an admirable ability to rally other children in creative yet free-wheeling ways. His friendships last -- he has built them in and out of the program, and Dragon's Eye has benefited from his community building.
James has built many art skills during his time with the program. He was one of my chaos sewers when he first tested his ability with needle and thread. The stitches were wonky, yet somehow, he managed to create a pouch that was still open, so it could hold things. We learned to admire those beautiful stitches because they worked!
James has asked if he could draw during breaks in the program, the way Oliver did. I look forward to sharing his designs! His artwork over the years has always had a wonderful sense of color and humor, as these photos show.
James is also a skilled D&D player. He has been organizing impromptu tabletop games with our detectives at the lunch break for years.
James will no doubt bring his sense of humor to the roleplaying we leaders do -- I am looking forward to his improv. I think he'll instinctively have both a sense of timing, suspense and humor that keeps our adventurers on their toes. I am also grateful to have his skills with yarnballs on my side -- the team will have to work to take him out of the games!
"The Winter Queen" calls our detectives to the Highlands of Scotland for a seasonal adventure exploring the age-old battle between Winter and Summer. There is still room in this mystery for grades 3 through 8. The program runs on Tuesday, Feb. 20 through Friday, Feb. 23, from 9 AM to 4 PM at Durham Community School.
One of the pleasures of running adventure programs is the list of tasks I must accomplish before the story begins. Topping the list this week has been:
Here is a look at one of those tasks.
Next on the list, some armor worthy of a Battle Boar.
