Hoists and cranes were fixed to the walls up here, along with a wide array of mage-lights, all tuned to a cool white daylight like a winter day. The walls, despite the cracks and chips missing, were painted in a dull, uniform gray. Over the railings, Kordas saw partitions, cubicles, and the shells of outdated magical apparatuses. He ensured he had a firm grip on the railing and said, “I’m going to examine this area with mage-sight, and it might be a very stupid thing to do. So Star, be ready to catch me if I start to waver. I don’t feel like falling again today.” He squinted his eyes shut hard, which honestly did nothing useful, but it made him feel like he was a real mage with big, big powers. He hoped he looked good doing it.

Slowly, he opened his eyes. The corners of the space definitely had several varieties of shielding, from scrying to sound and—explosion? That made sense. His vision slid around, careful not to let himself get blinded. Some of the lift equipment. Ho, hey, nice, a scaffold elevator. A—what is that? It’s very interesting, the way it feels like it’s drawing me toward it, because it’s so engaging. There’s a curious way it curls inside itself, that I have got to get a closer look at—

“Whoa!” Kordas cried out, throwing himself back. “Whoa! Ho . . . found it. Curiosity trap.”

He blinked his eyes rapidly, trying to shake off a physical effect of the Trap. It left dazzling patterns in the eyes for a while. What else had he seen before the Trap hit him? Some small items, some books . . . people. There are people in there. And they’re all near the Trap. And all—around—us—are—He looked around within his memories—an advantage of his memory-enhancement—and played back in his mind what hadn’t yet registered consciously from what he’d seen by mage-sight. He’d seen—

Vrondi. Little twinkly pairs of eyes of blue, with matching auras. So many kinds of blue, from a light sky blue to twilight. Some had stripes, some had pulsing patterns. He’d had no idea there were so many kinds of them. He’d never have guessed. And gathered around this place, tens of thousands of vrondi curiously “smiled” at the three of them as they entered the room, apparently surprised to sense new people. Until they—there it was. The vrondi had all been looking directly at the Trap when the trio had entered.

After a couple of minutes, he felt ready to move on, and led the others onto the elevator. “When we get further down, I’ll shut off the Curiosity Trap. I think I know how.”