Then, very carefully, they walked up to the giant dining table and, without touching anything for fear of breaking anything or setting off traps, began examining the artifacts that decorated the middle of the table. There were trinkets from all over the world, and from all over history. Cohen found them really cool, and decided to get a closer look. Some of his favourite artifacts included a mini carousel with a red and white striped roof and black horses, a statuette of a little green frog on a yellow mushroom, a well-sharpened hatpin with a lapis lazuli and emerald peacock as decoration, a ballerina figurine with a lily pad tutu, a ceramic flower crown that looked over 10000 years old, a bouquet of dried snapdragons that looked like branches of skulls, and a bright red stuffed cardinal resting upon one of the two skulls that Cohen recognised as the skulls that had been repaired with kintsugi. There were also intricately carved candlesticks, cloche jars with flowers and plants, and a set of golden cutlery with flower petal detailing. Then they noticed it: a giant beam of light on the mantle of the fireplace. This was the source of the music, the illusion of security, and the panic that has plagued the west wing dormitory for centuries. Cohen jogged over, and watched as the beam of light that morphed into a sword that was easily three feet long. They had found the sword. They reached out their hand to grab it, then quickly pulled back. In a split second, the sword turned red hot, the guardians were alerted of a presence in their precious room, and Cohen was bolted to the floor. Then a black, white, and red fox-like being emerged from a small burst of fire. They were stunning, but dangerous. Their scythe slicing through the air and cutting open a bit of skin near his ribs was  the last thing Cohen saw before slipping into oblivion. 

***