Dungeons & Deadlines — Episode 7: Visitors from the High Tower

From the gleaming towers of Corporate, a party from the Advanced Technology & Standards office descends with solemn vows… and a Horn of Predictive Enlightenment.

Panel 1 — Arrival
Characters: Lorion Silvertongue (Corporate Ops Elven Strategy Bard), Innovar Quillcog (Gnome Corporate Engineer), Dame Helena Wright (HR Human Compliance Paladin).
Lorion: "We're here to help. We bring digitally transformed solutions to align with the AI imperatives of the executive team!"
Del Soren (sharpening a wrench): "Great. We just love leadership imperatives. They always make our lives better."

Panel 2 — The Horn of Predictive Enlightenment
A war-horn has been mounted high between two areas.
Innovar: "Now, whenever flow halts, the horn shall sound, uniting all in response!"
Horn: "BAAAAAAHHH"
Del + New Hire + Garreth flinch: one spills coffee, one screams, one jams in earplugs.
Caption: "It did not unite. It enraged."

Panel 3 — Nightfall Sabotage
The horn is now absurdly wrapped in foam, tape, shrink wrap, a pillow, and what might be a dead mouse.
Caption: "The resistance was swift and… resourceful."
Corwin to Del: "Still hums a little. Add another layer of rags."

Panel 4 — Conveyor Chaos
The conveyor grinds to a halt. The Corporate party panics.
Lorion: "The prophecy was right! The bottleneck begins here!"
Innovar scanning schematics: "It's a spectral misalignment in the fourth axis!"
Caption: "Or perhaps… something more devious."

Panel 5 — Reveal of the Crayon Trick
Del Soren twirls a blue crayon like a dagger and chucks it expertly. POOF — Conveyor stops.
Del (grinning to New Hire): "Blue today. Yesterday was red. We're training the photo-eye to see the full spectrum."
Caption: "Their 'problem'… was actually a feature."

Panel 6 — Retreat
Corporate team exits, frazzled, chased by flying crayon stubs.
Helena (covered in packing tape): "We must regroup. We need even more corporate standards. Possibly from another continent."
Del (to New Hire and Garreth): "They'll be back. But so will we."
Caption: "The Dungeon holds."