In the end, telling the truth had seemed the easiest recourse. Perhaps it was just the open attitude of the convention, a meeting of minds all interested in dreaming the impossible, but Magnus decided to sit the costumed accountant down in his hotel room and explain the broad strokes of the whole affair. She left out Nikola's name, he'd been adding enough derisive jabs at poor Benjamin without another reminder of that little fiasco.
"You're monsters-are-real girl!" Benjamin exclaimed once Magnus had finished her initial summary.
"Pardon?"
"From the video, it was all over youtube. Dr. Magnum-"
"Magnus" Tesla offered the correction before she had the chance.
"Dr. Magnus. I thought it was a hoax, I mean it had to be, but you were serious!" He stopped to reattach his fake moustache, which seemed to come off every time he spoke. "The news said you died."
"Let's... not go spreading around any evidence to the contrary, then." Magnus said quickly. "I would like to get this artifact back in safe storage without letting anyone know I'm here."
"I wasn't lying to that-" he fished for the word "-abnormal that attacked us. I really don't have it anymore. And I don't think I can get it back for you."
"Why not?"
"I didn't buy it for myself. We wanted something really cool as the best in show prize for the masquerade this year, it's always a steampunk art piece you see and this... bomb thing, well I didn't know it was real. The listing just said it was a one of a kind sculpture, so I bought it."
"Couldn't you ask for it back?"
Benjamin shook his head. "It was on the con's budget, and the contest is tonight. A week ago I could have found a replacement maybe... But now? Not without explaining to most of the staff who you are and why you're here, it'd be a major breach in con protocol."
Something they could save as a last resort, then. "Where is the artifact now?"
"Centre stage, it's part of the display there until the end of the convention."
"Great, so now we need to steal the bomb out from under the noses of a hundred sweaty fanboys instead of just one." Tesla chimed in, helpful as always. If he paced for much longer he'd wear a hole in the carpet.
"We don't need to steal anything." Magnus kept her voice level and calm, this situation was hardly out of hand just yet. "The contest can go on as planned, and we'll speak with the winner purchasing their prize after the fact. In the meantime, we need to track down our purple-eyed friend and make sure there's no one else like her about."
"Another combat-trained abnormal antiques dealer who speaks Praxian and browses ebay in her spare time? Well that'd just be our luck."
A thought occurred to Magnus while her friend was complaining, a ridiculous fancy that on any other day she would have let pass without action. But she'd been on a plane with Nikola Tesla for three hours this morning, and he was a very bad influence. His competitive playfulness was contagious, and this was a coup she couldn't pass up.
"Well, there would be one easier way to get our hands on the artifact..." She let the thought hang in the air, until Tesla realized what she meant by it.
"Oh no. Don't even think about thinking about that, Helen."
"If you're thinking about entering," said Benjamin, "I really should warn you that the competition is fierce."
"Oh, I'd expect" for once it was Magnus grinning playfully, and her favourite vampire looking annoyed, "but given this year's theme... well, my friend here does an excellent Nikola Tesla impression."
