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[Steel Samurai]

Steel leaned against the wall of the tavern in a small port near Resden. He sighed deeply as he thought about what would be the most surreptitious way to take over the small boat bobbing at anchor in front of him . . .

One Month Earlier, Valhalla
The ground was cold, and hard, but the man sitting in the early rays of the sun, his back against the tower wall, didn't seem to care, as he focused all of his mental ability into perceiving the life forces of those around him, what they were feeling, and how their aura changed to reflect this. His concentration was suddenly broken by the sound of the rusty iron gate creaking open, and a resounding thud as a certain half demon was thrown upon his face.
"You too huh?" Steel said.

Edited by Steel Samurai, 07 April 2007 - 03:39 AM.

[JRPomazon]

Jordan stumbled out of the tavern, appearing to have drunk too much ale for one sitting. His center of gravity was taken for a spin and he could barely stand. He placed his hand on the wall of the tavern and used it to prop himself up while he moved toward Steel. After a few steps, he sat down on the ground and looked at the ship that was about to be "reposessed".

He looked at Steel for a second and blurted out "Hey you. After you steals that boat, mind if you take me along? I got business to take care of on the road. . . sea. . . big place." It was apparent that Jordan was drunk, but still sane enough to ask for a ride.

Edited by JRPomazon, 05 April 2007 - 09:51 PM.

[Steel Samurai]

OOC: JR, we're gonna do a bit of life in prison stuff before we actually get to the traveling part. You could join in that if you wished, but it might be awhile before we get back to the present.

Steel snapped out of his reverie. He studied the stranger's aura. There did not seem to be much malice or hate in this one, and he seemed to be able to fight well enough.
"You'll need to do something for me first . . ."

[Mystic Kitsune]

"Yeah...they caught me snooping and thieving." He said as he got up to dust himself off.

"How did a warrior such as yourself come to be captured by these guys anyway? They didn't seem so tough...the only reason I'm in here is to take a look around...and maybe look for something good to eat." He said as he started looking around the place seeing easy ways to escape.

But instead he stood around, appearing to be in deep thought. He was just glad to see the warrior again.

[Steel Samurai]

"I heard the food was decent. Our stocks were beginning to run low, so instead of starving we decided to lose on purpose and get jail food. 'Sides . . . there's a lot of interesting people who end up in here." Steel said, motioning to the lot around him. He got up rather slowly, from laziness rather than any great fatigue. "Come on. I'll show you where the food's kept."

[Mystic Kitsune]

He silently followed the warrior, still amazed at the fact that even without his eyes, his senses were superb. He took the time to observe the other people. and see what exactly was "interesting" about some of the people there.

He noticed the dead plants around the prison, it was to be expected, but there were some things that caught his eye, there were some that were alive and well in a field of dead plants, or anything dead, there seemed to be some sort of live flower.

In fact, when he walked by a wilted flower, it would seem to be given some life, even if only a little.

He smiled to himself and continued following the blind warrior.

[Steel Samurai]

"Your aura has changed since last we met." Steel remarked as they strolled across the sandy area which constituted the prison's main courtyard. "It's the same yet . . . fundamentally different somehow. Now what could be the cause of that? But, Y'know, whatever. Oh, by the way, there's another here we haven't seen in awhile." Steel motioned to a figure leaning against the doorway as they passed through it.
"Well, here's the galley . . . err, kitchen."

[Mystic Kitsune]

"Heh, I went through some changes..." he said, remembering how close he was to death that he had no choice but to be the way he is now...

He nodded as the warrior motioned to the figure on the wall.

"It was rough, and had a large effect on my body, as you can see" he said while bringing the attention to the fact his former fox ears and tail were no longer visible.

"As for my sword, the guards have it. But I can still use it."

They arrived at the kitchen, quite large, compared to other places he had been, at least.

"What food do you fancy?" He asked.

[JRPomazon]

OoC: Ok Steel, I understand. I'll just sit back and watch for now.

[Ransom]

Perseus leaned against the doorway, cloaked, for disguise. He couldnt let just anyone in here see him for he who he really was. Or he would become overly conspicuous and that could only cause trouble. Prisoners were walking past in droves, barely noticing him, oblicious to the fact that he was sizing up all of them, remembering their faces, whether they were heavyset or skinny, tall or short, blonde or brown haired, even the battle scars they carried. He knew this information could prove invaluable to him in the weeks ahead in his imprisonment, and if trouble found him, no matter what, he would be ready.

Perseus watched silently as the two familiar figures walked past heading for the kitchen.
He nodded at their gestures, showing he recognised them.

He waited a few minutes then paced inconspicuously into the kitchen, approaching Kitsune and Steel.

"What food do you fancy?" Said the half-demon.

Perseus stepped inbetween them.

"Chicken." he said quietly.

[Steel Samurai]

"The teriyaki is excellent, but I don't recommend the parmigiana. Not enough cheese." Steel returned without missing a beat. "And the waitresses really are quite something. I think I'll go for an antelope haunch myself." He sauntered over to the kitchen door, slipped his arm around one of the pretty Nordic waitresses and whispered something in her ear. She turned bright red, but hurried into the kitchen to fulfill his request.
"I took the liberty of ordering you an ox leg Kitsune. I hope you don't mind. Really, this place is like a nice hotel if you don't try to escape."

[Mystic Kitsune]

"As long as it's not a plant, I'm fine." He said. He wasn't really interested in the waitresses, but rather, interested on how they actually have service, despite the fact they're...supposedly held captive.

No wonder people try to end up in jail, with service like so...

He pondered whether or not there was a dark side to the place, a torture chamber, perhaps.

[Steel Samurai]

Steel grabbed a few flagons of mead from the beverages table and motioned to a table nearby. "I have heard that if you get caught breaking out there are successively worse levels under this one." He said as he seated himself on the sturdy wooden backless chair. "But so far there's not really been a reason."

[Mystic Kitsune]

"I wouldn't really see a reason...but the atmosphere still is pretty dull, boring...not too mention the lack of nature around here. One who would yearn for adventure, one who would..." His voice trailed off as he saw the others seemed to be distracted with other things.

He took a seat and sat at an angle, leaning forward on the table resting his head on both his hands in deep concentration.

[Ransom]

Perseus sat down next steel, setting down his platter of beans.

"I wouldn't really see a reason..." Kitsune began, "but the atmosphere still is pretty dull, boring...not too mention the lack of nature around here. One who would yearn for adventure, one who would..."
He eventually trailed off, distracted.

"Well personally," Perseus said, "I've been thinking about escaping ever since i got in here. My..." he looked around, checking if anyone was listening in. "My... back, is becoming extremely cramped, especially with this damned cloak on. I'll be lucky if i get off the ground by the time i actually escape."

Perseus looked up from his food and noticed Kitsune's exile of reality.

[Mystic Kitsune]

These two. By the looks of it, they haven't changed one bit.

He laughed a bit to himself, seeing that he seems to be the only one who has changed drastically, but the others seem to have taken it for granted, which he was not expecting.

[Wanchimaera]

Wanchimaera, who had for a long while, not been seen or heard, walked into the dining area. Having overheard the conversation between Steel, Perseus, and Kitsune, he decided to join the group in hope of getting out of the prison. He leaned over to Perseus and quietly said, "So I hear that you're ready to break out of here, too? I used to live nearby, so I'm familiar with the terrain and the climate here. I've been weakened to the point where I cannot be of any use to you physically, but if you get me out of here, I'll show you how to get back to Van'Duras."

[Steel Samurai]

Steel chuckled slightly as he sipped the golden mead in his flagon. "Personally I am content to wait the war out, at leastt for another month or two. The serenity, such as it is, and peace are quite soothing after leading the soldiers of the Fortress." He leaned back. "If you want to risk the food and girls for a month out of here then go ahead. The security, however, as I'm sure you've noticed, is not quite as lax as it appears." The pretty waitress appeared with a trolley heaped with food, and set a platter down in front of each of them. Steel began carving his Antelope haunch with a razor sharp knife and a pewter fork. The waitress paused for a moment behind his chair, and then whispered in his ear. "Of course, how could I forget." He winked at the group seated around the table, got up and was led away by the waitress to the back of the kitchen. Five minutes later he returned, copious amounts of lipstick on his face. Steel sat down, wiped off the waxy red substance with his napkin, and began eating again.

[Mystic Kitsune]

He was picking at his food. Almost playing with it, he wasn't not hungry, he was still in thought though. He seemed to be human again, before he was reckless and would have probably devoured the meat and start trouble, even an uproar, over a really silly reason.

He glanced at Steel to see him wiping the red wax off his face, and just closed his eyes with a smile. It was one of those moments where he was in deep thought, but what he was thinking about was unknown. He seemed to be more observant of the people around him rather than being lost in thought.

"What do you plan on doing after your meal?" He finally asked, after a long period of time.

[Steel Samurai]

"Ah. Now that, my friend, depends upon you. Normally I'd flirt with the waitresses awhile, or perhaps bask in the sun. But that, I think, would not interest you. I still haven't showed you the rest of Valhalla. Let me do that before you decide."
Steel put the last piece of his antelope in his mouth, chewed slowly, and then washed it down with the rest of his mead. He pushed back his chair and waited for Kitsune to finish.

[Mystic Kitsune]

"I've been done for a long time." He said getting up.

He motioned Steel to lead the way.

[SL the Pyro]

Z hid in the doorway, having snuck into Valhalla to spy on his would-be foes. He just had to smile. "They know they're in this time of war, and yet they act like they don't even care..." he thought. He then noticed that Shadow Link was rather grumpy, then started thrashing on the bars of his cell; he was trapped for setting things on fire. "Well, I guess it could be worse..."

His sinister smile returned. "Enjoy your freedom while you can, my friends... because when I rule, I'll make sure that you are the first people to be wiped from existence..."

[Steel Samurai]

Steel led Kitsune and the others following down through the back door of the kitchen. They went down a long hallway lit by torches. The architecture had changed, suddenly, yet subtly at the same time. It seemed older, hearkening to an earlier time when Valhalla was harsher than it was now. Steel remarked upon this, but then stated "In point of fact this is more recent than the courtyard you were so unceremoniously dumped in. I'm not completely sure of the reasons, but it seemed that the builders decided to place some somewhat more . . . uncomfortable lodging down here for the more fractious of the defeated." Suddenly they emerged into a large, shadowy room, lit only by glowing white stones inset into the walls.
"This" Steel said "is the arena, as I'm sure you know, Kitsune. I come in to spar occasionally, if I'm bored." They stood on a balcony, of sorts, which seemed to run in a ring around a sandy pit, an iron grate stretching from the low stone wall in front of them to the edge of the dome which formed the ceiling. Through the grate one could see that the sandy pit of the arena was around 20 feet lower than the flagoned floor upon which they stood. An arch in the wall on the side of the pit across from them seemed to lead in from the outside, presumably the way in which their jailors, Hel and Ereshikigal, lured those attempting a rescue in from the outside. Weapon racks sat against the wall, freshly dried blood on many of their blades and tips.

Steel stood in thought for a moment and then motioned for them to continue. Three exits faced them on the balcony, Steel unwaveringly led them through the middle. "I wouldn't recommend going through the other two. Rather gruesome really, it's the torture chambers which they hire out to lords and dukes who can't afford their own. I've heard that even a king or two has sent a prisoner here to have them talk. That, of course, is on hold until the war is over. Ah, here we are."
They stepped into a long corridor filled with cells. "These are first time offenders. We're not meant to see the second and third time ones on the next two levels down, but I've snuck a peek in there and . . . let's simply say things aren't pretty. Hmm" He paused for a moment and focused on the life signs in the cells. Lack of sight did, occasionally, have its advantages. "I believe there's only one woody in here, most of them are rather docile and don't put up much of a struggle once they're in here. Save that mad Veteran. Oh, and Gabe was fairly annoyed at me when I got here for killing him." He walked over to the cell. A large, white furred creature looked mournfully through the bars at Kitsune. "Let's see . . . his name is 'Shadow Link'. I know it's a fairly large army, but do you recognize him?"

[Mystic Kitsune]

Kitsune stared in shock.

"This...this...creature?" He said looking in. He motioned Steel to give him the torch, and leaned in closer. He could see some gleaming parts from the fur. White fur.

He shivered slightly. Bad memories of the color white. Very bad. White hair struck his thoughts. And he looked down at his hand and clenched his fist trying to get rid of these memories.

He handed Steel his torch back and stepped back rather awkwardly. Almost a stumble. At the same time, the white furred...rather large, creature seemed to back off as well.

"I get it. Overconfidence, brute strength, underestimation led to this. It happens in certain cases, when one sells their life to -" He was interrupted by a grunt from inside the cell.

[Steel Samurai]

Steel looked at the creature in the light of the flickering torch for a moment before mumbling something about a superiority complex. "No matter. I was simply curious as to your knowledge of his . . . species."

Edited by Steel Samurai, 10 April 2007 - 12:17 PM.

[SL the Pyro]

(Okay, I'm gonna have to step in. NO Yeti stuff. )

Z, travelling along the shadows of the walls, followed Steel and Kitsune out of curiosity. He saw the one named "Shadow Link" in a cell near the ones that the other were looking at, appearing to have a lot of white fur as well. Something was amiss, though; form this being of darkness, he also sensed light. Upon moving closer, his whole body began to sting; the closer he got, the more it hurt. Z could tell that a binding spell had been cast on this mysterious little boy, comprised of Light magic. The boy seemed to be sleeping due to the spell, which was only making him look like he had fur.

This didn't stop Z from recognizing the boy, though. "I don't believe it..." he thought.

Flashback

Z had been creeping through the halls of an old mansion. It was a simple task; he was asked to steal the vast fortune that the owner of this mansion had in his possession. The one who assigned him this task was originally going to split the money with him, but Z decided to take it all for himself.

It was too easy; with his shadow-blending powers, he could easily evade any security. He entered a secret chamber, chalk-full of gold and silver. Z smiled; this was the first time he had seen so many riches.

Then he sensed a presence, so suddenly. It was impossible; no one could sneak up on him!

He felt a foot hit the shadow where he was hiding, forcing him to jump out. He looked around, but didn't see the presence. How could he be hiding himself in here? He then felt the presence again; this time he felt it and grabbed an arm, clothed in a white sleeve. What surprised Z the most is that it was coming out of the wall; whoever this attacker was, he had the same shadow-blending powers that Z himself did.

Z wasn't in the mood for these games; he gave a hard tug to pull the attacker out. It was nothing more than a mere child! He was clothed in a black tunic with a white undershirt and pants, and wore black boots and a long, black hat. His purple hair shimmered in the torchlight of the room, and his cold, blue eyes stared back at Z with determination.

"Who the hell are you, and how do you have the power to melt into the shadows!?" Z demanded out of the boy.

The kid merely snickered and said, "I was gonna ask ya the same thing." The boy then took something blue and round out of his tunic and shoved it into Z's face; a bomb. Z was blown backwards, and when his vision returned, all he saw before having to shut his eyes again was the kid's boot flying into his face. He flew backward into a pile of gold coins.

"Son of a b****!" Z hissed wrathfully. Z took several swings at the kid, all of which he sidestepped; this kid was too fast for him to hit by normal means. He retaliated by taking something else out of his tunic, a hammer which he used in an upward swing. If Z didn't jump to the side, it would've knocked his head clean off. Before he could retaliate, the boy's hammer went in a downward swing to the ground where Z was standing.

"C'mon! Can't ya do any better than that?" the boy taunted. That was the last straw; Z's Spike Chain erupted out of his cloak and ensnared the boy hard. "YOW! That's better..." he winced, still as sarcastic as before. Z started pouring his dark aura into the kid, ready to make him explode...

But it wasn't working. The boy was only increasing in power. He broke out of Z's Spike Chain and, using the power that Z had unintentionally given him, lashed out in a flurry of punches and kicks that Z was too anger-clouded to dodge. He fell to his knees. How was this possible, for him to be beaten by a mere child!? "Who... are you!?" he asked.

The boy stood over him with a triumphant smile. "The name's SL... and don't you forget it..." he said with a smirk before bringing his hammer down.

Z blacked out at that point.

When he woke up, he was still in the secret chamber. The owner was obviously unaware of the battle that had taken place. Much to his dismay, all of the treasure was gone from the room, no doubt taken by "SL" Z cursed under his breath.

"You insolent child... mark my words... you will live to regret this..." he warned mentally before taking his leave.

That incident had happened a year ago; he'd never saw SL since. That assignment was the only one he had ever failed, and he was the laughing stock of all of the elemental sorcerers when he told them the story. The only things stopping him from ripping Shadow Link's lungs out right this minute were the facts that the light would shred him if he got any closer, nor was he allowed to even be here, meaning that he couldn't let Kitsune or Steel notice him. "You deserve far worse than a simple binding spell, you accursed b****rd..." he thought before moving back out away from the cage; he couldn't take the light radiating from the the binding spell cast on Shadow Link any longer.

Then he heard him grunt. If Z had visible eyes at the moment, they would be widened. Was he still conscious after all? He saw the boy beginning to stand up, and then after a bit of struggling thrashed the wristbands on his arms that caused the binding spell to shatter, releasing the spell. What appeared to be the white fur had suddenly disappeared, leaving Z with the same vision of the boy that had cost him a fortune a year ago. The black tunic, boots, and hat. The white shirt and pants, and the purple hair. He opened his eyes, the same cold blue.

It was Shadow Link. No doubt about it.

Seeing his real face again made Z want to rip him to shreds even more.

"Light... I HATE light..." the boy said in irritation, rubbing his sore wrists.

Edited by Shadow_Link, 10 April 2007 - 12:49 PM.

[Mystic Kitsune]

Kitsune noted the words "superiority complex" mumbled by Steel.

"Let's take a look." He chopped the cell door open and at lightning speed took the Yeti out in a chop to the neck.

"Out cold. Now if you take a look..." he said while opening it's mouth. He turned his face to avoid the disgusting smell of the breath coming from it. He pointed at the long teeth it had.

"These are fabled teeth described in books only found in the mountains far away from here. If I recall they should only have four claws and opposable thumbs."

He walked around and lifted up the arm.

"The claws, they...well are rotten from meat. By the smell of it, it smells human. Are you aware if they lost any prisoners? Especially in this corridor?"

Edited by Mystic Kitsune, 12 April 2007 - 07:43 AM.

[SL the Pyro]

Yeah, I edited my post to make it make sense. Just so long as the Yeti isn't SL.

----------

SL lazily walked up to the bars of his cell, hearing a "clank" in his tunic. He felt around to feel his metal hammer there; it appears that everyone who captured him thought that he wouldn't wake up from the binding spell, or they were just lazy. Good for him; he took out the hammer and got ready to smash his cell bars apart.

Z wasn't about to let him escape, though; he reached up from the shadows and grabbed his hammer in mid-swing. Shadow Link looked down at Z's half-formed body with a glare. "Going somewhere?" he whispered.

Shadow Link recognized Z's hooded face and just had to laugh; out loud, unfortunately for him. "Well, look who it is... how've the bounties been payin' ya?"

Z glared at him, now with his WHOLE body up. He towered over SL, who didn't appear the least bit scared of him. "Quite good, but not nearly as much as the pay-off I would've had if you didn't steal it!" he spat.

SL smirked at him. "Are you still on about that? Sheesh... you should just learn to fight better." he replied slyly.

"You dare to mock me!?" Z said, at normal volume now. He knew that Steel and Kitsune could no doubt hear him, but he didn't care now. "Give me one could reason why I should shove your testicles down your throat right now..."

SL's smile disappeared. "Simple. Because you can't!" he said, tugging his hammer out of Z's claw. Z tried running him through, but missed just like the last time they fought. SL retaliated by swinging his hammer hard into Z's gut, slamming him through the bars of the cell and into the wall.

"Oh, no!" Z thought in a panic; that was going to get Steel's and Kitsune's attention, especially since he was in plain sight now.

-----------

I'd like to remind you all that SL is an NPC at this point. I don't mind if you control him, just don't to anything horribly wrong with him (Yeti stuff and killing-off comes to mind). The same thing goes for the elemental sorcerers that make up Z's gang, just don't kill them off yet. I just thought I'd get this all out of the way before something goes all wrong, as no one is controlling them at all, thus will lead the big mods upstairs to believe that I'm breaking rules.

Edited by Shadow_Link, 10 April 2007 - 01:33 PM.

[Steel Samurai]

Steel turned somewhat distractedly towards the two. "Oh, I was wrong. There is another woodie over there too." He paused as Z was thrown into the wall. "Z, if you must fight, could you do it elsewhere, mm? We're trying to determine the species of this . . . this creature over here. You're being a bit loud . . . Oh for pity's sake." A tiny needle suddenly appeared in Shadow Link's neck, and the strange purple haired boy slumped against the bars of his cell. "I would advise you leave before Hel or Ereshkigal or one of their underlings catches you. He'll wake up as soon as I take the needle out, which I shall do as soon as we leave." Steel turned back to the strange furry creature in front of him. If it had been standing, instead of slumped against the wall as it was, it likely would have been 7 or 8 feet tall. Its arms and legs seemed massive, but Steel could tell that it was mostly fluffed out fur, and if the creature was wet it would have appeared almost anorexic.
"Well . . . what do you think?" He asked Kitsune.

[SL the Pyro]

Z slowly got to his feet, his gut aching; even with his Spike Chain acting as an armor, Shadow Link's hammer still hurt him. Z couldn't wrap his mind around it; not one warrior he'd faced in his live, other than his other elemental sorcerers, were able to even touch him. This... boy had done it more times than he cared to count.

He glared at Steel, wondering why the samurai helped him after all the trouble he'd caused in the past, but it mattered little. At least Shadow Link's hammer wasn't still pinning him to the wall. And as much as Z wanted to rip the infuriating boy limb from limb, Steel did have a point; though he could handle the two Guardians of Valhalla, he didn't want to start a conflict. "I truly hate it when you're right, Steel..." Z finally relented, melting into the shadows and leaving.