AC: Round 1 - Group 5

[Revenant]

This thread is reserved for member of Group 5. The thread will open at noon on August 18th (Pacific time) and will be closed after two weeks.

Good Luck!

Group 5
Steppenwolf Orlouge - Steppenwolf Orlouge
Taka - Tainted Bushido
Cellar Door - Taste of Treason
Erissa Tarsul-Caedron - Sagequeen

[Sagequeen]

Erissa Caedron sighed in her sleep, the scent of green and life lulling her to dreams. She had never felt a mattress so soft, never heard a song so perfectly suited for a lullaby than that of the wild around her. The high elf felt as though she could rest an eternity, and her eyes fluttered open for a split second to appreciate the source of the beautiful sensations enveloping her.

A few heartbeats later, the elf's eyes snapped open, the memory of signing her freedom away on a dotted line surfacing harshly. How long had she slept? Long enough, it seemed to her, that the lush mat of greenery upon which she lay had wrapped its lacy tendrils around her arms and legs. Erissa strained against them, the delicate roots snapping and popping as she pulled them from the ground. There would be others, the elf remembered, teammates with whom she would surmount this challenge, spun by an eccentric old man with too much time and too many things.

As she looked for her companions, Erissa could see nothing but impenetrable walls of green hedge surrounding her, and a perfectly square doorway leading out of the little cell where she awoke. The blue sky shone from above, and the elf longed for a better view of the area. With a light jump, the elf suspended herself in mid-air, telekenetically pulling herself upward along the twelve-foot hedge. The crown of her head peaked over the top, and Erissa caught sight of a massive, living labyrinth, and behind her, the sea.

The very next thing she knew, the high elf was sprawled on her back, once again on the ground. Her body was invaded with the jabs of pins and needles from core to limb; it was very apparent to her that Erissa would not be able to cheat this maze due to the force-field above. She struggled to her feet again, shaking her arms and stomping her feet to rid them of the uncomfortable prickling sensation.

“Hello?” she called, the sound of her voice falling dead. “Hello!” she called more loudly, cringing at the volume and what else she might be summoning by daring to use it. “'Go do the tournament,' he said. 'It will be fun,' he said,” she muttered, meaning to checking the straps of her backpack, when she realized with alarm it was not there. In fact, the elf was in her nightgown, her feet clad in silken slippers. Erissa had been teleported in her sleep, all her supplies and provisions sitting ready in a neat stack near her bed. “Right,” the elf said, a touch of sarcasm in her sultry voice. "Fun." She stepped forward through the doorway and looked back and forth down the long, narrow pathways.

A distant flock of birds chattered angrily before taking flight within the pathway to her left. Erissa would take that path, then, hoping the one who disturbed the birds was a friend instead of a foe.

[Taste of Treason]

The smell of wildflowers caressed her nostrils and reminded her of stolen hours in the dark of night. Cell opened her sleepy eyes and watched a perfect violet blossom grow and bloom before her very eyes. It must be a dream the thought made the girl smile, it had been years since she’d had anything but nightmares waking her from slumber.

As the flower’s stem twisted and reached toward the clear blue sky above Cel became aware that she wasn’t alone in her fantasy. For a moment she could see three others lying peacefully on the ground nearby. She pulled herself to her feet to get a look around as flowers began to spring up on all sides, growing and turning into bushes and soon walls of greenery. Within moments all the girl could see was foliage dotted with beautiful blooms, with small holes to her left and back, almost like doorways. Beyond the doorways seemed to be more of the same, and it wasn’t long before Cel realized it was a maze of some sort.

The tournament! a laugh bubbled deep in the girl’s gut, forcing its way through her lips and causing some birds to startle and fly from a bush. Her heart raced from the scare and it took several seconds for her to calm herself. The young woman stood silently for a moment, making out the sound of crashing waves somewhere nearby. A look at the ground gave more proof, the lush vegetation surrounding her sprung up from sandy ground, she was near the water. The wall stood twice her height, climbing it seemed impossible. “Hello?” Her voice seemed quiet in the small clearing though she was doing her best to yell, “Is anybody there?”

She turned, taking several steps towards the pathway that had stood behind her when she heard a female voice calling ‘Hello’. The girl paused, had it been her own echo? No, there was nothing for her voice to bounce from, one of the others must have woken. Cel turned and followed the other path, towards the unfamiliar voice.

“Hello?” She called again, praying that someone out there could hear her. She wasn’t the easily frightened type, but walking through the door still gave her chills. When she turned into the next area the size of the labyrinth became clear, the path continued as far as the girl could see. With a deep breath she forced the lump forming in her throat back down by swallowing hard, It is just a maze Cel, nothing is going to hurt you.

She took her first steps down the long path, listening for anything that might be a sign of a way out. A soft rumbling behind her caused her to look back, where several vines from the walls seemed to be reaching towards her, in seconds the walls grew, closing off the door she had just left, and worked their way towards her. The girl began to run, unsure what would happen if the labyrinth swallowed her whole.

[Steppenwolf Orlouge]

It’s funny how life works out. One moment you’re waking up on a beach, a vegetation labyrinth growing around you, and the next you’re walking down a maze of green, only to have a small girl run into you. Both of those instances occurred for me, and I had a feeling that both of them hinted towards the Adventurer’s Crown. After all, I didn’t have many enemies who would want my head, and the fact that I didn’t have any weapons on my person hinted at the typical M.O. of a tournament council trying to give the big man a handicap.

I grabbed the girl by the shoulders before she could fall down on her butt, each of my hands placed firmly on her shoulders. The scream that followed was both melodic and eerie at the same time. Kind of like a piano solo slowed down to a quarter of its original timing. As the girl let out her screech, my peripheral vision noticed several vines creeping up behind the girl, only to retreat back into the walls at the scared girl’s vocals. I released her quickly, allowing the girl to catch her breath as well as calm her nerves a bit.

“Well….I guess that answers exactly what you can do,” I said, blinking wide-eyed at the girl. I turned my head, trying to make sure that I was not being stalked by the same vines that had been sneaking up on this child. I turned back, hoping that the spell singer had eased up a bit. The last thing I needed was getting my head ripped away by a pissed off Raiaeran so soon into coming into the Adventurer’s Crown. “What is your name, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Cellar Door,” The girl’s voice was timid, but had a sweet tone to it. Obviously the voice of a singer, though an untrained singer. I smiled, glad that she didn’t decide to battle me instead. Couldn’t tell you how many people would turn on you on a dime during a tournament. Something about items of irresponsibly destructive power and competing for said prizes tended to bring out the worst in people.

“Good. That’s a very unique name. My name is Steppenwolf,” I extended my hand to the child, who took it in her own for just a moment. As we shook hands, I couldn’t help but notice that the teen (at least I was assuming she was a teenager) would not make eye contact with me. Had I said something to offend her already? I thought I had heard her mumble something along the lines of ‘That’s a first’. Not the best start to the adventure.

“Listen Cellar, I can only assume that we’re in the middle of the Adventurer’s Crown. Now, if you woke up the same way I did, I can only assume that you found yourself surrounded by this maze out of nowhere as well,” The girl nodded at my assessment of the situation. Content that I was on the right track, I continued, “Now, while my knowledge of mazes and labyrinth’s isn’t the best, I can only assume one thing; our goal is in the middle of this place.”

Cellar nodded again, her eyes still avoiding mine at all costs. “Now, you may not have noticed, but that voice of yours seems to have something in it that the plants don’t like. If you can keep up that singing when the maze attacks, we should be safe.” I looked around for a moment, checking behind my back once more to reconfirm no stealthy vegetation attacks from behind. “However, if something more substantial comes your way, I would think you would appreciate someone who could cover you and buy time for you to find the right song for the situation…”

Cellar raised an eyebrow, her face showing the most subtle hints of curiosity, “Go on….”

“I propose an alliance. You and I. I cover you and you keep the whacking weeds off of me. I think together we should be able to find the answer to this puzzle.” I placed both my hands on my hips and looked up into the air, proud of my own idea, and flaunting it as if I were a hero who had rescued a kitten from a tree. “Do we have a deal?”

Cellar’s response was a solemn nod, a gesture which I returned with a more enthusiastic head-bob. “Then let’s go!” I announced proudly, turning my back to the girl and slowly making my way back from wince I came…

[Tainted Bushido]

Quiet tranquility.

That was the goal of meditation. The ability to look inward to sort through the good and the bad, to discover where the holes in one's spirit were and to repair the damage. This was the basics of any warrior, to learn how to self reflect upon the dangerous road they tread. It was said when a samurai picked up his katana he was six steps from death. This was a fact that Taka had never forgotten and often reminded others when they told him to stop fighting. At least that's what it seemed nowadays, for Taka had found himself in loss after loss. Even the victory at Gisela was hollow, a fight he had been forced to play underhanded in order to secure the city.

Doubt, that was the enemy.

Taka sat alone in the dojo, the candles creating a tranquility in the room to aid in the meditation along with the sandalwood scent of the incense before him. His daisho and mask sat before him, his quiet contemplation not allowing him to wear such accoutrements. In his lap, in a rare moment sat the nodachi he had been given by his rival Shiryko Benimaru the weight a constant reminder of his physicality. The blade seemed to respond to the strength of his soul in some way, and Taka was trying to meditate upon that bond, to deepen the connection, perhaps strengthening his connection to the weapon.

His eyes were closed when he heard it, the distant sounds of the shore. He almost thought he had achieved a rare moment of utter peace, returning to the sea which always seemed to comfort him, when he smelled the scent of sea salt. It was too familiar to the ronin to be anything else, and often served a small comfort to the man who found few in his life. Still he remained still, until the felt the icy breeze of the land heading for the sea in an effort to cool the lapping waves of the ocean.

His eyes opened to the fact he was no longer in the dojo, his eyes adjusting to the twilight and the soft blue hue that seemed to hug everything. His dingy brown kimono offered a bit of protection against the breeze as he noticed the first thing about where he was, almost like on of the tranquil gardens of home. He would often meditate upon his training in such a garden, with the smallish opening in the hedges to allow for someone to enter or exit the area. The problem came when he realized unlike his childhood home, this garden was alive...

...and hungry.

Vines had wrapped about his legs and arms, trying to pin him to the ground so he might die of starvation and feed the sands with his very body. And it was indeed sand under him, he could feel the give it had when he shifted to test the strength of the plants. It was not a weak grip, but it would not be problematic. The fact he had no daisho however, was. The Rat's Tail nodachi remained faithfully in his lap providing him at least one weapon to fight with as he carefully extracted himself from the vines, pulling one arm free before tearing the others. The sounds of shouting and birds taking flight was not lost on him as he carefully slid the sheath of the nodachi off the blade, the steel faintly glowing in the soft starlight. The moon was hiding behind the horizon marking a vista that would have captured many a poet or artist to draw its form. Taka however, was neither and only marked it as a landmark for later. Carefully extracting himself from the remaining vines he let the sheath for the nodachi hang from upon his back as he narrowed his eyes and looked about him, trying to glean more before he heard it, candid conversation.

Moving swiftly he took to a defensive position from beside the hedges before he heard the rumbling bass of a familiar voice. When he had been with Anita-chan talking and figuring out how their relationship would work if it could. He had been invited to the occasional dinner as a chance for Taka to learn more about the daughter of Sei Orlouge, the Dranak Dragon. One of the others invited to the family dinner was Steppenwolfe Orlouge brother to his Lord. A sigh of relief left his voice as he walked into view carefully sheathing the nodachi in it's scabbard. Turning he saw the woman with him, and upon not immediately recognizing her hid his face behind a curtain of hair, not wishing to scare her with the inky black skin that marked him an Oni's pet.

His voice held a gentle severity as he spoke, "Orlouge-dono, it is good to see you. What is going on?"

[Sagequeen]

The high elf's ears perked to the sound of more voices, eerily garbled in the misty, serpentine drifts that wound in ebbs and flows around her demure figure. Erissa wound her long, silver hair into a bun as she strode forward, feeling as though she were being watched. The sound of rusting behind the elf sent prickles down her spine, and to her great dismay, she realized that the walls were not just closing in on her, but growing in, sealing off the passage from which she had just come and catching up with her quickly.

Erissa broke into a sprint, making for the end of the hall of hedge that waited several yards ahead of her. Her blood pumped and her breath came rapidly as an odd, weathered statue of a dancing faun, marking the junction, drew ever closer. She broke from the passage into the small square just as the waxy leaves and branches jutted forth, closing the hall completely. The laughing faun's pudgy arm was outstretched, pointing at her ominously as she considered three new choices of direction. In his other hand upon a chipped stone platter, he bore a reed flute.

The high elf stared down each of the three passages in turn, none of them giving a hint of where she should invest her effort. Erissa leveled her gaze at the face of the faun, whose jolly, frozen grin mocked her. The flute, she noticed, was newly made. Each of the eight reeds were each cut to different lengths, arranged in order from shortest to longest, and bound with the woody, shaggy twine beaten from sapling branches.

Erissa studied the flute, stretching her hand out to take it, but she paused. Her eye was drawn to a plaque on the pedestal, and she tore away the vines and branches that had grown over it, obscuring the words etched there.

By root and twig, the green will bow,
Branch and leaf and sylvan crown,
I can help you move along,
If you can but play my song.

-By my word, Gabacef the Tender

Erissa smiled ruefully as she took the flute and blew across the openings, the whispery notes catching the attention of every living thing.

“Perfectly pitched, of course,” she said. The elf carefully played a succession of notes: G, A, B, A, C, E, and F. The little statue moved in time with the music of his name, clicking its stone hooves on the pedestal and waving its arms. The woody notes drifted through the maze around her, and as Erissa finished the song, the statue was no longer pointing at her, but instead down one of the three paths. “Well,” she murmured, laughing, “I know which way not to go...” Fauns, she recalled, were notorious tricksters. The elf shook her head, and with flute in hand, she took the path to the right. As she glanced back at the statue, it watched her, and she could have sworn it looked disappointed.

The voices he heard were louder, and as she rounded a final turn, Erissa caught sight of her teammates. With great relief, she jogged to them and greeted them warmly.

[Taste of Treason]

A giant with a heart of gold, how quaint. The girl almost laughed before she realized just how much she sounded like her mother. As the group assembled Cel took great care in noting their features. Not one appeared to be a mystic, thankfully. The pink-haired beast before her seemed harmless enough, but his sheer size made her promise herself not to cross him.

The mysterious man who hid his face was one to keep her eye on for sure, but as her gaze fell to the weapon in the stranger’s hand, her thoughts grew more cautious. The elf, after her time spent in Riaera, Cel felt like she could trust. The girl had, after all, been taught how to sing by the race. “I’m Cel, I’m assuming we are some sort of team or something. Does anyone have any idea on how to get out of here?”

Steppenwolf answered with a chuckle, “I’m assuming walking would be a good start.” He then turned to his left, the only path that no one had come from and gestured for everyone else to follow. Cel shrugged her shoulders and gave the elf a smile before obeying, finding some comfort in being led by the largest of the group. His large strides made keeping up difficult, and at times it almost felt like the girl was running. She forced herself to turn down each path, keeping up pace while staring at the back of his florescent afro. She could feel her breath getting heavier, her forehead starting to form the smallest of sweat beads.

He was maybe ten strides ahead when the walls began to close, his form shrinking as the maze separated the newfound pack. “Run!”

The girl took off at a sprint, desperate to make it to the opening before the maze swallowed the giant whole. They couldn’t get separated; somehow she knew that they were supposed to do this together. A vine reached out from the wall and twisted its way around her ankle as she ran, sending her face-first into the ground. The hit hurt her head, but the real pain came when the girl looked up and saw the wall of greenery before her. She had missed her chance.

[Steppenwolf Orlouge]

I slammed my fist into the shrubs that had closed in behind me, retracting my throbbing fist and yelping after realizing I hit something decidedly hard. Seething from the pain, I began to wonder if the green walls also hid some sort of wooden interior as well. I growled, my thoughts going back as to why the maze was so determined to separate the four of us so soon after finding one another.

“Cellar!” I yelled, hoping that the young girl could hear my calls.

“Yes?” I breathed a sigh of relief at the girl’s bitter sweet voice.

“I’m going to go on ahead! You regroup with Taka and Erissa! They’ll protect you!” I cupped my hands, hoping for once that the deep orc blood in me carried my voice further than I thought. “Taka! Please protect Cellar at all costs until we can regroup! Erissa! See if there’s some way you can control the maze with one of your elf-nature spirit connection thingies!”

I thought that maybe I should have studied up more on elves, and Erissa in particular. After all, Sei had informed me of each Ixian Knight that had entered the tournament. I guess I foolishly thought that I’d be paired with my little brother and Kyla, my niece. The last AC allowed for teams to register with who they wished, not just stick random groupings together. Thankfully Taka and I had fought alongside each other before, and Cellar seemed to be a girl who could be trusted. I turned my back to where I last saw my group, attempting to psyche myself up for what was to come.

I began to walk through the labyrinth, my eyes darting back and forth in case some unknown danger sprung itself out. My knuckles were clenched together, white as could be. There was a very eerie vibe to the small crackles and pops coming from within the green sanctuary. If I had been with my party, I would have been able to remain the steadfast and strong leader; without them, I was a scaredy cat trying to find his friends.

Come to think of it, that’d be a great premise for a play.

I slowly took my turns, the sweet smell of wild flowers growing stronger with each of my paces. Something was very unsettling about this entire puzzle, and I intended to find out what. “Hope the rest of the gang is faring better than me…”

The sound of a buzzing insect caused me to jump a good foot in the air, a girl like shriek escaping me. I composed myself quickly and looked around to confirm that nobody was looking. Smooth move, Steppenwolf, I thought to myself smooth move.

[Tainted Bushido]

Silence reigned in the aftermath of the separation from Steppenwolfe. Taka's eyes glowering at the hedge from behind the curtain of white hair he was currently using as a mask. Hand went to hilt of nodachi as he studied the hedges and felt the connection with the sword grow with his anger fueling it. Carefully the sword was pulled from it's sheath before with a casual flick the bandage wrapping about the scabbard wrapped about his chest and clung the weapon sheath upon his back.

"Utz!" The cry was loud and piercing, a shout to accompany the strongest blow Taka was capable of. The sword slammed into the bushes and for certain Taka saw the other side of the hedges. The frustration came that in the wake of the blades passage the hedges gathered up, sewing up the wound faster than he could create it. More accurately Taka observed, the hedge seemed to let the blade go through it by parting around the blade. He would not be cutting through the bushes any more than he could grow wings and fly.

That is a possibly little falcon...

They weren't words so much as a thought imprinted in the Ronin's head. The mark of the Oni's taint calling him into its dark depths. The Ronin ignored the comment, knowing better than to rise to the demon's bait. Any reaction would bring it closer to the surface and he could not afford a loss of control, not today. The imprint of mental laughter echoed in his head as he stabbed the tip of the nodachi into the ground.

Carefully reaching back he tied his hair into a ponytail as he assumed a martial readiness his stance shifting subtly into a more aggressive posture. He looked to the other two who seemed to be watching as he spoke, his voice heavily accented, "We cannot solve this puzzle if we remain still. There is no path but forward. Be cautious and look for any weaknesses in the hedges. Perhaps we can find a way to create some later, but for now we will need to capitalize on the..."

The sickeningly sweet smell of flowers invaded his senses, causing him to stumble a step as hand went to face. He groaned softly, feeling the sudden urge to simply rest and forget what was happening. There was no need to keep going forward, he needed rest. He had after all been in his evening's meditation, and sleep was so inviting. His muscles already ached with a day or hard work, and here he was compounding it with more strenuous activity.

He felt eyes on him and shook his head firmly, banishing the tendrils of fatigue as the scent of wild flowers escaped his senses. Faint wisps of fog rising from the sands beneath them as Taka looked back upon the other two a frown of concern upon his features, "Did you not smell that?"

Before they could even answer Taka collapsed in a heap upon the ground.

The sounds of sandals upon the sand could be heard as an exact replica of Taka stepped from around the corner. His daisho sitting upon hip as he looked upon the two girls with a look of concern upon his features. He moved forward cautiously towards the downed form of the Ronin in an eerie display of the mazes prowess.

[Taste of Treason]

Cellar found herself cut off from her protector so soon after meeting him. She slammed her fist to the floor and stood up slowly as Steppenwolf barked orders to them. It was refreshing to see somebody take charge of the situation, because nobody else seemed to want to. She watched as Taka tried first to cut down the hedge that blocked them from their path, and then collapse on the ground.

The girl raised an eyebrow, suspicious that this may just be some sort of act from the masked man. Yet as she examined him from afar, a double of Taka walked around the corner, seemingly unaffected by the fact that an exact duplicate was on the ground in front of him. Cell stood, walking backwards for a moment while never letting the man out of her sight,

She took a hard swallow as she distanced herself, another wall of shrubbery rising up to cut off Taka and Erissa from the girl. Cel clenched her fists, angry that she had allowed herself to break off from her team. The girl turned her back to the newly formed wall, clearing her throat as she did so. As she walked forward through the maze, she was always ready at a moments notice to start spell singing. After all, it was her best weapon here.

As she walked through the maze, eyes darting every which way to prepare for danger, she suddenly heard a voice from afar. “I’m afraid that won’t be necessary for now, Ms. Door.” The voice had a cracked tone to it, as if someone had stuck the person in permanent puberty. Cel took a deep breath, prepared to sing out a note as she turned another corner to find a person standing before her.

He was a well dressed man, a monocle over his left eye, his body weight resting upon a cane with a crystal top. He was wearing a black petticoat and jet black slacks, and what appeared to be completely clean, shiny black loafers. “Allow me to introduce myself. I am Alabaster. I own all that you see before you.” He threw his cane up, grabbing it at its middle section with his right hand as he arced his arms out.

“Quite simply, Cellar Door, you’re going to play a little game of mine. Your party gets to the middle of my maze, and I grant you safe passage through these parts. However, there will be a few obstacles trying to impede you from uniting with your party, as well as reaching the center of my very well thought out labyrinth.” He chuckled a bit, using his free hand to adjust his monocle.

“Yeah, you’ve already shown us that you can shift the maze around, and have it try to kill us,” Cellar said, taking in another deep breath as she ended her sentence. She had to be ready for anything this guy could dish out, and that meant having a prepared set of lungs ready to attack him.

Her observation was met with another laugh, as well as another monocle adjustment. “My dear,” Alabaster said in that strange voice of his bowing down and letting his long, shoulder length locks fall in front of his face. He smiled, and it was the only feature one could see amongst the snow colored hair, “I’ve only given you a taste of the real challenge…”