NationStates Jolt Archive

"It's Ancient for blocked," Gahlagæer explained.

"Well, bloody hell." Sevren pocketed the orb with an emphatic hmph before continuing. "How are we supposed to find or track them then?"

"As the saying goes, good things come to those who wait," Jandon said. "In this case it wouldn't be good but I am sure they will come if you were to wait."

"What, those that come into the forest... that is all of them?"

"Possibly, but it is possible that the more ancient members don't attend the meeting in person," Jandon explained. "A member of the brotherhood may know all of those who belong to it and the younger members may be more likely to be persuaded to tell."

"A surveillance and kidnapping mission then," Eamonn said and looked over at Sevren. "That could be very tricky."

"Especially if they start throwing Dracoliches at me again."

"Well you would have to stay at a distance Mr Aktei," Eamonn said.

"They still might throw dracoliches at me..." Sevren said. "In any event... yes, I think it would be wise to keep a hearty distance between myself and them."

Eamonn nodded, "Somewhere far but not too far," he said. "Like Gahlagæer's castle."

Sevren snorted slightly. "Well, if he does not mind the possibility of his castle suddenly being set upon by waves of dracolichy destruction, there should be no issue..."

Gahlagæer smirked. "It's what my castles defences were built for," he pointed out.

"Your castle has been around for quite a long time though, has it not? Would it not be possible that they might devise methods against it given enough time? After all, they are undead just like what seems to be a significant portion of this valley..."

Gahlagæer chuckled. "I know, that is why I am always updating the defences," he replied.

"Well, I suppose it shall be sufficient. Though do not blame me if the castle comes crashing down because of something unforseen... though I suspect if such happens we will not have time to point fingers."

"No we won't, but you will get an early warning," Gahlagæer assured him.

"What timeframe are we operating under, if one might ask?" Sevren replied, seemingly on a tangent to the conversation as a whole. "Lying in wait for an ambush might all be well and good, but is there any real pattern to their appearances in this forest? Do we know if their arrival is even remotely imminent? Perhaps Jandon recognizes some form of pattern to their coming and goings?"

"The moons tells us when they are coming," Jandon said. "They follow in line with the positioning of the moons."

"And? Are they just about due?"

Sevren looked up and then muttered slightly to himself: "Whoa... how did I miss that there were multiple?"

"One comes tonight to prepare for a sacrifice," Jandon said, reading the positions of the moons.

"Sacrifice, hmm?" Sevren replied, rubbing his chin thoughtfully before turning to Eamonn. "Perhaps you lot would make it a point to divest them of their offering? A good old-fashioned spank'n'gank. Cure the brotherhood agent of his unfortunate ambulatory-while-dead condition and give the sacrifice something to look forward to other than a sharp pain followed by several billion years of unending torment. Or some such."

"Thing is the sacrifice might be you," Gahlagæer then said. "Best if you left the area."

"Any means to return us to the castle post haste then? The castle might be well defended, but there is all manner of undefended real-estate between us and it."

"Katana, you stay with Mr Aktei and take him to Gahlagæer's castle," Eamonn ordered.

"Yes, Sensei," she replied.

Several large male wolves moved towards them.

"They will protect you as well," Jandon said.

"It will be a rather long walk, will it not? Or is there another castle floating about nearby?"

"I can teleport you there if you want," Gahlagæer told him.

"That would be the prudent course, as it would not require the wolves to enter into other territory, which would give Eamonn and the others more backup. While such might be considered a tad much to take down one critter preparing a 'sacrifice', as they say back home: 'There is no such thing as Overkill'."

"But of course even a single member of the brotherhood could prove very powerful, maybe too powerful for us," Gahlagæer pointed out.

"He is right," Jandon said and the wolves returned to their position.

As Katana walked towards Sevren, Eamonn glanced at him.

"You can watch our progress, it should be safe for you to see us via the orb," he said.

"And the saying goes doubly so for treading through uncertain situations. Another saying being, of course: 'When in doubt, call in an orbital bombardment.' We shall retire to the castle and watch from afar. I only hope that if he puts up a significant fight, that he turns out to be someone important."

"But we must do as little damage to the forest as possible," Gahlagæer warned.

A yellow circle appeared nearby.

"Now stand inside the circle, I will the transport you."

"True," Sevren replied as he began to move towards the circle, "but then, the Godulans have always prided themselves on their precision when conducting assaults from above. We treat it like sniping. Sniping that can be refined from reducing a city to rubble all the way down to picking off an enemy field commander through a small window when nobody is looking, in any event."

Sevren stood in the circle and shrugged slightly. "A gendarme would be really nice in this situation too... or Dalziel..."

Katana too went and stood in the circle.

"Oh don't worry I have plenty of guards at the castle," Gahlagæer remarked.

The circled closed up and became a small ball before quickly moving away.

"Did you just squish them?" Daniel asked with alarm.

Gahlagæer shook his head. "No they'll be fine."

Before long the ball had returned to Gahlagæer's nearest castle. It opened up and let the pair out before disappearing.

"Well this looks cozy," Katana sarcastically remarked, noting the dark damp stone walls of the small room they were in.

Sevren examined the room for a moment before moving to open the door. "Possibly just a landing pad of some sort. Much like the reception area for my embassy's spacefold portal."

The door creaked open and light flowed into the room. Katana was forced to shield her eyes against the sudden change.

"Smells mouldy too," she remarked before leaving the room.

As her eyes adjusted, she saw that they were now in a well lit main hallway. Large paintings of Gahlagæer and a few others adorned every room. To their right was a huge staircase.

Sevren made no noticeable responses to the sudden increase in ambient light, simply moving through the doorway without hesitation. He did however stop in front of the first painting he came across, giving it a thorough looking over.

The painting showed Gahlagæer in black robes overlooking the castle by moonlight. The paintings eyes moved and looked down at him, the clouds in the painting appeared to be moving.

A pale looking teenager appeared at the top of the stairs. "So you are he who is being hunted by the Brotherhood of the Wraith?" he asked.

"For the most part," Sevren replied, moving away from the painting, satisfied that if the paintings weren't the same kind as at the mansion, they used the same principle. "Though, given the choice, I would be only too happy to allow someone else the honor of that particular distinction. It is not the most convenient thing in the world."

Sevren approached the stairs and began to walk up, keeping an eye on the teenager as he ascended. "I require a place to sit. The common room I visited earlier should suffice."

The teenager looked at him. "This way then," he said, waiting for them to reach the top of the stairs before leading them back to the sitting room.

"This is a different castle," Katana whispered.

Sevren gave an ever so slight nod in response, but continued on. I'll figure things out with the orb when I get the opportunity, he thought to himself.

"He's a vampire," Katana quietly said. "Watch your neck."

The teenager ignored that and led them into a large sitting room. It was much larger then the previous one and had better lighting, better still there was a large telly on one wall with a very comfortable looking settee placed in front of it.

"Enjoy," he coldly told them.

"That raises something of a question, come to think of it," Sevren said after Katana's warning. "I don't have blood. My body utilizes a tri-oxy hematite nutrient fluid... similar in color but nothing like the natural norm. does that make me inedible?"

As he walked into the room, he gave a momentary inspection before taking a seat, and immediately brought out the all-seeing orb. He did give a moments thought to the television though, for another question floated up out of nowhere:

"What kind of shows do you get around here? Do they prevent dark valley residents from recieving outside programming, or do they just monitor things really close?"

"No that just makes you a freak," Katana remarked, folding her arms.

The vampiric teenager looked over at Sevren. "We get your usual Draconian shit along with our own local channels," he replied. "As far as I know they do monitor it."

In response to Katana's rather blunt reply, Sevren held up a single hand so that she could see it plainly. As she watched, he curled his fingers backwards, as if the back of his hand was his palm, and made a reversed fist. After a moment his fingers relaxed back to some semblance of normalcy, and Sevren walked away to sit down in the settee.

"We all have our quirks."

"Freak," Katana reiterated.

Instead of sitting down like Sevren did, she went around the room looking for possible traps or bugs.

"If there is anything you need, do not hesitate to ask," the teenager then told them.

"Thank you," Sevren replied. "I had a rather large meal this morning, so I am fine. I am not certain if Katana has had a chance to eat, though. Judging from her present attitude she is either not hungry or channeling it into some form of aggression. It is rather hard to tell."


Sevren began to look into the orb, willing a return to Jandon. The wolf had sensed him before, so the others would know he was out of danger for the most part.

Katana just scowled at him as the vampiric teenager just left.

The orb showed Jandon with the others, once again he was staring directly at Sevren. In the background Daniel and Katsuo could both be clearly seen trying to see what the wolf was staring intently at.

Sevren swerved the view such that it appeared the scrying thing had smacked into a tree and hit the ground.

"Well theres doesn't seem to be any bugs in here," Katana remarked.

Back in the forest Jandon shook his head. "It would seem that he has not fully mastered his scrying."

Sevren snorted with dismay. "It was the only thing I could think of as an identifier. Give me a break," he mumbled to himself more than anything.

He acknowledged Katana's assessment with a short nod but kept to the orb.

Katana looked at the orb. "Doesn't seem much we can do from here," she remarked.

"Not much we can do at all, so best to just enjoy the lull in the action."

"How exciting," Katana sarcastically remarked. "Watch them trudge about a forest following a talking wolf. I doubt they'll even bump into the brotherhood."

"If there is no excitement, so much the better. If there is excitement, I can only hope that it is a one-sided fight in our favor. Besides, there is not much else to do. You can watch television, or something equally time-consuming to while away the hours."

"I never watch the telly, waste of time," Katana remarked.

"Not much else in the way of options," Sevren replied.

"Could always count the bats flying around outside," Katana remarked. "Wonder how many of them are real bats and how many are vampires in bat form."

"Throw things at them and see if they dodge before coming to kill you... p.s. don't."

"Like a vampire could kill me," Katana replied. "I know how to fight off several vampires at once."

"Sounds like a challenge," came a voice. "I like challenges."

Stood in the door was a dark shape, someone hidden under a hodded robe.

Rather surreptitiously, Sevren started navigating his orb to try and get Jandon to spell out 'Problem' with his nose. "Now you know why some cultures consider pride a sin," he said without moving to acknowledge the newcomer.

The hooded figure walked into the room, causing Katana to reach for her fan. "The brotherhood are a pest, yes," he said, his face still hidden.

"You one of them," Katana scowled.

"No of couse not, the brotherhood don't like vampires," he replied.

"You stay away from him," she then warned, noticing him head towards Sevren.

The vampire stopped. "Or what, you'll give me final death?"

Back in the forest, Jandon was once again watching the orb. "Not having much success, I think he's trying to say something."

Sevren finally stood up, keeping his orb in one hand whilst still attempting to write out synonyms for 'problem' and occasionally scribing extremely large exclamation marks.

Turning to the newcomer, he simply smiled and said: "I am Sevren Aktei, diplomatic envoy of the Triad Consortium of Godular. I have given you my name and purpose. Be so kind as to return the favor."

The vampire pulled down his hood revealing a teenager looking no older then seventeen, but as a vampire who knew how old he really was.

"I am Turisas Fabregas," he announced. "Of the Ravnos clan."

Sevren put the orb back into his pocket, cutting off contact with the others, then turned to Katana with a momentary 'And that means what?' look. Returning his attention back to 'Turisas', he continued.

"Be so kind as to explain your presence here. We did not send for anything, and despite what you may have heard we were not offering up a 'challenge'."

"I like many others here have free reign of the castle, save for Gahlagæer's quarters and can go where we like," he pointed out. "And I have very good hearing, her boast was quite obviously a challenge."

"No, I am fairly certain it was just a boast," Sevren said, approaching Turisas in a rather shephardly manner. "You see, I have known the young lady for at least a small amount of time and can tell you right now that she would be on the verge of attacking me simply because I called her a young lady. She is one of those types who is very keen on proving her independence and ability to 'keep up' with her associates, which tends to translate into an almost unreasonable tendency towards clubbing things over the head. Right now however she is under rather specific orders not to see to the destruction of you or any of your compatriots, but to my protection. This has made her bored, within the space of approximately ten minutes. When she is bored, she gets a tad loud. Its not her fault I can assure you, it is the simple fact that she is the most aggressive of the bunch and here she is stuck riding herd over a man who has an almost phobic dislike of physical conflict that would likely freak the hell out if anything actually came to blows. So the boast you might have taken as a challenge was really just an anxious utterance to hold the percieved monotony at bay, and also a defensive response to the percieved assertion made beforehand by me regarding how to tell bats from vampires in bat form, and most assuredly NOT a threat of intent to do physical harm upon you and yours.

"We would not DREAM of initiating hostilities in such a manner, as you can see were are presently alone and unsupported in the headquarters of your apparently illustrious leader. Were the situation reversed, would you be so blindly foolish as to make such an inflammatory comment with full intent to see it carried out? It is the ultimate lapse of etiquette, do you not agree? Here we are under the auspicious protection of your erstwhile leader, if you refer to him in such a manner as I am not entirely certain how things work around here, and one of us makes a comment so disruptively rude that an apology is unquestionably required, if not the LEAST of the expected reparations. Why, if it were not something of a death sentence, and also a breach of her mission requirements, one would see fit to enforce her departure from the premises. However, I think it might be understandable, at least once maybe, to let the comment slide as a spur-of-the-moment utterance to be later regretted in much the same manner a drunkard might regret insulting bar buddies. So what say we forget all this nastiness, leave the hostility at the door, and you help us figure out exactly which of those bats flying around outside really ARE vampires in bat form?"

Turisas smirked. "Well she now knows where to go if she wants a fight," he replied.

His eyes then turned to the window and he walked over to it. The windows opened as if by magic and the teenage vampire leapt up onto the window ledge. Briefly he looked over at the two guests before leaping out the window. Moments later a bat was seen flying towards the bats.

"Well we know at least one now," Katana yawned.

The bat returned and flew in through the windows before shifting back into the form of Turisas. He landed on his feet and walked toward Sevren.

"Well when I went out there was just the one vampire in bat form," he said.

"One vampire as in 'you', or one vampire as in 'other than you'?" Sevren replied, quirking an eyebrow.

"As in me," Turisas shrugged. "All those bats out there are always bats, no shapeshifters amongst them."

"Amazing how often I see that kind of answer coming..." Sevren said to himself before returning to his seat.

"Hmph," Turisas replied. "Full of yourself are you?"

"Me? Oh no. It simply seems to be a defining characteristic of the previous two days that circumstance has continuously deigned to throw me off by alternating situations of overarching complexity with those of blindingly obvious simplicity. I have begun to look at everything that has a chance of happening with something of a sense of dread because it has caused me to put my foot in my mouth far more often than I would care to admit."

"The rumours were right, you are odd," Turisas remarked.

Katana silently watched.

"As long as people think I am odd, or even moderately amusing, they do not think I am threatening. I go to great lengths to promote such an impression for the sake of maintaining at least some modicum of goodwill. Even the impression of bumbling incompetence has its uses if properly arranged, as it did with the wolves in the forest."

Turisas casually placed his hands behind his head. "Funny how the sacrifices are always the oddballs," he remarked.

"I would not condescend to know their selection trends," Sevren replied with something of a smirk.

"Around here it's known they take victims from the nut houses," Turisas replied. "Guess if you were Draconian you'd be in one."

Katana turned around to hide a smirk.

"If I were a Draconian I would been brought up under differing circumstances. But I am not a Draconian, so it is pointless to dwell upon the implications of alternate lines of circumstance. It is simply necessary to understand that I seem 'odd' to you because it makes you feel more at ease, on conscious and subconscious levels, which facilitates negotiations and other generalized diplomatic proceedings alongside the dispulsion of any seeds of anxiety that might be present at the initiation of such deliberations. Personal pride takes a back seat to the process, and I am sufficiently confident in myself that I need not feel offense at somebody laughing at me rather than with me. As long as the dealing proceeds smoothly, and the other side feels that its needs have been met while the Triad Consortium can still make out like bandits in the deal, I care not for their personal opinion in regards to my... disposition."

Sevren pulled the All-Seeing orb back out and willed it to return to the Wolf, pulling back to a 'satellite' view and willing it to show any indications of movement in the general area caused by anything comparable to a wolf or ninja, and also indicating life signs belonging to the previously mentioned categories. He wondered if the thing would be able to detect necromantic energies or whatever forces would sustain the undead.

"Now, are you going to stand there and chatter on about the Brotherhood or was there some other reason you came into this room beyond possibly picking a fight with my present bodyguard?"

The orb returned to their location and moved up to show a clearing in front of them. Though there appeared to be no one around, there was a fire burning. No doubt they were already aware of the smoke rising from it.

"Depends on her really," Turisas shrugged. "I came for this actually."

He held a rather large book in his hand.

"And do you intend to read that book here, or is there a place that would make for better surroundings?"

"Book has to stay within this room I'm afraid," Turisas smirked.

"Oh well," Sevren replied, not removing his attention from the orb.

"So don't mind me," Turisas said and headed off to another part of the room.

Katana walked up to Sevren. "What do you see?"

"Oddly enough," Sevren began, "somebody has set a campfire. I believe Eamonn and the others have noticed it."

Katana sat on the arm of the settee and looked over at the orb. "The sacrifice site then?" she wondered.

Inside the orb a figure appeared in front of the fire.

"Or something like it," Sevren said, willing the orb to get closer to the fire, but not too close.

Closer they could see that the figure was hooded, his face hidden away. He didn't look to have picked up their scrying.

"I'd say that's a member of the brotherhood," Katana said. "That looks like one of the symbols Tavan found in your room."

"Wouldn't that mean that he is setting up traps, then?"

"Possible," Katana replied. "Could really do with Tavan right now."

"It might also indicate that he knows he is being watched, whether he shows it or not," Sevren replied, then turned to the vampire in the room.

"Turisas, do you have any method of contacting your... 'employer' in at least a semi-quiet manner?"

Turisas popped over. "Of course," he said. He then rubbed his hands together and held them out before an image of Gahlagæer appeared. "I'm now in his mind."

Good job I was prepared, the image replied. What do you want?

"He's setting enchantments about that campfire," Sevren said, figuring that if the image could not hear him, Turisas would relay the message anyway. "They might be wards or traps, so if you lot intend to make a move, be ready for that contingency."

We'll have to change our plan then, Gahlagæer's image replied.

"Heh if you weren't so uppity about having a vampire hunter in the group you could have had a top magic user with you," Katana remarked.

Turisas scowled at her.

I am well aware, but alas I am very good with magic myself.

"We will update you as the situation warrants, though if you do make a move I doubt I would be able to provide you of anything you would not already know."

Thank you, Gahlagæer's image replied.

And with that the image faded out.

"And you know where I am if you need to talk to him again," Turisas said.

"Indeed," Sevren replied before returning to watching the orb like a hawk.

Turisas headed off back to another part of the room. Katana set her fan down and continued to watch the orb, they could see that they had stopped walking and now appeared to be making a plan.

"I wish I could hear what they are saying."

The figure in the clearing appeared to be waving his hand over the fire.

"He wasn't there before," Katana mentioned, noticing a second figure standing behind the first. "Didn't Jandon say that there would probably only be the one member tonight?"

OOC: Sorry, been running a bit of a cold... thought I'd posted after yer last...

"Turisas, be so kind as to inform your... boss... that Binky of the Brotherhood has developed a rather unexpected case of reinforcements."

"Hmph," Turisas smirked.

Once again he did what he had done before and an image of Gahlagæer appeared in his hands.

"Company, seems another member of the brotherhood has shown up."

Gahlagæer nodded. Thank you, we'll keep that in mind while planning out next move.

Meanwhile a strange purple haired girl had appeared from seemingly nowhere and was sat atop a nearby bookcase, watching them.

Sevren noted the new arrival before turning to Turisas again. "Visitors are not frequent around here, are they?"

Gahlagæer's image vanished once again.

"Well there are resident vampires in this castle, Gahlagæer likes to keep us around as we strike fear in the locals," Turisas explained.

The girl giggled and kicked her heels against the bookcase.

"If that's what you meant by visitors like Tarja up there."

"Actually, I mean visitors like me," Sevren replied. "My bodyguard and I seem to be drawing interest rather rapidly. Not that I have an issue, though it might get somewhat crowded..."

"Oh we get plenty of visitors," Turisas shrugged. "Alot don't actually leave alive, others don't come here alive in the first place."

"That raises another question... does turning into a vampire count as life insurance fraud?"

"Well technically no, in the process of becoming a vampire you die and any medical test thereafter will state that you are in fact dead," Turisas pointed out.

"But you are still ambulatory, still capable of sensing and interacting with your surroundings, and also capable of enjoying the money you would get from your own death. Such loopholes have not been recognized yet?"

"But vampires don't breath or have a heartbeat," Turisas pointed out. "And besides if you're found to be a vampire they withhold payment until you suffer final death."

"Then why do vampires need blood?"

Turisas shrugged. "Why do mortals need food?" he replied. "The lifeforce keeps us running."

"Blood is blood. It must still be metabolized in some fashion. If you are dead, without a functional respiratory or circulatory system, such metabolization cannot occur. Is the blood, like the supposed 'lifeforce' it contains, simply absorbed into your body via some unknown means? Do vampires have waste products? If vampires do not breathe, should not the act of speaking require more effort? If vampires do not have an active circulatory system, then how do they get their 'seductive' reputation, after all, they would be unable to... rise to the occasion..."

Sevren returned to his orb, a somewhat ponderous look on his face.

The girl atop the bookcase giggle once again.

"Vampires are classed as undead for a reason," Turisas said. "We are dead yet we still walk the land, no one has ever been able to explain why."

The orb showed that Eamonn and Katsuo had started to move in opposite directions around the clearing. The others just stayed put while the two brotherhood members appeared to be talking to each other.

"Zombies with a twist," Sevren commented. "The same with Liches, Ghouls, Bodachs, what have you. It is not that you walk the land that I wonder about, simply how it is that you digest your food. With no functioning circulatory system, there is no means to metabolize. With no means to metabolize, the blood would simply pool up inside. Mystical types of absorption would also fall under this hindrance as doing so would take more energy than it would give..."

He moved the orb's view around, attempting to see if he could catch a glimpse of the faces under the hoods.

"The blood stops our bodies from decaying," Turisas said. "Here nothing is as easy to explain with science."

No matter where the orb moved to it was just impossible to view their faces.

"So does that mean Vampires have a chronic dandruff problem? If the blood goes towards replacing 'dead' tissue, then it would have to disperse somehow. Do vampires molt?"

"No more than if we were to die," Turisas replied. "Just standing here life energy is seeping out of me, the blood replenishes that, by nature of magic the blood still flows through my veins while my heart no longer beats."

"Where do dead blood cells go then?"

"I don't know," Turisas shrugged. "I may be a vampire but I am no expert on the matter."

"The question requires less of an expert on the matter and more of an expert on matter," Sevren said with a slight quirk of a smile before returning to the orb.

"Malkavian bait," Turisas muttered and returned to his book.

The girl giggled and continued to watch them. Back in the orb, Eamonn and Daniel had seemingly moved into position. The others began to fan out and it looked as though they would attack the two members of the brotherhood in as many directions and possible.

"Hope they don't bring in any more members," Katana remarked.

"I hope so as well. If the Brotherhood agents should triumph, they would learn that the wolves were involved and likely conduct a cautionary purge... and I would also need to go back to get more ninjas..."

Then he turned to Turisas and the girl on the bookcase. "And you lot will be out of work."

"We're not in work to begin with," Turisas pointed out.

Katana looked towards Sevren. "Do you think I should call in backup?"

"Only if more arrive... and even then I would be loathe to call in outside forces. Having Dalziel come out of the Embassy might be considered a hostile act, but I can only guess at what calling in other outside forces into the Dark Valley would cause... I doubt the vamps would appreciate vampire hunters or 'official' ninjas swarming about simply because we are too nervous to sit around out of the line of fire."

Katana nodded. "True," she said. "The main thing is to keep them away from you and I think this castle will be enough."

"Indeed... particularly because I seem to be sprouting bodyguards at an amusing rate..." Sevren turned a momentary glance at the girl on the bookcase, "or at least folks who are paying attention to me. Such may or may not be a blessing."

"From her it's not," Turisas smirked. "Since she's a Malkavian, she's insane."

The girl continued to stare at Sevren.

"Of course you said I would be right at home with exactly that kind of person."

The girl grinned. "I can see the music, no ones going to take me alive," she then said.

Turisas looked over at Sevren and nodded.

Sevren blinked for a few moments, then grinned slightly. He brought his free hand up to display it to the girl, showing first the palm, then the back of his hand with fingers spread out. He then gripped the arm of his chair and pulled back. With a hearty pop his hand separated from his arm at the wrist, and he nodded towards the 'disarmed' hand.

For a moment it did not move, then with a couple exploratory twitches, the hand started to skitter about on the arm of the chair, before coming to rest as if looking at the girl on the bookcase. It seemed to stare right back at the girl, then it spasmed slightly, some small speaker in the hand piping in with the barking of what sounded like a Yorkshire Terrier.

Yap! Yapyapyapyapyap!

"Shush you," Sevren said, then reattached the hand to his arm and returned his attention to the orb.

The girls eyes widened and she stared at Sevren.

"Oh no," Katana groaned. "If you've set her off I'm going to stake you."

The girl pointed at him staying silent. Behind them Turisas chuckled.

"Daddy!" the girl yelled after a moments silence. "I see the music."

Within the orb, the first brotherhood member drew a large sword and with a swift move he beheaded the other member.

"Well, I know they saw THAT," Sevren said, wide-eyed at the rather unexpected development. "But hey... anything that cuts down their numbers..."

"The sacrifice," Katana said. "That must be why their numbers keep changing."

She then watched the remaining brotherhood member walk over and pick up his comrades head. That was when Eamonn and Daniel leapt out from the clearing and headed to wards them. The next thing they saw was the head being knocked away and caught by Robin.

"Here we go."

"They might wish to keep a wary eye on the head... if the Brotherhood agent is undead than having its head separated from its shoulders would not be inherently detrimental."

Katana nodded.

"Knowing Robin he'll have a trick up his sleeve," Turisas remarked.

Sure enough there was a bright light in Robins hands and the head vanished. The remaining brotherhood member took a defensive stance as the group surrounded him.

"You think they'll get him alive?" Katana wondered.

Sevren slowly turned to look at Katana with a half-amused unblinking stare before returning his attention to the orb with a chuckle. "After so many folks have told me that the Brotherhood of the Wraith is made up of the undead, asking if we will capture on alive seems as something of an amusing joke."

"The older members are undead," Turisas pointed out. "Most likely he'll be a newer member and therefore still alive as opposed to undead."

"And beside you can still kill the undead," Katana added.

By now the remaining member was trying to fight them off.

"While it might indeed be possible to kill the undead, wondering if they will be able to bring it back 'alive' is something of an amusing contradiction. Now, if he IS alive, that might be the case, but if he is a lich of some form, then it might be better to say 'I hope they bring him back with the ability to answer questions'"

"Same difference," Katana shrugged. "You were trying to say vampires were still alive earlier."

"Actually, I was trying to understand whether Vampires need use the bathroom."

"No we don't," Turisas replied.

"Which, of course brings up the following consideration: If there is no means for ridding your body of dead cells, then there must be some form of matter annihilation reaction taking place... which would rather swiftly cause you to explode..."

"Strangely enough that though we don't breath we can still belch and break wind," Turisas smirked.

"We really didn't need to know that," Katana snapped at him.

"Maybe vampires fart dust? The dead cells would not consist of overmuch matter, likely just a puff of expended gas and organic leftovers would be sufficient to expunge the system of all possible contaminants..."

"Well that takes care of that mystery then," Turisas remarked.

The girl looked at her arm as if she were looking at a watch although she wasn't wearing one. She did look as though she was expecting something. Whatever she was waiting for crashed through the winder sending glass everywhere, in an instant Katana had opened her fan and moved into position protecting Sevren from flying glass and whatever it was that had crashed through the window. While the girl didn't move a muscle and instead continued to stare at her arm, Turisa dived out of the way as a smouldering lump hit the floor with a loud thump and skidded to a halt, not moving but it did look as though it had been human.

"State Farm, as they say, will not believe this one," Sevren commented in an almost disturbingly nonchalant manner as he stood up from his chair and pocketed the orb with one hand while he picked up the chair in the other, flipping it around as one would open a butterfly knife before setting it back down, facing towards the 'intruder', and leaning upon the back of it with his arms crossed.

Turisas and Katana both walked over to the corpse.

"The Brotherhood," they said in unison.

"Better keep a safe distance just in case," she then warned Sevren.

Turisas knelt beside it and prodded it. "Certainly dead, no chance of them resurrecting the sod in this castle," he said. "See Gahlagæer's castle does at least make sure they're very dead if they get through the defences."

"I say we set fire to it and burn it into ash," Sevren commented. "Brotherhood folks being dead strike me as not being an improvement on the situation. While they might not be able to resurrect that fellow, animation is a wholly other process according to what I can remember, and might slip through the cracks."

Katana reached into her fan and pulled out a katana and promptly removed the charred from the body and lobbed it at Turisas. "No doubt you have magical chests around here," she said. "Place it in on and put it in the deepest dungeon."

Turisas nodded and left the room.

"Separating the head and body keeps the spirit trapped, burning it to ash allows the spirit to come back and can be quite nasty."

"What if they have a method of animation that does not require re-infusing the body with its spirit? Such would not necessarily require the head, so it might be prudent to put the body in a box as well..."

"Well just the heart actually," Katana replied. "The body can be destroyed but the heart and the head are needed."

Katana then proceeded to cut the heart from the charred body.

"Want a souvenir?"

"How very dark-ritual-ish of you..." Sevren commented as he brought out a small tupperware container from one of his pockets and opened it to accept the organ.

"If anything I can beat somebody over the head with it."

Katana placed the heart into the tupperware container.

"Best to keep it in a secure safe," she then said. "Although there shouldn't be any risk of people coming after it, you never know. Necromancers can be unpredictable."

"When Dalziel gets the spacefold portals operational again, I shall be certain to send this his way," Sevren replied while pocketing the tupperware container elsewhere on his body, surprisingly enough leaving no sign that he was actually carrying something so bulky.

"So I wonder how they're getting on with the other brotherhood member," Katana said. "Bet they're not having as easier a time."

She calmly placed the katana back inside the fan.

Sevren shrugged slightly and moved to sit back down, bringing out the orb again and willing it to show the fight in the forest.

The group were walking away from the area. Robin and Eamonn were dragging the two brotherhood members behind them, both brotherhood members were tied up using glowing ropes despite one of them having been beheaded by the other.

"Shit, looks like we missed the fight," Katana sighed.

"I suspect however that a flaming corpse flying in through the window was a suitably spectacular alternative."

"True, guess we better wait til they get back here," Katana yawned.

"Which should not be long, if they employ the method used to get US here..."

"Not if they have a live brotherhood member with them," Turisas pointed out. "Teleportation could give him the chance to escape."

"Of course, a several-hour drive to whichever castle might be nearest would also provide ample opportunity for the captured Brotherhood member to divest himself of his/her/its keepers."

Turisas laughed. "Gahlagæer's car itself is a powerful forcefield, nothing can get in or out if need be as in this case," he explained. "Especially in the boot of the car, unlike during teleportation he'll never spend any time at all out of them, in that split second during teleportation he could escape from another dimension."

Sevren thought for a moment, then shrugged. "It has been so long since the Godulans even utilized automobiles that such considerations do not enter my mind as swiftly as I would care to admit."

Turisas raised an eyebrow. "In the rush for greater technology the basics are always forgotten," he said. "That is the curse of technologically superior civilisations."

"The benefits do outweigh the disadvantages, however. We do not have to worry so much about somebody attempting a bombing run while in transit to our destination, as there is no real space between. Your employer might still have to... after all, while the vehicle might be effective at preventing folks from getting in or out... what stops a fellow from making off with the entire vehicle?"

Turisas shrugged. "That's something you'll have to ask Gahlagæer himself," he replied. "On the other hand it won't be taken by anyone in the boot."

"They did send somebody flying over here in an attempt to catch me, and my personal experiences with dracoliches suggests that they have the capacity to throw things at us that could concievably pick up a vehicle... damn things crashed my embassy, it was hardened against orbital bombardments and they caved the bloody roof in... bloody insane...

Sevren sunk further into his chair, turning back to Turisas only after a few moments of further malicious mumbling.

"Perhaps an escort of some form?"

"Dracoliches, that is so the brotherhood," Turisas remarked.

"Escort?" Katana asked. "They'll probably have something in reserve if they send those again."

"Like what, gargoyles?"

"Gahlagæer is a necromancer and good necromancers know how to turn undead," Turisas replied. "As a powerful necromancer that will include dracoliches."

"Of course, each time they have tried to acquire me or smear me across the pavement, it has been a different method each time. What if they use landmines?"

Turisas laughed, "Like I said, forcefield," he reminded Sevren. "In the car you are safe."

"It is not the inside of the car I am worried about, if you would recall. I am worried about what might occur to the car itself. Perhaps the landmine would be sufficient to turn the car over, where it would immediately be set upon by all manner of unpleasant looking creatures tasked with carting the vehicle off and tossing it off a cliff...

"Admitted it is a bit of a stretch, but it could happen! Maybe! Possibly! Perchance!"

"It is possible yes but with the forcefield it's like throwing an old toy car around," Turisas explained. "You'd feel no more then what you'd feel in a ship so you'd want to hang tight though."

"Which is not the point. While they might not be harmed in the proceedings, they would very likely have to get out of the car."

"In that case Gahlagæer's teleportation skills will have to be used as the last resort," Turisas said.

The strange girl vampire began to laugh.

"At which point they would risk losing their captive, as you say. I shall trust that the brotherhood is sufficiently startled by the recent developments to prevent them from mounting any significant form of countermeasure."

Turisas placed his hands behind his head. "Well when their life is in danger like that it is a risk that they will have to take, but for now the sensible thing is to drive the captive here," he replied. "Of course the brotherhood may well be still outside the castle, we've had one in here already."

"However crispy that one agent might be," Sevren said, kicking at a small pile of ash left behind by the Brotherhood Agent's corpse.

"There will be more either way," Turisas said. "They know you're here now but they won't be able to get in without being barbecued."

"I shall keep to simplicity and hope that they all come 'char-broiled'."

Turisas laughed. "Somehow I don't think they'll be going for that approach again," he replied.

"Of course, not, these folks are 'smart'. Would have been smarter to not target me though..."

"Guess they didn't foresee us getting involved then," Katana remarked.

"They seem to miss quite a bit of information in whatever foretellings they attempt."

Turisas placed his hands behind his head. "They are more after what power they can grab then what the future holds."

"Stupid them, then," Sevren replied, then curiously nestled into the chair. "Wake me up when they get here, I likely will not get another shot at a snooze until whatever it is gets resolved."

And with that, he conked out. A small automated voice gave some small advisories about how to 'disturb' in case of emergency, then began a small audio loop of near-imperceptible snoring.

"Oh definitely strange," Turisas said with a roll of the eyes.

Feeling decidably peckish, the vampire decided to head out and see if he could go to a nearby village for some food. That was of course if the brotherhood weren't outside the castle grounds waiting for a chance to get at Sevren.

Some hours later, Gahlagæer's car pulled into the castle courtyard. The strange vampire girl who had spent those hours staring at Sevren began to laugh.

Like lightning, Sevren bolted back to consciousness and a standing position, groggily muttering, "Giggity?"

"Giggity!" the vampire girl yelled and clapped her hands.

"Great now you've set her off," Katana remarked from the doorway just before Daniel teleported into the room.

"Was told I'd find you here," he grinned. "We've arrived, they're taking the brotherhood guy down to the dungeons."

"You want to go down and see him once he securely locked up?" Daniel then asked.

"I don't think that's safe," Katana said, shaking her head.

Whoop... got caught up in so many other threads I forgot that this one needed a post.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I believe it would be useful to at least make some attempt at figuring what they are up to. Though I would prefer to keep at least a relatively safe distance away from him, her, it, or whatever. Besides, I cannot seem to target the Brotherhood folks with my orb."

"Sensei is a good interrogator," Katana told him. "He'll be able to get anything out of him."

"And besides, Gahlagæer has some pretty good torture devices in his dungeons," came the voice of Turisas from the doorway. "You should hear the victims scream."

Katana scowled at the vampire. "You're disgusting."

"I would prefer to avoid discussion on the infliction of pain in order to gather information. Such talk tends to make my stomach heave."

Turisas grinned.

"Don't you even think about it," she warned him before looking back at Sevren. "I'd suggest not going near the dungeon any time soon anyway."

"Indeed, I believe I shall remain here and leave the... questioning in the more capable and more interested hands of others..."

"Sensible choice," Katana nodded.

She went and sat down once again, leaving Sevren to his own devices. Daniel looked towards him.

"So she didn't bore you to death then?" he asked.

"I prefer 'boring,' actually. It means nothing has gone wrong. And beyond a large flaming corpse flying through that window over yonder, we have not been afflicted with any deviations from whatever constitutes daily drudgery."

Daniel raised an eyebrow and looked over at the broken window. "That explains that then."

Sevren took the tupperware container out of his coat pocket and displayed it to Daniel. "Want his heart?"

A look of disgust appeared on Daniel's face. "Urgh! His heart? That's disgusting."

"We had to put it somewhere," Sevren said while putting the little container back in its respective pocket. "Would you have preferred to slip over it just after you teleported in?"

Daniel just shook his head. "No, keeping someones heart is just disgusting," he said repeating himself. "Why'd you keep it?"

"Because otherwise somebody might be able to bring the schmuck back. Duh."

"Then don't wave it around like that," Daniel then scowled at him.

"Oh why not?" Turisas grinned. "I smell Cyredathem strongest of all on you, now that's disgusting."

The young prince looked towards the vampire. "Fuck you."

Turisas grinned even more. "Such language from a prince," he said. "You'd make a good vampire."

Daniel just scowled at him. Him a vampire, would never happen not in a million years.

"I would love to be the one to sire you."

"Do that and you are dust," Katana warned.

Disgusted, Daniel decided to leave. "I am going to check on the others, see how they're doing with the prisoner," he said and on that a cloud of purple smoke announced his departure.

Can you feel, the love toniiiiiiight...

Sevren couldn't help but smirk at the vitriol spewing between the vampire and the prince. The look from Daniel in particular was capable of chiseling a statue to dust in seconds. Draconian history must be quite a riveting topic, as one would suspect that several brawls would break out over the course of various chapters.

With the prince's aggravated egress, the diplomat simply sat down and brought his orb out again. He focused it on Eamonn and Daniel with specific intent to see what was going on.

Daniel was stood next to Eamonn and Katsuo in a dingy dungeon. They appeared to be watching something, moving the orbs perception would show that they were watching Gahlagæer working his magic on the prisoner with an eerie yellow glow.

Sevren kept his attention on the 'operation', intrigued by the magic, but more interested in the nature of any information the 'guest' would divulge.

But the prisoner wasn't speaking, not through choice as he was unconscious. The brotherhood members face could be seen, the skin was pale and the eyesockets sunken, eyes closed.

Katana and come over to look at the orb.

"He looks dead," she remarked.

"A minor inconvenience. I have the sneaking suspicion that being dead does not necessarily preclude one from divulging information. After all, Turisas is dead, but he is quite mobile and chatty... to say nothing of antagonistic."

"Well I am a vampire," Turisas smirked. "Necromancers can put themselves into a self-induced coma to avoid questioning."

"So can I," Sevren replied. "It is quite relaxing, actually. In any event, nothing can stop a determined questioner from getting the answers he or she seeks. All it takes is patience."

Turisas laughed. "Sure maybe a year, a decade or even a century," he replied. "They're tough bastards to crack especially the higher level necromancers."

"Maybe. It simply depends on how you ask the questions."

Turisas shook his head. "No it all depends on whether you can get their brain restarted or if you're able to shift through all the information in their brain."

"What, you mean you do not have brainscanning? How interesting. There might be potential for trade after this situation is taken care of."

"Well not the kind that works on brains firewalled with magic," Turisas remarked. "You have to do that manually and depending on the levels of magic involved you'll have a hard time breaking through with mere technology."

"Psh," Sevren waved a dismissive hand. "We scan Artificial Intelligences in and out of custom made biotech brains with impunity. If need be we could pick that fellow's brain apart molecule by molecule, reconstruct the pathways between synapses to determine their structural consistency, and very literally recreate that fellow's mind on a computer. Then it all just comes down to point-and-click. Unfortunately, it requires a rather large rig and a FRESH brain."

"Well no fresh brains around here," Katana remarked.

After an hour or so, Gahlagæer and Eamonn appeared. They walked over to where Sevren was and briefly looked at each other before Eamonn spoke.

"We have a possible hideout for the brotherhood here within Dark Valley," he told Sevren. "Gahlagæer thinks he should send one of his armies out to attack it."

"By all means," Sevren replied, putting his orb away and turning to Gahlagæer. "Do not let me hold you back on that account. At the present time, the Brotherhood counts as a threat to both you and the royal house, to say nothing of me. Were I the one in control of any force of note, you can be certain that I would have no qualms about terminating the Brotherhood whenever and wherever it might be found."

Gahlagæer nodded. "The problem now is coming up with a plan," he then said.

Sevren shrugged dismissively. "Do not ask me about that. I was just a sensors adjutant for a couple years. I neither was nor wished to be promoted to captaincy. Tactical thinking is not something I consider among my strong points."

Gahlagæer raised an eyebrow. "Ah but you'd love to get involved in the planning, am I correct?"

"With all due respect: No, I would not," Sevren replied. "I do not know what you are capable of, nor do I know what they are capable of in turn. One who does not know his own forces or those of his enemy has no business in coordinating anything in relation to either. I am a diplomat, not a general. My work starts after the war.

"You, however, have a better understanding of both your forces and what the enemy is capable of. It would be wrong of me to even presume to have any tactical advice in regards to what appears to be an impending confrontation."

Gahlagæer smirked. "True," he replied. "But since you are involved perhaps it would be an idea too be involved, you will need to know what is going on."

"How, pray tell? By getting in the way? All the tactical information I have, so too does Eamonn and the three ninjas in my employ. They would know better how to employ it as well."

"If something goes wrong we'll have to get you away again," Eamonn said. "That escape plan will easier to plan out with you around."

Sevren rolled his eyes in exasperation and rose to his feet like some earthen giant arising from dormancy, almost 'Crashing' into a standing position. "Fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine. If you lot must insist on pulling me into something that for all intents and purposes I neither know nor care about, with such vehemence I might add, then let it be known that I came despite alerting you to all reservations. I would request one concession though. If you lot intend to include me into all of this planning, it would be best to involve the one formally charged by my superiors into overseeing my security. Dalziel's input would be far more useful than mine."

Gahlagæer raised an eyebrow.

"But you are involved already," Eamonn said. "The Brotherhood is gaining strength and I fear we may not be able to protect you forever." He shook his head. "Both of you then, besides we will all be involved in the planning and we can't leave you out of our site."

"So whom might this Dalziel be?" Gahlagæer then asked.

"Head of security at the embassy. He brought down one of the Dracoliches that attacked us there. He also dealt with the brute after the attack that led to me hiring on the ninjas. I dare say he would be more the voice of experience than I. Will I be able to contact him using standard comm channels?"

"Of course," Gahlagæer said and clicked his fingers creating a momentary yellow spark. "Now you can."

Sevren nodded slightly and reached into his jacket, pulling out a small disc shaped device. With a twitch of a finger he activated it and brought it to his ear. A voice began to speak, clear and calm and with almost robotic precision, audible by everybody nearby.

"Ambassador, what news?"

"Things are about to blow up and they want my 'strategic advice' on how to go about blowing such things up."

"That is not your job."

"I told them that. They still want me there."

"Would it not be more efficient to bring in a military commander to assist in necessary coordination?"

"Yes, it would. Other than you, do you know anybody presently planetside that fits the bill?"

"No."

"Good. Do you have the spacefold portal back up yet?"

"It has been ready for some time. We were awaiting communications from you."

"Good... prepare for a transit."

"I shall make ready for your arrival--"

"Not mine, yours. And make sure to get the cougars ready too."

"There must be some mistake. The rules are I cannot step outside the embassy. I am a living declaration of war if I step outside to smoke without prior permission from the Draconian government."

"You are not stepping into Draconian territory. I have the local administrator right in front of me and he has already given permission."

"Acknowledged. Notify me when you are prepared for my arrival."

The comm cut off, and Sevren returned the device to his pocket. "Assuming that the castle is warded against interior teleportation methods, would you happen to have a relatively well-defended place that Dalziel would be able to place a spacefold portal?"

Gahlagæer nodded. "Given a timeframe I can allow for transport into the courtyard," he suggested. "A momentary bubble in the wards against teleportation is allowed in the courtyard with a simple command and it's very well defended should anything nasty tag along."

"Excellent. Would you be so kind as to lead me to this courtyard so I can relay coordinates?"

Gahlagæer nodded, "Come this way then," he said and began to head off.

"I'll go with you then," Eamonn announced.

The damned child just nodded.

Sevren brought another small device and followed the other two down to the courtyard. "Inform me when it is safe to relay coordinates."

Gahlagæer nodded and led Sevren down to the courtyard.

"Here we are," he said. "Stowalwastinawa." He then clapped his hands twice and looked towards him. "It is safe, quick now."

Sevren walked into the middle of the courtyard and clicked a button on the device in his hand, then walked back to the edge to stand by Gahlagæer. Moments later, a massive shaft of light burst forth from the ground, eventually fading into what would normally be a doorway-ish affair. In this case however, the portal was far larger than typical, as if to permit a tank or similarly sized vehicle entry into the area.

On the far side of the portal, visible repairs could be seen taking place as Godulan workers seemed to already have the building back into relatively working order. Standing before the portal itself though, were a pair of giant glistening metallic mechanoid cats, standing as high as Sevren's head at the shoulder, in an escort formation around the effective man of the hour.

Dalziel stepped through, the Cougars keeping perfect pace with his movements, and the portal closed behind him. He came to stand before Sevren and nodded towards Gahlagæer.

"You have provided me with clearance to leave the embassy... will there also be clearance given to cause liberal amounts of physical torment upon those who sent the dracoliches?"

Gahlagæer nodded. "Preferably at their lair rather then at my castle," he replied. "They'll probably do alot of damage."

"So can I," Dalziel replied evenly, turning towards Gahlagæer to show his remarkably black eyes. A curious black mist seemed to flow from his eyelids, only to dissipate within moments. He gestured towards the two mechanical cats at his side.

"This is Poofy, and this is Fluffy. They eat dead people."

Gahlagæer raised an eyebrow, showing Dalziel his own black eyes.

"Interesting names," he remarked. "Well I can guarantee them, well almost certainly guarantee them dead people to eat."

He smirked and turned to lead them back inside.

"Now if you will follow me, we have some serious planning to do."

"Indeed," Dalziel replied, and the whole assortment moved to follow Gahlagæer out of the Courtyard.

And so Gahlagæer led them back into the castle into what he called his planning room. It consisted of a large table with chairs all around it, much like a dining hall.

"Make yourselves comfortable," he said.

The giant cats curled up into separate corners and dozed. Sevren took a seat at the table, but Dalziel simply chose to stand behind the ambassador.

Appearing on the table from out of thin air was a model of a large run down castle.

"This is the brotherhoods hideout," Gahlagæer said. "Problem is finding the traps."

"I assume that the traps are magical in nature," Dalziel replied, "Though not all. Likely physical traps such as pitfalls and dart fusillades overlapped by arcane wards and ghostly assassins roaming about. There might also be significant underground catacombs, so a tactical orbital bombardment would be out of the question until we know exactly how deep and how far such corridors would extend.

"Might I inquire as to whether the castle is placed on a hill? that might work as a confining factor."

The model moved out to show a more or less flat area surrounded by trees.

"As you can see it is set deep in the forest," Gahlagæer explained. "The forest itself is a trap of its own accord, dangers lurk behind each tree."

The model moved back to the castle, zooming in on a pit.

"That is the one pit trap I know of, the other traps are indeed magical and are hard to locate from a distance. we would have to learn them as we went through the castle."

"Hmm. What I would give to have the General with us," Dalziel commented while scanning the model. "Barring that, I would need around ten others from my division in order to assist..."

"A Reality Sever is out of the question," Sevren interrupted. "The area is too large for a standard cast, and you lot need to be in the center, not on the outskirts."

"A reality sever?" Gahlagæer asked.