The hylian looked around the kitchen. He glanced quickly at Noval, and took a few steps forward, to ask a question. It seemed strange that their arrival was not met with hostile action. He at least expected some Hakiem traps set up around the castle. North Castle was old, so they were bound to suspect some secret passages.

"It seems deserted.... where are the Hakiems."

Pyre hoped he hadn't spoken too soon, and kept his dagger at the ready. He knew what awaited them in the captured castle.

'I thought it might be something like that.' Raven mumbled. Although he still didn't agree with her being here, there was nothing to do about it now. 'At least she'll have someone to talk to while she's not talking to me.' He says gruffly; in reponse to her Skye talking ability.

The kitchen. Why couldn't we come out somewhere more profitable, a treasure room or even a bedroom. They have to keep there jewellery somewhere. He stepped out into the room and drew his dagger he was glad to be out of yet another subterranean tunnel but from now on they could be under attack at any moment. He also wondered, if this was the kitchen, where are the cooks?

Alpha shrugs slightly at Kasei's comment. "I'm just going where the general said. I had no idea the tunnel would lead to a kitchen either." The last of the group to emerge into the culinary area, Noval chuckles slightly from behind the rest of them. "Yes, yes, I suppose it is a bit cliche, but it serves the purpose well enough. Although I will admit, that tunnel was built more as an escape route than as an entryway to the Castle . . . the kitchen seemed like a fairly good location to the constructors, I guess.

"Besides," he adds, looking straight at Raven, Fang, and Kasei, "do you honestly expect us to be so stupid as to have a secret passage leading to one of the greatest stores of wealth in the entire world?"

Dogura's Awareness Check fails (11+1[Roll+SPI]), and he notices nothing out of the ordinary . . . well, at least what could be considered ordinary for a kitchen responsible for creating meals for the Royal Family of one of the mightiest nations in the world. However, Pyralin's observation does cause Noval to begin looking around more thoroughly as well - like Raven, he too has noticed a distinct lack of the royal servants. "Well," he says softly, "this is really more of a storage room for the cooks. The Hakiems have no reason to come in here unless they're looking to make a meal or two."

The general turns back and closes up their entryway. Camouflaging the passage is a stack of flour sacks - all fake of course, made merely to disguise the exit - which is surrounded by several such sacks. Its hiding spot is secure indeed. Then he motions to a second doorway, which lies in the wall to the left of their own entrance. "Through there is the main kitchen area." He doesn't add that in truth, there should be a loud commotion coming from the next room . . . which is dead silent.

The samurai hadnt taken these facts into account, and almost slapped himself for his own incompetence.
Dogura is hesitant to charge into the next room. Everything he was told him to look before he leaped. He trys to pick up even the tiniest sound with his ears, but hears nothing. This is what worries him. Nothing... not even a mouse, or air currents. He nodded at Fang, and the mage again felt the floor for any vibrations. [Awareness Check] OOC: Yes, Again. I learned from FoG3.

Pyre carefully walked towards the next room, after Noval. No sound came from it either. He was starting to get seriously worried. Either the Hakiems had done a very good job of killing the inhabitance of the castle, or this was a trap. Even as he processed this however, he began to think of other possiblities. What if servants, and gaurds were hiding somewhere in the castle. They could be a valuble asset. The hylian said as much to Noval, for Pyralin thought that he would know likely hiding spots. Some of the servants had to have been down in the kitchen, and mabye they left a trail to a safe haven within the castle. [Track check]

He agreed with Dogura's caution. Everything shouldn't be this quiet. Something was definitly going on in here. He tightened the grip on his dagger as he worked.

Seeing Dogura and Fang checking the door, Rose listened to Pyre. She followed the young Hylian's lead and also began to look for tracks any captives with wits around them left behind [Track check]. Unlike Pyre, she drew her sword. She also said to Noval, "Feel free to tell us anything of use. If you know that I was a general, then you should know that I most likely have been in Tarm Castle before."

OOC: Good for you, Dogura. Actually, I messed up last time; used SPI instead of INT for the roll. Oh well, too bad, let's keep going.

IC:
Fang's Awareness Check succeeds (13+3[Roll+INT]). The mage can actually feel a lot of vibrations coming from the kitchen, enough for hundreds of people to be there. Whether these people are meant to be friend or foe cannot be determined just yet, at least not through his own means. Could Pyralin and Rose help with their Tracking abilities? Unfortunately not, for both Rangers fail in their checks (Rose: 4+3[Roll+INT], Pyralin: 1+7[Roll+INT]) and cannot find anything of interest in the room.

Noval nods his agreement with Pyre's acknowledgment. Indeed, if they could manage to locate any additional forces - especially Hylian Knights, and especially more members of the RER - it would only be for the better. The general softly speaks, for he is relatively close to the door and does not wish to be heard by those beyond. "There are several such places I can think of, all throughout the castle. Hidden caches of weaponry, secret storage rooms, arcane passageways; all of these were incorporated into the design of this castle. I can think of quite a few, but there aren't many in this area; the architects didn't put any one hiding spot too close to another."

He grins at Rose's comment. "Of course, General Hillmound. Don't worry, I am aware of such things. I haven't seen the blueprints of Tarm Castle, unfortunately, but if it is anything similar to the ruins we have of Tarm in this world then you know what we're dealing with."

Shada abruptly pushes her way past Noval, pressing her ear against the doorway. She utilizes her own abilities in Tracking, and succeeds (11+3+3[Roll+INT+L2]). There seem to be only a single pair of footprints in the room, spotted in one spot where he had stepped in a spilled bag of flour and two more places where his feet had left behind the flour that had adhered to his shoe. The space between the three steps that form suggest that whoever was here was in a hurry, as if giving it just a quick look-over.

But even her Sheikah senses can hardly pick up the sole noise coming from beyond the door: heavy, fear-filled breathing. She quickly tells the others, allowing them to decide how to use this information.

"Fear?" kasei says..."You sure it was fear? Oh well, I say we open the door and see who it is; if its an innocent, let them go, if not, take em hostage!" the mercenary says, then goes up to the door and knocks on it. Hard. "Anyone in there?" he asks, then turns to the others, shrugging his shoulders...

Rose used her free left hand to pinch the bridge of her nose. "Din's Fire, can you get any more idiotic," she hissed. "Has it occurred to you that the Hakiems could hear a knock like that?" She tensed up even more, ready to fight just in case Kasei's recent bought of stupidity caused problems.

Fang's concerened stare at Kasei told Dogura everything he needed to know as to what lie in wait for them. Dogura stood directly in front of the door, which possibly held many Hakiems in it, and drew his sword, preparing to silently kill any Hakiems who may have heard the noise. Dogura shot Kasei a verbaly abusive telepathic note, and trained his eyes on the doorway.

Fang stood up, confident in the samurai's abilities, and made his way over to the door that Shada had specified. "Nice work doll face. Now to see who, or what lies behind this door. Although we could have gone without the knock, I agree with kasei. If they're innocent, one of us could escort them out of the castle, and to safety. If they seem capable of fighting, they'll have no choise than to join us." Fang stepped forward to pull the door open, or perhaps off of the hinges, seeing as how tightly he gripped the knob. He slwoly pulled the door open, revealing whatever may be inside...

Noval practically slaps himself for Kasei's ignorance, and Alpha can only slump his shoulders as he witnesses firsthand the man's ignorant foolishness. Shada lets out a moan, which only ends once Fang calls her a 'doll face'. Even before the door is two inches open, she starts swinging wildly at him, with an intense rage powering her strikes. At first she only tries to get him with her well-aimed fists; it's only a matter of moments before her daggers come into play, and at that point Alpha recovers from his shock - he's actually never seen this side of her, and for that he counts himself quite lucky - and rushes forward to grab her.

But the door is opened, and it soon is kicked open the rest of the way. On the other side is a lone Hakiem with a red handkerchief tied around his arm. A flurry of feathers fly straight into his face, pushing the L5 Hakiem to the ground as Skye launches into the room beyond. Squawking back, Calla quickly interprets for the rest: "There's a bunch of people in white uniforms, probably cooks and servants, all tied up in the kitchen. Three more Hakiems are guarding them, one with a green handkerchief!"

Noval charges, stomping right over the first Hakiem as he enters the kitchen area. Shelves, stoves, and a large fireplace decorate the walls to the areaThe once pristine area is indeed littered with hostages, but fortunately the three Hakiems still standing have now turned to face Noval. But something's wrong. 'The Hakiems standard guard formation consists of five men, four L5's and one L4. Where did the other L5 go . . . ?'

One of the three doorways out of the kitchen bursts open. Beyond are three more Hakiems, one L5, one L4, and finally one L3. This doesn't look good.

Hakiem L5 x 4
Hakiem L4 x 2
Hakiem L3 x 1
[size=0]Hey, if you want to know their stats, then just head over the Traveler's Hostel. Check the profile I put up on the Hakiems. This message brought to use by Font Size Zero, the best way to encode a secret message that anyone can see. TM.[/size]
OOC: I once again ask that the few remaining people that have yet to send me their stats/abilities list to please do so. Makes things easier on me as a GM, and that means I'll be nicer to you (no, not really).

Dogura was astonished. He had not expected this much trouble so fast. Not that he was dissapointed, but he had hoped for a smooth ride. Well, had Kasei attracted attention or not, this was in an Inevitable face off. The group of warriors would be more than enough to handle a group this small. What worried the samuari, and Fang as well, was if they were capable of calling reinforcements. Dogura's sword was already in his hand, and Fang's eyes began to glow, as well as an odd marking on his right cheek. They had prepared for battle, and were seeking to dish out some pain.

Dogura decided to take out one of the two Lv4 Hakiems. He decided this, already in motion. As he took off, he was silent. His tabi didnt make a single sound as they (seemingly) hit the floor. He aimed his sword for the enemy's left lung. When he was within 10 feet of the Hakiem, he sank into a shadow, as to confuse the enemy, and negate it's defences. He shot out of a shadow from behind the Hakiem, and shoved his sword straight for it's right side (from behind, so as to strike the left lung).

Fang was not about to let Dogura manage a kill when he himself had not yet attempted to attack. The mage spread his arms out, and seemed to gather energy. In fact, upon closer inspection, it seemed as though he was giving off energy! He then clasped his arms together to attack with a certain element of nature. [Elemetal Burst] The attack was concentrated on the only LV3 Hakiem. His eyes glowed ominously, as his attack was to purge the enemy's existance into nothingness...

OOC: Remember what we discussed about Fang's attacks Alpha? I dont know what element it is yet, but you know how he attacks with his powers. Thanks.

He makes his way in to the ajoining room and is not to happy with what he sees, a large group of seven Hakiems, all who want to make their welcome an unpleasant one. He also spies the kitchen staff tied up around the room as well as a variety of kitchen instruments ready to be played with.

He looks at the Hakiems and takes down their levels; Logically, I should go after the strongest first and work down to the weaker ones. That's dependant on if I want to see how quickly I can become a pile of body parts, on the other hand, the weaker ones may not prove to be much of a challange and getting rid of them first would only be a hinderance. That wouldn't be much fun. After a long bout of contemplation he choose his course of action and ran into the fray with his dagger ready. Then he avoided any confrontation and went to free one of the many hostages

"Damn, well I guess I deserved this..." kasei says, then apologizes and assures everyone that he'll be more careful next time...then the hakiems show up, and kasei pulls out his daggers, but then realizes he needs long raged, so he puts away diablos. He pulls out his bow, ad fires three arrows... "ha, get through this!"



OOC: yes, kasei is an idiot....

Pyre sighed as Kasei went an pounded on the door. No caution. No stealth. But he knew he wouldn't have time to do anything about it, for the fighting had begun. The hylian slid into the room behind Dogura, both of his daggers out and ready. He watched as Raven went to free the captives, and guessed that it would be best to cover the theif. He moved through the room next to him, and then suddenly broke into a sprint at the nearest Hakiem (probably a L5 as probability dictates, but if not... whatever).

The ranger used slightly strange, but effective tactics. He slid, allowing his feet to shoot forward while the rest of him came down to the floor, and than sprang forward in a leap, flying at his opponent, gaining inertia without having to run very far. He two daggers lanced through the air, aiming at the top and bottom of the Hakiem's chest. [dual wielding L1]