Dogura awaited the others at the dungeon enterance. The samurai had arrived earlier than planned. It was 5:53, and he it was getting a little hotter. He again glanced at the stairs that lead into the abyss. He had'nt any idea how big the place was on the inside. The darkness cultivated Dogura's fears, and seemed to want to drag him inside. He waited patiently for the others, Pyre, and Blank.

Pyre approaced the entrance to the temple. As he exited the shifting sands, he was visible to any standing at the entrance to the dungeon. He looked up at the sky, and though it was partially obscured by the blowing sand, he could tell that it was near 6 o clock. He smiled slightly, and nodded at Dogura. "So why are we here?" he asked. He didn't know much about being chosen, or the quest, but he assumed it was important, and that more would be revealed as the quest continued. He looked at the dungeon for a moment, wondering what he would experience in there.

Dogura heard Pyre comming before he was visible. After hearing the man's question, he decided it was legit to tell him, and only fair. "Alright Pyre, I'm about to hit you with a lot of information. We may as well trade information, and get to know eachother until Blank arrives." The samurai glanced behind him at the dark staircase. "I was as surprised as you when i realized you were chosen. You see, Im going to start at the beginning." Dogura sat down, indicating that it would be a long winded expaination.

"When i was 7 my father was drafted to go to war. He taught me everything I know. He was most likely the greatest samurai in history. He was a great man and i looked up to him. Before he went to war, he performed a strange ritual in a forbidden spot. It was from that point on that the darkness, Shadowclaw, was crawling within my skin. You see, my father explained that my great great great great grandfather was a horribly powerful person, and used it for evil. He was eluding the law for some time before he was caught, and killed. He said that the people prayed a demon into the family, that will be passed down to every son that is born."

Dogura paused for a moment, and then continued. "My father died at war, and I was left to take care of my mother. Years came and went. When i was 17, I set out for North Hyrule to explore. Yes, I was born in South Hyrule. I always heard that life was better for a warrior in the north. So I set out north, leaving my mother in search of adventure. Along the way, I came across a town. It looked deserted, all except for a large army of Dark-nuts patrolling the area. The city was in ruins, and there were some people in chains. When i was passing through, a woman, about 16 years old... invited me in for tea." Dogura clutched his head, and made a horrible sound.

He stood back up, and then dropped to one knee. He began panting, and gasping. After he regained his composuer, he apologized, and held up a hand. "It's dangerous to tell you the rest right now. "I'll have to tell you later, p-please just remind me. He sat down in the sand, trying to calm down.

He looked at Dogura curiously for a moment. He was surprised at the samurai's sudden breakdown. It seemed that something powerful was effecting him, since a trained warrior did not simply fall to his knees. Pyre knew that he didn't need to go forward and help him, but instead, sank down into the sand to sit. He prefered to be on the same level as the one he was talking to, instead of standing above them. "Mabye I should tell you more about myself."

As he began to ponder where he should start, memories flowed to the forefront of his mind, rendering him temporarily speechless, lost in his rememberances. At last, he opened his mouth to speak. "My father was a smith. He worked in a small cottage in the forest, and made a forge there, using it to create weapons, and armor. He sold this to travellers, but mostly to the Hylian Knights. I don't know much about my mother, since she died just after I was born, and my father doesn't like to talk about her. Her name was Melody, and I think she was a cleric of some sort." Pyralin closed his eyes, once again lapsing into memory.

"I worked for my father when I was younger, tending to the forge, and collecting firewood. When I was ten, I made deliveries to Rauru town, the closest village to our house, and then to North Castle. A few years later, I set out on my own. I headed to North Castle, and joined a small travelling caravan that travelled from Rauru town to the Ruto highlands. It used to me a much larger group, but because South Hyrule is cut off, it became poorer, and poorer, and many of the members left. I worked as a delivary boy at first, but soon started to work as a scout. I trained with the Shadowmaster in the highlands, and learned the arts of a ranger. I travelled a lot with the caravan, but I was restless, and wanted to explore far off places like Tantari, and Parapa... mabye I can tell you more later, but I would like to get some rest before we descend into the dungeon." The hylian looked down into the darkness of the staircase.

Hearing the Ranger's stories calmed Dogura down. He was sitting in a cross legged position, and nodded at Pyralin's suggestion to rest. "Yes, rest is essential. We mus'nt nod off inside the dungeon, energy is a big factor. You get some rest. I can manage an entire week without rest. I'll be fine, besides, one of us has to keep an eye out for blank." With the changing of seasons, it was getting darker earlier. This provided a nice darkness for rest. "Blank never was one to be on time. I would say you have a good 20 minutes." Dogura remained vigilant for a certain wandering nomad.

OOC: Lets go blank!

Pyre laid back in the sand, and looked up at the slowly darkening sky. The scarlet hues of sunset were begining to spread across the air, and it seemed to create a somehow surreal sensation to the desert. It was a little cold, but Pyre didn't mind. It was better than the blazing sun of the desert days. He took his daggers out of their sheaths, and placed them on the ground on each side of him, well within his reach. He wanted to rest, but he didn't want to be caught unprepared. He settled his hands on the hilts of the daggers, and let his eyes close.

Life, it seemed, was finally catching up with Blank. The nomad grew more and more tired with each passing day. Sleep eluded him, food tasted plain to him. His senses had recently become so nulled that walking through Parapa Desert seemed transformed from a harsh escapade to an annoying one. Along the way he spoke to no one. In fact, while normally there were curses aplenty spit from his mouth on long journeys, Blank remained silent for the duration.

Arriving on the scene, he nodded to Dogura and Pyre. He was tired, ill, and doubtlessly confused as to why the two "Chosen Ones" had been asked to come to this factor of death. Nonetheless, Dogura was considered a close friend in this land, and although friendship was beginning to lose its meaning in Blank's mind, he could still understand the samurai's reliance on close allies. He shook his head and prepared to enter the Temple, not knowing what could lay beyond the stairs at this point.

OOC: Notice anything different about Blank? More on that in the near future

OOC: Yeah, he seems like my hermit of a neighbor. Is he sick? Or are you sick? I often put my emotions into Dogura.

Dogura saw Blank approach the stairs. He wasnt standing rather, he seemed like there was nobody home. "Well, Blank, you look a little pale for being so close to an adventure. Is it heartbreak? Because that is the one thing I dont have a cure for." He then turned serious. "Now listen to me. If you arent at your best, it's likely you wont survive. It's no trouble for me to gather you here on another day."

He then placed a a finger on his lips. Inside the stairwell, there was a familiar barking of Blue bubbles. "You see? They are informed of our arrival. We must make haste." He turned and was on his way down the stairwell. "I suggest we stick together." His voice echoed down the empty stairs.

Pyre jumped to his feet, his hands closing around the hilts of his daggers. He slipped into the realm of senses, streching his consciouness outwards. He could hear the sound of the wind blowing over the barren landscape, and could here the persistant sound of the blue bubbles, but could also hear something else. It seemed to be coming from the dungeon itself. A underlying ominous hum. A frown creased his brow, and he walked to the lip of the stairs. "Yes, it would not be wise to get seperated, for there are only three of us to start out with. There is something... wrong with this place."

Before descending the stairs, he looked back at Blank. He seemed unhealthy, but had something about him. Pyre was confused. It was like he was a seasoned warrior, and adventurer, but he was weak as well. He nodded at the nomad, the hylian didn't know anything about him, and was curious, but the darkness of the dungeon made it seem like the wrong place to ask. He looked down at Dogura. "I guess we have no where to go but forward." He plunged into the darkness after the samurai.

Dogura reached the bottom of the stairs with Pyralin and Blank. The room was silent. The noisy blue bubbles were nowhere to be seen. The walls were stone bricked, like you would expect a dungeon to look. However, there was enough light provided by the torches to see a stalchild on a swing in the corner of the room.

Dogura's first impulse was to destroy the Stalchild, but it had not seen them. Perhaps they could sneak around it. The swing was fastened to the darkness on the ceiling, and the stalchild was facing the other way. There was a door on the other side of the room, but it was sealed by firm bars. There was another door parallel to it, which seemed to welcome them.

OOC: Thus we begin. And I RPed Blank following along with us. Wherever the sick guy might be......

OOC: I'm as healthy as can be XD In the near future, you'll both receive quite a shocker.

IC:

Blank's forlorn eyes narrowed as he stepped towards the stairs. The deeper he went, the better he felt. It was refreshing down there, in the depths of the dungeon. His eyes adjusted to the temple's level of illumination, and immediately began to dart about the first room. Seeing a Stalchild on the swing was perplexing, but Blank's first instinct was to kill the bony mutant.

He saw Dogura hesitate to attack, knowing exactly what the vagabond was thinking. The skeletal entity had not seen the trespassing trio, and had remained in its position on the eerie swing. Blank, however, didn't care. Although fatigued, he felt an unfamiliar rush of adrenaline pumping upwards to his arms, and in an almost blinding movement his swords were unsheathed, the nomad stepping cautiously towards the Stalchild.

"He didn't see us," whispered Blank to the others, "but it's just too abnormal, a single, weak Stalchild just sitting alone in the corner." His breathing slowed as he came closer to the enemy, ensuring less sound generated to alert the creature. His whisper also lowered to an even quieter tone. "I think it warrants a check, at least." The Hylian was close enough now. Far more silent than any lunge he had ever performed, Blank thrust his swords towards the Stalchild. The left blade he aimed at the swing's fastenings, be they rope or wire - it was irrelevant at this point - in a horizontal arc, while the right blade he brought crashing down towards the monster's torso.

The stalchild fell to peices, and his skull began to bounce around the room, his bones in a heap. It left a trail of tears behind it. "Oh! Please dont hurt me you big meanie! Leave me alone!!" He head bounced further away from the nomad. "I-It can speak?" Dogura asked aloud. It was rare to hear a stalchild speak like that. This was un-ordinary.

Blank was not only surprised that the single attack had shattered the Stalchild, but also that the head retained it's livelihood. and was actually bouncing around the room, followed by a steady flow of tragic tears. And yet a third surprise was the speech. Blank had not seen many of the Stalchildren in his adventures, and whenever he did, he had simply been growled at and attacked. Normally, upon subduing the skeletons, a low groan was murmured and the bones ceased to exist. This one was very odd.

He would have attacked it again, had it not spoken. He stopped, sheathed his weapons and raised his hands slightly above his head, a gesture of truce. He spoke loudly now, to drown out the sound of the Stalchild's words and to give his own speech an impact on the creature's ears... or at least, the bony remnants of what were once ears. "Alright, alright! I won't hurt you!"

"That is, if you tell us how to get past those bars," added Blank, not wanting to go with the already accessible passage.

Pyre watched as the Stalchild was broken into pieces. He heard Blanks proposition, and nodded assent. It seemed wise to go through the locked door instead of the open one, but they might not have a choice. He drew out his daggers. He didn't trust the jumping skull for an instant, even though it spoke. It reminded Pyre of the floating bubbles.

(((OOC: I just played the forest temple, I'm replaying the game, and boy do I want to kill the damn skulchild bad reminds me of the bubbles.... i hate bubbles...)))

He look towards the barred door, and then back at the skulchilds hopping remains. "Yes, do tell us how to open the door.... we won't hurt you."

OOC: A stalchild are what pop out of the ground at night when you're a kid. Stalfos are the big skeletons with armor swords and sheilds.

IC:The skull stopped bouncing when he go to the corner of the room. "Oh please!! Dont kill me! I'll do anything! Just put me back together! Please!" Dogura looked at Blank who seemed ready to finish the poor thing off. "Blank, stowe your blade for now. We could use an escort." Dogura picked up the heap of bones, and brought them to the skull of the stalchild.

A swirling mist of green magic formed around the stalchild, as he put himself back together. "He ran up beside Dogura, clutching his robe, he peered around the corner at Blank. "Keep the mean man away from me, and I'll show you the way!" He ran to the other side of the room, and pushed a brick in. The bars on the door slid open, and the stalchild regrouped with Dogura. Pyre, and Blank. "Go through that door." The stalchild stood behind Dogura, for the others had attempted to kill him.