PLAYER PLOT ★ STORM THE CASTLE

[futurologists]

THE CASTLE ( NOV 7 ) Our resident warrior princess, Kidagakash Nedakh, has formulated a plan to investigate the castle and speak with the royals. (The OOC plotting post can be found here.) Now, it's time to put it into action. The castle itself is huge. From the outside, you can see a beautiful garden, a pond, and a statue commemorating Odette. You can also see several guards, some more invested in their job than others. A few are stony-faced, menacing men with looks that could kill. A couple just look like they'd appreciate a pretty girl or interesting guy to liven up their boring day. On the inside, all the halls look different, yet the same — different pieces of art, different wall fixtures, but everything else is identical. There's many portraits of the king and his late wife on the walls, sparkling chandeliers, and servants scurrying around. Odette's pale, smiling face and cascading blonde locks look somewhat familiar, but that might just be because of all the statues of her likeness around the city. The castle has pretty much every room you'd expect a castle to have. A library, a wine cellar, a dining hall, etc. Within them, characters can expect to find various things of interest — there are many books, fancy stationery, even some valuable coins if you look hard enough. There's also many letters to be found detailing the situation in Chantes; of course, there's also plenty of letters on far less official business. Some of them have quite steamy imagery. There are plenty of servants milling about inside the castle and out in the gardens. In the dining hall and their chambers are several of Chantes' most important nobles. And then, of course, there's you.

Comments

Hellboy / ota

[hellshaped]

THE SEARCHERS: poking around.

[Hellboy's trajectory is downward, toward the basement, the logical conclusion to draw for somebody used to dealing with vampires. Not that he is really expecting to find vampires here, but there is a tiny voice in the back of his head telling him to check for a dungeon. Missing people might be in a dungeon, he thinks.

On his way down, he's looking for anything resembling an office to rummage through papers. It's probably pretty pointless to try and "be one with the shadows" or whatever, so mostly he's just trying to act like he belongs here and not draw any unwanted attention to himself. (No, it's not easy.) He tries for carpeting whenever he can, but sometimes there's none to be had and he just has to deal with the clack clack clack sound that his hooves make against the stone floor.

Whenever he finds letters of interest, he tucks them into the pockets of his coat, careful to leave any shiny things in their place. He's not really here to pillage, and he will make it a point to yell at anyone he sees taking advantage of the situation. He tries not to linger anywhere too long, since that's a good way to get caught, but the library is good for a distraction -- lots of places to tuck away papers in there -- so he spends a few minutes flipping through books until it's time to keep moving downstairs.]

HELLGATE: the wine cellar.

[This is not a dungeon.

Hellboy pauses at the door to the wine cellar, knowing that it's very likely the door to the dungeon (or basement, or whatever) is right around the corner. But he hangs there for a second, debating with himself, before muttering a quiet oath under his breath.]

Screw it.

[And then he just heads inside and starts pulling wine bottles off the rack.

He rationalizes to himself that this is nothing like stealing trinkets or coin from the rooms upstairs. Those are things that would be missed. Who would miss this wine? There's so much of it. It's really a victimless crime.]

THE HANGMAN: the dungeon.

[This is where Hellboy was intending to go in the beginning, distractions notwithstanding. The air is musty and stale, and he feels more at home here than he did in the rest of the castle. Dead things and sorrow and old bones. He breathes out hard through his nostrils to clear his head.

Cautiously, Hellboy enters the dungeon and begins to inspect cells and cages for clues. He's on high alert down here, since out of anywhere on the castle grounds, he's almost certain if he got caught here, he wouldn't be leaving.]

wine cellar

[perma_banned]

Oi, ya big bastard.

[Ban didn't like the look of Hellboy. His worst memory came with the scene of a giant red demon, full of bloodlust and mindless anger. Even if the guy seemed articulate, he imagined it would be difficult to be nice to him without some fair prompting.]

Quit hoggin' the wine for yourself.

[This was, of course, before a few guards slammed the door to the cellar shut behind them, locking it under several thick bolts.]

Hn?

[hellshaped]

[Hellboy has a few bottles stuffed in the pockets of his coat by this point, with another balanced precariously in the crook of his stone arm as he tries to finagle another off the rack. When he hears someone come in, he freezes, struck by guilt and embarrassment about just how stupid this is.

This is kind of the worst time ever to let vice get control of him. You're not in a ghost's house, HB. This is literally a castle. Full of people.

And, as it so happens, full of guards.]

Oh. Great. [Jaw clicking, Hellboy takes a step back and just hurls the bottle he's holding at one of the guards. He's a terrible shot, so of course he misses and it just kind of shatters against the wall, but he's hoping it'll be long enough of a distraction so he can do something here.]

[perma_banned]

What's with you throwin' like a granny?

[His question was punctuated with a 'pop'. Ban loosened the cork on a dusty bottle of wine--something needlessly expensive--and began drinking down its contents as Hellboy made motion to scare off the guards.

The guards, determined to catch the two freaks of nature before them--drew a sword and spear between them both. Ban lifted a brow, watching dumbly as the shaft of a spear suddenly appeared in his chest.]

Whassat?

[He vomited up blood--the throw of the first guard showing much truer than he expected in that dark.]

[hellshaped]

[Hellboy swiftly cycles between irritation and horror as this random guy just kind of stands there uselessly instead of helping him, and then continues to stand there uselessly as he gets speared through the chest.

(Having gotten speared through the chest on several different occasions himself, Hellboy is very sympathetic to how much that particular feeling sucks.)

And then there's blood everywhere and good god. This could have gone more smoothly.]

What the hell-- [The other guard with the sword, satisfied that Ban's been taken care of, rushes at Hellboy with his weapon drawn.

Infuriated that one of ALASTAIR's own has been killed in the stupidest manner possible, Hellboy just grabs the blade with his stone hand and snaps it off, clocking the guard in the face with his flesh hand and immediately knocking him out cold.]

[perma_banned]

Ahhh? You didn't kill 'im?

[Ban possessed no small amount of stupidity, but in his own right, it was a lapse he was allowed to work with. With his right hand square on the shaft of the spear, Ban gave a sharp and sickening yank forward that tore it out, showing exposed and broken ribs and messy flesh. Even if a spear didn't strike someone in a vital place, it would have been smarter to simply remove it surgically, if possible. What Ban did was seal his own fate.

For a dead man, he was surprisingly lithe--returning the spear over the shoulder of the soldier with enough force to easily stab it halfway through the stone wall beside him. In the next few steps, his free hand lunged forward, hammering him in the face and sending him rolling along the ground until going still from a shock that forced him into quite the nap.

Ban reached over to pick up his wine again, taking another long guzzle of it. The hole in his chest was gone--replaced with pale white skin as if that had been the case from the start.]

That's a surprise.

[hellshaped]

[That'sssssss not something Hellboy expected to see. Usually when humans get run through with spears, they tend to... die. Quickly. The fact that this dude is still standing is nothing short of a miracle, particularly because he doesn't even seem bothered by the injury.

Although... what injury?

Hellboy drops the snapped-off blade with a clatter, goggling at the complete absence of a wound.]

Are you... how did you do that?

[perma_banned]

You surpriiiiised, demon?

[Ban winced, spitting out some of the wine he guzzled down. He had tasted his own blood numerous times, but adding it to his drinks wasn't at all enjoyable. Tossing the bottle nonchalantly, he raised one hand--another bottle appearing in it, as if from nothing, to replace the prior.]

Ain't anybody around that can kill me.

[hellshaped]

[Hellboy's tail twitches when he's called demon -- when people are so blatant about it, that usually doesn't bode well. He's instantly on edge, particularly at these various displays of magic.

Voice lowering, Hellboy unconsciously balls his fists, the fingers of his right hand grinding against each other, stone against stone.]

What are you?

dungeonsss

[adlantisag]

[ He'll find her there, having been dropped here by Loki--currently crouched inside one of the cells. His step is distinctive, but she makes very little noise, so as soon as she hears him coming she raises her head.

They're alone. The place is absent of guards for now, all of them having been successfully drawn by the commotion outside. ]

Hellboy. Come look at this.

[ She draws him towards her, where she's gracefully rising from her crouch. There's nothing of interest in the cell--or rather, that's what's interesting about it.

There's dirt on the floor, but streaked, as if it had been stepped in repeatedly. The pallet still has rough straw 'bedding' on it. ]

[hellshaped]

[He really needs to do something about his hooves, honestly. Booties? Those little vinyl caps people put on their cats' claws?

Hellboy starts at the sight of someone down here, having not been expecting it. But most people don't have Kida's hair color, so he relaxes pretty quickly when he realizes it's her. He doesn't say anything as he comes to her, and spends a moment looking around at the unremarkably empty cell before crouching down to study the floor.]

You think this is recent? [Preserving the 'crime scene' is probably pointless, so he runs his fingers through the dirty.]

[adlantisag]

[ Booties tbh. Where is he going to find vinyl in Chantes? ]

Look at the center of the marks. We can see the floor, wiped clean.

[ Meaning, there hasn't been enough time for a layer of dust to form. This is fresh; a day old, at most. ]

People have been kept here. But for what?

[hellshaped]

[Hire some nice goblin woman to knit him hoof booties, the perfect solution.

Hellboy squints at the dirt, the fresh tracks on the floor, then leans back on his stone hand as he remains crouched.]

Is this the only cell that's like this?

[adlantisag]

I have not checked all of them, but its neighbour is the same.

[ She motions to the next cell over. In truth, she doesn't have the time to check all of them, much as she'd like. ]

I need to go and rendezvous with Riza. But I wanted--I wanted to be certain with my own eyes. I wanted to see.

[ He's an investigator, he must understand the curiosity. ]

[hellshaped]

[He understands completely. It's why he came down here in the first place (eventually).

He's quiet for a moment, thinking, rubbing the dirt between his fingers. People being held here and recently moved, right in the middle of multiple disappearances? The timing is too perfect. But still, they don't want to jump to any conclusions.]

Be careful. If the king is involved, we don't want to tip our hand too soon.

[adlantisag]

[ Bracing her hands on her knees, she stands fluidly, watching the floor for another moment as if it could give up its secrets. Hellboy's voice distracts her, and she finds herself turning her head, her pale hair a curtain around her face. His face is impassive as ever, but in a way, she finds it relaxing. Reliable, perhaps. ]

Hellboy. You trusted me enough to follow me here-- [ she motions around them ] --and so please, know that I will endeavour to earn that trust. I will do my best.

[ She offers him a smile; unfortunately, she doesn't think she has much else to offer that will assuage him. ]

[hellshaped]

[Hellboy stays crouched even as Kida rises, tilting his head up to look at her. She's smiling, but he can't bring himself to return it. He's worried about her, that maybe they all went into this half-cocked. For Christ's sakes, they broke into a castle.

But there's really no turning back from it now. They're here. Kida may as well finish what she started. There's a self-confidence (arrogance?) in Kida that Hellboy admires; he lost his own surety somewhere in the middle of the ocean and hasn't quite recovered from it yet. He is always second-guessing himself now.

Exhaling, Hellboy eventually stands, placing his hand gently on Kida's shoulder.]

I already trust you. I could do a better job of showing it, though. [He finally cracks a smile, the corner of his mouth lifting self-effacingly.]

Wine Cellar

[dailydouble]

[ Ahad never intends to end up in wine cellars, but it's as if he's attracted to them anyway. There's rarely anything of note in them, except for the wine, of course. Pillaging is a rather useless activity for someone with his abilities, but a nice collection will make him stop to appreciate it. ]

The better vintage is two racks above. [ He'll gesture helpfully, after watching Hellboy 'liberate' a bottle. ] If you care about that sort of thing.

sorry for the delay! i've been living on the tdm, lol...

[hellshaped]

[Hellboy at first convinced himself that he'd find something totally useful and poignant in here. Some secret passageway or a dead body or a note hidden in a bottle.

Then he just started stuffing his pockets with booze and lost all pretense pretty quickly.

Hellboy coughs to cover up his embarrassment at being caught... liberating... some of this liquor that is decidedly not his, but follows Ahad's gesture anyway.]

That's actually a really good question. Does it get you drunk faster?

don't worry about it!

[dailydouble]

[ Ahad has never stored secrets in his own wine cellar, but that doesn't mean no one ever has. It's as good a place to check as any, but he absolutely sees little point in stealing the cheap wine. ]

Not necessarily. Wine is wine, but the more expense sort tends to taste smoother.

[hellshaped]

I can't say smoothness is really my chief concern.

[Still, he puts a few cheaper bottles back and carefully takes a few off the upper racks instead. May as well.]

I'd been working my way through a ghost's wine cellar before all this, so I guess I should treat myself. [He motions toward Ahad with a bottle.] What about you? Don't let me stop you from doing the same.

[dailydouble]

[ He'll shrug, turning to survey the shelves but not take anything from them yet. ]

Very little stops me from doing what I want. But pilfering wine is less appealing when I can create what I want.

[hellshaped]

[That's right. Kida did say something about Ahad being familiar with magic.

Hellboy lowers the bottle to his side, peering at Ahad with a mixture of curiosity and trepidation.] Create what you want?

[dailydouble]

It's usually unnecessary, but making avoids the problems that could arise from stealing it.

[ He doesn't want to stand out too much here, which either robbery or forging currency could do. He's not entirely unaware that Hellboy was likely more interested in means versus why, but he's not ready to address it yet. ]

[hellshaped]

[Hellboy makes a quiet, noncommittal sound at that. Creating wine from thin air strikes him as vaguely sacrilegious, worse than regular magic. It makes him uneasy, but Ahad has been nothing but pleasant to him so far. If not a little awkward.]

Well, [he finally says, shrugging and going back to stuffing his pockets.] That's pretty pragmatic, anyway. I don't have that kind of luxury, so I guess I'll have to settle with playing burglar.