The Castle of the Devil ((May be R))

[Chaosmazer]

No beasts seemed to stir on that night in the Black Forest... yet there were travelers. Many travelers were in the woods... some simple merchants foolish enough to go without a body guard, there were men who preyed upon the fools with blades of steel... And then there was one man... sleeping a bit off of the trail... Tall, black hair fell from under his hat, his face even asleep held a grim beauty. His body, strong yet agile, like that of a wolf... covered by a dark cloak, a long sword joined with a dagger at his side, along with a pistol. All now laying within an arms reach of the sleeping man.
Suddenly he heard something, a light sleeper he woke suddenly... In the darker shadows he could swear that he had seen something... heard something... he stood, his weapons at the ready as his eyes pierced into the darkness. It was sudden, the man was unable to act as a large wolf jumped on him. Fighting feverishly, attacking with his smaller dagger made from silver, searching to sink into the beast's flesh! His other hand holding the creatures snapping maw from his neck, knowing that one bite would mean his end... it had been a long time since he had encountered a live werewolf!
The fight ended suddenly however. The man moved quickly, faster than even the wolf could react... his silver dagger sinking into the heart of the beast... he rolled the dead body aside panting. Cleaning his dagger he looked threw the trees to the sky, morning was nearing... no more sleep would be had that night. The man walked the path through the forest until he reached the edge while the sun was raising.

Coming upon a town outside of the forest... oddly empty and many buildings looking as though they have been abandoned. In the distance a large castle could be seen... about a two days walk nestled into the side of a mountain. The man felt something odd about that place.
A few men and women went about their work, but all seemed skittish, especially of the stranger in town. Walking into a small tavern, he ordered a drink before looking to the nervous barkeep. His eyes searching... "What has happened in this town... why is everyone so scared that they jump at their own shadow?" he asked boldly. The barkeep looked about then to the man. "Boy... you haven't heard of all the people disappearing? All the men who have been dragged off?" The barkeep said. The man shook his head. The barkeep continued. "Some say... it is from that castle... the people around here call it The Castle of the Devil!" he said. "Yet... for hundreds of years, nobody has lived there... it is just abandoned ruins..." the barkeeper said. The man stood up. "Then it seems as if I have found my destination... this... Castle of the Devil... there was a werewolf outside of town... I dealt with it... but I do not know if the two situations are linked... perhaps that is what had been dragging people off..." the man suggested. The barkeep shook his head. "A werewolf wouldn't be so picky about what it took... only men... young men, never older than 30 have been taken away. Women and children remain untouched... stranger... if you go to the Castle of the Devil... you will never return... what is your name... the name of a man foolish enough to go to such a place?" The barkeeper asked. The man turned around. "Samuel... Just... Samuel..." he said walking out of the door.
Going across the plains, walking, in two days time Samuel would be standing outside of the "Castle of the Devil" An odd feeling radiated from the building. As he looked upon the ruins he found the place he could almost sense some sort of life from within... Opening the doors, Samuel walked in, not knowing of what awaited him...

((Any may join, R for many reasons, violence and such. This is a Fantasy/Gothic sort of world. Magic is frowned upon by people but it exists, monsters exist, all that good stuff. Feel free to be good or evil, or maybe even a bit of both))

[Lady Lara]

((haha, you have good threads ))


A girl who appeared only eight years old walked into the gigantic front hall from a dark room, greeting the man. "Oh, hello sir." she said, tucking a lock of albino-white hair behind one of her ears, then curtsied. She appeared to be healthy. Her hygiene was magnificent as well. However, she looked like somebody who had been alone for centuries. "It is nice of you to join us." she smiled at him, her voice holding a strong Irish accent. "Would you like some hot cider?" she asked him, motioning a hand to the nearby living room. She didn't seem the least bit concerned that she couldn't see his eyes, nor that he seemed so... dark. She was more concentrated on being kind to him, welcoming him inside.

[Chaosmazer]

((lol, no worries, I'm glad. I can't remember what I had planned for this one, but I can just wing it. The character is actually based off of a book, kinda like in your thread.))

Samuel looked down at the girl... confused... this... was what was in these ruins... the rumors of great evil... all just one little girl? He steeled himself, expecting something else... though now... he was a guest... he would be on his best behavior. "Thank you... Cider would be nice..." he said... the place giving off an eerie vibe to him... but he was used to things like this. He tipped up his hat a bit. Showing his face... his eyes, showed a strength, but a kindness that lurked inside... he was driven... "What is your name little one?" he asked entering the castle.

[Lady Lara]

((ahh, cool beans.))

Despite his return of kindness, the girl suddenly appeared very angry when he had called her little one. She glared at him for just a moment, but her mood seemed to snap back to the sweetness that greeted him at the door. "Oh, Master says I cannot give out my name to strangers." she smiled at him again, liking how his eyes looked. She peered into them, as if searching for something. "You can just call me Larka." she smiled again, really liking the nickname she had come up for herself. The name meant snow, which was white, and she was an albino child, so she thought it fit perfectly. "What's your name, sir?" she lead him into the living room, gesturing for him to sit somewhere. She hoped he didn't choose the lazy-boy recliner. It had restraints on it, which locked automatically around the person who sat down there. That was also the chair that had a mind of its own. Blades of all sorts seemed to pop through the people who sat there. Each time it was a different limb, a different blade.

[Chaosmazer]

"Larka, well... my name is Samuel..." he says giving her a little smile, seeing that she didn't liked to be called little one... he didn't know what else to say really. He looks about the living room... looking for a place to sit. Finding a spot, he sits down on one of the non-dangerous chairs... though the recliner did look comfortable... however, he wanted to be ready, just in case. "Your master you say... hmm... who is your master?" he asked curious. If there was problems being caused by this place... the master would be the one to talk to...

[Lady Lara]

She looked at him, as if shocked that he caught her saying master. She wasn't supposed to tell anything about her master... she'd probably already get punished for mentioning her master at all. "I'm sorry..." she said, looking away from him, then walking out of the room to the kitchen that was just down the hall to get some cider. She had to get rid of him somehow... perhaps he would be useful in master's plan. She would have to ask her master first, but she couldn't go anywhere near master until Samuel was gone... or at least, trapped somehow... so that she'd be able to leave without worry of him following.

[Chaosmazer]

Daniel sat back in the chair. Waiting for her to return... he stands up, and inspects the room a bit... looking around, seeing what this castle was like... the girl he met so far, though strange, was kind enough. He smiles... waiting for her to return... cider sounded good, he hadn't had warm cider in what felt like centuries... moving to the walls, feeling them... none of this was an illusion... he had dealt with too many illusions in his time... but he couldn't help but feel a bit cautious.

[Lady Lara]

She returned with one cup of cider, not having anything for herself. "Here you go, Samuel." she placed the cup on the ceramic, dragon-shaped coffee table, which had a glass piece that sat on top of the dragon, making it into a table. She then moved over to a small beanbag chair, sitting on it awkwardly. "So, what brings you here, anyway?" she asked him, actually kind of curious.

Her master was able to send mental messages to her, but she wasn't able to send any back, so she had to do whatever she was told... or else... She had received only one so far... and it sounded fairly easy... she was afraid that there was more to it, however. Getting Samuel into the basement somehow didn't seem likely... but she had to make it happen... shortly. Either way, she awaited his response, hoping to get some sort of answer from him.

[Chaosmazer]

Looking at the hot cider, he moved over to the coffee table, picking up his cup, it smelled wonderful. "Rumors mostly... I've heard things about this place... just... disappearances... I wanted to see for myself..." he said. He didn't want to say too much. He drank the cider down quickly, loving the taste of it before sitting down in the lazyboy, the last chair didn't suit him that well...

[Lady Lara]

As soon as his back would hit the back of the chair, the metal restraints would lock around his wrists, shoulders, ankles, belly, and even his head would be held back against the cushion. None of the blades would move just yet...

'Larka' ran over to the chair, making sure she didn't touch him nor the chair. She definately wouldn't get him downstairs now, but maybe master would change his mind... "You're in for it, now, Sammy." she laughed nervously, "Now you get to see one of the many things that happen here... What rumours have you heard?" she asked him, sitting on the couch beside the recliner, watching him, looking into those eyes that she found so interesting.

[Chaosmazer]

Feeling himself suddenly confined. He struggled lightly... this was one thing he hated... the feeling of being restricted... unable to move freely. He strained against his binds... until he found it was no use... he looked to Larka... "I've... heard that there were disappearances... that was really it... why... what is going on here..." he says, looking back at her. His eyes showing a fiery will... not wanting to be held like this.

[Lady Lara]

"You can find out if you follow me to the basement." she told him, knowing he had to get out of the chair first. "However, you're kinda stuck. Oh, and if you can't get out of that chair shortly... you'll find some red spots under the bars." she said, referring to the tiny blades that would pierce through his limbs, where ever the restraints were. It was mainly a torture device, but the last blade... the one that would pierce through his skull... would probably kill him. "There is a way out of this chair. It's just as uncomfortable as it is nice. Sometimes furniture needs attention too." she told him, not wanting to watch yet another person get tortured. There were worse torture devices that they had, but this one was the slowest... the most painful one...

[Chaosmazer]

He heard her... connecting the dots... he knew what would happen. "How... how do I get free then?" he asked her... "Please... Larka... I'll follow you to the basement... that I give you my word... but first... please... tell me how to get out of this chair..." he says. He was remaining calm... but he was still worried... he couldn't move... he knew he would die if he didn't move soon enough.

[Lady Lara]

"If I told you how to get free, Master will not be happy with me." she watched him with a serious tone. "Maybe I don't want you to find out what has been going on. Maybe I'll just let you stay here forever. I'm sure this chair would love to have some company... at least until I need to wash it off again..." she moved away from the couch, then moved around to stand infront of him where he could see her clearly. "Chair will only misbehave if you don't give it attention." she then shapeshifted into a wolf... but all of her fur was white... she had no way of hiding that she was an albino. She moved over to him, laying her head against his hand, and looked up at him. She couldn't give him any more clues. It may seem silly, but all he had to do was relax, and stroke the chair with both of his hands. Once he did so, the chair would slowly move the restraints back under the cushions, out of sight. However, he would have to wait until the bars clicked back into place. If he tried to get up when the bars weren't even hidden yet, he'd find himself in a lot of pain, very quickly. The blades wouldn't stop at the bars in that instance.

[Chaosmazer]

Samuel watched her, feeling her laying her head against his hand. A wolf... what was she... a full werewolf or some other sort of beast... he didn't know what to think... he usually didn't take kindly to other races... one of his flaws... But most other creatures try to harm humans... which he was trying to protect. Samuel thought a moment... he started feeling something move in the chair... he was running out of time. It hit him... both hands of his started moving... stroking he chair. "Good chair... you're not so mean..." he said talking to it... it sounded silly, but he didn't care at the moment..

[Lady Lara]

Larka felt like laughing as she listened to him talk to the inanimate object. Only a few seconds later, the bars started to separate, freeing his limbs all at once, but very slowly. It was probably nerve-wrecking to have to wait for the bars. Luckily, the blades were disabled whenever the bars moved. However, she neglected to share that information, wanting him to think that the blades would still shoot out in the given time. She jumped up onto his lap, and shapeshifted into a snake... once again, the scales were white, her eyes red... she then slithered her way up to his neck, testing if he feared snakes or not. For some reason, a lot of folks feared snakes greatly. She could never figure it out, but she was not entirely worried about that right now. She didn't dare touch any of the bars as she moved, wrapping herself snugly around his neck, making sure that she was not choking him... yet.

[Chaosmazer]

He didn't move... Samuel wasn't afraid of snakes in the least... he had spent a few years in the jungles roaming... he learned of much worse things than snakes... in fact... he rather liked snakes... finding them to be interesting creatures. However he didn't know what to do... he refused to move until the bars were completely secure. Though now the snake traveling up him... wrapping snugly around his neck... he remained still. "What are you planning?" he asks her. No longer liking this castle so much...

[Lady Lara]

She hissed at him, then moved onto the couch, shapeshifting back into her human form. She giggled, watching him. "I cannot tell you what I'm planning. You can move away from the chair now, though." she said, hearing the faint click of the bars locking in place. She loved shapeshifting sometimes... it definately added some confusion to the other's situation. She stood up, walking back to the entrance hall, but away from the door that would lead outside. However, the fun thing about this castle... once a door closed, it would lead a different way when it was opened again... including the front door... so even if he wanted to escape right now, he didn't have much choice in the matter. "Come with me." she smiled, motioning for him to follow. "Don't let any doors separate us. The doors are just as nice as that chair." she giggled again, and waited for him to follow her.

[Chaosmazer]

Samuel looked to her as she moved away from him... he stood up. He growled in annoyance... but decided to play along... he looked to the front door... he figured it would be a lot more that just opening it and walking out if he wanted to escape... so he followed her. He did say that he would follow her... and sometimes... the only way to get out of a hell like this, is by going through it... he looked to her, following her. He was starting not to trust this... 'little girl' he wondered what she was...

[Lady Lara]

"So, Samuel..." she said, as if mocking him, "Why would you want to enter the castle where no man has ever exited after exploring? Did you think you would be lucky number one?" she asked, leading him through a long hall, and a couple rooms before reaching the stairwell. All of the decorations were dark, making Larka stand out like a sore thumb as they moved through the castle. The paintings were of the people that had originally lived here, and in one of the rooms, the entire family tree was laid out on the walls. From the door they entered the room, the eldest ancestor had the largest painting. To the right were the descendants, each generation getting a smaller and smaller painting. In the very last painting of the family tree, 'Larka' was in the painting. However, the label underneath of the painting showed that her name was Angela Tor Reeno. Code Angie, some vampires knew her by. She tried keeping Larka as her name now, though. The past... so she believed... did not matter anymore. She continued through the room, trying to make the door swing so that he'd either have to hold the door in place, or follow her through it before it closed.

[Chaosmazer]

Samuel didn't look scared... his face changed to a grim position, ready to strike, though as if he was carefully thinking, trying to find a way to put a stop to this... why was this castle like this... he seen the painting... Angela... that was defiantly the little one showing him around. He moved through the door after her as quick as he could, not wanting to be left behind... "I came to put a stop to whatever is going on here..." was his only reply.

[Lady Lara]

The only strange thing was... that painting was dated for a couple centuries prior to the current day. "Oh..." Larka stopped in the next room, not showing him to the staircase just yet. She turned to face him, asking, "Why?" she frowned, "It's not like all the guys in the world are disappearing or anything..." she said, trying to defend her Master. No man before Samuel had said such a thing. Usually, they were too caught up in trying to escape, or trying to talk her into letting them free, that they didn't think about the big picture. "I cannot help you with that..." she said, turning around once more to open the door that would lead them to the staircase into the basement.

[Chaosmazer]

"I don't care if you are going to help me or not... people are disappearing... innocent people..." he said. "I'm going to stop it... once I find your master... who is He... or She..." he said, not knowing the gender of the one who ruled this castle. He was angry though... something that he saw as good... if he was angry... he would see this through to the end...

[Lady Lara]

"You are never going to find Master unless I show you to her." she answered, opening the door that lead to the staircase, which lead to all levels of the castle, but Larka was intending for the basement. Of course, without Larka's attendance, the doors that lead into their proper levels... well, they wouldn't go where you'd think. Whichever level was intended, that's where all doors lead. Larka took a deep breath as she waited for him to follow her through the door, standing infront of the door so it wouldn't close.

[Chaosmazer]

Keeping a grim face on, ready to attack anything that might set out to harm him. Samuel enters the door. His guard up. "Why do you want to take me to the basement anyways?" he asked.

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