Old storyline; locked

"What the Hel* happened to you?! Weren't you supposed to be catching a ship?" Airien asked

Selena smiled grimly.
"Until I was attacked by a...thing. The Golden Mask found me, and if he found me, then he's found your father and you." she said. "Get your father here; he'll be safe then."

"Fathers safe in the citadel, actually. I have a, shall I say, a little secret waiting for those who dare try to harm the most powerful Duke of Corbep. No the Golden Mask will almost certainly want to have father on his side and I, am his only weakness, which is why i came looking for you." Airien told her.

She nodded.
"Fair enough." There was a tapping at the window.
Selena, with some difficulty, got up and opened the window. She sent the bird back, then opened the message it had been carrying.
From Hawke.
"Ah...this is interesting.." She murmured. She read it, and passed it to Airien
"Apparently Bandon is gathering allies to fight the Mask. Luckily I am Hawke's...friend...and so i think that rather qualifies me to go, too." She thought about it.
"Perhaps you would like to go too? I cannot imagine you simply sitting here waiting for someone else to defeat him."

Bandon raised himself from his throne and started to pace along his throne room. Suddenly he screamed at the full extent of his lungs "Where are they!!" He then turned and struck one of his guards without saying a word. He heard a sound outside and he looked out the window. he saw some assassins on their wrecked ship and white blurs coming out of his fortress, his guards. Bandon signalled his guards to take prisoners. Every time a guard got killed he would raise again in minutes. Finally he had killed 5 assassins and caught 2. Exellent...

As Xu looked to the left of the Dragon, he saw an elemental flying alongside. He was startled at first, but then knew that it was carrying a Message.

Xu leaned over and took the note, as the elemental flew off.

It was a Message from Bandon, asking him to meet at his fortress; apparently, it was safe.

"...I know where we can go..."

He handed Toro the note, which had the location of the fortress written down...

Bandon had one of the assassins in the torture room kneelingin a pool of blood. Bandon cut off one of the poor man's arms and had started cutting off his fingers on his attached hand. Bandon was not only doing this for his pleasure but because he wanted to know more about this Golden Mask character. Half way through cutting off the prisoner's ear, Bandon heard a knock and a group of guards brought in 15 soldiers. they were Bandon's Elite force. Bandon Enquired about the rest of the group and the leader replied. "I am sorry sir, but we have split, we are the loyalists. the others are after you. We killed 2 spies on our way here. I am sorry." And with it he bowed in front of bandon. "Go to the throne room hat is where we are all going to meet." replied Bandon... At least he had some soldiers now...
EDIT: Can someone please post??

Sorry for this.
C'mon! Someone please post. I is getting bored.

OOC: I need to wait for Duck to post...

OOC: There is an OOC discussion thread, incidentally. Post there, it stops this getting cluttered

Cibhi was scared,his robe was torn and he was covered in mud.The matrons would faint at the sight of him now.
He had picked herbs as he walked,ones he didn't know of for identification.All the way he heard the strangest noises,loud one second then suddenyl quiet,their distance indeiscernable.He attempted to hide his fear,stories had been told to him of monsters that smelt fear...
He shook his head.His mind was wandering.You couldn't let that happen in the Deep parts.You had to be focused on your goal.
He stopped,and turned to a tree.That mushroom...he was sure he'd passed it.He groaned.Lost.He looked up to meet a canopy of leaves.No North Star to show him the way...
He sunk to his knees and cried.His sobs echoed for miles.

Hakwe stopped. Was that...crying he could hear?
He ran towards the sound, and realised he was entering the Deep Forest. Now it would be even harder to find Bandon's fortress, but he had to find the source of the sobbing. It occured to him that there were more then lizards and birds in the forest, espescially the Deep Forest. Spririts, elementals, ghosts...
But then he spotted Cibhi.
"Cibhi!" He called.

Cibhi looked up,tears dripping from his eyes.It couldn't be...
"Where lies the Diamond of Empartheus?"He said.He had to be sure it was not a spirit acessing his memories to torture him.

"What?" Hawke replied, confused. "Well...It's in the Temple. At Mirage Lake....remember?"
Hawke was confused. Had Cibhi gone a little crazy?
"Come on. Bandon want's us to go to his fortress; the sooner we're out of deep forest, the better."

Cibhi nodded and got up.
"Just checking it was you.Let's go."He started,then stopped."Which direction?"He then paused for a second"Bandon has a fortress?"

Hawke laughed, quietly.
"Apparently. I think it's this way." Hawke said, pointing.

Bandon was back in the throne room breifing the few loyal men he still had when he heard a voice. It was in his mind and it made Bandon jump. He had forgot how powerful this place was. Able to pick up thoughts and fears from afar, able to drive a normal person insane if they heard it.
He also heard doubt in his allies minds and so he took his helmet off for once in thousands of years revealing a horrifiying face of mangled flesh and raw bone. There was also shadows flying over many of the revealing innards of his head. He pressed his temple on the sides of his head and wispered "Follow". The many candles in the fortress had died and his men could not cope with the dark powers that was rushing into the throne room and passed out.
Bandon had a feeling of evil strength and his mind left the body. It flew away from the island over the desecrated towns, across fields and straight into the Deep Forest. He saw two of his allies and his mind whispered follow Once more, beckoning then to follow this faint morphing glow. That was his mind...

Airien turned to Selena after much thought, "Very well, then. I will go with you, now I think, is the time to fight, not talk. Let me go back to the citadel one last time for my things." Airien said. With that, she went back home, collected her weapons, armour and a sword and returned to the opera house, waiting for Selena to show the way...

Selena had gathered her things, and put it into a backpack. She'd changed into travelling gear; breeches and a leather hide armour like wear on her chest.
"Let's go, then" She said, and walked out the Opera House and in the direction of Bandon's Fortress.

Koroa flew towards the fortress, hoping no danger would come. Toro felt a sense of De-ja-vu, being with everyone again.
"Just like old times" he thought...before remembering how dangerous that quest was.
"This was going to be one bloody month..."

TIMESKIP

Next post could please be everyone arriving at the fortress, describing their entrance, etc etc, just to hurry on the story a little.

As Airien wandered through the halls towards where the mysterious Bandon was she got a very strange feeling that long ago, before she had even been born she had been here before. Of course she thought this was rediculous but none the less, she just couldn't shake of that feeling. Then, she arrived at the throne room, which she entered.

Hawke was sitting on the floor resting, when Airien walked in.
"Aren't you that girl from the forest?"
Selena walked after with Airien.
"Hawke?" she asked.
Hawke's face lit up. "Selena! How's that Opera House doing?"
Selena smiled. "Very well. Still a crook?" Hawke laughed.

Bandon was pacing, as everyone arrived. He flicked his hand when Selena and Airien walked in and the piano started to play. He turned to face Airien and he said "You. I recognise you. You must have been here before. If you are not equipt everyone, go to the armory in the left wing, do not enter any of the rooms besides the armory. You shall know it when you see it as it has two suits of animated armour standing at it. When the rest arrive, I shall show you Tulak, where he is and how he is doing. I am sure you remember him?"
He sat down at his throne and clicked his fingers. A skeletal servant arrived with a banquet of food. "If you are hungry, then eat what I have provided." He then sat back in in his throne and waited...

Xu stumbled into the Throne Room, gripping to the walls to avoid falling over.

Xu was slightly confused at this point... While Bandon said it was safe, he was now equipping everyone with weapons...Surely, Bandon knew of Xu's health at this time!

"I'm sorry...Did I get the right message?" Xu asked...