#106
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"No, best not," Daniel replied. "I'm still iffy about mines like these. If everyone's vanished, who's to say it won't happen to us?"
"Left it is, then," said Stephanie. She walked through the left passage and turned right. Daniel followed. It led to a room with a table in the middle and a carpet underneath it. The chairs were lined up around the table. Daniel went into the room and suddenly, two ghosts appeared. They looked like guards in their uniforms. They sat on two of the chairs, facing opposite each other. One of them started a conversation. "How's it going?" the one on the left asked. "Not too bad," answered the one on the right. "But I've got the heeby-jeebies about this place." "You'll get used to it," the left guard assured. "It's just your first time in a mine." "I don't think it's that," the right guard countered. "Have you noticed that more and more people turn up missing every day?" "No," said the left guard. "The only person I knew was missing was Danford, but that wasn't the first time he was gone." "Well, for one thing, guards are not showing up at their posts," the right guard began. "And when the captain tries to find them, they're nowhere to be found. It's like they suddenly dropped from existence." "Strangely familiar," said Daniel, quietly. "Hmm..." the left guard spoke. "You sure you aren't just seeing things?" "Wish I was," answered the right guard. "Then when I was on patrol this morning, I found a door that had been boarded up. I wanted to know the reason behind this, so I listened at the door. I couldn't believe what I heard. There was this booming hum that I heard every few seconds." |
#109
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"Booming hum, huh?" Guy shuddered. "I remember the last time I've heard one of those. A very faint memory. A nightmare. I was on this giant drum in a sea of poison, with a pitch-black sky... Then, I heard a booming hum. I can't quite remember what I saw, but I remember being barraged with huge detached hands, and seeing a deep red light..." He opened his eyes and noticed the others. "Oh, sorry about that. Those things just come out, you see."
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#111
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"I tried to open the door. It seemed to open inwards, but when I opened it...you won't believe what happened next."
"A ghost popped out," the left guard replied drinking his coffee. "No, something surreal," answered the right guard. "I blacked out suddenly and then I was in something like a dream, only it seemed to be real. Like a vision." "Oh?" asked the left guard, curious. "I was in this conservatory," said the right guard. Then he looked at Daniel. "Just like this..." Then the right guard grabbed his sword, twirled it around once in the air, then pointed it at Daniel. Daniel blacked out and fell on the ground. Then suddenly, everyone was in a conservatory, just like the guard mentioned. Only there was something wrong with it. Daniel was standing, at this point he knew he was having a vision. Everyone else could see it too, as if they were actually there. The conservatory had some rather disturbing features. A man-sized mannequin was hanging from the ceiling by a rope, to everyone's left. A statue of similar size was wearing a robe, holding a skull on a wooden handle in a threatening manner. One arm was raised as if the statue was alert, while the arm holding the skull was raised at level with the statue's head. The statue was wearing a mask that looked a lot like an unhappy theater face, only with a slightly angry look. Stephanie couldn't take her eyes off the statue, as it seemed to be staring directly at her. On the right, there was a doll that looked like a little girl on the right, with pink eyes. She had no pupils and no matter where Ultima walked, the doll seemed to be looking at him, staring into his eyes. There was also a statue of a woman, wearing a gown, mouth open a bit. For some reason, she was pointing her finger at Keiichi. She was standing against the right wall. |
#113
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Adara tensed as she looked around her, seeing the conservatory, even though she was certain that she hadn't left that other room. She looked at the rather disturbing things around the room, and remembered someone she'd met a long time ago, and couldn't help thinking that he'd probably find these objects rather amusing.
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#114
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Guy looked at the others, who seemed to be panicking a little more than he was, then up at the mannequin hung from the ceiling. "Oh, sweet memories..." he said sarcastically, his voice breaking a bit. "I'm gonna kill dad for that." he balled his hands in a fist and threw Seedot at the mannequin. Seedot yipped and frantically ran away from the mannequin. Guy then sat down and tried to calm himself by putting himself in a meditative state, with his legs crossed and his hands over his lap forming a circle. His breath was still shaky.
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#116
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"Don't touch that mannequin up there," warned Daniel. "That could be a voodoo doll for all I know."
Stephanie looked in another direction and froze with fear. She was staring at something. Then her camera flashed on its own. Curious, she opened the mysterious picture and saw a frightening image. The picture looked like it had been taken with the night vision mode active. Right away there was a girl with long black hair in the front. She looked as if she was only several inches away from the camera. Ultima was at the far left of the picture, unaware of the girl. She had no pupils. Her eyes were completely white as she stared at the camera, her face showing no emotion. She looked to be fifteen or maybe sixteen years old. "Guys...look" she spoke. She showed the picture to everyone. "...don't touch anything in this room," said Daniel, quietly. "If we can't see her...better not make her angry. Let's just walk by...as if nothing ever happened...and Guy never threw Seedot at the mannequin, either." As he made the last statement, he slowly turned his head to Guy, eyes wide and giving a stern look. Last edited by Armed Floatzel; February 13, 2011 at 11:05:41 AM. |
#120
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Keiichi made a "What the heck?" kind of face at the picture, and looked over at where the girl was, "Since Mr. Leader there says not to touch anything.. I guess i'll have to.. Not touch something.." it looked like it pained him to say he wouldn't touch anything.
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#121
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While no one was looking, the female statue moved her finger at the light bulb on the ceiling. Suddenly, the lights went out slowly with a descending hum and what sounded like a breath that also descended in pitch. The room was completely dark.
"Great...now we're supposed to walk around in the dark?" Stephanie complained. Everything was silent. Daniel didn't like silence and darkness put together. Daniel walked slowly. "Hey Stephanie...take a couple pictures with flash mode on. I want to see if there's a light source around here," Daniel spoke. "I think I'll use a match instead," answered Stephanie. She pulled a box of matches out of her pocket, lit one up, and everyone could see where they were going, if only a bit. Then Daniel saw something in one of the leather chairs. Stephanie looked closer and saw a girl with long black hair. She looked to be monochromatic. Her hair was over her eyes and she was looking down, as if asleep. Stephanie thought she looked like the girl from the camera. Daniel and Stephanie froze in their places, watching the strange girl. |
#126
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"Why?" asked Stephaine. "You don't know her. If you touch her, the reaction might be more than surprise."
The girl raised her head. She looked at Keiichi. Then Daniel saw that she had pupils, making her look a bit less scary. She was still monochrome, though. She picked up the teddy bear next to her and held it, looking down again. |
#131
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The girl slowly began to show some color. Daniel could see that she had brown hair and pale skin. She was wearing a dark blue gown that began to sparkle as she gained more color. Then she spoke,
"You do care." Daniel and Stephanie were both surprised to see this sudden change. Last edited by Armed Floatzel; February 21, 2011 at 08:34:13 AM. |
#136
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"Carolyn," answered the girl. "Sorry if I scared you...I was only trying to protect my mother. She...can't function well without me. Just so you know, I've been practicing dark magic for a few years now."
"What's wrong with your mother?" asked Stephanie. "Ever since that head injury she got about two years ago, she hasn't been the same," answered Carolyn. "Is she paralyzed?" Daniel guessed. "No," replied Carolyn. "She's a bit...odd. I'm so glad she's happy, but I feel she's lost something. She can't walk straight for one thing." "Ouch...I hope she's okay," Stephanie spoke, concerned. "She's not insane or anything like that, but she can't think clearly. I think 'lost' is the best word for it," Carolyn continued. |
#139
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"Dark magic...." Guy muttered. "Sounds dangerous." He was about to glance at Daniel, but stopped himself. "Does.. this magic have to do with these dolls? And, uh... sorry for losing my temper and throwing my friend at it.. being hanged by a rope is a sensitive subject for me."
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#141
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"Why don't you find out yourself?" Carolyn responded, answering Keiichi's question. "Don't worry about the guy hanging from the rope, although I do use him to practice my voodoo, so be thankful I wasn't in the middle of an experiment."
"Just curious," Daniel began. "Why are you interested in voodoo?" "I'm just a harmless little girl...to most people anyway," answered Carolyn. "If we were to have a burglar, mom would be the first target. So, I study voodoo magic to protect us. Anyone that tries to rob us might end up with a broken neck. I use simple ghost-like tricks to scare off most people who get too close." "You seem quite powerful for a girl your age to be studying dark magic...and voodoo no less," Stephanie commented. |
#144
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Guy glared at Keiichi. "I'd hate to say 'I told you so,' but wasn't I the one who suggested we not take those valuables earlier?" He walked a little closer to Carolyn. "Do you mind telling us how to get out of this room? You see, we're trying to... er... uh..." He glanced at Daniel. "What were we trying to do, again?"
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#146
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"Well, we were here originally to find out what happened to the miners," Daniel explained. "So far, we've found a strange-looking medallion and this even stranger floating sword."
"Found it, did you?" asked Carolyn, faintly smiling. "That was supposed to stay hidden." "If it's yours, I'm terribly sorry," Daniel responded. "We found it by accident. Do you want it back?" "No, you keep it," said Carolyn. "I did a bit of investigating and found that this little medallion is linked to all the disappearances." "What role did it play?" asked Stephanie. "A conduit between this mountain and another land," Carolyn explained. "You press the top emerald to enter this mountain, and the bottom one to go to the Tutasallavian Forest." "Nice name," Daniel remarked. "So is that where all the miners are?" "You'll probably have a hard time finding them all," added Carolyn. "I haven't seen anyone other than my friend. Listen...the Tutasallavian forest is a strange place. It scares me, and being a student of Dark Magic, that's saying something. It's unnaturally quiet." "So I guess our next step is to pay a visit to this forest," Stephanie spoke. "Right," Carolyn replied. She paused for a moment before saying, "Be careful, okay? That forest is eerie. I've even heard my friend say there's a werewolf lurking around there." |
#150
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(Nyaah.. Sorry about taking so long.. Just got 012 Dissidia Final Fantasy.. And boy, does it ROCK.)
Keiichi put his paw up, "Heh heh! You say eerie, i say bring it on! I'll just aura sphere any werewolves that attack us riiight away!" |
#151
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"We'll try and find your friend," Stephanie assured. "Is there anything else we should watch out for, other than werewolves?"
"There are natural hazards *everywhere,*" warned Carolyn. "Some are fairly obvious, while others are very subtle or concealed. Best advice I can give you is watch where you step. Be prepared for anything. That forest is just one of those places. Good luck with finding what you came here for." "Until next time," said Stephanie. She then pushed the bottom emerald on the medallion. Suddenly, everyone was in a forest, next to the shore of a small lake. For now, it was strangely peaceful. Daniel felt a bit less tense as he listened to the water. The moon was full, but it looked pretty when mixed in with the purple sky, which didn't seem to get any darker for some reason. "The Tutasallavian Forest..." Daniel spoke. "This place gives even me the creeps." "You sound familiar with it," replied Stephanie. "Care to...the moon...it's shining on me." She slowly lost her consciousness as her all-too-familiar transformation began. As she slowly changed into an Espeon, Daniel spoke up, "Don't panic, it's just her transformation. It happens every night under the moon. That said, who's going to carry the treasure and the medallion?" |
#156
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Daniel noticed that someone didn't make it here after Stephanie pressed the button.
"Guy's not here," Daniel spoke with an unfocused stare off into the distance. "Maybe we should leave the medallion's buttons alone." "I just hope nothing bad's happened to him," replied Stephanie. "Let's try to look for Carolyn's friend. Maybe he'll know what to do next. In the meantime, watch your step. There's still the chance that the werewolf is around." Daniel and Stephanie began walking along the shore, looking around at the quiet, but peaceful scenery by the lake. The purple sky continued to make Stephanie feel uneasy. "Hate to die in a place like this," Stephanie commented. "Reminds me of a creepy PC game I played." There was a small grove of trees immediately next to the shore, with a clearing further north to the left. Daniel could see a path in the distance. There was a hill further north. There was no sign of life or movement out here apart from the wind that howled above. It sounded somewhat ominous.
Like at the start of this video.
Daniel caught a glimpse of something in the distance. He stopped suddenly and stared at it. It looked like a face leaning out from the edge of the grove. It seemed to have pointy ears, then ducked back into the trees. Last edited by Armed Floatzel; August 21, 2011 at 11:08:28 AM. |
#160
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(permission from Ultima)
As Ultima ran towards the trap, Daniel shouted, "Hey, stop!" But by the time he said that, it was already too late. Ultima ran into a small patch of thick grass, which was concealing a length of rope. Once Ultima's foot came into contact, the rope caught him by his foot and suspended him several feet off the ground. He dangled there as Daniel and Stephanie ran towards him. "Hey Ultima! Carolyn said there's hazards *everywhere.*" said Stephanie. "Since Stephanie is now an Espeon, none of us here will have an easy time getting you down safely. I can think of a convenient way, but you'll have to break your fall somehow. I'll cut the rope." Daniel turned to the others and spoke, "We'll have to make sure he doesn't fall and crack his head." Daniel aimed carefully and threw a small bolt of fire at the top of the rope like a throwing knife, causing the rope to catch on fire, slowly burning the threads holding it together. Daniel waited next to Ultima, preparing to try and break his fall once the threads snap. Last edited by Armed Floatzel; August 22, 2011 at 12:26:23 PM. |
#165
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Ultima fell with an acrobatic spin and landed on all fours. He stood back up and dust his paws off. "Tsk, I'm use to hanging in trees, but such a calm place must really be mischievous for random traps like that. I'll be more careful, I know some forest traps can be instant fatality." Ultima turned his head to the area where the creature was.
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#168
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Daniel shook his head at Ultima and smiled a bit, yet hinting a bit of frustration.
"Ultima, what are we gonna do with you? You got lucky this time, but-" That's all Daniel had time to say before the wind started to pick up suddenly. Then a soft, boyish voice, like that of a mature teenager, spoke up, as if it was in the wind as well. "Think before you act. You might just live to see the next sunrise...or even make some new friends." Then the wind turned calm again. Daniel and Stephanie froze in their positions, trying to digest the situation. Last edited by Armed Floatzel; August 24, 2011 at 06:14:02 AM. |
#170
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Adara froze when the voice spoke, though she couldn't stop one of her ears from twitching. She scanned the surrounding trees, trying to see if there was anything there, but she still couldn't make anything out, other than the trees themselves.
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#172
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Daniel looked around the last tree and walked out into the open, with Stephanie following him. He then saw another small patch of mixed trees, bushes and overgrown vegetation. Then he heard a rather distant howl of a wolf. He thought it came from behind the hill behind everyone else, but ahead of where he was standing.
He said nothing and waited. |
#176
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Daniel and Stephanie crept towards the small patch of overgrowth, eying the hill suspiciously. Another howl was heard, closer this time, but nobody could see anything. Daniel saw a marking on the tree, and as he came closer to it, he could make out a skull and crossbones. One look to the right and inside, surrounded by the overgrowth, there was a pit of wet-looking sand. The wind picked up in a familiar way, and the mysterious voice from before spoke,
"A mark for the wise which the foolish will ignore." "In that case, this must be quicksand," said Daniel. "I don't know what we should worry about more. The traps, or the werewolf," added Stephanie. "The werewolf," answered Daniel. "That's the only danger I see right now that has legs. But why is it so elusive?" |
#180
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Daniel turned around and looked around the corner to the right, still suspicious around the hill. What he saw next surprised him. What looked to be the werewolf was sitting on the top of the hill in a casual way, as if it was bored. With one leg over the other, it tapped its right foot paw on the ground, repeatedly.
From a distance, it seemed to have a light gray fur color and . It didn't seem to notice the others yet. "There it is," Daniel spoke quietly. "The werewolf. Looks very civilized and different from the ones in mythology." |
#184
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"I see you over there," called a very familiar voice. It was the voice in the wind, only it wasn't in the wind this time. This time, everyone could hear where it came from.
"That's...the werewolf who's talking," said Daniel, puzzled. "Well at least he can talk." "You really shouldn't try to hide from someone who can see you from every angle," said the werewolf, but not from the hill. To everyone's surprise, he was now standing right behind them. Suddenly, he didn't seem as menacing and fearsome as everyone thought. He had a green headband, a purple shirt, and a purple silk cloth around his waist that ran down to his ankles, as far as canines go. He looked cheerful and lighthearted. He stood at six feet, two inches. |