<Thû> Thû's invisible smile broadens as he perceives the subtlety of the Crimson Moon's aetherial defences. Truly, this as-yet unseen Archon was not to be taken lightly. He had only encountered such defences once or twice, both times while working the soaring spires of High Commorragh. Flowing down the food storehouse to ground level, he decides at last to make a quick circuit round the walls of the central spire to test its defences before figuring out a way to slip unseen past the guards at the front door. After all, it wouldn't do for a Mandrake to fail to bypass at least the hoi-polloi.
<Aesra> @kanila Growling Aesra heard before or the thing that made it were no where to be found again, although looking at the direction of the ramparts he could swear he saw a dark shape jumping down from one of the nearby buildings and getting lost in the shadows of the courtyard. However any further investigation of that matter was stopped as he was approached by four Kabalite Warriors, at closer inspection he spotted that those four were the same ones who were standing guard at the gates when he entered - probably their shift was done and they were returning to the fortress. "Are you lost Beastmaster?" one of them that went by the name Aerith asked, his looks dangerous and his fingers dancing on the edge of his knife while his friends stood close by, looking at Aesra with open hostility. "Do you need guidance?" he asked, but the way he said it Aesra would know that to accept it was the last thing he should do. <Surion, Ave'ras> @Casavay @bossaroo OOC this is assuming that you went together. Crew quarters are close by anyway and are quite small, so I hope it won't break much of the immersion. Thankfully, the actual crew quarters for this part of the fortress were located right in front of them, so they didn't need to walk anywhere specific. The place was not that big, possibly because there were more quarters further inside the fortress or even the spire itself, but which were not pointed out on their map. In any case, at this moment and by the looks from the outside, the place was almost empty with only couple of Kabalites outside, who were busying themselves with cleaning their weapons and paying the newcomers no mind.
"Ha, no guidance required. But you might want to pay attention to the shadows near the rampart. But you know that already, wouldn't want something sneaking in while you were on patrol now would you." Keeping an eye on the quartet, Aesra made his way back to the main courtyard. Getting in a fight here would be foolish and getting any true answers from these four was not happening. The growling had disappeared for the time being, so there was no reason for him to stay here.
@bossaroo Surion's eyes performed their usual waltz as they danced over the curiously polite fellow - only having gotten a look at his behind and backs rarely tended to tell many secrets. Except for Scourges, the smith briefly thought, before urging her straying mind back to the matter at hand. She bowed in kind, honestly somehow amused that he did. Needless to say, this fed her already considerable ego even further. "I mark my works Surion, and there is no need to bow." After a quick look around, spinning on the heel of her boot, she came to a standstill. "Empty rooms only end in one of three ways. They hold the greatest of secrets, the most obvious of traps, or the most aggravating of disappointments."
@Casavay Ave'ras was quite suprised when the 'Baroness' bowed in return , maybe they werent as pompous as he'd thought. He chuckled quietly at the thought . As he arived at the crew quarters he understood the madams ideas , they hadnt even regarded the new comers. It appeared he'd have to learn his fellow kabalites later "well one must commend their dedication , they havent even looked up" he looked down at his map and started to look for a new destination before an idea cane to him " well since my idea had ended in such abysmal conditions , why dont you pick our next destination ?" He gave her is usual soft almost friendly smile as he gestured to the map they'd been given. The answer would tell him much
<Kaesar - Pleasure Bar> @Wata Kaesar found the place easily enough, the building close to the crew quarters he saw the other two newcomers were heading. Once inside, the Incubus would see that the place was well-organized and even better supplied. Soft lights had the color of blood and he saw a bar where each guest could help himself with a wide assortment of exotic wines and other spirits. He also saw many tables and pillows thrown across the ground on which other Kabalites lied, enjoying themselves by smoking various drugs through nargilas or simply mixing them with drinks. Behind it, further in the back and covered by curtains, were spots where those in need of carnal pleasures were indulging themselves like any Dark Eldar did. He also spotted couple of poles where a slave or two were tied to, where some of the Kabalites would come to and use exotic knives of various shapes and colors to cut into the slaves and experience some of their sweet misery that came with torture. Of course, as for himself, he was free to do anything he wanted. If nothing, he spotted that the drinks were free so he might as well start there. <Heltherith - Entrance> @Maleth The guards at the gate acted with their usual speed (and since they were fresh in the shift they were eager to start it with a proper bloodletting) and raised their rifles at the approaching Wych, not caring much about the paper she held in her hands. Thankfully, the halberd-wielding warrior in charge wasn't that trigger-happy and he gazed upon Heltherith with a mix of curiosity and disgust. "I should've known one of your kind would come...Perhaps I should've let the sister deal with it..." he muttered before handing Heltherith a holo-slate with the basic information concerning the layout of the inner fortress as well as some of the places of interest. "No matter. Lord of the Crimson Moon shall judge you Wych, enter now and await his summons alongside the rest." And with that, the gates opened and Heltherith was allowed free passage into the Kabal's central compound. <Thû> @Draconion The spire itself (nor the courtyard for that matter) didn't seem to be warded in the way the wall was, at least not on the outside, so Thû was able to move somewhat freely through the shadows and scout around it. Outside obviously being very old with the possible foundations going further into the ground, the Mandrake didn't spot any other possible point of entry save the main entrance itself. The place was guarded by a score of Kabalite Warriors however Thû was able to slip past them and enter the spire unmolested. There were no hidden defensive mechanisms in the doors - or perhaps there were but they didn't activate - and he finally managed to enter the central "lair". Shortly after passing the initial entrance, Thû found himself in a wide chamber filled with many interesting pieces of art, the place could be even considered as a gallery of sorts. The floor itself was made of marble and a huge mural depicting a silver moon shedding crimson tears made for the most part of it. Through the length of the gallery, on each side he saw a multitude of statues, some of Eldar maidens looking as if stolen directly from a Craftworld, others those very same maidens twisted in "interesting" poses while other statues were of some ancient Eldar overlords, all looking angry and hateful, which was of course quite normal. Behind them, on the very walls Thû saw paintings and smaller murals, all of them showing what seemed to be Dark Eldar commanders standing either triumphant over a pile of corpses or surrounded by great armies and even greater amount of broken lesser races, all of those kneeling in front of their overlords. The place was looking quite rich in history and would even considered to be serene if not for that growl. Instantly turning around, the Mandrake heard the very same growl like before coming from the darkness behind statues of two Eldar maidens intertwined in a quite delicate pose. The fact Thû was unable to spot the thing - even though he felt that something was there - was quite disturbing but not as nearly enough as the fact he was not alone in this room (not counting the thing in the darkness), the fact he just became aware of now. "How do you like the exhibit?" Thû heard a voice coming from further back and belonging to a tall Dark Eldar, who he could swear wasn't there just mere seconds ago. He was dressed in long crimson robes trimmed with silver lining, bulky enough for Thû to know that the man carried armor beneath, that looked ordinary, completely opposite with the weapons the man had on himself. A long-barreled pistol of archaic design not know to Thû and an elegant sword made of silver metal that seemed to draw the light from the chamber onto itself and twist it in wonderful shapes, the shapes that also hurt Mandrake's eyes if he was to look at them more closely, while somewhere deep inside he knew that it would be a bad thing indeed if he was to get too close to it. As for the man's face, he was looking somewhat young (which was definitely wrong and thus just another trick), while his eyes, even from this distance, were pitch black and similar to the eyes Thû saw on the halberd-wielding lord at the gates, only these hid infinitely greater malice and even greater age, if such thing was even possible. For creatures that often used many means to hide themselves, Thû could see that this creature in front of him had the same intention (although using different technique) - show little and hide much, the perfect way to ensnare your enemies. He was looking at the painting in front, where a Dark Eldar of some renown was described fighting green-clad giants known as Adeptus Astartes, droves of them already dead beneath his knees. And for the silence that ensued, it was clear that this man was waiting for Thû's answer. OOC went a bit too much here, sorry for the long post.
@bossaroo First, Surion gave Ave'ras a chuckle, and drily joked, "Don't say that... I find these barracks lovely. Much more inviting than what I'm used to." Then, the silver-clad woman shrugged. She hadn't really given much thought to exploring this place - and was more busy with hiding the surprise that he suggested they stick together for the immediate future. It was neither pleasant nor displeasing, but her own, firm expectation had been that the warrior'd find her aggravating. "I would like to inspect my future site of work and look if there is a forge around here." As she spoke, she fiddled with the holographic map they'd been given.
Kaesar scanned the scene of the bar. He glanced at the slave poles and decided to pass on them, for now. They expired too quickly and when forced to duel they didn't last any longer against him. So, for now he approached the various beverages. He examined a few and picked his choice of wine. Kaesar picked a table where he could sit by himself and look at the kabalites toying with the slaves. Uncorking the battle taking a heft swig of it, Kaesar grabbed a knife from his waist and played with it. Flipping it in the air and performing a few minor tricks with it, practicing his sleight of hand and dexterity. He leaned back on the chair and put he's feet on the table. Taking another greedy gulp of the bottle, Kaesar hoped the waiting wouldn't be long.
@Casavay Ave'ras nodded to the blade smiths remark , so it was her work that she chose to see "if you wish it madam" he stood by as she looked for a path to the forge. Analyzing her and the kabalites who had only sat and polished their weapons . He made a note of one particularly muscular kabalite before looking at the relatively small quarters before looking down and making sure there were larger areas. He sighed relived when he confirmed there were and awaited the Blade smith leading the way "oh lead on baroness of blades " he smiled his signature smile
The armoured woman quietly made her way directly towards the Citadel without much care, her entire form - or what little was seen past the thick, Incubus Warsuit - holding her Punisher in hand. She had gotten her invitation after having found out the past man who had demanded her services was dead just as payment had come through. With a halberd resting over her shoulder, she had at least hoped for some form of action upon raids. Alas, it was not meant to be. Though... She had been at least given knowledge of this new, Crimson Moon; the name itself sounded childish at best to her, though if anything she had far more interests laying on the notions of knowing that a bodyguard was needed, surely. If someone was to start their own kabal, there certainly will be competition and those who desire his or her extermination. As she neared the entrance, she said nothing; an Incubus had no duty aside from being that of a warrior or bodyguard, as all in Commoragh knew of these warriors. And she knew they'd be incompetent to think there was any other purpose.
