[S] Taking the Manor: LBY

[Saber]

Do you believe in ghosts?

The wind was cold, still, and stale. The sky was dark, cloudy, and even the bright full moon was having trouble piercing through the shadowy veil. It was surprising, to say the least, that the land here had changed so quickly, so soon. Yet, it was to be expected. The date was nearing that of Halloween so seeing such changes to the landscape weren’t exactly too much of a surprise. What did surprise the cloaked Assassin though, was the fact that the building he now stood in front of appeared within two days, as he had been at this exact spot at the same exact time exactly two days prior, and it was barren here. Maybe that was the game making way for the event? Or maybe it was just Saber’s good luck (which was actually pretty crappy). Either way, there was building in front of him and it looked rather strange. With that in mind, he was quite content with investigating.

If he had the choice, Saber would have brought some other poor soul along with him. However he did not have the time right now, nor was he prepared for someone to be with him. No, tonight he was supposed to be alone and he was going to train from dusk until dawn in a zone not far from where he currently was. With the appearance of the spooky mansion in front of him, there was now a change in his plans. This place had a strange air to it and it attracted him like the bosom of a beautiful woman. He would grab hold of that bosom quite firmly tonight and he was going to figure out why this place was here; even if it killed him. Yes, he knew what was inside. Somewhere, he could bet that there was a series of traps or monsters lying in wait for someone to make a wrong step or take a wrong turn. Yes, this place would take a few lives during its activity. With that in mind, Saber readied himself internally. If he was going to do this, he was going to go all out, no holds barred. This mansion would be his.

Stepping forward, the Assassin stepped off the beaten path which led beyond the mansion and stepped onto the dead grass which would lead him right to the front doors. Those doors were heavily aged, dusty, and cracked all across their width and height. The windows looked as if they had not been touched in ages aside for the one ghastly hand print on the bottom right corner. As he stepped up onto the first stair, it creaked loudly beneath his boot. The Assassin grit his teeth at he creepy sound, but he pressed on. He skipped the second and third step, reaching right up to the flat floor in front of the doorway. Then, he gripped onto the handle. The instant he did so, he heard the sound of a clock chiming. The player looked to the clock on his display and noted the time; it was six in the evening. That clock he would now pay close attention to, as it seemed the mansion was still tracking it.

Nodding at the sound, Saber pushed the door open and entered the mansion. Immediately, he was taken aback by the sight beyond. It was vacant of all life, for the most part, but that wasn’t the weird part. The weird part was how damn old it truly looked! There was dust in literally every crevice! Cobwebs were bunched up in droves in the corners of the building and one chair was even completely covered in a spider web! This place was abandoned beyond belief! If this was an event and the creators truly wished to go for the haunted feel, then they had definitely hit the mark. As a breeze worked its way through the room, a chill shot down Saber’s spine. He narrowed his eyes for a moment and scanned the area. It was empty, but he swore that he heard a noise. Even so, he stepped into the hall and placed his hands onto the hilts of his blades. Now where should he start…?

“The hell is that noise…?” Yes, there was indeed a noise… and it was coming closer. It sounded like… giggling?

: Word Count :
720

Coded By Saber of L33T T3@M

[Saber]

Do you believe in ghosts?

The giggling and laughing only became louder with every passing second, and Saber was frightened by it. Not by the giggling, but because he couldn’t tell which direction it was coming from. Why? Because it was coming from every direction. There were multiple ways in and out of the entrance hall that he stood in, and the giggling echoed wildly through it. The level of the noise and the sheer amount of it made tracking the source impossible, and that was unsettling. Due to that, Saber gripped onto the hilts of his blades even tighter. He snarled, clenching his teeth together tightly and took a step back. As the giggling came closer and closer, increasing in volume level, Saber took a glance over his shoulder to the door. He eyed it for a moment just in case he decided to dart, but then there was a notification on his status bar; RAID…

He couldn’t leave?!

“Son of a…” Turning his head forward towards the mocking noise of the deafening laughter, Saber pulled his blades free and prepared to fight. He kept his teeth clenched and the blood in his veins began to pump through his body wildly as adrenaline poured into the flow. He felt his hair stand up all across his body and his skin began to tingle slightly. His muscles tensed and his feet pressed into the ground. Whatever was coming was either extremely large, or there was a lot of one creature; a huge amount of some type of monster. To be honest, he would have taken the first one. Dealing with one large, scary beast was easier than dealing with a hundred. Still, it seemed like he was going to have a good fight on his hands. And so, he hunkered down. His body and mind were ready, but something was off; as the giggling came closer, the mansion’s air didn’t change.

It was at that moment that the first sight of his company appeared out from the upper left staircase exit. The sight of the creature which was one of the many gigglers was a small, little pumpkin. It looked like a very happy and joyful one was well. As it appeared, it simply floated through the air and continued its giggling, unbothered by the high level adventurer in its midst. It was as if Saber wasn’t even there, as if he was just a ghost. Though, many more began to appear right after and they did so at an alarming rate. First there were five, then ten, then twenty, and then they were pretty much all over the freaking place. Within seconds of the first floating pumpkin’s appearance, the hall had become full of the little things, and it made Saber feel a little foolish. They weren’t hostile either, but just seemed to be enjoying themselves as they floated, hopped, and rolled around the mansion hall. Saber sighed heavily at the sight and relaxed, sheathing his blades.

These creatures were each called “Mini Jack”, short for what he assumed to be “Mini Jack-O-Lantern”. It was a pretty basic name, but Saber didn’t expect anything glorious from such a low level monster. The things ranged from puny level ones to mediocre level fives, and their sizes reflected that. The level ones could fit into Saber’s palm, while the level fives were full sized pumpkins. He personally would have preferred the level ones, and he actually did. As one began to float by, he reached a hand out and held it there for a moment. He did this because he remembered something he had just recently committed to; he was an Animal Tamer.

“Hey there, little guy.” Saber said through his scarf cloth mask to the tiny pumpkin that was infront of him. It squeaked at him and twirled through the air, spinning around its vertical axis while investigating the extended hand. As he held his hand out, the player subconsciously activated his Animal Tamer’s –Scout- skill, hoping to bond with the little thing. To his surprise, it worked. It actually worked, kind of, maybe, as after he keyed the skill, the little pumpkin squeak again and planted itself in the player’s hand. It nestled right into the hand and smiled happily towards Saber as it did so. The light within its core glowed brilliantly, and it seemed quite content with the pairing, at least for the moment.

“Hai! Blumpy!” Saber couldn’t exactly understand everything the little pumpkin was saying, but another skill he had, -Tongue of Nature-, assisted him with translating the language. It also worked to translate his own for the pumpkin.

“Pleasure to meet you, Blumpy. I am Saber. I apologize for coming into your home, but I am searching for something… Something important to me.” As he spoke to the little pumpkin, Blumpy’s expression shifted to that of confusion. Though, as Saber spoke more, it seemed to understand him. The little thing nodded to him and hopped up the Assassin’s arm, carefully bouncing up the man’s limb until it landed on his shoulder. There, it made itself comfortable again. The moment it did so, a menu appeared in front of Saber; it was a quest box, and it was late.

Welcome to my home, Adventurer. In order to retrieve what you seek, you must answer my questions and solve my puzzles. Each hall has a clue inside. Find the clue, and solve the puzzle. Only then may you advance to the next room. There are five rooms and the clock is ticking. Good luck.

“Master. Puzzle. Fun!” Blumpy giggled on Saber’s shoulder as it seemed to read the text which floated in the air. Saber on the other hand was not so amused, sort of. This would not be easy, and he liked that. However, there was much to do and if there was a timer, than wasting whatever time he had was not wise. Saber then checked his clock: 6:06.

Time to move.

: Word Count :
992

Coded By Saber of L33T T3@M

[Saber]

Do you believe in ghosts?

“A clue… a clue… a clue…” Saber mulled over in his head and took the first few steps into the mansion beyond the door, striding into the wide open space which was before him, and filled with floating monster pumpkins. They didn’t disturb him though, but some were curious and began to look at him as if he was some sort of strange thing. He didn’t return their gestures however, as he had seen pumpkins many times before in reality. The assassin was also quite used to seeing strange things in this world, so a floating fruit, vegetable, inanimate object thing wasn’t something out of the ordinary. What was out of the ordinary was the fact that they had all swarmed the freaking room out of nowhere. What a great way to greet a guest.

Even so, Saber accepted the greeting and pushed it aside. He had more important things to worry about, like a clue. Somewhere within the hall he stood at was his ticket into the next room and his ticket further into the mansion, and so he began to search. He didn’t know what he was looking for, or where he was going, or where to look, but he had to look. With one eye on the clock, Saber started to dissect the room in his mind. First, he needed the floor plan. Second, he needed the furniture. Third, any décor and what it should look like. Fourth, the pumpkins. Why the pumpkins? Well, the pumpkins would avoid anything deadly to them, strange auras, and could even be attracted to things. Should he see them either cluster, avoid, or hiss at anything; then Saber would have to investigate. With Blumpy on his shoulder, he could bet that the little creature would do the same. Getting one to accompany him would be a good idea, so he gave the little thing some favorable attention. Blumpy would also keep him company in this house, period… Saber would have a little buddy for once.

“Alright Blumpy, let’s get to work. First, we need the floor plan.” Even though the little thing had no idea what Saber was talking about, it huffed and nodded before hopping off the shoulder it sat on. The creature floated up to Saber’s head instead. As it did so, Saber pulled down his hood, allowing the little thing to land on him.

“We’ve got the entrance which leads to four separate exits. One directly to the left of the door after the small hall, one to the direct right, and two up the stairs, one going in each direction; left and right.” Saber paced slowly through the small entrance area as he spoke, careful to avoid the pumpkins or softly nudge them away from his face as he moved. As he walked and talked, he scanned the area, searching the four exits for anything strange. What he did note was that they were all clouded and blocked, disallowing him any sort of access to them. He couldn’t even see beyond ten feet down. He was completely restricted to the zone he was in, and that was fine with him. That restriction meant less to look at. He could focus on what was in front of him.

“Second, the furniture. There’s a small entrance area here where someone would enter in guests and greet them.” Saber spoke aloud both to himself, and the little partner he now had, as he placed his hands on top of a very dusty and aged entrance desk. It had a bell on it, which he dared not ring just yet. Behind the desk were a bunch of old and aged papers, all with a language which he could not read from the distance he was at. There was an old oil lamp as well, but it didn’t look like it had any fuel. Still, he kept a note in his mind to take it with him later.

“And we also have a few chairs.” The man looked to his right, and then to his left, eyeing the chairs which sat beside him. They were currently filled by pumpkins who were quite comfortable in their soft, lush embraces. Though, Saber wouldn’t dare do that. Those things were covered in dust and cobwebs. Yuck.

“And, two nightstands… Each with a wooden chair and a lamp. One has a book, the other has a folder…” The man noted the last two pieces of visible furniture on his floor, and they were quiet aged as well. However, the book and the folder seemed a little off. For now, Saber left them as well. The Assassin then adjusted his eyes to the walls and the layout of everything once more.

“Third, we look at the décor. The wall papers are aged, several portraits have become clouded with dust, and some have even fallen to the floor. The chandelier is still hanging; the stairs still have their rugs. The stair handles are still put together as well. None of the lamps are broken, but may be low on fuel, which is just a thing associated with age…” The sharp eyes of the Assassin observed everything around him and took in as many little details as he possibly could. If he thought something seemed off, even by just a little, he gave it an extra second stare. However everything seemed normal to him, for now, and normal being that nothing seemed like the “clue” that he needed to find. The place just looked old. That was it. There wasn’t anything too it beyond that, but he knew full well that there was something here. Where it was, however, was just a matter of him figuring out. Or, he simply had to wait…

It was Six-Ten.

: Word Count :
957

Coded By Saber of L33T T3@M

[Saber]

Do you believe in ghosts?

Almost as expected, the clock chimed all of a sudden and Blumpy rumbled happily on Saber’s head. The Assassin raised an eyebrow at the feeling and looked up towards the pumpkin. It had quite the happy face on, as if the chime was some kind of fetish or something. Though, when Saber looked around, all of the pumpkins were making the same face. The Assassin’s nose wiggled at the sight, but he remained silent. He wouldn’t judge. Nope. Not one bit. These things were here first, which made him the strange one. However, what followed the happy-wiggle fest was the sound of paper tearing. Saber’s ears perked at the sound and he instantly looked over his shoulder.

There, he noticed a change in the papers on the desk. The top spreadsheet had been ripped at the middle slightly and underneath it was something else. Quickly, Saber removed the page and his eyes narrowed; there, the clue was written into the next page. The ink was fine, and the penmanship was perfect. It was also written it several languages, as if covering all the bases. Though, Saber focused on the English one. Upon reading it, his eyes lifted up towards the sky. He stared at the ceiling for a moment and his nose wiggled. Then, he looked back down at the paper. Taking the pen which was in one of the corrals, the Assassin wrote down the answer to the clue he had been provided. Once it was there, he stood upright and took a step away from where he stood.

Blumpy rumbled on his head for a moment, and then he heard a click. Right before him, the room began to move. The massive entrance area in front of him clicked and slid open on its own, giving Saber access to the door which had been revealed behind it. Such an intricate design was obviously made to keep adventurers and treasure hunters out, however it put Saber on edge. He expected one of the other doors to open. Even so, he did not waste time, as he was unsure of how much he had. With that in mind, he checked the clock; 6:13. He was making good time, to say the least, and he wanted to keep that up. So, he placed his right hand on the hilt of his sword and walked through the entrance he had been provided with. As he opened the door, the greeting area behind him began to revert to its original ways. His answer burned away and the room returned to its original standing, but the pumpkins remained.

“Good job, Blumpy. Nice teamwork.” Saber whispered as he opened the door which had been shown to him. The little guy giggled and shook against him for a moment, happy for the praise. As Saber opened the door, he felt another chill run down his spine. Even so, he continued on through, closing the door behind him. Just as it closed, the moving wall returned to its place and the latch clicked again. Locking the adventurer in, and locking any followers out.

: Word Count :
516

Coded By Saber of L33T T3@M