[S] Taking the Manor: H1

[Saber]

Do you believe in ghosts?

“Whoa… Not good…” Upon entering the new zone, Saber hesitated. This place was much different than where he just was and it seemed a lot more… hostile. It made him pause right away, and he instinctively started to pull on his sword, freeing just an inch of the metal housed within the sheath. Though, he did not draw it completely. Instead, he waited and watched. As he had initially thought, this place was much different than the other world and he did not exactly wish to tread where he knew he shouldn’t. However, he was safe for the moment in the small archway which covered over his head and to his sides. How long that would last, though, was unknown to him. With that in mind, he began to work fast.

This room was much wider than the entrance hall but was much wider and longer. It looked more like a dining area than anything and seemed as if there was some sort of dinner service being prepared for. Several small tables dotted the floor with five chairs surrounding each in a star formation. Every table had a cloth over it with candles, flowers in the centers of them. Plates, silverware, and water drinking cups were placed in association with every seating location, and there was even a basket of bread at each space. This bread was not molded. Around the room, candles were attached to the walls and the tiny Jack-O-Lanterns from before populated the skies. Along with the Mini Jacks, larger pumpkins also floated about. These ones were known as “Helio Jack”s, and they seemed to be a little angrier as the few which floated nearby were actively cackling.

As expected with the dinner service, many maids and butlers roamed the floor. However these were no ordinary waitresses, waiters, and servers. These were Goblins dressed up. Though, unlike their wild counterparts, these Goblins seemed to be quite content with ensuring each table was ready for their guests and none of them seemed to be bored by what they were doing. It seemed they had either accepted their fates, were happy with their new lives, or were just well disciplined. Or, or, the wandering Minotaur Servants were keeping them from escaping. There were about four of those things, and they were huge in comparison to the Goblins. If they were to be upset, there was no doubt that Saber would be in for a hard fight. Thankfully, their levels were low, and their numbers did not exceed twenty total. There were maybe fifteen or sixteen creature roaming the floors.

Yet, Saber did not put it passed the creator of this place to have other things hidden around. With that in mind, Saber knelt down and raised his hands up to Blumpy on his head. He took the little thing in his hands and lowered it down into his shirt, resting it just inside the baggy cuff. There, the little creature rumbled and made itself comfortable. Saber patted it softly on the head and scratched just under where he believed its chin to be. It let out a satisfied rumble in reaction to the scratching, causing the player to grin. Maybe he would try to keep the little guy, he was quite entertaining and seemed pretty comfortable even when hell was about to break loose. Though, an idea crossed Saber’s mind…

“Blumpy, can you hide among the other lanterns?” The Assassin looked down towards his tiny companion and it looked back at him. It made a thoughtful face and hummed softly, most likely thinking of what it could do. Though, after a few moments, it began to nod. Saber nodded back in response.

“Blumpy float fine.” The little thing rumbled and hopped into Saber’s hand as he cupped it underneath the floating pumpkin. Saber then gave the little creature some attention and smiled at it.

“Alright. Hide in with your friends and wait for me to call you. When I do, come right over to me. Okay?” As an answer, Blumpy nodded again and shook itself happily. With that, Saber nudged the little creature up into the air. Blumpy hummed and rolled away, merging very easily with the other pumpkins who seemed to be undisturbed by his presence. With his new partner out of danger, Saber returned to his feet. His happy expression became cold and his eyes narrowed on the room in front of him. Clutching his blades, he nodded to himself. This was going to get rough…

: Word Count :
749

Coded By Saber of L33T T3@M

[Saber]

Do you believe in ghosts?

The Assassin waited an extra moment to ensure that Blumpy was safe, and noted to himself that his little friend now had a blue arrow above his head. Should things go south, at least he knew which one he needed to retrieve. However, for now, he averted his eyes back to the floor below him. The Goblins were still focused on the tables and the Goat Servants were eyeing them closely, circling the room in a sort of pattern to ensure maximum security. That pattern would not last long, and Saber knew it. Those things were going to most likely come after him when things got bad so he made sure that he was prepared to fight them. Due to his time out of London, he had fought much scarier beasts and ones twice their size, so they wouldn’t be a problem as long as he kept a level head. And so, he checked the clock; six-eighteen. He wanted to be done with this by six-twenty-five, and if his time was right, he might get something around six-twenty, but he didn’t let himself get his own hopes up. The person running the show probably had a method to the madness. If Saber’s worst fear was true; he would have to clear the room.

With that in mind, Saber stepped forward into the open space. The instant he did so, the aged floors beneath his feet creaked loudly. The quiet and large room was the perfect catalyst for an echo, and the noise did so. As Saber’s boot pushed down onto the floor, the entire hall stopped what it was doing to turn and look at him. All of the Goat Servants looked towards him, all of the Goblins stood up, and all of the larger Pumpkins twisted in place. Saber wiggled his nose at the sight and listened to the sound of all of the bodies moving at once. It was slightly terrifying, but it was also enlightening to know that his singular presence had generated such anger. It made him smile, and as he smiled he squeezed down onto his blades tighter. The Goat Servants looked at each other, and then around at the Goblins.

“Oi...!” Saber called out, grabbed the attentions of the Goat things again. This time, they looked a little upset. That made Saber smile even more; he was almost grinning from ear to ear now as he realized how much fun he was about to have. These things were barely level twenty, and he had enough raw power to slice them apart…

“…Your guest of honor is here… How about you show him a proper greeting?” Swiftly as he finished, the Assassin’s hands dropped to his thighs and he grabbed two throwing knives into each hand. Daring to take the first move, Saber launched the four knives out into the dining room. Before his targets could even react, four Goblins had been struck in their heads by the knives. They squealed out in pain and staggered back. Whether the things were hostile or not honestly did not matter to Saber. The bad air was enough for him to want to move and he didn’t dare leave his back exposed to so many creatures. He would rather kill them now and search for the clues then deal with the harsh, potentially deadly, consequences later.

It seemed like his intuition was right, however, as the Goat Servants were ready to fight him as the four Goblins recovered from the preemptive strikes. Rather than strike again with range, the Assassin pulled out his twin blades and twirled them around twice before locking into a forward grip. He took an aggressive stance; his left foot forward, hips twisted slightly, chest forward, and swords raised in front of him. He narrowed his eyes and grinned wide underneath the cloth on his face.

“Come and get me…” He beckoned, using his –Tongue of Nature- skill to get the point across more easily. Immediately after, the further Goat Servant roared and the entire room seemed to collapse on where Saber was standing. Deep in the reaches of his mind, Saber knew this would be rough. The larger Lanterns in the sky were diving down at him from above, the Goblins were armed with several large kitchen knives which were most likely sharp enough to cut through practically any kind of flesh, and the Goat Servants weren’t going to be push overs. If Saber wanted to win this, he would have to use a strategy he didn’t like, as he preferred to scrap with his enemies; he would have to stick to guerilla warfare.

: Word Count :
771

Coded By Saber of L33T T3@M

[Saber]

Do you believe in ghosts?

The feeling of regret came quick, but the situation wasn’t as bad as he initially thought. At first, Saber expected to be bombarded from the skies as if the Lanterns were artillery fire. He also expected the Goblins to be in his face and all up in his business like it was their job. He even expected the Goat Servants to be trying to thrash him around like a ragdoll. Boy, was he wrong. Immediately after the small skirmish started, Saber realized that the only things coming after him now were the Goat Servants! Two Lanterns had looked at him funny and were floating by warily because of his proximity, but the Goblins were much more afraid of him. As Saber stood and fended off a heavy punch from one of the massive Goat creatures, not a single Goblin decided to try and hit him. The Assassin was confused, and concerned as he punched another heavy swing out of the way, causing the Goat Servant to create a small hole in the floor.

Yet, Saber was content with the fact that he only had one problem to worry about for the moment, but it was still a problem. The Goat Servants were extremely tough and even as Saber began to slash at it, its health only dropped to about a quarter instead of a half like he had initially expected. This was a little disturbing, and caused Saber to detach himself from the creature as it reeled back. Before it could strike him with a powerful haymaker swing, the Assassin launched himself to the right and assaulted a pair of goblins which were standing by. They squealed and yelped at the sudden invasion of personal space and attempted to resist the strikes. Their kitchen knives swung at the assassin, but they were weak. Unlike the Wild creatures, these ones did not have lives filled with hardship. Their bodies were thinner, and their muscles lacked the mass of their counterparts. With ease, Saber deflected their petty attacks, knocking the knives upwards and caused body of the Goblins to stagger.

Clutching onto his blades tight, Saber sliced at the left Goblin with his right blade and then the right Goblin with his left blade. His strikes did not critical as he had wished, however he had achieved one of his goals; both attacks had disarmed the Goblin Servants, literally. Their knives flew out of reach with half of their arms attached, blood sprewing out of openings where they had been severed at. Pain filled outcries filled the mansion’s dining hall and the Goat Servant Saber had left roared loudly. Quickly, the Assassin dove to his left and rolled over his shoulder as the heavy fists of the Goat Servant slammed into the floor again. Then, hearing the floor creak, Saber spun to his right as one of the other three over-sized Goats tried to hit him from behind. Instead, its fist clipped one of the chairs and caused the back leg to splinter and break. The chair collapsed to the floor in a furious spin, knocking some of the cups over on the table it was originally from.

Taking the moment as an advantage, Saber hurled himself forwards and stepped behind the massive Goat Servant. Squeezing his blades, the Assassin sliced a deep groove into the back right trunk-like thigh of the creature. It wailed in agony and began to tilt over because of the wound. Immediately after, Saber sliced out the back of the Goat Servant’s left knee. Tendons split, blood exploded out of the wound, and the leg dropped to the floor. The Goat Servant let out a howling roar and grit its teeth together for a moment, long enough for a surprised look to cross its face as Saber thrust his sword through the back of the Goat Servant’s skull. The blade easily split through the bone and forced the stiff jaws apart. He held his sword there for a moment, allowing the oversized Goat to taste the iron in its mouth. Then, he sliced his sword to the right, cutting through the right side of its skull. The assassin swiftly followed with a swing with his left sword, using the momentum of his initial right twist to fuel the strike. With ease, he finished the cut and removed the upper half of the Goat Servant’s head.

Saber narrowed his eyes on the rest of the room and kicked his first kill to the floor. As he did so, the remaining the Goat Servants hesitated for a second, staring down the Assassin. His blades were bloody and there was even some splatter on his clothes, but it did not phase him. The rush of battle had brought a smile to his face and he was quite excited for the next one to challenge him. Though, as he took another offensive stance, he noticed something… off… about the table to his left; a steak knife was missing. The Assassin wiggled his nose at the sight, but then it clicked.

Swiftly, he stepped out to his right and ducked as he did so. At the same instant, the steak knife drove through the air and sliced through where the player had originally been standing. Due to his quick thinking, instead of getting Saber the knife drove into the motionless heel of the Goat Servant on the floor just before the Servant burst into an array of shiny lights. Saber chuckled at the sight and readied himself for another attack, but that excitement quickly faded as the rest of the silverware on the table also started to rise into the air. Saber swallowed hard and looked at the time: it was six-twenty-five.

“A clue would be nice…” Saber thought to himself, glancing around the room again for a moment as he started to realize that there were probably a lot more enemies than he initially thought…

: Word Count :
984

Coded By Saber of L33T T3@M

[Saber]

Do you believe in ghosts?

Almost as if his prayer had been heard by some divine entity, the clock struck and a bell chimed. As it did, the lanterns began to cackle loudly. Their eyes glowed and they shook happily. The smaller pumpkins, the Mini Jack creatures, hummed and giggled warmly; they definitely had a bell fetish. However, they were not the only ones affected. The Goat Servants below stopped and looked towards a door, the Goblin Maids and Butlers bowed their heads, and the floating pieces of silverware calmed to the point that they were almost still. Saber, curious as to what everybody was looking at, glanced over his right shoulder to see what was grabbing everybody’s attention. As he looked, he really wished he didn’t. Why? Because this mansion was freaking creepy, that’s why. First, he was swarmed by living pumpkins and the place was more deserted than an actual abandoned house.

Now, blood leaked out of the cracks in the walls on the upper right side of the room. The blood seeped down the aged wallpaper, staining it as the liquid came to life. Slowly, steady, eerily, the red, thick water formed the next clue. It was a strange one, one that Saber had never heard of before. However, it was something he kept in the back of his mind for the moment. He let it sit, let it fester, and tried to understand it. However, nothing came into mind. To his dismay, the Assassin knew exactly what that meant. If he couldn’t figure out this clue, he was going to be stuck here for a little longer. He let his mind quickly run over every possible answer, but there was no connection. The clue was so subtle that he honestly was lost. And so, he squeezed his swords. The eyes of the world fell on him once more and one of the Goat Servants snarled, impatient already with the player’s lack of urgency. Then, the man adjusted his vision from his clue and back down to the beasts below. He raised his blades in front of him and eyed the Goat Servants individually for a second, taking in the fact that this was going to take a little longer than he wanted.

“Pass…” The Assassin said aloud. The bell chimed in response, the clock hitting 6:30, and the Goat Servants roared in glory. Several of the Goblins began to laugh and the floating silverware became more restless. However, that would not last long. Saber narrowed his eyes and twirled his swords. He pulled himself out of his stance and stood upright, his eyes taking in the sight of his enemies mocking him. They laughed and laughed, but it was Saber who would be the last one standing… He wouldn’t let them have their way, and whoever was running this show was going to see him soon. Very, very soon. He had failed once and it was going to slow him down, but he would take advantage of it; this room was about to become a bloodbath.

: Word Count :
505

Coded By Saber of L33T T3@M

[Saber]

Do you believe in ghosts?

“SILENCE YOUR TONGUES, YOU SCUM SERVANTS!” The Assassin barked before kicking forward, darting straight into the face of his next prey. The laughing crowd flinched in surprise at the speed of the player, and the Goat Servant he now stood in front of quickly took a step back to avoid one of the man’s deadly swings. However, his balance was quickly put off and it couldn’t avoid the second swing which shadowed the first. Blood spurted into the air as the tough skin of the massive Minotaur-like creature was split open, and Saber snarled loudly, almost growling in pure anger for the shame which had befallen him. He would make these bastards pay, and they would pay with their lives!

Before the Servant could react to the Assassin’s movement, Saber swirled around his heals and lowered himself onto a crouch. As he came around, his two blades sliced at the kneecaps of the Servant, cutting through the reverse-jointed limbs and broke bone. The loud cracking and snapping of the impact made some of the Goblins flinch, but it angered the other Servants. As their brother whailed out in pain and fell backwards, the remaining two roared and rushed towards the Assassin. Tables and chairs were thrown aside as they forced their way through, and one of the actually picked one of the tools used for sitting up. The wooden object was flung towards Saber in an attempt to get the man away from the wound Servant, and it worked. As the chair flew at him, Saber jumped backwards and then hopped up onto a table. The instant he landed, he jumped backwards again to avoid an attack by the flying silverware. With his right foot touching down on another table, he steadied himself for another dive, but a sudden noise of creaking metal caught his attention. It was close, really close.

Looking to his left towards the noise, Saber watched as one of the large suits of armor began to crackle and pop, its limbs and connections suddenly sealing together. At the sight, Saber grimaced and jumped away from the suit. A few moments later, the collection of armor squeezed the two handed battle axe that had been placed between its hands and lifted it off the floor. It stepped forward, disconnecting itself from where it stood in a dusty explosion. With another strong beast on the floor, Saber sheathed his swords and brought open his inventory. Quickly, he summoned forth his bow and arrow combination and wasted no time putting them into his hands. Rather than assault the crowd with a heavy suit of armor coming after him, Saber decided it would be best to take them out through distance. With that in mind, he drew his first arrow and docked it against the body of his bow. Swiftly, he pulled it back and aimed at the suit of armor; testing time.

The suit, angered by the presence of the player, rushed forward towards the table the man stood on and brought the battle axe it carried over its shoulder. As it closed, Saber could feel the ground begin to shake because of its heavy weight and the anger which lived within the armor. Just before the suit could get close enough to swing, the arrow which was held against the player’s bow was pulled back, the string taut. Then, he released. It shot through the air and crossed the distance in a second, but it did nothing, as expected. Upon impact, the fired arrow did nothing to the creature but bounce off the heavy armor and landed on the floor. Saber nodded to himself at the confirmation of the high defensive level and jumped forward off the table, and right over the head of the Knight as it swung its axe down onto the table. When Saber hit the floor, he retrived the arrow he fired, lifted and leveled his bow, docked, pulled, and fired. This time, he struck one of the Goblin Maids in the eyesocket, dealing much more damage to the fleshy creature than he had done to the Heavily Armored Knight. The man nodded as the Goblin wailed in pain and began to clutch its bleeding eye, but did not stay for the show as the Knight had pulled its axe free.

Jumping away from the Armor Suit, Saber moved laterally backwards, moving away from the swinging axe and the Goat Servants which were quickly approaching. As he landed, the Assassin jumped to his right, dodging an aerial assault by the angry silverware and nocked another arrow. Once it was set, he pulled and fired. This time, rather than a Goblin, Saber struck one of the charging Goat Servants. The arrow stabbed into the left nostril and stuffed itself into the weak spot, piercing deep into the skull. The Servant roared and ripped the arrow out of its face, only to have its eye shot out as Saber hit it again. This time, the Servant’s advance stopped, and did so long enough for Saber to move backwards further, avoiding another assault by the silverware. This was getting fun…

: Word Count :
853

Coded By Saber of L33T T3@M

[Saber]

Do you believe in ghosts?

Another arrow was released from Saber’s grasp and it struck the stomach of the already wounded Goat Servant, causing blood to leak out at an alarming rate. It roared loudly and staggered to keep up with its brother and the Knight, but the Assassin was too quick and nimble. After every shot, he was moving further away, keeping his distance while avoiding the onslaught from the flying knives. As he moved back, he was moving to his left, slowly causing the herd to circle around the backend of the room. Yet, as he did so, the Goblins became frightened. Some of them were already backing off, while a few were indecisive about helping their “leaders”. That was angering the Goat Servants it seemed, as the one which Saber had not targeted yet was shaking his fists at the cowardly group. Saber took it as a blessing, and also as an advantage.

Changing his target, Saber switched to the undamaged Minotaur-like Goat Servant and suddenly burst forward, soaring by the silverware as they attacked him once more. As he passed, his back right leg was sliced by one of the steak knives. The wound caused Saber to wince, but his mind pushed the pain away and he focused on the more apparent threat to his life; the Servants. Because of him jumping forward, Saber flew almost right into the grasp of all three of the powerful foes he was fighting against, and they accepted his challenge with open arms. Yet, they could not catch him quick enough. Upon reaching the trio, Saber pushed off the ground and surged up into the air in an arc, bursting over their heads as all three swung at his previous location. The Knight’s axe became wedged in the floor, the Servant without his left eye swung at the Knight, and the other Servant stomped hard, causing the ground to sink beneath his heel. Saber chuckled at the sight and pulled an arrow back on the bowstring.

Once the string was taut and the tension high, Saber released. His arrow shot through the air at an extreme velocity. Due to the close range, strong pull, and the addition of gravity, the arrow fell onto the already wounded Goat Servant’s skull was burst open, and the arrow drilled straight through it, lodging itself deep inside of the Creature’s cranium. Satisfied with his shot, Saber rolled his feet over his head and landed down hard onto the top of the table. He didn’t waste anytime and spun around his heels, drawing another arrow back as he did so. A moment later, he released and the already damaged Minotaur was struck in the back of its head, and then in the neck as Saber fired again. The final strike drilled the creature in its upper spine, severing the connection to its lower body. Upon impact, the third Goat Servant dropped to the floor, unable to fight. Saber lowered his bow and narrowed his eyes on the remaining Servant as it watched its brother hit the deck. Then, it looked towards the Assassin, whom was standing tall with his bow in one hand, and another arrow in the other. The clock chimed again, the pumpkins danced, and Saber was ready for his next clue…

6:35…

: Word Count :
545

Coded By Saber of L33T T3@M

[Saber]

Do you believe in ghosts?

As the clock chimed, the walls began to bleed once more, the paper split and the cracks in the wall increased inside to compensate for the effect. This time however, the volume of what dripped out of the cracks was much more frightening than the previous time, as this clue was a small paragraph. The sheer amount of wording and the required amount of liquid made Saber a little queasy, as the thought of draining so many people for that amount of blood filled his mind, but at least the air wasn’t full of the stench of death. He was thankful for being spared that smell at least. However, he was not going to be spared the requirement of combat. As the words came together, the Assassin was already sure that he was probably going to be stuck here a little longer as the clue he was provided didn’t seem to make any sense. There were a few keywords, but it was obnoxious how little information he was being provided this time around, even when the answer was probably in his face. Yet, this time he was ready to continue. Without even bothering to try and make any connections, Saber lifted his bow and docked his arrow.

“Pass!” He shouted, his voice echoing into the room as if he was a stubborn child refusing to be fed. This time, however, the Goat Servant did not laugh, the Goblins did not cackle, and the silverware did not shake. No, there was too much blood in the air for that now, and Saber was keen on getting more. He already had his weapon ready when he spoke, and the Servant on the other end of his hand-made scope was just standing there, staring at him with barred teeth. The battle ready Assassin returned the gesture, but his mouth was pulled into a smile and was covered by the cloth which he used to hide his identity. This mansion was an interesting place and it was challenging him both mentally and physically, and he was quite content with that.

However, what he wasn’t content with was its attempts on his life. If he could just walk into the area and search for the answer, that would have been fine. However, putting him up against so many bloodthirsty foes was a mistake. It was safe to assume that the owner of the mansion had worked hard to build up what he had, and it must have taken a long, long time for him to gather all of his underlings. To send them to their deaths so readily, Saber felt a little bad for them. Though, he did not feel as bad as to go easy on them, not one bit. Instead, Saber was going to slaughter every single one of them until he got what he wanted. He would walk through this building and leave a trail of blood behind him if that was what it took. At the pace he was going, that seemed like it was going to be the case.

: Word Count :
509

Coded By Saber of L33T T3@M

[Saber]

Do you believe in ghosts?

Pulling his bow back up and in front of him, Saber targeted the last Goat Servant which was snarling before him and docked his arrow. He narrowed his eyes on the creature and snarled, bearing his fangs as the string became taut. However, as he began to pull back on the string, Saber glanced over towards the clues once more. His eyes read over their content, taking in what was there just one more time. As he did so, he suddenly realized that he had just made a grave mistake, and now he would deal with it. The Assassin sucked his teeth as his mind began to work and looked back at the Goat Servant; mistake number two was looking away, as the Servant had rushed him. Moving out of surprise and fright, Saber burst backwards off the table he stood on and into the air. The Goat Servant roared and stepped onto the table and launched itself after the Assassin, both arms extended in an attempt to catch the player. Saber narrowed his eyes and activated one of his newer skills; -Hazecloud Vault-.

The Goat Servant whom was almost within reach sudden vanished from view as a massive cloud of smoke exploded into the air, appearing directly in front of where Saber was moving. The cloud covered the Goat Servant’s face and removed Saber completely from view. The cloud wasn’t a large one, but the buff which it gave to Saber was extremely beneficial to his escape, as after the cloud appeared Saber’s left foot touched down onto a table. With a hard kick, he vaulted backwards at a much further distance than he could normally, effectively removing himself from the Goat Servant’s range as it came out of the opposite side of the cloud. The instant the Goat Servant appeared, Saber fired the arrow he had been holding. That arrow now had a little buddy riding along; a rune. Still confused by the cloud, the Goat Servant didn’t avoid the arrow as it was struck in the face. Just after impact, and after the arrowhead was stuck inside of the Servant’s throat, the rune which Saber had connected to the projectile exploded into a ball of fire.

The initial explosion blasted apart the Servant’s neck, destroying half of its throat, and the ball of flame ignited a terrible fire on the Goat’s head. The flame spread rapidly over its body, feeding off the burly, dry hairs which coated the Minotaur’s being. The Servant reached up and grabbed onto its throat as its mouth opened, attempting to scream as it stared towards the Assassin in the distance. Saber lowered his bow and watched the Goat Servant burn and suffocate, not even giving it a mercy shot to the head as its health depleted. Though, he never looked away. The man stared down his burning, defenseless enemy and watched the life fade as the flames carried it off into the hells from which it was birthed. A few seconds later, the Goat Servant joined its brothers in the crystal space.

With the lead four dead, and his powerful being now showing itself completely, the Knight hesitated, the Goblins looked amongst themselves, and the floating Knives stood by. Saber was willing to end all of their lives, however he had no time to waste. Instead, he took in the information which had been provided to him by the red walls and his calmed skull began to decipher the words. There first clue was a date, followed by a clue. On its own, it meant nothing, but the second clue assured Saber that it was what he thought it was; a date. There was no math or combination. The second part of the second clue associated the date with history, and then to the calendar. As such, Saber picked apart what the date could mean. Was it a birthday? Was it an event? Or was it an important moment in time? At first, he didn’t know and he had called ‘pass’. However, after a few seconds of letting himself relax, the answer came to him. And so, he strapped his bow across his back and pulled one of his remaining throwing knives off his hip. The Knight that stood a few tables away readied its battle axe and prepared to duel the Assassin then and there, however the man turned away from the Suit of armor. Instead, he hopped off the table and approached the nearest wall. Narrowing his eyes, the Assassin slit his index finger and caused it to bleed. He winced at the sharp pain, but as his stomach clenched and his head began to unravel, he reached up to the wall and began to write. Slowly and in his own blood, he placed the answer of the riddle for all to see.

With the final letter being written, there was a loud bell chime followed by the sound of a door unlocking. Glancing over his shoulder to the left, the huge fireplace at the back of the dining hall spit out a hurl of dust. The roof of the fire pit lifted, dragging several feet up the wall and a door was revealed behind it. Looking further to his left, Saber watched as the Knight dropped its axe to the ground and the floating silverware dropped to the floor, motionless. When he turned his head to the right, the Goblin Servants were bowing their heads. Saber stepped away from the wall and sheathed his throwing blade, shaking his left hand slightly because of the tingling pain which lingered.

“Well done, Adventurer. You may proceed.” The Knight said aloud, lowering its own head to the player. Saber raised an eyebrow at the sight, but then he looked back towards the Goblins. They did not move from their bowing positions and the cackling pumpkins above their heads seemed to be a little more docile now. Saber nodded in compliance and looked among the pumpkins for his ally. He scanned the floating things, looking at each individual pumpkin before he found what he was looking for; a blue arrow pointing at a tiny level one Mini Jack.

“Blumpy! Time to go!” The Assassin shouted through the hall at the little pumpkin and watched as it twisted towards him. It glowed happily and smiled at him, yipping at the call. As it started to fly over, Saber made his way towards the fireplace, striding by the black armor. Though, as he passed, the Knight reached out and placed a hand on the Assassin’s shoulder.

“You would do well to watch your surroundings, Adventurer. Be swift, but be careful.” The hollow suit spoke with a hushed tone, and then separated itself from Saber after it finished speaking. Saber watched the being return to the placed it had moved from and then looked towards the Goblin Servants as they cleaned up the mess caused by the battle. Blumpy returned to Saber’s shoulder as the Assassin finished his sight-seeing and the two entered the threshold beneath the fireplace. The time was now six-forty-five. Saber sighed softly to himself and opened the door once he was through the fireplace. As he did, the ceiling behind him slid back to its original position. At the same moment, the four Goat Servants were replaced by a fresh group and the Goblins were berated for their inability to help the previous leaders. Saber heard the sound of a hard smack as he closed the door behind him.

: Word Count :
1247

Coded By Saber of L33T T3@M