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Prison of Extore, Skull-King |
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Waves crashed against the rocky shore, the air was chilled with the coming of night. A figure garbed in a cloak of shadows stood in front of a rope bridge dangling between a cliff falling toward a ever constant shifting ocean, and a angry spire jetting out from the ocean. There were several of these spires out in front of this being, ruby eyes looking among these dagger-like spires all the way toward a prison that sat upon what seemed to be a throne of these wrath-filled spires.
Behind it flanked a larger cliff side then the one he was standing upon, like a wave made of darkened earth and stone. To him in this gloomy dusk, it looked like it was eager to engulf this man made structure and bring it to the ocean that flowed endlessly underneath.
Shifting its free arm, it adjusted a pack on its back and hip. As it did so, the cloak tore open around its hood. A crown is what this seemed, a crown of bones that were curved spikes. One high upon his forehead like a rhino's horn, and six others that went along the side of his head that were curved much the same, but grew smaller as they went to the back of his head. Slowly on the sides of his shoulders, the cloak ripped and spikes stuck out as half the size of the rhino's horn. Finally around its shoulder blades, spikes stuck out from there, longer and alot more narrower then the horn upon his forehead. With a slight movement of his hand, the ruby eyes enclosed into the skull of the python's head shone slightly, and the figure's head tilted back revealing a skull face from underneath the hood. "Krypt, I don't want to hear anything from you today."
Of course that staff didn't listen to any command he gave to him now that it had learned Skull-King couldn't do as most of the things he had promised alone. The boneforge looked upon the rope bridge out in front of him, taking to study the condition of it. Thinking it was safe, and glad that he had found a enchanter willing to talk and accept his kerous to halve the weight of his equipment, as well as finding a merchant to sell him this equipment.. He went forward with a cautious step.
One step after the next, and he made it a crossed. Though he thought he had heard the rattle of chains, along with a wail of sorts that he could of recognized if he was closer. Either way, he continued, the small bracelet of interlocking chains along his wrist shone slightly but he ignored it. Coming onto the spire, he thought of looking back but shook his head and went forward, going around the half man made and half natural path, he looked to the next rope bridge.
It seemed alright at first, one step after the next, the boneforge out of human nervousness habit said, "One step, two step. One step, two step.. On-Aah!" One foot fell through a plank, but going at a cautious pace he was ready for it and pulled himself back up. How he would of let out a sigh of relief, but he could not. Now watching the boards as he walked, he skipped planks he did not trust and tested planks with the bottom of his staff and pressure.
The next bridge went smoothly, though his chain bracelet shone more then dimly for a moment, it went smoothly. There was no heat coming from this being, no energy that could be drained from him, there was no reason to drain something that was not there.
Looking upon the last bridge and the prison ahead, he brought his hand into the pack on his hip that had a flap covering the top, fingering with dagger-tipped items over parchment and jars. The parchment was what he could find on this goddess named Isod in such short notice, along with trying to stay hidden from members of the Hand of Dawn that seemed to be tracking him. It told him what would please this Lady of Torment.. Which wasn't much other then common knowledge and common sense really. Though, there was one thing..
Taking his hand out from the bag, he advanced over the rope bridge cautiously as he examined the prison. Twelve barred windows, too small to squeeze through and it only seemed like someone's head could fit into them. The front wall was slick, there were no edges to grab onto but those small windows that weren't even close to one another. Seven stories up, where the barred windows ended, there was a big gap, a doorway of sorts, lined with long spikes along its edges and inside that he could see. There seemed to be no space between them, and they were made of metal.. Then how come he could detail smaller spikes on the ones on the wall? Guess so no one could grab them. Bringing his head down, his unblinking eyes looked upon the cleanly picked, and old bones that lay among the ground as he walked up the last of the rope bridge.
It was meant for suicuide, that doorway to the outside up there.
Looking to the iron door, he scowled on the inside before he even tested it. To his amazement, it opened, hell it was even jarred. Though as he did it let out a loud announcing squeak, or was it a screech? ".. Honey i'm home." He said before stepping inside. Into the Prison of Extore, the Lady of Torment's 'temple.' After stepping a few feet inside.. The door slammed shut, and Skull-King didn't look back as he continued into the completely dark hallway that he could see inside in black and white much like a drow thanks to the dark arts and the drow he managed to kill by pure luck.. Actually more like drawing its attention and having one of his puppets stab it in the back.
The boneforge didn't get far before he came upon a being much to strange for his comprehension. Laying before the staircase he wished to gain access to, was a pile of chains. Though when he had went forward and came within fifteen feet of it, there arose a being with no notable features. Well! Besides being made of chains that is.. Standing before him was a humanoid shaped figure of chains, how it seemed to mesh into such a figure when it looked like their was so little chain was beyond him, but it had. These chains never stopped their movement, they seemed to slither like snakes with the constant motion of metal against metal that made a never-ending rattling and metallic screech with a moments pause between them.
Skull-King stood, but not for long to learn of its attentions. One of its arms swung out from a crossed its stomach, the arm extending into nothing but the chain it was and acted like a metallic whip. Experienced with wielding the staff like it was a weapon, he swung it out against the attack. The chain wrapped itself around his staff before the King caught it before it could finish the last four loops. His, and his staff's ruby eyes taking on a dark shine as they looked upon the opponent. The thing pulled, but the boneforge didn't even shift as he had firmed planted feet.
Words unknown to Skull-King spoke to this being, but his own interrupted these.. "Halt your attack! You are a servant of the Lady of Torment are you not?!" Skull-King was now struggling with holding his ground and keeping hold on the staff that would of broken by now if it was ordinary. "I have come to give your Matron what she desires! Service on this realm, slaves, and a way for her servants like you to find her more!"
His plead seemed to have no effect, "I tell no lies but give loyalty to the Matron of Chains!" His hand released the chain, and his other released the staff as it was taken away from him and held in the hand of the Kyton. Skull-King stood there, feet opened and hands away from his body as he seemed ready to act. The being stood there, running a finger, if that's what it could be called, over the staff's head before thrusting the bottom into a crack on the floor, the head facing Skull-King. Then in a moment, the Kyton stick a hand into a hole in the wall before its body lost its shape and it disappeared on the other side.
Looking back to the solid door that lead to the room, he looked back and went forward pulling his staff from the floor and went up the staircase to the second story.
Upon placing a foot onto the level, all that was hidden was revealed, the slowly corroding stone, the dusty and dark atmosphere, it was all gone. The hall leading to the next staircase lined with iron doors left and right was like it had been reconstructed right before his eyes.. The sound though, filled his hearing. From each door, wails of pain and agony seeped through, the dark gray iron doors look like they'd never be broken from, the slits into each room seemed to lead to blackness and that nothing was there. Though, Skull-King looked, his curiosity of the noise and of what was happening got the better of him.
Upon looking through the slit he thought he saw hell that laid in wait for him, what would be a spirit out of these walls was solid. What was worse it looked alive, its body pierced from the front and back by spikes. He saw what was before that though, one of those Kytons had put him there and pushed down, missing every major organ it did. Leaving him there pinned, it cranked a wheel and the spikes that came from above were slowly brought down toward the tortured soul, the being could only see the spikes diving into his eyes before he drove into the back of his skull. Sandwiched between something that would kill him, but never would, for he was already dead.
Skull-King pulled away, his eyes had been locked there for what felt like days after one gruesome torture after the next had been committed to the man. The boneforge actually looked shaken as he trudged on, from each room he passed came the wails of pain from the torture that was being commenced to these souls for what would be all eternity in his mind.
The floors above were just like that too, Skull-King passed one dark gray metal door after the next, they didn't look like iron or steel, and he didn't want to test how strong it was. On one level he caught a Kyton entering a room, a rattle coming from the door that he somehow could manage to make out that was a cackle.. Then the door shut, and constant shouts of pain ensued..
Time was faster in those rooms, but time outside past normally.. A day out here was a year? No.. He never wanted to know.
Forcing himself to walk casually, he ascended each flight as he blocked out the wails of misery. Eyes looking to the door every once in a while as he cackled. He felt like the tortures happening around him were driving him back into the pit of insanity he had pieced himself out from, each floor shaking the mentality of his mind. Upon the last flight that was in the middle of the hallway, he squeezed the staff in front of him and focused for several minutes and collected himself back together.
Climbing the steps, he opened a trap door on the ceiling. He entered, his ruby eyes gazing a crossed the room. Chains covered the ceiling, dangling here and there like loops for a trap in waiting, and some just hanged straight to the floor with shackles at the end. The room would of felt a hot humidness, the sound of chains rattling one side then the next. But these were more subtle. The door closed, and the chains moved out of place, went back into place a crossed it. If he didn't have the memory he was blessed with in his natural life, he would of lost its place.
Before him close to the window he had seen earlier, was a risen platform, a altar.. With a human female laying on top of it.
Skull-King would of reeled back and fell, and likely would of been lost to the chains he now noticed that covered the floor.
Coming from the woman's mouth were chains, a number of them, so many that he couldn't count unless he took the time to which would not be granted in this place. Her body covered in them, the beauty that may of laid beneath those chains would never be seen by the likes of this boneforge. Sea blue eyes fell upon Skull-King as blond hair laid out upon the stone cold rock platform.
Stepping forward, he brought the pack on his hip onto the floor before kneeling down. Opening the flap, he stuffed the the parchment further inside. Pulling two jars out from the small pack, he placed it onto the floor farther in front of him, then removed the chain from his wrist and laid it on top of the jar lids. Each link on the chain had a special enchantment of not just detecting any kind of undead, but rather of ethereal undead and revealed those that were invisible to the sights most mortals had.
Tilting his head forward, at first holding the staff normally with the tip on the floor, he held it out in front of him as if offering it. Oh how the devil inside this staff started to curse him.
"Lady of Torment, Matron of Deceit, I have traveled to this altar in search to bind myself to your will. I have brought offerings, two new souls for you to do as you please with.." The jars lite up now, one ethereal figure slamming his fists against the glass wall. The other was curling up into a ball, rocking itself back and forth. "A new chain to add to your collection or for you to give to one of your servants here to find more to fill the rooms here." He thrusted places the staff's tip farther then the stuff in front of the other items, with the head facing toward the altar as his head bowed. "I also offer this, a Babau devil of the 414th layer of Nuzalheim, a former servant of M'gigleoax. Please accept these offerings I give, and humbly ask if you may bestow upon me a item or power that I can enslave ethereal beings myself.. For you, of course."
With that, Skull-King went silent, waiting for a reply of sorts..
 Leonardo Winter · Mon Jul 14, 2008 @ 08:55pm · 0 Comments |
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