The carriage slowed and finally came to a bumpy stop.

"We're here," the toothless driver hissed. Catastrophe stepped out of the carriage and walked down the stone path to the mansion's enormous, burnished wooden doors. His mood, which was quite high when the carriage set off from Bleak Peak early that morning, had taken a nosedive. The driver had gotten lost and driven the carriage to the mansion with peonies on the front lawn, and it had taken ages to get him to understand what had gone wrong.

The sun was now setting, and Catastrophe was several hours late. He strolled up to the door alone -- he didn't trust any soldiers to keep their mouths shut, and Vidtinok was needed at Bleak Peak to keep things running smoothly -- and knocked sharply. The door opened almost before he had stopped knocking. A butler bowed as Catastrophe walked into the mansion's enormous, shadowy foyer. The butler led him through a maze of hallways and into a stuffy parlor. There was a fire raging in a fireplace, and a suit of armor watched over the room vigilantly. Several Black Skull members sat in armchairs. The butler gestured towards the largest armchair, and Catastrophe sat down, unsure as to what was going on. All I need is the old man, he thought. Puzzled as he was, he wasn't about to let the Black Skull see his confusion. He needed to stay in control of this situation.

"Greetings, Lord Catastrophe," one of the Black Skull, an old woman with greying hair, said unctuously. "What an honor it is to finally meet you."

"The pleasure's all mine," Catastrophe said without conviction, refusing a cup of tea that the butler offered to him.

"We're glad that we were able to be of service," a cyclops dressed in a musty suit said.

"Are you?" Catastrophe asked. There was a pregnant pause. The Black Skull members looked at each other hesitantly.

Catastrophe was growing bored of this farce. "If it's all the same to you, may I have the prisoner?"

"Of course, of course," a young, thin man said soothingly. "The prison guards are fetching him now."

"It might be a while," the woman said. "Security is very tight, and what with all the locks and codes, it takes ages to get to the cells."

Another pregnant pause. 

"While we've got time," the cyclops said, "how are things on Bleak Peak? I've heard tell of a portal up there -- how's that going?"

Catastrophe only just managed to keep his pretense of calm. How did they know about the Portal? 

The woman and the man both glared. "What on earth are you doing, Karaff?"

"Sorry," the cyclops said. 

Catastrophe had had enough. "Excuse me, what is going on here?" he asked, standing up.

"Nothing," the man said in a dulcet tone. "Karaff here is-"

"Shut up," Catastrophe said, his whole body tense. "I'm taking the prisoner and leaving," he told the woman.

"Are you now?" the woman asked, her eyes full of fear.

Catastrophe spat on the ground. "You don't have him, do you? You were lying, all of you were lying."

"Oh, no!" the man squeaked. "There was an accident-"

"An accident? With all of the security that you've been prattling on about? I've had enough of this." Catastrophe walked towards the door.

"He was with a girl, and his ankle's in rough shape. He's probably still with her now, and we can give you a description," the woman blurted out.

Catastrophe paused. "That would be very helpful. Thank you."

"We've got a special contact that we can tell to keep an eye out," the cyclops explained. "We'll send a description along."

"Right," said Catastrophe briskly. "I had better return to Bleak Peak. Good day to all of you." The butler showed him out, and Catastrophe cursed quietly to himself all the way back to the carriage. He climbed into the carriage and sat down, the door locking behind him. 

"Back to Bleak Peak, please," he said, putting his face in his hands. The trip wasn't quite fruitless, he thought to himself. There's still a good chance of catching him.

There's also a good chance he'll go telling his story to everyone and their dog. He's already told the Black Skull, a needling voice piped up. Catastrophe banished the thought from his mind -- they probably think he's mad, they need never know the truth -- and laid down on the carriage's comfortable seats as the horses began to trot towards home. He was exhausted, and there was still plenty of work to do when he returned to Bleak Peak. With luck, he could catch a nap before arriving back at base.

Eniyan~

It was late at night, at that time when the air itself seems clogged with the dread of darkness. A cold wind swept across the streets, carrying the distant sounds of wolves howling way out in the fields surrounding the entire town. 

Eniyan walked by himself up these streets, seeking nothing other than solitude and quiet. The others had gone to sleep for the night in a hotel called the Full-moon Hotel, a quiet little stone building crowded between a bookstore and a tailor’s shop. The streets were nearly empty, save for the occasional bird or rodent.

It happened suddenly, he had no time to react, no time to fight against it. There was a voice in his head, whispering at first, growing stronger by the second. You are made of darkness, it hissed, coming from the corners of his mind. Stop hiding from yourself. Something was building in him, bloodlust, anger, a rage--all the things he had kept under control for so long. 

He slammed his head against the alley way, trying to block out these thoughts, this evil building up in him. His vision was swirling, he felt sick. Still the feeling grew.  You are not like them, you are strong, you are powerful, the voice growled. 

No matter how much he fought it, the darkness grew. His vision suddenly flashed red, and when it returned to normal, there was no will in him other than what the darkness spoke.

Take two of them prisoner. The rest, do as you see fit.

His free will was gone. And so, this new resolve in him, he crept back towards the hotel.

Anyone who gets in your way--remove their head.

Do not let anyone stop you.

He walked into the hotel with his pistol drawn, ready for what lay next.

No matter how long it takes or how hard the task becomes, you must take two prisoners. This is your will, this is your wish, this is your purpose.

And it was. There was no thought in his mind except to obey. 

~~~

Kirah~

Sleep is an easy thing to take for granted. That's not something I do tonight, though. I fall face-first on a bed, still in my uniform and shoes, after being checked in by a skinny otter anthro. But for some horrible, dasdardly reason, it lasts about two seconds before I hear something down the hall- a door breaking open, and someone shouting. It takes me a second, but I realize the someone who's shouting is Dar'sava.

Cursing, I roll out of bed, grab my pistol, and creep out into the hallway. Dar'sava's door is open, and I can hear that a scuffle is going on. I move towards his room quickly and quietly as I can. It's clear someone is here who shouldn't be. I try not to get afraid. I dart into his room and pounce on- Eniyan?

"What-"

"I don't know what's wrong with him!" Dar'sava gasps. Eniyan's hands are wrapped tightly and viciously around Dar'sava's neck, which just about gives me a panic attack. For the second time in less than 48 hours, my pistol collides with the side of Eniyan's head, knocking him out.

The two of us stand there awkwardly before I ask, "You okay?"

"Yeah," Dar'sava says. "It was so weird...he didn't say a word, and I think his eyes looked weird, like he was possessed or something."

I furrow my brow. "What should we do with him? Obviously we can't leave him here to wake up and attack us again."

"I dunno. What, do you want to interrogate him? Should I tie him to a chair?" he says jokingly.

I smirk. "For someone so dumb, you can be pretty smart sometimes."

"Hey, wait a-"

"Excuse me, I have to go steal some rope," I say, turning and leaving his room. "Don't die while I'm gone."

Turns out I don't have to steal any. I remember I have some in my pack. I grab it from my room and head back to Dar'sava, where we tie Eniyan to a chair. I fall asleep on the floor with a flashlight and a pistol next to me. 

A few hours later, Dar'saa shakes me awake. "Eniyan's waking up," he whispers. I stand up, turn my flashlight on, and shine it in Dar'sava's face. He blinks slowly.

"You snore really loudly, by the way," Dar'sava whispers. I throw him a dirty look before turning back to Eniyan. 

Lysette~

Okay. Okay, okay, okay.

I’m repeating the word in my head, just trying to process what’s going on. We’re in the hospital- so that’s good news- by ourselves and we were just dropped off by a tenebris- tenebris!- named Eniyan and a girl named Ember. Which is just… confusing news.

And… someone’s looking for Eron. And it definitely wasn’t whoever captured us*, because they would not have politely asked a receptionist.

Something bumps. “What was that noise?” I ask, a little panicked. Eron doesn’t respond. He seems to have zoned out.

That brings me to another issue.

“What are you talking about? You have a servant? Actually, no. I’m definitely not your granddaughter so that was probably a lie as well. So. Who’s looking for you? And why?” I hiss, trying to sound angry but also be as quiet as possible at the same time.

“Oh. Um. Well, I got struck by lightning, which is how I-”

“You what?” I say incredulously, and it’s extremely hard not to shout, but somehow I manage, although that did come out a bit louder than I meant it to.

Eron sighs. “I got struck by lightning and twisted my ankle-”

“How are you not fried? As in, dead? Or at least paralyzed?” I ask, trying very hard not to shout, which is becoming increasingly difficult. (As is talking in italics, though I’ve rather given up on that.)

“As I was saying, Ro- a boy found me and was bringing me here, to the hospital, but we were lost, and then we found a cat who was talking to us and gave us some food and then I got captured,” he finished matter of factly.

“You were talking to a cat. And you got struck by lightning and somehow escaped with only a broken ankle,” I say, crossing my arms. But at this point, honestly, I probably shouldn’t be surprised anymore.

“Yes,” Eron says impatiently. Not knowing what else to do, I take a bite of the peanut butter cracker. It’s rather salty and also on the stale side, but other than that, not bad. I open the water bottle and take a large gulp of it, washing the saltiness out of my mouth.

“Mr… Ero?” The receptionist says uncertainly. “Yes?” Eron says, annoyingly calm, as usual. “We- um-” the receptionist squirms uncomfortably. “Your servant is missing,” he blurts out.

I watch as the news hits Eron. He goes stock still for a minute. “Oh. Thank you for telling me,” he says, disconcertingly quiet.

Who is this “servant”? What happened to him?

There’s something going on here.

I narrow my eyes. But I still don’t know what I can possibly do. “Are… you okay?” is all I can think to say.

Then something bangs again.

I scream.~~

So, @Nyx, I think something happened to Jira? Idk, do what you want with that.

*Lysette is still in the dark about who captured her, in case that wasn’t clear. I had to go back and look, so, just thought I’d put this here.

Also, Hazel, I wasn't sure if "Ero" was a typo or if Ronan actually told the receptionist that was his name. If it was just a typo, pretend I wrote Eron. I will go look it up though and reply to this comment with the answer.

Off topic, but side note: Kiwi said "hcbuf" and I'm not sure I want to know what that means. 

Edit to my comment a few seconds ago: never mind, Ronan gave the name "Ero" to the receptionist.

Dar'sava~~

Dar'sava turned backed to Eniyan, who was slowly beginning to awaken, blinking his eyes. A few hours ago, they'd been a deep, dark purple, but now they were warm and yellow again. 

Eniyan took a moment to examine his surroundings, then the chair he was tied to, before looking back up at Kirah and Dar'sava again. "What happened?" He asked. His voice sounded rough, like he hadn't spoken in a while. Dar'sava noticed there seemed to be thin, dark lines, hardly even noticable, coming from around his eyes.

Like he'd been possessed.

"You tried to kill me, that's what," Dar'sava said. He rubbed the bruises on his neck, feeling a little offended when there was no spark of realization or rememberance in Eniyan's eyes.

"I don't remember doing that, but I'm not suprised," Eniyan responded after a brief pause. There was no response from Kirah or Dar'sava for a moment. Eniyan's eyes widened a little.

"Oh, Claaws," He said. "You're being serious."

Dar'sava exchanged a worried look with Kirah. 

"So, you actually...don't remember any of it?" Kirah asked. 

Eniyan shook his head. "Not really. Bits and pieces... I remember I was taking a walk, when something...I don't know, possessed me? That doesn't feel right, though." He paused for a moment, deep in thought, then continued. "I remember walking into the hotel. I think the receptionist yelled something, but I don't know what. And I remember...walking into the hallway, and fighting someone, but I don't know who."

"That would be me," Dar'sava interjected. "I can't believe you forgot you tried to murder me. I'm not that forgettable, right?"

Kirah rolled her eyes. "If something possessed you, that means it could do it again. And depending on what it is, it could possess any of us."

~~~ 

Lysette~

Wait. What? Someone tried to kill someone and then someone saved the person who was going to be killed and they tied up the first person and now we’re going to rescue them?! No! No, no, no. Definitely not. I need details, we can’t just jump into this with no planning whatsoever? And who are these people? And someone’s missing, too. Who’s missing? I’m clueless. I dislike being clueless, as it turns out.

I rub my forehead.

“I’ll explain on the way,” Ember says, interrupting my thoughts. Oh no, there must have been a conversation going on that I didn’t notice. Then I realize Ember is looking at me. Wait, how much of that did I say out loud? “Not much,” Ember laughs, and I realize I said that out loud too. Shoot.

I waver. I could probably argue about this and manage to stay here, where it’s safe, but- wait, is it? Is anywhere safe? I shudder internally. I’m not getting anywhere with this kind of thinking.

But a boy disappeared here, and I would really rather not be next. Hopefully they can find him… my thoughts start to whirl again and I try to drown them out. I’m no expert on emotions, but even I can tell that Ember is worried, and she helped us. So did Eniyan.

I at least owe it to them to help. “Okay, let’s go,” I say, to thin air. “Lysette!” Ember is calling my name from the steps of the hospital, holding the door open. Embarrassed, I hurry out of it.

“Okay, so… how are we getting there?” I ask, probably awkwardly. “Using those,” Eron says absently. I look in the direction he’s pointing and see several… things. Modes of transportation? I don’t know. Things. “What are those?” I ask. Okay, so I’m completely clueless and know nothing about Kyngdom technology.

I guess that happens when you’ve lived on the edge of a dangerous forest in a secluded slightly creepy very mysterious house with one old lady and her granddaughters.

“Wait, what are you doing?” Ember suddenly realizes Eron is still here. “You literally can’t walk, get back inside!” The receptionist is already hovering outside the door. “Excuse me, sir, your ankle-”

Ember slides off the machine and helps Eron get back into the hospital.

I can’t help but wonder how he got down here in the first place. The elf sighs. “Lysette, right?” she asks. “Yes… and you are…” I have a feeling Ember said her name but I really can’t remember it just now. “Jira. Nice to meet you.” I nod distractedly. “So… wait, why doesn’t Ember like you again?”

She shifts uncomfortably. “Who said anything about that?” she asks innocently. “You did,” I say pointedly. She sags. “It’s… probably best if I don’t tell you?” she says hopefully. I’m about to shake my head but Ember comes back at that moment. “Okay, do you know how to use these things?” 

I shake my head apologetically, tugging a loose strand of hair and pushing it out of the way. “No, sorry.” Ember looks like she’s about to freak out, but she pulls herself together. “Okay, I guess you could ride behind me…” But even I can tell that whatever these things are, they were not meant for two people.

Jira shakes her head. “Look, it’s easy. That pedal makes you go forward. You use that” she points to a wheel attached to the front of the thing “to steer. This other pedal makes you stop. Got it?” I nod uncertainly.

“Okay, let’s go.”

Ember looks like she’s going to protest, but then she just decides to go with it. “Okay then…” I push myself onto the seat of the thing. It isn’t the most comfortable, but better than what I was expecting.

Something starts to… rumble? Growl? I’m not sure how to describe it, just that it’s ridiculously loud. “Oh, and that’s the ignition!” Jira yells, pointing to a button. “The what?” I ask loudly. “THE START BUTTON!” she says. I push it and the machine starts to vibrate, making the same loud noise. Ember sighs and mutters something I can’t hear.~~

So, yay! Now someone gets to make up what the modes of transportation are. And hopefully Lysette doesn’t crash or anything like that, and please excuse the many plotholes I will probably find later… heh…

Just a few questions, I've been going off and on about joining Kyngdom for a while, now I'm thinking a little more seriously about joining.  I read that this RP is begining to come to a close, so is it too late to join?  If so, where would I role play with my characters?  Is Catastrophe played by one person or can anyone write from his POV?  Also, the Kyngdom guide doesn't seem to have been updated recently and I don't know what's happening here, perhaps someone could explain? Hopefully I didn't miss a post that would explain these things, that would be slightly embarrassing.

Anyways, I enjoy coming here every so often and reading even though I usually don't get the full story.  You all write so well and your characters are so interesting!