Fantasy Moments in Time

[Zer0]

- Seth & Sen Pendragon -
" Identity Crisis "​

Sen's sniggering was cut short by the wet napkin plopping on his rain drenched face. "Careful, Minnie!" he cried out worriedly, as she stumbled, trying to catch her, but by the time he clambered over the window, wet and dripping, Minnie had already fallen on her bottom.

He went red and covered his mouth. His beau knew this expression well, like watching something adorable. "You're so cuuuute!" he whined. Laughing, he retreated to the bathroom under her pillow throws to get dry and change. He honestly hadn't eaten enough, and his stomach grumbled when he came out, tussling his hair dry with a towel, and called a servant for another round of late lunch. He felt uncomfortable asking Cadbury now that he knew the man was a prince.

He found the fallen ball joint for Minnie, then kissed her cheek. "Want me to help you?" he asked, sitting cross-legged beside her and reaching for a napkin and some oil.

Katsuya
The Story | Characters | OOC
​

 

[Katsuya]

- Minnie von Ironheart -
"A moment's rest"​

Minnie huffed as her beau retreated to the bathroom, her face went from red to pink now when she had a moment to calm down. When he came out, tummy rumbling, she frowned in worry as he asked a servant for late lunch. Said servant nodded and left to bring up dinner.

It wasn't until Sen sat next to her, ball joint in his hand, that Minnie looked at him. "Shouldn't I be asking you that? Sen, you're working yourself to the bone with the assassin guild search." She held his reaching hand gently, bringing it close to her chest where he can feel her calming heartbeat.

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Seth & Sen Pendragon -
" Identity Crisis "​

"Yes, but I don't mind helping you with your arm, Minnie." smiled Sen, sighing peacefully when he felt her calming heartbeat. He scooched close and rubbed the prosthetic end of her shoulder with his other arm. His hands were a little cold from having just taken a bath and the weather, and the one over her heart gave very gentle rubs.

"Sorry if I worried you, I can't help but feel responsible even though this is Serena's mission. I guess it's the tinker in me just wanting to fix things. I'm doing alright, though, Minnie, I just wished we had more people to help with the work."

When the servant came in with food, he hungrily dug in. Finally he had hot food in his belly, and sat beside Minnie as he ate, smiling because it tasted really good. "I know me and Seth will be going into dangerous grounds without you, but I've been in tougher straits before, and I survived." he recalled the time he got captured by Valdanr many years ago. "I'll survive this time too." he cupped her cheek comfortingly.

Sen really wasn't a fighter without his inventions, as Minnie knew very well. He always relied on her for protection, or the other guards under her command in the guild, and always tried to talk his way out of trouble if it was possible, or wait for rescue if it wasn't.

For this he'll be relying on Seth, their plan really was to try and talk to Gravitas, and find a way to stop this assassination without any casualties. Minnie's sniping skills would be extremely useful, but she looked like the princess and that would look bad if the people saw her and thought it was the Princess of Spades attacking a state of Hearts citizen.

Sen caressed Minnie's blue hair down to her tattoo. "Is there anything you want me to do to ease your mind, or . . . anything at all before me and Seth go?"

​

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

- Minnie von Ironheart -
"Identity crisis"​

Listening as she leaned her cheek in his hand, Minnie thought for a moment. Cheeks tinting pink from his gentle caresses on her hair and tattoo as she closed her eyes.

". . . I really doubt you can ease my mind that easily, Sen. You and Seth are going somewhere dangerous to talk with the leader of an assassin's guild. How could I not be worried?" She whispered, nuzzling his hand and kissing his palm and finger tips. "I would rather go with you . . ."

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Seth & Sen Pendragon -
" Identity Crisis "​

Sen sighed. He looked worried. On one hand he didn't want the State of Hearts to think the princess is up to no good if ever they get caught, on the other hand he didn't like making Minnie worry like yesterday, and if he was completely honest with himself . . . he wasn't sure he and Seth can take on an entire assassin's guild and come back alright.

A thumb rubbed across Minnie's cheek, then Sen gathered her in his arms and hugged her. "To be honest, I think me and Seth can't do this by ourselves." he admitted. "So . . . as much as I'm worrying about what might happen if the Hearts folk see your face, you're right. It's better if you come, Minnie. Less chance of me or Seth dying."


Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

- Minnie von Ironheart -​

Minnie wrapped her arms around Sen and squeezed comfortingly as he hugged her. She pondered for a moment, gears in her head cranked ideas of what to do to help the twins without really showing her face . . . and not get caught.

"Okay . . . I'll wear a disguise or follow behind and hidden from sight." Her suggestions muffled by his clothes. "Maybe that way, no one will see my face and mistake me for Milk . . . "

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Seth & Sen Pendragon -
" Identity Crisis "​

"Alright, I'll help make a disguise for you too, Minnie." said Sen, smiling at the sound of her muffled voice. Minnie was naturally adorable. She never needed to try. "I think I have enough time before we head out." he reached for the bedside table and pulled out a pocket watch from the drawer. He had made this himself, copper and industrial glass with all the ticking and tiny rotating gears visible through the case. He did wonder though if Minnie wanted him to stay in bed longer instead of going back to the workshop, she doesn't really like him overworking.

"Erm, do you want me to make a disguise for you?"

Katsuya

 

[Zer0]

- Seth Pendragon -
" Comfy Snuggling "​

Meanwhile, in Seth and Serena's room, Seth was rubbing his cheek against Serena's with gusto. "So soft . . ." he muttered, eyes closed and chinky in glee. He hummed, really getting into their cuddling under the covers in this rainy afternoon. A welcome repose before their adventure to the state of Hearts.

He nibbled and played with Serena's neck, hugging her tight, before settling down in her warmth and dozing off in her arms.

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

- Minnie von Ironheart & Serena Lock -
"Comfy Snuggling"​

The tiny gunner listened to the soft pitter-patter of rain hitting the glass window as Sen checked his pocket watch, affectionately nuzzling in his shoulder. Then she paused her nuzzling and her brows furrowed a bit as she looked up. Her teal blue eyes narrowed, the corners of her lips arched down, and her cheeks puffed.

"...Nope." Minnie lightly tapped the tip of his nose. "You barely slept since coming here . . . Sleep, tired person."

During the meeting with Milk and Sebastian, Sen knows it'll take time to travel to Hearts. Six days by horse and the assassination plan for Milk's life during the concert is in two days from now. With Ernest volunteering after talking with him too, they need to decide when to leave for Hearts: Before or after the concert.

- - - X - - -​

Meanwhile, Serena giggled and tucked strands of Seth's reddish auburn hair. The blonde smiled as they cuddled under the warm blanket, welcoming the calm rainy afternoon. She quietly cackled as she felt tickling nips on her sensitive neck, playfully poking his sides before squeezing him in a tight hug and let out a slow sigh. Her blue eyes glittered in adoration as Seth dozed off.

"Rest well, my red apple." The violinist stayed up, only murmuring sweet nothings whenever Seth snores silently. She slept later in the late night, arms around the twin to keep him warm and snug.

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Seth & Sen Pendragon -​

"Alright." smiled Sen, blinking when Minnie tapped his nose. He playfully tackled her into the covers. After some canoodling, he settled with her under the sheets, hugging her close to his heart. He kissed her forehead and watched her affectionately, caressing her hair, and rubbing down her cheek across her neck and down her shoulder stump. He flayed out her long blue hair, gazing at the bits of her black tattoo poking from the edges of her nape.

"You're so hardcore, Minnie."

- - - X- - -​

The next day, the twins asked Serena and Minnie if they are alright with staying in the castle. "Six days is too late." said Seth.

"Yeah, I was hoping we'd be able to talk to that crazy man to stop the assassination." said Sen, sighing. "What's our plan now? Is it possible to cancel the concert?" he turned to Cadbury.

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

- Minnie von Ironheart & Serena Lock -​

"Oof! S-Sen-!"

Minnie laughed her chirpy laugh as she tried to tickle Sen's sides. Then after canoodling, she nuzzled her cheeks on his chest, leaving kisses over his heart at times. A sigh of happiness left her lips before her blue eyes blinked and peeked up coyly.

Her pale cheeks turned pink.

"Hm? What has caused these luscious lips to praise me as such?" She asked quietly, reaching up to cup his cheek.

- - - X - - -

The girls had no problems with staying at the castle. They saw Cadbury shake his head.

"Not possible. We've been setting up for this concert for a while now. If we suddenly cancelled it, the people of this kingdom would want to know why and that reason would cause unnecessary panic." Milk sighed, crossing her arms self-consciously.

". . . That's not good." Serena frowned.

"We also have to believe that the assassination group would find out too and try a different approach." Minnie chimed in. "Maybe we can capture them before they shoot? Serena, you know where the three highest places the chef-guy was talking about, right?"

"Yea. It's easy to spot them from the stage." The violinist said. "I'll show you guys where it is too."

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Seth & Sen Pendragon -​

"Nothing." said Sen, caressing her hair. "You've always been cool Minnie." he said simply, leaning his cheek against her palm, enjoying her touch.

- - - X- - -​

"Alright." nodded Seth. "I guess the only thing we can do is prepare, and maybe watch the city for any shady characters."

"Let's check out the places." agreed Sen, and with that the twins followed Serena.

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

- Minnie von Ironheart & Serena Lock -​

Her eyes softened up when she saw him enjoying her touch, chirpy giggles can be heard as her thumb affectionately rubbed his cheek. " . . . I lose my cool when you're involved. Honestly . . ."

Closing her eyes, Minnie enjoyed his caresses through her hair, humming in content. " . . . I want to stay warm . . . with you." She mumbled, about to doze off first from the nice body heat beside her.

- - - X - - -​

"Aye aye, Captain." Serena perked up, playfully saluting before spinning around to lead the twins.

"Alright. Then I'll do the usual work around here - Come on Cadbury." Milk tugged the disguised prince's suit and he stumbled behind her, muttering about her being pushy. She poked his sides hard it seems, by the way he clutched his sides and chased her down the hall for revenge pokes.

Minnie watched and a corner of her lips quirked up in amusement. " . . . I'll go safe-check the castle. Stay safe, you three." She quickly pecked Sen's cheek before he left with Serena and Seth, waving at them. Then, if either twins looked back, they would see Minnie quietly made her way into the soft shadows of the not yet waking hallways; disappearing behind a pillar.

After receiving horses from the castle stables, the trip to the stage wasn't long. The twins will notice as they followed Serena's rich magenta billowing cloak and jogging copper horse, they were getting closer to the ports that leads out to the ocean. Then she took a sudden turn to the left where they can see a cove with cobbler stone bridges that leads out to the blue waters too. A few pillars of rocks with moss growing on top stood high as the castle's towers. Caws of seagulls echoed quietly as the waves crashed into the rocks and bridge. They can see tiny nests on the edges.

"Over here. You can see the towers the closer we get to the stage." Serena explained, used to being a tour guide for others before as she lead the way. And like Serena said, the twins can see the towers' silhouettes; one of them is close to the bridge. It's huge, standing tall on an odd rock formation that reminds the blonde of fungus growing on trees. The tower itself is thin and white with small floating islands circling around them. Oddly enough, the twins can see a few of those islands creating a circle at the top for a moment, lighting the spell for that split second before floating away.

"You see those islands? They have winged statues that glow a broken barrier spell." Serena explained as they slowed down to see the towers as close as they can from the now moss-covered bridge. "Long time ago, like waaaaaaay before our great grandparents were born, there was a storm that would've drown the citizens here with massive waves. Lots of people died and the left over few prayed as they reached to the middle of the city where the castle is built. Then as if their prayers were answered, winged creatures came down and calmed the waves before blowing the storm away with their wings. Only to disappear back into the sky. So, as thanks, the surviving people sculpted the statues and placed them on these small islands. The towers themselves used to be a place for prayer. Now they are used as watch towers for any upcoming storm . . . since the dragon's dark army broke the barriers."

"The towers even have names: He'ra, Aphro'ite, and Ath'nes." Serena said. "Do you guys want to explore the tower or do you want to reach the stage first?"

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Sen & Seth Pendragon -​

Sen hugged Minnie tight. "Stay warm with me forever." He relaxed, holding her the way she liked. Nuzzling into her hand, he continued to gently rub her stump, then tucked her in warmly, before he kissed her forehead again and whispered, "Goodnight., Minnie."

- - - X - - -​

Sen gave Minnie a one-armed hug. "Alright. You stay safe too, Minnie." He did look back, and when he saw her meld into the shadows, he once again thought about how cool his fiance is.

Upon seeing the tower, the twin's eyes glinted with that familiar glint of adventure. They looked at each other and seemed to silently communicate, then grinned. "The tower!" they announced together.

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

- Serena Lock -
"Wanna race?"​

Serena peeked over her shoulder to see the silent exchange and grinned excitedly. With a loud 'HYAAA-!', she whipped her reins with a cracking sound and the horse neighed, galloping away first.

"I'll race ya there!" She yelled, cackling like a very mischievous witch that's plotting a prank on her neighbors.

If they followed the laughing violinist, they would see that she was leading them to another thinner bridge that's connected to the one they are on now. Hooves stomping from stones to dirt and grass as they passed a stone sign, saying: "Welcome to the Tower of Wisdom, Ath'nes."

The group would pass small lakes and thin streams of water falling from the cliffs above as the horses galloped through. The cackling Serena let out a 'Weeee~!' as her horse leaped over a large puddle. Trees with green and blue leaves covered them in cooling shades as they passed through the groves . Then the morning's sun peeked it's bashful light over the ocean's horizon to greet them as soon they reached the end.

They can hear the seagulls cawing, smell the mingling sea air with sweet wet rained over forests, fresh and clear. Deer heads perked up when they heard them running through before running away themselves. Birds chirping. They can even hear the soft groans of the islands passing by them from time to time.

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Sen & Seth Pendragon -​

"Whoo!" whooped the twins as their horses bolted after Serena's.

Their mares were dapple greys, white speckled hair whipping past the trees as they leapt over brooks and streams. "Wow!" yelled Seth, galloping close to the edge to admire the sea of clouds; Sen wished Minnie could be here. After all this, he'll definitely invite her here.

Ever the playful one, Seth made his horse leap under a falling stream so that he was drenched, water droplets exploding like sparkles under the morning sun, as he urged his horse forward until it was neck and neck with Serena's. He flashed her a roguish grin. "Are you hungry, Serena? Because you're about to eat my dust!"

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

- Serena Lock -
"The temple of Wisdom: Ath'ens"​

"Ha!" Serena leaned forward, eager to win. "Not when you're eating my dust first!"

It was neck and neck. Everything was a blur to Serena as trees and bushes mushed together as splotches of colors, running past her vision. Her tongue licked her dry lips in anticipation as they got closer and closer to the top of the rock formation. Then she spotted a dark blur coming from the back to go in front of her-!

"SEN!?" She squawked in surprise.

The group arrived at the top, where the temple turned watch tower stood. Pure white bricks somewhat glowed under the sun's soft morning light, making a soft halo of it's own. It was tall and pointed on the tippy-top of the roof, looking like a needle. When they went inside, Serena's red heels echoed loudly with clear clops on the clean and shiny floor. Her eyes wide in awe as she craned her neck up, staring at how tall the walls are. She felt like this building was bigger then what it seemed outside, with the way the walls rose very high and curved at the painted cloud ceilings. Paintings of past inventors wisely advising others to build boats and machines that Sen might consider ancient are bordered with gold leafing.

Serena secretly poked it only to panic a bit when the gold leaf stuck on her finger, rubbing it off by the inside of her magenta cloak.

At the end of the hallways is the center of the room where there's a taller dome shaped ceiling, open windows that arched and letting the sun shine inside. There's even soft tweeting of birds, singing their morning songs. Seven other hallways lead somewhere in the building, probably leading to the top or perhaps a room unknown to the public . . .

. . . or it felt that way to Serena.

There's a smaller space at the side where it held a statue of a sitting angel, almost looking like she's was praying as she looked up; or clapping her hands as an idea sparked in her mind. Her expression spoke of curiosity, a want to explore, and a gleam of creating in her wise calm eyes. On the block she's sitting on held a plaque.

" . . . So this is Ath'ens." Serena muttered. She looked behind the statue to stare at the glass stained windows

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Sen & Seth Pendragon -
"The temple of Wisdom: Ath'ens" ​

Sen stuck his tongue out to both of them; and when they reached the top, Seth let out a loud "Aww!" of disappointment when he ended up third.

"Hehehe!" grinned Sen, cantering his horse around triumphantly on the stone steps. As he turned, though, his glee turned to awe when he looked up at the majestic angel statue. "Wow . . . that is pretty."

His brother agreed, staring up as well. Seth held Serena's hand. "This is a great place, Serena!" he said eyes all sparkly like a kid. Knowing the twin, the violinist could tell he was eager to climb all over it. Sen looked at his brother and they had the same look, and likely the same idea.

"Let's go in!" and Seth pulled Serena forward excitedly. As they went in, his boots clunked beside Serena, still holding her hand and pointing out things to her. He liked adventuring with her, seeing the sights together. His steps were bouncy, and he too looked in alarm when the ancient gold leaf stuck on her finger.

Sen was lost, entirely absorbed at the ancient paintings of past inventors, very much amazed that these people were the original creators of everyday things. It was like a fan meeting his idolized star. "You two go ahead, I need to memorize these names." said Sen.

Seth looked up at the columns. "They are calling me to climb them." he said, and up he clambered like a monkey at home, going: "Wheee!" when he leapt from one out cropping to another, his whoops echoing around. He climbed the statues, checked out the highest arching windows with his air hike spell to admire the view, and yelled to Serena all the fascinating things he saw, before dropping down with a show off display of his parkour prowess and then stopping in front of the sitting angel to read the plaque beneath.

Meanwhile, Sen, after memorizing the names, told Seth and Serena that he was going to go explore one of the other seven hallways, hoping to find something secret or an unknown room.

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

- Serena Lock -
"The Temple of Wisdom: Ath'ens"​

The blonde violinist giggled as she watched Seth swing around the temple, even looking outside from the top where the arched windows are. Meanwhile she was looking at the different stain glasses and how they shined brightly, staining the tilted floors with colors. Like a curious child, Serena wondered if she stepped in the staining colors, would she be colored too?

Sure enough, she was as she got closer to the statue. Her cloak and hair changed colors to her child-like glee, spinning in place for a moment where she caught Seth showing off his prowess. The violinist giggled again, playfully covering her smiling mouth when he walked closer and kissed his cheek adoringly. Then she took a closer look at the plaque too.

"There is always a way out for those who are clever enough to find it." Serena read the simple quote, raising a brow at the statue. ". . . I feel like . . . if Ath'ens was a real person, she would be fun to talk with."

With Sen, as he looked and memorized the names of old inventors of the past - - - 'Tommy Po' 'John Tumic' 'Kida Lee' - - - and walking in one of the seven hallways, he would see inventions that lasted time behind railings. Be it a small boat or a large trap for fishes, the inventions somehow fit in this hallway and displayed for any to see them. The rotten woods and rusting metals were cared for, Sen can tell by the shine of the metals and repaired parts of the wood.

At the end of the hallway, he would see a circular room with filled bookshelves that reached up to the high ceilings. With a closer look of the book titles, he'd notice that it's a mention to the Tarot kingdom's inventions and achievements. Traps, mobiles, communications, medicines, poisons, and even the discovery of how stars works and mapping them in many volumes, written in readable chicken scratch as if the writer didn't have time to write all the information down and yet they did it anyways. At the top and center of the huge library is nine thin golden rings, rotating around a giant golden orb that shined under sunlight, with an hourglass sitting underneath it. There were hands at the top and bottom, as if someone is holding the hourglass. The last of the pale sand poured down from the top of the hourglass and suddenly, Sen can hear the familiar and loud clicking of gears echoing from somewhere close.

The giant hourglass slowly turned upside down by the hands, starting over again as the sands poured down once more. Sen can see that the arms attached to the hands made it move, kind of like how the Ferris wheels move. Etched at the top and bottom of the hourglass is the title of this grand invention.

'Father Time' is what the hourglass is called.

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Sen & Seth Pendragon -
"The temple of Wisdom: Ath'ens" ​

Seth had almost fumbled his tumble dive down the floor when Serena spun inside the colorful light.

"You looked pretty under the stain-glass windows, Serena." he muttered after he had landed. "As though you stepped into an autumn painting on a golden afternoon." he cupped her cheek. He smiled brightly when she kissed him, the colorful lights a pretty blur behind her golden framed face. Nose inches from each other, he looked into her eyes affectionately, then planted a sweet kiss on her lips. Like fresh dew in the morning.

He read the quote together with her. "Yes, full of secrets she'd have fun trying to make us ask her what it is." he chuckled. "I hope we're clever enough to stop the assassination." he added. Then he suddenly bowed. "Goddess Athens, please help us stop the evil people who are trying to prevent the peace treaty. They want to assassinate the princess, and we're like people groping blindly in the dark, so . . . " he looked up sincerely, " if you're real, please don't let them succeed, and please help the people of the State of Hearts. Thank you for listening, Lady Athens." he bowed again.

Meanwhile, Sen was in awe, but at the same time felt a little pang in his chest. He really missed Minnie and wanted to share this with her. He wondered how she was doing and what she was doing back at the castle. He had a lot to tell her about this place.

When he came to the hourglass, he was gaping. It was the biggest hourglass he had ever seen, and wanted to look inside the machine to see how the gears worked after many, many years since they were first built.

"Father time . . ." he read aloud. "Nice . . ." he went around the giant hour glass, looking at every detail. But it wasn't enough, his hands started to get all twitchy, wondering how this ancient machine worked, until he couldn't take it anymore and actually started feeling around for a loose bolt, something that he can pry open to see how it worked inside.

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

- Serena Lock -
"The temple of Wisdom: Ath'ens"​

Serena held her hands together in a quiet prayer as she listened to Seth's, looking up at the statue as well.

As if the Goddess heard their prayers, a sudden 'PANG!' sound echoed from where Sen was.

With the inventive twin, as he looked around and tried to find a loose bolt, he would accidentally press down a hidden square button that's on the side of the hands machine. With a loud 'PANG!!!', the solid hands moved away from the hourglass, metal scraping on the stone floor, and revealing a passageway underneath the hourglass; Stairs leading down to darkness . . .

With odd and ominous clicking sounds . . .

"Sen? What did you do?" Serena yelled out from the other side of the hallway. "You didn't take anything apart, did you?"

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Sen & Seth Pendragon -
"The temple of Wisdom: Ath'ens" ​

Seth jumped at the Pang!

"Uhhh, techinically no," echoed back Sen's voice. Seth looked at Serena with a look that said his brother must have done something that might get them into trouble, then made his way to where his twin was, " I think I just found a maintainance shaft!"

"Sen, what are you doing? --- that's a big hour glass . . . " said Seth, when he saw Father Time.

"It's the biggest oldest hourglass I've ever seen!" said Sen, climbing up one of the columns to get two of the torches above. " I've got to find out how it works!" He climbed down and presented one of the torches to his brother.

"No, no, not worth the jail time." said Seth.

"Serena?" he presented the torch to her.

Whether or not the two would go with him. His impatient excitement was going to win him over a minute later, then down he will go to the darkness to see how this hourglass worked.


Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

- Serena Lock -
"The temple of Wisdom: Ath'ens"​

". . ." Serena gaped at the huge hourglass before shaking her head as Sen passed her a torch. She stared at it for a second.

"I . . . I'm going." She turned to Seth with a tiny frown. "For all we know, this might be important for our case." With that, she lit the torch on with flames and went down, one step at a time. "Are you sure you don't want to come with, my red apple?"

As Sen went down in his excitement, his foot would step on the last stair only to sink in a little, hearing another click. Suddenly, a saw blade came swing down like a rotating pendulum and it missed Sen. Crashing into the stone damp walls, little bright sparks sprang into life for a second until the bladed wheel stopped and stuck in the wall.

Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Sen & Seth Pendragon -
"The temple of Wisdom: Ath'ens" ​

"This hour glass?" said Seth to Serena, looking up at Father time, confused as to how knowing its inner working would help them. " I'm sure, Serena, I don't want to risk going to jail again and not be with you."

Suddenly there was a crash and a yell of fear. "Sen?!" said Seth, immediately abandoning what he said, and following Serena inside.

"I don't think . . . this is a maintenance shaft . . ." said Sen, his look of shock reflecting on the saw blade that was just inches from his face.

"Are you okay?" said Seth, concerned, turning him and looking up and down at him seeing of blood was going to drip. His twin had a couple of bangs missing from his hair.

"I'm good. Why in the world would anyone put a trap like this in here? Think there's forbidden treasure below?"

"I don't know, but this passageway is dangerous. And there's only one way in and out for all we know. What if a trap that seals the entrance is sprung? We should ask what this passage is."

"You are being oddly cautious." commented Sen, raising an eyebrow at his brother.

"We don't know what's down there --- true it could be fun, but . . . someone should stay upstairs in case something happens and the ones down here can't get out."

"Well, I'm going down." said Sen. "Serena, still want to come with me?"

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

- Serena Lock -
"The temple of Wisdom: Ath'ens"​

Serena smiled sweetly at Seth, turning around to wrap her arms around him. "Oh Seth-"

That's when she heard Sen's fearful scream and quickly went over to the other twin, her eyes wide when she spotted what caused it. Having a closer look, she noticed the the blade is a bit rusty, like it had been years since it last triggered. Then she stared at the dark hallway pensively.

". . . Yea. I'm still going." She turned back at the twins with grim grin. "I want to know if our favorite assassins guild rigged this place or not . . ."

As her cloak and clothes bursts in flames, she reached out to Seth and cupped his cheek with a now dark gloved hand that has petal like edges; her hand is really warm. "Remember our notes." She hummed a few music notes he recognized, the ones they studied together for secret messages; the one she's humming right is saying reassurances to him. He knows she'll watch Sen's back.

"Ready, Sen?" After pecking Seth, she turned around with sparks of fire following her fiery coattails, lighting up the darkness a bit with her ember-edged roses. Now black heels clacking loudly as she walked to the bottom of the stairs.

"Time to see what's on the other side . . . "
Zer0