Strang bowed his head.
"I'll see it done, pardner. Like I said, I got no patience with elf folk or my own kind. This sword is going from my hands to hers, I swear on my life."
He took the blade from Sean, then turned.
The elves parted, and a portal appeared out of nowhere. Strang stepped through it, and both portal and man faded to nothing.
The elf king smiled.
"Midnight tonight's when we start. It's a few day's sailing. Good luck."
The elven battalion turned and marched out.

The king looked at his queen, then at the assembled champions.
"I think I need not say how important this current matter is. With both the safety of the kingdom and my daughter at stake, there is nothing that can stand in your way. I will gladly hand over half my kingdom for her safe return, in gold, land, jewels... anything as long as she is returned. All those who are here must attend, unless they do not wish to risk life and limb in service to their land. If she is returned, you shall all be given your wildest dreams on a silver platter..."
The king's resolve, his iron will and indomitable strength left him, and he collapsed on his throne, sobbing.
"J-just... bring her back..."

Tyrcestus's hand curled into a fist.
"OK. We will."
He turned around to face the large group behind him.
"We have a night to prepare. Sean, get whatever weapons you think we'll need on the way - swords, arrows, shields, medicine, etc. Trinity, you're in charge of food supplies, get what is needed from the kitchens."
His eyes met that of the pirate who was responsible for the blood trickling down his leg and the searing pain he was still feeling.
"You and your lady, get us a ship. I assume the whole "wildest dreams on a silver platter" line caught your interest?"
He noticed there were still unassigned people, so he just shrugged. "Everyone else, anything you think we need you point out and bring. That's basically it."

Mandrate addressed Beelzenef, as the king was currently indisposed.
"Your aid comes at a time of great need. Come, we have much to discuss in the ways of tactics - I do not trust those sneaky elves to stay true to their bargains."

Hexy had gone white at the very first instant Levia Inferis was mentioned, and even now was shaking like a leaf.
"It's real... I... I thought it was a story to scare kids... but... oh... it's... real?!"

Arisa looked back at Steve. "Please don't talk to me right now." Arisa said to Steve, then looked at Ty. "I'll see if I can find a cart, for Shadow to pull." She told him, then looked at Trinity. "Then I'll help Trinity find food, and the two of us can load up the cart with food, and you can add any weapons and what not." She looked back at Ty. "Shadow doesn't look it, but he's strong."

******

Zalia nodded her head. "Just tell us what you need, and we'll do the best we can." She said to Mandrate. "I'm guessing the situation is extremely dire to bring the castle under such preparations."

2014-03-09"right, I'll start right away. Your majesties, you have the perfect man for the job."
He heard what Hexy said as he looked at her.
"yes, I'm afraid that the stories are true. My master used to tell me about it and I saw him go in and make it out once so I know it's possible."
He looked around the group to see what needed to be gathered up.
"If you want to join me on going to the armory, your more than welcome to join me. I might need some help in carrying some things."  


Zerron couldn't believe that the elves would sink so low to get the sword away from the world. it was adding fuel to a fire deep within him to fight them himself.
"You can count me in. To my kind taking hostages is considered being a coward. I'll fight till that elf king is dead! Just tell me what I need to do."

Steve shrugged off Arisa's coldness and followed behind Sean and said "So what exactly is Levia Inferis?"

******

Beelzenef snorted before saying "Me not trust stinky elves too. They plan dirty move cause they no get shiny thunder sword. Rook..." as a small goblin stepped forward "Tell kin wait, we no shed elf blood less they shed ours today. Need talk about this in war meet." As the goblin rook rushed out, and dashed to the kin to make sure they didn't attack the elves who were leaving
"Let Beelzenef guess, not know if elves launch attack on king castle while others race to princess." Beelzenef said as he and he faced Mandrate

Tyrcestus nodded, and turned to Mandrate.
"Any advice?"
Mandrate's reply was simple. "Chances are, unless you have extreme luck, at least a few of you are going to die. There are three things within Levia Infernis that are fatal. One can't be avoided and WILL kill you if you are not careful. One should be avoided and most likely will kill even you on sight, and the third element are the inhabitants."
Tyrcestus cocked his head. "What IS this place?"

"Long ago, great and terrifying beasts roamed the ocean. Some say they're still around. One of the largest beasts, a Leviathan, collapsed after a terrible battle. With what, no-one knows. When Leviathans die, their flesh becomes stone, their veins tunnels, their organs entire lands. You could spend your entire life wandering around inside a Leviathan and never know it. The corpse was found by the primitive demons and they fashioned it into a prison."
Mandrate shuddered.
"To this day, it is a mark of incredible power to enter Levia Infernis and escape alive. There are six levels within the prison, and each is a mile in size. The greatest enemies of demon-kind are incarcerated there. It is a fate worse than death, for three reasons. The warden, the other prisoners... and the Cracks."
Mandrate looked at them all, sternly.
"The death rattle of the Leviathan is still resounding, after all these years, and once a day shockwaves far beyond what humans were meant to endure shake down the entire prison. Make no mistake about this, your bones WILL break. You WILL be crippled. Most likely even killed. The Cracks cannot be stopped, they cannot be avoided, they cannot be blocked. It will be hell."
He paused. "And even if you live through that, the warden of the prison will still finish you off if he deigns fit. A traitor who was given the power of the most powerful demonkind. If you meet him, run. No matter how strong you think you are, if you irritate or defy him he can summon a demon powerful enough to kill even you in a heartbeat. And finally, even if you somehow manage to avoid both him AND survive the Cracks... the prisoners themselves. They are so powerful they were all exiled from this kingdom and just one of them at half their maximum output could cripple a country. There are 6 major prisoners in total, and they are all insanely powerful. Make no mistake - this will not be a normal quest. This will be a quest that will break your bones, force you to stare death in the face and pit you against beings so completely superior to you it would be like an ant defeating a man."
There was another pause.
"I do not mean to scare you," he added, a little late.

Hexy fainted.

Saliin followed behind Steve, casting an uncertain look at Arisa. She trekked after them to the armory not sure what to do exactly but knowing that this was at least something.

Grave felt his thoughts draining. Levia Infernis... So it isn't just a children's tale. Darkness filled his thoughts, the old tales coming back to him after all of these years. It wasn't exactly heartening. Perhaps remaining an exile wouldn't be a horrible thing.

Isen let out a sigh and let her head hang. Of all the things, she'd have to follow Grave into Levia Infernis. What sort of cruel joke was this? Her contractor must be laughing now, the rest of her fee sitting comfortably in his own treasury. Should she just kill him now and be done with it? Her hand twitched and she made a fist a few times before letting it go limp again, the killing urge passing. She watched as the girl went with a few others to the armory. Grave seemed to be in check at the moment as he stood in the castle of the kingdom he had been exiled from. Completely ignored as time erased all memory of him. The girl might be worth studying.
Setting off after them she put a cheery smile on her fur covered face and let her hood fall back from her head.
"So what sort of things will we need to go to Levia Infernis? Do you know of any way to give us better odds at making it back out?" She asked Sean from the back of the group.

Mandrate turned to Beelzenef.
"With your permission, I would like to marshal your forces in a containment ring around the elven village - your kind are far more suited for forest work than our most talented rangers. That should prevent the elves bringing in reinforcements."
His gaze turned to Zalia. "I have read your letter and I promise your needs will be seen to immediately."
Then he turned his eyes to Grave, and laughed, a cold bitter sound.
"Ah. You. Good. Just in time to discuss the terms of your re-admittance into the kingdom." Mandrate stood up to his full height and his fists clenched. "You WILL enter Levia Inferis, and you WILL recover the princess. You WILL not practice your dark arts to the detriment of the people of this kingdom, and in return I'm sure I can convince the king to... overlook that little stunt you pulled. I'm surprised the king didn't tell me to kill you on the spot."

Tyrcestus, trying to process all the information, walked over to Hexy and shook her, trying to wake her up.
Hexy opened her eyes, and the first thing she saw was Tsukiyo crouching near the ceiling.
"Where is there a scythe lady on the ceiling?" She looked around for Tyrcestus or Sean, but they had gone. With no attention on her, she mounted Fweep and flew up to where she was.
"How did you get on the ceiling?"

Tyrcestus walked into the kitchen and saw Trinity's quiet packing.
"Hey," he said softly. "You ok?"

Isen received a tap on the shoulder.
"Ahem," said Vizard, "I don't think I've seen YOU before. Have you?"
"Nope," Gizzard admitted. "Can't say I have."
Both brothers stood there, hands on hips, waiting for an explanation.

Zalia nodded her head to Mandrate. "Right now, the priority is bringing the King's daughter back safely." She said to him. "Beelzenef and I will help in whatever way you need." She added, as she gently gripped Beelzenef's hand. She couldn't imagine the kind of worry the King and Queen are going through...wondering about her safety.

******

Arisa walked outside of the castle, and managed to get Shadow to agree to pull a cart. After that, she looked for a stable hand to give her a cart and harness. When she had secured this, she got Shadow ready to pull the cart.
Shadow gently nudged Arisa with his nose.
"I'm fine." Arisa said to Shadow.

"That fine, I talk with kin when leave castle. Be bad idea if elves launch attack while we search for big high king girl and thunder sword. Goblins prepared for war with elves, and no take prisoners. When group leave for race?" he asked as he held onto Zalia's hand. He turned to her and said "We be fine, if stay with each other."

*****

After following Sean into the armory and picking out a nice sword and a shield with the kings crest embroidered on it. After equipping them he pulled Saliin by her waist close and said "So does this mean you and Grave will be joining us in this little adventure?"

Zalia looked up to Beelzenef and nodded her head. "We'll do all we can." She said, as she looked at Mandrate.

******

After attaching the cart and harness to Shadow, Arisa walked back into the castle, and made her way to the castle larder. She found some dried meats, and some preserved fruits. She waved down a couple of male servants and the two of them carried out to the cart that Shadow was now pulling.

Isen smiled at the two of them, "That would make sense. I'm simply tagging along at the moment. I'm keeping an eye on the necromancer and his apprentice. It's what my contractor is paying me to do."

Saliin carefully moved herself away from Steve. "I'll go where my Master heads. I don't really want to go to this Levia Infernis place, but if I have to, then I will." She told him as she began searching through the armory.
Eventually she found something that interested her. She took the long weapon from its rack and held it. "Perfect" She muttered staring up at the curved blade. She returned with the glaive in one hand, the long pole resting on her shoulder.

Tyrcestus moved closer to Trinity.
"This place sounds like it's going to be very dangerous. I don't blame you if you don't want to come," he said softly.

Mandrate nodded to Zalia.
"Any help in this time of need would be appreciated. I fear we will be going through a trial as well here. The elves will not take any chances with this."

Vizard and Gizzard looked at each other again. It was clear they were thinking of... other contracts a woman could sign.
"I see."
"Indeed."
Then they popped off to the king's garment room. When they returned, they were wearing the finest silk and velvet suits. "Well, we're ready." "Yep, just point us in the right direction."
Vizard winked at Isen. "If you get lonely on the boat there... me and my brother will always welcome your open legs - er, I mean, we'll welcome you with open arms."

Clun trudged into the armory, and grabbed a club. One trip to the royal carpenter's room later and a mangled, spiked, fierce-looking abomination of a weapon hung lazily over Clun's shoulder. "I will be helping the horse get supplies." Then he left and helped Arisa load the cart, as well as offering to help pull it.

Hexy cocked her head.
"I'm Hexy. I'm a witch..." She put a finger to her mouth. "Shh. Now what are you doing on the ceiling?"

Grave smiled thinly at Mandrate. "I suppose almost everyone at this court has heard about it by now." His laugh was cold. "I will not endanger the quest, or experiment on wayward denizens of this kingdom. AT the time though, that church was breaking the law. I would have thought that my actions would have been seen as proactive. I was mistaken, of course."

"Don't give me that!"
Hexy bopped Tsukiyo on the nose.
"Don't get all logical and stuff with me. I'm up here because I'm asking you what you're doing up here, which brings us back to why are you up here? Also, I asked first."

Tyrcestus reached out and touched Trinity's back.
"Can I..."
His words faltered. "..help?"

Mandrate growled slightly.
"There are appropriate measures that are taken before judgement is passed, necromancer. I would advise you keep that at the forefront of your mind."
He returned his attention to Beelzenef. "They leave at midnight tonight. Chances are the elves will wait about a day to strike, which gives us time to prepare."

"Okay, we talk with goblins. Have them work with king guards so no sneaky elves try and launch attack. Since we here, why not Zalia love visit Father Baka? If trip as bad as stories, may be good idea." as he hugged Zalia in his arms

*****

Steve decided to leave Saliin alone in the armory and headed to find something to eat. He wandered around for a bit trying to find some food, and after a few minutes a maid pointed him in the right direction. He went into the larder and grabbed an apple and walked over to where Shadow was tied to a cart with Arisa and two guys helping her out.
"Hey guys, could you excuse us a minute please." Steve said to the two went off to grab some more food. The hermit knight turned to Arisa and said "Could we talk please?"

Zalia shook her head. "No...I want to go with you, my love." She said, as she looked up into his eyes.

******

Arisa, with her back turned to Steve, sighed heavily, and folded her arms, as she turned around. "What do you want to talk about?" She asked, trying to hold back the pain in her voice.
Shadow immediately picked up on the pain in Arisa's tone, and turned his head, glaring at Steve.