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Post by Red Charge on Jul 2, 2012 4:43:54 GMT -5
Klepto and Selenia were the last team to head through the entryway arches of the palace, immediately reaching a fork in the road and turning right to a corridor identical to the one Zypfire and Horizon went into. There was nothing much to see so far, leaving the two enough time to converse.
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Post by Klepto Moonlit on Jul 2, 2012 8:52:55 GMT -5
As Klepto turned into the corridor with Selenia, he found... nothing. The corridor was mostly barren. "I thought this was supposed to be a palace," Klepto said as he continued walking. "Where's all the stuff? I know if I had enough bits to own a palace I'd be fillin' the hallways with all sorts of expensive junk. Suits of armor, fancy vases, ya know." None of that was here though.
"Let's just hope there's something in one of these rooms. The last thing I want to learn is that these guys took all their stuff with them when they left." Which Klepto supposed was a possibility. That's what most ponies did when they moved, right? It sure would make for one lousy expedition though. "Speakin' of rooms, was there a plan you had in mind or did you just want to try the first door we come across?"
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Post by Selenia on Jul 2, 2012 13:45:46 GMT -5
So there it was. Selenia and Klepto split off from the main group and headed right. The halls of a palace, surely they must be loaded with... Nothing. Figured as much. Klepto expressed his disappointment, rather heavily. "There haven't been any traps or warnings, so my guess is that it might have been casual looters." She snorted at the thought. "They must have made quite a few pretty pennies off of the treasures in this place."
The hall was still just long and boring so far. Selenia's ears perked at Klepto's question, though. "I figured we'd just go from door to door as we find them, look for anything worth noting." If the whole operation went well, she might even get enough money to replace her etherium pendant that she broke during the battle with the Cult.
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Post by Red Charge on Jul 3, 2012 23:38:52 GMT -5
As the two walked they reached a turn leading to another corridor. On the right side of said hallway were three doors, two of them close to Klepto and Selenia and the last far down the hall. Between the two close door was another of those still armored skeletons Selenia remembered from the last ruin. Whether it would stay still or attack was another question however. Sadly, neither she nor Klepto could read the inscriptions on the wall, so they had no idea where the doors led. Far down the corridor they could see a stairway leading up where the corridor turned again.
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Post by Klepto Moonlit on Jul 4, 2012 11:07:10 GMT -5
"Pbbth, looters," Klepto said as the two continued walking. "At least some ponies have the dignity to steal from the living." Rounding the corner, the first thing Klepto caught sight of was a fully armored skeleton standing next to two set of doors. He paused to look at the thing before shrugging. "Don't really think armor on a dead guy is gonna do much good. Some air fresheners probably would have made a better choice."
Klepto looked further down the hall, seeing another door and a spiral staircase close to where the hallway made another turn. "Alright then, first door we come across," the thief said as he unassumingly trotted up to the closest door. "At least it'll be easy to know which ones we've been through already." Upon reaching the door, Klepto gave the handle a turn and pushed it open. "Let's see what's behind door number one."
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Post by Selenia on Jul 4, 2012 12:04:01 GMT -5
Selenia nearly jumped out of her skin when they turned the corner and were greeted by an armored skeleton. It took her a few seconds to realize that this one wasn't animated. Yet. So she calmed down and followed Klepto closely towards the door.
"Those... things... attacked us on our last expedition." She eyeballed the skeleton. "Somehow they become animated and can move, probably from some magical trigger or something deeper into the palace." She looked back down the hall to check if there were any more accompanying it. "This one hasn't been triggered, and it's alone in this hall. Strange. In the underground complex our past expedition was in the walls were lined with these guys. I wouldn't be surprised if we have to fight some off."
She grimaced one last time at the immobile skeleton and watched over Klepto's shoulder as he pushed open the first door.
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Post by Red Charge on Jul 4, 2012 12:08:00 GMT -5
When Klepto opened the door he was revealed by the nauseating scent of rot. He was in a moderate sized room, lined with shelves and pantries. It was a galley, nothing but rotten fruits and garbage greeted them. The only usable thing in the entire room were probably the pots of honey near the back of the chamber, since honey never rots. Another door connected the galley with the other room, probably the kitchen.
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Post by Klepto Moonlit on Jul 4, 2012 13:41:07 GMT -5
"Ah. I guess that would explain the-" Klepto was cut off by a horrible stench suddenly entering his nostrils. He had to stifle a gag before looking up to see what had caused the foul odor. "Garbage..." What a lousy first pick. The first room they entered, and it had to be filled with this putrid garbage. Klepto only took about a second to look into the room before slamming the door shut.
"I'd say that room is pretty much useless, though the garbage is doing a better job making me want to go home more than the skeleton," Klepto said. He rubbed his nose for a moment, trying to forget the stench. "Ugh, alright, door number two." Klepto stepped around the skeleton, turning the handle of the second door and giving it a push. "Hopefully whatever's in here is a little less smelly."
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Post by Selenia on Jul 5, 2012 12:26:50 GMT -5
Selenia took a step back when Klepto opened the door and the odor of rot wafted out and assaulted her nostrils. "Oh my word this is dreadful!" she choked out through a held nose. Old food and death. Charming. She spied another door in the back and figured that would lead to the kitchen. Nothing useful in there except maybe some knives or other utensils. Klepto slammed it shut and she gave a nod of approval. Good riddance.
Door number two would hopefully hold better surprises. All Selenia could do now was follow Klepto's lead, though she could tell his original enthusiasm of looting an ancient palace was starting to fade.
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Post by Red Charge on Jul 5, 2012 13:26:42 GMT -5
The other door was indeed a kitchen, and it smelled just as badly as the galley. Garbage, broken dishes and upturned pots. Though it was once used to prepare massive feasts, now the large kitchen was nothing more than a wreck.
But the most disturbing part was the vast amount of congealed matter, it was at this point impossible to tell if it used to be blood or something else. But it gave off the feeling that it was, the way it was splattered on the floor and the walls.
On the far end of the room was another door, fancier than the others, perhaps leading to the dining hall. various utensils, as well as a tray were seemingly brushed to a corner of the room by someone, next to a cooking stove. Talk about lazy cleaning.
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Post by Klepto Moonlit on Jul 5, 2012 19:59:00 GMT -5
Klepto opened the door to find himself greeted by... more garbage. The sudden stench was still as much a surprise as the last time, but at least his body knew what to expect. "Seriously? More trash? What kind of..." His voice trailed off as he noticed what was splattered on the floors and walls. "Uh, that what I think it is?" It definitely looked like blood, or at least what dried up blood splattered on a kitchen's walls and floor should. It was hard to imagine what else it could be.
Klepto frowned at the substance for a few more seconds before slamming the door shut and turning down the hallway. "I'll tell you what," he said as he trotted down the hall to the door further down, irritation heavy in his voice, "If these guys' goal was to make me want to go home, they're certainly doin' a good job of it. Not only does this place stink, but it's startin' to creep me out too." "Then again," Klepto thought to himself, "Maybe that was their goal." The skeleton, the blood (which could have very well been fake), perhaps it was all just a ruse to scare people away. He wasn't sure why an ancient civilization would take such lengths to protect some old, abandoned mansion, but there weren't many other explanations for the time being.
"Alright, this one better have something good behind it," Klepto said as he got closer to the door. "Based off previous history, we'll probably find a severed head floating in a clogged toilet." Upon arriving at the door, Klepto reached his hoof out towards the handle before stopping and looking back at Selenia. "Here," he said, stepping out of the way, "You do the honors. Maybe you'll have better luck than me."
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Post by Selenia on Jul 7, 2012 11:35:56 GMT -5
Klepto swung open the second door. More junk. What a big surpri- hey is that blood? Selenia took a look at the stains on the walls and floor. "Well, this room is at least a bit more interesting than the last." She poked her head in the doorway and took a peek around. "Nothing of real interest, except the scent of rot is much stronger in here. No doubt due to whoever perished over there." She gestured to the stains. There was no reason to investigate them further. They were explorers, not a forensics team. She scrunched her nose as the door shut.
"I agree, I dont think anyone would go to such great lengths to scare off looters. Judging by the lack of actual valuable items, I'd have to say their tactic didn't work." She calmly followed Klepto to the third door and proceeded to stand back and brace her nose when he gave her the reins for this specific portal. Selenia looked at Klepto for a second with a rather bewildered stare. It seems the treasure hunter is bored already, she thought. She lit up her horn and turned the knob with her magic, bracing herself for whatever might come out.
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Post by Red Charge on Jul 7, 2012 12:19:44 GMT -5
As Selenia opened the door she heard various creaks from the room beyond, nothing metal sounding like a trap. The door opened smoothly and nothing was triggered against them.
This room took the cake, it was a massive dining room with two large tables arranged in a square, besides the massive table there was nothing of note. Besides, of course, that every seat in it was taken by the skeleton remains of the diners, all now looking towards them. The table they were sitting on was laden with gold and silver plated candlesticks, utensils and expensive looking plates, this despite the vast amount of ancient blood splattered everywhere, in some places leaving horse shaped silhouettes disturbingly against the walls. The room was also decorated with old fabrics and curtains of what must have once been fine silk and crumbling statues and busts all around.
Hind Sight wasn't kidding when he said the Equiterians were big, each of them was at least as big as a large horse, far bigger than ponies anyway. It was clear that the skeleton guard were possibly defeated guards from earlier conquests. Speaking of which, two were standing inside of the dining room, side by side at the door, heads craned backwards on their spinal cords to stare at the new comers.
The oddest thing was, when the door opened both Selenia and Klepto could have sworn they were looking into the room.
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Post by Klepto Moonlit on Jul 7, 2012 20:51:15 GMT -5
Klepto peeked over Selenia's shoulder into the dining room. He was silent as he looked around the room, examing the bloodstains on the wall (complete with horse-shaped outlines) and numerous skeletons sitting at the table, eerily staring at the two of them. "Well, uh..." Klepto said,"Looks like we're late to dinner. Sorry to keep you waiting folks. Heh heh." The thief waved at the skeletons, laughing nervously before clearing his throat.
"Anyways," he said, slowly walking around Selenia and into the room, "Aside from the creepy skeletons and blood on the walls, which seem to be part of the haunted funhouse theme they have going, this room isn't that bad. At least it isn't filled with stinky garbage." Klepto looked at one of the tables, then turning back to Selenia. "I'll tell you what though, these plates and stuff look like they could fetch a shiny pile of bits."
It was then that Klepto noticed the two skeletal guards, or more particularly how they had originally been looking into the room and were now watching the doorway. "Uh, what were you sayin' 'bout how those skeleton guards attacked you?"
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Post by Selenia on Jul 8, 2012 15:50:20 GMT -5
Selenia took a few steps back as she heard a creaking and wrenching noise. She braced herself for the inevitable trap, but it never came. "Huh." she nosed over at Klepto who was looking intently inside the room. "Oh.. Wow... This room sure has some nice, ah, items." She gestured equally to the shiny tableware and deceased patrons.
Selenia noticed Klepto had a twinkle in his eyes as he sized up the value of the loot. "Ah, I don't think we should take anything... We should just mark the room and come back later. She turned to leave and was greeted by the dual visage of the two skeleton guards at the entrance of the room. Their heads were now facing the two foreigners, as opposed to the position they were in when Klepto and Selenia entered.
Selenia readied a concussive spell and pointed her horn at the guard on the right. "Yep... Nasty little buggers. Mind the claws." She warned Klepto with a tinge of uneasiness in her voice, figuring that cold hard conflict would end up being inevitable.
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