The Secondary Saga

[Ruby Rose]

I HAD to get this post up, as too much went on in my group to be able to post next phase. Punish me as you wish XD

Grave made very quick work of cauterizing Alice’s poison wound, while Richtofen took the opportunity to deal with the rest of the misfortunate group’s ailments. The Nephilim stood up with Alice in his arms and made his way to the rest of his ragtag allies. Thankfully, the good Captain took it upon his own shoulders to step up to the plate and (somewhat) take a leader position… While spouting some kind of seafarer jargon Grave just could not understand. It meant something at least… well, he hoped. Crow turned and apologized for the lack of rope around the area. Surprise, surprise, Grave complained.

The spherical bot turned out to have arms that could actually hold things, like in this instance a flaming torch. Grave’s head swam like a fish in a fish bowl when he tried to think of how so much could fit in a tiny machine, so he left it for the time being. Crow turned back to Grave and mentioned that he should stay as the centre, and he couldn’t help himself when he replied with, “Aye aye, Captain!”

Next the Captain turned to Jan, the military man Grave didn’t pay much notice to, and he felt somewhat bad for that. He was assigned the important mission of watching the group’s six. He seemed disappointed, but Grave would have been more than happy to trade, had he not quite literally had his hands full. Finally they made headway through the temple-ruins-thing, until they came face-to-face with a crossroads. Grave never liked decisions. As if knowing the Nephilim didn’t want to decide, the Doc ‘suggested’ (or more so chose, with information) that the group go to the left…

That was until a heavy, scratchy noise flowed, or more so broke from the right. Grave could hear the Vampire whimper slightly in his arms, and even he felt a shiver run down his spine. Whatever was in there did not sound like it wanted to invite the group over for dinner… well, maybe to be dinner, but that was about it. They began to make a beeline for the left corridor, until that bloody doctor set of a tripwire, Jan barely saving his ass from the big-ass axe that soared out of the wall. Grave sighed as he silently thanked Jan for leaving Richtofen’s head on his shoulders.

At Jan’s command, the silver-haired man was already off, running with the group and holding onto Alice like a lifeline. He had absolutely no idea how he dodge- “SHIT!” Grave cried, as he felt a gnarled arrowhead find purchase in his pale shin, but he kept going, only adrenaline and sheer willpower pushing him on. He held Alice close to his broad chest, protecting her fragile body like a shield. Thankfully, nothing else came too close to the two, but at each tiny movement Grave jumped, ready to evade.

And then the doctor found himself alight like a German bonfire, swearing in his native language. The licking flames were soon extinguished and Richtofen back on his feet. IRIS casually hovered over the flames, and Jan attempted the same manoeuver as the problematic doctor, the difference being that the latter failed. With an arrow in the shin, Grave wasn’t confident he would make it over, but it was worth a shot. He turned to the female in his arms, “Hold on tight!” he told her with an energetic grin, and he leaped as far as one could with an arrow in their bloody leg, and managed to make it over, finishing in a stylish crouch.

Crow proceeded to activate a large stone door, shutting them off from the traps – and more importantly the unknown creature. Grave reached down and tore the arrowhead from his leg, too tired to shout in pain, before standing up and taking in the… ‘scenery’. Some kind of colosseum. Grave had seen quite a few of them where he was from, or at least he thought he had. Memories of before were extremely blurry.

The ‘peaceful’ moment was rather rudely interrupted by a colossal crashing and unearthly roaring from behind the stone door. The bugger was trying to break through… or more accurately, did break through. A gigantic axe cleaved through the stone and flew across the arena, barely missing Grave’s silver-topped head and lodging itself in the bleachers, of sorts.

Richtofen commanded their automaton ally to pull the lever, and the machine obliged… but the mechanism spawned a great, big hole in the floor, and the other four were sent plummeting into the pitch blackness. Before long, the sounds of splashing – or more so ‘erupting’, in some cases – water rose to meet the Nephilim’s ears, before Grave himself, along with Alice, hit liquid. The water didn’t seem too deep, but deep enough to save all their lives. Grave looked up to see Crow standing proud and the other two soaked nearly head-to-toe in the highly unpleasant muck, now that Grave could feel the sensation of the so-called ‘water’ around him.

Crow spoke up, and Grave was first to reply, “Bloody bet it could’ve… I managed to keep Alice in check though, that’s a plus, I guess,” he droned on, looking at the blond Vampire in his arms. Jan then suggested to figure out what the hell they were going to do. Before Grave could open his mouth, Crow’s voice rang out instead. Coincidentally, right as the Captain was complaining about the dark, an orange light began to soar down the chamber; IRIS seemed to have been attacked. Bloody perfect. Thankfully, a guttural (and VERY disturbing) squeal was heard from above. The bot managed to fend off the attacker at least… but the torch… yeah, the torch wasn’t so lucky. It was out before anyone could say ‘lights’, as the other three tangled their limbs to grab it. A for Effort at least.

Yet another light arrived, this one blue and much more artificial. The source was soon discovered behind it; IRIS, finally hauling ass down the cylinder. Crow suggested the group look around, and Grave more than gratefully obliged, slipping his soggy legs out of the awful substance. From what Grave found, it was some kind of waste; he found bits of half-eaten food, preserved for years by the slime, along with the odd bone or skull. He looked down at Alice, and she had her eyes firmly shut. No wonder. Grave didn’t blame her for not wanting to lay her scarlet eyes on the icky scene surrounding them.

Grave jumped as he heard a mechanism activate, and he prepared to jump over another axe, or duck another arrow… but that was not the case. The desecrated walls began to hum, click, whir and spin around, and IRIS’s report produced comfort for the Nephilim. Crow called for silence, and Grave listened in. The walls were creaking and…

Before Grave could even take half a breath, the Captain had the other two men in his grasp, and shoved the supernatural creatures out of the way, saving all six asses at once from the collapsing masses of stone and gunk. Grave coughed and spluttered as the dust filled his nostrils, and he did his best to miss the Vampire. The fricking doctor decided to use the trap as an excuse to show his ‘tactical expertise’ so to say. He suggested to get the hell out, and Grave was already off, Alice still with him, and he called over his shoulder, “No shit, Sherlock!”

Did Richtofen even know who Sherlock was?