The Secret Vale Archives [Closed]

After typing the dial, the door made a large clank sound and the door drew open. The five hurried past it only to find themselves in a place that was pitch black. Before they could even think, the door closed behind them just as the strange bull creatures appeared from one of the bookshelves.

Darkness enveloped them so thickly it felt like material. The door had blocked the sounds of the noises from the other room but it was replaced by the ominous sound of silence. From above, all there was a glowing line almost as thin as a spider's web zigzagging around the room.

As one of them made a step, there was a huge hissing sound. The sound of hot water touching something cold. The path was obviously narrowed again but in the dark which was the path and which was the hot water--acid, it could even be?

Vega strained his eyes in order to try and see but was met with failure. No luck. We have to be extremely cautious. Vega remaind still as he sent out his semblance bringing back no sign of enemies. Vega spoke in the general viscinity hoping they had stayed close together. His voice was low but loud enough for the party to hear."We must be cautious. There are no enemies but that still leaves possible traps. Solomon you were the second to arrive. Does your paper mention anything about this room?

Having his eyes adjust as much as possible to the light, Shiroe starts staring at the ceiling, the thread-like line of light forming a continuous but odd formation across the room. His attention was entirely on the ceiling above. It looks quite like a web of some sort but it's too dim to distinguish entirely.

"Acceptable. Mind leading the way, Solomon?" Shiroe said, still staring at the Ceiling. Suddenly remembering the sounds of hissing water Shiroe also adds, "And I also suggest we don't stray from the path. Whatever path there may be, that is."

He looks around the room one more time but it's still too dark to see anything properly. Too dark to see if enemies are lurking in the corner or even right above them.

We're not alone. Better keep my guard up

"Follow...the ceiling?"Thorn scratched her head as she was not good with puzzles or riddles or the sorts. She looked around the room but squinted as it was dark and she could barely see anything. "There could be enemies, keep a close eye out."She opened Ambrosia and leaned on the non-spiked side.

If head mistress found Liseran in the guards' keep, she'd probably be exiled, but Liseran really believed that she needed to.

The guards' keep was where they kept the monsters. Or rather Dust-powered mechanisms that looked like the Grimm. Upon defeat, the monsters would dissipate. Liseran's vision had showed the intruders in the Dark Room, a room full of acid on either side save for the thin pathway provided.

Liseran came to one of the gates that had the word Wallcrawler on its door. She went inside with her Weeping Cerinthe equipped and used the Waker spell (a dust spell used to conjure lightning) to cast a tiny spark on one of them.

The Wallcrawler was a monstrous looking hand, nothing like the Grimm, but it could camouflage with the walls of the dark and easily get a perpetrator.

"If I can get one..." she said. "I'll know they're plan..."

The Wallcrawler woke and began prancing up and down and grabbed Liseran on the face.

"Hey!" she muttered

She pushed it down and went to a tiny button that said: "Patrol mode."

It blinked red and then she closed the button capsule. The Wallcrawler followed her to the vents that led to the guarding rooms: The Maze, The Dark Room, the Dome, the Guard to the Core, and the Core itself.

She directed it to go to the Dark Room using a Walker spell and it did slip into the vent over so quietly.

"Bring one of them," she seemed to have told it.


***

The Wallcrawler was already alerted to the motion going on in the dark room and it could see five perpetrators in long line. Following its orders, it clasped onto the leg of one of them, who just so happened to be Vega.

Vega instantly felt something grip his leg. "Dammit something has me!" Vega considered drawing his sword to attack but a thought struck him. If I swing wildly now it could hit the others and we can't have them paralyzed now or worse. DAMMIT ALL! "GO ON WITHOUT ME! I'll take care of this and meet up with you later!"

The Wallcrawler pulled back on his legs until he get him to fall. He began dragging him away from the path, but fortunately not the the acid. It was dark, but the Wallcrawler had been programmed to bring the intruders down a manhole that was unseen in the Dark Room.

Its heavy metal weight pulled him down into a chute. Faster and faster until it let go of him and Vega was in another room. It was a round one with doors at all sides. In the middle of the room, a young woman in a robed purple outfit and a silver butterfly mask was there. She had two bells in her hands and she pointed one at him.

"Binder," she said.

An emblem shot from beneath him, attempting to keep him in place.

Solomon halted immediately, undoubtedly causing the person behind him to bump into his back. He snapped around to face the sound of Vega's voice. "I will NOT let another man perish under my watch!" he screamed. He pumped electric dust into his gloves and began to let a small amount of electricity flow over them, creating a small light source that barely revealed Vega, but not the creature that had gotten a grasp on him. "Where is it?!" he frantically questioned before Vega was pulled from his feet and out of sight. "No, no, NO!" he shouted, shoving his way past the others with little regard for safety. He regained sight of Vega as he disappeared. "DAMNIT TO HELL!" he shouted, dropping to his knees and slamming his fist into the ground as he fought back tears. "Not again....this can't be happening so soon...," he quietly spoke.

Vega saw as something appeared under him. He had no idea what it was but he could faintly hear the person in the middle of the room say something. Although Vega could not make out what the person said he knew better than take the chance. Vega leaped away from the emblem and drew his sword pointing it at the person. "Who are you and why have you separated me from my party?"

Solomon barely felt the punch through his armor and jumped back up to his feet. "Watch yourself, tough guy," he said regaining his composure and becoming his usual self. "We don't even know what got Vega, so I wouldn't be so sure of his safety," he added. "Forget it. Let's get going," he ordered dryly as he stepped past the group to lead once again.

Shiroe wasn't able to do anything, they were on a thin platform and didn't have much room to move in. If any of them accidentally shoved the others they might have all fallen into the acid. Shiroe was shocked at what happened but knew he had to keep his mind calm and his thoughts straight. He wasn't sure if any more would come and grab them so he kept his guard up.

Dammit! If only this acid weren't here. Now we lost one member

"We have to keep moving forward, we have to get out of here as fast as possible before any more of those things come to get us." He said to the others, trying to sound as calm as possible despite the slight quiver in his voice. "If that thing wanted to kill him it would've just shoved him into the acid along with the rest of us. I have a hunch he's alive but we have to get moving to avoid any more possible casualties"

Liseran's bells trembled in her hand, but she knew she couldn't let the perpetrator see that. Behind her masks she was frightened, but her voice came out cold and unaffected by the question.

"You're not supposed to be the one asking things," Liseran said firmly. She pointed one of her bells at him, readying to perform another motion. "Why are you here and why are you trying to steal the Book of Pasts?"

"Tell me," she said. "Or I'll make you suffer!"

She charged forward and cast the Walker spell to lift her up into the air. As she hovered, she created two zigzag patterns. Another glyph appeared and from it lightning charged towards Vega.

Vega darted to the left trying to avoid the woman's attack. "Book of Pasts? Thank you for that bit of information. At least I know what its called." Vega drew his blade and readied his wires. "I'm truly sorry miss but I can't take too long with you. I have people waiting for me." Vega charged toward her aiming for a quick slash with his sword. A little paralysis never hurt anybody. I'll just stop her and be on my way.

Liseran bit her lip upon hearing that she had just given away some crucial information. She noticed the infiltrate was concerned about getting back to his teammates, but she couldn't let him go. Vega charged towards her with a sword, almost catching her off guard. With quick impulse she activated Weeping Cerinthe's second form: two long stiletto blades. She drew them to an "x" but the blade hit her first and quite hard in her abdominal area.

Liseran was tossed aside backwards to hit a wall. She tried to move, but her whole body was numb.

No! she thought as he began to run away. I have to go after him! He's headed towards the third room!

Vega walked up to the girl as she laid paralyzed against the wall. "I'm sorry miss please don't take this personally. It's only business I take no pleasure in this." Vega sheathed his sword and ran to the nearest door. It would not budge, after trying all the other doors Vega was left with one. "I hope for your sake this one opens." With a quick pull the door opens leading to a staircase. Vega gave one last look at the girl. "Good day to you miss. I wish we could have met under better circumstances." Vega pulls the door shut and begins ascending the stairs.

Solomon looked over his shoulder to respond to Marc. "I think 'see' might be the wrong word, pa--," Solomon was cut off as he bumped into the exit door. "Er, right this way," he said as he quickly recovered. Opening the door, he entered first into the wide circular room. As he took in his surroundings, he spotted Vega not too far from them. He quickly spun around to face the rest of the group. "Not a single word," he silently threatened before turning to face Vega once more. "Glad to see you in one piece, friend. What exactly happened?" he called out.

Vega was surprised to see his teammates so soon but remained calm as he remembered they were still in enemy territory. "Its good to see you all." Vega looks around the room making sure there wasn't some other enemy that would take him away before he had a chance to explain. "I didn't see what took me but it led me to another room where I was confronted by a girl. She tried to stop me but I put an end to that idea. After I left the room I didn't have any pursues or did anyone arrive to help her, which makes me think she acted alone. During the fight I was able to learn the name of the the book which we are searching for. It is called 'The Book of Pasts'." Vega looks over the group seeing that they all seem unscathed. "I take it you did not meet any opposition along the way?"

As Vega spoke the last words the ground began to shake, but it wasn't because something was moving around. The chandelier above them swung furiously as the sound of something within the walls moved, surrounding them.

Hisss......

There was a clank sound and what should have been walls revealed five gated tunnels. The gates opened as water gushed from them, filling the floor up to ankle-level. As they stared into the tunnels, they caught the movement of something. Something huge. They readied themselves, grabbing their weapons and keeping their backs to one another.

In one of the tunnels, the black movement suddenly turned into an opening red eye.

Hisssssssssssssss!

From one of the tunnels, the head of a giant King Viper appeared before them, its large fangs ready to charge at its pray. It charged its head down, aiming towards the group's tiny circle, its large slithering body covering all tunnels leaving them no choice but to fight.

Vega activated his wires as he prepared for his attack. Noticing the snake coming toward them he had an idea but he knew it would not be enough. Sending out his wires in thick sets, Vega wrapped them around the snake and made the wires push against back. The wires would not be able to cut the beast nor would it hold for long but it would stop it for the time being. "Everyone! We can't be clustered together, it makes for an easy target. Solomon, Shiroe, and Marc stick together! I will take care of Thorn, do not leave anyone alone and cover each others backs, we have to confuse the beast.!" Vega strained as he held back the snake he wasn't sure how much longer he could last.

Thorn responded with a quick 'ok'. She moved over next to Vega and readied Ambrosia Spike. She smiled and attempted to pierce the skin with Ambrosia Spike. If she succeeded she would shock it from the inside and hopefully weaken it. "Take this!"She held a tight grip on Ambrosia so in case something happened she wouldn't be disarmed.

The King Viper hissed in pain recoiled its tail, its thick body moving back and giving the area more space. Arching its head, it hit the ceiling, making it even more furious. It sees Thorn with the Ambrosia Spike and coils out its tail, attempting to swipe her and those next to her.

Solomon waited as the tail of the snake rapidly advanced. The second before impact, he jumped over it, dropping the ball of Distrugere to the ground but keeping hold of the chain in an attempt to coil it around the creatures tail.

The tail got tangled within the chain and tried to pull back, but to no avail. The snake hissed furiously, trying to attack the chain only to bite its own tail. It screeched and slithered its head into one of the dark tunnels, most of its body retreating, aiming to charge at them unexpected. More water gushed from the tunnels and was now knee deep.