The Serpent's Story

Lucius watched the cart hurtle away down the dirt and gravel path, leaving the soldiers alone on the moors. Lucius had been given the map of the moors by Colonel Sanderson, which was now in his pocket. Lucius removed the map from his pocket and unfolded it. It was a crumpled, A3 piece of papyrus with the layout of the moor drawn on it. There were 4 points marked onto the map, a now deserted hamlet that was slightly to the north, a tarn to the northwest, a valley to the east and a cave to the northeast. Lucius wondered how long it would take to go round them all. It was obvious that their first destination should be the hamlet that had supposedly been destroyed by monsters. But before anything else, he should introduce himself to the group, they would need to work as a team, and wouldn't be able to if they didn't know each other.
"I don't believe that I have introduced myself yet." Lucius announced to the group, "My name is Lucius Silver, son of the late Sebastian Silver. And what about the rest of you? If we're going to be working together, we should know who we're working with."

"Oh for Luna's sake..." the Serpent scowled as he attempted to get the door to budge, but to no avail.
However, after another few seconds he managed to ram the door down with his shoulder. He stepped into the ransacked cottage, surveying the scene that the monsters had left. Blood was spattered everywhere, the furniture was smashed to smithereens and the walls had multiple holes in them. The Serpent inspected the blood, it had separated some time ago. The house had an attic, so it shouldn't be to hard to hide and wait for the soldiers.
"Right you lot, get in the attic and seal the door shut. I'll make sure the soldiers go where they're supposed to go. You four watch out of the window and make sure you're not seen. If they realise it's a trap or see you, knock them out, kidnap one of them and take him or her to the cave. I'll leave them a message so they know what to do. However, I don't want that happening so make sure to monitor their behaviour at all times. And remember, DON'T kill them!"
With that, the Serpent opened the hatch leading to the attic and pulled down the ladder, gesturing for them to climb up.

Lyra grimaced at the sight of the small house. It's walls were in tatters, and it's roof was caving in. Lyra leaned over to the person next to her, eyebrowns high.

"We're going it...there?" She whispered, as Serpent knocked down the large door in front of them. She sighed, and started forward after the others, kicking debre out of her way. As she passed through the doorway, a light chuckle passed through her lips. There were red splatters along the walls and ceiling, and she could only guess it was blood. The furniture was practicly non exsistant, as is was in shambles, seeming as though it was crushed by something very large. Lyra paused only for a second to press her index finger to the redness against the wall. To her surpise, it was dry, although the color said otherwise. Lyra simply shrugged her shoulders, and made her way next to Serpent. The trip her hadn't taken as long as she had expected, and she had plenty of energy to spare.

"Right, you lot." He said, pointing to her and a few others. "Get in the attic and seal the door shut. I'll make sure the soldiers go where they're supposed to go. You four watch out of the window... Lyra didn't hear the rest, as she was already up the stairs to the attic, ready to get started. The stairs the climbed were old, and creaked with each step she took. "Hmmph." She thought. "They definatly arn't going to able to sneak up on us...

Lyra soon reached the top, and walked over to the farthest corner of the room, and sat on her haunches. Reaching up, she pulled her hair up into a loose bun, and leaned back, waiting for her next command.

A small sigh escaped the finely shaped lips of the elven woman who stepped inside of the abode before her. It smelled of death, positively reeked of it. And looking around, her light blue eyes assessed why. Blood, pooled on the floor, painting the walls. Furniture shattered, walls torn, floorboards ripped apart. 'As if this doesn't scream totally evil!' she thought with distaste, her lips curling in a grimace as she stepped around a puddle of crimson.

Running her hand under her hood, she pulled her silvery hair away from her face, sighing heavily once more. Watching Serpent as he told them what to do, she allowed a bored look to paint her fair features. Looking him over, she did not understand what was so frightening about him.

She clicked her nails on her gauntlet together, the metal ringing slightly.

"As you wish," she replied lowly, her voice laced with the venom she was so known for. Show them hatred, anger, and strength, and your enemy will back down before you, her mind whispered.

Ayeala stepped silently up the stairs, leaping into the rafters above her and melding into the shadows displayed around her. Her eyes shimmered in the low light, as though an animal lay up there.

Huffs sounded through the building as her faithful wolf padded its way towards a corner, looking up as it noticed her. Laying down, he never took his eyes from her. "Be calm, my friend," she said to him, which seemed to allow him to lay his head down and close his eyes.

Isaac trailed along behind the group, taking each step with great care and calculation as he plodded towards the wrecked building ahead of him, the smell of death a sweet promise of possibility in his mind. The blood on the floor called to his mind powerful beasts with simple directives; the perfect subject for his control. However, as far as he could tell, there were no corpses of these beasts in the area, leaving his potential arsenal in a more modest state, with only a few wolves, bears, and other forest creatures in a workable distance for his control. This disappointed him, causing him to bare his teeth beneath the bandanna and slightly increase his pace to enter the dilapidated hovel only a little behind everyone, reducing the distance between him and the few other agents of Luna already in the attic. Climbing slowly and deliberately, Isaac worked his way into the musty attic, the sweet perfume of death in the air weighing heavily on the few breaths he took. His eyes scanned the room deliberately before he decided to occupy one of the darker corners of the attic. Once there, he sat on the floor heavily, closing his eyes and slowing his breathing almost to the point of stopping. To an untrained eye, he seemed for all the world to be slipping quietly into death, which is about half of the truth off what he was doing. Isaac was slipping into a half-dead state, but in doing so he primed himself to inhabit the body of another creature. The preparation was merely for an emergency, however, as Isaac didn't expect to need to utilize his skill in the field of bestowing animation to the dead. Truth be told, Isaac just liked the isolation that being half dead afforded to him.

Luka had been suffering from a decade long depression. He hadn’t been having much fun lately and he needed a change. This could be the perfect opportunity. Luka hadn’t shifted from Soileh’s black panther form in almost 2 years, no time at all for a Demon but the desire to return to a form similar to the rulers of this earth disgusted him. He longed to be an ethereal spirit once again. A shadow, shifting throughout time. At least while in this feline body Luka felt removed, omnipresent even. He felt comfortable. Luna’s brand had struck Luka in the same desert where he was born. He was grateful to her for now he could share his mate’s body at will, and she could share his, their thoughts and wisdom forever intertwined like a watercolor.

Luka was the last to enter the cryptic house. His paws bounded soundlessly though the door and up its steps. As he entered the musty attic he registered the faces around him. Three elves, very different, and one enigmatic human figure he knew to be the Serpent; his caller in this game. Luka prowled towards the shadows and rested his body against the cold floorboards, waiting.