Authors note 1.
I looked up how the levels are assigned, and as it turns out, I was completely wrong.
My thanks to Undeadlord22 for bringing it to my attention in a polite fashion, to be honest I may or may not correct them later, however any further character bios will be correct.
By way of apology, chapter three a week early, I was going to focus on another story but… I decided since I f'd up I might as well fix it.
Chapter three
Blue Rose sat in awkward silence around the main room of the wooden cabin. The center of the room was dominated by an intricately decorated fire pit that roared, soaking the rest of the room in a ferocious heat.
The awkward silence was only broken once Evileye's rabid curiosity and thirst for knowledge overcame her sense of propriety.
"What is this place?" Evileye gestured all around herself to indicate that she meant far more then just the cabin that they were inside.
The woman who had introduced herself as Arcturia smiled warmly, (ha, get it? Warmly?")
"You are currently on the first floor of the Great Workshops of Temprence."
There was a brief pause as what she had just implied ran through their heads, they had just spent the last eight hours marching through white out conditions.
They knew that they had.
The shocked silence was once again broken by an irate Evileye.
"Are you saying we are underground?! We just spent the last 8 hours walking through a heavy snow fall! And the last time I checked it does not. snow. Underground."
As the rest of Blue Rose nodded their heads in agreement with Evileyes words, Arcturia just cocked her head.
"And your point? My master creates masterpieces of art and weaponry, he creates life such as myself. A simple snowfall is nothing."
Another tense and shocked silence fell. This time the silence was broken by Laykus who's disbelief laced her voice as she spoke.
"Are you implying you were created by your master?"
Arcturia solemnly nodded.
Jaws dropped.
Gargran hesitantly spoke up, wondering just what sort of god or demon could create such vistas as the one they had just walked through, and the life to populate it.
"Could you tell us more about your master? I am very curious to learn about someone so.." Gargaran was at a loss for words to describe someone who could create a being like the one that stood before them. "So skilled."
Arcturia considered the proposition and was about to turn it down and send them on their way, but then as she looked at begging faces of Blue Rose members, Acturia reconsidered, they were just like kicked puppies she mused.
"Very well, I suppose I have not been ordered not to tell you a story or two…". She trailed of thoughtfully. After a moment she clapped her hand.
"Very well, I suppose I can tell you the story of how Master Ignacio came into being." She pointed a long, delicate, calloused finger at the adventurers. "But no interruptions! You can ask questions after the tale is done, understand?"
Arcturia waited until she had received a nod from each of the adventurers before beginning her tale.
"In the beginning their was nothing but formless void. And then there was earth."
She had out one hand and a sphere made of glittering ice formed, floating just above her palm.
"At first their was only earth, but the she who was earth grew lonely, and so she created the race of craftsmen and artists known as the I'D, or, as they are more commonly known, the first men, of which, my master was the original."
A small figure of frost grew out of the sphere and begin walking up and down its circumference.
"As he who would become my master journeyed across the earth, more races came into being, some friendly, some not."
As the figure walked across the sphere, more figure grew to threaten and harass the first figure, some humanoid, some not. But the the first figure would swat or hit the aggressive figures until they dissolved.
"As he who would become my master journeyed, he became know for his skill and puissance in all matters of creation, and he slowly gathered those who held similar interests to his side."
Slowly more figures that followed the first figure on its journey formed.
"Eventually, he who would become my master found the Great Workshop. At the time it was under the control of an evil undead who had been using the forges to equip his vile army"
The first figure and his group of followers confronted a vague and shadowed figure that sent skeletal minions of frost against him.
"After a long and vicious battle the master and his guild mates succeed in claiming the forges, and named their new kingdom after the name of their group, and so. The Great Workshops of Temperance were born."
Large shapes began rising from the sphere, outlines of turning cogs and roaring flames, shadows of figures hard at work.
"But after hundreds of years, the golden age of Temperance began to fade away, our creators began to disappear one by one, and the great forges started to fall silent."
The figures began to fade away, the cogs ghosted to a halt, and the outlines of the flames slowly died down.
"And now, only he who is our master is left, only he remains to stoke the flames and keep the gears turning, only he who continues to create masterpieces, and who has earned the title of God-Smith."
A single figure remained in the scene, steadily and methodically moving from area to area, adding fuel to the flames, winding gears, and attending to every function within the scene.
The Ice sphere slowly dissolved, leaving the adventurers of Blue Rose with even more questions.
Arcturia shook herself before speaking brightly.
"Now! Time for you all to go to the second level! Wachlacia should be waiting for you in his castle!"
The members of Blue Rose started speaking all at once.
"Wait-"
"How old-"
"But you said-"
"Why are we-"
"I thought-"
Over the clamor of Blue Rose, Arcturia spoke.
"Yeah, sorry, but you all are running late and the master is impatient! Try not to piss Wachlacia off too bad! Now, GATE."
And abruptly five purple-black tears in fabric of reality opened and swallowed the members of Blue Rose whole before closing themselves.
In the following silence, Arcturia sarcastically mused into the empty cabin.
"hmm. I do so hope that they manage to get to Vladamire's castle alright… And they don't make him angry."
Arcturia shrugged, losing interest in the affairs of the insects, that had dared to infiltrate the Workshops of Temperance. If she hadn't been told by Mary that master Ignacio wanted them to arrive at the reviving room in one piece, and with a good impression of the both her and Wachlacia she would have killed them, let them freeze to death, frozen them into ice sculptures, frozen the blood in their veins….
Arcturia continued to think of a multitude of gruesome and varied methods of killing the intruders as she shrugged on her parka, picked up her lantern, and left to go check on the status of her floor.
2nd Floor: forest of the impaled
The members of Blue Rose groaned as they rose to their feet. They began look around themselves but were interrupted by a snide, cultured, voice.
"Do you intend to make me wait any further? The master awaits you as we speak, I would not make him wait for overlong if I were you."
As five sets of eyes sought out the voice, they eventually landed on a armored man that stood at the end of a bridge black stone bridge that was obscured by fog.
On closer inspection, the members of Blue Rose were stuck by how, beautiful, the man looked, and there was no other term for it. He wore dark segmented plate mail, a red cloak drifted behind him, twisting in a non-existent wind. His fine pale feature were twisted into a sneer, his ebony hair fell behind him in a casually messy mane of hair that blended into the dark color of his armor.
The man sneered at their awe struck reactions.
"Welcome intruders, to the 2nd floor, the floor which I guard and administer to as declared by my master. I am known as Vladamire Wachlachia"
As the man spoke the fog began to clear from their surroundings, revealing a massive stone castle, made out of the same kind of brick as the black bridge Vladamire stood upon, it also revealed the surrounding forest.
Gargaran paled.
Evileye cursed.
Tia puked as Tina began to hyperventilate.
Laykus just looked on in shock.
The forest, if one could call it that, was made up of hundreds, if not thousands of huge sharpened stakes.
And stuck onto each of the stakes was slowly writhing body.
Vladamire grinned, exposing a row of pointed teeth.
"Welcome Intruders, to floor two, or otherwise known as, The Forest Of The Impaled."
Authors note
Three chapters- 3 days. Yay me.
Yeah. So. Thats a thing. Any ways, apology chapter a week early for screwing up the Character Bios. I still haven't figured them out, so they will be posted in a later chapter. For now, suck it up I guess.
As usual, please Rate and Review. I and the other writers on my page all enjoy writing so much more when we get reviews.
Constructive reviews mind you.
Oh yes. Each author on the page has written two stories so far. try and see if you can tell who wrote which ones.