Circe's Revenge
Disclaimer: All familiar characters belong to DC. I own Farrah/Persiana, Lance/Diablos, and Selene/Red Knight.
Chapter 4: All is not what it Seems
The members of Titans East were traveling with a woman and her coachman to an exquisite manor not too far away. The woman was the countess in the local area, and, feeling extremely gracious for the Titans saving her life, she invited them to spend the night in her abode. Needless to say, the party was stunned at how big the manor really was and many were glad to spend the night.
However, Farrah was not. Despite the appearance and the situation, the lioness could not help but fell ill-at-ease about what was going on. Something about the countess sent Farrah's instincts screaming that this woman was more than what she appeared to be.
Diablos was right; Circe's magic had morphed and changed some of their powers into different forms. As a were-cat, Farrah experienced a heightened sense of awareness and perception of danger, which was greatly amplified with her role as a thief.
She tapped Diablos on the shoulder,
"Could you get everyone together alone the first chance you get? I need to say something."
Lance nodded,
"All right. We'll ask for a respite once we get to the manor."
The lioness could only nod at that.
After another hour of uneventful traveling, the team had arrived at a splendid manor, with several glorious mountains as a backdrop. Below them, down on the cliff side, there was a large town, almost like a city.
The manor itself had numerous statues, ranging from women with vases in the garden, to gargoyles perched on the roof. The gargoyles themselves looked weathered, while the statues of the women with vases looked more…pristine. Around the women with vases were beautifully scented flowers.
A most intriguing sight was along the path to the front door. Fourteen statues, seven on each side, held swords and crossed down the middle of the path above people's heads. The statues were of armored soldiers, both men and women. Male statues filled every other space, and female statues followed behind them. The expressions on all their faces were blank or disciplined, depending on how you look at it. Each one of the statues had a different symbol on the armor worn.
As soon as they had arrived, the team was stunned at the immense size of the manor. The princess smiled,
"Please, warriors. This way. The servants shall show you to your rooms."
A platoon of servants exited the house and helped each member with their equipment inside. Lance and Farrah both made note of the symbols of the statues as they passed through.
The servants showed the team to their rooms. Each one was spacious and shared all the comforts of home, yet was small. As each Titan member settled in, one of the servants said,
"Dinner will be in two hours. Feel free to roam the gardens and the house."
She bowed respectfully and left. As soon as she was out of ear shot, Lance looked at the others,
"Well?"
Red Knight was confused,
"Well what?"
Hawke asked,
"Did anyone else get a bad feeling when we got here?"
M'gan nodded,
"Now that you mention it…when I was looking around with my…magic, I felt something. Something…dark, like a power well of magic."
Donna also nodded,
"I have a terrible feeling about this place, Lance. I do not know why, but we must leave as soon as possible."
Selene grumbled,
"Typical. Just when we are about to celebrated, a man has to ruin my fun."
Leonid shook his head,
"I am forced to agree with Selene. This countess does not appear to be threatening. Still, we should keep on our guard nonetheless."
Superboy nodded,
"Yeah, with Circe, you never know."
Lance then formulated a plan,
"Hawke, you, Leonid, Connor, and Selene walk around the grounds. Find out what you can. Farrah, you and Donna check out the statues. I'll look for a library or collection of books. Don't ask too many questions, and keep discrete. We meet back in the main foyer in one hour. If you get into trouble, M'gan and I will be monitoring you."
He turned to the Martian heroine,
"See if you can find a dress of some kind. I don't think your present attire will be appropriate at the dinner table."
As the Titans left to their assigned tasks, Selene looked at M'gan,
"Are you just going to let him order you around like that?"
The alien heroine shook her head,
"He seems to know what he is doing, and I agree; I should be more presentable. You should too."
The brunette barbarian huffed and walked away.
Unbeknownst to any of the adventuring party, a picture hanging in the hallway had its eyes shift. Then, they disappeared. One of the servants had a vacant, blank stare and blank expression on his face. He calmly walked from his hiding spot and down a secret corridor of the manor, until he reached a stone spiral staircase. Slowly, he crept down the stair case, trying not to make a sound. The slight echo of his steps were blocked by the stone, yet, a feminine voice could be heard at the bottom, tutting,
"You are not as stealthy as I would like you to be."
The servant stopped and waited. The feminine voice continued,
"Come into the darkness, pet. Your mistress commands it."
The servant obediently continued his trek down the staircase.
When he reached the bottom, there was an ordinary wooden door. The servant opened it, but found the room dark. The feminine voice continued,
"Now, what have you to report, minion?"
The servant answered flatly,
"The one with red-eyes grows suspicious of us. He believes there is an evil here. The girl with red hair believes there is a magic power well here she sensed."
The feminine voice laughed,
"How right she is. It matters little. Soon, they will not leave. They will not want to leave…"
A pair of piercing red eyes glowed in the dark,
"After we feast upon them, we shall make them like us."
The servant hissed, his eyes also turning red. His hiss bore fangs…
Next Chapter:
Titans East come to realize the peril they are in, and fight for their lives against this new threat! Stay tuned!