Raising her eyebrows slightly, Raven walked up to the exit and ran a
finger down the edges, thinking back to when she had first used it. Tilting
her head to one side, she narrowed her eyes and made her fingers thinner,
more like a dagger and slid them between the edges, pushing on it lightly.
She then tried the other side and then stepped back, crossing her arms
across her chest a bit.
"Now if I remember right. . . I should be able to. . ." Making her fingers normal once more, she made her eyes into that of a cat's, scanning the surface of the wall. Smiling, she found what she was looking for and she turned her eyes back to their normal glowing yellow. Taking out a ring from her pocket, she turned to the others with an arched eyebrow.
"When I use this key, this wall is going to open and we're going to be in the throne room." She explained calmly. "Now Logan, I think you should try to listen to the other side of that wall to see if anyone is in there before I use it. Make sure we don't jump into the fire right?"
Nodding, Logan pressed his ear against the wall and he concentrated, listening to the other side of the wall easily. He stayed like that for a few minutes, not moving at all, as if he was a statue or was stuck to the wall. When he finally backed away, he nodded and waited for her to use the key.
Smiling, Raven pressed the ring against a small groove in the wall near the floor, turning it to the left in a half circle and then back again, making a full circle to the right. When she removed the ring, the wall started to slide to the side, giving them full view of the throne room.
It was filled with light, the ceilings filled with windows on every angle to try and capture as much as the sun's rays as possible in one day. The walls were adorned with tapestries depicting the Creed family and all of their "heroic acts". Most of the acts depicted showed the reigning monarch of that time slaughtering some group of people in gory detail. Victor Creed, the father of Graydon, was shown tearing into a rebel force with his bare claws and fangs, his eyes an intense shade for mere thread colors.
The rest of the room was surrounded by tall candleholders, the white candles burning a golden color, despite the fact that it was still day out and that the room was filled with sunlight. Large blood red curtains hung down, gold etchings around their borders. The doors to the throne were large and covered in gold and silver etchings, depicting pictures of rampant lions and submissive unicorns.
"Nice place he's got here." Bobby snorted, looking at a tapestry of a woman being rammed onto a spike. "It's got a nice warm cozy feeling to it that I can't quite place."
"Please Bobby, now is not the time for your jokes." Hank sighed, looking around. "We need to find an easy way to the dungeons." He said, turning to Raven.
"I don't think we need to worry about that right now." Warren said, looking at the doors tensely.
"Why?" Hank asked.
"Doesn't it seem odd that the king isn't in his throne room?" Warren asked, arching a wing slightly. "I mean, we just tried to sneak into his castle from the front. Wouldn't he be in here and plan on a strategy of some kind with his captains?"
"It does seem a bit easy." Logan admitted, crossing his arms across his chest. "Then again, his father was Victor. He wasn't exactly known for his brains now was he?" he asked.
"You can say that again." Raven sighed, thinking back to herself. "If you want, we can check the doors and see if anyone is waiting for us to come out." She suggested to Warren.
"That sounds like a good idea." Warren nodded.
"Now's your chance to do something useful, Kitty. Phase through those doors and see if anyone is near us." Raven said, checking her nails calmly and making them blood red and slightly longer and thinner. Rolling her eyes, Kitty phased and poked her head out the doors, looking right and then left.
She saw only one guard to their left on the far side of the hall. He was leaning heavily on his spear, meaning that the idiot was fast asleep when he was supposed to be on watch.
"What an idiot." Kitty said, pulling her head back out and turning solid once more. "There's only one guard on the far side of the hall and guess what? He's fast asleep!" she reported.
"All right then, what are we waiting for?" Bobby asked, cracking his knuckles to try and looking masculine. Piotr sighed and rolled his eyes skyward, as if looking for some help there.
"We're waiting for me to find the staircase to the dungeons of course." Raven answered, walking to the doors and opening them a fraction. Looking outside, she found the sleeping guard and she smiled, shaking her head slowly and turning to Kurt with a sigh.
"Kurt, I need you to be a dear and kill that guard and bring his body hear for me." She said, batting her eyes with a smile. Laughing silently, Kurt nodded and teleported behind the guard, killing him in his sleep and teleporting back into the throne with the body, dumping it at Raven's feet.
Looking down at the body, Raven slowly turned into the guard, taking his spear from his hand. Smiling, she walked out of the room and looked down both halls, finding that no one was coming towards them.
"All right, I'll take point. When I whistle, that means it's all right to move on a head. Make sure you're as quiet as possible." She directed. With that, she started down to the left, her hips swinging slightly from side to side and making Bobby nearly explode with suppressed laughter.
They worked their way down to the dungeons with Raven on point for the entire time, only having to kill a small handful of guards on their entire journey there. Bobby shrugged it off and said it was simple luck. Others, like Warren and Logan felt that there was something fishy going on and said that they should all be on their toes in case there's a trap waiting for them somewhere.
When they reached the staircase, Logan jerked back and sniffed the air, narrowing his eyes a bit. Growling softly, he turned to the left and headed for a large iron door. Kurt grabbed his arm and stopped him.
"Vhat is it, Logan?" he asked.
"I can smell a large group of people behind that door. They're sweating too. They're waiting for us to go down these stairs and then they'll pounce from behind." Logan explained. "Hank and Scott, help me out with this will ya?" he asked, looking over his shoulder. "The rest of you go down the stairs and get the others out of there quick."
After splitting up, Raven and the others went down the stone steps, entering the dungeons. They were dark and damp, a moist smell rising to their nostrils swiftly. Looking around, Raven found an entire section that was blocked off with a stone door.
"That's where they'll be keeping them. Erik can control metal." She explained, heading for it. When she opened it, they had only stepped inside where the torches suddenly flared alive and blazed in their faces for a moment before they dulled down again. When their sight came back, they found themselves surrounded by armed soldiers, led by a Gifted person holding a match that had taken the form of a dove.
"I've been waiting for you." He said calmly, smiling at Raven. "It took you long enough to get here. We were almost worried that our trap hadn't gotten to Logan and that he had been able to smell us down here after all!"
With a click, collars were snapped around their throats.
"I'm so glad it went so well!"
"Now if I remember right. . . I should be able to. . ." Making her fingers normal once more, she made her eyes into that of a cat's, scanning the surface of the wall. Smiling, she found what she was looking for and she turned her eyes back to their normal glowing yellow. Taking out a ring from her pocket, she turned to the others with an arched eyebrow.
"When I use this key, this wall is going to open and we're going to be in the throne room." She explained calmly. "Now Logan, I think you should try to listen to the other side of that wall to see if anyone is in there before I use it. Make sure we don't jump into the fire right?"
Nodding, Logan pressed his ear against the wall and he concentrated, listening to the other side of the wall easily. He stayed like that for a few minutes, not moving at all, as if he was a statue or was stuck to the wall. When he finally backed away, he nodded and waited for her to use the key.
Smiling, Raven pressed the ring against a small groove in the wall near the floor, turning it to the left in a half circle and then back again, making a full circle to the right. When she removed the ring, the wall started to slide to the side, giving them full view of the throne room.
It was filled with light, the ceilings filled with windows on every angle to try and capture as much as the sun's rays as possible in one day. The walls were adorned with tapestries depicting the Creed family and all of their "heroic acts". Most of the acts depicted showed the reigning monarch of that time slaughtering some group of people in gory detail. Victor Creed, the father of Graydon, was shown tearing into a rebel force with his bare claws and fangs, his eyes an intense shade for mere thread colors.
The rest of the room was surrounded by tall candleholders, the white candles burning a golden color, despite the fact that it was still day out and that the room was filled with sunlight. Large blood red curtains hung down, gold etchings around their borders. The doors to the throne were large and covered in gold and silver etchings, depicting pictures of rampant lions and submissive unicorns.
"Nice place he's got here." Bobby snorted, looking at a tapestry of a woman being rammed onto a spike. "It's got a nice warm cozy feeling to it that I can't quite place."
"Please Bobby, now is not the time for your jokes." Hank sighed, looking around. "We need to find an easy way to the dungeons." He said, turning to Raven.
"I don't think we need to worry about that right now." Warren said, looking at the doors tensely.
"Why?" Hank asked.
"Doesn't it seem odd that the king isn't in his throne room?" Warren asked, arching a wing slightly. "I mean, we just tried to sneak into his castle from the front. Wouldn't he be in here and plan on a strategy of some kind with his captains?"
"It does seem a bit easy." Logan admitted, crossing his arms across his chest. "Then again, his father was Victor. He wasn't exactly known for his brains now was he?" he asked.
"You can say that again." Raven sighed, thinking back to herself. "If you want, we can check the doors and see if anyone is waiting for us to come out." She suggested to Warren.
"That sounds like a good idea." Warren nodded.
"Now's your chance to do something useful, Kitty. Phase through those doors and see if anyone is near us." Raven said, checking her nails calmly and making them blood red and slightly longer and thinner. Rolling her eyes, Kitty phased and poked her head out the doors, looking right and then left.
She saw only one guard to their left on the far side of the hall. He was leaning heavily on his spear, meaning that the idiot was fast asleep when he was supposed to be on watch.
"What an idiot." Kitty said, pulling her head back out and turning solid once more. "There's only one guard on the far side of the hall and guess what? He's fast asleep!" she reported.
"All right then, what are we waiting for?" Bobby asked, cracking his knuckles to try and looking masculine. Piotr sighed and rolled his eyes skyward, as if looking for some help there.
"We're waiting for me to find the staircase to the dungeons of course." Raven answered, walking to the doors and opening them a fraction. Looking outside, she found the sleeping guard and she smiled, shaking her head slowly and turning to Kurt with a sigh.
"Kurt, I need you to be a dear and kill that guard and bring his body hear for me." She said, batting her eyes with a smile. Laughing silently, Kurt nodded and teleported behind the guard, killing him in his sleep and teleporting back into the throne with the body, dumping it at Raven's feet.
Looking down at the body, Raven slowly turned into the guard, taking his spear from his hand. Smiling, she walked out of the room and looked down both halls, finding that no one was coming towards them.
"All right, I'll take point. When I whistle, that means it's all right to move on a head. Make sure you're as quiet as possible." She directed. With that, she started down to the left, her hips swinging slightly from side to side and making Bobby nearly explode with suppressed laughter.
They worked their way down to the dungeons with Raven on point for the entire time, only having to kill a small handful of guards on their entire journey there. Bobby shrugged it off and said it was simple luck. Others, like Warren and Logan felt that there was something fishy going on and said that they should all be on their toes in case there's a trap waiting for them somewhere.
When they reached the staircase, Logan jerked back and sniffed the air, narrowing his eyes a bit. Growling softly, he turned to the left and headed for a large iron door. Kurt grabbed his arm and stopped him.
"Vhat is it, Logan?" he asked.
"I can smell a large group of people behind that door. They're sweating too. They're waiting for us to go down these stairs and then they'll pounce from behind." Logan explained. "Hank and Scott, help me out with this will ya?" he asked, looking over his shoulder. "The rest of you go down the stairs and get the others out of there quick."
After splitting up, Raven and the others went down the stone steps, entering the dungeons. They were dark and damp, a moist smell rising to their nostrils swiftly. Looking around, Raven found an entire section that was blocked off with a stone door.
"That's where they'll be keeping them. Erik can control metal." She explained, heading for it. When she opened it, they had only stepped inside where the torches suddenly flared alive and blazed in their faces for a moment before they dulled down again. When their sight came back, they found themselves surrounded by armed soldiers, led by a Gifted person holding a match that had taken the form of a dove.
"I've been waiting for you." He said calmly, smiling at Raven. "It took you long enough to get here. We were almost worried that our trap hadn't gotten to Logan and that he had been able to smell us down here after all!"
With a click, collars were snapped around their throats.
"I'm so glad it went so well!"