Shoutouts: To Psychopathic Jester: Thank you, but I'm sorry if you feel that I lack detail, but I'm not all that big on detail, as long as the main point shines through. As for character description, I pretty much assumed (I know that was wrong of me) that for the seven, everyone would remember back to the character models for the playable characters, everyone that's appeared in the game, remember what they look like, as for the unimportant OCs, they're not worthy of description, and for anyone that hasn't played the game, I don't give a shit if they don't know what anyone looks like (for those of you who haven't played the game, I'm sorry.)
To Avatar of Fyre: Yes, I am enjoying myself. But "I'm so ronry, so ronry, so ronry real sad real arone." (If you saw the movie "Team America" you'd know what that was about.) What's weird is, the last time I saw Cpt. Religious get along with d.p.h.g., the rabbits were pink camo. (I hate pink and I loath pink camo., it makes the much cooler winter camo. look bad.) As for my gramatical errors, I must apologize, because when it comes to written word, I'm not exactly tidy all of the time...I'm only human, or at least look like one. As for the confusion, I am sorry but it was how I was taught to write.
To Magnificent the Destroyer Lord: Well it's nice that you think my banter is nice, unfortunatly not even I know of Diabra's powers, which is a stretch since I made him. BTB
To Richardc269: (once again in this update) I'm sorry for the spelling errors. Also, I have never ever used the paladin before, belive me when I say that's kinda sad, yet amazing. Plus, I'll remember what you told me...er, typed me.
To everyone: Damn you all, for making me apologize so much! The real reason I made so many mistakes is that, the voices in my head that I usually consult on such matters, are on vacation. So with all that said and done, here's the forth update.
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Chapter four: Planning
When Tulwik, Leera, Vash and Cain arrived in Lut Gholein, they noticed, through all the cheers they had gained, that the people had lost some of their happiness. Almost as if they subconsiously knew about Diabra. Tulwik and co. had got a room at the inn, free of charge, before heading to the pub, except for Cain, who said that he'd go get some rest.
"I don't know how he's able to do it," Leera said, as she, Vash and Tulwik entered the pub, "Everytime when I slept on the beds they were either too sandy, too blood stained or to infested." She then saw her other team mates sitting at a table in the back, clearly not wanting to be disturbed by retelling their adventures to idiots who carry a sword and call themselves adventurers.
"You're late," Khali said, throwing a knife at a crudly made dartboard halfway across the room, as Tulwik Vash and Leera came over to the table.
"It wasn't our fault," Vash said, taking a seat next to Ishami, she had her mask off, revealing her beutiful young face yet extremly old, haunting, smokey eyes. She was wearing one of her four normal expressions, anger, intensity, incomplacent and disgust, at that moment it was incomplacent.
"What would you like to drink?" Atma asked the three new arrivals, but before they could answer, she continued, "We have nothing at all, except ale and water. If you want either of them to be cold, ask Moontear."
"Nice to see you too Atma. I'll take water." Leera answered, as Ishami threw a throwing star at the dartboard and declaring victory.
At this Atma looked at the faces of the three new arrivals and saw that they were not foolish, young story hunters as she first perceived, but, in fact, they were the three remaining members of The Great Seven. She then quickly set her tray down on the table, proceeded to give each of the new arrivals a huge hug and get their drinks of water.
After all greetings were made, Tulwik then saw a cut on Ishami's shoulder that looked to be slightly burnt. "How'd you get that?" he asked pointing at it. Ishami then recounted the event out at sea which had involved merpeople. She told him that after the battle Moontear dabbed volcano potion on her wounds.
"Hold on," Vash said, "if you got attacked under the water, then how did you get burnt?"
"Well," began Moontear, "a few years ago, Alkor and I created a chemical concoction called volcano potion. Not only is the blast radius of it, if thrown, three times that of the regular explosive potion, but it can also heal, disinfect, and cauterize deep or poisoned wounds. However, as a side effect it can sometimes burn the skin."
"Does it hurt?" Leera inquired.
"No," Moontear concluded.
"Okay, now that everyone's here, it's time to look at maps," Khali said, getting up and putting his throwing knives away. He then beckond his friends to follow him to and up the stairs, in the other back corner of the room.
When Khali's friends reached his room, it looked like the exact opposite of what they thought it to be. Instead of tidy to the point of anal retentivness, as they thought it to be, the room was in fact complete and total waste dump. Strewn across the floor were clothes, dull throwing knives, bones used for religious purposes, and even a few discarded undergarments from one or two of the girls from the local brothels.
"My god," Vash said awestruck, "we've killed demons that were cleaner than this."
However, Khali seemed to be unfazed by his friends surprise, this was proven by him, when he simply walked over the debris that happily comprised his room and to a desk in the back. His desk was no exception to the rest of the room, however it was covered with debris of a different kind. Instead of being covered with clothing, knives, bones and panties like the rest of the room, it adorned old books, atlases, building blueprints, etc. He then sat down at a chair in front of the desk, beckoned his friends forward, whilst he donned his spectacles and said, "Ever since that night Tyrael gathered us together, I've looked through the oldest books, maps, and scrolls. In both the palace library and The Arcane Sanctuary, trying to find out where Diabra shall begin his oppression of Sanctuary. So," he said pointing at one large unfurled map, "I think after much thought that I've found it. Since Diabra is comprised of The Three Prime Evils, he should at least share some of their personal traits. Now since Diablo and Baal had a preference towards speed and efficiantcy, that means there are two possible entrances from which they'll come, instead of making a new one. The one made by Andariel in the monastary and The Temple of Mephisto," at this Tulwik inhaled sharply, "Don't worry Tulwik, even though I'm a gambling man, I have never lost, ever. I'm banking on the chance that due to Baal's and Mephisto's somewhat dramatic actions, during the lives they lead, that Diabra shall make his grand entrance from Mephisto's temple. So if that is the case then, please direct your attention to this," Khali said as he pulled one of the blueprints from the floor. It showed the makings of a inexplicably beutiful temple. "This," Khali began again, "is the Claw Viper temple."
"Wait," Leera said, "I know value when I see it, and that temple wasn't worth two buckets of demon dung."
"Well of course the temple isn't worth anything now," Khali said, "I mean how well kept would your house be if you had pea-brained newts in charge of cleaning it and keeping from crumbling. Besides, do you think those lazy lizards would actually have the concentration, much less the intellect to build a temple that's not made out of twigs? My research has lead me to belive that the temple was once a means of expediant travel, predating the townportals themselves."
"And what makes you come to this conclusion, insult to the human race," Fenrier said.
"Because of this, pathetic excuse of a an imbecile, " Khali said, pointing to a sort of jagged pathline leading off the blueprints, "After reading from the diary of one of Lut Gholein's former settlement leaders-"
"Kings," Vash corrected.
"No," Khali said, "this information predates Lut Gholein actually being made into a city. Now as I was saying, after reading the diary, I found out that the temple lead to an underground river. This supposed river can move nine times as fast as any ship that travels on the Twin Seas and it leads to the lower areas of Kurast. However, due to the to claw vipers, no one would have been able to clear away any large rocks that may have fallen in to the river, and as dark as it will be down there we won't be able to steer around them."
"Well since I can see in the dark," Ishami said, "the difficulty should, at least, be minimized, not drastically, but minimized just the same."
"Don't worry about it 'shami," Vash said, almost chuckling, "because I've a better idea."
"Then I'd like you to please share it with us," said Khali expectantly.
"Nope,sorry, that would ruin the suprise." This statement had severly annoyed Khali, for if there was one thing that got on his nerves, it was not knowing something that others around him did, espeacially when they flaunted it.
"Fine then suit yourself," Khali said snappishly.
"You know this may sound stupid," said Tulwik, speaking for the first time in hours, "one of my phycopathic ramblings probably, but since we are going into the Claw Viper Temple, then won't we run into oh, I don't know, something like a ton of incredibly vicious and pissed off claw vipers?"
"Actually," Khali said, "no. When we first went down there, we pretty much got the majority. Those who were left, ran off, afraid that we might come back, so the way's pretty much clear."
"Aside from the rocks, I have a feeling you arn't even near the hard part yet," said Fenrier, almost sighing.
"Actually, I belive I have," Khali said.
"No you haven't," Moontear interjected, "Unfortunatly, when we we're in Kurast last time, we didn't kill all that we're faithful to Mephisto. After we left, those who were left shelled themselves up in the oldest of tunnels and passage ways, making it impossible to get down there. So even if we do make it past the river, we'll still have to fight an army to make it to the surface."
"Well we've got nothing to worry about then!" Vash cried out.
"Of course," Leera agreed, "Last time I checked, that word dosen't apply to us anymore."
"That's absolutly right," Khali said, getting up and stretching, "Now if you don't mind, I'm going to support some of the thriving, local buissneses."
"Bastard," Fenrier spat out, as Khali made his way out of the room.
"Just remember, that by me going there, it puts food in women's mouths," Khali said, in mock compassion.
"Among other things," Tulwik chuckled.
"But of course," Khali said, as he shut the door, seeing as he was the last one to leave the room.
"So, what are you doing at here at this hour?" Leera asked Vash, several hours later that night, at the edge of the dock. "I don't see you with any other women, so that's a good sign."
"I'm swiming," Vash replied, as he stretched. And before any furthe inquires could be made, he dove into the ocean.
It was several minutes now since her husband had disappeared beneath the water's surface and Leera was becoming worried. Her anxiety increased when she saw the water churn slightly. Then everything seemed to to go in slow motion, suddenly something jumped out of the water, seemingly soaring above her, perfectly silhouetted in the moonlight. It looked like one of the orcas, that Tulwik told her about, except where it should be pure white, it was blood red, it had, what seemed to be, bone, sharpened to a blade, protruding from the flippers and fin, it's skin looked hard as hell too.
When it landed behind Leera, she already had her bow out, with an arrow at the ready. It's a good thing that Vash could shape-shift so fast, because when he was done changing back from a werewhale, an arrow whizzed past his head, leaving a nice cut on his right ear.
"God damn it!" Vash yelled, as he clasped his hand over his ear.
"Hey it's was your fault, trying to show off!" Leera yelled. With sparked an argument that lasted until both of them had gone to sleep, after seeing that Vash's injury was taken care of.
For once, one of Diabra's servants were happy to inform their master of recent news, in this case it was a cave leaper. In an incredibly shrill voice, the leaper spoke to it's master, "Master," the creature seemed to recoil under it's master's multi-colored gaze, "um, master, it seems that we have good news. Our eforts have proven successful at finding not one but two of them."
At these words, a minuite, creepy smile touched Diabra's face, he then said, "Two down, five to go."
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I'm sorry it took so long for me to get this update up and running, but hey what can you do about it? I'll try to get the next up A.S.A.P. So as always, KEEP ON ROCKIN AND REVIEWIN CAUSE I'LL HANDLE THE ROLLING!
