Brazen Wolfe Tabletop

Empty Halls

218WeEH

The large tawny hawk flew into the open window in the plain looking barn before settling down on a crate as it ruffled its feathers and shifted its form, muscles bones and feathers shifting, growing, stretching and receding until Takeo sat on the crate – a few drops of water still hanging to his hair from the light shower of rain that had greeted him as he flew into the town.

“I hate it when it rains” he sighed shifting his cloak around. The transformation from hawk to man after flying in rain always left him with water under his clothes when they appeared again. Standing and treading down the hall, a familiar path from his training as a child which his feet remembered. Each floorboard was different, only a few of them weren’t floating on top of nails that would squeal when stepped on and for those who remembered the path you could pass through these halls silently.

Passing a door, one belonging to another lotus member who was initiated a month later than he, he saw it was empty, but the external facing window was left open which was expected – their order was given all kinds of orders and had to deal with all situations imaginable.

Approaching the archway at the end of the hall he took off his shoes and placed them next to his masters shoes, as he had since a boy, and slowly stepped past the threshold and into the chamber beneath. A shadowed figure knelt infront of a fire so the feature’s of the face and front of the body were cloaked by shadow and darkness. Coming to rest, standing twenty steps away he knelt down and waited for his master to acknowledge him.

Minutes seemed to go by and Takeo got tired of waiting for protocol “master, I bring tidings from lady Kyoko. Her ships passengers, crew and refugees from Jade Point, have become afflicted with Shadow Bruises. Whats more, they disappear from all sight and senses, well seemingly so at least. Occasionally a person who is acutely aware of their presence can detect them.”

“They have started to attack the guest of princess Kyoko, targeting her it seems but there is resistance in the host. I believe they are being cursed by a stone as black as shadow and directed, forced even to make attempts on the life of the guest.” Takeo looked at his master, unmoving and unyielding. “Master do you know of what I talk about” he said moving forward to get closer. Something wasn’t right, the figure wasn’t moving but seemed to be unnaturally still. “Forgive me master” he muttered before approaching the figure and pulling back the hood. As he did several stray feathers wafted down and what was a very convincing decoy was revealed to be feathers and fabric under the robes of his master.

Frowning his senses went on full alert, a creak from the hallway, the rattle of a window, something somewhere was not right. Pushing his body through the the mental preparation to transform into his raven he darted down the hall, his dirk drawn and ready as he seemed to hit every squealing floorboard on his flight down the hall. The transformation process was physically and mentally draining and normally the Lotus agents couldn’t transform so quickly again after reverting to their human form, and his mind was rejecting the ancient magic.

As he stopped near the crate where he came into the building by he looked around, willing his heart to be silent and his body to take the form of the Raven.

Silence. The building was silent, not a sign of life, or more important death anywhere. His mind settled and his body started the shift, looking around the room as his eyes shifted and changed he didn’t see a single thing out of order, like nothing had changed or been here. As he turned and flew out the window he started to piece together what his next steps would be. Without his masters seemingly endless Knowledge there may be no one but the monks who secluded themselves from the world of men long ago.