Re: The Vivacious Deadlock: S3G6: Round Three: The Sable Masque
04-28-2012, 01:40 PM
Originally posted on MSPA by Ixcalibur.
Phere screamed; she could not help it. Her hollow burned red hot and for a moment before the pain left her she tried to claw the artefact from her face, digging her nails into her skin. Something was in her way; she pulled it off and threw it aside. Slowly the pain faded away and she became aware of the silence and the stillness that surrounded her. She lifted her gaze from the marble floor where it had settled and took in the room as a whole. It was enormous and lit by dim candlelight from a number of candelabra. Sheets of sumptuous lustful violet cloth were hung across every wall and doorway. The inhabitants of the room were dressed, or undressed as some of them were, in varied and vibrant formal attire. All of them had seemingly come to a stop in whatever it was that they had been doing before Phere had arrived.
To say that the outfits that the party-goers were wearing were exquisite was to do them a disservice. They were jaw-dropping, masterpieces of fashion design. Each one appeared to have been custom tailored to perfectly suit the wearer. Some of the outfits seemed to go that one step further, to separate themselves by their complete disregard for the laws of physics of logic itself, all in the name of fashion. From behind ornate masks that covered every face in the room except her own Phere could see the guests staring at her. Their folded arms and hostile glares seemed to suggest that what they were looking at was not in fact a person but a heap of stinking trash that some incompetent had mistakenly dumped in here and now the stench had completely ruined the good time everyone had very recently been having. Their expressions suggested that they were just waiting for someone to come and take her away.
Phere was not feeling at her best. Her encounter with the tower had been humiliating, it had demonstrated just how unprepared she was for the task she aimed to complete, and just how much more use she could have gotten from Crowe if she had pushed him just that little bit more. The judgemental glare of this crowd was not exactly helping her state of mind. For the moment she just wanted to be alone, away from the scrutiny of these people, away from the reminders of her failures thus far. She wanted to take a moment to look back at her kingdom; at a life where she was able to accomplish the goals she set out to achieve and where she had once been successful. Part of her felt like she was out of her league here, but most of her wanted to press on, to find a way to make this battle her own.
The silence lasted perhaps a full minute before she regained her wits. Her bemused expression hardened into a scowl. “What do you think you are looking at?” she snapped at the staring crowd.
As if on cue a pair of things unfurled from near the doorway. It was like watching a carpet unroll itself, only somehow vertically. They were suits; the red jackets traditionally associated with the uniform of a valet, black trousers, white gloves and a Venetian joker mask where there ought to have been a face. Their movements were clumsy and awkward, like that of puppets, but as they reached Phere and took her by the arm it was clear they were far stronger than they appeared.
“Get your hands off me.” The Empress tried to pull away but their grip held tight. Though she thrashed against them, they managed to pull her to the doorway easily, as though she were nothing more than a rag doll. One of the valets brushed aside the violet cloth that hung there and they left; the quiet murmur of conversation and other activities returning to the room as they did so.
The corridor was long and winding, decorated with portraits and occasionally occupied by couples looking for a little privacy. Phere was currently too preoccupied with the unnaturally strong uniforms that were inexorably dragging her from the party to cast her gaze into the rooms that they passed. Even she would have been shocked by the excesses of decadence and debauchery taking place in some of those cloth shrouded chambers. Eventually they emerged into a room, which it had to be presumed was the main hall. While the violet room had been pretty big comparatively it was some poky box room. The hall was several stories high, with a marble staircase off to one side of the room and numerous balconies upon the floors above overlooking the throng of well dressed people down below. There were people everyone, many clutching glittering neon cocktails in their impeccably manicured hands, others slowdancing to the tune played by a full masked orchestra in one corner.
Nobody paid Phere and the valets the slightest bit of attention despite her kicks and her screams. The valets moved through the throng surprisingly easily, and they approached a small doorway. This was pushed open and Phere was rather unceremoniously shoved through it, into the cold night air that lay beyond.
Phere screamed; she could not help it. Her hollow burned red hot and for a moment before the pain left her she tried to claw the artefact from her face, digging her nails into her skin. Something was in her way; she pulled it off and threw it aside. Slowly the pain faded away and she became aware of the silence and the stillness that surrounded her. She lifted her gaze from the marble floor where it had settled and took in the room as a whole. It was enormous and lit by dim candlelight from a number of candelabra. Sheets of sumptuous lustful violet cloth were hung across every wall and doorway. The inhabitants of the room were dressed, or undressed as some of them were, in varied and vibrant formal attire. All of them had seemingly come to a stop in whatever it was that they had been doing before Phere had arrived.
To say that the outfits that the party-goers were wearing were exquisite was to do them a disservice. They were jaw-dropping, masterpieces of fashion design. Each one appeared to have been custom tailored to perfectly suit the wearer. Some of the outfits seemed to go that one step further, to separate themselves by their complete disregard for the laws of physics of logic itself, all in the name of fashion. From behind ornate masks that covered every face in the room except her own Phere could see the guests staring at her. Their folded arms and hostile glares seemed to suggest that what they were looking at was not in fact a person but a heap of stinking trash that some incompetent had mistakenly dumped in here and now the stench had completely ruined the good time everyone had very recently been having. Their expressions suggested that they were just waiting for someone to come and take her away.
Phere was not feeling at her best. Her encounter with the tower had been humiliating, it had demonstrated just how unprepared she was for the task she aimed to complete, and just how much more use she could have gotten from Crowe if she had pushed him just that little bit more. The judgemental glare of this crowd was not exactly helping her state of mind. For the moment she just wanted to be alone, away from the scrutiny of these people, away from the reminders of her failures thus far. She wanted to take a moment to look back at her kingdom; at a life where she was able to accomplish the goals she set out to achieve and where she had once been successful. Part of her felt like she was out of her league here, but most of her wanted to press on, to find a way to make this battle her own.
The silence lasted perhaps a full minute before she regained her wits. Her bemused expression hardened into a scowl. “What do you think you are looking at?” she snapped at the staring crowd.
As if on cue a pair of things unfurled from near the doorway. It was like watching a carpet unroll itself, only somehow vertically. They were suits; the red jackets traditionally associated with the uniform of a valet, black trousers, white gloves and a Venetian joker mask where there ought to have been a face. Their movements were clumsy and awkward, like that of puppets, but as they reached Phere and took her by the arm it was clear they were far stronger than they appeared.
“Get your hands off me.” The Empress tried to pull away but their grip held tight. Though she thrashed against them, they managed to pull her to the doorway easily, as though she were nothing more than a rag doll. One of the valets brushed aside the violet cloth that hung there and they left; the quiet murmur of conversation and other activities returning to the room as they did so.
The corridor was long and winding, decorated with portraits and occasionally occupied by couples looking for a little privacy. Phere was currently too preoccupied with the unnaturally strong uniforms that were inexorably dragging her from the party to cast her gaze into the rooms that they passed. Even she would have been shocked by the excesses of decadence and debauchery taking place in some of those cloth shrouded chambers. Eventually they emerged into a room, which it had to be presumed was the main hall. While the violet room had been pretty big comparatively it was some poky box room. The hall was several stories high, with a marble staircase off to one side of the room and numerous balconies upon the floors above overlooking the throng of well dressed people down below. There were people everyone, many clutching glittering neon cocktails in their impeccably manicured hands, others slowdancing to the tune played by a full masked orchestra in one corner.
Nobody paid Phere and the valets the slightest bit of attention despite her kicks and her screams. The valets moved through the throng surprisingly easily, and they approached a small doorway. This was pushed open and Phere was rather unceremoniously shoved through it, into the cold night air that lay beyond.
Heaven Help Us | Make Room!!!! | I'm Not Okay (I Promise)
Hang 'Em High | The Only Hope For Me Is You | Zero Percent | Early Sunsets Over Monroeville | DESTROYA | Demolition Lovers | To The End
Surrender The Night | Disenchanted | The Ghost Of You | Party Poison | Vampires Will Never Hurt You | The Jetset Life Is Gonna Kill You
Hang 'Em High | The Only Hope For Me Is You | Zero Percent | Early Sunsets Over Monroeville | DESTROYA | Demolition Lovers | To The End
Surrender The Night | Disenchanted | The Ghost Of You | Party Poison | Vampires Will Never Hurt You | The Jetset Life Is Gonna Kill You