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Abel had been standing there, leaning on his chair in boredom, as the green-haired one kept going with some unimportant-- He got bored with just thinking about it.

Then the bard suddenly spoke up. Abel looked over and blinked once, with a slight surprised look. It was the first time he had actually really spoken, and it made total sense. He moved his sight back on the druid. "Little guy's right. You're boring us. You're also seriously underestimating us. The more you talk, the more time I have to wait! So shut it!" Abel gave a sigh. "Besides... If she wanted to, lizard woman would have thrown you off by now, so it's not like you could take her down anyway." He leaned a little more on his chair.

A low, raspy voice filled Asami's head as she passed through the shadows.

"O Calling Dark, you please and displease me at once," it hissed, like sand running across coarse paper. "You have many minions now, but you have allowed the enemy to procure a weapon to use against you."

Pressure began to build on Asami, like a claw was closing around her in a vice grip. "This is unacceptable, O Calling Dark," hissed the voiceless voice. "And now I must expend power on your behalf." Behind Asami's eyes, a magic tome slowly spun. "They have this book; it rests in the hands of a lady bishop. You must take it before they come. Send a man to deceive them and retrieve it for you. He must take orders; I will fill in the rest."

The pressure was released as slowly, a door was drawn out of the air, waiting for the one who would be sent through it.

Tibarn just blinked. "... What?" He looked around quickly, for the absent Asami, then cursed and stood up. "That's it. I'm going out, gonna be ready when they come." He turned toward the window, flaring his wings and glancing back at Rei. "I don't care what you do," he said, more or less to everyone else. "Just stay the hell out of my way, got it?"

He leaped out into the light of the climbing sun and swiftly changed with a flash of green light, then swept out over the castle wall to circle over Eyris. The sun was getting high in the sky by now.

Steely Dan grunted quietly as he sat back. "Well," he said at last. "I'd wager I've enough able men to drop the lot of 'em 'fore you folks get close. 'F it's all the same, y'all can go on outside an' do as y'like, I'll be busy with the real fightin'. Yeh need a sneak, send Large. 'E's the little one, can' miss 'im." He pushed his chair back as he stood, suddenly grinning like a jackal as he turned and made his way out of the room.

Chickenwire had not said anything so far, merely watching Rei carefully. Chickenwire was not in most senses a man of words so much as actions, and slowly he stood up and turned, then walked out of the room and down to the courtyard.

He nodded to Clang and Large down there, and informed Large that he was wanted upstairs. After the little swordmaster darted into the castle, Chickenwire turned back to the courtyard at large and paused observantly. Everyone seemed... energetic. Odd, after a sleepless night, but no one seemed the least bit tired, and everyone seemed ready for a fight.

Well, most everyone. Chickenwire passed a number of bloody corpses-- they had never been cleaned up last night-- and nudged one with his foot. He passed on, grumbling, "Someone oughta do somethin' 'bout all these damn bodies... 's gross."


Upstairs, Large stepped into the dining room. Even his footsteps came off contemptuously. "I heard," he murmured softly, "that my presence was requested. I hope that I was not misinformed."

Abel looked over at Asami, as she entered back into the room. He listened to her speak, and just stood there for a bit, somewhat dumbfounded. He looked over at Tibarn, as he flew out the window, out of frustration, then looked back at Asami. "How do you expect us to get passed the barrier? Got some special trick you can use?" Abel stood up and looked around a little, then looked at Rei. "...Like.. how she attacked you? If you were both inside the manor then... ..You mean The Door? ..Actually, that could work. Problem is... we'd need somebody to go in that nobody knows about yet. Oh, and we'd have to be able to travel through it from somewhere, too..."

"No you are not misinformed," Asami answered Large. "I need you to get a tome for me. A lady bishop has it. You are going to go over there and make them think you are on their side. Then when the time is right steal the tome and give it to me. Understand?"

The little swordmaster narrowed his eyes, listening for a moment to Rei's complicated rambling. Pfeh, shamans. Always overthinking...

When addressed, he looked up sharply, then smirked. "I can do that, sure. Lady bishop, steal the book. An' that's it. Not a problem." His smirk widened into a grin as he started for the door. "Gonna take me a bit to get there," he added.

As Large spun through the shadows, the door that hung in nothingness swung open behind him.

He tumbled through, and it closed again behind him. Raspy chuckling filled the shadows as the outline of the door faded to match the nothing into which it was set.