Welcome to Gaia! ::

::Unfortunately, adventurous as the young boy was he was not by any definition chivalrous. And after the great fun of rough housing with that giant monster, immediately followed by one of the greatest rides he's ever been on...he really didnt even remember her promise of a shiny when they land.

And while the ships "docking" experience might be more accurately described as "crashing" the light little boy most definately "landed"...on his rump.

He was having such a jolly time rolling around and playing Barrel that as the ship came to a sudden stop his "barrel"-ing body flew right off and into the air, again eerily followed by that sword which managed to flip with him. Strangely in mid air the sword managed to hook onto his clothing, and with its heavy wieght gravity took it and the child straight down letting it impale into the shore soon followed by the boys buttocks, and a stout...::

Oomph!

::He let a slight grown as he jerked himself upwards tearing out a bit of the tail of his jacket which was caught under the sword, and rubbing his soar rump, it had taken quite the beating.

Then with a heavy jerk he free'd his jumbo sword and made his way deeper into the shore. There so much wreckage...this entire place was in shambles...it brought a wide smirk to his face. Wreckage was funny. But without any people this place was boring. Really boring. Even though he had only been here a little over a minute.

About then a brilliant idea came to him! He could just call for some people! Afterall funny hat man said this is the place where the shinies where and there were no shinies in sight. And so he took a depth breath in and shouted as loud as a little kid about 6 or 7 could shout.::

HEWWO!! IS ANYBODY OUT THERWE?!

Ahead of them, loomed the foreboding jagged rocks and peices of wreckage that decorated the Pirate's Tunnel. There was no buildings, no obvious man-made places in sight.

Should they decided to do some exploring about the entire area, they would find still nothing.

However, one thing was noticeable, and not that far from their current position.

A shorn out cave, with gaping maws of some rock hewn beast...that only offered darkness, and the flickering of distant torch lights.

Of all things, there was a tunnel....at the Pirate's Tunnel. Go figure.

Should this suspicious looking entrance be approached, they would find the opening of the tunnel was supported by slender pillars. These pillars are only a foot or two across, so anything standing behind the pillar wouldn't really be hidden.

Stabbed into one of the pillars, lay the decaying and whitening remains of a skeleton, complete with a large feathered hat. A interesting rapier, it's cup guard embossed with shining diamons and rubies, was impaled into the chest cavity of the skeleton. Hewn into the archway of the tunnel, were the words: P RAT T N EL.

Apparently most of the other words were worn away or chipped; lost to time itself.

Surrounding the walls of the cave were hewn out of stone. The rough surface of a hewn wall frequently provides minuscule ledges where fungus grows and fissures where vermin, bats, and subterranean snakes live. Rough and uneven, the hewn floor was covered with loose stones, gravel, dirt, or other debris. It would prove difficult to run or charge across such a floor.

Elsewhere.....

Upon her awakening, and her cries, nary a single sound would be uttered. Not even a mouse. She seemed to be alone..but now awake, she would be able to better examine her surroundings.

She lay upon an extravagant four poster bed, the caopy of which was a soft sheen of silk. Around her, was complete darkness, save for the four wall mounted candles that ebbed light in small areas. The constantly flickered every so often, adding to the steady feeling of the fear of the unknown.

Eventually however, the sounds of footfalls would indeed be heard.

And they grew closer....and closer....closer....

Well, there certainly wasnt much to look at, but the flickering of flames cast by torches in the distance. It didnt seem like there was really anywhere else to go, so why not head in that direction? Seems like someone was already there or so as indicated by the lights.

With his rapier drawn, Turriens stealthily, or at least in his mind, moved towards the many pillars in the tirchlight.

"Eh?" he spotted the skeleton and noticed the plumed hat and fancy weapon.

The rapier removed, the skeletal remains seemed to sag along the pillar, until hitting the ground. It was then that a slight indentationc ould be seen on the pillar itself; an indentation which continued to recede within the rock.

It seems that the rapier had been lodged within the cracks, forcing the apparent pressure plate from closing all the way.

A low steady rumble could now be heard, as the entrance to the tunnal began to visibly shake. First small pebbles and peices of earth fell, followed soon by larger chunks.

If it wasn't obvious yet-- the tunnel was going to cave in. Should it be sealed up, the onlyplace that could possibly lead anywhere at all, would be lost to both of them, and trapped they would stay upon this hellish mass of rock and wreckage.

Elsewhere....

The footfalls came to a final pause, right outside the chamber doors. The handle turned....the metal and wood groaning it's solemn protest.

And the door swung open to reveal....

"Oh s**t - Oh s**t - OH s**t!" Turriens repeated multiple times as the tunnel started to shake, dust and small rocks shifting loose and falling down like a fine rain. "Quick! Put it back!" he called out to the boy, only to realise it was far too late.

He didnt even find it odd that a cat was talking to him, acting as if it was something very normal and happens in everyday life. However, that was only because the situation at hand was much more attention grabbing. He started flailing his hands as he tried to figure out what to do, run down the tunnel into the unknown, or... run down the tunnel.

And down the tunnel it was!

Only as he started to make a mad dash down the tunnel, he stopped after moving three feet into the distance, he turned back and grabbed the boy whilst he gnawwed on the weapon to bring him along, "Let's go!" he shouted.

Not after he took two more steps did he turn around again, snagging the plumed hat off of the skeleton before he made a mad dash through the collapsing tunnel. Cant let such a thing go to waste... especially since his looked to be in very poor condition.

The first thing that would hit the dynamicaly challenged duo, would be the stale odor in the air. Such a old, shorn out cavern like this, especially with apparently man-made steps built into it from lord knows how long ago-- the smell was almost to be expected.

If any of them had ever been in such a predicament before anyway.

The musk in the air made it nautious for one to take deep breaths, and the footing underneath them both was more than unsure; it was downright dangerous.

The steps were so steeply cut into the rock, that any sort of running, would lead to the runner flaling flat on his face and sliding down stone, to whatever bottom there was at this thing. Definately not a fun time.

Yet the main problem they both faced would be the lack of a light source. You see, it was pitch black, and all sunlight had been completely shut out. Sure, there were torches along the wall, but what could they be lit with?

Elsewhere...

"I trust you slept well?" The voice spread into the room, even as the door finished opening. There, in the doorway, sootd a most elegant looking figure. Even his walk had a sort of countenance to it. His voice had a thick accent to it, perhaps French, and his attire was even more out of place.

In fact, you could go so far as to say he was dressed exactly as her male companion had been, minus the plumed hat, and the fact that his clothes were much richer and elaborate in design.

His hair was blonde, and rested well pats his shoulders, giving his already physically fit stature an almost feminine air.

Amunet stared at the man who entered as she wrapped the sheet tightly about her body. He was a rather handsome man, such beautiful features, and such a pleasant voice. "Who... who are you? Where am I?"

Meanwhile...

Tarik tried desperately to catch Amunet's scent in order to find her, but it was impossible, the putrid stench that hung in the air made it difficult for him to even breathe. The feline looked back at the two humans, he would have no choice but to follow them for now. "Pick a direction..."

A talking cat!

It was amazing, somthing the swashbuckler had never witnessed before. So amazing that he forgot about the boy going up the steps while his face expressed a shocking wonderment with his mouth agape in an 'O' shape and his eyebrows raised.

And then the sudden sparks cast by the heavt blade grinding against stone brought him back to reality. Well, it seemed that up was the way to go, so Turriens decided to follow, nimbly moving up the stairway with all the grace of a half-elf, following the trail of small sparks that was cast, though of course, he could already see the outlining of the steps in a cold blue and a faint red where the sparks had landed and began to cool.

And no, he never though about taking one of the torches and trying to light it along the trail of sparks. He was just that simpleminded.

Up and up, he really didnt have any idea of where they were going. Nor did he really care for that matter. He just wished they'd get there fast, not really liking the smell. Hopefully, thered be fresh air at the end of the stairs... and maybe sunlight... and perhaps some food... and Shineys! That would be neat. The frivolous swashbuckler smiled at the thought as he follewed the steps upwards.