"This was all a scheme?" Unbelievable, they could've been dead by now. Or wait, she didn't think the muse would've killed but till

"So the bear was actually a muse?" she asked in astonishment

"Well, almost," Stanley replied. "You see, there is a Muse by the name of Nature that works a slight different than the other muses. As long as their target is not human, Nature can bond with any host she chooses any amount of times she wishes. I simply asked her to help me out here... I am terribly sorry for scaring you so!"

"So... how do we turn this off then?" Eleven asked, still fluttering in the skies. Stanley shield a slight at that.

"Now THAT part is easy! Simply thank them for their help, exhale deeply, and you should return to normal... hey wait!" He cried, in alarm as Eleven did so without landing first. In a blur of speed he caught her, gently setting her down.

"THAT was really weird... but too cool too! But Stanley... my muse says it doesn't have a name..." Stanley nodded.

"Yes, it is up to you girls to give your muses a name," he explained. "So please, choose wisely because that name wills tick forever."

Yumi did what Stanley said and inhaled deeply after she thanked her muse. she felt the feeling of strength disappear and she missed it already. Also the sword and the panther vanished in the air.

Hmm what kind of name would she give her Muse, well not give, more suggest, it was for her Muse to accept. Well her Muse didn't talk at all. 'What do you think about Evelyn?' she suggested, the name meant light, and she thought of the Muse as light in her life, something to brighten up the dull life that was laying head of her before they met.

She felt a warm feeling, like the warmth of a smile, and she took it as an accept. "Her name is Evelyn, my Light"

"Evelyn... I rather like it," Stanley replied. Obi on his shoulder nodded, giving a grin. "And you?" he asked Eleven.

Eleven paused, thinking quietly. A muse of flight and arrows? "Celeste," she finally replied.

"Both very good names," the former knight replied, then sighed softly as he glanced towards the sky. Where the moon was shining now. "It is getting late, we should probably call it a night. Thankfully, I have a few extra guest rooms. Always kept them in the hope of help you know?" he asked, before glancing towards the muses.

"Portal!" he said, as soon a small muse that looked like a black dot appeared before them. "Will you please send us to my place?" The black dot seemed to bob up and down, and Stanley nodded. Seconds later, the small black dot became a huge ebony door.

"Please, ladies first," he told the pair, holding open the door for them.

Yumi stepped toward the door but found it a bit scary. But she still opened the door, because curiosity took over, and besides she trusted Stanley and his Muses now. as she stepped through the door everything began to spin, including her, but it took a mere second before she stepped into the room of the Muses. "Wow, so cool" she gasped

Eleven followed behind, and her mouth opened wide. "Y-yeah..." she added, quite impressed herself! The room was massive, easily the size of most houses! There were ledges, bookshelves, paintings, chairs, a bed, and of course in the back a separate room for cleaning up. The room was quite eclectic, having decor from all parts of the world to a variety of tastes it would seem to the casual observer.

"This is..."

Stanley laughed softly, as he followed behind them, A few remaining muses followed as well, until finally Portal itself came through. "It is something isn't it? This is a collaboration of all of he muses, working together. They wish for the same we all do, you see. It is created as a safe haven, for those we free as well as those who find their way here." He smiled, laughing as he noted one muse hanging by its front paws from a rafter, while another nudged it back onto safe ground. Obi sat on Stanley's shoulder, paws folded over and content as could be.

"In the back are the washrooms, and you're free to pick any bed you like. Or if there isn't something to your liking, just ask and I'm sure we can work something out.

* * * * *

Back in the forest, one muse however had remained behind. It was a strange looking muse, vaguely resembling a wolverine. But the jaws were wired shut, and it's belly open. Beside it sat a muse that looked like a bulldog, but with a thick goatee mustache and bushy brows. "They brought this war upon themselves Famine my Brother. Come, let us Report." And with that, the pair started walking towards the castle.

(( tension is building :D ))

"I'll take this one" Yumi walked over to a bed in a corner. she scanned the room. It was big and most of the objects were made of wood, which gave it a warm and friendly feeling. The washrooms however were a bit neglected and looked very cold in contrast with the main room.

"It's just perfect"she said happily to Stanley. "you like it too don't you" she said grinning to Eleven. 'What do you think Evelyn?' she asked her Muse. She still didn't talk but gave a feeling you would feel if you were with family or friends, safety and security

((Indeed! *Grins* You'll find out a bit more as we go along :3 I have a few lil random plotline tangents to work with :P))

"I am glad you think so," Stanley replied, as he settled into a rather large chair for a moment. Obi climbed onto his lap, and curled into it. Or rather the shadow form of Obi really, since Obi's main part was always within Stanley.

"It is wonderful!" Eleven replied, picking herself another bed and climbing into it. Inside, her muse agreed, quite content. She looked towards Stanley then. "Thank you so much for helping us out. I mean we would have been lost if..."

"Think nothing of it," Stanley replied. "I am just grateful for your help," he told them, nodding his head. Later, tehre would be much to do, but for now these two girls needed their rest. Although he knew sometime tonight he would have to get a few more supplies. No matter, with Obi's speed he would be back before they woke up easy.

((cool you've got that covered i see ^.^))

Yumi let herself fall onto her bed and almost fell asleep immediately.

She dreamt about her muse, the images were vague and she could barely recognize the shapes. But she felt the emotion, horrid things had been done to her. She thought she could see the face of the King but she wasn't sure. she couldn't remember that much detail when she woke in the middle of the night, sweaty and freaked

She walked over to a window and saw that it wasn't in the middle of the night at all, it was getting morning, she saw the sun come up

"Good night guys," Eleven said, as she herself fell asleep too. During the night, she dreamed a bit about Celeste's life. She saw her brother meet Celeste, and knew then that her partner was indeed supposed to be her brother's. But the muse seemed happier with her, much happier...

She awoke during the night with a rather strange feeling. Blinking, she opened her eyes to find a wet nose in her face. Blinking again she stepped back a bit to find that it belonged to a muse with rabbit-like ears and a long body. A familiar looking muse: Stanley's muse, Obi. Only... Obi was here and quite solid.

Her muse confirmed this wasn't a good thing. "Uhm... hi. Where's Stanley?" Eleven asked, curious. Obi jumped up into Eleven's arms, whimpering and even trembling a slight. Oh dear...

She caught sight of Yumi and walked over. "Uhm Yumi... we may have a problem here," she said, holding up Obi. "We have an Obi but no Stanley..." It was about then she noted that all of the other muses seemed nervous, or were pacing, or simply staring at Portal, waiting for something to happen.

"Can anyone here translate?" she asked, when a small muse that resembled a bundle of pine straw needles stepped up. Jumping onto Obi's nose, it started to translate for Obi.

"T-t-they have him..." Obi said, shaking a slight. "The King captured him in an ambush, I don't know how it happened! He... he Pushed me so I would not get hurt but... I.... they're going to try to get him to talk, I just know it! He won't do it... but... oh! I'm worried. I don't want him to get himself... this is terrible!" Eleven looked towards Yumi then, biting her lower lip a moment.

"After he helped us out... we should help him too. But I am not sure how..." she admitted, looking towards the gathered muses.

"We have to help him, we owe him and plus, gor all he did for the Muses! But I don't really know either, I mean, we can't really storm into the castle demanding Stanley back" She was shaking, but not with fear but with anger. 'How dare that bastard do this!' she really was furious.

"Does any of you remember where the dungeons are?" she asked the muss in a bit ofter tone. "Thats where he might me, but then again, they know that Stanley had everything to do with Muses, and that the Muses would know where exactly the dungeons were, so he might have took him somewhere else." her brain was working again. "But he could also expect the Muses to try to get to him, since they probably don't know we're in this too"

"Yeah... Eleven agreed with a cringe. "That would be bad..." she added, grimacing a slight. "We cannot help him if we get caught too..." She was saddened, wondering how Stanley was faring. But she too could feel a bit of anger, because they were only doing this since Stanley stood up to them.

"I... I know," Obi spoke. "And yeah, this has trap written all over it to me. But they really don't know about the two of you yet. I can take us there, remember. I have speed AND stealth. I can make us invisible for a time..." It was really upsetting, seeing Obi so downcast. But one could see he was determined to help his Partner as well.

"I can portal you close to there...." Portal added. "And portal you back to here right afterwards," it offered. Eleven nodded, taking in a deep breath.

"Then we better not waste any time. And we need to take the bare minimum of muses with us, although I know all of you would like to go..." That was when a small muse came up, that looked like a mouse.

"My name's Replicate," he commented with a wink. "I want to help! I can make infinite copies of myself to distract 'em, serve as a decoy, scout, whatever!" he added. Eleven nodded, deciding that sounded really useful. She wondered though... would she see her brother in this conflict? This was not a case of could they pull this off? They HAD to pull this off!

"so we're all set?" she said loking at the Muses "You guys will be very useful and I'm sure Stanley will be proud when he gets back" she emphasized the word 'when'

She got ready packing the small purse hanging on her belt with some stuff that might get useful, including some healing herbs for Stanley

"Okay then, let's go!" Eleven commented, and Portal seemed to nod as it opened up another door. Once everyone was through, on the other side they would have found themselves at the edge of the forest, the castle visible a few paces ahead.

"I'll cover us... but any sound you make, anything you touch will still be noticed so be careful," he told the girls.

"I'll dash on ahead to hopefully keep them occupied," Replicate said, and with a flash was off towards the castle.

"I just hope he's okay..." Obi said quietly, as he worked the magic. "We're all set, let's go." He finally said. We can see ourselves and one another, but they won;t be able to. From here on out... we need to be really careful..."

"Okay" Yumi whispered as she walked toward the castle, steping lightly and almost soundlessly. Years sneaking out of her aunts house had payed off.

When she saw the castle doors she let out a quick gasp, it was almost unguarded, only one sleepy guard. 'what do you mean trap' she thought sarcastically. she wsneaked past him, the gate was opened a little,but just enough to get through, it was really close

'Oh... we're walking into the lion's den here...' Eleven thought to herself, thinking much the same when she saw there was only one guard at the door. Thankful for her naturally small frame, she followed Obi and Yumi inside.

Once inside, Obi started to lead the way. The small muse made his way as quietly as he could down stairs, hallways, eventually coming towards the bottom of the castle. There, alone with five or so guards along the way, was the dungeon. The dungeon only had one occupant however.

Eleven had to grab Obi, noting the muse was about to yell and dash towards Stanley. The poor man seemed unconscious, much of his person bound in bloody bandages. He was currently suspended from the floor in shackles, a small pool of crimson underneath. In Eleven's arms Obi squirmed, very much wanting to cause trouble. Or... to yell at least.

Replicate, meanwhile, shed off the spell Obi had cast with a shake, and started its distraction. It ran in front of a guard, causing the guard to grab it. However, in the guard's hands it split into five separate forms which all went running in separate directions. Distracting the guards certainly from seeing an impending attack or two...

Yumi gasped soundlessly, or so she hoped. Stnaley looked awful. Without knowing she grabbed the bag with her haling herbs to see if it was stil there, she always did it when she found she needed something very much, check if it was still there.

She saw the guards run after Replicate, distracted. Her firs impulse was grabbing the small dagger hidden in her boot but then she remembered the Muse, ot better, the Muse reminded her from it's presence. "Should we fuse wiht the Muses? it could blow our cover" she said, indicating the fact that noone knew they had fused with Muses

Eleven thought about this a moment. After all, they really didn't want to blow that secret yet did they? It was then that she noticed one of the guards was familiar. These were no ordinary guards... these were knights! And her brother, Kerik.

"Let us grab Stanley and run! Those are KNIGHTS in guardsmen disguises," she told Yumi. Obi meanwhile, slipped out of Eleven's arms, and with his agile frame slipped between the bars of Stanley's cell. Crawling up the unconscious man, Obi used his teeth and claws to work upon picking the locks to the shackles.

Meanwhile, the original and real Replication had managed to get ahold of a set of keys. While the guards were distracted with his copies, he ran over with the keys towards the closest person, Yumi.

Eleven's muse, meanwhile, recognized Kerik as well. It wanted to fight... and that was the LAST thing Eleven wished for. Please let this go by alright...

"your.. brother?" Yumi asked softly. as she stood here feeling helpless, the muses were doing all the work.

She also suddenly felt an urge to fght, but repressed it. 'not now little one, later' she told Evelyn.
She watched amused when the knights were trying to catch the replicas and loked so astonished when evrythime one disappeared when they catched it

"Yeah..." Eleven replied quietly. Looking now, one could see they resembled each other as well. Kerik's hair was just tied back in a small braid, and his eyes held a more stern expression, plus a scar ran across his face.

What they hadn't counted on however, was just how much noise would be caused when Obi finally DID do the shackles and Stanley was released. Most of the knights were still distracted, but one noted the loud THUNK and turned around.

Kerik.

"What on earth...?!?" Kerik asked. He walked towards the cell to try and discover what was going on. "You slip out of your holds traitor?" Kerik asked Stanley... but of course Stanley was still out cold and could not answer. "The muses... that one is not alone..." Kerik quickly walked out of the cell then, grabbing one of his fellow knights by the shoulder.

"Enrique! Your Muse... Reveal, use it now!" Moments later, there was a flash of light as now things became all too visible...

"Sis...?!?" Kerik asked, seeing Eleven standing there. "Now... now it makes sense. You're Bonded to one of the escaped ones, aren't you?" Eleven inhaled sharply.

"Well I..."

"Hmph... no need. So you're with them then eh? Well this means I will have to treat you the same as him, blood or not! The lot of you will not leave this castle!" Eleven looked towards Yumi.

"I guess we have to fight..." she said quietly. Inside of her, her muse was more than ready. In fact, it almost seemed to be looking forward to this! Eleven however, was not...

Yumi nodded as she too called for the help of her Muse. But Eleven, she couldn't let it go, what her brother said, it was just horrible.

she felt the burst o strength again and saw the panther appear, just like befor but this time it was different, this time it wasn't a bear she had to fight, and she fet in every cell fo her body, the fear of having to fight a knight, no mre than one, who were way more experienced.

Kerik eyed the panther, a slight smile forming. "Interesting..." he commented, his blade out and ready. The knight named Enrique was beside him, ready. "Enrique, I shall fight the summons, you go after the girl!" Enrique gave a nod, as the two knights started to advance.

One of the other knights was still chasing after Replicate. Which left two as well for Eleven. She was thankful her brother was not one of them. Although her muse wished desperately to fight him. But the Celeste also understood his Bond's decision and respected it.

The wings emerged once more, the bow in Eleven's hands. Drawing an arrow, it whizzed through the air and pierced the first knight's shoulder, causing him to drop his blade. The light arrow went all the way through, like an energy beam, before vanishing. Eleven dodged a blade that came her way, taking a slice to the cheek. But it was better than the area it was originally aimed for.

'I trust you... let us win this!' Eleven thought towards her muse. Lives were depending on them!

* * * * *

Obi, meanwhile, was licking the downed Stanley's face. The man stirred a moment, before blinking, the one eye not bandaged looking towards Obi with a soft smile.

"Somehow... I knew this wasn't it..." he said quietly. He would fight to stay conscious, fight to regain his strength. Fight so they could all escape from here alive. But first, he had to regather his senses and his body.

((Enrique is an NPC, do with him what ya will btw :P Same with every knight BUT kerik :3))

((okay Kerik is entirely yours:P))

Yumi send the panther toward Kerik. It sneaked like only cats could, circling it's pray. Even though it was a spirit summon, it still looked real enough to do some real damage.
Yumi was left facing the Knight with the name Enrique 'Evelyn, let's show them what we are capable of' she said to her Muse, with a lot of courage, courage of which she didn't expect to be hers. "You have a lot of courage to stand here against me" she said in a full-of-herself voice. bluff of coarse,but still. 'what can this sword do?' she asked the Muse as in return she felt the control of her limbs slide.

As the Enrique charged with a sword that Yumi suspected could slice through stone, her hand tightly gripped the sword. She then understood that she was no more than a spectator, the Muse was in full control, showing her what to do with the marvellous sword.

"Will you just circle me... or will you fight? With that stolen power of the King's?" Kerik asked, his hardened eyes following he panther's movements. He grinned a slight then.

"Fine, I will show you what a true knight can do!" He started forward, blade in hand, and leapt towards the panther, aiming his blade for its left shoulder. But he knew it would dodge, and in reality the move was a feint. The blow, if this worked, would strike the right shoulder instead.

Eleven's battle meanwhile was fierce and heated. Her arrows could slide through anything it seemed, well, Celeste's arrows really. Indeed, her muse seemed suited for this sort of combat. He controlled her hands, her wings, everything in expert fashion. One knight fell, leaving Eleven staring the second down. The arrow was aimed, going straight though the man's chest just as his blade fell down. But he was knocked out, and Eleven left with a few deep cuts. But... she had survived. How was Yumi faring? Ooooh... what of her brother?

The panther dodged, but was hit in the right shoulder instead. there was silver substance leaking from it but is seemed as if it didn't even noticed. It growled a deep and low growl,continuing his circling, yellow eyes taking in every movement Kerik made, as if it was interpreting his foe. Then with a quick movement it leaped toward Karik teeth ready to strike

Yumi meanwhile, was still dodging Enriques every attack, or at least, the Muse was. Evelyn kept dodging the strikes by jumping a bit away from the sword, tiring the knight that was so desperate to win. Then she leapt high into the air and with into the air and slashed the knight right into the heart as h fell onto his knees,lifeless.

The sword began to glow with the touch of blood, as this time a small lynx , silvery and of of the same spirit substance, manifested in the air


((i hope it was okay to ill him, i couldn't find a way not to with a sword))