Chaos' party: Thread 6.1

( More along the lines of a "shit-hole" but I suppose that's what an asshole is anyways :P )

Darem looked back tower and sighed, realizing it'd be a while before he saw it again. He turned and followed Chaos, "Where to now?"

"We need to rendezvous with the others in clock town." Chaos said looking up at the sky. "Hopefully they've had similar success collecting their masks." He said as he adjusted his hood over his head

"The sooner we get out of this sun the better. A black suit isn't the best for desert travel." Fist said as she unzipped her suit down to her belt.

Darem laughed, "I forgot you all aren't used to tha heat!" He hummed for a second, "We could stop by my cave on the way back if you'd like. Grabbing a few carvings and sellin em would give us some pocket change."

"Not a bad idea. We'll stop on the way." Chaos said as he had the group move out.

Over time a sandstorm slowly began to brew. Sand was getting into even the most personal areas of the party's clothing. Soon it started becoming impossible to see which direction they were going. "Seriously, the desert sucks!" Fist shouted as she tried to see where she was going. "Is everyone still together?" Chaos asked as he tried to scope out the group

"I can still hear you at least!" Reina shouted over the howling winds. She couldn't see anything and the sand blasting into her face made it hard to even keep her eyes open. Spitting the sand out was pointless as it just came right back in her mouth. Even setting one foot in front of the other in the storm was difficult.

Darem hummed thoughtfully for a moment before reaching around him, "Listen up you guys! I think there's a place around here for you guys to take shelter in!" He turned a little to his right and started walking, "Just listen to the sound of my voooooooooooooooooooooooooooooice" He began, "This way! Keep it coming! Almost there!" He continued on.

"Sounds good." Chaos said. "Try to stay close everyone!"

As the group followed Darem's beckoning, faint glimpses of a large structure could be seen in amidst the storm. The group entered past two large walls that blocked off enough of the storm to get a better view of the place. They were in view of a sizable stone castle with large pillars around it. Not much beyond the front entrance could be made out in the storm, but it was safe to say that the place was relatively large. After a short glance the group quickly made their way into the open door and away from the dangers of the sands.

"Good god finally." Fist said as she took off her suit and threw it at the wall as sand poured out and onto the ground.

"Good call Darem." Chaos remarked as he sat down and took off his jacket to shake the sand out of it.

Darem nodded, flashing a toothy grin. "Thinking about it...It might be better if we stayed here overnight. It'll probably keep us warm."

"But, we're in a desert." Reina remarked as she too started taking off various articles of her own clothing and beating them against the wall in imitation of Fist and Chaos.

"Deserts get cold at night." Fist replied as she shook the sand out of her hair. "Either too hot or too cold. They're kind of bipolar."

"Exactly." Darem plopped on the ground and leaned against a wall, careful not to break any rocks off of his back. "The desert at night is a different story, youngin'." He gave a hearty laugh, "It's so hot, even the heat needs a break!"

"Oh" Reina nodded, she felt like somehow she should have known that.

Jillian laughed at Darem's joke as she shook the last bit of sand out of her shoes.

Fist looked around the room. "Where are we anyways? I don't remember seeing this place on the way to the tower."

"Whatever it was, it seems pretty abandoned now. Chaos said as he motioned to an abandoned skull in the corner

"Adds to the character a bit, eh?" Darem yawned, "I've been in here a little while before. But honestly I try avoiding the place."

Chaos put his shoes back on after dumping them out. "Well we won't need to stay long. I suggest we get some rest at least while we wait for the storm to end. We'll move out again in the morning."

"Sounds good." Darem replied as he curled up.

Jillian found a spot where she could lean against the wall and nodded off to sleep quickly. The fight had tired her out more than she realized.

Reina stretched out and curled up close to Chaos, her sleep was troubled by thoughts of the mask and the fight they had just finished and she shook in her slumber.

Late in the evening the sandstorm continued on. Faint noise akin to a horse's feet echoed very faintly towards the other end of the room towards multiple different hallways

Darem awoke with a start, quickly uncurling himself  and looking around. After a minute he sighed and rubbed the side of his head.  He looked towards the skull before walking over to it and picking it up. He looked into the dark corridor. "Are your friends back there too?" He muttered, a chill running down his spine. He sat down and crossed his legs before looking back at the others. He rubbed his head again as he watched the hallway, "Can't take any chances."

Jillian stayed sound asleep, her body too tired to worry about whatever noises she was hearing in what seemed like her dreams.

At Darem's voice Reina woke up, she had been quite restless anyhow. She padded over to him quietly and placed a tiny hand on his big shoulder. "Is something wrong?" She whispered and shivered from cold.

Darem smiled at her, "This place just makes me uneasy. Nothing to worry about." He turned back towards the hallway, "You should rest. I'm sure ya don't get to sleep nearly as much as you need."

Reina scrunched up her face to look tough. "I get enough." She said stubbornly. "Besides, I don't like this place either, its music is all wrong." She sat down next to Darem. "Anyhow it's better to have someone to keep watch with."

Darem nodded, "That is true." He patted his hand down next to him and dusted off a spot, "I'm sorry for wakin' ya. Didn't realize how loud I was bein'."

"I wasn't sleeping well anyhow." Reina hugged her knees and watched the darkness off in the distance. "You don't have to treat me like a kid you know? I do my share of the work, I can keep watch at night just like everyone else. Jillian treats me like a kid sometimes but she means well. Chaos doesn't, he's been teaching me how to read and fight!" There was a glimmer of excitement in her eye when she talked about Chaos and the things she was learning.