Welcome to Gaia! ::

Ace looked around the room filled with people and their terrified looks. He had heard the announcement but he was unsure if he should belive or not. For all he knows it could be a prank to entertain them. But then again, the princess looked troubled. He saw the othe guards looking at him and remembered he was wearing a guard's uniform. Ace quickly straightened up and pretended to be a guard as much as possible.

Nicholas was shocked. The body had been moved and there was a trace of blood. He stiffened and then whispers ans instruction to Henry.

"Henry, take this piece of paper and give it to Princess Scarlet," he wrote down a short note and passed it to Henry. "Go," he ushered the little animal. He made sure that he had his sword was with him and a musket that he had collected from his wardrobe. With a determined face, he set on to follow the trail of blood.

It was partially his fault. He had insisted that all the guards be posted by the guests and no one was there to watch over the body.

The maid's body is gone and I am following the trail. Have the guards that you can spare follow the trail from the ballroom,

Nicholas Lighton

Nicholas was in the dungeons now. The trail of blood seemed not to end and he was no where near the culprit who moved the body. Suddenly, he reached a dead end. The trail of blood had mysteriously stopped at the wall. He was dumbfounded but not outsmarted. He figured that there must be a secret passage way there.

He began applying pressure to the bricks lining the wall and it was luck that helped him. He had stumbled and his foot had stepped on a loose tile and the tile sunk. The wall where the blood disappeared swung open and revealed a dark passage. He couldn't risk getting caught anymore thus he opted for walking blindly and feeling with his fingers. Soon, his fingers were slick with blood and he finally exited the passage only to come out to the sewers.

The trail went to the left and Nicholas began wondering if Scarlet received his message. He followed the trail until it turn to the left yet again. He began hearing huffs. He was near the culprit now. He moved silently but as fast as possible and soon saw light up a head. He can see the blood glistening in the firelight and he could hear the sickening drip of blood from the corpse.

"Soon, my little child," the voice belonged to a man, a demented one it seemed. "I had you ripped now I have to drown you in the water. Then I'll make more friends for you until I found where that brat went," he added. The Nicholas heard a sickening thud, the man had dropped the corpse to the ground and he had stopped.

"That good for nothing boy. Slipping into the castle unnoticed and making it hard for me to kill him," the man said in a wheezing tone. Instantly, Nicholas remembered the boy who disguised himself as one of the guards. This maniac was looking for him.

"I tracked him for years and he slipped pass my fingers," he paused. "Foolish! No one can escape me! Hahahahaha!" The man laughed.

Nicholas's face under his mask hardened. Why was this man looking for the boy? He held no value what so ever. Not by the state of his clothing for sure.

He was tempted to confront the maniac but he knew not what to do. He only had with him his sword and his musket. He weighed his chances. He choose the musket. He slowly loaded it and jumped into the passage where the man was with the musket raised at an attacking stance.

"Hello there, sir. I believe you have something that does not belong to you," Nicholas said smoothly. To his annoyance, the man seemed to look at him with praise. He was thin but tall and wore a ragged cloak that covered his body from view thus Nicholas knew not what kind of weaponry he possesed.

"You are very brave sir. Coming after me all alone," the man smiled. "But why the mask,brave sir? I would like too see the face of the man who dares track Ramun the Death and wishes for death himself," he said.

"I have no wish of dying nor of uncovering my mask. I am here because you had defiled the walls of the castle with your heinous murder," Nicholas retaliated.

"Oh! You seem very sure of yourself! Brava!" The man praised. Nicholas frowned under his mask.

"Ramun, I have more people coming to apprehend you and your escape route has been blocked," Nicholas said with conviction. Ramun raised an eyebrow and then both heard voices coming from the passage Nicholas had came from.

"Your friends are here," he said but Nicholas was concentrating on Ramun. Suddenly, he heard Scarlet's voice and he paled. That was enough of a distraction for Ramun and he quickly kicked the musket off Nicholas's hand and sent another kick to his stomach that sent his slamming to the wall. He tried to retaliate but was punched instead. Ramun kicked and punched until Nicholas was barely concious.

"Serve you right, hero. Now I shall use you against your precious friends!" Ramun snarled and laughed like a maniac. He took Nicholas by the hair, sword at his throat and awaited the others to come.

((I'll play Ramun for now))

"Hostage? He was asking for death. I am simply granting it to him. I am not called Ramun the Death for nothing my dear," he said with a mad glint in his eyes. He noticed a shadow retreating from the group. He could guess who.

"Calm down now, people. We can negotiate," He said calmly. "I can set spare this man's life if you listen to my proposal," ha said gleefully. From behind him, he could hear the soft shifting of a trap door. "Well, will you listen? Or-" Ramun turned and held Scarlet by her neck, tightly.

"Or do we have to sacrifice the last member of the royal family as well?" His tone showed absolute mirth.

As he held her tightly by her neck she managed to knock the sword out of his hand and push Nicholas away.

Nymphadora cursed under her breath and held the guards back as they tried to rush over to the princess. The guards knew that they would have hell to pay after it was all over. Nymphador slowly walked over to the crazed man, "Let negotiate then. What is it that you want?" She asked hoping that soon she would have the princess back in tack.

Scarlet was now being held by him and she could feel his rank breath on her neck. She made sure to keep it together and show no sign of fear because that's exactly what the man wanted.

"W-wait," Scarlet managed to say even though her throat was being gripped tightly. "Wh-why do you..want him..." Scarlet needed to know...she would not allow the guards to get the boy until she knew the reason why he wanted him.

"My lady, that does not matter, as long as..." Nymphadora said to Scarlet before she was inturupted by her.

"It matters to m-me!" she again managed to say.