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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 22, 2008 16:39:01 GMT -5
Dieter loved the darkness that covered the Coven. Sure the stargazing was spectacular but the darkness is what made the Coven home to vampires. Dieter looked at Caldera's general direction and said, "well it's a little ways away from here and we'll have to get through the gate." Dieter lead Caldera through several winding roads and over a couple creeks with a little moving water. Eventually they made their way to the stone walls surrounding Dieter's estate.
The German masonry held up incredibly well and seemed to be relatively new; it had to be less than 100 years old. Dieter lead Caldera to a large portcullis. There was no guard standing there and the portcullis was closed. Dieter walked to the threshold of the portcullis and said, "you know who I am. Let me in. This is my guest Caldera. This is a great night visit isn't it Caldera." Dieter was very careful in who he invited into his estate. This kept out any of his stronger enemies and might keep Caldera being a pawn because she had a free invitation.
The portcullis opened just enough to let Dieter and Caldera pass. The grounds were astonishingly decorated. The landscaping was spectacular. Close to the castle walls, with a significant space of well trimmed grass, was a thick ring of Black Forest oaks, maples, and other hardwoods. After the ring of European trees came arboretum,then a garden of Japanese cherry blossoms, after that were a few Chinese gardens which lead to the stronghold proper. The castle was done in a similar style to Osaka castel, or close to that of a Japanese palace. The features of the building were well decorated with several images and sculptures of art. These were on well fortified stone walls which only gave way to brown roofs which directed rainwater off the castle.
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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 22, 2008 20:55:24 GMT -5
Suddenly the door opened outward. A woman that could've been no taller than four and a half feet stepped outside. She wore a pink Kimono and had her hair in a bun. She didn't wear makeup nor did she need to. She had a natural beauty that was incredibly rare and her gait had emotion and purpose in every step. She walked in a way that made her glide past the entrance and she ran up and hugged Dieter, kissed him on each cheek, then she bowed to Caldera.
"Welcome to our wonderful home. Please is there anyway I can help you?" Meanwhile Mizu telepathically messaged Dieter.
I'm assuming she's a guest since she's on your arm. Is she food or that friend you told me about.
She's a friend.
Why was she thinking of scaling the beautiful walls to your castle or how to attack it then.
Old habbits die hard. She was a Dragoon.
That explains it. Well its been a few weeks since you last visited your home for leisure. I hope you're satisfied with it's look and make up.
You're amazing and irreplacible. As always and as you shall always be. Thanks for giving me more of a German welcoming. Its hard to find the older greetings still around.
Still seems a bit strange if you ask me.
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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 22, 2008 22:17:48 GMT -5
Mizu smiled, "well I must say the decisions were all up to Dieter really. Dieter really put his heart into the decorations of the place. These are definitely much nicer than its previous master's decorations. His heart was a bit colder and emptier. He definitely liked spires and pyramids but they weren't very tasteful in my opinion." Mizu decided she'd let the girlfriend comment drop. Her relationship with Dieter was complicated. Since she had a blood curse to be bound to the service of Dieter, she knew Dieter felt that doing much around her would violate what little freedom she had. Although she loved him and never wanted to leave him, Dieter was never quite sure if it was the curse or her. Thus he wanted her to make the decisions for herself. She insisted to stay on the property and help him any way she could. She especially loved the Sakura blossoms. They always were a nice sight and reminded her of home.
Dieter also felt it best to leave the girlfriend question unanswered for now. He knew how Mizu felt and Dieter couldn't be sure if that was some crazy curse The Numidian fixed up or genuine. He'd feel guilty if he took advantage of her. That and vampire relationships are very difficult to maintain. Try living 100 years with someone and not go crazy. Some vampires did it but most had their relationships only last so long. In fact, Mizu was probably the woman he's spent the longest amount of time around and not wanted to flee or kill at this point. Eat your heart out Val. Dieter thought to himself.
Dieter walked over Caldera and said, "well the house is lit and there's some cool things to see in there. Trust me the top floor has an impressive view of all the Coven."
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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 22, 2008 23:34:58 GMT -5
Dieter took a deep breath then focussed on his speed. He moved incredibly fast and 'appeared' right next to Caldera. Mizu was already there and had opened the door to threshold. Dieter knew Caldera kept her secrets and Dieter purposely made sure not to read her mind. If she thought thoughts too strongly they were hard to ignore but he understood that. Dieter didn't need to read her mind to understand that she had questions as to what the nature of the relationship between him and Mizu was. Dieter hoped she would respect his privacy enough to wait for him to talk to her privately. He didn't want to do that kind of talk in front of Mizu.
"I would offer you something to drink but I'm afraid you wouldn't really like most of our selection. We don't have many human visitors on this property. We do have some French wine that the previous owner left over. He did seem to sport their taste." Mizu loved that there was a guest to entertain. They weren't a rare event but a nice perk in the night. Mizu viewed as one of her primary responsibilities to be hospitable and kind toward guests. It was a boost to her self esteem to have them over. She didn't get many guests that visited for pleasure or that were very nice to her when she was under The Numidian. The last three quarters of a century had been very pleasant to her.
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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 23, 2008 18:16:52 GMT -5
Dieter thought of which roof facing which direction would be most suitable. Like a Japanese palace every story had a roof that swooped out and channeled rainwater downward. There were walkways that went around each story and it would be a simple matter to reach any of the stories from there. The top roof was ornately decorated and had a single hidden trapdoor. The interior of the castle was mostly wood that was treated with magic not to burn. The center of the castel had a hollow section that ended at the sixth floor. Staircases criss crossed through this center section which held long balconies. Dieter knew all four secret passages to get to the sixth and seventh floors. All in all the place was built to be easy to defend. If you were to try and ascend through the middle section and your presence was unwanted there were vantage points at every point of their assent.
There were valuable furnishings everywhere and wards to prevent unwanted vampires who had faded to black. This forced vampiric intruders to resort to less sophisticated means to ascending the manor. Dieter would show Caldera only one of the ways to the roof. The top floor would be the best vantage point of the rest of the Coven. "Please follow me right this way Caldera."
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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 24, 2008 12:42:19 GMT -5
Dieter kept walking at a steady pace, "well no one really important has come to attack this place. Some one decided to spread a nasty rumor that I had single handedly exsanguinated the owner gaining a measure of his strength in his own plot to kill me and that I retain a lot of his power over curses. I can't imagine who would've spread that around. I'm really quite a nice guy." Dieter liked keeping as much of what actually happened that night between him and Mizu. It kept a lot of people too scared to try to move against him. Really Dieter got lucky and went to what would've been a death sentence really well prepared.
Dieter continued on his way up to the steps. He moved a section of wall covering and there was a ladder behind it. "This will take us up to the sixth floor."
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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 24, 2008 16:23:01 GMT -5
Dieter looked up and saw the latch it really wasn't that hard to find. Then he realized that he was the only one that could see in the dark and then he noticed the fact that Caldera's butt was directly in front of him. He self consciously looked away and stated, "well there's a latch there if you feel around for it. Just pull out on it then up. We'll be on the sixth floor. From there I can get you to the seventh and that's where we get the best view of the ass. I mean Coven!" Dieter knew he only had this place since the last 70 some years. As soon as he inherited the place it had changed into this form. He kept all of the Numidian's belongings in the basement levels. The basement didn't have any sewer access. Dieter couldn't risk entry via that means. The castle had a septic system which suited to help keep the plants well. At least that's what Dieter thought. How plants really survive in the Coven was a mystery to Dieter.
"Once you get up there I'll make sure to put on some lights there's some cool stuff up on the sixth floor."
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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 24, 2008 22:18:49 GMT -5
"Well the lights are really easy to turn on. " Dieter's tone became significantly more commanding and seemed to be directed at the house itself. "Some lights for the guest please." Instantaneously the walls seemed to light up like normal with floating orbs illuminating the floor. The pillar placed there was actually something the Numidean had stolen from Greece and was a collum from some temple of...wherever.
The entire room was very richly furneshed with Ottoman Turk extravagances. If you were to imagine a Sultan palace it would look somewhat like the room Caldera and Dieter were currently in. "I actually got this stuff on a trip to Greece. It was part of the ottoman empire back then. I met this nifty guy back then. Famous poet by the name of Byron. I didn't know who he was until a bit later. He had a bit of a gimp walk but man could he charm the ladies."
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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 25, 2008 1:13:45 GMT -5
"Well the next room has some Indian art. However behind the ivory display is a hidden staircase that goes up to the seventh floor. I'd stop tugging at that thread. Mizu would be very displeased. You don't want to see her angry" Mizu would repair any unraveling that happened to the tapestry. Dieter guided Caldera through the adjoining rooms giving some appropriate exposition of how he acquired the things. They were all stored in one place or another at one time. Dieter loved that he could bring all his possessions into one place. Most of these old things were not just valuable in a monetary sense. Dieter carried a lot of sentimental value in old gifts, treasures, or nick knacks that he found. He even packed a lot of twentieth century items of luxury in a few of the rooms on the first floor.
The top floor was of was decorated in Tang Dynasty artifacts. There were poems, pottery, and beautiful calligraphy decorating the walls. Dieter was proud that he'd kept these things with him over all these years. It took him a while to track of everything. This floor approximated where he was raised and trained by his sire. They brought back some fond memories. He learned his most important spellcasting and technique from this time period. He learned from some martial artists old assassination arts that had been passed down as well as what was then recent developments. Tang China was always special to Dieter which is why he kept this area purely reminiscent of it. "These are all things that I got in the first few years of my life. I'm rather proud I was able to keep up and track down so many of them."
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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 25, 2008 23:46:36 GMT -5
Dieter grabbed a rope that was hidden behind a pot and then pulled on it. Suddenly the walls on the north side of the room disappeared as their shutters came up. Outside there was a balcony that wrapped around this floor before descending to the sixth floor's roof and downward from there. One could see the magnificent view of the entire Coven and see many of the other mansions in the distance. The lazy lights of the town showed the activity down in the streets and provided a very good view of Dieter's own real estate. Dieter put his weight on one floorboard which activated several of the doors throughout this level and allowed access. The board never made a sound and was very particular on the whose weight would trigger it. Mizu and Dieter were the only one's who could trigger the board to allow access to some of the rooms upstairs. Dieter didn't expect people to trespass and attempt to get to those rooms. It was just a precaution to keep some of Dieter's very personal treasures safe.
If one were to say that the security measures at the roof leveled on paranoid, Dieter was five times as precautous regarding the basement. There housed necromancy secrets of the Numidian, scrolls for techniques on very high level and dangerous curses, and other dangerous materials. Dieter kept the Numidian's treasure a secret and didn't look though them too much. The Numidian was just simply too creepy in a lot of his records. Dieter knew he was a thorough and avid record keeper. His experiments were often disturbing and cruel, his methods despicable, and his essays regarding his enemies vain enough to make you sick.
"Well do you like the view?"
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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 26, 2008 23:53:33 GMT -5
"Well we're far from being densely populated. It also depends on how many people are housed at the Elder's mansion. Not many people decided to jump on the Dieter bandwagon so no one save for me and Mizu live here. I'm glad you like the view. Its the least I could do to brighten up your day. Although the expression doesn't really apply."
Dieter looked out on the night sky. Then one of his favorite songs popped into his head, flooded his brain, then leaked out through his mouth. "And she's buuying a stairway to heaven."
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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 27, 2008 18:27:38 GMT -5
"Mizu does as Mizu will," Dieter looked out on the night and then pulled out an ancient rocking chair. "Good old hickory from old America. Have a seat." Dieter sat down on his knees and looked outside. "There's actually a lot of people watching you can do from this height. Have a good rock on the chair. I'm loath to leave you without a seat. It'd be rude not to offer."
Mizu reappeared at this point with a Zheng. She methodologically set it up and then started plucking beautiful and melodious chords.
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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 29, 2008 2:35:19 GMT -5
"Well there's a lot of stuff. Old caligraphy with great riddles that I've solved. Puzzles that I still haven't figured out." The Numidian's research that I haven't looked through but which may yield great power; Dieter felt it best to keep that to himself. "Mizu could engage you in probably my favorite pastime while I'm here."
Dieter nodded to Mizu and then she jumped up and brandished a bamboo kendo stick. Dieter leaped over the balcony and procured the hidden kendo stick beneath the ledge. With super speed Mizu had already caught up with Dieter. She took a solid swing that would have surely hit dieter in the head but he returned a perry mid backflip over the ledge of the balcony. The footing to the ceiling was awkward and difficult. It had rained recently and was now wet.
"The usual rules sir? Swords only know magic."
"Of course, it wouldn't be sport if it wasn't."
"Very well then sir, I intend to win this time."
"Well its never been an easy win."
With that their sticks clacked at high speeds but the perries kept raw force from ever being met. They were artful dodges and kicks and feints.
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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 30, 2008 1:30:04 GMT -5
((These are the wooden bamboo swords. Its not that Dieter's afraid of getting cut, he just doesn't like ruining clothes))
Dieter advanced, got parried and twisted to Mizu's back counterbalancing his weight against hers. When he arived to strick Mizu attacked with a swing to Dieter's head. Dieter had counted on that and made a swift sweep at her right foot she was using for balance. Mizu knew she was going over and made a quick spin midair and tried to strike at Dieter once more. With one hand Dieter blocked with the his stick and then threw his full weight into Mizu sending her over the edge of the roof.
"Never cheer for me will you Cal." Mizu would be fine. She'd either catch herself on the roof below her and admit she lost the round, or fade to black and admit she lost. If one were curious as to what she actually did she landed on her hands and then flipped onto her feet. She lost the kendo stick in the fall. Dieter had played that round well.
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Post by Dieter Helyanwe on Jun 30, 2008 23:15:55 GMT -5
Dieter readied himself for a kick. He struck a balance stance to use some Judo or Akido. Dieter thought the style was interesting but styles with hard to read kicks would make manipulating your weight somewhat easier. Dieter also loved to combine pressure point hitting into anything he did. Its a great way to weaken people up for a finishing blow. Hand to hand was always a lot of fun. As soon as his feet were grounded Dieter threw the kendo sword back onto the balcony.
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