Dalious had a confused look on his face.  He looked down one hallway, then down another.  He had been wandering the mansion for a few minutes after waking up and already found himself alone and lost, though he was without a destination to begin with.  So he continued on, picking paths at random only to find that everywhere he walked, it was eerily quiet.  

[color=steelblue] "Hello," [/color] he said to no one at all. 

As peaceful as it was to him, a headache was forming from being inside.  Maybe it was the walls moving, if indeed they were, or maybe he felt like he was in an endless stuck state.  He wasn't sure, but as soon as he thought about getting some fresh air, to perhaps get some training in, a door came into his view.  He simply walked to it and opened it, then walked outside.  As if on command.

Regardless of the color in the sky, Dalious always woke before dawn. Unless, of course, he was blacked out drunk. In which case it would add a few more hours on. He passed the hedge maze and the fountains, and went out into an open field. There he sat with his knees forward into the soft grass, preparing some dragongrass into a small pipe he had carved out of oak. He lit the pipe weed with a match and then took a nice, long drag of it. As he exhaled he closed his eyes and took in the quietness of it all. No sounds, just silence. A perfect place to train.  

There was a war coming. On a much larger scale than he had originally predicted. There was to be nothing else on his mind from this moment forth, but to protect and serve the prince. Perhaps getting rich along the way. He began stretching every inch of his body, loosening up any kinks he might have developed from all the horse back riding. His neck and back popped quite often, until everything was set and in place. Dalious dropped to the ground and began doing push ups.

[color=steelblue]"One, two, three, four..."[/color] he started. As he continued, all he could think of was how quiet it was. How peaceful it was. It had been a long time since he had experienced anything like it, and he remembered that time.

"The captain is dead!!" one of the crew members yelled. He had fallen overboard with many others during the hurricane. The waves crashed down around them with intense power and fury, as thunder boomed across the stormy skies and lightning struck all around.

A younger Dalious, one of the deck crew, quickly climbed up the un-piloted ship and grabbed hold of the helm. He struggled with regaining control of it, but once he had it he began barking orders. The men could barely hear him over the harshness of the winds and waves, but the ones that did quickly took to action and the others soon followed.

"Dalious!!" another deck hand called out to him, as the majority of the higher ranking members were already dead. "Look, we're going to die!!" The kid pointed at the biggest wave he had ever seen, coming toward them from the right side. Dalious turned the ship toward the wave.

[color=steelblue]"Full speed!" [/color]Dalious shouted.[color=steelblue] "Brace yourselves, lads!!"[/color]

The ship raced up to the top , forcing through the majority of the wave, though still getting completely crushed by enough water to sour any man's day. Over the wave they went, directly into the eye of the hurricane. Everything seemingly immediately stopped, and all was very still for the moment. The waves even turned from brutal to placid, in a very short amount of time. They could see the storm all around them from a distance, and every man remained as quiet as a mouse for a few moments longer. Some of them wept, thinking of how it all almost just ended. The silence was eerie, just like the mansion he was staying at.

[color=steelblue]"...fifty nine, sixty...sixty one..."[/color]

"Aye, you saved us!" another of the crew said, breaking the peaceful silence. "Captain Dalious!"

The remaining members of the ship all cheered. It was from there that he led them out of the storm, heading through the western path as it was where it was weakest. He would never forget that moment, he could never forget that silence.

When he finished his workout warm ups, he moved on to practicing with his katana. He used slow movements, but focused on the force of a single attack with each strike. He continued this for the next half hour, changing from speed drills to power drills. He also practiced some water dancing, swift fluid like movements that appeared graceful but struck as any deathly blow. It was important to him to train in every kind of art, giving him many options in combat as opposed to the one he started with. 

For a long while he was left alone, or seemingly alone. It was difficult to tell inside and around the Lady of Demons' home, as the senses always seemed to be clouded in such a subtle way it was difficult to tell. However, at some point he went from truly being alone to having company, though this company didn't announce itself until it felt like it, after several minutes had passed by.

[b]"What an interesting variety, Captain Durendail."[/b] From a nearby bench the Lady of Demons spoke where she watched Dalious, sitting with one ankle lightly crossed in front of the other. In her hands she held a small pouch made of a dark cloth, both hands resting over it slightly as she held it in her lap. [b]"So is that what you want to be? A Jack-of-all-Trades?[/b]

[color=steelblue]"My lady,"[/color] he said, upon realizing she was present. He sheathed his katana to his back and wiped some sweat from his brow. [color=steelblue]"I only try to better myself in all forms of combat. Gives me more options. So, yes, I suppose. If only the human life were longer, as there are to many things I would love to learn. Alas, life is to short, especially for a pirate...especially for a pirate fighting in a war. Not an issue I imagine you need worry 'bout? Mortality, that is." [/color]He wasn't sure if demons were immortal, but everything surrounding this mansion did make it seem as so. Her appearance, one of a young girl seemingly only with a few years to her, gave him the implication. How old was she really? He wondered what she would really look like, if there were no magic to this place. 

A chuckle left her lips, giving a sort of shrug as she began to stand. [b]"I suppose you could put it like that. I certainly am not worried about the same issues as you are, though. Just remember, though, a Jack-of-All-Trades tends to falter against a master of one talent, especially when it matters. But enough of that for the time being. I assume you remember your ship, yes?[/b]

[color=steelblue] "I guess its a good thing I've made friends with other talents along the way,"[/color] he said, knowing full well he might be getting in way over his head. It was to late though, once he dipped his toes in he had to swim.

[color=steelblue]"Aye, of course i remember her."[/color] He could never forget the first time he set eyes to the Sparrow. He was a poor young lad helping out around at the docks of his village, sleeping in hay stacks and barely getting by with food for a night. His parents were both killed by bandits, or so he was told by the orphanage he stayed at for a time. He had always been on his own. The day the Sparrow came into his life, everything changed. The ships' captain at the time needed a crew, and so he agreed and never looked back. [color=steelblue]"The Sparrow changed my life. Last I saw of her she was taken from me, from my old crew no less. Probably sold off to some bloke. Why, have you seen her?" [/color]


The Lady of Demons shook her head slightly, but the smirking aspect of her smile grew slightly, her clearly knowing something that he didn't; thankfully, this was something she didn't keep to herself, not that time. [b]"No, I haven't seen your ship, but I do have a little bit of news for you. A certain Captain Thorpe has come across the Sparrow, and has decided to keep the ship in his possession for time being until, say, the true owner returns."[/b] She gave a slight shrug, though her smile remained as it was.[b] "Something I thought might come across as good news to you."[/b]

A wide grin surfaced on Dalious' face. It had been a very, very long time since he had heard that name. Especially the correct version of it, with many other variations floating around the world. Captain Thorpe, Steeljaw himself. Dalious chuckled aloud for a moment, he should have known that pirating bastard was still around causing trouble and having fun. As the memories of the legend began pouring back into his mind, he cut them short out of respect for the Lady of Demons, as she seemed quite the busy body.

[color=steelblue]"My lady, there is no finer news I could hear!"[/color] he said, bending down to attempt to hug her, though stopping short as he wasn't sure of her customs. Instead, he gave her a soft pat on the shoulder. [color=steelblue]"Thank you. You have made my day. Though I am eager to go out and seek my old friend, I still am the prince's to command. At least until this is all over. There is much still left to do, but I shall rest easy in knowing that the Sparrow is in good hands."[/color] 

When Dalious moved forwards and seemed like he might embrace her, though her smile didn't fade the eyes of the Lady of Demons narrowed ever slightly. When he thought better of it her gaze became a little less sharp, though her eyebrow raised slightly at the shoulder pat. Slowly looking from his hand up to him, she just slowly nodded. [b]"I thought you might be glad to hear that. You should like what I have for you next."[/b] She brought her hand up then, holding up the small bag she carried. [b]"From what I understand, you use a blunderbuss. In this bag is a small amount of shot that you can use for it; however, don't make the mistake of thinking it's any normal kind of shot. If I were you, I would save it until my opponent was someone on the Advisor's level, or higher."[/b]

Dalious took the pouch into his hand and bowed low, not expecting this much kindness from the Lady of Demons. It was rare to be treated as such, and though he was not used to it, he embraced it with much respect. He stood again and gave off another nod.

[color=steelblue]"Thank you again, I shall remember your words,"[/color] he told her. [color=steelblue]"It was an honor to cross paths with you, my lady. I do hope we can meet again, perhaps under less stressful circumstances." [/color]

[b]
"I wouldn't be too surprised if we do, Captain Durendail."[/b] She gave a nod, before turning to begin walking away at a leisurely pace. [b]"Good luck with the rest of your exercise."[/b]

Dalious watched her leave until she was out of his view.  He reloaded his weed pipe with more dragongrass, taking a few puffs as he stood in thought.

[color=steelblue] "What a nice demon lady," [/color] he said to himself, then continued to smoke.