Flirting with Danger

Flirting with Danger
Date of Scene:	29 June 2013
Location:	Hollow Bastion - Courtyard
Synopsis:	Malicia wanders into Hollow Bastion in search of the Shadow Lords to further her research, however, she comes across the very person who plunged St. Canard into the darkness.
Cast of Characters:	Negaduck, Malicia

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Negaduck has posed:
Hollow Bastion is a strange and beautiful place that carries the vast landscape of water and ice. This land carries melancholy behind it as the massive waterfalls pour from the mountains on the courtyard and the castle itself.

This passage is the den of the Heartless.

Where all of them lie...

So do the Shadow Lords.

In particular, one of the Shadow Lords has been incognito for a long time. It is none other than Negaduck, who had been plotting behind the scenes. He has been establishing various networks of underground syndicates, bending them to his will through extortion and intimidation.

The dastardly mallard is at the very center of the courtyard, rubbing his hands together. "Mwahahahhaa... It was about time that many of the syndicates finally crawled under my control. That will teach them for not meeting my demands. And now... it will be time to put them to work."

Malicia has posed:
Malicia knew she wasn't supposed to be here. Not because anyone in particular had told her such, but because the dark, empty chill that permeated the entire area was impossible to ignore. But the demonness was lured in, drawn by the power lurking behind the walls of Hollow Bastion.

She had been tracking the Heartless for some time now and had heard talk of these mysterious 'Shadow Lords'. It was said they were the ones who held the power -- some sort of key wielding ability.

But talk is cheap, and gossip cheaper, still. Malicia knew the only way to find the source was to head straight to it. Whether this made her brave or utterly foolish remained to be seen.

Dark laughter danced across the courtyard and caught her attention. Pausing momentarily to mull her next course of action, she settled on heading straight for the source.

Foolish it was.

Negaduck has posed:
The presence of Malicia is warning the Heartless. Each step that the woman takes, she will find that the darkness is manifesting more creatures to appear. Those Shadows peep their heads out and then they spring into action. About five of those Shadows are creeping over the woman, watching her carefully.

For now, they study her.

Meanwhile, Negaduck is continuing to plot over what to do with his collective syndicate. Those musings were interrupted with the presence of a Shadow looking up at Negaduck.

"WHAT DO YOU WANT, NUMBER FIFTY-THREE?!" The mad duck snaps, narrowing his eyes. However, as the Shadow notes to him of a presence in here, Negaduck has a grin forming. "Oho, is that so..? We have a guest here, perhaps it is time to 'greet'--" Those words are emphasized with a pair of bazookas taken out.

"--our guest." A grin forms.

Negaduck is off, moving to the one heading to the source.

For Malicia, each step that she takes, she will finally notice that shadows have started manifesting and erupting to life. The Heartless are awakening to her presence. It is not just a simple, low number now, it is a massive number that becomes like a black cloud.

Malicia has posed:
Malicia is stopped in her tracks by the wave of Heartless forming in front of her. She turns to see more behind her and realizes she's surrounded.

One of the creatures gets a little too close for comfort, nipping around her heels. The demonness snarls and strikes it with her claws like an agitated viper. "Learn some respect, you little miscreant!" She hisses.

But the creatures clearly could care less about respecting an intruder. Back turned, busy sniping at the one, single, Heartless, she fails to acknowledge the massive wall of pitch black that is rising behind her.

Perhaps this wasn't the brightest idea after all.

Negaduck has posed:
As Malicia snipes at some of the smaller ones, that wall continues to expand. That massive wall itself is the everlasting presence of Darkside. The sizeable Heartless soon towers over Malicia when she starts sniping the single little Heartless sniping at her.

This is the Den of the Heartless. All of those creatures begin creeping out. Many of them are of all sizes, manifesting around and stalking after the woman. At this point, Malicia is surrounded by the creaures.

And in her efforts of dealing with that little miscreant...

*CLI-CLANK!*

She will find that the barrel of a bazooka has been locked and loaded her way.

"Greetings, I'm the welcoming party."

That weapon belongs to an older duck who has a very maniacal grin. His red fedora and yellow jacket covers his body while that grin. Those teeth are showing sharp and deadly intentions.

"You are in Hallow Bastion, and I am your host, Negaduck."

Malicia has posed:
Malicia flinches at the familiar sound of a weapon fully loaded. This was not the first, nor likely last time, she would experience being in the crossfire. She freezes up, careful not to make any sudden movements. Turning to face him, she looks him up and down momentarily.

"I know who you are." She says coolly. "Darkwing Duck's twin." Though Malicia had yet to face Darkwing, she knew of the masked vigilante from her time in St. Canard. She had been casing the joint, so to speak. It was during her late night skirmishes in the city's seedy underbelly that she heard whispers from the thugs and gangs of a deadly doppelganger. A being so rotten and treacherous that even the largest and burliest of criminals thought twice about crossing him.

"And what a fine host you are, going to all this trouble just for little 'ol me." She finally said.

Negaduck has posed:
Oho, Negaduck is so happy to see a new face. It is perfect for him to blast, maim, flay, destroy, atomize. And THEN detain.

Alas, the detaining part. Negaduck blinks as the stranger is aware of his infamy. "Oho! Is that so?" Negaduck smiles maniacally. However, the choice of words that Malicia had chosen had not been a good choice for her.

'Darkwing Duck's twin.'

His grin fades. The white in his eyes slowly turn red from the bottom of the eyes on up, like a lava flow rising to the surface.

*STEAM WHISTLE SOUND EFFECT*

Negaduck immediately fires a rocket from the bazooka, the impact of the munition striking the ground creates a large explosion, a black hole near Malicia's feet.

"Oho! I do anything to appease the adoring fans. However, I must warn you to watch what you say. The next one may be without sand in my eyes."

Malicia has posed:
"That was a poor choice of wording, wasn't it?" Despite nearly becoming a smudge on the ground, she remains rather composed. Inside, the alarms were blaring and telling her to RUN LIKE HADES. But on the exterior she merely folded her arms, her pointy tail swishing back and forth quite calmly.

"My apologies, I meant no insult. If it's any consolation, I think red and yellow is /far/ more fashionable." Because when in doubt, appeal to the ego.

"But where are my manners? My name is Malicia. I have come here in search of the Shadow Lords."

Negaduck has posed:
There is a narrowed gaze at Malicia as she manages to jump back at her word. Negaduck's anger is pretty high. Where he was vaguely amused, he is downright angry at the moment. However, he is easy to appease.

Feed his ego. It does wonders to remain in his favor.

Negaduck's wrath is quelled.

The bazooka is lowered, then he lifts an eyebrow, "You are either brave or very stupid for tresspassing into the den of the Heartless. Many people who enter here have death wishes to enter here unless they are a Shadow Lord."

Searching for the Shadow Lords?

A manical grin forms, "Well, you are in luck!" He brings his hands to his chest, thumbs pointing at him. "I am a Shadow Lord! I am the one that brought St. Canard into darkness! I am the one that ruined Darkwing Duck!"

As Malicia and Negaduck continue their conversation, more of the darkness creep around as the Heartless begin flooding the area. Their eyes light up, staring at her.

Malicia has posed:
"You mean the Heartless came to our world because of you?" She seemed impressed by this news. "But /how/ did you take control of them?"

She advanced a bit closer, careful not to keep her guard down. This was one trigger-happy duck. One wrong move and she'd be tasting lead and gunpowder.

"I have come here to offer my services to the Shadow Lords. I want to assist you in your cause." This was only half the truth. In full, Malicia wanted access to the Heartless; to find out more about this dark energy. It seemed the demonness didn't learn her lesson the first time around when she was expelled from her magical academy for playing with Dark Magic.

But she was a creature of sin and so it was in her nature to be drawn to the darkness.

"Tell me more about how you ruined Darkwing."

Negaduck has posed:
"I /fought/ the Heartless!" Negaduck's eyes harden at Malicia, "I overcame them. I became better than ever before!" He brings both arms up high, feeling the darkness flow in his hands. He can feel that blackness swirl within his grasp.

"It tried to take control of me. It tried to take my heart. I fought it. I won. I overcame them!"

He comes out of that tirade to look her over, listening to her. "So, services for the Shadow Lords, hrm?" Then, Negaduck muses before he gives a shrug, "Well. If that's the case. Sure, we could use more people." Negaduck gives a thoughtful look. "You will be under my..." He leans forward with a grin.

"Humble care." Sharp teeth grin.

As for the path of Darkwing's ruin, "I took his family and his friends and plunged them into the darkness with St. Canard. I left him to rot in that tiny town, Traverse!"

Malicia has posed:
That grin. A shiver runs straight up her spine and the feathers on the back of her neck are prickling.

"How gracious of you." She replies in a velvety tone. "I've a feeling we'll make an efficient team. We share the same world, after all..."

Naturally, Malicia has no idea about the Negaverse.

"So Darkwing is lurking somewhere among these worlds, then? How interesting..." She taps her bill thoughtfully.

That's when she notices the Heartless at her feet. They aren't attacking anymore, presumably because their master is holding them back. Slowly, she leans forward to give the nearest one an affectionate scratch on the cheek as though it were a dog.

Negaduck has posed:
"Darkwing Duck finally showed that he had backbone when I tried defaming him." Negaduck fails to mention the fact that Darkwing Duck gave him a good name. Shudder. Negaduck definitely does not want to think about that. Not at all.

While Malicia handles the Heartless, the creatures do show more a more amiable nature towards her. They do not attack her, nor do they seek their heart. Negaduck lifts his hands into the air and he tightens it into a fist.

A glance is given to the 'guest'. "Now, come with me, I shall take you into the depths of Hollow Bastion."

Malicia has posed:
"Yes, I would love a tour of the castle." She gives the Heartless one last pat and follows behind Negaduck.

Hopefully, this wasn't a trap. She knew the risk she was taking, moving further into territory where she would likely never escape, should Negaduck turn his wrath on her. But success and power only came to those who dared play on the dangerous side.

Trailing behind him, her eyes scan the surroundings.