[Gallagher]

Once reunited with Saber, Erik wastes no time in getting the pair on their way. It takes less than an hour for master and servant to arrive at the house, which was just as empty as he'd been told it would be. Not in the nicest of ways. There was little in the way of furniture, and a lot in the way of dust. Narrow windows hardly lit the front room, let alone reached the hall, and cobwebs hung heavily between ridges on the stone walls.

Nevertheless, Erik was pleased. Or as pleased as the young man ever was. His suitcases clattered over the entryway, only to be left propped against the wall. "This is nice. Stuffy, though."

[Rainbowfox Ari]

Being woken up early was one thing. Being woken up by a blaring female voice in his head that wasn't Lady Catherine. Right, there was that. Yawning a bit, he stretched, clawed for his phone groggily, and studied the clock. The pronouncement couldn't have come a little later than five in the morning? He groaned, rolled back over, sighed, and pushed himself out of bed, blinking blearily and waiting for his mind to catch up to his surroundings and take stock of what had just been said. Two days? Right. He and Lady Catherine had some work to do.

"Lady, are you about?" he asked, getting out of bed, and starting to get dressed. He chose something a little less flamboyant, since most of his clothes were still packed. A quick check of his e-mails on his phone showed that the house had been purchased, and paperwork and the like was in the process of being filed. It would be a while before they could move in - but it was at least in progress.

War, huh? In any war, preparation was key. He knew that there were spells he could perform, and he also knew he had to do them before any big battles. It was time to get to work. He made sure that Catherine was aware of where he was, before fishing out his jewelry-making box, and starting to thread some beads on a wire. "I'm going to make some jewels for us. To prepare for this thing. I need YOU to make sure there are any other Masters or Servants around here that might be able to eavesdrop." he told Catherine. "Since it's been forbidden to fight, just report to me where they are - we'll deal with them at the commencement."

[Rainbowfox Ari]

"Of course not, Mistress." Victor said smoothly, smiling at the dog. "I am ever-so-fond of dogs." He smiled, stood, and executed a graceful bow. "I am at your service, as per the terms of our contract."

After a moment of looking around, he realized that he'd vaporized a good portion of the floor and surrounding area. Very un-mad-scientist-like, he rubbed the back of his neck, and looked a mite bit sheepish. "Erm... I guess I should apologize for... this." He motioned to the burnt sections. "It comes with the territory."

He flexed his fingers, and looked at them for a moment, before looking back at his Mistress. "Alright then, what would you like me to busy myself doing? I'm afraid I'm rather inexperienced at all of this, but I will win for you, M'lady." He bowed again, and looked up at her. "I am but your humble Servant until this is all over. I will protect you - that is a given. What is it you would like of me to do, before this War commences?"

[Suzerain of Sheol]

Well, either her Master has no idea of her earlier escapade, or is gracious enough not to bring it up to her. This place that he's chosen for their headquarters seems functional enough, as defensible as anywhere else in the cramped confines of the city. She... rather hopes that she won't be asked to clean this one, as well.

"It suits me as well, Master," she offers noncommittally. "But Master, now that we've arrived, I was wondering if I might have your name. The nature of our bond is mostly one-way, if you weren't aware."

[Gallagher]

As Luci was about to respond to his apology, and the mention of the ruined floor, she noticed his attention shifting away from her already. She didn't have to wait longer than it took for her to cross her arms before he opened his mouth and gave away just what was on his mind. "Let's start with trying to keep quiet for a moment, shall we?" Despite her suggestion, Luci didn't so much pause to take a breath. "The war will be upon us at dawn. If there are any preparations to be made, they need to be handled in the next few hours. Your weariness pulls on my mana, and neither do I have the patience for it nor do we have the time. What do you need from me to recover from the ritual?"

[Suzerain of Sheol]

"Of course I am, my Master dear." Assassin materializes nearby, sitting with one leg crossed over the other on nothing more than air. She would raise a questioning brow at his need to prepare his magic, rather than having an arsenal already well in hand, but she has relatively little expectation that he'll need it. If he wants to play at being a war-magus, they've the time for it. With no obvious sign, she begins injecting her toxins into the ambient mana as he works, to give the spells bound in his jewels that much more of an impact against their enemies, should he require them.

She hears his request for intelligence with a slow nod. "That won't be a problem at all. None of our enemies are aware of our presence yet, as far as I can tell." They certainly shouldn't be if she's half as good at her role as she perceives herself to be. "Caster and his Master are at large in the central marketplace, and Archer and his are entrenched in a hotel near the palace. Berserker is somewhere to the east, but... her Master appears to be nowhere. Strange. The others I have no sense of. They may not even be in the city yet."

[Gallagher]

"Oh." Erik turned to Nina as gauntlet covered fingers pushed his sleeves up. "I'm Erik. I'm going to get some of my circles painted, then eat and start feeding mana into your reserves. Do you want anything before that?"

[Rainbowfox Ari]

Victor licked his lips a bit, perhaps a little nervous about asking for things. It would, however, help his mana to do such things. Perhaps the thought of what he was asking would be unsavory to Luci - that was the main hangup. He had not qualms about the actual need for this particular activity. As a matter of fact, he relished it.

"M'Lady... I need my lab, and I need to experiment. This... place, seems perfect for that." He sat crossed-legged on the floor, and looked up at her. "If you would let me build my lab into this place... I could do so much with it. I even have a plan to get nearly-endless energy." His hand drifted over to seek Mousse, as if gathering courage from the dog.

He snorted. "I hate to rip off another genius - but I say we turn this hotel into an experimental laboratory - minus this room, of course. And the concierge."

[Rainbowfox Ari]

Donovan bent over his work, bending wire intricately around a semi-precious stone, infusing it with mana as he's working. "That's good. I want to know if they move. I want to know WHERE they move. It would behoove us to keep track of their movements - even if there are explicit orders at the moment not to engage with anyone. Which one do you think we should be focusing on? We have one day to prepare, and I'm not going to be leaping into any sort of fray without at least some sort of a plan."

Using solder, he fixed the gem in place, and started work on the intricate filigree that would branch out to the rest of the bracelet. This one was going to be a shield of sorts. Tuned to Catherine, of course. "I also want to make sure that we leave plenty of time to get to the place of the announcement. I want to be the first one there, and the last one to leave - we need to have an idea of who we're up against... and what." He sighed, and curled another piece of wire around a smaller gem. "We need to be wary of any Masters that can use instant spells as well. Which is why I'm preparing beforehand. I know I might not need them, but I'd rather be safe than sorry."

[Suzerain of Sheol]

"Erik." She sounded the name aloud, finding it pleasing. "The honor is mine to serve you. And it is a sound plan, you need not trouble on my account. I'll keep watch for the approach of enemies whilst you work."

[Suzerain of Sheol]

He could be using all that delicious mana on another draw from her deck, but who was she to question her Master? Addressing his inquiry, she tells him, "Alas, I do not possess the ability to know the strengths and strategies of our opponents. Your judgment is sound in wishing to size up our competition at this detente, though do not doubt that the other pairs will be seeking to do the same."

[Quiet Man Cometh]

When next the young boy awoke, the Black Horse is laying next to him, spikes withdrawn and looking merely like a sturdy horse, shining black but with eyes more intelligent than any animal.

"Little child," the Black Horse asks once his master is awake. "Do you know what you've done?"

[Quiet Man Cometh]

The form that twists in front of him is entirely unexpected to Henri, but he recovers quickly. Not all predators are sleek or subtle. Sometimes subtlety is broken under the large hands of a brute. He looks his servant straight in the eye when he speaks.

“You know why you are here, and you must also know that there isn’t much time to prepare. What will you need to be at your peak readiness?”

[Suzerain of Sheol]

The tyrant's unearthly voice quivers with power. He likes this Master of his already. "Merely direct me to our enemies. Whilst I see lives, the gashes do better on them." He returns to human shape, his robes and mantle impeccably cleansed.

[Rainbowfox Ari]

The boy blinked, and sat back, looking at the horse. He shook his head a bit. "Nope. I don't like War. But.. um... apparently I summoned you or something, but we can be best buddies, right? I don't know how to fight people - but I can learn, I guess. I'm probably gonna be pretty bad at it, but..." He looked down to where he'd settled his plush bunny. "Mr. Ploosh can protect us!"

He hugged the horse's leg tightly, and grinned. "Do you have a name? If you don't have a name, I should name you. What about Midnight? I've always wanted a horse named Midnight - and you're black, and you're pretty, and you're really, really big." Another grin, another hug, and he threaded a few of the black mane-hairs through his fingers. "If we're gonna be best buddies... my name is Kiki! You can call me Key, though - everyone does. I'm gonna take real good care of you! I've got apples and sugar-cubes, and all sorts of goodies! I just need a brush, though. I heard that horses like to be brushed."

[Rainbowfox Ari]

"Other pairs are not us." Donovan said quietly, fixing the hook of the clasp onto another part of metal, then drawing back away from his work to admire it. He set that aside, and began working on another one - this one a set of earrings - ruby to match with Lady Catherine's exquisite sense of fashion. Also, studs - to avoid them being pulled out during battle. They'd be set with marvelous silver daggers - something he'd picked up from a novelty jewelry store a couple months back. He'd been looking for something to do with them. This was the perfect thing. They seemed to match the Lady's personality, too.

Don thought for a moment, putting the finishing touches on the set of earrings, and retrieved a deep burgundy box from the confines of his kit, opening it and revealing a luxurious silken pillow-base. He popped the earrings into the holes, and shut the box, getting started on another piece of jewelry. This time, it was a broach in the shape of a heart. Also ruby. He'd bought the gem a while ago, and was just now using it.

"I'd like to start with the strongest opposition. That way, we only have to deal with small fry when the time comes to fight the last couple. Once this fight starts, I want to go after the ones who pose the most threat to us. What do you think?"