Dire-Sloth

[I AM GETTING ENTIRELY TOO FED UP WITH THIS STORY THREAD SO I AM GOING TO SKIP AHEAD AND GO BACK LATER.] The peaceful silence roared in Kat's ears as she woke up, tangled her bed's fine sheets. She'd been having a nightmare, but all she could remember was the terrible din of some sort of creature, mixed with the roar of the wind. Sunlight streamed through the tall windows, which she didn't remember leaving open. She did remember how deep in the mountain cleft the Rosenkreuz manor was, and surmised it must be near noon. She couldn't remember the last time she'd slept till noon. Her head ached dully, begging her to go back to bed, but the musc

SPECIAL DISPATCH! Medio no gaiden, gozaimasu!* *Translator's note: I do not speak Japanese. "Ah, Noel? I was dusting the parlor and noticed the clock above the mantle has stopped again." Hannah said to the manor's housekeeper. "Again? Let's go have a look." The two women walked down the spacious halls of the manor, Hannah as usual half-jogging to keep up with Noel's brisk walking pace. The tall windows lining the west wall illuminated the white plaster walls of the over-decorated parlor, casting a glow over the room's centerpiece, an ornate clock on the mantle. Noel held an ear near it for a second. "Probably over-wound. Well, that's a sim

“Whatcha doin’?’ “Opening the cylinder casing.” “How about now?” “Still opening it.” “What’s that?” “A socket wrench.” “What are you doing?” “Still opening the case.” “Why don’t you have it open yet?” “Because,” said Claus, grunting, “This bolt…will not…” The wrench slipped from his hands and clattered across the table, the piston assembly still stubbornly shut. Claus rubbed his grease-covered hands against his apron. “Don’t you have somewhere to be, Kat?&rdquo