The Auditorium

In his efforts to find the one known as Mozenrath, as well as others in the castle that could assist him in reclaiming the Black Cauldron, the Horned King found himself wandering the vast hallways and corridors of the fortress. While it was certainly beneath him to walk to and fro every which way in the sprawling keep, self-touring the estate allowed the lich to visualize his surroundings for when he finally felt comfortable enough to teleport from place to place as he had done in his own castle. It was even more beneath him to even think about asking the bumbling goblins under Maleficent's employ to give him directions - the king would not be snickered or talked about behind his back so long as he remained here, and especially not for taking aid from mere minions. 

Additionally, it was only a matter of time before he found a space for himself. He considered finding a location in the dungeons and simply rule from within the catacombs as some sort of de-facto jailer, tormenting those captured by this brigade of heathens as he saw fit, but perhaps he would wait until the Cauldron was his to find a permanent residence. After all, a king would need a proper throne. 

As the undead sorcerer continued on, a low, creeping sound began to fill the hallway the king was present in. He recognized the echoing wails - an organ, though he would not expected any of the ones he had saw at the courtyard to be able to produce such a haunting melody. 

"Perhaps the rat or the duck is more of a musician than I expected," the king spoke to no one in particular, finding the pair of double doors that led to the room where the music was emanating from. 

The Horned King shambled into the open room, finding a spacious but darkened auditorium within. The lich was somewhat surprised, rather impressed that the castle continued to reveal room after room without the residents of the castle even noticing. 

He cast off those thoughts for now as his gaze narrowed in on the source of the noise: a large pipe organ roaring with the same eerie assonance, and the figure that was producing such music. The king did not recognize this one - a late arrival, it seems - and was only able to see the back of the figure, the dark coat covering most of his form. From the captain's hat and the smell of salt and decay from his form, this one appeared to be dark sailor of some kind, and the lich could feel some sort of shadowy, otherworldly feeling coming from him. 

A welcome surprise... A genuine thought coming from the undead sorcerer as he approached the organ player.

Mozenrath could wait. This new figure in the game had the lich's attention, continuing to let him play his piece as the king grew closer and closer. 

The Horned King was given the faintest of pauses as the figure cut his playing short to rise and address the king. Though a fiendish monster himself, the lich was not expecting how the one in front of him would look like, even with the dark emanations exuding from his form. 

There was a semblance of humanity in his stature and attire, still retaining the sea-faring garb but more that of a scoundrel of the ocean than an honest privateer, but that's where it ended. For the rest was as if he had crawled from the deepest, darkest pit the sea had to offer: a inhuman face with writhing tentacles making something of a beard, a blunt and sharp claw making up most of his left arm, and barnacles aplenty covering the entirety of his clothing. 

This sea-devil was something to behold - and was the first after Maleficent to impress the Horned King on sight alone. 

"Such dark yet melodic serenades from one such as monstrous as yourself... though, who am I too judge, me, a shambling corpse," the lich chuckled, stepping closer into the light to reveal his form to the dark pirate. "Most who can withstand my presence address me as your highness, but you may call me the Horned King." 

He inspected the grand organ the squid-faced figure had been playing, taking in its size and presence within the room before turning back to the "I presume you also headed the call of our mistress Maleficent. It seems, from your playing, you have acclimated to this new setting well..." 

The Horned King held out a hand - not so much for a handshake, but to allow the organ player to introduce himself to the king. 

Davy Jones... The Horned King mused to himself. Had he heard his own incompetent barbarians mumble such a name over their meals back in his castle? He never kept track of (or cared) where all of his human warriors had come from, but he would believe that perhaps a few of them had been sailors in his land. Perhaps this Jones was a figure of myth or superstition to them. 

Yet here he was, before the king, in the flesh. Surely, that would have given other fools quite a fright.

Not the Horned King, however. "In my world, Prydain, I ruled over a... sizable spot of land, though it certainly was not enough for me. I was destined to rule over so much more, all of Prydain was mine for the taken... I simply needed more than mere humans to pursue such." 

Jones was certainly the first that was the king considered worthy to hear a retelling of the lich's past, but the king decided to simply cut to what others needed to hear. "I seek an ancient artifact, a crucible of great power - the Black Cauldron. It holds the power to revive the dead, no matter the number. With it, an army of indestructible warriors will be at my command, and the many worlds and lands we villains all hail from will know true fear and horrors unimaginable." 

The lich cracked his hand, a small sneer appearing under his cloaked visage. "Of course, Maleficent is entitled to some of its power, as the one who has so... graciously brought us all together. Though the company she keeps... lacks in some areas, her power and the promises she made to return some of us to our former glory rings true.

"What of you, Jones? What do you seek?"

"Ahhh... Revenge..." the Horned King breathed. Not too unsurprising a motive, but it was in the additional information Jones gave that stuck with the lich. "It seems we are more kindred spirits than I could have expected, captain. I, too, was bested by foolish interlopers that took everything that I had worked so frivolously to attain. What I wouldn't give to watch them writhe in agony within the dungeons of this domain." 

A dark commander of his very own vessel, his own cruel crew of undead spirits, and a ruler of the vast seas of the living and the dead? Jones was shaping up to be worthy candidate for his own venture. And he hadn't even spoken with Maleficent yet. The Horned King could not have asked for a better opportunity to fall into his hands than Jones. Should he have both Varian and Jones on his side, not only would the cauldron be as good as his, but his status here at the castle very well may rise. Oh, to have the likes of the others grovel and acknowledge his power... And then even-

No... Hubris destroys lesser men - it even destroyed the king once. The lich was going to need to steel himself if he was going to lose to ambitious fantasies every time he met someone actually competent.

For now, the goal is the cauldron. And for that, Jones was the perfect warrior to add to his band of renegades to retrieve it. 

"Maleficent desires the cauldron's power, same as I, to raise an army of the undead - the Cauldron-Born - to raid and ransack the worlds we come from. However, with the right magical tomes and power... I could see the cauldron doing far more than just necromancy. If you were to aid me in my reclaiming its power and restoring my former glory, I see no reason as to not assist you in obtaining the same."

The Horned King pressed his finger tips together. "How does reuniting you with The Flying Dutchmen sound, my captain?" 

The Horned King met Jones' gaze - the captain was cut from an intimidating cloth, and those of weaker hearts and minds surely would have faltered at the Dutchmen's commander's stare. But not the Horned King, however. Many emotions had died within the lich so long ago - certainly joy was among them. However, as Jones agreed to deal, the undead sorcerer could feel something almost akin to jubilation in his corrupted bones. A powerful ally added to his ranks, battled hardened and experienced, with little fear nor hesitation in his stance. His drive and ambitions fueled him, same as the king, not allowing tomfoolery or jests to intrude upon their ultimate endgame, unlike the others. 

The Horned King struggled to suppress his imagination - the sight of the Cauldron-Born, Varian's mechanized monstrosities, and the viscous crew of The Flying Dutchmen, all converging upon world after world. The best the king could do to control himself from losing his composure at such a marvelous sight in front of Jones was allow a raspy, heinous chuckle escape his dead lips. 

"I am quite pleased to have you alongside me, captain. Prove yourself as I'm sure you can, and you shall receive everything you are deserved... and then some," the lich breathed, still facing down Jones' stare. "For now, you and one other are the only members of my contingent to reclaim the cauldron, but I intend to have those numbers grow."

The king stepped away, allowing himself a moment of respite from the captain's invasive look. "As I'm sure you're aware, many have come to this castle under Maleficent's power. I would prefer those more similar to you and I to join us in taking back the cauldron. I doubt whomever has the cursed crucible in their possession currently could within stand the power of us three, but to have a few more able-bodies among us would surely increase our chances of victory."

He rubbed his chin, now remembering that Mozenrath had been the first candidate for recruitment before Jones monopolized the king's time. "I have one other in mind at the moment, but he has proven... illusive. Perhaps you have come across him in this castle? Another sorcerer such as I, a human boy in blue, with a gauntlet of some sorts on one of his hands." 

There was also the floating... thing that accompanied the boy, but the Horned King didn't feel its existence was prevalent to mention to the captain. 

"I see..." So the captain had seen Mozenrath. Perfect. Both he and Varian were on the lich's side to retrieve the cauldron, and both had familiarity with the boy. Perhaps swaying him to join would be easy simply through having known associates.

"Your concern is appreciated, but hardly necessary. I have already navigated one endless catacomb within the depths of this castle tower. I certainly can do the same to retrieve a lost child." 

The Horned King stroked his chin in contemplation. There was little he could have Jones do outside of rounding up others that could join them, but the lich would rather do that himself. The last thing he needed was for someone rambunctious and unwilling to follow his command join. He needed no hinderances when it came to conquest. And the lich would very much like to keep Jones on his side for as long as possible; promising him the return of his ship and possibly his crew was a good crutch to fall back on, but with the power Maleficent had, one simple conversation between her and the captain could result in everything slipping out of the Horned King's grasp. 

However, them meeting would be inevitable, and forcing Jones to stay by the king at all times would make the captain grow suspicious of him. No. The captain was a man of the sea, and those of the sea were always free spirits - there would be no containing the captain for such an extended amount of time. The Horned King would just have to plan ahead while also thinking on his feet, moment to moment. 

The sorcerer turned to Jones. "Maleficent has already stated that the cauldron is our first objective as a... team, so the time will come where we shall reconvene and discuss our strategy in full. I most recruit others for this, and either myself or our mistress shall call for you when the time is nigh. For the moment, you are free to do as you please. Getting acquainted with this new fortress was something even I took some time to experience upon arriving here, and I am sure there are others here that would be impressed by the caliber of your being, captain." 

"Of course," the lich's toothy mouth formed a small grin. "You are more than welcome to simply play this grand organ to your heart's content. I am a king, but you are your own captain, captain." 

"As do I, captain. As do I."

As the captain of the Dutchmen returned to his grand instrument, the Horned King turned as well, heading towards the exit doors of the auditorium. Jones was far more agreeable than the king could have imagined, but that just made negotiations flow far more smoothly. Better than the lich could have dreamed of. Now, with an esteemed alchemist and a cutthroat pirate captain on his side, the Horned King was beginning to finally see the upsides of joining Maleficent's alliance beyond simply re-obtaining the cauldron. There was so much more power for him to strive for, and these two were but just the first to pave the pathway to his victory. 

But more could be added to this road of his, and now he knew just where to find such... useful materials, thanks to the good Captain Jones.

With nary a final word or turn, the lich skulked out of the auditorium, his business with Davy Jones concluded. After all, the Horned King thought, an artist needed room to perform his craft. 

Though, the king hoped to see an even more... artistic side of the captain on future battlefields. A nice red color across a few worlds was a pleasing thought to the undead sorcerer. 

[OOC: The king shall venture forth to the thorn filled gardens!]