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Post by Loogs on Sept 13, 2010 21:11:49 GMT -5
Thanh Sơn district, Vietnam"Are you absolutely sure you've pinpointed the location to be here?" Marimai clutched her head in her hands, taking deep breaths and trying to regain her composure. Thaiara Llewelyn was a terrible driver, and had almost gotten into a collision with the trees, but what did she expect? She didn't have much experience with cars, much less an off-road vehicle like this one. The roads on the outskirts of town were bumpy and uneven, causing the vehicle to buck and jump constantly. Now Thaiara had brought the vehicle to a stop near a small ramshackle bar, located on the brink of Xuan Son National Park, a vast, luscious rain forest inhabited by diverse wildlife unimaginable. "Yes, I made sure to do my research. I am absolutely certain he is here, or at least somewhere in Northern Vietnam." "How exactly are we going to find and hunt down our mark?" "Me, Marimai? I'm a mage and a Troubadour Knight. I don't do hunting. What we are going to have to do is get someone to do the hunting for us." "And I assume you've already contacted someone qualified for the job then?" "I'm afraid I could not; however, I have an idea. I'll post a bounty here in this bar, and I'm sure someone will capture our mark for us. This is a rain forest, after all, filled with hundreds of endangered species. That means poachers, which make hunting their livelihood." "Very well. I'll have the money ready by the time you bring me our target. When you're ready, head back to Thanh Sơn and contact me. I'll send someone to come get you and deliver the bounty." Marimai climbed back into the front seat and started the vehicle. Thaiara walked over to the door of the bar, but before she opened it, she turned to Marimai with a concerned look on her face. "Are you sure this is who you need for the concoction? Do you even know this is going to work, Your Highness?" "I did the research and consulted with the right people. We need to capture our mark so we can get the special ingredient for the potion." With that, Thaiara nodded, waved goodbye, and entered the seedy-looking bar. It was quite dark inside, and the stench of urine and alcohol lingered in the air. As soon as the door shut with a bang behind her, all stares were directed towards her. Even wearing a simple pair of denim shorts and a plain blue T-shirt in lieu of her usual garb of pure white flowing robes, Thaiara still attracted attention in rural Vietnam with her pale skin, tall lanky figure, and white hair. (Not to mention she was a woman of moderate attractiveness in a seedy bar.) Well, at least she had their attention. Thaiara cleared her throat and spoke loudly so everyone could hear. "Excuse me, gentleman. I have arrived here because I have a bounty to post." She presented the photo she was given by Marimai. Unfortunately, whoever had taken the picture hadn't had luck on their side that day, because the picture, taken with a telescopic lens while the subject was in motion, was a tad on the blurry side, but one could discern a scruffy, unkempt humanoid male clearly enough. "This is the mark. Dead or alive, we don't really care, but whoever succeeds will be rewarded with one hundred thousand dollars." Her audience stared blankly, then resumed their own activities. Thaiara sighed. It sure would have been nice to know a little Vietnamese right about now. She shrugged and sat down on a wobbly barstool, hoping someone understood what she had said. OOC: This topic is open to everyone. Now, I know what you're thinking: "BUT LOOGS YOU NEVER NAMED THE MARK!" I know I never named the mark; that's because I want YOU, the plucky, clever RPer to guess who it is. (In character of course.) The only other thing I will mention is that the mark is in fact a character named in RP. Go ahead, set off from the bar into the rain forest and take a stab at who exactly you are looking for. Describe who you think it is, and if you're right, maybe you'll get a little surprise. Oh, do keep in mind a couple of things while you explore the rain forest looking for your mark: 1. It's a national park. If people think you're a poacher, they won't be too happy about that. Endangered species 'n shit. 2. The poachers won't be too happy either if they think you're after whatever they're hunting. 3. Hey yeah, this is a rain forest! Animals live here! And they hate it when guests show up unannounced in their house. 4. It is monsoon season. Expect some not-so-light showers this evening. Good luck, and happy hunting! If you have any questions, please consult the Radiance Q&A.
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Post by ch00beh on Sept 14, 2010 16:03:47 GMT -5
Ok, let me get this straight. The mark is "blurry, unkempt, and scruffy," which describes all of my characters, as well as 90's, biscuit's, sv's, kuro's, prime's, and half of lee's. (and half of lee's cast is about the size of everyone else's combined). we can't even get a general height, or build, or color, or an odd shape? maybe a "wat did they do?"
And after looking at rando picture, you want us to actually just leave the bar and go out into jungle without actually interacting, or without getting any leads? or do i get to pop into the bar and ask the aforementioned "wat did they do?" so my character can at least get a general idea of what they're looking for?
confusion.
sincerely, ch00bs
PS. like i want to enter this topic, i really do, but i'm confused. even if i was using Rie (who is totes overused by now and probably doesn't leave the archipelago), her business senses would make her laugh chuckle smirk[/smile] blink stare at the idea of chasing a shadow.
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Post by Loogs on Sept 14, 2010 17:17:40 GMT -5
OOC: Good point, Choobs. I actually thought I'd given too much information away (seriously guys, read every little thing I've written pertaining to Radiance so far, every little thing. I've already dropped a huge hint back when I wasn't planning on making this a mystery topic.) But I think I can see how you can say I've left it too vague.
Therefore, I went back and edited the post to say "scruffy, humanoid male". Also, your characters are welcome to swarm Thaiara and ask a couple questions, although I'm afraid that this is about all I can say without completely giving it away and making the topic way less fun in the process.
Oh, yeah, read through the original post again guys, and thoroughly, I'll give you one more hint and that is why exactly Marimai needs this mark.
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Post by Yoshimitsu on Sept 14, 2010 19:23:51 GMT -5
OOC- Felix post comes next. Reports of a Power on the move in Vietnam. Eyewitnesses state that the power was last seen entering the surrounding area, into the jungle. Details of the Power's capabilities and limitations are unknown, but its behaviour suggests it is potentially dangerous. Pursue the target and observe. Apprehend if it seems dangerous.Samm read the mission report again as he stood on a particularly sturdy branch of a tree. They couldn't have picked something more vague and tiresome if they tried. In theory, it was simple. Pursue and capture, standard business. In practice, it was a nightmare. The area was easily the best place to hide. A thick undergrowth, more than plentiful trees and the middle of the monsoon season. Visibility was at an all time low. What made matters worse was the forecast for later in the day. As soon as the rain came down, Samm would have to pursue from the ground. What a pain. "Felix, have you found anything?" Samm asked. He had a headset on, the microphone extending from his ear to his mouth. Across his eyes was a tinted green visor that had a number of different filters, including x-ray, heat vision and low and high light conditions. The problem was, they were all useless right now. "Notta fucking thing, Peacock," Felix's voice came back. There was a slight drawl in the other boy's accent. Obviously had a few to drink already. "No one's heard of this ghost Power. Seems he's pretty fuckin' good at hidin', whoever he is. Whaddabout you?" "Negative," Samm replied, looking down. He didn't expect to see anything right now anyway. It was highly unlikely that the target would miraculously appear, just because the vibrant haired boy had tempted fate. "It's like looking for a needle in a haystack. There's too much ground to cover." "You got that bloody right," Felix agreed. Samm could picture the alcoholic sat in a bar, completely uncaring about any funny looks he might have been getting by talking to himself. Unless he was smart and pretend to talk into his phone, who knew? "Keep me updated if you find anything out," Samm requested, closing the link. He sighed and adjusted his wristband. Another technological marvel, it was actually a piston gun. Six darts were locked into the band, each one on a lengthy steel wire that could hoist an elephant without straining itself. As soon as the dart impacted on something, the tip would release six smaller points that anchored the dart in place. He pointed his wrist at the next tree along and pushed the button at the base of one of the darts. Silently, it fired and embedded itself into the thick bark. He braced himself and pushed the button again, his body hoisted along the wire after the dart.
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Post by The Evil Biscuit on Sept 14, 2010 19:27:29 GMT -5
<What do you think?>
<She’s cute. Look at Big Duc, he’s practically drooling.>
<He’s always drooling. This is not news.>
<Now she’s yelling. Tch. Americans. What is she saying?>
<I don’t know. Where’s Five? Get him over there before someone kills her.>
_____________________
The bar fell silent around Thaiara. Eyes from corners she couldn’t see fell upon her hungrily, drinking in the sight of a fair, clean American. The smell of sweat, smoke and peanut oil lingered. Glasses clinked in the shadows; chair legs honked against sooty hardwood. Men approached from the darkness, grinning toothless grins. Whatever she was selling, they were not interested in.
‘Ohhhh, Honey Betty Crocker you came to very wrong place!’
The voice squawked from the far tables, bathed in darkness and smoke. A chair toppled with a raucous clatter, and bare feet padded quickly towards her. A young man, thin, tan and very weathered, muscled his way through the gathering circle of vagabonds, tilting his conical nón lá as he squeezed through. He wore what had once been a white wifebeater, long since turned a sickly yellowish haze – if it had ever been cleaned, it had certainly been years ago – draped over a pair of army surplus shorts that were easily several sizes too large for his lanky frame. He skittered to Thaiara and came up in front of her, nose-to-nose, having to stand on his bare toes to do so. Dark eyes regarded her from under the straw-brimmed hat with curiosity and concern. He pulled away with a laugh and gestured at the funny American.
‘Oh, seestah, no one ‘stand you! Think you very yes hookah! Shut face I talk!’
The young Viet turned to the gathering throng and spread his arms wide, as if to part the sea of brown flesh and body odor surrounding him. His eyes flashed, and he rattled off a string of violent Vietnamese that, to Thaiara’s ears, might as well have been possessed tongues. Whether in English or his native tongue, he seemed to only be capable of shouting whatever he needed to say - and whatever he was saying now, it was taking him a very long time to get across. When he finally caught a breath, the crowd breathed with him. Then the men all turned, disappointed and disillusioned, and wandered back into the darkness to find their drinks with grunts and groans of displeasure. The young man turned on his heel and smiled, showing a full mouth of teeth as yellow and as stained as the rest of him.
‘I tell them you pay hun’tousan’ dolla! They no care! Dolla no good here! Beside, you no yes be here anyway funny girl! This bad part town! West Side Story! Go back Hollywood Broily Hills!’ _____________________
<What the hell’s he doing?! That’s a hundred thousand!>
<Three! Tell him to get her over here NOW!> _____________________
A whispered curse of bitter Vietnamese lanced through the shadows at the young man. He stopped and rephrased his concerns.
‘Uh... that not what I say! I say come see friends in back! We take America dolla! We find man in peektcha! Boyfran!’
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Post by Loogs on Sept 14, 2010 19:34:25 GMT -5
OOC: wat no biscuit Marimai isn't the one in the bar, it's Thaiara D:
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Post by Yoshimitsu on Sept 14, 2010 19:50:19 GMT -5
Felix rapped his knuckles on the bar to get another drink. Glass of whiskey filled to the brim, no ice or mixer. Though the barman was not used to such a young boy even being in his bar, let alone ordering such a strong drink, he served him all the same. Felix had already handed over too much money to be refused his beverage. Wealthy customers were not common in the bar, even if they were clearly outsiders.
Sipping his drink, the boy cast his eyes around the room. In his experience, a bar like this was the perfect place to gather intel. The problem at hand was that it was too early for tongues to have relaxed enough. Not immediately a huge issue, but a little inconvenient to say the least. He'd just have to be patient. Not a big deal, with a steady supply of alcohol. Time to play the waiting game.
"Felix, have you found anything?" Samm's voice cam through the earpiece lodged right in Felix's ear, completely out of sight. Bleeding nightmare, it was. Made it sound like Samm was right next to him. Thinking quickly, Felix slipped his phone out of his pocket and flicked it open.
"Notta fucking thing, Peacock," the dark haired boy replied after a moment, allowed any observers to realise he was replying to someone. "No one's heard of this ghost Power. Seems he's pretty fuckin' good at hidin', whoever he is. Whaddabout you?"
"Negative," Samm's reply came. Felix wasn't surprised. The jungle was a big place. Plenty of nooks and crannies for a mouse to hide in. "It's like looking for a needle in a haystack. There's too much ground to cover."
"You got that bloody right," Felix agreed with a grin. It was why he'd agreed to gather information from the locals. The easier job and much more suited to him. A few drinks and the job could be done. Thank God for that.
"Keep me updated if you find anything out," Samm finished. Felix snapped his phone shoot and pocketed it again, ignoring the looks he was receiving. The phone probably cost more than anyone else in the bar earned in a life time. Luckily, the boy was a professional and didn't have to worry about theft. He could catch the culprit in no time flat.
A woman walked into the bar and immediately captured the attention of everyone. Not surprising, really. The clothes were too new, too clean and too expensive. Her pale skin wasn't helping her case either. The fact that she was now openly talking in English was enough to earn a confused stare from everyone, apart from Felix. He resisted the urge to laugh, instead sipping his drink.
Uh oh, I smell some fuckin' trouble, Felix thought as a number of men approached the girl. With a subtle movement, Felix removed the right from his index finger and readied himself for a fight. Sober fights were the worst, so he'd end it quickly if he had to.
Then he realised what they were saying. The boy was fluent in most languages, as was required for missions like this. Discussing a bounty the woman was offering. Of course, they had completely the wrong end of the stick. That man in that picture was no boyfriend of her's. He was a potentially dangerous Power that needed to be stopped. He downed his drink, and approached the girl.
"'Scuse me, Miss," Felix said, cutting clean through the voices of the other men. He could probably take them if he had to. "Can I have a look at that?"
He added in an undertone to the nearest man, in fluent Vietnamese, "I'm not interested in the bounty. He just looks like someone I know."
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Post by Loogs on Sept 14, 2010 20:22:18 GMT -5
Thaiara, usually a very timid woman, stiffened up as the Vietnamese man laughed heartily at her, and the fine hairs on her body stood on end when he translated her announcement in a vociferous tone of voice. She glanced nervously at the walls surrounding her, made of gunky, rotting wood with dim neon signs hanging from them, bordering on their last few meager flickers. I am in a tiny village in the middle of nowhere, in a squalid bar, in a country where I don't know a word of the native language. Even with my mage powers, I still fear for my safety. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear... However, it seemed as if the man had changed his mind. He communicated to her in his broken English his interest in collecting the bounty. Thaiara breathed a sigh of relief, even though she still wasn't sure what some of these men had in mind for her. Another young man approached her as well, thankfully with far better hygiene than the other man, and fluent in her own tongue. Both inquired about the murky picture she was holding.
"This is the mark we are after. A male, either human or humanoid in appearance. Possesses powers which have the potential to be dangerous. We know that presently he is hiding in Xuan Son National Park; however, we want him captured by next morning. Not only is it very critical that we have him captured immediately, we also do not know if he will flee to another location."
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Post by The Evil Biscuit on Sept 14, 2010 20:37:21 GMT -5
Before she could show the photo off, the boy had it in his grubby hands, squirreling away to admire it with a cackle.
Suddenly there were five of them, all more or less identical, hunched over with him, creating an impenetrable straw canopy as their hats jostled and settled over each other.
'OOOOOHHHHHHHH' 'OOOOOHHHHHHHH' 'OOOOOHHHHHHHH' 'OOOOOHHHHHHHH' 'OOOOOHHHHHHHH'
Then they exploded into hushed whispers of their stuttering native tongue, clearly excited. Five, the boy they'd met first, spoke up.
'He cute boyfran! We find! Easy find! Ha! Reunniiitte and it feeeeel soo niiiiiiiice,' he swayed back and forth as he butchered the old love classic. The other four continued to paw and grope at the ratty snapshot, jabbering errantly amongst themselves. Five reached in and snatched it back, shoving it towards the other American.
'You smell bad! Look at peektcha! Cute boyfran!'
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Post by ch00beh on Sept 15, 2010 7:25:43 GMT -5
Okay let's see if I can still grab that voice She looked around the world, bouncing from shadow to shadow, laughing where she went. Adventures were so fun! There was so much to see everywhere... but there wasn't much to do as a shadow form. Vieve suddenly remembered that she hadn't manifested herself for a couple weeks now. No wonder her currently nonexistent legs felt like they needed stretching! This looked like a good place. --- With the American woman now entrapped by the gaggle of kids at the back of the bar, most of the patrons had gone back to whatever it was they were doing, presumably thinking of the things they would do when the children were done. A couple glances were snuck at the white woman every now and then, but no one really focused on the back wall, until there was an audible THUMP. ( thunP) "Ow ow ow why do I keep doing that," a small girl said to no one in particular. She was sitting in the darkest corner of the bar under a table, eyes squinted, and hand rubbing a red spot on her forehead between her orange highlights. The hand was connected to an arm, of course, but the arm was completely covered in tattoos, each symbol etched so close to its neighbors that her skin appeared black from a distance. An odd sight to see on what appeared to be a twelve year old girl in a fine black dress with almost glowing blue embroidery. Vieve opened her eyes and crawled out from under the table. Seeing as she was under that piece of furniture, and also since she had stunned herself for several moments, no one could immediately identify the source of the thump, so it was back to business as usual (drinking). As she stood up, her head bumped into yet another object, though this one was softer than wood. She fell onto her butt, and if anyone was looking hard enough, they would have noticed that every part of her that struck the ground partially dissolved into her shadow, though they quickly reformed into mostly solid pieces. "I need to get used to having a body again..." she mumbled to herself. Vieve looked up to see what she hit this time, and it looked like the only nice looking lady in the room surrounded by five silly looking boys.
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Post by Loogs on Sept 15, 2010 13:30:51 GMT -5
OOC: you guys, let me correct you before someone makes the same mistake again. Thaiara isn't really American, she's technically Welsh D:
I'll edit in my post when I get home.
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Post by ch00beh on Sept 15, 2010 13:33:06 GMT -5
everyone white is american to vietnamese characters. Duh. they're the last set of westerners to have a major influence in their country.
i may or may not be making this up.
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Post by Loogs on Sept 15, 2010 13:37:18 GMT -5
yeah, but Vieve ain't vietnamese DDD:
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Post by ch00beh on Sept 15, 2010 14:27:40 GMT -5
OOC: but i mean she's a white lady offering American money. I don't see why you'd need to edit posts or say that people can't put two and two together to get four when you actually wanted them to add one and two to get three. D:
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Post by Loogs on Sept 15, 2010 16:59:49 GMT -5
OOC: my bad you guys, I probably should have mentioned a welsh accent; didn't realize that her last name (Llewelyn) wasn't really enough to identify that.
I used American dollars because i'm a dumb American who can only think in dollars. I considered using dong instead, but I'm dumb and for some wacky reason decided against it. whatevs, we can work with this.
ok no more spoiler posts I promise
P.S. Biscuit you're fine, you can leave that in there because I can see them confusing her for American
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Post by Tout-Perd on Sept 15, 2010 19:03:40 GMT -5
When the author of Hector says she'll pay in dong, you suspect she'll pay you in DONG.
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Post by Loogs on Sept 15, 2010 20:03:58 GMT -5
You guys, I really don't know what more Thaiara can do now (and I reeeeeeeally don't want to have to explain the bounty every time someone jumps into the topic) so I give you guys permission to either auto Thaiara or simply get started with the search. Remember to clearly state who you think you are looking for while you are searching.
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Post by Tout-Perd on Sept 16, 2010 1:53:35 GMT -5
Joseph slammed the beer down on the counter, having drained all but a few reticent droplets from the bottle. This place was not the worst establish he’d been in. The booze wasn’t expensive and wasn’t particularly poisonous, the people stayed out of his way almost instinctively, and nobody for a good ten miles even knew what the South Pole Summoners were, never mind suspected him of ties to them. Comparatively nice smelling, too. He was gesturing for another beer when a lanky tourist woman wandered in. The face didn’t ring much of a bell, though it seemed familiar. He’d probably ran into her once or twice a few years ago. She was waving some picture of the Loch Ness Monster or Bigfoot or something around, and mentioning a quantity of dollars that certainly wouldn’t get her kidnapped for ransom. Not that flaunting herself wasn’t helping her prospects on that front any. Joseph pushed his seat out slightly. He’d stagger over to her, act drunken and slovenly, and she’d leave voluntarily before she departed manually. It wasn’t a strategy he had to employ often, but it worked. Hopefully, she’d leave, and everybody else would forget about European-Tourist-Woman-with-Lots-of-Money. Then things would settle down to everybody grumpily minding their own business. He liked that. “A male,” Joseph felt the not-inconsiderable hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He stopped moving towards her, starting to realize where her train of thought was going. She was hoping to put a bounty on a person that could be almost any- F&[HASH]117;ck. Joseph squinted at the picture. Was that him? It was him, wasn’t it? He’d had a dark brown leather jacket until two years or so back, when it got burnt by a poorly aimed Molotov cocktail. That could be that ratty-ass jacket. He sort of knew the woman… Sort of. She’d been around. He might’ve even seen her in the house in Brightmeadow, now that he thought about it. She knew he was one of the f*cking Summoners. This was on track to ruin his day. He threw down a fistful of coins, taking one last bottle from the bartender as he started moving away. “Possesses powers which have the potential to be dangerous,” Well, no, he didn’t, but this wouldn’t be the first time he’d been mistaken for a Power. Considering that clusterf*ck in Winstone, it seemed that people assumed anybody with the Summoners could fly and control fire. He wished. As far as he knew, his only powers were a superhuman liver, lots of guns, and a propensity for setting things on fire. Speaking of which… Joseph moved slowly, avoiding drawing attention to himself. He’d need a distraction, and he had just the idea. He slipped past a heavily tattooed kid. Emo something or other. Probably a boy, considering that it looked like a girl. It took careful timing, but he managed to slip out the front door while everybody else gawked at the bizarre newcomer. “Now…” Joseph grabbed a long-handled winnowing fork from a cart in front of the building, and wedged it points-down in the loamy soil. He shoved the butt up against the door, and pushed down, bracing the entryway. They wouldn’t be pushing that door open in a hurry. He then reached into his jacket, slipping on a set of brass knuckles. His footsteps squelching in the damp earth, he stalked around to the shady side of the bar. With a single well-aimed punch, he knocked a hole through the decaying wood, a bit too small for him to fit his fist through. Fortunately, the damp wood didn’t make any noise as it fell apart. Joseph pulled a match from his pocket, and fumbled for a moment before producing a string of cheap firecrackers. They weren’t anything dangerous, maybe enough to take off a finger or something like that, depending on where you shoved them. And he knew exactly where he’d be shoving them. He struck the match on the fabric of his jeans, and then ignited the fuse. He pushed the string of noisemakers through the newly created aperture, and then took off for the jungle. As he reached cover, he heard the first of them go off. -------- Further into the jungle, a man was working at setting traps. Each was a small nooselike loop, baited with a piece of half-way rotted fruit. Though it involved clambering through the trees, he moved with an effortless grace, the kind of motion only accomplished athletes could hope to achieve. He paused. His hand went to the pouch he’d been using for bait fruit, and came up empty. It was as he had feared. He slid off of the tree limb, and used one hand to maintain a hold. He dangled for a moment, and then let go. His fall was silent, landing on his heels and halfway moving as if to tumble sideways. Putting his hand on his knees, he stood up. He grabbed at a small amulet on a fiber cord, dangling from his neck. It’d been a few days since he’d last seen his wife, but hopefully, this latest batch of catches could cover for- A chain the size of his arm wrapped around his throat, instantly cutting off the air to his lungs. He grabbed at the links, scrabbling desperately to be free. “No,” The chain tightened, and the man jerked suddenly. He stopped moving immediately after that. A towering figure, bordering on ten feet tall, cast the corpse aside. His skin was deeply tanned with an inhuman hue, the color of treebark. His hair draped in massive, shaggy curtains of crimson around his neck and back. The only things he wore besides a pair of shredded, battered trousers were large manacles, chaining him together at the wrists and ankles. With a hand the size of a frying-pan, he reached up, and took hold of the trapped branch. He bent it downwards, casually pulling it without strain. His fingers, moving with a surprisingly delicate motion, worked their way through the traps, obliterating in seconds what had taken the man almost a quarter of an hour to accomplish. He threw the ratty string to the forest floor, and let go of the branch. It snapped back into place with a loud whoosh, the twigs scraping ineffectually against his hide. A noise came to him. Like gunfire, maybe, from about two miles east. He sighed, his titanic shoulders moving like the buckling of a continental plate. “None of these poachers understands a single jot or title of the English language, proper or otherwise. It seems that the only manner in which to dissuade them is outright execution…” He balled his massive hands into fists, and slowly began sauntering towards the noise. OOC: Sorry about Sthenelus’ terrible dialogue. Not feeling up to it tonight. But here’s my two characters.
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Post by Yoshimitsu on Sept 16, 2010 6:32:36 GMT -5
"Peacock, newsflash, it's a man," Felix said into his phone, even though the phone wasn't actually connected to the other boy.
"Well done, genius. This is what you have to report?" Samm's unimpressed retort came. Felix grinned, and took a healthy swig of his whiskey. Winding up Samm was one of the perks of his job.
"Yup. And some cheap-ass leather jacket, I think. Hard to tell, the fuckin' picture's blurry," Felix continued, looking at the picture of the bounty closely. "Sort of looks a fuckin' mess. Guess you're after a hobo."
"Is he a Power or is this some wild goose chase?" Samm asked.
Felix didn't reply immediately, his attention diverted by a commotion at the door. Seems like it'd been locked. Or barred shut. Someone didn't want people in the bar escaping. Or just a certain person at the bar? Whatever. Time to make himself scarce.
"Hey Peacock, pop quiz. You're in a locked bar full of fuckin' pisshead and the front door wont open, what do you do?" Felix asked. He could almost hear the eyeroll.
"Smash a window, get out then disappear. Get on it," Samm ordered. There was a brief pause, then, "Whoa."
"'Whoa'?" Felix asked, not sure if he wanted the answer.
"Nothing, doesn't matter. Just get to the jungle ASAP," Samm ordered, then cut the link.
Felix sighed and downed his whiskey. The windows in this place were covered in grime, small and not an ideal exit. With the door inoperable, though, he didn't have much of a choice. Making himself disappear would be easy, but how could he throw people of his trail? The answer was simple.
The dark haired boy pulled a small object out of his pocket. It looked like a motorized cat toy, complete with wind up action. He twisted the key a few times, then dropped it to the floor casually. With attention placed on the door, no one noticed the action. He slipped through the ever-growing crowd at the entrance and made his way over to one of the windows. Just a matter of seconds, now...
The toy exploded violently, shaking the bar and sending chunks of dust and ceiling plaster down into the drunkards. Seizing his chance, Felix shoved his elbow through the window and rolled through. A few cuts on his elbow. Nothing serious. He didn't hang around, instead choosing to run for the jungle.
~*~*~
"Get on it," Samm finished, before something caught his eye. A tree snapping back to its proper position, probably due to a trap going off. Still, it was worth investigating. He pistoned a few trees over, forgetting to kill his communication with Felix. His reaction was instantaneous.
"Whoa."
"'Whoa'?" Felix's voice came, slightly apprehensive. Samm shook his head.
"Nothing, does't matter. Just get to the jungle ASAP," he ordered quickly, ending the conversation.
In front of him, there was life. Human life... Sort of. Actually, if Samm had to describe it, he would say it was a walking tree. Taller than any person could be, skin the colour of bark. He was surprised it didn't have leaf-green hair. No, this thing in front of him was not a normal human. It also wasn't his target, but that didn't matter as much.
As soon as Felix got there, they could split up to find the target and observe this thing. For now, he'd tail the massive tree-man.
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Post by The Evil Biscuit on Sept 16, 2010 8:38:54 GMT -5
The explosion rocked the bar, sending tables and bodies careening into every corner. The five boys vanished in the flash and smoke with a collective shriek.
_______________
Are we ok? Where's One?
Here, here. Excuse me, I've got dirt in my nose.
Three?
Mmph.
What?
MMPmpphphm. *spit* Bleagh. I'm here. Ashtray caught me in the mouth.
I saw the do ch'de that threw the bomb. Wouldn't mind wearing that skin for a while.
Yeah. Big take today - good show, Five.
Right. Let's go hunting, shall we?
Yessss. Yessss. Yessss. Yessss.
The jungle breathed a heavy sigh, and the wind blew the smell of powder and sulfur into its knitted belly with a strength very unusual for such a clear day.
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Post by ch00beh on Sept 16, 2010 12:22:49 GMT -5
OOC: brief rewind The lady slowly turned around, probably to check what had just given her a good tap on her bottom. Vieve looked up at her face. She didn't look too mad. "I'm really sorry miss lady ma'am," she stumbled for a moment, unsure of exactly how to address someone you were apologizing to, "but I didn't see you and I just put my body back together and I'm trying to get used to it again but there are things all over the place and they really like to hit me in the head because they're big meanies." The girl took a breath, getting to her feet as she did so. She patted the dust off her dress, and as it waved about, one could see the bottom of it melting into her shadow. "Oh, my name's Vieve. I mean really it's Jennevieve, but everyone calls me Vieve because Jennevieve has too many syllables and stuff and Vieve sounds better than Jenna, right?" The really tall lady looked slightly baffled at this fast talking, tattooed girl. "I, uh. Maybe you can help me out. I'm looking for someone in the area. They have a picture of him," she gestured at the five boys then made her way over with Vieve in tow, "so if I could just—" The woman was caught short by a loud explosion. They five boys disappeared, and where they once stood, a photograph fluttered down, thrown around by the blast. Vieve didn't see any of this, since she had closed her eyes on instinct while slapping her right hand to her left arm. There was a flash of blackness from the symbols she touched, and her shadow leaped out of the ground, encasing her in a cocoon which sank into the ground. The cocoon of shadows popped out of the bar's outside wall, falling out of a shadow traced by the morning sun. As quickly as it had appeared, the shell vanished into wisps of darkness, dispersing into the air. Vieve stumbled in the center, not very quickly regaining her composure. She leaned a hand on the outside wall to steady herself, but quickly regretted it since the unpolished wood was full of splinters. Vieve yelped, not for the first time today, and took her hand from the wall to examine the damage. She glared at the splinter, as if trying to will it out of her body. After another moment, her hand disappeared in a puff of shadow, the medium sized splinter falling to the ground. With her hand gone, the girl noticed a picture on the ground. It was probably something she accidentally took with her. She bent down to pick it up, her hand reforming fingers as she took it, then examined it closely. That shape was familiar. It looked like a boy, but he was in motion, so she couldn't be sure. He was messy, like he had just gotten out of bed... was it him? Oh, she hadn't seen that boy in so long! And the really tall lady said that the boy in the photograph was probably in the area! The girl held the picture then began running into the surrounding forest. It was time for another adventure! "Rhometer! I know you're hiding!" she called out.
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Post by Loogs on Sept 16, 2010 15:09:50 GMT -5
OOC: Why, that's your cue, "Rhometer"! Great sleuthin'/wild guessin', choobs, really surprised someone got it so quickly actually.
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Post by Tout-Perd on Sept 16, 2010 16:47:40 GMT -5
OOC: Uh, Biscuit, is the bar made of explodium? I thought I specified that they were just harmless firecrackers, but no biggy. Not that I'll make you rework your post, since it's less work for me to tweak my post into Joseph throwing something nastier through the hole, and it's not out of character for him either.
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Post by ch00beh on Sept 16, 2010 16:57:36 GMT -5
But then after the firecrackers Felix threw an explodium toy. I don't think it was that powerful either, but whatevs
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Post by The Evil Biscuit on Sept 16, 2010 17:09:12 GMT -5
Yeah I went with the toy boom not your dinky fireworks. Even if the explosion was low-key, the Dinhs' result remains the same.
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Post by Beelzebibble on Sept 20, 2010 21:47:16 GMT -5
The marbled cat lay in repose astride the thick tree branch, looking quite overprepared for the humid air in its alternately striped and spotted coat. The cat turned its head once, sharply, to observe a rat which briefly darted between bushes on the ground below, then blinked its luminous eyes in dismissal and turned its gaze back upward. An ear twitched to bat away an insect, then, on a whim, the cat picked itself up, dropped down to a lower branch, and sauntered along it, thick tail curling around the branch's jutting limbs, to a point where the cat could safely jump onto the ground.
The boy following beneath the branch, unseen to the marbled cat or to anything else, matched the movement as well as he could, creeping over the ground with his most sinewy slink. His overcoat, which clung unusually close to his body, was mottled with the same intermingled spots and stripes. The freely hanging belt wrapped around an available shrub before uncurling itself. When the boy inadvertently snapped a sizeable twig with his knee and the marbled cat's ears swiveled to locate the source of the sound, the boy waggled his ears in kind. Then the cat, having seen nothing but perhaps unsettled even so, disappeared into the underbrush.
The boy fell back on his haunches and wondered what his next occupation would be.
Presently the answer came in the form of a pot-bellied pig which emerged from the thick and sniffed about the ground with its blunt snout for nourishment. It was an exceptionally obese specimen. Its spine drooped, its belly nearly brushed the dirt, and rolls of fat threatened to swallow its eyeballs completely. The nostrils worked furiously to catch an appealing scent, but finding nothing, the pig moved on. It lingered long enough, however, that the boy could squat down and follow it, the folds of his overcoat dangling loosely around his form, now dark, dirty black except for a pale pink around the buttons. He curled his hands into fists, arched his back downward, squinted his eyes shut tightly, and turned up his nose. But nothing enticed him either.
He looked up into the canopy and noticed a long-tailed parakeet hanging upside-down from a branch, scrabbling around in the bark of the tree with its beak. Its plumage was bright green except for the red feathers on its head and the blue of its tail. Its wings splayed out momentarily for balance as it poked its beak between and into the cracks in the bark. The boy grinned and swung himself implausibly up onto a branch of a nearby tree. Holding on with his knees, he dangled upside-down. His emerald-green overcoat, royal blue around the fringes, fanned out around him, every excess wrinkle standing straight up off his body. His scarlet fedora did not fall off his head, though he looked rapidly this way and that, taking in the surroundings with sharp, darting glances. By and by he accidentally snapped off an adjacent branch and the startled parakeet flew up and out of sight.
"Please exhibit a modicum of respect for your surroundings," his shadow advised from the forest floor.
The boy dropped onto the ground but didn't answer. Bengal monitors did not vocalize.
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