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Post by Tout-Perd on Nov 16, 2012 2:06:07 GMT -5
OOC: Here's the fruits of the last Exodus Meetup. Going to continue it as a topic on the Exodus proper. To help y'all figure out who is what in here, I'm going to color code the initial post. Black=Cendra Green=BloodWolf White=Lee
With that said, this RP is open as of this topic going up to anybody who wants in.
"So, this is where she wanted us to go," A woman sat on the edge of a corroded aluminum rowboat. One of the few rays of sunlight to break through the canopy played across her darkly tanned skin. She rested her head in her hands, her light green hair falling across her face.
An alligator's booming croak echoed through the trees. The noise struck her as positively mild and tame.
A girl dressed in black, a netting coat draped over her shoulders, sighed as she finally saw signs of another person. She had thought she was on the right path, but hadn't seen a single one of the landmarks that had been given to her.
Lyia approached the meeting spot, her duffle bag slung over her shoulder. At first she was surprised that the two had beaten her there, but she hadn't hired them for their incompetence.
"I trust you both remember why I've asked you to come here?
"I..." The tanned woman smoothed the hem of her dress, "Somewhat know. You asked me how good I was at telling different plants apart, especially mosses... So I'm guessing this is some sort of scientific expedition, right?"
She brought her hand up to her chest, clasping a brass medallion dangling from a leather thong.
"And you also asked me how I was at navigating the canopy..." She smiled softly.
"For me, it's easier than walking."
She turned to face the other lady.
"I'm Maude, Summoner expatriate."
"Lorenna, nice to meet you." She wasn't shaken by Maude's declaration of a Summoner lineage, if the nation had kicked her out, she was clearly on the right side of that conflict. She turned to face their employer, "Pretty much here for the same reason."
"And I'm Lydia," The woman shrugged her dufflebag to the spongy peat.
"This is my expedition. We're looking for a specific kind of moss," She unzipped her bag and produced a small, clear glass jar with a minute, desiccated piece of greenery at the bottom.
"It's this specific variety of moss, though naturally it will be much greener while still alive," She lightly tossed the jar to Maude.
"Keep it closed for now. The moss is a little delicate in the open air."
"I understand," Maude caught the jar with her fingertips, the motion silent and inhumanly graceful. She regarded the contents for a moment, and then offered it to Lorenna.
"It's arboreal, right? Judging by the roots, and general structure?"
A long, wailing howl pierced the primordial serenity of the swamp. The birds and frogs fell utterly quiet, creating an uneasy silence as their echoes died away to nothingness.
Maude felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.
Lorenna's eyes darted towards the direction the sound had erupted from. Quieter echoes followed the intense noise, and she strained her ears to hear news of the source of the disturbance
Her feelings went from approval at Maude's catch to annoyance as the cry reached them. In the silence that followed, Lydia found herself calculating. They could avoid whatever made the noise, or Maude and Lorenna could deal with it on their own... Or she could deal with it by herself, though she'd rather not expend the resources. Either way, however, it would slow their progress down, and that was something she did not care to allow.
Maude kicked her heels against the side o the boat she'd been seated on. The force threw her into a backflip, landing on her sandal-clad feet in the muck of the bank.
"I've... heard worse," Her smile failed to return to her face, but her voice still maintained a steady note of confidence.
"Well, ahem... Should we be heading along?" Maude gestured to the rowboat, and then braced her foot against it. She readied her strength to shove it out into the murky waters.
Lorenna sighed. At least whatever it was out there, it was a ways away. I she stayed where she was, she would be fine for a while. Closing her eyes, she sent out a call to her many friends in the area, and instructed them to spread out.
"Indeed we should," Lydia replied. She removed a small brown pouch, then closed the bag, leaving the sample with Lorenna.
"The sooner we find it, then the sooner we're done, I do... want as much as is feasible, though. Also, take bark samples from any tree you find it on. Soil samples as well, if any is present where the moss is growing."
"Understood. I'm going to venture a guess that you also want us to note the degree of shade and the altitude it's growing at, correct?" Maude offered.
Lydia's glance made it clear that she had considered those details too obvious in importance to even bother saying aloud.
Maude decided to evade the green-thumb's withering gaze, and began shoving the boat out into the muddy quagmire. The bottom scraped against the stones in the mud as she pushed it forwards.
The Summoner stood a few inches into the much, pausing for just a moment to feel the warm ripples against her calves. Noticing the boat begin to escape her, she vaulted forwards, and managed to land on one of the seats without upsetting the craft's balance.
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Post by Cendra on Nov 27, 2012 16:23:07 GMT -5
Lorenna was a bit envious of Maude's graceful boarding of the small craft. Maybe once her height stopped changing she would be able to do the same one day. As it was, her body wasn't growing as much as it used to, but just enough to make her more clumsy than she would like. Another howl echoed through the surrounding area. This time it sounded just a little bit closer than before.
Lorenna winced and tossed the sample into the boat, extending her hand to the ladies inside.
“Help me in?” She questioned hopefully. The last thing she wanted was to get stuck on her own with whatever that was.
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Post by {WW}BetaBloodWolf7 on Jan 11, 2013 8:06:27 GMT -5
Lydia clasped Lorenna's hand and pulled her in. "There you go. Now I have to admit, I'm not very familiar with animal cries, do either of you have an idea of what it is that keeps calling out? I'm not terribly concerned by it, but it would be good to know if we should expect trouble from it, or others."
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Post by Tout-Perd on Feb 4, 2013 11:54:50 GMT -5
The seeming confidence that Maude had been projecting deflated out of her near instantly. She quickly glanced back and forth between her two companions before deciding to settle her gaze upon her muddied feet.
"I... have experience, one could say," Maude wasn't sure how to approach the subject of her heritage, considering the immediate issues that most people took upon hearing it. Lorenna seemed accepting enough that she wouldn’t make it an issue, and Lydia was clearly so focused on her expedition that she could care less about whatever atrocities Maude’s people had committed in the past.
However, nonetheless, she had her reservations about delving too much into her background. When she’d first arrived in the Archipelago, she had quickly made friends, and thought that she’d found a place that she could comfortably settle. However, after Miko razed Slateport, those friendships had dissolved almost as quickly. The last time she had visited Whelkshore, a few years ago, Natalie had stated in no uncertain terms that Maude was a persona non grata in their home. She hadn’t had the heart to go back and try to force the issue since.
As for other, shakier friendships that she’d had with people? Some wouldn’t talk to her. Some raged at her, blamed her for not failing to prevent the tragedy. And a certain few had outright tried to turn her in to the police… That was a thought she’d rather bury whenever it came up, to say the least.
Presently, she felt the twinge of dread that came with risking these tenuous but precious connections to people that knew of her background, and yet didn’t seem to hate her. She’d been finding her home in the wild places of the world, away from almost all people. Whenever she did stumble upon a group that didn’t know of the Summoners, she’d take comfort in time spent with them, but it seemed she was always drawn back into the thick of things. Her heart wanted to be at peace with people, find somewhere where she could settle down and just lead a peaceful life. But her soul…”
”Yes?” Lydia’s curt word broke Maude out of her introspection. Lorenna was fidgeting slightly.
“Well, I mean, I’ve trained in how to hunt monsters and such,” Maude looked down at the water sloshing against the side of the boat, her lips twitching slightly, “And I can’t recognize exactly what that call was. It’s pretty far from anything I’ve heard before, truth be told, though it does seem vaguely familiar to me.”
The Summoner decided to look up towards the canopy, and the hanging beards of Spanish moss. It probably was more prudent to be surveying the trees when that was where their quarry lurked, and lifting her chin made her look considerably less guilty.
“Anyways, I can still venture a guess at what it means. The call carried a long distance, and went unanswered, as far as we could perceive. If it had been answered, that likely would have proven it to be a territorial behavior, the calls clearly marking their grounds against that of others of the species.”
“However, since it went unanswered, it seems likely that whatever it is was either calling for more of its kind to come nearer, or the other possibility,” Maude shrugged, “Well, the other possibility is that it sees US as intruders, and it’s telling us that we’d best leave before it removes us on its own."
On the bright side, mentioning that some wild beast wanted to maul them seemed to dispel the looming awkwardness over her history.
In the back of her mind, Maude found herself wishing that ferocious monsters would provide her this social escape route more often.
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Post by Cendra on Feb 7, 2013 16:56:01 GMT -5
Lorenna squirmed in her seat at the news. The fact that Maud was uneasy explaining their predicament, was not encouraging. She heaved a sigh and tried to relax again, looking for signs of the illusive moss. Not too long later she felt a tickle on her neck and quickly turned her head to see a bright orange and deep black, viceroy butterfly on her shoulder. Lorenna smirked and shook her head. "You silly thing. You scared me half to death!" she whispered as she let it flutter onto her fingers. Closing her eyes Lorenna brought it level to her nose. A soft, light hum entered her mind and her smile grew as she responded in kind. "Would you like to help us today, little one?" She thought and wrinkled her nose as the butterfly's little tongue tickled it. "Tell the others what we're looking for." Images of the moss in the jar came and sent until she was satisfied the butterfly could tell the others properly. Excitedly, the streak of orange fluttered off of her finger and into the trees. Then without warning, there was a eruption of color. Orange, blue, black, brown, they danced here and there in search of their quarry. No matter how many times it happened Lorenna never got tired of seeing it. Attachments:
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Post by Tout-Perd on Sept 19, 2013 15:21:35 GMT -5
Maude gazed upwards, reveling in the sight. In her sylvan wanderings, she was no stranger to clouds of butterflies, but this one had something unusual about the way they moved. The roiling nebula of wings seemed to move in set pattern, fanning out and spiraling as it dissipated into the forest around them. The purposeful flights reminded the Summoner of the stately grace of the stars circling through the heavens at night.
"That was all you?" She asked brightly, smiling openly. Her green hair fell around her face in locks as she rocked forward in her seat, attempting to better meet Lorenna’s gaze. The wisps of a tantalizing thought darted through her mind. If this girl could command butterflies, then she had quite a bit in common with the Summoners and their powers.
Maybe that was why Lorenna seemed so understanding and accepting? Maybe she’d finally found somebody who wasn’t just choking down their dread and putting on a nice front to avoid angering a powerful Summoner? Maybe this was somebody who she could genuinely be friends with?
Maude shook her head slightly, almost imperceptibly. Getting her hopes up was the best way to be disappointed later on. She’d need to tend to the mission first, and then see where things shook out afterwards. She exhaled a sigh through her nose, quietly returning her gaze to the canopy. -------- A figure stood shadowed in the branches of one of the gigantic trees, their bare feet finding purchase on the craggy bark. They were evidently female, a short grey robe-like garment falling short of covering their perfectly sculpted legs. She leaned intently over the edge, peering through the boughs without revealing her presence to those below her.
She extended a hand from within one of her voluminous sleeves. Her delicate hand clasped a small jar identical to the one Lorenna had shown earlier, this one empty but for a few brown-grey flecks of dust. Her almond-shaped eyes darted to the container, and then back to the party in the boat below. She lurched forwards, as if to hurl herself off of the branch.
Her toes gripped her perch, though, and she gritted her teeth, stopping herself. Her hair flared behind her with the motion. It fell back into place behind her as she regained her balance, a midnight black cape flecked with white that fell past her knees. She frowned intensely, biting her lip. Her body shook, her tresses rustling around her.
“No, not yet… If I move now, I’ll only get what they have with them. And what will that buy me? Another two months, maybe three? No, I am to wait.”
A butterfly flitted past her at eye level, lazily wafting past her face. It took her a moment to realize its significance, but as soon as she did, she acted immediately.
She jerked her head, tossing her hair. One thick lock caught the butterfly and batted it out of the air, leaving it unharmed but knocking it into a downward spiral. The stunned bug tumbled until it landed below, coming to rest on the head of the girl dressed in netting.
The woman spat in disgust. Even though she’d avoided killing it, harming an innocent insect left a bad taste in her mouth.
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Post by Cendra on Sept 25, 2013 14:26:38 GMT -5
“Not exactly. They do it themselves for the most part.” Lorenna smiled back at Maude a bit bashfully. It wasn't very often she would use her powers in from of anyone. Well, anyone except her closest friend that is.
Suddenly a whirl of high and low pitched thoughts entered Lorenna's mind as a tiny body landed on her head. Leaning forward she carefully took the butterfly in her hands, a small frown reaching the corners of her mouth.
“What's wrong little one?” she asked the delicate creature. Looking more closely she saw one wing had broken and was bent at an odd angle. A series of more organized hums flashed in her mind as the insect regained some composure, however, they were too confusing to get a clear idea of what happened.
The warmth of the sun, then a flash of brown followed by pain and confusion. Clear or not, it was evident that there was something out there that was a danger to more than just her little friends.
Turning as calmly as she could to her companions, she said in a low whisper, “Something unusual is nearby. I don't know what it is, so we need to be extra cautious.” Since the butterfly's flight was inhibited Lorenna placed it on her netted sleeve to let it rest and keep it safe.
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Post by {WW}BetaBloodWolf7 on Jan 1, 2014 22:51:27 GMT -5
Lydia carefully reached into the brown pouch and pulled out a small handful of powder and dropped it behind them as they went, making sure to lightly dust the leaves of nearby plants. It was amazing to think that not more than a couple years ago this same powder caused her nightmare inducing hallucinations, but now she could hold it in her bare hands without any trouble.
"Be careful not to touch any of that dust, you won't like the things you see. Hopefully it'll keep whatever it is following us away, or at least slow it down." She warned them, setting the pouch down and reached into her bag again, this time pulling out a pair of forest green gloves with a a row of thorns extending from the back of her palm to the back of each finger.
"Don't touch these either." she said, pulling the gloves on. "For an entirely different reason." She then dipped her hands back into the brown pouch, one at a time, coating the back of her gloves. A little extra touch couldn't hurt.
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Post by Tout-Perd on Jan 7, 2014 17:21:52 GMT -5
The arboreal stalker peered cautiously over the edge of the thick bough she stood upon. The three women below all were preparing themselves for conflict, tension evident in the set of their shoulders and the various motions they were undertaking. The oldest one was readying some manner of weapons, and the green locked one had half risen to a crouch, while still rowing steadily. The tall, lean girl was more concerned with tending to the butterfly, but seemed almost to be conversing with it. The woman’s hands clenched tightly on the branch, her knuckles standing out as knobby fields of stark white against her already milk-pale skin. She craned her neck, her tresses rustling and stirring. They were about to become aware of her if they weren’t already. She hadn’t wanted to force the conflict, but it was best to move while she still had the initiative. “Fine. We shall do as you wish, then,” The woman acquiesced, rising to her feet. She rushed along the branch to a stable point, and bounded into the air with a super-human fleetness. She landed on a branch directly above the boat, the wood creaking with the sudden stress. Taking hold of a strand of her hair, she whipped it around the branch, and shifted her position so that it was between her and the trunk. The woman tugged at the lock, the hair slowly but surely biting into the bark. She tossed her head, and there was a chewing sound as it cut into the wood itself. Sawdust began seeping out of the cut, akin to the use of a chainsaw. Within moments, the bough began bending downwards. She took one last glance downwards to affirm the position of the boat, and then stomped with one foot. There was a loud snap, and the branch plummeted downwards. -------- Maude shared her peers’ sensation of dread. It was hard to express it, but something was feeling wrong in the very air around them. Nature had such a finely ordered balance that any forceful intrusion seemed to put every small aspect of an ecosystem on edge. The Summoner kept her gazed focused upwards, to where the butterfly had plummeted from. The branch above them was moving, and bending- “Get back!” Maude planted her sandal against Lorenna’s chest. She shoved the girl out of her seat, leaving her on the floor of the canoe with a muddy print on the stunned girl’s dress. The rowboat sloshed back and forth in the murky waters with the sudden motion. Maude rose to her feet, weathering the youth’s hurt gaze for only a moment. It was them that the bending limb came crashing down upon them, striking across the middle of the boat with a ringing clang. The sides of the boat bent in towards the center, and water sloshed over the sides as it rocked from the impact. The branch was between her and the other two, having obliterated the seat that Lorenna had occupied only seconds earlier. Astride it was a slight woman, shorter than any of the three. Raven-black curtains of hair fell to the woman’s ankles, waving like an anemone’s tentacles. The woman paused for only a moment, and then lunged towards Lydia. “GIVE IT TO ME!” She shrieked, her tresses flaring outwards around her. She made it halfway over Lorenna when she stopped short. Maude had grabbed one of her locks, and used it to bodily yank her backwards. The Summoner folded the smaller woman over her knee with a brutal blow to her spine. “Consider it given,” She grunted, and went to release their stunned attacker to drop to the floor. It was only then that Maude noticed two details. Firstly, the hair she’d grabbed had bit into her hand like taut piano wire, drawing a welling of blood to the surface. Secondly, though that strike was enough to hospitalize or even kill a full-grown man, this stranger had barely noticed it. The raving woman dropped to all four, twisting her neck. The strand of hair jerked Maude from her feet, slamming her against the edge of the boat. It then slithered free of her grasp as if of its own will, leaving the intruder to make another screaming charge at Lydia. OOC: And now you all know my reason for this RP's hair fixation. New villain unlocked!
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Post by Cendra on Jan 11, 2014 20:43:49 GMT -5
Lorenna, still sprawled on the bottom of the boat, was more than a little damp from the oncoming water of the wildly rocking vessel. As another misplaced foot collided with her side, she realized the best thing to do was to remove the main factor of disturbance.
“Get!” Lorenna yelled as she slammed her left leg into the intruder's, “Out!” following it up with her right to finish the job. A loud yelp cut the air and the boat rocked more violently that before as black strands of wire attempted to steady it's owner. With one last yank tearing the hair away from the boat Lorenna's victim fell into the murky wetness with a loud splash.
Wasting no time, a cry of confusion was sent to any butterfly in the area. Within seconds the air around the boat was again filled with streaks of color. This time, however, they seemed to focus exclusively on the face of the, now drenched, woman sloshing about in the water.
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Post by {WW}BetaBloodWolf7 on Jan 16, 2014 1:16:38 GMT -5
"Quick, give me your hand" she told Maude. Then, without waiting for a response, Lydia grabbed her hand and tugged her closer. Then she dipped her freehand into her duffel and pulled out a bag stuffed with thick, sticky green leaves. Carefully, so as to not contaminate the leaves with the powder on her gloves, she pulled a leaf out and firmly placed it over the gash in Maude's hand. It's not a proper bandage, she thought but it should keep it clean.
The water, while not particularly deep, was still deep enough to cause the black-haired woman to struggled to face them. We don't have time to deal with this thought Lydia as she picked up her brown pouch. She stepped over to the rear-end of the boat, careful not to lose her footing She then pulled out a handful of the powder and, as the woman finally turned to towards them, Lydia threw it right into her eyes.
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Post by Tout-Perd on Jan 17, 2014 4:31:15 GMT -5
“Thank you,” Maude murmured, her voice barely audible above the thrashing of their assailant. She clutched the leaves tightly to her injury, stanching the bleeding, and turned her gaze upon the woman that had attacked them. She was floundering in water up to her neck, now clawing at her eyes. Random, animalistic shrieks of rage and pain filled the air. The woman slapped at her face, pausing on occasion as a butterfly flopped against her skin, before resuming her frenzied attempts to clear the caustic dust from her face. “Should we-?” Maude turned to Lydia, and gestured with her uninjured hand, “Shouldn’t we help her? This is alligator territory after all, and I’d hate to just leave her helpless to-“ TWANG! TWANG! TWANG! Their boat shook heavily, the leaves of the bough that had fallen into it rustling. Their craft lurched in the water, listing to the side. Three strands of hair, each culminating in white claws shaped like magatama, had punctured the side of the boat. The hair contracted of its own volition, bodily lifting its stunned bearer from the muck of the swamp. Even though her actual limbs were still flailing and uncoordinated, her sodden hair flicked and danced around her, finding purchases all around in light, arachnid movements. The locks seemed to stretch, grabbing hold of floating logs, roots, the edge of the boat, and anything else within reach. “Nevermind… I… Don’t think she needs our help,” Maude jammed her heel into the fork of the tree limb and snapped it in half, hefting the section of wood as a makeshift club. She interposed herself between Lorenna and the creature, keeping her weight on her back heel to keep the boat on an even keel. The stranger, at the center of her writhing sphere of tresses, had no response but for a guttural snarl. A few wisps snaked out of her tangle in a serpentine motion, their barbed tips dipping towards the group as if tasting the air. They jerked, once, twice, and then the entire mass came barreling towards Maude. Claws whistled as they whipped through the air, missing Maude by the scant inches as she turned. The Summoner swung her club in a powerful uppercut, swatting through the snake’s nest of hair. She landed the blow with a loud crunch, the weapon splintering upon impact. The woman reeled and shrieked in pain, but her scalp had a mind of its own. Four more strands lanced past Maude as she twisted in the enclosed space, snagging a fifth with her uninjured hand. Now aware of the claws, she seized it just above them, taking it in the same unyielding grip she climbed ancient, moss-slicked trees with. She hurled herself forwards, the boat tilting precariously as two more locks shot past her, tracing red lines across her skin. Pausing to center herself with a deep breath, Maude then twisted her hips and barked out a fierce cry. She landed a scything kick with her heel to the other woman’s windpipe. The woman gagged, the impact lifting her several feet farther into the air. Maude dropped back, steadying the boat with her weight. It was only then that she realized what a grave mistake she had made. While she’d been beating away at the body, the raven black coils of hair had hemmed her in, punching nearly a dozen strands into the hull of the boat all around her. She had no room left to move as a multitude of bloodthirsty tendrils came rushing in from all sides. OOC: If somebody could keep this chick from eating Maude, I'd greatly appreciate it! Thanks!
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Post by Cendra on Jan 23, 2014 14:43:16 GMT -5
Lorenna found herself at the bottom of the boat again, rubbing her sore chest. She knew Maud had meant well getting her out of the way of the first attack, but it sure was going to leave a mark! A nice foot shaped bruise she guessed. It would be fun trying to explain that to her parents. With cries of pain and battle in the air, Lorenna looked over the edge of the boat to see what the casualties might be to her little friends. Expecting to see wings and bodies floating in the water, instead the sight that met her was more than a little confusing. Not only were there no dead butterflies, but the violent hair seemed to be avoiding them on purpose! Black streaks swerved this way and that, as the dots of color did their best to inhibit the vision of the woman, just like she had asked them to. Suddenly everything in the air shifted as Maud landed a heavy blow to the flailing woman's throat. Everything was happening so fast! Lorenna started to panic, used to having more time to think about these things. Needles cut, bit, and threaded. “CLOAK!” Lorenna cried out in fear. Almost instantly, every surface of the boat and everything in it was covered in brilliant orange and black. A few tears made their way out of the corners of Lorenna's tightly shut eyes. “If she were here, she would take care of everything.” she thought.
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Post by {WW}BetaBloodWolf7 on Jan 25, 2014 20:36:10 GMT -5
At Lorenna's cry the world filled with tiny black and orange figures. For a tense moment that was all Lydia could see. Then they settled, covering everything. She stood still, trying not to disturb the cloak of butterflies while she assessed the danger they were in.
The first fact; the woman has hair capable of movement. Second fact; it can target things without the aid of her eyes, this is proven by the fact that she is not attacking the nightmarish visions she should be seeing. Third; it can sprout claws and the strands themselves cut like blades, are they possibly of demonic origins? A possible result of employing magic? Or perhaps...
As her mind began following the sudden tangent she began to move. Shaking and nodding to her own arguments, not noticing that the very butterflies she had been concerned about disturbing were beginning to flee from her now constant motions. In a short space of time the cloak had largely left her, exposing all but lower torso and legs.
A sudden scream aroused her from her theories. It gurgled and was pained, but held an unmistakeable note of triumph. Lydia looked back to see the tresses shooting back over the boat edge at her. Reflexively she reached out for the lethal locks with her right hand, grabbing them before they could do more than wrap around her glove.
"Lorenna, call them back!" she shouted at her. A sudden tug sent her sprawling to base of the boat, hair biting through the cloth glove. Another tug bit deeply into her hand. She grabbed onto a board before the hair could yank her farther.
"HELP!" she screamed.
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Post by Tout-Perd on Feb 4, 2014 14:22:52 GMT -5
The Summoner found herself with a cloud of writhing barbs inches from her face, dozens of vibrant wings tickling her cheeks and nose. The serpentine strands twitched and orbited around her, inching in before backing off again. Though the hair continued its predatory motion, the woman’s eyes were wide open, stricken. Apparently, even though she was more than willing to slice and dice humans, the butterflies were beyond her scope.
“Thanks, Lorenna,” Maude exhaled. The stranger had her dead to rights, until her companion interfered. Now, just as long as they stayed still… Motion caught her eye from outside the cage of hair. Lydia had accidentally disturbed her shield of butterflies, and now had a black lance headed straight for her throat. She blocked the strike, but the strand wrapped around her hand and began dragging her towards their assailant.
Maude burst free of the canopy of butterflies, the woman’s hair recoiling all around her. The wreath of insects around her exploded into the air, letting her move unhindered.
“Lydia, let go!” Maude snapped. The herbalist’s serious glance would’ve been enough to wither any of the plants she carried. She reached for a green pouch on her hip, and then produced a folded shovel. With a sharp motion, she unfolded it. Serrations along its edge gleamed in the scant light, and were put to good use as the researcher sliced through the tendril with a loud twang.
The woman reeled, dozens of locks snapping free from their purchase as they were suddenly aroused to wrath. Another inhuman screech arose from her lungs, her arms and legs spasmodically twitching. She lunged towards Lydia, a maelstrom of pitch black flecked with white talons storming along the boat.
Maude grabbed one of the oars, and with a twist of her hip, snapped if across the back of the woman’s head. The hair paused in mid-strike, and then doubled back on itself. Maude vaulted sideways, her trajectory carrying her over the edge of boat. She wedged the shattered oar against one of the seats, and used it to swing herself back on board.
Planting her foot in the stranger’s throat, she landed. The boat listed heavily to the side from the impact, muddy water slopping over the sides. Maude yanked her makeshift stave free of its moorings, and lammed the predator in the skull with a two-handed blow. The impact bounced the woman’s head off the floor of the boat, leaving a substantial dent in the aluminum. The woman went still, her hair falling slack across the floor of the boat. Maude slouched low, her chest heaving. She maintained a tight grip on the broken oar, her blood running down its length.
“Well, that’s that,” Maude exhaled, shrugging a sweaty lock of green hair out of her face. She prodded at the fallen woman with the jagged end of the oar, eliciting nothing more than a groan from her.
“Is everybody okay?”
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Post by {WW}BetaBloodWolf7 on Feb 4, 2014 15:17:21 GMT -5
First order of business; I want them now! Without even bothering to refold the shovel, she dropped it and reached into the front of the duffel, her right hand now coated in blood from the gashes left by the hair, and pulled out a transparent, blue tinted, bag full of small fresh leaves. She reached in with her bloody hand and pulled out a small wad of short thing oval leaves that tapered at the ends and stuffed it into her mouth.
She chewed furiously for a minute before stuffing a few more leaves into her mouth and putting the bag back. Second; treat yourself before you treat others. She pulled out two plastic containers, a roll of gauze, and a fingerless black glove. She opened the first container and, releasing a strong sickly sweet aroma. She stuck two fingers in and pulled out a green paste. Quickly, but carefully, she spread it over her wounded hand. She did this several times until a thick coating covered the palm and back of her hand. Then she tightly bound it with the gauze, slipped the glove over it and flexed her hand a few times.
Next I should test the salve on Lorenna's chest, and to see how the leaf worked on Maude's hand. "Lorenna, apply some of this to where Maude kicked you." she, opened the container, revealing a white ointment to Lorenna. "It may cause an itch or slight burning sensation, especially if you're not used to it. Still, it should relieve some of the pain and most of the bruising. And it shouldn't stain your shirt either." The last part she added on suddenly. Anything that would make it agreeable to it would help.
"Maude, I want to see where the hair cut your hand. The bleeding should have stopped by now and sealed it." She held a hand out to Maude and this time waited. When Maude held out the hand to her Lydia carefully peeled the leaf off of it and pressed lightly against cut. The spot still felt sticky, but the seal held firm. Good, even in combat it stayed on and the seal held. The material may need to work and dry a bit faster, but overall this has been a successful field test.
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Post by Cendra on Feb 10, 2014 11:35:14 GMT -5
Lorenna graciously took the small container of salve from Lydia.
“Thanks.” She said with a small smile. “And... sorry about before. I'm glad you're okay.”
While Lydia checked on Maud, Lorenna studied the salve. Opening the top of the jar she took a tentative whiff and was pleasantly surprised by the sweet scent that reached her nose. A few of the butterflies that had stayed on her person fluttered down to investigate as well. Deeming it safe enough, she scooped up a bit of the salve with two of her fingers and applied it to the now yellowing area. A soft hiss left her lips as a slight burning sensation flared on her tender skin, but after a minute or two the feeling diminished. Poking gently at the area, Lorenna decided the footprint wasn't quite as tender as it had been and the bruise perhaps a little lighter. After finishing her self examination, Lorenna turned her attention back to the woman laying limp in the water.
“So, what do you suppose we should do with her? She might come after us again when she wakes if we just leave her here. I suppose if we had a titanium hair tie we may be able to take her with us safely. Unfortunately, I don't carry those with me. I see it in my near future though. You know... just in case.” The last bit said only half jokingly.
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Post by Tout-Perd on Feb 10, 2014 14:32:21 GMT -5
"I'm glad that we're all okay," Maude murmured, pressing the leaf firmly against her injury again. The bleeding had almost stopped much earlier than she was used to, leaving the wound feeling unusually clammy.
"I don't know what we should do with her... She acted like a monster, but as far as I can tell, she's just a human woman," The summoner leaned in, carefully poking at the woman's hair with her sandal. The woman sighed quietly, more of a dreamlike whisper than a moan of pain.
"And while we might not have anything to restrain her with, I think you might be able to help with that," Maude turned to meet Lorenna's gaze, and cocked a verdant eyebrow, "Those butterflies you called, she seemed to avoid hurting them. It's the only reason she didn't gut me. So maybe you could have some, uh, camp out on her hair? She might avoid attacking if she had to go through those little guys, first."
"I wonder what she wanted?" Maude looked over the woman hesitantly, eyeballing the hairs to make sure they didn't suddenly revive, "She went for Lydia first, despite the fact that both Lorenna and I were nearer... And she was screaming about wanting something. I wonder if that means Lydia is carrying something important to her, or maybe she needed one of those medicines?"
Maude inhaled deeply through her nose, her shoulders tensing slightly. The implications of Maude's statements hung in the air as heavily as the cloying marsh humidity.
"Lydia, have you ever met this woman before?" Maude felt a bitter taste at the back of her throat. As quickly as she'd made new friends, she was making accusations and driving a wedge between them.
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Post by {WW}BetaBloodWolf7 on Feb 10, 2014 14:48:50 GMT -5
"No, but I've met others like her. They usually come in small groups and they're usually after the compounds I keep with me, or a plant I've harvested for whatever reason. Usually drugs and all that comes with it, sometimes they want to turn it into a weapon, or make me do it for them. One cartel in Columbia off-" she stopped abruptly. They didn't need to hear about jobs she'd done with, or for, cartels. While she had never provided weapons to them, or helped them make their drugs more addictive, most looked down on assisting drug cartels in any way. Especially when it came to the coca plant.
"I'm sorry, I'm rambling a bit. I guess I'm more upset by her than I thought, I've never been attacked by hair before. I have no idea what she wanted. I just hope that that's the last we see of her."
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Post by Tout-Perd on Jun 12, 2014 18:13:01 GMT -5
Maude knit her brows as Lydia spieled off the potential problems they were dealing with. She'd got a good read off of Lorenna, free of ulterior motives and full of trust, but she was starting to think the only reason Lydia was tolerating her Summoner lineage was because she regularly dealt with even worse scum. Her fingers flexed, curling into fists for just a moment before relaxing.
“It's okay. You're the boss, after all,” Maude offered, finally, “It's just important that we know what to look out for. I don't think this woman was any kind of hired criminal... She was way too wild and reckless for a hitman or mercenary. If she had been, she would've just dropped that branch on us and got out of dodge.”
“But the point stands that she knew to go after you, pretty explicitly. It seems somebody might have pointed her at you, and if that's the case, then we might have a whole menagerie of monsters crawling out of the woodwork,” The summoner hefted the splintered oar, experimentally twirling it to check its weight.
“Lorenna, keep your eyes and ears open, and not just for the moss. Things could be getting pretty dicey if she has friends.”
Maude turned, and looked Lorenna in the eye with a faint grin.
“Don't worry though. I've handled worse before.”
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Post by Cendra on Jun 16, 2014 13:18:48 GMT -5
At Maud's prompting, Lorenna gave a gentle thought to a few butterflies that decided to stay close. Soon the limp hair was covered in fluttering polka dots and others few higher in the sky near and far.
Lorenna shifted a little uncomfortably on her feet. Despite the reassurance that both women were experienced in these matters, she couldn't bring herself to be at ease with the situation. This job had seemed harmless enough when she had accepted it, but after hearing Lydia list off the people she had encountered on such jobs, she wasn't so convinced anymore. She never really thought about moss being anything other than just that, but who knew. She should. Knowing was her whole thing around here after all. It was killing her that these two were such a mystery now. Hopefully the other butterflies she had sent out farther would be able to glean some things from the others they came across in their flight. Both seemed to be the outdoors type, so it shouldn't be all that hard to find something.
Lorenna returned Maud's words with a small smile of her own and a nod of understanding.
“Even so... you sure we should call for back up or somethin'?”
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Post by {WW}BetaBloodWolf7 on Jun 29, 2014 22:18:34 GMT -5
The mood had shifted. While they had still been somewhat tense over the attack, it was now directed into the group itself. Lorenna had become noticeably upset by the word "cartel" and Maude's eyes had narrowed a bit as well, though whether it was the idea of cartels attacking them or the thought of cartels themselves that upset her, or even something else, wasn't something Lydia could discern.
"Listen, I'm sure that many drug gangs run in the country but I'm sure they don't want anything to do with this moss. New drugs are typically made out of chemical products, not plant extracts. The few that do bother with plants just want to make stronger cocaine and marijuana anyways, so I'm sure we're fine." She told them, hoping that it would calm them down a bit.
At least as long as more demon-possessed hair monsters don't show up.
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Post by Tout-Perd on Jul 15, 2014 12:45:28 GMT -5
“We’ll be fine, I’m sure...” Maude thumped her palm with the splintered oar, feeling its rough texture against her palm, “Fact of the matter is, I know monsters. I can handle monsters. Where I grew up, I was being trained to fight those sort of creatures since before I could walk.”
Maude’s tone grew more serious, and her eyes darted around, drinking in their surroundings.
“And the cartels wouldn’t have any way of getting to us this deep in the swamp, or at least nothing that we couldn’t see coming from miles away. There’s no roadways, no bridges… Cars and getting in by foot are out, and helicopters or even parachuting in would be suicide with the canopy here. The only way in would be either by boat, which we’d hear from miles off, or by climbing along… And you’d have to be a Power to catch up to us at this point.”
Maude’s demeanor broke, and she smiled peacefully.
“Listen, we’re safe. I strongly doubt a lunatic like her brought any friends,” The Summoner nodded towards the fallen stranger.
She took hold of her hemp necklace, using to lift the brass medallion she wore. It twirled at her fingertips, one side engraved with a stylized “M”, the other with two large blue beads set into its surface.
“And though it might be uncouth to mention my lineage, I’ve got ‘backup’ covered.” ------- A small, wiry figure threaded her way through the canopy. Each step was meticulous, a singular swing of her body that moved her arms and legs in a perfectly synchronous motion. She would occasionally pause to loop strands of silk affixed to her wrist around a branch for a particularly precarious motion, the line glowing gold as the afternoon sun shone through it.
Every few steps, she’d pause and glance around, noting broken branches and unusual scratches in the bark of the tree. Two saffron-colored tufts twitched just above the bridge of her nose, like a second set of eyebrows courtesy of Dr. Seuss. A butterfly bumped into her, and then fluttered a curious circle around her. It examined her for a moment before flitting away, seemingly have decided that she was merely one of its kin.
“May Grimaldi, you’ve really done it this time…” She muttered to herself, arching over backwards to reach out for another branch.
There had been a string of killings across the United States in the past month, starting in southwestern California, and leaving a bloody swath eastward across the southern states. At first there was only an incident once per week, and then every three days, and then every other… And now, they had been getting multiple reports per day of gruesome casualties. They all had the same tell-tale mutilations, which is what had led to APCARP getting involved. Wounds that looked like cuts dealt with razor-wire, with occasional tears in the flesh like some sort of organic chainsaw had shredded them. They’d found small fragments of what had appeared to be teeth in some of the wounds, indicating that their culprit wasn’t just some ordinary psychopath. Chillingly, each and every victim had been drained completely dry of their blood.
May shuddered, making her new perch quaver. However unusual her typical quarry had proved to be, vampires were hardly her bailiwick. She took a deep breath, her antenna perking up.
“The paranormal is just things we don’t understand the science behind yet. This ‘vampire’ is just a Power, the same as any of the dozens that you’ve brought into custody. Everything’s going to be fine,” She continued wending her way through the maze of branches, thinking back to how the administration had treated the case.
Initially, the modus operandi had predisposed their analysts to thinking they were dealing with Lucas, the psychopath that had been behind dozens of gruesome murders at the Ansonia incident. However, the amount of time between these new killings and the stealth with which they’d been perpetrated had tipped them away from that option, leading to a collective sigh of relief from her division. May shook her head. It must’ve been a fool who had said ‘better the devil you know than the one you don’t.’ If her superior officer ever offered her a choice between two missions, one against Lucas and the other against any number of unknown Powers, she’d take the latter in a heartbeat. The thought snapped her back to the present; she’d been following the trail of this unknown culprit, via scent and visual tracking, and it was due time for her to check her bearings again.
Her antennae twitched, and her eyes drifted half closed as she focused on the information they brought. The heavy, oppressive miasma of the swamp washed over her. The earthy scent of the muddy water and decaying vegetation was most prominent, but she was getting used to it. She pushed the odor aside, focusing on more distinct notes. The metallic tang of an aluminum boat, the exotic spiciness of a variety of plants unknown to her… And near to that, she could smell the killer, the same stench as had been at the scene of each murder. Dry blood, rotting cloth, and unwashed hair. There’d always been a faint trace of a dry, mossy smell as well, diminishing at each of the scenes from the first one. Here, that same rich note was omnipresent, virtually overpowering compared to the faint, phantasmal note it had been limited to before. There was something else, too… The exotic scent of the algae that Summoners traditionally wore in their hair.
“Son of a bitch…” She whispered, her antenna drooping. Maybe the devil she knew wasn’t looking so bad, after all. ------- There was a faint sigh from the bottom of the boat, where their incapacitated foe laid. Swamp water seeped into her grey clothes, staining them brown. She fidgeted slightly.
Instantly, Maude interposed herself between Lorenna and their attacker. She extended her arm, using the momentum to slide the oar in her grasp. The Summoner froze, the jagged pole pressed directly against the underside of the woman’s jaw. Her palm was braced against the back of the shaft, ready to drive it home.
The stranger’s eyes fluttered open slowly, dreamily. It took a moment before they focused, not on the woman getting ready to impale her, but instead tracking one of the myriad butterflies flitting about above them.
She hunched her shoulders, coiling her muscles for a moment. Maude braced her foot against the seat, the wood creaking as she prepared to lunge…
The asian woman merely raised her hands above shoulder-level, stretched, and let out a dainty, almost childish yawn. She craned her neck to look at the others, despite having to twist to avoid impaling herself. Smacking her lips loudly, she spoke, her voice full of innocence and wonder.
“I… I am alive?”
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Post by Cendra on Jul 16, 2014 20:12:58 GMT -5
Lorenna gave Maude and Lydia her best smile, but still couldn't shake her uneasy feeling.
“You're the experts, I guess.” she rubbed her neck nervously.
The butterflies hadn't found anything, but there was a buzz of curiosity from one for a moment that was soon replaced by the common peaceful hum. Normally this wouldn't have concerned her, but the feeling in her stomach wouldn't go away.
Lorenna kept a wary eye on the limp black hair at the bottom of the boat as Maud maneuvered around her to have a better vantage point against the waking woman. Needless to say she woke up in a completely different way than expected. A confused look came over Lorenna's face as the woman smacked her lips.
“Alrighty then... Multiple personalities it is.” She said as she sat back to watch how things would unfold.
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Post by {WW}BetaBloodWolf7 on Jul 20, 2014 20:21:39 GMT -5
"Yes, you are." Lydia told the woman, trying to keep her voice calm. "Please, stay still for a moment. I'd like to examine you and make sure you're ok, see if you're ok."
She hesitated, then carefully crossed to the prone woman and leaned in towards her. "I'm going to apply pressure to your limbs and ribs. If you feel any sudden pain, then please let me know and I'll stop. Alright?" Without waiting for a response she began gently applying pressure to the woman's left arm. She stopped at the risk and took a quick look at the woman's eyes before continuing.
She's clearly dazed, but is it the effects of the powder I used earlier, or just the strain of waking up after being possessed by her hair? Or is it something worse? No, it's not the powder. Or if it is, it's too mild of an effect to do really do anything. She should be thrashing around, screaming, anything. The possibilities filled her mind. Before long she sat at the woman, her head shaking again at the arguments forming in her mind.
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Post by Tout-Perd on Jul 20, 2014 21:44:03 GMT -5
The woman responded about as well as a preschooler given a similar mandate, keeping her head in place but fidgetting her shoulders and feet the entire time as Lydia examined her. The woman's skin was hard to the touch; despite looking gossameer pale human skin, it felt more like porcelain.
"I... I am happy that I am alive. When myself takes me, I worry that I'll kill me." She extended a hand into the sunny air, a butterfly alighting on her finger.
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