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 Posted: Sun Aug 07, 2016 3:23 pm
Being told they'd get rooms for the duration of their stay gave Tara mixed feelings. On one hand, it was good to know they'd not be curling up in the few non-broken chairs or something if they needed to rest. Also meant enough of the hotel was standing to allow rooms to be habitable. But on the other? How long exactly where they going to be there in the Swiss Alps?
Tara used the key to open the door with the matching number. The room was in good condition. Two average sized beds, a bedside table between them, dead TV on top of a wide set of drawers in front of them. Little sitting area in the corner. Basic, simple. About what she expected from a hotel.
Just... a lot nicer than she was used to.
One of the first things she did was make sure to block the window, so none of the damn birds could get in, using some of the debris she found out in the hall. Then she tossed her bag onto one of the beds and sat down heavily. It was warm enough that she was able to take off the heavy coat she'd gotten before leaving the Prytaneum, and she looked at her collection of scratches and cuts on her arms and hands from the bird she'd fought with Rob earlier.
A shiver went through her as she recalled killing the creature. It... she understood why they'd have to be killed. They were hurting people. Probably already killed some. If the Chosen could figure out why and stop it... maybe the metallic birds would be willing to go somewhere else. Somewhere safe for them to exist, and not hurt people.
Tara clicked her tongue though. "Unless this is their home, and it's the humans that disturbed them... could explain why the birds are attacking. Just... why now? Wonder if there's some new construction happening..." She mumbled her thoughts aloud, not seeing the harm in trying the tactic for how to brainstorm. "Might be worth... taking more samples from other birds. See if they're all the same as that eagle..." Maybe some of the other Chosen were more scientifically aligned, might have some ideas for figuring out what these creatures were....
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Posted: Sun Aug 07, 2016 10:27 pm
"Or they're man-made. Could be deity-made, who knows." - Mathilda strolled around the hotel, glancing at door numbers. The key in her hand held a number that should be in this row. When she was told that there was room for her, she was told that the other half of the room would be occupied as well. Hopefully, it was another Chosen, not a villager. She didn't want to sleep in a room with a pervert, or worse, someone who didn't like her weapon. Strolling a bit farther down the hall, she noticed board up windows, and heard the sound of birds attempting to break through. Flexing her hand to avoid reaching for her bald, she spun the key around her finger. A few moments later she found her room, and heard a voice. She knew that voice. And after hearing her question regarding the birds, she spoke. "Or they're man-made. Could be deity-made, who knows. Metal working was common during Greek times. Might be something regarding that. And hello Tara. How are you liking the birds?" Laughing, she moved towards the untaken bed and tossed her bag at the foot. Not bothering to shed her jacket, she plopped onto the bed. Yep, she was gonna be here a while. The room itself was nice, and she could she that Tara had boarded the windows. Good, less birds. " Gott, I hate those birds. They are on the top of my hate list right now." wc:243
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Posted: Sun Aug 07, 2016 10:51 pm
Hearing the door open, Tara turned her head to the entryway, quickly grinning to see the blonde stroll in. Though the grin faltered a bit in sheepishness as she realize how loud she'd been. But, the conversation could very well be a productive one with Mathilda. She was nodding along with the ideas--though Tara bit her lip a bit. She hadn't considered deity-made...
"I hadn't thought of that. Think we should focus on if the um.... um... Chosen of the uh..." Tara snapped her fingers, trying to remember the deity. "Um the uh... blacksmith god... starts with an H.... well, those Chosen. Maybe they'd be the ones to figure out how to handle these creatures, if these are man or deity-made?"
Or was that too straight-forward? Too video-game-logic?
Still, she smiled to Mathilda as the other flopped down onto the bed. "If they weren't trying to kill us, I'd think the birds were pretty neat." She frowned then, looking down at her bandaged up hands from where the eagle earlier had cut her. Shoulders dropping a bit, she mumbled, "Had to kill one before. Will likely have to kill more before this is done." Wincing, she looked towards Mathilda. "I uh... I cried after. And it felt like I wasn't honoring Artemis by killing it. But... I mean, if I didn't fight it, it would have hurt my friend and I while we were out there... and then it was so injured it was likely going to die slowly anyways so..." She trailed off and gave a helpless shrug, her lips drawn down in a guilty near pout. She shouldn't be upset about killing a creature like that, but... well... This wasn't exactly the usual behavior for her to deal with.
"My aim was pretty good though, so... definitely improving." The one up-side that got her to smile.
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Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2016 12:45 am
"Hephaestus, god of blacksmiths, and by association, metal. Could be a lead. Don't know the likelihood we could get any info out of him, we haven't seen any of the Gods besides Hestia," Maneuvering so she could face tara, Mathilda grimaced. "To each these own I suppose." Noticing Tara's hands, and hearing her comment, Mathilda stood up and walked over to the girls bed, sitting on the edge. She ran her hands through the girls hair, something her father had done when she was small. She hummed a melody for a moment, hopefully calming the girl's inner turmoil. "It's okay Leibchen. And it's okay to cry. Not everyone is used to this, you more-so than me. Did you know that the only animal Artemis held dear to her was the dear? Or that, she was only upset when people harassed animals. She was the goddess of the hunt my dear. You aren't arming the birds for fun, you are fighting to save your life and others. She would not be mad at you, not for this. Plus, those birds are probably not even real birds, Just, well, not-birds. If you eve need to talk about this, you come find me okay? I will help you then best I can, no matter what." Hugging the girl, she smiled at hearing of the girls improvement. "Really? Wunderbar! That's most excellent my dear! I'm happy to hear that!"
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Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2016 2:51 pm
"That's the one," Tara grinned, snapping her fingers a final time as Mathilda filled in the blank. But... that was true. Her shoulders slumped a little. "I wonder why none of the gods have really... spoken to us. I mean, I guess that means we haven't screwed up too badly on anything yet, which is good. I guess I just expected..." Her hands waved in the air haphazardly. "Some sort of guidance."
Apparently, that'd been asking for way too much. Something she was coming to terms with, sure, but it was still annoying. Locating people, fighting the birds, helping with repairs... oh sure, that was great for helping the people there. It was wonderful to help them--really! She felt better knowing they were doing some good. But could they just... kill enough of the birds to make them go away? Or was there really something else happening here..? And if so, how would they... figure that out?
Of course, she laughed a bit to see Mathilda's face. Apparently she didn't agree about the birds being neat. When she moved over to sit near her, Tara smiled a bit, grateful for not needing to bluster or pretend she was alright with it all. She closed her eyes briefly as she listened to the melody, taking a few slow, deep breaths to calm herself.
The words Mathilda spoke eased her a bit, and she nodded, eyes opening. It was true. She had a tendency to think of Artemis in the more... New Age sense, she guessed it was? The notion that the goddess protected all animals from harm, which... really, ignored that she was a goddess of the hunt as well. "That's true... I guess I sort of forgot about that. I'm not... really a hunter. At least, not like... with weapons. Just a camera," she added, trying to make a joke.
"But... that does make sense." No, she wasn't doing it for sport. She wanted to protect people, wanted to figure out how to best assist with this... crazy situation. Now, if they were torturing real birds... then there'd be an issue.
When Mathilda hugged her, Tara grinned and gave her a tight squeeze back. "Thanks, Mathilda. I needed that."
Right. Focus on the positive. She nodded and laughed. "The practice and weight training's been helping big time. I might just be a sharpshooter someday yet," she snickered. Probably not. But hey, pipe dreams.
"How about you? What're your thoughts on all..." She waved her hand around. "This?"
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Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2016 11:20 pm
Mathilda smiled, her eyes crinkling. Laughing at Tara's joke, she espoused with a chuckle in her voice. "That's good to hear, about your aim. I would love to watch you fight one day." In the next second, she wrinkled her nose. "I hate those birds. I have probably said it a hundred times already, and I will say it a hundred times more. I hate these birds and their stupid birdiness. If I never see another bird again, I will be happy for the rest of my life." Pausing, she hummed in affirmation, looking down at her Ares necklace. "There's probably some rule about them talking to us. Gods are cliche and all that jazz. They're like that animal that pushes their baby out of the nest and expect them to fly." She raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that birds? Maybe these birds got pushed out of their nest and are demanding retribution. That would make sense. Stupid birds." Flicking a speck off her pants, she pursed her lips, looking contemplative for a few moments. "Regarding the situation, I feel like these birds are just aimless. They attack at random and at everyone. There's no pattern, reason or rhyme. It's like they're running on autopilot. Robot birds. I think that there may be someone behind them. Or maybe a what. Who knows."
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Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2016 11:51 pm
Tara made a face to hear such things about birds--in general--and laughed, sticking her tongue out playfully. "Jeeze, talking like that, I'm clearly going to have to take you with me next time I go for a walk in the woods around the campus. Those birds there are a lot nicer. At least the ones I've encountered thus far," she added after a small pause, looking up in thought. Those woods did get pretty dark and wild after a ways in...
"But these birds are absolute jackasses," she agreed with a huff, shaking her head. Maybe it was all the metal? Maybe they just... hurt?
She nodded in full agreement to showing Mathilda her growing skills sometime, happy to be able to have that chance to show the woman her advice and help were getting through to her.
But Tara went quiet at the idea that the gods were silent for a reason. The analogy to the avians--yep, more birds!--that pushed their chicks out and just... had to go on instinct to fly... felt fitting. Even if she laughed at the notion these poor guys were seeking revenge for the treatment. "I just hope we can beat the odds, if that's the case. Most chicks manage to fly to safety. A lot of it's that their bodies are so small, they can bounce and be ok despite the immense distances they fall," she explained on auto, used to going into such talks when she'd be leading or assisting in the educational nature walks. "But there's always those unfortunate few that... land wrong, or land too close to where predators can catch them." No, nature on principle wasn't... nice. It was harsh, and where one life ended, another gained from the loss.
Mathilda's views were ones Tara shared, and she nodded along. "Someone could have lead them here. If they are robots, maybe there's some machine sending them signals? Like radio waves or something?" She shrugged, just tossing around the ideas for the hell of it. "We might need to go out into the mountain more, to try and find the source. Or maybe that's just asking for trouble."
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Posted: Thu Aug 11, 2016 12:23 am
Mathilda laughed. "If you say so! I'll have to take you up on that trip. Just give me awhile after we get to get rid of any leftover murderous intent I currently feel for the avian species. And you're correct about that." She tapped her finger other chin, pausing. "There could be. Maybe higher up the mountain. Too bad there isn't a map, maybe there's some old hideouts that a device, or someone could be hiding." She nodded at Tara's comment about falling birds. "However, we are human. More so now. We learn to adapt and survive no matter the circumstances, because we know what lies ahead. Though we may be blind now, we aren't along. We are surround by like minded people. It never hurts to ask! So come on, let's head out! She what we can find!" wc:838
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