[GRO] Leeroi Furore - Teen

[zeflamigo]

Leeroi tested the radio for a short moment, then quickly pocketed it in his coat. "At least we know we won't get stopped by snow on the way home," Leeroi pointed out. They didn't want to get caught in a snowstorm with the criminal when they could go back to town and be celebrated.

He didn't want to waste anymore time. His lusus was probably already looking for him, not to mention it would be stupid to get caught in the daylight. Leeroi started to move deeper into the cave, keeping an eye out for clues of life.

Hivestuck

 

[Hivestuck]

The cave was long, but ran shallowly across the mountainside. Spaces between precariously stacked rocks allowed shafts of moonlight to penetrate the darkness. The cave would likely be completely obliterated come the next weather phenomenon.

As the path roped deeper, the atmosphere of the cave turned drier and stiffer. The rapidly diminishing light splashed against deposits of halite, dispersing into glitter. Choking clouds of salt lifted off the floor with every step.

With no flora capable of surviving such caustic surroundings, there was nothing organic holding the cave together. Any sharp sound or contact with the walls was enough to rattle loose at least a few pebbles. For the most part, the path was unobstructed, save for an outcropping of fallen stalactites. A sweep of a flashlight across the ceiling would reveal a sharp decrease in the ceiling's height, and two sharp grooves down its rocky texture.

Kimbley Kitty

Gl!tch~

 

[zeflamigo]

Leeroi's attitude about the adventure had shifted since they first entered the cavern. He wasn't scared, he would tell Guo emphatically, but he wasn't chatty like he had been before. Perhaps the adventure only started to feel real once they entered, he thought. He had to be alert now, he had to be ready at any moment to strike.

He tied his scarf around his face, trying to keep himself from coughing from whatever was in the air. Looking around, Leeroi spotted the grooves in the cave ceiling above him. "What do you think that is?" he asked, raising the flare a bit higher to get a closer look.

Gl!tch~

 

[Gl!tch~]

This place wasn't anywhere near as sturdy as his hive, or the surrounding mountains. Like a tent compared to a castle. Guouli observed these details with a concerned eye as they walked into the cave. Could someone really be hiding somewhere so....shitty? As Leeroi lifted the flare and started talking, the younger blueblood papped the side of the cave. Some pebbles fell. Kinda ominous.

He looked up where Leeroi was looking, and furrowed his brow. It was hard to see him express anymore than from that, since he had pulled his shirt over his lower face. He wasn't about to inhale whatever was coming up from the floor like an idiot. "I dunno. But, hey, uh. This cave isn't like up in Busthind. I think we should leave some kinda markers to help us get out of here if things go Troll Indiana Jones on our butts. But don't touch the walls, okay?"

So they'd have to mark the floor, somehow.

Kimbley Kitty

 

[zeflamigo]

Leeroi rolled his eyes. What was the point of marking their direction unless they were at a crossroads? "Uh, I think this is a pretty good ******** marker," He pointed again at the strange marks on the ceiling. If Guo could see Leeroi's mouth, he'd see him sneering. "What, are you scared already?" Leeroi started to raise his voice, leaning in to antagonize Guouli.

"I guess if it makes you feel better, I can just leave this here," Leeroi added, motioning with the flare. They did have flashlights. It just wasn't as cool.

Gl!tch~

 

[Gl!tch~]

Guouli punched him in the arm. Hard. "It's called an exit strategy, dumbass." Leeroi got louder, which made more small rocks fall. "And keep your voice down. We're here to find a con, not get caved in on, dipshit. Keep the flare, but it's just something to keep in mind." Honestly, if it came down to it, if Leeroi caused s**t to fall, Guo was leaving his stupid a** behind. That's what happened when you didn't have a freaking survival instinct.

Back to low, idle conversation as he made his way deeper down. "So, what do you think this dude is even gonna be like?"

Kimbley Kitty

 

[zeflamigo]

Where Guo punched, Leeroi was sure to shove back a bit. He wouldn't allow anything different. Still, he listened when Guo told him to stay quiet. Only, for Leeroi that meant not speaking at all. When Guo prompted conversation out of him again, he struggled to talk at half-volume.

"You mean besides crazy?" Leeroi asked. He thought for a long moment, then patted at his own stomach. "Probably hungry." He had no way of knowing exactly what kind of criminal they were dealing with, aside from a dangerous one. Leeroi was leaving his mind open. He trailed up next to Guo, walking deeper into the cave.

Hivestuck

 

[Hivestuck]

As the height of the tunnel decreased, the amount of debris on the ground increased. It was now apparent that stalactites had been knocked down by a passing creature. The voids in the hanging mineral deposits were left in a symmetrical pair--reaching their highest at approximately nine feet from the cave floor.

The cave surroundings constricted, funneling the route further into the mountainside. The tracks that had been relatively consistent, developed signs of frustration against the claustrophobic space. Zigzagging scratches had been gouged in the ceiling, and shallow five-pointed lines were left on the walls. The struggling reached its zenith at a particularly dramatic narrowing of the cave, from behind which, was a faint light.

The cave emptied out into a naturally-made "room." The cavern was tall and wide enough for the opposing walls to be obscured by shadow. The shadows were cast in narrow pillars of moonlight streaming from holes in the ceiling. Salt on the floor sparkled dimly.


"S̛͕͈̟̖̦̜̿̍͗̂͂́͌h͇̜̪̝̹̟́̓̾͊̎̔̚o͕ͪ̍͌̑͆u̽̄͌͡l͋͆͂͗͛́d̶̞̻̟͔͚̹ͯͩͅn̴̙̝̟̹̬͇̖̊̎ͮͦ̌͌'̟̫̤̻̉t̜̞͚̞̜̱͔ͣ͗̉͗͊̀̓ ̫̘̲͂͋̚h̎̉a͙̘̜͉͊v̬̥̻̭̦ͣͪ̀͌ͬͬͅḙ̝̠͔͚̘͙ͩͤ ̲͉͔̳̃ͬ͊͆͠c̪̲ͫ̌̂ͧo͙̪̜͒̃̈͂̆m̻̪̞͕̦ͩ͂ê͚̙̼̮̎ͮ̽ ͉͍̺̬̼͊̌̏ͯ̚͝h̻̞̩̱͍ͬe̖̘̙̯̙̺͎̍̄r̀̍̐ͣͧ̔e͙̱͙̪͇͈̩̾ͥͫ.̪͚̋ͪ̒̊̚"

Kimbley Kitty

Gl!tch~

 

[zeflamigo]

"Holy s**t," Leeroi muttered, observing the scratches along the walls and the ceiling. It was like something out of one of Guo's horror games. Hopefully it lead to the troll they wanted to catch, and not some strange cave-dwelling monster. Absentmindedly, he counted the strikes in the wall and ceiling. Five and two, five and two. Then, it finally clicked in Leeroi's head.

Leeroi grabbed Guouli roughly by the shoulder, shaking him. "Guo," He said, whispering, holding the flare up again. "Horns," he explained, eyes wide with excitement and pride. They were close.

The voice struck Leeroi's thinkpan, and he went breathless, turning wildly for the source. His eyes were wide and his hands were shaking with raw excitement. He was simply awestruck that his quest had come to fruition. The journey was complete. Now all he had to do was take care of this criminal. The Boss Battle.

"Show yourself!" Leeroi demanded, holding his ground, holding his flare as if it were a weapon, reaching for his knife with his other hand.

Gl!tch~

 

[Gl!tch~]

Horns, Leeroi enthused, while Guo was at the same time being physically shaken by his friend. After batting him off, it sunk in.

"Oh s**t." He'd be annoyed he hadn't figured it out before Leeroi, but there wasn't time for that. Some voice had echoed, maybe distorted? It was hard to tell. But they had found something. Probably a troll, preferably something wickedly messed up.

He took what time he could, though, as Leeroi called out, to pull out a flashlight and his own (pathetic) knife. Time to play it cool. "What, is this your hive or something?" he asked of the voice as he finished rummaging. "Didn't see a door or anything around, bro."

Hivestuck

 

[Hivestuck]

Beams of light from the moons and flashlights criss-crossed over pillars of salt and mineral. Long shadows splashed across the distant walls. They moved with each twitch of the flashlight. The effect was disorienting. The sound of scraping was the only orienting feature of the room.

The scraping evened into steps and was then joined by quasi-rhythmic breathing. The steps stopped and the rasping continued, high and distressed, before settling. At the center of the room stood a figure tall and thin enough to nearly hide themselves among the stalagmites. However their silhouette was broken by two, enormous horns that looped back and away from the figure's skull. Their face was obscured, but the scale of the figure spoke to its age. Red lenses on a full-face mask caught the light in a jarring flash.

The figure exhaled and thin wisps of vapor trickled up into the shafts of moonlight.

"Ỳou̡..͏." The troll seemed about to repeat their warning, but stopped abruptly, "C͞H̡IL͡D̕R҉E͟N."

Its voice scraped an echo across the cavern. It was a sound of shock and perhaps a bark of laughter from someone whose voice wouldn't allow for such sounds. The figure shuddered and rocked and then stilled. Clouds of a sickly green color spilled thicker from the troll's mask.

"́Ch͜il͡ḑre͝n," it began again, incredulous, "This ̧i̵s͡ ̢not̵ my͡ h̵i͝ve. N҉or ̴i̴s it yours.̢ G͜o."

Kimbley Kitty

Gl!tch~

 

[zeflamigo]

Leeroi didn't know how to react to this strange troll. So much was going on around him and he was having a difficult time processing it all. The disorienting lights did little to help him focus, but when the speaker finally stepped forward, all attention fell on them.

This troll was monstrous, oozing gas, breathing irregularly. Like some sort of sci-fi villain, Leeroi thought. He idly wondered how this troll weaseled their way out of the punishment pits.

They told him to leave. Leeroi flinched in confusion. He didn't expect to get the option to turn back, and he didn't really know how to react to it. Gripping his knife tighter, he addressed the criminal.

"I'm not going anywhere," he said, holding his ground. "Who are you, and what are you doing down here?" he added, fully confident this was the criminal they were searching for, but looking for more answers.

Gl!tch~

 

[Gl!tch~]

He let his backpack straps slide back up his arms. Guo's breath hitched a little when they saw a little bit of the troll.

Fascinating.

But not...exciting? This troll wasn't frothing at the mouth like Guo hoped. They should've given it another night, maybe. Wouldn't be any fun if they were going to be shown mercy. Guo wanted something desperate. Tense. A movie soundtrack? Whatever.

Leeroi's questions were innocent enough. Though they pretty much knew the answer to why. But if the adult troll really was a criminal, they probably wouldn't tell children that kind of information. It'd be way super dumb. Guo tried not to roll his eyes. Keep it cool. "This isn't a great place to hang out, y'know? I had to tell Shouty over here to shut up so we wouldn't cause a cave-in. If we should leave, you should too, eh, buddy?"

God, he hoped this troll was unhinged enough to eventually snap if he found the right thing to say. Just looking at them, though, was enough to make him hope this could become a horror movie. He had a few questions, honestly. The young blueblood would love to know about the mask, the voice, the everything. Is it a punpun pits thing? He had to wonder.

Hivestuck

 

[Hivestuck]

The children's relative fearlessness seemed to give the figure pause. It stood motionless for a while, save for its rough breathing and the vaguely translucent plumes of vapor wisping from its face. Eventually its head tilted in what was likely a quizzical motion, but more resembled a puppet with a cut string.

The troll regarded the children's appearances. They were armed; equipped for some sort of excursion. The troll knew the surroundings well enough to know what a desolate, not to mention dangerous wasteland they all stood in. It would take more than a few pan-addling days without sopor and sweeps of confinement to render them incompetent enough not to read the room.

Having reached a conclusion, the figure stepped forward. They seemed to come into focus as they left the light fog that had begun to settle around them. Green hemotyping caught the light of the green moon violently.

"A͜l͞t̕erni̡a suf̷fe͏r̵s n͏o ̡fool͞s̸.͞ My̶ ̕crim̛es áre͜ mańy, b̴u͠t͠ ́y̢o͘ur ͞de̡a͟t͡h͞s̸ ͏wil̶l̵ ̴n̢o̷t́ be ơne̷ ͏òf the͜m͠."

The lighting of the room shifted as Gangrene appeared before the boys, towering jaggedly with one arm raised. A trail of dark smog was the only indication he hadn't simply teleported. The smell was overpowering, cloying, and floral.

Kimbley Kitty

HE COMES

Gl!tch~

 

[zeflamigo]

Leeroi smiled toothily, both in awe and amusement over this stranger's form. A troll made monster, a real villain. The blueblood could hardly contain giddy laughter at the sight. Gangrene's identity was even plainer to Leeroi, especially after he admitted his guilt.

When the moment to fight came, Leeroi didn't flinch. Though Gangrene's erratic movements certainly threw him off, the blueblood didn't waste any time swinging for the greenblood's legs, trying to plunge the knife into something vital enough to incapacitate the adult.

Gl!tch~