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[ The Chase - Part Four ]

It had picked up speed, thrashing through the forest and leaving nothing in its wake (as he could imagine, no way was he looking behind him) but he could hear it. The destruction, its teeth snapping at him as he continued to try evading it.

He felt its claws rack against his back, stumbling him forward. "Aa, ********> But it wasn't enough to beat him down. Just hurt like a b***h. His pocket guide confirming.

OOC

My character's username: GreenRanger
My character's level: 9
Character's HP: 3/30
Current party: --
Current Guild: Queen's Rangers
Location: Tulgey Woods
Small IC description of character:
A tall brown haired humanoid male sportin' the green set of Gryphon attire, and most likely doing stupid poses. While smiling. And humming to himself.

Character journal: here

[ The Chase - Part Four part Two ]

He was running low, he was running as fast as he could but the end of this quest didn't seem to be coming upon him any time soon.

And it didn't, not yet anyway. Those teeth that snatched and those teeth that bit found their way to GreenRanger, depleting him for the exact amount of remaining hit points he possessed.

[ THE CHASE PART 1 ]

Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!

It was a poem that Arland, currently HotTea42, was familiar with. He had memorized it during middle school when they had been tasked with selecting a piece of literature to recite in front of the class (it had seemed like a better idea than The Raven at the time, although he'd memorized that one as well on his own some time later). In memorizing that poem he had never imagined that he would ever be faced with a Jabberwock, however.

"Sh!t..." He scrambled back away from the initial bite, flailing around for a moment as he hit the ground before pulling himself away and up into a mad run. "Sh!t, sh!t, sh!t...."

Whatever it was, it was big, and it was definitely after them. Dog's attention stayed divided between the path ahead and the girl beside him. He hadn't tripped over anything yet. Could you even trip here? If you weren't supposed to, anyway? Don't get distracted, he told himself frantically.

Laz snarled in the back of his mind, frothing, agitated, pulling at Dog to summon him even though they'd tested earlier and knew they couldn't. The weapon wanted to turn and fight.

When the claws or fangs sliced into his back Dog yelped inadvertently, then glanced to Hots, because he thought he'd heard her yell too. Or were there other people running? Was this instanced, or was it a single, larger event? "You -- okay?" he got out between strides. She was keeping up, even pulling ahead, and he was impressed.

[ THE CHASE PART 4 ] - A

The Jabberwock had found him, making him all the more glad that he had made the decision to snag the potion at the fork in the path. He took a leap to bound over a fallen branch, not daring to look back least a glimpse of the Jabberwock be the last look he was able to take.

He could feel the warmth of the beast's breath on his neck and debris from slaughtered trees were flying everywhere as the creature bumbled through its destruction. Either it was going to catch him in its claws or he was going to wind up trapped beneath one of the trees that had become victim of the beast's consuming rage.

He let out a colorful curse as a claw lashed out at him, causing him to stumble over his next few steps as if his legs were now useless noodles. He wasn't going to make it, not at this rate.

<Run, damn you.>

"I'm--Fine!" It was almost a gasp between pants as they kept moving. Had to keep moving. Had to get away.

Warrick was in her head like an over protective fog, and she tried to send him calming, reassuring thoughts, but the thunderous fall of giant feet and the hard snap of thick branches and trunks were loud and distracting. She wanted the comforting weight of the twin knuckledusters in her hands, but she couldn't summon him.

Voices rose up through the chaos. Loud, familiar voices, that called out to her. Maebe, America, Otto, Taym. People she cared about. She heard them screaming for her, and it made her slow, just a little bit, head turning as if she would look back, search the wood for them, but the quaity of their voices was wrong. They were strong, they would not cry out for help. She knew that. This was wrong.

More head games.

"Don't stop!" She didn't know if he could hear them as well, or something else entirely, or anything at all. All she knew was they couldn't stop.

[ The Chase - Part Two Take Two ]

He could hear them again, calling to him and whispering in his ears. Those in Japanese like he had heard before seemed more muffled, yet still there, just pushed aside as new familiar ones shifted through. Like they decided to try a different tactic. Trying to pull him with the allure of friends and comrades, those he knew on the island. Those that had picked colors and the basement nation, he could hear them. Calling to him.

And it worked. Because he had heard some of them here, or at least thought he had from earlier encounters. GreenRanger did the stupid thing and stopped.

And... well...

The creature still chased them, but now a clamor of voices began to rise behind them. People he liked, people he loved. People who were here, people who might be here, and if that had been all Dog might have turned to look, but there were voices mixed into the plaintive, frightened yells that belonged to people who couldn't possibly be in this dream with him, and it had to be a trick, had to be a trick.

"Not stopping," he answered, and the confirmation that Hots was hearing things too and that she knew it couldn't be real either helped a lot.