[ em ] Into the Wild ( Merric & Lysander & Lawrence )

[kuropeco]

Survey Mission 6969-B
Location: Northern Canada
Images: x, x
General Debriefing: You're told about a semi-remote part of the Northern Canadian Wilderness which, after someone wrote a book about finding themselves after hiking the area, has become popular with young adventurers. A few different groups have gone missing - thought by local authorities to simply be unlucky in the wilderness. Absurd stories by survivors and other groups, however, have led to the need for an investigation.

**This is pretty far north, please dress accordingly and keep an eye on the weather and season!

**This is a class C mission, meaning you need at least 3 team members and at least one must be an Intermediate Trainee or higher!

Quote:

Mechanics: RP assembling a team as needed, and head to the lighthouse.

The portal drops you on what can only be described as a tundra. There are rolling hills, large boulders left by glaciers after the last ice age, and the tallest trees, barely taller than you, are huddled in small groups few and far between. Most of the plant life is small shrubs clinging to life around rocks, and small grasses that are low to the ground to avoid the freezing wind. The ground itself is soft in parts, and wet and muddy nearly all over.

Roll 1 d100 and match your roll to the result below. RP accordingly. Complete 3 rolls per person on your team. (Each can roll individually, or one person can roll for the group - as long as you end up with at least 3 rolls per person, with RP, you can consider the mission complete!)

Your Roll:
1-10 - Rising Temperatures have begun to melt the permafrost that has been frozen for hundreds if not thousands of years. You step in a very, very soft spot of earth - sinking down to your thighs into the ground. The air you've released smells moldy and stale, and cold water begins to seep into your shoes and clothing - and the small mice whose house you just ruined run up your back.

11-20 - What appears to be a gently rolling hill actually turns out to be a rolling hill a surprise cliff. You fall into a hole about 10 feet deep, and only about 4 feet wide on either side. The floor is littered with bones - human and animal alike. You'll need help to get out of the hole.

21-30 - You see a campsite. It's deserted, the small tent in tatters. Further investigation reveals 3 sleeping bags, a pack of MREs, some granola bars, and a broken compass inside. Near what was once a fire is a small cook stove and a rusting pot. There is a single left boot on the edge of the camp, but no other sign of whoever built the camp.

31-40 - You stumble and look down, only to see that you've stepped in a rather large animal track. At first glance if looks like it might be a dog or cat track - except it's a bit too long, a bit too large, and it very clearly has very huge claws. From heel to toe it's at least a foot long, the claws easily add another 6 inches of length. Whatever made the track was heavy.

41-50 - You come over a small rise to find dead caribou. In life it was enormous - in death it still is. If you feel like examining the body you'll see the kill is fresh. The caribou had it's throat ripped out - but the only meat missing is the liver and the heart. Aside from the neck wound and a hole in the torso the beast looks untouched.

51-60 - The wind picks up suddenly. It's biting cold, too cold, and you consider calling it a day before you freeze to death out here. On the wind, you hear and eerie howl, accompanied by an even eerier laughter.

61-70 - A large boulder looms in front of you. As you start to go around it, something catches your eye. A huge stick is shoved in the ground next to the boulder. A top the stick is a human skull - bleached white underneath the dark red paint that has been applied to it. Various other bones are arranged in front of the stick - in a pattern that has no meaning to you. Images of humans and animals have been painted on the boulder behind the strange altar.
Some of the bones are fresher than others.

71-80 - A pile of clothing sits on the ground. A shard of obsidian sits tangled up in what was once a shirt - and the whole thing reeks of death. Scattered around the pile are other pieces of stone weaponry.

81-90 - A creature - you can't tell what type because it appears to be an amalgamation of many seems to rise up out of the ground in front of you. It stinks of death, decay, and mold. It looks like several small animal corpses have merged into one corpse the size of a fox. Borrowed bones stick out at odd angles, and while it has no much you can see you have the odd feeling it DOES want to eat you.
The Amalgamation has 10 hp and does -1hp damage to you per attack. It will dissipate when it reaches 0. Attack rolls do not count towards the three you need to finish the mission.

91-99 - A barrage of caws makes you look up. A murder of crows circles overhead, cawing and cackling, seeming at you and your party, before whirling off to head even farther north.

100 - You've awoken a boss! It oozes up out of the ground - made of earth and skeletons. The stench of death and decay wafts at you from it - it's many, many eyes from dozens of skulls glow faintly in the light. It has claws, teeth, and jaws from various creatures. It's a huge monstrosity - a giant Amalgamation intent on absorbing you, too. The Amalgamation Boss has 100hp and does 10hp in damage per attack.
(If you roll the boss and choose to run you can consider the mission done no matter how many rolls you've done!)

 

[kuropeco]

Merric had never been on a mission before, unless one counted the whole Sahara desert thing, and he was relatively nervous about going on one now. He had prepared himself carefully, making sure he wasn't too scattered, but at least, if he was anything, it was meticulous and cautious.

Mostly. There were, of course, some exceptions.

He arrived at the lighthouse with good time, Merric waiting at the doorway for whoever was supposed to join him, his fur lined coat already tucked warmly around him. It wasn't completely freezing on the island yet, so he felt slightly overwarm, but the papers had indicated the mission would be far, far north, so he'd likely be grateful later on.

Merric took a breath, readjusted his bag and his coat and his hair and the waistcoat underneath for possibly the third time in as many minutes, and tried to look calm.

Baneful

 

[Baneful]

Lysander had no idea what to expect on missions, he’d been on one so far and it had been nice, but this one said specifically it would be on questionable terrain and very cold. He hadn’t really brought anything suitable himself so he was forced to ask the quartermaster for some clothing to wear. What resulted was a lot of trying on ill fitting cast offs from other people until he found something that acceptably fit.

Lawrence on the other hand knew what to expect this time and had dressed in several layers of comfortable warm clothing suited for the cold. It had been difficult finding everything in white and was a sheer testament to stubborn vanity that he’d even managed it at all. He had almost sworn when he saw who he was babysitting. At least no one would be escaping that day, he’d happily hunt the fugitive down and put him down if he had to.

Merric got a stiff handshake when Lawrence arrived.

“Where is your friend?” He asked sharply.

Lysander was nowhere to be found.

kuropeco

 

[kuropeco]

Merric, who was not a denizen of Twitter normally and who likely had missed all of the drama currently ongoing with their mission supervisor, caught sight of Lawrence striding over and offered him a friendly smile, if not a slightly shy one.

The sharpness of the greeting tone, however, made him falter, Merric blinking.

"Oh," he said, trying to think. "I - I'm not sure, I...wasn't aware of who else was supposed to be on this mission..."

Merric trailed off, a little uselessly, but more than a little regularly.

Baneful

 

[Baneful]

Lawrence seemed somewhat heartened at Merric not immediately deciding to dislike him and even seemed to soften up a little towards him, giving him a reassuring smile. "Oh, my apologies. Yes, it looks like both you and Lysander Astoria have been assigned to this one."

He handed over a folder to the other man which detailed the location they'd be going to.

"He has a history of being quite rude to me I'm afraid, I assumed he'd have already twisted you against me, delightful to see you are your own man. Allow me to introduce myself, Lawrence Michaels." he said sweetly.

And as if on cue, Lysander sauntered up behind him and beamed. The fact of the matter was that Lysander didn't have a problem with Lawrence, he thought he was excellent and a horse enthusiast just like him. It was Lawrence who couldn't stand existing in the same world as the other man.

"Oh great!" he said brightly. "Hey Merric! Hey Michaels!" and with the ease and effortlessness of someone who had never really worried about anything, he made his way over behind Merric.

"Where are we going?" he asked, expecting automatically to be filled in the way Roswell did.

kuropeco

 

[kuropeco]

He brightened considerably, both at the smile and at the knowledge that Lysander would be joining them, Merric only barely managing to contain the wide smile that threatened to cross his face. "Oh, that's lovely; but I haven't seen him yet today, I'm afraid."

Merric's brows drew together as he reached out to take the offered folder, a frown tugging at his lips. "Oh? I'm...I wasn't aware of that, but...I'm sorry to hear that." Maybe they just didn't get along well? He had no idea what could have transpired between them, but at least he was now meeting the man who'd messaged him on Twitter.

"Ah, yes - the doctor, was it?" Merric asked. "Merric Cassel; I'm glad to meet you."

Lysander's appearance made his smile lift again, as it always did. "Hello, Lysander," said Merric, the folder still held open in his hands as the other stepped up behind him. "It looks like we're going to the arctic - or somewhere cold, that is, here - "

He extended the folder outwards, eyes scanning the information.

Baneful

 

[Baneful]

Lysander didn't seem too phased by the idea of going to the Arctic, mostly because he'd never been and the idea of somewhere cold to him implied snowboarding lodges with warm fires and plenty of state of the art electronically heated gear.

"Great!" he said, extending his hand to Lawrence who shook it with the most internal anguish he'd felt in some time. "A full hunter with us too again, that's nice, means we can be saved if we get into trouble. Really safe and good, can't ask for more than that really."

And obviously there wasn't much danger or he'd have been told about it already. It was going to be a nice walk in a new place.

Lawrence hated the cold and was dying at the thought of it. However, if there was something he was good at, it was personas. This was a situation of real necessity so he dug deep, reaching for the persona he always used when faced with unusual people and things he couldn't deal with.

His accent altered, suddenly a little more...cowboy than it had been prior.

"Ayup, a doctor. An animal doctor. Let's mosey boys, we've got some steers to rope." he said, and turned towards the portal.

kuropeco

 

[kuropeco]

It did help that they had Lawrence along, Merric thought, as he cast a glance between the two men. He and Lysander were still beginner trainees, after all, which meant that they only had so much firepower between them if something went wrong.

He sincerely hoped nothing was going to go wrong.

Merric closed the folder and hastily tucked it away before he flashed Lysander a smile as Lawrence turned towards the portal, his accent slipping into something a little more southern that Merric couldn't quite place and almost didn't notice because of the distraction of cold.

It was icy on the other side, chilly and bright. Merric tugged his coat more securely around him, his hair whipping around his face, staring around at the thickets of empty trees, the enormous boulders, the draping hills. It felt like a wasteland, somehow.

"This is...well, it's..." Merric hedged and took a step forward. Something screeched overhead, and he glanced up, catching sight of black wings and black beaks - a veritable hoard of crows that circled lower and lower until flapping away.

Merric shuddered, then gave Lawrence and Lysander a weak smile.

"Not ominous at all."

Quote:

91-99 - A barrage of caws makes you look up. A murder of crows circles overhead, cawing and cackling, seeming at you and your party, before whirling off to head even farther north.

Baneful

 

[Baneful]

It was cold as hell when they stepped out into the other side and Lysander made a noise in his throat as he bundled up into his scarf more tightly and tucked his gloved hands in his pockets. He reflexively moved closer to Merric, as if the smaller man could provide shelter from the cold, only to be startled by the creepy crows.

He made a face.

"Crebain from Dunland." he said seriously, before cracking up into laughter.

Lawrence meanwhile was irritated that he was having to babysit and even more irritated it was a pair of idiots, and walked on ahead a short way. This was a mistake though, as when he irritably walked across a soft patch of earth he sunk, sunk all the way down to his thighs, making a sound of surprise.

That was when the mice happened, scurrying up his back, and in an instant of complete identity confusion he leapt free and into the air, shapeshifting into a barn owl which let out an excited screech, seized one of the fleeing creatures up in its talons and then alighted on one of the scruffy trees to eat his prize.

Lysander stopped laughing to stare.

"Please tell me you saw that too." he said flatly.

kuropeco

 

[kuropeco]

Merric was privately pleased at Lysander moving closer, offering the other man a small smile, though he didn't understand the reference being made. He thought it had something to do with a movie or a book, but it had been a long time since he'd either read or watched anything that wasn't a documentary or something required for a class.

"I don't know what it is we're supposed to be looking - oh!"

Lawrence had abruptly fallen - no, not fallen. Sunk down, the ground almost swallowing him up, and Merric dashed forward, startled, reaching out to help him. Except then he was gone, and there was an owl, and Merric froze with a hand outstretched to nothing, staring up at the owl for a moment, before he turned to look at Lysander again, eyes round and huge.

"What - did he just - fly away?"

Baneful

 

[Baneful]

"Yeah!" Lysander said glad he hadn't just imagined that moment where he'd watched a grown man turn into a barn owl. A barn owl which was now devouring a small mouse in an entirely barn owl fashion.

"What if he doesn't come back?" he said, with a moment of concern. "Do we need to call someone?" He took a few steps in the direction of the owl. "Er... Lawrence?" he said, raising his voice in the hopes of being heard.

It did seem to snap the owl out of whatever zone it had been in and it snapped. "Oh NO." in a very human voice before dropping out of the tree in a swoop and shifting back on the ground. Lawrence looked a lot paler than usual, even ignoring the cold, trying hard not to throw up in front of two trainees. A mouse. A mouse he'd tasted vividly. To the owl it had been the best thing ever, to a human it was absolutely not.

"S..sorry about that pardners." he said woozily, before noticing Lysander's still concerned look. "An artifact." he said, in explanation.

"Let's...let's press on.."

Of course what they ran into next was a large dead animal, its throat torn out and heart and liver devoured by its assailant. Lawrence sighed at the sight, not really wanting to think about meat and now forced to listen to Butch emphatically rant about how much he wanted to taste it.

Lysander moved forward to inspect it, looking thoughtful before gesturing and stating.

"Well, it's dead." and nodding his head.

kuropeco

 

[kuropeco]

Merric was still extraordinarily concerned that their only full hunter had somehow managed to turn himself into an owl - especially because of the feasting on the mouse, which was admittedly making him feel a little sick as he cast a glance at Lysander beside him.

"I don't..." He trailed off as Lawrence flapped down to meet them again, reappearing in a gust of feathers and pale skin. Merric hurried towards him, expression concerned, and said, "Are you all right? Do you need anything, er...I'm sure we have water, somewhere..."

He felt a little helpless. Merric trailed along with the two others, staring in dismay at the carcass and Lysander's succinct observation of it.

"What killed it, do you think?" he asked, a shudder passing through him. "Do you think whatever it is might still be around.

He very much hoped not. Especially since, as he took another tentative step forward, Merric felt the ground give out from beneath him. He let out a small yelp of surprise, fingers scrabbling at the ground as he sank lower, the collapsing earth a musty, unpleasant scent where it wafted up from around his trapped legs.

"Oh - " Merric gasped out, then felt a mouse - and then another - and another - scurry upwards underneath his jacket, Merric wriggling to try and free himself.

Quote:

1-10 - Rising Temperatures have begun to melt the permafrost that has been frozen for hundreds if not thousands of years. You step in a very, very soft spot of earth - sinking down to your thighs into the ground. The air you've released smells moldy and stale, and cold water begins to seep into your shoes and clothing - and the small mice whose house you just ruined run up your back.

Baneful

 

[Baneful]

Lawrence shook his head at the offer of water, too busy still trying to figure out how many calories there were in a mouse and feeling very very ill at the thought of what he'd just done. It had been what Tweetheart would do, but he wasn't tweetheart and wasn't sure why he'd gotten so muddled up. Perhaps it was because it was difficult to stay Jan around people from the island, more and moreso these days.

Either way he wasn't too concerned by what had killed the animal, mainly because he was one hundred percent convinced that Butch and him could have done much much worse to an elk given half a chance. He didn't say this to the other men though, quite willing to let them get themselves worked up about whatever it was that they might be tailing. Flightiness meant that they'd be cautious and more compliant when it came to his orders.

Lysander didn't like it. He liked nature, he liked animals, this didn't feel natural and he believed very strongly that the spirits here weren't happy, that there was some sort of disruption, much the way he'd felt on the previous EM with Roswell. He'd tried to make light of it as best he could to hide this, but under his calm exterior he was panicking and more than a little bit afraid.

He almost jumped out of his skin as the other man also fell foul of the disgusting earth, relieved when it was just the revenge of another mouse family from earlier.

As one of the mice scurried free, Lawrence looked away and closed his eyes.

The weather was ridiculous he found himself thinking, thinking of anything other than the mice, the warm satisfying mice, and tried instead to think about how much he'd rather be back on the island, maybe on the beach with a cold drink.

He raised a brow as he heard what was almost unmistakably a howl, and laughter.

He found himself hoping it was a Halloween creature, because he was feeling tetchy and could really go with something to get his claws into.

kuropeco

 

[kuropeco]

Merric hoisted himself out of the ground, gasping a little. He smacked at his coat and vest until the last of the mice had skittered away, then climbed back to his feet, feeling a little off kilter, his face paler than usual. Laughter was echoing around them, hollow and chilled, and neither Lysander nor Lawrence looked particularly inclined to believe that this was a good thing.

It was all very unpleasant.

"What...do you think that was..?" Merric asked warily, tugging his coat more securely around him, never more grateful for its voluminous size and the fur lined interior than he was at this moment. He took a few more cautious steps forward, wishing he didn't feel quite so useless, his heart in his throat.

The bones made him take a step back even as he circled the boulder, Merric clearing his throat.

"Oh."

Quote:

61-70 - A large boulder looms in front of you. As you start to go around it, something catches your eye. A huge stick is shoved in the ground next to the boulder. A top the stick is a human skull - bleached white underneath the dark red paint that has been applied to it. Various other bones are arranged in front of the stick - in a pattern that has no meaning to you. Images of humans and animals have been painted on the boulder behind the strange altar. Some of the bones are fresher than others.

 

[Baneful]

Lawrence found himself strongly inclined to head straight back to the island and call this whole thing a complete waste of time, not because the other men had done anything directly wrong, but simply because his patience was eroding rapidly with every strange thing they ran into. He wasn’t entirely sure he was going to be able to bring both of the newer hunters back intact and was starting to consider what the consequences for him might be if he went back minus one or both of them. It was a mistake, he thought, yet here he was, babysitting two confused and upset men who weren’t used to the sort of horrible things which could happen on trips like this.

Lysander moved over to pet Merric on the shoulder sympathetically for his misadventure sinking into the ground. “You okay?” he asked, with concern. It had been only mice, but that sort of thing was quite a scare to stumble into, especially with the wind bringing strange sounds and with mangled animal carcasses around them.

They walked on against the cold breeze, Lawrence shivering physically even through his layers and with both arms wrapped around himself and with Lysander trying to keep up the pace with every part of him inclined to laze around rather than have to deal with this sort of thing.

When they stumbled upon the altar, Lysander only even noticed it via Merric’s response, raising both eyebrows way up high. “Tell me that’s a Halloween decoration.” He said grimly. “It’s gotta be fake.” He’d never seen human remains in person and found it highly distressing in a way he couldn’t articulate. It was one thing to see bones in a museum, it was a whole other thing to see them out in the wilderness, especially a dangerous, cold and brutal wilderness where it seemed entirely possible to die.

Lawrence stooped to pick up the skull in his hand and looked closely at it, inspecting the points where the bones fused, the teeth and the sinus cavity. “No, it’s real.” He said. “Weathered, but real.” He touched the red paint with his thumb, finding it dry.

“I can see why they sent us out here.” He said. “Stay alert.”