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 Posted: Wed Oct 09, 2019 3:04 am
Quote: Destiny City News reports several sightings of 'rabid dogs' appearing throughout the city. Those interviewed claim that the dogs would surround them and chase them down the streets, seemingly popping in and out of sight until the person finally found themselves in a well lit area. You have the misfortune of running into these same dogs. They cling to the shadows as you go about your way at night. Seemingly at the corner of your vision, one flickers by, and you turn and see nothing. Again and again it happens. They are trying to drive you into the darkest corners of the city, herding you away from the light. In the nearby distance are the lights of the city: streetlights, signs, traffic. You have to do something to get there, to escape these creatures. When you make it to any significant light source, you hear a low growl, a wailing hiss; the dogs have vanished. For now.
Liliane regardless of what form she'd taken didn't like to be a coward, but as she sat on the bench at the edge of the market square she couldn't help but regard the shadows with increasing suspicion. Had the city always been this weird? She was all about current affairs and news but for some reason she hadn't noticed that the supernatural was an all too frequent occurance.
What was it they said, ignorance was bliss?
The red-head's nose wrinkled as she continued to stare at the shadowed street nearby... It was the shortest route home and yet she had already confirmed she would be taking the much longer route. Still, people were still coming out of it and they seemed fine so maybe it was safe?
Her expression was one of complete indecision as she weighed up her options, though to an onlooker she probably looked a little strange. 'not all there' would likely have been an accurate description as she rose from the bench briefly and stretched her hand out to 'touch' a nearby shadow (though nothing came of it) before taking a seat again.
Perhaps if she found someone heading in a similar direction they might be able to make their way through together without attracting attention or was this simply a case of these things not giving a rats a** and all measure of people were fair game?
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Posted: Thu Oct 10, 2019 8:32 am
He didn't like bright lights. Despite his glamour, his youma eyes were still sensitive to light. Crowds also were things he was trying to adapt too, but with the holidays season, more and more people went out to shop, go to events, and look at displays. Despite the merriment of the approaching holidays, people were still on edge of leaving the well-lit boulevards and plazas of the city to the darker corners where lighting was sparce or lighting piles barely functioned.
Winter stood at the edge of the ring of light and people, a backpack slung over his shoulders from his latest adventure in being human, and watched with wrapped attention at the shadows.
Dogs. The very mannerisms of their movements and aggression called the darker instincts of his mutated blood out to fight, run, and challenge these packs. He wanted to smell them, taste what blood they could eek, and hear their calls.
So far none had stayed solid and yet they had a power. Something foreign to this world but natural to the universe.
He took a few steps out.
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Posted: Tue Oct 15, 2019 1:48 pm
With the crowds so thick and so determined to stay within the confines of the most well lit areas it was more difficult to people watch than usual. Now and then people would walk directly in her line of sight at the most inopportune time and whatever story she might have painted in her own mind would be interrupted. There were few within the crowd that stood out, with the majority behaving in much the same way, the more subtle and nuanced interactions were lost.
People were tense, paranoid, or unsettled; in some cases they may have been all three. A season that was meant to be fun had turned into something much more malevolent and she couldn't say she appreciated it.
Nevertheless something did catch her gaze, across the sea of people there was one individual that seemed less perturbed than those around her. He had seemed less inclined to enter the swarm and instead, he'd simply remained on the edges. She couldn't blame him for that, she knew of plenty of people who really liked their personal space...but when he stepped closer to the shadows she couldn't help but sit up.
Was he mad?
Her lips parted in surprise and she quickly leapt up from where she had been loitering to begin to make her way towards him, she might not reach him in time but even so, she felt inclined to make sure he was safe. Perhaps he was one of the rare few who hadn't experienced the wonders of these shadowed beasts yet? If so, then it was better he didn't walk into the dark regardless of how much he disliked crowds!
Alternatively, maybe if she was in close proximity, even several foot steps behind, then the power of numbers would dissuade those things from attacking...
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Posted: Mon Oct 21, 2019 7:12 am
He didn't like people too close behind him. Every fighting and natural instinct told him that that was dangerous. Turning your back on anyone gave them an opening.
But she was a human. A civilian. A normal person in Destiny City's dance and had no thoughts if death, war, and fighting aside from the movies and hospitals. Considering her, she looked too healthy too to be an addict who could stab him for money. Too clean to want to mug him. Humans could be scary on their own, but she didn't move like a monster.
He glanced at her as if to see if she wanted anything. "Hello?"
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Posted: Mon Oct 21, 2019 3:42 pm
Spotted!
A winning smile appeared on her lips and she raised both hands to give a wave, she was more than just a little nonthreatening and certainly didn't pose a danger to anyone like him. Quite frankly, anyone with any amount of intelligence and reasonably quick feet could have outrun her. She was neither agile nor willing to jump over fences and through various other regions of the city at the moment.
"I ah..." she cleared her throat and motioned to the shadows, they were nearing the threshold and if they went any further then she would soon find out whether or not the dogs did chase groups or if they only chased individual targets. Regardless of what might happen though she would rather have made her way home and even a temporary increase in numbers might help.
"I'm just going this direction," she replied and pointed down the way.
"...But there's been a lot of weird stuff in the shadows lately and I wasn't really feeling the whole 'get jumped and mugged' thing so I figured if I followed behind someone then maybe I'd be less interesting," she confessed. She wasn't going to admit she was afraid of ghostly dogs but people hiding in dark alleys made sense, right? Especially when everything was so dark and the shadows seemed intent on cutting off safe passage around the city.
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Posted: Wed Oct 23, 2019 8:29 am
He smiled at her, humored by her logic. "And who is to say I'm any less dangerous?"
With that thought, he turned and started to walk. "You can come along but not behind me. I don't like people at my back." He said to her, gesturing to the space beside him for her to go if she wanted to come along. She'd have to make the decision soon because he was already moving into the shadows.
"Where do you live? If you want, I can walk you are far as you want. The dogs don't seem intent to kill right now. They don't seem to be able to be grabbed." He told her as he put his hands into his coat pickets for now. It was getting chill at night.
But then he considered something else and removed a hand to offer his to her. "If they try and grab at you, I can hold onto you. I'm pretty good at fighting if you want a little help. I'd feel better knowing you made it home safe then waiting around here all night on the off
chance someone comes around."
He was already going that way anyways and if nothing happened then he could just teleport home anyways. Considering he was fighting for the Negaverse, it was best he take time to remember why he was fighting and that was for the people in the city. While the shadows weren't cause by the Negaverse, it was still their responsibility to handle it. This was their territory after all.
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Posted: Tue Oct 29, 2019 2:29 am
"Uh..." She pursed her lips thoughtfully at his question before shaking her head. "You're tangible, I can see you and at least feel your presence," she pointed out. It wasn't the most eloquent way of explaining it but as a solid being he had a pull and it was reassuring to know that something real was there. Regardless of what he might have actually been he was more safe to her in those moments than the hounds that had chased her more than once and pushed her into regions that may not necessarily have been that safe.
"To be honest I'd rather take that risk and go up against something I can touch rather than that," she glanced warily at the shadows and hurried forward to fall into step with him. In a straight up fight she would be useless, he could certainly do some damage to her and she wouldn't be a challenge, but at the very least she might be able to do some damage back even if it was just a simple scratch or two.
However the offer to get her home...
"I live in the suburbs, just a little bit out from the centre of town. There's plenty of streetlights out there once I can get to it, it's just getting there," she admitted and wrinkled her nose. "If you're passing by I'd appreciate the company though," she added with a warm smile. Admittedly she shouldn't have been walking home with strangers at all but when presented with a friendly face and the possibility of being hounded again there wasn't really any alternative.
"There's safety in numbers, you know?" For now she gave him the benefit of his personal space, he could slip his hands back into his pockets if he liked. If worst came to worse then she could reach out and grab him but she was going to keep a more positive mindset.
"I'm Lily by the way, figured I should probably offer that rather than letting you walk some random nameless girl home," she chuckled. "And um...thanks for that as well, you could have just said no," she admitted.
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Posted: Fri Nov 08, 2019 10:59 am
"I could have said no. You could have not come over. But here we are. I'm Winter." He said, putting his hands back into his pockets and walking down the street. The light behind them faded as they were casted in the dark shadows of the buildings and the night sky. Signs and billboards hung higher up but too far up to shine any light on them.
"So Lily? What do you do? Student? Working?" He said, deciding to practice on his social skills a bit with normal people.
There was some distant growling of dogs further off a d Winter looked over in the direction ahead of them but didn't remove his hands from his pockets.
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Posted: Tue Nov 12, 2019 2:14 am
The conversation was a distraction and it was one that she appreciated. She was tense enough as it was and to have someone with a more relaxed demeanour was comforting. It settled her nerves a bit and deep down she was envious of just how easy he seemed to adjust to the impending sense of doom... particularly when she heard the growling elsewhere.
He'd afforded them a glance, she'd simply tensed her jaw.
"Student for the most part," she forced herself to smile and kept her stride in line with his despite the urge to walk significantly quicker. Perhaps they were attracted to panic and if she were to move more rapidly they'd close the gap!
"But I'm looking for part-time work as well," she admitted and released a sigh. "I need to break up my days a little and I'm not in Uni all week so I might as well do something constructive with it," she added. She had been lucky her parents could afford to cater to her educational requirements but that still didn't mean she should be a total drain; besides, a job would give her the chance to meet new people as well and she'd never say no to that.
"You? Employed or just exploring other opportunities?"
She hadn't seen him around campus but then again she hadn't seen most folks, it was a big place after all.
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Posted: Tue Nov 12, 2019 5:44 am
"I do a lot of work for my family that keeps me busy most days. It affords me some pocket change but otherwise bit enough to afford a house. I'm going to be looking for odd jobs in order to save up. I have a friend who is interested in moving in with me so it should help the cost. My life is erratic and unpredictable so a steady job isn't something I can do, but with the season it shouldn't be hard to find something. Destiny City is at least good for having that."
He set a hand at her back and was moving her to the other side a moment, eyes a dog that had materialized beside them and was flanking the side. Winter had no way of knowing if the dogs could sense what he really was or just wanted to pick off the person who was most tense. Either way, he was watching them.
He released his hand from her soon after. "Sorry. One there is getting very close."
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Posted: Tue Nov 12, 2019 7:04 am
"I was going to work at one of those haunted houses," Lily smiled at the thought, when she'd been out of town those things had always been so fun. She'd been excited at the possibility of dressing up and donning make-up, maybe learning how to walk on creepy stilts to scare the little kids... But now that she was in Destiny City where she appeared to be the target of decidedly less pleasant jests she wasn't so sure.
"It sounded like it'd be a fun job, kind of like being a Christmas Elf but for Halloween instead," she shrugged. "Only a zombie, a witch, or something that looks quite so cute," she admitted and shook her head. She barely even flinched as she was carefully redirected to his other side and only briefly glanced off to the side to acknowledge the fact that as expected, the damn things were back again.
"Maybe you could do something like that...?" she hazarded and pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Unless you're not really into the roleplaying elements in which case," she paused to consider what else there might be around. Based on the fact there was that creepy as heck carousel there were bound to be tour guides around. Regardless of whatever he decided to go for it did seem that this city in particular was very good in terms of part time opportunities.
"You're not scared easily are you?" she asked family and returned her gaze to him. "Like, those things really don't seem to bother you at all," she acknowledged. She may have been misreading him or he may simply be that brave, but given his measured approach to moving her from one side to another, he seemed very much in control... A polar opposite to the giddy red head.
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Posted: Tue Nov 12, 2019 7:18 am
"I suppose it depends on the haunted house. I don't like dark, confined spaces or mirrors. I could probably scare people in an open area though." But Halloween was fast approaching and he wasn't sure if they would hire him so late in the season.
"I could try that. Thanks for the suggestion."
With the shadows starting to form a group, their walk escalated to a faster walk. Not a run just yet or even a jog.
His attention was split between her and them, but he didn't miss a beat in talking to her. "I'm afraid of what they can do which makes me take them seriously. It's healthy to be afraid at least a little. I've just been in a lot of weird situations thanks to this city and I've also been in a lot of dangerous situations that have put my life at risk. While I love dogs, I know they can be vicious. I respect them, but I know when to watch them."
Then he glanced at her and smiled. "I also like a good fight, animal or otherwise." And his eyes went back to watching the shadows that were now circling them as they moved.
"We might have to run at some point. When it happens, don't look back." For now the dogs were just watching.
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Posted: Wed Nov 13, 2019 2:58 am
"Maybe I should call you Edward," she mused. Sure he'd introduced himself, but some of his personal preferences made him seem like he was a pop culture vampire! Afraid of mirrors, enjoys a good fight, about to take on some dogs. She wasn't much in to teen fiction but it was a smile she very much needed in an otherwise tense situation.
Nevertheless, it seemed that the very thing she hadn't wanted to happen was going to happen. Those shadowed entities cared little for numbers and based on their increasing insistence, they seemed otherwise inclined to push ahead and challenge the pair of humans who walked through their territory.
"You know, I used to be a dog person," she admitted and slowly shook her head. "It's sort of changed as of late," she added. Between the attacks from dog-shaped youma and now the shadowed, snarling beasts of the void, she was becoming more inclined towards the purring kind than those who were larger and normally more affectionate. "Cats have been far more friendly and that's saying something," she murmured and glanced over her shoulder again.
By the sound of things, Winter fully expected them to make a play for both her and him. More importantly, it seemed that this would be quite soon and it would be in her best interests to prepare herself. That being said, why did it sound like he fully intended to stay behind?
She hated that line.
Don't look back.
Why not, what did he intend to do? She didn't want to be responsible for someone else experiencing pain!
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Posted: Thu Nov 21, 2019 6:22 pm
He stared back at her, confused. "But my name is Winter?" He had just told her his name. Why was she going to call him Edward.
Thinking her a bit odd, he walked at a slightly faster pace with her. "You shouldn't give up on dogs. They are good, faithful, and loyal. Just because some crazy dogs out here are following us doesn't mean the rest are bad. Don't let this sour your experience. There are plenty of strays around here that may seem mean but are actually just scared and trying to survive. I've found that with a bit of kibble and some patience, they are usually kind." Which was why he often kept pet food in his space pocket during patrols. The number of stray animals he found was crazy, and if he could manage to swing by the humane society and tie a leash to the door for the night, then he knew he got at least one off the streets. Others were just feral and he left them to enjoy the streets they grew up on. There just were some animals not made for homes.
"I think we might need to run soon. Start jogging. I'll jog alongside you. I'll take care of any of them as we move. Alright? Let's go." And to this he quickened the pace.
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Posted: Mon Nov 25, 2019 8:59 am
"Pop culture joke," Liliane coughed and shook her head. It had obviously fallen flat, but she refrained from explaining it as the humour was far gone now. This wasn't a criticism of Winter, hell, it might have been a compliment given he had managed to dodge some of the more cringe-worthy teen pop culture that she had been exposed to in passing!
Nevertheless, while not an impassioned speech, she did take note of the case he made for dogs. Up until recently she had been more inclined towards them, they'd always been playful, lovable and genuinely affectionate. It had only been from the day she had awakened that this stance had shifted somewhat, casting her love for the fluffy pups into question after several more disconcerting meetings.
"I'll try," she offered with a small nod.
It was the most she could do for now, she would have to approach canine kind with caution for a while and build up her confidence again gradually. Maybe in time she would be back to cuddling them willingly, for now though a delicate pat might be the best she could do.
Still, their time together seemed to be numbered, those shadowed creatures that had chosen to prowl in the depths have swept up on her quicker than she had realised. Unsurprisingly she didn't need much convincing to move a little quicker and she matched his speed.
They'd be nearing the streets she was most familiar with soon and once there she was likely to be able to cuddle under each of the street lamps if she needed to... However if he told her to run, she probably wouldn't have needed much persuading, credit where it was due but this guy seemed to be more than capable of taking care of himself.
Winter didn't seem disconcerted, not like her anyway.
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