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 Posted: Sat Oct 17, 2020 7:40 pm
Quote: Confronting the Creature (1) : Everything about this place tells you that you should not be out at night. The forest turns wicked, a horrible fog rolls in, and a monstrous creature stirs. But you, for whatever reason, decided to be out late. Perhaps you thought you could hunt the creature, or solve some mystery, or perhaps you were simply unlucky. Either way, the creature has found you. This must be a battle, and you must quote the shop mule, Beckoning Chaos, if you wish to pursue this plot. You will need to send a PM to this mule to declare if you intend to escape or be captured, and any special requests or information you need to share! A moderator or GM will be assigned to RP the creature in this roleplay. You may manage to escape into a building if you are close enough into town, however if you manage to do this you will spend the rest of the evening with the creature tormenting you, banging on the house and trying to break in; you will suffer horrible hallucinations and be plagued with paranoia and fear until morning. If you do not manage to seek shelter, or if you would like the creature to break into your shelter, the creature will defeat you in battle and you will pass out. You cannot defeat the monster, but you may learn something about it in battle. If you lose, you will be taken to a cellar with other prisoners and held outside of the city. Please see the below prompt for more information!
Yes, even though Oberon was the one sneaking out at night, he was still concerned over his oldest brother’s self destructive tendencies. With Palatine babysitting Sessrumnir, Oberon felt as though he could take the opportunity to investigate the mysterious disappearances.
And the creature itself.
Behind him he could still just barely see the village as the sky darkened above. The fog would be rolling in soon, and with it the unknown being that lived in the forest.
“Don’t call it a monster,” he’d told Sessrumnir when they’d discovered those strange metal pieces the other day. “We don’t know what it is, but it’s not a monster. For all we know it’s trapped here like we are.”
Oberon had also suggested to his brother that maybe humans simply turn into that form after being there for too long, a hypothesis that he wasn’t very excited to test out.
In his hand he held the metal piece with the strange carvings. He hoped that it would help keep him calm as it had when he’d found it, but as the fog thickened along came with it a sense of dread.
He stood in wait, as it was only a matter of time.
“So, if you’re out there and can hear me and, uh, I guess understand me… I don’t mean you any harm. I just want to meet you,” Oberon called out into the fog covered forest.
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Posted: Sun Oct 18, 2020 5:25 pm
For a forest that seemed so still in the darkness, somehow everything seemed to move as well. In the blink of an eye, perfectly statuesque trees seemed to twist into new forms, to line up and space differently. In the gaps between them, sometimes a figure would appear. In a fraction of a second, it was gone, and only a swirling mist hovered in its absence. Oberon was not alone, but it did not seem as though he intended to be. Eyes were upon him, at first from a distance, just watching. But then, as if his invitation had drawn the creature, it was behind him. The night was cold, but the towering beast somehow cast a shadow even colder--and Oberon was right in the middle of it. The creature was silent as it appeared behind him; it did not attack, it simply observed.
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Posted: Mon Oct 19, 2020 4:50 am
Everything about this situation was telling Oberon that he should run, to give up on trying to learn something about the unknown, and to just try to survive another day. This was infinitely different than his dealings with youma, who were mostly predictable and animalistic. Very few youma he'd crossed paths with seemed to operate on more than just primal instinct.
This… Guardian… for lack of anything better to call it, because referring to it as a creature seemed too undignified… was different. Or maybe the world it lived in was so much different from what anyone from Destiny City was used to. Mythical, even. The environment, the fog surrounding it, seemed to be an extension of itself. Or perhaps it was the fog that bound it there.
Oberon's heart raced. He was curious and determined to learn what others were afraid to find out, but he wasn't suicidal. He enjoyed his life, and in spite of the dangerous situations he placed himself in, he didn't have any intention of allowing himself to be killed. But he also had no intention to fight.
His mind was playing tricks on him and moved trees in the darkness. Or perhaps they really did move and it wasn't an illusion but the careful manipulation the Guardian needed to trap all who were not welcome.
"We were brought here against our will. We only want to go home," Oberon spoke out into the darkness as it shifted around him, a figure appearing and then disappearing again between trees. He refused to assign blame to the Guardian until he learned more. He was still trying to piece together why, if it brought them there, it would bring them there to the village, only to drag them off one by one again, and seemingly without killing anyone in the process.
"Are you trapped here, too?" he asked, making sure his voice remained as calm as possible. Not because he wasn't afraid, but because keeping himself calm lessened the likelihood that he would unintentionally appear hostile.
And then he felt it. A shiver up his spine and hair on the back of his neck stood on end. The Guardian had appeared behind him, he was sure. Oberon could see his own breath, and even with a jacket the cold pierced through. A looming shadow was over him, even in the darkness.
"Do you not want me to look at you?" Oberon asked, this time his voice quieter to cover the shorter distance between them, acknowledging that it was much closer than was safe for him. Normally one would not keep their back to a predator, but Oberon was not convinced that was what this Guardian was.
"Does this belong to you?" he continued without an answer, holding up the metal piece with the carved runes to show over his shoulder. He didn't know what might inspire the Guardian to try and communicate with him, but he hoped his questions and actions would show he really meant it no harm.
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Posted: Tue Oct 20, 2020 5:01 pm
The creature had been prowling slowly around Oberon, sizing him up from a distance. Almost, it seemed to draw closer in curiosity--until the metal was brandished. It seemed to be considering him, though there was no indication that it actually understood his words or not. It wasn’t until Oberon brandished the metal piece that it really responded; the moment it was produced, the creature bristled and let out a harrowing screech, straight at him. It echoed through the air with such volume and ferocity that it could disorient and hurt. More than that, as the creature stared at the metal piece, its fingers stretched out and then clenched, as if to squeeze the life out of the air. The talons of its feet dug into the ground and it sank its claws into the dirt as it shuddered. Its feathers raised behind it, creating a shield of eyes that seemed to stare at Oberon even as the beast wailed on.
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Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 5:56 am
The screech startled Oberon, and he turned to finally view the Guardian fully. It looked and sounded like it was in agony. Slowly, Oberon lowered the piece of metal and placed it into the pocket of his shorts, away from view. His intention hadn't been to cause harm or distress. He merely wanted to observe and try to communicate.
"Sorry, is that better?" he asked, removing his hand from his pocket to show it was now empty. Trying to keep his heart from beating out of his chest was another challenge, and the staring eyes from the tail feathers did nothing to calm his nerves as the Guardian bellowed and shrieked.
Even in the darkness he could tell this was no run of the mill Destiny City magic. The youma he'd met were hardly this complex, and he didn't know of many that could use illusions or will forests to move.
And even as fear wanted to overtake him, he couldn't help the feeling of pity he felt. Had it been injured? He knew others had tried fighting it, and while only the piece of metal seemed to cause it pain, he wasn't sure it hadn't been hurt before. Burned, perhaps?
"It's okay," Oberon promised, his hands held up with his palms out to show they were empty. "Can you understand me? I won't hurt you. Not on purpose."
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Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2020 6:17 pm
Even with the metal away, the creature did not seem calmed. Its form contorted and it looked like it was in pain, trying to twist out of its skin--but its cold eyes were on Oberon the entire time. Maybe it did understand him. Maybe it could understand every single word. But it didn’t change anything. It let out another wrenching wail, a choked noise that clawed its way up its throat and made the trees themselves tremble where they stood. Even with Oberon’s empty hands and kind demeanor, the damage had been done. The creature’s feathers had been raised and it swayed where it stood; the eyes seemed to move as it did, always staring into Oberon. It looked like its joints had seized, but there was still something dangerous about it. Once more, it wailed, and it looked like it was going to charge at him. Its talons dug into the ground and it seemed to be preparing to charge--not for love of battle or a desire to do harm. It was acting out of defense, but there didn’t seem to be anything to do to calm it down now that it had been worked up.
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Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2020 4:47 am
Not good. That metal piece really messed with it, apparently. Oberon grimaced as the Guardian didn't seem to care that the metal had been put away, and took a step back when it looked like it was preparing to attack.
"It's okay," he promised once more, keeping his voice calm, but deciding that there was too much tension to make any kind of progress. "I'm leaving," he said, even though he knew he may never have another chance to really have a chance to study its behavior and find out if it needed help.
"I'm going to head back to the village and leave you alone. Okay?" Again, Oberon had no idea if it understood him, but he took careful steps backwards, heading in the direction of the village. Maybe it would let him go. If not, well… he unfortunately had a means of at least temporarily stopping it in its tracks.
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Posted: Sun Oct 25, 2020 3:05 pm
If ever the monster had been able to understand Oberon, it didn't seem to still be in the same mind frame. Even with the metal away, the monster was shuddering, taking in great breaths of air. It approached Oberon, though, like it was compelled to chase him. The more Oberon moved, the more the creature seemed to intend to follow. The hunt had began, and where it seemed slow at first, a noise in the distance made its head jerk and its adrenaline flared. It charged at Oberon, swiping at the air as it let loose another deafening howl in its attempt to subdue him.
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