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Post by enigmamystere on Jun 8, 2017 10:34:32 GMT -5
"...you know, it kinda bothers me that he didn't really tell us why he was looking for this fairy."
Daring turns to her friend with a deadpan expression. "It really shouldn't. All we need to do is look for this creature while we search for the treasure."
"Yeah, I guess..." She opens her scroll, frowning as the two of them walk along once more. "...what the heck is Pesterchum?"
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Post by Pink Moon Wolf on Jun 8, 2017 21:28:45 GMT -5
"Huff... huff..."
Swift's sprint gradually slowed to a halt, at which point she leaned against her knees and caught her breath. It felt like she had just run from one end of the island to the other. With the amount of distance she had covered down there, including pathways she had doubled down on, she might as well have. And yet she was still no closer to Rainflower.
She pulled out her phone...
11:27 AM.
"Are you freaking crapping on the nuts I don't have?" Almost three and a half hours of this. Sure, she had spent a few hours more than that on this wild goose chase last night, but she really thought she'd be done with this by now, especially with Van there to help her. Why was this fairy so hard to find all of a sudden? Normally they were just around the corner even when you didn't want them to be. Which was most of the time.
Wait... that scent...
Swift perked up, suddenly noticing that Rainflower's sickeningly sweet scent was permeating the area. She took a good look around the cave, anxiously walking in the direction of the smell, rounding a corner...
...and winding up in Rainflower's abandoned workshop.
Her ears flattened. "Yeah. Of course. WHY DID I EXPECT ANY DIFFERENT?!"
With an agitated groan, Swift stepped into the little abode, sat down on the couch and opened up Pesterchum. No one had responded to her memo yet. Her frustration at this fact lasted only a few seconds before it occurred to her just how early it still was. She'd just have to give them some time.
In the meantime, she figured she'd get in touch with Van. The two had split up some time ago to cover more ground. Maybe he had some good news for her. Maybe, but probably not.
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-pinkmoonWolf [PW] started pestering arcaneGhostbuster [AG]-
PW: Any luck?
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Post by ParamountKeymaster on Jun 8, 2017 21:40:43 GMT -5
Meanwhile, somewhere deeper within the caverns, Van had slowed his investigation as well for the sake of conserving energy, searching the tunnels at little more than a light, somewhat sluggish stroll. Tracking spell after tracking spell had gotten him nowhere, and after casting so many of them in vain, you couldn't blame him for being tired. The utter discouragement of it all didn't exactly help.
He looked around at the luminescent crystals growing along the walls, wondering how deep they went, wondering how far he would have to go, wondering why he was suddenly so blind.
His phone buzzed, prompting Van to pull it out and sigh at Swift's two-word message. She probably already knew what was coming.
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AG: I can assure you that if I had any, I would have informed you by now.
AG: My apologies, Swift, but I'm already incredibly tired.
AG: I can only hope that Patrick will have enough energy to teleport somewhere and get us some lunch.
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Post by Pink Moon Wolf on Jun 8, 2017 21:48:21 GMT -5
PW: Yeah, go figure.
PW: Nothing on this end either. No fresh trails, no sounds, not even a reply from anyone on the memo.
PW: I wanna say that we'll find them eventually, but you can only run in a circle so many times before you realize you're going nowhere.
PW: But I can't just give up. Not when they're Evan's only hope.
PW: Probably.
PW: So... am I included in that "us"? Because I could use some lunch right about now too.
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Post by ParamountKeymaster on Jun 8, 2017 21:52:35 GMT -5
AG: If you need nourishment, I would be happy to oblige.
AG: I was thinking Subway. Sound good to you?
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Post by Pink Moon Wolf on Jun 8, 2017 21:56:57 GMT -5
PW: Yeah, Subway's fine.
PW: Chicken bacon ranch. 6-inch. Wheat. Provolone. American if they don't have provolone. Lettuce, onions, banana peppers, cucumbers.
PW: I can pay you back when this is all over.
PW: Meet me at Rainflower's place.
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Post by ParamountKeymaster on Jun 8, 2017 22:01:34 GMT -5
AG: Will do.
AG: And Swift? Please don't get discouraged.
AG: Knowing Rainflower, they'll come barging back in when we least expect it.
AG: And regardless of how long that takes, I know Evan will appreciate your effort regardless.
AG: ALSO WHATS UP WIT U N CUCUMBERS I DONT GET IT
AG: NVM IM GOIN SYS
-arcaneGhostbuster [AG] ceased pestering pinkmoonWolf [PW]-
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Post by Pink Moon Wolf on Jun 8, 2017 22:16:40 GMT -5
Swift took a deep breath, tossed her phone onto the couch cushion next to her and leaned back. Might as well take this opportunity to calm down and clear her mind.
In the twelve-plus hours that had passed since Rainflower's disappearance, she had to wonder what in the world that fairy was up to. It was either something that had their full, undivided attention, or something that had put them in actual danger, regardless of how and if Rainflower perceived danger. Before, judging by Van's tracking spells, she had been so certain that they were still down there in the caverns, but she slowly started to accept the possibility that they could have ventured to the surface. If that was the case, the amount of ground they would have to cover was overwhelming. This could take forever at that rate, as if it wasn't already.
She hoped Evan would be willing to wait that long, but she knew deep down that a storm of frustration, fear and self-loathing awaited him when he woke up. It also gradually occurred to her that anyone she brought on board would have to learn about his condition eventually. The humiliation he'd inevitably have to go through was already weighing heavily on Swift.
Ugh... Bad choice of words.
Her ear perked slightly and she took a peek down the hall. She thought she heard something in the distance.
...............
What if...?
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Post by ParamountKeymaster on Jun 8, 2017 22:43:43 GMT -5
Patrick cheerfully slipped his phone back in his pocket, more than ready to make the jump to Subway. His stomach had been making the rumblies for hours, considering he didn't even have time to eat breakfast before his and Swift's arrival in the caverns. Now, after mentally begging Van for oh so long, a BMT was just within his reach.
Before he could cast a spell, however, a strange sound caught his attention.
"What the fridge?" By that point, Patrick was used to weird noises in the caverns. With all the fantastic beasts to find down there, one had to grow at least a little accustomed to the bizarre potpourri of barks, squawks and roars. But this... this unsettling screech like a whale choking on a car with an out-of-tune alarm... it was hauntingly familiar...
...and it was close.
So... curiosity or hunger?
To Van and Ray's dismay, Patrick's curiosity proved stronger as he tip-toed around the corner, hoping to catch a glimpse of whatever had made that sound.
"Eep...!"
And he found it alright.
The creature was currently rubbing up against a patch of stalagmites, unaware of his presence. A freaky, luminescent, elephant-sized creature with the body of a stegosaurus, the head of a lamprey, a mane full of tentacles, two long antennae, and enormous clawed hands. As it scratched itself with the jagged rock formations, it grunted out a series of sharp, discordant mutters, simultaneously sounding like an angry bull and a power drill being constantly switched on and off.
Its antennae pointed in Patrick's direction, at which point it froze and looked his way.
GULP.
With a deep, rumbling breath, the dinosaur-lamprey-thing lumbered over to Patrick until it was much too close for comfort, staring down at him with its beady, blue-green eyes. Its jawless mouth flopped about as it panted, exposing its circular array of studded, albeit dull, teeth. It slowly ducked and bobbed, examining the boy from all angles. All the while, Patrick could only stand there, frozen in utter terror, wanting to run but too stymied to even flinch.
"Um... Hello."
The creature's mouth opened to a grotesque size as if it was yawning, letting out a warbling howl like a cyborg dog. Three long, snake-like tongues slithered out of its mouth, stretching towards Patrick.
"SWEET HAROLD RAMIS!!!"
The tongues' alarming proximity to his face were enough to snap Patrick out of his stupor, prompting him to turn and make a mad dash away from this abomination.
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Post by gantzgun74 on Jun 12, 2017 20:39:00 GMT -5
Erin really wanted to hit herself for taking so long to get here. There it was, the entrance to the Geodesic Caverns and yet here she was showing up hours later then she was supposed to.
But really, she had her reasons. When she had learned the name of the sickness that had afflicted Evan, she had decided to follow his trail of matter in the jungle before she finally stumbled across the mud-hole he had supposedly fallen into when he and the others had went traversing through that area. In spite of scanning over the bog numerous times, it left her with no results on what she had been hoping to find... So she did the next best thing and carefully collected a sample of the sludge, thoroughly cleaning up the outside, and sending the vial, along with a note, to Alphys for analysis.
After all, no matter how many times she thought about it, it just made no sense at all that such a magic based disease was left over in this bog...
Which said to her SOMEONE had left it there. Whether by accident or on purpose who could-
Actually, it was likely by accident. After all, the chances of anyone walking into that mud-pool seemed abysmal since barely anyone walked out this way. Well, whatever the case it was still odd...
And now here she was, at the Geodesic caverns... And judging by the matter trails, she had been an hour or so behind Swift and her party...
"After what my bro told me, I can't imagine Rainflower would leave this place along with all of their experiments..." But then again, Rainflower was Rainflower. "Whatever, I should be getting in there-"
Then she heard it... It was distant, echoing through the caves and yet muffled somewhat by the distance....
But she could hear the howling of some terrible unknown creature.
".... Oh snap... Oooh boy, okay..."
... She pulls out her racket and quickly rushes inside.
Momentarily she wished Alex was here, the godly backup would've been GREATLY appreciated.
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Post by ParamountKeymaster on Jun 12, 2017 21:17:30 GMT -5
"CRUD CRUD CRUD CRUD CRUD...!" Without thinking too hard about it, Patrick just kept running through the cavern, desperate to put as much distance between himself and this thing as possible. Needless to say, given how drained he had been prior, he was exhausted mere seconds after beginning his sprint. He severely doubted he had enough energy to cast some sort of spell in self-defense. What little he had left had to be saved for that teleportation spell, which he was mentally preparing in the meantime. Once he was absolutely certain he was safe, he sure as heck was ollying outie.
He risked a peek over his shoulder. The creature was still back there, chasing him with a bouncy gait like a dog playing fetch, barking like a wounded seal that had swallowed a broken smoke detector. And it was clearly gaining on the tired mage.
"OOOOOKAY YOU'RE NOT GONNA LEAVE ME ALONE!" No time like the present to make his escape, it seemed. As he continued to run, Patrick promptly faced forward again and raised his hands, purple light swirling around him as he prepared to make the jump. He charged up a portal. He leaped forward...
SLAM
"Waaaaaaaaaall..."
Patrick fell backwards, peeling off the cavern wall and landing flat on his back on the cold, hard ground, his magic dissipating and his head throbbing.
The creature slid to a halt, its claws scraping against the stone beneath it. Standing directly above Patrick, it let out another bark, one of a seemingly inquisitive nature, antennae twitching and pointing down at the boy. It lowered its head in his direction, mouth open and tongues writhing.
"MEEP...!"
This was not the kind of lunch break Patrick had hoped for...
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Post by gantzgun74 on Jun 12, 2017 21:58:43 GMT -5
The creature drew closer, one could almost swear it was licking it's chops-
SHOOM, Only for a dark portal to open up nearby and a racket to launch out of it, striking the beast away with great force.
The racket then vanished into another portal and Patrick heard the wind whistling, as if something was floating up to the scene fast.
"HEEEEEY!!!!" And indeed there was Erin, showing up and landing from her in cavern flight between the beast and Patrick, holding her racket up defensively... "PHEEEEW... Big boy..." As the beast recovered, she turned to look at Patrick. "Hey! You okay?? Answer quick, I doubt that thing's gonna stay down long!"
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Post by ParamountKeymaster on Jun 12, 2017 22:12:05 GMT -5
As the racket collided with its flank, the beast let out an ear-piercing screech like nails on an underwater chalkboard and toppled over onto its other side.
Patrick was left lying there, completely petrified, eyes wide and breath held, mind only barely registering the fact that he had narrowly escaped being eaten. He managed to pull himself back to reality, if only slightly, when Erin addressed him, prompting him to sit up on shaky arms and stare up at the thief in a stupor. "Um... Well, I'm alive!"
The dinosaur-lamprey-lion flailed about on the ground for a moment, then gripped the floor and wall and pulled itself back up, shaking itself off once it was back on its feet. Its beady eyes studied the two humans, twitching antennae pointing first at Erin, then at Patrick. It let out a loud, squeaky sound, like a pitched-down cross between a dog toy, a duck, and a bear. Then it charged at the two with a bellowing screech.
"YIPE!" Patrick was still too dazed and terrified to move. All he could think to do was try in vain to conjure another teleportation spell, weary and scrambled as his mind was. "GET ME OUTTA HEEEEEEEEEEEERE!!!"
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Post by DMis on Jun 12, 2017 23:34:10 GMT -5
-dracoricMistress[DM] has responded to the memo-
DM: What'cha needed Swift?
DM: Sorry for the late reply... Headset decided to glitch on me.
DM: What's happened?
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Post by Pink Moon Wolf on Jun 13, 2017 17:11:50 GMT -5
...! Swift's ears shot up all the way when she heard her phone go off, quickly scooping it back up and reading the green lines of text in the memo. Finally, a response! Another potential pair of eyes and ears! After taking a deep breath, she quickly typed a response...
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PW: Oh, thank God.
PW: Well, long story short, Evan's been transformed by a Rainflower potion and we need to find them to get a cure for it.
PW: Patrick/Van and I have been searching for three hours now, plus the... I think five or so hours I spent last night looking for them alone.
PW: And I'm pretty sure Erin's somewhere around here too. Haven't heard anything from her since before we started looking.
PW: At this point, I can safely say I'm getting desperate.
PW: For Evan's sake, I NEED help finding Rainflower!
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