Log:The Attack of the Sphinxbeast
| The Attack of the Sphinxbeast | |
|---|---|
Find anything cool at the market? | |
| Participants | 26 April, 2017 Two Custodian recruits meet by happenstance, and go on an adventure that turns south. |
| Location
Riverside Markets, Rainbowside Markets, Alley Escape, Row Houses, Suburban Sprawl | |
| The day's largely over, and the majority of the markets are already closed down. Despite this there's a man sitting on the sidewalk with an overlarge dog at his side. They're both eating sandwiches, although the beast is enjoying his on a plate that's set on the ground. Omari's in a jacket and shorts even though it's still cold, and his shoes are tapping with an odd beat as he hums along to the small amounts of chatter from exiting patrons. In spite of the day being over, Max is still lingering around the marketplace. Mostly because she can sense the hedge gate in the nearby area, even if she doesn't quite realize it. Sure, she has her suspicions, but there's nothing concrete yet. So, after buying a last minute item from a vendor that quickly closes up shop afterwards, the enchanted mortal is left with nothing else to do. She wanders along the area, bright blue eyes curious watching the various vendors as they start to close their shops. Eventually, it's Omari that catches her attention. Out of the various mundane mortals, one of the Lost certainly sticks out. There's a moment of consideration before she starts to make her way over to him, a curious look on her face. "Find anything cool at the market?" she wonders, briefly eyeing his canine companion before looking back to him. The beast as the Beast's side looks up at Max with eyes bluer than the Changeling. "Meat," it says to Max. The wolf-like create at Omari's side is wreathed in a small flurry of snowflakes that melt before hitting the ground while the Summer's mantle stands in contrast to that as an immediate wave of heat. The white wolf then barks up to her, "We're not sharing." This earns a brief chuckle from Omari, and a slow shake of his head. "Don't mind Romulus. He doesn't much like strangers." He smiles then, a warm thing despite the sharp teeth he's flashing. "Closest thing was a M*A*S*H* wallet, and some cutlery with dragons scrawled on them." "Oh, I'm not interested in taking anything you've found," Max assures him, briefly raising her hands in a defensive manner. "Though, you mind sharing the space?" she wonders. Without waiting for a real answer, the enchanted mortal takes a seat near him. Just out of arm's reach of Omari, and out of lunging reach of his animal companion. She stretches her legs out in front of her and rests her hands lightly in her lap. "Romulus, huh? Isn't that the name of a wolf from a Greek legend?" she questions with a raise of her brow, obviously both interest and curious. "No, that would be the wolf-mother, and it's Roman. I'm the /founder/ of Rome." The hedge beast likely would've been smiling if it could, and gets its head ruffled before it can say another thing. Omari's about to say something, but one of the vendors shouts out, "Tell your dog to stop barking!" This elicits a brief growl from hedge beast and Changeling. Omari clears his throat, but Romulus is still growling under his breath. "I named him and Remus because it seemed fitting, but I don't really know which is supposed to be the oldest." He stops a beat to take a bite out of his sandwich, but stops cold when a sense of manners hits him. He extends a hand, smiling again. "Omari, by the way." "Oh, I knew it was something like that. Aren't Greek and Roman mythology pretty similar in a lot of ways?" Max questions as she makes herself comfortable on the sidewalk. The canine is eyed momentarily before she looks back to Omari. The offered hand is looked at with an apologetic expression. "I can't touch people," she tells him with a faint frown tugging on her lips. "But, it's a pleasure to meet you, Omari." The enchanted mortal thinks over the name as it sounds familiar. Then she returns her blue-eyed gaze to the Lost beside her, studying him over momentarily. "I think I've heard your name tossed around before. By Ashe and similar folks?" she questions, trying to be sly with her words while they're still in a relatively public area. He pulls his hand back, and takes a curious sniff at it as if it'll make sense. A shrug follows that as he continues muching down on his sandwich. After a few bites he reaches for a few napkins, and wipes away at his mouth. "So you've heard of me, huh? Yeah, I just joined the Custodians, but how'd you know about them?" Omari sniffs in Max's direction, brow quirked as he looks her over. "I joined them recently myself," Max replies with a light smile. Obviously she's proud of this fact, even if she isn't quite bragging about it. Then she chuckles lightly. "Your hand is fine. I just... can't touch people. It's nothing personal," she says, attempting to reassure him that her weird quirk isn't his fault. A hand reaches up to brush some hair from her face, tucking an unruly strand behind her ear. "Anyways. I'm still a recruit of the Custodians. I'm not even sure I can really be anything else, but, I've offered my various abilities to help. Both with them and the Watchers." Omari's curiosity remains, but he remains silent as Max speaks. His gaze flits to the wolf, and the wolf too looks back up at the Hunterheart. Both then turn their attention to Max, and Omari asks the question they're both thinking. "What are you?" he asks in a hushed tone. "Because you're not like us," says the wolfmand accompanied by a wintry wolf, "and you don't particularly smell like one of us either." Which may well be a blessing. Max takes another quick glance around, ensuring that there's no one around eavesdropping on their conversation. Even if there are a few peope and vendors still lingering around the closing market, no one really seems to be paying attention to either of the pair. So, the enchanted mortal seems comfortable enough chatting with Omari about such things in public, though her voice has lowered slightly. "I'm human, I guess," she answers first. "I mean, I have a few tricks up my sleeve that most other humans don't, but, I'm unsure what to call myself otherwise," she tells him, her brows furrowing slightly. There's a pause before she says, "I have the ability to see you guys natually."
After studying him for a few long moments, Max smirks faintly. "A couple of months," she answers, honestly. The mortal slowly rises to her feet, taking a few steps toward the ally where she knows the nearby Hedgegate is located in. There's a look about her features, obviously inviting Omari and his more beastly companion to join her. Somewhere further away, just far enough to where no one can easily listen in on their conversation. The enchanted mortal has quickly learned how paranoid the Lost can be. "I'm not quite sure of the exact reason why, but, my main theory at the moment is that I was over 'There' briefly," she explains to him, even if it's vague for now. Omari stands up, and reaches high to stretch his arms when up fully. Before he can retrieve the remnants of his sandwich the wolf at his side already has it in his mouth. This causes Omari to frown as he slowly begins to walk behind Max as he occasionaly looks around the area. He stops in his tracks when she mentions there, and leaves the Beast blinking. When he catches himself he starts walking again, and asks, "What do you mean briefly?" Pausing when Omari comes to a sudden stop, Max pauses as well. Since they're deep enough into the alley, away from prying ears, she leans against the wall. "I've been told that when you get taken over there, you have a hard time remembering exactly what happened, right?" There's a small tilt of her head as she watches him. Her arms raise up to fold loosely over her chest. "Well. Before I could start seeing you guys, there's a week or so missing from my memory. Thought it might have just been a really bad drug trip, but, now I'm not so sure," she explains. "Right," he responds with a slow nod of his head. His hands go to his hips, head cant slightly in doglike curiosity. "Might as well be a bad trip since you can see all of this." Omari's lifts a hand motion in presention of himself, and then waves off to the wintry wolf at his side leaving a constatly disappearing trail of snow in its wake. "Then, how much do you know about the Hedge?" He briefly lifts both hands in faux innocence, and flashes a fanged smile. "Since you're in the Custodians, too, I'm gonna imagine a little bit." There's a smirk that tugs at the edge of Max's lip when Omari makes that first statement. "It's not been /all/ bad," she points out. "I mean, you don't look bad. Definitely unusual, strange. But not /bad/." She shakes her head lightly. "A little bit would be the correct amount of knowledge I have when it comes to the Hedge. I know that it's a dangerous place, that 'trods' are basically like roads, that it's a step away from over 'There', and you guys can grow some sort of fruits over there," she tells him. It's not a lot of information compared to what an average Changeling might know, but it's certainly more than what the average mortal does. "I'm hoping to learn more so that I can be of better use to the Freehold. Like when we were tracking down that serial killer guy." Omari remains silent as she talks, although he's doing that wolf thing. He's slowly moving to her side, but there's no growling to be heard. He only lets out a slight, silent chuckle until she's done. "Well, that's about the gist of it in a roundabout way. Since you're all about helping and what not I got another question for you, and don't worry. I'm not gonna make ya play twenty-one questions. How good are you with a gun?" When Omari moves closer to her, Max remains mostly still, casual. However, if he gets within arm's length of her, she'll subtly move away. The mortal doesn't want any accidental touching going on. "With a gun? Admittedly not that great. I've been trying to learn, though. And I met a new friend that's going to teach me archery. Going to try a few different means of self-defense until I find something I'm decent at," she explains with a chuckle. Then she gives him a playful grin. "Ask all the questions you want. Though, you might not always get an answer." He shrugs in response, and then nods off towards the gate. This gets Romulus' attention, and the dog is already mozying over towards the gate. Omari stops, standing between Max and the gate. Both hands are lifted, and less than a blink he's holding two guns in each. One, an overlarge revolver that looks to have been shaped out of lava wreathed in ethereal heat. The other gun looks at least slightly more normal in size, although its appearance is nothing but: seemingly made from a block of ice that bleeds its cold aura arond the hand holding it. "I got some stuff I need to get to, and as much as I love Romulus, I could always use another hand." Beat. "Another gun, really." Bright blue eyes watch him closely as he steps closer toward the Hedgegate. She's seen it in use before, though she's unsure of exactly where it leads into the Hedge. She blinks in surprise when suddenly a pair of firearms appear in his hands. First the right one is looked at, then the left, each studied over with apparent interest and intrigue. "Whoa, that's a cool trick," she compliments with a grin as she momentarily looks over to meet his gaze. "I don't plan on being too long without some combat ability. I /can/ shoot a gun, but, I've heard things can go topsy turvy on the other side too. Right? I mean, with things?" Omari twirls them both with relative ease, and lets out a cackle of a laugh in response. "Nah, girl. That's for the normal types of stuff." He then drops his hands to his side for a second, and brings both guns behind his back for the time being. Despite their obfuscation by his form the faint glow of the fiery one can still be seen behind him. "Don't get me wrong. I /can/ use the normal guns, but these three have been with me for a hot minute. They don't jam, are a bit stronger than normal, and there as magical as I am. For fuck's sake," he says with a laughing scoff, "You can prolly see 'em for what they are." "You've got one hot and one cold," Max replies with a playful grin. With the glow of the fiery one still somewhat visible, her eyes can't help but dart briefly behind him. "Admittedly, I'm not a great fighter, but, I'm not completely helpless. I can run pretty fast and I can hide when I need to," she tells him. "I'd be willing to help you out with whatever sort of business you got going on. I mean, as long as you don't ditch me on the other side." "Either gun can do most of the work so long as you hit 'em. Hate hits like a truck, and Desire burns 'em from the inside when the bullet pierces whatever they're made of. Excalibur's a different story, but I don't think I'll have to break that girl out just yet." He shakes his head as a slow click of his tongue reverberates throughout the alleyway. "And I ain't gonna ditch you. Ashe'd kill me, most likely, and becuase you're under her you're no different than pack." "That's comforting to hear," Max tells him, her tone hinting that she might not just be responding to the comment about leaving her behind in the Hedge. The enchanted mortal studies him over for a moment before reaching into her pocket and pulling out her cellphone, tapping the screen a few times. "I'm curious to hear more about what you mean with the hate and desire thing. And more about what business you got in the hedge." She looks over at him with a curious smile. "What's your number?" Omari cants his head again, and it appears more habit than anything else. "Hate and Desire are the guns. You don't know much about hedgespinning and the like, huh?" His head tilts to the other direction, ever curious about the Enchanted Mortal before him. He does relent, and rattles off a number without much thought. "I don't so much mean for later, by the way. I'm gonna go out there now. It's why me and Rom are heading this way, and to catch up with Remus too." To that end Romulus barks out, "Fuck him!" A brow raises at the mention of hedgespinning, her head tilting to the side not too unlike his own. "Okay, after we do this thing, you'll totally have to explain to me what hedgespinning is," she replies with a light laugh. Once she has his number in her phone, she slips it back into her pocket. Then she takes a careful glance around them. "I don't have anywhere else to be. I suppose I'm prepared as I can be to venture into the Hedge," she states as she looks back to him. There's a hint of nervousness but excitement as well, the mortal ready for some sort of adventure. She glances to Romulus with a smirk. "Can't leave your pack alone, right?" Despite his feral tendencies he's not quick to pick up on the emotions of others. Max's nervousness may as well have been eagerness in the Beast's eyes, and there's clear glint of joy to be found there as he turns his attention on the gate and in turn reveals those guns to Max again. "I can explain Hedgespinning and all that along the way, although I'll warn you that I can't do it on my own." All it takes a simple expression of glamour that causes his warm mantle to flare. He then taps at the entrance to that gate, and simply says, "Open the fuck up, please." They're only left waiting for a few seconds before the gate begins to open, and reveals the Rainbowside Markets on the other side. Despite how late it is at night the markets are bustling with business. Clearly, the hobs have no sense of time nor complete care of human custom. Curios, faux toys, and many an odd fruit are sold in the stalls with a few choice things seemingly turning their attention towards the now open gate in anticipation of who or what may enter. The hobs to be seen are goblinoid in shape, and dressed in a wide array of outfits from rags to finery that'd make an ancient duke jealous. Although Max has ventured into the Hedge a few times by now, she's never seen anything quite like the goblin market. Those bright blue eyes of hers are wide with both awe and curiosity. The various things offered for sale catch her attention at first, but she (mostly) resolves herself to pay more focus to Omari. She doesn't want to get lost here, after all. She sticks close to the lupine Lost, not so much so to touch him. The mortal weaves and ducks whenever she needs to if a hob gets too close to her, not wanting any contact with them either. "Whoa, this place is totally crazy. And cool. And crazy," she says quietly to Omari with a smirk. Since she's human, she probably draws the eye of at least a few hobs here and there. "Crazy," Omari simply corrects. "We're not here to buy or sell, and if you ever do come here it'll have to be with someone more apt to those kinda dealing. You can really get yourself fucked over if you don't-" Before he can even get that out a red fellow standing about five feet tall is already shouting to them both, "Any boring old day dreams you wanna sell!? I'll give you the best scarabed gold you'll get this side of the rainbow!" This leaves both changeling and hedge beast growling until the marketeer backs off for the time being. "Anyway!" Omari damn near shouts. "Let's get moving. If you can't find some other dude or lady to bring you here I can take you when I got something I need to sell." With that said he waves for her to come along, although it's clearly almost every seller in the market is eyeing her up for value, both tangible and intangible. With all the eyeballing that she's getting from the various vendors, Max decides to pull her hood up over her head. Although it doesn't exactly hide the fact that she's human, it still helps with making her not stand out so much. "You can sell dreams here? I wonder if they'd take nightmares too..." There's a look like she has about a hundred questions about the market, but she decides that now probably isn't the best time to ask them. Instead she just continues to follow Omari along with a curious expression that lingers on her face. "Okay, so, tell me more about this business we're heading off to. We going after someone? Something? A heist or something?" she wonders, looking at him with a raised brow. All Omari can answer to her question is a shrug. "Can't say. Probably, although there's always some fine print involved with selling a piece of yourself. I wouldn't be so quick to sell off a part of myself either way, though." He stops to tap at his chin while Romulus continue on forward with Max. When catching up again he answers her second question far too gleefully. "Well, you know a puma right? Also a manticore?" At the questions that are returned to her, Max gives him a curious look. "Are we hunting down a mythical beast of some sort?" she questions him curiously, tilting her head slightly to the side. "Well, if you lend me one of those guns I can try to shoot at it. I'm better with the prep work sort of stuff though, admittedly. But, I could be of use helping to track too." She glances over at the wolfish hedgebeast. "Though, this guy right here is probably a hundred times better than me," she says with a chuckle. Romulus huffs as they near the end of the twisting avenues that compromise the market, and come to the alley escape. Despite this obviously being the Hedget here's nary a sign of greenery to be seen around here. This seemingly man-made canyon of dreary darkness appears to be bereft of life, but there's clearly something waiting in the shadows or right in the corners of one's vision. Despite the tenebrous nature of this place the two wolves appear completely unfazed by the propsition. Omari lifts finger and thumb to his lips to let out a sharp whistle that almost goes unhead by mundane hearing. It's far off, but they can hear something stomping their way. Omari then turns to Max, and offers the icy gun. "Take this, then. I can say research won't matter much for what we're going after." Taking the frozen gun from him, careful enough not to accidentally touch him, Max studies it over curiously in her hands. With the way she holds it, it's clear that she's far from a firearms expert, but at least she has some of the basics down. She keeps the weapon at her side, remembering one of the rules of gun safety: don't point it at anything you're not willing to shoot. As they continue to move along, the mortal glances about this way and that with a curious expression. This is certainly different scenery than what she's experienced with the Hedge so far. "Okay, so what /can/ you tell me about it? Cat-like, I assuming?" There's a flicker of amusing in her eyes. Canines chasing felines. "How tough is it? Big? Intelligent at all?" Although she does occasionally look at Omari, her gaze mostly keeps wandering about them. The mortal likes to remain aware of her environment, especially in dangerous territory like the Hedge. That stomping gets louder still, but then creeps to a few, simple and slight thuds. The things presence is felt before it's seen, a chilling wind that passes by and blows about he debris of the area. Unsurprisingly, it's another wolf although much larger than Romulus. The giant thing looks to be cut completely from ice save those black pits working as a facscimile of eyeballs. "First off, it can fly," Omari offers while checking the fiery gun. "Remus," he calls out to the overlarge wolf that's now kneeling down. "You better have the stuff," he growls in return, and casts his blackened gaze down at Romlusus with much impunity. "I don't know how tough it is, but that's why I have guns and lots of magic. As for it's intelligence, I know it's smarter than me, and, as much as I gathered, likely smarter 'an you too." Max looks a bit relieved when it's a giant wolf and not a giant maticore creature that steps out from the shadows. She looks it over curiously, then grins at the interaction between all the wolves. Her gaze flits between them before landing back on Omari as he speaks. "If it's smarter than you, then I don't doubt that it's smarter than me," she says with a playful grin. Even though they're hunting a beast, it doesn't hurt to keep things a bit light! "If it can fly, should we expect an attack from the sky?" There's a moment of thought, an idea, then she shakes her head. "If I was high, I could scry on it. But, I've been told that it's a very bad idea to be tripping on this side of things," she says with a short laugh. "If we can find a trail, I could probably at least help you guys in tracking it." Omari idly shrugs in response, and after a hop mounts himself on top of the icy wolf. Crystalline fur is pressed down and out by the Changeling's movements, and in the act causes miniscule pieces of ice to fall from Remus' coat. "It's not hard being smarter than me." Beat. "I just know a lotta shit, and it's helped me be me. And don't worry Remus. If we get this thing you can eat it's guts, and after I clean the skin." He then looks to Max, head cant slightly. "Is your touching thing all livin' things or just people?" "There's different kinds of smart," Max simply tells him with a light smile, a bit of a compliment from her even if she doesn't obvious about it. Then there's a furrowing of her brows at the question. "I'm... not sure. I don't really touch animals, or own any, so, I've never been around one long anough to see if it works on them. Though, as a rule I try to avoid touching them," she explains. "I can temporarily curb the effect if I concentrate. But you and the other still can't touch me. Otherwise that'll take more energy out of me than is advisable before going up against this beast we're after." With that said, she closes her eyes momentarily as she focuses on her 'power' not working against the bigger wolf. Once she's ready, she carefully climbs on behind Omari, lightly gripping the fur of the icy wolf to hold onto. "Okay, should be ready to go." "That shit sure sounds complicated, but I get the general idea. Don't think I'm much of a touchy type, but it's good to know." There's nary a command or call from Omari. Remus just instinctively rises, and starts dashes along at a lightening pace. Occasionally, the overlarge wolf leaps into the air and with enough effort that all of them may as well be flying. Below at least half a dozen sets of row houses can be seen, all lined up perfectly. As high up as they are the occupants are difficult to make out. When Remus touches down again it's amid the suburban sprawl. It could almost look normal here if it weren't for the fact that almost everything looks the same, and disturbingly so. There's little difference to be found when on the ground, and which way is which is impossible to tell. The front yards immaculately cut and not a single hedge or shrub is out of place. "Try to keep a look out," Omari says while checking over his own handgun. "If you hear something that like an alien, that'd be it." "It's easier just to not touch anyone," Max replies with a small shrug of her shoulders. Then she falls silent as they soar over the houses. The mortal had been led to believe that the Hedge was mostly just thorns and bramble, so seeing such an odd reflection of the mundane world elicits a curious expression on her face. Everything below them is peered over with interest and it's only when they touch the ground does she lift her gaze up again. Then she hops off of the wolf, making sure that her gun is secure in her hand. "Is it weird that I find this place stranger than the more thorny part of the Hedge?" she questions as she glances briefly at Omari, faintly smirking. Max's bright blue eyes start to flit about the area, falling quiet after her first statement as she listens in as well. She starts to slowly walk along the street, though doesn't stray very far from Omari. It does sound alien, that much is to be sure. However, it's more along the lines of nails on a chalkboard that ends in a very pissed off yowl. Omari and his hedge beasts are currently unaware of it as they begin to plot out how they're gonna go searching. "Alla this place looks the goddamned same, and that stench," he notes of the funk that comes for each of these suburban houses, "won't help any of us." Remus lifts up, and before Omari can object the fae mount is already leaping over houses to go in search of their quarry. "Well, that's just great," Romulus growls. The wolf looks up to Max while he rests on his haunches. "You see anything, normie?" Paying more attention to the strange and unnerving sound in the distance, Max doesn't catch the question aimed at her at first. She blinks and looks back to him, a brow raising slightly as her gaze shifts between the small pack of wolves she's been traveling with. "You... didn't hear that?" she questions, obviously finding that hard to believe. "Unless there's something else around here making those sort of noises..." The mortal takes a moment to pinpoint which direction she had heard it coming from before lifting her hand and pointing that way. "It's coming from over there," she informs Omari, briefly looking his way. The wolfish Lost doesn't hold her attention very long though as she quickly looks back in the direction she's pointing in. "Hear what?" Romulus and Omari ask in unison. The two briefly look around, and then back at Max. "Are you sure you're not just hearing things?" Omari looks off where Max is pointing first while Romulus turns his head to look for where Remus went. Sadly, the much larger canine went in the opposite direction. Omari starts walking off to where Max pointed without much thought or hesitation, and Romulus is soon to follow. The area Max heard the sound from is down another twist and turn of a street that seemingly leads them right back from where they came. Wait. No. The wind's blowing differently, and the funk from the houses is clearly coming from another direction. Despite these obvious differences everything looks the same. Max is unsure that her leading the way is the best idea, but since she's the only hearing the sound, it's the most logical choice. So, she starts to follow it as best as she can and when they seeming end up back where they started, she comes to a pause. Her brows furrow in confusion until she feels that the direction of the wind is different. "Okay, the apparent normalcy of this place makes it ten times weirder and creepier than the normal thorns," she states, with a slight frown. "And yeah, I'm pretty sure I'm not just hearing things, but, you're the expert on what can happen over here," she points out. The mortal listens for the sound again, before turning and attempting to continue tracking down it's source. Her compliments of his so-called expertise earns her a peal of laughter and diminishes any attempts at stealth. "Oh man, that's some rich shit right there." He shakes his head then, as he sets that warmer pistol inside his jacket somewhere. In the next second he pulls a bright white and gold rifle from the ether, and is still trying his best not to laugh. "Lady, the only thing I'm ever gonna be an expert on is-" He doesn't get that out as the screeching picks up again, and close enough that neither beast nor changeling can ignore it. It looks more like a house cat than any panther, although at that it size it doesn't make much of a difference. It dwarfs the now gone remus, and keeps itself aloft with an even bigger pair of feathery wings. For now, it doesn't quite see them. However, it does notice them. "No! Dogs!" it shrieks from above. Weird creatures in the Hedge? Max was starting to think that this was where most myths and legends orignated from. However, she doesn't have much time to think about that and quickly refocuses her thoughts on the present. Glancing over to Omari, her brows furrow lightly at him. "We should probably wait until it's closer to the ground to shoot, right?" There's a pause in thought, an idea brewing in her head. She takes a quick glance at the flying cat, then back to her canine companion of the adventure. "I could try to bring it's attention to me, dodge it when it tries to attack and your wolves could attack it, you could shoot it... Or, you know, something like that?" she suggests with a raised brow. Omari's checking his rifle to make sure everything's right, and then sets his eyes on the hedge beast flying above. The slight amount of light from the moon is more than enough to make out the creature as it continues yowling. "Let's go with that, then," he's quick to answer with a smirk. "Most of my plans involve shooting, and seeing where it goes from there." At that he whistles for Romulus to come over. "Start shouting when you're ready." Just as he's quickly pulling weapons from nowhere, he's gone in a gust of wind. He's not too hard to spot again, as he lies down on a roof not too far from Romulus and Max. To them both he then gives a thumbs up. Blinkblink as Omari suddenly teleports away from her. Why do the Lost get all the really cool powers? Envy is quickly pushed aside to refocus on her current task. Once she spots the thumbs up, she turns her gaze upward toward the flying cat in the sky. First she lets out a sharp whistle to catch it's attention, then she waves her arms to further entice it. "Hey! Excuse me! I've gotten turned around here, do you know how to get back to the market?" she calls out to the creature loudly in an attempt to draw it's attention to her. "Maybe you could help me out! I bet you'd be really cool to ride around on!" The beast was circling around the neighborhood, but Max's yelling draws it's attention straight away. It dives straight down at Max, and only pulls up in time to land. When it slams down it sends debris and dirt everywhere. As the area settles down amid the clouds of dust the thing's eyes can be seen glowing, staring straight into Max. Those silver eyes blink, and as the dust settles and reveals an oddly human face. "Why are you here, mortal, and why should I not pick my teeth with your bones?" it asks with as much venom as could be expected. "Oh, I'm hardly fit for a meal. I mean, look how little meat I have my bones!" Max momentarily pulls her sleeves up to show off her slender forearms, though mostly she's just trying to provide a distraction for the heavy hitters to come in and take care of things. "Also it would be way better to help than to harm, right? Even if you're not the helping sort, I can guarantee I'm way more useful alive than I am dead," she tells the creature with a grin as she continues to talk to it, moving around as she speaks to further keep it's attention on her. It nears her, bearing razor sharp teeth despite that human face. It sits within arm's reach, and extends one of those paws right in her face. A claw pops out, just a hair away from her nose as it growls, "I'm as helpful as I need to be or until my belly is full." Beat. "I've never seen your face, yet I kiss it every day. You can see me all around you, in the treetops where I play. What am I?" Max's eyes had widened when the creature held it's claw out to her. /At/ her. When a riddle was posed instead of her face being clawed, she raises a brow curiously but doesn't actually question it. She takes a few moments to think it over before a figurative lightbulb goes off above her head. "Oh! You're the sun," she exclaims with a light grin, clearly thinking that she got it right. There's no excitement or jubilation from the creature, only obvious disdain at Max's answer. "You are correct." It shifts a bit to rest all four limbs upon the ground, still staring at Max. At least now without with threat of being clawed. All the while Omari is shifting in his position the roof, and taking aim at the creature. With one hand pulled away from the rifle he signals Max to keep it going. "I turn polar bears white, and I will make you cry. I make guys have to urinate, and girls to comb their hair. I make celebrities look foolish, and normal people look like celebrities. I turn bread brown, and make your drinks bubble. If you sqeeze me, I'll pop. If you look at me, you'll pop. Can you guess the riddle?" There's a brow raised at the next riddle that's given to her and she has to take another moment to think of the answer. Is it this? Is it that? One thought seems to answer part of the riddle but not the other. Then she realizes that last line. And there's a bit of a wry grin that tugs at her lips. "No," she answers him, lifting her head up to meet the creature's gaze. "You're a tricky one, aren't you? Go on, give me another riddle. Try not to set me up for failure, though. That takes the fun out of it," she playfully scolds the creature. "This one is always one of my favorites," she purr with a sickle cut smile. She pushes her forelegs up while keeping her gaze locked on Max. A glance up to Omari shows him flashing a thumbs up down to Max. "What has fifteen hands, eight stones, covered top to bottom in red, and is so much better when turned inside out?" A thumbs down? That wasn't a good sign, but she doesn't have a moment to try and subtly respond when she hears the next riddle. Max tilts her head at first, thinking it over. That was one she hadn't heard before. Then a look of realization crosses her features as she figures out the answer. And it's definitely not a good one. Instinctively she takes a small step back, then another as she tries to help Omari by leading the creature better into his line of sight. "But if I'm turned inside out, you can't ask me any more riddles," she points out with a nervous chuckle. "Well, I wouldn't be able to answer them, at least." Despite the human face it does possess it takes a moment to idly lick at one of its forepaws. It looks over bits of fur to stare at Max as if her protests are no different than the wind at her back. "Well, dear mortal, you would be able to answer the riddle of how best to fill my stomach, and, frankly-" She stops, sauntering closer as any cat would before flashing those fangs. "You. Smell. Like. Dog." Romulus may be out of sight, but he is clearly there. Thankfully, it's still cold here, and that's enough for the Hedge Beast to draw on something cold. The temperature in the area drops, but it's no avail currently. Before Max is given much of an opportunity for another rebuke against her murder. The sphinx is hungry, and that feminine voice is gone in place of another yawl as it digs it's claws into Max's shoulders. It only takes a second for the first beat of its massive wings to attain liftoff, and with the next it's already trying to take Max away somewhere nice, quiet, and good to eat. Omari had his shot lined up, but things aren't going exactly as he predicted. "Fuck!" he curses aloud as Max is airborne. "This is why I hate-" He's gone, and a gust of wind comes from somewhere above. The wind settles, and they hear it before they see it. The shot that rings out is deafening, and likely heard for miles on end. A bright burst of light comes from that rifle of his and hits the hedge beast clear in its wings. "...plans!" Just as that list bit comes out, he's already starting his freefall and ejecting a cooling ball of light from the chamber. Max lets out a surprised yelp as she's suddenly grabbed and lifted from the ground. Instinctively she struggles in the grip of the creature, though honestly it's more of a helpless flail. Omari teleporting onto flying creature and clipping it's wing brings her out of her brief panic though and she's quick to move back into action. Lifting the icy gun up, she takes a shot at the beast as best as she can... but shooting targets on a firing range and attempting to hit a moving target are two different things. The shot goes wide and misses completely! You say, "Romulus is effectively out of combat. Phix is gonna dig those claws into you. Omari is gonna try shooting again on the way down. IIRC in the rules he only has about 2-3 turns before hitting the ground. Action from Max?" The hedge beast doesn't at all seem keen on dropping Max. No way, no how. One wing is bleeding all over Max, and the beast. It still keeps itself aloft, but it's taking its toll. It bears down on Max with everything it can, tightening the grips of those claws on its meal. Omari doesn't seem to disturbed about the prospect of going splat on the ground. He likely won't die, but that won't be comfy. He chambers the next "round," and with another deafening crack he fires off a shot. However, it sails wide right and just leaves a dying trail of light in its wake. Great, blood is getting all over her and one of her favorite hoodies. Lifting the frozen gun again, Max takes a more careful aim at the creature this time. When she pulls the trigger, her shot actually hits the flying cat-thing, which causes the mortal to grin a bit triumphantly. Sure, the three of them are still falling to the ground at an alarming rate, but at least she got a hit in before they fell to their possible deaths! She lifts her head to look up at Omari. "Can you do that teleporting thing with more than just yourself?" she calls out to him with raised brows. There's not much in the way of an audible cue when Max fires the trigger. Hate makes nary a sound and ejects no bullet when it fires. A shard of ice flies from the muzzle, and lodges itself square in the hedge beast's chest. Crimson ichor spills onto Max once more, and she close enough that some of it's getting on her face and in her hair. The pain from the shot is enough for the hedge beast to loose her grip on the Mortal, and in turn sends her hurtling downward. Omari seems intent on crashing downward, however. While she did say no touching he's clearly never been one for following many rules. His rifles thrown to the waiting Romulus well below them, and he closes his eyes during the freefall. As he catches up to the hedge beast he's sure to give it the finger, and then he reaches out for Max. "This won't be fun!" he shouts. A gust of wind follows them both, and in the blink of an eye they're both slamming into the ground. They did get down there, mostly painlessly, but momentum is still momentum. The mortal grimaces as more blood gets onto her, because who likes getted drenched in such things? However, Max does seem somewhat relieved when she's let go of. Until she realizes that such sends her into a freefall. Normally she's against people touching her, but when she sees Omari reaching out for her, she instinctively grabs at him in return. This is an emergency, after all! When they 'safely' land on the ground, the force of the impact is enough to knock the wind out of her and knock her out cold. She's still alive and breathing, but her grip on the gun loosens as her body becomes limp for the time being. Darkness isn't so bad. It's impossible to tell when Max comes to, but when she does they're still in this surburban nightmare. It's still well into the night, so at least it hasn't been too long. Omari isn't too far from her, although all of those guns are now gone from sight again. The hedge beast has also met its clear demise as both Romulus and Remus feast on its insides, and occasionaly knock one another to the side while eating. Omari's sitting on the ground, and muching on a prickly looking hedge fruit while he's looking over something bloody.
"Glamour fruit," he idly states. The thing looks almost like an orange save those evidently harmless spikes all over its blue skin. His hands are bloodied, and set before him is the skin of their former adversary - wings, fur, and head bereft of body. Omari then reaches off to side, and after a few seconds comes up with another of those fruits. He offers it with a bloodied hand, and just shrugs in response. "If bad shit happens it happens. What's the worst that could happen? I fall down the stairs at my place, and break my trigger fingers?" He pauses, taking in that sobering thought for a moment. "Actually, don't answer that." The offered fruit is examined briefly before Max graciously takes it from him. She sniffs it a little curiously before taking a bite from it. Then she smirks faintly at his response, shaking her head lightly. "As long as you don't exert yourself, anything that might happen should be relatively harmless. Probably," she replies. Then she peers at the skin of the beast, raising her brow. "What do you plan on doing with all this?" she wonders, nudging the wings with the tip of her shoe. "That creature might have been cool if it didn't want to eat me. That kind of puts a damper on any sort of relationship," she says, chuckling gently before taking another bite of the fruit. The fruit itself tastes like a sour orange, although not as rough on the tastebuds as a lemon. Omari takes another bit of his and then eyes of the head of the thing. "I dunno. Cat body, cat ears, face like a normie, and wings. Best I can call it is a calico killer, but I've always been shit with naming. I also wouldn't have wanted much to do with it either way." He scoffs at the thought. Probably a canines v. felines thing. Though the taste of the fruit isn't too bad, she does wrinkle her nose a bit at the sourness of it. "Yeah, I'm not that big of a fan of cats either," she says with a chuckle. "Though, the riddles were kind of fun until they started to be about maiming me." The mortal smirks again and lightly shakes her head. Max takes a glance around at the eerily normal looking neighborhood around them. "We should probably get back to the other side soon, right? Need to find someone to bandage up my shoulder before it gets infected or something." She eyes her bloodied and scratched up shoulder. "Positive note, it'll probably leave a cool scar." Omari rises to his feet, and finishes off the last bits of his fruit. He shoots an askance glance in Max's direction, and for at least a few moments he actually looks serious. Then it's all gone when he's grinning like the bastard he is, and shooting two thumbs up. "Everybody digs scars, so it's something to show off." He sniffs then, "At least when Summer hits. It's gonna rain soon." With that said, he whistles for both wolves although Remus, the big one, starts carrying that carcass in his mouth as he comes back. | |
