Log:Turtles On Top of Turtles

Turtles On Top of Turtles
Don't need to consult the winds. And hi. You ready to go?
Participants Rorschach, Paige, Saulot	19 March, 2017 The Harvestmen captain sends out a private top scout out some potential trouble. Just don't look down.
Location Skip-A-Step
The skies are thankfully clear, and there's narry a cloud in sight. The dreamer's moon hangs high overhead, and it's unobstructed gaze shines a brilliant, white light over much of the Hedge. It'd almost seem like tonight might be a good night to wander around in the Hedge, obvious dangers aside. However, it's still fairly cold, and only worsened while in the Hedge. While they're a ways away from the gate proper, they can already make out something large coming through and dragging down the trees in its wake. However, where hedge-plants once grew something stranger and foreign to both sides of the gate is growing. Paige seems to have recovered from her adventures the night before, and is ready to go scouting. Oddly, she's left the bird behind tonight, so it's just her who meets Rorschach. She's dressed in dark clothes, and absently toys with a pendant while waiting for her companion in super sneaky scouting. She does seem to be looking around, at least studying where she's planning to go. Rorschach showed up looking only slightly worse for the wear. It was hard to find the Darkling as it kept getting darker near him. Damn Moon court mantles. That he was shadowsoul only cimplicated this, or aided it. Depending on how you wanted to feel about this. The Bug showed up on time. There was Paige. There was a clakking to signal her like a cicada. He handed her a note. Consulting the winds for a bearing?' And then flipped the page for her to read 'Oh yeah. Hi.' Those knocked down trees don't tell the entire story. The beast, whatever it may be, did come through here. However, it's wanton destruction seemingly brings new life. With just a glance they may have looked normal, but under any inspection they're nothing close. Bark more akin to scales, leaves as rough as sandpaper, and exposed roots that drip green ichor upon the earthen floor of the Hedge. Paige glances over to Ror, takes the note and grins. "Don't need to consult the winds. And hi. You ready to go?" she asks, tugging her coat a little more snugly about her. "Don't know how much time this'll take, so I want to get started," she tells him, still grinning and lookin gback to the route they're about to take. Rorschach looked confused at the question. One antennae twitched, and his head turned. He blinked at her twice trying to figure out what 'ready to go' meant. He was always going. He never stopped. To answer her question he popped the knife in his boot and then slid the rsuty thing back in. He nodded and looked up and left to right. Apparently that was answer enough. There was no sound when he moved, just sinking into a darkness that followed. The path through Skip-A-Step is easy enough to follow. Whatever did this left prints big enough for both of them to stand within it. The trees and plantlife it leaves in its wake are a sight to behold, but not worth complete attention beyond their uniqueness even in the hedge. Many of the walls of the naturally made maze here have been knocked down as the creature made its way down whatever path it was heading. The beast itself is likely on the magnificent side of fantastical. From the size of those tracks it's big enough to equal the size of an overlarge elephant, but there's something that's off. The tracks only show two feet moving it along, and dragging two separate appendages in the back. The best that can be guessed on general trajectory is further south, but then there's destruction to the west as if it just moved in a literal instant. Paige nods when the knife comes out and grins. "Awesome. Let's go." She doesn't pull her own knives, not yet, just starts walking, making her way carefully, for now. She's not a very stealthy person, but she does watch where she steps, and pay attention. She makes a thoughtful sound and glances to Rorschach. "I know it looks like he went that way," she murmurs, motioning westward, but let's keep following what we see in case it's something else." Rorschach held up a hand seeing this and looked east instead crouching low moving more like a critter than a man. He made some gestures indicating really large broke west. He pointed east curling one antenna into a question mark and pinted in teh direction oppoite the way the beast ran and held up two fingers. And gave her a querying look. What did it change direction for? Was it running FROM something els they should know about? The trip through the maze is the longer path, but likely the safest. The further they go through the crevices of destroyed stone there's no sign of the beast until they come accross another of its foot prints and demolished section of stone. No sight of those hind limbs, but a good bit stone has been completely crushed to dust. Take enough time to examine it all, and the bottomside of whatever did this left an impression similar in shape to a cut diamond. Paige slowly shrugs. "I don't know. That's part of why I want to keep following the tracks. Find out what happened," she murmurs quietly. She pauses at the crushed stone, brow furrowing lightly. "This is just really weird," she mutters, shaking her head and glancing to Ror, but unless he shows he wants to stay longer, she keeps going. Rorschach wasn't ready to turn his back on the hedge. It wasn't in his nature to assume, and by very vice he was going to be damn certain before continuing on. He didn't survive the Burrower's endless mazes by assuming anything and it wasn't in his nature to assume there wasn't something worse on their ass to be safe. One hand was on his knife in case, his right antenna twitched a couple times. A finger went back to Paige to indulge him for a moment. Paige doesn't seem to mind indulging Rorschach. Reading signs may not really be her forte, but she doesn't begrudge someone who can do it better than she can. So she stands guard while he pokes around, turning in slow circles to make sure they're not snuck up on. As expected of a natural environment there were predators here. Paw prints belonging to briar wolves can be seen all throughout the maze along with things not as easily identified. However, if something were chasing this beast it never set foot on land. It doesn't take that much longer until they reach the end of the maze of toppled and seriously fucked up stone. Out here they can see a bit more clearly, and find where the best set its feet last. The trees here are sparse enough to see somewhat clearly, but the beast can't quite be seen through all the greenery. Although the beast can be heard clearly enough. Long, bellowing sounds you'd likely only hear from a beached whale. Rorschach looked to Paige tilting his head to teh bellow and scribbled in notepad: 'Can make it darker. Harder to see us. How quiet and do you fly?' he didn't assume and seemed to consider all sorts of angles ehre curisou for her and then wrote, 'Can see in teh dark. Don't want to hinder you though' At least he had the consideration that not everyone was a nocturnal, subterranian thingie. one more note came and he showed it to her with a half smile from scarred lips. 'I could really fucking go for a bagel right now' Hunger aside he gave her a wink and looked down the path. Paige reads the note when she's not glancing up, all paranoid like. "I can fly, and when I do, no one can see me. You'll look like you're alone. But if you're okay with that, I'll go ahead and take to the air," she says, tipping her face up to catch whatever breeze there is. Rorschach grinned widely and tapped the side of his nose. Apparently it wasn't a bad plan, and would let them see things from above and below. He sank down letting his mantle obscure him like amother's embrace burying and hiding him for safe keeping. It could fairly be assumed this is how he keeps getting into people's cupboards when they are not looking. The bug is able to see where the beast was headed next. It wasn't going near the gate as Jonah had predicted, but its path is close enough to warrant a measure of concern. Its haphazard creations are left in its wake, but they're never in a straight enough line to be wholly relied upon. However, they can see something in the horizon and in the skies very, very high above. From this far down it almost looks like a miniscule bird up there, but the nearer they get they can get a better grip on things. The creature they're following is massive, but that thing making an aerial beeline is much, much bigger. "I'll stick close, and if something attacks I'll help, just don't expect to see me," Paige says, watching that bird, or whatever it may be. "Going to check out what that is real quick, then I'll be back. Won't take but a second," she says, toying with that pendant again. She grins at Rorschach, then fades away until she's just, well, a contained breeze. And once she's fully incorporeal? Well, only one way to see what that thing up there is, and that's to go up! Rorschach knew there was soemthing else out here. There was ALWAYS always always something worse. Thank you Hedge for proving his paranoid triple-checkings true. :The bug was not happy about the dot and pointed to where the beast was going and then turned around to surveil the land. Jonah siad they were to investigate, not engage. Right. The bug wrapped himself in shadows that melted withthe undergrowth of the night until the HEdge floorw as obscured and he quietly worked his way over to where the beast was going to find out what was up. The beast itself is a ways away, and at best two kilometers before it gets to this edge of the Hedge. However, from up above Paige can see the beast they were sent for. It looks like a turtle. No, a tortoise. Both? The front limbs end in feet one would expect of those shelled beasts, but its hind limbs end in flippers. It's shell appears more as an overlarge hump that tappers off into a flat end. In that shell are a few dozen blades of different makes, age, and rust. Currently, the beast is moving round the gate, but hasn't quite gotten to it completely. However, it's a damned decent deterrent not to come in or out over here. Paige probably doesn't pay much attention to the shadow that is Rorschach, but then, it's hard to tell, really. Instead she just goes up. There's a moment where she studies the turtle beneath her, taking her time examining it. And the lost blades it carries on its shell. "Well hell," she murmurs before lookgin toward the approaching bird...thing. Rorschach crouched in the hedge. He pulled up his sleeves where the shadows looked like some strange subdermal tatoo of ink that melted with intent into new form. Slowly he pressed his firearms together, one atop the other. The very being of the shadows within him leaked out, and then from the moon above, seemed to find considerable favour with her son blacking out the area in a 420' area. THe darkness rolled out like a fog and obscuring all taht was across the forest floor. The turthle thing? That was thrashing about, but it looked potentially injured. The ROach furrowed his brow pulling the cricket out of picket. He kissed to top of it's head encouraging it to stay quiet, for the love of nettles. The bird was also a potential issue, but it didn't have to be. Feeling encouraged by the success of this he started running, nibly dodging everything the darkness sought to obfuscate. There was a bit of a grin. The closer that big bird gets the more magnificent it appears. It's feathers shine in the moonlight, and it's clearly of the raptor variety. The biggest difference are those jagged teeth found in its beak, and the forked tongue seen there as it screeches loud enough to be heard all the way back at Stoneheart. The turtle? It's more focused on getting somewhere decent, and begins stomping around the gate. As it does so it leaves behind faint, ghastly after-images that repeat the process and leave those odd trees in their wake. Paige leaves the turtle to Rorschach....for the moment. She's paying attention to the magnificent beast heading her way. She's part bird or something, right, so of course she feels some affinity. But she does dip down, heading closer to Ror, so she can hear him if he needs help. Rorschach crept closer to the gate and the turtle. THere were things jutting out of it which the turtle didn't seem to notice. But it was... phasing when it moved and leaving weird trees behind? Right. Well, if they were acrid or hazardous who better to find it out than the professional test subject. His head swiveled around to try to note the position of that big raptor flying around. He looked to see if Paige was oka-...Paige was invisible. Him looking for her was as futile as she looking for him. He seemed ot meet he same conclusion to keep an ear our for her and made his way to teh trees being left behind to examine it. Is Paige okay? Yes. Is it good she's intangible? Hell yes. The bird was likely gonna have turtle soup for dinner, but now it's looking at an appetizer. The thing is as big as most commercial planes, and Paige really is just a snack compared to it. Its beating it's wing fervantly when taking bites at where Paige's body should be. Paige cocks her head, such as it is, when the bird tries to eat her. Then she smiles (does she have lips at the moment) and moves down, keeping to a speed that is easily followed by the bird. Why? Well, she's trying ot lead it to the turtle! Let the big things duke it out! Rorschach crouched down by teh green ichor and eyed it carefully. Cocoa butter, but seeping. Scaly? Interesting. Time...for science. He was an irradiated cockroach. the worst that could already happen pretty much has. Like any true bug? He licked the tree. Next would be getting samples. First... first thing was first. Rorschach carefully liked something found on the ground. 5 second rule right? Anything on teh ground longer than 5 seconds belonged to the Bug. His rules. Rule of dibsies. DIIIIBSIES. His head buzzed a little and his right antennae started to twitch-twitch. It took a few seconds. In the meantime he took out his knife, and let's be honest about this thing, if whatever was causing it to glow green and blister wasn't a deterrant? The amount of rust on that blade was certain to give one tetnus. He poked the tree with it and he flinched. He was going to try to just get a bark sample but the taste of pineapple was distracting. He tapped it again thunking the tree and a haldf stupid grin crossed his face. This... was coming home with him. He stopped worrying about the turtle for a moment and just, through the darkness, looked at the colours of sound that perminted the sweltering darkness that held like a caul over the area. Dude.... dude. The bird does indeed give chase. It has to drop back down to gain speed, but when it does it actually goes right through the incorporeal Paige. Turtle's back on the menu, but after it makes its first dive at the opposing hedge beast it only knicks the thing's shell. In turn the turtle's head snaps up like lightning as it tries to take a bite out of it. The bird is too fast, and the only end results are even more trees knocked over along with several more of the odd ones sprouting in their place. Paige doesn't seem to mind being pushed past by the bird, and watches curiously as it goes after the turtle. The lack of, well, anything really as far as damage goes makes her hmm softly. She drops back to the ground, moving more quickly than she could if she was solid, trying to find Rorschach. Rorschach was safe. Well Rorschawas safe from other things, his own curiosity? That was pending. He pulled out the Geiger blade (trademark pending) and had to bring this back as tribute to the court. Oh yeah, evidence too. Totally ...yeah. The blade was covered in rust and didn't look like much. It was pitted and the metal seemed to slowly bubble and blister from teh intense radiation that it was kicking out. Only cockroaches and Keith Richards survive that shit right? Ugh. He went to saw through some of the bark but seemed to strip it easily like a carrot. The lack of challenge almost made him stumble and fall on his ass. He caught himself and looked at teh raw part of the tree, slightly greenish, new, sappy, and so tantilizing. Yeah. Had to know if the outside was at all like the iinside. MAN he could do this all day. Oh damn it keps getting better. He collected leaves, a chunk of a stub branch, all into his backpack. Rorschach collected the samples. His sense of proportions went a bit out the window and the aound of avacado and tangerine drew him nearer to get a peak at teh turtle and the great Roc. He tried to make it to the gate. He licked the gate. It did not taste like a thing and in fact seemed to give him a headache. He flinched and flinched again. SOmething in his coat chirped like a curious violin. He ducked back from the battle taking his protective blanket of darkness with him. On the good note for Paige, that cricket had the most resonate and distinct sound this corner of the hedge. With cleverness she could start getting an idea of where to go Paige watches the giant beasts attacking for a while, before she listens to find Rorschach. "We should go," she whispers, even as she looks around to see if a feather may have gotten left behind so she can snag one. "C'mon," she tells her partner in crime before she starts backing away from them. Rorschach looked to Paige and held out a hand for hers. Once their ruse was no longer needed it seemed obvious the inclination was to find one another. He looked her over and seemed in a curious mode. His one antennae twitched on occasion. Bugs, man. What can you do.