Random Plots and Places 11: Still more random than you!

[DoomITP]

Foxpital

Des pauses, considering what Jinkei had said. Images of sunlight, silver and stakes flash through his minds.

No one is invincible, Fox Child. Not even gods.

[Cyber Punk]

[Foxpital]

Jinkei laughs. "I suppose so. There's always something bigger looking to end you, or something." She smiles and pats Des' arm. "Thank you for coming to see me. It can get pretty lonely here, with only the ceiling for company."

[DoomITP]

Foxpital

Des give Jinkei another hair ruff and pushes a stray strand off of her bandages.

Of course, I don't mind.

[Cyber Punk]

Foxpital

Jinkei smiles brightly and holds his hand. "I feel like I've known you for years. It might sound weird, but there you have it." Then her face becomes sad. "This Alex... I should be happy for you, but I can't help but feel some loss."

The foxgirl looks away, holding back tears, then looks back at Des. "Why?"

[UncleWolf]

3:10 To Nowhere

John's expression falls when he sees what's there and he begins to back up towards the window sill. "Um...Sutha? I suggest we get back inside the train and start making our way to the back through it. Like...now." He tells her, sounding a little shaky and for good reason. The entire train seemed to be surrounded by a living darkness that probably wanted to do something along the lines of eat their bodies and souls. Unless he's otherwise prevented from doing so he'll clamber back in through the window to make good on his words. If he finds any other passengers he'll attempt to help them along though. He's not that much of a coward.

[Shadowcaller]

3:10 To Nowhere

John doesn't need to say that twice. "Come on, I'll help you inside." The half-orc says as she offers her hands for him to stand on. She'd complain she had just squeezed herself into that damn window but this was not the time. The best option was simply to help her companion inside and then get in herself while trying to not to look at the living darkness. Just pretend it wasn't here as well as she could to not panic.

[DoomITP]

Foxpital

Des looks slightly confused.

What do you mean?

[Cyber Punk]

Foxpital

Jinkei can't explain it, but she'll try her best.

"I don't know! It's just... this Alex... it feels like she's taken you from me. I hardly know you both, why am I feeling this way? I remember... the stake... connected to the stake somehow..."

She winces in pain. "Ergh, my head... remembering... hurts. Don't wanna."

[DoomITP]

Foxpital

Des looks down sadly at Jinkei.

I haven't gone anywhere. If you need help you just need to call my name and I will do my best to come help you.

[Cyber Punk]

Foxpital

Jinkei smiles sadly and nods, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Thank you. That... means a lot. I hope we get to redevelop our friendship. You were my only real friend outside of this place, or so it seems."

There could be other people she's forgotten, who knows?

[DoomITP]

Foxpital

Des looks around the room.

Possible, I suppose. I don't know any of your other friends.

[goto124]

[Outside Calavera House]

Despite (or due to) previous circumstances, that was a genuine compliment to Sybil's ears. Funny things.

'And now,' Sybil announces with a touch of glee, 'We get far, far away from this damn place. I won't trip!'

They're still connected by the collar.

[Cyber Punk]

[Outside Calavera House]

"Agreed." Lisa responds back gleefully, and crosses the barrier with Sybil, laughing at the pandemonium that they left behind.

All of a sudden, the chain lengthens! They're still collared for the meantime, but the length of chain between them seems to be getting longer and thinner.

Lisa notices and smiles. "Finally!"

Foxpital

"I have a lot of friends in Foxside. It's my home, and I love it." Jinkei looks wistful for a bit, then continues.

"But outside of the place? I don't have any friends." Kasai and Alkania will count, but the combination of heartbreak trauma and brain trauma has ensured she'll have no memories of them. "Aside from you, apparently. And maybe that store I used to work at."

[Deathkeeper]

3:10 to Nowhere

Spako gives the train a long look and sighs.
"I am not physically capable of dragging an adult human straight up with my wings. We can't afford the half-hour it would take for me to secure ropes and such. We have to keep going. There's a rule for a reason. Women and children first." he says gravely, waving them along.

[Earl of Purple]

MERC Quest- The Henge of Tormented Souls

Perched atop an isolated, barren hill in a region of arid grassland and scarce habitation is a stone circle. There are thirty individual standing stones around the base of the hill, each standing four metres high, whilst the henge itself comprises twenty three metre tall trilithons around an inner circle of ten metre-tall stones. In the centre of that inner circle is a trilithon made from three massive blocks of crystal. Each of the stones bears a single rune, the same symbol repeated on each one- a glyph designed to contain evil and prevent its trespass.

A short distance from the hill and its stones is a small aeroplane, large enough to hold ten passengers in addition to its pilot and copilot. The aeroplane has been painted red, but the paint is chipped and fading, with a large propeller mounted at its rear to push the vehicle through the air. A large tent has been erected nearby, whilst six people labour at the nearest of the outer stone circle. They have wrapped a large rope around it, and are trying to pull it down and disrupt the circle.

[Zefir]

MERC Quest- The Henge of Tormented Souls

Fade is here, somewhere around where he can't be seen. (behind a tree or stone etc) He waits for the other merc member to be here pointing at the camp so he also takes note of them.

[DoomITP]

Foxpital

Des nods, privately not being a fan of Biting Knife himself.

You could head down there once you heal up, I suppose.

[Cyber Punk]

Foxpital

"Well, I'm already training to become a priestess... maybe in addition to that, I could join the cooking staff in my spare time? I hope my being a priest won't harm you in any way, Des. I'll try my best to keep from harming you."

Jinkei smiles. This vampire that she has disjointed memories of, and yet she's sure he's alright, as a friend. "I'm going to live for a long time, Des. I'm only 19 years old, and I know people that are in their 400s in Foxside. I hope..." Her eyes begin to water. "I hope... we remain friends for as long as one of us is alive, and even after then!"

[Ashen Lilies]

MERC Quest- The Henge of Tormented Souls

Jazirian is nearby, also observing. He creeps towards Fade's hiding spot, in the guise of a mouse.
"If you disrupt the people by the stones, I can check out that plane."

[ThirdEmperor]

[3:10 to Nowhere]

"Sensible, but.." Livret stirs on Spako's shoulders, glancing down into the dark gap between the cars. It can't be all that deep. He huffs out a new light, this one orbiting his own head instead of trailing after the kobold, and spreads his wings. "But I shall go check on him. Only for a moment. Go on ahead."

And at that, the little wyrm is diving off into the darkness in search of the voice.

"Thank you." The old goblin matron's hand interrupts whatever thoughts Spako might have had, tussling the little spikes atop his scaly head like a child's hair. "Will you help her up?" The child clings to her own shoulders as she's held out to him, lip wobbling in silent, confused terror. And still she makes not the slightest sound.

--Elsewhere--

It's not the same as the room they left. The darkness has crept inside, crawling across the cracked leather cushions of the seats in little blots of ink, six-legged, forming long trails as they march across the walls and ceilings. They spill out from beneath the door, so numberous in the thin crack beneath that the shadows seem to writhe with their movement.

A messy crunching beneath John's hoof as he slips through the window.

The movement falls still.

And then, as one, they flare their little wings. The humm echoes from all sides of him. The exhaustion it brings, sudden and desperate. The cozy little light on the cabin roof flickers, dims, and dies as they come marching forward in wriggling battle lines.

[Cyber Punk]

[Evan's Sniping Spot]

As far as Evan knows, this sniping spot is known only to him and... and her. Luna. Maybe that's why he came here, to reminisce. Maybe it's another reason that brought him there. Who knows?

Whatever he came to do will probably take a backseat for now, as there's someone in his spot.

The exact same spot that he was when he first met Luna.

[DoomITP]

Evan's Sniping Spot

Evan stops dead silent upon seeing someone in his favorite location. He draws his short barreled shotgun, spelling doom at this range and steps forward quiet as night.

You have three seconds to explain why you're here.

[Cyber Punk]

[Evan's Sniping Spot]

Evan should notice that the lady has no scope on her highly-modded sniper rifle, yet her eyes are fixed on something in the distance. Without looking at him, she speaks.

"Got a target who was last seen in this location. I'm here to off her. What's it to ya?"

[DoomITP]

Evan's Sniping Spot

Evan raises an eyebrow.

What a mighty big gun you have there...

His mind goes elsewhere for a moment as he frowns again.

Anyway, what's it to me? I'm Evan Armire. That's what.

[Cyber Punk]

[Evan's Sniping Spot]

"Don't underestimate the small girl with a big gun, my uncle always said." The lady smiles to herself.

"Evan Armire? Heard of ya when I was out world-hopping. Supposed to be some bigshot sniper, eh?" She grins. "Well, you're a sniper too, so that's good enough for me."

Then she turns to face him. There's a line that shows where her irises ought to begin, but inside that line... well, there's no difference in color from her sclerae and her irises.

Somehow, Evan should be able to tell that she's not blind.

"Holly Dawson. Here hunting some mark... Luna McGuire or something. I'll just off her and the spot's all yours."

[DoomITP]

Evan's Sniping Spot

Evan's eyes narrow. The eyes probably had ocular implants that rendered a scope pointless. Then Luna came up. His reaction was oddly underwhelming.

Hmph... That is my at one time fiance.

[Earl of Purple]

Henge of Tormented Souls

The group working at the lowest ring of standing stones manage to knock one of the stones over, and let out a cheer.

There's a crackle of white light about all the other stones as it goes over, the ward about them weakening.

[Cyber Punk]

[Evan's Sniping Spot]

Well, Evan isn't completely wrong. Still, the eyes do help with her gunplay bastardizing the laws of physics.

Holly turns back to her target. "Huh. I see. You were a target too, but I have a rule against hunting snipers. Money was mighty tempting, but I don't do this for the money."

She chuckles. "So you're no longer together? That's the right idea. Fiancees only tie you down; thank goodness flings are a thing."

The suppressed report of her rifle is heard, and she smiles in satisfaction. "Never saw me coming."

[DoomITP]

Evan's Sniping Spot

Evan's heart stops beating for what feels like an eternity when the rifle goes off, he brings up a weapon with a scope of his own to survey what had happened. The was no way that she had killed Luna. No... There couldn't be.

[Cyber Punk]

[Evan's Sniping Spot]

Yes way.

Evan can see Luna motionless on the ground. She doesn't look to be pretending. Maybe... she was probably distracted when it went off. It looks like she didn't suffer.

"Kill confirmed. Sure, with me it ain't needed, but I like to make sure." From the sound, he can tell she's packing up. "A deal's a deal, spot's all yours."

Evan probably can't tell, but Holly is eyeing his well-defined body hungrily.