(CLOSED) i, johannes faust, do call upon thee, mephistopheles!

[apocalypticist]

WHO: Ryo & Akira.
WHERE: The forest.
WHEN: December 20th.
WHAT: Forest exploration.
WARNINGS: None so far; will add as necessary.


[ They've been thinking about exploring the woods and searching for clues to the origins of the creatures there for a few weeks now, but Akira managed to convince him to delay the trip a little until the egg Keigo had obtained hatched—something about wanting to know what to look for so they can search for the creature's family. He has a tendency to get overinvested in baby animals and Ryo thinks there are more important things to look for in the woods, but he doesn't say no; they can keep an eye out for a dragon family missing an egg, he supposes.

He's meticulous in his preparation for the trip, making sure they have contingency plans in case something goes wrong. He cleans his rifle and sharpens the knives kept under his coat, he wraps some food in cloth to stave off hunger and give them the energy to keep walking. They could be out there for a while if they lose their way or if the forest is feeling malicious.

He settles into stride next to Akira as they head into the forest, the town quickly disappearng from view behind them. ]

Comments

[apocalypticist]

[ Ryo nods, moving to retrieve Akira's coat and shirt from where he left them behind the boulder. Here, get dressed. ]

What are you going to do if we find any dragons?

[lacrimose]

[Thanks buddy. He puts his shirt and coat back on, considering.]

I don't know how these things behave, or how smart they are. If we can learn about them, maybe we can figure out if they'll take back Keigo's dragon or not.

If not... I guess just observing them could give us some ideas for how to deal with the baby dragon.

[apocalypticist]

Keep in mind that they may see whoever tries to return the baby dragon as a kidnapper. [ So that could result in someone getting eaten. ]

[lacrimose]

If they turn aggressive, I can take on a dragon.

[Probably. He they can't be any more challenging than the average demon, anyway.]

[apocalypticist]

I know. But killing the parents would defeat the purpose, wouldn't it?

[ Come, let's head deeper into the woods. Gotta look for those dragons. ]

[lacrimose]

That's true... I guess we can come up with a plan once we've had a chance to watch the dragons.

[If they find them at all. They head deeper into the woods, but from here on, it's all thick forest; there's nothing to suggest dragons would even have the space to live amongst the trees like this, and no other evidence to suggest there are any around, like evidence of fire or tracks.]

What do you think? Should we keep going, or look for other monsters?

[apocalypticist]

Let's keep going for now.

[ He still thinks Akira is too overinvested in the dragon, but maybe they'll come across more quest monsters while looking for its family. So they keep walking, going deeper and deeper—until their surroundings grow darker and darker, the trees looking gnarled and twisted as if in agony.

He has a very bad feeling about this. Of course, he ignores it in favor of pushing forward. There has to be something worthwhile waitng for them if they can get past this, right? ]

[lacrimose]

[This is a part of the woods completely unfamiliar to Akira, and everything about it sets him on edge. He's expecting an ambush at any second, but it doesn't come. He won't even bother suggesting to Ryo that they should turn around, knowing that when his friends sets his mind on something, or if something grabs his attention, he's absolutely going to see it through.

Eventually there's a clearing in the trees, and through the gloom Akira spots it -- a strange, floating, faceless creature, with limbs like branches. A guardian of the woods. Akira looks to Ryo, speaking in a hushed voice.]

What do you want to do?

[apocalypticist]

[ Ryo slants his gaze toward the creature, eyes narrowing as he tries to assess how dangerous it is. It doesn't look like any mythological creature he's familiar with; they need to be cautious when dealing with unknown risks—it could be like the bogeyman, or worse.

He drops his voice to a whisper. ]

Get past it without fighting, if possible. We don't know what it's capable of. [ As he replies, he opens his jacket to pull out his rifle, switching off the safety. ]

[lacrimose]

[Akira lowers himself to a crouch when he thinks it might be looking their way, sizing up potential ways around it. They could take another route and risk getting lost or turned back on themselves, or he could, if the creature is slower than he is, sprint past it. Ryo's not that fast, though...

Frowning as he weighs his options, Akira suggests quietly:]

Maybe I should distract it, until you've gotten safely by?

[apocalypticist]

[ Ryo crouches as well, keeping his attention on the creature. His instincts are telling him to leave, feeling like lead in the pit of his stomach, but he ignores it as he considers Akira's suggestion. ]

All right. [ He nods, glancing to Akira. ] Give me your coat and shirt.

[lacrimose]

[Akira nods and undresses as quickly and quietly as he can, before passing his clothes to Ryo. Then he makes sure to move away from Ryo before transforming, to avoid making his friend a target. As predicted, the growing dark shape from between the trees seems to catch the guardian's attention, and as soon as Akira realises he's been spotted, he pounces.

Without any flesh to tear at or sink his fangs into, however, it's hard to guess what he should be aiming for. Still, Akira's size and weight is enough to bowl it into the tree for at least a second or two, giving Ryo precious time to start making a run for it.]

[apocalypticist]

[ Ryo hastily shoves Akira's clothes into the satchel, quietly watching Akira pounce the creature, and as soon as he sees an opening he breaks into a sprint, running as fast as he possibly can. The guardian whips its head in the direction Ryo is running and quickly stabs an appendage into Akira's leg and throws him to the side as though he weighs nothing at all, before going after Ryo.

Ryo tosses a glance over his shoulder and realizing that it's going to catch up with him, he stops briefly to fire several bullets in rapid succession at it in the hopes of slowing it down—but the bullets barely seem to graze it at all and suddenly the creature is slashing at him. He automatically puts an arm up to protect his face and pain shoots through him when sharp claws sink into his forearm. ]

Augh—!!

[lacrimose]

[Akira snarls as he's impaled in the leg and thrown aside. Ignoring the yellow blood streaming from the wound, he pulls himself up and launches himself back at the guardian, but he's already too late and hears that cry of pain.]

Ryo!

[This isn't just about fighting for the hell of it like before at the cliffs -- it's about protecting someone he cares about. He tries to grab one of its appendages before it can slash at Ryo again, and while he succeeds in stopping it, he can't tear the limb off. In fact, he can't seem to scratch the creature at all. While he struggles to restrain it he puts himself between it and Ryo, letting out a roar as he's impaled again through the shoulder and abdomen.]

[apocalypticist]

[ His arm hurts, and something feels wrong; a faint nausea is creeping over him there's some kind of liquid dripping from his injury, though it's hard to see with the blood mixing with it. ]

Akira— [ Gritting his teeth, he aims his rifle and squeezes the trigger. The bullets doesn't cause any damage as far as he can tell, but he manages to distract the creature for a couple of seconds. ]

We have to run!

[ This is like the bogeyman fight but worse, and there's no way they're going to be able to defeat that thing unless an actual miracle occurs. ]

[lacrimose]

[Akira can feel his energy being drained from around his wounds at a staggering rate, and if he doesn't do something quickly, he'll be unable to sustain his devil form. Luckily the burst of gunfire is the distraction he needs.

With a roar he pulls the appendages out from his wounds, and, ignoring his own injuries for now, scoops Ryo up to carry him away.]

Hold on!

[Hopefully he doesn't mind being tossed on Akira's back as he runs -- it has both the benefit of Akira being able to run more quickly on all fours, but Ryo can also provide covering fire as they retreat.]

[apocalypticist]

[ Ryo has to shake his head to clear his mind enough to shoot at the creature until they've gotten the hell out of Dodge—his body is feeling sluggish and his attempts to aim the rifle and fire don't go particularly well, several of the shots missing completely. It's like his energy is being depleted, replaced by the building nausea and he doesn't feel well.

Luckily for them, it doesn't look like the guardian is going to follow them. Once he's certain they're in the clear, he hastily puts his rifle back inside his coat. ]

How bad are your injuries?

[lacrimose]

[Akira's body seems to move on its own, darting around trees and over fallen branches, heading back the way they came. He doesn't even slow down or look back to check if the creature is still in pursuit, trusting Ryo to be able to deal with it. It's only when the gunfire dies down and there's no further sign of pursuit that Akira slows to a halt, letting Ryo climb off if he's not too injured to do so.]

I'm okay. [His wounds are taking longer to heal than normal because of the drain on his energy, and he sounds like he's in pain, but they're not fatal. He's dealt with worse.] What about you?

[apocalypticist]

[ He can climb off without any problems, but he's a little slow when doing so. He's looking a bit unsteady too, like he might lose his balance and fall over any second. ]

I'm fine.

[lacrimose]

[Akira shifts back into his human form once he's off, not wanting to waste his waning energy unless there's a threat. His wounds are still there, although now red-blooded instead of demonic yellow.

He puts a hand against Ryo's shoulder to steady him, then checks his arm.]

You sure? You look pretty messed up, considering the wound's not that big. Let's hurry back, just in case.

[apocalypticist]

I just feel a little tired. [ "A little" being an understatement here. He pushes up his sleeve to get a better look at the injury; there's some still some residual poison that hasn't gotten mixed with blood around the cuts and his eyes narrow when he sees it.

He should clean it as soon as possible. ]

All right, let's head back. [ Even with Akira supporting him, walking turns out to be harder than it should be; he can't move very fast at all. ]

[lacrimose]

[This is way too slow for Akira's liking. Even if the guardian isn't giving chase, they made an enemy of whatever harpies survived, and there are doubtless plenty of other monsters and potentially aggressive wildlife that might decide to attack them, too.]

If you're tired, you can rest. I'll carry you the rest of the way.

[Akira makes the executive decision to scoop Ryo up and princess carry him. Sorry buddy, he's not going to watch you struggle when there's something wrong.]