INBOXtext / audio / video / actionThis is Kozukata Yuri. I'm sorry I missed your call. Please leave a message and I'll get back to you.art creditcode credit
[A couple minutes after she sends that text, she texts again.]
The mountain. Normally I can feel her everywhere, but she's definitely concentrated around the mountain now. If there's any way to get over there we might be able to find more. But we'd have to actually get over there.
[ After they'd set up a time to meet, Majima made his way over to the woods of the Park, before the mountain itself. As usual, he looked ready to go. Not quite as usual, he was wearing the pale body armor that he'd retrieved from the F.E.A.R. armory.
The last time he'd been up, it had helped blend into the snow up on the mountain. More importantly, it was warm -- an essential for higher altitude exploration. ]
I don't know what we'll find up there, but I hope it's some answers. Ready to go?
[Yuri suddenly wishes she'd had some kind of armor to bring with her. She feels a little under-dressed in her normal, albeit now a little bloody, clothes. At least she'd thought to add a jacket, but then, she'd never gotten too cold climbing the mountain back home. So the thought of really covering up hadn't really occurred to her.
She brought her camera though! She came prepared for that, at least. Her expression is grim, but determined.]
I'm ready. My camera works against the supernatural and things like that, but if it's anything beyond that... [She'll be functionally useless in a fight, sorry Majima.]
[Yuri follows behind him, gripping her camera tightly. She has no idea what to really expect from this, so she's a bit on edge.]
No, I never really thought to go too far... It's a big town, so I've been trying to just focus on a couple areas at a time. [She hadn't gotten to this yet, alas. There's just too many interesting places to get to and not enough of herself to go around.]
[Yuri tenses a little, immediately on edge and looking around when he speaks up like that.]
Treasure? [She relaxes a little, a little exasperated that she's gotten her hackles up over something like that. She follows after him, coming up beside him and leaning over to check it.]
Do you think it's actually worth something? [She crouches down and reaches out to pick it up, but pauses when it.
Moves?
??? ????? ???
And... opens...?]
Eugh! [Yuri makes a disgusted noise and recoils instantly.] A-- bug?!
[ The insect flapped its gauzy wings sluggishly, and then Majima noticed a few more glints of gold, this time contained in the hollow of an old tree. There was the whirring of numerous wings, and then he was bringing up a hand as the gold-backed bugs flew at them. There weren't all that many of them -- perhaps the cooling whether was making them sluggish, but he had no experience fighting bugs and no desire to stick around and find out how hard they could bite. Or if they were venomous.
Attack Item >Run Away!! ]
C'mon, let's get the hell outta here!
[ If Yuri didn't get a move on, he'd grab for her hand to pull her onward. ]
[It takes Yuri a few seconds to leap into action, so it's Majima's grabbing at her hand that finally propels her forward with a yelp of a disgust and alarm.]
Why do those exist!? [WHO IS RESPONSIBLE. WHO DID THIS. Yuri didn't generally think of herself as someone who'd be frightened off by bugs, but this isn't really a kind of bug she'd ever encountered before. And knowing this place? Being poisoned by it was the least worrisome thing a bite from it could possibly do.
She takes it back she wants off the mountain thanks!!] Can we outrun them?
[ In a way, the bugs were kind of beautiful, in the way that a scarab was beautiful as long as you didn't turn it over and see the horrible too-many legs underneath, wriggling and... gah. He was freaking himself out. ]
I ain't pack any bug spray, either!
[ God, all these inventory slots and he'd forgotten the most important thing for hiking in the woods. He drew his dagger as they ran, swiping at a few bugs that strayed too close. Strangely enough, they seemed to stray away from either the heat or flame generated by the blade, and one that had flown too close burned up once in contact with the dagger itself. ]
[Did these weird treasure bug things count as supernatural? Yuri wasn't sure, but she raises her camera as they run and snaps a picture.
While it certainly doesn't kill them, it does seem to stun the ones caught in the viewfinder's path and makes them drop from the sky. So that's...something.]
What's that knife? [it's doing a lot better than her camera at least, since she can hardly keep it steady enough to take the pictures while they're running]
[ Majima waved away more of the bugs as they ran; at least they'd thinned out the impromptu swarm! Now the remnants, perhaps either because of autumn sluggishness or the livelier-than-usual efforts of their prey, seemed to be wavering in their pursuit. ]
Only since I been here, it's changed. Never used to set things on fire.
[ Don't get him wrong, though! He enjoyed the change. ]
[That answered the next question she was going to ask, at least. So it became a magical murder-knife upon coming to this place? She'd be a little more concerned about that with her camera, but so far it's been acting the same as usual.]
Nothing I'd want to be hung on the walls. [At least the swarm seems to be less... swarm-y.] I think they're giving up!
[Which is GREAT news, because Yuri feels like her lungs might actually be on fire]
[ So Majima began to slow to a stop, looking back over his shoulder to make doubly sure the bugs had given up on them. ]
Ya okay? Didn't get stung or anythin'?
[ This expedition was off to a GREAT START, that was for sure. At least the woods and trail in front of them were quiet, aside from the occasional birdsong. ]
[ Majima shook his head as he caught his breath. Human-shaped enemies were way easier to deal with. ]
Here's hopin'. But check it out -- we're a lot closer. And do you hear somethin'?
[ Before, he'd only been listening to the pounding in his ears and the whirring of insect wings, but now it sounded like some kind of humming in the background. ]
[ At what cost, indeed. Yet the further they traveled along the trail, the the more convinced he became it was the same humming over and over, repeated. ]
We should've come across one of them staircases by now. They're impossible to miss.
[ Ah, but up ahead was a break in the trees. ]
That's the mountain, but...
[ Didn't it seem different, somehow? If one looked at it long enough, didn't it resemble a strange, curled-up figure? ]
[Yuri stops short in surprise, eyeing the...mountain? Uh.]
What... Is it? [Or maybe she should really be asking:] Or who? [She remembers feeling Sodder's presence most strongly on the mountain, more than ever before, but...] Is that... Sodder?
That's the same thing I saw back durin' the carriage rides.
[ How rude, calling it a thing!! Although Majima was a little at a loss as to what to call the being. ]
But it's different now. And what the hell are those legs?
[ Those strange, unearthly legs digging into the being's head looked like they were grasping, trying to keep hold. It looked like there was a layer of rock binding the figure in place, too. ]
I think... I think Rei mentioned seeing something like this too. [She doesn't know all the details, but she's pretty sure she mentioned something like this? Yuri takes an uncertain step closer, squinting a little as she tries to make out more details that might be useful.]
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[A couple minutes after she sends that text, she texts again.]
The mountain. Normally I can feel her everywhere, but she's definitely concentrated around the mountain now. If there's any way to get over there we might be able to find more. But we'd have to actually get over there.
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[ He was going to try and fail, but hey. ]
You wanna come with?
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Of course. Just say when, I'll be there.
TIMESKIP I guess??
The last time he'd been up, it had helped blend into the snow up on the mountain. More importantly, it was warm -- an essential for higher altitude exploration. ]
I don't know what we'll find up there, but I hope it's some answers. Ready to go?
SURE WHY NOT
She brought her camera though! She came prepared for that, at least. Her expression is grim, but determined.]
I'm ready. My camera works against the supernatural and things like that, but if it's anything beyond that... [She'll be functionally useless in a fight, sorry Majima.]
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[ TEAMWORK. Majima headed in the direction of the mountain, careful to keep to the path. ]
Should be some staircases around here somewhere; they lead straight up to the mountain as long as ya watch your step.
[ A light dusting of snow crunched quietly underfoot. ]
You never been this far out in the Park, right?
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No, I never really thought to go too far... It's a big town, so I've been trying to just focus on a couple areas at a time. [She hadn't gotten to this yet, alas. There's just too many interesting places to get to and not enough of herself to go around.]
How often have you come out here?
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It's -- hey, what's that?
[ Up ahead was a metal gleam, half-buried in snow. It looked like... a coin? Majima walked up to it, frowning. ]
What, someone lose their pirate treasure out here?
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Treasure? [She relaxes a little, a little exasperated that she's gotten her hackles up over something like that. She follows after him, coming up beside him and leaning over to check it.]
Do you think it's actually worth something? [She crouches down and reaches out to pick it up, but pauses when it.
Moves?
??? ????? ???
And... opens...?]
Eugh! [Yuri makes a disgusted noise and recoils instantly.] A-- bug?!
no subject
[ The insect flapped its gauzy wings sluggishly, and then Majima noticed a few more glints of gold, this time contained in the hollow of an old tree. There was the whirring of numerous wings, and then he was bringing up a hand as the gold-backed bugs flew at them. There weren't all that many of them -- perhaps the cooling whether was making them sluggish, but he had no experience fighting bugs and no desire to stick around and find out how hard they could bite. Or if they were venomous.
Attack
Item
>Run Away!! ]
C'mon, let's get the hell outta here!
[ If Yuri didn't get a move on, he'd grab for her hand to pull her onward. ]
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Why do those exist!? [WHO IS RESPONSIBLE. WHO DID THIS. Yuri didn't generally think of herself as someone who'd be frightened off by bugs, but this isn't really a kind of bug she'd ever encountered before. And knowing this place? Being poisoned by it was the least worrisome thing a bite from it could possibly do.
She takes it back she wants off the mountain thanks!!] Can we outrun them?
cw: bugs I guess
[ In a way, the bugs were kind of beautiful, in the way that a scarab was beautiful as long as you didn't turn it over and see the horrible too-many legs underneath, wriggling and... gah. He was freaking himself out. ]
I ain't pack any bug spray, either!
[ God, all these inventory slots and he'd forgotten the most important thing for hiking in the woods. He drew his dagger as they ran, swiping at a few bugs that strayed too close. Strangely enough, they seemed to stray away from either the heat or flame generated by the blade, and one that had flown too close burned up once in contact with the dagger itself. ]
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While it certainly doesn't kill them, it does seem to stun the ones caught in the viewfinder's path and makes them drop from the sky. So that's...something.]
What's that knife? [it's doing a lot better than her camera at least, since she can hardly keep it steady enough to take the pictures while they're running]
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[ Majima waved away more of the bugs as they ran; at least they'd thinned out the impromptu swarm! Now the remnants, perhaps either because of autumn sluggishness or the livelier-than-usual efforts of their prey, seemed to be wavering in their pursuit. ]
Only since I been here, it's changed. Never used to set things on fire.
[ Don't get him wrong, though! He enjoyed the change. ]
You gettin' some good photos?
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Nothing I'd want to be hung on the walls. [At least the swarm seems to be less... swarm-y.] I think they're giving up!
[Which is GREAT news, because Yuri feels like her lungs might actually be on fire]
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Ya okay? Didn't get stung or anythin'?
[ This expedition was off to a GREAT START, that was for sure. At least the woods and trail in front of them were quiet, aside from the occasional birdsong. ]
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I think I'm okay. I think... I think if that's the worse we face up here, we'll be okay. Even if that's a pretty... Pretty ominous start.
[Wheeze. This was possibly a bad idea.]
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Here's hopin'. But check it out -- we're a lot closer. And do you hear somethin'?
[ Before, he'd only been listening to the pounding in his ears and the whirring of insect wings, but now it sounded like some kind of humming in the background. ]
I don't remember that sound from before.
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She tilts her head though, brow furrowing somewhat at the noise.] ...Is it a machine? [None of this bodes well.] Where's it coming from...?
[Yuri trails off a little, mumbling the question to herself as she begins to walk again, trying to locate a source or a direction to follow it in.]
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We should've come across one of them staircases by now. They're impossible to miss.
[ Ah, but up ahead was a break in the trees. ]
That's the mountain, but...
[ Didn't it seem different, somehow? If one looked at it long enough, didn't it resemble a strange, curled-up figure? ]
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What... Is it? [Or maybe she should really be asking:] Or who? [She remembers feeling Sodder's presence most strongly on the mountain, more than ever before, but...] Is that... Sodder?
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[ How rude, calling it a thing!! Although Majima was a little at a loss as to what to call the being. ]
But it's different now. And what the hell are those legs?
[ Those strange, unearthly legs digging into the being's head looked like they were grasping, trying to keep hold. It looked like there was a layer of rock binding the figure in place, too. ]
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Can we get closer? ...Will it be safe...?
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[ Was that humming coming from the giant being? From the legs? Somewhere else? He continued forward, a bit more cautiously now. ]
Maybe it is Sodder. It stepped in when all those beasts were attackin' us.
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She follows close behind, eyeing the figure with a frown.]
I thought Sodder was someone like us--Someone who'd been dragged into this dream world type thing. What could've happened to make her like... This?
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want to wrap this up and say they couldn't find a way to the mountain?
Sure!