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Post by Ashe on Apr 19, 2020 17:46:41 GMT -6
Ashe frowned and stooped to try to wash some of that off his poor baby. Gremlin, firstly, protested the touching involved and squirmed to try to get away, and secondly, he appeared to be getting even more goo all over him. It was like a Blob scenario, where the hatchling was becoming engulfed in whatever this sticky matter was. Ashe was slightly alarmed; what if it suffocated him or something sinister like that? He tried to keep it away from his eyes and nose, which was difficult because now Gremlin was struggling and biting at anything that came close to his mouth. His teeth were small but they still drew blood each time they got Ashe’s fingers. He would yelp and draw back, lick the blood away, and try again. But it was a losing battle and the leaves were falling faster. The Sarane didn’t stand a chance and soon was completely covered in this goop. It looked pale green in color, but it could have been something else.
Gremlin: 0 4/5 Ashe: 0 4/20 [Ashe is using Sever Bond at the cost of 4 MP] April Post 4
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Post by Ashe on Apr 19, 2020 17:47:01 GMT -6
The purple sky made things look different. Who knew the blue color we were used to had such an effect on the appearance of other things in our day to day life? Ashe tried in vain to wipe off the goo on the Sarane’s face, but nothing came off. And, strangely, nothing came off onto Ashe either. He noticed that he was not goo covered in the slightest; only Gremlin. Was it attacking his pet, then? Was this the work of a creature that called the mansion its home? It might not like having a carnivorous creature like a Sarane in its home. Ashe looked around for a source, and found none. By now, the entire face and muzzle were covered, and the Sarane was struggling. Ashe thought that this was it, he was going to watch his pet die and he wasn’t going to be able to help it. It couldn’t end like this! He wouldn’t let it! He had too many plans for this Sarane to just let it happen.
Gremlin: 1 0/5 Ashe: 0 5/20 [Ashe is using Sever Bond at the cost of 4 MP] April Post 5
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Post by Renathan on Apr 19, 2020 18:03:17 GMT -6
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Post by Ashe on Apr 24, 2020 17:41:58 GMT -6
In a last ditch effort, he grabbed the Sarane and turned to leave the property, hoping that if he got off the magical land, everything would go back to normal. If he could just hold his breath for a little bit, and not inhale any of that terrible gel stuff, then they would be fine. Ashe turned, meaning to bolt and run, but he became aware of the wriggling creature in his arms. The Sarane wasn’t struggling in the throes of death, he wasn’t struggling to breath. He seemed more upset that Ashe was holding him and not letting him play… He frowned and set the mass of wriggling flesh down on the ground, and the sarane started to scamper off. Last moment, Ashe remembered the leash and grabbed it before he could escape. So he was… fine? He seemed to be fine. He had turned around and was gnawing on the leash restraining him. Or maybe...gumming, would be more accurate.
Gremlin: 1 1/5 Ashe: 0 6/20 [Ashe is using Sever Bond at the cost of 4 MP] April Post 6
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Post by Ashe on Apr 24, 2020 18:04:58 GMT -6
The goo seemed to have surrounded and almost become Gremlin. The little guy felt soft and squishy now, and he was chewing on the leash for all he was worth but he wasn’t damaging it at all, so Ashe deduced that the gel goo had covered his teeth, too. Ashe didn’t know what was going on, but his little critter seemed to be adapting just fine so he decided to continue on inside. That was what he was here for, after all. Why stop now just because he got a little case of the cold feet? He walked on, heading for the Mansion anew. The sarane followed after him, though occasionally he tried to leave him to chase after dragonflies. How cute, a dragon chasing after dragonflies? Ashe unfortunately couldn’t stop and admire the cuteness, he had to keep going. The path was winding and confusing and he wasn’t even sure if he was going the right way any more. The mansion was still out of sight.
Gremlin: 1 2/5 Ashe: 0 7/20 [Ashe is using Sever Bond at the cost of 4 MP] April Post 7
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Post by Ashe on Apr 24, 2020 18:16:52 GMT -6
The trees seemed to rise even higher around them, the bushes getting even closer. Rustling was coming from every direction and Ashe didn’t know what to think. Were they being followed? Was it a breeze blowing through that he couldn’t feel because he was in the midst of all the trees? Or was his mind playing tricks on him? He felt uneasy in the long silences that stretched out around them periodically. Too quiet and he felt like he could feel his very blood pulsing in his veins. He didn’t like it. He tried to focus instead on the noises his sarane was making, when he could hear them above the rustling. He tried to figure out if there was a pattern to the sounds, but they didn’t seem to follow anything of the sort. The only pattern he heard was the soft gooey steps of Gremlin. The Sarane almost seemed to bounce along next to him, there was such a pep in his step. Now if only something fun and interesting would happen.
Gremlin: 1 3/5 Ashe: 0 8/20 [Ashe is using Sever Bond at the cost of 4 MP] April Post 8
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Post by Ashe on Apr 24, 2020 18:50:19 GMT -6
Next, the sky started getting darker. That, or the tops of the trees became more solid and started blocking out more of the light. Either way, things started getting darker and darker around Ashe and he felt the chill down his spine that comes with not being alone, with being in something else’s sights. He cast around, wondering who was watching them. Or what. He couldn’t see anything, but he didn’t have the eyesight of prey or predator. He tried not to think about it, though it nagged in the back of his head. He tried instead to focus on his Sarane hatchling, who was digging for grubs or other such things at the moment. Dirt flew, but his claws were unable to penetrate as well as they would have normally. The goo must be blunting even those sharp points! Despite that set back, the dirt seemed to be moving itself. There was no way he was able to do all of that, with the lack of marks he was making himself.
Gremlin: 1 4/5 Ashe: 0 9/20 [Ashe is using Sever Bond at the cost of 4 MP] April Post 9
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Post by Ashe on Apr 24, 2020 19:26:00 GMT -6
He became aware of a sound. It wasn’t the usual rustling, and it wasn’t the gooey sound of his Sarane moving around, but there was something else out there now, making a soft noise. Ashe looked around, and before too long he found what it was. Two bottles of something were floating in the air. Odd, but not any more odd than the other things going on today. He started toward them, seeing that they were too high for him to reach, but hoping maybe he could jump or stand on something when he was closer. With a huff, Gremlin dragged himself behind Ashe, trying to resist but the goo was making it impossible to get traction on anything. Frustrated, he finally relented and followed his master, with a bunch of grumbling and hissing. As Ashe got closer, he saw there was a cloud floating above the bottles, essentially holding onto them. That must be why they were floating! But what was this thing?
Gremlin: 2 0/5 Ashe: 0 10/20 [Ashe is using Sever Bond at the cost of 4 MP] April Post 10
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Post by Renathan on Apr 24, 2020 19:26:15 GMT -6
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Post by Ashe on Apr 24, 2020 20:05:06 GMT -6
The black floating ball of shadow, or gas, or whatever it was, continued to move this way and that, the bottles clinking together slightly as it moved. Ashe watched, and couldn’t help but feel a wave of dizziness come over him. He had a brief realization hit him, that he was being hypnotized, but it was too late. He couldn’t move his limbs in protest, and he found this very disconcerting. All of the crazy stuff he’d done in the past, and now this silly thing was able to just slip past his defenses and do this to him? It was shameful. This had to be extremely powerful magic… Right? He felt like his eyes were going to roll into the back of his head and the only thing keeping him tethered was the Sarane beside him. Thankfully, he could still see and feel his little buddy. Gremlin was watching the thing above, too, but with more concern and distrust. He wasn’t affected!
Gremlin: 2 1/5 Ashe: 0 11/20 [Ashe is using Sever Bond at the cost of 4 MP] April Post 11
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Post by Ashe on Apr 24, 2020 20:19:53 GMT -6
The last thing Ashe remembered was those two bottles falling. They fell in slow motion, and he felt like he could reach out and pluck them out of the air, sluggish as his own movements were. The were coming down, down, down… Being as paralyzed as Ashe was, he couldn’t catch them, and could only watch as they landed on a soft bush nearby and waited for him. Gremlin wandered over toward them, reaching the end of his leash, tugging at Ashe. He nearly snapped out of it at that jerk, and started to gasp, then his eyes rolled back into his head and he slumped to the ground. From what he could see, what he could feel, a huge black hole had opened up beneath him and he had fallen down, down, down. His sarane had fallen with him, and it was unsure if he really had, or if Ashe was imagining things. The pair turned end over end, legs flailing.
Gremlin: 2 2/5 Ashe: 0 12/20 [Ashe is using Sever Bond at the cost of 4 MP] April Post 12
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Post by Ashe on Apr 24, 2020 20:24:14 GMT -6
On the way down, this never ending hole that surely went to the center of the earth, Ashe did several flips and spins. At first, he’d been concerned with how he landed, but once the feeling in his stomach had subsided, he figured it didn’t really matter. Any fall from this height would kill him on impact, or magic would save him, but in neither of those options would his leg position help. So he took the time to do some moves of his own and he could almost imagine he was on Fafnir and flying away. Hey now - he did have a Sarane with him, didn’t he? He reached out and touched the goo on Gremlin, and his little rubbery baby looked over at him. His eyes were wide, with wonder or terror it was hard to say. Reptilian faces weren’t that expressive. Ashe tried to pull him closer, but the goo made his hand slide right off. Right off…! He watched his hand continue on without being attached to himself anymore.
Gremlin: 2 3/5 Ashe: 0 13/20 [Ashe is using Sever Bond at the cost of 4 MP] April Post 13
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Post by Ashe on Apr 24, 2020 20:28:41 GMT -6
Ashe stared at the stump of a hand he had left and felt his stomach flop all over again. That was his good hand, too! What was he going to do without it? What was Vix going to say? Could he still ride Fafnir as well, or swim as well? Without one of his hands? He groaned and closed his eyes, hoping it would come back. It was still gone when he next opened his eyes, though, and they were still falling. Gremlin had his wings stretched out, attempting to fly, or at least glide and have some sort of control. He was brave, Ashe thought, and he himself should be braver in sight of this. He stretched out his arms and tried to angle himself, too, or at least keep himself right way up. Wind felt weird, racing past the stump on his right arm, but he couldn’t think about that right now.
But that was all he could think about.
Gremlin: 2 4/5 Ashe: 0 14/20 [Ashe is using Sever Bond at the cost of 4 MP] April Post 14
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Post by Ashe on Apr 24, 2020 20:34:01 GMT -6
And now the ground was coming up, fast. Gremlin’s wings suddenly grew, and he took to the air, the leash breaking as he floated away from Ashe. The ground was so close now that he could see the blades of grass sticking up, razor sharp. His pet was safe, at least, but Ashe wouldn’t make it to ensure he got back home safe. He gritted his teeth, willing the magic to save him. His nodes! He could save himself with his nodes. He reached into his pocket with his good hand, but it was empty. His stomach fell out of him yet again as he realized he must not have brought them with him. Nothing could save him now.
And he hit the ground. He felt, and saw, his body splitting apart in slow motion. Cartoon-like. An arm snapped off at the shoulder, rounded and clean, and flew away. A leg followed. His mid section popped into two pieces like an action figure. His head rolled on the grass.
Gremlin: 3 0/5 Ashe: 0 15/20 [Ashe is using Sever Bond at the cost of 4 MP] April Post 15
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Post by Renathan on Apr 24, 2020 20:36:05 GMT -6
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