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Post by Kristofor on Oct 11, 2020 13:00:33 GMT -6
"Hiiiiyah!" Something small falls from the tree with a squishy splat. Two more somethings drop from the lowest branch, brandishing shining points. The object that landed smelled faintly of a doctor's office, of the liquid they use to hold something. Or maybe its the chemistry lab. Its... an eyeball? with a tail of eyeballs? I've already seen a spleen with eyes, so an eye with legs and a tail of other eyes. The things with shining points surrounded it, jabbing at the walking eyeball, completely ignoring the fox and the hound. The irony of me having a hound dog in my possession is rather sudden. I can't help it, and start chuckling ot myself. The tiny trio of hamster sized horrors aside, Dawson is still sniffing about at the tree. He foudn a few stray brown leaves there, a rather waxy sort of leaf never seen before. His long ears dragged on the ground as he sniffed around some.
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Post by Kristofor on Oct 11, 2020 13:14:12 GMT -6
"Hey. Is that dog stupid or too young to get spooked by everything." someone asked above my head again. Looking up, I could see a gleam of eyes hiding among the branches. It shifted, and finally dropped from the tree. The three little horrors totally ignored it too. With a black mohawk, squinty dark eyes and a pinched expression, the figure's posture was so bad I wondered if it had injured itself. Its face had very heavy markings of a mask, and stripes on whatever was showig on its brownish gray arms. The rest of its body was clothed in tight black humanoid garments, except for the sad excuse of a tail ducking behind the creature.
Young, but why would that matter., I find my tone growling briefly. The scent of the dead is strong among this striped...thing. It chuckles, stooping to a shorter height with long arms but shorter legs. I try to pull Dawson to me but he's winding around the trunk, sniffing away.
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Post by Kristofor on Oct 11, 2020 13:19:41 GMT -6
"'cause a lot of stupid people are bringing their dumb dogs here to play like its some sort of stupid dog park." the creature sneers, blackened hands in their pockets, with a lazy posture. Glancing up their pinched face to look at me up and down. Then chuckles to itself. Sounds male, but the smell is annoyingly strong. Like it ate garbage or dead things. Like that dead familiar?
Are you the master of this estate?, I finally ask, curiosity breaking over the cautiousness. He looks too... rogue to be so. Slapping a pocketed hand up to his forehead, the creature whoops with laughter. Practically cackling.
"Hahaahahahaa! Me, the master. Hahahahhaa!" Slapping the foreheaded hand to his knee, the creature finally stops laughing after a solid minute. "No way man, I'm just hired help."
"Any louder and you'll wake the dead." someone else pipes up grumpily from out of noplace, puttin gmy fur on end again. I backed off, this time having to pull hard on Dawson.
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Post by Kristofor on Oct 11, 2020 13:26:53 GMT -6
"This fox is a riot! Thinks I'm the master of this dump." the striped creature starts talking to the treetop like I'm not there. Was he just stupid or crazy on top of it too. I can hear yawning up in the branches before someone else comes out of the tree. What the heck is with this apple tree. This is the third person? its popped out that I've seen. Was there a fourth? Similar in looks and dress to the other, this one smells female, and a lot more pungent. But instead of a black mohawk, this one has thick ropes of hair spreading everywhere on her head. She tosses her head back to look me up and down. "Is this the guy we're supposed to bring to the boss?" A sharp amount of teeth show in a keen mean smile.
"What do we have here... you're not trespassing, but what are you doing here in the city, fox?" she asks humorlessly.
About this time is when Dawson starts fighting his leash, then sees two others and they smell VERY MUCH SO.
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Post by Kristofor on Oct 11, 2020 13:31:26 GMT -6
I live here, I growl, not takign my eyes off the duo as I scoop Dawson into my arms. The little hound squirms in my grip, pawing at my neck and my chest.
"Huh. From what I picked up, a fox got left for dead out at the gate by the lazy assassin. But here you are, certainly not dead." the female muses, looking pointedly at the shorter amount of fur she can see on my neck.
"Thats what I heard..." the male stalks around behind me, looking me up and down. Its hard to watch them both, but if I need to run, I'll kick them and get out of there again. "Luci rarely lets people get away like that..." he glances at the tree. "Bro? Do you know anything about this?" I don't hear words, but a distinct amount of scratching. Scratching of claw on skin through hair. Dawson, stop scratching me... this isn't the time.
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Post by Kristofor on Oct 11, 2020 13:37:53 GMT -6
But when the hound stops pawing at me, I still hear the scratching of claw on skin until it abruptly stops. The sound of a claw flicking something away, and a wad of grime hits the dirt between the three of us.
"Clearly, the fox was found by the scavengers of the city. Taken in, treated, and released into the city. But yes, he is definitely not dead." sitting on the fence beside the tree is a third striped individual. With overly large coke bottle glasses, the male squinted at me through the fog. His voice had a much less bullyish tone, but very intelligent. Insightful. Total opposite of these two chuckleheads. Except for the fact that he smelled the worst of them all. "I remember the boss being told that the fox had indeed recovered the papers that the lazy lord shredded and is now a citizen of the city, just like any other humanoid." Slipping down off the fence, he lands on all fours, and stands. Cracking his neck back and forth, with a frazzled black mohawk, similar black markings as the other two. Related, or just species?
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Post by Kristofor on Oct 11, 2020 13:44:02 GMT -6
"You're either optimistically brave or stupid, for still wandering the city in a place where you already nearly got killed." the bespectacled creature says to me, angling his head at extreme angles to see me properly. His eyes are huge with those glasses, and smells even worse up close. I step back, my tail fluffing out. There's three of them, I'm outnumbered and I have a baby hound dog. This is not good. But the intelligent one takes his attention off of me to the others, sounding annoyed.
"You idiots. We weren't supposed to be SEEN while finding this fox. And in this gods forsaken area of all places. I'd rather not encounter the reaper and the crow again." he sneers at them. The other two giggle nervously.
"Sorry bro. I got a bit curious about the dog the fox has. Its weird, y'no. Fox and a dog, they're natural enemies." the male tries to talk his way out before the female slaps her hand over his mouth to shut him up.
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Post by Kristofor on Oct 11, 2020 13:52:52 GMT -6
The intelligent one bristled angrily before snarling at them. "Get out and report back to the boss." When they only leaned away, he raised his voice. "NOW" yelping in fear, the male and female scurry for the gate behind us. Exhaling a snort, the very bad smelling male turns back to me.
"I would exercise some cautionary tactics fox, while skulking around the outskirts of the city. The Triad has feelers in every node of this city, no matter how small. It would seem that Lucifer's target has attracted the attention of our immediate boss. A word for the wise, fox. If you meet a black maned man down a dark alley with green eyes and a single eye, don't try to run away." He turns around, the duster of a tail quite prominent.
What...are you three.
"Stooges, mainly. Messengers. The hands that get dirty rather then the higher ups. But as for what we are... we're mutts." the male answered.
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Post by Kristofor on Oct 11, 2020 13:58:00 GMT -6
Glancing back as he scratches at his mohawk. "Not humanish, not mammalian, not enough of either to be 'classified' by human standards." He points at me and Dawson with a backwards hand. "Keep a closer eye on your hound, fox. The humans are enamored with those creatures presently. That and dragons. You don't want to lose him in this haunted place." Shivering, the itchy intelligent mutt waves backwardsly and leaves the estate. Several moments pass before I feel like I can put Dawson back down again. The puppy really doesn't care to be held like that. Sniffing the area where the three stinky mutt creatures were and growling a bit at the smell he smelled. He didn't like it. Too stinky. So he'd take the space. Crouching in the middle of the walk and making it his. Uh.... oh no.
I had to get the pup to listen to me about not doing things like that. Someplace specific, like only large trees. Otherwise, he'd likely water everything.
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Post by Kristofor on Oct 11, 2020 14:04:25 GMT -6
"Rude mutt." Yep, really starting to think this tree wasn't a tree. Because something seemed to drift into existence up in the branches again. "Calling the master's estate haunted. It is enchanted, yes, but not haunted." I don't believe theres a difference if four different things come out of the same apple tree, I grouse aloud as I backed out from under the tree. "Now thats just plain oversightedness. Haunted, by definition, means to be frequented by a ghost. It is the month of SPOOKS AND SPIRITS, for chaos' sake. Yes, there are specters and such that come through in the month, but it is not haunted. The mansion itself is not haunted. Nor the grounds." the existence smiles a sharp pointy smile. "I'm plenty scary for that." Looking up, I see the redhead with the sharp pointy teeth grinning lucidly down at me from a higher up branch. But they look, smaller? Younger? wha? Dawson sees the thing when he sees me looking up.  ? 65 +1 |
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Post by Kristofor on Oct 12, 2020 5:13:38 GMT -6
The redhead didn't jump down from the tree, or even choose to move. It stretched, lounging. No, not it. Its hard to tell by smell alone. But the sharklike teeth person? had little to no smell, actually. Was it a ghost? No, looked solid.
"You're overthinking things." the redhead glances down at me, still smiling. "I've seen ones like you; you try to logic it out before really seeing what is in front of your nose. This isn't the place to try and seek a solid ground, after all."
Do you know those... three things that came out of the tree? Is it a portal? The redhead scoffs, snaps their fingers and a little reddish black notebook appears in their gloved hand.
"I do, actually. They're the personal stooges of one of the higherup in the Triad, a crime ring here in this place. Escaped experiments who were fused with non-lab animals."
Dawson got bored quickly of looking in one place and started sniffing my paws.
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Post by Kristofor on Oct 12, 2020 5:22:19 GMT -6
"I mean, what better to use as your personal servants then homeless mutts." the redhead asks nobody in particular, turning a page. "They work for a man only known by his looks. Black hair, bright green eyes and a long scar down one eye. It works, at least thats the appearance. So the blind stooge wasn't joshing you, foxling. Don't meet that man down a dark alley. He's trouble iwth a T." but a longing smile spread over the existing smile. "Hell of a treat on the eyes though. He can charm anyone."
You said blind stooge. He did act blind, the one with giant glasses...
"Yes. The first one is dumb and impulsive, the only female is half deaf but sharp, and the intelligent one is nonsensically blind. His vision is extremely nearsighted to the point of blindness. Blind, deaf and dumb, thats how you know you've got the scarred man's stooges." The redhead's book snaps shut.
These fox paws are very intersting smells, Dawson's finding.
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Post by Kristofor on Oct 12, 2020 5:29:24 GMT -6
Are you an information shark?, I can't help myself and ask. The smile drops and the figure just looks annoyed now, before dragging the smile back with resistance.
"I am not a shark, this is my natural toothy smile. Its a nervous habit, I grin when I'm nervous." he? sighs, tapping the book against the red banged forehead. The red eyes glance at me. "As for information, not particularly. I have a connection inside the Triad who told me who to watch out for. You might find him at your going rate fox. The albino crow."
The crow the stooges mentioned?
"No, THAT crow is here on the estate." He appears to not know anything about just hunting me days ago? "Judging by your smell, you met him."
You look just like the mad freaper who was chasing me down days ago.
"Your right, I do. And I'll give him a hell of an earful for dressing me up as his double to avoid being caught!" the fist smacking into the tree caught Dawson's attention briefly.
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Post by Kristofor on Oct 12, 2020 5:34:47 GMT -6
The not-freaper starts messing with his heeled shoes, kicking them off with a relieved sigh. "I hate those restricting shoes." Wiggling his blackened toes before regaining his resting spot in the branches. When the shoes hit the ground, Dawson started barking at them, pawing and pouncing forth like they would try to play with him back. "Cute dog by the way."
Is there an enchantment on the estate so I can understand everything that approaches me?, I finally have to ask. The not-freaper isn't nearly as crazy as the real thing, so my guard is relaxing just a bit.
"Something along the sort, yes. When the master and his servant first got the mansion, they found that their language didn't match up to what was being spoken outside quite right. So to be frank, yes, there is a sort of universal language spell. Whatever you speak, you will hear back. And whenever you speak, they hear back with their own native language."
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Post by Kristofor on Oct 12, 2020 5:40:40 GMT -6
"As for the tree, its just a tree. I was already here, and invisible while the stooges followed you inside from over the fence. Thus, why they all seemed to be dropping out of the tree or the wall. Its no portal." tapping their gloved fingers against the dead and twisted apple tree. "Would be interesting if it was though. But transport magic is extremely complicated." He pulls one blackened foot close and starts to massage around the ankle bone. Human feet are actually quite interesting to look at. They are flat mostly, with no toe pads or claws to speak of. Occasionally they curl up in the middle, or the toes curl up together. Its fascinating. I like my fox feet better. "If you had any sort of transport magic before you came to Pethia fox, it doesn't work now."
Why?
"Somethin' about the magic of the world has been tapped and siphoned up by the lab years ago to make their creatures. Its not dead, but certainly not terribly strong. Humans are naturally attracted to magic, or not."
New toy! Gain one boot.
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