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Post by Emery on Feb 15, 2024 13:06:39 GMT -6
Without any further ado, the dove sprung off of the newly repaired floral arrangement and up towards the ceiling again, leaving the room just as silent as before. "...Interesting." Emery said, mostly to herself. It looked like there WAS some sort of system of decay and repair in this place, with tiny little creatures like that acting in the role of repairmen. Now she was glad she had dawdled enough to see it, as it had given her another piece of this place's puzzle. Moxie on the other hand wasn't nearly as smart, but he was just as enraptured by the little bird, and continued to stare upwards and twitch his head to either side, as if waiting for the little creature to make another appearance. She couldn't blame him- it was the first living, moving thing other than Emery that he had seen since they came in here. It was about the only thing for him to really look at.
Moxie 9.4/9.4 Emery 9 29
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Post by Emery on Feb 15, 2024 13:10:56 GMT -6
She wondered... Quickly, Emery looked around at the massive bouquet centerpieces again, trying to take closer notes on them. Sure enough, some of the flowers did seem more or less dry, some of their leaves curled inward a bit or not, so on and so forth- the tell tale signs of them being constantly swapped out. She made her way along the table, looking for any one of them that was especially out of place. Soon she got lucky- incredibly lucky. There was a whole patch of baby's breath that had caught some sort of mold, their flowers shrinking and dying at the touch of the white fuzzy substance. It was a little gross, actually. She cleared her throat (or at least, did so as best she could with an artificial vocalizer) and gestured to the bouquet. "Excuse me." She said, her voice echoing through the hall. "I believe you missed a spot."
Moxie 10.0/10.0 Emery 10 30
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Post by Emery on Feb 15, 2024 14:44:46 GMT -6
The logical part of her didn't want it to work. It was a stupid idea. But the part of her that was starting to understand how this place functioned knew that it would. And sure enough, the tweeting of birds once again filled the void yawning above her, their tiny voices echoing off the walls. It was louder than before and before she knew it, not one but two birds came fluttering down from above. The first was the same dove as before- or at least, a second dove that looked identical- but the second one was some manner of swallow, bearing a necklace with a golden pendant on it. She couldn't imagine the reason for the difference. Was it... a manager? Did it play a different role somehow? She could only speculate, as they slowly circled down to perform the same job as before, this time with baby's breath clutched in their beaks.
Moxie 10.1/10.1 Emery 11 31
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Post by Emery on Feb 15, 2024 14:50:12 GMT -6
They fluttered down to the arrangment and Emery got to see them work close up, her cameras zooming in with a barely audible whirr. They moved in a classic birdlike fashion with short, jerky movements but otherwise worked quickly and efficiently. One person might attribute intelligence to their actions, but Emery guessed that they were more likely normal, simple animals that had been possessed by the autonomous spirit of the mansion. She wouldn't know for sure though... unless she could capture one. Now that would help her with her studies. Right now, they seemed completely absorbed in their work. Perhaps she could just... reach out and grab them? And then place them in her bag? Sure they would be furious, but they were still just small birds- she doubted they would be able to actually escape. She lifted her arms up, moving as slowly and quietly as she could manage.
Moxie 10.2/10.2 Emery 12 32
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Post by Emery on Feb 15, 2024 14:58:01 GMT -6
The birds didn't seem to notice her approach, continuing merrily with their work, and for a moment she thought she might actually be able to pull it off. But then, she saw something between the floral arrangements. Moxie had made his way down the opposite side of the table from Emery, but was now staring intently through the gap between vases. At first Emery was unnerved- was he staring at her? Did he finally remember she existed over here? He was so still, so intent looking that it spooked her, but soon she realized what he was looking at. The birds. They were certainly attention grabbing with their rapid movements and bright, cheery chirping. But as a droplet of drool dripped out of the kito's mouth she realized that he didn't have quite the same feeling on them... though he was just as eager to grab them out of midair as Emery was.
Moxie 10.3/10.3 Emery 13 33
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Post by Emery on Feb 15, 2024 15:01:17 GMT -6
Emery glanced back at the birds, who were still none the wiser. "Moxie... don't-" She managed to say, not as quietly as she would have liked, but it was already too late. The occasus kito lunged and Emery instinctually flinched back at the sight of his disproportionately enormous jaws, lined with enormous teeth perfect for grabbing prey and swallowing them whole. He threw himself over the length of the table, crushing the ceramic plates against his bulk and scattering the perfectly arranged silverware onto the floor. He scrabbled against the table's surface with his feet, snapping wildly at the birds as he tried to gain some purchase. They shrieked in fear and swirled around his head, dropping their flowers in their panic. "Moxie, stop!" Emery cried out, cranking up her vocalizer's volume to the max, but it was of no use. He saw something he wanted, and he was going to eat it.
Moxie 10.4/10.4 Emery 14 34
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Post by Emery on Feb 15, 2024 15:03:35 GMT -6
Their original goal now completely forgotten, whatever spell was on the birds to keep them managing the floral arrangements was now broken. But apparently that meant that they had forgotten where they came from too, as instead of returning to the void above, the birds shot off away from Moxie towards the far side of the room. Moxie wasted no time in turning tail and sprinting after them, his large legs carrying him surprisingly fast in comparison to their tiny wings. They were quite evenly matched. Unlike Emery, who's fastest pace was a limping jog. She cranked her volume down again so she could swear in peace, using the table as a support as she tried to keep up with her pet. He had apparently completely forgotten she existed and ran after the birds with wild abandoned, chirping loudly with excitement as he tried to catch them in his trap.
Moxie 11.0/11.0 Emery 15 35
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Post by Emery on Feb 15, 2024 15:42:58 GMT -6
At this point, Emery knew that any frantic scolding she could shout after Moxie would fall on deaf ears. Literally- she was pretty sure that kito didn't have great senses of hearing. SHe only had to try and keep up with him and hope he either didn't get lost. She also hoped he wasn't actually able to catch those birds. She'd feel a bit bad about it after all, but mostly she'd be frustrated at the loss of scientific data. She wasn't going to get much out of this trip if Moxie was going to eat all of the most important parts of it. Unfortunately, he was making great headway in comparison to her, having nearly reached the end of the hall. Emery regretted letting go of his lead, that was for sure, but she couldn't really catch up to him now. She only had to hope that he would stop at the door.
Moxie 11.1/11.1 Emery 16 36
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Post by Emery on Feb 15, 2024 21:06:58 GMT -6
The birds certainly had to stop at the door, being unable to fly right through it, and they danced above Moxie's head in a panic, chirping wildly. Moxie nestled himself down towards the ground before leaping at them, his jaws making an incredibly loud snapping noise as they slammed shut. Emery flinched at the noise but luckily it looked like he wasn't dexterous enough to catch the birds, though he was doing a fantastic job of scaring the crap out of them. Still, as he leapt and flailed fruitlessly at his targets, Emery was slowly catching up to Moxie. To her surprise however, something new happened. The door to the next room was made of solid wood, covered in all sorts of decorative carved panels, scenes of fruits and vines. In a single beat, one of those panels simply... popped off, clattering to the floor loudly. Moxie jumped at the sound of it.
Moxie 11.2/11.2 Emery 17 37
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Post by Emery on Feb 15, 2024 21:11:39 GMT -6
As the kito was now distracted by the little plug of wood still wobbling on the ground, the birds wasted no time and dove through the hole, one right after the other. Moxie noticed immediately given his wide field of vision, but before he could react they were already gone. He shrieked furiously and began kicking at the door, though it wouldn't open. (And Emery suspected it was a pull door besides.) Still, that meant that the distraction was now gone. Even if she hadn't been able to catch the birds, she could at least rest easy that this ordeal was over and she and Moxie could get back to regular exploration. She could just grab some more... stationary objects. But Moxie didn't seem to be calming down after the escape of the birds, which was disturbing- normally he was so lighthearted and easily distracted- which was normally a trait she didn't even like!
Moxie 11.3/11.3 Emery 18 38
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Post by Emery on Feb 15, 2024 21:15:31 GMT -6
But this time he seemed to only be getting more and more frustrating, taking chunks out of the beautiful hardwood door with every kick. Was it because his predator drive had been activated and now he was left without food? He had already eaten so much, but in all the other times she had trained him he hadn't been chasing any real prey. Granted, these weren't "real" prey either given the tenuous nature of reality in the mansion, but that was far too high brow for a kito to understand. Emery swore under her breath again. "Moxie, just- let's calm down a bit, ok? You're ok." She said, awkwardly trying to soothe her pet, but unfortunately that had never been something she was any good at. She gave short, clipped commands, not soft nothings. Moxie let out another shriek, panting loudly, before a strange gurgling came from his throat. Emery leaned back a bit- what was that?
Moxie 11.4/11.4 Emery 19 39
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Post by Emery on Feb 15, 2024 21:19:37 GMT -6
She didn't have to wait long to get an answer as Moxie soon jerked his head forward, jaws opening wide, and belched out a column of flame from his mouth. Ah. That was right. Occasus kito could breathe fire. Not as much as other species of beast, but enough that burning the mansion down on accident was a real concern. He didn't seem like he wanted to stop either, so Emery looked around for something- anything- to put out the flames. Thinking fast, she pushed over one of the floral decorations, grabbing the vase before it could topple over with the plants. She peered in- thank goodness, it was full of water. "Moxie- stop!" She cried, rushing towards him. He didn't listen however, and slammed the now charred door with his head. With a horrible squeal it finally crumbled enough that he could pull himself through, charging down the hallway beyond.
Moxie 12.0/12.0 Emery 20 40
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Post by Emery on Feb 20, 2024 14:19:20 GMT -6
Emery simply paused for a moment, gaping emptily at the gap in the doorway, taking in what just happened. But then she shook her head, realizing the the door (or what remained of it) was still on fire and threw her payload at it, splashing the ruined entryway with a vase's worth of fertilizer enriched water. The flames instantly died down, sizzling away under the water, and Emery breathed a sigh of relief. That was one disaster averted, but she was horrified that Moxie had figured out how to use his powers like this. So much for a natural sense of loyalty as well, he appeared to have abandoned her in favor of chasing those poor birds. She tossed the vase aside carelessly, letting it clatter to a stop on the carpet as she approached the door. She had to find him, and get him out of here before he could make anything worse.
Moxie 12.1/12.1 Emery 1 41
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Post by Emery on Feb 21, 2024 11:05:54 GMT -6
She pushed the door open, and it was startlingly easy given how much of it had been burned away. Normally a solid hardwood door like that would be a struggle for Emery to get open, but Moxie had done such a number on it that she hardly even needed to nudge it. She stepped into the hall beyond and it was just as lush as the dining room. The floor was a soft woven carpet from some foreign land, and the slight give under it implied the presence of more hardwood planks. The left wall was covered in stained glass windows with various hearts, flowers, birds, and other symbols of love lined in lead. The right wall had every inch covered in paintings, various pastoral and romantic scenes. Or at least, it was supposed to be. Moxie had only been in this hall for less than a minute and had already managed to demolish it.
Moxie 12.2/12.2 Emery 2 42
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Post by Emery on Feb 21, 2024 11:14:26 GMT -6
The carpet sizzled in striped patches from where he breathed fire on it, and many of the paintings were now slowly being eaten away from the bottom up by embers, like old film. Emery struggled to stamp out the carpet, but realized there was no real point. She could sit here trying to put out these fires, or she could find her pet and make him stop herself. She just had to hope that nothing in the mansion was TOO flammable. She cringed- here she was worrying this whole time that the mansion was going to try and kill her, but in reality she had proven a much bigger threat to it. How ironic. Unfortunately, she knew that the mansion wouldn't be happy at all to keep her after this- once she grabbed Moxie, she was going to try and get them out of there, lest they face the magical building's wrath.
Moxie 12.3/12.3 Emery 3 43
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