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Post by Nerius on Feb 6, 2023 18:07:31 GMT -6
[157]
She was leading him to the greenhouse, which, judging by the tracks through the snow, was where she had come from. There wasn't anything obviously wrong, at least from a distance; no broken windows, no fallen tree on the building, no smoke. That was a good sign, maybe? There was still plenty of issues that could be lurking in the greenhouse, and now was the task of actually finding it. Juniper couldn't speak, and just tell him what had happened.
She'd led him to the greenhouse, but wasn't going toward the door, she was off to the side instead. He'd walk the outside first then, see if there was anything obviously wrong with the structure. As Nerius walked over to where the evergreen was standing, she'd paused so maybe there was something there, he immediately saw... something, with the snow. There was a large area of churned up snow, with a particularly dramatic patch several yards away from the building.
(Juniper: Lv: 22, 112/115 | Lyl: 25, 112/115) (Nerius: 2/20)
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Post by Nerius on Feb 6, 2023 18:26:58 GMT -6
[158]
They were.. tracks? Maybe they were tracks, it didn't look like any kind of shoe print, or paw print, just a lot of churned snow and.. poky holes. A staff maybe, like Juniper had? Nerius had no idea, he wasn't a tracker, for all he knew it could have been the result of Juniper attempting to make snow angel. Though, if it really had been Juniper, wouldn't there be pine needles?
Nerius knelt down to inspect the larger scuff, he still had no idea what caused it, but he was pretty sure it wasn't Juniper. Apart from the fact that she surely would have shed at least a few needles from flailing around like that, and there were no needles to be seen, it was huge. It was large enough it could have been made by a sarane. Which was possible, though sarane were carnivorous, and unlikely to find anything living in his greenhouse particularly tasty.
(Juniper: Lv: 22, 113/115 | Lyl: 25, 113/115) (Nerius: 3/20)
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Post by Nerius on Feb 6, 2023 18:36:19 GMT -6
[159]
But, he supposed, a sarane might want inside for the warmth. Most breeds weren't adapted for the cold, and the cosy greenhouse might be appealing for that reason. Not that Nerius had any reason to think it was actually a sarane, but something big was (or had been) wandering around his greenhouse, likely drawn by the prospect of either food or warmth.
Juniper had remained by the building, watching as he inspected the (for lack of better word) tracks, but wasn't otherwise helpful. It wasn't like she was a tracker either, and while she had probably seen the creature, she probably didn't know where it was now. Who knew how long she'd been waiting at the house for him to come downstairs. He could try following the tracks, even to someone with no skill in tracking, it was hard to miss the path of a large creating tromping through a foot of snow.
(Juniper: Lv: 22, 114/115 | Lyl: 25, 114/115) (Nerius: 4/20)
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Post by Nerius on Feb 6, 2023 18:48:28 GMT -6
[160]
The 'tracks' went right for the greenhouse, then turned at an angle to follow along the building. They continued for several yards, before there was another, much smaller, scuffle in the snow, and stopped. Well, great. Given that the tracks had started in the middle of an open area, Nerius had suspected what ever was leaving them could fly. So while he wasn't surprised by this development, it did make his job harder.
Maybe they picked up again further on? Nerius continued his walk around the greenhouse, Juniper following after him, keeping an eye out for further tracks. He'd just about looped the whole building without seeing anything, when Juniper paused, making a soft sound to alert him to something. There was a large, messy pile of snow to the side of greenhouse. The area around was untouched, so it hadn't been pushed into a pile from there. It was an odd spot too, not quite against the wall, just under the eve of.. the.. roof. Nerius' eyes traveled upwards; of course.
(Juniper: Lv: 23, 115/120 | Lyl: 26, 115/120) (Nerius: 5/20)
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Post by NPC on Feb 9, 2023 19:32:05 GMT -6
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Post by Nerius on Feb 14, 2023 20:25:17 GMT -6
[161]
Why hadn't he thought of that before? That would explain the large churned pile on the ground as well, the tracks didn't trail in from the nearby trees, they just started. Which suggested something flying had landed, and if could land, it could take off again. Nerius scanned the roof of the greenhouse, but didn't immediately spot anything. But the roof wasn't flat, and it would be easy for something to be hiding up there.
And something clearly had been up there, he could see bare places where the snow had been knocked aside. Nerius had no idea if it was still up there, or what it even was.
"Don't suppose you know where it went?" he asked the evergreen, knowing full well she wouldn't respond. He'd never felt the need to attach a ribbon of telepathy, Nerius interacted often with Juniper, but generally not in a way where detailed conversation would be useful.
(Juniper: Lv: 23, 116/120 | Lyl: 26, 116/120) (Nerius: 6/20)
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Post by Nerius on Feb 14, 2023 20:34:11 GMT -6
[162]
This was a rare exception, and even then it wasn't that useful, something big enough to make those tracks shouldn't be hard to see. Unless it could turn invisible or something, which wasn't impossible for Labs creatures. He Received the (expected) lack of response, Juniper just stared at him, and tilted her head slightly. It was unlikely she'd be particularly useful for this venture, but if she wanted to hang around that was fine by him. Some of those berries were looking rather ripe, after all.
But the first order of business was finding what the hell was on his roof. He considered asking Varkon to take a look, but the cyborg wiurn was horribly grumpy in snowy weather, and would not be in the mood to cooperate if it meant leaving the warmth of the stable. In his defense, he did have metal grafted to multiple parts of his body, and having that metal get freezing cold couldn't possibly be pleasant.
(Juniper: Lv: 23, 117/120 | Lyl: 26, 117/120) (Nerius: 7/20)
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Post by Nerius on Feb 14, 2023 20:49:32 GMT -6
[163]
So instead of recruiting help, Nerius decided to walk the greenhouse exterior again, this time keeping his eyes on the roof. There wasn't anything more than disturbed snow at first, but as he rounded a corner, he saw... it. There was what appeared to be a ridiculously large ladybug perched on the roof of his greenhouse. It was massive, easily the size of a sarane, if not larger.
Nerius could only stare. Weird shit was the norm around the city, but this was bizarre even by local standards. Where had it even come from, was it someone's escaped pet? It didn't seem hostile, though Nerius suspected it also hadn't noticed him or Juniper. The evergreen had noticed it, however, and was staring at it with what Nerius had come to recognize as concern. Was it a carnivore? Regular ladybugs ate aphids and other insects, but he had no way of knowing what this thing ate.
(Juniper: Lv: 23, 118/120 | Lyl: 26, 118/120) (Nerius: 8/20)
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Post by Nerius on Feb 14, 2023 20:59:35 GMT -6
[164]
Speaking of food, that might be a good way to coax it off his roof. He'd rather catch the creature than chase if off, if it were someone's pet, there could be a reward for its return. If not, it would be an interesting specimen to keep, though he wasn't entirely sure what he'd do with the creature.
The few bites of muffin he had remaining would hardly be a meal for the massive creature, but he could always grab more from his house. Risking leaving the big bug unattended, Nerius returned to his house to pick up a few snacks. Juniper followed, but didn't go inside, not finding the enclosed space terribly appealing. Once he'd collected a variety to snacks to try to tempt the creature, Nerius returned to the greenhouse. The creature had moved a bit, but fortunately its large size and vibrant color made it hard to miss once he was looking for it. (Juniper: Lv: 23, 119/120 | Lyl: 26, 119/120) (Nerius: 9/20)
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Post by Nerius on Feb 14, 2023 21:17:31 GMT -6
[165]
He still had no idea what it would want, he didn't have any giant aphids on hand, so he'd brought a variety. Fresh apples, a loaf of bread, and even a few strips of raw bacon, all in a basket. Surely the creature would want something out of there. Juniper too was interested in the smells, and leaned her head over to take a sniff, though he didn't let the evergreen actually eat any. The issue would be getting the snacks somewhere the bug would notice, it was too far away on the roof to pick up the scents below.
The greenhouse roof was hardly the most accessible place, even in clear weather, and would be even worse coated in snow. There was an access hatch, yes, but Nerius didn't really want to be climbing around on a glass roof covered in snow. How the bug hadn't slid off Nerius wasn't sure, but he sure would.
(Juniper: Lv: 24, 120/125 | Lyl: 27, 120/125) (Nerius: 10/20)
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Post by Jack on Mar 4, 2023 19:07:09 GMT -6
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