yogen | may missions

[ Quite a bit of faith Midori's putting into Bonnie's hands, though he's right. She wouldn't intentionally do anything that would hurt them as long as they could still pull their weight, and it was in her best interest to keep her meal tickets alive! Her sense of preservation trumped any kind of feelings of wanting to cause mischief, believe it or not.

So, no bloodshed, then. Meaning the knife was probably a no-go if a monster did pop out. If that was the case, then she'd have to rely on swinging her basket around, or having someone else take care of that for her. Lucifer's advice had her keep a mirror on her at all times just in case, but that still wasn't necessarily pleasant to go through! ]

Aw, but I don't want to fight a hellhound! They can be so cute!

[ Don't make her fight the puppies! Just kidding, she really couldn't care less about them. Either way, her main focus was on finding the bottom of the stairwell. Keep on moving, ignore any of the distractions, keep pressing on... ]

Ew, gross... I don't wanna get zombie on my shoes either. They're a pain in the ass to clean off.

[ More of a pain than she wants to deal with...

Though shit. She steps on the floor beneath them, grunting in surprise as her foot makes contact. It really came out of nowhere, ugh...

Grimacing, she forces herself to follow behind Dito, letting him lead for now. She hates it, but he's the one with the lantern. ]

Someone try to find a light-- a candle, something.

[ Toward the center of the hall a compass is drawn on the floor using red paint, each arrow pointing to an empty slot before it where an object should go. If they had been working at a puzzle before, then perhaps the group might discern this to be a fetch quest, as the arrow's dim lighting will no doubt catch sight of at least one or two of the doors that the arrows likewise point in the direction of.

Incidentally, Dito's PDA can be found somewhere around here. The screen has fissures all throughout it, and it's not responsive to attempts to unlock it. It'll need some repairs to get it functioning again, but fortunately it's fixable. Well, probably.

But more important than either of those things might be what they find if they find along walls. There are deep gashes along the stone stone surface, as though something were trying to claw their way through it and failing to do so. There are bloodstains on this part of the wall, along with the floor near it, but they seem to have long since dried. Even more convenient is that near the charming decor is the lightswitch that they're looking for, or at least what they can assume to be it.

Maybe something heard their wishes, because aside from the gashes and bloodstains, Bonnie and Dito will certainly hear the low growl from the nearby shadows. ]

Zombies, hellhounds, and other creepy critters, oh my!

[ they're all starting to sound like dorothy and her companions, but we'll allow bonnie the role of dorothy, and dito can be toto— even his name is close! that would leave ranger as the tinman, and midori the wizard of well, oz! there's no cowardly lions or brainless scarecrows (he could definitely give these titles to certain people, but he won't). instead, he walks with a smile as he inquires what's around them, but what catches his eye is the compass drawn on the floor. pocketing the keys like so, he kneels down to brush his fingers against it to see if it'll scrape up after years of being here, or maybe it's fresh, and even time works oddly in this place with space. ]

How lovely, it's like a test of courage now, and what two of you have been waiting for.

[ the growl within the darkness could be something familiar (for he has heard something about a three headed wolf or so from a long time ago), and he's sure that would itch bonnie's little killing brain... maybe, and dito's ravenous enough to want to be the head of the pack. they're more the fighters within the group considering they were begging for something to appear, and while he could send them off into the unknown. ]

Alright... [ enough with the games, he contemplates their next steps, and issues his next commands easily. ] Ranger, first I want you to locate where that sound came from, and Dito, you'll inspect it... as for Miss Bonnie. [ he walks over to bonnie, holding up his lantern towards what may be what they're looking for— an item to explode light into the room. ] That's what you're looking for, isn't it?

[ the light! she can even have the honors of turning it on. ]

Yeah, yeah... Well, looks like zombies are out of the question at least.

[ He's used to working in this manner, and so he has no objections. The sound suggests that it's bestial in nature, and Ranger wonders if it might not be the supposed wolf from back in January. It strikes him as far more likely that it was something that had sneaked in from the forest and decided to chomp one them to bits, however, or otherwise that it came along with Stephanie. It's unlikely to be the cause of their problems.

He gestures for Dito to follow him while the other two look at their mystery switch. It doesn't prove that hard to pinpoint the source, and he stops after just a handful steps before gesturing toward the door in the back, one that's hidden behind the spiraling staircase. If he didn't know any better, he'd liken it more to a cornered animal than the big bad wolf for how loud the rumbling grows, but the way it halts upon being given attention makes him question that line of thought.

But if not, then why is it choosing to stick to the shadows rather than immediately pouncing? It's odd, and the only alternatives he can think of is that it's either waiting for something or trying to avoid it. ]

It's somewhere over there. You wanna go say hi?

[ It seems like it'd prove more entertaining to him than puzzles at least, and Ranger doubts that anyone will care if whatever it is gets torn to pieces. Better yet, if it's a wolf or anything else that isn't a human it won't even knock them over into the void to see what fun awaits on that side. ]

Edited 2022-05-25 06:08 (UTC)

[ bonnie is missing the point!! you don't clean guts off, you get them all over yourself and you enjoy it. ugh.

hellhounds, on the other hand, sound annoying and ugly in the not-fun way. not that he hasn't dealt with shit like that before... sand wolves, a cerberus, whatever. 50% of his job is killing shit, and unsurprisingly his favorite part. he prefers people though, since it scratches his sadist itch. they scream a whole lot better, too.

this kind of shit constitutes grunt work, which he isn't thrilled about...but it's nothing new. dito tilts his head to the side, eyeing the dark area for a second before he snorts through his nose like he's disappointed, already moving to pull his spear out. ]

"Inspect it"... You know if it's some ugly mutt I'm just gonna kill it, right?

[ nevermind that he would 100% kill anything growling at him regardless. even though it's not even attacking! which is, frankly, boring. but maybe that'll make this whole thing go by a lot quicker.

with a shrug, he'll start approaching the thing, clicking his tongue in a pretty condescending way akin to how someone might call a dog over. he tone is amicable enough, but his subsequent words are dripping with sarcasm: ]

— Heeey, you stupid flea bag... I don't bite.

[ yes. yes, he does. just ~~sara~~ not animals or monsters. he'll settle for stabbing those.

he's also going to finally spot his stupid pda on the ground in the process of approaching this thing and just kinda...kick it aside. again, who gives a shit. ]

[ Bonnie can absolutely be Dorothy, although she really does miss her little dog too. It feels nice being off of the steps, any more and she was going to ask someone to carry her. Although, looking at the gang she's with, that would've probably been a bad idea anyway. Oh well, maybe next time! She hums, watching Midori check out the compass before a certain sound fills her ears.

The smile on her face can't be contained. ]

Mm! Just what I was hoping for.

[ Whether it was some kind of void monster or wolf, it finally felt like something fun was about to go down. Something was down here, something ferocious that had already torn into prey a while ago. The claw marks in the wall, along with the shed blood around the area only intrigued her more. Oh, hopefully it's not weak enough to go down to those two...

For the moment, her focus would have to be on the switch. She skips right over to the wall, tracing her fingertips along some of the gash marks, before reaching said switch... ]

Nobody blink!

[ And she flips it. What've we got? ]

[ Click.

The lights flicker and come to life, illuminating the hall to reveal its contents in full. It appears to be a common area as much as an entrance, the grand spiral staircase sits in the middle, and tucked beneath itThere are a few small tables here and there, along with a handful of chairs and couches littered about. The volume makes it somewhat odd that they couldn't be seen before, but perhaps that's because the shadows here seem to absorb the majority of the light cast upon it.

It will also reveal the source of the rumbling growl, a low and throaty sound emitted by a creature that might pass as having been human once, were its body not so deformed. The creature is large, far larger than a human would be, with a massive torso and long arms that hang by its size. It lacks a head, but it compensates for this deficiency with the large, vertical slit on its chest - a mouth that opens and closes to reveal dozes of sets of razor sharp teeth instead. Despite its lack of features, it seems well aware enough of its surrounding - at least, if the ear splitting shriek that follows the light hitting it is any indication, or the way that it lumbers toward the closest person.

Good luck. ]

[ that is not what he wanted, exactly. it's the opposite of anything that he wanted the moment the lights flick on which tells him it must have been either subdued by the darkness or that it was minding its business, and they stirred it from whatever it was doing. he reaches over to click off the light, allowing the world to be swallowed by its intensity, and with a quick click back on.

hm, it surely did not disappear with everything else.

it reminds him of an obstructor, but they normally have a gimmick that makes them easy to work with. this one however seems to act off its own volition from the various blood marks mix with layers of claw-like scratches in rock.

he clicks off the light again, and switches it back on.

sometimes third time is the charm! there's no place like home, there's no place like home, there's no place like— ]

Home, it must live here.

[ in the darkness until the lights flooded the area, and now they're presented with a hulking mass of meat. a disgusting individual which wouldn't be too bad for a meat source if they brought it back home, it's not human, so it's ethically correct and no one could call it unorthodox.

...
...
...

immediately, ]

This is what you two wanted so have fun, [ he means it at the bottom of his heart, laughing after because there's no need to worry when you have two battle ready individuals. ] you have twenty minutes to handle the problem through any means possible.

[ orders are orders, and despite it barreling towards someone— ]

Ranger come with me, let's scout the area.

[ going to pray it doesn't bowling ball into ranger and hits dito by accident or something. ]

[ The monster is not subdued by switching the lights on and off. It does, however, seem to agitate it further judging by the way that it stomps forward and suddenly takes a few stomping steps toward Midori. It's fortunate for him that it doesn't seem to be the smartest creature, or at least not very good at differentiating people, as its attention quickly returns to the nearest person, which is presumably Dito. ]

Edited 2022-05-25 23:37 (UTC)

[ That is, in fact, not what Ranger wanted to see when the lights flick on either. He had expected something like a cornered animal, but he wasn't quite prepared for something that more closely resembles a science experiment gone wrong. It's not helped by the lights being turned off and on either, and Ranger takes a couple of tentative steps back and away from it. It can presumably be disposed of if one has the means, or at least if they're clever enough, but it might have been easier to leave it be.

Everything else in this place seems to have some explanation or another for it, but what in the lord could be responsible for that, and who would just drop it in a place like this and call it a day? Actually, there's an easy answer to that one - somebody who wanted to keep it away from everyone else. If that's the case, then it seems possible that where there's one there's two and three.

At least Dito had his wish granted.

Ranger blinks a few times and offers another shrug before he retreats from the scene over to his coworker's side. There doesn't seem to be much need to involve himself at present. ]

Sure, sure... Let's see what else there is.

[ He'll let Midori pick a direction. Choose wisely. ]

[ ... well! that's not what dito was expecting either, but as he blinks at the ugly, fleshy creature that didn't really match the picture at all he'd painted in his mind. and he's actually okay with that, because it looks like some experimental freak of what used to be a person.

it's so goddamn ugly, and dito's going to have a lot more fun with it than he would a dog he's quickly realizing as he feels his heart skip a beat.

what he's not okay with is the lights flicking off and on all of a sudden, and dito's eyes break from the creature as he turns his head around to see who is doing it.

of course it's midori. ]

Hey, I kind of need to see the damn thing—

[ he doesn't even really get to finish bitching properly, because midori's gone and irritated it into moving more toward them. dito and his attention whip back around to the creature in question, and he takes a step back away from it almost as if he's sizing it up now that it's closer. if he has its attention, he's going to grip his spear with both hands now, pointing it at the thing in an attempt to dissuade it from getting any closer. can it even see? he thinks it's a bit annoying it doesn't have a head. he wanted to impale it there first.

he's not really paying attention to midori's time limit here, but he does want to get to the fun part, so he's going to go ahead and rush it, attempting to drive his spear dead center into the stump of where a head's supposed to be. it's got organs down there still, right? dito hopes so. ]

Hey, the hell--

[ Bonnie honestly thought it was more of the monster messing with the lights, but of course it was Midori. You're lucky she's fond of you, because boy was that both annoying and terrible on the eyes!

Speaking of, the creature looks like it's advancing... unfortunately, not towards her. Any movement she had made towards her cloak stopped, and instead she changed it to a fist pump! ]

Go, go Dito! You can do it!

@b.hood
If you could, checking the furniture nearby may have some hidden secrets (oooooor maybe the west passage!!!)!
If not, do push them behind the creature's legs when it's too focused on Dito, he is fond of prey laying on their backs! ☆

[ he would add that if it's needed that burning dito's neck until he crouches to avoid a swing if he's too greedy is fine, but that would probably cause more trouble than it's worth. as soon as ranger makes his way next to him, midori is putting away his pda back into his suit pocket.

assessing the situation, he keeps a cool head despite infuriating the monster. it'd be boring if it was too easy, so dito better thank him for that— this gets the blood pumping, so it should spray even more when he stabs his spear into it.

with his voice low, he points down the south corridor for them to check out first. his eyes migrate to ranger's to make sure he understands. ]

We'll go that way. [ with his colleague, midori will proceed walking forward as dito (and bonnie?) handle the threat in the center of the lower level. they'll be fine. ] I gave Miss Bonnie something to do, so she won't just be moral support.

[ Ranger offers a nod, immediately catching on to what Hiyori is saying. In the movies those who split up are always picked off one by one, but in the movies it's always incompetent and inexperience individuals running in blind. The same can't be said here, and so he doesn't worry.

Off they go, not down a yellow brick road, but into another dark room that could have anything at all behind it! Maybe even another monster, but he doesn't think so. Dito seems to have gotten the monster that's always hidden in the shadows. It would just get boring if they were hiding in every single room. ]

Yep, sounds like they got a handle on it. Let's see, what's behind door number one here~

[ He'll push open the door once they reach it and grope around along the wall until he finds the switch. Hiyori has had his lightswitch privileges revoked. ]

[ It could easily pass as having once having been human, and it bleeds red just as any human might as its approach is interrupted by a spear impales it with a sickening squealch. It goes in easily enough, but he'll find that it's harder to pull out as the creature's too long fingers wrap around it as it writhes and attempts to yank it out with no success. Its other too-long arm swings forward to try and catch him as it stomps forward, and hopefully Dito is quick enough to avoid it, as if he doesn't he'll find that its bite is far worse than its bite - a single punch from it is enough to leave a person with multiple broken bones.

If he didn't have its full attention before, he does now. ]

[ the only thing that's delaying dito is the fact that the goddamn squelch and the direct feeling of his spear slicing straight through is only serving to give him a shudder here. oh, he's really, really starting to get excited. he honestly can't help the fact that he's outright grinning now, or that he's starting to quietly laugh to himself even as the creature tries to use its more human features to contest against what dito's doing.

great, great. perfect, actually. dito wants to split those ugly fucking arms open and see how much they bleed, honestly.

his pupils dilate as he suddenly attempts to shove his boot straight against the creature's disgusting excuse of where a face is supposed to be. right where his spear's impaled, obviously wanting to pull his weapon out.

even as he directly notices that the thing is fighting back, and yes — he's using any momentum from his foot to push off the creature, jerking himself and his weapon away from it. it's not a perfect avoid per se (especially given the extra seconds it takes for him to yank his spear out), but dito's realizing he doesn't have the luxury of messing around here as he backs off for a second, trying to gauge this thing's attack level. ]

Fucking hell—

[ he's bitching. of course he's bitching. that's what he's good at. but he's still kind of excited here, so there's that. he's actually smiling while he's bitching this time.

at least it bleeds. dito wants more of that blood, he thinks, as he rotates his spear in his hands. ]

C'mon, c'mon, c'mon...

[ he sounds unnecessarily enthusiastic about this right now. ]

[ The problem with not having done much fighting over the past year or so is that watching Dito strike the monster, she can only feel a slight pull towards getting in there herself. The sudden appearance of blood catches her eye, delaying her reaction to the buzzing PDA she felt in her pocket. He looks like he's having so much fun, and that could be her, slicing through that monster's stomach, getting to see what makes it tick--

She's transfixed, but unfortunately, that's just going to make her feel sad!

Bonnie finally pulls out the PDA, getting a good glimpse at Midori's instructions. Checking some of the furniture out, hm? Well, if Dito has everything handled here, then that wouldn't be a terrible idea. If he doesn't, that just means she'd have to stay alert. ]

Okie! ♥ I'll give you a buzz if I find anything good, or if Dito gets his head chomped off. Whichever one's first!

[ With that show of faith stored away, it's time to get a glimpse of some of these couches... or at least, at what could be under them. It wouldn't take much for her to move any of them after all, even if she may scratch up the floor beneath it. Time to check for secrets! ]

[ It's far above what a normal human would be capable of, enough to warrant the complaints and curses, but with some effort Dito will manage to avoid losing any pieces to its snapping maw. The creature's chest expands and constricts as its jaws open and close, making it difficult to maintain proper footing, but he'll manage to get his spear back. Blood spurts freely from the wound, decorating the floor and nearby furniture with a vibrant red, but while it's a hideous sight it doesn't seem to to have taken much damage.

From watching its movements thus far, Dito might be able to garner that it's powerful, sturdy, and has a high pain tolerance; however, these features all seem to be intended to compensate for the fact that its massive and disproportional physique make it slow and clumsy when compared to a seasoned fighter. It has spatial awareness despite its lack of eyes and ears, but it seems to act almost purely on instinct, swinging its arms out and snapping jaws that have far too many sets of razor sharp teeth.

But it's at least smart enough to know how to use the materials around it, as rather than immediately approach, it'll grab a nearby sofa with its massive hand to fling it at Dito.

There is nothing beneath the sofas, nor is there an obvious passageway. However, a section of the wall hidden behind one of them does seem to be a bit different than the rest . There's a slight different in coloration, and if she were to tap along the area she would find it to be hollow, and from there she can probably guess that there's something hidden behind it. ]

Hmm...

[ Nothing underneath. So, they're not going down any further it seems! It would've made for a good trap for the creature if they needed it, but Dito's got it, right? He'll dodge that sofa. Probably.

Bonnie won't know unless he yells loudly, since she's now focused on that wall. It was a little too obvious that the section was different, and it doesn't take her long to go right up to it. A secret passageway'd be fun enough for her, and while it probably wasn't a good idea to split up even further... oh well!

She gives the wall a bit of a knock, searching for a sweet spot... and provided she can't find a latch or something to get the wall to open, she's not going to have to resort to straight up kicking down the wall. ]

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hiyori: 14, monster: 8 he is not... MIDORIS PROBLEM...

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chestmouth monster

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roll: 6

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south room

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