[LOC] The Root

[kamileunaire]

Larque was almost relieved to be carried off the way they had been. He was frightened himself, but he knew that Mantismom was far more capable of keeping them alive than he would have been. A twinge of guilt twisted his gut over Tamiya, but he knew that his lusus wouldn't harm her. She had carried him in such a fashion in the past, and could be surprisingly dainty.

Mantismom hissed with great agitation. The lusus she had previously tangled with did not seem so eager to give up the fight, and she knew should wouldn't be able to fight with two younglings on hand. The steep walls of the cavern were nothing to her hooked insectoid feet, and going back the way they came didn't seem like a good option (the drones outside would pick them off too easily). She quickly scuttled forward and picked a torn-open hive to lodge herself into, resolving to wait until the danger passed.

((larque and tamiya, option B))  

[Sypon]

The two nestled into the space. Tamiya looked out for her lusus - nowhere to be found. The fortunate sheltering of mantismom was a blessing. Tamiya clutched the whistle under her top until her knuckles paled. She controlled her breathing - she surveyed the shaft of the hivestem the best she could, straining to see what would happen next.  

[Hivestuck]

Results of the Previous Prompt:
Top of the Hivestem A) You retreat into the caved-in garden. Unfortunately, the creature has an advantage in the craggy environment, and thrives on gliding from wall to wall. You have been NOTICED.
B) A successful blow to the creature’s gliders causes it to go off balance, and gives you a chance to escape! You have SUCCEEDED this round.
Middle of the hivestem A) Your idea to retreat the way you came is a flawed one, as the eel follows you all the way out. You’ll need to straddle the outside of the hivestem walls – on ledges stories above the ground – in order to escape this alive. You are NOTICED.
B) Retreating into the hive below offers a safe space, as the eel is unable to twist its head enough to attempt to bust down the wall to enter. You have SUCCEEDED this round.
Bottom of the hivestem A) You utilize the wreckage to your advantage and throw the chunk of rancidness at the howlers, who attack it immediately. It may not have been what you intended, but they are distracted enough so that you can escape. You have SUCCEEDED this round.
B) Your attempt to use the fire escape fails as it completely swings off of its hinges. It sways and creaks and finally – breaks. Fortunately, the fall isn’t too deadly from the base of The Root. You have been NOTICED.

Final Prompt!

There is silence. Has the search party really left? It’s tough to say whether they are waiting for an ambush, or have truly gone. The search lights are still blazing overhead, and you stay put. Finally, it’s time to move. Where do you go?

A) The top of the hivestem
B) The middle of the hivestem
C) The bottom of the hivestem

The results of this prompt will be posted September 14th.  

[seekingCylem]

[ OPTION C

Didero fell. He was clambering up the fire escape when the creaky metal of the stairs collapsed from underneath him. The howlbeasts didn't follow--apparently they were smart enough to notice the danger posed by the damaged stairs.

Didero remembered the fall, but not the landing. He was all of a sudden draped across a handrail and no longer moving. Didero wheezed and pulled himself from the wreckage without stopping to think about how much pain he was in. Hatoful Dad positioned himself behind Didero so he didn't fall over backwards.

Despite the fire escape now lying in a heap on the ground, there was still a great deal of clattering coming from above. The search party, Didero realized. He gaped, flailed wildly, and stopped to catch his balance. He was so close to being home free!

Still, he didn't trust that the howlbeasts had truly left. Not that easily, at least. Didero eyed the fence with a pained expression and pulled himself back towards the building. He wasn't about to lose himself in the maze again, but he wanted at least some barrier between himself and the lusii. ]

 

[kamileunaire]

Mantismom held completely still as the eel lusus came slithering past. In the end, she was pleased to know that her ploy had worked. They were still alive, for the moment...and she made the decision that it was time to go. The place was far too dangerous for the little ones, and she could hardly remember why she had relented to Larque going in the first place. Once the danger had passed, she dislodged herself and began her descent.

Down they went, toward the ground, where she hoped to make a speedy getaway. Hopefully Tamiya's lusus had not fallen prey to the search party, but the massive insect did not have time to watch out for him.

(Option C, Larque and Tamiya)  

[Green Minuet]

[+] Kursha Vidari

“Tch.” Kursha sucked in his breath through his teeth as he watched a shadowy figure descend through the gap in the ceiling. The lusus had spotted him after all. Worse still, he was pinned. The creature lay between him and the unhinged door. The only other way out was back through the roof, and against a flying beast he stood no chance of climbing.

Ignoring the painful thudding of his pump biscuit in his chest, Kursha selected a good sized chunk of rubble and pelted it at the approaching beast. “Fine! You want me so bad? Come and get me! I'll take you out!” he squawked, voice shrill. If he was going down, he might as well go down in a blaze of glory. Still, there was not much glory to be had in throwing rocks. As he hurled another at the lusus, he cast around for a another solution. There! A little ways to his right there was some torn wiring. Perhaps he could use that to...

The lizard's tail smashed into Kursha's chest. The force of it knocked him off his feet and sent him tumbling over the floor. Beneath him he thought he heard something snap. He had no time to wonder about it though, because the lusus loomed over him. Kursha met its gaze. He bared his teeth. “Do your worst, you worthless piece...”

A fierce scream interrupted him. Then a fountain of blood appeared out of a sudden gash in the dragonbeast's throat. The Colonel fluttered around its face, shrieking as her talons sought out its eyes and nostrils. Drawn by her charge's voice, she had dove in to defend him. Not one to waste an opportunity, Kursha rolled to his feet and broke into a run. He could lose his hunter deeper in the hive and then, once he was safe, he could... he could...

He had not thought that far ahead yet. As he ran, the rucksack bounced against his shoulder, quiet.

((Option B. Forgot to shout again, sorry!))  

[Sypon]

Quiet. The aggressor had come and gone. With a thankful sigh, Tamiya shakily peered into the chasm, holding onto mantismom for dear life. The bottom of the hivestem was rushing up at them rapidly -- she couldn't look out for her own lusus while focusing on clinging tight. "Larque!" Tamiya yelped. She was too far away to grab onto him as she felt herself slipping -- losing a sandal as she struggled to hang on. It would have to be a sacrifice for her going to The Root. It was a bad omen. Tamiya frantically cursed and prayed she would never have to come to this place again.

When the two reached the bottom, Tamiya called for her lusus - and like magic, he appeared. Pristine but staggering, he made his way to the others and sat on his back legs to survey them. Tamiya hugged him around his neck. "A-are they gone? Larque... I want to go home now..." She mumbled.

She wanted to curl up in her hive - take in her garden, pray, attend to her garments, and fill her cold, wretched form with warmth and sleep.

(Followin Larque)  

[Hivestuck]

Results of the Previous Prompt:

A) The location that the search party was previously to give look-out. They seem to have moved on now – thank gog. The searchlights have ceased from up here, and using your vantage points you see them dispersing and grumbling about not having caught any wigglers. You have ESCAPED!
B) The middle of the hivestem is abandoned. After suffering damage from a huge, burrowing lusus, it’s even more creaky now than before. You should get out of here before something hurts you that ISN’T a bunch of trigger-happy drones, but at least you have ESCAPED!
C) The search party has grouped up again. They collect at the bottom of The Root to depart – right as you step into their line of sight. “HEEERE, LITTLE WIGGLER!” Nope. You are NOTICED. If you succeeded in the previous round: the time you bought by eluding the tracking lusii has earned you plenty of time to escape. You flee The Root before they even get to the bottom. You have ESCAPED!

Kamileunaire

Katanari

You escaped! You get 2 EP! You can now negate and re-roll one encounter in The Root per day!

If you posted in at least 2 rounds of the CYOA, you get 1 EP! You can now negate and re-roll one encounter in The Root per day!

The roll table for The Root has now been MODIFIED. From now on, please generate a number between 1-35 for your encounters!

If your troll escaped or did not participate in the CYOA, you can continue to RP from where you left off after the CYOA. If your troll did NOT escape unnoticed, they must flee The Root and return at a later date. They weren’t caught and tortured, of course (if you’d like for them to have been roughed up before they escape then that’s fine), but there will need to have been a passage of time before they return. It will be considered a “new night” in this instance.  

[kamileunaire]

Once again, Mantismom had been able to pull through for him, and Larque released a sigh as the massive body of the eel slithered past without seeming to see where they had gone. He heard Tamiya's yelp, but there was little he could do, twisting around to try to look down at her. Mantismom's grip tightened somewhat, the spikes lining her scythed arm catching securely on the purpleblood's clothes. She wasn't about to drop her precious cargo, even if her grasp was a bit uncomfortable.

"Hang on." Larque replied tiredly, unfazed as his lusus carried them all the way down. Once they were safely at the bottom, they were gently set back onto the rubble-strewn ground. Larque was surprised at the relief he felt when he saw Kabukidad bounding up to them, and nodded at Tamiya's comment.

"Yeah. Let's go, before any of them catch up to us..." He agreed, glaring back at the wreckage. He hoped they would never have to come back to it again.  

[Hivestuck]

ignore owo  

[Sypon]

"Y-yes..." Tamiya mumbled. She detached herself from her lusus and rejoined Larque. Her hair was out of place, she hurt all over, and she fidgeted uncomfortably with her asymmetrical footwear. Her clothes were somewhat tattered from the spiky ride -- she finally understood why Larque's attire was so worse for wear. Kabukidad seemed displeased at the development.

Nonetheless, she pressed on - out of the Root. Kabukidad sprung forth to find an escape route big enough for the insectoid lusus to crawl through, and Tamiya followed. She rattled off a few final prayers and then fell silent.

She would have certainly been dead without Larque. It was a bizarre feeling. There would have been no one to save her like she saved the redblood, and she certainly couldn't save Larque. But she would try. Balance of Alternia be damned; she owed him that much.

Tamiya walked shoulder to shoulder with Larque as they cleared the structural skeleton of The Root. She fished around for his wrist and took it in hers gently.

"I will be putting on a fire in my hive tonight and will be making stew. I have exhausted my rituals and need a day of rest and solace. I have a spare recuperacoon. If you would... Like to join me."

Tamiya trailed off. It was the most she could do to keep her mind off of The Root. As the hivestem disappeared behind New Hemisect's many identical structures, Tamiya felt more at rest. Peace was only a train ride away; she would be home.  

[kamileunaire]

Larque was shook up, but perhaps not as much as other kids his age might have been. He scowled as Mantismom lead the way, tossing a glance back over his shoulder every so often to make sure that none of the dronse - or their lusii - were following after.

It was the first time in a long time that he had seen drones up close, and the first time ever that he had engaged them. He hoped bitterly that they wouldn't remember his lusus. Who knew how the military kept tabs, it wouldn't surprise him if he ran into trouble for it in the future, with a lusus like her being so large and recognizable.

He would have carried on with his paranoid thoughts, until he felt the cool touch of Tamiya's hand and froze up slightly. The tender gesture was almost alien to him, but he allowed it, and eventually ended up clutching her hand in return.

"I'll stay until tomorrow night, if you want the company." he responded after a moment of deliberation, making eye contact with his lusus momentarily as she glanced back. "Thank you." he murmured, realizing that he wouldn't mind having a little company himself.  

[Green Minuet]

[+] Kursha Vidari

Kursha lurched to a stop as he turned a corner and found nothing but empty air below him. For a moment he teetered on the edge, staring down into the abyss. Then he grabbed hold of the wall's edge and pushed himself back into the hall. He landed hard on his backside. He was too tired to manage anything more graceful. Slipped the rucksack off his shoulder, he lay it on the ground beside him and flopped down and groaned.

He was tired, bruised, bleeding, and utterly disheartened. What had begun as an adventure was coming to a miserable conclusion. Sure he was successful in throwing his pursuers off his tracks but he had also lost Alifax. The Colonel was missing too. And what did he have to show for his efforts? A couple of of beetles, and an injured pigeon.

Kursha's pupils slid over to where his rucksack lay. He watched it in silence, inhaling deeply to catch his breath. “Oi,” he said suddenly after a minute had passed. “You were making plenty of noise earlier. Now that I want the company, you've decided to take a nap, huh?” There was no reply. Kursha frowned. “Come on, fuzzball. Let's talk.”

Sitting up, he pulled the bag into his lap. “I need to figure out what I'm going to do with you. If I bring you back to my hive the Colonel will...” Kursha's voice hitched. He paused. Then, hands trembling, he reached into the bag. He lifted out a small white shape. The wings were bent and the head was turned the wrong way. Something had crushed it.

Kursha stared at the tiny dead pigeon cupped in his hands. When...? How...? It should have been safe. It shouldn't have...

He didn't cry. He couldn't. Instead he stared blankly until the feelings of remorse had subsided and he was left with only a dull pain of regret. It was really stupid, he realised. It was just a dumb pigeon. He had seen far worse. And yet, he had felt responsible for the hatchling. To have that slip away and not even notice...

Kursha placed the dead bird on the floor, doing his best to arrange it so it did not look so pitiful. There was no point in mourning it. He would forget about it in a week, and if not a week then a month, but he would forget. It was just another dead wild beast. For now though, while these feelings still had meaning, he would honour them.

Rising, Kursha took step back. The pigeon looked slightly less squished and its feathers were neatly aligned, but there was no pretending it was anything but dead. Dead was dead. “I'm sorry,” Kursha said, averting his eyes. Then slowly he went back down the hall to find his lusus.  

[zeflamigo]

Odette stared up at the downed building with a sad expression on her face. She expected that the wreckage would have been taken care of by now, but that did not seem to be the case. She had grown much since she was last there, and so much had changed. Yet, the root did not. It stayed almost the same, even in its dilapidated condition, like it was only a memory in Odette's head.

She made her way into the building, quiet and full of tension. It was hard for her to believe it, but exploring the building was one of her fondest memories, though also one of the most dangerous. It was, after all, one of the last things she did with her lusus. Now there was a hole, something Odette desperately wanted to fill.

The stench of death hit Odette like a wave, and she fought to keep her nauseau back. Eyes falling on the deceased lizard lusus, Odette had a hard time keeping herself from breaking into tears. It was a horrible, disgusting sight, and Odette couldn't help but feel a bit connected to the troll who lost someone so close. She could hear soft crying, but she wasn't entirely sure if she was imagining it.

Scanning the area, she looked for something to cover the body with. She settled for a small tablecloth, laying it across the lusus. It only covered large lusus' head and body, it's tail extending far out from underneath the covering. Picking a flower that had been growing under an open patch of roof, she placed it on the lusus and gave a moment of silence.  

[zeflamigo]

Odette continued looking through the Root, meandering through seemingly endless passageways. She tried to block the face of the lizard from her memories, but it lingered. At least she had done her best to respect the creature, and the voice that had been crying for it. Life on Alternia was horrible and destructive. But she could do everything in her power to right those wrongs. And maybe, even just for one troll, she could make things a little bit better.

Odette stared at the gaping mess before her. She was surprised that the building was still standing with such damage. It did seem fresh, though. She probably should move out before the building had a chance to crumble on top of her.