wilderlogs | gently whispers "what the fuuuck" [OPEN]

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gently whispers "what the fuuuck" [OPEN]

Who: Shuichi + OPEN
What: Awkward detective fumbling his way through the sudden arrival and trying to make sense of this bullshit magic temple nonsense
Where: The woods and the temple
When: Couple of days after the squad arrives at the temple
Warnings/Notes: N/A, will update if necessary

A. MAGIC MIRROR OPTION

[(Y'know, if anyone feels like helping this sad city kid find his way to the temple.)

Is he dead? Fuck, maybe he is. This really isn't what he thought death would be like, but after what just happened, being dead would make sense...

But while this would be a seemingly peaceful enough afterlife, just trees and nature in every direction and no one else around, there are details that leave him with doubts. For instance, he hadn't really been alone at the end there, and he can't imagine the others wouldn't also go...wherever he ended up. Unless that's just how death works. Hell if he knows.

The sword and mirror laying in the grass beside him are better evidence that this isn't anything that simple. He's never owned a katana or a hand-mirror in his life, so why would he just wake up here with something like this? And there had been that voice... Whatever was going on, being alive somehow makes more sense. The question is just whether this is more of the same kind of bullshit as what he'd just escaped, or something else entirely.

If anyone happens to have the magic mirrors on hand, they might find the image of an Asian teenage boy there, the picture tilting dizzingly as he turns his own mirror to examine every inch of it.]

A sword and a mirror, huh...?

[His eyebrows knit together as he looks over the mirror, frowning thoughtfully. A mirror could be used as a signal by catching the light, he supposed, but that's not really useful when you're alone. Jeeze, if he was gonna be abandoned in the middle of nowhere with supplies then food or whatever would have been way more helpful.]

B. THE TEMPLE

[He's held onto the sword for some reason. It's not like he knows how to use it, but it seemed significant. Too significant to just leave lying in the middle of the woods.

That doesn't really make him feel any less awkward just carrying it around the temple in front of others. Even if a lot of the "others" here are...kind of bizarre. Given the kind of people his classmates were, "bizarre" means a lot coming from him. Whatever progress he'd made back home in the way of being social, it suddenly seems way more nerve-wracking to just approach any stranger here at random. Some of them are literally aliens, if everything is to be taken at face value.

He's not really sure he believes it all. But he still hasn't worked up the confidence to go around introducing himself at random.

But if they're all going to be here for at least a few days, he can at least find a place to stash the sword for now. Anyone who's claimed a room for themself might suddenly find a new kid wandering in and startling upon finding someone already there, hands lifting defensively in that universal sign of "I am unarmed". Except...he's literally holding a sheathed sword. Goddammit.]

S-sorry! I didn't realize this one was claimed already!

C. INVESTIGATION START

[Once settled, his first instinct is to explore the area and examine everything unusual thoroughly. And...well, there's a whole lot of "unusual" around here.

But for now, he's really curious about that mysterious music. It's nice enough that he feels pretty relaxed, even as strange as all this is. But it's still weird and inexplicable and he's gotta figure this out. So he's crouched in front of one of the statues the music seems to be coming from, inspecting it closely and carefully feeling every nook and cranny of it, trying to find some less ethereal source of the music.]

D. WILDCARD

((OOC: Hit me with whatever tag you want, if none of these work for you! You can bother me via PM or at

tinybro if you wanna plot anything in particular out!))

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Dixon's finally able to contribute more to the group's food stores than a handful of fruits and berries scavenged from the more prosperous plants in the forest. Granted, that's because he just chased down and clubbed a raccoon to death with a rock, which is a gruesome sight and likely not to be the most appetizing thing anyone brings back to the temple today, but at least it's something Dixon can use to try and argue his way out of being a complete drain on the group's resources.

Honestly, beating the brains out of a living thing was uncomfortably satisfying. For about five minutes he was thinking about things besides using up one of his last two cigarettes. As he heads back towards the temple he hums a song, occasionally interspersing it with singing, feeling like he's closer to a baseline than he has in the last few days.]

"...in and outside turned to water...teardrop in your palm..."

[And then he's interrupted by the mirror he's been keeping in his back pocket making noise again. He drops the raccoon and pulls the mirror out, squinting at the teenager looking curiously out the other side. Shuichi probably isn't greeted by the most comforting sight: a guy with half his face scarred from burns, jacket and shirt-collar covered in raccoon blood.

God, another fucking teenager? Can't they get a few more people past drinking age? Dixon's feeling taxed enough worrying about these dumb kids, especially since he's keenly aware that his ability to do just about anything to assist them is close to a flat zero.

He sighs.]

Where are you at, kid? It's getting dark and I don't know how this forest is gonna be to strays.

Edited 2018-04-04 18:14 (UTC)

[Yeah, the sudden appearance of a scarred and bloody stranger is definitely unexpected. Shuichi yelps and drops the mirror in his surprise. Enjoy that tumbling image and sudden up-close view of the grass, Dixon.

At least he recovers quickly enough. Shit, he didn't break it, did he...? The kid finally comes back into view as he cautiously picks the mirror back up, looking uneasy for a moment before relaxing just slightly. Good, not broken.]

So this is basically some kind of video call...?

[Why the device has been made to look like an old-fashioned mirror is a mystery, but he can solve that one later. The bloody stranger is a more immediate concern. Shuichi looks uncertain but suspicious, his ability to trust in random blood-splattered adults pretty low at the moment. Give him a break, he just got out of the frying pan and so far it feels less like he's in the fire and more like this is just another fucking frying pan.]

Who are you?

[He doesn't apologize for startling Shuichi. If anything he looks a little impatient at waiting until the grass leaves the focus of the screen before Shuichi says anything.]

I guess.

[Dixon's not a fan of it. He tried to throw his in the lake earlier and it returned to his palm. Then he tried to break it and it fixed itself. At the very least he's learning the mechanics of this dumb magic thing.]

Dixon. [He gives his name because he's honestly not sure what else to identify himself as. They're what, a ragtag group of weirdos hunkering down in the middle of the forest together trying not to die and tasked with some dumb quest? What noun is there for that?] I ain't going to hurt you. There's a whole group of us at this old temple. We just got here a week ago, confused as you.

[He pauses, then seems to remember he's got blood splashed on him. He gestures towards it and smudges a little off his collar between his thumb and finger.] Don't worry, that's just dinner.

Edited 2018-04-04 18:40 (UTC)

[That explanation doesn't clear up much, but it certainly sends him on a bit of a facial journey through surprise, relief, unease, and right back to uncertainty and suspicion. That...sounds kind of uncomfortably familiar. Him showing up late is a strange detail, but--

Hold on, train of thought derailed by that pitiful attempt at reassurance.]

D-dinner?

[ oh god what is for dinner dixon ]

[That, oddly enough, perks him up. He gets a bit of a youthful, excited expression on his face that is not unlike a puppy dropping a Kong at someone’s feet.]

Oh, this, let me show you... [Dixon turns the mirror towards the mashed-up was of striped fur and broken bones by his feet. He’s proud to show it off. He caught that fucker with his hands.]

Ugh--

[The disgusted sound escapes him before he can really think about it. That's...really gross. Wow. But the guy looks so proud of himself, Shuichi plasters on an awkward smile.]

That's, uh...impressive.

[Well. This wouldn't even be the scariest-looking person he's tried to get along with. Granted, at least one of those people turned out to be just as creepy as they looked, but. Well.

Besides, this is...oddly comforting, now that he thinks about it. There hadn't been any animals at the school. There hadn't even been any bugs outside of Gonta's lab. Now that he's paying attention, he really is noticing the faint sound of birds and everything you'd expect to hear in the woods. So that's one sign of this not being more of the same shit.

Unless whoever's behind all this just got better with the details this time around. He can't be sure how long he was out before waking up here, after all.

He needs to stop thinking about this in the middle of talking to someone. This was probably an awkwardly long pause.]

So...where's this temple you were talking about?

Edited 2018-04-04 19:44 (UTC)

It's nothing to look at now, and I don't know that it's ever going to be pretty, but meat's meat. [He sounds a little defensive. Getting this raccoon (and figuring out how to get drunk via magic) have been the only things going right for him this week.]

Turn your mirror up around. Let me see where you're at. [They've been here a little while, and Dixon peers behind Shuichi to try and figure out if it's a particularly recognizable grove of trees. There's a big oak-looking thing, and Dixon recalls generally where that is in comparison to the nearby river.]

Okay, you're not far off. You might not want to go wandering for a minute, there might be people washing off in the river. I'll come get you.

[Escort mission: boring forest edition.]

[He was trying!! He tried to be nice!! Give him a break, dude.]

I'll just...wait here, then.

[He's a good, patient kid. Just gotta hope this really is a decent-enough person and waiting doesn't turn out to be a huge mistake. If Dixon does manage to find his way to the right place, he'll eventually come across that same kid sitting at the base of a tree, more closely examining the mirror while he waits.]

[It doesn't take Dixon that long to get there, mostly because he's spent a lot of time getting used to these woods. For whatever reason, the temple itself makes him feel queasy. He's been going there to sleep, but that's only because it's cold and damp out here at night. In a battle between malaise and pneumonia, malaise wins.

He shows up, dead raccoon in hand and golden shield strapped to his back, somehow magically smaller than it is when he carries it by hand.]

You keep looking at that long enough maybe someone else will pop up. I think there's about twenty of us now. [He jerks his chin at the mirror, then his eyebrows rise as he sees the sword.] You bring that here or did you wake up with it?

[The shield looks...way out of place on this guy. He's too polite to say it, but he can't help but make a mental note of the strange disconnect in the styles of the man's clothes and shield. He files that away along with the info on the apparent size of the group.]

Oh, no, it was just...there, when I woke up. I've never even used a sword before.

[It's reminding him uncomfortably of the scene in Angie's lab, just...god, how many days ago was that? Too recently, but it already feels like a lifetime ago after everything that happened since then. But even still, he can't help but feel like he needs to hang on to this one.

Shaking off the thought, he scrambles to his feet. He doesn't want to keep the kinda-scary dude waiting.]

I never used a shield before either, but I woke up with this one, [he says, unintentionally answering one of the unspoken questions in the air.] And knew how to use it too. Bet if you tried to take someone's head off with that thing you could. You should try it out on a tree or something.

[He considers seeing if he could trick Shuichi into trying to hit him with the sword, to activate the magic shield and get some of that sweet mystical buzz, but Dixon's never been successful at tricking anyone into anything and gives up on that idea quickly.]

Come on, it's about two miles that way. [He points towards an indistinct patch of woods; Shuichi will have to take Dixon's navigation skills on faith.]

[Shuichi blanches at the suggestion, grimacing.]

Ah...I'll pass.

[Besides, why would he just suddenly know how to use a sword? Unless...

Nope. Not following that train of thought right now. At least, not until he's in a better position to investigate it. It'll just drive him nuts if he overthinks it right now.]

Wait, two miles?

[Do you see these scrawny limbs? The few evenings of doing push-ups and shit with the others recently have not made him suddenly any less noodly. He is not prepared for a hike like that]

You could try hitting me with it. Promise I'll block it. [Totally sneaky. Super slick.

He rolls his eyes at Shuichi.] It's only half an hour if you keep up. Or you could sleep in the woods. I'm not going to carry you.

[He probably would if Shuichi collapsed or something, but only if no one responded to the magic mirror. He's certainly not going to just if Shuichi's feet hurt. It's not as if Dixon is particularly built for stamina either; a combination of two decades of smoking and heavy drinking and a sedentary lifestyle have ensured that he's spent the last week wheezing and sweating while all these skinny teenagers and nimble twenty-somethings frolic around as if they had energy for days.]

Come on, kid, if I can make it you can too. I've been out here all day and ain't died yet. By the way, you got a name?

I'd rather not.

[Two miles just sounds like a long way, alright? He might not have even found this temple if he hadn't accidentally gotten the mirror working, not if he'd started walking in the wrong direction or something.

But "a half an hour walk" sounds managable, at least. The mirror and obviously the sword are too big for his pockets so he'll just have to carry those, he guesses.]

Ah...it's Shuichi Saihara.

[He looks a little uncomfortable being the focus of a stranger's attention like this, ducking his head and half hiding behind his long bangs. God, he wishes he had his hat right now. Ditching that had been easier when his classmates were the only other people around.]

[Dixon makes a kind of disappointed huffing noise, like he was really hoping Shuichi would take a swing at him. He'll have to find someone else to do it later. After those few days of straight-up detox he never wants to go more than ten hours without alcohol or this amazing magical substitute in his system.]

Yeah, I'm not going to be able to say that. [Nor is he going to try. Shuichi has just been slotted into the category of 'hey you', 'hey kid' and 'that one, you know, the Asian one with the hair'. Maybe 'Sushi' if Dixon's feeling particularly ambitious about getting people's names right.

Fortunately for Shuichi, Dixon's not really interested in giving him a staredown. He notices that the kid's shy, but mostly he just turns his attention to the path out of efficiency. He can talk and walk at the same time, after all.]

So the rest of us got here about a week ago and got jumped by some weird pizza cutter monsters. Since then we just been staying at the temple trying not to catch anything from the river water. I bet you had some dream about voices telling you to save the forest too, right?

[He almost protests that it's not a hard name to say, but...yeah. He's not up to even that level of conflict over something so petty right now. Especially when everything else this guy is saying is so much weirder.]

Pizza cutter monsters.

[He sounds kind of disbelieving, a bit bolder now that the guy's attention is on the path. Shuichi follows, frowning. And then frowning more over the rest of that.]

I did, but...that's just a dream.

[It means something that apparently everyone has it. But he's inclined towards some other explanations before "magic heroic shit".]

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B!

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when you typo your own character's name and don't notice til someone calls them that lmao...

Oh nooo, well, we can pretend it was just... done correctly. Oops.