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Post by Valerian on Sept 12, 2023 11:46:24 GMT -5
There was a time when Val thought she couldn't get enough of life. In the humid heat of the swamp, choking on life everywhere she went, the dryad longed for her desert grove for not the first time since setting out. Ah well, she would have to make due. Not having much in the way of equipment, Val made use of the natural shelter provided by one of many mangrove hollows. Growing1 some moss down the front, she formed a loose curtain. The hollow was high up enough that it was in no danger of dampening, and would provide all the comfort a Valerian would need. Poking her head out, she could see a grinning skeleton, propped up in a hollow across the plateau. They seemed to grin back, and this encouraged her. As the day wore on, she considered their purpose here. Their quarry was the Bogaboo. Val had never had a quarry before, and she wasn't sure she liked it. I can only hope, when the time comes, that I do the right thing- whatever that is. Perhaps Taki could shed some light on what the right thing would be. Not wanting to look foolish in front of the wise druid a second time in as many threads days, Val thought long and hard about the questions she would ask. That evening, as the two of them were finishing dinner, she asked: "Hey Taki, what is a Bogaboo, anyway?" 1 Plant Growth
Quest Name: Calls in the night Participants: Two or more Location: Marsh Flats Post Requirements: 4 post per person, 200 words per post Description: A night or two into your search, you begin to hear voices coming from the woods, but only at night. These voices are faint and far, but are calling out for you! You can occasionally hear your name being beckoned into the void of the swamp, and while this would normally be enough to send you running the other way, you know this is the work of a Bogaboo, the very thing you are after. So, to do your job, you trek out into the swamp hoping to find this mysterious monster. But its a very elusive creature and finding it comes with it's own obstacles. Mud, bugs, thick vines, thorny bushes and more stand between you and your goal.
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Post by Shitakibo on Sept 12, 2023 12:36:59 GMT -5
She watched Val milling about the camp, using her magic to make it a more comfortable place. They ate quietly that evening, but the shaman could tell that there was something on the young dryad's mind. She too was pondering what to do for the next few days while they searched for their quarry. Reading tales and books about a Bogaboo, one might think it were an Orochi folk tale to scare children. While it was often used in such a way, the creature had no ties to any one species.
"Hey Taki, what is a Bogaboo, anyway?" Val asked after they'd finished eating, as if mirroring the shaman's own thoughts.
"I was just thinking about what I've read and heard from others actually. To the best of my understanding, it is an undead amalgamation born of corpses that are not properly buried here in the Flats. About the size of a man, they usually have four gaunt arms and use trees or ponds to ambush victims. They're obscenely strong, quick to climb or move, will wait below the surface of a deep enough pool to pounce... it's not something to be trifled with, even for experienced adventurers. We'll put these bones to rest, give their souls peace, and be on our way home so long as we stick together." Taki replied after gathering her thoughts for a moment. While she wasn't keen on undead as a general rule, she'd met more than one exception but doubted this would be such a case. Plus, putting those wayward souls to rest was something that the shaman was deeply passionate about. Having seen the spite, rage and pain of devastated spirits before, she could only imagine what such a creature's spirit was like face to face.
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Post by Valerian on Sept 14, 2023 21:33:23 GMT -5
We'll put these bones to rest, give their souls peace, and be on our way home so long as we stick together."
"I see." Truly, she had jumped the gun. If anything she would see on this harrowing journey could be called evil, it would be this. Even then, she wasn't sure it was the right word. Not after encountering the Rune Bear. Maybe things will make more sense when we meet one in person. Despite the warmth of their campfire, a shiver ran through Val. As she pondered the strange and ominous creatures that certainly gathered just beyond the light, one of them spoke her name. It was distant, but unmistakable. She thought Taki had herd something, too. Val felt the air shift towards terror but found herself quickly lighting a makeshift torch in preparation for a midnight treck. This is it.
"I really don't want to leave the fire. Its so gloomy beyond the bounds of its light." Her words drifted uncomfortably far through the thick night air. In return rasped a call, fetid as the still bogs: "Taki.. Taki.. Come play.. Val.. Swim with me.. Travelers.. Come play.." The wind shifted, and the voice disappeared. "How dreadful. I'm not sure how we would approach such a strange and sneaky creature. If we want to find a Bogaboo, we might have to fall for its trap." Though the voice was distant, and it source certainly not in sight, Val couldn't help but see shapes in the flickering firelight.
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Post by Shitakibo on Sept 15, 2023 1:27:24 GMT -5
"Unfortunately for us, that is precisely what we're going to have to do I'm afraid. There's only so many ways to handle this situation and they all involve a very up close encounter with the creepy beast that whispers on the wind." The shaman said, looking out into the gloom despite it's futility. Her senses picked up nothing moving in the vicinity but she imagined that was the point... this place was likely on the edge of it's territory, and it often would lure adventurers into the thicker bog.
"Be on your toes, we move out soon... cautiously." Taki warned Val, checking her pack to ensure her gear was secured. Waiting about another hour, she listened carefully to the wild whispers of the Bogaboo as well as the spirits of the swamp. When she felt the time was right, she signaled to Val.
"Stay close, and no matter what you see or hear, don't stray from my side or dry ground... only if I go into the water should you follow. We'll try to follow the voice deeper in, but not necessarily the way it might like us to... so I'm hoping that drives the creature to less than ideal action." She explained, before slipping outside the camp and waiting for Val to follow.
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Post by Valerian on Sept 15, 2023 8:02:04 GMT -5
Val heard the shaman speak, but her mind lingered on the putrid voice. She would swear she was still being called, though she couldn't hear anything. She was far too caught up in a whirlwind of fear and bravery and holding on to her own courage that she didn't fully understand Taki's plan. Far from hunting the Bogaboo, it was all she could do to be hunted by it without running back to the safety of the desert.
Now too far from their camp to orient herself by its light, Val did her best to follow Taki, but each tree they rounded threatened to deflect her from the path, and each pond they circumvented still tried to drag her under- its rotten, unseen fingers grasping in the unnaturally heavy darkness. "What do we do once we find it. Or, what should I do if it finds me." Val found herself drawn to the surrounding dark, feeling as if she could catch it and dispel it with the pitiful flame she'd carried with her. "Val.. Come.. Join us in the bog.. Val.. Val.. Its only natural.. heh heeeh heh heh heeh" The things.. laugh.? cough.? was petrified and rotten, warm and fetid. There was no way it was natural. Right? Could nature produce such twisted things? Such terrifying monsters? She couldn't imagine it. She could respect the things nature produced. Even the most violent predator or the least vertebrate grass, she could understand. They all had a place. For this thing, she could imagine no such place.
Without realizing she had done so, Val veered towards the ominous voice. Deep under the Bogaboo's spell, she could only wrestle with the fear in her gut. Its rotting presence left little room for higher thought. By the time Val realized Taki was looking for her, she had already wandered deeper into the swamp, and into her hunter's trap. The voice, however, had receded further into the bog. She had felt so close only a moment before. It felt as though the monster was just beyond the reach of her torch, ever closer to burning out. Utterly disoriented and panicked beyond reason, Val was the perfect prey of the Bogaboo.
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Post by Shitakibo on Sept 15, 2023 13:46:44 GMT -5
Taki sensed Val starting walk into the swamp, picking a different direction than the one the shaman was trying to approach. She figured the young lass had gotten complacent while they'd been trudging through the autumn swamp. The din of the bugs, dark shadows and dimly lit night could easily cause the unwary adventurer to lose their bearing. Taki cut a line across the wetlands, falling in quietly behind Val and letting her lead them deeper into the swamp.
She was quite aware that the path was going to take them into a favorable situation for the Bogaboo, but if Val was going to lead them through the muck, Taki would oblige and make sure she stayed safe. She listened carefully to the whispers of spirits as they moved deeper into the boggy mess that was the Marsh Flats. The ground grew softer as they progressed, the shaman having to pick her steps more carefully with each passing mile. Her senses grew fuzzy as the ground grew more saturated with water, going from a sharp and distinct sense of surroundings to barely more than a confusing and hazy input. They were well into it's territory now... likely to head straight into it's layer at any time.
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Post by Valerian on Sept 15, 2023 15:59:58 GMT -5
Val picked her way through the thorny branches that stretched ominously down from the shadows of great, mangled trees. She was alone, now- at least, no voices drifted to her. She hoped Taki would catch up soon but had no way of knowing the difference between "towards Taki" and "towards certain death," so she did her best to press forwards. Each step was harder than the last as she tottered along semi-solid footing and to a small pond. I saw something move! Just under the surface. I can almost make it out.. She needed to know what it was, but for every inch she lofted her torch out over the pond, the thing pulled back as much. Yet, she had to keep going. She had to know. Almost.. A splash put out her torch. Rasping, bubbling laughter betrayed the stalking Bogaboo just before it could knock Val's legs out from under her, and she scrambled to find cover behind a fallen tree. She could hear the thing dragging itself out from its hiding place in the marsh. The rattle of wet bones, the squealch of mud, and the occasional guttural giggle were the only sounds in the marsh as the monster approached Val's hiding spot. Scared but defiant, she readied herself for an ambush of her own.
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Post by Shitakibo on Sept 15, 2023 21:34:17 GMT -5
Taki drew her sling, slipping silently into the trees not far from Val. She could hear the creature moving, sense it's pressure on the spirit realm. When such a being was born of so much malice and disregard, it's presence was something the natural spirits tended to avoid. She watched and waiting, trying to find the right vantage to protect Val but let her learn and experience this fight as well. Finding a wide branch with lots of foliage, she settled in and spread her senses as far as they might go.
The creature was patient, toying with Val several times before the girl slipped behind a knot of root and tree that had fallen some time ago. It rose up from the wide murky pool of water it had been submerged in, clumps of mud and reeds sloughing off it's bony exterior with wet thuds that echoed off the surface of the pool. Not yet, she thought to herself, taking a slow and calming breath. The hunt was on, and everything would change once again for the dryad... if she'd not encountered a malevolence such as this before, it would probably a jarring one. Taki could only wait, giving the lass room to grow while she made sure it didn't turn lethal for anyone but the Bogaboo.
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