R
Renegade Proxy
Guest
Original poster
Certain or no, the death of Jax did not mean safety for anyone else. Already as the lithe tree-dwellers raced after their prey the lumbering forbears of their breed tramped the ground behind. Gaping maws surmounted root-like limbs from which flowed a heavy, poison miasma. Awkward and slow, they nonetheless made steady time and where their mouths could not reach the whipping tendrils that encircled their girth more than took up the slack. Unlike the more intelligent members of their kind, these trailing gargantua were blind to anything but hunger. Already they snatched at whatever was unfortunate enough to be within reach, writhing bodies screeching as they were consumed. All around, fungal vapours filled in the gaps with quick onset of hallucination and paroxysm made easy targets.
It was only after reaching the stone that a new face was noticed just behind. Caution and more than a little fear were however superseded by those lumbering arboreal, so numerous that it seemed as though the trees themselves had joined the march. Back pressed against the stone, wonder replaced fright as the rustling bodies passed it by at a distance. Understanding dawned as the last slowly receded into the eaves. As their path had taken them around the monument, so too was the very ground bare of greenery in a radius surrounding it on all sides. Even their noxious exhalations were diminished, perhaps the only reason the two who stood within that circle remained lucid and alive.
At last able to take a breath, time was given over to do just that. One hand leaned against the stone, its twin laid over a still-racing heart. At least the creatures were after different prey and even more fortunate; that area of alienation around the stone seemed to include their spores as well, which were already dispersing and had never crossed the border separating green turf from bare. It was an unlooked for boon, all the impetus needed to take the large chunk laying just off the tip of one foot. Having been broken off the marker, it was little less that a hand's span from tip to tip and thick as a wrist. A cursory glance too spotted a suitable branch left behind in the chase. With a length of chord taken from the thankfully retrieved pack, both were married in a rough-shod but serviceable partnership. Newly equipped, attention now turned to the new face that had so fortunately followed from the fire to this sanctuary. Common sense asserted his origin as the one who had caused a ruckus in the trees, probably cause of this whole mess. However, he hadn't made a move to attack and though wariness held him at arm's length he'd be otherwise ignored.
All that remained now was to figure out where to go next. Injured, stripped of protective clothing but nonetheless alive, those shortcomings could quickly become problematic if not tended to with due haste. Perhaps though, the situation wasn't wholly untenable. Sharp eyes came to bear on the new face, hidden thoughts pondering just what to make of him.
It was only after reaching the stone that a new face was noticed just behind. Caution and more than a little fear were however superseded by those lumbering arboreal, so numerous that it seemed as though the trees themselves had joined the march. Back pressed against the stone, wonder replaced fright as the rustling bodies passed it by at a distance. Understanding dawned as the last slowly receded into the eaves. As their path had taken them around the monument, so too was the very ground bare of greenery in a radius surrounding it on all sides. Even their noxious exhalations were diminished, perhaps the only reason the two who stood within that circle remained lucid and alive.
At last able to take a breath, time was given over to do just that. One hand leaned against the stone, its twin laid over a still-racing heart. At least the creatures were after different prey and even more fortunate; that area of alienation around the stone seemed to include their spores as well, which were already dispersing and had never crossed the border separating green turf from bare. It was an unlooked for boon, all the impetus needed to take the large chunk laying just off the tip of one foot. Having been broken off the marker, it was little less that a hand's span from tip to tip and thick as a wrist. A cursory glance too spotted a suitable branch left behind in the chase. With a length of chord taken from the thankfully retrieved pack, both were married in a rough-shod but serviceable partnership. Newly equipped, attention now turned to the new face that had so fortunately followed from the fire to this sanctuary. Common sense asserted his origin as the one who had caused a ruckus in the trees, probably cause of this whole mess. However, he hadn't made a move to attack and though wariness held him at arm's length he'd be otherwise ignored.
All that remained now was to figure out where to go next. Injured, stripped of protective clothing but nonetheless alive, those shortcomings could quickly become problematic if not tended to with due haste. Perhaps though, the situation wasn't wholly untenable. Sharp eyes came to bear on the new face, hidden thoughts pondering just what to make of him.