Chapter 2: Tiptoe Through The Thorns Part II [The Spurious Sanctuary]

[Grey]

Mr. Lapwing


Mr. Lapwing dusts his suit off theatrically, stood in the doorway, raising an eyebrow at the assemblage.


He then rounds on the Hedge outside; "Damn you, but you must make one's impending doom so bloody tempting?" There's some admiration in his tone.


A little part of him likes the inherent malice of the Hedge - it's got style.


He straightens his tie, turning back to the room - but not stepping into the room.


"Well, gentlemen, do we rescue the sorry denizens of this house of debauchery, or shall we run as swift as our legs may carry us?"


He eyes one of the tattooed women appreciatively from his vantage. Perhaps some might be so grateful as to serve as travelling companions?

 

[Chaka]

Micah Sands


The rapid movement of thousands of tiny glass-shards around his hand makes an odd high keening noise, like a dentist's drill. Micah shrugs.


"I'm for fleeing. Saves time later."

 

[Hyrune]

To Bronn


The hobs continue to silently beseech you, never... quite stepping over the line, but dancing on the threshold, their eyes open, their touch reaching, their bodies inviting.

 

[Cthulhu_Wakes]

Bronn


"Got no use for a whorehouse now, so...ta!" The ogre slinks back out the door and past the Darkling.

 

[Hyrune]

The trod goes neatly through the building - there doesn't appear to be any path otherwise, with the whispering grass growing right up to the clay walls.

I swear, this isn't railroading.

 

[Chaka]

Micah Sands


Backing out of the threshold, where he had been stnding, Micah allows the elemental shield to sheath his entire body again. The dentist's whine reduces in pitch to a low buzz, like bees. He scans the surroundings, and notes the path goes all the way through the building.


"Ladies and gentlemen, we have a choice. Walk through the horribly ominous hob-filled building, or walk through the horribly ominous whispering grass around the building. Both options potentially end in horrifically painful failure. However, we're pledged, so the only way out is through. Metaphorically, if not literally. Thoughts?"

 

[Cthulhu_Wakes]

Bronn


"I'm not in the mood for carnal pleasures, I'll say it now. One of them touches me again and I star' swinging, no questions asked. I hate bein' touched."

 

[Chaka]

Micah Sands


Micah nods. "well, I can lead the way through. Anyone who tries to touch me now will wind up with their fingertips buzzsawed off, and I doubt they'd want to touch anyone following after that."

 

[Cthulhu_Wakes]

Bronn


"Let us be on with it then." Bronn cracks his knuckles, a sound like rockslides. He looks up at the top stories. "Well, fuck all, let's just go on in, you first whirlwind."

 

[risaphoeniix]

Corri


As Corri enters the building there's something haunted in her eyes. She shies away from any touch but every once in a while looks to the point of lashing out and snapping a frail hob limb. "Lets just get this over with," she growls.

 

[Chaka]

Micah Sands


Micah nods. "Alright. I'll lead."


Confident in the maelstrom of razors surrounding his flesh, Micah strides through the door and along the path.

 

[Grey]

Mr. Lapwing


Lapwing follows, cautiously, singing under his breath.


"If you're inclined to a whisper grass shell, with God above and not much else..."

 

[Hyrune]

The hobs don't surge forward, as before, but they keep apace with you as you stride forward. The green-furred, ferret-like women crawl sinuously along the ground, the proud ladies look down on you (even at Bronn) haughtily, whilst the buxom, blue-tattooed women gaze at you all with challenging eyes. All are silent, however, from the insectoid to humanoid to...other.


The interior is quite...well, plain. Clay walls, clay floor, not a sign of adornment anywhere really. The door directly in front of you is the twin to the one at the front, no doubt leading deeper into the building.

 

[Chaka]

Micah Sands


Micah strides purposefully across the floor, looking neither to left nor right. The shield flows away from his hands as he pushes the door open.

 

[The Fuzz]

Watson


Holding carefully onto Hugo, Watson stalks through the room, silently baring his fangs at any hob which gets too close.

 

[Hyrune]

The room you enter is much the same as the last - somewhat smaller perhaps, but similarly lacking in anything remotely resembling furnitu- oh, wait. A single bed rests against one, clay-covered wall. It doesn't look particularly appealing... it's made of stone. No blankets, pillows, anything. More female hobs rest in the corner, watching you like cats - there's nothing predatory there though, merely...watching. Perhaps a little boredom, a little longing.


Another door lies directly in front of you.

 

[Chaka]

Micah Sands


His hands bare, Micah continues to stride forward, pushing the second door open.

 

[Cthulhu_Wakes]

Bronn


The ogre follows with the elemental, careful to avoid the shield, nodding to the hobs. "Well, this is...pleasant."

 

[Hyrune]

A third room. Identical to the last apart from a set of rather plain stairs leading upwards, with yet another door ahead of you - but this one is open, and you can see the Hedge once more, and the trod leading down the hill between twin lawns of whispering grass and the circle of crimson thorns.

 

[Chaka]

Micah Sands


The glittering sheath flowing down to re-cover his hands, Micah continues to stride purposefully, not looking from side to side. He steps back out into the eerie sunlight of the Hedge, with an audible sigh of relief.

 

[Cthulhu_Wakes]

Bronn


"Does it not worry anyone else that we're being so happy to get back out in the Hedge of all places? Really now. Ought not to be a sigh of relief...though compared to the whore house, I imagine this is better... Life loves its horrid jokes." Bronn steps out with a great smile all the same for the 'sunshine.'

 

[Chaka]

Micah Sands


Stepping out into the sunlight, Micah dispels the shield, and the humming subsides. "Bronn is right. It's not safe anywhere here; we should keep moving."

 

[Hyrune]

You'll move from the comparatively bright hilltop (try not to look too closely at the alien sky...oops, too late...) and soon descend back into the red haze surrounding the...building... and following that, the all too familiar green gloom that haunts the Hedge. Shadows and golden toads frolic and intermingle (occasionally and disturbingly quite literally with regards to the latter) but the trod itself retains some semblance of breadth, the brambles and thick, lurking branches keeping their distance, for now.


Indeed, the Hedge is so well-behaved it will be some time and distance before you realise one of your number, Old Man Willow, is missing entirely.

 

[The Fuzz]

Watson


Watson looks up, and sniffs sharply. Moping can only go on so long, and there's something he was supposed to be doing...Something he should be worried about....


"Oh. Shit. Folks? Mistress Jasmine warned me about this area of the Hedge. Something about ruins infested with vileshrikes, near a, um, disreputable establishment. Also, some bloke called the Stripling Prince apparently lives on the trod near here. If we find his place, we're dangerously close to an Arcadian gate."


He wrinkles his nose, trying to remember..."Oh, yeah. There's a Mr. Black somewhere past there on the path too, running another guesthouse."


Looking around, as if coming back to himself after wallowing in some private oubliette of guilt, Watson glares at the undergrowth. "Where's Willow?"


Still holding Hugo, Watson leans forward and raises his nose in the air.


[Fang and Talon 2, 5 dice, 2 successes.]

 

[Cthulhu_Wakes]

Bronn


"Hell of a time to mention that, isn't it Watson?" The ogre chortles. His smile barrels down to frowns when he also sees the Magus is gone. "Um...fuck." The ogre looks around at the undergrowth and the thorns, then back at the whorehouse. "A fine start."