Realistic or Modern Welcome To Shearport

[Axelgear]

Sackcloth


Sackcloth's eyes drift up and down the way, glancing as people start taking the wire. He gives a nod to Zach at the thanks, even while inwardly wondering what possible reason might cause people to wrap it around their waistline while in a dense forest. This wasn't a ship, for pete's s-


... Wait, what was that about a ship?


By the time he's made certain of his senses that there is, indeed, a distant whistling sound, it's too obvious for anyone but the most tremendously thick not to notice.


"Red!" Sackcloth calls out. "Do you hear that whistling!?"

 

[Grey]

Lucas Hood





Snarling, Hood hauls ass back to the trod and takes anyone not fighting hard enough with him. "It's the fucking hunt! GET THE FUCK OUT, GODSDAMN YOU."

 

[The Fuzz]

Everyone





There's a cracking, rattling BANG as whatever it is that's coming towards you.....stops coming towards you. The trees at the side of the trod shake a bit, and a few more leaves fall, but the only thing that comes onto the trod is a smell of sour seaweed.


"Bloody hell, Simon! What the fuck kind of docking d'you call that?"


"I call it 'No One's Dead, So Shut Up Monty'. How'd the boxes make out? We good?"

 

[Grey]

Lucas Hood


Hood rounds again suddenly, once on the trod, snapping off the rope in his claws. His moustaches bristle with arboreal menace.


Slowly, he stalks toward the ship.

 

[PixelWitch]

Zach - Into the trod.


At Luca's yell, he was fully prepared to fireman hoist the little dainty Darkling next to him, and leg it, but when the noise ceases he simply stands there dumbfounded, expression a maelstrom of confusion, bewilderment and frustration.


He tromps after Luca, picking his way over awkward high roots, pausing to offer a helping arm to Sage, before what appears to be the hull of ... a.. boat? Comes into view. He stares up at it incredulously. Momentarily forgetting he's in the fucking Hedge.


"WAT," he deadpans.

 

[risaphoeniix]

Lita the Magpie - Up the Tree





"It's We Are Here o'clock!" She shouted down at Red, squinting at her watch through the rain. She bounds down from the tree to come up between the others as they approached the ship. "Why's there a boat in the middle of the woods?" she wondered aloud.

 

[Axelgear]

Sackcloth


Well. That certainly was a thing.


"Yes, that is a good question!" Sackcloth calls out from where he lays in a particularly thorny pricker bush, mostly shielded by his cloak valiantly throwing itself upon it so that he might live. "Why, indeed, is there a ship sailing on land in the midst of a gigantic magical forest, to set itself upon a dragon, a wolf, a bird, a librarian, a man made of rime, a boy made of fire, AND A PARTICULARLY PAINED PUPPET!?" The brownie shouts.


"RrrrrRRAAAAGH!" The puppet-man roars as he pulls himself from the pricker bush he had been tempest-tos't into by Lucas's particularly valiant attempt to save everyone by yanking them about on a wire through a corridor of thorny death. Dusting himself down and wincing as he plucks the thorns out of his fabricated skin, he collects them all, one by one, to wrap in a piece of shredded cloth. Might find a use for them later.


"Whys and sighs dance like cupid; they're found by lovers and the interminably stupid! Now stop being amazed and awed by this fantastical and magical spectacle and focus before someone starts shouting and gives our presence away to whatever's on that ship!"


Beat.


"Oh, buggery..."

 

[Inari]

Red


Red grunted as he came to, lying on his side amid a tangle of twisty roots. The rain was still going, but that other noise was gone. He spat out a glob of particularly magical mud and wiped more off his face. The wolf’s cheek and some of his forehead were a bright red pattern which resembled tree bark; a sour grunt left him when he spotted the patch of cracked wood on the trunk next to him. There was shouting, both near and far, and as equilibrium returned, so did wariness.


Red snuffled at the air habitually. Seaweed. Whistling. Crashing through the trees. People talking about a boat. He didn’t speak up, but cautiously approached where the sound of unfamiliar voices came from, starting to spot the others picking themselves up nearby.

Spoiler

Feels a bit late to try and work up the emotion of an in-moment post; figure it’s reasonable Red got yanked into a tree by Lucas barreling toward the path with the rope still in-hand. If he gets to the (supposed) boat in time and it's particularly big, he'll search for a means of entry/ascent.

 

[The Fuzz]

Everyone





The boat's not really in full view. The wind is still howling, and the branches are still swaying back and forth in it, and as they move, you can catch glimpses of dirty white speckled with patches of rust. It's.....kinda big.


Raindrops patter onto shoulders and try to drop into your eyes, and anyone who still has a blink reflex (bloody changelings) is going to find themselves blinking against the storm. Nonetheless....there's some movement in there. Some banging and clanging and mucking about, and snatches of what sound like someone shouting instructions, and very quickly getting frustrated and just shouting. After a minute or so, it sounds like someone got out a loudspeaker.


"Hello! Yes! We're not ready just yet, but don't worry! We're setting up, and it's going to be fucking fabulous!"


What's doing, folks? Whoever's on the ship, they're not coming out to you.

 

[Inari]

Red





Red shielded his eyes with a hairy hand, but it didn’t do much good as he tried to spot anything up above. Still, he could hear just fine; clangs and clatters and scurrying steps, shouting orders and then just plain shouting. The loudspeaker announcement earned a frown as he tried to measure curiosity and caution.


”Setting up what?” Red bellowed back at the loudspeaker voice, before remembering a little detail from just before the tree bark came rushing toward him. ”Lita!” he called before any answer came, turning to scan ground and trees for the Magpie. ”Did you get that watch from some kinda goblin land-boat-circus captain-ringmaster?” He’d thought she was just being a goof with her weird mentions of “anyminutenow o’clock,” but she’d shouted that “We are here” bit just before this extremely unexpected arrival.

 

[risaphoeniix]

Lita the Magpie





Lita looked at her watch. Obviously, this was who was here. While the others were still recovering she started moving towards the boat, nimbly dodging fallen branches and other debris. "Nope!" she called back to Red, "I found it in the gutter!" When she reached the old metal titan she started looking for some sort of ladder.

 

[The Fuzz]

Lita, and then anyone else who stamps through the trees to the boat

The rain is still pounding down, and most of the hatches are battened shut. The boat lies tilted at about 45 degrees, propped up against some particularly sturdy trunks. Only some of the windows are broken, miraculously. Inside, you can see figures pottering about, wearing dirty yellow oilskins and dragging poles and rolled up canvas and boxes around.

 

[Grey]

Lucas Hood


Hood tromps up the hull, and begins looking for a way up, onto the deck, because he has questions to ask and a powerful wrath behind them.


His growl is low and constant, his foliage bristles. His claws are more conspicuous than usual.

 

[The Fuzz]

--> Hood





"Aha!"


A hatch opens on the deck right beside you and an ugly-ish little face peeps out.


"You've caught us with our pants down I'm afraid, but no need to worry, no need to worry at all, you look like a man who's interested in a discount, and I can offer, aha, a pants-down discount, first customer, first customer, how about some fertiliser? Freshen up those leaves sir, have you looking like a treat. Springtime all year round, guaranteed sir, guaranteed!"


Deeply seamed and lined skin, tanned brown by unknown suns over god knows what landscapes, with a pair of smallish tusks peeping up from behind the lower lip. Big, big eyes under the floppy, stained peak of a waxed yellow hat.

 

[Grey]

Lucas Hood


Hood leans close, glowering, eyes like poisonous emerald orbs.


"A traveling market?" He asks, voice low and level.

 

[risaphoeniix]

Lita the Magpie - Right Behind Lucas





"Ooo Market" Lita pops up behind Lucas. "Whadya got?"

 

[Inari]

Red


Red had come around to find Lucas just before the hatch came open, quirking an eyebrow at the little creature who peaked out. Lita's enthusiasm brought a huff of annoyance from the wolf.


"We're not here to shop, remember?" Red reminded. There was a trail to be followed and a lost child at the end of it. Unless...


Red stepped forward and attempted to peer into the hatch to get a closer look at the goblin, snuffling at the air.

Spoiler

Red's gonna try and get a look at the (guessing it's a) goblin. See if it has feet that match the tracks, or if he can smell the same scent.

 

[PixelWitch]

Zach


He raps his knuckles experimentally on the metal of the hull.


Yup. Definitely real.


For a moment he almost considers going inside just purely to get out of the rain, standing shivering, his hair spluttering and hissing angrily at the moisture. It sounded as disgruntled as he felt.


"Red's got a point. The less time we spend here, the better..."

 

[Axelgear]

Sackcloth


Everyone having moved on to the ship, Sackcloth keeps his distance a moment before he finds holding back not worth the trouble and moves to follow. He listens to the various arguments, carefully trying to put back on what's left of his cloak and picking out any little splinters he missed when the arguments are set forth.


"Ahem..." Sackcloth hums behind Red, to try and get the wolf's attention. Coughing into his hand, he keeps his head low, eyes just barely scraping up past the edge of his hood and only meeting the wolf's gaze in the most deferential manner, even if it is practically soaked in that knowing, condescending manner.


"Forgive this impertinence, blame it on circumstance, but a ship's a thing of steel. If it travels the Hedge, its crew fully fledged," he gestures up at the portholes and railings of the vessel, "then it might have information to deal." A roll of his wrist and he steps closer to Zach.


"We have a trade, bargain to be made, as beasts make everyone nervous." A sideways glance. "Red, the exception, but we track a hellion, and can offer these fine gents a service."


Once more, back to Red.


"A humble suggestion, offered for your inspection, oh fiercest and noblest Red; as friends we could garner, these merchants in armour, if we offer to make that beast dead."


Sackcloth bows his head, awaiting Red's judgement on the matter.

 

[The Fuzz]

--> Red





Hmmmm. Nope. Nope. Not same. Musty, damp, salt, not the same.


Can't really see the goblin's feet.


---> Hood





"Indeed sir! Why, we have-" interrupted by Lita getting excited.


----> Lita





"Lots! I'll have to check with the boys for full inventory, but we have a stall of dreams and dream accessories, rare fruits and seeds, no returns or backsies, we've got a really nice selection from our tailor Mr. Grovotkin, how about a coat, you look like a nice young lady who'd like a coat, big one, black, with a fringe on it, I bet, yes, and some shells, you'd like some shells?"


He leans on the hatch for a second and gets his breath back. Sales pitches. Sometimes you just have to belt them out.


---> Everyone





The banging and clattering from inside the hull takes on a more measured rhythm. You can see folks piling up poles and canvas near the rear doors onto the deck, presumably waiting for the weather to clear some before they move to come out and fully set up. A couple of goblins glance your way, but they seem content to let this one handle the talking.....oh, wait. One other is coming. He's a tall one, standing a full head and shoulders above most of the other goblins, and cadaverously thin. He moves towards you slowly and gracefully, one step after another, like some kind of dapper heron in very nicely put together waterproofs.

 

[Inari]

Red


Red puffed after getting a good whiff of the goblin. No good. He was just about to try and tromp back to the trail when Sackcloth spoke up. Condescending as the whole show was, Red found himself tapping a finger on his hip in tune to the brownie’s cadence. At the end of it, he smiled that wolfish smile of his and tugged at his hood in a semblance of tipping a hat and turned back to the goblin, only to find a more authoritative (read: taller) figure approaching. Red gave the thing a look up and down before pressing on, speaking to whichever of the two lead-ish fellows cared to deal with him.


”I’m looking for a beastie that’s been through here recently. Has paws kinda like a dog; maybe a lot of them, walks funny. Front, front, front, front, back. Might have had a little girl with it. Know where I could find it?” No telling if these...sailors had any idea of his quarry, or a mind to share where to find it, but the trail was rapidly washing away with no sign of a den.

 

[Grey]

Lucas Hood





The ranger leaves the interrogation to Red - acknowleding, in his proud heart of hearts, that the wolf could never be tamed.


But he still looms and glowers at the hob in a way that suggests 'the muscle', and brooks this insult to his dignity by considering it a clever ploy to hide the real power in this band.

 

[risaphoeniix]

Lita the Magpie - Very Excited





"Shells!" she exclaims, practically bouncing "I love shells!" Lita loved goblin markets, some of her favorite trinkets and tools came from them. She was sure she could find something useful to help her on their current quest. Or something shiny...

 

[PixelWitch]

Zach - I'm on a boat!


Finally managing to scramble onto the hull to witness all this, he can't help but rubberneck to look at the market within.


This isn't the time for shopping, dammit...


He eyes the stalls however against his better instincts, unable to keep the curiosity at bay.


Them goblin fruit seeds though... I'll need new one's if I'm to replace my garden...

 

[Ragoza]

Liam - Climbing on deck





This is not how boats work. Boats go in water. This has been so for a very long time. To say that the old sailor is bewildered would be an understatement. He climbs up onto the deck, taking position beside Lucas and Red.


"How does this tub get around, exactly?"