[CLOSED] Does anyone else hear that ominous bell tolling...?

[edgewater]

Who: Perrin, Parvati, and Maya
What: BOUNTY: RINGING RISK
Where: The Northern Forest to Heavy Downmoor
When: sometime in February
Warnings: Typical spookiness for the areas, memory issues, possible setting-typical cws per character

Parvati's been on bounties before. Or, well, close enough things to them. Nyoka's dragged her and the Captain out to hunt giant monsters in the past. This shouldn't be so different. Perrin's leading the path ahead - the Dragonite having better wayfinding skills than either of the women following along behind him. Their game plan is good, she thinks. She already has good synergy working with Perrin, and Maya's no slouch either. As they've been walking along, the Clefairy has been tying a collection to ribbons to nearby trees to ensure they don't get lost the deeper they go into the woods.

But the ringing. Oh, the ringing. The listing on the questboard almost makes it seem tame, now, as they go deeper and inch closer to their target Pokemon. She adjusts her hammer's position on her shoulder with a flex, continuing to follow down the path.

"Everyone feeling all right?" She asks, her voice cracking a little. "No headaches or nothin'?" Or irrational thoughts of running away and the like...

Comments

[shotinhead]

A deep sigh. Ringing, huh. Perrin had felt a lot better about going out, his torpor had been fading, and he'd gotten a new lease on life.

But the ringing. It made him think of the buzz he might have heard before, when he'd--

When he'd-- huh. The thought slipped away easily, he noticed, as he looked down to the Tinkaton, gaze turning from her to Maya. "Hey, if we had been 'ere before, you guys would notice, right?"

[positivestars]

It reminds her, a little, of the Sevens school bell, which brings her to alertness.

"Nothing so far," she reports to Parvati, "but I'll tell you if it gets worse."

She nods to Perrin- she has ribbons draped over one arm, preparing to tie the next marker. "These should help us, too!" They look alright- at least for now.

[edgewater]

Oh that's. A little worrying. Sure, Perrin has his own problems, but he's the wayfinder, and typically a confident one to boot. She's been on his mail route. She knows how he takes detours. "I'd like to think I would. Maya's right, with the ribbons."

It's a boon, to have where they're going clearly marked by something that's clear and obvious. Not like scratches onto bark that'd quickly be forgotten and fade into the background. But her gaze stops, on one of the trees. "Did you tie that one?" It's not the same colour as the bundle Maya has in her hands.

[shotinhead]

Leaning a little, he blinked, looking at the ribbons... before giving a slight hm. "We've not been led wrong by our ribbons, but... I dunno, guys."

Hey! He's got one wit about him - even if he doesn't have more. But his wariness is different, it seems... wrong.

[positivestars]

Ah. She looks again, and with an unpleasant jolt, realises- "That- doesn't look like one I've touched, no." She's holding yellow and orange- those should stand out… "Are they- replicating what we're doing?" That's pretty alarming!

She tilts her head, concerned. "If it's trying to lead us astray, we must be getting somewhere."

[edgewater]

"Are we sure that's a good thing?"

If they're being led astray on purpose, maybe. Being lured into the lair of this Pokemon certainly seems like a plus - makes it easier on them. But it's also disorienting all of them like crazy, and Parvati can only focus on grounding one person at a time. "What, should we see if we can follow those?"

How many times have they walked past those ribbons, anyway? How long did it take any of them to notice?