MONDAY AFTERNOON...ISH...

[parodeity]

[ so anyway i guess the striders are very willing to take punishment and stupid risks. dave opts to make his choice as [ redacted role ] on monday after they patch themselves up from round one. after that, they head to the locked building to try to pry some boards off the windows to see if they can like.

see inside?

if not they'll probably #yolo and open the thing anyway. ]

Comments

[splinten]

[Dirk's back to guard position at Dave's back because yup. He'll be quiet for the moment but just you wait! pop culture references will flow free and ready soon enough]

[abhoth]

[As both of the Striders saddle up to risk their butts for the second time in a row on this lovely Monday, they'll notice the ambiance around the building feels — well, wrong. The kind of wrong that sends shivers up your spine and makes your stomach churn with unease.

Sigils are carved onto the boards and front door, as well as spray painted into the ground surrounding the building. All of these look pretty old, like they've seen years upon years of dust, grime and rain. While the panels budge with Dave prying at them, he'll definitely need Dirk's help with get them off all the way, especially with his injured arm.]

[parodeity]

[ yeah cool why does his role always have ~SENSE OF UNEASE~. dave...ignores this, despite the fact it is hard to ignore, and will continue trying to pry off the boards. alone.

dirk may have to actually step up and insist on help because he's not gonna ask, ig ]

You aren't prone to grimdarkness, are you?

[ STUBBORNLY TUGGING AT BOARDS WITH BOTH HIS HANDS, FUCK BEING INJURED ]

[splinten]

I have never gone grimdark in my life. Did kinda go pixelated once. [Dirk nudges Dave away to HELP WITH PRYING because HE HAS GOOD HANDS.]

Those marks seem like a different script from my new, second-rate tats. [His shitty SBAHJ tat is 1st rate.] Heavily inspired by alchemy or Greek symbols, I'd guess.

[abhoth]

[Cryptic stock horror novel bs is the price of Dave's role, it seems. Just think of how much Rose would probably criticize the heck out of this?? It's all Fine.

But with Dirk's help, both of them will be able to pry the boards off bit by bit. Might want to be mindful of splinters, though, unless they also want injuries under their nails and on their fingers.]

[parodeity]

It's probably lovecraftian. Ten bucks says it's necromancy or some bs.

[ fine dave will be mindful of splinters, god. ]

[splinten]

Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn. Iä! Iä! Cthulhu fhtagn!

[There's wisdom in not chanting this in Lovecraftville, but at this point it should be clear Dirk is not wise.

Anyway he plucks out a stray splinter as he peeks up over the window to See In??]

[abhoth]

[The windows are pretty darn dirty, but not enough to obscure their vision. They'll be able to see what they'll quickly identify as an enormous Library. Rows upon rows of bookshelves will be in view of the window, though most of them will be tipped over or broken in half. The front desk area is also visible from here, but not much beyond that.

In the corner, there is a large, hulking shadow. Taller than the bookshelves by at least foot or two, but both of them will be unable to identify whatever the hell it's suppose to be. As they peer through the window, though, the shadow will move.

And then it'll be out of view.]

[parodeity]

[ ...yeah okay. a library means information, if they can read anything in there.

it also apparently means a monster. ]

...Wanna try to kill this one? [ he wants to investigate the library. there's still time to make another choice, but. dave's spent too much time fighting crude ogres and whatever the fuck else the game threw his way; he doesn't find it an impossible concept even if he deemed the pet shop Too Useless to throw down seriously in. ]

[splinten]

[They have two scalpels, Dirk lost his flashlight and has replaced it with only a matchbook, and the library's information may be hard to access. It means they probably have to kill the monsters to get much out of the place.]

Yeah. We should watch a little longer to see if we can see others. It might be good to try to check another window and get a better sense of the layout too. [It's a large monster, taller than the bookshelves, so they might be able to use the smaller spaces and their speed to their advantage.]

You can stay on this one while I check for another window? Then we try to go in quiet and stealthy. [If it's a scent-hunter, that could still be an issue, but maybe they don't like the smell of cthulhufrog vomit and antiseptics.

Also he wants to know if the windows could be smashed through for an emergency exit so he'll check out that too!]

[parodeity]

Sure.

[ dave will in fact stay put, peering into the building and waiting on dirk to get to the other side. he'll extrapolate the layout from what he can see, noting it down mentally for Later. ]

[splinten]

[oh dark tumblr, show me if there are other windows Dirk can rip open and what he might see.

Also if the windows are a good size/build for them to smash through for escape.]

[abhoth]

[There are several windows on each side of the building, more than enough that they'll be here all day if they end up ripping the boards off each and every one of them. Dirk won't have as much trouble ripping one open if he goes solo, but it'll take a bit longer for him to do it. The windows themselves are made out of four, glass panes each. Theoretically, they could smash through one as long as they don't mind getting shards of glass and wood all over themselves — which, let's be honest? They probably don't. Love yourselves, boys.

Dirk will see more of the Library if he peers through a window on the opposite side, including what appear to be gigantic portraits hung up on one wall. The windows are too dirty to see what the portraits actually are. If he listens closely, he'll be able to pick up what seems to be the pitter-patter of several sets of feet against the ground.

From where he's standing, Dave will notice the building probably has more than one floor. Two or three tops, depending on how tall the ceiling may be. The building is large enough for that, just by glancing at it from the outside as well.]

[parodeity]

[ yeah, okay. dave will start heading for the door, deciding they can only do so much recon. he'll meet dirk there?

at which point he will dig out his key and then prod dirk in the cheek with it just to see if that does anything.

...

yeah ]

[splinten]

[Thanks for POKING DIRK IN THE DAMN CHEEK.]

I felt that.

[parodeity]

It's a big buildin'. We may as well not waste your shots.

[ but he doesn't say anything to reveal the key, exactly. he just goes to unlock the door, pauses for a moment, and then steps inside.

two scalpels and a knife and a lifetime of fighting in less than stellar condition, with too many injuries to count. a life of being raised to die, more or less, and to always die in the service of others.

the skeleton key is a dangerous item for dave strider to have. it's the only thing he can serve, with the alpha timeline out of reach. ]

[abhoth]

[Godspeed, you kids.

At the entrance, they'll immediately be greeted by the giant portraits Dirk saw from the window. Each of them are dusty with age and time, the faces twisted beyond recognition. However, the frames don't really match up with the rest of the old timey decor around the city. They are more modern; black sleek plastic instead of an ornate design. Weird

The door will remain open behind them, unless they purposely lock it. The scent of lavender wafts through the air as they take one step further into the building. A feminine voice will speak to them:]

Hello, gentlemen.

[And then it's gone.]

[parodeity]

[ dave opts not to tell dirk that was the ghost who maybe laughed at him re: fingers, and just mutters: ]

Yo, Abigail. [ he has no idea who the fuck it is. but he seems resigned rather than startled, before he steps inside. and he will. probably purposely lock the door so no one wanders in unawares?

then dave will shut the fuck up and start moving quietly, investigating with the same single-minded purpose he used on the storage room and utilizing the skills born of...well, living with bro. he's tense and quiet and cautious about where he steps, but the only way to go is forward. ]

[splinten]

[Well. That was... something?

Anyway Dirk immediately goes for the nearest structure—bookshelf, desk, whatever—to crouch down behind. The goal is to scope out the area, stay low and quiet, and possibly get a look at the monster to see if they can actually fight it or if they should take those window exits he made sure of.

THIS SHOULD BE AT DAVE'S BACK. OBVIOUSLY. I remember a while later. I Got There eventually.]

[abhoth]

[Thanks to both of them being Sburb Ninjas^TM, they manage to quietly slip into the library without drawing attention to themselves. The nearest source of cover for them will be the receptionist's desk, which is tall enough to conceal them both while they're crouching.

Books are strewn across the floor as far as the eyes can see, large holes punctured through some of them. Now that they're inside, it's easy to see why the bookshelves are in a mess. It looks like something large smashed through them.

While they're there, the sound of legs skittering against the wooden floor can be heard coming from the other side of the library. Ten footsteps in quick succession, over and over. Occasionally, there's a squelch. From here, both of them may be able to see two sets of something large and pointy peeking out from over the bookshelves on the far end of the room.]

[parodeity]

[ the receptionist's desk works. dave will want to check the drawers and the desk itself anyway, and will do so with the aforementioned ninja skills. he will also want to pick up a book to flip through to see if he can read any of it at all. hard to tell what with, you know, THINGS BEING GIBBERISH SOMETIMES.

he makes no move to leave cover yet, but in a bit he will kind of peer above the top of the desk to try to gauge if the Whatever is moving in a pattern. ]

[splinten]

[Very quietly:] If we can't identify a way to beat it, we leave through one of the windows and come back better armed. Agreed? [Because he won't leave alone, so either they're going to die together or they're going to live together.

For his part, he's using Ears to try to get a sense of whatever the thing is and how it moves. On the desk he's specifically looking for some kind of map or hint towards indexing. He wants to know where the science and/or local history sections might be.]

[abhoth]

[The book Dave happens to pick up is a children's book. The contents are legible, at least. It tells the story of a young abomination's bedtime routine. As for the drawers and the desk, he'll be able to find an apple shaped paper weight, a wooden ruler, and some lined sheets of paper. On the desk itself is a list of books that have been checked out. The last date is in May, but the day itself has been smudged out.

Dirk himself will be able to find a small map of the library taped to the receptionist's desk, as quick reference for whoever used to be employed here. The science and math related subjects seem to be grouped next to each other, on the eastern side of the library. History to be in the middle shelves. They might have to dig through the mess if they want to find them, though.

The thing is still in the back of the library, but it's westbound. It doesn't seem like it has a pattern, but it's kind of just... chilling. The library is its home, and it hasn't picked up the presence of intruders.]

[parodeity]

[ STOP NOT LETTING HIM SEE THE YEAR, YOU ASSHOLES!! for the record: he steals the ruler for some reason.

...

and the paper weight. anyway. dave will scan the rest of the books in their area to see what titles there are slash if there is anything more immediately useful?

to dirk, mostly inaudible and whispered directly to his ear: ] Maybe. I want to see the other floors. We'll just...try not to draw attention if we can avoid doin' it.

[ it's just like with bro. sometimes if you're quiet and fast enough, the inevitable beatdown doesn't come. (this is a lie. bro always catches you and then you probably break some bones. whatever.) ]

[splinten]

I ain't leavin' alone. [Quiet reminder.

But he quietly shows Dave the map so he can get a sense of it. WHICH PRESUMABLY WILL SHOW THEM WHERE THE STAIRS ARE? So they will... sneak that way I guess]