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Thread: A Fox and the Private Eye [A KotixBluemoon Story] [[M]]

  1. #21
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    "Dafu can scout. Dafu good for sneaking." Dafu spoke, setting down the last sharpened bone spear before picking up his two bone daggers. Testing the weight and their range, Dafu rested them against the cloth of his clothes before moving to the opening. He shifted his weight there, a subtle change as he seemed to settle, suddenly seeming more feral than man, before slipping outside the cover. Dafu moved carefully, slinking into the shadows near the entry way door as his ears pivoted, picking up on the soft shift of sand, the sudden drips of water, and the present hum that hid low in the back. He sniffed the air, picking up the musty dirt and cooling sands as they piled up from the blowing winds outside. The sun was rising higher, which would mean the ants would usually start moving towards the northern edges of the deserts, hoping for shade.

    "Moving means less chance of them entering.." Dafu whispered to himself as he continued around the edge, the cavern familiar enough for him to map out mentally without even looking. He kept his eyes and ears peeled though, knowing that it took just one slip up to wind up killed. Even the most skilled kept themselves aware. Giving another huff of the air, he finally made it to the opening they were planning to escape through. Stopping before it, he held an ear up to the opening, hearing the buzzing through the wall, a slight cirrup sound echoing through the small opening. Nothing had changed there, and the hum was frighteningly reassuring.

    Nodding to himself, Dafu carefully made his way back to the entrance, pushing it fully open for them to move through. He nodded his head, letting Del know the coast was clear before starting up collecting everything they were taking for their escape. Now would be the best time, just before the noon sun hit, and hopefully a southern route would be easier to escape through at night than trying to fight their way through the morning sun and the rising horde of Melioruts that might come after them.

    "It's now or never." Dafu spoke, giving her a toothy grin.

    "Even Dreams, can be a nightmare"
    Spoiler: Click it, I dare ya! 




  2. #22
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    With her supplies set next to her, Del was waiting by the remains of the fire when Dafu returned. She got to her feet and loaded her portion of the food on her back, her spears and water tube taken up in her hands. As soon as the fox was ready, she moved with him to the exit, her eyes scanning right, then left, before she stepped out into the larger cavern.

    “Now...” she said, nervous laughter following as she walked behind him towards the small tunnel in the wall. The scattered sand crunched underfoot, but little else disturbed the silence in the large space, an eerie sense of doom hovering throughout. Shivering, Del looked up at the sun filtering through the tube she had dropped into this hell from only a few days prior. She had been blind, bound, and unconscious once she hit the rock, and it was truly a miracle that she had not suffered a broken neck instead.

    Her grip tightening on the spears in her hand, the private investigator cursed her failing nerves. She was not prone to hysteria, and she would not allow it now. She was alive despite the odds, and if she wished to avenge herself she had to keep her cool. Trusting the fox’s instincts was also imperative. Rolling her shoulders and flexing her neck, she trotted up next to him, the two walking side by side until they reached the hole.

    “Let me go in first. You can pass my things along...then follow.”

    She didn’t wait for him to argue, her water and cooked meat set aside as she put her spears through the opening first, then followed with her head and shoulders. There was only a little room on either side of her, the tunnel darkening as soon as her body was inside. The gentle slope downwards made it easy to descend, Del wiggling forward and using her elbows and feet to propel herself. She could hear movement below, a light scuffling, and there was an odor wafting towards her...a sweet cloying scent...like decaying matter.

    Holding her breath, she slowed her movements as a small cavern opened up in front of her. Phosphorescent white eggs were the first thing she saw, numbered in the hundreds at least. She crawled out, using her hands to balance herself against the floor. Crouching, she looked back into the tunnel and whistled for Dafu. Her eyes were just beginning to adjust to the dim light when she noticed dark figures moving about. They were small...childlike...and seemed interested in a pile of refuse in the corner. A nursery? she wondered, taking care not to move so as to avoid detection.

  3. #23
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    Dafu had remained quietly behind, becoming more unnerved the closer they got to the sound. He was glad to wait for Del to enter the tunnel first, though felt sheepish for it. He was the great thief, and a gentleman at that! How dare he let a still mostly injured woman take the lead. Though, she had insisted, and had taken the dive into the place herself. He kept his eyes peeled around the tunnel, ears on a hair trigger to pick out anything that wasn’t the humming from the hole. Time ticked down slowly for him, and just as he was ready to call the woman dead, he heard the sharp whistle. Letting out a short breath, he allowed her gear to slide through the tunnel, careful to not let any of the dangerous pointy bits to head through first. Once he was sure they had made it through, Dafu followed shortly after.

    While Dafu would never admit to being claustrophobic, even he had to admit the tunnel was unnerving for him. The walls hugged him, leaving just enough room to wiggle through at an agonizingly slow pace. His tail even caught and snagged in places, forcing him to stop and adjust it the best he could to free himself. The pace was slow, his mind having to fight the desire to rush the entrance and get out. There was no going back either, so he was committed to the entire ordeal. He couldn’t even force a normal breath in, having to taste that cloying scent of decay, almost mixed with a sweetness like sugar syrup. It was a very strange scent before he finally dropped out of the hole, quickly righting himself as he looked around the room.

    They had landed in a nursery, which explained the humming. He had never seen a Meliorut egg up close, but from what he knew, this was both the safest and dangerous place to be in. Until the eggs hatched, they would be left unguarded save for the children who hatched. He held his breath, looking over to the smaller creatures scurrying about, consuming anything they could.

    Not daring to speak outloud, Dafu taped Del on the shoulders, before motioning to the small creatures and then his own eyes. They seemed blind, relying on scent and sound to find their foods. He looked around the room, allowing his eyes to adjust to the darker tunnels now that the sunlight was mostly gone. Placing a hand against the wall, he motioned tapped her shoulder again before pointing to his side, beckoning her to follow him towards the hopeful entrance of the nursery room.


    "Even Dreams, can be a nightmare"
    Spoiler: Click it, I dare ya! 




  4. #24
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    With her belongings in hand, Del stepped quietly to the side to allow the fox to enter the nursery unhindered. She was keeping her attention on the immature Melioruts when she felt his touch, a single nod her response when he indicated that the creatures could not see. She had begun to suspect that when her presence went unnoticed for the duration of her ‘visit’, their little antennas shifting back and forth but never picking up on her location.

    She was already looking at him when he tapped her again, her eyes shifting to the place he indicated. Once again she nodded, falling into step behind him as he moved towards another opening, her eyes slowly adjusting as they moved deeper into the cave’s warren of tunnels. She put her hand out and placed it against the wall to her left, cringing at the dampness which clung to its surface. Using it to help guide her steps, she moved slowly, her leading foot shuffling across the floor to avoid tripping on any obstructions. She was sure the fox was having an easier time of it, his nocturnal lifestyle sure to come with better night vision, his rod to cone ratio in his eyes surely higher.

    Once the two had made it through the first tunnel off the nursery, they came into another antechamber, the small space offering little other than a narrow strip of light which appeared to be filtering in from above. Squinting, Del could see enough detail to know she wasn’t climbing up the rock to whatever source was providing the illumination. The walls were smooth and the fissures too narrow to climb through. There was no choice but to move on. Allowing Dafu to lead again, she fell in step, gently reaching out to get his attention after a few moments had passed.

    “Can you tell if we are walking on a level or slanted surface Dafu? I know we headed down from the original chamber, but my sense of direction is hazy from there. Maybe we should make some marks on the walls in case we need to go back also. I’d hate to get lost in this damn maze.”

  5. #25
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    Dafu paused at the juncture, nose sniffing the air trying to catch anything over the damp dew and mold that permeated the air. He had been leading them the best he could, following his nose towards where the smells were the weakest. He had been following this trail, all other senses tuned to try and prepare them for the creatures ahead. Ears swiveled at every scratch of stone, every tick of the creatures that scurried about them in the tunnels above and below. Her question threw him off, as he had been paying more attention to his nose than to find the way out.

    “Dafu .. not know.” Dafu spoke to her, stopping near the entrance to a much larger cavern, one that he would assume was a resting home for them. There would be none at the moment, but he could see signs of bedding and remains scattered about the opening. He looked back down the tunnel they had come from, and thought over her idea of marking the tunnels as they had gone through. Other than his sharp sense, what would stop them from running into the same tunnels again, if his nose led him that way. Marking would be hard though, as they needed a way that would be hard for any creature to follow that would still be viable to them.

    “Dafu think … going slight down. As for mark.” Dafu retreated some back into the entrance of the tunnel, testing his theory and finding the minor slope of the tunnel. It was a gentle slope, one that no one could honestly tell of if not for any sort of balance skill. He paid it no mind though as he flicked out one of his claws, looking towards the two of them. He began to scratch away at the stones, careful to not make a lot of noise as he dug into the stone and slime, shivering at the sensation. Soon enough, he had carved a cross along the wall, deep enough that one would feel it just as well as see it. The process was repeated upon the other wall before he returned to join Del, a broad smile that she would be able to see.

    “Dafu mark X on wall. Mean been there.” Dafu spoke quietly with pride, waiting to see her reaction to his brilliant plan.


    "Even Dreams, can be a nightmare"
    Spoiler: Click it, I dare ya! 




  6. #26
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    Standing in the entrance of the large cavern, Del squinted after the fox, not bothering to follow him as he darted down the tunnel. She had suspected they were going deeper underground, but had hoped otherwise. Until they reached a level plane, or were traveling up, she wouldn’t feel as though they were making progress. Heading down only brought them closer to the freaking ants and she had no intention of dealing with them directly unless absolutely necessary. Just standing outside their sleeping area made her nervous, even if none of the Melioruts were about.

    Tuned into whatever Dafu was doing, Del was able to hear the subtle scratching noises, but just barely. When he returned obviously proud of himself, she offered him a smile and patted his shoulder. “That’s good work. It’ll help us out if we have to move quickly. I’ll just use the wall to guide me and hopefully I’ll find it easily enough.” Shifting away from him, she retraced his steps and ran her fingers up and down over the damp surface to determine what height to keep her hand. Once she came upon the marks she put her thumb up. “Found it!” The grooves were deep enough to locate by feel, even without the benefit of night vision...which was a good thing, because she could hardly see them now. If she was running, she would never see them without light.

    Returning to the fox’s side, Del continued forward, slipping into the larger chamber and keeping her back to the wall. She scooted along quietly, keeping on alert as she passed several sleeping areas. There was more than one exit coming off the area and she hoped they would have time to explore their options, rather than being forced to choose quickly due to urgency. She led with her hand, her heart pounding in her chest as sweat started to gather on her forehead. Calm down girl, she chided herself mentally. Getting all worked up was not going to help her situation. She needed to keep a level head and make decisions based on reason, not fear. It was hard to remain in control though, with the unknown the only certainty to look forward to around each corner. Once she got out of this hell hole, she was going to get shit-faced drunk for a week straight. And if Dafu had the inclination to join her, they could paint the town red together.

    Having covered a little more than half the distance around the cave, Del came to the first tunnel. Like the others, it was dark inside, but she thought she saw a pinpoint of light some distance in. Moving a little to the side, she motioned for the fox to come forward.

    “Does it seem safe to explore?” she asked him in a whisper.

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