Run, run, follow me [Open Mingle]

[saveournpcs]

Date: Saturday, 4.1.2020
Characters: OPEN

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I.

It's midday when trouble seems to brew underfoot. Literally underfoot, in cases - wherever the Numbered are, they'll suddenly find dormice approaching them, running around their feet, in some cases up their legs, aiming to get their attention, and then running off - coming back again, running off once more in the same direction.

Trying to get the Numbered to FOLLOW.


II.

If Numbered decide to follow the mice, they'll be lead through the streets, fields, or whatever there is (in some cases, this might mean that the mice are trying to lead them through the military area aroudn the air base). Perhaps they'll run into other Numbered on the way - all mice seem to be leading those that they lead into the exact same direction.


III.

The direction of, it turns out, the tunnels under the cliffs. The mice will easily slip through the grates that bar the entries - the grates were made to keep humans out and let a tiny mice through easily. The Numbered, however... well, the grates were installed solid and sturdy to keep humans out. The mice will vanish in the tunnels and not come back.

Comments

[lovedramamoron]

Jimmy follows after him, placing his feet very carefully as he moves. The last thing he needed was to trip over something.

[saveournpcs]

They walk for a while before the furry wall gives way to... a foot? Yes, that looks like a really, really big mouse foot right there. It gives a bit of perspective on the size of the whole mouse, at least - the foot alone is the size of four double-decker buses.

[iamnotgod]

Walter refuses to speak aloud, but pays attention to the way the foot is pointing.

He pauses, then turns around partway and tries to convey through hand gestures: Should we go back the other way?

Or better yet, leave, but he'd rather not have to deal with mice everywhere for however long until this gets resolved.

[lovedramamoron]

Jimmy makes an attempt to gesture to keep going. They'd gotten this far. They couldn't quit now.

Was there a way to squeeze around it?

[saveournpcs]

They can squeeze around it - if they are careful even without touching the foot.

[iamnotgod]

And if there's one thing Walter's been for most of his life, it's careful.

So he squeezes, proprioceptive sense working at its highest level he's ever had to use it. Any touching is minimized on his part.

Once he's far enough ahead - behind? - the foot he gestures for Jimmy to make his own way through.

[lovedramamoron]

Jimmy presses himself closely against the wall of the tunnel as he carefully edges his way through the narrow passage. He takes it slow,but eventually manages to reach Walter.

[saveournpcs]

Beyond, there is more fur wall, but again sufficient distance between fur and cave for them to walk.

[iamnotgod]

It's better than walking along a cliff; Walter will admit that much to himself.

Not out loud, though. While his curiosity is beginning to get the better of him, it's not that big.

Unlike the mouse.

So he just keeps walking, hoping that eventually they'll find more open space.

And possibly a place to write to the other Numbered again.

[lovedramamoron]

Exactly how big was this mouse? This was starting to get a little ridiculous.

Jimmy keeps walking behind Walter, hoping that they were getting close to the end.

[saveournpcs]

They are getting close to something, at least, as they can tell by the strength of the breeze picking up, and soon they're walking through a storm instead - a storm that changes direction every so often, and gets warmer and more humid in the outwards direction, too.

[iamnotgod]

"We do not want to be near its mouth," Walter finally broaches.

At least this answers the question of what direction they were headed?

"If only we could climb to a ledge down here."

It'd be safer - or at least feel safer.

[lovedramamoron]

"I'm mostly certain that dormice don't eat humans?" Jimmy offers. Although the book he'd been reading on British wildlife didn't really cover mice this big.

"Do you see a ledge?"

[iamnotgod]

"They're omnivores, and we're dealing with magic. Even if it has the same attitude as its smaller brethren, there are no guarantees."

He suppresses a strangled groan.

"Harder to see any from down here," Walter admits. If there were any, they were easily merged with the wall above.

They'd have to keep going for now.

[saveournpcs]

The sides of the cave are rough and have small ledges everywhere, they could probably be climbed. But there's no larger ledge in sight - their torches only reach so far, and the cave is, well, caved - the walls vanish behind the expanse of dormouse no matter how strong their torches are.

[lovedramamoron]

Jimmy peers at the walls.

"I don't think anything up there is big enough to help," he decides. "Maybe the best option is just to try and get around the mouth quickly. At least once we make it past that we should be almost through?"

[iamnotgod]

"We're assuming there are anything like normal exits here," Walter points out.

"Though at least running into the other Numbered would be some sort of reassuring."

This place was a mess of criss-crossed tunnels - surely there could be more than one that led to this dormouse?

Walter makes to keep moving before pausing and pulling out two handkerchiefs from his stash of supplies.

"Seems only prudent," he explains, passing one along to Jimmy.

[lovedramamoron]

"Yeah, do you know if anyone else was coming down here? Maybe someone got here ahead of us."

He makes a face and takes the piece of cloth. "Good idea. This is going to be unpleasant."

[iamnotgod]

"Russell mentioned hearing from several other people when I contacted him earlier," Walter recalls.

"Kitty has been leading people down, though I don't know who she's with right now. Dr. Tilly I met at the gate, and I expect the rest of her family's been clued in as well."

Breathing through the improvised face mask, he sets them both forward between the walls - one of fur, one of rock.

[saveournpcs]

After a while, they come across another tunnel, much like the one they came from. There's nobody standing in it, but there's voices in the very distance, almost impossible to hear.