[Aiden had things under control, but Josh gets impaled and his focus is disrupted at the last minute (15). Dahlia's head cracks against his and he stumbles back with a hiss, eyes glowing gold in response before moving to try and stab again (13).
He throws a glance over his shoulder at his husband in the process.]
Josh?
[There's a pit of terror growing, but he shoves it down, trying to focus on the matter at hand.]
( Dahlia narrowly avoids getting stabbed (16), swatting his arm away.
"You still think fairytales will save you."
Josh's husband's voice snaps Josh out of his stupor (non-nat 20) as he tugs the wood out from his abdomen. Leaning over for a few seconds, he looks up, eyes hungry - ready for a fight.
He leaps for Tina to grab the arm that shot at him, (17, 10) taking a hold and yanking hard, ripping it off completely as "Tina" cries out.
Victoria grips the ground, branches disappearing again, this time attempting to strike from below Aiden (nat 20 😮💨🫣🥲). Dahlia gets struck - as well, perhaps karma for her mouth.
Tina's detached arm reaches to strangle Josh, but Josh lets go and zips away as the arm flies into the canopy of redwoods above. (14, 19)
Dahlia reaches forward, to grab onto Aiden's head (nat 20) magic from the Redwoods and the spell keeping the bodies in place coursing through her.
Aiden has flashes of a sunny New Orleans day, holding the door to a flower shop open for someone. They thank him. There's a (unfamiliar to this Aiden) sound, of perhaps an Ocarina or some kind of wind instrument. The flowers wither and die in his hand.
"Too bad," Dahlia in this vision says. "They were almost as young and beautiful as you."
Aiden, make a strength save to pull out of her grip and end the vision.
Chris approaches his wife, kneels down and tries to drive a knife through her head, (15, 18) but the branches and wood disconnect from one another and the knife goes straight through to the Earth. )
[There's a small cry of pain as the branches come at him from below, and then is trapped in the vision, the distress of the people around him falling away. He sees the images falling into place, part of him trailing along, giving into the feeling of familiarity, before a nagging itch appears at the back of his brain.
This isn't how it went.
He can't say why or how, but it's enough to give him a reason to fight back. He reaches his hands up, pulling at the fingers gripping around his head and trying to snap them back (17).]
( Aiden's werewolf strength snaps Dhalia's fingers back on both of her hands and the break off into Aiden's.
Josh, seeing that these woodland anomalies fall apart, attempts again to rip Tina's other arm off, and succeeds (14, 12). Raging, he tries to shove that arm down "Tina's" throat from above. Even distracted by his husband's struggles, he misses the throat (4, 2) but gets her through her neck.
Tina's form collapses to the ground and is reclaimed by the Earth.
Victoria attempts to elongate her her arm branches to strangle Chris, and they wrap around his neck as he tries to strike again. (6, 1).
Chris attempts to break the grapple hold she has on his neck and can't, quickly losing air. )
[Aiden follows Josh's lead, his emotions still a bit frayed and present on his face, but he's angry enough that it doesn't take much to tear Dahlia's head from her corpse and watches it disintegrate (18).
He then turns and charges towards Chris, planning to take hold of Victoria and pull her off (18 if he can get another roll in).]
( we can call it raging - and he can make his attempt, but her natural twenty turns where aiden grabs to thorns and he takes some damage.
Josh also turns toward Chris and his assailant, grabs Chris' dropped knife and tries chopping her extended, strangling limbs off. he gets a hack in, but it doesn't break her grip or cut them completely, the knife sticking out.
Victoria uses her turn to begin to suck the knife into her branches.
Chris tries to grab the knife from her, to finish what Josh was trying to do. (21, 1) Because Aiden is holding her (and bleeding), she can't dodge. Barely breathing, Chris grips the knife and drags it out before swinging it back down. The material dissipates and air returns to his lungs as he flops over. )
[Aiden keeps his eyes on the horizon, scanning to see if there are any other tree zombies looking to make an appearance (nat 20), but as he does he can't help but go:]
( No tree zombies, but, there is a rustling in the trees a few yards out, coming straight toward them.
Josh is too busy crouched by Chris, "Breathe," rubbing his back to notice any footfalls or rustling.
"They're not gone," Josh says, sure of himself. And of Scott, Allison, Sam, and Davina. They can't be. He feels like his heart would break. It was too clean. Too theatrical. )
( He can still feel the bruising around his neck, how close a call they had, but he pushes himself to his feet and stands tall. He's an Argent. He's had closer.
"Something else?" he asks, retrieving his knife from the ground, turning. "Come on," he says, leading them out of the clearing.
[Aiden is not doing well there (5), trying to herd the other two men towards safety. Apparently he wasted all his good rolls while they were fighting zombies.
He also is spending time looking back over his shoulder to try and see if he can spot what's coming.]
( Chris is a natural at hiding (21), but Josh isn't familiar with terrain and vampires don't hide (6), plus, his husband's looking back, and not trying to hide either. Not, well. He doesn't do much better as three people with guns enter the clearing, inspecting.
One is busy looking at the remains of the zombies, two thinks he sees a glimpse of someone looking back (6), and three definitely sees two figures in the trees.
"No use hiding, these woods go on forever. And they're protected land. Come out, you two."
Number three holds his gun front, as two approaches the tree-line.
Josh -- doesn't see Chris anymore, like Chris was never there. Well, one of them better be free, he thinks.
Josh leaves his husband there, hands up, ready to bluff.
"It's only me," he cries, putting on an act. (18) "Friends of mine, they just got sucked into the ground and, and something set these two trees on fire and then, then I was attacked, and my friend, she's been dead for years. I think I'm going crazy."
Chris pulls Aiden away, hiding him, too (18).
All three gunman are distracted and curious about the crazy, flailing young guy. They look at one another. One stands, points his firearm at him and then gestures to go with the other two.
Chris stands with his hand over Aiden's mouth while two lead Josh away, with the first watching the trees for a little while longer. Finally, they retreat far enough that Chris lets go and steps back. )
Sorry. Better the two of us out here, then the two of you wherever they're going. They're armed. Likely connected to Wallace or Corsair. Convincing act, but they probably think he and his friends had designs on their bosses.
[Aiden nods at Chris' assessment, even though the concern is clear on his face. Josh is more formidable than he looks. He's not easy to kill. That doesn't mean Aiden isn't worried about letting him go off on his own.
That being said, the strategy is sound, because he's assuming the next step:]
( There's no need for a roll, because Aiden knows his husband's scent and they can stay far enough away but know they're going in the right direction. )
[It doesn't always feel that long. Sometimes it feels like yesterday and other times it feels like forever.]
Would have been longer but we had to wait for his best friend to come back from the dead. She would have been pissed if she missed it.
[That wasn't the entire reason, there was also Cami and Hayley being on the run from Marcel ... their people weren't in the right place for a long time. But they figured it out eventually.]
[Aiden continues to lead the way, eyeing for security measures (12) so they can determine how easily they can sneak their way inside.
Inside the facility, however, things are happening at a different speed. Jed's minders have been in a bit of a tizzy for the last hour.
He doesn't know why. It's been quiet for so long but, but something happened that sent them flailing. Jed has to fight his way out of his vat of apathy to pull himself forward to watch, seeing if maybe this might provide an opportunity to both get out of here and find what they did with Ben.
Opportunities have been few and far between. He tried to get out early on, but as the weeks passed it's become easier to sink into the anger and wait for a new opportunity. But for now he just watches, and can't help how his brow furrows at the face of the new man brought in.
( Not too, too many security measures. A camera on each corner. But, no guard tower. No mountain ash or salt. The lab's remote, probably there to house people not sucked into the ground, he assumes. There is a familiar scent, one he remembers visiting the bayou with an ancient demigod boyfriend, Hope, and Josie. But, why would he be here?
Come to think of it, wasn't he supposed to summit with them?
There's a front door and a back door, and a balcony he could leap to. But, he's with Chris, who doesn't leap...
Two of the men split off from Josh and the one with a gun pointed at him as he takes him to an elevator. The buttons aren't marked, but Josh listens, and realizes he's heading downward.
The elevators open into a basement. The basement is sparse, except for two - lab techs who look like Olympians (vampires?) - watch as the newcomer is taken down a hallway. One takes out a card, slides it through a panel and the door slides open. )
You have Jed?
( Well, that doesn't -- help his tourist story. Bars separate him from the room Jed is in as Josh steps inside. He looks back. He spins around, trying to sell the incredulousness, again. (17) )
What is going on?
( One lab tech turns to the other.
"Do you believe in coincidences?"
Tech 2 shrugs. "They don't. And they don't care." She turns to the man with a gun. "Watch them."
He nods, the door slides shut.
Josh's act drops, as he turns back. Was he pulled into this, too? Is Ben? )
[That's mean, he shouldn't have gone off like that. His face looks as though he regrets it because Josh - that's his name, Josh. Married to Hayley's second. Anyway, Josh has nothing to do with this and can't tell him where Ben is, and is a much older and never mind a vampire, so he should probably be nicer.]
Sorry.
[He doesn't sound very sorry, but he is.]
I've been here for weeks. Ben and I were on a hike and we came across the whole mess with the trees and them suddenly catching fire. Then Ben is getting sucked into the ground and a zombie that looks like my dad comes out of nowhere and once I've dealt with him these guys show up and shove me in here.
[And he's been there for weeks, at least. He's definitely lost track of time somewhere around when his phone died, but has to be that.]
They feed me but that's about it.
[There's a beat and he drops his voice as he gets closer.]
Do they know you ... have a very specific diet?
[Meanwhile on the outside, Aiden is mostly concerned about the cameras. He wants to know how many people are inside. He tips his head towards one of the cameras then looks to Chris. "Can you shoot one of them out from here?"]
( It looks like he's captured, he'd say, but he has been in Jed's place before. Under thumb. Your actions are stifled. Not your own. He doesn't throw attitude back. Just waits for the explanation as he scans the sparse double room they're in separated by bars.
Josh turns back. So, Jed being here really is a coincidence? He's shocked so a (7) doesn't deem what kind of motivation he can sense. )
It's a failsafe.
( He starts there. )
You and Ben stumbled onto the hiding place for these ancient witch's original bodies. They thought you were a threat, sucked one of you into oblivion and gave the other a neat reminder of someone you failed.
( He guesses. He's not the magic guy. That's Davina's MO.
He steps closer, lowering his voice, too. He goes to grab the bars and he gets a shock he doesn't expect. his (12) has him absorb only some before pulling back. )
Great. ( Right, his point. ) They don't know anything. I think they bought I also stumbled onto it. And they don't know I was with anyone else. I'm not alone. Aiden's here. And - an Argent.
( Chris just smirks.
"Pick which one," he says, readying his gun to aim. )
["Let's start with the closest one. I want to try and lure some of them out into a blind spot."
Jed takes a breath as he calculates that, trying to make all of that make sense. Though his father is not someone he failed, so he rejects that right off, but maybe there's some kind of thread of truth there. Something related that may pertain to his father.
Not the problem right now.]
I'm all for getting out of here, but we need to figure out how to get to wherever they took Ben. I'm not leaving without him.
( this is Chris Argent, I'm not rolling. he uses his inspiration and years and years of training to knock the first one out. nothing happens right away. but it is one of four cameras.
Josh nods. )
I'm not going anywhere without Davina either. She, Scott McCall, Sam Winchester and Allison Argent all disappeared, too. Thinking they're all in the same place is getting me through it.
( because they can't be dead. it doesn't make any logical sense. but he doesn't know anything beyond that. he's out of his element. (6) )
[Aiden was going to give it five to ten minutes but before anyone can appear, a mild-mannered looking man in a trench coat just appears, suddenly, in front of the door, staring up at the building like it's an intricate puzzle he's trying to solve.
Jed frowns as he processes that. He doesn't know who the other three are but he does remember Davina's name, knows she's important to New Orleans. She can't stay trapped.]
Could you tell if the guards were human?
[He can't, not anymore, not without becoming a werewolf again. But Josh can probably tell.]
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everyonelives2025-03-12 08:39 pm
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He throws a glance over his shoulder at his husband in the process.]
Josh?
[There's a pit of terror growing, but he shoves it down, trying to focus on the matter at hand.]
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"You still think fairytales will save you."
Josh's husband's voice snaps Josh out of his stupor (non-nat 20) as he tugs the wood out from his abdomen. Leaning over for a few seconds, he looks up, eyes hungry - ready for a fight.
He leaps for Tina to grab the arm that shot at him, (17, 10) taking a hold and yanking hard, ripping it off completely as "Tina" cries out.
Victoria grips the ground, branches disappearing again, this time attempting to strike from below Aiden (nat 20 😮💨🫣🥲). Dahlia gets struck - as well, perhaps karma for her mouth.
Tina's detached arm reaches to strangle Josh, but Josh lets go and zips away as the arm flies into the canopy of redwoods above. (14, 19)
Dahlia reaches forward, to grab onto Aiden's head (nat 20) magic from the Redwoods and the spell keeping the bodies in place coursing through her.
Aiden has flashes of a sunny New Orleans day, holding the door to a flower shop open for someone. They thank him. There's a (unfamiliar to this Aiden) sound, of perhaps an Ocarina or some kind of wind instrument. The flowers wither and die in his hand.
"Too bad," Dahlia in this vision says. "They were almost as young and beautiful as you."
Aiden, make a strength save to pull out of her grip and end the vision.
Chris approaches his wife, kneels down and tries to drive a knife through her head, (15, 18) but the branches and wood disconnect from one another and the knife goes straight through to the Earth. )
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This isn't how it went.
He can't say why or how, but it's enough to give him a reason to fight back. He reaches his hands up, pulling at the fingers gripping around his head and trying to snap them back (17).]
Get off me.
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Josh, seeing that these woodland anomalies fall apart, attempts again to rip Tina's other arm off, and succeeds (14, 12). Raging, he tries to shove that arm down "Tina's" throat from above. Even distracted by his husband's struggles, he misses the throat (4, 2) but gets her through her neck.
Tina's form collapses to the ground and is reclaimed by the Earth.
Victoria attempts to elongate her her arm branches to strangle Chris, and they wrap around his neck as he tries to strike again. (6, 1).
Chris attempts to break the grapple hold she has on his neck and can't, quickly losing air. )
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He then turns and charges towards Chris, planning to take hold of Victoria and pull her off (18 if he can get another roll in).]
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Josh also turns toward Chris and his assailant, grabs Chris' dropped knife and tries chopping her extended, strangling limbs off. he gets a hack in, but it doesn't break her grip or cut them completely, the knife sticking out.
Victoria uses her turn to begin to suck the knife into her branches.
Chris tries to grab the knife from her, to finish what Josh was trying to do. (21, 1) Because Aiden is holding her (and bleeding), she can't dodge. Barely breathing, Chris grips the knife and drags it out before swinging it back down. The material dissipates and air returns to his lungs as he flops over. )
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What the fuck.
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Josh is too busy crouched by Chris, "Breathe," rubbing his back to notice any footfalls or rustling.
"They're not gone," Josh says, sure of himself. And of Scott, Allison, Sam, and Davina. They can't be. He feels like his heart would break. It was too clean. Too theatrical. )
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[He reaches forward, extending an arm to pull Chris to his feet so they can get moving.]
C'mon, we have to move.
[He'd much rather observe them before they can observe him.]
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"Something else?" he asks, retrieving his knife from the ground, turning. "Come on," he says, leading them out of the clearing.
Everyone make hide checks. )
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He also is spending time looking back over his shoulder to try and see if he can spot what's coming.]
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One is busy looking at the remains of the zombies, two thinks he sees a glimpse of someone looking back (6), and three definitely sees two figures in the trees.
"No use hiding, these woods go on forever. And they're protected land. Come out, you two."
Number three holds his gun front, as two approaches the tree-line.
Josh -- doesn't see Chris anymore, like Chris was never there. Well, one of them better be free, he thinks.
Josh leaves his husband there, hands up, ready to bluff.
"It's only me," he cries, putting on an act. (18) "Friends of mine, they just got sucked into the ground and, and something set these two trees on fire and then, then I was attacked, and my friend, she's been dead for years. I think I'm going crazy."
Chris pulls Aiden away, hiding him, too (18).
All three gunman are distracted and curious about the crazy, flailing young guy. They look at one another. One stands, points his firearm at him and then gestures to go with the other two.
Chris stands with his hand over Aiden's mouth while two lead Josh away, with the first watching the trees for a little while longer. Finally, they retreat far enough that Chris lets go and steps back. )
Sorry. Better the two of us out here, then the two of you wherever they're going. They're armed. Likely connected to Wallace or Corsair. Convincing act, but they probably think he and his friends had designs on their bosses.
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That being said, the strategy is sound, because he's assuming the next step:]
We're following them back right?
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( There's no need for a roll, because Aiden knows his husband's scent and they can stay far enough away but know they're going in the right direction. )
How long have the two of you been married?
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[It doesn't always feel that long. Sometimes it feels like yesterday and other times it feels like forever.]
Would have been longer but we had to wait for his best friend to come back from the dead. She would have been pissed if she missed it.
[That wasn't the entire reason, there was also Cami and Hayley being on the run from Marcel ... their people weren't in the right place for a long time. But they figured it out eventually.]
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( He doesn't need to comment on the importance of marriage. He is well, well aware. He married into his wife's family. )
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New Orleans isn't really easy on anyone.
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( Aiden tracks Josh and the three others to a facility he spies through the trees.
Josh is led in through the front doors, keeping his act up as a bewildered, confused tourist. )
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Inside the facility, however, things are happening at a different speed. Jed's minders have been in a bit of a tizzy for the last hour.
He doesn't know why. It's been quiet for so long but, but something happened that sent them flailing. Jed has to fight his way out of his vat of apathy to pull himself forward to watch, seeing if maybe this might provide an opportunity to both get out of here and find what they did with Ben.
Opportunities have been few and far between. He tried to get out early on, but as the weeks passed it's become easier to sink into the anger and wait for a new opportunity. But for now he just watches, and can't help how his brow furrows at the face of the new man brought in.
Why is he familiar?]
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Come to think of it, wasn't he supposed to summit with them?
There's a front door and a back door, and a balcony he could leap to. But, he's with Chris, who doesn't leap...
Two of the men split off from Josh and the one with a gun pointed at him as he takes him to an elevator. The buttons aren't marked, but Josh listens, and realizes he's heading downward.
The elevators open into a basement. The basement is sparse, except for two - lab techs who look like Olympians (vampires?) - watch as the newcomer is taken down a hallway. One takes out a card, slides it through a panel and the door slides open. )
You have Jed?
( Well, that doesn't -- help his tourist story. Bars separate him from the room Jed is in as Josh steps inside. He looks back. He spins around, trying to sell the incredulousness, again. (17) )
What is going on?
( One lab tech turns to the other.
"Do you believe in coincidences?"
Tech 2 shrugs. "They don't. And they don't care." She turns to the man with a gun. "Watch them."
He nods, the door slides shut.
Josh's act drops, as he turns back. Was he pulled into this, too? Is Ben? )
What are you doing here?
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[That's mean, he shouldn't have gone off like that. His face looks as though he regrets it because Josh - that's his name, Josh. Married to Hayley's second. Anyway, Josh has nothing to do with this and can't tell him where Ben is, and is a much older and never mind a vampire, so he should probably be nicer.]
Sorry.
[He doesn't sound very sorry, but he is.]
I've been here for weeks. Ben and I were on a hike and we came across the whole mess with the trees and them suddenly catching fire. Then Ben is getting sucked into the ground and a zombie that looks like my dad comes out of nowhere and once I've dealt with him these guys show up and shove me in here.
[And he's been there for weeks, at least. He's definitely lost track of time somewhere around when his phone died, but has to be that.]
They feed me but that's about it.
[There's a beat and he drops his voice as he gets closer.]
Do they know you ... have a very specific diet?
[Meanwhile on the outside, Aiden is mostly concerned about the cameras. He wants to know how many people are inside. He tips his head towards one of the cameras then looks to Chris. "Can you shoot one of them out from here?"]
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Josh turns back. So, Jed being here really is a coincidence? He's shocked so a (7) doesn't deem what kind of motivation he can sense. )
It's a failsafe.
( He starts there. )
You and Ben stumbled onto the hiding place for these ancient witch's original bodies. They thought you were a threat, sucked one of you into oblivion and gave the other a neat reminder of someone you failed.
( He guesses. He's not the magic guy. That's Davina's MO.
He steps closer, lowering his voice, too. He goes to grab the bars and he gets a shock he doesn't expect. his (12) has him absorb only some before pulling back. )
Great. ( Right, his point. ) They don't know anything. I think they bought I also stumbled onto it. And they don't know I was with anyone else. I'm not alone. Aiden's here. And - an Argent.
( Chris just smirks.
"Pick which one," he says, readying his gun to aim. )
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Jed takes a breath as he calculates that, trying to make all of that make sense. Though his father is not someone he failed, so he rejects that right off, but maybe there's some kind of thread of truth there. Something related that may pertain to his father.
Not the problem right now.]
I'm all for getting out of here, but we need to figure out how to get to wherever they took Ben. I'm not leaving without him.
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Josh nods. )
I'm not going anywhere without Davina either. She, Scott McCall, Sam Winchester and Allison Argent all disappeared, too. Thinking they're all in the same place is getting me through it.
( because they can't be dead. it doesn't make any logical sense. but he doesn't know anything beyond that. he's out of his element. (6) )
Maybe they're underneath.
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Jed frowns as he processes that. He doesn't know who the other three are but he does remember Davina's name, knows she's important to New Orleans. She can't stay trapped.]
Could you tell if the guards were human?
[He can't, not anymore, not without becoming a werewolf again. But Josh can probably tell.]
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