RETURN OF THE MIST

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There is an eeriness to the lands - an unknown chill that seemed to hang across the air, threatening to consume more than it already had. The shift is undeniable and, evidently, had already garnered its fair share of attention, as lions flocked in an attempt to rectify the disappearance of their kin.

Here, the fog seemed to thicken abruptly, occupying thr area as a swirling mass of white smoke and fading, hungry clouds. Listen close enough, however, and one may catch a sort of strange echo — indiscernible, mostly, other than the waning tremor that it left behind. There is almost no denying that there is someone in there, caught amongst the maze of wispy tendrils and omnipotent barriers.

And although the sound of approaching footfalls was beginning to grow louder, the question still remained - will they be able to find them?

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INSTRUCTIONS
Searchers: @Roan, @Hanneth, @Avana
Lost Lion: @Dero
Next Round: 4/1

Dice Sum Needed For Success: 36
Trade Boost: Pathfinders

All participants, include the following at the bottom of your post:

Code:

<center><b>Search Roll:</b> [roll=1d10]
<b>Trade Boost:</b> if your trade received a boost, as indicated above, place their level in that trade here. otherwise, place “n/a”</center>

All participants must reply to this thread by the listed date, otherwise they will be removed from the search party. When replying, all participants must include the search roll and any specified trade boosts at the bottom of their post. There is no posting order.

pixel credit to strobelast

Avana had convinced herself that the mist was keeping her father apart from them. While everyone was searching for the missing members of the Hollow, Dero was also always on the strawberry daughter's radar. Though she figured the rest of her family would likely be looking for him as well, the medic still didn't feel like they were as convinced of the mist taking her father like she was. The dark man had been missing long before the fog arrived, after all.

The maned girl decided to head off towards the jungles, thinking that maybe her father would have somehow found himself back in a somewhat familiar feeling environment. He wasn't the best in the head. This much she knew, so it made sense to her that his mind might try to find a sense of home even if they were in new lands. The swamp seemed pretty similar to Ecrosia. As the small family group moved through the jungle, though, the pathfinder couldn't deny the sound of footfall somewhere up ahead. Even with the soft terrain of the sodden swamp, Avana knew she could hear something. "Do you hear that?" she'd side whisper towards her brother and mother before stopping. "Hello?" Avana's voice grew louder as she called into the fog, hopeful that someone might call back to them.

Search Roll:

Rolling 1d10: 2

Trade Boost: Pathfinder - Level 2

Table & Reference by Amanda | Base by Drifty | Background from unsplash

Unwilling to let her daughter go on her own, Hanneth moved after her. They walked toward the Jungle and slowly her own heart started to ache some. So many good years had been in the Jungle from before. They had made it a home, a safe place, a welcoming place. With Dero by her side, it had all felt easy but now nothing did. Since they had gotten pulled apart, their lives had been nothing but one trial after another. They needed a break, they needed safety. Her mind had wandered and she had noticed Roan joining them until Ava spoke. Her ears flicked around unsure what had been heard but willing to follow along anyways. She moved closer to her pink daughter to try and get a better listen on things.

Search Roll:

Rolling 1d10: 5

Trade Boost: n/a

CODE BY Ice - IMAGE BY Autumn

Honestly, Roan was growing hopeless the more they set out to search the mist. Whenever they seemed just on the cusp of finding someone, the voices would go silent or the trail would go cold, or something sinister would jump out at them. Only once had they found anyone and it wasn't even someone from their own pride. Still, he couldn't deny his sister the need to continue searching for their father, and maybe having @Hanneth along this time would help change their luck. Fingers crossed.

As Avana lead the way, Roan followed alongside his step-mother. Given his experience now with the mist, the mauve lion remained alert to their surroundings. He didn't want to get taken off guard again by strange lions emerging from the mist. Still, he did stop to listen when his sister seemed to hear something. This was how it always started though...

Search Roll:

Rolling 1d10: 9

Trade Boost: N/A

Table & Ref by Amanda | Background | Base

RETURN OF THE MIST

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They gather, finding some sort of unity and camaraderie beneath their common cause, bodies and minds working as once to try and find those that they had lost. The echo continues for a while longer, buzzing beneath the surface of the mist as if trying to break free — though it would find no avail. At least, not yet, anyways.

For it was abruptly that there was another shift, the air growing taunt as a small gust of wind pushed out across the landscape, demanding the attention of those present.

A gurgle and a bubble suddenly came up from the group's left side. The sound was low, seeming from the swamp and murk itself. The land belched a few more times and then from swamp dirt and mist a creature was spat up. Covered in mud there was no real way to distinguish exactly what it was besides some kind of bird and in an approximate duck like shape. It looked far worse for wear, with some cuts along its wings, feathers out of place or missing entirely, and hardly breathing. What breaths it did get out were garbled with water and muck in its lungs.

---

INSTRUCTIONS
Searchers: @Roan, @Hanneth, @Avana
Lost Lion: @Dero
Next Round: 4/6/2022

Dice Sum Needed For Success: 36
Trade Boost: Medic

All participants, include the following at the bottom of your post:

Code:

<center><b>Search Roll:</b> [roll=1d10]
<b>Trade Boost:</b> if your trade received a boost, as indicated above, place their level in that trade here. otherwise, place “n/a”</center>

All participants must reply to this thread by the listed date, otherwise they will be removed from the search party. When replying, all participants must include the search roll and any specified trade boosts at the bottom of their post. There is no posting order.

pixel credit to strobelast

Avana craned her neck to try to peer through the mist, ears flicking wildly in hopes to hear the sound again. She'd even go so far as to close her eyes to try and better focus on anything around them. It wasn't a voice she would hear this time, however, not even more footfall, but a strange gurgle from their left side. Maned head whipped to her left just in time to see the swamp bubble up from beneath its murky waters. At first, the younger Hodari thought nothing of it, but then it happened a few more times. Intrigued by this strange phenomenon, Avana's path alerted to take her closer.

The mist had a funny way of throwing the odd experience their way. Sometimes it was just an abandoned carcass, but other times it had been an attacker. Avana remained on guard until she got close enough to see that the swamp had seemed to regurgitate something to the surface. Covered head to toe in the muck -- if it even had a head and toes, that is -- was some sort of creature. Mismatched gaze studied the blob for a moment before recognizing feathers sticking out from the mug. So it was some kind of bird?

The more she watched it, the more the poor creature seemed in pain, struggling. Its breaths were shallow, its body marred. Even if it should appear as easy prey to a carnivore, the Hodari couldn't help but hold sympathy for the avian. "It needs help," she finally declared before stepping closer. With a gentle stroke of her paw, Avana would attempt to start wiping away the swamp's muck from the duck's body, not caring that it was dirtying up her own coat in the process. Maybe if she could give it a firm little nudge against its chest, it might cough up whatever swamp water was clouding its lungs. The medic didn't exactly know how to help a duck when she most likely would have just hunted it down, but something about the circumstances left her unwilling to end its life without first trying to save it.

Search Roll:

Rolling 1d10: 10

Trade Boost: Medic - Level 2

Table & Reference by Amanda | Base by Drifty | Background from unsplash

No two searches ever seemed to be the same. They all started the same, just randomly setting out in pursuit to investigate the mist, but they never ended the same. Roan kept his attention primarily ahead of them in hopes that something might emerge from the mist like before, but none such luck would come their way. Instead, he'd hear the bubbling of swamp muck to their left which seemed to be enough of a distraction to cause at least his sister to stop. Avana was much more invested in the noises than Roan, not thinking that the little gurgling could be anything that would aid their search, but who was he to stop her from pursuing the sounds?

The mauve man stopped for a moment, simply watching as his sister closer to the noises little by little until finally something emerged from the muck itself. Definitely not a lion, so frankly, the king didn't care much about it. However, the maned girl was not so easily swayed away from the creature as she seemed intent on saving it. "What even is it?" Roan questioned as he dared to take a few steps closer for his own investigation. A fleeting glance looked to Hanneth, curious if she had any insights either. As another medic, would she have sought to save a duck like Avana was trying to do now?

Search Roll:

Rolling 1d10: 8

Trade Boost: n/a

Table & Ref by Amanda | Background | Base

Hanneth had no idea that the mist would throw things at them, test them and see if they could handle it or not. The strange sounds that started from the muck caused her hackles to raise. She no longer had the trust that she did years ago. Everything had to potential to attack and rip her family away from her. Mismatched eyes found the muck covered animal that was moving toward them. With a small huff she decided it wasn't large enough to harm them but it seemed to be hurt. Hanneth hadn't really tended to nonlions before but followed her daughter's lead. If that was what Ava needed to help with everything going on, she would be there to support her. She looked to @Roan with his question and shrugged her shoulders, Some sort of bird or duck maybe? She really wasn't sure. The grime on it and the overall state of it made it hard for her to really know what it was. Let's see if we can find some water to get it cleaned off some. She spoke to both of them as she looked around but didn't see anything nearby.



Search Roll:

Rolling 1d10: 9

Trade Boost: medic

CODE BY Ice - IMAGE BY Autumn

RETURN OF THE MIST

---

Avana's pressure on the bird's chest caused it to sputter, to cough, and eventually project out muck and water from within its lungs. Just the act made its eyes seem... brighter. Alive. Despite how drab and muddy the tired bird still looked there was all of a sudden something in its eyes to suggest life instead of death. And a little bit of a booger in its nose.

You lions are much less scary up close. It said weakly, beginning to shuffle a few of its feathers so they lay in a more comfortable and normal position on its back and down its wings. The one I saw back that way- It pointed to the south with its beak. -I didn't want to mess with, I crashed through the thorny brush and trees getting away. It explained, not knowing that lost lions were exactly what this group was out here looking for and just how valuable its little bit of information might be to them.

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RESULTS
Searchers: @Roan, @Hanneth, @Avana
Dice Sum Needed For Success: 36
Final Dice Sum: 47

Success!

The search party has managed to successfully locate a lost lion!

A random roll has been conducted to determine whether or not they have located who they were originally searching for, or if they have found someone else by chance.

Locator Roll: Random Lion
Found Lion: @Diantha

The found lion can now post to this thread, and all participants can continue or conclude the thread as desired. There is no posting order.

pixel credit to strobelast

she coughs up something, some kind of wet slippery fish that's been caught in her mouth, long dead and rotting. her limbs are weak, so the first thing diantha does is collapse into a pile of limbs. it feels as if she's been walking for an entire year. when there should be enough fat, there is only emaciation. she's grown, but the mist eating her away makes her look too slender and too poor of health. her mind is hazy, with several chunks of time missing for she's been consistently enveloped in white. .... her lips feel dry and her eyes crusted. somehow, she can only think of is a warm bedding and the warm feeling of sands beneath her paws.

_{BG — DUSK/ALE-TIE — CODE}