McCoy Apple Orchard Apple seeds and misery

[Sarah Silvers]

Outfit

Mim walked the orchard.

She liked this place. It was... rustic. Reminded her of a different time. Oh the fields where made with machines sure, lines of the field too straight otherwise, but the apples were still picked by hand. The apples weren't ready yet. They had been ripe and good in November to October- that made sense now that she thought about it from that apple dunking thing at some halloween party. She had barely even enjoyed that party... it had all just been so mundane. The witch, could she even call herself that right now, ran her fingertips over the bark of a tree and felt the grooves.

She remembered the garden she had made with her sisters. Oh that had been a wonder of nature and magic and- well. Gone now. Likely burned like the rest of their things. Mim moved with slow deliberate steps as she circled the tree, if the situation was different she might be making a real circle. Planning to drain everything from the tree to birth some curse or boon out into the world. The little mark on her ankle came to mind like an unpleasant itch and she stopped walking.

No big magic.

This little thing warned the hunters. This ages' inquisition... She'd gotten too sloppy and ambitious. Now she had a chain around her ankle. She hated it but could only blame herself. Well, she blamed a lot of people depending on the day of the week but she knew it was her own fault. Since then she had to throw herself into her life as Sarah. Work on good grades and managing an alarmingly sober social life. Couldn't party to excess when she knew it only took a small slip of a spell before those Exchange folks were on her tail yet again. Her lie had been, flimsy all in all, but the witch sold it well. She'd been lying longer than those children had been alive. Now though? What did she do when the lie she told had to become her reality?

She sneered and raked her nails across the tree before kneeling down. Small magics, like her little misfortune charm, were safe. Like what she was going to do right now. She ran her fingers into the cold dirt at the base of the tree and felt it. A quick cusped hand and she pulled up a handful of soil. It was cold... cold with the night settled over it. It would remain cold for as long as she kept it. Mirium pulled a little camera film canister for some 35mm film. She took a photography class with an old camera and hand tons of these around. They were great for holding components.

Mim bottled the night soil, dreams of making a new Mortal Garden with her sisters filling her head.

She felt so alone.

[footnote]Hotspot of the Month!
Cinder Collection (average component)
Soil from an Orchard at Night (average)

[Dallas Montana]

outfit


Dallas was out of pizza.

Worse, Dallas was out driving snacks, his mega-gulp slushy nothing more but a bit of solid ice, sucked clean of every bit of flavor.

The oversized man, who insisted on wearing clothing large enough to use as a parachute, was still unfamiliar with the area, and driving to his hometown every other weekend to visit his parents since moving to Easthaven had done the silly man little good. He wasn't lost yet, but his phone lacked a proper signal to navigate him, and he had taken one too many detours in hopes of finding a gas station. For snacks, of course, snacks were the main issue for worry, having munched his way through an XL pizza with halal pepperoni (beef), mushroom, onion, bell pepper, and extra cheese, three sleeves of double stuffed Oreos, the leftovers he was supposed to save for his roommate, and several bags of loose candies, Dallas was not a proud man, just a hungry one.

When all hope seemed lost, Dallas recognized a sign and veered toward it, after using a proper turn signal, of course! An Orchard! Vaguely remembering the name from the market, where he snagged a barrel full of apple butter, Dallas drove the long road, hoping to see a familiar street or some wandering farmer to ask directions. Dallas didn't think he'd run into anyone, not that it was insanely late yet, but Dallas just assumed all farmers had to be in bed by 7 pm.

He saw someone.

Maybe?

Nope, definitely a person standing by a big tree, and Dallas stopped the car to squint at them in the dark. They weren't wearing overalls, so Dallas wasn't sure if they were a farmer or not, but one glance at his pile of devoured snacks, and Dallas felt he had no choice. Turning his car off and getting out was a bad time to remember Dallas was afraid of the dark, stepping off the road in the direction of the human, cupping his eyes like binoculars to see if they were a scarecrow. Dallas really hoped they weren't! A scarecrow sounded scary, the mere thought causing the 6-foot 4-inch man to jump when his ginormous boot crunched a leaf: he was frightened.

The bravest man in the world, Dallas walked closer to the stranger, who he could now confirm was not a scarecrow--or some vicious zombie with no jaw. It was a lady! And the lady was scooping up dirt? Confused, Dallas was second-guessing asking the dirt lady for directions, but when he turned to his car, the walk back seemed awfully scary so he pressed on.

Be brave, Dallas, the demons are more scared of you than you are of them. Right?

“Hey,” Dallas called out when he was in earshot, waving his arms gently to make himself visible so as to not frighten the lady gorilla gripping soil. “Do you work here? Or--like, live around here?”

Please say yes, Dallas thought to himself, and please do not eat his face or use his skin as a suit.

[Sarah Silvers]

Lights of a car swung between the trees, falling on the witch as she made her bobs and bits for potion craft and curse work. Her eyes turned slowly on the car, half expecting this to be the exchange. Ha ha, we've caught you doing witchy things and now to the stake with you. Well they didn't seem as barbaric as the old days so maybe they'd just shoot her. Would that be so bad? To be untethered again? If the lingering effects of her old spell were still in place maybe she could find a new body- maybe in a hundred years her spirit would take another young idiot and steal that flesh. She could be more careful next time and work harder to get all her sisters back in one place.

All these thoughts meant nothing as a young man stepped out of the car, shutting off the lights, and calling out to her. That voice, that tone, that stance. Everything in Mim responded to it in the worst way. A slow cruel smile slipped over her lips in the dark. She swallowed the expression and put the film can back into her pocket. Then she plastered on the harmless bright smile of Sarah and waved back at the man.

“Hey! Omg, thank god someone else is around here!” she said.

Her hand in her pocket moved from the film can to her phone, pressing and holding the button until it buzzed once signaling it was turning off. Then she pulled it out to show off the totally black screen. “I was trying to, like, meet some friends out here but my phone died and I'm kind of lost.” she said, sounding more annoyed about the whole thing rather than afraid or worried. She moved closer to the boy, so he could see that short presses on the side of her phone did in fact not light it up. “You don't have a phone I could use do you?” she asked.

[Dallas Montana]

Dallas' flesh was infested entirely with goosebumps, every dark hair on his body sticking upright in alert as he made his way closer to the strange dark lady. It occurred to him that Dallas was not looking very friendly with his brows pressed so closely together in fearful anticipation; he wondered if his eyes were so round and wide that she'd mistake them for a cartoon.

When the woman standing near a large tree finally spoke, her voice sounded awfully kind and not at all like the witch from Snow White, and immediately Dallas relaxed: he could trust her.

Having never been given a reason to doubt anyone--especially those who wandered dark orchards at night, Dallas pressed on with a calmer gait, his facial expressions settling down in his usual dopey demeanor.

“Hey.” He greeted back with a soft smile, squinting in the poor lighting to see the dark phone being waved at him.

This stranger was lost too, and what a sorry coincidence for the both of them. Dallas without hesitating, retrieved his cellular device to show off his baby animal-themed background.

“You're meeting people out here? It's awfully dark. Uh.Yeah, but I'm not sure if you'll get much of a signal--” Yet, when Dallas was close enough, he still handed his phone over to the lady in a natural need to be helpful.

On the bright side, at least they were lost together, and company always made Dallas feel better.

[Sarah Silvers]

Mim eyed the young man up and down, giving him a proper once over. At least as proper as these dim lights would allow. Tall, which was always nice. In good shape at a glance, something she preferred. Oh, and he seemed a little dim. Her favorite type. She moved up close to him with thoughts swirling from one extreme to another on what to do, ah if this was the good old days she'd have this little human kneeling at her doorstep, begging her and her sisters for aid only to come crawling back in a month or two begging them to take back whatever ironic fate they'd weaved for him. Or maybe they'd just use his entrails for a ritual. She missed the happier times.

The guy handed over his phone with out a second glance. Seriously? Wonderful.

Mim took it, letting her fingers glide along the boy's for just a moment, before opening the phone app and starting to type. Then she stopped, hit back a few times and started again. While she played with the device she spoke to him. “Yeah, it seemed weird to me too. Now I'm thinking Monica was pulling a prank on me. She can be such a B, ya know?” Mim said. After a few more moments of trying and stopping she paused and frowned. A good stage frown to let anyone looking at her know how good she was frowning.

“Damn. I, like, don't actually know they're numbers. I always get them from my contacts list.” Mim said.

She hand the phone back looking defeated. Maybe she'd get this guy to give her a ride, and hex his car once they were in town. Leaving him stranded while she got herself an uber. She'd want to have more fun with him but without the potential for big magic it would just feel too hollow for her. Eh... maybe she would anyway. Time would tell.

[Dallas Montana]

Dallas didn't know what a 'B' was, but he assumed it was short for 'best friend' or 'buddy.'

There would be no look of worry on Dallas' face, his expression settled in some relaxed position where his lips rested wiggly, and his eyes were set at half-mast. Perhaps it was confidence, that caused this man to stand with ease, but judging by how quickly he handed over his phone, he might've just been too trusting of others.

That blind trust widened. The lady did not know her friend's number, and Dallas nodded that he understood. He didn't have everyone's contact numbers memorized, maybe just his mom and dad? When Dallas thought hard enough, he could remember his childhood landline, recalling his elementary school days when that was a requirement to memorize. Now that he thought about it, he knew his roommate's last four digits, but it was just because he liked the pattern.

“Uhm, that's okay-I don't really know how to get back to town, but we can struggle together if you want. Did you drive here?”

Would it be weird to offer the girl a ride home? He'd heard horror stories of females getting into cars with men, and his stomach ached at the possibility she could be worried about his intentions.

[Sarah Silvers]

This guy seemed unconcerned by her. At ease but not overconfident. Mim ached to drag him into a circle, to fill a potion with his blood, to twist his mind with foreign thoughts and emotions until he didn't know if he was coming or going. She wanted to break something and laugh at the night as she reveled in it.

She wouldn't. Moderation aside She almost always felt like that. Plus that stupid mark informing anyone if she got... over eager. Be Sarah. Be a 'normal' girl. She reminded herself in disgust.

“Oh I ubered out here. I was gonna call a new one but, like, you know.” Mim said waving her powered off phone again.

The man revealed he was lost too. It's like he was ASKING to be cursed. Was this some kind of a trap? A gift? Whatever.

“We can be lost together then. I'm Sarah.” she told the tall man.

Mim was always a bold woman.

[Dallas Montana]

Dallas' face lit up like a Christmas tree: a friend WITH a name. He was overjoyed! No longer doomed to driving the scary roads alone, he had Sarah to help defend their vehicle from any spooky encounters, right?

The large man, with as much bravery as a kitten, threw her a clumsy thumbs up: there was not a solid thought behind those enormous hazel eyes.

“It's so great to meet you, Sarah. My name is Dallas, gosh-I'm so glad I ran into you, roads can be scary at night... Oh, I drove, did you want a ride? I can't promise I can get us un-lost, but... I am pretty good at trying my best.” He stammered, running his fingers nervously through his hair, and then gave jazz hands in the direction of his old trusty Honda CRV.

What were the odds that Dallas ran into a SARAH in the dark like this? This was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime meeting and he felt so special!

[Third on the Match]

Monstrous Haferbock

DC
5

Intent
Hostile

Keywords
Plants, Fire, Growth

Cinder
7d6

Strike
8d6

Luck
4

There have been rumors in the past few months. Tales of creatures stalking the orchard at night. Most of the farmhands won't go out after dark anymore, although the subject of their stories has only appeared once or twice, and always at a distance.

Sarah and Dallas are not so lucky. The hind blends with the shadows, marked only by its smoldering green eyes. It is a huge beast. It is draped with roots and vines reminiscent of chains that fade away to an unknown ghostly point.

Has the monstrous being been there during their entire conversation? Towering over them in the dark, blended into the trees? There is no way to say, but they may notice it now, a shadowy bulk with burning eyes and a crown of shadowy antlers that stretch to impale the stars.

[Sarah Silvers]

Haferbock Strike 8d6: 5 pass vs DC2 (hit)
Mim Strike 4d6: 2 pass vs DC5 (miss)

Oh... Oh the poor dear was good at trying his best.

Seriously how had some nasty beast not gobbled this boy up yet? Of course even while she wondered in her head she didn't realize that a shadowy figure stalked the night near them. It scraped at the ground with a hoof, digging at the dirt a bit before kicking into action. In the dark... unaware... the beast would rush at the two and break the girl's spine in the first action. At least it was what would have happened, and the scene was displayed in the witch's metallic fingernails on her right hand just before the shine of them tarnished and the vision passed from the nails to Mim herself.

In a moment she pushed at Dallas and fell out of the way of the rushing goat. She kicked out with her foot hoping to hurt it but caught only air. As she sat up looking around she spied the thing, beast and shade mixed together. The roots hanging off it vanishing just shy of the ground. “Shit.” she cursed. She hadn't seen a feldgeist in a very long time, and never one over in the new world. Did they migrate here or was it natural? It didn't matter. All Mim did know was that she was very underprepared to deal with something like this.

Shit.

Mim Luck 4/4
Odbity Los: 0/1

Haferbock Luck 4/4

The Odbity Los enchanted Item has absorbed the strike from the Haferbock and is inert until recharged.

[Dallas Montana]

Haferbock Strike8d6: 2 pass vs DC1 (hit)
Dallas Strike4d6: 2 pass vs DC5 (miss)


The giant man performing jazz hands to present his early 90's Honda to Sarah would never see the creature incoming. Instead, the entire scene unfolded at a pace too quick for the poor man's brain to decipher: the lunge, the push, the second push, Dallas didn't catch up until his ass clapped the ground. Somewhere between Dallas's falling and landing, his long limbs flailed, but they were just short of making contact with the thing that pushed him.

“Ow,” stated the tall man, getting on his knees to properly rub his behind, turning toward Sarah with a wincing smile. “Think we found your friends.” He innocently piped up but was a little offended that they chose to knock him on his ass with what felt like vines? Branches? He was not a fan of tomfoolery.

He squinted in the wrong direction, trying to see where Sarah's friends were lurking.

Weird that they didn't say hello, right?


Dallas: Luck 3/4
Haferbock: Luck 4/4

[Sarah Silvers]

Haferbock Cinder Plants 7d6: 2 passes vs DC2 (hit)
Mim has offered Assistance to Dallas' next strike

Mim turned toward the, goat spirit. Goats. She rolled her eyes in annoyance. She stood up as quick as she could and looked at Dallas who was saying something about her friends and looking in the wrong direction. Seriously? She all but snarled at him as she worked to drag him up. “Het is een feldgeist, kind!” she said, paying little attention to the words she spoke, as she pointed at the goat spirit and then tried to push him toward the car.

As she did the ground rumbled a bit and vines began to whip about toward her leg. She pulled back, suffering only a small scratch as she started moving toward the passenger side of the vehicle. [q]Dallas. Be a dear and get in the car so we can RUN THAT THING OVER she said. She'd do it herself but if it could sense hostile intent it was more likely to kill the driver. Better to make Dallas do it then.

Mim Luck 3/4
Odbity Los: 0/1

Haferbock Luck 4/4

[Dallas Montana]

Haferbock Strike8d6: 3 pass vs DC1 (hit)
Dallas Strike (With the power of Mim +1d6) 5d6: 2 pass vs DC5 (miss)


Dallas recalled attending the birthday of a classmate when he was only eight. It was a fond memory, much like all of the other memories in life. Mary Ellen, the girl who sat two rows to his left, loved animals, and seeing as both her parents were financially well off, having a petting zoo-themed party was a given. Dallas adored Mary Ellen's birthday party, not only because she had TWO birthday cakes (Strawberry and Chocolate) AND stuffed crust pizza, but because Dallas got to lay around and pet animals. Baby ducklings, baby rabbits, baby ponies, baby cows, Dallas was in animal heaven.

One animal in particular, however, stuck clearly in Dallas' mind: the baby goats. Menaces from another dimension, Dallas remembered the hoard of baby goats devouring whatever they could get their tiny little mouths on. For Mary Ellen, it was the My Little Pony charms off her sandals. For David, a boy who sat behind Dallas on the bus, it was the cuff of a sweater. For Dallas, a young boy who felt the need to make use of every pocket gifted to him by his clothing, it meant everything. Considering only moments before, Dallas had been at the snack table, shoving his grubby kid hands into every bowl to fill his pockets with goodies. It wasn't his fault, Dallas always had a healthy (or unhealthy) appetite, and they should have warnings about entering a goat pen with pockets full of sugar.

They descended upon him like beasts, bleating and trampling, grabbing his child-sized pockets with strong jaws. Dallas' pants never stood a chance. Dallas would survive that day, cake-less, and plagued with nightmares of bleating creatures coming to steal his treats for years.

Now, nearly two decades into the future, there was a similar blink of fear in Dallas' eyes, finally coming face-to-face with the creature lurking in the dark. Granted, this did not look like the average goat, but maybe it would make his fear a little more reasonable.

This thing was definitely not a friend of Sarah unless Sarah only had weird demon-like tree-goat friends.

Now, Dallas wouldn't be quick to judge, but with how quickly the creature encroached on their bubble, Dallas judged the two of them needed to skedaddle.

Sarah was a step ahead of him, several, actually, already dragging him up and pushing them toward his car.

“What is that-” he started to ask as if he could expect some lady to know what dungeon and dragon-like creature was chasing him, but Sarah was making a rather dangerous request. Run the monster over, she suggested.

Dallas was in the driver's seat the time the beast rammed him, this time with the sturdy roots that draped over the mysterious creatures, slamming into his driver's side door, creating an ample opportunity for the glass window to bonk into his empty noggin. Oh. Stars. Pretty. He grabbed his skull, keys dropping into his lap, his eyes vaguely sliding over to the snack pile in the passenger seat. He should really move that for her.

Wait.

Hit the tree-goat with a car?

She wanted him to hit a goat?

“I'm... I'm a pacifist!” He squeaked, then fussed for his keys with the sudden motivation of a demon rocking his Honda.


Dallas: Luck 2/4
Haferbock: Luck 4/4

[Sarah Silvers]

Haferbock Strike 8d6: 2 pass vs DC2 (hit)
Mim Strike 4d6: 2 pass vs DC5 (miss)

Mim buckled herself in, safety first before ramming a motherfucking goat. While Dallas stumbled in. There had been a bunch of bags of snacks or candy or something in her seat but she just pushed it out onto the ground before climbing in. Now that they were, oh- The feldgeist slammed into the door on Dallas' side and rang his dome. Funny but not really helpful to their situation right now. He even dropped his keys to his lap. He was scrambling around a bit and Mim knew her way around a guy's lap so she reached over and plucked the keys up while he informed her he was a pacifist. “That's a dumb thing to be right now, Dallas.” she said as she threw the keys into the ignition and turned them.

Seriously get a key fob, they are great for this exact situation! Who didn't have a push start these days?

Even as the car started her door dented in and she looked to see the Haferbock had slammed it. Mim went to try and open it to hit the beast in the face, but the door was firmly stuck now that it was bent out of shape. Lovely, now if she wanted out she had to climb the window or get over to a different seat. Her luck was really running out fast tonight. “Dallas, that thing or us. Pick. Now.” she said, glaring.

Mim: Luck 2/4
Obidty Los: 0/1

Haferbock: Luck 4/4

[Dallas Montana]

Haferbock Strike8d6: 4 pass vs DC1 (hit)
Dallas Strike 4d6: 1 pass vs DC5 (miss)


That thing or us.

Dallas carried a mighty frown, but not just because his skull was rattling around and starting to make him feel sick. Sarah wanted him to ram his car into the poor creature. Calling it a 'poor creature' felt like a stretch considering its monstrous proportions, and he still wasn't sure if animals could have glowing eyes, but now was not the time to start googling things.

His hands were agonizingly slow to meet the steering wheel, switching the car from park to neutral, then slowly sliding to drive (thank you, automatic shift). The second ram into his precious car on the passenger side sent Dallas' air-filled head into the window again, shattering the window with his giant man-dome. Dallas' vision vanished for several seconds from the force, causing him to hesitate in sitting upright from his crumpled position. He didn't think he could handle much more. Incidentally, while Dallas' vision clouded with stars, he rocked forward and slipped with the gas peddle, which he quickly rectified by slamming on the brake just before the beast now blocking their path.

“We can't just hit them! What if...” He trailed because he really didn't have a reason otherwise, Sarah was right: it was it or them.

Could he just drive away? Judging by the size of the beast and the way it was slowly compacting his vehicle, escaping now would be difficult but not impossible.

Silently, Dallas flicked on his blinkers to signal that he was going around the monster. He glanced over his shoulder checked his mirrors and moved at a slug's pace to get around the charging monster so they could escape.

No, he would not hit the animal.


Dallas: Luck 1/4
Haferbock: Luck 4/4

[Sarah Silvers]

Mim Strike 4d6: 0 passes vs DC5 (Miss)
Haferbock Strike 8d6: 5 passes vs DC2 (Hit)

Mim had to take a slow blink at Dallas.

This was the kind of guy that got eaten in the woods by wolves because they looked hungry. Or decided that the bear would be friendly if he just acted calm and talked in a soothing voice as he coated himself in honey. You know, a moron. Grinding her teeth a bit she tried to keep calm, only to have the car hit rather hard again. An airbag burst and hit her in the face making her see stars until it started to deflate a moment later. Yeah... YEAH NO. “DAMMIT” She yelled in frustration. She used to be a terrifying witch of the wood! They used to have to send hunters just to make her and her sisters considering moving or playing nice for a while. Now some pisspot grove spirit with an attitude was gonna kill her!? She glared at Dallas with enough venom to kill, if she still had all her old might from the good olden days.

“If you're not going to kill it then drive fa- DID YOU JUST HIT YOUR BLINKER!? DRIVE!” she all but screeched at him.

She was going to die.

She was going to be a ghost again.

If Dallas lived she was going to haunt the absolute SHIT out of this asshole.

Mim Luck 1/4
Obidity Los 0/1

Haferbock Luck 4/4

[Dallas Montana]

He wished there was time to turn and explain his personality type. Yelling at him would do little good, only making his hands feel clammy as he tried to veer around the beast.

Well, slow until the lady screamed, and it scared Dallas into slamming down on the gas, sending the two of them shooting off down the road and away from the creature.

“Language, please.” Dallas finally spoke, wiggling his rearview mirror as he sped down the dirt road, taking them in a direction he hoped was town.

Were there signs? Yes. Was Dallas able to read any of them? No, he was far too rattled.