Subject: An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] 456 views

Special Vault Renegade I have made 13 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Male	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Sept 20, 2016 16:06:26 GMT -8 Post by Special on Sept 20, 2016 16:06:26 GMT -8 (ooc: anyone's welcome to join in for some deathclaw-related shenanigans~) It was the early hours of the morning, with the sun sitting comfortably above the horizon yet still emitting that characteristic dawning glow. The Deathclaw had very recently awoken to greet the day. If a craggy reptilian face could show much expression, his was undoubtedly expressing 'groggy'. Diurnal life was not at all his usual fare- but he'd long since learned that humans generally did not appreciate being woken up in the dead of night by an over-curious lizard, so he would just have to deal. Today, he had something very important to try. He'd spotted the nearby settlement, threadbare though it was, the night before and opted to rest a small distance away. He'd await the inhabitants to begin going about their daily business. Sure enough, the people did start appearing from their wooden dens. It was time for him to put his unexpectedly complex plans into motion! An abandoned tent had also been scouted the night before, and this was where he headed first. Even a younger deathclaw like him had little trouble knocking the surprisingly sturdy structure down. It took a little longer to dislodge the ropes from the tarpaulin. Still, inevitably he stood victorious. The next bit was the one that would take some time to figure out. Deathclaw paws were dexterous enough, but the long claws made trying to turn and adjust the tarp without tearing it a lengthy and difficult affair. Several minutes later, the deathclaw's genius plan was complete! He stood there with the tarp draped about his neck and shoulders like a cloak, and he'd at least loosely fixed it there with the remaining ropes. This might at least initially have disguised most of his more obviously... nonhuman features from onlookers. If one could just overlook the fact that this Definitely A Human was six and a half feet tall. Or that the end of his tail protruded from beneath the 'cloak', and the 'hood' sat awkwardly over his horns. Or that there was a low rumble that accompanied his every exhale. Yep. Definitely A Human. Nothing strange to see here. After wasting a good few moments being proud of his accomplishments thus far, he'd start to slowly approach the settlers. This couldn't possibly go wrong.
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Shepherd Wanderer I'm Commander Shepard and this is my favourite store on the Citadel I have made 79 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Female	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Sept 20, 2016 17:57:35 GMT -8 Post by Shepherd on Sept 20, 2016 17:57:35 GMT -8 He sat on an old, ramshackle bench, which had likely surpassed its second century of life, wondering where he was—where was he going? The greenhorn tapped his finger idly on his chin in quiet contemplation, looking up at the grey winter sky. He ignored the bite of cold that nibbled on him, puckering his skin like gooseflesh, and turning it a painful pink. Where is Diamond City from here? he wondered rhetorically, staring at the ghostly skyscrapers pressed into the greying horizon. The real problem is going to be finding it in that mess. He kicked out his feet in front of him, inhaling the brisk morning air, and looked upward at the sky. God damn, no, I should go scrounge up somethin’ to eat, he decided, and sat upward. “What in the hell?” he mumbled to himself, scratching his cheek as he stared forward. “Is that a deathclaw in a fucking tarp?” he said, loud enough that settlers perked up and scattered quickly into their shabby abodes. “Oh, you’ve got to me kidding me,” he squeaked, knowing he had nothing strong enough to put a deathclaw down. He scrambled upward and began backing up, eyes on the beast for the most part, but shoulder checking to see if there was someone to offer him help. “H-hey, open up, c’mon, you gotta let me in!” he hissed at the nearest person, who was peeking out of their door—they slammed it in response. Nevin Nells looked up at the approaching deathclaw in the distance. If I run it might chase, if I stay for sure I’m a goner, “Ah, fuck it.” He drew his pistol from its holster at his hip, and cocked the hammer—“c’mon you big sonovabitch.”
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Special Vault Renegade I have made 13 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Male	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Sept 20, 2016 18:32:45 GMT -8 Post by Special on Sept 20, 2016 18:32:45 GMT -8 The warning voice ahead was heard clear over the quiet of the morning... and off the other humans scampered to shelter away, as if he might as well not even have bothered with the disguise in the first place. Damn it, he'd been so sure that plan was a flawless one! Apparently not. Oddly enough though, there was one human who was seemingly not allowed into the safety of the others' hidey holes. That human now stood to face him, and pointed at him with a sadly recognised implement. He did not know their name, but he knew their power well enough. Those things tended to make a really loud 'bang' sound, and then he hurt and bled and it took forever to stop. He didn't like those things at all. He stopped at an observational distance, and lowered to all fours in case he needed to either charge forward or run away suddenly. He lifted his snout and gave a curious few sniffs at the air between them. "SS... SSUH-NUH..?" he uttered, as if trying to figure out what that noise had been. But it had too many syllables. He'd have to try something smaller. "BIIIG?" he rumbled out with greater confidence. That was one he could manage, yay! But what was it for? "BIIG!" (Whatever the case, he liked how it sounded. That was one to add to his burgeoning vocabulary, now made up of two whole words! If only he knew what they actually signified, so he could make use of them properly. Human vocalisations were so strange.) "BIG!" It would probably become obvious that this particular deathclaw had no real intention of fighting the longer his babbled attempts at speaking continued. Who knew a deathclaw could be pacified just by talking at it?
Edited by Special [Sept 20, 2016 18:32:58 GMT -8] Reply Quote Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Member Give Gift Back to Top

Shepherd Wanderer I'm Commander Shepard and this is my favourite store on the Citadel I have made 79 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Female	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Sept 20, 2016 18:53:25 GMT -8 Post by Shepherd on Sept 20, 2016 18:53:25 GMT -8 Nellis held the firearm in the direction of the reptilian mutant’s head, hands beginning to shake in mortal terror as he faced the monstrosity. If one were impressed by Darwinian feats, they would marvel at his bravery, but he knew this was something only a foolish person would commit to. He could feel the tears well in the corner of his eyes, and his throat tighten with a deep sadness—his lips drew into a hard line, whitening as the blood drained from them. He was not ready to die, he figured he still had a lot of his story left to tell, he was still young—and he was still a virgin, he hadn’t made remarkable friendships yet, he didn’t know what it was like to live a life. He wanted to piss himself, frankly, and sprint as quickly as he could away from the beast he faced. When it began to squawk—sounds that came like words from its mouth, he became even more possessed by his terror. He did not want to shock it into attacking him, and since he would not be able to burst through any of the locals’ doors—he directed his firearm straight upward, and wasted one munition on a warning shot, hoping to startle the big beastie away. Nevin then pivoted hard, flicking the safety so he would not discharge the weapon into himself, and took of sprinting in the opposite direction. He wanted to live, damn it! The deathclaw would likely be able to outrun him, even though it seemed smaller and therefore younger, but he could find some place to hide quickly before it could catch him, he was sure of it. His Plan B was surely less of a death sentence that the original one. “No, no, no!” he was whining the whole way, skidding in the dust as he found a hole in the foundation big enough to fit him. He dropped to the ground, and was attempting to weasel his way inside—hoping that reptile wasn’t directly on his heels. “Please, no, holy fuck, no.”
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Special Vault Renegade I have made 13 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Male	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Sept 20, 2016 19:15:32 GMT -8 Post by Special on Sept 20, 2016 19:15:32 GMT -8 The gunshot ripped through the air, and the deathclaw responded fearfully in his own right- with a more aggressive and feral-sounding yowl. He jumped back and immediately looked down at himself. He noted swiftly that there was no blood. No pain. So that shot hadn't been directed at him? Tick, tock, brain gears turning. Ding! Oh! He was fine, then. The fearful feeling subsided. But the human was running away now. This was usually how it ended, no matter what he tried. Apparently he was feeling especially stubborn today, though, because he swiftly barrelled after the other as fast as he could. He was going to interact peacefully with a human today, damn it! Chasing after the fleeing figure probably wasn't the best means by which to achieve that, but nobody had ever accused even a sentient animal of being very good at human-level logic. The cloak fell from his shoulders with the vigour of his movement, but he didn't seem to care. His mind was elsewhere now. "BIG?" he queried as if he really thought this was the correct context for that sound, watching the other scramble out of view before he could quite catch up. He sat down off to one side of the spot, slightly out of any direct firing line from the other's hidey hole. Those boom-things were tricky, he knew. You didn't have to be right in front of them to get hit. "BIG... SSUH-NUH," he tried again. Look at him, communicating with a human in their own way! He felt so smart! He had exactly zero idea that he wouldn't make a lick of sense to the stranger, of course. Poor lizard.
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Shepherd Wanderer I'm Commander Shepard and this is my favourite store on the Citadel I have made 79 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Female	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Sept 20, 2016 19:53:32 GMT -8 Post by Shepherd on Sept 20, 2016 19:53:32 GMT -8 Nellis had managed to steal himself away beneath the floor of the shack, trapped in a hole in the foundation by the guard-lizard outside. He listened to the patter of rain on the tin rooftop, and could see the grey light of day pouring in from the hole. He knew eventually the deathclaw would have to concede, as all mutant animals did, when faced with the age-old quandary: shall I wait for the tasty morsel, or merciless hunt another one down? But this one was different, he was beginning to see—or rather hear—as it was attempting to form a line of communication with him. Or the more likely story, it was imitating him in order to trick him from leaving his safe-place. “Son of a bitch,” he said loudly, “now get away, ya bastard.” He cocked the hammer of his pistol again, directing it outside, waiting to discharge the gun if the fucker decided to reach its ugly, gangly arms into the hidey-hole.
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Special Vault Renegade I have made 13 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Male	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Sept 20, 2016 21:06:04 GMT -8 Post by Special on Sept 20, 2016 21:06:04 GMT -8 The curious subadult remained utterly oblivious to the fact he was technically in a hostile situation. He wasn't being shot at, that counted as peaceful in his mind. He was also a bit too busy being unreasonably pleased that the human finally repeated that strange noise he hadn't been able to figure out before, and a little more enunciated this time at that! "SSUHNUV... SUHNUVA?" Well now, he actually managed three syllables! "SUHN UV-AH B'TCH?" Why on this wide wide wasteland did human noises have to be so long and complicated? He opted to remain where he sat, at least aware enough of the unfriendly tone from the other that he wasn't going to put himself in harm's way. He wanted to talk until the human realised that he wasn't here to fight. Then they could be friends! That's definitely how it worked with humans, right?
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Shepherd Wanderer I'm Commander Shepard and this is my favourite store on the Citadel I have made 79 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Female	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Sept 20, 2016 21:20:41 GMT -8 Post by Shepherd on Sept 20, 2016 21:20:41 GMT -8 “No,” his voice was firm and hard, like he might be scolding a pet dog. “Son of a bitch,” he said, in his best lecture-room voice, as if he were trying to touch up the areas where the lizard needed assistance in swearing. “Now you can go on your merry way and show someone what you learned here.” Nellis scooted further back into the hole, and dragged himself to the side, attempting to get a good look at the mutant; how close is this thing? The answer was, as always, too close for comfort. “Go, go,” he said, “ah, what the fuck am I doing? Talking to a God damned deathclaw.” He slapped his forehead dramatically.
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Special Vault Renegade I have made 13 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Male	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Sept 20, 2016 21:42:42 GMT -8 Post by Special on Sept 20, 2016 21:42:42 GMT -8 The beast faltered at the scolding tone. Was he still not getting it right? He was distracted from trying to rectify this by the human suddenly moving. He abruptly stood up on his four paws like an excited dog, mistakenly assuming that the movement meant the human was finally going to come out of the hole... But it was not to be. He then instead eyed the human warily, keenly aware that the fact they could see each other meant he was probably once again in danger of being shot at. "GO, GO!" he repeated nonetheless, still standing there. Was the human just going to stay in there forever? How could he entice them out? It didn't seem like his attempts at communicating were working very well. Then again, this was the most he'd ever gotten to interact with one. Maybe this was perfectly normal for humans. He had no idea one way or the other, really.
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Shepherd Wanderer I'm Commander Shepard and this is my favourite store on the Citadel I have made 79 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Female	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Sept 21, 2016 0:40:15 GMT -8 Post by Shepherd on Sept 21, 2016 0:40:15 GMT -8 It certainly was a deathclaw, even if it was acting like an oversized, scaly pooch from down the street. “Shoo,” he hissed at the beast, since nothing was sending it away. Since he was apparently stuck under some person’s house for the long run, the settlers inside pretending nothing was happening, he would have to hunker down for the long-con. He wiped the tears from his eyes, and curled up, it was still chilly after all. (Roll the default dice [1-6] to see how many hours he hides, then continue?)
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Special Vault Renegade I have made 13 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Male	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Sept 21, 2016 17:56:33 GMT -8 Post by Special on Sept 21, 2016 17:56:33 GMT -8 When it became apparent that the human would not come out just by talking at it, the deathclaw was forced to consider other options. Trying to drag them out was a no-no, unless he wanted to contend with the boom-thing. And he really didn't. Leaving would also defeat the purpose of having stuck with this particular situation for so long. The beast was determined! It was time to put all the cleverness of his developing intellect to use, and to see what he could come up with. Hmm... Suddenly it dawned on him. What if he just made the human think he'd left? Then maybe they'd come out of that hole! Perfect! The deathclaw exaggerated a huff in the human's direction as if to finally admit defeat, and then slunk off around the other corner of the house until he was certain he could no longer be seen no matter how the other oriented their line of sight. He then laid low and became mindful of his breathing. Now it was just a question of how long he had to wait for the other to become convinced to move into the open again. T8sOhP9s1-61-6
Edited by Special [Sept 21, 2016 18:47:46 GMT -8] Reply Quote Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Member Give Gift Back to Top

Shepherd Wanderer I'm Commander Shepard and this is my favourite store on the Citadel I have made 79 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Female	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Sept 21, 2016 18:56:52 GMT -8 Post by Shepherd on Sept 21, 2016 18:56:52 GMT -8 One might be able to feel the relief in the air as he watched the reptilian monster get up to leave, and trudge out of his sight. But it could be lingering, like a hungry predator waiting for him. The settlers would likely not stir for awhile, praying to whatever deities that the deathclaw would go away, but they would have a better vantage point. He would be best, he assumed, to wait until one of them tested their own life first, and investigated the area for the enemy. But Nellis was impatient, and worried he would lose too much daylight if he remained under the shack for too long. He hummed himself a soothing tune for an hour or so, fingers still trembling with fear, heart still soaked with apprehension—yes, that was the feeling, apprehension. After an hour was up, that was when he decided to try to wriggle his way out of the hole—“Oh, um, ow,” he huffed as he dragged himself out, like a dying cat. He shot upward, and pranced into the middle of the street, looking right and left first—all clear—where’s everyone else?
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Special Vault Renegade I have made 13 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Male	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Sept 27, 2016 5:34:51 GMT -8 Post by Special on Sept 27, 2016 5:34:51 GMT -8 The deathclaw had nearly fallen asleep from laying so still in wait, but at long last his clever plan had paid off! The human made a noise as they moved, and that was his signal to get ready. He lifted onto his toes like a prowling kitten, readying to pounce- indeed, with signature butt-wiggling shortly following the scaly colossus sprang forth with a gleeful trill. "BIG SUHNUVA!" he boomed with the tone of a dog who'd waited all day for his master to return home. Finally! Assuming the unfortunate human in question took too long to respond to this, the deathclaw might just have further resembled an oversized dog by trying to bowl his perceived new friend over in his unrestrained cheerfulness. "GO, GO!" As for where the others were? Probably not silly enough to leave their houses while the lizard continued its bizarre insistence on bonding with a stranger to their town. Better that guy than them, right?
Edited by Special [Sept 27, 2016 5:35:33 GMT -8] Reply Quote Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Member Give Gift Back to Top

Shepherd Wanderer I'm Commander Shepard and this is my favourite store on the Citadel I have made 79 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Female	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Sept 29, 2016 20:08:07 GMT -8 Post by Shepherd on Sept 29, 2016 20:08:07 GMT -8 The hairs on the back of Nellis’s neck pricked at the sound of the guttural, horrifying attempt at words, and he froze. His back faced the beast, and while his body remained paralyzed with horror and indecision, his mind raced with repentance, and followed quickly by acceptance. The beast threw him down, its size—even though clearly a juvenile—was still much larger than his flimsy human body, filled with squishy flesh tissues and various human goops. He shrieked, flailing a bit on the ground, and turned to face his attacker and to look unto the face of death. He was of course, startled to be greeted by the deathclaw’s eager attempts to speak, and the apparent happy face it was making. “O-oh,” Nellis said, “um . . .” “D-did you lose.. your owner, pal?”
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Special Vault Renegade I have made 13 posts Right now I'm Offline I joined September 2016 My gender is Male	An Absolutely Terrible Idea [open] Nov 11, 2016 8:07:36 GMT -8 Post by Special on Nov 11, 2016 8:07:36 GMT -8 The oversized scalepup gave the kind of blank stare only an especially dopey dog was generally capable of. If his face wasn't a horrifying landscape of hide and fang he'd even be cute. Maybe he still was. If one was charmed by giant lizards famed for their ability to disembowel. He seemed content to just sit straight down where he was, whether the human had cleared the vicinity of his bony ass or not. "PAL?" he returned with the precise intonation the man had used. He was getting a little better at this imitation thing. Who knew what that had even meant in his lizardy brain, though. He was probably figuring the two of them were BFFs by this point. He lifted one horribly dangerous paw like a dog who'd been told to 'shake', but held it in an oddly human manner toward the other as if he was offering a handshake... because he was. He'd seen humans do this before. Not that he knew what this meant, either. He was really just trying it out on this human, to see if it was a universal thing. Meanings could come later, right? (ooc: lol lizard science also HI i exist again)
Edited by Special [Nov 11, 2016 8:08:08 GMT -8] Reply Quote Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Member Give Gift Back to Top