#merill event

[roetrolls]

Search And Rescue (Merill Event, Pt 4)

(Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3)

> You place your flashlight on the ground, pointed upward to keep the area illuminated, and raise both your hands with your palms facing out.

“I’m not going to hurt you,”

> You put on your softest voice, slowly lowering yourself into a crouch. You need to appear as non-threatening as possible.

“But there’s someone coming here to find you who will. You don’t need to trust me. I won’t make you come with me. But it’s not safe for you here, and-”

“They killed my lusus.”

> The girl cuts you off, her voice small. She must be talking about whoever it was that gave her location to Agrizo. 

> You pause for a moment, uncertain.

“I’m sorry. That must be hard.”

“I miss her.”

> You open your mouth to speak, but she cuts you off again, moving closer to you.

“Are they going to kill me too?”

> You can feel your heart breaking. Despite her efforts to keep her voice even, you can tell this girl is terrified. She can’t trust you yet, but she wants to.

“No. Not if I can help it. But you can’t stay here. I know you don’t know me, and it’s okay if you don’t trust me, but-”

> She drifts closer to you, closing her fist around your sleeve. Her hands are trembling.

“I’m scared,”

> She speaks over you again, sniffling. Tentatively, you pull her hand away and peel off your coat, draping it over her back. That should hide her wings long enough for you to get her somewhere safe. If she’ll come with you, that is.

> You don’t have long to wonder, however, before she lunges for you, throwing her arms around your neck and pressing her face into your shoulder. 

“Please don’t let them hurt me...”

> Your chest tightens, and you slowly wrap your arms around the girl in response.

“I won’t.”

[roetrolls]

Search and Rescue (Merill Event, Pt 1)

> Your name is Merill Parish. You are a private investigator who specializes in missing persons cases. For the past sweep, you have been tracking a troll by the name of Kiyana Agrizo, believing her to be the cause of many disappearances in the area.

> You are currently in your agency, reviewing your newest case and trying to eliminate Ms. Agrizo as a suspect. For this case. She’s not off the hook for anything else.

> Of course, calling your run-down little office an ‘agency’ is a severe overstatement. It’s a hole-in-the-wall studio, with nothing but your desk, an ancient computer, some filing cabinets, a water cooler, a couple of chairs, and a single potted fern (you like to call him George).

> The look of your office isn’t a testament to your skill; you’re a damn good detective. Your lack of funding is merely a result of your less-than-stellar business practices, namely your tendency to accept extremely low payments from the majority of your clients. What can you say, you’re a bleeding heart.

> When a yellowblooded boy comes crying to you because his burgundy moirail is missing and no one thinks she’s worth finding, you’re not going to turn him away just because he doesn’t have enough money.

Ding.

> You are roused from your work at the sound of a bell. You don’t quite understand why you need one; the ‘agency’ is one room. Your desk faces the door. When someone enters, you see them. You don’t really need to be alerted to their entry. But, hey, it cane with the place, so why complain?

> You lift your head to examine the new client, a tall, muscular blueblood with multiple facial piercings and-

> Oh shit.

> You know that troll! He’s Agrizo’s friend! How did he know where to find you? Has your investigation been compromised? Did Agrizo send him to finish you off?

> You tense up, preparing to reach for your weapon, until the boy opens his mouth to speak.

“No one can know I’m here”

(Part 2)(Part 3)(Part 4)

[roetrolls]

Who’s this?

You’ve already met her! Though, she hasn’t been formally introduced, so why don’t we fix that?

> Your name is BILLIE PARISH, you are 4 SWEEPS OLD, and you were adopted by your new caretaker, Merill, about a quarter of a sweep ago.

> You are INCREDIBLY WARY of strangers, and don’t trust easily. This is because you have grown up with a huge target on your back. Literally. Your WINGS have gotten you out of plenty of bad situations, but they were also the thing that caused many of those incidents to begin with.

> You also have BRIGHT BLUE BLOOD, which doesn’t help.

> You enjoy ROUGH HOUSING and COLLECTING COOL STICKS, but your favorite thing to do is LISTEN TO STORIES. Merill tells great stories.

> According to Merill, you are THE GREATEST THING that ever happened to him.

[roetrolls]

Search And Rescue (Merill Event, Pt 3)

(Part 1) (Part 2)

> You follow the coordinates Grysda gave you into a dense forest. He turned out to be a pretty nice kid. You suggested he get better friends. He responded with a nervous laugh and rubbed his neck. That was a few hours ago. The second you got enough information to start your search, you did. 

>There’s barely any moonlight filtering through the trees, and you have to take out your flashlight to avoid tripping over the gnarled roots strewn across your path. It might take you a while to find anything.

> You can’t guarantee that whoever lives here will be willing to come with you (in fact, that outcome seems highly unlikely) but you can at least warn them about Agrizo’s arrival.

> You wander for a while, lost in thought but on high alert. You estimate that it’s been about an hour since you entered the forest, but so far there have been no signs of life, troll or otherwise.

> Until now. There’s rustling in the bushes behind you and you whirl around to face it, hand on your gun. 

> A figure is crouched within the brush, tense and ready for action. Behind them, a pair of wings flutter so fast they appear as nothing more than a blur. 

> This has to be the troll Grysda came to tell you about. According to him, no one else lives here, and they were described to Agrizo as “a literal flight risk.”

> You point your flashlight at the ground in front of them, not wanting to frighten them by aiming at their eyes, and the stranger takes a step back, rising to their full height and staring at you with hostility. Their clothes are tattered, their hair disheveled, but that’s not the thing you notice first.

> This troll is a child.

(Part 4)

[roetrolls]

Search and Rescue (Merill Event, Pt 2)

(Part 1)

> You stare at the blueblood with uncertainty, waiting for him to go on. He swallows and rubs the side of his neck, doing everything in his power to avoid meeting your gaze.

“I know you’ve been trailin’ my friend, Kiyana. I haven’t told’er, don’t worry.”

> He takes a deep breath. You’re still on edge, but you force your shoulders to relax.

“She just received a tip about a mutant livin’ outside city limits. Was specifically told they can’t defend themselves. I...I can’t just sit back and let her hurt some innocent troll.”

> His voice breaks and he forces himself to look at you for the first time, eyes brimming with tears. He wipes his face with the back of his hand and swallows.

“She can’t know I was the one who told you this, but...”

> You watch as he fiddles with a scrap of paper, swallowing again.

“I’ve got the coords she was given. Please...Whoever it is she’s after...Find ‘em b’fore she does. I can’t offer you much in terms’a payment, but-“

> You shoot up from your desk, planting your hands on the table and staring intently at the blueblood in front of you.

“Keep your money. Where is this troll?”

(Part 3)(Part 4)