Post by Danielle Smith on Sept 19, 2015 11:56:52 GMT -5
A bear roared with pain and struggled against the hunting trap. Danielle, who had gone out for a few hours of romping, was trapped. Her left foot, right now a bear's foot, was snared in the teeth of it. Blood and flesh stuck uncomfortably against the trap and her fur. Roaring again in protest, she pulled against it. Terror pulsed through her veins as she searched the area to determine if shifting back was an option. She could phase out of the trap. She could escape.
Danielle visited middle-of-fucking-no-where Wyoming to translate some stupid piece-of-shit text for some cheap loser with a bad hat. Wyoming would rue the day she was injured, she thought bitterly. She would hunt down the asshats who put this fucking contraption in the forest and eat them. Danielle entertained the idea of actually eating humans while she worked, with much difficulty, on relaxing her form so she could shift. The pain was, no pun intended, unbearable. With each passing second she refocused her breathing and tried not to think about what her foot would look like. She hoped that the shift wouldn't snap her foot clean off and, with one final roar, felt her body tremble rapidly back into her smaller human form.
"FUCK,"she gasped loudly and forced herself to turn over. Her left ankle, a bloody mess, thankfully remained attached. With all the energy she had left she forced herself to phase from the trap and pulled her leg free. Shaking, she turned onto her stomach and pulled herself away to the nearest trees. Leaves and pine stuck against her clammy skin and dirt clung in places she would piss and moan about later. At the nearest tree, she latched onto a low-hanging branch and pulled herself up. Her mind still entertained the idea of eating whoever did this to her- to any animal- as a result of the new agony of moving her foot in any new direction. Danielle imagined the human in the trap and she with a big, scary rifle and thought of how she would drag their remains to a cabin and cook them. With a harsh laugh, she forced herself to start hobbling the hell away from this place. She gathered a large stick and used that to assist her walk. She needed to hurry to her car. Wherever that was now.
The trap had been set at the bottom of a few hills near a creek. She had, as a bear, wandered to drink and had stupidly stepped right into the damn trap. Cursing, Danielle began her slow ascent up from where she'd been. The time she would take to get back was currently unknowable, which only fueled her pain and frustration. She only hoped that the trap-setters weren't in the area and, more importantly, weren't hunters of her kind. "We'll be okay, Dan," she murmured to herself between breaths. Her foot ached like a bitch. Each movement brought a shudder of fresh hell up her spine and back down into her stomach.
Post by Benjamin Locke on Sept 19, 2015 18:24:47 GMT -5
Ben was busy dozing in the sun when his peaceful, pleasant moment of relaxation was interrupted by what sounded like a very, very upset animal. The sound could likely be heard for miles around but it seemed particularly close to him.
The young man had traveled to Wyoming with the intention of relaxing a bit and enjoying the mountain scenery. He'd even briefly considered going nude and just laying about in his true form though he'd quickly decided not to.
Truth be told Ben wasn't his most comfortable in his natural form. Also, if someone saw him Ben would have to murder them and that just wouldn't be fair since they couldn't have possibly known they'd stumble upon his secret. It was just better this way.
After hiking with intermittent bouts of flying, Locke had spotted a nice flat rock on the edge of a small cliff that looked down at some forest and was within sight of a creek he had every intention of bathing in later. So Ben had stripped down to his trunks, applied some sunblock to keep his tan skin from burning if he happened to doze off, and laid back to soak it all in, throwing on his aviator sunglasses to keep the bright sun out of his brown eyes.
It seemed like it had only been a moment or to when, presently, he was jolted up by the sound of a roaring bear. Ben grabbed the rifle he'd laid next to him for protection, his heart beating rapidly, before he determined that there was no immediate threat. It occurred to him that the roar had seemed more akin to a cry of pain rather than bellow of challenge.
Locke searched about, trying to pinpoint the location of where it had come from. Near the creek he managed to catch a glimpse of motion as something moved off out of sight into the trees.
Vaulting over the cliff, the young man used his ability of flight to float gently to the ground, landing near a bloodied bear trap, rifle in hand in case he ended up face to face with a wounded bear in the course of his investigation. Locke moved closer to investigate, his eyes following the trail of blood that lead off into the forest.
The trap wasn't broken so he thought it likely that whatever had escaped from it was pretty strong if it could pry the thing open long enough to slip out. Ben didn't know much about such traps but he assumed that it would require opposable thumbs to grip and open it.
Now this was a flying leap but it occurred to the young man that a primate supe might have been caught in the trap and escaped injured. That thought worried Ben, so he began to follow the blood trail, determined to help before whoever had set the trap showed up to investigate.
Post by Danielle Smith on Sept 19, 2015 21:01:10 GMT -5
Danielle's shaken form managed to successfully get to the top of the hill, somehow. She heaved herself against a tree, clammier than ever, and panted. The mossy growth of the tree was a relieving cool against her form. Her body protested the concept of moving any further so she, begrudgingly, sank down against the tree. It felt so great to sit, and yet, it was awful. She took a few deep breaths and tried to tell herself that a broken, fucked up ankle didn't hurt.
She sucked at convincing herself when there was blatant contradictory evidence. Looking at the injury, she tried hard to remind herself she wasn't sickened by gore. But it was a bloody, shredded hunk of flesh right now. It was pretty awful to examine.
Danielle searched the area with her eyes once more, tensed for some sort of hunter to come barreling through the underbrush with guns and knives. Fuck, she was on edge. She hated the feeling of fear that kept her wide-eyed and tense. But she knew the fucker who put that near bear trap in was likely going to come around eventually. Maybe not today or even soon, but she couldn't risk staying too long. Trembling, she thrust her walking stick into the ground. It was time to begin moving again, despite the agony it was causing. Briefly, she considered changing back again just to stop relying on the stick, when a flicker of movement caught her attention.
Something or someone was coming up the hill. Danielle started hustle-walking away from where she had been standing. She kept her gaze directed towards the movement as she moved, not watching where she was going. A startled shriek erupted from her when she bumped into another tree. She promptly hid behind it and waited, relying on the tree for support. She peered from around the tree, trying to remain hidden, to see who came. Did she stay human? Did she go bear and attack? What was coming? The sound of her heart was loud in her ears and drowned out anything she could have heard as a clue.
Post by Benjamin Locke on Sept 20, 2015 2:04:15 GMT -5
Whatever it was it was hurt pretty bad. Ben wasn't prepared for a treck through the woods, wearing only an open button up and dark jeans with worn flats. Luckily, he didn't think whatever it was could get very far on its savaged leg. With the rate it was bleeding out, Locke was confident he'd find it soon. He just hoped he would be soon enough.
"I'm not going to hurt you!" The young man called out, slinging the rifle over his shoulder in case they were watching as he followed the trail. Ben didn't want to end up being forced into a death match with the very creature he was trying to lend aid to. "I'm here to help."
Ben wasn't much of a tracker but the blood was simple enough to follow. Next to it he could see some weird indentations. It took him a minute to realize that the wounded creature must be using a branch or something as a crutch. Well, animals don't use tools like that. The notion that the wounded creature was a primate supe seemed more and more likely.
Something was wrong. Often times the young man ignored his heightened senses but now his smell was bugging him. Ben inhaled deeply. The wounded creature was female but it didn't smell nearly as rank as he knew most primates to be. It was a lot like a human's, in fact.
The young man frowned and looked more closely at the tracks, past the blood, for a moment. The tracks seemed primate, if a bit small. That coupled with the smell and Locke was starting to think he was tracking a human. If it was a human woman then he had less time to find her than he'd thought.
Post by Danielle Smith on Sept 20, 2015 12:01:20 GMT -5
Danielle could make out the what had, it seems, followed her. Her eyes followed the ground. With a scowl, she realized how stupid she had been. Blood dripping through the undergrowth laid a clear trail. "I'm not going to hurt you!" the figure, a tanned male with a gun, claimed. "I'm here to help!"
She considered his words carefully. He had, obviously, followed her blood. He had a rifle though ABD had been alone in the woods...Could he be a threat?
Danielle stood silently for a long, uncertain minute. Was he a threat? He didn't look like much of a hunter. Her eyes lingered on the weapon though, untrusting if it. She already had a nasty memory of guns, she didn't need more. Seeing one again set her more on edge, her stomach twisting into uncomfortable knots. Her urge to shift and threaten was overwhelming, but she fought it. She didn't think being a bear would be a good idea right now. She adjusted her supports, trying to keep her attention on him. "Put the rifle down!" she shouted, tensing as she partly gave her position away. She was going to take the risk though- that gun was making her way too nervous and she needed help.
Danielle watched from where she hid, waiting. She readied her stick to swing it as a weapon in case this turned south. She let her gaze flicker about, looking for others to threaten her wellbeing. She really doubted that it was truly just herself and this male in these forests, but hoped that this would pass quickly without incident. The tension in the air was palpable now while she awaited his response. It felt like it could suffocate her- but maybe that was the mix of pain, forest air, and this situation. She found herself praying quietly that this interaction went well.
Post by Benjamin Locke on Sept 20, 2015 16:57:10 GMT -5
In the course of his investigation, the young man followed the blood trail from tree to tree. Ben imagined some young woman limping about on her savaged leg, further aggravating the injury. He rubbed his own leg, brow furrowed with worry. She must be in some rather extreme pain but was clearly tough as nails to still be going. The young man admired that kind of determination, making him resolve all the more to save her.
A voice, hoarse and tense but definitely female and human, shouted for him to put his rifle down. Ben complied immediately. He couldn't help her if she wouldn't let him so the young man needed to make her feel more at ease. 'sides, the rifle was there to make things easier for him. Locke didn't actually need it.
"The rifle is down," Ben called out to the woman, halting in his following of the blood trail and lifting his hands so that she could see he was unarmed. "You'll bleed out at this rate, ma'am. Come out,please, so I can help you."
Ben waited patiently. He wanted to help, but the young man had an eternity. It was entirely up to her.
Post by Danielle Smith on Sept 20, 2015 17:34:46 GMT -5
There wasn't much of a pause following her demand. His quick reaction only eased her somewhat, he still had to demonstrate trustworthiness. Then again, with her limited options, this was likely her best bet at survival. "The rifle is down," he announced. Danielle eyed the distance between him and the gun as he spoke once more. "You'll bleed out at this rate, ma'am. Come out, please, so I can help you."
Ma'am? Danielle scowled in annoyance at that despite the situation. With an audible grunt, she started forcing her body to move once more. Her stick popped from behind the tree, with her slowly working her way around. She hobbled into plain view slowly, reluctantly. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously at his form as she made her best attempts at walking. What would this look like, she wondered. A naked woman with a badly injured leg in the middle of no where. Danielle couldn't begin to fathom how she would explain this story and instead focused on watching the male.
She kept her distance somewhat, wearing the mistrust on her face. He would have to approach slowly. "And how, exactly, will you be helping me?" she asked, trying to sound something akin to relieved or grateful. Terse was likely how her inquiry came out unfortunately, but the longer she looked over the male, the more she doubted his assistance. He had nothing with him. He didn't present himself as a medic of any sort. If anything, all he could help with was getting her somewhere else faster, but that wouldn't fix her leg. Danielle frowned in thought, wondering where this situation was headed.
Her mistrust began to fade as she considered the likelihood of this stranger being the trap setter. He had come to help and had agreed to her single term. She saw no other visible weapons on his form and, with the rifle down, he seemed harmless. This wasn't the trap setter. Couldn't be.
Post by Benjamin Locke on Sept 20, 2015 18:17:22 GMT -5
When the naked woman emerged from the forest, Ben immediately averted his gaze. His face flushed heavily and he immediately began sputtering out an apology. It took his brain a moment to process and look past the naked woman, towards her injured leg.
Ben felt awfully silly about the second or two he'd spent embarrassed about seeing her naked body, once he'd recalled that she was badly injured and in need of help. As always, the young man felt like a bit of a pervert when he found himself attracted to a human or some other species that differed significantly from his own in physical appearance.
Trying to not be super awkward, Locke met the woman's eyes, forcing himself not to drift downward. "Well," She'd asked him how he would help her and now that Ben thought about it, that was a pretty good question. He couldn't heal her and he sure as hell wasn't going to expend the kind of effort required to teleport with her. The young man supposed he could fly her? But first things first, the leg needed to be dealt with. Unfortunately, he had no idea how to do about that.
Now Ben was embarrassed. "Um. I'm really fast?" He glanced down at her leg. It looked kinda angry.
Post by Danielle Smith on Sept 20, 2015 19:14:24 GMT -5
Danielle let out a grunt of some sort, but it sounded more like a growl. "Um, I'm really fast?" he'd just claimed. She took another difficult step closer, glowering bitterly towards him. He had no plan? She almost wondered why even bother to help her. Her temper nearly got the better of her as she addressed his comments, but she surprised herself by not shouting. "So, in short," she began, her tone cool with thinly veiled anger. She was still moving towards him, albeit very slowly. "You can move fast but have no- ow- medical aid?" She was an arm's length from him now. The stick shook at the weight she put on it to reach towards him and grasped his shirt by a hem on a sleeve.
"Give me this, now." She was trying to remain calm but if he couldn't help her leg then she was going to do something about it. He had clothes- she could bandage her leg or something, put pressure on it? She'd seen that in television shows and read it in books, so surely it had to help a little. At the very least wrapping it up ought to limit the bleeding, but she'd lost so much already. She refused to go out like this though, like some dying bleeding animal. She would find a way to survive, some way.
"Can you carry me? Cause if you're fast and can carry me, then we can hurry to my car. It's...4 miles, I think, east of here- the parking lot- main. Do you think you can do that? Do you know where that is?" She was trying very hard to not scream at him. He was, after all, here to help and having someone at all was better than nothing. The idea of dying alone in the woods repulsed Danielle. If she died, at least someone could witness her final moments. Not that she was planning on dying, but the thought was beginning to cross her mind as she drew weaker and weaker and her fear got stronger and stronger.
In the distance, a shot from a gun rang out. Danielle tensed and stumbled against her stick, yelping as she used her bad foot for support, yanking on him to steady herself. "I can't stay here, so if you're really fast, be fast,"she urged, meeting his eyes. Danielle's grip on his shirt had grown tighter, more intense.
Post by Benjamin Locke on Sept 20, 2015 21:48:30 GMT -5
Ben sighed. He'd tried to help someone and come unprepared. He supposed that he could just teleport and grab some medical supplies but that sounded like a lot of hassle. It was starting to look like Ben would have to carry ms grumpy out of the woods on his back. He wasn't sure he'd be comfortable with that.
"First of all, stop yelling at me," Locke told the woman in a quiet but firm voice. He was trying to help and she was kinda being mean. He didn't like that. A gunshot rang out in the distance and Ben turned his head to look towards the source as the injured woman stumbled and yanked hold of his shirt to steady herself. The young man sighed in resignation, doing his absolute best to ignore the fact that a naked woman was touching him.
"Wait here for a second," He told her, guiding her to a tree for support. "I won't be but a minute." Once she'd steadied herself, Ben teleported to the drugstore, grabbed a tourniquet, and teleported back. All in all, it took less than three seconds.
"This should keep you from bleeding out while I hoof you outta these fricken woods. Sit down so I can put it on." Ben had never applied a tourniquet before but it wasn't terribly complicated. He figured that they'd be to her car before any complications would arise from leaving it on for too long. Then it would be a short drive to the hospital. Simple enough.
"I'm Ben, by the way." He'd tell her as he applied it to her leg.
Post by Danielle Smith on Sept 20, 2015 22:05:31 GMT -5
Danielle about erupted in fear when he said "wait." Her grip tightened even further but he was already guiding her to a tree. "I won't be but a minute," he explained, but she felt condemned. She started to stammer out a plea that he not leave, now steadied against the tree, when he literally blinked out of existence. Her heart plummeted into her stomach. Bewildered, she looked around, wondering if she'd imagined it.
And then he was back. As fast as he'd vanished, he returned. "Am I losing it?" she said to herself, wondering if she imagined this moment. But as he pulled out actual medical supplies- better than the t-shirt, she thought- she realized that she had not imagined him. Danielle gaped at him with a mix of suspicion and admiration. He could just *poof* and then *poof* again? What was the word...teleport? He could teleport?
It dawned on her he was speaking to her again. She only just caught that he would be hoofing her out of the woods. She frowned, peering behind him towards where she imagined the shot had come from. The idea of running into whoever was out here wasn't exactly high on her list. No, scratch that, it was, but when she was stronger and knew she could get away with inducing some absolute terror. Alas, that was not the situation.
"I'm Ben, by the way." She let out a low groan as he began applying the tourniquet. Any movement near her foot hurt beyond all reason. From how her body felt, she wondered how much longer she could even stay awake. "Ben...Sorry I- AH-" she gasped, digging her hands into the ground. "Fuck...I'm Danielle- pleasure to meet you- thanks-ow..." The tourniquet looked ready to her, but she couldn't tell. She wasn't even sure how fatal a bear-trap injury was. Her foot- at least the ankle- was busted though. That would put her in a cast for a bit. Then there was the threat of infection- how long did that take to set in? Although it'd be kinda cool to have a peg leg, should infection set in and it have to amputated. Kinda cool, but not desirable.
Danielle felt absolutely drained. "I dunno how long I can stay awake- if I'm not- I hid...er..." She paused, considering, then spoke again. "My car keys, they're hidden under the back right tire." She would try her best to stay awake but didn't know how she could endure much longer. She as probably going to pass out soon.
Post by Benjamin Locke on Sept 20, 2015 22:28:28 GMT -5
Ben didn't notice the odd looks she was giving him as he applied the tourniquet. Ya know, because he was looking at her leg and doing his damnedest not to have his eyes drift any further upward. Any small amount of trust between the two of them was tentative at best and he figured stealing a peek at the goods wouldn't help her feel anymore at ease.
The bleeding had been halted by the tourniquet so he stopped tightening. "Just relax. You might not be in any immediate danger of bleeding out but we're not out of the woods yet," Ben told her. This next part wasn't going to be super comfortable for him but the young man would just have to deal.
"I'll have to carry you on my back," He told her. Once she'd given him permission, Locke would assist her in climbing onto his back. The fact that he was wearing clothes made it a little bit easier to imagine that the woman on his back was also wearing clothes. That made Ben a little bit more comfortable. He could hear barking in the distance.
Post by Danielle Smith on Sept 20, 2015 22:43:12 GMT -5
Danielle agreed to be carried immediately. The faster they were out of the woods, the better, she thought. She didn't care how he carried her so long as she didn't have to try and stumble her weak ass back to her car. Be a human backpack? Sure, she'd even sing the map song for all she cared, she was just feeling grateful she wasn't going to be stuck in the woods with the hunters. She let him assist her onto his back and held on as tight as she could manage, which, by now, wasn't very tight at all. The feeling of clothe felt lovely against her clammy skin, almost like a blanket. She let out a grumble at his comment- she couldn't really hear the barking at this point. That was concerning.
She adjusted and pressed her face into his shoulder, mumbling another thanks and a promise to repay this him. Then she went limp, drifting off. She tried not to full on pass out on him, a feat that was becoming beyond difficult at this point. Danielle finally caught the hint of a bark in the distance and frowned. She reiterated her statement, a little louder this time, "I seriously owe you big for this. Indebted."
She was never thrilled about owing favors, but in this case, she would make an exception. She would gladly repay anyone for saving her over her alternatives. She closed her eyes again and held on as Ben did whatever "fast" was for him- be it running or hiking or, hell, skipping.
Post by Benjamin Locke on Sept 20, 2015 23:08:35 GMT -5
Almost immediately after she was on his back, Ben could feel Danielle go limp. The woman must've been exhausted from blood loss and exertion. Without any pain medication, he was amazed that she'd made it this far. The young man didn't bother picking up his gun. It wasn't really his and he could always just grab another one in the future.
"Don't worry about it." Ben didn't want anyone to be in his debt. He was helping just to help. Occasionally, the young man could be impulsive and he would do something bad. But just as often he would feel compelled to do something good. "Helping a woman who'd stumbled into a bear trap and has hunters and probably bloodhounds on her trail? That's something you don't just stand by and watch."
The barking of the dogs grew steadily louder but Locke wasn't too worried. He took off, Danielle on his back. Normally, the young man was fairly fast on his own but their situation was fairly urgent so with every running step he boosted his speed using his powers of flight, increasing his speed quite a bit at the cost of endurance.
By the time they'd reached Danielle's car, Ben was panting and out of breath, his leg muscles beginning to feel fatigued. "Damn. I need to stop teleporting everywhere all the time. I'm so out of shape." He removed the key from where it was hidden, Danielle still on his back. He took her around to the passenger side and opened the door.
"Here ya go," Ben would let her off of his back, assisting her in climbing into the vehicle if necessary. Once she was in, he would head around to the driver's side. Starting the car, he hit the accelerator just as four dogs began to emerge from the woods, their owners likely not far behind.
"Better luck next time!" The young man shouted as he drove off.
"How are you feeling, Danielle?" Ben asked Danielle, heading towards the nearest hospital.
Post by Danielle Smith on Sept 20, 2015 23:19:17 GMT -5
Danielle was fairly certain the reason she didn't remember leaving the woods and getting to her car was because she'd passed out. Or at the very least, he'd run so fast she didn't have time to consider how far he'd run or how long it had been. It was the sound of her keys jangling as he retrieved them that roused her back to awareness.
"Here ya go," he was saying as she slipped off the back and was helped into her car. In the back seat were her clothes. While he got into the car and started it, she reached into the back and pulled on her shirt and worked on getting her underwear on, swaying into the window a bit as he drove off. She lifted her head as the barking got louder and caught sight of the dogs coming from the woods. She glared in their general direction and refocused on getting dressed. He was probably tired of seeing her naked.
"How are you feeling, Danielle?" he asked. She buckled in finally and sat back, staring down at her foot while she considered her answer. "I feel alive. And a bit vengeful," she replied, tacking on her resentment as a half-joke. "How do you feel? You look...tired too." She glanced up at the passing road signs and watched as they whizzed by and then looked back at him. They were going to the hospital, she knew. She was going to be put in a cast, she thought with a twinge of annoyance. "What were you doing out there, Ben?" she watched his face as she spoke, just watching him now. She didn't feel like seeing where they were headed, she just wanted to stay awake and be distracted. "I don't know how to do tourniquets either, but I think you did a great job...Bleeding stopped," She commented. "I think you have a bright future in medicine ahead of you."
