>>3012706
>[x] Climb a tree to try and find where you are

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[x] Climb a tree to try and find where you are

Being unable to tell one way from another, you decide that climbing a tree to look out above the canopy is the best course of action. You're bound to spot the limits of the city even if you are miles away and failing that, you should at least get a phone signal. There are two problems however; you are not the most athletic of people nor could you say you had much experience climbing trees. There is also the autumnal darkness making it hard to see too far in front of you. Desperate times call for desperate measures however.

You use the flash-light app on your phone to spot a tree the right size with branches in ideal climbing positions, coming across a large-size candidate that stuck out from the canopy not far from your starting area. Shining the light along it's length, you plot out a course up the tree all the way to the top, double-checking it again to be memorise the route. With a small hop you take a strong grasp of your first climbing branch careful to keep a good grip of both it and your phone, lifting your body up by using the tree's trunk to support yourself, quickly getting high enough to firmly plant your feet on the large wooden foothold. You find the next branch with your flash-light and resume climbing, again using the trunk to support yourself as you move up to the next foothold. You repeat this again without much difficulty soon finding yourself half way up the tree, probably a good 20 feet off the ground.

“Ok, I can do this.” You reassure yourself, actually somewhat impressed you'd managed. This is far easier than you thought!

That is of course until you suddenly slip, almost losing your footing and forcing you to tightly hug the rough bark of the tree's body, narrowly avoiding falling face first into the forest floor below. You hold your breath for a moment, keeping a tight hold of the tree and refusing to move until you're sure you're safe again. Letting out a sigh of relief, you carefully move yourself back to the branch and resolve to keep going, albeit more carefully. Thankfully there are no more incidents along the way, though you nearly drop your phone.

You emerge above the thick leafy canopy at the top of the tree into the night sky, taking a strong grip of it whilst you start to look around. Gazing out above the forest, something is immediately not right. Firstly, no matter where you look, the blazing beacon of the city is no where to be seen. Secondly, the light of the full moon illuminates the tops of distant mountains for miles across the valley which as far you knew were quite far away from your home. Lastly, you hold up your phone into the night sky and bring it back down to look at it, the X across the signal bar indicating you still had no signal.

“Oh shit.” You aren't one for expletives, it simply slipping out as you realise the gravity of your situation. “Where the hell am I?”

Something isn't right, that's for certain. But you at least have an idea of what way to go now. You decide to go:

[ ] North to the nearby house(?)
[ ] East along the trail of light
[ ] West to the village(?)

>>3014660
>West to the village

>>3014665
>West to the village

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[x] West to the village(?)

Going west to the village where there's likely to be the most people seems like the best idea, especially since it probably has phones lines or even services like a late night bus. Making your decision, you start moving to climb down the tree but you stop as something fills your ears, something that sounds both pretty and strangely foreboding. You realize the sound is singing; that of a night bird. You'd never actually heard a bird sing at night yourself, but you recall your work colleagues telling you it was quite beautiful.

Turning your head in the direction of the song, you notice it coming from the south, specifically from the direction of the large bird you could barely make out in the darkness even with the moonlight. You stare at while it flies around above the canopy circling the area to the south while singing away, finding yourself strangely unable to pull yourself away from the entrancing song.

After a while of you watching, the bird seems to notice something and stops circling, changing direction and flying north. It continues to sing even as it comes closer and closer, getting bigger and bigger as well. Suddenly you notice rather than just heading north, it ominously seems to be coming your way. You notice something else too; it's far too big to be an owl or even an eagle, and it's only growing bigger the close it comes.

Starting to make something out unnatural from the shape of the bird, something that looks...human-shaped, the song suddenly changes tone drastically and your entire being fills with terror, the bird-song sounding like it had become ear-piercing screeches in your head, making you clutch it in pain. In a panic your eyes hastily shift to the bird to find not a bird, but something else entirely, some kind of human-size unexplainable writhing black mass of teeth and claws and limbs and countless eyes constantly shifting in a sickening display of horror. You let forth a cry of terror and practically throw yourself down from the tree top to the branches, mind filling with nothing but fear clouding it from your previously safe route down.

Your mad scrambling down the tree soon has consequences, as in your blind terror to get away from the thing you lose your footing, falling straight out of the tree and crashing into the hard forest floor below. There's a loud crack as you land on your right arm followed by sharp, intense burning pain forcing you to let forth louder cries of pain while you clasp it, but the harsh screeching song forces you to your feet, mind too consumed by the terror to focus on the strong pain. You run in what your mind vaguely recalls is the west and stumble over one tree root and bush to the next as you flee, the song continuing all the while and a dark presence looming above you as it seems to get closer and closer by the moment.

At this point you're blindly dashing through the pitch-black forest while crying out in terror, madly batting your arms against any tree branches or bushes that stand in your way, receiving numerous cuts in your business suit and arms as a result. In your panic-stricken mind you vaguely realise this is actually a bad idea, as glowing eyes of various colours appear in the dark of the woods focusing on you, sinister laughter mixing in with the horrific “bird”-song, seemingly attracted by both your terror and bleeding wounds.

Just as the thing or things chasing seem to be closest, you come across the edge of the forest and spot in the distance what appears to be a house connected to a small warehouse right on the border. You change direction to rush towards it, crossing the edge of the forest and finally escaping it, but whatever is chasing you follows after without any sign of relenting and seems to have every intention of continuing to pursue you. You're near the house now, but the thing is bearing down on you, practically feeling it's breath on your neck from above. You have no choice but to make a quick decision:

[ ] Stop at the house and bang on the door for help as loud as you can
[ ] Keep running to the village

>>3014900
>Stop at the house and bang on the door for help as loud as you can

I'm going to fish for more votes before continuing. Any feedback is welcome.

>>3014900
>[ ] Stop at the house and bang on the door for help as loud as you can

[x] Stop at the house and bang on the door for help as loud as you can

You continue on your course to the house, diving for the front door and trying to open it. You nearly despair as the door handle refuses to budge, possibly due to a lock. Desperately you turn to banging on the door with your good arm, practically hammering it on it's hinges.

“Please, someone! Open the door! There's some kind of monster chasing me out here, it's going to kill me!” You yell as loud as you can, striking the hard wooden door with your fist. “Please!”

There's no answer or sign of movement through the door's small window despite your pleas. “You have to help me, I'm going to die!” You shout and bang on the door again.

The singing suddenly stops and you feel a chill down your spine. Slowing turning to face behind you, the monster following you is quickly approaching from the treeline, now growling and seeming to slowly take on a proper solid form as the ringing in your head from the song fades. Your eyes widen as from the writhing madness a more humanoid form begins to emerge; first legs, then arms and gradually a fully-clothed torso comes into view while it continues to quickly fly towards you. A human face forms at the top, but even from a distance you can tell from the killer intent in it's grey eyes and the baring of it's razor sharp teeth in it's smiling open mouth that's it's no less sinister or dangerous.

You turn back to the door and start banging against the hard wood again. “Open the damn door!”

“Human~” You freeze up as a soft feminine voice fills your ears. “Driving you mad was fun, but now you're out of places to run.”

Finally you turn to face the source of the voice, finding it or possibly her swooping down towards you on large wings, sharp claws raised and equally sharp teeth preparing to strike. You raise your good arm to cover yourself and accept the inevitable.

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“Excuse me, what's with this racket in the middle of the ni--” From behind, there's suddenly another voice. At the door of the house is a perturbed-looking man with short silver-hair and glasses holding a hand-lamp. Before he can finish his sentence, you dive past him through the door and land with a thump on the floor. The man goes to protest, but then sees the monstrous person about to fly in after you at speed and firmly slams the door shut behind you. There's a loud thud against the door, followed by an audible groan from the other side a few moments after.

After that came an angry and upset female voice. “Shop-keep, what do you think you're doing? I saw him first!”

“Ah, I believe there has been some kind of misunderstanding. This person is actually a customer and not a meal. I'd prefer if you didn't harass them.” The man responds, locking the door without waiting for her response.

“As if I'd believe such a dumb lie! That person is clearly an outsider, not a customer. The sign even says closed.” The “girl” protests, the door handle turning as she tries to open it. “Give him back.”

The man nervously grabs hold of the handle to try and stop her breaking the lock while talking. “I really must insist from one business owner to another. Customers are an important thing after all.”

“and why would you need to lock a customer in with you?” The soft tone of the “girl” turns threatening. “You don't stand a chance against me, especially tonight. Hand him over and no one else has to get hurt.”

“I'll call my magician friend on you” The twisting of the door handle stops for a moment, only to get immediately more intense, the man barely able to keep the door shut now. “or her red-ribboned friend. You think she'll show mercy to someone who breaks into my shop to eat a human?”

This time the assault on the door stops completely. There's a moment of silence as the “girl” assumedly contemplates the warning, then a small “tch” fills the air.

“Hmph! I'm never visiting your store again!” The “girl” says in a huff. There's a small fluttering sound on the other side of the door and soon only the silence of the night remaining.

The silver-haired man sighs in relief. He goes to re-adjust the handle to properly re-shut and lock the door but after a large amount of fiddling it becomes apparent that both the lock and door are damaged, the door tilting back open whenever he tries to shut it. He sighs again, sliding a nearby stack of wooden boxes in front of it to hold the door in place and secure his store.

“It seems you owe me both a new lock and door.” The man smiles at you. “Fortunately I think an outsider like you probably has something of great interest for me.”

…

You're vaguely aware of a comfortable and warm feeling around your body as you slowly regain consciousness, though there's some accompanying acute soreness in your left arm. The distinct tweets of bird-song filtering into the room snaps your eyes open and you awake with a start, sitting up and looking to the source in panic. You only see a window with the early morning sun shining through however, the singing clearly just normal morning birds chirping away. You hold a hand to your head and rub it over your face, still feeling rather tired.

“What kind of dream was that?” You mutter to yourself in disbelief, remembering the nightmare as vividly as if it actually happe--

“It was no dream I'm afraid.” The voice of the man from your drea—last night interjects. Looking up, you find the silver-haired man sat across the room in a chair with his legs crossed holding a book, re-adjusting his glasses as he looks up at you. You notice your left arm feels very stiff and looking down you find it bandaged and in a sling, confirming the memory that you broke in it a heavy fall that makes you cringe even just remembering.

“Lucky for you I was in the middle of a most thrilling book, usually I'd be asleep at that time of night, though I suppose with the full moon...” The man trails off, seemingly deciding something was better left unsaid. In spite of his hair colour and demeanour, the man actually looks rather young, late-20s to early-30s. He seems to be wearing some elaborate black and blue old-style eastern clothing, complete with a small pouch tied around it's front. “I possess some well-learned first aid skills that helped me bandage your wounds and a stock of medicine to help ease the pain.”

“Thank you...for saving me, I mean.” You thank your saviour graciously, but he only frowns in response, eyes moving to look out a nearby window.

“Don't thank me yet, you're still in grave danger.” The man informs you matter-of-a-factly.

“Huh, what do you mean?” You feel a sense of deep worry start to raise in the pit of your stomach in response.

The man gestures towards the window with a finger and you move closer on your knees so you can follow his meaning. Getting to the window, you peer out and find what appear to be at first glance five young girls hanging out around a tree a short distance from the shop, talking and playing around. However as your eyes focus on them, you notice something odd about all of them; they had features that were decidedly non-human. Before last night you would have easily put them off as costumes and props, but when you look closer you see them moving as naturally as you would move a hand or leg, a girl with small wings on her back flapping them as she moves up to sit on a tree branch while chatting with the others.

One of them notices you watching them from the window and says a few words to the others, at which point all of them stop what they're doing and turn to stare directly at you in a very unnerving fashion, a couple of them even smiling and waving.

The silver-haired shop-keeper sighs and stands up, drawing the curtain to cut off vision and nip any trouble before it begins. “I suppose you have a number of pressing questions but I can't promise I can answer any of them, truth be told.”

[] Where am I?
[] Who are you?
[] What was that “girl”?
[] Write-in

(sorry for the delay)

>>3017464
>[] Where am I?

Who needs a healthy player count, right?

>>3017464
>What was that “girl”?

>>3017496
I'm not sure what you mean

>>3017515
I mean nothing by it only that it's a shame there aren't more players here. Nevertheless the show must go on, and I do want to explore this setting further.

ganbare qm

>>3017464
>where am i

Just as a little update, I called it and started writing more a little while ago, but it's getting late here so I'll post the update tomorrow

>>3017464
>Where am I?

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[x] Where am I?

You decide to start with what you think is the simplest. “Where am I? Last night I was a couple of miles from my home in a big city, now I'm in this remote mountain valley that had a dangerous monster chasing me.”

The shop-keeper returns to his seat and places a hand to his chin pondering how best to answer your question, clearly giving it much thought. “Hmmm. If I'm being honest, I very rarely encounter your type. I'm not sure how much I should to say, so it's best I say little and leave it to those who deal in these matters should they deem it necessary to tell you. For now, the less you know the better, this is for your own good as much as it is mine.” The man looks at you apologetically for his unhelpful answer. “It frustrates me too, what kind of shop-keeper doesn't want to tell someone the name of their establishment or where it's located, especially to a super interesting customer like you? For now all I can tell you is to refer to me as “Rin” and that this is my curio shop.” “Rin” puts a hand to his chin again to think something over and goes to add something. “Re-frame from referring to me by that in front of others though, I wouldn't want them to get the idea they're allowed to do it.”

You consider what Rin said, or more over what little. It seems he knows where you are, but refuses to divulge it for some unknown risk. What you're most curious about is what he means by “your type” and “super interesting customer” though. Rin picks up on your curious look and gathers what your train of thought is.

“Sorry, I'm getting a little ahead of myself. You're what we refer to as an “outsider” in this land and my shop deals in the various goods of outsiders, therefore encountering one of you could be quite the boon.” Rin tells you this rather enthusiastically, then to your surprise produces your phone from one of his pockets and starts fiddling around with it. “This is what's called a “smart-phone”, is it not? I've read about it in various outsider books and magazines I've found, but this is the first time I've actually seen and held one. Unfortunately I can't figure out how to use it, whenever I press the buttons, it lights up and asks for some kind of code.”

You resist the urge to try and snatch your precious phone back from Rin in light of what he's done for you and seeing how strangely fascinated he is by it you even decide to indulge him, calmly starting to instruct him instead. “Stop, stop. You'll get nowhere doing that. You might even break it.” Rin stops pressing all the side buttons on the phone repeatedly and listens to you attentively, clearly intent on learning.

“First, press the black button on the right side once. When it lights up, softly press the numbers 1289 on the number-pad.” Rin follows your instructions with a surgical level of care, a familiar little welcome tune indicating he now had access to the phone. “Now, what exactly do you want to do with my phone?” You half honestly question half interrogate the silver-haired shop-keeper.

“Well, from what I read in those books these smart-phones can apparently do everything. One of the most interesting features is their apparent magical ability to “call” someone and instantaneous communicate with them no matter how far away they are. To think such a small thing holds such great power. The outside is truly a fascinating and advanced place.” Rin gushes to you excitedly as he tells you his rather bizarre-sounding knowledge regarding smart-phones. Unfortunately if last night was any indication it's unlikely there's a signal. You didn't want to burst his bubble, but he might lose interest in it and return it if you tell him straight.

“I don't know about “everything”, but without a signal it's little more than a music player and camera with games on I'm afraid. It can't even do something as basic as call someone without it.” You regretfully inform Rin of this fact, who clearly looks disappointed and dejected in response though oddly also seems like he expected it.

“I suspected that might be the case. Cellphones I've gotten hold of in the past have all had the same issue.” Rin explains before following up with a question. “What exactly is this “signal”? The books I read regarding cellphones were very unclear on this subject.”

He “knows” about cellphones yet doesn't understand what a signal is? How far flung and remote is this place? You take the time to explain the basics of the cellular network to Rin (truth be told you aren't exactly an expert on the subject either) including radio towers, waves, satellites and their relationship to each other, him listening to you both intently and with fascination. In particular the idea of satellites seem to capture his attention.

“Humans have launched objects into space that float above the Earth?! And it lets them transmit endless and massive amounts of information to each other in seconds?!” Rin places a hand over his mouth to consider the implications of this. “Have we truly fallen so far behind?” He mutters to himself, looking both fascinated and troubled at the same time.

“Yes, thousands in fac--wait, you don't know about satellites?” Now this is very strange, even people living in isolated rural areas knew about those, it's one of humanity's most important advancements after all. Not knowing how smart-phones work is one thing (you'd actually taught an elderly relative how to use one before), but satellites? It had been a good 60 years since the first was launched, so it wasn't exactly a recent event. Rin by no means seems like the ill-educated type either, he had been well-spoken and thoughtful throughout your conversation.

The question of where you are returns to the forefront of your mind, troubling you deeply. Your initial thought that you were simply dreaming had already been thrown out, the discomfort in your left arm attests to that. The problem is you had little to go on and all of the weird possibilities going through your mind like time travel or being transported to another world like in a TV show are all as equally absurd. You had just been walking through the woods!

“Ah, have I said too much?” Rin gathers himself and interrupts your line of thought upon seeing your troubled expression. “Forgive me, it's just for someone like me the very idea seems fantastical.”

Before you can press the issue there's the sound of knocking on a door. Rin pauses and gets up from his chair, placing your phone down on the old-looking wooden table and heading to an adjacent room, presumably the store proper. The shop-keep pauses again at the door of this room and turns to you. “It's best if you stay out of sight.” He warns before going into the store and closing the door behind him.

You nod in reply to his advice, but the question of where you are and several other continues to weigh on your mind heavily.

[] Peek into the store to see what's going on
[] Investigate the room for clues
[] Try checking over your phone for any ideas

>>3019099
>Try checking over your phone for any ideas

>>3019099
>[X] Try checking over your phone for any ideas

>>3019099
>Try checking over your phone for any ideas

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[x] Try checking over your phone for any ideas

You decide it best to heed Rin's advise seeing as how he lives here and knows better, especially as you suspect whoever he's attending to may be more than just a customer judging by his wariness. It would also be impolite to go rummaging through the things of your saviour and protector in what appears to be his personal room. Your eyes wonder to your phone laid on the table and you move over to pick it up, sitting on the adjacent chair and hoping perhaps it might give you some ideas.

Just as you suspected before, there's no signal. You had briefly held out a tiny bit of hope it would have one now, but the flashing cross over the bars snuff that out. As you had said to Rin before, what you could do with the phone without it is pretty limited. No phone line, no Internet, not even GPS. You fruitlessly try all of those things anyway, dialling the emergency services line, opening the Internet browser and loading the GPS app but all come back with an out-of-service message. You even try loading your favourite online phone game, but to no avail.

That's not to say it's completely useless. Last night it had been an invaluable tool thanks to the torch feature and it had a number of other features typical to modern smart-phones like a calculator, a clock, a camera, music, games etc etc and even a few movies you had on there. You could call it a Swiss army knife without the knives...or screwdriver...or can-opener. You sigh to yourself; none of those features would help you figure out your current predicament or probably in general really.

Eyes drifting to power bar at the top, you realise you have no way to charge it either, lacking both a charger and any visible power sockets (had this house even been connected to power lines?). The power remaining is currently at 90% and as far as you knew that would be all there is until you manage to get home to charge it, assuming you even would/could. You might have to be selective in it's use if you'd want it to last long term and who knows how long you'd be stuck here. On the other hand, is it just a clock with games on it.

[] Play games to pass the time
[] Put headphones in and listen to music in standby mode
[] Turn it off
[] Write-in

>>3021188
>[] Turn it off

[x] Turn it off

Moving a thumb to the button on the side, you press it down for a few seconds and the screen goes dark, shutting off and placing it in your trouser pocket. It might not be useful now but it could still come in handy later like with the torch app last night and seeing as how you didn't know when you'd get to charge it again, saving it's power would probably be for the best.

This still left the matter of how to keep yourself occupied until Rin returns. You had too much on your mind to go back to sleep now even if you are a bit tired and you'd already decided not to go through his stuff, without his permission at least. Thinking on your predicament more until you knew more would probably just drive you crazy and make you more worried as well. Your eyes start to wonder around the room while you wait, taking stock of it and the things in it.

It definitely seems like a private living quarters, though you're more used to them being on the second floor above shops back home, which this single-story shop didn't have at all. Now that you look closer, you notice the small room has a decidedly eastern quality and design to it. All of the furniture is wooden and looks quite old; there's a couple of wall-shelves, a few cupboards, a small wardrobe and this table and chair. You hadn't paid it any mind before, but even the bed is on the floor in one of those Japanese-style futon beds you had seen back in the city a few times and had often heard about. There's doors to other rooms which you think must be kitchen/toilet spaces, possibly one to that connecting warehouse you recall seeing last night.

The single large window from before still has the curtain mostly drawn so the room is a little dark. Curiosity gets the better of you and you walk over to it, taking a small peak past it and finding three of the young girls still gathered by that tree near the store. By the looks of it they're all watching something happening in the direction of the store front which you suspect is the reason Rin was called away, though you can neither see nor hear anything aside from birdsong and the light morning wind.

While they're distracted, it might actually be a good time to get a better look at them and their “unique” features...

[] Keep peeking and study the girls closer
[] Stop looking and find something else to do
[] Write-in

>>3024448
>[] Keep peeking and study the girls closer

Small update: Going to be taking a little break to do other things, but I've not given up just yet

>>3024448
>Keep peeking and study the girls closer

Update in the works, should be done by later today

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[x] Keep peeking and study the girls closer

Deciding to the use the opportunity to get a better look at the girls, you take the time to study the three of them more closely. Generally all of them have the appearance of a young human child; bare white skin, human faces, two arms, two legs, pretty much what you'd expect of a normal human body, but all of them also have different features that are decidedly not. The first girl is one who had flown up to the tree but now returned to the ground, her small blue feathered wings with white tips she used occasionally fluttering on her back. Her short hair is also strangely the same colour, white with the occasional streak of blue, two small white pointed parts you realize are actually horns and what appears to be another single little wing on the back of her head. She is wearing a frilly black dress with a blue middle and white hems complete with white socks and black shoes.

Another girl with flowing golden blond hair is totally different, she has two large triangle-shape ears on her head and what appear to be two thick fluffy tails as golden as her hair attached to her lower back. Her clothing has a much more traditional Asian look, a short white robe tied together with a large red cloth belt with an equally red frilly ribbon wrapping around her stomach ending just above her legs. That is until you notice she's wearing what appears to be black spats, not exactly the most “traditional” of clothing, complete with white socks and wooden sandals.

The last of the visible three has short black hair and two big floppy white ears that look kind of like a rabbit's on her head, dressed in what seems to be a pink frilly nightgown and nothing else, not even shoes, her bare feet visible on the grass.

Now that you look at them, they're actually kind of adora--

“Hello!” The upside down head of a yelling girl with black cat eats suddenly appears at the top of the window nearly giving you a heart attack, causing you to fall back in shock and nearly take the whole curtain with you as you hit the floor. Groaning in discomfort on the ground, in the distance you can hear the girl and the others laughing with each other, clearly having succeeded in setting up a prank on you. You lay on ground for a few moments before slowly sitting up, placing a hand on your heart and letting out a small sigh. You lean over to the window and fix the ruffled curtain, but there's suddenly a small knock on the window, though whoever did so is obscured from sight.

Considering looking past the curtain to see which of what you presume is one of the girls knocking wants, you recall Rin's warning to stay out of sight. You wouldn't have thought it from their cute appearances, but Rin had explicitly pointed to them while using the words “Grave danger”.

[] Look past the curtain to see what she/they(?) want
[] Don't answer and stay hidden
[] write-in

>>3032044
>Don't answer and stay hidden

>>3032044
>Don't answer and stay hidden

Just another update in the event the thread dies before I post the next part, I am still going and I've nearly finished it. Maybe with an more interesting OP next thread it be attract people.