Enter The Gromble

[grombleness]

Who: The Gromble and ~you~
When: Late night, March 2nd
Where: The plaza
Style: Either
Status: Open!

[When The Gromble awakens, the first thing he notices is how wet he is. It's not the comforting sludge of his bed, it's almost like clean water. The Gromble just barely suppresses a shudder as one of the locals approaches with a welcoming kit. He's shocked to say the least when the human walks right up to him and shoves a fresh towel in his face, cheerfully telling him he should dry off before he gets sick. What in the name of the pool is wrong with that human?! Can't they see how terrifyingly hideous he is?

They must be drugged like those strange love-and-peace humans from a few decades back. It's the only acceptable explanation. No sane human wouldn't recoil from his grotesque visage!

Rather than wipe off his protective coat of grime he chooses to toss the towel to the side, red heels quickly click-clacking their way to the nearest garbage can and propelling him inside where he can safely read his pamphlet and observe the sparkling clean plaza. Truly, humans were absolutely unfathomable creatures, who would want to live in a place like this?

He remains there absorbing the information written in the pamphlet (the whole thing sounds ridiculous, really) until someone approaches the trash can. He's feeling pretty cranky, a good scare might cheer him up. He hunkers down, ready to loom at the person. Come at him, Vatheon.]

Comments

this could end in tears

[paladaddy]

[Doop de doop, don't mind Shiro, he's just going home after a long day of doing things. He's kind of sleepy, but he still decides to stop by the plaza and touch that coral-thing before turning in for the night. It's been a few days.

But before he gets to the coral, he stops by a certain trash can to throw away the wrapper to a snack he had been eating. Vatheon is so nice and clean he would feel bad for littering.]

[replicatedcourage]

[Looks like it was Sola's turn to do the shopping again, which of course means he forgot a few things and had to run back to the store. He's got the tomatoes he'd left behind last time now and passes right by the trash bin on his way out of the plaza, humming and swinging the shopping bag a little in time with the music in his head, utterly unaware of the danger lurking just to his right.]

[grombleness]

[From what he can see, Shiro looks to be a priest. Always a safe scare target, very non-violent humans. In ancient times they were more dangerous and prone to trying to take out entire monster settlements, but now they're all just a bunch of preachers.

Gromble looms out of the trash can suddenly, increasing his size tenfold and letting out a horrific roar.]

[grombleness]

[Gromble's not entirely sure what Sola is. He seems different from a human, but he's definitely not a monster. He thinks. Honestly, he's not sure how to approach this scare, or if he should even be scaring him. Are pointy-eared humans aggressive?

Well, that humming is unbearably on tune, so he'll scare him if only to make it stop.

Gromble pops out of the trash can just as he passes, emitting a deafening screech. He'll teach this human to sing at him!]

[paladaddy]

[Well. That was unexpected.

Since the Gromble is very clearly not human and could possibly fall under the category of 'demon,' Shiro starts acting purely on instinct and training. He jumps back away from the trash can and draws his gun from the holster hidden beneath his coat. A moment later, he starts shooting at the Gromble.]

[grombleness]

[Out of all the things he expects a modern priest to be carrying, a bang and shoot is about the last on the list. Gromble quickly shrinks himself back down into the can to avoid being riddled with holes.]

What kind of priest are you?!

[The words are out before he even realizes it. All this being teleported about really has him on edge. He needs to find a sewer and get his bearings, this is just embarrassing.]

[replicatedcourage]

[The sudden appearance of a monster from the trash startles Sola mightily and he whirls around with a yelp, pegging the grey creature in the face (that's its face, right?) with the bag of tomatoes, resulting in a disgusting squelch. The bag leaves his hand, drooping across Gromble's face as Sola covers his ears from the painful screeching.]

Ow!!

[paladaddy]

[Oh, so now the demon wants to play nice and talk things out. Shiro would be rolling his eyes if it hadn't happened a million times before.]

You have five seconds to get out of that trash can and explain yourself before I blast you back to Hell.

[grombleness]

[The bag in the face is actually quite pleasing. It's like he just scared a little old lady! Gromble pops out of the trash can completely and starts to skitter away, giggling. He has no idea he just scared a hero type.]

[grombleness]

[Back to Hell? This priest must be insane! He thought they all stopped believing in monsters and demons a long time ago. Well, in that case, talking to the man a bit won't compromise anything. He's already crazy.

This was really quite badly planned out. In his defense, kindly old priests are classified as safe and easy scares. He'll have to revise the curriculum when he gets back to the dump.

If he makes it back.

Loathe as he is to follow the orders of a human, he doesn't know where the nearest toilet is and he has no safe escape route from the bang and shoot. He has to listen for now. The Gromble holds his hands up (his human gestures are really quite rusty, he hopes this means "I have no weapon" and not "I'm going to claw your face"), then attempts to exit the trash can. Once he's out, he rubs at his face tiredly.]

It was just a little scare.

[replicatedcourage]

You little jerk, get back here!

[Ears still ringing painfully, Sola takes off after the creature that had just attacked him. Instead of pulling his sword from his back, he yanks the slingshot from his sylladex and skids to a stop just long enough to fire a quick succession of three seeds at the back of the thing's...head..?... at it's back before running to see what he'd hit (or missed).]

[paladaddy]

[Seeing the Gromble cooperate, Shiro sighs and relaxes his grip on his gun and removes his finger from the trigger. Just a dumb demon, then, not a dangerous one. He keeps it out, though, just in case this thing is trying to lull him into a false sense of security.]

How long have you been in the human world? You should know better than to go scaring people, that's a quick way to get turned into swiss cheese.

[grombleness]

[He's faster than expected, and all this fresh air is starting to wear on the old Gromble. He didn't fill his sac before being rudely ripped from the dump, and now a human is chasing him down with a slingshot with nary a gutter in sight to dive into?

This is just unacceptable.

One of the seeds hits one of the Gromble's heels. He stops and turns, voice low and dangerous.]

Watch where you're aiming, brat!

[grombleness]

[He's being treated like a little bonsty! The Gromble huffs, placing his hands on his hips and looking defensive. He knows his scare protocol, excuse you Shiro!]

You priests haven't carried weapons for hundreds of years now! It should have been a perfectly safe scare.

[replicatedcourage]

You're the one that attacked me!

[Sola looms over Gromble, taking advantage of the fact that he can actually loom over anyone for once.]

Now I have to go back and get more tomatoes! Geeze. Why did you do that?!

[paladaddy]

[Shiro kind of just stares at the Gromble for a moment, because hello differences in worlds!]

...yeah you're definitely from a different world.

[And he's holstering his gun, because yeah, the Gromble definitely isn't a threat then. And if he's from a different world, holy bullets might not affect him anyway.]

If you're going to go around scaring people, I'd suggest picking your targets carefully. This is a multi-world hub, and what you see as a 'harmless scare' would be taken as a threat to some people.

[grombleness]

[Why is this kid even talking to him? He should be wetting his pants and running for his mommy now, not... chasing him down and trying to intimidate him. Gromble rubs his forehead.]

This has to be some sort of dream. Did I get into some fresh produce...?

[grombleness]

[He watches Shiro suspiciously, trying to not roll his eyes at being told to pick his targets carefully. He knows that you nitwit human! The last thing he says does catch The Gromble's attention proper, though. He reaches for the dirty pamphlet tucked into his belt and retrieves it, waving it around.]

...are you trying to say this isn't just a load of crap? I thought these humans were... you know.

[He mimes smoking. Hippies.]

[replicatedcourage]

Uh, well the tomatoes were fresh.

[What's with this.. thing?]

What are you, anyway?

[paladaddy]

[See Shiro was a teenager during the 70s, so he knows allllllll about hippies. And that actually gets a snicker out of him.]

Nah, it's being truthful. You've got the natives, who're probably the people you met already, and then there's the people from other worlds, who are more normal.

[grombleness]

[Being asked what he is just insulting. The Gromble looms suddenly, tripling in size and screaming.]

A monster! I am a monster, you half-brained human!

[grombleness]

[He's not entirely sure he can believe it, but sure enough, all the other humans are continuing about their business even though he's out in the open chatting. No one's even attempting to flash him or organize an angry mob!

There might be some truth to what the human is saying, after all.]

Well, this is all really quite fascinating, and the brochure is appreciated, but it utterly fails at mentioning WHY WE ARE HERE IN THE FIRST PLACE!

[Don't mind the rapid changes in vocal tone from sweet to screaming, that's just his thing.]

[paladaddy]

[The yelling is understandable, but goddamn that breath. Shiro might be leaning back a bit from it.]

I've been asking that since I got here, and there's been no answers. You just get brought here, and eventually you get sent home.

[replicatedcourage]

Stop screaming!

[And there's Sola's fist aimed right for whatever part of Gromble he can still reach.]

I'm not a human, and if you scream again I'll kill you! Heroes kill monsters!

[Ugh, now he's still hearing ringing in his ears even after the screeching stopped.]

[grombleness]

[He does not like being tugged about like this, not one little bit. Shiro's calm demeanor does a lot to keep him from trying to scare again, at least.]

Ugh.

[Well, the brochure does say they'll be provided for. He needs to fill his sac if he's going to continue to talk in such an oxygen rich environment.]

I don't suppose there's a good dump or sewer anywhere nearby?