>>You hear the father walk far off into the cavern.

>>You listen to the soft squeaking screeches of the bats for a while, the sounds gaining a depth to them as your hearing adjusts to them.

>>You try to imitate the sound, quietly. You do so for several minutes, varying the pitch and tone until it is perfect. You can hear yourself, but your vision does not return.

>>You listen, silently.

>>You slowly begin to hear more and more. The flowing stream far off down the tunnel, Hugh's toes grinding into the ground as they clench and unclench, You hear the soft echoes off of the walls, and then, after a while, you hear a far off screeching. It slowly builds, getting closer, as a wall of sound drives into your ears. You are lost in a chaotic mass of noise, the flutter of leathery wings nearly drowned out as you feel a few of the bats brush past you. You feel a pain in your ears, and suddenly you feel as though a hole has been punched into them, widening the small holes into your head. The noise becomes much more manageable.

>>Your hearing has improved.

>>You listen to each individual bat's screeching for a while. The noise is different for many of them, just at a very high pitch. You puff up your chest, and screech. You can hear right where the sound impacted the wall, imagining every curve and "seeing" dozens of tiny, swift blurs in the air.

>>Bats.

My body is ready...

>>You have learned to see with sound.

>>Hugh, are you tired?" You ask him.

>>"Not anymore! This is great! We could go flying now that you can see again!" Hugh says, shaking you a bit. "If you think you can, that is." He smiles. "Actually I'm fine right here, too. All these little guys are really cool. They're like weird birds that hang upside down."

>>The two of you make your way outside. You find that a series of short, high pitched bursts lets you see quite well. You and Hugh are greeted by the cool of the night.

>>The two of you fly for some time into the night, diving and weaving with the pure joy of flight.

>>You have learned the meaning of brotherhood.

Previous Thread: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/14375864/

>>14399392
I assume we start after we sleep the day away...

You and Hugh descend after you have rediscovered the joys of flight. He laughs as you land rather harshly on the ground.

"It's been ages since I've seen you land clumsily. Ages..." He pauses, as though remembering something.

You remember your first few times flying. You chipped a finger sticking the landing on all fours, and tumbled over a shoulder, the impact rattling your body. You were astounded at how much the impact had hurt. This was nowhere near that bad.

You hear the far off sound of a motor.

What will you do?

>>eyes ehousio

And I thought I had a sick sense of humor, capcha...

>>14399488
Hide; we don't know if that's Father yet. If it is, we'll show ourselves.

>>14399504

You pull Hugh into cover, putting a finger to your lips. He nods, and the two of you keep silent watch.

A large, box-like car with an open top and a spare tire on the front pulls up to the cave. A young man dressed in shorts and a buttoned shirt with two pockets on the front gets out of the vehicle and examines the wet ground where you and the father walked last night. He pulls out a small device you can recognize from the movies as a radio and speaks into it.

"You were right, someone was here, Around midnight. Strange claw marks in the soft earth, look like a child from the gait, but the foot's posture is wrong, and the way it's pressed into the ground."

He looks around, obviously on the lookout. He does not notice you or Hugh.

"Two sets. And a man wearing shoes. Average height. Tire tracks going here and away. No, Max, they're not bear tracks. The foot's angular, claw looks like it's projecting out of the toe, it's strange... Yeah, I'll be here, come as soon as you can."

He is alone.

>>14399607
Do nothing; we are the justice, and would never strike down a civilian etc etc.

>>14399643

The young man walks over to the entrance of the bat cave, leaving very shallow tracks. He walks in a peculiar manner, making him very quiet even to your enhanced hearing. He examines the tracks by the cave, in particular the great scoring marks where you and Hugh took off about twenty minutes ago. He tests the soil with his tongue, and looks int he direction of the tracks. He stands, surveying the scene and pondering what he's discovered. His hand goes to his side, removing a strap over a small bang stick at his hip.

After looking around a bit more, he begins examining the sides of the cave, slowly working in a circular pattern that you know will eventually reach your landing site.

>>14399761
Is it possible to get on top of the cave without being seen AND have cover up there?

>>14399870

He seems particularly perceptive. Quiet as you are, moving and disturbing a branch would likely draw his attention. The cave has a small ledge farther up its face that would give you next to no cover. The top of the hill might give you some, though there is a great deal of foliage atop it.

>>14399909
Can we scurry into the cave without attracting too much attention? Is there any cover away from the cave (past his car)?

>>14400007

The cave, he would spot you even if he was a normal person. Past his car, along the road there's little cover. But plenty off behind you, as well as a small pond. You suspect it's past sunup since the man's not using a flashlight to look around.

He continues to get closer, till he drifts away in his methodical pattern.

>>14400080
Let's try to hide near/in the small pond. Hopefully, we're water proof.

>>14400099

You are a stone creature who regularly spits water. Of course you are.

You and Hugh move quietly as is possible over to the pond. You step in a few dry leaves, and you can see the man turn in your direction, putting his hand on his gun as you and Hugh duck on the bank of the pond.

"Who's there?" He calls out.

You reduce the volume on your screeching, just to be safe. Apparently, you can make the noise with your mouth closed at a much closer range. Good to know.

Hugh slowly mouths the words "What are we going to do now?"

>>14400273
How dark and deep is the pond? Hopefully our new-found sonar can tell depth in water.

Also, how dense in the foliage around the pond?

>>14400358

You aren't sure how dark it is, and your "vision" looks strange under water. You don't need to breathe, so going below the depths should pose no threat.

The foliage around the pond is thicker over towards the other side, perhaps large enough to hide behind. That will take a bit to get to, though.

>>14400498
Let's go for it; slip in the water as quietly as we can and get under the foliage.

Mouthing to Hugh: "Under there."

>>14400553

You and Hugh slip down into the water silently, and you soon realize that your vision is very strange down here. Everything seems to be moving as though they were flags waving in the wind. You wait for a long time before surfacing. You can see the man and another dressed similarly investigating where you and Hugh slipped into the pond.

"I just don't understand it. No one can hold their breath for that long, especially not a child." The new man says.

>>14400824
Keep down there; they'll hopefully give up.

>>14400837

You descend back down. You can see them from just the edge of the water as you walk a bit closer on the bottom of the pond. The man's face is furrowed with concern, but eventually he and the other man drive off.

You and Hugh surface. Hugh spits out a bit of plant material. "Ugh, I'm glad we can't taste anything." He says. "Those guys sure were tenacious, I wonder what's up?"

Gargoyles, a name taken back from the original statue-fountains and spouts of Franse, which most commonly demon-esque in design, they would transport water through their 'mouths'. Hence the name gargoyle, which in reference to gargle sheds some light on the matter.

>>14400905
"I don't know...Let's go sleep and wait back in the cave for Father to return."

>>14401038

"I don't know...Let's go sleep and wait back in the cave for the Father to return." You say, brushing some of the weeds off of your body.

You creep back into the cave, where you can hear soft squeaking from the bats who are now getting to sleep. You feel somewhat tired yourself. But you remain awake, to wait for the father. It's not like he can move you while you're sleeping.

>>14401124
Are we impervious to being awaken while sleeping? No knocking on our head?

>>14401145

You're hard to wake up. Years of sleeping through traffic and the sounds of the city has made you a heavy sleeper.

You wait for some time after Hugh says the sun is risen, but there is no sign of the Father.

>>14401207
Wait some more! If he doesn't come...well...fuck.

>>14401235

He doesn't come.

"It's really early." Hugh says with a yawn. "Sun's getting up there."

"You don't think..." He stops himself, tensing.

>>14401287
"No, I'm sure he's busy. We'll wait till tonight. Let's get some rest."

Then, find a neat little place to sleep inside the cave.

>>14401328

"No, I'm sure he's busy. We'll wait till tonight. Let's get some rest."

You see Hugh nod, slowly, looking down at the floor of the cave.

As you become weightier and weightier, you cannot help but wonder why O'Malley hasn't come. You do not know the way back to the church. All you can do is hope nothing has happened.

"Hello?"

A quiet voice rouses you from slumber that you know has not lasted long. It sounds like the voice of a young girl, coming from the other cave entrance.

Hugh is roused as well, but is silent.

"Hello? Anyone there?"

>>14401445
Fuuuu-

Remain still. Hopefully, we were smart enough to put us out of direct sight.

>>14401487

You totally were. You can hear soft footfalls from off towards the entrance.

"Anyone?" The voice shouts, before you hear the person fall to the ground.

"Ow..." The voice says after a bit.

The bats hear this, and some of them wake, groggily.

>>14401525
We are so smart. :D

Stay hidden, but try to get a good sonar vision of this girl.

>>14401597

You hold a hand up to Hugh, and let out a high pitched noise that agitates the bats a bit.

You can see a young girl, about three feet in height with long, wavering hair dressed in a skirt and sweatpants and a long sleeve shirt. She is a child, probably no more than seven. She's rubbing her knee where she fell, and walking awkwardly further into the cave.

>>14401657
Is there anywhere she might fall or get hurt ahead of her?

>>14401657

An innocent. We should remain out of sight, as gargoyles are terrifying for even adults, never mind children. Still, she may be in need of help.

Call out to her, "Are you lost, miss?"

>>14401668

The ground is unsteady, so she might trip, but nothing too serious.

"Are you lost, miss?" You call down the cave.

She perks up instantly. "Yes! I need help! There are bad men after me!"

>>14401741
JUSTICE!

"Who are these bad men?"

Don't reveal ourselves, though.

>>14401758

"Who are these bad men?"

"I don't know. They were wearing suits, and had knives. Please help me! I don't know where to go!" The girl answers.

>>14401804
Flashbacks to /the/ night.

Poke Hugh and mouth to him: "Watch her; I'll be back."

After that, scurry outside past her.

>>14401826

You whisper to Hugh to guard the child, skirting out past the young girl, who is now deep in the cave.

You are outside. You hear rustling in the brush.

What will you do?

>>14401905
Stay hidden, but try to scout out the area with our sonar vision. Be ready to fight the bad guys.

>>14401932

You see a man stalking on a path towards the cave, a strange knife that curves like a river in his hand. He is wearing a mask with long tendrils attached to the front, and he moves oddly, like a puppet with no visible strings. His breathing is hard and erratic.

>>14402085
OH SHIT NIGGAH!

Try to find some cover or brush of some sort, get closer, then wait and see what he does.

>>14402117

You get into the brush. You see him walk down the path, clutching the knife in his grasp with the point down. You smell fresh blood from the blade. He is softly chanting something.

"Dread Cthulhu sleeps in R'leyh, beyond time and space, soon he will awaken, soon, soon. I'a I'a Cthulhu f'tagn..."

>>14402085
stay hidden. Wait until he enters the mouth of the cave, so his vision is compensating. We'll have the tactical advantage of superior 'vision', surprise, and historical supremacy (We're made of Rock, and all he has is half a pair of scissors. I think the numbers crunch in our favor.)

>>14402165

lol. Good point.

I shall return in 30 minutes to attend to this.

>>14402150
Didn't we see this in a silver screen picture, once?

>>14402203

P-p-p-possibly.

You wait in the brush, seeing the man advance towards the cave. You shriek terribly, the man clutching his ears as you pounce on him, slamming his head into the soft earth. He loses consciousness.

>>14402514
We're the God-damn batman; we don't have time for Cthulu. Check for any other cultists around. If no one else is around, let's return to Hugh and the little girl.

>>14402537

There is no one else in the immediate area.

You slip back into the cavern, having to run along the wall a bit till you reach Hugh.

"Who are you?" The girl asks, curled up with her arms over her knees. You realize that the cave is a bit chilly. "Hello?"

>>14402698
Speaking in riddles time.

"A blind guardian, child...and who are you?"

Wait for answer.

"Your pursuer has been dealt with; now what are you doing here?"

"A blind guardian, child...and who are you?"

"Cindy. Cindy Markov. My daddy's a watchmaker." She says, shivering a bit.

"Your pursuer has been dealt with; now what are you doing here?" Your voice echoes in the cave. You think you can hear the position of things when you speak to her, incredibly vague compared to the normal high pitch.

"I was walking home from school when those men took me. I was in a wooden cage with some other people, but I escaped. I don't know what happened to the rest of them." She says, somewhat calmly.

>>14402787
What have we learned so far?

Brotherhood, anger, mercy, pain, and...stuff?

>>14402804

You have learned: alot.

You have: Two bang sticks; The father's bang stick (Silver bullets), The thug's bang stick (Silver bullets)
Walking stick

You have learned: The meaning of death
The meaning of hate
The meaning of fear
The meaning of brotherhood
Mourning the dead
Resourcefulness under pressure
Sympathy
True Pain

Your stone is an unknown shade.

You stand at around 4 feet tall.

Your ears seem larger, and your hearing has become superhuman.

You are completely blind, but have learned to see with sound.

>>14402804
>>14402929

Alright OP; I have class in 5 hours again. It's been mad fun, but sleep calls to me. However, one last instruction:

Since we're going to have to reveal ourselves to this child eventually, let's get it over with at the next possible convenience. Tell her that the mouth of the cave is fine because we took care of the cultist, then slowly (SLOWLY) reveal ourselves to her. Before this, we should be somehow gaining her trust. Ask her what her father is like, how she's doing, what her favorite candy is; whatever can make her not immediately flip a lid when she sees us.

Hopefully, this little girl isn't a trap of Eldritch horror that will now try to eat our face. D:

>>14402947

Alright, I shall post the next part in no real hurry then. I shall run on Wednesday again, with a possible break.

>>14402947

"Cindy, my name is Gabriel. I have a friend here named Hugh."

"Hi Cindy." Hugh speaks up. You do have to admit, Hugh's voice sounds much less threatening than yours.

"Hi." She says back, tentatively.

"Tell me, what is your father like?" You ask her.

"He's nice, he reads me stories." She says. "About princesses and castles." She pauses. "He made me a cuckoo clock. It makes a funny noise."

"A cuckoo clock?" You ask.

"You know, like in that one film, what was it called..." Hugh says, thinking aloud. "Anyway, the one with the people in the hospital and Nurse Ratchet."

"I think that was 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'. And it wasn't about cuckoo clocks." You add.

"Aww." Hugh says, morosely.

"Are you doing alright, Cindy?" You say over to her.

"I'm kinda scared, but daddy told me that as long as I was brave, I would be alright." She says.

"That's right. You're a brave girl, Cindy."

Cindy grins. "Yeah. My daddy said when you're scared, that's when being brave is most important."

You look over at Hugh. "Alright then, Cindy. The man who was chasing you is gone. But I need you to be brave. Hugh and I are going to walk over to the cave entrance so you can see us."

Next Time:

Scaring Children 101

or

Nyarlathotep? I hardly know 'er!

See you then!