apocalypsehowcomm | (log) tdm prompts

[All in all, Crowley isn't so sure about the concept of hopping on a train for almost an entire day so they can go stop some nonsense in the Appalachians, but he'd been less keen about hanging about ADI with reduced staff, so here he is.

Most of his time is spent bothering Aziraphale, or dozing, but eventually he gets bored enough to go wandering, looking for someone else to bother so Aziraphale doesn't get fed up with him.

First stop is the dining car, where he grabs a couple of mediocre looking sandwiches, and then he's free to poke about and make a nuisance of himself. When he spots Katrina positioned in a seat by the window, he decides to say hi, dropping down into the seat beside her without much fanfare.]

Want one?

[A still-wrapped sandwich, since he has a spare.

Not that he's being nice or anything.]

[ Trains are new. Being so far from the ocean is also new. But she wants to stop the Entities from doing their work, so she has gone along on the trip.

The food is... subpar, even for humans, but it speaks to a need for sustenance over indulgence. That much she can relate to, and it has made eating easier. Being on land has made her a little bit soft. She thinks she understands now why Ryn wants so badly to work toward peace.

She hears footsteps approaching, but she doesn't move until he sits and speaks up.

She doesn't smile-- she's still working on making it look natural rather than terrifying-- but she doesn't do anything to indicate he's not welcome. Crowley is like her, not human. And he's intelligent. She trusts him, at least for now. ]

I had tuna sandwich one hour ago.

[ Fish, naturally.

Even so, she takes the sandwich from him. ]

I save for later. Thank you. You have ride train before?

[ Transitions are another thing she's working on. ]

[Crowley isn't even a little bit surprised by the lack of smile or general sort of — vibe that Katrina has, but he's equally not bothered by it. If she didn't want the company, he's certain that she'd say something. There's some reassurance in being friends with someone who's so straightforward, he never has to worry where he stands.

He gives a little nod of acknowledgement to her thanks, which is an improvement on outright brushing it off.

#growth]

Oh, loads. First one I ever rode was pulled by horses, but those were mostly for moving around goods, not nearly as posh as this. [Not that it's especially posh, but it's a big step up from a wagon bed being pulled by horses.] They used to be a fantastic way to get around, especially if you had the money for a nice room.

[Which he always did, of course.]

How are you liking it?

[ Things on land are starting to fascinate her more than give her cause to look down on land-dwellers. Trains. Cars. Their buildings and amusements. Their music and dancing. She can see clearly how it all drew Ryn in and made her want friendship with humans. ]

It is okay. Noisy, but fast. Mountains and forest are beautiful and deep, good for hunting.

[ A slight pause, as she backtracks a little. ]

What are horses?

[There's something to be said for paring things back to the most simple points; Crowley appreciates that about Katrina.]

Horses are a land animal. Awful things to ride and stink something terrible, but they're alright from a distance. They're sort of big, have hooves, a long face. [He sort of — makes a long horse face gesture with his hands. You know the one.] I'd pull up a picture, but I doubt we've got any signal out here.

[A tragedy for so many reasons.]

[ Yeah, she can't really imagine them. Hooves she knows, because she has seen (and hunted and killed) deer. Horses she needs to see. She's curious. Humans use them to pull cars, for transportation. Interesting. ]

In town we go to, if they have pictures, I want to see.

[ Riding them. Humans are fascinating. ]

This is first time I go so far from the ocean. Maybe it will be last. It is--

[ Is it just her, or did that feel particularly bumpy? She scowls a little. ]

Train is shaky.

They'll likely have real horses where we're going.

[Crowley doesn't actually know all that much about the Appalachians, but humans are fond of horses, especially in areas where it isn't as easy to travel by car.

He'd also bet that Katrina will be a fan of horses. She has a horse girl vibe.

And would likely prefer them to trains, if nothing else.]

The tracks're old up here, probably just a bit wobbly in places. I'd not worry about it too much.

[Famous last words.]

[ It never even occurred to her that Wolf Pen might have horses. Slight surprise registers on her face. If she could do it without being terrifying, she would smile a little right now.

She's about to respond, when suddenly, the lights go out.

Immediately, she tenses, though her mind is mostly calm. ]

This is normal?

[The first thing Crowley does is twist around in his seat to look back where he left Aziraphale, not that he can make anything out.

It's just darkness, though, no screaming or horrible things coming out of the woodwork, so he keeps his seat for the moment.]

Ehhhh, could be normal, could be something weird. Hard to say with this place, but I'd keep your wits about you.

[ That's fair. Katrina really does need to work on not immediately going into attack mode. Danger is different here on land, in this world that is like hers but not hers. ]

Train entered tunnel. But electric lights do not change with--

[ A crisp, clear tapping sound on the window cuts her off. She turns in the direction of the sound, but it's still pitch black, and she can't see a thing. ]

Do you hear this?

[For a literal demon from Hell, Crowley can startle easily sometimes, and the sudden tapping has his shoulders tensing up as he mutters a surprised shit.]

I hear it. Hang on —

[It isn't difficult to dig his phone out of his pocket, but attempting to bring the screen to life is a pointless exercise, earning another curse from Crowley.]

Right, definitely some bullshit, then. Are you armed?

[The answer is likely yes, he's sure.]

[ She's starting to gain an appreciation for the word "bullshit" and all it can mean. ]

I have a knife. Spear is with my bag.

[ She has one duffel bag. Katrina travels light.

Since the lights went out, she's only moved her head. Now, she stops doing even that, and lowers her voice. ]

Creature that tap may hunt with sound.

[That is... a very good point, and it has Crowley falling silent as well, turning to look towards where the tapping.

When he speaks again, he keeps his voice low. Just in case.]

Keep it ready, but let's not bring a sharp object into the mix just yet. People are stupid when they're scared.

[ He's right. In darkness like this, using a weapon is as likely to hurt an ally as it is to hurt a foe.

The tapping comes from another direction then, the other side of the train. Katrina turns her head in that direction. ]

One or many?

[The thing about Hell is that it's dark.

There are lights, sure, the awful sort of flickering fluorescent bulbs that do little more than cause a headache, but they go out more often than not, and there are places in the depths where no light has ever touched, not even from flame.

It's been a little while, since Crowley's been in the true dark, but it isn't something easily forgotten. He breathes out slowly, focusing on the sounds around them and then trying to focus past them. They don't need to hear people panicking or fumbling in the dark, he needs to hear the tapping.]

Many. I'd bet four or five, at least.

[ After he responds, she takes a moment to listen too, and confirms his guess. She's familiar with this hunting strategy. ]

Work together. Make prey afraid so it run to hunters waiting.

[ Her opinion of humans in general is not so high that she thinks they'll alo be fine. But the humans with ADI? The people from other worlds? They should be okay. Even Bruno is more likely to hide than to run off.

The tapping starts right behind her, and if she weren't accustomed to hunting and lurking in the dark depths of the ocean on the edge of the continental shelf, she might have jumped.

Slowly, she reaches out to where she last saw Crowley, to where his voice comes from. ]

I grab your hand. [ A moment later, she finds his hand and covers it with hers. ] I am here. If you throw punch, you will not hit me.

Best to stay where we are, then.

[He's worried about Aziraphale, but it's the sort of worry that would exist regardless of the level of danger, and the sort of worry that he's carried with him so long he can keep it contained.

Aziraphale is likely just as safe as him, if not safer, on account of being able to handle himself in a fight far better than Crowley can.

The tapping starting up right nearby has him freezing, but he doesn't jump, nor does he jump when Katrina touches him. It's a little odd, but he understands the logic, remaining still until she finds his hand.]

I'll do — [my best would've been the end of that sentence, had he not been interrupted by someone reaching the edge of their fear threshold.

That was definitely the sound of someone trying to run, only tp trip over something and faceplant on the floor nearby.] — Oh, for fuck's sake.

[ It's good to have someone she can count on around in this pitch dark, and she would say as much if not for the one person trying and failing to flee.

As much as she'd like to, Katrina does not let out a longsuffering sigh-- which is a shame, as it would have been her first one ever. ]

This is how they hunt. [ And that is, indeed, her first attempt at flat irony. In short, she agrees with Crowley's sentiment. ]

This person is a fool. There is no hunter in this train car. It would have made sound.

[If anything, it's a good metric for whether or not there is something in the train with them, because the person struggling on the ground would make a great appetizer.

But there are no sounds of like, flesh being torn asunder, so they're probably fine.]

Don't tell them that, better them than us if something does get inside.

[ She smirks a little, because that's so reminiscent of life in the ocean. Survival is paramount, even if they are the apex predators of the deep. ]

Yes. [ The tapping comes again, from a row or two down. ] If no one run outside, they will be tired of waiting and will go hunt other prey.

Lucky for all of us, they don't make trains easy to get out of while they're moving.

[If they'd been here several decades ago, it might have been different, but safety upgrades make it pretty tricky to get out of a moving train.]

Cage that keep us safe.

[ A decidedly not comforting thought. ]

And we will not starve. We can share sandwich you gave to me.

[ Katrina being positive? Perhaps the apocalypse is nigh indeed. ]

[That is.... a very sweet sentiment that Crowley definitely doesn't actually think is sweet, because then he'd have to acknowledge having any kind of affection for people.]

Hopefully we'll not be in here that long. It feels like the train's still moving.

[It's said with the awareness that Entities are very good at messing with perception, so for all he knows they could've been stopped for twenty minutes.]

[ Affection for people? Terrible. It's called ensuring group survival, gosh. Affection is for ~~humans~~ ~~losers~~ humans. ]

This journey teach me that mountains are not safe.

[ Nothing like this ever happened in the ocean, that much she's sure of.

And then, just as suddenly as the lights went out, they come back. Katrina blinks as her eyes adjust to what feels like the glare of the sun.

The tapping has also stopped. ]

They are finished.

[ Whoever "they" even are. ]

(log) tdm prompts

katrina; fearful tunnel syndrome

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