Within the wilderness, far out of reach from any intelligent civilization. Laid a small encampment built in front of a cliff-side cavern. Legend foretells it's abandoned, stories say it's inhabited by demons, others say it's home to a madman, yet despite no one having been brave enough to scour through the pitch blackness of the Everblight forest, only one story was the closest thing to telling the truth. And it wasn't until this day, that someone from the outside, was brought to the small enclosure...
Tracing a different route each time he passed through, a portly hodded man led his newest colleague through the dense forest, hand-chosen based on how the man didn't question a single thing. He was driven by purpose alone, accepting his offered payment without questioning the nature of the job. A man who he knew, would keep what was only envisioned in stories to himself, not to tell a single soul about the work he would aid him in accomplishing. The man looked back over his shoulder, just as they were approaching the small canopy covered clearing…Seemed he took his time, trimming the trees to ensure no sky dwellers would find this little...'paradise'. "This is it, follow me..." he sternly instructs, beckoning the young man with a single, meaty crooked finger before cutting through the clearing to the dimly candle-lit cabin.."Don't tread behind now, keep up." he groans, sounding rather eager to get down to brass tasks..
Once in front of the door, the man would produce a key from his sleeve and reach for the topmost lock within quite the arrangement lining the left side of the door. For each, producing another key until each and every one was unlocked. It was then that the same large hand reached for the doorknob to turn it, his feet carrying him inside, swinging the door open enough for his new employee to follow on in...Inside, appeared to be a normal home, fully furnished and with a wide arrangement of collectibles and books organized upon bookshelf after bookshelf. More shockingly, the cabin was quite warm despite having no visible fireplace. Heat instead poured in from the non-insulated door that sealed the entryway to the caves. Efficient, considering the other efforts he made no to be discovered out here...However, as welcoming as his home seemed, he didn't give the lad any time to look around. Instead, he led him right on through (after locking the front back up of course) to the back door. "This way. Don't touch anything.." he demanded, sounding stern in his order before producing several more keys to the door now before him, repeating the same patient process of undoing each lock.
Soon, he swung the door open wide, ushering the lad to go on through. Once he did, he followed close behind, turning to shut the door and seal it behind him before taking point again. It wasn’t long before they rounded the first corner into a rather spacious room, revealing quite the assortment of caged animals on one side, with unworldly creatures contained in more reinforced, steel cells on the other. The work the man did to build such into the cavern walls certainly showed, revealing the man’s craftsmanship, or rather his paranoia in painstakingly carving out the stone and forging the steel that made up everything within. Whichever it was, it truly was impressive coming from just one man. “This is where you will be staying…No doddling, no wandering any further. You do exactly as you are told, nothing more, understood?” he explained, his tone more disgruntled, lightly highlighting his age as a fat old man. With that cleared, he stood in the middle of the room, looking around to the various creatures within his collection before eventually settling onto one in particular, motioning towards the small creature within the second cell “You can start by prepping the pink one…Make sure her muzzle is bound so she can’t bite and do see to that her back legs can’t kick either..” she instructs, motioning to the shelf nearby that held various amounts of restraints and apparatuses, set behind a tall steel worktable. It was there he stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his face still shrouded by his hood…waiting for the lad to move and do as he was instructed.
Tracing a different route each time he passed through, a portly hodded man led his newest colleague through the dense forest, hand-chosen based on how the man didn't question a single thing. He was driven by purpose alone, accepting his offered payment without questioning the nature of the job. A man who he knew, would keep what was only envisioned in stories to himself, not to tell a single soul about the work he would aid him in accomplishing. The man looked back over his shoulder, just as they were approaching the small canopy covered clearing…Seemed he took his time, trimming the trees to ensure no sky dwellers would find this little...'paradise'. "This is it, follow me..." he sternly instructs, beckoning the young man with a single, meaty crooked finger before cutting through the clearing to the dimly candle-lit cabin.."Don't tread behind now, keep up." he groans, sounding rather eager to get down to brass tasks..
Once in front of the door, the man would produce a key from his sleeve and reach for the topmost lock within quite the arrangement lining the left side of the door. For each, producing another key until each and every one was unlocked. It was then that the same large hand reached for the doorknob to turn it, his feet carrying him inside, swinging the door open enough for his new employee to follow on in...Inside, appeared to be a normal home, fully furnished and with a wide arrangement of collectibles and books organized upon bookshelf after bookshelf. More shockingly, the cabin was quite warm despite having no visible fireplace. Heat instead poured in from the non-insulated door that sealed the entryway to the caves. Efficient, considering the other efforts he made no to be discovered out here...However, as welcoming as his home seemed, he didn't give the lad any time to look around. Instead, he led him right on through (after locking the front back up of course) to the back door. "This way. Don't touch anything.." he demanded, sounding stern in his order before producing several more keys to the door now before him, repeating the same patient process of undoing each lock.
Soon, he swung the door open wide, ushering the lad to go on through. Once he did, he followed close behind, turning to shut the door and seal it behind him before taking point again. It wasn’t long before they rounded the first corner into a rather spacious room, revealing quite the assortment of caged animals on one side, with unworldly creatures contained in more reinforced, steel cells on the other. The work the man did to build such into the cavern walls certainly showed, revealing the man’s craftsmanship, or rather his paranoia in painstakingly carving out the stone and forging the steel that made up everything within. Whichever it was, it truly was impressive coming from just one man. “This is where you will be staying…No doddling, no wandering any further. You do exactly as you are told, nothing more, understood?” he explained, his tone more disgruntled, lightly highlighting his age as a fat old man. With that cleared, he stood in the middle of the room, looking around to the various creatures within his collection before eventually settling onto one in particular, motioning towards the small creature within the second cell “You can start by prepping the pink one…Make sure her muzzle is bound so she can’t bite and do see to that her back legs can’t kick either..” she instructs, motioning to the shelf nearby that held various amounts of restraints and apparatuses, set behind a tall steel worktable. It was there he stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his face still shrouded by his hood…waiting for the lad to move and do as he was instructed.
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say old man," the fiery haired boy sighed dramatically in response, tugging his coat off and dropping it onto the floor like he owned the place. He looked much too out of place here - too young to be called an adult, too pampered based on the silky fabric of his clothing and seemingly too oblivious to realize what he was getting himself into. But like the saying went, 'more than meets the eye', it applied all too accurately towards the teenager. Raleigh barely spared a glance at the other caged creatures within the room as emerald eyes zeroed in on his first job - and so he took the restraints from the shelf that the man had gestured to, the sound of clinking metal ringing and echoing loudly around the room as he moved towards the pink...furry creature-like thing. He could feel the old geezer's eyes burning holes in the back of his head and purposefully let out yet another loud sigh as if he were a petulant child being told to clean his room. Just to urge a reaction.
"Well?" Raleigh asked, turning to look at the man with testy patience. "Can't exactly prep the thing when the cell's locked, can I old man? So if you could please, please, pretty please unlock the door that would be much appreciated thank you." Sarcasm and attitude was all but making themselves known in his tone of voice, knowing fully well of his status in this place yet still arrogant enough to try giving his...let's say 'employer' hell to deal with. What's a job without a little fun after all?
"Well?" Raleigh asked, turning to look at the man with testy patience. "Can't exactly prep the thing when the cell's locked, can I old man? So if you could please, please, pretty please unlock the door that would be much appreciated thank you." Sarcasm and attitude was all but making themselves known in his tone of voice, knowing fully well of his status in this place yet still arrogant enough to try giving his...let's say 'employer' hell to deal with. What's a job without a little fun after all?
The portly scientist lightly scowled at the boy's snobbish attitude, but decided to let it pass when he saw Raleigh move to the shelves to retrieve the muzzle and the chained lead. Just what he wanted to see, someone willing to complete his tasks without so much as questioning his motives...Though, in seeing him turn to glare back his way, the man straightened his stature and pointed towards the label just to the right of the cage "The combination is the experiment's number right next to it's project alias. I assume you're familiar with padlocks.." he gruffly informed, returning his arm to his side, slipping his hand into his pant's pocket while he continued to observe how the boy handled the assigned specimen.
Off to the side of the pink creature's cell was indeed a label with the symbols N.I.Y.A 2175 inscribed onto it. Inside the cell, was a frightful, cowering female. A vixen girl with tails-a-plenty curled about her shivering form. All the other experiments were so loud! How they screamed, barked and shrieked at the boy from their own confined cells. A few of them even shrilled out their protest towards the old man, to which he ignored. He almost constantly heard the vile creatures in his ears all the time, even when he was away fro his lab. It was like a burned image on a screen, permanently etched into his everyday life. He even heard it in his sleep..But the noises, the noises frightened the girl. Even moreso, the one approaching her cell didn't seem to help matters. He was coming in for her and she knew it! Hunkering her head, she made all attempt to conceal herself with the tiniest hope that she would just vanish, but the collar already fixed around her neck inhibited her magical capabilities. There was no use, she wasn't going anywhere. All she could do was wait and pray that she wasn't harmed, whimpering softly to herself all the while "N-nna-na...nnnaaa..." she began to snivel.
Off to the side of the pink creature's cell was indeed a label with the symbols N.I.Y.A 2175 inscribed onto it. Inside the cell, was a frightful, cowering female. A vixen girl with tails-a-plenty curled about her shivering form. All the other experiments were so loud! How they screamed, barked and shrieked at the boy from their own confined cells. A few of them even shrilled out their protest towards the old man, to which he ignored. He almost constantly heard the vile creatures in his ears all the time, even when he was away fro his lab. It was like a burned image on a screen, permanently etched into his everyday life. He even heard it in his sleep..But the noises, the noises frightened the girl. Even moreso, the one approaching her cell didn't seem to help matters. He was coming in for her and she knew it! Hunkering her head, she made all attempt to conceal herself with the tiniest hope that she would just vanish, but the collar already fixed around her neck inhibited her magical capabilities. There was no use, she wasn't going anywhere. All she could do was wait and pray that she wasn't harmed, whimpering softly to herself all the while "N-nna-na...nnnaaa..." she began to snivel.