Threaded Mode | Linear Mode

Doctor Louis D'Ville · (03-13-2021)

“All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king.”

- J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

Doc stared at the mountain and the mountain stared back at Doc. A heavy fog of war covered the valley between them like a blanket, but slowly began to lift as the sun rose higher over the horizon. He took a step forward and began to slowly skid down the steep cliff towards what now appears a dense forest below. Doc slips and falls forward into several tumbles head over feet until he reaches the bottom. His head takes one final blow against a rock and it knocks him really silly. He sits in a daze for a moment and watches everything go dark around him.

"Weighing in at…. Five pounds and three ounces! She may be light, but she looks strong! Congratulations!"

The doctor hands off the baby to the mother in the bed. Another man in a surgical mask and scrubs sits with her and they both love over the newcomer together.

“Isn’t she perfect?”

“She is, darling. She truly is.”

“Our Angel.”

“She has your eyes…”

“She has your smile…”

“It will only be a short trip, my dear. No worries, I will be back by the end of the month and, I swear, it will be working from home the rest of the summer.”

“Promise?”

“Of course.”

“I’m sad you won’t make it for her birthday…”

“I swear I’ll make up for it, darling. Soon, we will have all the time in the world!”

*SNAP* *SNAP*

"Hey."

*SNAP* *SNAP*

”Hello?”

*WACK*

OUCH!

”There you are.”

Doc opens his eyes and sees a pale face staring at him nose-to-nose. He hurriedly backs away, back into the rock that nearly ended him a moment ago, and smarts out-loud again. The face is that of a little girl type creature. She resembles a little girl, but is smaller. Not small like a small person, but just smaller. Pixie-like, but bigger. Her tiny frame perched down like a bird as she investigated Doc.

Everything about her seemed… magical. There was an aura about her. Everything she touched left a stain of glitter and the static in the air around her kept you alert at all times. She stands and curiously stares at Doc..

"So what brings ya here, stranger?"

Doc cocked an eyebrow and searched around his pockets for a cigar.

Hell---oooo?

She waves her hand back and forth with a duh look about her.

You there?

I’m here to… visit the mountain, my dear.

HE SPEAKS!

She skips over to a rock by where Doc is brushing the dirt off and sits.

I’m Dolly! What’s your name?

Doc looks up at the girl as she stares blankly back at him.

Well, my friends call me, Doc.

Hmmmmmm.

Dolly veers away from Doc and slides off the rock. She turns back to him and leans a bit with a raspy whisper.

Do you think we’re friends?

Doc laughs to himself. Who is this child? Who does she belong to?

Uh… Shh--

Dolly’s kind of twirling around in place and kicking at the grass before she interrupts.

You seem nice. You’re all alone, really confused, and seem lost. It looks like you could USE a friend. Hmmm…

I….---

Okay, Dawk!

Dolly takes a leap and jumps in front of Doc holding out her hand to shake, which Doc accepts.

Friends it is!

Honestly, I don’t really need that much help. If you could just---

PFFFFFTTTT!!!!

Dolly busts out laughing and pointing at Doc.

HA! Dude.... There is NO WAY you’re getting to the mountain without a guide. No. Way.

I’m not sure what I’m missing. It’s… POINTING Right over there….

It’s not that easy, Dawk. You’ve gotta go through the Angry Forest, which can be a real asshole if you’re not careful. In the middle of that is the swamp… And that place just sucks…

Angry…. Forest?

Bunch of trees... Wildlife...

The trees are angry?

The forest is PISSED!

The two have a stare down.

Do you want my help or not?

Doc ponders.

You’re offering to be my guide?

Well, yeah, we’re friends, right?

Indeed!

DOLLY HAS JOINED THE PARTY!

Doc smiles and finally pulls out the cigar he longed for before and bites down on it.

HEY! WOAH! What are you doing?!

What is it?

Dolly motions with her head towards Doc.

You can’t take THAT in there.

Doc looks cross-eyed down at his stogie and sighs before spitting it out into his jacket. Dolly is already started down the path towards the woods and doesn’t look back as Doc then scurries behind her.

It’s a short walk to the tree-line and the two never speak the rest of the way. Keeping their balance on top of a mixture of clay, dirt, and grass kept their attention more than anything. When they reached the entrance to the woods, Dolly turned back almost running into Doc.

Mind your manners in there.

She points with the other hand on her hip.

I know no other way, my dear.

As they enter, Doc can hear echoes of fighting and screaming… Yelling and arguing... Traffic jams and sirens…

Reminds me of rush hour.

I told you it was pissed. You get used to it after a while.

Doc shrugs.

As you would.

Dolly was unphased by the forest’s din and skips through like a simple path was laid before them. There wasn’t. Meanwhile, Doc is dodging acorns and pinecones being thrown at him from unknown snipers at every step and he swears that the roots have curled up a few times in attempts at tripping him. They finally reach a small clearing where Dolly offers to sit for a rest. The bitching and moaning coming from the forest seemed to have ceased or is at the very least quiet inside this little place where the first time since entering nothing is trying to hurt him. Doc accepts the offer. He finds himself a friendly stump to lean against and drifts into a light slumber.

“You’re missing her life… Don’t you see that? You come home for a week… Not even a week… And you’re gone again. You said this would end… You promised.”

“You must understand, dearest. What I do is for the both of you. We will make real memories for her soon. Trust me.”

“You’re running out of time.”

Doc opens his eyes and blinks a few times as he doesn’t believe what he sees. As his vision clears he notices a pair of eyes staring back at him from a tree. Doc looks over to Dolly, who’s sitting on a rock paying no attention. Once Doc looks back, the eyes are gone. He murmurs to himself about seeing things and pulls himself up to his feet. Dolly looks over to him and smiles.

Ready to go?

Sure. Dolly… Let me ask you. Do you live here?

In the woods? PFFFFTT! NO.

Well, where is it that you--

ATTACK!

Doc is speared and dropped to his back. He fights off the dizziness and recognizes the same eyes staring back at him that was before.

Is this guy bothering you, Dolly?

No, Thaddeus! I was taking him to the mountain.

The cat-like creature loosens its claw-like grip on Doc’s chest and looks back at Dolly.

The mountain? Why are you--

Doc frees his arms and manages to flip the creature over and take top. He puts two hands around the beast’s throat and squeezes.

A friend of yours??

A tree reaches down immediately and picks Doc up in the air and squeezes him tightly around the abdomen. Dolly sighs and runs up to the incident.

HEY! What did I tell you?! Mind! Your! Manners!

Are you kidding?! *GAK*

Doc chokes out a few words.

Put him down, please?

The large tree groans and releases Doc from about ten feet in the air and he falls flat.

"She's sick."

"I wish you were here."

"I hate you."

Doc opens his eyes to blurry vision once again. Dolly’s small, confused face takes shape as Doc shakes out the cobwebs.

You sure do sleep a lot, Dawk.

He shakes his head back together and hears the beast growl and stare at him from the other side of Dolly.

Who is this guy?

His name’s Dawk.

Thaddeus looks at Dolly as if saying, “AND?” But there’s nothing.

Did he tell you that or did YOU name him? Where’s he from Dolly? What does he want?

Pardon me. I can hear you loud and clear, kitten.

Thaddeus snarls again at Doc. After getting a good look, he’s very human-like even with the cat features. He looked like a normal boy dressed-up like a cat, but done very well. And his claws were sharp. He wasn’t wearing clothes, but some sort of decorative armor, but the most distinct thing about him was the beautiful mane that flowed around his neck.

I dunno. He seemed nice. He’d definitely get lost or KILLED on his way there by himself.

He does look weak… Beat up by a tree? Ha, aha!

There’s a sound of branches cracking and a long groan from a few trees around them.

Oh, be quiet!

A cold wind blows and makes Dolly shiver a bit. She looks back through the forest from which they came. It looks different then before.

Where to now, my dear?

Doc struggles with his words a bit while he still tries to catch his wind. Dolly continues to stare back from where the wind was coming. Thaddeus slaps her on the shoulder and she looks back.

We’d better get moving.

What’s up?

It’s nothing. You coming?

Thaddeus looks at Dolly with his lion prince nobility then a smirk.

I’m still kinda mad, but I can’t let you go on alone with someone stranger. You have a problem with that, Dawk?

More the merrier, I suppose.

Awe. You said your friends call you “Dawk”.

THADDEUS HAS JOINED THE PARTY!

They all begin to leave the area. Doc follows behind the two on the path as they talk. He’s still licking his wounds from his fall. They don’t go far before the projectiles start flying again, but Dolly also puts a stop to that. The forest seems to listen to her, which again makes Doc ask questions, but he keeps to himself and is just happy the relentless attack has finally ceased. The forest has seemed to open up more. The path is wide as the three of them now walk together side by side and talk.

So what brought YOU to the Angry Forest, Thaddeus?

Eh… Ya know..

Dolly’s in the middle, she looks to her right at Doc.

Thaddeus is a prince.

Doc’s eyes widen up and he leans forward to look at the beast.

That a fact?

Yeah, it’s nothing, DOLLY...

A rancid smell stings Doc’s nostrils and causes him to break into a coughing and sneezing frenzy.

What is that? Did the cat have an accident?

Dolly laughs and the beast has grown to ignore.

No, no. That would be the Swamp of Denial, Dawk!

The Swamp of what?

DENIAL.

An interesting place you folks have here.

They walk a bit further and right into this swamp. The ground becomes muck and the trees become more sad the further they go. The forest seemed to make way for this even more wicked place. Within the trees there was at least life, here there was nothing. The three of them walk together with mud up past their ankles.

Now, be careful. There’s deep spots.

I hate this shit.

Thaddeus leaps up and grabs a hold of a tree. They’re close enough together that he can go from tree to tree, even in their tired, sad, weakened state.

Was there no way around this muck?

There was.

Then why are we--?

Mid Sentence Doc sinks into a deep spot. His boots slide against the mud in the bottom and he flails around in the dank water for a moment before catching himself. Just before he shoves himself upward he sees another figure floating underwater looking at him in the water. Before he can make out what it is a claw reaches down and grabs him by the collar and rips him out of the water. Thaddeus drags Doc into the few inches of water they were just standing in.

I told you to watch your step, Dawk.

Yes… *COUGH* Your advice has been… crucial.

Doc spats out some more swamp water.

There was something in the water.

Like what?

I don’t know. When I woke up earlier, YOU were stalking me from a tree. I had a similar feeling.

I wasn’t stalking you…

You kinda were.

I was---

There’s a splash and a creature flies into the air and lands on a tree. It’s amphibious-like, but much like the other beast with its features. We’ve got “Cat-Boy” and “Frog-Boy”.

What is that?

Hey, Dolly. Interesting company you’re keeping these days.

The frog speaks.

Hi, Corey!

The frog leaps from one tree to another around the party.

Just passing through?

YEP!

The frog lands on a tree ahead of Doc then swings down around a branch to go face to face with him.

Who’s your friend?

Oh! That’s DAWK!

Dawk?

No. DAWK.

Interesting name.

Doc looks up and sees all eyes on him for a moment.

So, what’s up?

We’re taking DAWK to the mountain.

Why?

YEAH! Why?

Dolly still seems to dance even though the muddy muck hinders her steps as she goes.

I dunno. He said he wanted to go there.

The frog drops from the branch giving a splash to everyone and stands face to face with Doc.

What business do you have there, newcomer?

I asked the same thing.

Both beasts come after Doc again as Dolly feels the chill and looks behind once again.

What business do you have with my--

Can we keep moving guys?

The three look at each other and back to Dolly. They all feel the cold breeze as it rushes in.

What is that?

I’m not sure, but we have to go.

Corey looks at Thaddeus to Doc to Dolly then back to Thaddeus.

Well, I can’t miss this.

COREY HAS JOINED THE PARTY!

What a way to start my journey back up the mountain, right? I'm sure everyone was just drooling at their mouths when Demos was drawn with Doctor Louis D'Ville. What a match-up to kickstart this tournament. What an epic confrontation to ignite the fire. What a much deserved chance for a fellow like Demos to bring all he has.

Demos, my friend, I'm not sure if Charlie Nickles told you about me or if you even know the guy. I don't really know exactly what's going on there. Anyway, the confrontation that Charlie and I had didn't really matter but I still made XWFMas Cheer out of him. That was fun. That was jolly.

What we have here is.... A completely different story. I told you before I always respected the little stint you had at first. That's everyone's go-to, but not the good doctor's. Your spring to the top just shows how lazy some of the real competition around here really is. I'm different though. I can't help myself but to treat all of you great patients the same. Because you all ARE great.

Even you Demos.

Don't let everyone exploit your downfalls. I'll tell you the same that I told Charlie, Demos... That Television Title you have on you there... Buddy, Ol' Pal, I'll beat you again while you wear it just to keep you in your place. And honestly, if it was me, it would make me feel better. After this mauling, Demos... After I beat you down, and I might even find something else to shove you into, you'll surely feel comfortable in this fine place that you've nestled so fine into. Meanwhile, I'm going to STOMP, STOMP, STOMP, STOMP my way back to a throne that yearns for me.

You're great, my friend.

But you're no King.

Threaded Mode \| Linear Mode King of the Mountain
Author	Message