closed 🌠 pick a star on the dark horizon

[starshower]

Who: Tifa & the ex-SOLDIER boys
What: Closed catch-all for October.
Where: Around
When: October
Content Warnings: N/A for now, except for maybe the horrifying cactuarbears.

𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳. ♫

Comments

[starshower]

Part one of running a successful business? Keep it tidy. No one's gonna want to come if it looks like a jungle outside.

[With one last hard pull, Tifa manages to yank the weed out of the dirt, and the recoil almost sends her reeling backwards off her feet. Thankfully, her balance keeps her upright, and she instead tosses it into the bag once Zack's brought it over.]

It's not too bad around here but figured it wouldn't hurt getting my hands a little dirty. Help Aerith out when—

[There's a small rustle that comes from inside the bag, cutting the thought off.]

[activatingcombatmode]

[It's really cute knowing that the girls are working together in this place. And knowing that Aerith is getting this place set up as she had back home is another comfort. He's pretty proud of them.]

Well put me to work too, I wanna see this place-

[Spic and span...? He'd been about to say that but suddenly there is a rustle in his bag and he looks down at it like it's about to shapeshift into a monster.]

The hell?

[He opens it up to peer inside?!]

[starshower]

[Just as Zack opens the bag, something small and prickly tears through the sides of the bag and leaps out from inside of it, almost colliding into his chest before it corrects itself. Weeds, dried up leaves, and garbage follow along with it, flying everywhere as well as creating a mess on the ground as the bottom opens up.

Tifa gasps as it runs up to her, and she hardly gets a good look at it before it dashes back to the bag to pick up the weeds.]

What is that!?

[Another creature ruining their day. Here they go again.]

[activatingcombatmode]

Aughgh!?!

[The prickly creature nearly stabs him in the chest with its spines and Zack nearly knocks his fist into it before he's spattered by garbage and dried weeds. He flings the bag in surprise and anger and then grabs for the handle of his broadsword!]

Some kinda monster!

[It's another weird mash-up between two different things. Zack squints as the creature suddenly spins on the spot. This bear-like ... spiny... THING.]

The hell it looks like a... cactuar?

[Cactuar??? Bear???]

[starshower]

Not... quite...

[The head above the spines on its neck turns, its empty eyes glaring at them as if they'd just done something wrong, and a low noise comes from its wide, open mouth. It has cactuar-like qualities, but... it's so, so wrong in so many ways.

But before she can get that thought out into words, it zips around the church with the weeds from the bag, and starts to dig up holes in the dirt near the walls with its needles, as if... wanting to replant the weeds back into the ground where she pulled them from!?

She follows, expecting Zack to come along with her.]

HEY!

[Are they really going to get into a fight with a prickly teddybear!?]

[activatingcombatmode]

[They're really going to get into a fight with a prickly teddybear! Because that thing is now running around at high speed, digging its ugly little paws into the ground and shoving weeds back into the ground where they don't belong. And no way in hell is Zack going to stand around while the church gets uprooted like this.]

Get back here, you little bastard-!

[Zack already has a hand on the handle to his simple broadsword (he'll get a better one eventually?) and he starts chasing after the creature at a sprint. He has no issues with killing some sort of monster creature that is being a pest. It's time to smash. He lunges forward and slashes at the creature with sharp dexterity.

It somehow makes a squeaky noise as it jumps up and spins around in the air before it lands a few paces away, weeds still in hand!]

[starshower]

[Besides the empty stare and the thin, sharp needles, these things share another trait in common with their Gaia counterparts: they're quick and hard to catch and will run away the moment you turn your eyes on them.

When it leaps away, it's already starting to dig another hole in the ground, but rather than plant one of the weeds in it, something pops out from under the dirt. A second, slightly larger one of these beartuars with more weeds clutched in both of its hands.]

Where are they coming from?

[It's all she says before she leaps into action behind Zack, but just as she's about to land a punch, her knuckles come dangerously close to one of its needles, and she stops short of punching right through it, exchanging a look with the creature.]

We're gonna need another plan.

[activatingcombatmode]

[He's really not expecting more of these things to start multiplying from the ground. Zack lets out a grunt as he turns and tries to swing at the other creature only for it to leap away from him yet again. Tifa definitely has speed on him but they need a better plan.]

This wasn't my idea of gardening or clean up for the day!

[He clicks his tongue.]

Can we lure them away?

[Cactuars are jumpy stupid things but they do tend to like to play or tease too. So it might work... If these bear things are anything like the real deal.]

[starshower]

Mine neither.

[She was under the impression that gardening was supposed to be relaxing, even if it is just pulling weeds and cleaning it up!

Tifa looks around them, and her eyes land on the torn bag several feet away, with dead leaves and weeds spilling out of it.]

Maybe. Think we can use what's left to get them to move?

[Away from the church, preferably. They're free to stick these weeds back into the ground anywhere else.]

[activatingcombatmode]

Sounds like a good a plan as any.

[Zack makes the move by jogging quickly over to the bag of spilled weeds and rubbish. He hauls it up and taunts the creatures one more time.]

Hey! Is this what you're looking for, you little pests?!

[He's waving a stalk of weeds in his hand...!! But then he quickly starts for the path away from the church as they look at him curiously and wobble forward.]

Come on, time to go!