Character(s): Alucard, Trevor, Sypha + [OPEN!] Status: Open Location(s): The Free City -> Lake Atéleio Date(s) June 17 onward About: Dealing with the new and stranger things along the lake Warnings: To be added.
The Free City [It was rough, moving from Krimnos to the Free City. The source of the problem was, of course, all of the rain because to sail through the sky in torrential downpours was of course almost impossible. The three of them had come down from the mountain because word of the things along the lake had reached Krimnos and beyond. Strange creatures dragging people under.
It was worrisome. It could be related to something larger. And initially the Belmont was going to go on his own.
So it was only appropriate for all three of them to come down from the mountains.
In the Free City, Alucard's focus is on getting supplies for camping. At the moment, that means standing in the market looking rather unhappy at the meager offerings in the market. There's a basket hanging lightly from his wrist, and there's precious few things in it.]
I suppose everyone has bought the essentials.
[They'd manage. He brought some things from home with them, but...]
Camp Lake Atéleio There's one ahead!
[Alucard doesn't know if he can be heard under the pouring rain. He's soaked to the bone right now, but that doesn't matter. His eyes are fixed on yet another of those strange creatures that has dragged itself up on the shoreline, clearly having sensed someone or something lurking within it's range.]
Someone else with better eyesight than me - is there anyone near it?!
[ Even though Sypha is fair certain that the three of them had discussed not owing anything to anyone at this point, it was also obvious to all of them that there was no way they could just leave people to such unsavory fates as that. The trio was bound to get involved, all of them being ridiculous bleeding hearts as they are.
Now they're in the Free City, restocking their supplies. Rather, they would be restocking if there was anything of use to be had.
The tip of Sypha's tail swishes back and forth, flopping this way and that in a sign of mild annoyance. Not at the boys, of course. Well, not this time. ]
I brought what food we had that would travel well enough to be worth carrying. I think all of us assumed there might be more here.
[ An oversight, to be sure, but all of them had survived worse. ]
[Alucard's voice is all too dry. He isn't happy about this, and he can't even be funny about it either. All he can do at this point is tug his coat a little tighter around himself to keep the rain from soaking him through and grumble.]
You traveled frequently during the rainy seasons, did you not? How did you manage when supplies began to run low?
Rationing sounds like the easiest part to start with. Goodness knows I we're all familiar with it.
[Admittedly, Alucard is least skilled with it, growing up as he did. But he has traveled the world enough to know what must be done, and foraging is, well, he can trust Sypha there.]
[ 'Better eyesight' is highly, highly questionable. The eyepatch is removed, the danger of anyone seeing his brand in this awful place, awful weather, awful everything being lower than the need for whatever tiny advantages he can take, but even without it that eye is still bad. Higher vantage point on the other hand- ]
The nasty fucking indistinct grey lump is moving toward another nasty fucking indistinct grey lump.
[ Everything is nasty fucking indistinct grey lumps in conditions like this. that's just how things are. ]
Can't tell if it's a person or animal, but it must be something alive to have its attention.
[It's nice, seeing Trevor without the eyepatch. Alucard prefers it that way, none of Trevor being hidden from the world but...he understands why. So he never says anything about it either way, he simply embraces the rare occasion that it isn't present.
Alucard waves a hand faintly, and his sword is in his hand.]
Whatever the fuck it is doesn't seem to be moving. Might already be dead.
[ He narrows his eyes in concentration, but he genuinely can't tell. Visibility is awful. Alucard's question gets a little consideration, but he nods. ]
Let's. Even if the poor fucker's dead, I like the idea of denying this thing a meal.
[Alucard takes a single step forward, and under his feet there is an awful squelching sound as he steps into ankle deep mud. It splashes up his boot and all the way to his knee, and there is a look of absolute disgust as he pulls his leg out.]
Carefully.
[He moves past the puddle quickly enough, settling for running at a normal human speed rather than a dhampir's enhanced abilities. There's still mud, there's still giant puddles, and more than that, the movement has captured the attention of the thing that's at the edge of the lake.
Good. Means they're serving as a distraction for whatever it was trying to eat.]
[ The closer they get, the more it becomes clear that the indistinct grey lump isn't human-shaped. The legs are too thin, the torso too long. It's still hard to tell if it's a centaur or a horse or stag, though.
The mud isn't as much of a problem for him, partly because he doesn't care as much but mostly because ankle-deep mud against Alucard barely covers his toes. The real problem is the chance of slipping. It means moving forward at a steady pace, and controlling the chain whip that he takes from his waist only with his upper body. Means he can't anchor himself properly, so trying to restrain the thing with the chain will be a doomed effort. Instead he tosses the chain forward, attempting to use it to bludgeon back the creature rather than lash at it. ]
[Alucard's eyes try to narrow through the rain, making a level best attempt to see what it is that's come far too near to the shores. There's four legs yes, but...no there's more on top of it than just a horse or a stag. Centaur, he assumes, and let him be proven wrong.
None of that speeds Alucard up though, as his footing is absolute important in moving through the next few minutes. He's having to zig and zag carefully to avoid the worst puddles, as he can all too easily see himself becoming stuck, falling, or worse.
Trevor's chain is a good thing to start with - especially since the lake creature appears to be struck mid-lunge. It's response is to let out a loud screech that perhaps sounds better underwater. Doesn't matter. It's enough for the thing in front of it to rear (oh it's definitely a centaur), and there. There's hooves brought upon the thing's head.
It feels like permission to get in there, and so Alucard does. For that he does use a burst of speed, his sword out front. There's then another horrible noise as steel meets flesh.]
[The markets in the Free City were scarce. Even the Black market was having trouble keeping up with the demand for basic supplies. But Shura wasn't there for that kind of thing. She's still trying to dig up information on the strange arrow, but today isn't proving to be any more fruitful than her previous forays. It was rare enough for a few merchants to make an offer, but none of them could tell her anything more than it was unique. It's a nuisance!]
What, so you're tellin' me that you got no idea what this thing is made of, but you know how much it's worth? Jeez, you got to be kidding me!
[The merchant probably doesn't deserve Shura's grumpiness, nor does he probably deserve to have the arrow waived point-first in his face, but hey, that's how Shura's playing it today. Who cares if someone sees them!]
[Alucard's only visiting the black market because he's heard rumor that some of his father's books have shown up in such spaces of late. He's worked on putting in appearances at the one in Krimnos lately, enough of a familiar face for it to be clear he's looking for something rather exacting.
But Alucard also knows the rules, and making a scene at these things? That's a bad choice no matter what. So to see Shura making a small scene, that's worrying.
[There are rules and general expectations, and frankly, Shura doesn't care much about them. She's on her last nerve with the whole thing and people trying to buy the mysterious arrow off of her.
But then there's a new voice entering into this slightly-excited conversation. Shura doesn't recognize the sound right off, but that face is familiar. She saw him on an airship a while back, hadn't she? Well, fine. If he was trying to distract her from making a scene, he'll get his wish for the moment.]
Have you, huh~? You'll be the first!
[But at least Shura is backing up off of the merchant, straightening up and spinning the arrow between her fingers. Hey, maybe he had seen this thing before! She doubts it, but it's possible]
...May I please take a look, before I confirm or deny anything?
[Alucard doesn't extend a hand out for the arrow immediately. Instead, he spends a scant few seconds pulling out a pair of leather gloves and putting them on, because of course he's like that and worried about either damaging the item or inadvertently getting something foul on his hands.]
I'm afraid spinning doesn't allow for a good examination.
[In response to that, Shura will just twirl the arrow a little bit faster. Putting on gloves like that--he was either an overly cautious professional or a little neurotic.]
I'm just showin' it off, y'know~
[Clearly, Shura has no shame. But with that taunt, she'll catch the arrow between her fingers, turning the arrow to balance on her fore and middle fingers. It's a neat trick, and possibly a warning. She's not going to fall for any tricks.]
If that's what I believe it might be, being so cavalier with it's care is not something I'd recommend.
[That does seem to suggest the answer is professional rather than neurotic, but sometimes one can't quite tell with Alucard.
Either way, he isn't above straight up taking the arrow from the perfect balance Shura has it in, and the next few minutes are spent in silence as Alucard seemingly examines the arrow from every angle. He has it up to his nose and beyond at one point, and there's a lot of soft hmms and other such noises mixed in.]
I can't put an age on this, but the materials used construct it belie rarity, and suggest it may be associated with either early Elven culture or attempts to be a very faithful reproduction of weaponry from that time.
[ Thankfully, having Sypha here means that they have at least some relief from the endless, horrible damp. Not a lot of it, but some. The tent doesn't stink of mildew, at least, and in conditions like these Trevor's willing to call that an overwhelming victory.
Which is nice, because the most recent victory was thoroughly whelming. He's trying to attend to the consequences of it right now. Alucard is filthy - they're both caked with mud - and the wound needs to be cleaned. The question is, with what. The water isn't safe, not untreated, and it won't be treated until Sypha returns. Nothing they can spare is dry enough to burn. Which leaves-
-god, he barely brought enough wine to take the edge off his nerves. Now he has to use it on this.
And so of course, when Sypha returns to their tent, its to Alucard asleep with no trousers on, so to better access the wound, and Trevor pulling the cork from a bottle of wine with his teeth. ]
[ If Sypha hadn't already decided that she needed to learn healing magic, this situation would have cemented her conviction. She stands in the open flap of the tent with wide eyes, observing the tableau with a temporarily calm air about her. She's been scouting on her own, and luck had been with her enough that she'd thought to gather up some medicinal herbs she'd noticed growing around the lake (perhaps anticipating that her boys might get injured on such an endeavor, because of course they would).
Alucard is the wounded one this time, the three of them are drenched and muddy, and that calm she's feeling is dangerously close to flying out the proverbial window.
Dropping her pack inside the tent, Sypha moves to kneel next to the dhampir.]
Go ahead and pour the wine. Tell me what happened.
[ The alcohol isn't a bad idea to start; it'll give her time to make clean, hot water and a poultice they can apply to the injury. She thinks back on every text she's ever read about magic, trying to recall even the smallest tidbit that could be useful for healing. Back in her caravan, there had been several skilled healers--enough that she had focused on other types of magic that she'd found more interesting at the time. While her magic's offensive capabilities had surely come in handy in the fight against Dracula, it feels shortsighted now. Of course, what Speaker wouldn't have their family to support them if they were wounded?
Not now. Don't think about that now, she reminds herself. Focus.
Finding a bucket, she draws water out of the air--it's certainly humid enough. She dumps a handful of pungent leaves into the water and uses magic to begin heating it slowly.]
Do we know if the creature was venomous? Or did it only have very sharp claws?
[ Well. There goes his wine. He has the grace not to complain as he pours it onto a cleanish cloth, using it to wipe away mud and monster blood and whatever other nasty things have found their way into the cuts. It feels a damn waste, especially when water is so abundant. But floodwater carries disease and heating it will take time. ]
Good news is, I think we found the things behind all the disappearances. Bad news is- well. [ He re-soaks the cloth as he states the obvious. Shit, even if there were going to be any left it'd probably be contaminated from doing this. The city's not too far away, but a lack of safe drinking water'll have driven up the price of drink. He really is going to be out of luck for the next week or so. ] Don't think the thing was venomous, but I never saw them in the family archives. Fuckers might be full of surprises.
[ Maybe while Sypha is learning healing magic, she'll find some spell to turn water into wine. It might be good for a party trick, and Trevor would certainly appreciate it down the line.
For now, she continues to focus on bringing the water in her bucket to a boil. She could probably make it happen a little faster, but the herbs need to be heated slowly for them to be most beneficial. ]
I'll take whatever good news I can. [ Trevor's comment about surprises receives a terse nod. She looks down at Alucard with furrowed brows and sighs. ] We'll observe him... make sure he stays stable and hope for the best.
He takes a turn for the worse, there are other ways to heal him.
[ He wouldn't say that, were Alucard awake. But it just makes more sense to get some blood down his neck than to let him suffer through healing slowly.
It takes some cleaning - the mud's horrible, along with whatever lake-scum was on the creatures - but soon the cuts are mostly red with wine, not with blood. The smell of it is sharp and not entirely pleasant. He isn't an easy drunk, at his size, and so it's the cheapest shit he could find. ]
Clean as I'm going to get it with this swill. How is the water going?
[ Sypha makes a face at the idea of forcing blood down Alucard's throat even though she knows it would help him. He would be appalled, though his survival takes priority over his comfort. Better to have him alive and livid than dead, she thinks, but they don't have to worry about that just yet.
In the bucket, the water is starting to form little bubbles around the walls and the bottom--hot but not quite boiling. The herbs have colored it with a green tinge and a bright, medicinal scent rises with little curls of steam. ]
I think this should do it.
[ Reaching for a towel, she soaks it in the water and then wrings it out before handing it to Trevor. ]
Do you think there are very many of those creatures
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Alucard
[It was rough, moving from Krimnos to the Free City. The source of the problem was, of course, all of the rain because to sail through the sky in torrential downpours was of course almost impossible. The three of them had come down from the mountain because word of the things along the lake had reached Krimnos and beyond. Strange creatures dragging people under.
It was worrisome. It could be related to something larger. And initially the Belmont was going to go on his own.
So it was only appropriate for all three of them to come down from the mountains.
In the Free City, Alucard's focus is on getting supplies for camping. At the moment, that means standing in the market looking rather unhappy at the meager offerings in the market. There's a basket hanging lightly from his wrist, and there's precious few things in it.]
I suppose everyone has bought the essentials.
[They'd manage. He brought some things from home with them, but...]
Camp Lake Atéleio
There's one ahead!
[Alucard doesn't know if he can be heard under the pouring rain. He's soaked to the bone right now, but that doesn't matter. His eyes are fixed on yet another of those strange creatures that has dragged itself up on the shoreline, clearly having sensed someone or something lurking within it's range.]
Someone else with better eyesight than me - is there anyone near it?!
Wildcard
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Now they're in the Free City, restocking their supplies. Rather, they would be restocking if there was anything of use to be had.
The tip of Sypha's tail swishes back and forth, flopping this way and that in a sign of mild annoyance. Not at the boys, of course. Well, not this time. ]
I brought what food we had that would travel well enough to be worth carrying. I think all of us assumed there might be more here.
[ An oversight, to be sure, but all of them had survived worse. ]
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[Alucard's voice is all too dry. He isn't happy about this, and he can't even be funny about it either. All he can do at this point is tug his coat a little tighter around himself to keep the rain from soaking him through and grumble.]
You traveled frequently during the rainy seasons, did you not? How did you manage when supplies began to run low?
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[ Sypha didn't like thinking back on those thin times, when her caravan had survived on what felt like scraps. ]
We also rationed food very carefully. Just enough to keep us alive, and sometimes less than that.
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[Admittedly, Alucard is least skilled with it, growing up as he did. But he has traveled the world enough to know what must be done, and foraging is, well, he can trust Sypha there.]
Is it worthwhile to fish?
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[ Which she could also fight with magic, but would the reward outweigh the risk? ]
Best start with rationing what we have--if we must, we can fish.
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[He feels a bit silly for asking now. Alucard breathes out, and he looks down again at the sad and mostly empty basket.]
I suppose we can at least go to one of the bakeries and see if they have any loaves left for the day. We'll have a few days with bread.
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The lake
The nasty fucking indistinct grey lump is moving toward another nasty fucking indistinct grey lump.
[ Everything is nasty fucking indistinct grey lumps in conditions like this. that's just how things are. ]
Can't tell if it's a person or animal, but it must be something alive to have its attention.
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[It's nice, seeing Trevor without the eyepatch. Alucard prefers it that way, none of Trevor being hidden from the world but...he understands why. So he never says anything about it either way, he simply embraces the rare occasion that it isn't present.
Alucard waves a hand faintly, and his sword is in his hand.]
Shall we proceed?
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[ He narrows his eyes in concentration, but he genuinely can't tell. Visibility is awful. Alucard's question gets a little consideration, but he nods. ]
Let's. Even if the poor fucker's dead, I like the idea of denying this thing a meal.
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[Alucard takes a single step forward, and under his feet there is an awful squelching sound as he steps into ankle deep mud. It splashes up his boot and all the way to his knee, and there is a look of absolute disgust as he pulls his leg out.]
Carefully.
[He moves past the puddle quickly enough, settling for running at a normal human speed rather than a dhampir's enhanced abilities. There's still mud, there's still giant puddles, and more than that, the movement has captured the attention of the thing that's at the edge of the lake.
Good. Means they're serving as a distraction for whatever it was trying to eat.]
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The mud isn't as much of a problem for him, partly because he doesn't care as much but mostly because ankle-deep mud against Alucard barely covers his toes. The real problem is the chance of slipping. It means moving forward at a steady pace, and controlling the chain whip that he takes from his waist only with his upper body. Means he can't anchor himself properly, so trying to restrain the thing with the chain will be a doomed effort. Instead he tosses the chain forward, attempting to use it to bludgeon back the creature rather than lash at it. ]
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None of that speeds Alucard up though, as his footing is absolute important in moving through the next few minutes. He's having to zig and zag carefully to avoid the worst puddles, as he can all too easily see himself becoming stuck, falling, or worse.
Trevor's chain is a good thing to start with - especially since the lake creature appears to be struck mid-lunge. It's response is to let out a loud screech that perhaps sounds better underwater. Doesn't matter. It's enough for the thing in front of it to rear (oh it's definitely a centaur), and there. There's hooves brought upon the thing's head.
It feels like permission to get in there, and so Alucard does. For that he does use a burst of speed, his sword out front. There's then another horrible noise as steel meets flesh.]
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free city
What, so you're tellin' me that you got no idea what this thing is made of, but you know how much it's worth? Jeez, you got to be kidding me!
[The merchant probably doesn't deserve Shura's grumpiness, nor does he probably deserve to have the arrow waived point-first in his face, but hey, that's how Shura's playing it today. Who cares if someone sees them!]
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But Alucard also knows the rules, and making a scene at these things? That's a bad choice no matter what. So to see Shura making a small scene, that's worrying.
He's over in a second.]
I think I've seen something like that before.
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But then there's a new voice entering into this slightly-excited conversation. Shura doesn't recognize the sound right off, but that face is familiar. She saw him on an airship a while back, hadn't she? Well, fine. If he was trying to distract her from making a scene, he'll get his wish for the moment.]
Have you, huh~? You'll be the first!
[But at least Shura is backing up off of the merchant, straightening up and spinning the arrow between her fingers. Hey, maybe he had seen this thing before! She doubts it, but it's possible]
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[Alucard doesn't extend a hand out for the arrow immediately. Instead, he spends a scant few seconds pulling out a pair of leather gloves and putting them on, because of course he's like that and worried about either damaging the item or inadvertently getting something foul on his hands.]
I'm afraid spinning doesn't allow for a good examination.
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I'm just showin' it off, y'know~
[Clearly, Shura has no shame. But with that taunt, she'll catch the arrow between her fingers, turning the arrow to balance on her fore and middle fingers. It's a neat trick, and possibly a warning. She's not going to fall for any tricks.]
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[That does seem to suggest the answer is professional rather than neurotic, but sometimes one can't quite tell with Alucard.
Either way, he isn't above straight up taking the arrow from the perfect balance Shura has it in, and the next few minutes are spent in silence as Alucard seemingly examines the arrow from every angle. He has it up to his nose and beyond at one point, and there's a lot of soft hmms and other such noises mixed in.]
I can't put an age on this, but the materials used construct it belie rarity, and suggest it may be associated with either early Elven culture or attempts to be a very faithful reproduction of weaponry from that time.
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for Sypha
Which is nice, because the most recent victory was thoroughly whelming. He's trying to attend to the consequences of it right now. Alucard is filthy - they're both caked with mud - and the wound needs to be cleaned. The question is, with what. The water isn't safe, not untreated, and it won't be treated until Sypha returns. Nothing they can spare is dry enough to burn. Which leaves-
-god, he barely brought enough wine to take the edge off his nerves. Now he has to use it on this.
And so of course, when Sypha returns to their tent, its to Alucard asleep with no trousers on, so to better access the wound, and Trevor pulling the cork from a bottle of wine with his teeth. ]
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Alucard is the wounded one this time, the three of them are drenched and muddy, and that calm she's feeling is dangerously close to flying out the proverbial window.
Dropping her pack inside the tent, Sypha moves to kneel next to the dhampir.]
Go ahead and pour the wine. Tell me what happened.
[ The alcohol isn't a bad idea to start; it'll give her time to make clean, hot water and a poultice they can apply to the injury. She thinks back on every text she's ever read about magic, trying to recall even the smallest tidbit that could be useful for healing. Back in her caravan, there had been several skilled healers--enough that she had focused on other types of magic that she'd found more interesting at the time. While her magic's offensive capabilities had surely come in handy in the fight against Dracula, it feels shortsighted now. Of course, what Speaker wouldn't have their family to support them if they were wounded?
Not now. Don't think about that now, she reminds herself. Focus.
Finding a bucket, she draws water out of the air--it's certainly humid enough. She dumps a handful of pungent leaves into the water and uses magic to begin heating it slowly.]
Do we know if the creature was venomous? Or did it only have very sharp claws?
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Good news is, I think we found the things behind all the disappearances. Bad news is- well. [ He re-soaks the cloth as he states the obvious. Shit, even if there were going to be any left it'd probably be contaminated from doing this. The city's not too far away, but a lack of safe drinking water'll have driven up the price of drink. He really is going to be out of luck for the next week or so. ] Don't think the thing was venomous, but I never saw them in the family archives. Fuckers might be full of surprises.
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For now, she continues to focus on bringing the water in her bucket to a boil. She could probably make it happen a little faster, but the herbs need to be heated slowly for them to be most beneficial. ]
I'll take whatever good news I can. [ Trevor's comment about surprises receives a terse nod. She looks down at Alucard with furrowed brows and sighs. ] We'll observe him... make sure he stays stable and hope for the best.
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[ He wouldn't say that, were Alucard awake. But it just makes more sense to get some blood down his neck than to let him suffer through healing slowly.
It takes some cleaning - the mud's horrible, along with whatever lake-scum was on the creatures - but soon the cuts are mostly red with wine, not with blood. The smell of it is sharp and not entirely pleasant. He isn't an easy drunk, at his size, and so it's the cheapest shit he could find. ]
Clean as I'm going to get it with this swill. How is the water going?
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In the bucket, the water is starting to form little bubbles around the walls and the bottom--hot but not quite boiling. The herbs have colored it with a green tinge and a bright, medicinal scent rises with little curls of steam. ]
I think this should do it.
[ Reaching for a towel, she soaks it in the water and then wrings it out before handing it to Trevor. ]
Do you think there are very many of those creatures