Encounterlogs
Meridiths Odd Encounter Sr Noah 240301
The story begins with Meridith in her cozy, nature-integrated cabin, suddenly disturbed by aggressive knocking and the authoritative demand of individuals claiming to be police officers, demanding entry without providing any warrant or legitimate reason for their intrusion. Despite Meridith's attempts to assert her rights and ask for proper identification, the situation escalates quickly. Feeling cornered and suspecting the legitimacy of these so-called officers, Meridith decides to flee through a back window into the safety of the woods rather than confront the situation directly. The officers, relentless and apparently unfamiliar with the potentially dangerous forest terrain of Haven, pursue her.
As Meridith navigates the dense wilderness, leveraging her intimate knowledge of the area, a confrontation with the officers becomes inevitable. Amidst confusion and the dangerous presence of the local wildlife, including menacing hounds, Meridith finds herself needing to not only ensure her safety but also that of the officers who have recklessly followed her into the forest. The chase culminates in a tense standoff where Meridith, despite being labelled a fugitive, acts to save the officers from the lethal wildlife. She manages to subdue the hounds and, demonstrating a remarkable sense of compassion and responsibility, aids in the medical stabilization of an injured officer. The story concludes with local deputies arriving to defuse the situation. The initial misunderstanding that led to Meridith being pursued seems to vanish, possibly due to interference from the local authorities of Haven, ensuring that this dangerous night ends with a semblance of peace, and Meridith's actions, rather than leading to further conflict, help to mitigate the fallout from this unexpected encounter.
(Meridith's odd encounter(SRNoah):SRNoah)
[Mon Feb 26 2024]
In A Small Cabin
In this small but well-designed living space the walls are adorned with wooden panels, giving a sense of nature indoors. To your left, there's a black sofa with plush cushions, and warious throw pillows. The sofa is strategically placed near a large window that allows natural light to fill the room during the day. The window also provides picturesque views of the surrounding wilderness.
On the opposite side, there's a neatly arranged bed with green linens and various mix-matched pillows. The bed is framed by a wooden headboard, adding to the rustic feel of the cabin. Overhead, a warm and subtle lighting fixture casts a soft glow, creating a tranquil ambiance in the sleeping area.
Adjacent to the bed, a built-in closet is seamlessly integrated into the wooden wall. The closet features sliding or folding doors, maximizing space efficiency. Inside, there are shelves, drawers, and hanging rods for organizing clothes and personal items, keeping the cabin clutter-free.
Overall, this one-bedroom cabin combines the comforts of modern living with the tranquility of nature, providing a serene retreat for those seeking a peaceful escape.
It is night, about 34F(1C) degrees, and there are a few dark grey stormclouds in the sky. There is a waning gibbous moon.
As Meridith starts to don her arms, the footsteps approach the door, followed by a rather firm knocking. Some hushed voices can be heard outside, some laughter. Multiple people. Whomever is knocking seems used to doing that, simply knocking harder and harder without waiting for a response, a dominant insistence.
Meridith whistles sharply. "Hello?" she asks, before too long. "Who is it?" she insists.
The knocking pauses for a moment, almost as if surprised to hear Meridith answer, then a voice comes. A havenite, masculine tone, "This is the police. Open up." Is shouted through the door with remarkable hostility.
"Any special deputies with you?" Meridith asks aloud through the door as she pulls on a bracer. This is wrong, she feels. Fighting her way out'll be tricky...and complicated. But she is pretty sick and tired of authority cracking down on her for bullshit.
A pause for a moment, then a loud noise as if they were practically punching the door instead of knocking, "We're not asking again. Open the door or we will break it open ourselves" is demanded from beyond the door, and going by how irritated the tone is, they seem to mean it.
"Pretty sure I get to ask for a warrant, Officer. I've already had to fix my door once this week," Meridith replies testily. "And how the hell do I know any of you are cops!" she bellows. "Back off and show me some fucking paperwork, you dickheads!"
Warants! Rights! Important concepts to some, perhaps, but apparently not so much for whomever this is. Not that it would be /particularly/ simple to show paperwork through a closed door. "Break her up." Can be heard muffled from outside, and footsteps seem to be leaving for the car, then returning before long, something - or someone - positioning at the front of the door.
Meridith waits for them to get all their little equipment set up, then she unlocks the door and moves quietly to a rear window. Eager to make egress through the rear window of her home. Discretion, right now, being the better part of valor, she decides.
An irritated grunt can be heard from beyond the door as the sound of a lock turning is heard. "(...) was... (...) forwards (...) using (...)", whatever it is they're saying, they seem a bit let down before the door opens, showing a police battering ram held by an annoyed looking officer, sided by 2 more - a tired looking woman and a rather pissed off looking male, likely the one doing the shouting. They eye someone, then, spotting her weapons, take a step away from the door, hands on their guns.
Not shooting yet, at least.
An irritated grunt can be heard from beyond the door as the sound of a lock turning is heard. "(...) was... (...) forwards (...) using (...)", whatever it is they're saying, they seem a bit let down before the door opens, showing a police battering ram held by an annoyed looking officer, sided by 2 more - a tired looking woman and a rather pissed off looking male, likely the one doing the shouting. They eye Meridith, then, spotting her weapons, take a step away from the door, hands on their guns.
Not shooting yet, at least.
"I'll meetcha at the station when you stop being lunatics in the middle of the night!" Meridith flashes double middle fingers and springs out her window, making a break into the woods.
Well, that was one decision. For a second, the cops stare, baffled, at the window. Then they spring into action, someone can hear shouting as the police follows after her into the forest, guns in hand. Not the safest thing, perhaps, to be doing in Haven. But she may know from their uniform -- these officers aren't from Haven. Cursing can be heard from behind her as a chase ensues.
Well, that was one decision. For a second, the cops stare, baffled, at the window. Then they spring into action, Meridith can hear shouting as the police follows after her into the forest, guns in hand. Not the safest thing, perhaps, to be doing in Haven. But she may know from their uniform -- these officers aren't from Haven. Cursing can be heard from behind her as a chase ensues.
Meridith does know these woods pretty well. She isn't gonna run them deep, but if the mists raise...and the beasts come out, she'll want to make sure she doesn't get them hurt. She only wants to make it clear of them, not get them actually hurt. Well. Maybe a little hurt...
These officers clearly do not have that advantage, but also seem to be lacking in the advantage of knowing how dangerous these forests are. Spreading and searching as if it were any other. The most irritated one starts shouting into the wind, "Surrender yourself now and the consequences for resisting arrest will be far less severe." is claimed as he fingers a tasergun.
"You broke into my fucking house and refused to show a warrant prick! I don't even think you assholes are cops! Back off!" Meridith bellows back, moving to take cover. She considers a moment, then snaps a warning shot towards the officer with her bow.
When the arrow lands, the cop jump back as if stung - far to slow to dodge had it been aimed at them, a most useless gesture. "Jesus fucking Christ, the fugitive is actually using that damn bow!" The officer shouts out loud as he trades his Taser for a pistol, "Cass, call for backup!" He commands at the same time that he takes cover behind a tree. Then, he starts shooting - wildly - into the direction the arrow came from. Bullets cracking branches and damaging trees in the general direction before he finds himself reloading.
Meridith flicks a hand out, attempting to pull the officer into the tree with telekinesis, frankly she thinks it might pass notice. She then sprints off into the woods once more. They drew first blood, she decides.
Officer Grumpy grunts as he's pulled into the tree, leaving his face scratched, then turns around with a furious expression. "Cole, what the fuck?!" He calls out to the former battering-ram wielder, who gives him a puzzled look, "...What?" A short argument ensues before they start searching the forest. Too slow, however, to catch up to Meridith, especially while being on their guard for future attacks.
Meridith breaks recklessly into the woods. She isn't much faster, they have numbers. It's a bad scenario. And she should be panicking about this rather insane escalation, but instead she moves. Focuses on the hunt. She is used to being chased down by monsters...she tries not to think about how she usually handles them.
The officers continue to move, cautiously, in the same general direction, eyes flitting around the woods, trying to find Meridith. At first, she can spot the occasional beam of a flashlight piercing the dense woods. But as she runs, this becomes less and less common. Before long, gun shots can be heard in the distance - some issue, or confusion, perhaps. Either way, it seems they're off of her tail.
Of course, that doesn't exactly solve the problem of what happens should she decide to come back to her home, if these people are, in fact, actual cops.
Meridith is thankfully friends with...two deputies. Who can hopefully explain the misunderstanding. Or the school or...if they aren't the real cops? Gosh that'll be fine, right? That'd be way better. She gazes back at the woods at the scattered gunfire, nervously listening if there's signs of...proper conflict.
At first, two guns can be heard firing quickly - close to each other. A pause --reloading perhaps-- can be heard, briefly, only for the gunfire to continue, from one gun. A second joins it from further away, before long. Going by the directions - they may have strayed a few too many steps away from town. But with multiple of them, they should be fine, most likely. And if not, well,
That's a lesson, too.
Meridith groans. Angry, she stomps her little food on the ground and pivots, sprinting toward the sound of gunfire. Because she's extremely, extremely, extremely stupid.
While Extremely, Extremely, Extremely Stupid makes her way back to the gunfire, two guns become one. Uh oh. It's not long before Meridith can spot the reason from a distance - or at least, one of them. A golden hound, shot dead. No dead officers here, at least. Yet.
Meridith exhales softly, taking a deep breath, she tries to hide, just mostly trying to keep out of sight. Her eyes peer about looking for any other threat. If they've got it handled...maybe it was a mistake for her to double back.
A bit further, Meridith can see a general gist of the situation. One officer lies on the floor, either dead or at least down, near a second hound, downed as well. A third, however, still stands. Stalking something, seeming to be about to pounce. Shots are fired from beyond a bush, which the hound seems to rather cleverly be using for cover.
Meridith bursts into motion. "Hold fire!" She bellows. Her hand reaches out, pulling the Hound towards her, and her rapier flashes as she attempts to pierce through the beast.
The hound is pulled alright, looking rather surprised as it flies through the air, towards someone, only to land on her rapier - and pushes her aside - and possibly over - in the process. It yowls in pain before kicking itself away, now bleeding, struggling, trying to make sense of things. The shots don't cease - the shooting officer perhaps too distressed for considering.
The hound is pulled alright, looking rather surprised as it flies through the air, towards Meridith, only to land on her rapier - and pushes her aside - and possibly over - in the process. It yowls in pain before kicking itself away, now bleeding, struggling, trying to make sense of things. The shots don't cease - the shooting officer perhaps too distressed for considering.
Meridith flicks to her bow, trying to place a killing or griveous shot against the beast to keep it from continuing to fight. If it doesn't back off, she'll charge towards it again. Otherwise she'll turn to the dropped or wound officers to try to stabilize them.
From this distance, it would probably be challenging not to kill an already wounded beast and it gurgles, a sickening noise as blood escapes its mouth, then it falls, dead. Stray bullets keep firing, though thankfully not too close to Meridith as she approaches the downer officer. It is the one referred to before as 'Cole', it seems, with quite a nasty wound on their arm, though not to a lethal degree. Intended for later consumption, likely.
Meridith isn't a proper doctor, but she did biology and pre-med and first aid is definitely in her wheelhouse. She does her best to assess and provide some patch. "OFFICER DOWN! I NEED A HAND OVER HERE!" She bellows. Seeing he's stable enough makes her worry, she moves towards the gunshots once more.
No actual sounds of a /hound/ can be heard as Meridith approaches the shots and as she moves closer, she can spot something rather dangerous from beyond the shrubbery. 'Cass' she was called before, laying on the ground with her back against a fallen tree and in her hand, her pistol. It seems between fight or flight, she's picked fight. Her body tensed, Her eyes flitting, sweat on her brow, gun clenched in her hand. She aims it every time at even the smallest movement, firing at rustling leaves in the wind.
Meridith takes a deep breath and comes out with her hands up. "Cass," she says, before she's within obvious sight. "I got the beast, but I need you to help me with your officer. We need to get back to the road, okay?"
Cass virtually immediately shoots in Meridith's general direction, missing her by quite a bit, perhaps by some last moment realization that this was not, in fact, the correct target. Her hand shakes as she slowly lowers her gun, then raises it again at a rustling leave, "W-W-W-Wolf" She claims more than a little falsely, not even bothering to apologize.
Meridith growls. "Put that fucking gun away before you kill someone and follow me! We need to get your friends to the fucking ROAD!"
The woman shakes some more, then nods, processing it. Slowly. She finally lowers her gun, looking rather dazed, "B-Ben left..." She mutters as she stares at the shrubbery, "I-I.. C-Cole..." She swallows, "..D...dead..." She claims, likely simply having assumed as much when he went down, barely acknowledging Meridith.
Meridith says "Cole is FINE. He got a bad injury and we can save him. Go get him, start walking, I will keep you safe until we make it, GO."
Meridith gestures towards Cole, trying to remove the panic by giving clear concise commands.
Cass nods hesitantly, then manages to force herself up, not even reacting to the news of her colleague's survival. As she spots him, she starts to drag him - with some difficulty - in the general direction they came from. Not entirely correct, but close enough, a lot mist shrouding her every step, causing her to stumble on occasion. Meridith can hear, nor see, further hounds. A pack of three it seems - could have been worse.
A thick mist.
Meridith takes a slow steady breath. A hound can be scary. Not a huge problem, she's quick and her blade his sharp and she has learned to use her armor to protect her body when they close. Two can be tricky. Especially if they find you at once or ambush you. Three...however? She hesitates a little. "Officer, you've wasted a lot of ammo. I want you to decide right now, if you can actually hit those things," she says, pointing. "Otherwise, grab that man and run for your life."
Meridith follows beside the officer, keeping her eyes peeled for any further beasts, or contacts. Not eager to get shot, either. She did not see any such thing
She struggles, but before long, the mist starts getting more thin, the flashing lights of police vehicles reflecting of the trees. Cass walks into the direction single-mindedly, focused on her salvation. The sounds of an argument, shouting, can be heard from afar.
Meridith decides to face the music. Doesn't feel like there'll be a better shot for this than now.
Some rather exhausted looking local deputies seem to be in a rather heated argument with the third officer - Ben, that was. Ben notices Meridith, staring, pointing, "FUGITIVE!" He finally manages to scream before the locals give a sigh of relief. They walk up, giving a nod before guiding Cass towards Ben, taking Cole off of her hands as one moves to call an ambulance. Not making any moves towards Meridith, for now.
Meridith flags a local deputy over to explain the situation. She gives a thumbs up to Ben.
The local deputy gives Meridith a look over as the others get to work - separating the officers, then putting them in a trance, presumably to wipe their memories of the hounds. The deputy rubs at the back of his neck, "For whatever reason the officers were under the impression that you are wanted elsewhere..." He explains with a shake of his dead. "Maybe so, maybe not. We'll look into the scenario later, for now, the priority is just containing the breach of secrecy..." He hesitates. "...We expect you to show up tomorrow, though. If we have to run after you..."
"Yeah yeah, save it. I'm not going anywhere. They slammed on my door in the middle of the night and refused to show a warrant. You know that coulda been anything," Meridith complains. "...I did my best to keep them alive, promise," she says quietly and frowns gazing at the injured.
"...Right..." The deputy returns a little suspicious, then shrugging his shoulders.
Not long after, the hypnotism is done, the wounded officer brought in for recovery. Would Meridith arrive as demanded, she'd find the issue disappeared as quickly as it came. Be it some sort of bribe or tampering, there was nothing in the system warranting their being there to begin with, it would appear.
She managed to avoid police harassment, at least, and prevent anyone from dying when things went south, while at it. The best outcome that could be hoped for here, perhaps.
As Meridith navigates the dense wilderness, leveraging her intimate knowledge of the area, a confrontation with the officers becomes inevitable. Amidst confusion and the dangerous presence of the local wildlife, including menacing hounds, Meridith finds herself needing to not only ensure her safety but also that of the officers who have recklessly followed her into the forest. The chase culminates in a tense standoff where Meridith, despite being labelled a fugitive, acts to save the officers from the lethal wildlife. She manages to subdue the hounds and, demonstrating a remarkable sense of compassion and responsibility, aids in the medical stabilization of an injured officer. The story concludes with local deputies arriving to defuse the situation. The initial misunderstanding that led to Meridith being pursued seems to vanish, possibly due to interference from the local authorities of Haven, ensuring that this dangerous night ends with a semblance of peace, and Meridith's actions, rather than leading to further conflict, help to mitigate the fallout from this unexpected encounter.
(Meridith's odd encounter(SRNoah):SRNoah)
[Mon Feb 26 2024]
In A Small Cabin
In this small but well-designed living space the walls are adorned with wooden panels, giving a sense of nature indoors. To your left, there's a black sofa with plush cushions, and warious throw pillows. The sofa is strategically placed near a large window that allows natural light to fill the room during the day. The window also provides picturesque views of the surrounding wilderness.
On the opposite side, there's a neatly arranged bed with green linens and various mix-matched pillows. The bed is framed by a wooden headboard, adding to the rustic feel of the cabin. Overhead, a warm and subtle lighting fixture casts a soft glow, creating a tranquil ambiance in the sleeping area.
Adjacent to the bed, a built-in closet is seamlessly integrated into the wooden wall. The closet features sliding or folding doors, maximizing space efficiency. Inside, there are shelves, drawers, and hanging rods for organizing clothes and personal items, keeping the cabin clutter-free.
Overall, this one-bedroom cabin combines the comforts of modern living with the tranquility of nature, providing a serene retreat for those seeking a peaceful escape.
It is night, about 34F(1C) degrees, and there are a few dark grey stormclouds in the sky. There is a waning gibbous moon.
As Meridith starts to don her arms, the footsteps approach the door, followed by a rather firm knocking. Some hushed voices can be heard outside, some laughter. Multiple people. Whomever is knocking seems used to doing that, simply knocking harder and harder without waiting for a response, a dominant insistence.
Meridith whistles sharply. "Hello?" she asks, before too long. "Who is it?" she insists.
The knocking pauses for a moment, almost as if surprised to hear Meridith answer, then a voice comes. A havenite, masculine tone, "This is the police. Open up." Is shouted through the door with remarkable hostility.
"Any special deputies with you?" Meridith asks aloud through the door as she pulls on a bracer. This is wrong, she feels. Fighting her way out'll be tricky...and complicated. But she is pretty sick and tired of authority cracking down on her for bullshit.
A pause for a moment, then a loud noise as if they were practically punching the door instead of knocking, "We're not asking again. Open the door or we will break it open ourselves" is demanded from beyond the door, and going by how irritated the tone is, they seem to mean it.
"Pretty sure I get to ask for a warrant, Officer. I've already had to fix my door once this week," Meridith replies testily. "And how the hell do I know any of you are cops!" she bellows. "Back off and show me some fucking paperwork, you dickheads!"
Warants! Rights! Important concepts to some, perhaps, but apparently not so much for whomever this is. Not that it would be /particularly/ simple to show paperwork through a closed door. "Break her up." Can be heard muffled from outside, and footsteps seem to be leaving for the car, then returning before long, something - or someone - positioning at the front of the door.
Meridith waits for them to get all their little equipment set up, then she unlocks the door and moves quietly to a rear window. Eager to make egress through the rear window of her home. Discretion, right now, being the better part of valor, she decides.
An irritated grunt can be heard from beyond the door as the sound of a lock turning is heard. "(...) was... (...) forwards (...) using (...)", whatever it is they're saying, they seem a bit let down before the door opens, showing a police battering ram held by an annoyed looking officer, sided by 2 more - a tired looking woman and a rather pissed off looking male, likely the one doing the shouting. They eye someone, then, spotting her weapons, take a step away from the door, hands on their guns.
Not shooting yet, at least.
An irritated grunt can be heard from beyond the door as the sound of a lock turning is heard. "(...) was... (...) forwards (...) using (...)", whatever it is they're saying, they seem a bit let down before the door opens, showing a police battering ram held by an annoyed looking officer, sided by 2 more - a tired looking woman and a rather pissed off looking male, likely the one doing the shouting. They eye Meridith, then, spotting her weapons, take a step away from the door, hands on their guns.
Not shooting yet, at least.
"I'll meetcha at the station when you stop being lunatics in the middle of the night!" Meridith flashes double middle fingers and springs out her window, making a break into the woods.
Well, that was one decision. For a second, the cops stare, baffled, at the window. Then they spring into action, someone can hear shouting as the police follows after her into the forest, guns in hand. Not the safest thing, perhaps, to be doing in Haven. But she may know from their uniform -- these officers aren't from Haven. Cursing can be heard from behind her as a chase ensues.
Well, that was one decision. For a second, the cops stare, baffled, at the window. Then they spring into action, Meridith can hear shouting as the police follows after her into the forest, guns in hand. Not the safest thing, perhaps, to be doing in Haven. But she may know from their uniform -- these officers aren't from Haven. Cursing can be heard from behind her as a chase ensues.
Meridith does know these woods pretty well. She isn't gonna run them deep, but if the mists raise...and the beasts come out, she'll want to make sure she doesn't get them hurt. She only wants to make it clear of them, not get them actually hurt. Well. Maybe a little hurt...
These officers clearly do not have that advantage, but also seem to be lacking in the advantage of knowing how dangerous these forests are. Spreading and searching as if it were any other. The most irritated one starts shouting into the wind, "Surrender yourself now and the consequences for resisting arrest will be far less severe." is claimed as he fingers a tasergun.
"You broke into my fucking house and refused to show a warrant prick! I don't even think you assholes are cops! Back off!" Meridith bellows back, moving to take cover. She considers a moment, then snaps a warning shot towards the officer with her bow.
When the arrow lands, the cop jump back as if stung - far to slow to dodge had it been aimed at them, a most useless gesture. "Jesus fucking Christ, the fugitive is actually using that damn bow!" The officer shouts out loud as he trades his Taser for a pistol, "Cass, call for backup!" He commands at the same time that he takes cover behind a tree. Then, he starts shooting - wildly - into the direction the arrow came from. Bullets cracking branches and damaging trees in the general direction before he finds himself reloading.
Meridith flicks a hand out, attempting to pull the officer into the tree with telekinesis, frankly she thinks it might pass notice. She then sprints off into the woods once more. They drew first blood, she decides.
Officer Grumpy grunts as he's pulled into the tree, leaving his face scratched, then turns around with a furious expression. "Cole, what the fuck?!" He calls out to the former battering-ram wielder, who gives him a puzzled look, "...What?" A short argument ensues before they start searching the forest. Too slow, however, to catch up to Meridith, especially while being on their guard for future attacks.
Meridith breaks recklessly into the woods. She isn't much faster, they have numbers. It's a bad scenario. And she should be panicking about this rather insane escalation, but instead she moves. Focuses on the hunt. She is used to being chased down by monsters...she tries not to think about how she usually handles them.
The officers continue to move, cautiously, in the same general direction, eyes flitting around the woods, trying to find Meridith. At first, she can spot the occasional beam of a flashlight piercing the dense woods. But as she runs, this becomes less and less common. Before long, gun shots can be heard in the distance - some issue, or confusion, perhaps. Either way, it seems they're off of her tail.
Of course, that doesn't exactly solve the problem of what happens should she decide to come back to her home, if these people are, in fact, actual cops.
Meridith is thankfully friends with...two deputies. Who can hopefully explain the misunderstanding. Or the school or...if they aren't the real cops? Gosh that'll be fine, right? That'd be way better. She gazes back at the woods at the scattered gunfire, nervously listening if there's signs of...proper conflict.
At first, two guns can be heard firing quickly - close to each other. A pause --reloading perhaps-- can be heard, briefly, only for the gunfire to continue, from one gun. A second joins it from further away, before long. Going by the directions - they may have strayed a few too many steps away from town. But with multiple of them, they should be fine, most likely. And if not, well,
That's a lesson, too.
Meridith groans. Angry, she stomps her little food on the ground and pivots, sprinting toward the sound of gunfire. Because she's extremely, extremely, extremely stupid.
While Extremely, Extremely, Extremely Stupid makes her way back to the gunfire, two guns become one. Uh oh. It's not long before Meridith can spot the reason from a distance - or at least, one of them. A golden hound, shot dead. No dead officers here, at least. Yet.
Meridith exhales softly, taking a deep breath, she tries to hide, just mostly trying to keep out of sight. Her eyes peer about looking for any other threat. If they've got it handled...maybe it was a mistake for her to double back.
A bit further, Meridith can see a general gist of the situation. One officer lies on the floor, either dead or at least down, near a second hound, downed as well. A third, however, still stands. Stalking something, seeming to be about to pounce. Shots are fired from beyond a bush, which the hound seems to rather cleverly be using for cover.
Meridith bursts into motion. "Hold fire!" She bellows. Her hand reaches out, pulling the Hound towards her, and her rapier flashes as she attempts to pierce through the beast.
The hound is pulled alright, looking rather surprised as it flies through the air, towards someone, only to land on her rapier - and pushes her aside - and possibly over - in the process. It yowls in pain before kicking itself away, now bleeding, struggling, trying to make sense of things. The shots don't cease - the shooting officer perhaps too distressed for considering.
The hound is pulled alright, looking rather surprised as it flies through the air, towards Meridith, only to land on her rapier - and pushes her aside - and possibly over - in the process. It yowls in pain before kicking itself away, now bleeding, struggling, trying to make sense of things. The shots don't cease - the shooting officer perhaps too distressed for considering.
Meridith flicks to her bow, trying to place a killing or griveous shot against the beast to keep it from continuing to fight. If it doesn't back off, she'll charge towards it again. Otherwise she'll turn to the dropped or wound officers to try to stabilize them.
From this distance, it would probably be challenging not to kill an already wounded beast and it gurgles, a sickening noise as blood escapes its mouth, then it falls, dead. Stray bullets keep firing, though thankfully not too close to Meridith as she approaches the downer officer. It is the one referred to before as 'Cole', it seems, with quite a nasty wound on their arm, though not to a lethal degree. Intended for later consumption, likely.
Meridith isn't a proper doctor, but she did biology and pre-med and first aid is definitely in her wheelhouse. She does her best to assess and provide some patch. "OFFICER DOWN! I NEED A HAND OVER HERE!" She bellows. Seeing he's stable enough makes her worry, she moves towards the gunshots once more.
No actual sounds of a /hound/ can be heard as Meridith approaches the shots and as she moves closer, she can spot something rather dangerous from beyond the shrubbery. 'Cass' she was called before, laying on the ground with her back against a fallen tree and in her hand, her pistol. It seems between fight or flight, she's picked fight. Her body tensed, Her eyes flitting, sweat on her brow, gun clenched in her hand. She aims it every time at even the smallest movement, firing at rustling leaves in the wind.
Meridith takes a deep breath and comes out with her hands up. "Cass," she says, before she's within obvious sight. "I got the beast, but I need you to help me with your officer. We need to get back to the road, okay?"
Cass virtually immediately shoots in Meridith's general direction, missing her by quite a bit, perhaps by some last moment realization that this was not, in fact, the correct target. Her hand shakes as she slowly lowers her gun, then raises it again at a rustling leave, "W-W-W-Wolf" She claims more than a little falsely, not even bothering to apologize.
Meridith growls. "Put that fucking gun away before you kill someone and follow me! We need to get your friends to the fucking ROAD!"
The woman shakes some more, then nods, processing it. Slowly. She finally lowers her gun, looking rather dazed, "B-Ben left..." She mutters as she stares at the shrubbery, "I-I.. C-Cole..." She swallows, "..D...dead..." She claims, likely simply having assumed as much when he went down, barely acknowledging Meridith.
Meridith says "Cole is FINE. He got a bad injury and we can save him. Go get him, start walking, I will keep you safe until we make it, GO."
Meridith gestures towards Cole, trying to remove the panic by giving clear concise commands.
Cass nods hesitantly, then manages to force herself up, not even reacting to the news of her colleague's survival. As she spots him, she starts to drag him - with some difficulty - in the general direction they came from. Not entirely correct, but close enough, a lot mist shrouding her every step, causing her to stumble on occasion. Meridith can hear, nor see, further hounds. A pack of three it seems - could have been worse.
A thick mist.
Meridith takes a slow steady breath. A hound can be scary. Not a huge problem, she's quick and her blade his sharp and she has learned to use her armor to protect her body when they close. Two can be tricky. Especially if they find you at once or ambush you. Three...however? She hesitates a little. "Officer, you've wasted a lot of ammo. I want you to decide right now, if you can actually hit those things," she says, pointing. "Otherwise, grab that man and run for your life."
Meridith follows beside the officer, keeping her eyes peeled for any further beasts, or contacts. Not eager to get shot, either. She did not see any such thing
She struggles, but before long, the mist starts getting more thin, the flashing lights of police vehicles reflecting of the trees. Cass walks into the direction single-mindedly, focused on her salvation. The sounds of an argument, shouting, can be heard from afar.
Meridith decides to face the music. Doesn't feel like there'll be a better shot for this than now.
Some rather exhausted looking local deputies seem to be in a rather heated argument with the third officer - Ben, that was. Ben notices Meridith, staring, pointing, "FUGITIVE!" He finally manages to scream before the locals give a sigh of relief. They walk up, giving a nod before guiding Cass towards Ben, taking Cole off of her hands as one moves to call an ambulance. Not making any moves towards Meridith, for now.
Meridith flags a local deputy over to explain the situation. She gives a thumbs up to Ben.
The local deputy gives Meridith a look over as the others get to work - separating the officers, then putting them in a trance, presumably to wipe their memories of the hounds. The deputy rubs at the back of his neck, "For whatever reason the officers were under the impression that you are wanted elsewhere..." He explains with a shake of his dead. "Maybe so, maybe not. We'll look into the scenario later, for now, the priority is just containing the breach of secrecy..." He hesitates. "...We expect you to show up tomorrow, though. If we have to run after you..."
"Yeah yeah, save it. I'm not going anywhere. They slammed on my door in the middle of the night and refused to show a warrant. You know that coulda been anything," Meridith complains. "...I did my best to keep them alive, promise," she says quietly and frowns gazing at the injured.
"...Right..." The deputy returns a little suspicious, then shrugging his shoulders.
Not long after, the hypnotism is done, the wounded officer brought in for recovery. Would Meridith arrive as demanded, she'd find the issue disappeared as quickly as it came. Be it some sort of bribe or tampering, there was nothing in the system warranting their being there to begin with, it would appear.
She managed to avoid police harassment, at least, and prevent anyone from dying when things went south, while at it. The best outcome that could be hoped for here, perhaps.