Tawny Lea knew she was in a bad way.

Alone in a blizzard with a stinging pain in her head and only one enigmatic being for company definitely qualified as dangerous. It made her recall things she had read some time ago, stories of adventure and drama. The insane or insanely dangerous situations that the characters got into made her feel more appreciative of her own relatively safe and simple life. She relished the escapism but had always felt a little relieved when she could put the book down and return to her normal life.

But this was not a book, not a movie, and most certainly not something that she could just walk away from.

Snow muffled footsteps echoed through her head.

Once more her conviction for survival shone through the fog like a lighthouse. She would tear victory from the jaws of defeat. Nothing was going to stop her from her goal of escaping this beast.

With this renewed strength of will she met the thing's gaze.

The monster's eyes regarded her and there was… what? A feeling. What kind of feeling? She tried to see, tried to understand what was happening. She felt very alone and uncertain, her sense s confused and her body fatigued. She knew she had to get away but had little idea where to start… And why was this happening when she was just trying to help others? There were far too many questions and far too few answers. It made her thoughts run in a downward spiral toward murky darkness.

Then there was a quiet voice, so soft that she wasn't even sure how she was hearing it over the roar in her head and the angry wind and snow. It told her to just give up; he could see how tired and afraid she was…

He?

That sudden distinction that made her mind snap back to reality. It felt similar to a dream that ends when lucidity sparks a realization that small details are different than what it they were in real life. And after that you wake knowing none of it was really real at all.

Jerking her head up sharply she noticed that it (he?) had moved a good deal closer to her. It was hard to see anything besides those eyes…Those eyes which held a very unpleasant smile in them. Nothing else was distinct about the thing making its way closer and closer.

And then a recollection came to her in a sluggish way.

It reminded her of one of those hypnotists she saw occasionally at shows and on TV. They told you things and you felt inclined to do them because they had put you in a different state of mind. The hypnotist usually had the Toon in question do something ridiculous and everyone laughed and things were all right and no one was getting hurt or followed and things made sense…

The blurry world howled again, silent and yet still somehow as loud as a fog horn.

With great difficulty Tawny Lea forced her eyes away from that dreadful gaze. She made her mind wake and commanded her body to move through the senseless chill.

Abruptly free, the Dog's reasoning and ability returned.

Incredibly confused, but wasting no time on contemplation Tawny ran towards and past the thing with the red eyes (which she didn't dare look at again). The creature, apparently surprised that his prey had escaped, was slower to react and consequently the Toon had just enough time to flee the pond area and the burning stare.

This fact was perfectly fine with Tawny, who took that opportunity put on full speed towards what she dearly hoped wasn't a wall.

She had had little luck this night, but some still seemed to be with her because she didn't crash through anything more solid than smoke in her flight.
Suddenly a dark space appeared before her, dark grey within the white blindness.

A tunnel.

She slowed her frantic pace somewhat. She tried to look about, to peer through the mist and snow, but no building make itself known. A fearful thought struck her as she slowed down further: this was her only hope. She had to place her faith in her luck as she had little doubt that the thing would catch her if she tried to run in the other direction…and what if she was going the wrong way then? But what if she was going the wrong way now? What if…
Tawny Lea's confidence began to plummet dangerously quickly. She stopped, the grey tunnel loomed a few feet away, uncaring to her plight.

And then a voice, no more than a whisper, spoke to her.

"There is no running from your fate."

The Dog spun around in shock but she could still see scarcely more than her own nose and the deeper darkness of her only hope. She shivered, not only because of the cold; but because it sounded as though the storm itself had started talking to her. Its voice felt as cold as permafrost and threatening as a venomous snake.

For one agonizing moment the Toon was frozen in place, terrified. The wind kicked up even more frightfully than before. It stirred the thick strands of fog into a frenzied swirl; but through the sudden crazed dance the whiteout lost some power. She was able to catch glimpses of shapes and trees …and one tall, thin something moving with some trouble through the blasting currents of air and ice.

Though it was hardly comforting to know that he (whoever he was) was talking to her (and was very close) at least it wasn't a great and spiteful force of nature trying to take her down.

The thought of lunacy crossed her mind, thinking that a storm could have a persona, a voice, seemed out of bounds in term of even Toonyness. But in her current state Tawny refused to rule anything out. This strange thing's ability to control and the way the world seemed to be falling apart at the seams was proof enough that things could be far more than they appeared to be.
Tawny Lea felt in her heart that if she gave this stranger power over her it would all spiral out of control. Her fear, her uncertainty, all her pain would be magnified by intense, red eyes. And what would happen then?

She would give up-

-But that was not going to happen.

She ran to the tunnel, away from the howling wind, and away from another, even more frightening howl of anger.

Tawny Lea emerged from the darkness into a world of shining metal, gleaming marble, and grey-black skies. The blizzard was lesser here, as though the place was somewhat disconnected from the Brrrgh. Because of this she could observe outlines of inexplicable skyscrapers in the distance and smoke mingling with the fog.

Her heart skipped a beat as she saw statues of a distinguished figure holding a book and gavel. She knew where she was; she had heard the reports, seen the pictures.

Lawbot HQ.