Strangers in a Strange Land, Prologue

M

Ms.Ezra

Guest
Original poster
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We call our world Nomae-Ralo.

Our world is very different from yours. Your world is dominated by humankind, with no room for other sentient life. The menagerie of races that is our world, is only the stable for myths and 'fairy tales' in yours. We have quarrels, and power struggles same as yours. Only we have yet to discover the inner might of a lightning strike, so we huddle around wood and rock fire, or oil lamps when the land is ruled by the night.

And yet here you are, in our world. An otherworldly force has opened a door between our worlds to pluck you from there, and dropped you here.

It's not just you who has come from that world, others were taken as well. They come from across your globe, and even from different times. Some of you lived centuries apart.

At first we just called you all Strangers. Because you spoke a tongue never heard, dressed odd to us, and some of you brought strange weapons. Dangerous weapons. The best of us took you in. The worst of our leaders jailed you for your strange ways.

But rather quickly, you Strangers became two very different groups. The Drifters are those of you who keep your distance from other Strangers and even the natives, preferring to wander in search of something only you could understand.

Then there are The Enders. Those Strangers who passed from your world and have taken it upon themselves to exert their will on the native races, to end their dominion and existence by any means. Maybe something horrible happened to them in their world, why they choose to do this.

In some of you, the passing between worlds granted you unnatural power. Most with this kind of power became an Ender, but the possession of power does not make one Drifter or Ender. Choices do that.

What choices are you going to make in our world?
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Our Cast of Characters

Anne Bonny, The Pirate
Played by Ms. Ezra

Date Yuzuki, The Samurai
Played by Camleen

Albert Rhinegard, The Guy
Played by Ascendant

Craig Wittingham, The Old West Bandit
Played by Goodtvus

Sir Richard Francis Burton, The Explorer
Played by Gands

Felix Lars Helström
Played by Oryx

Grim Manne, The Hunter
Played by Papa Scorch

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Interested in joining? PM me for details and check out The Interest Check.
 
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A strange encounter-

Craig now more confused then ever slowly takes off his hat and runs his hand through is hair then putting his hat back a top his head.

"I mean no harm, I just simply wanted to figure out my surroundings," he says to the men, "it would be mighty fine if we could sit and talk... I am very confused." He says scratching the back of his head chuckling to himself. "And I'm no cowboy, I dress like one but I'm actually a salesmen." Craig says as he reaches his arm out for a handshake.

"The names Craig, Craig Wittingham... I walked through a door and ended up in this beautiful scenic route," Craig says to the man dressed in a very different fashion from the rest of people that seem to be in this camp. It was a weird moment for Craig, the man talked about the current year as if it were in the past for him. It was a strange encounter, and it got Craig thinking.

"I'm not the only one then? He's also not from around here? I can learn a lot from him... I gotta play this out right... and what does he mean by 'work something out'," Craig thinks to himself assessing the situation.
 
{"What journey? Your journey... your race to its end. The time after your birth was another part of your race... and now you move onto this latest part of that grand race. You have been blessed with great speed and purpose. Will you allow your doubts to win, still?"}

The dragon's head leans down towards her as she asks her questions of him. He has to pick and choose which questions to answer and which ones to let go.

{"There are Strangers here now, like you. There have been Strangers here since the beginning, and there will be Strangers here until the end."}

He nods a little, his eyes falling partially closed as the orange haired woman continues.

{"You are deserving of a second chance as anyone else is. Regardless of class or station in life."}

His answers seem to be getting more simple, but perhaps he is actually leading the conversation somewhere.

{"Insights and tests… yes… I could offer more than I will in regard to… insight. My people know much of this world, of your world. And there is much we cannot act upon. Even if we truly want to. But we do try to help where we can. You coming to this place was a sign spoken of many years ago. And this is something we must act on."}

He draws in a breath, and now leans down so his snout is perhaps 10 feet away from Ziarla and in the air a little. She would feel the very warm exhales of breath as he speaks once more.

{"Tests of your collected humanity… a chance to show that you are worthy of this opportunity given. Even now… forces align. For the good of this world or for its worsening. The White Duke. The Shield Bearer. The boys from the tower. The militaristic people. Those that hide from the eyes of outsiders. The religious zealots. The warlike wanderers. The backbone of society. Those of metal in the desert. The long tailed hunters. The furred ones of the plains. Those below. And…"}

His head now raises up over her, his eyes still peering down to her.

{"Those of the mountains. All of this world have vested interest in the Strangers. It is to you to decide what is to be now. What kind of new world these lands will be molded into."}

He now reaches out with a single claw, and presses it gently to one of the paths around her. A spark of golden light is seen the moment the large claw touches the ground, and that path is gently illuminated with a gold shimmering trail. He lifts his claw, and then slowly he pushes himself onto all fours. The birds perching upon his wings flutter away, heading back into the trees.

{"That is the path to Doren. That is where your search begins in earnest. The search for allies… and for enemies."}

He now takes a looming step back, and he turns. Without another word he begins to move off slowly, casually…
 
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Craig
@Goodtvus
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​
"Pleasure to meet you, Craig Wittingham. I am Sir David Bowie. Pardon my patron's guards, they're only doing their job." Sir Bowie snapped his fingers, and a nondescript servant came from within the tent carring two collapsible canvas stools, setting them on opposite sides of the fire. He asked of the Duke "Will you be joining us, my Lord?"

"Oh no, I much prefer the shade." replied the Duke, going back to reading the large book on his table. "As always, I trust your judgement on this Stranger."

Sir Bowie looked across the fire at Craig. "Now then Craig, shall we?" He said gesturing at the pig, snapping his fingers again, prompting the servant to run back into the tent and come back with a tray of two plates, with cutlery and cloth napkins. The servant cut each of them a generous portion, gave them all appropriate cutlery and a napkin, then took a large portion of the pig into the tent for the Duke.

"I know what you're thinking, Mr. Wittingham. 'Where am I?', and after my comment earlier, you're also wondering 'When am I?" Sir Bowie asked before having a bite, chewing it over while still smiling. He would allow Craig to eat a little more before speaking again. " Right now, we are on the Palerme Plains en route to my Lord's summer home. But in a larger sense, we are also not on Earth. This is a whole other world, and a whole other reality called Nomae-Ralo. And it's currently King's Year 27, in the reign of King Edward the Fifth and his brother, King Richard the Third. What's more, relative to you, I'm a man from Earth's future. I was born in 1947, and it was the year 2016 when I passed from Earth, to here."

Sir Bowie would eat, while all of that sunk into the man's head.

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Sir Richard
@Gands
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"Tea? Certainly." Genessa clapped once and said to her older subordinate "Bernard, fetch us some plain tea from across the way, and bring plenty of sugar, honey, the works."

Bernard was flabbergasted "Tea? You're going to sit down and have tea when we should be-"

Genessa interupted with another, louder clap. " We have a Stranger here, and he could be a very valuable recruit. If that one reported is fast as claimed, we have no hope to catch her right now. So, fetch some tea, and let's continue with our mission." She said sternly but calmly without raising her voice.

Bernard put up his right arm, horizontally and just below his chin. "Yes Ma'am, sorry, I was over-excited, as usual." He apologized and promptly left the guild office.

"Right then. Let's talk, and I hope we can have you join our ranks Mr. Burton. It's been some time since a Stranger has been in this office." Genessa beckoned for him to follow her into the back office. The front was a rather plain, utilitarian front with only the desk, the paintings, and a few chairs for any waiting parties. The back had four desks along the left wall, but it appeared only one was occupied and had its nearby wall space taken up by notes and seemingly random sketches nailed up. There was a larger desk on the right side, its own wall space carefully covered by her paintings of various people. Vlad, and the two Richard had not known, each had 'Executed' written in the canvas beneath their faces. There were two other doors, one was marked 'Armory', the other 'Barracks'.

"Have a seat." Genessa took the chair at the big desk. bringing out from its drawers an inkwell, quill, and rolls of parchment. The woman first wrote down his name followed by the date. "First, some questions for you; What year on your world were you born in? And what was your occupation? This is of course part of what we do here at the Red Shield Guild. Once located, we record everything we can about a Stranger. Once those questions are answered, you can ask more of me. Sound fair?"

Bernard came back, carring a pot of tea in one hand, and in the other a cloth sack. He carefully poured them each a glass, and set out the vials of additives for them to add as they pleased. Genessa herself poured in a lot of honey."

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Albert and Yuzuki
@Ascendant @Camleen
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"She knows I don't understand all that gobblegook, right?" Anne asked of the young man after Yuzuki tried to evidently have a moment of prideful challenge with her. Which, to one who could not understand you, had none of the desired effect. She scoffed at the rather pathetic way Albert was sitting, even after being given food. "Oi, matchstick man....I'm sorry, alright? Dat whatcha wanna hear? I'm sorry, now stop poutin' an let's start talkin'. I've had nothin but these cats fer company since I docked a ways off and stumbled here. Five days of drinkin' teachin' an pettin' gets old right quick."

The pirate reached over and grabbed another basket that had been set aside against a wall. There was more fruit, but they were purple unlike the red ones in the basket, smelled sickly sweet, and appeared to be oozing. Anne grabbed one, put her head back, and squeezed it. A thick glob of purplish fluid oozed out of the fruit and into her mouth. Anne dropped the fruit in the basket, and made a harsh grimacing expression as she swallowed whatever that had been. Almost immediately her grimace became a smile, and her cheeks flushed. " I blame it on....whatever those are...ain't rum but damned if they don't work better."

Her mood better for now, Anne finally asked Albert "Ya said you were from...United...States...of...America?" She shrugged. "Never heard of it. That near her homeland, why I haven't and you two are together?"
 
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Sir Richard

Burton was very pleased. He couldn't have written a better dream himself. He sat down opposite the young lady. Listening carefully as she spoke and drew out her papers. He pulled out the blank book and his own pen & ink set so that he too could take notes. He leisurely prepared his tea, with a modest amount of honey. After drinking and savoring it, he started to speak.

"My full name is Richard Francis Burton. I was born in the year 1821, Anno Dominae. My early life was spent in the army of the East India Company. After that, I became an explorer of largely wild uncivilized country. I speak 26 languages fluently, a smattering of a few others and maybe a dozen other dialects. When I became too old to continue exploring, I wrote books and became a diplomat. "

"Now, my turn Miss Genessa. Tell me of this town's beginning, and the coming of the King".
 
A whole new world-

Shocked and amazed Wittingham tries to soak everything in while eating some of the food offered to him. Smiling he looks up at Bowie.

"So in this reality Mr. Bowie, what is different? And a less serious question, what is the future like?" Wittingham says taking another bite out of his piece of pork. Swallowing his food before speaking "also if you don't mind me asking, how did you end up in the position you're currently in?" Craig says to man.

Craig looks up at the sky and smiles briefly then looks back at Bowie "you don't mind if I call ya Bowie? I wasn't one to remember names," Craig asks continuing to eat as much as he can without being impolite. "And where do you reckon I should go after this?" Craig says lastly before getting full off pork.
 
As the dragon continued speaking, Ziarla was starting to get a clearer picture of what the large being wanted her to do. 'I guess this is where he wants me to start determining who to ally with and who to distrust.' She thought to herself, nodding in acknowledgement to the dragon. "I understand what I have to do. Thank you, dragon." She added with a bow and turned to head down the golden path. She wasn't about to run yet, though. She had about 1/4 of her energy reserves left and didn't know how far it was to Doren, so felt it best to hold off from running until she was much closer to the town.

Sighing as she walked down the path, she had a chance to have a good think about what the dragon said to her. She wasn't known to have good leadership qualities, but she was going to do her best in making as many allies as possible. If there was going to be a war soon, she would need to be ready for that eventuality as well. She'd need training with weapons. If there's firearms involved, then she's already got the steady hand and concentration needed to be proficient with them. It would just be learning to control recoil and being able to reliably hit a target.

Soon, she was able to see Doren in the distance. She didn't want to get any closer because guards might come out to either kill or capture her. So, finding a safe space to perch, she decided to open up her phone's camera and do some reconisance with the zoom function, scouting out the lay of the town and discrening whether there was any guards patroling the town.

(Tagging: @Camleen )
 
Albert Rhinegard

The man found it a bit unusual Yuzuki had helped him along considering she had been thrusting her blade in his face not less than an hour or so ago. What exactly was she now to him, he wondered at Anne's question. Meanwhile, he'd missed almost everything Yuzuki had said outside and within the tent, using words far more complex than he'd bothered to learn besides 'food', and something about killing or death again? When Yuzuki pushed him, his head slowly emerged as Albert tried to listen carefully to her words, repeating them a few times in his head.

We, her, something about location maybe, and time. But once more, her words were too complex for Albert who frowned and apologized in Japanese, ("Sorry, I don't understand Japanese completely. She knows none.") Once more, Albert was annoyed by her terming Yuzuki's language 'gobblegook' in a blatant show of disrespect, but he had little choice than to hold his tongue in this instance. 'Matchstick man,' that one particularly annoyed him.

But then she mentioned docked, and that got Albert thinking. So it was likely that boat on the beach was hers, perhaps? Five days might be enough time for the grime on the rope to build. His thoughts were interrupted by the what Albert intepreted to be a little erotic act of 'drinking' in this world that Anne performed, making him blush and look away whilst mentally stumbling.

It took some consideration, what was safe to tell this woman. She was clearly untrustworthy and dangerous, not to mention from a previous time. There were certain knowledges that were dangerous to those who hadn't grown up with them, in Albert's mind, so he chose carefully, blushed a bit at Anne using 'together' to reference Yuzuki and himself, "United States of America. Declared Independence from Britain in 1776. She and I are uh... I don't really know."

He was quick to add, "We're not together together though, if that's what you meant." The man had also been careful not to mention the exact time he originated from, and especially not that her pistols were horribly slow to reload, obsolete pieces of junk that didn't even make use of the concept of rifling.

Interactions: Anne, @Ms.Ezra , Yuzuki, @Camleen
 
YuzukiB.jpg

Anne speaks to her… well in her general direction… and she frowns a little. She looks to Albert, expecting him to be her translator. But instead he tells her that he doesn't know her language completely. And even that is kind of broken, she has to take a moment to put together his words. Her head leans back a little, as if in unbelieving. Wonderful. A soft sigh escapes her lips as she now falls silent, staring at the floor in front of her.

If she is a prisoner, she would gladly perform the seppuku ritual. She would make it a grand, honorable spectacle for the odd beings of this plane of existence. Her head bowed down a little, her eyes only lift in Anne's direction as she takes in the fruit's juice, and she seems to get a little tipsy. If she's holding them captive… she surely isn't the guard. No, she has a village full of animal people for that. Of which she supposes she has only seen a fraction of. At least that's what she's going to go under the assumption of.

Her gaze is directed towards Albert as he seems to get flustered. Why is he blushing? With a questioning gaze upon her features, she looks between them, wondering what they are talking about. Oh, this isn't going to be easy.

Her thoughts once more drift back to their current circumstance. Not her circumstance, their circumstance. She feels a need to at least stay with Albert until he either shows he can fend for himself or… he seems less fragile. He seems a nice enough man, an innocent man. What her master would have called 'a sweet man'. Someone, as she has pointed out to herself before, has lead a life of privilege. Meaning well, but when it comes to getting their hands dirty… they get weak in the knees.

Keeping in mind she hasn't actually had a whole sentence worth of conversation with anyone in this world yet.

She now sits up on her knees, her left hand moving to rest draped over the hilt of her katana. Which she needs to take care of today. It's been to long since she has, which amounts to a couple of days. An eternity for someone who is keen on training and ritual. With her right hand, she brushes a few stray strands of hair from her eyes, watching the two of them converse. Her hair is a chestnut brown in color, and pulled back into a loose and messy ponytail. Just enough to keep most of it out of her way in combat.

As the two converse and compare notes, Yuzuki would have sat quietly. Unmoving from her position sitting on her knees. By now she has finished the fruit she had chosen to eat, and had nothing more. She makes a list of things she needs to accomplish this day. Even though she hasn't got a good look at the sun to determine what time it was. But then, she doesn't realize that it's very possible this world's timekeeping would be different than the world she is from. One of the many subtle differences.


Tagging: @Ms.Ezra, @Ascendant
 
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Craig
@Goodtvus
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"Hahaha, people on Earth liked to call me by 'Bowie', so you're welcome to do so." Bowie replied to the easiest question he had been posed. "Firstly, there is magic here. Real, corpeal magic, but very tricky to find, and learn. And oh my, what is the future like.." Bowie chewed over the question a bit. "The telegram, which was the height of communication in your time if I'm not mistaken, has long been deemed obsolete. People are more connected than every before, and yet, we've been up to our old tricks with these new tools. As if we haven't really learned. There were two wars that spanned the globe in under a century. Men set foot on the moon. So so much I'll have to tell you more later."

Bowie then held out his empty plate, and the servant replaced it with a wooden cup of wine. "I was a musician on Earth all my life, and I've been at it still in this one. The Duke employs myself and a band for the entertainment of himself and his court. I would ask if you would like to accompany us, however....there are other considerations. See, you and I, we're called Strangers to the natives. We're regarded with equal parts awe, and fear. The awe from blokes like myself, who bring new ideas and beauty to their lives. The fear, from those with more nefarious intentions. Hence your reception."Bowie gestured to the guards, who were still looking at Craig warily.

"I wouldn't presume to tell you where to go, or what to do, but I can only offer the advice to try and stay off anyone's list, find your own niche here, and most importantly avoid anyone from the Red Shield Guild. They're a well-to-do group of explorers and chroniclers, but all that to determine if a Stranger is a danger to this world. If you are, well then they get the proper authorities involved." He nodded at The Duke. " I don't think myself a threat, but it's all a matter of perception, you understand. The Duke is my insurance. Best to find yours."

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Albert and Yuzuki
@Ascendant @Camleen
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"1776 ya say?" Anne rubbed her chin. "Last I recall, it was 1720. Good riddance to the Brits. Took my Mary, my freedom..." She had started thinking aloud but managed to catch herself before divulging the other things weighing heavy on her head. "So den....yer from the future?" Anne rested her hand on her chin, looking at Albert with intrigue. "Wassit like?"

​
 
Albert Rhinegard

Albert unfolds himself a little, his anxiety falling. Out of the corner of his eye he notices Yuzuki brushing her hair, and then almost immediately looks once more at the ground before crawling over to the basket and grabbing an unappetizing looking fruit, and a few sticks of cooked meat. Taking a tentative bite of the fruit, Albert wasn't sure if he enjoyed it, but soon enough he was devouring the meat instead, surprised at how hungry he had been.

In between bites, he looked at Anne and occasionally at Yuzuki, considering how to answer the woman. What would be smart to answer, at least. Deciding some information likely wouldn't hurt, he spoke to Anne, "I'm from 2012 actually. Science and technology reigns supreme. My people fly through the sky like metal birds and scream across the countryside in what you might consider metal horses." Albert was careful to make a flying motion with his hand and then moved it quickly along the ground.

Looking at Yuzuki and trying to involve her in the conversation, he did his best in Japanese, fully understanding that their calendars weren't aligned but he didn't know how to translate that bit, ("I, future man. From America. Fly like iron birds, ride iron horse. You, past woman. Your land, we call 'Japan', you call 'Nippon'.") He took another bit, careful to add while motioning from her to himself and then lightly pounding his chest, ("America, Japan, allies in my time.") Albert was also careful to leave out the whole nuking bit, not only because he didn't know how to describe that, but it wasn't relevant and would likely agitate the woman if she understood that centuries later her people would be turned to cinders in nuclear fire for their aggressions against the world.

Taking one more bite of meat, he also nodded towards Anne, using the most applicable word he knew for a pirate and careful not to speak in a way that made it clear he thought poorly of Anne, ("Thief. Bad woman.")

Interactions: Anne, @Ms.Ezra , Yuzuki, @Camleen
 
Back to the grind-

Craig listened intently after finishing his meal almost in awe to hear about the future and of what this world had to offer.

"A man on the moon huh, and magic, well I'll be damned," Craig said with a smile relaxing in his seat. Sighing then sitting up straight in his seat Craig starts to speak again "So since ya'll probably won't me to move on soon, is there anywhere I should avoid that's near by?" Wittingham says while adjusting his hat.

It wouldn't take long for Wittingham to soak in all this information, hes had to start over man times before and this would be no different. With his criminal record now completely gone he could become anyone he wanted to be, a fresh start with no prior names except the ones he decided to tell others about. This was an answer he just couldn't come up in the moments of talking to Bowie.

"And a weird question before I head on out," Craig says while standing up fixing his clothing, "What currency does this world find universal?" Craig says to Bowie as contemplates what he should do after this, and where he should go.
 
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Craig
@Goodtvus
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​
"To the south west" Bowie pointed behind him, indicating their relative position. "Is the city of Reyric. And to the northwest through the mountains, is Alloralla. Avoid those, as the pointy-eared peoples would alert the Red Shield almost immediately. Your best bet would be north east into Linia, the Kingdom of Edward the Fifth. King Edward's not as fond of the Red Shield as his brother, less of them snooping around." Bowie rose, indicating Craig to sit while he went into the tent, and came back with a palm-sized sack of burlap, tossing it to Craig.

"Linia and Gatecia trade in gold and silver coins mostly, but those Dragon scales are accepted by all peoples. Should be enough in there to get you started. Consider it a welcoming gift, one Stranger to another." Bowie winked his left eye. He then raised his cup. "One for the road?"

When Craig opened the sack, he would find fifteen jade green scales about the size of his thumbnail. Each was harder than stone and shimmered.
 
YuzukiB.jpg

Yuzuki's brows furrow a little as she watches Anne and Albert conversate. She watches Anne's body language. Well… maybe Albert isn't as useless as he made himself seem. He's effectively disarmed Anne. She's in a more relaxed state, she's moving in a slightly more sluggish manner. Perhaps a mix of the conversation and whatever tonics she's using. She's focused on Albert.

And she looks towards the man as he grabs another fruit, her hands now moving to rest upon her knees. Her head tilts up a little when he makes his flying motions for Anne, her head bobbing up and down lightly as if to follow the motion of his hand. A whimsical look comes across her dirty features, a curious one.

When Albert turns his attention to her, her eyebrows raise with an attentive look. She finds herself grinning just a little… not to make fun of him. But he kind of sounds like a child trying to speak for the first few times. Slow, words a little out of place every once in a while, his dialect kind of all over the place. But, he's trying. And for Yuzuki, that speaks volumes to his character. He's from… America? She thinks she's making that out right. She glances towards Anne as she speaks. "Watashi wa anata ga mirai kara, Amerika to iu basho karada to itta to omoimasu. Watashi wa Amerika no koto o kiita koto ga nai. Dono yō ni tobu koto ga dekimasu ka? Anata wa tetsusei no dōbutsu o motte imasu ka? Hito wa tetsuseidesu ka?" Albert would pick up that she thinks she heard he's from the future, but she's never heard of America. And something about animals and people made of iron.

She points to Anne as she continues, speaking as if they would understand what she was saying. "Kanojo wa Ōbei hito demo arimasu yo ne? Kanojo mo Amerika shusshindesu ka? Anata wa kanojo to dōmeidesu ka? Nihon wa dōmeikunidesu ka? Kanojo ga watashitachi o tasukeru koto ga dekiru nodeshou ka? Kanojo wa doko ni iru no ka shitte imasu ka?" Asking something in the neighborhood of if Anne is like him, American. And if they're all allies also. And if Anne knows anything about where they are.

And when he motions to Anne, her dark eyes move towards the woman. She starts to speak as she stares right at her. "Kanojo wa sanzokudesu. Kanojo no buki ya kōdō wa, sonouma o tsutaemasu." He could probably make out the fact Yuzuki is calling her a bandit, that her actions and weapons say so. "Kanojo wa mizu no fearingu no gōtō kamo shirenai. Watashi wa sore izen ni Minatochō o mamotte kimashita." Albert might get out of all of this, Yuzuki thinks she's a water fairing bandit. And how she's fought them before. Yuzuki pauses then, and she looks towards Anne with a thoughtful gaze. She stares into the woman's eyes for a few silent moments, and then she looks to Albert… and she speaks slowly so he can understand her.

"Ahlbehert" She tries to pronounce his name. "Watashi wa kanojo ga sanzokuda to itta to oshietekudasai. Watashi wa kanojo no omotenashi ni kansha shite imasu." She nods to him, hoping he understood at least some of that. She wants him to tell Anne that she thinks she is a bandit, but thanks her for her hospitality. When Albert tells that to Anne… hopefully he does… Yuzuki's hands move to the ground in front of her, palms flat on the floor, and she once more bows at the waist towards Anne.
 
Back to the grind-

Catching the bag Craig looks into it and then looks at Bowie.

Craig smiles, "Thanks partner, and sure I reckon one drink wouldn't be too bad," Wittingham says to Bowie as he sits back down looking at the dragon scales given to him by Bowie. Craig examines the scales noticing there incredible durability and toughness, then taking a sip of what Craig assumes is going to be alcohol. A taste comes to him that is familiar a taste he had longed for ever since he was caught by the sheriff and was awaiting execution.

"Hey Bowie, you said there was magic in this world, right?" Craig says adjusting himself in his seat, "You said us strangers are special here, have any strangers you met used any magic or had any abilities?" Craig says curiously as he takes another sip of his drink.

Craig laughs briefly "Sorry for all the weird questions, I figure I should learn as much as I can in case I come across another stranger so I can help them out as you have done here for me." Craig says taking one last huge gulp of his drink finishing it off.

"Until we meet again Bowie, next time the food and drink will be on me" Craig says to Bowie extending his hand out for a hand shake.

Inv: Revolver with 12 rounds, a hunting knife, a box of matches, a canteen,a compass, and fifteen dragon scales.
 
("Hold my cross high so I might see it above the flames!") *Translated from the French


One of the guards took pity 'pon me… and he fashioned a cross from the kindling spread around me at my feet. A friar holds a cross on high, and I stare at it. In his way, he tries to console me with the gesture. I feel the warmth of the flames. I start to sob, I hear myself begging for them to stop. They said they would… but I had to recant. I could not. They have broken my body, but my spirit does not belong to them. I struggle once more against the chains holding me to this pillar… they will not relent their hold 'pon me. The bottom of the gown I wear starts to raise a bit with the encroaching flames, and I feel the hem catch those flames. I scream out again, I wale. My voice and spirit pleas to the Archangel Michael… to Saint Margaret… and to Saint Catherine. They hear me, I know they do. But there is naught to be done. I feel the whole of my body being torn at by the flames all around me. Nothing but fire. Like the pits of Hell itself, Jesus help me. I feel my flesh being scorched off of my bones… I burn… I die…


But that is not my end.


The world she knew was gone… and now she has entered another. With a grunt, she lands on her hands and knees in the middle of a dirt path. Her fingers curl in the loose dirt, she feels how cool the dirt is to touch. A shiver runs through her form… she is bare, her clothing gone. Slowly she looks up, and she sits up on her knees, her arms crossing over her bare chest. Such a beautiful place… surely… this is Heaven… She lets out an anguished cry, tears trickling down her cheeks as she looks up. ("Jesus you saw fit to save…") she cries out again in happiness. She had to go through Hell to get here. But things on this world rarely are as they seem.

("Get out of the road you lunatic!")

She jumps in surprise as she hears a voice… or something resembling a voice from behind her. It sounded more like a bunch of growling grunts. She looks over her slim shoulder… and she scrambles to her feet with the sight. A wagon, being pushed by what looks like a stocky horse. Holding the reins… a giant green monster. Sitting next to him is a woman. The monster starts to laugh at her, and so does the woman. She forgets her shame as she stands there staring in horror at this spectacle.

("Jesus why")

She whispers as she stares. This isn't Heaven at all. Her Hell continues. They were right? They were all right. She looks down at her trembling hands, renewed tears trickling upon them. ("Move, Maleese!") The green monster growls out at her again. Her whole body trembles, and she feels once more the fires all around her, burning her flesh anew. She screams in agony, and the wagon explodes.



The city of Doren
The guards in the highest watchtower spot the explosion on the road in the distance. He stares out, squinting to try and see a bit better. He calls down to the barracks below, and those guards make report to the city watch. And very quickly they would report to the Red Shield Guild. They are under orders to report anything out of the ordinary… and an explosion out of nowhere on the road a few miles out counts as out of the ordinary.


Tagging: @Ms.Ezra, @Gands, @TheTechnologicVampire
 
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From her perch and the zoom on her phone's camera, Ziarla was able to see the wagon exploding. Putting her phone back in her pocket, she watched the flames burn the wood of the wagon and the dirt beneath it. She saw the occupants of the wagon and the female that must've caused the explosion. A wagon wouldn't explode willy-nilly, unless from magic, or from the powers of a Stranger.

Eyes wide, she jumped down from her perch. Engaging her speed, Ziarla sprinted over to the scene of the explosion, the wind again makimg the sound of the 5.0L twin-turbo V8 from a certain Swedish mega-hyper car. Skidding to a stop, she surveyed the scene, looking to see if anyone was still alive from the explosion. If she found someone, the orange-haird rally driver would pull them from the wreckage and make sure they wrre a safe distance away.

Once they were safe, Ziarla turned her attention to the crying woman in the road. If memory served her correctly from history lessons, she would recognise the garb as that from the French Renaisance period or from a similar time period. Kneeling down, Ziarla spoke to her in as comforting tone as she could muster.

"You ok there miss? You look very distressed. Something bothering you?" Even if the female couldn't understand her, Ziarla did the right ghing and at least tried to comfort the woman. "This might come as a shock to you, but you just made that wagon explode. That's definitely not normal for the inhabitants of this world. Do not worry, there are more like you here, with strange powers. I for one am one of them, with my power as extreme speed. They call us Strangers here."

(Tagging: @Camleen )
 
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Craig
@Goodtvus
==========
The Palerme Plains, Southern border of Linia
​
"Indeed, I have met Strangers with abilities. One man, a James Dean you wouldn't have heard of, could run at great speeds. Might still be running somewhere, haven't heard from him or of him in some time. As for magic, can't say I have met any outside special natives who could use it." Bowie shook Craig's hand and gave a hearty laugh. "I'll hold you to that Craig. Until next time, you stay safe. Oh and umm should have warned you, but these plains are named for the people who inhabit them, the Palerme. Look like werewolves, but don't worry if one bites, you'll just die." Bowie warned and waved after Craig as he departed.

============================
Sir Richard and Ziarla
@Gands @TheTechnologicVampire
============================

City of Doren, Kingdom of Gatecia
​
"Where was the explosion reported?" Genessa asked as the trio came out of the Guild building. Everything was still calm, relatively, as the guards had not raised an alarm just yet over the explosion.

"To the East, Madame." Bernard replied. Both Genessa and Bernard held nothing more in their hand than a six inch wooden rod with runes burned into them. "It may be nothing more than an accident, but still, we must explore the cause before making any conclusions." The woman explained to Richard. When they were approaching the gates, the guards started raising the gate for them without question or order. They looked at Richard longer than normal, but otherwise gave no indication they viewed him as threat. If he was in the company of the Red Shield, he must be fine.

===================
Albert, Anne, Yuzuki
@Camleen @Ascendant
====================
​
The info about 'metal birds' and 'iron horses' made Anne wonder what had become of the seas if it was true people could do all that. Were there still ships? She was going to ask once he'd relayed all of it to the other woman.

But then she saw, even if she couldn't understand, that Albert was talking to her about Anne. She knew it had to be. It was an all too common thing in her life.

"I know what yer sayin' about me, Albert." Anne gave the young man a leer while putting one of the strange fruits to her mouth and sucking on it rather loudly. "Yer sayin' somethin' long the line of....'Anne is a crook'....'Anne is a bad person'.....yeah I know that tone....well let me tell you somethin' about you that you don't know." She sucked on the fruit again. This time the juices didn't seem to be helping her mood. Her eyes were turning red, tearing up as they looked at Albert."Yer a soft man. Yer skin looks so smooth, an yer beard is clean...everything about ya is clean....means ya probly had a good life in that future. Lotta soft men in yer time? Things so easy for everyone?. Was likely easy fer ya to be good. Some of us....we got it bad from the start....an good didn't get us any good....so we took what good wouldn't get us....if livin' ousside the rules of 'good people' " She said with a growl to match the cat people " makes us bad then dammit....I'm the redheaded Devil." She dropped the fruit and yelled "DON YA DARE JUDGE ME!" She slammed her first to the ground and, in a surprising turn, the ground shook ever so slightly. This outburst prompted a couple of the Barbin to come in, concerned about what was going on.

The hand that had struck the ground was trembling, and Anne was looking at it like a new appendage had suddenly sprung up. She looked at Yuzuki, Albert, and to the two cat people who looked concerned for her. They came close and knelt around her, purring but not in delight. She could feel their concern for her. See it in their eyes.

"I'm fine....fiiine." She told them slowly, and the two backed off, leaving her hut. The pirate looked at the other two, shoved her basket of booze fruit away, and rose slowly. "I'm....going fer a walk." She said curtly and walked out of the hut, her stumble noticeably gone as if stone sober, or at least close. The woman ignored the eyes and hands of the Barbin she passed as she left the village. Not too far, just far enough she could feel more alone but still see the fires. She found a large flat rock, sat on it, and looked at her hands. She flexed them, and felt something new. Power. Like she could crush this rock if she wanted.

But where did it come from? She'd been quick, had a strong thrust to her swordplay, but never a tough enough hand for the heavy work it took to run a ship. And why did she feel less drunk suddenly? That tingly feeling was less for sure...

Her thoughts were interrupted by a sound she wasn't expecting to hear from within the forest. A loud, sheer, blast from bagpipes that hurt her ears. Back in the Barbin village, the sound actually caused the Barbin to stop in their tracks and cry out in pain. The younger ones held their ears and fell to the ground.

Anne looked around, pulling her pistols out and whipping her head around. "Da hell are bagpipes doin' out here?!"

"A distraction, wench!" a voice yelled out moments before Anne felt a hard hit to her square in the back. It knocked the wind out of her, causing the woman to fall forward into the ground, her hat falling off.

The blow had come from a rock thrown by a sling. The sling and rock belonging to a man bearing blue paint on his face, wearing a kilt, and at his side a Claymore stuck into the ground. A talisman hung from his neck and rested on his wide armored chest. He took the Claymore from the ground, and held it high as he yelled "ATTACK!" prompting another blast of the sheer paralyzing noise to come out over the village.

Twenty Men, or Maleese as the Barbin would know them, dressed similarly to their leader with war hammers or axes, came out of the forest and charged at the temporarily paralyzed village. The bagpipes would keep cutting a piercing blast through the fighting, until their leader gives the order to stop.

mel_gibson_braveheart.jpg
 
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Sir Richard

Of course, Burton comes with the other two. At the first hearing of the explosion, Burton tilted his head studying the noise.

"Hmmn, not gun powder, nor nitro glycerin. Perhaps Greek Fire ?"

In the process of the walk, Burton checks his sword, his pistol. He follows the other two, attentive to his surroundings.

@Camleen @Ms.Ezra
 
A farewell-

Craig waved goodbye to Bowie as he departed from the camp laughing to himself thinking about the werewolf natives Bowie warned him about. Walking further away from the camp sticking to the road he talked to himself.

"So some of us strangers have powers... do I have a power?" Craig thought as he walked down the road revolver at the ready for any hostile encounters to come. "With only twelve bullets I have to make em count, I could make black powder but I'd need the ingredients for it first" Craig contemplates as he strolls through the unknown.

Admiring the scenery and fiddling with his knife another thought sprouts deep from within his mind.

"So what will I bring to this world? I'm still at square one.... going back to my old ways could work but I don't know this world as well as Earth" Wittingham thinks as he looks back and notices the camp is no longer in sight. Within this thought another thought suddenly shocked his mind "Shit! That's right, I do recall Bowie saying the south west and north west were bad news, I reckon I should figure out where I'm goin then" Craig says quickly reaching for his compass as he strolls the path.

The compass old but reliable offered him the information he needed, he was currently heading north which was close to the pointed eared folk. Craig sighed and stopped in his tracks quickly facing west.

"Off the dirt road but it's better the ladder I suppose," Craig said to himself with confidence as he walked off the dirt road heading west.

Craig after going on the run back on Earth learned many things from his fellow gang members, the basic essentials to survival in the wilderness. This was something crucial when on the run from the authorities as it allowed his crew to effectively get away with most crimes. Not only throughout his life had he become a master at word play, and chemistry, but his experiences as an outlaw made him a survivalist. In Craig's mind this would be the best choice until he could figure out what he wanted from himself and from this world.

"Looks like its getting dark.... time to setup camp fro the night," Craig says to himself quickly finding a nice open spot in the woods. "Time for some fire!" Craig says to himself in excitement as he gathers a bunch of rocks and forms them in a neat circle.

Craig would then hastily collect bundles of sticks and timber from the ground surrounding the area neatly placing them within the stone circle. He then searches the near by area for flint quickly finding it before sun fall he strikes the flint against his knife about the campfire until it eventually sends a spark into the fire pit. Blowing gently on the smoke to keep the fire from going out it eventually catches hold of the firewood causing the campfire to slowly light the moon light sky. Craig finds a comfortable spot near the camp fire.

"*Yawn* Reckon I should get some shut eye before it gets too late," Craig says to himself as he holds his revolver tightly in his grasp ready for anyone willing to sneak up on him.

It'd be no different when he was on the run, and it wouldn't be an exception here...
 
Albert Rhinegard

Albert was mostly lost as to what Yuzuki was saying. Her words were almost entirely beyond him, and he failed to even get the gist of what she said. It made him sigh and rub his temples, but then Anne began to grow on her spiel and that made him feel even more frustrated, anxious, and confused. The man jumped a little when she struck the ground, seeming to make the Earth itself shake, The fuck? Was that a coincidence?

The entrance of the cat people seemed to indicate that it wasn't, as well Anne's own way of looking at her hand. Albert looked at her closely as she walked almost normally out of the hut, thinking to himself, She struck the ground, it shook, and now she walks normally. Those things are probably connected but I should observe more before making a judgement. And also try something...

Bringing his own fist down onto the dirt brought only pain to the man, who ended up shaking it in the air to remove the crud and pain, Whelp, damn, I don't have earth-shaking strength... That almost certainly wasn't a coin-

The loud sound of bagpipes filled the air and hurt his ears, causing Albert to clasp them with his hands. Yuzuki seemed used to this kind of thing as she got to her feet, telling him something that Albert couldn't make out before disappearing out the door, Did she expect me to hear over this damn noise and also translate at the same time?! What the fuck is going on?

Stumbling out of the hut, Albert had lost sight of Yuzuki, but as he walked around with his hands still about his ears, the man got a good look at the men charging towards the village, Oh shit, they're probably going to enslave the cat people and murder me if they catch me. With that going through his mind, Albert made the only logical choice he could think, and began running as best he could away from the men, trying to get to the forest to hide.
 
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