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Character Index

 
Charlan isn’t so dumb, is he? But when he brings his hand up towards Niji, she immediately rears up and lets out a loud and startled whinny, kind of kicking her hooves in his direction. Not nearly close enough to hit him, but make it obvious he shouldn’t be stupid---- hey is that food he has?

She lowers herself and leans towards Charlan cautiously, or more precisely the grass he holds in his hand. She exhales through her nose a few times in curiosity, but still very cautious. She then leans back a little as she lets out a low snort, her head whipping side to side. Niji suddenly darts away from him, and stops about 20 feet away. She then starts to eat the grass on the hill, seeming suddenly content. Why should she take the strange man’s food when there’s plenty all around her?

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The Burned Woman just stares as Horse puts the woman out of her misery, and he then seems to want to go after her. But luckily Jim warns him off. She casually sheathes her sword as he relents to her, her eyes looking between Jim and Horse from under her hood. She leans down and scoops up her worn shield, holding it in her left hand.

“Yes… warn everyone you can.”
Her gaze moves towards Horse as she speaks. “Tell everyone you can that our brigade is more powerful than any of the monster races in this forsaken world. And I will cleanse it in fire.”

Her attention moves to Jim then as he stops near her. 2 of the foot-soldiers flank him, one of them holding a rope. “I don’t know why they want you, really. It is the will of my Lord, and I obey.” One of the troopers starts to tie Jim’s hands with the rope, but she points to him as she speaks harshly, her French accent seeming to get heavier. “Don’t. He has surrendered. He is coming willingly.” He hesitates, but quickly then stops away. Her hand slowly lowers as she still stares at the nameless trooper, and she speaks, looking back towards Jim’s tent. “My purpose is my own, Morrison.” She then looks to him “And it is divine purpose.” She then turns, and once more Jim is flanked. But this time by 5 troopers. She starts away from the camp… towards an awaiting caravan. One that has kept itself out of sight.

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Once more Yuzuki ‘feels’ an attack coming, and she finds herself acting almost on instinct. She holds her sword straight up and down in front of her as she steps back and to one side. His kick nearly hits her, she is barely able to dodge away from it. His sword swipe comes, and she fluidly draws her sword up and outwards to deflect away his blade. As he steps away from her, she takes a step away also.

But as the reality of the moment catches up to her… Yuzuki is finally able to get a good look at the man she had chosen to fight, circling one another. Her eyes widen, and she takes another quick step back. She feels her hands trembling suddenly as she stares at him, and she whispers.

“Father”

The word leaving her lips fearful, almost a stutter.

When Hizashi asks of her sword, she looks down at the pommel resting against the top of her hand…



((Translated from the Japanese))
“Papa… it is very hot here… why is it so hot…”
“It has to be, Yuzi. They have to make the dirt into metal for my sword.”

Yuzuki is 7. She is wearing a pink colored silken kimono, the edges adorned with an intricate floral pattern. In her right hand she holds a wooden rounded block with an angry looking face on it. Her father, Hizashi, holds her other hand. They stand near the forge as men load it with coal, over and over. It will take about 600 pounds of coal… and that is just the beginning.

“What say you, Kaito? I expect a sword as godlike as ones your master would make.”

One of the men chuckles and steps away, wiping sweat from his bald head as he bows a little to Hizashi. “I cannot replace my mentor, sire. I can only hope to do his legacy proper tribute. You will have your godlike sword, sire.” He bows again and turns to go back to work, and Hizashi smiles widely. He looks down to Yuzuki as she fidgets, not liking how hot it is. So he half turns and picks her up, holding her close to him. “Someday you will stand with these men, and you will help them forge your own sword.” He kisses her cheek as she groans, tucking her head into the side of his neck. “But it’s to hot…” he laughs gently, he and his daughter move away as the men continue to work…



Yuzuki looks back up to Hizashi as he demands answers of her, and she looks just… helpless. Peasent. Disgraceful. Shabby imitation. Those are the words that Yuzuki hears the loudest. She speaks with a plea in her voice. “Father please… I’ve done my best, just as you and Ryo said…” She shakes her head as she takes another step back. “Please don’t be angry, father. I did my best after…” after he was gone. She looks back towards Hizashi… did her father’s spirit come here? Is that why she is here? His spirit is angry with her… he was angry with her when he died, and that anger carried him here to this ungodly place.

Yuzuki’s eyes flick to the right of Hizashi, looking passed him. Seeing Jim being escorted away… seeing the camp burn… seeing Horse unable to do anything… seeing Xing in pain… she has seen this before. She has seen defeat enough times to recognize it. Her gaze snaps back towards Hizashi, and she speaks as her voice trembles. “I’m sorry, father. I’m sorry.” She shakes her head as she takes a step back, and she then turns. Yuzuki then does something the others have never see her do. She flees from battle. In her time here, she has faced men twice her size. Without fear she has looked into a group of armed men and dared them to make a move against her. She has never hesitated, she has faced her own death many times. And that’s just since she came to this world. All of that was multiplied when she was on Earth. But now… Yuzuki runs away, she runs from an opponent she feels she cannot beat. Physically, perhaps she is a match for the man. But psychologically… Yuzuki has been defeated. So she runs, she runs as fast as she can right in the direction she left the others.

And she is half glad she did. She is able to (relatively) easily outrun Hizashi, so now she can focus on helping them.

To the archers that have Albert, Anne and Benjie pinned down… Yuzuki seems to come out of nowhere. She lets out an angry scream as she leaps right into the midst of them. With 2 swipes of her katana, 2 of the archers are dead. The other 4 are now distracted, and they look towards Yuzuki to see what the hell is going on. From her vantage point she sees more of the troops coming, and as she kills a third man she cries out. Perhaps Albert and/or Anne and/or Benjie would hear the utter sorrow in her voice. “Run now! Go! I’ll meet you in Gatecia!” Her leans to one side as one of the archers swings a dagger at her, and she is barely able to get out of its path. “The day is lost! Run!” She grits her teeth and slices off that archer’s hand, and then sends her elbow into the side of his jaw. She drops low suddenly, just as an arrow whizzes over her head and imbeds itself into a tree behind her. She glances in the direction of Albert, Anne and Benjie… and she is then gone. She runs towards the group of oncoming troopers, the reinforcements, and she gets their attention. By killing the lead of the group. Multiple arrows are fired at her, and she skips over a couple of them as they land at her feet from above. Yuzuki whips her sword to her side and she plants it in the scabbard in her sash… and she runs away from the camp, most of the men giving chase…

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And back on that hill… perhaps as Charlan is considering trying to tame Niji… her head juts up, blades of grass falling from her jaws. Her wide eyes look in the direction of Jim’s camp. She snorts loudly through her nose as her front hooves clomp heavily on the ground, her ears perked up. Another moment she stares, and then she goes into a sudden gallop towards the camp… she will avoid Albert, Anne and Benjie though. She moves in the direction she feels Yuzuki running... Xing's emotional reactions to the atrocities within the camp got Niji's attention. And now she feels Yuzuki's turmoil, and it acts like a beacon to the young unicorn.
 
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“Right. Now here's the plan. You work yer magic, I'm gonna make a big ruckus and when they give away their positions, me and the other Future Man-” Anne is interrupted giving her orders by the anguished and angry cries of Yuzuki. Anne jumps to her feet, looking in the direction of the screams from Yuzuki and the men she's attacking. “That daffed woman!” Anne unsheathes her cutlass and charges in that direction yelling “I see dead men!”

In short order Anne tramples through the brush they'd used for cover and is upon the remaining two men. Before they could bring bow or dagger to bear, she slashes one across the throat and kicks the other in the head with such force there is an audible crack then snap. Anne looks at the departing figure of Yuzuki, and the five troops who were giving chase. “Dammit.” Anne runs after them, but knows she can't catch up with Yuzuki. Instead she overtakes the troops and cuts the legs out from under two in quick succession.

The remaining three give up their pursuit and swarm on Anne.
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The man who has identified himself as Date Hizashi does not give chase. He looks to the camp, and smiles seeing that victory is theirs for the day. He whistles, and a gryphon swoops down from the sky. He hops onto the harness it wears and the beast makes a run for the camp, nearly trampling Xing who through her haze of turmoil, senses it just in time to roll away. Hizashi looks back at her and cackles as the gryphon beats its wings and takes off into the sky. He could give pursuit of the Stranger who wields what he thinks is a copy of his family heirloom, but those were not his orders. Like a good soldier, he guides the gryphon to fly over and around the caravan as it departs to carry their prisoner off.

Meanwhile Charlan looks after the unicorn that had been so serene one moment, then bolted off in the next. He looks back to the camp, and sees the fighting has stopped with the decisive victors being..whoever the others were. The woman in the cloak has to be a Stranger, of that he's certain. But he doesn't recognize her. Last he checked their records, the last Stranger to possess command over fire had died some time ago. So this one was new.

“I have to let Genessa know. But I think my Seer Orb is down there, somewhere.” He groans. “And they're not likely to be welcoming to me. They probably think I brought this attack on them.” He sighs and decides the best course of action is to cautiously make his escape. He knows enough of the world to not need any kind of compass or map. He knows his way to York, the nearest settlement just inside the borders of Gatecia.

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Horse nods at each message Jim wants him to relay, and is silent as he is led away but does not relent. He's ready for a betrayal to come soon as Jim is in the caravan of wagons and a carriage.

When he hears the gryphon coming, he readies an arrow but is distracted when he sees that the beast is about to trample Xing. He drops his weapon and moves to get to her, get her out of the way. Luckily he is not needed, but he still runs to Xing and kneels down.

"Xing? Are you okay?" He asks, touching her shoulders and looking around her body for any injury.

Xing gets back onto her knees, and turns her head in the direction of the departing caravan. "How can we be okay? Jim is...gone. He's given up. People....our family...we've lost family." She whimpers, and Horse embraces her but is at a loss for what to say.
 
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Albert Rhinegard

Albert is listening carefully to Anne when the woman is suddenly interrupted by Yuzuki, shortly dashing off after the young Japanese woman. In contrast, Albert stays right where he is, looks at Benjie, and says straightforwardly, "Your best bet for survival is probably staying with us. Go help her out. Careful with ammunition. I believe ammunition for our types of weapons isn't made in this world. Go." Before the man heads over, Albert returns the last of his weapons, believing Benjie to probably be trustworthy. If not, Benjie would likely just capture them anyway.

Whether Benjie went or not, Albert turned his attentions to the other dead crossbowmen lying on the ground, promptly searching them with the intent to take one of their crossbows, plenty of bolts, a quiver, and stripping the one most similar to Albert for his clothing and armor. Albert had zero qualms about stripping these dead men of clothing, armor, and even any valuables he found such as those scales from earlier, unlike stealing from Charlan. These men had attempted to kill him. Once the search of those men was done, Albert fully intended to move onto those slaughtered by Anne and Yuzuki if possible, since it seemed the battle had died down.

GM-Given Throughout his search, the man came across five pinky-sized ingots of gold, discoveries that made Albert's heart race, Holy shit! Wait... Maybe gold isn't as expensive here as back home? Psh, of course gold is expensive! Quietly, he put them away in his pockets, continuing to try to find appropriate armor and era-appropriate clothing even if it had a few bullet holes in it. Upon closer inspection of the men, it also became apparent that they all had swastikas tattooed onto the backs of their hands, cementing that Hitler was behind this. It was a disquieting fact to a man who wanted nothing to do with this conflict, yet seemed incapable of avoiding it. And now, Albert was also a killer. Not a murderer, but a killer in his mind. Another fact to be considered later.
 
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One moment Benjie was getting ready to follow the planned attack, then the samurai woman had swooped in as the wind, cutting a number of the enemy and calling for them to flee.

Live today, fight another day.

Benjie had no objection to the plan, being a guerrilla veteran he had plenty of experience when it came to escapes. Then he wondered did Yuzuki actually defeat the Japanese soldier, looking back at the camp, he noted that the Imperialist was still very much alive and on a winged beast.

“Should’ve known that she hesitate to fight one of her own.”

The Filipino muttered in an accusing matter. Yet he had no time to dwell on that while Anne rushed after the remaining crossbowmen. He was about to follow when Albert spoke about letting him tag along and the limited ammunition in this world then gave back his pistol and last grenade.

“Thanks.”

He answered in English and sprang forward, not as fast as Yuzuki but enough. With the carbine swing over the shoulder, Benjie caught up with Anne who was engaging three targets by herself. He could let loose with the gun again, but Albert’s eariler warning convinced to go in with the bolo blade instead. With the machete like weapon in hand Benjie leaped and tackled crossbowman who trying outflank Anne for his fellows to the ground. Without stopping, Benjie stabbed the foe on the left side of the neck repeatedly in an brutal fashion until the panicked soldier stopped moving and blood gushed out.

Suddenly one of the warriors noticed what happen and disengaged from the pirate and charged at Benjie with a medieval looking sword with a battle cry. Rolling up from the newly made corpse Benjie twisted and dodged away from the marauder who swung at him murderoous intent. The resistance fighter jumped back, and his opponent pursed only for Benjie to spin and sliced at the exposed right leg. His foe cried out, dropping to the side and Benjie was on him. In horror the raider begged,

“Please wait! I-

Benjie with a stone cold expression interrupted, by slicing again and cut open the front of the neck and splashes of crimson stained the insurgent’s clothes and face. He then turned to see how Anne fared against her hostile.
 
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Yuzuki knows overwhelming odds. While it’s not customary for those of her ilk to so easily and hastily retreat… well these are special circumstances aren’t they. Her mind is still reeling from meeting her father here… from his words to her. They cut sharper into her than any blade ever could.

But there is more to Yuzuki’s retreat than just getting the hell out of there. When you are fighting a group of people, get them to chase you. Make them angry enough that they will want to hunt you down. Run as fast as you can… because they will do the same to get you. But, there is only 1 in any group that is the fastest. So when that fastest runner gets some distance from the group…

Yuzuki plants her foot into the ground and comes to a jarring halt as she spins around. One of the men was very close to catching her, the others a small distance away still. The lead man seems shocked that she was able to stop so abruptly. Her eyes meet his as she unsheathes and swings her sword at him in on smooth motion. He cries out as the blade slice into his chest, and he stumbles back, falling to the ground. She then turns as the majority of the group closes in, and she is running once more. Yuzuki whips her sword out at her side, and then promptly replaces it into her scabbard as she runs. She now holds her scabbard in her left hand, as she may need both sword and scabbard to fend off the oncoming foot-soldiers. She can’t keep this pace up… she isn’t moving as fast as she was. But… she thinks most of the remaining troops followed her… so her… friends… are safe. Well safer.

Unfortunately, Yuzuki’s antics have not gone unnoticed.

From camp proper… the Burned Woman has taken note of the foot-soldiers chasing a singular person. As Jim is taken away by 2 of her lieutenants, she looks in the direction Yuzuki is headed. Her skin starts to bubble and char, her body suddenly trembling as she lets out a pained whimper. A painful breath is drawn in… and she focuses her power just in front of Yuzuki, intending to obliterate her.

Considering everything the Burned Woman has accomplished so far (no one has been able to stand against her), this should be by all rights the last page of Yuzuki’s story. But lucky for us all… well as stated these are special circumstances.

One of those chasing Yuzuki is now able to get within striking distance of her. A small-ish and thin man, his head shaved. He is carrying a pair of daggers, perhaps part of the reason he is able to move faster than the rest of his group. While Yuzuki really wanted to get more distance… well here we are. As before she comes to a sudden stop and spins around to face her new opponent. But something is suddenly very wrong…

The Burned Woman doesn’t have direct line of sight with her intended target. And said target is moving fast. She’ll have to… well instead of a smaller explosion… she’ll just blow up everything to make sure she gets the trouble-maker.

Yuzuki’s eyes widen as her near opponent swipes at her with his daggers. She is able to lean out of the way of the blades, but she feels she is about to be attacked by something more. On instinct Yuzuki pushes off her forward foot to leap back, her left arm drawing up to act as much of a shield as possible. Just as Yuzuki leaps back, the Burned Woman’s eyes flash a crimson red. As if in slow motion… the air between the dagger man and Yuzuki sparks… and then explodes. Both cry out as they are caught in the explosion… dagger man more so. If Yuzuki hadn’t moved preemptively, then this would indeed have been the end of her tale. It didn’t help the Burned Woman didn’t have a really good shot. But the explosion is enough to shake the ground in the immediate area, debris of the ground flinging into the air… along with body parts. The smoke from the blast clears, and the Burned Woman thinks that should be it. She finds herself smirking a little under her hood as her skin heals miraculously quickly, and she now moves to join her lieutenants. To take Morrison back to her commanders.

The troops that were following Yuzuki stop, some stumbling back from the pressure wave of the blast. They look behind them, seeing a rampaging pirate and a guerilla fighter cutting through the others. Their resolve is rattled… and they flee. They don’t bother to check on the man with the daggers, or the girl they were chasing.

But once someone gets closer to ground zero of the explosion… well there isn’t much left. A shallow crater, bits of people. The trees that are near the crater now burn slowly, but the flames will burn themselves out soon enough. But most of note, one of the pieces of ‘debris’ that fall to the ground… Yuzuki’s scabbard and sword… and part of a slim hand with a death grip on that scabbard. And… nothing. That’s all that is left there at the crater.

Well that’s kind of depressing, huh? Thankfully though, as promised, this isn’t the last part of the tale. Because every ending is really a beginning. We just don’t know it at the time.
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Yuzuki feels a tug on her scabbard as she leaps away. The dagger man has reached out to grab her scabbard, to try and disarm Yuzuki. The Japanese woman starts to cry out “No! Please get away! There is d-” but she is cut off as the explosion goes off. Yuzuki is hurled away and into the forest, almost immediately unconscious. And the dagger man that so badly wanted Yuzuki’s scabbard… well he got it. So bully for him. As he was grabbing Yuzuki’s scabbard, his body was for the most part disintegrated by the explosion. All that’s left of him… his hand and arm in that death grip of Yuzuki’s scabbard. The rest of what he was is in small chunks along the crater… or a fine red mist.

As for our favorite time/reality displaced Japanese samurai woman (onna-bugeisha as her ilk is known) with a magic medallion (but then how many of those can you possibly know of?), she is thrown clear of the camp itself and lands on her side in the forest. Almost immediately she gets up, and starts to stumble deeper into the forest. So how does she have the presence of mind to just be able to hop up like that? Well she doesn’t. She’s not even aware of where she is, her mind jarred from the force of the explosion. Blood trickles from her ears as she stumbles away, her right hand gripping her left arm in pain. By the time anyone got to the crater, Yuzuki would be out of sight. It is her survival instinct that drives her. The innate ‘fight or flee’ voice is screaming ‘GET THE FUCK OUT OF THERE’. So she listens. Though she isn’t given much choice. She seems to be going in the direction her mind perceives water, or at least her mind thinks she smells water. Water equals a reprieve, one hopes. But she is stumbling blind, her eyes haven’t even recovered from the flashpoint of the explosion.

Remember the river they followed Xing along to get to Jim’s camp? Well Yuzuki finds it. And she falls right in. Well passes out/stumbles into the water. Something in her must have told her that there was danger at that moment, so she started to turn weakly. But not enough to stop herself from falling in. But in turning a little, she at least doesn’t land face first in the water. As bad as things are for young Zuki, drowning would have been a very undignified way to go. She once more slips into unconsciousness… and the river gently carries her off, away from the camp.
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((Translated from the Japanese))

“I had heard you cried for days when they made you shave your head, little one.” Yuzuki is now 12, and she isn’t thrilled. Kaito, the swordmaster of the clan, feels bad for the young girl. But if Yuzuki’s father’s intentions are going to be realized… it will require sacrifices from his daughter. And one of those sacrifices has been her hair. Yuzuki speaks in a low, mopey tone as she watches some of the swordsmith’s assistants working a piece of glowing rock flat. “While ‘m here he didn’ want me ta get burned. Said hair would burn…” which is partially true. But more than that, it was to be a lesson in humility and sacrifice. Kaito nods a little and holds out leather bandana to her, motioning her to it. “If you are going to help smith your sword, you’ll be wearing this. If you are to be working with us for the next few months, you’ll dress the part.” Yuzuki scowls as she stares away from Kaito, tears rimming her eyes. “Here.” he now moves behind her and ties the bandana to the top of her head. It’s basically to protect her head from whatever sparks there will be from the forge. “There. Now you’re ready to smith with us, little warrior.”
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How much time has passed? Has it been a few minutes? Days? More? Is she still even alive? She thinks she is on a boat. A boat being pulled from shore by a horse. So a boat on the river. Maybe one of the merchant crafts she often uses to get across large bodies of water? Is that where she is? Heading to her next job? Her next pay? Her next meal? She hears water, so in her mind she is on a boat. She feels herself being pulled, so in her mind she is on a boat.

With a gasp her eyes open, and she starts to sit up quickly. To quickly. She cries out softly as her right hand goes to her left arm, pain shooting up that arm. She draws her knees up a little as she sits there… she is on the shore of a river. But she’s not in the river. How…

Yuzuki hears a happy nicker from behind her, and suddenly Niji is right there pushing her muzzle against Yuzuki’s back. She looks behind her towards the unicorn, and then towards the river. “You… pulled me out, didn’t you?” She says in a gentle tone, Niji nickering strongly once more as if in response. She nudges Yuzuki again, as if wanting her to get up. “Yes yes..” Yuzuki utters as she now slowly pushes herself to her feet. “Uwa” she utters softly as she feels herself get lightheaded. But Niji is right there, and moves so Yuzuki can lean on her. Which she gladly does. Her eyes close tightly a moment, and then open half way as she looks around herself. Yeah she has no idea where she is. Or even how long it’s been since the camp. She looks towards the sky… from the past few days she’s been able to get a sense of time in relation to the position of the sun on this world. And if she’s right, it’s morning now. But… which morning? How many mornings have passed since the camp? She needs to get back to her crew. Ugh she actually thinks of them as a crew. “Alright.. slowly..” she utters as she now starts to move, leaning a little on Niji, who obediently walks right next to her at the very same pace. "Thank you Niji... let's see if we can find the others..."
 
Anne faces the remaining two men, but saw one has come out of hiding and is resuming the chase for Yuzuki. She pays him no mind, as she knew Yuzuki would handle him even if he managed to catch her. The pirate's vision is clearer, her movements more steady, meaning she has less alcohol in her system now and thankfully that also means her head is clear enough she knows now to not use her power so liberally.

The two men appear ready to lunge at her, when the attention of all is caught up by the sudden large explosion. Except for Anne. She uses the moment the two are looking in the direction of the explosion to stab one in the chest between the plates of his armor, and grab the other by the neck. She uses just a little more strength than natural to crush his windpipe and toss him aside.

Now Anne looks to the explosion, realizing that it was the direction Yuzuki had been running in and bolting towards it. She finds the crater, and carnage like she's never seen. Yes she's thrown grenades and the aftermath of cannon fire, but this was something else. Her eyes are drawn to the scabbard and the severed hand holding it. “No no no.” She picks them both up, and looks at the hand in closer detail. A lot of dirt, blood. Small, but has evidence of battle on the knuckles. She looks around for any other sign that this wasn't hers. Nothing. Just misted blood and bits of gore.

Anne pries the hand off the scabbard and looks to the camp, sees through the brush and trees that woman far off in the camp with her hand pointed in this direction. She had to have done this. No smell of powder or anything else meant this was done by her power.

And if someone has a power like that, Anne only thinks now of following what may have been Yuzuki's last thought. They needed to retreat. Bags or rum be damned, they needed to run. Her head clear enough to do so, she thinks of putting her unnatural strength into her legs as she runs back to Benjie and Albert with Yuzuki's sword clutched tight in her other hand. Her idea works and she moves faster than normal, kicking up a small cloud of dirty behind her.

“We gotta get outta here!” Anne says, getting back to Albert just as he's finished putting on the crossbowmen's attire. Her eyes are wide, mouth open and teeth clenched. “Come on! Grab what ya can and follow me!” She orders, running to snatch her hat off the tree it'd been pinned to and taking off at a now normal run away from the camp, eyes looking back to be sure the other two were following her but also that they weren't being chased. Evidently the raiders were given orders to not. All the same, she doesn't stop running until she gets to the banks of the river they'd been following. Looking up and down, there's nobody else around. She falls to her knees panting, holds Yuzuki's sword in front of her.

Sure they weren't best friends. The two had only met the other day, and because Anne was just being Anne and Yuzuki herself as well, they'd been ready to kill each other right away. But all the same, she looks down at the woman's sword and thinks aloud “I've lost another one...goddamn it, I've lost another one.” She grips the sword tight and closes her eyes as she hears the others catching up. She lost Mary, felt her loss twice really. Now she'd only started getting along with Yuzuki, and she was gone too.

“They got her Albert. That...that witch got her!.” Anne says as she tries not to whimper or sob audibly.

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Back at the camp, Horse and Xing and the others see the explosion off a ways, but don't see anything else. Horse feels Xing clutch him tighter and weep into his shoulder. He turns to the woman and musters the courage to look into the dark of the hood into the woman's eyes.

"Honor your deal and leave us. If you have any honor left in your soul. We are beaten."
 
Albert Rhinegard

Another explosion rocks the area, causing Albert to twitch as he continued putting on the dead man's clothing, fastening his belt about his waist, the dragon dagger to the belt, Goddamnit, what the hell is that? Magic? Albert had been far too focused on not dying to notice the Burned Woman, especially considering the distance between them and how Albert had been perpetually hiding in brush at this point.

So perhaps he was spared a bit of Anne's turmoil as the woman erupted in front of him, the crossbowman's metal helmet going atop Albert's own head. When Anne emerged, what both she and Benjie saw was essentially this;

100b8332450b756de65ba1c864577f5e.jpeg


Of course, the picture doesn't account for the shattering of blood on the back of the torso and the entrance and exit holes made by said bullet. Nor does it quite convey how much more toasty Albert was, though nowhere near as much as plate might encumber one.

Anne's insistent tone and mad look upon her face scare Albert a little, beyond the point of immediately noticing Yuzuki's sword, "Uh, okay!" Albert holds onto the crossbow tightly as he charges after Anne the best he can, quiver audibly shaking on his back. Branches snap at his body and thorns attempt to get his legs, but the heavier boots and legwear give him a reprieve that his earlier modern clothes did not. Modern clothes that he simply left behind as well, not thinking to bring them.

Emerging from the forest onto the river, Albert slows down near Anne, breathing heavily. When the woman mentions that they got 'her', it is then that Albert notices the sword in her hands. What little color Albert had on his face withers away, What? But how? But she... Dizziness overtakes him as Albert drops the crossbow, then to his knees, helm clattering on the dirt. On all fours he crawls to the river and vomits into it as he realizes the reality of the situation. He's killed two men who pretty much had it coming, but now Yuzuki was gone.

Images of the dead crossbowmen flood his mind, including of the blood and gore of the fragged soldiers, and then Albert's mind connects the last explosion with that image, producing one of Yuzuki in pieces, blood adorning her face. Albert grips his chest from an intense pain in his heart as he plunges his face into the water, creating a chorus of bubbles that is his cry, It shouldn't hurt like this. I didn't know her that well. She tried to kill me. Yet I still feel awful. Like I've lost something that was intensely important. A piece of home, maybe? A remnant of Earth? A beautiful, young, bad ass Japanese woman whose life ended too soon and too horribly. And now I'm even more alone in this world. Anne is hardly a friend. This is all just bull shit.

Finally, Albert extracts his head from the water, taking a deep breath as the river's waters hide his tears. The man recomposes himself forcefully, slowly gets to his feet, and then walks some distance away from the group, sitting down against a tree as the man's eyes stare up at the clouds.
 
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Once Anne called out for them all to flee, Benjie didn’t need to be told twice especially hearing the last explosion. With blood still splattered on his face and clothes he ran after pirate alongside the now armor wearing Albert. Then they reached the riverside, fatigue finally setting in for Benjie who dropped on both knees, catching his breath. Looking up he saw Anne clutching the samurai sword and it only took him a moment to realize what had happened.

While Albert and Anne mourned their loss, the Filipino fighter stayed silent on the ground a few feet away from the water. Unlike them he had not came to know Yuzuki as much. Also the fact she was Japanese made it hard for him to feel the same way as they did. Of course he had noted beside the hesitation to fight her own countrymen, Yuzuki did gave her all for these two. Back in his own time he never imagine any Japanese risking their lives for some Westerners, yet here was an example.

Benjie did relate to the strange duo in one regard, he understood the all too familiar pain of loss...

No time to think about that now.

The guerrilla remindered himself, before pulling a lucky strike pack from one of his pockets, sitting down. Taking one of the cigarettes with the right hand and putting it in his mouth, Benjie proceeded bring out a lighter with the other hand. Sparking a small fire he lit the cigarette. A moment later he exhaled the smoke but kept an eye back toward the trees in case somome approached their group.
 
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Anne dunks Yuzuki's sword in the river to wash the blood off the scabbard. She thinks how she now has two weapons from people she's lost: Mary's pistol and now Yuzuki's sword. Neither of which she knew how to use properly.

It then occurs to her that she doesn't actually have the pistol. It's in the bag back near the camp. Before she can even curse aloud, there is a rustle in the bushes that makes her turn around and reach for her one loaded pistol.

But she only sees it is Horse coming through loaded down with their bags, and even the small cask of rum under one arm. Anne sighs, replaces the pistol and the two meet.

“That burning woman and her warriors have left us in peace.” He says somberly as he sets down their things and Anne sits on the ground, going for the bag she had Mary's pistol and her own things first, and offers Horse a quiet “Thank you.” without looking at him. The pirate goes for the cask that is still mostly full and uncorks it to pour a shot directly into her mouth. It reinvigorates her physically, but does nothing to improve her spirits as she looks down at Yuzuki's sword set on the ground. Horse looks at it, then Anne and gives a knowing somber look. “I am sorry.” Anne gives no reply, only tilts her head for another swig.

Horse turns to Albert and walks to crouch near him, to be at eye level. “Before he was taken, Jim had a message for you.” He sighs. “Remember Norway and Denmark.” He doesn't wait for Albert to reply at all, he only starts walking back into the forest. “We are going into hiding, those of us who remain. I pray we will meet again.”

Anne watches Horse leave, corking the rum and setting it down. She looks to Albert and asks “What does that mean? 'Remember Norway and Denmark?' “
 
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Albert Rhinegard

The drifting clouds help to calm Albert, seemingly twisting into various shapes as they always do while the man thought, I could've died back there, just like Yuzuki. Those crossbowmen could've gotten me. But I reacted like that, and then they were gone. It was like something came over me. I'm not sure if that's a dark something or just a survival instinct...

Most of the life has returned to Albert's eyes when Horse comes to him, delivering his message from Jim. Albert listens quietly to Horse as the Native American man wanders back into the forest, possibly to never meet the group again until much later. The message itself is fairly obvious to an extent, that Jim has been taken like Norway and Denmark and will probably resist as much as he can, but if there's a greater meaning, it eludes Albert.

This is essentially Albert's reply to Anne when the woman asks him. "Norway and Denmark, " begins Albert as he gets to his feet, making his way to Yuzuki's sword, "were invaded by Germany, Hitler's country and people." The man picks up her sword and draws it slowly from its scabbard, inspecting the weapon itself for blood, "Some of the people there fought against the Germans as best they could as a resistance, but it wasn't particularly noteworthy. I think the message mainly says Jim has gone unwillingly into the enemy lands and will likely resist them as best he can. Other than that, I can't say for sure."

Placing the scabbard into his own belt, across from the dragon dagger, Albert holds the ancient weapon like the samurai of old, adopting one of their stances, feeling its weight and being amazed at holding such an instrument. Long had he wanted one of these. And long may he cherish this one. Standing there, Albert stared forward, his fists audibly tightening around the hilt as he raised the weapon into the air, slowly striking downward at an invisible enemy. Halting the blade at the bottom of his sword, Albert sighs, "What I can say for sure though... as much as I hate to say it... is that Hitler has to be dealt with."
 
He looked on still smoking while the Indian warrior set down Anne’s stuff and then gave some kind of message to Albert. Getting up with cigarette still in mouth, Benjie listen to the American from the future explain to the pirate. Taking the cigarette out for a second, Benjie walked over to his new companions and interjected into their conversation, explaining to Anne.

“It’s more or less true, because I was living in that time. Those two countries were occupied by Germany, along with other places across Europe. Though before I disappeared from Earth, I heard the Allies were liberating the continent and advancing into Hitler’s home ground from two fronts, east and west.”

Of course the Filipino didn’t know anymore details about that other than what some of his American comrades mentioned. Yet like him, they were more occupied fighting with Japan at the time to dwell what was happening in faraway Europe. Benjie tense up at the sight of the samurai sword until Albert sheathed the blade.

As far I’m concerned they can keep the thing.

The guerrilla stayed quiet only for a few seconds more until Albert’s comment.

“It took the combined efforts of numberous countries and resistance groups to beat back that toothbrush mustache wearing scum and his fellow tyrants. We’re going to have to find more allies in this world to stand even a chance against him, but that’s not going to be easy either I imagine. Do any of you know where we can start?”

Upon saying his piece, Benjie proceeded to puff some more smoke from the cigarette. He then shook his head at the irony that dawned on him. Just a short time ago these people were holding him as a captive, now Benjie was dragged along with them. To top it all off he seemed to have traded one war for another.
 
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“Jim?” Anne tenses, balls her hands into fists. She allows Albert to have Yuzuki's sword as Yuzuki would probably want him to have it anyway. The pirate woman has been so caught up in everything, she has been assuming Jim was among the survivors and also going into hiding. “This Hitler has got to pay. For attacking the Barbin, for Jim and his people, for Yuzuki.” She slings one of the bags over her shoulder and takes out their compass and looks Northwest in the direction of Gatecia. Her eyes go to Benjie. "I'm Anne by the by. Anne Bonny. If yer not keen to come along I don't blame ya. Ya can have the drink of rum I promised before and be on yer way, or follow. I'm not press ganging people into my crew."

“We lost time here, so we best get goin' now and fast. We get to Gatecia, we demand an audience with their King and tell 'em Hitler is scratching at his borders. That oughta do it, right? Kings are Kings no matter where ya go, and he won't take kindly to someone with their eyes set on his lands.” She doesn't wait for any response, only picks up the cask of rum and sets off along the river.
 
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Albert Rhinegard

Sheathing the precious blade within its scabbard, Albert kneels down to grab the crossbowman's helm and set it back on his head, beginning to walk after Anne, speaking quickly to Benjie as he passes the Filipino, "Hitler doesn't have Germany here. It won't take numerous countries. I am Albert Rhinegard." Engaging in a quick trot, Albert makes his way to Anne's side, muttering to her, "He seems trustworthy, genuinely new to this world. His help would certainly be appreciated. But I do think we need to be wary in Gatecia. Hitler may have spies there, or even have covert control of the Kingdom already, if the King isn't a Stranger."

As he walked, Albert occasionally looked down at Yuzuki's blade rest on his hip, his own fingers wrapped constantly about the hilt, much as Yuzuki's once did. And with every look, there was only pain at the loss of a life with such potential.
 
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I got no problem with that.

Benjie thought in agreement when the red haired woman declared the former German furher must pay for everything that’s happen. He looked on as Anne took her compass, pin-pointing where Gatecia was. When she introduced herself, the guerrilla paused in surprise, spit out the cigarette, and uttered a short chuckle, swearing with amusement in Tagalog.

“What!? To meet the pirate Anne Bonny in the flesh, who would’ve thought?”

Granted, she didn’t look like any of the images he found in an old book about Caribbean pirates that an American teacher loaned him years back. He was able to hear Anne’s offer to him before she proceeded to walk away for her destination. Considering the alternative option was to wander around aimlessly in this strange environment and with known and unknown threats he quietly elected to stay with the group.

When Albert gave his explanation and name, Benjie nodded in gratitude and followed him and Anne from behind in an brief sprint before resorting to walk.

Due to military training that maintain his healthy shape Benjie was able to keep up with the others. He overheard some of thier conversation as they all walked, but said noting until realization hit him.

“Almost forgot my name is Benjie Deflino if you lot didn’t catch it eariler, but just call me Ben if it helps.”
 
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"Ah, so you know me even that far in the future? Good to know." Anne smiles at Benjie's response to her name. And it really was nice to hear that her name was in 'in the books'. It wasn't the reason she got into piracy, far from it, but still nice.

"Right right. Glad I still got a sober brain in this crew." Anne gives praise to Albert as they go along the shore. She had actually not thought about this Hitler having eyes and ears in the kingdoms of this world, as she had a head full of rum and blue tones at the time. But it makes sense corruption would be here same as it was in their world. "Tell ya what. We get to this city, I'm followin' yer lead Al. And you Benny." She says, again getting his preferred name wrong as she often does. "You two know more about how this other future man works. I may seem dull, but I ain't some dumb pirate. Dumb pirates get hung out as a warning." She then says back to Benjie with a smile "Enjoy the view from back there if ya like Benny."

-------------------------

The three traverse the river's length for the rest of the day unharassed, though everyone keeps the banter to a minimum so as to reduce the chance of attracting any unwanted attention. They stop now and then for drinks(Anne mostly of rum) or food (they had plenty venison and fruit) but make good time.

Before dusk, the three come through a thick forest to the top of a hill and behold a great sight.

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"Well then. Guess the old Barbin didn't know about this since it's not on her map." Anne says looking down at the glorious city before them. For such a grand thing, it has to be a capitol city or something of the like. She turns to the two men. "What's the plan boys? Go to the nearest door and knock?"
 
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Albert Rhinegard

Albert spent much of their time travelling mulling over scenarios that could go down at Gatecia. When they arrived at the top of the hill, it was then he thought it best to speak his mind, "I've thought about it, and I think it's probably best to just take the front door, essentially. If there are spies here, it would be advantageous to bring them out into the light after us if possible and then drill them for information. If we attempted to enter covertly, the leadership here might not trust us if they're not already under the control of Hitler. And honestly, without more knowledge of the city, I don't know how we could sneak in. So I say we just go in like normal people and try to get up to the Palace to speak with the King or Lords or whomever is there." Albert shrugged at the end of his monologue, figuring Benjie would just go along with the plan, he began to stroll down towards the city, calling out behind him, "Let me do the speaking please. You're a bit... abrasive, Anne."
 
Anne Bonny kept reminding him a great deal of the merchant sailors and even a few smugglers he knew back home. The main difference between them and the pirate was the fact she is a woman. Anne seemed to be a flirt as well, made more evident with her half drunken state and was a bit surprising since most white women he met back in his era ignored him. If Benjie had been his younger self he would’ve flirted right back but he stayed silent with a polite smile and nodded. On the other hand Albert seemed pretty smart but had the look of someone who just gotten out of his comfort zone only recently.

He further into the future, but when exactly?

He had so many questions for Albert but choose to save them for the time being and focus on walking. Once their group made it passed the forest and viewed what was down below the hill, Benjie’s jaw dropped in utter awe. Letting out a whistle that said he was clearly impressed, looked over to the other two while they discussed their entry.

“Either way it’s gonna be a gamble. I suspect we’ve probably be stopped by the authorities once we make the approach and then interrogated, considering our outsider status.”

While Albert may have the attire from this world, but Benjie and Anne didn’t. Beside that they carried weapons and gear that wasn’t from this strange world as well. Inspecting his pistol one more time before holstering it he added.

“We’ve certainly have their attention if noting else.”
 
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“Gladly. I'll let you do the talking.” Anne allows herself to fall behind Albert, now walking beside Benjie. Or 'Benny' as she chooses to address the man.

“Heyyy Benny. Please. Do a gal a favor.” Anne hands the mostly empty cask of rum over to Benny and smiles at him. “Have yer drink before I take the last. Been called many things in my life. Wench. Whore. Criminal. Sodomite. Bi...bi...” she struggles for the word then finds it “Bigamist! That's the word! But a liar, I'll ne'er be called.”

The three find a wide road after clearing the wilderness and crossing a stretch of grassland. The stones are laid close and tight, and the road itself winds across the plains. Following this road to the city, the three come to a large city gate. There are banners on the either side of the large wood and steel gate. A single man in chain mail and metal helmet rappels down from the top on a rope and approaches with measured steps. Anne stands back with Benny, takes off her hat and wipes the sweat from her brow. If the soldier is aware of what her and Benji's attire means of them, he plays the part of a soldier and does not offer any indication. He only comes up to Albert and says “I see a soldier's uniform, but no insignia. Identify yourself and your companions, and your intent on entering York.”
 
Albert Rhinegard

Mentally Albert slammed his fists together as the group made their way down to the gate, Alright, time to make use of all that RPG gaming and reading about psychology. Just treat these interactions like they were a game with real consequences, and hopefully it'll go well.. Upon finally reaching the large wooden structure, Albert found himself surprised that it was not simply open and allowing the free passage of peoples to and fro. Perhaps the reality was that gates were kept closed, or perhaps those guarding the walls already knew of the dangers that lay beyond them.

The rapelling soldier is also a bit of a surprise, I wonder when rapelling was invented... Should've really looked into that more, but Albert stands as firm as casual as possible despite a building amount of palm sweat. Reaching for neither the sword, knife, or crossbow on his back, Albert motions towards the two behind him as he mentions them before himself, "The man is named Benjie, the woman, Anne. I myself am Albert. Although I wear the clothes of your time, I am not of this world. Neither are those two. I don't know how surprising that is, but we're here to speak urgently with the King or whomever holds authority here. There is a grave and growing danger beyond your walls that needs to be addressed before it swallows the entire land."

Honesty seems the best course of action. Subtlety and subterfuge are unlikely to work, Albert reasons, as Benjie and Anne are so clearly out of place, and Albert himself doesn't know enough of this world to fabricate a believable story. There are three possible outcomes to this situation in his mind, basically summed up as, "they believe us," "they don't believe us," "they believe us and try to kill us."
 
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Wow Anne actually remembered that little agreement they had back during that camp battle, he realized. To be perfectly honest he hadn’t expected an eighteenth century pirate to give him a drink to begin with, considering her obsession with it.

“Salamat.”

Benjie said in Tagalog in an tone that Anne would recognize as gratitude if noting else. Then without further hesitation, he down a portion of the rum into the throat before sighing with pleasure. Handing the cask back to the lady buccaneer.

“Pretty good stuff Anne. Of course I tend to prefer more of a cold San Miguel beer.”

He smiled to himself, recalling the time one of his brothers, Huwan smuggle him his first case of the mentioned beer when fourteen years old.

Man I had my first hangover too, the next morning. When father found out he worked my stupid butt out and Huwan’s for it when we got sober...Well actually it was punishment for vomiting on mom’s floor, more than anything else. ‘Son if you’re going to drink, learn to hold your liquor.’ That’s what he said afterward.

Such past reflection ended for Benjie when they walked down the road toward the massive front gate. This sight most certainly looked like something out of some medieval fairy tale that was for sure. He watched with caution as an armor wearing solider rappel down the wall and approach their small party. The guard had carried a professional air about him, that old General MacArthur would approve of, while questioning Albert.

The Filipino national, crossed his arms over the chest, listening to how the nerd from Texas explained.

Going for the dramatic are we Al?

Sergeant Delfino thought, subtlety, concerned with how the soldier would react to such a claim. He glanced up at the wall, to see if there were any archers that the gatekeeper may have already line up.
 
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