Shirou saw that the situation was rapidly spiralling out of control. His attacks against the Deathclaw seemed to only deal relatively minor injuries to it, and more and more strange monsters were emerging on the battlefield. Thankfully, the little pink guy seemed to know where to go, and was actively gesturing for them to follow it. Given how well it handled itself in combat, he decided to trust it.
"Koko kara deru hitsuyō ga arimasu!" He shouted first in Japanese to the other non-hostiles, before switching to English. "Come on! We need to get out of here!"
He then projected another large cluster of Noble Phantasms, keeping the floating weapons close in a defensive formation as he followed close behind Kirby. "Issho ni ite kudasai, watashitachi ni kabā o ageru tsumoridesu! Stay close together, I'll give us some cover!"
@Nero Kunivas @Not_Amy @ChrisClark13
Hei
As the robot dog thing neared him, he'd dive under the thing as it lunged forward with its metallic jaws opened wide to rip him apart, he would press his hand against the weak spot where the thing's armor was the least covering, and would send enough volts to bring down a whale. Or a rough estimate, what came next was an utter surprise as instead of the thing collapsing and no longer a threat, the thing began to jump around enough that the concrete cracked where it jumped and Hei had to jump out of the way several times as it charged without thought, attacking anything it saw, even the Nazi soldiers it was grouped with, slamming into them and chewing them into pieces, then the random creatures that showed up from the chaos.
This was getting too hectic, so the most rational thing was to follow the small group with the pink blob as they got the hell out of dodge.
He had to slow down so he didn't run too far ahead of them.
They'd need to find shelter quickly. Or the cold would get them before the creatures did.....
@AIM Leader Wade @Not_Amy @Nero Kunivas @BobTheNinja @ChrisClark13 @Yoru @Wiggin @Agent_Puncake @littlekreen @Whoever-Else-I-Missed
"Why thank ya kindly. Like yours too. Sounds kinda like Alec's here." She looks between Alec and Amy. "Which is mighty odd, seein' none of us seem to be from the same place." She returns the compliment adding her own observation and relaxing her grip on The Survivalist. Something about these two just made her think they weren't about to turn on the group with weapons. Even if they were to whip out some fantastical thing to try and hurt them, Abby is certain from experience she could put two large caliber bullets between their eyes at a moment's notice. She'd feel bad to do it to the pretty redhead with an attitude, but survival came before personal tastes.
She was intrigued by the pair being surprised to be meeting Sonic, the big blue rat.
A video game character? Like the Red Menace? Abby looks over at Sonic. Must just look like something from wherever they came from.
The 'Whoooa' uttered by the man gets Abby to follow their gaze to...the nightmare creature coming out of a shop laden with hats on its horns. One of them, a brown Stetson, catches her eye but she wasn't inclined to come up on the thing and ask for it. Yes the thing was peaceful so far. One of the most peaceful of the group actually. But still it was a thing made of a skull and darkness.
The blue haired guy who looked like he had a stick up his rear spoke up about not being asked to be part of the group. Then the hunk named Thor put up his name for consideration as leader; despite not actively doing anything to lead everyone so far, Abby would have added in, if she cared enough. She was more annoyed the men were arguing about such a dumb thing, and Amy took the words right out of her mouth.
"Right, what she said. Buncha children I reckon." Abby voiced her agreement but looks pointedly at the one named Luer.
The whistle makes the Courier go for her weapon again, but she doesn't level it up at the source, as along with the strange armored man and the living tree they had left behind was the one Amy had described and with whom she has a heartfelt reunion. She could tell in those moments there was a lot of history between Amy and this man she only called 'Doctor'.
Garrus leads the group from there to his camp inside a huge clothing store. Abby happily puts on a couple layers of shirts under her SWAT vest while the others talk. From the bits she catches, this land was no different from hers. Right down to monsters, bandits, and salvaging scarce resources.
The Sinatra music was a welcome addition to their surroundings, made Abby feel a little more at home to hear 'Blue Moon' in ruins again. The young woman hunkers down next to her pack and weapons near the campfire and Alec, pries open a can of Cram and eats it right from the can with a fork while The Doctor talked to the assembled party. Most of the terms went right over her head, but she gets the jist of what the gangly man is trying to say.
At the fifth point about foreign technology and knowledge, Abby looks aside at her rifle and down at her pistol and around at what others had to offer. Her weapons were probably the most primitive here, so she doesn't bother offering them. She does hold up her Pip-Boy, which is still less advanced than whatever else would be offered, but it's something.
The tree thing, apparently named Reegan, puts itself into a pot and proceeds to preen itself. Abby tried to ignore that, as it is just too odd a thing for her to want to watch with everything else going on.
"Awful chatty, that one." Abby says under her breath to Alec very quietly when the one woman in fancy clothes dominates the conversation with The Doctor, again using a lot of words and dropping names that don't really mean anything to her. The most she gleans from it is this place was a dumping ground for people from other worlds, and because many didn't get along that was why it was ruined. In the time it took for Alistia and Lavaetian to talk, Abby has finished her first can of cram, tossed it over her shoulder, and started on another. The fire and clothing layers had done their work to get her body warmed back up.
The kid, Trigger she think was his name from earlier(there were a lot of names to remember) proves to be a kid in his response to everything The Doctor had to say, but Abby gave The Doctor more respect for taking it like a real gentleman.
When The Doctor went off to tinker with one of the Omni-Tools, Abby tosses her second can of cram over her shoulder and stands, clears her throat.
"Now....seeing as the floor is open. I got some things to say." She looks around to see who was listening before continuing. "Now lookin' around at ya'll...I can say I am holdin' the most basic firearms and supplies, and I likely am the least educated here, even if some of ya are behaving like children." She says looking particularly at Luer, Thor and off where Trigger had walked. "But! Wasteland where danger can be in any ruin you try to scavenge somethin' useful? Low on ammo, food, safe water, shelter? That's where I live, and this situation even with the cold, is just a Monday fer me. I've lead caravans across the deserts, through canyons and you know with what? Not my weapons. Thems just tools." She taps her right temple "With my wits and some luck and the right crew. Know what got people killed in all those long desert drives? Besides the Deathclaws and such? Ego. Ego and pride and holdin' on to baggage ya can't see will get you killed. I promise that, I seen it." She looks around at everyone.
"Now. I ain't gonna pretend to be your leader, but if I see someone's ego needs check, I will check it for them before it gets themselves or someone else killed. Even you, King." She points at Thor. "And lastly, if you think you're better off alone?" She points out in the direction of the doors. "There's them doors. Try hoofing it alone out there, see how far you make it before you regret it." She takes breath. "Now, I gotta see a man about a hat."
Abby walks away from the fire to Dusk and The Doctor. With a fully belly and warm body, Abby feels more confident walking up to the being, if apprehensive.
"Mind if I have this one friend?" She asks pointing at the Stetson and waits for something that could be construed as agreement before taking the hat off one of the horns and setting it upon her head.
"What do ya think, Doc?" Abby asks The Doctor adjusting the hat, but not specifying if she means the hat or her speech.
"Watashi no un dake...." Tsunade curses when she hears the lizard reply in a language she cannot understand. She is glad that the said lizard replies in a manner that doesn't indicate it is looking for a fight, and she raises her hands in kind. She sees one of the soldiers behind the lizard person and her hands fly together in a series of hand signs. The soldier would have been hit with a water dragon made from the snow beneath him; had the pink creature come seemingly out of nowhere and swatted him into the air like a bug.
"Nani?!" Tsunade exclaims her confusion at the thing beckoning them to follow , looking at the lizard person. The wind getting harsher and colder encourages her to follow the pink blob. It might be more familiar with this place, know where they could find shelter from this storm overtaking the area. So Tsunade sprints after him, bearing through the cold wind.
As they followed, Tsunade saw they were still headed towards the scene of the battle. Where the convoy has been scattered, and the crater made by her clone has apparently unleashed a fearsome creature. She witnesses the blob swap his sword for a mallet to strike the beast to save the young man she had seen earlier. Others were here as well; the other young man, and a shinobi? A very fearsome shinobi at that, the way he used ice without hand signals to so brutally dispatch remaining soldiers.
When the various monsters appear from below and beyond the snow storm to converge on them, Tsunade gets into a battle ready stance, and thinks to yell to the others they needed to get out of here immediately; the words are taken right from her mind it seems, and she is somewhat delighted the young man who had just been saved was the one who had spoken them first in her language. She gets to him, runs beside him and readies the water dragon jutsu she had attempted earlier, holding her hands together before making the final sign.
"Saigo ni watashi ga hanasu koto ga dekiru dare ka!" She exclaims to the young man beside her. "Watashi wa Tsunade, kara Konohagakure!"
Ayana
---------------
Ayana watched nervously as Tsunade... copied her movements? Well, at least some kind of agreement has been reached she supposed. Hopefully the rest of the... ah... negotiations(?) weren't going to be as confusing as this. Mentally she cursed her luck for running into a strange human that didn't know the common tongue, well, her own common tongue at least. Speaking in motions was going to be damned annoying.
Then, Tsunade looked past Ayana at something as she starts doing the hand-thing in preparation to cast one of those spells of hers. This prompted Ayana to spin around and get low to the ground, only to see that blob from earlier send a solider flying with naught but a single swing of that oversized sword of its.
Was it motioning for them to follow? Yes, yes it was. Still, she'd rather take her chances with a fey-like(?) creature than those soldiers or that monster. The human woman seemed to have the same idea.
As Ayana followed Kirby she soon came across the other human she had spied from the rooftop, the one that had originally jumped to the defense of the pink creature. Not that the pink thing seemed to need it judging by how it was now hitting the monster with a hammer. She wondered if that thing could possibly be the most dangerous thing here, though she wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. It was currently helping everyone after all. Still, best to keep an eye peeled in case it gets the idea to eat them later or if it gets up to some other fairy nonsense.
Luckily, the man the blob had led them to seemed to know both the woman's language and her own. Even more fortunately, he was already preparing to carve a way out of this mess.
Unfortunately, more bloody monsters seemed to have taken the fight as a sign to come crawling out of their damned holes! And the weather was also turning sour!
Out of the corner of her eye, she spied a solider that seemed to be barely clinging on to life. Well, no sense in wasting this chance. She stopped following the blob for a moment and drew a dagger as she approached the dying soldier, confident that the human man could hold the monsters at bay with his ridiculous weapon summoning powers for at least a few moments.
With a single precise strike, she plunged her dagger into the man's neck and into his spine. She drew a breath to steel herself and called upon her Blessing. Even more dead than he was moments ago, the man's vitality and soul were easily severed from his body and flowed into hers. Flashes of the man's dying moments entered her mind, eliciting a short gasp from her lips. Then it was over and the man's soul was now properly her hostage. Mentally she gagged at the "taste". It was so... so... strong, pungent even, the way the man's soul had been so dyed in its ideology. But this wasn't the time for brooding over the life the man had lived.
With a thought she told the soul, impressed on it really, what it seemed to want to hear. That it had fought bravely, it's duty was done, and now it was time to sleep. That seemed to at least work for now at least.
With practiced motions born from years of pickpocketing and helped along to know where everything already is by the man's memories, she began stripping the man's freshly cooling corpse for weapons and supplies. Particularly the man's "gun", "ammo", and any rations they might have. She stuffed her loot in bag and (borrowing on the solider's training and experience) held the gun in her arms.
Not willing to risk sticking around any longer with the remaining soldiers and monsters lurking around she dashed off after Kirby while calling back to Shirou, "Com'on, let's go!"
She kept her eyes open as she moved, her finger hovering over the trigger of the gun- ready to shoot at anything that might jump out at her.
"Watashi no un dake...." Tsunade curses when she hears the lizard reply in a language she cannot understand. She is glad that the said lizard replies in a manner that doesn't indicate it is looking for a fight, and she raises her hands in kind. She sees one of the soldiers behind the lizard person and her hands fly together in a series of hand signs. The soldier would have been hit with a water dragon made from the snow beneath him; had the pink creature come seemingly out of nowhere and swatted him into the air like a bug.
"Nani?!" Tsunade exclaims her confusion at the thing beckoning them to follow , looking at the lizard person. The wind getting harsher and colder encourages her to follow the pink blob. It might be more familiar with this place, know where they could find shelter from this storm overtaking the area. So Tsunade sprints after him, bearing through the cold wind.
As they followed, Tsunade saw they were still headed towards the scene of the battle. Where the convoy has been scattered, and the crater made by her clone has apparently unleashed a fearsome creature. She witnesses the blob swap his sword for a mallet to strike the beast to save the young man she had seen earlier. Others were here as well; the other young man, and a shinobi? A very fearsome shinobi at that, the way he used ice without hand signals to so brutally dispatch remaining soldiers.
When the various monsters appear from below and beyond the snow storm to converge on them, Tsunade gets into a battle ready stance, and thinks to yell to the others they needed to get out of here immediately; the words are taken right from her mind it seems, and she is somewhat delighted the young man who had just been saved was the one who had spoken them first in her language. She gets to him, runs beside him and readies the water dragon jutsu she had attempted earlier, holding her hands together before making the final sign.
"Saigo ni watashi ga hanasu koto ga dekiru dare ka!" She exclaims to the young man beside her. "Watashi wa Tsunade, kara Konohagakure!"
Ayana
---------------
Ayana watched nervously as Tsunade... copied her movements? Well, at least some kind of agreement has been reached she supposed. Hopefully the rest of the... ah... negotiations(?) weren't going to be as confusing as this. Mentally she cursed her luck for running into a strange human that didn't know the common tongue, well, her own common tongue at least. Speaking in motions was going to be damned annoying.
Then, Tsunade looked past Ayana at something as she starts doing the hand-thing in preparation to cast one of those spells of hers. This prompted Ayana to spin around and get low to the ground, only to see that blob from earlier send a solider flying with naught but a single swing of that oversized sword of its.
Was it motioning for them to follow? Yes, yes it was. Still, she'd rather take her chances with a fey-like(?) creature than those soldiers or that monster. The human woman seemed to have the same idea.
As Ayana followed Kirby she soon came across the other human she had spied from the rooftop, the one that had originally jumped to the defense of the pink creature. Not that the pink thing seemed to need it judging by how it was now hitting the monster with a hammer. She wondered if that thing could possibly be the most dangerous thing here, though she wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. It was currently helping everyone after all. Still, best to keep an eye peeled in case it gets the idea to eat them later or if it gets up to some other fairy nonsense.
Luckily, the man the blob had led them to seemed to know both the woman's language and her own. Even more fortunately, he was already preparing to carve a way out of this mess.
Unfortunately, more bloody monsters seemed to have taken the fight as a sign to come crawling out of their damned holes! And the weather was also turning sour!
Out of the corner of her eye, she spied a solider that seemed to be barely clinging on to life. Well, no sense in wasting this chance. She stopped following the blob for a moment and drew a dagger as she approached the dying soldier, confident that the human man could hold the monsters at bay with his ridiculous weapon summoning powers for at least a few moments.
With a single precise strike, she plunged her dagger into the man's neck and into his spine. She drew a breath to steel herself and called upon her Blessing. Even more dead than he was moments ago, the man's vitality and soul were easily severed from his body and flowed into hers. Flashes of the man's dying moments entered her mind, eliciting a short gasp from her lips. Then it was over and the man's soul was now properly her hostage. Mentally she gagged at the "taste". It was so... so... strong, pungent even, the way the man's soul had been so dyed in its ideology. But this wasn't the time for brooding over the life the man had lived.
With a thought she told the soul, impressed on it really, what it seemed to want to hear. That it had fought bravely, it's duty was done, and now it was time to sleep. That seemed to at least work for now at least.
With practiced motions born from years of pickpocketing and helped along to know where everything already is by the man's memories, she began stripping the man's freshly cooling corpse for weapons and supplies. Particularly the man's "gun", "ammo", and any rations they might have. She stuffed her loot in bag and (borrowing on the solider's training and experience) held the gun in her arms.
Not willing to risk sticking around any longer with the remaining soldiers and monsters lurking around she dashed off after Kirby while calling back to Shirou, "Com'on, let's go!"
She kept her eyes open as she moved, her finger hovering over the trigger of the gun- ready to shoot at anything that might jump out at her.
Shirou nods at the blonde woman who assisted him from earlier while continuing to follow Kirby, slashing and shooting his conjured blades at any nearby enemies who tries to attack them. He was very lucky that she spoke Japanese, but he had never heard of a place called the Hidden Leaf Village. He also felt the presence some kind of energy emanating from her. He had experienced this kind of "sixth sense" before in the presence of Servants, and when magecraft was actively being used. It was especially noticeable when Tsunade used her offensive abilities, though it felt somehow different from magecraft as he knew it. It was simultaneously foreign, but passingly familiar. Very strange.
"Watashi wa Shirou," he replied, about to comment further when he saw the horned lizard girl who followed Tsunade, losing focus for a moment as he did a double-take. She was humanoid with very reptilian features, with grey, brown, and white scales, a long, thick tail, striking dark-purple slitted eyes, and decked out in a dark brown cloak over leather armor and a metal breastplate. She looked like a character right out of some fantasy JRPG or light novel.
The distraction was short lived, as various monsters continued to try and assail them, along with the occasional Nazi straggler. He continued to fight alongside Kirby, repelling the beasts as best he could. He then noticed the lizard girl stop and kneel before a fatally wounded Nazi soldier, and saw her quickly and efficiently plunge a dagger into the man's neck. His blood ran cold at the sight, but the logical part of his brain deduced that this might have been a mercy killing, given how far gone he already looked.
He held position until the lizard girl finished her grim task, using his floating weapons to keep the encroaching monsters in check. But during that brief moment, his sixth sense came alive again, and this time the sensation was coming from her instead of Tsunade. And again, it felt similar to and yet somehow distinct from magecraft, as well as from Tsunade's power. It wasn't at all obvious what the nature of her power was, but it was there. He also noted that she had looted his body for equipment afterward. Incredibly, she then shouted to him in English as she finished and rejoined the group.
Just what in the world had he ended up?
"What was that just now?" he asked her as she began moving again, following Kirby's lead.
- Kuai Liang, aka Sub-Zero, Grandmaster of the Lin Kuei - Deathclaw/Beast Rampage against The Scattered -
The Nazis fell swiftly to Sub-Zero, but just as one was about to catch the Grandmaster off guard, he was swiftly cut down by...a pink, blob? Kuai Liang had seen a great many things in his life, but Kirby was truly a first for him. Yet because of the chaotic situation they found themselves in, he did not hesitate to follow Kirby when beckoned, for Kuai now owed him his life as well.
Others had begun to follow Kirby to escape the madness, including a young warrior and a lizard-like female swordsman.
"She said "Let's go!" Sub-Zero bellowed out to Shirou, assuming he couldn't hear Ayana over the chaos of battle.
@ChrisClark13 @BobTheNinja
@AIM Leader Wade
So how can things get worse for our group? They're already trying to survive Nazi's, giant arachnids, mutated gorillas with four arms, crystal giants, and large glowing monsters, in the middle of a now approaching blizzard that is making the temperature drop down into the negatives, what could get worse?........... Easy,
The sound of a dragon's roar. It was ear piercingly loud, and looking up to the foggy sky, they would all see a faint, black shape quickly falling to the ground. In a millisecond, the dragon landed on one of the old buildings along the side of the street with such force, the building collapsed from its sudden weight, sending debris and dust to those unlucky to be right next to it. The beast was demonic, having barely been scratched by its small fall, and with all those monsters and soldiers lined up along the street, it roared once more.
Four wings, its body covered in black crystals, and its roar was powerful enough to send the cars next to it flying in the air. Smoke bubbled in its mouth within seconds, and before anyone in the street could react, the fire it breathed looked like pure lava; flowing out down the street like running water. Everything burned, everything screamed in pain, and the rusted cars exploded from the sudden increased heat. And it was quickly coming down towards the group. Thinking quickly, the cyromancer jumped in front of the group, taking a stance, and quickly built up a wall of ice to block the fire; smashing against it and splitting into two streams of orange glow. The wall nearly was knocked down from the force of the fire, but Zero stayed in stance, only being knocked back ever so slightly. When the fire subsided, the dragon stood ready to pounce on them, standing on its hind legs. Before it could though, an Akird, avoiding its fiery breath, attacked from slashing at its wings to cripple the beast. It did little damage, however, with the dragon quickly spinning backwards to smash its claws into the massive creatures neck.
In other words not as fancy as the ones I use to write. RUUUUUUUUUUUUN!!!
With Kirby again signaling them all to follow, the group would disappear into the snow, as the dragon and Akird fought each other. The pink blob lead them across a massive interstate towards a large building complex, with a flight of stairs leading up to the main lobby. The front door was smashed to pieces, having been made of glass alongside the windows to the bottom floor. Snow was leaking in, but at least it provided cover the further into the building they went. The reception desk was where Kirby stopped, jumping on top to look around. No one in sight besides themselves, and the roar of the dragon could still be heard, but the building would at least hide them for the moment. They were safe.
Nomad
To anyone else, this would be getting too crazy to handle.
But where Nomad came from, this was the norm. From the two civies that didn't seem fazed beyond saying something about 'meeting video game characters.' Whatever that meant, and the alien that could've been a Hunter from how long he spent here.
Now he and the others were gathered in an abandoned store, huddled around a campfire as some ate and the others needed the simple warmth of the fire. He didn't need either, benefits of being a walking dead person powered by the power of the Traveler.
"Mind if I play some tunes to lighten the mood around here?" He'd ask as he began to play a random song. Eye Dee Kay playing it unwillingly through his speakers, not too loud but just enough that the group could hear it clearly.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Delsin
He slightly cringed at the song playing from the flying rubix cube, the song was old like something from the fifties. Frank Sinatra if Delsin recognized the singer.
"Was expecting more techno music from you. Or something someone would find in an AMV." He'd say to the cloaked man, who was twirling the golden revolver he had. Whom only shrugged.
Delsin would help himself to a nice plate of canned chicken alfredo, not the greatest thing, as he rather missed what Betty cooked and whatever his roommates would come up with in terms of food combination. One pleasant surprise was peanut butter and cheese sandwich. Sure, it was an acquired taste, but depending on what cheese can greatly affect the experience.
"So, how did we all get here, some big bad villain seeking to do some bad guy things, like steal the stones or something?" He'd ask the alien known as Garrus.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hei
As the robot dog thing neared him, he'd dive under the thing as it lunged forward with its metallic jaws opened wide to rip him apart, he would press his hand against the weak spot where the thing's armor was the least covering, and would send enough volts to bring down a whale. Or a rough estimate, what came next was an utter surprise as instead of the thing collapsing and no longer a threat, the thing began to jump around enough that the concrete cracked where it jumped and Hei had to jump out of the way several times as it charged without thought, attacking anything it saw, even the Nazi soldiers it was grouped with, slamming into them and chewing them into pieces, then the random creatures that showed up from the chaos.
This was getting too hectic, so the most rational thing was to follow the small group with the pink blob as they got the hell out of dodge.
He had to slow down so he didn't run too far ahead of them.
They'd need to find shelter quickly. Or the cold would get them before the creatures did.....
@AIM Leader Wade @Not_Amy @Nero Kunivas @BobTheNinja @ChrisClark13 @Yoru @Wiggin @Agent_Puncake @littlekreen @Whoever-Else-I-Missed
@littlekreen
The Doctor's attention was plainly focused on his surroundings. Making sure nothing would leap out at them and surprise the pair of them. But his head tilted slightly at Reegan's unusual turn of phrase. "
Depending on how well we can agree on what a 'breech' is, it sounds like you Spriggans and I will get along like houses on fire. Which, I'll admit, I wouldn't much mind at this very moment although I very well imagine you might. Mind, I mean."
He finished parsing the rest of the conversation with a slightly pained expression, followed by a look of real concern. "
Right. Heroes from various realities, brought here to fight or survive. Would you believe this isn't the first or even the tenth time this has happened to me?" Chuckling, the young man's animate face grew still once more as humor fled. "
But there's realities and then there's this. Whatever did this has power on an absolutely massive scale. Possibly more power than I've ever seen, and I didn't think that was still possible."
"
We'd better find the others," the Doctor finished, wringing his hands, though it's hard to say if it's in distress or just from the cold.
@AIM Leader Wade
At which point Garrus turned up. The Doctor spun on one heel and if he was shocked to see a nightmare in blue armor with a gun pointed at him, it didn't show. Instead, naked curiosity lit the features of the young man with old eyes. "
Garrus Vakarian? Call me the Doctor and this is my dear friend who I'm calling Reegan. Marvelous to meet a friendly, er, face. You wouldn't be Sontarian, would you? A variant? No? Blimey, that armor looks familiar."
"
Oh, you've seen others then, have you? Brilliant. Lead on, won't you?" And clearly the Doctor was energized by Garrus' good news and promptly picked up the pace. When the Turian lit up his Omni-Tool, the Time Lord's eyes went wide and he stared in absolute fascination before being promptly blindsided by a fierce redhead. Returning the hug with evident affection, the Doctor scratched the back of his head sheepishly and said, "
Left us in the cold, you see. No TARDIS for the moment. She's...ah, she's under the weather a bit." The Doctor frowned as he took in his companion and the large number of people gathered just beyond her. "
Ah, there's Rory," he said, brightening by an inch at the sight of his other companion. "
Lovely. Have you met the neighbors then already? Introduce me, won't you?"
@Yoru @Snowtwo @Not_Amy @LenxKaitoYaoi @Wiggin @The Wanderer
Garrus' little shelter was well received by the Time Lord and he promptly made use of the fireplace to warm up his hands before going around, shaking hands with anyone willing. The Doctor eyed the canned food suspiciously before moving on to something much more interesting; the people here and their situation.
Rubbing his hands together enthusiastically, the Time Lord stood up and addressed the crowd gathered near the fireplace and cooking food. "
Right, first thing's first. None of you belong here A cosmological instability brought you here from another universe entirely. If it was anything like mine, it's more powerful than even the Time Scoop of Gallifrey's Death Zone. I tried a Temporal Reverse Feedback Field to escape it and it wasn't remotely enough. Which puts us in rather dire straits I'm afraid."
"
But first, let's look at the facts. One, the cosmological instability is transient. What little I could see suggests it's not a naturally occurring event, nor could it possibly be given the tremendous amount of power it takes to bridge the barriers between universes. That means something brought us here."
"
Two, it also means that something is likely our only chance of getting home."
"
Three, we've been brought together. Here, on a dying world, a world in ruins. If experience is anything to go by, we should expect to be attacked at any moment so I'll try to make the rest of this quick. Four, we need to work together. Five, we have only the resources we have on hand so let's pool what we have, whether it's foreign technology or knowledge, we'll need it all to survive this. Six, if we can last for the next few hours or days, my ship will finish repairing and our chances will improve an order of magnitude once that's happened."
The Doctor paused again before flashing another brilliant smile as he turned in place, craning his neck to look at them all. "
And seven. I'll save you. I'll save as many of you as I can. That's a promise."
"
Now, I understand there's at least a ship or two on hand. Have they collected any data on this planet? Is this the most defensible place we can be or should we relocate? What do we know about the star system we're in?"
Spriggan nodded to the doctor as they went then gripped her ax tight as Garrus introduced himself. Creaks came as she loosed her grip deciding the.... Garrus was not a bandit. Voices her own reminded her that of his voice familiar to the building. So this was their concerned onlooker?
Goaded by her voices to make the effort for a smile her sluggish face unflattened itself to do so, "Hello, Garrus. Allies must be made. Enemies will introduce themselves. Threats to the whole must not be ridden against alone."
She spied a brick wall as they walked collapsing the cinderblock with leg strikes to free it adding, "Men should fear me on the new moon, when Mudus' light is gone, ignorant of the willing souls as my conscience. Should wisdom turn their backs I will rip and tear until it is done. Unless an ally calls our name."
Bent down plucked a large root broken off from her foot among the icy rubble to more quickly follow. Without complaint carried in her off hand. Numb from the cold felt little and worried less as it would regrow soon enough. There were uses of it for the Mer she could employ.
The use of his omnitool gained more of a shout from the Kajiit voice in her head. As with Garrus' use understanding what the little bracelets were for. Reegan stared with curiosity at the projection if nothing because of the loud whoop it gave in the back of her head. There were some unintelligible mutterings as they puzzled out how it worked.
Reegan stepped out of the way for the happy woman with no particular threat to her. As they both embraced followed Garrus to the others instead. Though along the way she plunked longsword and axe into a nearby plant pot big enough for her to stand in. Hefted with effort as Mundus waned.
She passed Dusk along the way and eyed the hats on his horns. Not a dremora as far as she could tell, in spite of his look, much less his actions.
An open thought she verbalized to Dusk while planter in hand, "Do they have ones that fit on my head stump? The end is cold. Your hats do you well. Maybe I need cloth tubes."
Setting light within her body from the growing hour set planter down. Clunked to free space close enough to the fire she could stay warm.
Absently hearing the doctor after being told of the supplies gathered a pot instead. A small cutting knife as well. Empty eyes looked to the others as Haasethur mentioned her name head flowers bobbing in acknowledgement. She stopped near Alec while Garrus and he were talking waiting patiently to deliver as her interred suggested.
Bell strikes of clinking dog tags from her shoulders placed them near his lap, "One regrets they cannot be here. The other is too far in the carin to hear. We feel you should have these."
Not waiting for a response she clambered in the dead dirt with a clenched mouth and wrinkled brow. It would serve to regrow her injuries and her missing parts. She quietly set the pan down to take the knife in her other hand and start cutting the root in slices. They plunked in the pot and she crushed some ice melting within her abdomen for water atop it.
When the Haassethur asked for supplies she absently replied, "I have two suits, two pistols I have forgotten most of, two of the glow bracelets, my longsword, an ax, and a short-bow."
Hand flexing hard a serviceable but poor shortbow creaked and split out of her forearm. The gulf of glow, hum, woodgrain, and vines resealing as it surfaced into her hand. Placed with the other weapons she returned to slicing.
"I'm not entirely sure why we were teleported here in the first place." said Lavaetain in response to the doctors statements. "But I suspect it's probably a resoundingly simple explanation. Within my world interdimensional travel is only a theory but teleportation magic exists and has been regularly used since the first days of magic. There's a lot involved such as rune inscriptions and the like, of which I won't bore you with the details. However one constant concern is that a failure to properly select a target can lead to being warped to an unknown location. What was odd though was that, despite the statistical probability that anyone missing a teleportation would end up in a random location or at least along predictable lines, they would be inevitably teleported to certain specific areas which seemed to hold no significance on a physical or magical level. The primary theory was that teleportation required entering through an alternate dimension or sub dimension and, while these locations held no significant value within our own, they did within the dimension that was being teleported through. Had the rebellion not started against the Emperor our Mars initiative would have been launched last year and one of its goals was to not only use golems to create a successful and viable teleportation station but to then proceed to see if we could create a magic portal to another dimension on Mars, or maybe Phobos and Deimos, in a contained environment. Though, as a fire elemental, teleportation magic is not something I am capable of it was one of the classes I did find interesting back in college. If the theories hold true it may be that this area is an utterly insignificant ruin in-so-far as it's own world is concerned but for a being, or beings, capable of such a feat it may be an extremely convenient dumping ground for unwanted, or undesired, peoples. Effectively, we were thrown out the proverbial window of our own home and this world was the 'wall' outside we smashed into while they go through our home unchallenged."
"That's an awfully wordy way to say 'it was convenient'." remarked Alistia. "But I do admit it makes sense. Might even explain why the world is so ruined here. Because other beings have been teleported here and they, inevitably, end up fighting and causing harm. I wish I could help more. This is hardly my first time cross dimensions. But I know not a spell to allow us to travel back on my own as it was always the capabilities of others that sent me from one world to the next. But... I also know that I will do my best to help you out, along with anyone else, to keep us all safe until we return to our homes."
@littlekreen
Reegan's remarks about being fear inspiring on the new moon drew a nervous look from the Doctor. He looked like he wanted to ask about it but watching the Spriggan grooming herself, which amounted to mutilating herself, preoccupied him.
Her contribution of a pile of weapons drew a disapproving look from the young man with the rather wild hair. "
I said foreign technology or knowledge, these are...well, I suppose they have their uses as tools but in my experience, thinking's the only thing that can get one out of a jam. Put a weapon in the hand of most people and what do you think happens? They stop," and he emphatically tapped an index finger against one temple to make the point.
"
Oh well, can't be helped. Let's have a look at this, shall we?" The Doctor promptly scooped up one of the Omni-Tools and marveled at it.
@Yoru
Still absently fiddling with the Omni-Tool, the Doctor spoke in Sonic's direction, saying "
What's not how you elect someone?" Glancing up, the Time Lord in tweed peered down at Sonic and his brow drew tightly together in concentration. "
Sorry, just came in, must have missed the rest of that. You're...you're some kind of...well I don't know actually. Lovely to meet you!" And he offered to shake.
@Snowtwo
Lavaetain's long and complicated explanation of the intricacies of magical teleportation draw nods from the Doctor, head-bobbing more like rather than actual agreement, even as he muttered, "
Right. Yes. Good. Go on. Wait, no, what?" And finally, at the end, he straightened and just said "
What? Rubbish. Well, perhaps not. Not in your cosmological constant anyway."
Switching his gaze back and forth between Lavaetain and Alistia, he scratched the back of his head, which mostly just mussed his already wild hair up a bit further. "
It'd help if I had a fifth dimensional topography to work with but it's sort of like this. Conventional travel through space is sort of from point a to b. Travel through time is like x to y. Dimensional travel is more of alpha to beta, if you follow. They all map to an axis, to a central fixed reference point. But separate cosmologies are something else entirely. Whatever your method involves, the one constant is massive, absolutely massive amounts of power. What's interesting is that some force didn't just do it once to one of us, or even once to loads of us but multiple times to multiple other cosmologies. Why?" Wild-eyed, the Doctor brandished a finger and waved it about erratically. "
Why go through all that trouble and then just...put us out with the bin?"
Forcing a smile, he said a bit more gently, "
Thank you, though. I'm only assuming the cosmological principles of this universe are like my own but there's no good reason they should be. What you know may end up being far more valuable than what I know. Stick together and we double our odds, eh? What do you say?" he finishes with a grin.
@Wiggin
At which point a rather angry young man began yelling at him. The Doctor pivoted on one heel and nearly overbalanced before, with an unsteady gyration, he found his balance. Then he frowned at the man. Well, more like frowned
up at him. The unusual eyes to say nothing of a breathing apparatus both drew the Time Lord's curiosity but he remained alert to what the young man had to say. With another frown, the Doctor straightened a pair of suspenders he wore under his tweed jacket and then lifted a hand of his own.
"
My ship will be fixed when she's fixed! She's a delicate piece of work, you know, after all she's been through. That said, unless you know of a way off this planet and more importantly back to your cosmological frame of reference, you might as well resign yourself to being here a good long time." The Doctor straightened his bowtie and offered a helpless smile. "
And thank you for rather nicely proving my point about what happens when most people pick up a weapon."
"
As for saving you, it's just something that seems to happen more often than you'd think. That said, I wouldn't object to being saved now and then. Amy? Rory? Are you listening?" he said, speaking up towards the couple nearby. The Time Lord turned back only to find Trigger already wandering off to evidently keep watch. Standing there a bit awkwardly, the Doctor finally noticed Dusk and immediately sauntered on up, looking at him with unblinking eyes. Not the look of someone seeing a nightmare but more the look of someone seeing a Christmas present and wandering what might be inside when unwrapped.
"
Oh, you beauty," he murmured.
A nod to the doctor's assessment she first put the knife down to gather bits from inside. Skeletal hands reached through ivy from inside to offer the two small bracelets. Not a body-sized internment she hadn't needed the whole portal and the objects were small enough to fit. Items retrieved instead by her hand vanishing to the elbow into her mouth as she received them. The Omni-tool plunked the pair onto the pile of weapons.
The doctor took one and she replied after a moment, "Nature is both brutal and serene but not merciful. Such is a Spriggan's nature. Those interred by choice gives us the soul's wisdom by the light of Mundus. My We are among Nord guards, Bosmer priests, and Khajiiti grifters. They did not inter diplomats. I am willing to listen but I will not hesitate, Haassethur. The priest knows enough of us I can make a potion for healing from what will not reattach."
An eyebrow raised in acrid irritation to some unheard party, "We know every skill you know, Khajiit. We know what one uses them for. Blame the priest."
The discussion of dimensions was beyond the scope of her knowledge so ignored them for the most part. The clothes from Dusk were more welcome to her attention as the exposed wound on her head grew quite cold. A broken ironwood spar exposed to the elements. One part of her crown with splintered open edge knit outward by millimeters. A fragile inner green glow still visible.
Bent over the edge to the pile of clothing Reegan chose a thick knee-sock and two scarves for her legs. An armor against the cold wind to sensitive portions. Toe of the sock tied loose to one of the other spars in her crown. The insulation taking less of her body's effort to keep warm her hair re-bloomed the flowers taken by ice. Short wisteria ladders pouring down between the curved ironwood crown. Dirt recovers from its long isolation that her root-feet immersed within. The touch freed faint alpine grasses to peek from the edge of the large planter.
Inner conversation partly ignored looked at the sitting Dusk but had no names to call them. An affinity to the wild she saw them closer to herself than the others. Mer were social creatures not predators in need of restraint. In absence of something to call, as he did not speak, chose the first thing in Dovahzul that came to mind. Color and demeanor, Silent light/rightness orphan, of one that seemed both so lost and dark.
Stood in the pot Reegan pointed blooms swaying perfume, "Nahlotkunoth, I need many of my petals. Yet my root is tough to prepare. Will you assist again to pick them for me? Do not worry about injury, I am strong and they regrow. I must finish before the light sets. Haassethur with you may be busy with the others."
Before resuming cutting slivers from sturdy root attended the frigidity of her legs. One end of scarf knots to her ankles then spirals to her thigh to tether within an opening spilling fading light. It wasn't much but kept the wind from stealing what little heat kept her sap from freezing. In front of the fire, sap flows free even in the dying light of Mundus in arctic winds. More than sturdy and strong enough that dusk wouldn't break her with ease.
"That is not the point…" Luer muttered to himself. Just because everyone was stuck here did not mean he had to be included in a group against his will. It was no different than being kidnapped that way. He glanced to Thor curiously when the god spoke in agreement with him. He ruined it though when he said he should be leader, making the archer slap his forehead softly in irritation. They are all idiots! He complained to himself, pinching the bridge of his nose for a moment and shaking his head just slightly so as not to make himself any more disoriented. "That is not the point…" He repeated.
"You are not getting my vote either. You apparently are not listening to me." Luer stated before shaking his head once more with a heavy sigh of defeat. "Forget it…" He finally said. It would not be the first time he was forced into something anyway. He was too tired and too dizzy to deal with it right now. He glanced up at the whistle, raising a brow to the man. It did not seem to take long for everyone to trust them right away, which again left the archer with less than pleasant feelings about any of this. He did not trust any of them… Gaeira aside. He felt he could trust a man that would save his life despite the circumstances.
Once the group had their weird reunions he wrapped his arm over Gaeira's shoulder and followed the rest of them. His blanket had provided enough protection from the cold bite of the SOLDIER's armor that he could touch it without worry. It was still cold, but he was still dizzy. He was willing to handle the cold over not being able to walk properly by himself right now.
—————————————————————————
When they arrived he situated himself behind everyone else. The fire was crowded and he wasn't interested in dealing with these people too much just for the sake of warming up by it. He would be fine… He shook his head to deny any offer of the dry clothes or food. He was fine in what he was wearing. He may be wet but he did not want to risk ending up in something too tight that he could not move in or something too loose that he tripped over to got caught on. Perhaps he was being too stubborn, or too cautious, but he did not really care. He was not even really that hungry right now… If anything, that part was what concerned him the most.
The archer gave Gaeira a reassuring smile. The man tried to help him, but he really was not sure what to tell him right now. Perhaps it was a bout of depression, but he really was not hungry. He brought his knees up to his chest and wrapped his blanket around them as well before closing his eyes and just listening to the others. Three months… he has been here three months and not gotten home? I am going to be stuck here forever then… He thought to himself with a heavy sigh. While he could not say he really wanted to go home, because he knew that would not be possible, he did at least want to be in his world where things made sense and he could revel in a semblance of comfort. This was insane… this could not be real. Maybe when he fell asleep, he would wake for all of this to be a dream.
He twitched as someone started playing some strange music, directing a brief glare in the direction the sound came from. It was hard enough to relax with all this chatter, the music did not help. He eyed the doctor with a raised brow when the man held his hand out to him, unsure just what he was expecting him to hand over. It did not seem the man cared much since after a moment he simply moved on to someone else.
He shook his head to ignore whatever that was. He groaned to himself as he laid his head back down when that same man began to speak to everyone very loudly. Could these people not be quiet at all?? Most of what he was saying made no sense, and why was he trying to take charge too!? Although Luer was content to continue complaining about everything, something the blue clad man said did catch his attention and brought his gaze back up.
There was a way back? A couple days… he had to deal with this lot for a few more days. If he was somehow still sane after this it might be worth it to go back to his boring life. All he had to do was tough it out then. He huffed softly though and laid his head back down once more at the man's words. 'Save' was a broad term, and depending on what he meant, the archer did not want to be 'saved'. He glanced to Trigger though when he spoke up and grunted softly. What kind of comparison was that? He sighed and just laid his head back down. These people were all annoying and all crazy. Gaeira and his friend were the only tolerable ones here right now.
Anything beyond that speech was nonsense he was content to ignore. He just wanted this to be over. Perhaps some sleep would do him well, a shiver reminded him he was still cold and an attempt to sleep would not go well with all these noisy people. As light a sleeper as he was they could cough and he would wake, so this noise was impossible for him to sleep in. He would just rest, since sleeping was not possible. It would serve the same purpose, anyway.
"Why thank ya kindly. Like yours too. Sounds kinda like Alec's here." She looks between Alec and Amy. "Which is mighty odd, seein' none of us seem to be from the same place." She returns the compliment adding her own observation and relaxing her grip on The Survivalist. Something about these two just made her think they weren't about to turn on the group with weapons. Even if they were to whip out some fantastical thing to try and hurt them, Abby is certain from experience she could put two large caliber bullets between their eyes at a moment's notice. She'd feel bad to do it to the pretty redhead with an attitude, but survival came before personal tastes.
She was intrigued by the pair being surprised to be meeting Sonic, the big blue rat.
A video game character? Like the Red Menace? Abby looks over at Sonic. Must just look like something from wherever they came from.
The 'Whoooa' uttered by the man gets Abby to follow their gaze to...the nightmare creature coming out of a shop laden with hats on its horns. One of them, a brown Stetson, catches her eye but she wasn't inclined to come up on the thing and ask for it. Yes the thing was peaceful so far. One of the most peaceful of the group actually. But still it was a thing made of a skull and darkness.
The blue haired guy who looked like he had a stick up his rear spoke up about not being asked to be part of the group. Then the hunk named Thor put up his name for consideration as leader; despite not actively doing anything to lead everyone so far, Abby would have added in, if she cared enough. She was more annoyed the men were arguing about such a dumb thing, and Amy took the words right out of her mouth.
"Right, what she said. Buncha children I reckon." Abby voiced her agreement but looks pointedly at the one named Luer.
The whistle makes the Courier go for her weapon again, but she doesn't level it up at the source, as along with the strange armored man and the living tree they had left behind was the one Amy had described and with whom she has a heartfelt reunion. She could tell in those moments there was a lot of history between Amy and this man she only called 'Doctor'.
Garrus leads the group from there to his camp inside a huge clothing store. Abby happily puts on a couple layers of shirts under her SWAT vest while the others talk. From the bits she catches, this land was no different from hers. Right down to monsters, bandits, and salvaging scarce resources.
The Sinatra music was a welcome addition to their surroundings, made Abby feel a little more at home to hear 'Blue Moon' in ruins again. The young woman hunkers down next to her pack and weapons near the campfire and Alec, pries open a can of Cram and eats it right from the can with a fork while The Doctor talked to the assembled party. Most of the terms went right over her head, but she gets the jist of what the gangly man is trying to say.
At the fifth point about foreign technology and knowledge, Abby looks aside at her rifle and down at her pistol and around at what others had to offer. Her weapons were probably the most primitive here, so she doesn't bother offering them. She does hold up her Pip-Boy, which is still less advanced than whatever else would be offered, but it's something.
The tree thing, apparently named Reegan, puts itself into a pot and proceeds to preen itself. Abby tried to ignore that, as it is just too odd a thing for her to want to watch with everything else going on.
"Awful chatty, that one." Abby says under her breath to Alec very quietly when the one woman in fancy clothes dominates the conversation with The Doctor, again using a lot of words and dropping names that don't really mean anything to her. The most she gleans from it is this place was a dumping ground for people from other worlds, and because many didn't get along that was why it was ruined. In the time it took for Alistia and Lavaetian to talk, Abby has finished her first can of cram, tossed it over her shoulder, and started on another. The fire and clothing layers had done their work to get her body warmed back up.
The kid, Trigger she think was his name from earlier(there were a lot of names to remember) proves to be a kid in his response to everything The Doctor had to say, but Abby gave The Doctor more respect for taking it like a real gentleman.
When The Doctor went off to tinker with one of the Omni-Tools, Abby tosses her second can of cram over her shoulder and stands, clears her throat.
"Now....seeing as the floor is open. I got some things to say." She looks around to see who was listening before continuing. "Now lookin' around at ya'll...I can say I am holdin' the most basic firearms and supplies, and I likely am the least educated here, even if some of ya are behaving like children." She says looking particularly at Luer, Thor and off where Trigger had walked. "But! Wasteland where danger can be in any ruin you try to scavenge somethin' useful? Low on ammo, food, safe water, shelter? That's where I live, and this situation even with the cold, is just a Monday fer me. I've lead caravans across the deserts, through canyons and you know with what? Not my weapons. Thems just tools." She taps her right temple "With my wits and some luck and the right crew. Know what got people killed in all those long desert drives? Besides the Deathclaws and such? Ego. Ego and pride and holdin' on to baggage ya can't see will get you killed. I promise that, I seen it." She looks around at everyone.
"Now. I ain't gonna pretend to be your leader, but if I see someone's ego needs check, I will check it for them before it gets themselves or someone else killed. Even you, King." She points at Thor. "And lastly, if you think you're better off alone?" She points out in the direction of the doors. "There's them doors. Try hoofing it alone out there, see how far you make it before you regret it." She takes breath. "Now, I gotta see a man about a hat."
Abby walks away from the fire to Dusk and The Doctor. With a fully belly and warm body, Abby feels more confident walking up to the being, if apprehensive.
"Mind if I have this one friend?" She asks pointing at the Stetson and waits for something that could be construed as agreement before taking the hat off one of the horns and setting it upon her head.
"What do ya think, Doc?" Abby asks The Doctor adjusting the hat, but not specifying if she means the hat or her speech.
"Watashi no un dake...." Tsunade curses when she hears the lizard reply in a language she cannot understand. She is glad that the said lizard replies in a manner that doesn't indicate it is looking for a fight, and she raises her hands in kind. She sees one of the soldiers behind the lizard person and her hands fly together in a series of hand signs. The soldier would have been hit with a water dragon made from the snow beneath him; had the pink creature come seemingly out of nowhere and swatted him into the air like a bug.
"Nani?!" Tsunade exclaims her confusion at the thing beckoning them to follow , looking at the lizard person. The wind getting harsher and colder encourages her to follow the pink blob. It might be more familiar with this place, know where they could find shelter from this storm overtaking the area. So Tsunade sprints after him, bearing through the cold wind.
As they followed, Tsunade saw they were still headed towards the scene of the battle. Where the convoy has been scattered, and the crater made by her clone has apparently unleashed a fearsome creature. She witnesses the blob swap his sword for a mallet to strike the beast to save the young man she had seen earlier. Others were here as well; the other young man, and a shinobi? A very fearsome shinobi at that, the way he used ice without hand signals to so brutally dispatch remaining soldiers.
When the various monsters appear from below and beyond the snow storm to converge on them, Tsunade gets into a battle ready stance, and thinks to yell to the others they needed to get out of here immediately; the words are taken right from her mind it seems, and she is somewhat delighted the young man who had just been saved was the one who had spoken them first in her language. She gets to him, runs beside him and readies the water dragon jutsu she had attempted earlier, holding her hands together before making the final sign.
"Saigo ni watashi ga hanasu koto ga dekiru dare ka!" She exclaims to the young man beside her. "Watashi wa Tsunade, kara Konohagakure!"
@littlekreen
The Doctor graciously accepted an Omni-Tool, then furrowed his brow as he listened gravely to what Reegan had to say. "
Blimey, sometimes I can barely understand you and other times I wonder if it isn't better that way. You're right, though. Nature, the universe...mercy's something only people do. Which is why it's so important that they do."
@Not_Amy
Abby's offer of the Pipboy drew the Doctor's interest next, though it may not be that much of a compliment seeing how his head seemed to be on a swivel, constantly changing directions on him whenever he saw something new and interesting. "
Oooooh, look at that," he said, sauntering up and peering at the control display of the antique device. "
Not new at all, but not known to me either. Mmmm, looks American though. Which," he glanced Abby over and both eyebrows went up as he spotted her rifle and pistol as he finished by saying, "...
which makes sense. Right. Lovely device you have there. Might be the best cartography tool we have on hand, as well as a recorder, so keep it handy, won't you?"
He flashed her a brilliant smile before bounding on to the next thing.
What brought him back minutes later was her rousing speech. The Doctor listened with a look of utter admiration before nudging Amy and Rory in the ribs and pointing. "
See? I like her. I'm not sure I've ever had a post-apocalyptic woman onboard the TARDIS before. ...Come to think of it, I'm not sure I've ever actually said the word post-apocalyptic. Which is a bit funny, if you think about it. The original Greek word for apocalypse means revelation. So technically, everyone who's had a revelation is post-..." He paused, frowned and said, "...
no, I had a thought there but I've lost it."
Abby's close approach and fetching of a cowboy hat from Dusk amuses him, though. When the woman asks his opinion, he gives her two thumbs up and says "
If you happen to find a fez, you'll let me know, won't you?"
@Nero Kunivas
Thor's list of accomplishments results in an incredulous expression on the Doctor's face. Then he peers intently at Thor before suddenly smiling again. "
Right. There's likely dozens of people here on a ruined world, each brought here through incalculable power by an unknown force. There's a snow storm outside that doesn't look like it has any plan on stopping. And, right now, we have no leads or clues in who's done this to us or why." He straightened his bowtie before resting his hands on the lapels of his suit coat. "
Tell you what. Tell me how flying, lightning and muscles will address any of those issues and I'll buy you a hot chocolate, the next time we're somewhere where we can get one. In the meantime..."
The Time Lord's smile slipped as he peered around the abandoned mall. "
In the meantime, yes, under observation. It's not surprising, though. Anything willing to spend that much power to bring us here must, I presume, have a vested interest in us. The only question is the nature of that vested interest. And what kind of a vest interest wears exactly. Did I really just use 'vest' and 'interest' in the same sentence three times now? ...Make that four..."
@Nero Kunivas @AIM Leader Wade
Meanwhile, Artis' handshake with the Doctor evidently pleased the gangly young man with the wild hair and old eyes. "
Indeed. Saving each other is something humans are especially good at. One reason I'm glad to see at least some of them here." Finishing the handshake, the Doctor beams at Artis and says "
Have you met Amy and Rory? Amy and Rory, say hello."
@Yoru
The Doctor emphatically pointed in Sonic's direction at the blue hedgehog's question and said, "
Exactly the right question to be asking. Anyone? Did anyone see or encounter someone or something immediately before, during or just after transit to this planet?"
@Wiggin
Dusk's pat on the Doctor's head resulted in a grinning Time Lord. "
Lovely," he repeated, still bemused.
Everyone was talking, and some were arguing. Garrus was in favor to Abby's speech, as focusing on who was leader was ill-advised, since they had other focuses, the Ponds listened and spoke up to the Doctor as he tried to figure out what was going on, with so many of them teleoported to this world, and Callintus simply enjoyed himself a nice meal of food, watching everyone go about their business. But one man seemed dead quiet, as no question seemed to jog a response from him. It was as they sat down with each other, preparing the food, that Seegan came around to him, and placed in his lap two metal objects. Two very familiar objects. When the Spriggan walked away, Alec grabbed both tags and held them up, seeing what was written on them. The names of two men who were with him in that shuttle before it crash landed. The Scotsman, sitting with his legs crossed, looked in confusion to the Spriggan. He wanted to go back to get these tags, at least so their familiar had something, should they ever return back to their home worlds. But how did Spriggan get these? And how did she know of what worth they were? This creature was from the same world as Callintus, and the man was an old warrior from medieval times, with magic and monsters, and dog tags were not introduced into any such army into the early 20th century.
He would've thought maybe she gave them to him, thinking they were ordinary necklaces, but the way she worded it, she knew these had some importance to them. These thoughts rant through Alec's mind, as Garrus and the Ponds spoke up.
"Not that I can recall." The Turian answered, glad the Doctor wasn't fiddling with his omni-tool anymore. He was using his screwdriver on it, and the device was making the tool act funny. He wasn't all that pleased if he found out the weird man broke it. "Before I got here, I was running a planetary scouting missing with my commander. Next second, I'm falling, and I end up caught between two guardians like Horus and Kingpin, and a hoard of monsters with five legs and mangled bodies."
When Amy and Rory shook hands with Artis, they answered back, "Doctor, do you think the Daleks could do something like this? They're just as old as you, and they seemingly can throw out the odd advanced tech."
"Yeah, but they're also giant tanks, usually they don't plan this far in advanced." Rory answered. Daleks were single minded, and what reason would they do this for? They hadn't seen them so far, and Daleks would gladly kill them all if they wanted the Doctor alone.
They all talked and talked, but Alec kept silent, with Calltinus; mouth full of food, tapped the Scotsman on the shoulder. "Alec?" He asked. "Are you alright?" The knight was concerned with the look in his eye, which had gone from confused to angry. He was putting pieces together. Suddenly, he stood up and walked through both Ponds, the Doctor, and even bumping into Abby's shoulder inconsiderately. "Alec!" Callintus shouted, getting up after him. "What's wrong with him?" Amy asked, following as well, with Rory right behind.
Alec didn't walk far, only to where Seegan had planted herself. "When did you get these?" He asked, slight aggression in his voice. "You gave these to me, knowing the value they had, you know these aren't just necklaces." He made a point of that. "Duggan," Calltinus moved to his side, putting an arm up to block him. "She had simply grabbed them before we left the building, whatever value they have, she didn't know, and she knew you wanted them."
It was hard to see why Alec had such an issue with it, but Alec knew something was up. The Spriggan was already a mysterious figure, but how she worded it to him as she set them down on his lap, they were specific, too specific even. "'The other is too far in the carin to hear,' and you said you have two suits, two guns, and two bracelets that glow. I have a very good feeling you did more than just give me these for those men's families."
Callintus quickly understood what she did the moment Alec mentioned the Cairn. She wasn't trying to be Intrusive. She simply wished to help poor souls find their way out of limbo, as a Daedra like her believes. "Alec." Callintus said cautiously. "Let it go--"
"No, I'm not letting this go, what the fuck else did you take from those men?!" Leaving their bodies behind? That was fine with him, he could not give them proper burials for the situation they were all in. But if she stole things from those men, ransacking their belongings for herself, such theft was not to go unanswered by the Scotsman.
"Alec!" Calltinus interrupted, trying to get his attention. "Calm yourself, boy, this is no time to let anger take hold of judgement!" With a push, Callintus put more space between the two. Alec wasn't having it though, seeing the look on the knights face. He knew something. "What aren't you telling me?" Alec asked.
"Alec--"
"No, what did she do to them! You know something about her, and I'm a little more anxious you won't tell me."
"Because you are in no state to be told so."
"Why does she know these are important?!" He raised the tags again to show him. She knows they're actually dog tags, like she was told why they had these. "..... Because she spoke to them." Calltinus answered, before continuing with a sigh. "To keep their souls safe, she placed them inside a place called 'The Soul Cairn.' A plane of Oblivion inhabited by souls and undead. It was to ensure they were not trapped here on this world, so far from their homes."
"So..... They're inside her?" Alec asked, even more confused.
"They exist with her, but are not trapped inside her. She is not holding them hostage, merely keeping them safe." Callintus clarified more.
Alec didn't like the sound of it, since Callintus was being careful with his words, dancing around a certain detail. "Then how does she 'save' their souls?"
Calltinus, again with a cautious look, answered back as well as he could. ".... She keeps their bodies safe within her."
".... What the hell does that mean?" Alec wanted clarification. But Garrus knew already where Calltinus was going. "She absorbs their bodies, doesn't she." Calltinus didn't answer, only look to Garrus with a glare. It was enough to answer the question.
"Wait, wait, w-wait, she ea-- She eats their bod...... She eats them--"
"She doesn't eat them." The knight interrupted, "She does not 'feast' upon their bodies--"
"Fuck you, YOU ATE THEIR BODIES?!"
"She does not--"
Before the Knight could defend her more, Alec sprang to action, charging at the Spriggan with fists clenched. Rage had taken over, and Callintus tried to block himself in front of her, yet Alec managed to
The ground was now made of sand. There was suddenly a blue sky covered in orange from a setting sun. Behind him was a small forest of trees, and in front was an ocean going out for miles on end. Alec was now on what looked to be an island, abandoned and alone at sea, with nothing but ocean life to keep it company. The orange glow emitting from the sun blinded Alec at first, as he hadn't laid eyes on it all day, but when his eyes adjusted, he could make out the changing colors as it sank ever slowly.
Water splashed onto his feet, he could feel it soaking through the metal and kevlar, all of which felt way too real to be an hallucination. "What the hell?...." It was just him, no one else was around The sun grew brighter as it set, and Alec couldn't help but look back, as it felt oddly pleasing to view. There was a strange sensation about it; comforting him from the stressful world he was just in. The warmth removed the cold from his body, a most welcomed change for the Scotsman, and after everything that had happened, a small, exhausted smile came to his face. He didn't see a green light, not like before, just....... Strangely he could remember how. Things kinda flickered, it was hard to remember. Just happened suddenly, before Callintus could intervene.
It wasn't just Alec within this setting though. Everyone was. No one would know what happened, only that they were alone on a small island, on a beach with warm sand under their feet, an everlasting ocean, and a view of the sun that seemed heartwarming to watch fade under the water. The sound of waves hitting the beach, the wind passing through their hair, a complete contrast to the world they were just in. Everything was calm again. No ice, no snow, he was tranquil in this moment. He sat down, one leg bent towards his body, the other stretched out to the water. His mind was at ease, like falling asleep in bed. Time passed by, and the sun was soon to vanish, not even bothering to ask questions still. Where did everyone go? How did he get here? Was he teleported again? Didn't matter.
He was too tired to think by this point. "Alec!" Shouted a voice; startling the Scotsman. He looked around, but no one was there, but he could recognize that it was Callintus' voice. In fact, he could also hear Amy Ponds as well.
"Helloooooooo!"
"Amy!" That was Rory's too, but the voice was faint, like the sound of wind breezing by. What the hell was going onononononononononononono
Without warning, they were all back in the mall, Alec sitting on the cold floor tiles. What that a mirage?... Clearly not, because the moment he turned his head forward, a large wave of salt water hit him in the face. The wave was half the size of Alec's body, and since he was sitting down, he was completely dunked by it, washing him back into one of the metal benches nailed to the floor. The wave's height died down the further into the mall it went, and as it passed, the floor would have sand all over, with several palm trees falling over railings from the floors above, smashing to the ground, with coconuts smashing into bits or rolling all over.
Callintus and Garrus found themselves on the floor of the mall too, the Turian slightly dizzy, while Callintus looked out of it slightly. As Garrus went to pick him up, the wave, suddenly hit them both from the side as he grabbed his arm. The Ponds were luckier, Rory found himself next to Amy and gave her a hug, as both were separated on the island, but when they heard the wave coming by, both of them shouted and ran down the hall to try and avoid it. Didn't work, again, the force of the wave hitting them from behind knocked them down and dunked them. They washed down the hallway with Garrus and Callintus, before sliding to a stop as the wave dissipated. Alec was coughing up salt water, while Rory and Callintus felt sand go up their nose.
"What the hell was that?!" Amy shouted, wiping running makeup off her face. Garrus took a moment to breath, before asking, "You on an island too?" Both Rory and Callintus nodded, blowing their noses. Alec sat up against the bench, also taking a moment to breath, when suddenly.
The weather was slowly getting worse outside as xiao still dressed in her thin desert clothes suddenly shivered and had to breathe some fire to remain relatively warm. Chilly winds were not the only problem she faced out here as it brought over sounds of unknown beasts.
"Talia stay close..." Talia her pup reacted quickly and jumped on her back where it clung to its dear life.
"Hey not THAT close... fine..." Xiao relented when their eyes met for a bit and she saw the fear her poor pet had.
She would be lying if she didnt feel scared herself. there mile tall stone spires with shattered glass everywhere. Broken metal beasts everywhere just as big as the rhinoceros beetles used by sandbenders to haul large loads. Another howl from a beast carried by the wind sounded to be much closer than the rest. That prompted Xiao to act as she began to look for a way inside this low building now.
As Xiao walked towards where an unseen trigger was keeping a watch a tipped over tuck was blocking her way. Sudden movement and a rigid foot slam on the ground later a pillar of rock shot up from below the large vehicle and launched it in the air. The thing smashed through the ceiling of the mall and landed just a few feet in front of Trigger with a heavy metallic crunch. even the ground vibrated from that impact when its front connected. The rear container with goods remained upright for a few more moments before swinging down sideways and impacting the ground for the second time causing yet another noticeable tremor.
"whoops..." The girl had overdone it again but on the bright side the road was clear now and she was ale to move on inside the large building filled with smaller buildings? That confused the girl a bit but she came across the same vehicle AGAIN, this time right next to the entrance to one of the smaller buildings inside.
@Wiggin
"JESUS CHRIST!" Alec shouted, as the truck suddenly came bursting in though a wall like the coolaid man was ready to shout, 'OH YEAH!' When the dust settled and Alec looked out the massive hole in the building, he saw Xiao standing there, and the Scotsman gave a rather confused look on the what the fuck this girl did. And also, how the hell was she not frozen to death, considering her choice of attire seemed out of place.
