Alande's eye was on the internal makeup o the ship, taking notes on its material composition, electrical systems, critical weaknesses, and the biological makeup of the races he caught brief glimpses of. There was a treasure trove of data on reality deviants, and he wasn't going to miss the opportunity to gather the information. The air temperature, though, was something he wouldn't be able to fix. Not really. Maybe he could jury rig something to take advantage of typical physics, but when it came to Enlightened application there wasn't much he could do to bring down the heat. Then, he was brought in front of the leader. This man had a sense of authority about him, and a clear edge of ruthlessness. He would be a problem later, but nothing he couldn't take care of. Alande knew how to commit, and cover up, a murder just fine.
At the mention of a lack of resources, Alande has to restrain himself from rolling his eyes. Sassing this guy was just going to make an ass of himself, even if he was completely right. He opens his mouth to speak. "Fixing our food and water problem will be trivial, sir. But, first, lets focus on the entities chasing us. My name is Dr. Vera. I'm an expert on biology, economics, material science, and data science. When it comes to your needs, I'm your saving grace in and out of this combat situation. If you have software based targeting systems, I can make a few adjustments to skyrocket performance. Or give you one, if you have the power generation. Alternatively, you can put me in the medical bay and I can work with scraps to save lives."
Magneto scrutinized the convoy as the apparent bandits invited the wanderers aboard. Eclectic groups were commonplace in his universe, so a cartoonishly proportioned pegasus-unicorn was no surprise to him. He glanced up at the machine gun nests indifferently; they would be no challenge, should this group prove hostile.
Floating over the lamborghini, he touched down beside it once the lieutenant parked it and placed the scrapped scorpion next to it. "I will move this to a better location when I find one," he declared, loudly enough to be clearly heard. The leaders of the convoy seemed to disagree with having them aboard, so Magneto seized an opportunity. "I expect to earn my keep, human. I am
Magneto, and the metal parts I could reconstitute with a mere thought will repair your failing machinery!" It was in everyone's best interest to keep this giant hovercraft moving; he felt he was in a position of power, driving such a bargain.
Luer had been waspish and moody, likely even before the Master of Magnetism arrived on this godforsaken planet. Rather than try to coax the squishy, ineffective human to stay and continue to sour his desert trek, Magneto breathed a sigh of relief and smirked haughtily. Now he could focus on the issue at hand—the air conditioning. The flamboyant costume insulated well against weapons, but did little against the scorching heat. "Anyway, show me to your engine bay."
"A doctor?" Adler remarked to Vera, taking a puff of his lit cigarette in his left hand. "Nice to have another on board. I'm a doctor myself. Though, more of a 'psychologist.'" If Alande didn't know better, he would detect a hint of sarcasm in Adler's voice at that word. Like it's meaning was a little 'in-joke.'
He wasn't so impressed with Magneto, however. The way he brazenly carried himself with an air of smugness and arrogance, and the demanding nature of his tone was like that of a king talking to peasants. He may control metal, but he seemed to overestimate his abilities and how far he could go in this unknown world. Even if it was familiar to both of them. "If you two feel like helping our other Doctor with the engines, I can show you to him." Adler wouldn't linger on his doubts for long. They had more important duties to worry about.
"Had to have high hopes for a living..."
Edward Elric
Vi
One minute he had been sitting out in the rain of Central City, still feeling hollow after losing Nina.
Now he's currently using his Alchemy to fix the AC (Winry would've stuck to this place like glue), even after spending some time here, he's still not familiar with the mechanics of this place all too much. Doc Brown isn't too bad of a teacher- he wasn't sure the Teacher back home would think of the man.
Thank goodness the AC was in one piece, made it easier to use Alchemy to put everything back together.
But then his stomach grumbles, and he realizes he's
very hungry. Ed sighed, soon stopping in his work to head to the nearest sink- he's flesh hand is covered in grease, dust and oil. His automail is pretty dirty too... he'd have to clean properly later. For now, "I'm gonna grab a bite to eat!" He called out to Al and Doc Brown, probably some fresh air too while he thinks about it for a few seconds.
Ed soon hurried off, considering the amount of people on this craft, they needed to limit how much food everyone got and such. Which kind of sucked considered he was so hungry most of the time-
The air was still just as hot and sticky once Ed arrived to get some fresh air, his golden eyes zeroing in on the newcomers. Judging by their reactions and/or lack of dehydration, they probably just arrived. Maybe in the same way he and Al did.
This place was dry, dusty, and hot.
Not really much like Zaun, hell- not at all like Piltover either.
She wasn't sure how to feel about that.
Still, it wasn't so bad. It helped get her mind off of... everything, from back home. Plus, with limited amount of drinks and such on this flying craft- Vi pretty much had to go sober, whether she wanted to or not. But, the people her put up with her, some even reminded her of people she knew.
Not Caitlyn though thank the Heavens above. The black dye in her hair still stuck around, she paid a good amount of coin for the dye and such, so yay- she got her money's worth.
The turret they assigned her wasn't, well... she wasn't a lookout. And it sucked for a while, being so high up, alone with her thoughts. She got used to it after a while, the endless desert wasn't a terrible sight to see. Plus, while the air was hot, it was breathable. No smog or terrible gasses to be wary of. It was nice.
The young woman had looked down when seeing fresh faces, her eyes narrowing a little in thought as Twilight- she'd never get over the fact she was familiar with a pony princess with a horn, wings, and magic- talked to someone attempting to leave. She half wondered if the person would listen.
It was still her job to look out for everyone on this craft though. So, slipping on the Atlas Gauntlets she kept beside her, the machinery humming and thriving to life, the young woman soon made her way down.
"In fact," Adler, out of the corner of his eye, saw Vi slide down the ladder to the cargo bay floor. Probably to get some shade from the sun bearing down, or grab some food from the freshly made stew. He watched her make her way into the camp, and there he saw Edward making himself a bowl, "I can introduce you to one of his helpers." Saying that, he waved for Magneto and Alande to follow, with the Vagabundo lieutenant following suit. (Though not before shooing away two of his crew who quickly surrounded the dead scorpion out of curiosity of scrap rights for it.)
The smell of stew in the camp was strong. A large steel cauldron was right in the center of the tents, hung over a metal fireplace to cook all the ingredients, which was a mixture of cut vegetables marinating in a meaty broth. The cook was cutting up a few more pieces of celery, potatoes, and a purplish vegetable that sort've looked like a turnip, but smelled like strawberries when cut open. He had a particularly 'unique' look to him in comparison to the other scattered on board, and the Vagabundos took to him immediately for the 'similar' personality traits they shared.
You may know why.
"Ah! Edward!" Silver shouted out to the young Alchemist as he approached, chopping the vegetables with incredible speed and timing using his robotic arm.
"Just in time, boyo! I was just adding in the finishing details! Had to substitute the lack of spices with a bit of bone marrow from our prey, but I've found myself a new family recipe in the making!" Like the others, Silver was found in the desert and picked up by the 'bundos, just before Ed and Al were, but took a quick liking to both boys. Not just because of his relatability to Edward's automail condition, but also his reminder of another young lad that seemed lost and in need of direction.
Once copped and thrown into the stew, a quick flame from his prosthetic arm boiled the stew once more, and a fast stir of the newly chucked in ingredients, he pulled out the ladle and pour it in a nicely made bowl.
"'Ere we are.~ Tell me what you think, m'lad." It was thanks to Edward and Alphonse that they had a cauldron, fire place, bowls and even spoons and forks to eat with. Their alchemy was a marvel to watch as they molded simple pieces of metal into finely crafted utensils, as if they were using clay.
The same could not be said about Silver and his cooking. For upon Edward taking a spoonful of stew, he was met with the eyeball of the creature they used the meat of to make the stew.
"Whops! There's where that went!" Silver was looking for that eyeball, and quickly snatched it off Edward's spoon.
"Thought I lost that little bugger. Think he's curious what you make of him in meal form!" Silver joked, before bellowing out a laugh as he pointed the eye at Edward.
"Glad to see the health conditions of the kitchen are still impeccable," Adler remarked back once all four of them walked into camp.
"Russell! Quick to prey upon the young blood I see," Silver quipped, grabbing some more bowls from under his cutting table.
"Someone has to save them from your corrupting presence."
"Said the pot back to the kettle." The two men's back and forth was light-hearted and easy to see. Adler also enjoyed Silver's company, though maybe for not the same reasons as the 'bundos did. Maybe more for how he could see through the facade the cyborg hid under.
"Edward, meet the new recruits. Dr. Alande Vera, and 'Magneto.' They said they're willing to help with the engine repairs if your brother and Brown need it."
"An endless road, but I know that you're strong and bold..."
Edward Elric
Vi
He wasn't quite sure why Silver took an almost instant liking to him. He doubted it was because of his arm and leg, nor because of all the repairs he did thanks to his Alchemy. Silver had... a melancholy look in his eyes. A look Edward was familiar with himself more or less. The blonde didn't pry though, everyone was entitled to their own secrets and past. But there was one thing the blonde could accept- the food this man made.
It was the best! The teen grinned in delight, his stomach grumbling as he eagerly accepted the bowl. Spoon in his right metal hand, "Thanks! Wow this looks so-so-... so-" Edward cut himself off after taking a spoonful of the soup, ready take in a big gulp full. Only to be met with an- eye. He felt his hunger quickly fade away like a candle in the wind as he stared down at the spoon where the eye was. Even after Silver removed it- he could
swear was still watching him from afar!
Still... he'd sooner drink milk than hurt the man's feelings, he kept such a thought to himself as he took a more tentative sip from his spoon. Once the unique flavor of the soup hit him, Edward quickly began eating. He was hungry, besides, they were hardly trying to impress anyone at a fancy dinner thing. The blonde paused though when Adler introduced him to two new people they found.
A Dr. Alande Vera and... Magneto? Edward took a spoonful of soup to keep from saying something smart- yet at least. "Hey, name's Ed, don't worry about the engine room. Al, Doc Brown and I have it covered." He replied as he finished off more of the soup, "You two better get some soup before it's all gone-" He jumped, nearly dropping his bowl of soup when a loud
THUD was heard. Edward whipped around, grumbling when he saw the big giant Atlas Gauntlets on the ground. He had been tempted to take those things apart for scientific purposes- the owner promptly picked up like a suitcase before tossing him back to Al.
"Yeah, this one's still growing so he's gotta get at least four helpings." Edward clenched the spoon so tightly in his metal hand as Vi's jab towards him. "You know if you're not gonna finish that bowl-"
"Hands off!" The teen scampered back a bit from Vi as she 'lunged' for it, it just earned a snort of amusement from the young woman, and a glare from the blonde. "I hope you find an eyeball in yours too..." Edward grumbled as he continued eating, the spoon's handle warped from the amount of pressure from Edward's metal hand.
Vi smirked to herself. Edward was like a funny little combination of Powder, Mylo, and Claggor. Mostly in personality and that sibling energy he seemed to have roll off of him in waves. Her smirk faded as she eyed the new people.
She didn't blame Twilight for wanting to help people, especially in this hot as hell sandy abyss.
That didn't mean she trusted the new guys though. Maybe it was just her own protective instincts flaring up, maybe it was just the familiar air of... arrogance that seemed to roll off these two in waves as well. Or she was just overthinking things once again, something she seemed to keep doing ever since arriving here. Wordlessly she turned to Silver, her expression softening. If Edward and his brother reminded her her siblings, Silver reminded her of Vander in a sense. "Was there actually an eyeball in Ed's soup?" She questioned as she failed to hide back a chuckle.
Adler's word reeked of a NWO operative way too confident in their own posturing, had it not been for their exact choice of words. He clearly wasn't Enlightened, or even an agent, given the lack of identifiers on his person. Nevertheless, he clearly had a very similar type of job in whatever his own world was. Ultimately, he concluded it was best to give a subtle nod that he wasn't entirely ignorant of what Adler was putting down, "I've worked alongside 'psychologists' of many kinds. That will work just fine, sir."
He turned on his heel to follow Adler when the gesture came, heading down the ladder. He started smelling the stew, and the composure he had falters for a brief moment. It was an interesting, and not quite, unpleasant smell. The rough edges of a home-cooked meal he hadn't been quite acquainted with for a while, In a snap of a look to John Silver, he takes note of their ears and non-human and non-cybernetic features instantaneously. His eye only looked to the cybernetic arm afterwards, which prompted him to raise his eyebrow. This actually looked fairly in line with proper Hypertech work, albeit a lot less sleek than it should be. It looked like it needed a few coverings on the upper-arm, could be a bit cleaner around the hand, but it was hardly unmutual in this context.
He seemed to be on board with trying the stew before the eye emerged from the stew. This, on a dime, completely killed his curiosity though his face didn't really show that. He payed close attention to the quips between him and Adler. The health conditions of the kitchen would need help. IN fact frankly there probably had to be a complete overhaul of sanitation and cleanliness standards, which funnily enough he was well equipped to do. Finally, upon prompting, he makes eye contact with Edward. Like just about everyone else he leaked of Reality Deviance. That prosthetic arm, at least, was top shelf stuff. Actually kind of admirable for how sleek it was. It had a bit too much of a European knight aesthetic, but if he had to work with lesser resources this is something he'd wind up dreaming up. Much more mind boggling was him eating the soup. Maybe he was from that era, if he knew so little about sanitation standards.
When Alphonse entered the scene, he immediately noticed the marking on their left shoulder plate. This, combined with the similar aesthetics to that and Edwards arm plus their close relation, it was likely but not certain they were from the same place and knew each other. That symbol was clearly reality deviance, likely Hermetic in nature. Disgustingly unmutual and unscientific, it was fortunate he was so good at keeping a striaght face. After watching him and Al bicker a bit, he finally gets the room to speak up. "I'm not hungry, thank you, The eyeball killed my appetite and reminded me of the state of your sanitation. Someone needs to start applying the principles of germ theory." he stated calmly as he flicked on the life readings. After looking at them for a brief moment he turns it off for his own sanities sake. "If you have any scrap materials, I can get to work on that. A good start would be integrating Ultraviolet Germicidal Irradiation in to your air and water filtration system. We solved its related problems a long time ago where I'm from. I can also help with building or fixing your solar panel arrays depending on if you have them already."
It was going to be a long day.
Magneto trailed not far behind the elements of this crew en route to the camp's 'kitchen', floating barely a centimeter off the ground. At first, all seemed fine as could be in here. He removed his helmet for the first time, revealing his white mane, and leaned in to peer at the contents of the pot. His nose and forehead wrinkled, the loose eyeball alerting him to the cook's questionable organization. This 'Edward' slurping down the soup did little to convince him otherwise. "While I... appreciate your hospitality, I have to agree with the good doctor," he replied, his tone having softened some.
By now, the mutant had time to notice Ed and Silver had mechanical arms. His eyes flashed white as he examined them both. There was a major difference in the quality of craftsmanship, but the principle was still roughly the same; wires translated motor nerve impulses into signals to manipulate the various motors and pneumatic actuators housed beneath the steel plating. Edward's arm was especially sophisticated, even by Magneto's high standards.
"You said you have the AC handled?" he questioned, ignorant to the contributions and capabilities of the young alchemists. "I take it you are engineers of some kind, then?"
It was a losing battle already. Sweat dripped from the weakened cleric's forehead. Zuggtmoy stood tall before them, her spores blanketing the vicinity. Phoenix coughed heavily, but ultimately shrugged off the invasive thoughts that came with those spores. Once he lifted his head, his face paled. A rogue, two fighters, a wizard, a druid, and a fellow cleric turned towards him with vacant stares.
In a bold act, Phoenix clutched his amulet and lunged to cast Lesser Restoration on the cleric of Bahamut. The others swarmed Phoenix, and soon their blades pierced his chest. He slouched forward, muttering a prayer without breath as they stabbed him repeatedly. His sacrifice bought the dragonborn enough time to cure their magical infections and gain the upper hand. The Helmite, however, didn't see the bright light pierce the fiery skies of Avernus or feel the strain of his limp body being thrown across the greater multiverse.
When he came to, the heat assailed him instantly. His eyes stung from the sunlight... Ah, glorious sunlight! Though he knew not where he was, the cleric rejoiced to have survived the horrors of the war-torn Hell. How did he survive, though? His mind was a whirlwind as he did mental gymnastics ranging from religious theories to actual math in hopes of rationalizing how he went from bleeding out to arriving in a desert instead of the Fugue Plane or—gods forbid—the shores of the River Styx.
His pondering was cut short as an imposing shape crested the horizon. It was a massive metal structure, akin to the flying fortresses dotting the skies of Avernus. Engines roared all around it, only the vehicles that possessed them were of sleeker designs than the infernal war machines.
Phoenix was afraid at first. He attempted to flee, then to fight when these machines caught up to him. He quickly realized his error; these were indeed humans and not devils. With his party missing, he made the prudent choice to climb into one of these sleek, agile machines and come aboard.
That was yesterday...
Today was every bit as confusing. It was sweltering in here, and other residents of these tents complained about something called the 'AC'. It was broken—some sort of construct, perhaps? Whatever its function, he gathered it could alleviate the people's heat-related woes. Three people were working to repair it, two of whom were 'alchemists'—a claim that further puzzled Phoenix. Where were their tools and vials of quasi-magical compounds? Their shaping of metal into usable items at-will read more as arcane spellcasting than his world's notion of alchemy.
With his armor and weapon left in a neat pile, Phoenix roamed the floating fortress, tending to the injured and ill. A scene at the cooking fire drew his attention, so he wove between the tents towards the gathering. By the time he made it, two apparent newcomers were professing their revulsion. One was said to be a doctor, but the other... perhaps an exhibitionist battle mage? It was the only way the cleric could rationalize the ostentatious and nigh-scandalous garb that hugged the floating man's every muscle.
"Good morrow, Silver. Is everything fine?" the healer questioned, hands held out to receive a bowl as his gaze scanned across all present. He raised his eyebrows at the lecture about... "U... Ultra-violent genocidal radiance? Solar planar rays?" he then tried to echo, failing miserably. "Apologies. I know not such phrases. Is this a matter of the divine?" The rapid-fire esoteric terms rattled his medieval brain, even though he was the second most well-learned among his party. What in the Hells kind of divine conspiracy did he stumble upon this time?
It did not take long for Xeir to find her way to where something smelled delishious. Her nose, naturally strong for a dragon of course easily guided the dragon in human form to the space where Long John Silver made his home cooked delights. By time she actually saw the old Cyborg, her nose was working over time trying to just sort out what was being cooked, or had been cooked, and why something smelled like vension from home.
then she realised there were some human cities that roved the wastelands in various continents that didnt have locked down cities. From what she could understand the middle east was the only region spared the RR virus and all the monsters it spawned mostly because of lack of water, aird landscape, and othewrwise, though pets were indeed affected, by the truckload.
But now, she was within the realm of a cook, and from what she could smell, an expert cook.
Thankfully Louis was a kind fellow, though Xeir couldnt help but wonder if the poor man was absolutely baking inside all that armor when he insisted she laid Darlo over his mount, Mignonne's back. Thye Hippogriff seemingly taking Darlos weight without worry. Well that was that....
Xeirs stomach rumbled, and she briefly wondered if even Louis was hungry ?
But at that moment she couild only think clearly one thought. "What smells so good ??? Why does it smell so good ?"
"So picky, all of you!" Silver shouted to everyone complaining about the eyeball still,
"at least this one here appreciates the effort I put into making a delectable meal for you miserable lot!" He pointed to Xeir as she eyed the stew like a predator would its prey.
"It's an old family recipe of meat stew with some 'creative' changes. May not appeal to most of the whiners on board, but when the hunger starts talking to them, that's when their tune will change and they come crawling back for even a measly little crumb of this finely cooked feast."
He wasn't as concerned about the health code violations of his 'kitchen' like the others were. With his rant finished, however, he pulled out some bowls for Phoenix, Xeir and Vi, and poured them each a hearty meal.
"Here you are, darlin'. If you want seconds, you need only ask. We'll have plenty for it," he told Xeir as he handed her a bowl, giving a mean glare to Alande and Magneto.
"No one's gotten sick from my cookin' yet, eyeballs and all," he joked, turning to Phoenix and Vi to hand them their bowls,
"besides, I doubt you've all ever tried my eyeball mutton combo. Now that's a meal to end the day with."
Silver's mood, however, changed upon Louis' offer of a keg of beer.
"My goodness, for me?" Silver asked with a stunned look.
"Why, how generous of you, sir! Tell you what; next time we get some more meat in storage, you got first dibs on the prime cuts!"
Anri
Quite a lot of events had happened one after the other since they caught up with the caravan. For one, there was this large group of people in funny armor that looked to serve as its guard, followed by them and their military leader allowing them aboard one of their VERY BIG metal carriages. There was some contention between some people, but no violence. And the leader of the caravan recruited some of the group as her knights! Oh yeah! The leader was a talking purple pony that looked to be some sort of hybrid between a unicorn and a Pegasus! Very interesting... Anri wondered how she tasted... Thoughts for another time.
For now... Exploration! As much as she wanted to interact with the Horse Princess, there was much and more to see for now. She darted all about the place, moving past, under, or over a bunch of people. Though the majority looked like weird bandits, there was still quite a few differences between them (a dent in the helmet here, a larger muscle there, and whatnot). As for the more unique individuals, she honestly only found them by following the smell of stew. Within moments, she had grabbed a bowl and some food without permission, and sat among the group as they conversed.
As she sloppily ate, she heard the doctor rant so much that the person he was speaking to had decided to abruptly end the conversation, and start a new one with someone else. Though she knew nothing of the doctor ors life, his words seemed... familiar. There was something in the depths of her being that desperately wanted to rise to the surface. A memory of a time long past. A memory that a certain part of her refused to let be. It clutched onto the memory and dragged it down into the depths, making it so that Anri could only respond to the rant in this way:
"I saved a lot of people by shooting them with my rifle!"
"You and me both, kid," Adler commented to Anri. With more people joining them and grabbing a bowl of stew, Adler felt like returning the conversation back to what Alande had asked about before. 'Who was chasing them.'
"If we're done arguing about religious beliefs and cooking advice," Adler spoke up louder to cut through the chatter, "then you best get caught up on current events." He then moved across the camp to one of the open tents besides the fire pit, which showed a large map of Africa. "As I'm sure you're all aware, we're not in Kansas anymore. Or any of our home worlds. For those of you from 'Earth,' this may look similar to our home planet, but it's a drastically different one on the ground."
"About a century ago, this Earth started getting visitors. Beings from different dimensions and galaxies started popping up across the continents. Humans, aliens, monsters, supernatural entities, even microorganisms appeared from a flash of blinding light that was described as 'an explosion going off.' How and why are still up for debate, and the humans on this world have been trying to crack that for years. But, they've been in perpetual war with the scattered since this all started, and were driven back to the brink of extinction by it all. Most of the known world is no longer in human control. The only pieces of land they still hold is here," Adler pointed to the map, circling with his finger the land that surrounded the Mediterranean Sea.
"They managed to hold that against invading forces and pushed them back. Since then, they have maintained a well armed parameter to keep back any 'scattered' that tries entering their territory. The surviving human governments banded together and reformed into a combined democracy called the 'United Republics of Earth,' and have slowly tried reclaiming land through colonization efforts and military expansion. And while that all sounds great for them. It isn't for us."
"The pendejos despise us!" The Vagabundo lieutenant shouted aloud, "Anyone not from this world either gets shot on site, or thrown into one of their super prisons! That's what happened to us! We were traveling across the deserts of our own home world, much like now, when all of a sudden... KABOOM!" He threw up his hands in a dramatic fashion, "a beam of light came bursting through the atmosphere! And when it hit the ground, it was like the biggest explosion you can think of times five! It was like the whole world was about to be atomized. But, once we got engulfed by the light, we were sent flying through the galaxy at ludicrous speed, and BAM! We ended up landing right dead center of this massive military convoy. We hadn't a clue what was going on, and when we tried coming in peace to them? THEY HOLD US UP AT GUNPOINT!"
"Bastardos!"
"Nothin' but a bunch of thugs!"
The sounds of a couple other Vagabundos listening in echoed across the camp as they listened in. "They beat us, took our ship, and threw us in their jails without even knowing why! We were stuck there for weeks, getting beaten and tortured, even experimented on! But, when our good friend Adler here got thrown into the same cell block as us, that's when we finally started getting together a plan to just not break out, but get some revenge on those cabrones!" The Vagabundos then cheered on.
"Long story short, me and the 'bundos not only got this ship back. But grabbed a few... other trinkets from our human counterparts. Along with freeing the rest of the scattered you see on board."
"We left those bastards crying in the dirt, and took 'em for everything they had! And, insult to injury, we burned that son of a gun prison RIGHT TO THE GROUND!" The cheers then got louder as they celebrated such excellent revenge.
"They weren't quite happy with such a beating, and want to give it back to us tenfold. And get back their stolen goods." Adler returned to the map, pointing to where they were on it. "So far, we've made the journey across the Palestinian regions here. Our plan is to head across the Sinai Peninsula, which is where we are now, and travel down the Red Sea to the Horn of Africa. We believe there's something down there that might be able to help us get off this world, or at least be friendly to scattered trapped here." The Horn was circled red, with some words written on the top saying, 'signal location.'
"And since this ride isn't free, you'll have to pitch in if you want to ride with us. So far, we've kept up a steady pace to keep ahead of our chasers, but we're running short of supplies. And, as Alande has already volunteered himself, engine workers are in constant demand. We've already been pushing it to its limit, but we're also running short on fuel. It runs off a kind of Thermal Energy on the 'bundos home world, but with none of that to be found here, we've tried converting it to a different type of fuel. Which led to the AC blowing out, and the engine now on the fritz. Besides that, we also have some chores needing to be done to keep this place shipshape. You can talk to me, Doc Brown in the engine back, or one of our lovely merchants on board called 'Anna' if you want more details on things to do."
--------------------------------------
One minute, you're home. Perhaps you are doing something of great importance, like saving the world from a great evil, or stopping some super-villain from destroying it, or even catching a robber before they can escape justice. Or maybe you have finished your quest, finally finding peace from just a long journey and preparing to kick up your feet. Maybe you are on the verge of death, avenging the loss of a loved one to some vicious brute or sadist. Maybe you are beginning that journey that will forever change you. Whatever your story is, or was, it will now become forever altered.
Something suddenly starts to feel different. The surrounding air feels strange, like there's a build up of static electricity. Your skin begins to tingle, while your feet no longer feel planted firmly against the ground, as though gravity is beginning to lighten. The ground vibrates, and small ripples of air begin flowing, at first as a calm breeze, but then growing more intense in strength. To the point where they become shockwaves visible to the naked eye. Whatever is causing it can be seen in the sky.
A beam of light passes through the atmosphere of the planet at incredible speed. From where it's aimed to hit the ground is what's causing the shockwaves and ground to shake, with the electrical current it's creating now becoming strong enough to interfere with electrical circuitry. And when it finally hits, the blast is like an atomic bomb going off. To stare directly at it would be like staring into the sun. It grows in size and begins engulfing everything, and before you can do anything to stop it, the blast engulfs you into it.
You feel like you're falling through the air; so fast you can't even open your eyes without them stinging by both the g-force of your flight and blinding light around you. Whatever you can see is faint, but you can just about notice the passing of stars, planets, supernovas, even black holes. Space is passing you by at the speed of light. Your center of gravity is completely gone, and all you can do is be thrown around by the incredible force that flings you across the galaxy.
All of reality blasts by you, and when it feels like your body is about to be ripped apart… You come out the other end.
When Adler was done speaking, yet another Vagabundo shouted out to the group from atop the ship. "OYE! WE GOT ANOTHER ONE! BIG FLASH, OFF THE PORT BOW!"
Indeed, off in the distance was yet another flash of blinding light that could only signify the entrance of another scattered showing up on this ruined Earth. And this one was a dozy, to say the least.
