A Strange Place

In a strange universe, at a particular meridian on an equally strange, patchwork planet, the world's healthy, yellow sun began to rise over the horizon, and the golden light of dawn gradually illuminated a large hill. On the side of this hill, beneath the green-leaved branches of a massive, centenarian oak tree, dozed a woman of heavenly beauty and long, white hair pulled into a ponytail with a vermilion band, garbed in white and red robes reminiscent of a Japanese miko, her arms folded comfortably across her middle. The strangest things about her, however, were the two snow-white, canid ears atop her head and the large white tail extending from her backside, the fur on its its tip black as if it had been dipped in ink dark as midnight.

To the East, across a stone bridge over a wide, rushing river that flowed into the ocean in the Southeast, lay the ruins of what may have at one time have been a great modern, walled city, now crumbling, overgrown with vegetation, and harboring no sign of any intelligent life whatsoever. Beyond the wall, in the northwest corner of the ruins or thereabouts, an even more massive tree towered. To the South, West, and North of the hill spread a great, untamed forest, though from atop the hill, one could hardly penetrate its thick canopy with the naked eye. In each cardinal direction, a series of step-like indentations led down the hill's slope, as if they had been intentionally carved there by the hands of civilized people or the whim of faeries. However, only the northern face of the hill had a road at the base, crude and made of dirt though it was.

Even if one could not see into the forest, however, one could see past it. To the South, the trees grew bigger and bigger until they towered nearly as tall as the buildings to the East, but within those enormous monuments to nature, one could spot the highest part of a weathered stone tower, and further beyond could barely glimpse the tops of a similar set of ruins to the Eastern ones. To the West, a distant city skyline that looked like it might belong to the 21st century could be beheld, this one gleaming and seemingly without the wear of the ages.

To the North, the foliage again grew larger and thicker after a particular distance, though in the North-Northeast, one could see a far-away, towering mountain of stone with a ring of clouds around its peak. In the North-Northwest, however, before the forest changed, a large stone formation could be seen over the tops of the trees, a rocky outcropping jutting forth out of a smaller mountain into the open air. If one had particularly good eyesight, it might even be possible to make out a series of waterfalls flowing down the smaller mountain's side.

To the Northwest of the hill, however, conjoining the edge of the denser section of the Northern forest and another forest extending from the Northern edge of the intact modern city to the West, a massive, raised castle could be seen, though it was unclear from the current vantage point whether there were any smaller buildings below the treeline. Immediately East of this castle was a mountainside with another large, distant building embedded in its side. This particular mountain was merely the Southernmost point of a much larger mountain range that seemed to extend into the North-Northwestern horizon as well as along the North side of the castle. Perhaps most noticeable, however, was the fact that lighting in the area of the castle seemed... wrong. More careful consideration would reveal that rather than the light of dawn, that particular area's buildings and sky were bathed in what seemed to be sunlight coming from exactly the opposite direction as the actual Sun - in order words, it seemed to be experiencing sunset while the rest of the surrounding regions were experiencing sunrise.

One by one, in the light of dawn, more people appeared from out of the aether upon the oak-crowned hilltop, each of them with their eyes closed as if asleep.

A woman in a black catsuit who looked like she could be the missing link between apekind and homo sapiens. Two orangutans. A short, toned man whose getup very clearly marked him as a policeman to anyone who could read English. A diminutive, cat-like girl clad in bright yellow. A red-haired woman in an even more eye-catching red outfit. A bare-chested man with wild, dark hair, whose modesty was only preserved by a gold-buckled belt and a loincloth. A middle-aged, one-armed man with little spectacles perched on his nose and a beard, who looked something like a druid. A fierce, bearded redhead, his armor adorned all around with genuine skulls. A rather bestial-seeming man(?) with a tattooed chest and vibrantly-colored clothing. A man in a red kimono and black pants with a discoloration on the side of his face that resembled a flame.

One by one, surrounded by strangers, their eyes opened and beheld the strange sight of the strange land upon the strange planet within the strange, strange universe - except the woman in the miko-like clothes, who continued to slumber with a positively beatific smile on her face. Perhaps some who had just arrived would think they were dreaming. But at least for one in particular among their number, the scene was both a waking nightmare and horribly familiar...

The Last Outpost

You awake at dawn, just as the light of the sun peeks through the window and falls upon your hammock. Moko is right where you left him, the dirty dishes are still sitting there and waiting to be cleaned, and in general, it looks like a completely ordinary early morning in your cozy, familiar abode. However, there is something unusual and somewhat alarming going on outside.

There is the sound of at least a couple large somethings moving around out there, close by, and when you turn to look out the window, the source immediately becomes obvious: along with an assortment of little, chirping chicks of a variety you've never seen before are two equally unfamiliar sort of large yellow birds that look vaguely reminiscent of chickens, each about a head taller than an adult man, with their long necks lowered to the ground and their beaks grasping at something...

Suddenly, you realize through your drowsiness: those damn birds are eating your vegetable patch!

Castelia City, Prime Minister's Residence

As the first rays of dawn peek through the South-facing windows of your bedroom at an angle, you awake. You went to bed at your regular hour last night, but in spite of waking so early in the morning, you feel well-rested. You spend your days trying to keep things in your dominion running smoothly and iron out disagreements among the parties in Poke Parliament, and for the most part, you succeed, but being Pokemon Prime Minister is a demanding job, and stressful. Maybe you were just so wiped after last night that you slept like a baby?

As you try to remember what about last night would have made you tired enough to sleep like a rock, you are filled with a sense of unease. Something is wrong, but you can't immediately identify what... As you look around, trying to identify the source of your disquiet, eventually your eyes land on the world outside your windows.

Oh. That's what it was.

Since when has there been a desert across the waves from your waterfront building?

You suddenly get the feeling that you're going to get a lot of calls and are going to need to do a lot of damage control and public reassurances very soon.

Anor Londo, Palace

Your consciousness gradually swims into focus as you open your eyes. It feels like your mind is emerging step by step from a heavy fog. The world before your eyes seems odd and dreamlike for several long moments as you take in the usual sight of your throne room, faux sunset streaming in through the window while you sake off the dregs of... sleep?

Impossible. You do not sleep, because you do not need to. Then, did you choose to sleep for some reason? Why? Could some outside force have compelled you to sleep? If something was capable of such a feat, what else could it have done to you, or to your realm?

This certainly bears investigating...

Ivalice, Orbonne Monastery

As the sun rises, you stir under your blanket and open your eyes to the sound of early morning birdsong. You feel well-rested after a night of good sleep. The light of dawn is streaming in through your South-facing window, but nothing seems out of place until you actually take a look outside and notice that over the treetops a massive, worn stone wall towers that wasn't there yesterday. Even stranger than that, above the wall, overgrown husks of buildings are visible that are oddly blocky and unlike any you have seen before. Obviously, it should be impossible for an old stone wall and what by all accounts appears to be an entire city beyond it to have appeared out of nowhere, and yet, there it is.

You've fought armies, political intrigue, wild creatures, and genuine demons, but you suddenly feel as if your life is about to get even more complicated than it's ever been before.

Edited by darksidevoid on Aug 20th 2022 at 10:52:28 AM

Conan - Strange Place

Know, oh prince, that between the years when the oceans drank Atlantis and the gleaming cities, and the years of the rise of the Sons of Aryas, there was an Age undreamed of, when shining kingdoms lay spread across the world like blue mantles beneath the stars - Nemedia, Ophir, Brythunia, Hyperborea, Zamora with its dark-haired women and towers of spider-haunted mystery, Zingara with its chivalry, Koth that bordered on the pastoral lands of Shem, Stygia with its shadow-guarded tombs, Hyrkania whose riders wore steel and silk and gold. But the proudest kingdom of the world was Aquilonia, reigning supreme in the dreaming west. Hither came Conan, the Cimmerian, black-haired, sullen-eyed, sword in hand, a thief, a reaver, a slayer, with gigantic melancholies and gigantic mirth, to tread the jeweled thrones of the Earth under his sandalled feet.

Before this extraordinary venture happened, the Cimmerian was once more walking the wild lands of the world, a few days after yet another time he had to leave his current place within it and part ways with a lover. Yet the raven-haired adventurer didn’t have time to dwell on sorrows, and so he chose to see it as another chance to go and. But right now, the sun was falling down upon the wilderness convinced the savage warrior to embrace slumber, slouched beside his campfire. And so, his consciousness faded…

When he began to stir himself awake, the canny fighter quickly realized something was wrong, as he felt that his frame was laying on the ground. But it was when he sat up and opened his eyes to gaze at his surroundings that shock appeared on his sculpted features. “Crom!” The wild-haired man, whose muscles had been built by a lifetime of fighting, lifted up his hulking body with the instinctual speed of a startled lion. For what stood before him was a city unlike any he had seen before, made of unnaturally angular rock building, and though the ruins looked ancient, they were nothing like the civilization from the days of Atlantis. What kind of foreign land had he been taken to during his rest? And when the wild warrior turned around, this only confirmed that the land he was currently in was a completely foreign environment, even to the experienced traveler. Lush forests, strange buildings including another geometrically aberrant city and a castle emphasized by clearly magical lighting formed together an extraordinary landscape even to the experienced traveler. And around him awoke other people, clearly whisked away here by the same force that did it to him. He took note of the odd clothings belonging to many of them, the armored man who bore the clear signs of an Aesir northerner, a comely woman with hair the color of fire, a dwarf lacking a nose upon his deformed visage and several girls who bore traits of beasts. The latter included what seemed to be a member of the people-apes that lived as throwbacks of humanity, though her spectacular beauty compared to most of her kind surprised him.

But more important things were on the swarthy, wild-looking man’s mind, as he could glean that he and the others had clearly been victims of an abduction to some strange country. And so, with a wrothful look upon his rough face, he unsheathed his well-used broadsword and brandished it in a threatening manner towards whatever might be nearby. “To whatever cur who dared to bring me here! Be you man or monster, come out and face your captives unless you have nothing but cowardice in you!” He was well-aware that the culprit might have been long gone or just too craven to come out, but the warrior would be damned if he didn't try to coax whatever was beyond this treachery.

Wulfrik, Strange Place

-Wulfrik smiles and sighs in his sleep, content at the upturn his fortunes have taken. The confines of the false world he was imprisoned in were no match for the might of the true gods' champion and their blessings, and the Seafang sailed proudly away, leaving behind the wretched world and the weaklings polluting it. Now Wulfrik sees himself walking through a palisade made of the severed heads of his enemies. The laughing witch, the obese wastelander, the unfaithful knight of Tzeentch, even those who had first opposed him in his life as a mortal, Viglundr, Sveinbjorn, Zarnath. All are silent now, and as he turns his head to admire them there is a breeze, the warmth of the sun, and the smell of grass.-

-None of which should be present in a longship's hold.-

-Wulfrik's eyes snap open and memory returns to him.-

-The Seafang had escaped the false world and sailed the daemon sea, under constant attack from its denizens. The metal beasts under his command ravaged the daemons' ranks with fire and lightning, and just as the mists lifted and the Seafang returned to the real world, something had yanked him from the ship. The last thing he remembered was his henchmen's anguished faces, understandably horrified at the loss of the only man who could order the Seafang to ride the winds a it rode the waves.-

-Wulfrik lurches up. Where is he? An unknown place, a hill topped by an oak, surrounded by forests and the ruins of cities.-

-Despair threatens to consume him. Have his sacrifices been for naught? Is he doomed to return to the world's beginning every time he escapes it?-

-His instincts are still sharp if his mind is clouded, and in the presence of the unknown people surrounding him his hand drops to his sword-belt. But his fist closes not on the hilt of a sword but the haft of a short spear, the very one that gives him domination over metal beasts. The crushing despair lifts a little from Wulfrik's heart. He may be stranded once more by the will of the gods, but not entirely bereft of his hard-won trophies. He looks down, and sees that the light-blade forged for him by the callow youth Kylo Ren is still in his possession. With such weapons in hand, even the metal-clad warriors of the false world can fall.-

-He realizes the truth. The gods deemed him worthy to escape the false world, and now present him with a new set of challenges. Once again he must find the greatest foes of this world and offer them in sacrifice before he is permitted to leave.-

-His faith in the Ruinous Powers restored, Wulfrik looks around him with fresh eyes, looking for opportunity rather than danger. Of the strangers surrounding him, many are dressed in the same outlandish fashions as his previous prison. But these are unlike the last time. A beastwoman like the warrior apes of Cathay's mountains. A pair of monkeys. What might be a dwarf if it were not for the absence of hair, perhaps a dawi zarr. A Nipponese fighter. But there is one, neither fully Kurgan nor Norscan, who towers above the rest, his muscles proclaiming him a warrior before even his immediate demand that their abductor reveal themselves.-

-Wulfrik stands at the warrior's side and draws one of his swords.-

What he said.

   Prove yourselves men for once in your lives instead of hiding behind your magics, sorcerers! Had you spent more time in honest toil than studying dusty books and wearing women's robes, you would not need to abduct REAL warriors to do your work for you!   

Edited by Chabal2 on Aug 20th 2022 at 5:39:47 PM

Makura

Years of training had drilled into Makura's head how to assess a situation and react accordingly. Her keen senses are filled with sensation - smell and sound and touch - and she snaps into awareness the moment she awakens, jumping to her feet, one hand on her gun and the other ready to claw out the eyes of whatever moves next.

As she catalogues the scents and heartbeats of everyone on the hill, however, she deduces that there is no one else there but the people who just woke up.

Then her gaze falls upon the muscular man wearing only a loincloth, and her brain stops for a second or two. Seitaka tugs on her pant leg, bringing her back to her senses, and she scoops him up, sensing his nervousness. Kongara grabs her other hand a moment later. They're both eying the man covered in skulls, and Makura can't blame them for being a little scared.

"Uh, guys?" She says, hoping to get their attention. "There's no one here except the people on the hill. Whoever brought us here is probably long gone."

Being kidnapped should probably have made her more nervous, but after working under Hyozan so long there wasn't much else in the world that could truly scare her.

That, and most of her brainpower was currently focused on suppressing fantasies of muscular men.

The man with the flame mark on his face rose to his feet calmly and silently. Awakening upon a strange hill seemed to hardly bother him, and he regarded the barbarian and the skull-covered brute with little more than a raised eyebrow. They were men of the west, he noted, and clearly warriors from their sculpted muscle and practiced movements.

The non-humans gave him more pause, but he assured himself that they could not be demons, not here, on this hill bathed in the morning sun. And there was no malice within them, either.

He swept his gaze across the distant and beautiful landscapes, and allowed himself a tiny smile at the wonders of the world, before he noticed the miko and frowned.

Yoriichi walked over to the miko, taking in her divine beauty and canine features, and bowed to her respectfully. He had, perhaps, an inkling of what might be going on.

"Miko." He greeted softly. "Have you guided us here? Is this heaven?"

Of course, Yoriichi did not believe he deserved such a place. But he couldn't hide the small twinkle of hope that crept into his voice.

Orbonne Monastery

Awakening from his slumber as the sun rose, Ramza took a few minutes to let his mind sort itself before he let his feet hit the stone floor and he stood up straight, rubbing sleep out of his eyes as he did so. For as much as he had been lost in thought last night, his bedroom being one of the few places he could 'brood like some kind of tragic hero' (so Alma called his moments of self-reflection), Ramza had slept fairly well. As such, it was a short time later that he ventured to the front door of the monastery to get some air.

What he saw outside, however, snapped him to alertness in an instant. This was not the wilderness surrounding the building that he knew. And if he didn't miss his guess, he was the first to have noticed that something was off. He would have to handle breaking the news delicately so as not to cause any undue panic.

"What the hell?"

Or Alma could come out right behind him and see the same thing he was seeing, and verbalize what he'd been thinking yet hadn't said aloud.

This was going to be a long day.

Igno - A Strange Place under an Oak Tree

Igno comes to his senses as he feels the gaze of the sun upon him; but he doesn't open his eyes just yet. He could feel himself laying outside, on the grass, with a breeze gently rustling the leaves of the tree above him. All in all, this is actually pretty nice. It isn't, however, where he fell asleep last night.

He briefly tries to figure out how he could have gotten here. Sure, sleepwalking happens to him every now and then, but he couldn't have gotten that far from his bed. He makes a quick mental check of the magical link connecting him to the location he'd marked the day before, to get a feel of how far exactly he is.

Absolutely nothing. Not even the faintest hint of an answer. Now this is more concerning; Igno could usually get a read on a marked location from far away, even from beyond the veil separating Mundus from Oblivion. The complete absence of a thread to pull on means that either the spell broke somehow, or that he'd been brought somewhere outside of all known realms.

This issue, however, is something Igno decides he will delegate to his future self, in about, say, five minutes. Yes, five more minutes laying there sounds fine. Unfortunately for him, his fellow visitors to this strange world had other plans.

Over the years, Igno had woken up to a variety of unusual sentences, such as:

"Wake up, we're here. Why are you shaking? Are you ok? Wake up."

"You sleep rather soundly for a murderer."

"Hey, you. You're finally awake."

And yet, the barbarian's challenge to their presumed captors is a brand new one. Igno exhales a bit, the thought of his five minutes of slothfullness getting cut short creeping into his mind. He decides to gather just a little bit of strength to mutter:

"Okay, sure, but can this wait, like, just a bit...?"

Sadly for him, the final nail in his lethargy's coffin gets hammered in with overwhelming force as another warrior joins in on boasting against whoever, or whatever, brought them here. The Gift of Tongues acts swiftly and ruthlessly on Igno's mind, as he hears the warrior's challenge in Cyrodilic, Dunmeris, Jel, Falmeris, and much more...

Igno sits up with a jolt as his ears are assaulted with an untold number of languages of man, mer and beast, originating from the past, present, and future.

"Gah! Okay, okay, I'm up, Xhuth...!" He lazily gets up to his clawed feet, running a hand through his hair and stretching before finally looking around at his fellow castaways.

"Well, uh, good morning, everyone!" He says, attempting to alleviate the situation somewhat.

Kayne & Moko—The Last Outpost

Kayne fairly rocketed up from her hammock, being in dire danger of hitting the ceiling in her rush to get up (or so it seemed to her childish mind), and wrestled her boots on, ignoring her socks. After the initial flurry of activity, she became more aware of the sleeping Moko, and tiptoed over to the dirty pot of yesterday night's meal, almost guiltily, as if regretting her earlier panic. However, she wondered if she could get two birds with one stone—or one pot, so to speak—and looked out of the window, slowly backing out of the door to her shack.

Outside, it was still bathed in the half-light of morning, a little bit chilly, a little bit warm, just right so that Kayne did not have to shiver in her linen shift. She approached the strange mutant jungle fowl—for that was what she thought they were—whistled and clicked her tongue to get their attention, and offered forth the contents of last night's vegetable peelings and sundry scraps.

Now it just so happened that Kayne was not a stupid girl, and so she had her Shielder Drive strapped onto her one remaining arm in case these creatures turned out to be hostile. But they looked so friendly and kind, and in any case, one could not blame creatures for following their own foraging instincts. Perhaps they could even be new friends!

Edited by JumpingFruit on Aug 23rd 2022 at 9:58:46 AM

Rachel - Rachel’s House

Rachel woke up, feeling well rested after a difficult day in Parliament. The politics of humans were already rife with complications, and those were multiplied when you were dealing with people who had the abilities of pokemon. Getting people to use these abilities for constructive, rather than violent or selfish ends, was… not a simple task. But it was one that she was fully dedicated to nonetheless.

After getting dressed and ready for the day, Rachel looked outside from her window, which provided a high vantage point that allowed her to see the vast waterfront in all its beauty. But there was something off about it - specifically, the fact that the ocean now suddenly cut off and led into a vast desert. Rachel already had her own theory about the cause of this.

“That damned Groudon… don’t tell me he’s responsible for this.”

She suddenly gets a message on her phone. A lot of messages on her phone, actually.

‘Madame Minister, everything is in chaos! The city has been cut off from the rest of the Pokemon World and placed somewhere else!’

‘Madame Minister, the people are panicked and confused! This strange occurrence doesn’t appear to be the work of any gijinka - it defies explanation.’

‘Madame Minister…’

Well, everything she planned on doing would need to be tabled now, because it was time to do whatever damage control she could. It was going to be difficult to explain to everyone that all of these incredibly powerful gijinkas who could control the weather, who could control time and space itself for that matter, could do nothing about this predicament. Speaking of which… Rachel herself definitely felt weaker than she used to - relatively speaking, of course. She and the rest of the weather trio had world destroying power if left unchecked, but not anymore.

So what was outside of Castelia City’s borders now? Aliens, like Deoxys or the Ultra Beast gijinkas? Is the land even livable? She’d find out in due time.

For now, it was time to venture into this strange new world. Which of course meant jumping off the roof of her very tall house and flying out into the city because she was the Sky High Pokemon and that was just how she rolled.

Nia and Pyra, Strange Place: Strange Bedfellows

To say that the last few days have been a whirlwind of chaos for the two girls would be an understatement. One a shorter girl with cat-like traits and the other a taller one adorned in red had met after the former had been brutally murdered after trying to steal the latter. The catgirl, Nia, and the taller one, Pyra, met each other at an idyllic land, or rather, the memory of one. Pyra made a pact for an exchange for resurrecting Nia, they have to get to Elysium, the birthplace of the Aegis. After the pact was made, they fought off the man who killed Nia as well as his so-called boss, a stoic masked man, and were bailed out by a salvager boy and his titan named "Gramps." Next thing they knew, they crash-landed onto an archipelago comprised of giant lifeforms, went to the boy's village and rested for the night. After the night passes, they would embark on an adventure that would test them and push them to the limit. It's just not the one they were thinking of.

Their slumber had been interrupted by a few indignant shouts around them. Nia was the first to rise to see the commotion: a pair of giant men, one with very little clothing and one with almost too much, shouting at some invisible force. On instinct, she covered her ears and cringed at the noise. After the situation has calmed down somewhat (in the sense that no one's shouting right now), Nia goes to Pyra's side and shakes her, whispering into her ear, "Oi! Wake up! Come on, Pyra!"

Pyra's eyes open to see her Driver's face and the open sky. She could tell right away that something was off and when she rises up, her suspicions are confirmed. Her Driver asked her with a look of concern on her face, "This can't be Elysium, is it?"

The Aegis shook her head, "It isn't. At least, it's not like the one in my dream."

Judging from some of the more violent captors and the patchwork-like land, Nia had a feeling it wasn't, but she needed a confirmation just in case. The Gormotti shook her head to see if it was just some weirdly vivid dream, but all it did was shake off the tiredness. It all felt just as real as the waking world: the air she's breathing, the ground she's touching, hell, even Pyra felt tangible! Speaking of which, Pyra got up and saw the scene around her. All sorts of people of differing looks and attire are either still resting or just trying to get their bearings, meaning that they're not alone. Then, she looked at the figure laying against the tree, with one of them already speaking to her. Much like her driver, she had ears that protrude from her head, but she can tell that they're different than the usual Gormotti look, not to mention the tail. After the robed man's question is answered, Pyra approached with her own, "May I ask who you are and what this place is?"

Meanwhile, Nia kept her distance from the rest of the group, not willing to take her chances with a bunch of perfect strangers. She sticks close to Pyra as she asks her question, but her attention is more focused on the areas around her. Already, this not like any titan she's ever been on, not that she's been to many. The nearby city's architecture is unlike any place she's seen, but it doesn't take a genius to see that it's been abandoned. The other city's cleaner look would give her a good idea of what the Eastern city would have been if there were people around, given their similar structures. Next, the Northwestern castle-like town invoked a muted, but visible reaction to the Gormotti, namely one of revulsion. Her mind almost instantly went to the Indoline Praetorium: a religious nation that, frankly, Nia was not a fan of. At all. But she can't dwell on that feeling forever, not that she wanted to. With all that in mind, her first place to go to would most likely be the ruins at the East, if only because it's the closest landmark and a place this big must have something left. Of course, she didn't want to wander off on her own, so she waited.

The Hill: Brave New World

Krillin was used to taking naps. Between his home life, his job, and his martial arts training, there weren't many blank spaces on his calendar. He'd learned to catching a few blinks of rest whenever he could; even taking a few naps during his meditations, not that he was eager to admit it.

But Krillin didn't need to open his eyes to realize that something was wrong with this little snooze. For starters, he could feel grass on his face. He'd never sleep prone in dirt, even after his most exhausting training sessions. A breeze alerted him to the fact he was still in his police uniform, which also seemed wrong. 18 would be furious at him if she learned he'd stained his work clothes from a nap on the lawn. But more than anything—more than the fabric and more than the scent of grass^note yes, he can smell things—the biggest red flag was the roar of two very aggressive grown men screaming about monsters and sorcerers and abduction.

Well THAT can't be good.

The martial artist planted his gloved palms in the grass and gingerly raised himself to a push-up position. From there, he tucked in his knees and hopped to his feet with a great big yawn. Gotta avoid grass stains, especially when you're wearing a yellow shirt!

Rather than taking in the sights, Krillin elected to focus on his fellow...well, he wasn't quite sure what they were at the moment. The groggy look on his face illustrated that he was still half-asleep. At the samurai-looking man's question about heaven, Krillin mumbled something about how "That can't be right. Nobody's got a halo." It wouldn't be hard to mistake his sleepy sincerity for sarcasm.

As if to reinforce the martial artist's claim, another voice answered Yoriichi's (arguably rhetorical) question:

"No...No, we are all very much alive."

The speaker was a man in his forties, still on his knees and supporting himself with a trembling lone arm. He stared at the scene and his audience with peculiar glowing cyan eyes, turning his his head to capture his surroundings. It wouldn't take a genius to guess that this one-armed druid was looking for something—or looking at something—as he turned his focus from one figure to the next and to the next. If it mattered to them, this twig of a man spent a few generous moments studying Wulfrik, Ingo, Pyra, Yoriichi, and the sleeping woman in red and white robes.

As he continued his unblinking gaze towards the world surrounding the hill, beads of sweat formed on the man's brow. Eventually the effort grew to much for him, and he shut his eyes with an exhausted sigh. His arm gave way, and the sagely figure fell onto the grass. With a Herculean effort he rolled his body onto his back, and there he panted after some silent and unregistered labor.

"Can...can someone...get...me water...?"

"Very much alive" might have been an overstatement; this wizard looked like he had a foot in the grave.

Anor Londo: A New Age

Gwyndolin stood on the edge of the palace rooftop balcony, surveying the land and everything beyond the light to the city's west. The plateau was gone. The fortress, gone. The parish, the burg, the swamp, the shrine...the entire damn kingdom was gone! As if Anor Londo was plucked from the world and placed on a new map—without effort, and without resistance. A perfect and absolute usurpation; the very thought clenched the Dark Sun's jaw.

The approaching clink clink clink of plate armor informed Gwyndolin that the messenger had arrived. Without moving an inch, the Dark Sun gave their orders:

"Inform the captains that all forces must prepare for battle. Defend the city walls and close all gates until ordered otherwise by mineself, or the Lady Gwynevere. Double the guards defending mine sister's chambers, and deploy those demon curs to scout the lands to the East, Southeast, and South. Ensure that they know they must not engage, or they shall face my wrath upon return. Are my commands understood?"

"Yes, Lord Gwyndolin." answered the Silver Knight.

"Then go. We must learn what hath befallen us."

The messenger left without another word. It took six pairs of wings flapping in the skyline to make Gwyndolin finally release their grip on the stone railing.

Edited by TheodoreHastings on Aug 28th 2022 at 1:57:56 AM

A Strange Place, Hill

"Nnnh..." The evident miko stirred at Yoriichi's words, then stretched widely with a big yawn, showing some large canines, and opened her eyes, revealing golden-yellow irises akin to a wolf's. Half-asleep still, she reprocessed what he had said again while also taking in all the interesting new scents, sights, and noises. Then she refocused on the man in the kimono and opened her mouth to reply, "Heaven...? Nay, 'tis not the Celestial- Ah!"

Pausing as she remembered the important fact that only Poncles or people with divine origins would actually be able to hear her words as she spoke them, she pushed herself up into a seiza position and rifled around in the pouch at her side, pulling out a scroll, which she partially unfurled to reveal... a blank canvas. But even as Yoriichi looked at the plain paper, it began to fill with characters in his native language with beautiful calligraphy. It might be a bit hard to parse at first, due to the rather archaic usage of some words, but it read something like:

Heaven? Nay, 'tis not the Celestial Plain we hath awoken upon, of that much We art certain. Yon landscapes art wholly unfamiliar to Us. Having said that... She beamed up at him, tail wagging back and forth behind her. 'tis wonderful to meet a native of Nippon so far abroad! We

"Amako" paused, and having "said" that, turned to the redheaded girl who had approached her, thinking for a moment. Then, one could almost see the lightbulb popping up above her head while, as if by invisible brushstrokes, the start of the previous sentence was blotted out, and below it came a different set of symbols, ones that neither of her conversation partners had seen before, but could somehow read all the same as she showed it to them both: We know naught more of these lands than thyself, but thou may call Us Amako! What be thy name, and whence in thy motherland dost thou hail?

It was at just that moment that the one-armed man collapsed. Alarmed, Amako dropped her scroll and immediately rushed over to him, reaching into her bag for a mug of fine blue pottery along the way, which was fittingly painted with the kanji for "Water". As she held it in front of herself for a moment, a strange miracle occurred: out of nowhere, a tiny raincloud materialized over the top of the mug, pouring a small torrent of fresh water into it, then dissipated. Crouching by the fallen man's side, she carefully lifted his head up with one hand and gradually poured the water into his mouth with the other.

As she was doing this, another oddity appeared on the hill. This one looked like some kind of humanoid lizard, had vibrantly pink hair and a few different evident swords strapped to his back, and was clad in an odd sort of armor. Like the others, he would begin asleep and then awaken to witness the strangeness of the people on the hill and its surroundings as the light of dawn shone on the Eastern horizon.

The Last Outpost

At Kayne's approach, the bigger two birds bolted upright with a pair of high-pitched trills that sounded something like "KWEH!" Shaking their feathers as if to shrug off their surprise, the pair had very different reactions. One eyed the girl warily and began backing away slowly. The other was overpowered by curiosity and approached her, sticking its head almost all the way into the pot as it experimentally nibbled at her offerings. Seeing that the teen wasn't retaliating against its companion for its bold action, the skittish one paused and watched.

After several seconds, the adventurous one withdrew its beak and turned to the other with a "Kweh!"

"Kweh-kweh?" the cautious one replied.

"Kweh-kweh-kweh!"

"Kweh!"

And with that, the one that had at first been wary turned and dashed off into the woods, while the other briefly scratched the ground as if to make the dirt more comfortable, then settled into a sitting position and let out a longer "Kweeeeh~!" Excited, all the little chicks gathered around the bird's front as it reached into Kayne's pot with its beak and snapped up a couple vegetable scraps, chewing them. Then it bent its neck down to the chicks and began feeding them one by one in the way many birds of smaller size might. Depending on how closely Kayne was paying attention to the big bird's behavior, she might notice that it was only going for the vegetables from her leftovers, and not any pieces of meat. Being this close to the creature, she might also notice that it was rather smelly, again like many other kinds of birds.

Rachel's House -> Desert

For perhaps a mile or so into the desert, you are unable to spot anything really worthy of note, just endless sand dunes, and to your left, a massive natural barrier of rock in the distance. As you proceed further, however a couple things of interest become apparent:

First, there are gigantic stone spheres embedded in the sand - no, on closer inspection, they're gigantic stone spheres with equally large engravings that make them resemble skulls of some kind? Or maybe they're actually the identical-looking skulls of some kind of truly enormous species of fauna. Creepy. Second, near the skulls, there are a number of smallish brown figures and one or two larger brown figures moving around. They look like they're wearing some kind of clothing, at least as far as you can tell from this distance, and they also glint a bit in the sunlight, as if they're somehow reflective.

Will you continue roaming around to survey the land further, or dare you to approach these odd, shiny creatures?

Edited by darksidevoid on Aug 22nd 2022 at 6:34:24 AM

Kayne & Moko—The Last Outpost

Kayne gasped as the chicks revealed themselves, because they were just so cute and tiny! But looking closer, she saw that only the vegetable scraps were being picked out, so she deduced that these birds must be herbivores. She wondered whether these birds were a family, but was sure that they were friends now. After all, she was helping to feed them!

She carefully backed up, still mindful not to make any sudden movements, after she had put the first pot down. She had another, smaller pot of purely vegetable peelings inside, and after she retrieved it, she offered it to the bold Chocobo yet again. If it was only a parent looking to feed its chicks, then even its raiding of her vegetable patch could be forgiven.

Kayne crouched down to observe the chicks. She didn't reach out for them, but rather let them approach her on their own. How very strange! she thought to herself. Not only has the horizon changed, but even the fauna too. Was the Last Outpost swept up by a dimensional rift while I was asleep? Drat the luck!

She spared a glance into the foliage where the other bird had gone. If it was frightened of her, then she couldn't blame it. However, she was a little curious as to what it was doing in there. And she did want to be friends with them so badly...

Edited by JumpingFruit on Aug 23rd 2022 at 9:59:05 AM

The Hill: Amako to the Rescue!

Eyes closed, the bearded man drank the water offered like a desert wanderer stumbling across an oasis. The life-sustaining fluid worked as expected, and by the time the mug was empty, he seemed to have stabilized.

His condition improved, the man opened his eyes to see the face of his rescuer. Had she met his stare earlier, Amako would notice that the wizard's eyes had changed color. What were once an unnatural cyan glow had been replaced with calmer, kinder, and sagely chestnut eyes.

"You have...my thanks, Miss." the bearded figure smiled. While he still seemed to be catching his breath, at least now he wasn't in danger of collapsing again. He rested an elbow on the ground and assured the Good Samaritan that he would be back on his feet in a few moments.

Some of the newcomers might spot a pair of dots above the forest to the Northeast. It would be hard to define at first, but with the passing minutes it would become clear that whatever was flying out in the distance, it was absolutely flying towards them. After a little time the flapping of wings would be noticeable. Then the long, human-esque arms and legs. Then the weapons in their hands. Finally the bat-like configuration of the creatures' wings, and the long curved horns sprouting from their wrinkly brain-like heads.

They didn't seem interested in making a landing to greet the newcomers, but perhaps that didn't matter. For all anyone knew, these were beasts here to answer Conan and Wulfrik's prayers: their captors making an appearance in the flesh.

The Last Outpost: Making New Friends (Part I!)

Up above Kayne's head, the forest canopy began to rustle. With her experience of living in the wilderness, the young artificer no doubt recognized that whatever was making that noise was swift, and more importantly: big. Perhaps she'd consider checking to see what was playing among the treetops. If she wasn't curious by sound alone, the snap and inevitable THUNK! of a large tree branch falling might be enough to catch her attention.

Should she choose to look up at the treetops, she would find no eyes looking back—not because there was nothing to see, but because the two monsters◊ staring down seemed to lack eyes. But what they lacked in eyesight they seemed to make up for in a long sensitive nose, and rows of sharp teeth they seemed very happy to show Kayne. They wielded long bone-like spears that seemed to match the monsters' pale complexion. Their spears and their hands were coated with blotches of something red—a substance that didn't need much thought to identify.

For the moment, the monsters seemed content to stay put. One clung to the trunk of a relatively bare tree and rested its feet (claws? talons?) on a sturdy lower branch. The other selected a higher position, and perched gargoyle-like on the branch of a different tree. But just because they hadn't decided to make a move on Kayne, the bird, or her chicks, didn't mean they would never make a move.

It was just a matter of time.

Castelia City, Skyline: Worrying About the Wrong Thing

For a civilization as diverse and colorful as Castelia City, the sight of two humanoid creatures flying through the air might not be all that alarming. There were plenty of flying Pokemon gijinkas, after all—what was surprising about a person who can fly?

Though if there were any observant onlookers who happened to catch the flying outsiders at the right moment, they might discover something alarming about them—their origins notwithstanding. It was something disturbing, revolting, and absolutely unacceptable that could call for immediate reprimand:

The demons were naked.

Kayne & Moko—The Last Outpost

Kayne stared back at the demons for several seconds, weighing her options, her brain kicking into overdrive. Because she hadn't bothered to dress properly, most of her equipment was back in the shack. However, she had left her axe stuck in the stump she split her firewood on, and it was a serviceable enough weapon. As she passed it by to interpose herself between the Chocobos and the demons, she easily pulled it out from the stump with her left hand—which, due to emitting a mechanical whirr, should have been the first indication that not all was soft and gentle about her.

Raising her right arm across her chest, in the textbook position for the beginnings of a shield bash, the sudden clenching of a fist heralded a sudden crackling of energy. And now, her Shielder Drive came alive, projecting four blue hexagons tessellated into a vague diamond shape. Kayne did not raise her axe, but she did not lower her shield either, further stretching the length of the tense standoff between herself and the demons. It was truly a shame, she thought, that they did not have any eyes to meet her own steely gaze with.

Edited by JumpingFruit on Aug 23rd 2022 at 9:59:30 AM

Ivalice - Royal City of Lesalia

It was only inevitable that upon the sun rising and the denizens of the country doing the same, someone besides the Beoulve siblings would notice that things were amiss, and one of the others that had noticed the changed landscape was Agrias Oaks, personal bodyguard to Her Highness, Queen Ovelia Atkascha.

With a firm frown on her face, the Holy Knight let out a long sigh, and once her two subordinates arrived, she spoke quietly so as not to allow her nerves to show.

"Alicia. Lavian. Do what you can to keep the people from doing anything rash. The last thing we need is someone causing a panic and making a bigger mess of things. While you're at it, rouse Ladd, tell him to get to work. We'll more than likely need the Chocobos up and ready to ride."

After saluting her, both girls...no, both women departed to fulfill their orders. She had to remember that they were adults, however they might act when they were off-duty. Now it was time for her own task: informing the Queen of the situation.

Upon reaching and opening her door (after knocking and receiving permission to enter), Agrias entered Ovelia's chambers to find her standing at the window, looking out at the landscape.

"I take it you don't need to tell me what news the morning brings."

"No, but at least I know I'm not seeing things that aren't there. This is going to be a problem..."

"Your orders, my Queen?"

"Organize a party. Send them out to investigate. They'll have to venture out and return to bring news to us. It's the best we can do at this point."

"Understood, my Queen."

"'Understood, Ovelia'. I don't know how many times I've told you, but you are more than entitled to use my name, Agrias."

"Then you should know, Ovelia, that with this new situation upon us, I am not going to be more than a room's length away from you for any reason until we have some semblance of assurance you aren't in danger."

"I wouldn't expect anything less, Agrias. Thank you."

And so, after a missive was given to the troops, a party would be assembled to venture out into the new world, one that would hopefully figure out what kind of mess Ivalice had gotten involved in...

A Lizard Spinning In Place - The Hill

Last thing Shuichi Iguchi remembered prior to blacking out was going over to meet the rest of the team.

Despite being a new recruit for the League, already they were looking to put him to the test. He was designated alongside the others as a member of the Vanguard Action Squad; those who would personally put the screws to the Hero Society. It was time for them to go the way of the dinosaur; extinct in a spectacular fashion! Of course, that did not come to be; instead, it felt as if someone hit him in the back of the head.

Shuichi grunted, rolled onto his side, and then slowly hoisted himself up to a sit. Already he could tell something was off even before he opened his eyes; there was too much light. Did some fake get the better of him already? Slowly, he cracked his eyes open...

...

...and his jaw hung loose from sheer disbelief. What in the heck was going on here?! That was... no city at all! That was... he wasn't sure what that was! And who were all these people gathered around here? He came to expect the strangeness, but even then, a few of these looked more like cosplayers than real people. The guy bedecked in skulls, in particular (real skulls?!), looked like some 100-yen store knockoff boss from a video game.

There was still weight on Spinner's shoulders, and the fitting of his homemade combat armor was right on top of him. This wasn't just any old dream. It had to be a Quirk at work. Such lowness! How was he supposed to espouse Stain's will if he was so quickly cut short?! That kind of disgrace would not stand.

...but then, if this really was a dream, then what was up with the fantastical landscapes? The ruins of a city over there, some giant trees there... that castle thingy over there... Shuichi exhaled, smoothing out his hair. Still done up, good. It looked like he was the newest arrival to the place; others were up and about, questioning the order of things... and speaking of that, it seemed they had new company looking to meet them. Unlike the group on the hill, these things (even knowing how diverse people could get, nothing about their jittery movement spoke "human") came from someplace else.

"Eyes up, you lot!" He barked at the people present, gesturing with his thumb towards the encroaching welcoming committee. "We've got trash mobs incoming!" For now, he had to figure some sense out of this nonsensical maybe-Quirk-maybe-dream. Ideally, purge the guy responsible and come back home; he had better things to do than LARP'ing in some podunk fantasy world!

Edited by FergardStratoavis on Aug 23rd 2022 at 7:22:28 PM

Conan - Hill

The fact that the Vaenir joined Conan in shouting for their captors provided no surprise to the bronzed Cimmerian, as he knew the redheaded man’s people needed to be belligerent to survive the frozen wastes they called home. But any comradeship would have to wait, for his stone-sculpted visage showed further scorn from the sight of a serpent man appearing out of nowhere, confirming that foul magic was responsible for the abductions. Upon hearing the beastly girl addressing him, he looked towards her with smoldering blue eyes. “With the trickery of sorcerers, you can never be sure whether they’re here or not, ape woman. But seldom can they resist an opportunity to gloat, which I have tried to give them.”

He noticed that a few of the unfortunate strangers were puzzled over whether they were in the afterlife, which was an understandable reaction. But the barely-dressed fighter was confident he wasn’t, as much harsher torments would have awaited him in Crom’s presence if he had a death as lowly as being stabbed in his sleep. His gaze concentrated on the writings of the canine-eared ‘Mico’, whatever that foreign word meant, but not wholly for her message. Instead, what astonished him more was the impossible fact that he didn’t recognize the strange letters from any of his travels, but that he could still read the language as if he had learned it since he was but a babe. Which only now brought to his mind that he was talking an unknown language. What kind of sorcery was this? “...I am Conan of Cimmeria. So all of us just awakened in this strange location, brought here through-!” He stopped talking when he saw the woman bring out water with just a strange writing; she was a magician as well!

While the barbarian would have otherwise acted on his suspicion towards arcane powers, his attention was once again caught, this time by the reptilian youngster’s outburst. This prompted the alert warrior to quickly turn around and see the winged monsters approaching. “Crom! Those devils are surely sent by our captors!” And so, the muscular man prepared himself to strike at said devils for when they tried to approach the newcomers.

The Hill

He didn't initially believe the others; not that he was a distrustful sort, but they had all been taken in their sleep, it seemed, so it wasn't as though any of them could be certain. Then the miko spoke.

The voice that rang in Yoriichi's ears was beautiful. And strangely familiar, like the voice of an old friend he'd forgotten. Thus, he was confused when she cut herself off to begin writing on a scroll instead.

Though slightly saddened that he would not yet be reunited with the fallen, that sorrow was quickly erased by the wondrous magic the miko performed. He knew at once it was the work of divinity.

"You are truly blessed by the gods, Miko Amako. This humble swordsman is Yoriichi Tsugikuni. I am at your service." He bowed to her again, much more deeply. "Though, you need not hide your voice. It is quite beautiful. If I may be so bold."

Makura gave the ronin an aside glance, at that, but her attention was still on the barbarian, who rambled about magic. She desperately wished that Mikado was here. She'd love to see him come up with a science-sounding explanation for the wolf lady.

"Well, if these wizards can also fool my nose, then I don't think any of you guys would be able to find them either. No offense. My senses are pretty sharp." She mused.

Kongara let go of her hand, transfixed by the magic that he'd just witnessed, and went over to sniff curiously at the wolf-girl. Seitaka stayed on her back, gazing up at the approaching creatures.

Yoriichi had also noticed them, but seemed unconcerned, still bowing to the miko respectfully.

For a half-second, she froze when the lizard man approached, but her brain quickly confirmed that it wasn't one of her former comrades. Unless Majira had come back from the dead and dyed his hair, and also somehow completely changed his scent. Still, the memory of someone she'd once called friend lingered a moment.

"Those things up there aren't gonna attack us." She said, aloud. "They smell curious, not aggressive. They're probably just as confused as us. There's no need to view them as a threat just because they look different."

Igno - The Hill

"Uh, yeah, I'll have to agree with the lady there." Igno added, nodding to Makura, before subtly adjusting his eyes to get a better look at the pair flying towards them.

"Hey, ah, you two hold your blades for a second, will ya?" Igno asks the two towering warriors as he keeps observing the two flying figures, taking a small moment before speaking up again.

"I mean, they sure do look like the sort of stuff a wizard would make, I'll give you that... But there's only, like, two of them, and-" Igno motions vaguely towards the group assembled under the tree, "-that many of us! If they wanted to put us in the dirt, there'd be more of 'em, right?"

"My guess is, either some trans-dimensional abducting wizard is sending them to gloat at us, as they love to do, and we could grill these two for more info, ooooor they actually do want to bring the pain, but they're a trap to make us show our hand before they reveal more dudes. Either way, we might wanna let them make the first move."

"Oh, also, I don't think I caught your name, miss...?"

Rachel, Desert

Rachel saw the giant stone skulls and assumed that they either belonged to some species of giants, or perhaps that they were some sort of macabre art piece. Or maybe even that someone had the misfortune of dying in the middle of being Dynamaxed. Hm... no, that was something only Pokemon could do. Probably, anyways. She couldn't entirely discount any possibilities right now, no matter how improbable.

Say, were those people she spotted? Oddly… shiny people, maybe? Well, there was only one way to find out. She carefully descended from the sky to get a better look at them and see if perhaps she had stumbled upon intelligent life in this strange new world.

Castelia City

Oh no! The demons are flying through the air, surrounded by people staring at them, and they’re completely naked. This would be exactly like one of their anxiety dreams - if demons had those.

Indeed, their presence has attracted the attention of numerous pokemon at this point, most of whom are a mix of frightened, confused, and curious. A cacophony of voices can be heard from those who have crowded around the scene.

“What the hell are those things?! Why aren’t they wearing clothes?!”

“Those don’t look like any pokemon I’ve ever seen…”

“They must be invaders! Oh my Arceus, we’re under attack!”

One figure stands out in the crowd. Another Certified Way Too Tall Person like Ray, except this one has long white hair, a huge white tail with a blue fin, and is dressed in Japanese garb. A Lugia gijinka - something approaching this. Everyone else gasps and makes way for her as she approaches the demons. She waves a hand to silence the others present.

“Excuse me,” she addressed them. “Do you understand me? Can you state your business being here?"

She waited patiently to see what they'd do, not making any sudden moves just yet.

Nia and Pyra, The Hill: A Demonic Encounter

Pyra would answer the question, but not until after the older man was taken care of. She sits next to the two as his thirst was quenched and introduced herself, "My name is Pyra and I come from a land called Alrest. The girl with ears like yours," she gestures to the Gormotti in question, "is my Driver, Nia. In a way, she's a partner of mine."

She gave the two of them her hand as a friendly gesture. She asked the older man, "May I ask who you are?"

Nia looked at the few creatures the rest of them pointed out. A part of her wanted to tap Pyra's shoulder to see the potential problem headed their way, but the two Gogol-like people suggested that they shouldn't be so quick to attack. It was two against two on whether or not they should engage or hold off. Her voice, unlike Pyra's soft and soothing, has a sharp and rather harsh tone as it reached the group as a whole, "I'd rather not have our first meeting end up a fight right away, thank you."

She eyed the couple of human-like creatures with a stern glare, but she did back up to where Pyra's at and nodded at her. Pyra looked at the demons headed her way and nodded back. She overheard her partner and did not engage, but she didn't let her guard down. They waited for the demons to make their move, whatever it would be.

Spinning On The Hill

The hell did this lady mean "not gonna attack us"? And what did the appearance have to do with it?! Were she not a mutant herself, he'd probably take her aboard the Pain Train for that kind of comment. Well, maybe once he got past the orangutans. Did she have some kind of an animal empathy Quirk? But then again, those 100 yen store Nomus over there looked anything but animalistic...

For now, Spinner merely shot Makura a glower. The other guy that spoke up at first seemed like he would take the lady's side, but no, it seemed he had a better head on his shoulders. "Numbers have nothin' to do with it. If those two are anything like the brain-things I know, they're gonna be hell to deal with." He grunted, squinting his eyes at the approaching gargoyles. Not exactly 1-to-1 Nomus, but maybe... if you dunked them in a vat of white paint...

"Name's Spinner; the disciple of Hero Killer Stain. Any of you better not be no fake "hero" for your own good." He added by way of introduction, idly adjusting the massive shape resting on his back; his focus for now on the encroaching gargoyles.

The Last Outpost: Making New Friends (Part II!)

Presented with a challenge, the monsters nearly took the bait and dove down to test the artificer's mettle. But their instructions had been clear: do not engage.

Too bad not everyone had that directive.

Kayne would undoubtedly hear it before she saw it—the high whirring of something collecting together before a loud PEW! marked its release towards the treetops. To Kayne, it might seem like a comet the size of a baseball soaring towards the demons; to the demons, it only seemed like trouble.

The spell narrowly missed its mark, perhaps on purpose. The branch the perching demon was on suddenly became significantly shorter, as the spell crushed a good third of it off to fall harmlessly to the ground. With another high whirring noise threatening a more serious shot, the demons began flapping their wings and took flight once again. They might not be the sharpest creatures in Lordran, but they could at least take a hint.

Should the artificer choose to turn around at any time during this warning shot, she would discover a strange robed figure with a long trident-like staff. If it was a person (and the bare hands strongly suggested it was), then they were remarkable 7 feet tall. The six painted eyes on their cylindrical helmet didn't move, but the way the figure turned its covered head towards the girl and the bird was telling enough.

It took a step towards Kayne, and whether it detected resistance or not it raised its free hand in defense. It spoke in a low, garbled language that Kayne wouldn't even be able to hope to recognize, then paused. Maybe it wanted an answer. Maybe it registered that its words weren't reaching the girl.

It hummed, lowered its head to ponder something, and took a shot in the dark:

"Are...you...harmed...maiden?"

Such an odd experience; to wake with an entire language learned while one slept. Here's hoping the girl had acquired the same convenient tutelage.

Castelia City: Awww Shit, There Be Dragons Here!

Even without eyebrows (or eyes, apparently?), the expressions of the two flying streakers would be pretty clear when a woman just chose to say "Nope" to gravity and intercepted them—they were freaked out.

The creatures answered the benevolence-beaming young lady with a chorus of growls, grunts, and jitters that were—in all fairness—largely directed towards each other. They had orders not to engage...did talking count as engaging? Or did "engage" refer to "fighting" in this particular situation? How would they even do that? This gravity-defying Crossbreed was clearly interested in conversing, but she couldn't possibly know the tongue of Izalith. So what was the point?

After a brief but passionate debate between themselves, it seemed the demons had reached a verdict: better safe than sorry—"don't engage" included "don't talk to strangers." Unless they were intercepted by the Lugia gijinka (a feat such a powerful being could probably do with minimal effort), the demons would resume their unintentionally lewd tour of the city, setting their sights on the tallest building in the city.

The Last Outpost

Letting out a happy "Kweh!" as Kayne returned with more veggies, the seated chocobo continued feeding its young contentedly, at least until the pair of monstrous visitors arrived. As the leather-winged creatures perched looking menacing, Kayne stepped up to stand between the birds and the newcomers, and the initial newcomers were driven away at the arrival of another vaguely creepy person, the little chicks tweeted anxiously and retreated underneath the adult's fluffy underside, while the grown bird let out a harsh, warning sound to the batwing demons, and then the robed figure:

"WARK! WAAAAARK!"

As if in response, a series of more "Wark!"s resounded from the direction the other adult had gone, and just as the figure with the trident finished asking whether the maiden was harmed, six more chocobos charged through the underbrush to gather defensively around Kayne and the seated bird, raising their wings and making further threatening squaks toward the uninvited guest. Five of the entering birds were yellow like the one already present, but the sixth was almost pure white, with a bit of green tingeing the end of its tail-feathers. The mostly-white one also had something the others lacked: An obvious saddle on its back, the seat, reins, and straps made of some kind of greenish, scaly leather, and the buckles fashioned out of some kind of silvery, crystalline metal.

In short order, something else unusual became obvious about the snow-white chocobo as it flapped its wings and let out a loud cry, the bird briefly glowing before a somewhat hemispherical shield of hexagons, larger than Kayne's own, appeared in front of the teen, followed by a sort of orange bubble that surrounded her person. Each faded soon after appearing, but the effects of Protect and Shell would still be present to deflect some amount of physical or magical force should the stranger attack the girl.

Desert

As Ray reached near to the ground, the various little brown beings became more distinct, and they looked up as she hovered close to the giant stone heads◊. Their reaction was about what you would expect from people seeing a strange foreign thing descending from the sky, albeit their voices sounded strangely synthesized:

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" screamed the yellow-eyed shortest of the lot◊ in a voice that sounded rather childlike, hopping 180 degrees and then shuffling away as fast as it could... which wasn't very fast.

"OH MY GOODNESS ALIVE, AN ALIEN!" exclaimed a small red-eyed bipedal one◊ who sounded more mature, trembling so hard she almost dropped her knife.

"Now, now, let's all calm down and—" implored one of the bigger ones◊ in a clearly adult voice, this one with yellow eyes as well, only to be cut off by one of his red-eyed friends floating◊ in a ring-like device.

"DESTROY THE ENEMY! ATTAAAAAAAAAACK!" Tilting upwards to aim his gun at Ray's middle, the floating one unleashed a barrage of bright red orbs◊ about the size of himself... a very slow barrage of bright red orbs, firing about one every few seconds that moved at the speed of a person walking.

"NO! YOU FOOL! RULE 15,392: VISITORS SHOULD NOT BE KILLED!" The taller being that had been calling for calm sprinted over and delivered a heavy dope slap to his aggressive fellow. If it wasn't evident that these things were made of metal yet, the loud, metallic CLANG!!! as his hand collided with the other one made it very obvious.

"Owwwwww..." the floating one moaned, clutching its head as it ceased firing and its eyes turned yellow. "Wait... OH NO! I'VE BROKEN A RULE! O, MISERY! O, WOE! IT'S OVER! I'M FINISHED! JUST PUT AN END TO ME! ...But try not to make it too painful, please?"

"Well, we can handle that later," the taller two-legged one decided. "First, we should greet this strange floating person, and see if they follow Rule 21. Ahem!" He turned to Ray and raised his free hand to wave in greeting. "Hello there, stranger! Can you understand what I'm saying?"

Kayne & Moko—The Last Outpost

"No, stranger," Kayne said to the Channeler, eyeing him (her? them?) up warily. Her accent retained a deep-fried southern twang even in the mysteriously implanted language. "Now if that's all you'd like to know, you had better leave. You're obviously not of the forest and the birds don't trust you at all. And arriving right on the heels of an invasion makes you a bad omen."

There were a few subtle clicks from Kayne's prosthetic hand as she readjusted her grip on her axe, but otherwise, she kept her shield raised and her weapon down the entire time she spoke to the strange mage. But aside from that, if the stranger cared to look around, Kayne appeared to live wholly alone, unless one counted the birds.

Edited by JumpingFruit on Aug 24th 2022 at 8:02:15 AM