There does appear to be scattered footprints, but they are both animal and human to all appearances. Most likely, the top of the hill is a spot where the sheep feed. Looking closer, you can see that indeed, the grass is a bit more worn and shorter in this area compared to some of the surroundings.
From her spot atop the hill,Miya can see someone come around from the right side of the cabin, a small with a floppy hat and beard, but further details are difficult at this distance. He walks around the front of the cabin towards the fence and grabs a crooked staff, most likely used to direct the sheep. He whistles quickly once, and a shaggy pepper furred dog of mixed breed comes bounding around from the other side of the cabin to him.
Just then, as the man is fiddling with the latch on the fence, Miya see as small group of hunched people, also rather small, creeping from the forest towards the cabin. At first she thinks they might be children, bust then she sees that one of them has what appears to be a crossbow, and is taking aim at the farmer...
Miya called a warning, down the valley toward the small, bearded man with his dog, "Watch out, shepherd! A group moves toward you from the forest and one has a crossbow!"
She unsheathed her katana and began running down the hill toward the cabin.
"Miya...wait!" Lydia runs after her friend. She doesn't have a weapon of her own and she's not sure who is threatening the shepherd but she wants to help if she can. As she races down the hill, she scans the area hoping to see the group Miya called out about.
Phillip squints in the sunlight as reality melts away again into a new form. The air rushes in his ears settling into a soft static. He tries to grasp at the murmuring voices competing with his friends' conversation.
Adam nudges him. The voices slowly fade as his mind aligns into the logical world of science. "Physics...maybe. Passing through alternate dimensions. There's only theory, but...no, I can see it. Yes, why not?"
Miya's voice shocks him back to reality. Adrenaline fills him with prickly energy when Lydia shouts. He scrambles after them, the cube still in his rigid grasp. The whispering voices flood back in as the veins on his arm stand out in a dull blue.
Adam stands, a bit baffled at the top of the hill, and after a second, begins to run down with the others, but seems to lose his footing and trips, and begins rolling the rest of the way down.
The shepherd/farmer looks up in suprize at Miya's shout, and seeing several people run down the hill towards hims seems to leave him puzzled. A second later, though he seems to understand the warning, and looks towards the small group trying to sneak up on him...unsuccessfully.
As the party gets closer, they can see that the interlopers are all dressed in tattered rags, with capes and cowls, and are no taller than 4 feet at the most. Their faces are hard to see under the hoods, but as the shepherds dog begins to bark loudly at them, they begin to spread out. The one with the crossbow yells something that sounds like gibberish to his companions and refocuses on the dog.
The farmer looks back to the party that warned him, then to the invaders;
"You can't have any more of my sheep you blights! I won't have any more of your burglary! Tell that bastard Grox I'll have no more of it!" he says shaking his crook at them.
Miya was pretty light on her feet and sprinted down the hill toward the shepherd, who now seemed to be warning off the thieves.
"Come on, guys!" Miya shouted back to her friends.
When she reached the bottom of the hill and was now close enough to the group of seemingly small/short people, she approached cautiously, noting they had began to spread out; her katana held in a confident and experienced fashion.
She addressed the caped thief with the crossbow in hand, "Sir, I suggest you put down that crossbow. The shepherd has asked you to leave his flock be and I advise the same thing. Surrender now." Miya's soprano voice held a certain edge -- her meaning clear and unyielding. Her heart was racing but not entirely from fear but something more deeper, resolute. Her eyes shone an unearthly blue.
Miya stood, the ancestral katana before her, her posture/stance ready for a fight if the thieves would not back down. She did not take her eyes off the small people, especially from the one with the crossbow in hand.
Lucian dashes after Miya, his army knife drawn and ready for... Whatever... He really has no idea of what may be happening, but the sudden rush of action and movement at least make him snap from metaphysical considerations, and paying attention to the matters at hand.
What are these..? - he ponders - Midgets?
Noticing their attention focusing somewhat on the dog, he strays somewhat towards that direction, making sure he stands between his companions and the cloaked figures, while still trying to close the gap to the animal, wanting to keep him safe - "Easy now boy, no one is gonna hurt you" - he tries to calm the beast, lest it get confused and try to attack him, while he keeps his eyes locked on the small ones ahead of him.
He can hear the crystalline voice of Miya behind him and to the side, and from the corner of his eyes he spotted her fighting stance - somewhat surprising but... Not really, after all the changes they had been through.
Phillip reaches the bottom of the hill standing ready with his friends, having no idea what he would do. He tries not to show fear or weakness, but he's more out of breath than he should be.
"What the hell are those things?"
Coming to a halt where Luc is between her and the little bandits, Lydia focuses on the dog. Unlike Miya or Luc, she doesn't pose much of a threat in a fight at this moment but she does have a Ziploc full of Beggin' Strips in her backpack. Smiling at the shepherd, she moves deliberately so the man can she what she is doing as she pulls out the baggie, removes a piece of the simulated bacon and then stows the rest again.
"It's ok," she soothes both the shepherd and the dog, 'We are friendly. We don't want to hurt anyone."
She breaks off a piece of the dog treat and pops it into her mouth; it tastes awful but should be enough assurance that she is not trying to poison anyone or anything. Then she holds the remainder out to the dog. It might be too excited but she was usually pretty good at getting her business dogs calm and keeping them organized, even Deuce the Great Dane who was a sweetheart but also an enthusiastic jumper.
She had noted Luc's sidelong glance.
Miya felt more assured in her stance and her ability with the daishō, her paired swords: katana and wakizashi. But presently, the feel and movement of the katana was lighter, more graceful, as if her regular training had finally started to pay off. Miya's mother had presented her with the swords on her sixteenth birthday. Nothing said "Happy Sweet 16" like a pair of swords from Feudal Japan. But Miya had been mesmerised and honoured by the gift. And every day since, she had practised fighting with them. Lucian hadn't seen her the past two years and did not know how good she had become with wielding the ancestral swords. He had kindly teased her when he saw the swords the day after her sixteenth party. He warned her not to cut or stab herself. And she did neither over the years -- listening to the wisdom and teachings of her Sensei, Hiroto.
She held her stance, slightly crouched, her lead foot forward, katana straight before her in case the crossbow was turned on her and she had to cut the bolt before it hit her. She had never attempted such a feat before, but these small people didn't need to know that. Hiroto would have been be appalled to see her attempt such a maneuver at this stage of her training.
Miya listened as Lydia attempted to quieten and call the shepherd's dog with her treats. Smart move, Lyd, Miya thought to herself. She fiercely eyed the thief whose crossbow was trained on the dog.
The situation was tense. Lucian with his knife out, standing next to Lydia as they both tried to calm the dog. It cocked its head to the side for a moment, as if curious as to what was going on, as if it had smelled something familiar on them. Its mouth watered at the offered treat, but it quickly remembered why it was barking in the first place...there were interlopers on his master's land.
While Miya took her stance, ready to lunge at the threat with the crossbow, Phillip took a closer look, squinting to get a view under the cowl. To his surprise, the creature, for now he knew for sure that it couldn't be human, was sneering back at him. It barked again at him in that strange tongue once again, and stepping forward, waving the weapon, the hood fell away.
The skin of the "man" was pale, almost grey, with flecks of green. The features of his face were pinched, with a sharp small nose and beady black eyes that seemed almost buttons of pure black. It had large sharply pointed hears and thin wisps of greasy looking black hair that suck to its otherwise bald head. Its most striking feature though was the rows of tiny needle like teeth that filled its mouth, and the fat dark tongue that lolled out as it yelled.
The others of its kind had re-gathered from their distant positions, and seemed to look at the one with the crossbow for guidance. There were only six of them in total, and from their posture and jumpiness, it was clear they had not expected to encounter such resistance.
The leader screamed again, this time pointing the crossbow at Miya and in an instant, pulled the trigger of the weapon. Instead of launching a bolt into her chest, however, the tightly bound cord that would have otherwise propelled the missile snapped with a loud CRACK! and partially dislodged the end piece of the crossbow.
All the creatures jumped, and the leader dropped the now useless weapon. The all stood in shock for no more than a second, and with no weapon, and now outnumbered (as the rest of the group arrived), turned and began running back to the forest yelling at each other in that strange language.
Miya watched, as comprehension dawned on her that the strange creature was going to shoot her with the crossbow. She had not run, but stood, protecting the others, accepting what was to come, ready to attempt to cut the bolt before it pierced her chest.
Fortunately, the crossbow seemed to malfunction and then broke apart. The weapon was dropped to the ground and the thieves fled. Miya moved a few feet, contemplating giving chase, but instead she chose to remain by her friends' side. She lowered her katana and picked up the broken crossbow. Moving toward the shepherd and the still-barking dog, Miya initiated an introduction.
"Hello, sir. Glad that you and your dog weren't harmed. My name is Miya Casten. This may sound like a strange question, but can you please tell me where we are?"
Even with the recent run-in and all the strangeness, Miya smiled gently at the short shepherd, hoping to calm the situation.
As the crossbow clicked, Lucian's muscles tensed as he readied himself to lunge at the creature, whatever it was. But as the whole contraption fell apart, and the creatures took flight, he was able to relax for a moment.
Just then he realized what they had been battling - those were not humans for sure but... What were they? Deformed people with some sort of sickness? His eyes never left them as they ran off into the distance, his thoughts broken only by Miya's words, turning back to face her and the others - "That was tense"
He added nothing, as his companion introduced herself to the shepherd, waiting for his reaction, blade still drawn out.
Phillip's eyes widened not believing what he was seeing. "This is either a dream or we really have gone to a parallel world."
Phillip relaxed a bit as Lydia soothed the dog, then refocused on the creatures. Everything was a blur as the lead one screamed and whipped its crossbow around at Miya. Time slowed as the bolt splintered.
He felt a sudden calm and for an instant the whispers became crystal clear. A formula. As the creatures scrambled away he looked down to see the swirling blue patterns dancing on his arm, then slowly fading.
The formula still stuck in his head, he whipped open his backpack and yanked out his textbook, madly flipping pages. Scanning several pages he pulled out a pen and pulled off the cap in his teeth. He quickly filled the margins of the page as he worked through the formula, circling passages and drawing large arcing arrows.
His mind finally clear, he looked up with sudden awareness and took in the situation. "Is everybody ok?"
At Phillip's question, Miya's quiet, crystalline voice gave swift response as she waited for the shepherd's answer.
"I'm okay."
Miya took a closer look at her surroundings now she was at the bottom of the hill and also at the man with the crook and dog.
Lydia laughs when the dog darts forward to snatch the treat out of her hand where it absently remained as she watched the ugly little creatures scramble away into the forest. She gets down on her knees and holds her arms out to the dog, encouraging it to return to petting range.
"What's his name?" she asks the shepherd, smiling brightly and clapping her hands together gently to coax the animal nearer.
Adam finally gets to the rest of the group, a bit out of breath.
He is flushed, and dirty, apparently having rolled quite a way down the hill. His jeans are torn, and he favors his left leg quite a bit, walking slow now, as if he has twisted his ankle. His right arm is rather bruised as well and several small cuts are across his forearm.
"I'm ok, I just need a minute." as he catches his breath and rights himself, wiping some of the dirt from his face and brushing back his scraggly hair.
"What the hell happened? I saw some, what? Midgets? And then heard a loud crack, and barking and...sh*t, I don't know."
He looks at the group and then to the farmer, seeing him for the first time.
"Who's this?"
The shepherd, still a bit shaken, looks back to the group, eyeing those nearest him. His eyes move back and forth from Lydia to Miya.
He shifts a bit in his stance as if trying to decide what to do, then finally leans on his crook and lets out a small sigh. His had droops over his worn face, and as he pushed up, he features are more clear.
His beard is thick, and mostly grey with strands of white and brown mixed in, and his hair is cut short underneath the hat. He looks to be in his fifties, late at that, as his features are rough and beginning to show wrinkles about his eyes and forehead. His ears are large and reddened by the sun, and he grins back at the group with crooked but mostly clean teeth.
"My name is Robin," he says to the group, trying to include them all. "And this here is Derrick. I can't thank you enough for scaring off those goblins."
He pats the dog on the head and gives him a bit of a scratch.
"Its ok, boy, you can get the treat."
and with that, Derrick snatches the beggin' strip from Lydia and wolfs it down rather quickly. Afterwords, he comes to each in the group, giving the m a sniff.
"I rather fear if they took any more of my sheep back to that bastard ogre, Grox, I'd have to move into town."
He sweeps up a handful of the lush grass.
"I sure do like it out here though."
"I was going to take the sheep out for a bit of grazing, but I think that can wait. It's been a while since I've had company, and at the very least I can offer you some breakfast and a drink."
Then glancing at Adam,
"And we should probably have a look at that ankle..."
He stands smiling, and claps his hand to his side, calling Derrick to him. The dog dutifully obeys, after giving Lydia a nudge with it's nose, perhaps a thanks for the food.
"I don't think I recognize your colors, but I'm glad your company happened by. What banner do you travel under, or are you independent?"
as he begins to walk back to the cabin, occasionally turning back to make sure the group are following, beckoning with his hand.
Goblins and ogres? She felt like she was Alice through the looking glass with all these fantastical creatures. She silently wondered how much the shepherd had to drink this day.
She repeated her earlier question, hoping to get an answer and shed some light on the strangeness.
"Robin, where are we? What is the name of this place? This town?"
Miya followed behind the shepherd, looking a little nervously at the cabin but deciding to trust the man wouldn't kill them once inside. He did offer them breakfast... and the dog obeyed him happily -- not that Miya was a big dog lover ... moving around so much meant she did not have pets ... She would leave the dog interest in Lydia's capable hands.
"You mentioned a banner? My maternal family has an ancestral emblem, but we, as a group, do not. I suppose, then, we are independent. Is that going to be a problem?"
Phillip's eyebrows raise when Robin casually mentions goblins and an ogre. Ogre, is that what I think it is?
His stomach grumbles at the mention of food, thinking back to the leftover pizza in his fridge. How far away is home?
"Thanks for the hospitality. We're definitely road weary and a bit lost to be sure."
Phillip tries to get his friends' attention in a Let's have a group huddle kind of way.
"Goblins" - Lucian mutters - "So those were actual goblins?" - he finds himself asking, smiling in spite of himself - "And working for an ogre..."
He nods at Miya's questions - "Yep, I guess we can say we are independent" - he adds, looking at the others, as they follow Robin.
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Robin lead the group slowly the some two dozen feet to the cabin.
Inside, it was simply, but cozy. A wooden home about forty foot square, with a large table pushed to the side flanked on three sides by bench seats. A primitive iron stove stood in the corner surrounded by several stacked bricks. In the back and a few feet from that a short bed frame filled with hay and covered with a thick wool blanket. In the corner opposite the stove, was a cupboard and Robin fetched several small plates from it.
Looking to Miya,
"Yes sorry dear. My hearing isn't what it once was. You are in land...or I suppose it is his son's now, though the vizier is regent as isn't of age yet. I don't think being independent will be a problem as long as you introduce yourself to the regent at some point. The town closest to here is , just shy of a day's travel from here, one of the vizier's assistants lives there. is his name, i think.."
He notices Adam wincing as he stands close to the door, looking around the the sparsely furnished cabin.
"Let have a look at that ankle." he says leading him to the bench. After examining it for about a minute, he looks up.
"Well it's a bit swollen, but I don't think there's a break, try to keep as much weight off it as you can."
to everyone with a smile,
Psh. Goblins. Nasty buggers have been picking off my flock at the behest of that brute for days. So glad you came along. I couldn't leave to get help for fear that they'd take them all while I was gone.
Now have a seat, and let's get some foot into you, my heroes."
Going through the door at the back, he returns a few minutes later with his hat in hand a few carrots and green onions poking out the top., and goes directly to the stove. You can see him take several eggs from the hat and he cracks them into a cast iron pan and begins cooking.
Phillip takes a last look at the surrounding countryside, trying to take note of the sun and the passage of time. Can't take anything for granted if this truly is an alternate dimension.
He follows the others into the cabin, his eyes closing to take in the sweet smell of eggs sizzling on the pan. He slides onto one of the wooden benches noting primitive surroundings.
"Uh, how far exactly does Lord Volokun's land extend? I guess we must have inadvertently crossed his border at some point."
Miya had travelled extensively for most of her life, but she had never heard of Willowdale or the name of the two leaders.
With Robin cooking by the stove, Miya naturally moved closer to her friends, perplexed by what had happened. Phillip was the science wiz; maybe he knew what had occurred back in the library.
After Phillip had asked his question, Miya waited her turn and in the strange voice she had adopted since coming to this place, she asked the shepherd, "Robin, this may be a strange question, but what month and year is it?"
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The old man nods to Phillip as he brings the hot pan to the table and begins portioning out food onto the plates.
"Oh, I suppose about five days travel in either direction by foot. I suspect with no proper lord, though, that'll soon be contested."
Pausing as Miya asks her own question, he scratches his head. Then he chuckles.
"Aye, that would be a strange question. But it makes sense now...your strange clothes, your confusion. You must have been . Usually they come out of the forest and turn Derrick's fur blue or make the sheep think they're chickens for a few nights, but they must of had a go at your group while you were traveling. "
"Turn your pouches inside out for a day and they'll probably leave you alone."
"And to answer your question, dear, it's the 3rd moon of spring in the year of the Chariot."
He grins and walks over to the cabinet again, and pulls out a tall,dark bottle. Bringing it over to the table he struggles with the stopper for a few moments. When it finally comes free with a POP the rich smell of strong, sweet wine fills the morning air of the cabin.
"Have been saving this for just such an occasion," he says, handing it to the nearest and indicating they should take a swig.
"I know you've done so much for me just be happening this way, but I wonder if I might ask you a favor? I haven't much in the way of wealth, but you seem like capable folk. I have a few things left from my own traveling days if you could drive off that blasted ogre."
Derrick remains the centre of Lydia's attention although she does listen as the conversation progresses around her. She is feeling rather overwhelmed by all the strangeness and the familiarity of the animal is comforting. A knot of homesickness had begun to knit slowly in the pit of her stomach; as much as this seems a fantastic adventure, she can't help but think of her family.
Quietly, she tries to coax the dog near enough to pet it while thinking on what the others are saying. She remembers reading The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe when she was in grade school. That was just a kid's story, a good one but...was it just a story? Was this Narnia or something like it?
The smell of the food sets her mouth watering and the pop of the wine cork shakes her from her reverie just as Robin asks the favour of them.
"Um....ogre? Like Shrek??" Lydia asks hesitantly, her tone polite but tempered with a combination of skepticism and confusion.
Robin looks puzzled for a moment at Lydia, and leans against the cabinet. He takes off his hat and sets it on a nail sticking out of the wall. His forehead is weathered, and his hair, though long, has receded to the back of his head, giving him what you would call a mullet, though he'd doubtful know the term.
"An ogre, yes. Though I've never heard of this 'Shrek.' It's bad enough having one ogre around, gods forbid there could be another."
He takes a sip of the wine himself, smacking his lips afterwards.
"Ahhh. That's the stuff. Well worth the wait."
He looks back at the group, a friendly smile on his face, but there is also desperation and worry in his eyes. He is putting on a brave face, but clearly this old man is near his wits end.
He seems to think of something,
"Oh! Bread, I'll get you some bread too...I think I still have some rolls..."
and he begins looking through the cabinet.
Unaware of how much time has passed, you wake to find yourself breathing deep, the freshest air perhaps you ever have. The sun is bright, and it takes several seconds for your eyes to focus, but you see blue skies and mountains in the distance.
Then, quickly, it comes upon you the precariousness of your situation. You quickly right yourself and grab for nearby support, as you find yourself perched on the rather thick branch at least a dozen feet off the ground in a tree!
You seem to be at the very edge of a forest, as you can see just in front of you, 200 or so feet, a shallow valley that further on opens up in to great grassy hills. A cottage/cabin with a fenced area to the side holds several sheep. Smoke rises from the roof in a thin line fading into the clear sky. You can also see what appears to be a smaller shack attached to what you assume is the back of the cabin, shorter than the rest, with no roof.
More curious though, you hear behind you, several muffled voices speaking in a gibberish like language. It fades away as you assume that group moves further into the forest.
As you take in your surroundings, you confirm that the strange refection of yourself is at least partially true, as you look down at your hands and see the new metallic bronze sheen of your skin.
You stomach grumbles, and you suddenly feel as if you haven't eaten in days.
Josh slowly blinked his eyes open, his chest slowly rising and falling. The birds were chirping, and the sweet scent of flowers filled the air and wafted its way into Josh's lungs.
Josh felt more at peace than he ever had been. He felt locked in in a way that Josh never felt before. He would've been content to lie there forever if he didn't look down. That definitely jolted Josh awake.
Memories flooded Josh's mind. The dig site. The shrine. The room. It made him very alert, and even moreso when he heard monstrous voices ambling underneath his perch. Looking around, Josh finds a small cottage, and the scenery surrounding it. Trying to get a closer look, he puts his hand over his eyes to block out the bright glare of the sun. Interestingly, that only magnified it.
Josh yanked his hand away from his eyes. Looking at it with morbid curiosity, he finds that it has turned a metallic sheen of bronze. Well, Josh thought to himself as he slumped against the trunk of the tree, There's another surprise to add to today's long, long list.
Clambering down from the tree, Josh instinctively slips into the shadows. For some reason, Josh doesn't want the owners of the strange voices finding him-although he isn't sure if his amateur attempt will conceal him. Slowly, he creeps toward the cabin, hoping to find answers there.
Faetouched? The word rattled around in his brain as he listened to Robin describe what could possibly magic. Has this old man simply lost touch with reality or are we truly in a place out of fantasy?
Phillip gobbled up his eggs uneasily, trying to focus on the familiar tastes, but catching himself before asking for a bottle of ketchup.
"What's this...ogre...look like?" Phillip bit his tongue trying to not to seem too out of place. "I mean, you know, compared to other ogres. Does he, uh, live nearby?"
"An ogre, yes. Though I've never heard of this 'Shrek.' It's bad enough having one ogre around, gods forbid there could be another."
He takes a sip of the wine himself, smacking his lips afterwards.
"Ahhh. That's the stuff. Well worth the wait."
He looks back at the group, a friendly smile on his face, but there is also desperation and worry in his eyes. He is putting on a brave face, but clearly this old man is near his wits end.
He seems to think of something,
"Oh! Bread, I'll get you some bread too...I think I still have some rolls..."
and he begins looking through the cabinet.
Lucian stands up and paces around the room somewhat, peering outside the window once or twice as the man is speaking. As he turns to get some bread, he adds - "Faetouched you say? I guess we can call it that since definitely we've been touched by something" - he looks around at his companions, then back at the man - "I've had some martial training..." - he continues - "But I am not sure how well we could fare against an... ogre" - his mind beggining to race through some of his military knowledge, grasping at something concrete to plod on - "We don't have weapons apart from Miya's sword and my knife" - he reaches down to his boot drawing the blade and staring at it.
Back at the man, he adds - "You have no idea of what your hospitality means to us - your roof, wine and food in what is a strange land for us makes a huge difference - so I have to thank you again for it - the region seems dangerous, so I am guessing not many would take a couple of strangers into their home at face value" - he nods at the man - "I am sure we are all willing to contribute in whatever way we can to repay your hospitality, but we need more intel... Huh... Information regarding this ogre, like Phillip just pointed out - what more can you tell us about him? And please... This will sound strange but... Where we come from, ogres are green, strong and big, but not necessarily ill-intentioned - would your ogre fit this bill?"
Josh sleepily blinked his eyes open, his chest slowly rising and falling. The birds were chirping, and the sweet scent of flowers filled the air and wafted its way into Josh's lungs.
Josh felt more at peace than he ever had been. He felt locked in in a way that Josh never felt before. He would've been content to lie there forever if he didn't look down. That definitely jolted Josh awake.
Memories flooded Josh's mind. The dig site. The shrine. The room. It made him very alert, and even moreso when he heard monstrous voices ambling underneath his perch. Looking around, Josh finds a small cottage, and the scenery surrounding it. Trying to get a closer look, he puts his hand over his eyes to block out the bright glare of the sun. Interestingly, that only magnified it.
Josh yanked his hand away from his eyes. Looking at it with morbid curiosity, he finds that it has turned a metallic sheen of bronze. Well, Josh thought to himself as he slumped against the trunk of the tree,There's another surprise to add to today's long, long list.
Clambering down from the tree, Josh instinctively slips into the shadows. For some reason, Josh doesn't want the owners of the strange voices finding him-although he isn't sure if his amateur attempt will conceal him. Slowly, he creeps toward the cabin, hoping to find answers there.
As Josh creeps through the verdant forest, he decides that the creatures are gone and that it's okay to stop sneaking. Looking around, he spies a massive wolf loping through the forest. Josh instinctively identified it-Canus dirus, a dire wolf. Long extinct. Shaking his head, Josh finally admitted it: he was in a whole 'nother world.
Finally out of the forest, Josh strides over to the wooden cabin and knocks on the door. "Hello?" he asks tentatively. "Anybody there?"
Miya sensed the shepherd's underlying worry/desperation and attempted to calm him.
"Yes, perhaps you are right and we have been faetouched. Hopefully it will pass soon."
"And we do not mean to imply there is another ogre nearby. I believe this Grox seems menacing enough. I offer whatever protection I can -- I have my swords -- my katana and wakizashi. And we have our wits -- together we will figure out a plan to triumph over Grox."
Miya spooned some of the hot, fragrant egg into her mouth -- and waited on the bread Robin had offered to bring to the table. That was when she heard the knock and the voice.
In quiet voice she offered, "Um, Robin, I think someone's at your door."
Miya stood up, ready to defend Robin and the others in the room.
When nobody answers, Josh sighs. "Please, let me in! I haven't had food in days, and I must have shelter before dark, or else I'm afraid I will perish from the dread creatures that I heard when I awoke." Josh's words flow like a soothing river out of his mouth-he never had much eloquency before.
Why did the voice sound so familiar?
Miya swivelled gracefully on her heels, katana in hand, and exclaimed to her friends, "That sounds like Josh!"
She ran toward the door and looked through the small window hoping to catch a glimpse of the person on the other side of the heavy wooden door.
She carefully unlatched it, even though she wanted to throw it wide open. And there on the doorstep was Josh, but like the rest of them, his looks had been altered -- heightened in colouring. He reminded her of fire.
Miya's smile grew wide at her friend. "Josh? What are you doing here? Last we heard you were on some archaeological site in Greece!" Miya let the katana fall to her side and moved closer and embraced Josh with her spare arm, careful not to cut him with her sword.
Against his ear, she quietly warned, "Quickly inside. There are some strange, dangerous things out there, in the forest", and drew him inside, closing and latching the door behind him.
Josh's jaw hit the floor when Miya opened the door. Although she had changed, she was still clearly Miya. "Mi...Miya! Josh stuttered out joyfully. You notice that the tips of his hair seem to be... flickering.
"Luc! Philip! Lydia! Adam!" A big, dopey grin splits Josh's face wide open, and atop his head, his hair seems to be on fire.
Walking inside, he turns to Miya and answers "Yeah, I was. But that's when everything started getting batsh*t crazy." Turning to the rest of the group, Josh begins to recount his tale. "Alright, the whole reason I was in Greece in the first place was in investigate a curious phenomenon. Shrines containing carvings of the celestials and fiends of every culture were found in Agrinion. Me and my chaperons were assigned to an Iranian dig site. One day, while I was collecting samples in one of the shrines, while reminiscing about you guys, I pricked my finger on a carving of a Peri-an Iranian angel. That's when things started to go [b]really crazy. From the point of where I pricked my finger, my blood started running down the carving and... glowing. Then it got to the pedestal in the center of the room, and an unseen rune started glowing. Time slowed down, colors flooded my vision... And that's when I blacked out."[/b]
Josh continues his story. "When I woke up, I was in a stone room with six wells-one was glowing. Going over to it to take a sample, I stuck my hand in it. Although the liquid evaporated after it came out of the well, I managed to get this:" Josh pulls out a smooth stone with a carving of a rune on it. "This is the exact same rune that I found on the pedestal in the dig site. Coincidence? I think not. Anyways, I blacked out after I fished the rune out of the well. I woke up in a tree. And that brings us here."
Josh grimaces. "And I think I heard those 'things' when I woke up, Miya. They passed under the tree I was in. And, I hate to tell you guys this, though you would learn it if we got home... You have been dead for three months."
Dead? For three months?
"Why do they think we're dead? It was only yesterday, or today, we were in the college library. Then something happened and we found ourselves in the same cave with the pedestals. How did three months pass in a day? I don't believe we were out cold for that long."
Miya sat back down at the table and picked at her eggs.
Looking back up at the glowing Josh, she quietly added, "There are goblins in the forest and possibly an ogre, according to Robin, our host. We must be careful."
Josh shakes his head. "I wouldn't be surprised that cross-dimensional travel screwed with the time matrix. As for why do they think you're dead? Some terrorist bombed the library. You were the only casualties."
Josh takes out a notebook and a pencil out of his vest pocket and begins sketching out equations. "The time flux could be accounted for because of passing between universe. According to popular multicosmological theoretical scientists, each universe has time consistent with the rest of the universes. Passing through the polyuniversal core, which has no fixed time, complicates this. That means that even though each universe is technically in sync with one another, passage through the polyuniversal core throws that off, depositing beings in a random time locale..." Josh trails off, lost in his thoughts.
Snapping back to reality, Josh explains to the group "The fact that I arrived at this time locale with you guys is beyond coincidental. It's almost statistically impossible. The polyuniversal core depositing us here on the same day goes against all laws of it, as theorized by multiple scientists. Something greater is at work here."
Lucian's eyes go wide as he sees his friend - "Josh..? What the..?"
As he goes on his tirade about time-space continuum, and multicosmological considerations, the soldier simply stares at him - "Hold your guns there man" - he pipes in, moving closer and hugging him. Not that he and Josh were ever the best of friends, perhaps they were even only acquaintances, but it was a comforting feeling to find another friendly face amongst all this.
Holding him at arm's length, Lucian adds with a stern look - "It is good to see you, and as you can see we are not dead. At least not on this end of the polyuniversal core" - he adds with a wink.
Looking back at Miya, he nods - "Hours even... I have the feeling everything has simply happened in the last couple of hours..." - then remembers where they are and catches himself, turning to their host - "Apologies, this is an old friend Robin, someone we hadn't seen in a while"
Lydia sits in stunned silence, happy to see Josh but unsure how to deal with the news he bears. Her lower lip trembles as she battles back tears but she manages not to reveal how upset she feels; that knot of homesickness a hot, queasy lump all of the sudden. She strokes Derrick absently while the conversation continues.
Miya turned, having sensed a change in Lydia's demeanour after Josh had announced that back in their hometown they were considered dead. And three months had lapsed. She walked to the older girl who sat with the dog and laid her hand on Lydia's shoulder, gently squeezing it in offer of support and strength. What must mother and father be going through, thinking I am dead? As an only child, Miya felt the weight of the situation but pushed down her own emotions and feelings to be there for the others.
She had caught Lucian's correction that it had only been hours since they were in the library and then brought here. Miya felt thrown and she had lost track of how much time had lapsed. She blushed at her confusion.
Josh had spoken of multiple universes and cross-dimensional travel. Miya was good at science but Josh was great -- like super genius in the sciences. "So we're far from home ..." Miya added softly to none. "How are we supposed to get back?"
Josh returns Luc's hug. "Nice... to... see you too, man...In the meantime... your grip is a bit strong..." After breaking out of Luc's bear hug, Josh turns to Miya.
Pulling out his rune, he puts it on the table. "The way I see it," Josh says, "We all came here through some otherworldly force, some interdimensional meddler. Don't look at me like I'm crazy. What other reason would there be for the dimensional fabric ripping within three months of the first event, and then depositing both targets in the same day?!? If we're gonna get back, we have got to find the guy who did this. We should probably snoop for rumors in towns, investigate ruins-that's my forte-and see if we can find even a legend of the sort of being who has this kind of power."
Turning around, Josh sees Adam and his twisted ankle. "Adam! You're hurt!" Josh exclaims, and goes over to see the extent of the damage. Instinctively, Josh reaches out and touches Adam. ”Loforni,” Josh whispers, and a blue light glows from his bronzed hand, healing Adam’s wounds.
Josh looks at Adam’s wounds, most of them now completely healed. ”What… The…. Hell?!” he exclaims.
Robin seems quite surprised by Josh's appearance, and stares, but only for a moment, as if his looks are odd, but not the oddest he's seen. He does seem like a man that has seen some things, as he basically lives out here on his own.
"Well...if you're a friend of these folk, then you're a friend to me as well. Would you like something to eat? I don't think I have any eggs left, but we still have wine and rolls." he says with a warm smile.
Then he turns to the table for a moment to fetch food for the new guest.
Adam looks upon Josh confused for a second, not recognizing his friend at first. He flinches slightly when Josh touches him, and a look of panic starts to come over his face. The healing is even more of a surprise though.
"Is that...? WTF!"
He looks up after the healing and finally recognizes his friend.
"Hey. Y-you look...different." He says more casually, and reaches over to the wine bottle, immediately taking a hard swig and coughing a bit.
Robin hands a roll to Josh and looks to the group again. Seeing Lydia a bit out of it, he gives her a smile.
"I think Derrick likes you." and then back to the whole group, Lucian in particular.
"Although I've never seen a green ogre, I don't think it would be out of place. They are big and strong though, and mostly mean. Grox has an extra helping of mean, I think. He has a camp of sorts somewhere in the forest, tended by his goblin lackeys. I would almost feel sorry for them if it wasn't them that kept coming to take my sheep."
He sighs and takes a seat on the bed, looking to the group.
"Gods, you're a sight. Let me see if I can give you anything else to help." As he crouches down to carefully remove several floorboards, he whistles a little tune. In a space dug out under the floor is a chest.
"Now where did I put that key?"
Phillip watches the door with the others as Miya opens it to reveal Josh. A smile crosses his face if only briefly. He stares transfixed at the flaming haired, bronze skin figure smiling back.
After the initial shock he offers a handshake, noting the odd texture and temperature of his bronze hand. "Good to have you with us...I mean...not good that you're lost...you know what I mean." He nods as Josh relates his tale and perks up at his extradimensional theory.
"Yes, yes." He nods excitedly, his mind whirling with ideas. "There must be some intelligent force. That would account for...yes...and answer...yes...so many things..."
Losing himself in his thought processes, Phillip freezes again as Josh heals Adam's ankle. Loforni. The word echoes in his ears. Again a warm familiar feeling just out of reach. He shakes away the whispers and watches as Robin fishes around for a key.
Miya's eyes travelled to the hiding place where Robin kept his chest. She waited patiently for the short shepherd to find his key to see what he was giving them.
Looking to Lucian, she attempted to gain his particular attention. He was the soldier of the group and she wondered if he had any plans -- an idea of what they would do or where they would go next.
Addressing everyone in the group, Miya asked in her strange, soprano voice, "Are we going to fight this ogre and his goblin minions? We can't leave Robin at this monster's mercy."
"Miya, I think we should help him out. We need to learn as much about this region as we can, and a little field experience would help," Josh answers.
Turning to Philip, Josh says "I'm not much as a science buff as you, but maybe when we have some more time we could work on a theory together, get to the root of the problem."
"Well... Yeah" - Lucian retorts at the idea of facing the ogre - "Why not? But our logistics is a tad under the weather - I've got my knife, but if he is packing anything bigger than harsh words, he'll be at an advantage - I mean him, and the others with him" - he seems to ponder, looking at their own sparse gear - "Unless you wanna lend me your sword" - he winks at Miya.
Miya looked up into Lucian's eyes and didn't say anything for a few seconds, contemplating his words. She understood Luc was jesting about lending him a sword - She did have two, but they were a pair and never to be separated.
"As you're well aware, my ancestral katana and wakizashi cannot be separated -- my swords must stay together, with me. I'm sure you will find a more suitable weapon soon enough." She returned Luc's wink.
Looking back to Robin and his locked chest, Miya gestured toward the shepherd, "Perhaps Robin has weapons he can lend you and the others? Or knows where we may purchase some?"
Turning her gaze on the others in the small chamber, Miya added, "First though, we need to find out who knows how to use weapons and if not, how are we going to train them in such a short time... So guys, how do you feel about using weapons?"
Phillip nods to Josh. "Yes, it would be great to bounce ideas off each other. I don't know what it is about this place, but certain things just...fit into place here. I can't describe it really, but I'm working on some ideas."
His attention turned to Miya and Lucian's discussion. "Uh...I've got an old slingshot I used to shoot water balloons with." He rummages through his multicolored "galaxy" backpack producing the slingshot. "I guess I could find some rocks."
"Other than that...I took some tai chi classes for a little while where we used a staff. I never really tried to hit anybody with it, though."