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ValidEmotions

Homesick || IC || Open

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Something has happened, something drastic.

 

Whoever you are, wherever you're from, you were taken away. You don't know how, you don't know why. One moment, you were living your everyday-life. In the next? In the heartbeat it took you to blink, your world melted away and was replaced with somewhere else.

 

But you didn't feel anything. There was no wormhole to suck you in, no weird tingle of magic. Whatever happened, you're just in a new place.

 

The technology is very advanced. Anything you might have dreamed it to be, it likely is. Pollution is non-existent, what with the advanced state of the world being all green. The city you found yourself in has tall buildings, a dense population, and just about any sort of creature walking around.

 

It looks like utopia!

 

But something pricks under your skin, something that nags the back of your mind.

 

Something isn't right.

 

You don't know why you're in this new world. Now you need to decide what you're going to do about that.

 

Rules

  • Follow DC Forum rules.
  • Please be respectful to each other.
  • I follow the 3-strikes process.
  • I'm expecting there to be some OP characters. I expect everyone to know how to be fair.
  • No godmodding and/or powerplaying.
  • This is mostly a Sandbox RP with a bit of a driving plot to keep things moving. If you have plot ideas, let me know.
  • Any sort of character is allowed as long as they aren't canon characters. So, no, Spyro is not allowed. But I'd be okay with his long lost cousin, Becky.
  • I will be updating things as the RP progresses. If you need a brief summary to help catch up, I will have one written within the first few posts of the IC thread.
  • Please post all characters in the OOC thread. Characters posted in the IC or PM'd to me will be ignored.
Character Sheet

[b]Username:[/b]
[b]Name:[/b]
[b]Age:[/b]
[b]Gender:[/b]
[b]Species:[/b]
[b]World of Origin:[/b]
[b]Appearance:[/b] Give me at least a few, complete, sentences.
[b]Personality:[/b] Give me at least a few, complete, sentences.
[b]Weapons:[/b]
[b]Powers:[/b] Explain a power if it isn't commonly known.
[b]Skills:[/b] Anything that isn't considered a power. For example, cooking or playing an instrument.
[b]Other:[/b]

Edited by Narvix

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Active Characters

 

Username: Narvix

Name: Phaenon

Age: 237 years

Gender: Male

Species: Grygon

World of Origin: Aclosie

Appearance: With two sets of feathered wings, Phaenon possesses the face of a bird of prey. A wicked beak, dark in coloration, protrudes from a face covered in grey feathers. Black scales follow the ridge of his maw, creeping upward towards the crest of white and grey feathers that sprout from the top of his head, back of his neck, and follow his jaw. Piercing green eyes with slitted pupils provide him with a very sharp sight. Down his neck, more grey, white, and black feathers are highlighted by black scales, covering his chest and the upper portion of his forelimbs. Below the elbows, his legs are covered with tan, hardened, skin and he possesses taloned 'hands', each with four digits.

Following his body, his torso becomes less feathery a little over halfway down, gradually replaced entirely with black scales. His feet also possess four digits. From the base of his spine sprouts an exceptionally long tail, barbed near the tip with three hooked blades.

Overall, he stands roughly 10 feet tall at the shoulders and is approximately 23 feet long, tail included.

Personality: Phaenon likes to believe himself a creature of simple comforts. He enjoys thoughtful conversation and pleasant company. Having a soft spot for small creatures, Phaenon tends to see himself as a mentor to all he meets. (Even if someone isn't quite fond of hearing his advice.) If something confuses him, he'll pursue the matter until he comes to an understanding. Sometimes, this brings him to troubling situations, of which he tries to reason his way out. Phaenon doesn't like doing anything that could ruffle or dirty his feathers (or scales), so he tries his best to avoid conflict. But that certainly doesn't make him completely innocent of playing coy or intimidating (especially if it gives him a good laugh).

Weapons: Talons, barbed tail, beak. All naturally built in weapons.

Powers:

-> Let There Be Fire: Your basic fire breath. Phaenon can let loose a steady stream of flames, for approximately three minutes, that can reach up to 8 feet.[Active]

-> The Ground Trembles: Phaenon has a limited control over the element of Earth (Soil in his world). Mostly, this is restricted to minor quakes in a small radius but he is able to create tiny avatars. These avatars are always in a set of three and no taller than 4 feet. They resemble bipedal creatures of various species and can't do more than physically interact with the world around them. The avatars have no magical abilities nor possess any physical prowess. [Active]

-> The Winds Rage: Phaenon has a stronger control over the element of Wind than he does of Earth. He can control the air currents and stir up raging winds on a whim. [Active]

Skills:

-> He has a lovely singing voice.

-> Phaenon taught himself to read in several different languages. (Not very useful in this new world.)

Other: N/A

 

Username: Narvix

Name: Kristi Foster

Age: 32 years

Gender: Demi-female

Species: Meta-Human

World of Origin: Earth

Appearance: Standing at 5'10", Kristi has straight, light brown hair that brushes her shoulders and hazel-colored eyes. She weighs around 146 pounds with an average build and triangular shape. She has a squared facial structure with moderately defined features (high cheekbones, pointed nose, and full lips). Kristi has a light brown complexion and doesn't actually tan; she just gets darker from all her time outside during Spring and Summer. She likes to wear light amounts of makeup, mostly sticking to just eyeliner and mascara with the occasional soft-shade of pink lipstick. Typically, she enjoys wearing sun-dresses of various colors and styles with ankle-high boots that match. If she's not in a sundress, she's in a pair of "short shorts", sneakers, and a tank top. For colder weather, you'll find her bundled up with long jeans, t-shirts, boots, and a jacket.

Personality: Kristi is a pretty fun-loving woman who prefers to avoid stressful situations. She's constantly talking, especially when on a subject she loves or knows a lot about. Dedicated to her friends and family, Kristi doesn't like to see anyone in any sort of distress and will always try to lend a helping hand. Many see her as a sort of bubbly person with a soft spot for insects and reptiles alongside with dogs and cats. She does enjoy the company of others and actually prefers it to being alone. In all honesty, she'd much prefer to be out and about to do something instead of staying inside all day. However, that won't stop her from accepting the offer to just cuddle up on the couch and have a movie marathon with friends.

As mentioned, Kristi avoids stressful situations as best she can. She can't handle stress very well and often easily falls apart into tears or fits of anger. She'll end up apologizing profusely though for her behavior after she's calmed back down. She won't apologize, however, for standing by her opinions and what she believes to be the right thing to do. If, of course, someone proves her methods or stance wrong, then she'll reconsider but the best you might get is an indirect apology.

Weapons: N/A

Powers: Spectral Interaction

-> I See Dead People: She can see the ghosts of those no longer living in the world, be they buried for centuries or recently drew their last breath. She can't touch them though, they just go right through her. [Passive]

-> Whispers From the Grave: Not only can she see them but she can hear what the deceased have to say. However, the only way she can respond to them is by speaking out loud. [Passive]

-> You Owe Me a Favor: To some extent, she can compel a ghost or two to do something - be it interfering with someone's life or finding specific information for her. However, she has a harder time with forcing the ghosts of recently deceased individuals to do what she wants as they still cling to the concept of living a lot more viciously. [Active]

Skills:

-> Kristi is pretty fair at understanding a situation and solving the various problems with it.

-> Since her ability can't be turned "on" or "off", she has perfected her poker face and is no longer phased by gruesome things.

-> Her body doesn't exactly show it but she is rather athletic and makes a decent runner or gymnast.

Other:

-> Megan's identical twin.

-> She's working on it but Kristi isn't the best at accepting when she is wrong.

-> She is terrified of deep water. If she can't touch the ground, she won't get near it.

-> Kristi isn't always able to read people as well as she'd like.

 

Username: Narvix

Name: Megan Foster

Age: 32 years

Gender: Agender

Species: Meta-Human

World of Origin: Earth

Appearance: Since they're identical twins, Megan has the same height, build/shape, eye and hair color as Kristi. They do weigh a few pounds heavier though due to muscle toning. Their hair is cropped short and often spiked using hair gel, either for a duck tail at the back or a ruffled appearance. They'll wear eyeliner from time to time but nothing else beyond that for makeup. Preferably, Megan enjoys wearing tank tops of various colors and designs, cargo capris, and a thin flannel jacket with sneakers. If it's too cold, they'll take to sweatpants and thicker coats.

Personality: Megan is the quieter of the two but also more prone to short bursts of temper. Since their head is constantly riddled with the invading thoughts of others, they don't particularly enjoy the company of other people and are always curbing their tongue in conversations. (Megan can't reveal they are able to read minds after all.) With their short temper, Megan sometimes tries to avoid fights. However, they don't mind fighting dirty and letting their tongue (or fists) fly unchecked.

Megan is often a cynical person without any large hopes for the future. While they're not strictly pessimistic, they label themself a harsh realist and prefer to keep their expectations low. They can manage their stress pretty decently, using art as a way to vent any frustrations they have or daily exercise.

Weapons: N/A

Powers: Mind Reading

-> I Know Your Secrets: First and foremost, the most basic of their sub-abilities. They are able to read the minds of others, listening to all of their thoughts without detection. It's a bit hard to turn this off though so it makes for quite the distraction or headache. [Passive]

-> Poison in Your Thoughts: If they wish to, they can force themself into someone's mind and alter that person's thoughts. Their limited to how much will power the "victim" has but, unless they're a fellow/powerful mind reader, it doesn't take long for them to achieve what they set out to do. [Active]

-> Linking Our Minds: Alternatively, they can act like a conduit, letting up to five people enter their own thoughts. In basic terms, they act like a communication device allowing for people to utilize telepathy when they wouldn't be able to otherwise. This poses a lot of risks though as anyone could alter their thoughts in this state. [Active]

Skills:

-> Megan is physically fit with a fair amount of stamina and strength.

-> Though without any particular form, they are a decent challenge in a fist fight.

Other:

-> Kristi's identical twin.

-> Their abilities are strong from years of development and inability to "turn off".

-> They have chronic migraines that sometimes affects their vision.

-> Megan is terrified of storms.

-> They are a sucker for kittens.

 

Username: TehUltimateMage

Name: Erin Laflamme

Age: 21

Gender: Female

Species: Human

World of Origin: Earth (Alternate Universe): Modern world earth where magic and dragons are commonplace.

Appearance: Erin stands at around 5'7, although she seems shorter because of her poor posture. Her face and frame are bony and pointy, giving her an unintentionally dangerous look highlighted by narrow bored eyes and a slight pout. Her orange hair, natural but clashing with her tan complexion, is pinned up in a messy bun with locks falling all over her face as if she can't decide if she wants to hide behind her bangs.

Forgoing the fashion revival of wizard robes, she goes for a classic combination of a hoodie underneath a coat of many pockets, paired with jeans and hiking boots, all in neutral and unassuming colors.

Personality: Deadpan and sarcastic, Erin has very underwhelming reactions to everything. Even with her ability to see through illusions, she has the habit of dismissing strange events and tries not to get involved in things -- although things have a habit of involving her. She is very practical-minded; a quick thinker, improviser, and her pockets are filled with every which thing she might need (matches, rope, multi-tool, and pocketwatch to name a few).

Weapons: N/A

Powers:

 

Null: Erin is known as a Null, meaning that she is unable to use magic (which is a learned skill in her universe); however, she is also unable to be affected by magic. The effects of being a Null are passive and constantly on, and affect only herself. A purely magical attack may get absorbed completely, but spells that use the elements are fair game.

 

Jammed Signals: Any operation of magitech by her is straight up impossible, and sources of mana cease to work in her vicinity. Magic locks and barriers are rendered useless. Depending on the source, this effect may or may not be permanent. Erin jokingly says that this jamming effect extends to electronics in general, and so most things she uses are mechanical and anachronistic.

 

Eyes of Clarity: Erin can see through illusions and glamor, but will just as easily dismiss a vampire as just a human wearing fangs. Mind control, mind reading, and other sensory tricks are useless.

 

Skills: Erin knows a little of many things, although nothing has really kept her interest for very long. Her survival skills are decent and so is her cooking; she likes to rebelliously go places (freerunning) but never anywhere too dangerous (since she has to rely on her natural healing) and will usually return home eventually. She does carry a harmonica with her to get some practice in while wasting time.

 

Other: Unemployed.

 

Username: skwerl56767

Name: Pusher Model 56, ID 767. (Basically a tanky mech.) Due to a previous mishap with a broken speaker, her nickname is "Fiddlesticks". I know, isn't it ridiculous? She has a pilot named Cyrii.

Age: Fiddlesticks was made only weeks ago. Cyrii, her pilot, is 29 in her years (about 18 for humans).

Gender: Both are female

Species: Cyrii = Xinschi-uual. Fiddlesticks = mech/android combination. Thanks to some illegal modifications Cyrii made to her mech, Fiddlesticks is able to completely function on her own without her pilot's help, even though she isn't supposed to.

World of Origin: OC. Planet Zirhon in the Milky Way

Appearance: New colored image. Because Cyrii is drawn to scale, I'll clarify her: she is a foot-tall, cold-blooded reptilian built like an otter, with four digits on each limb and a wedge-shaped head. She has orange scales with dark stripes and three large, solid, off-white eyes, two on either side of the head and one in the middle. Both forepaws sport two thumbs and two fingers, and she wears the standard Xinschi-uual soldier uniform. Her helmet is a device she manufactured herself that links her more directly to Fiddlesticks' mind, and encases 2/3rds of her face. Cyrii tends to stay anonymous inside Fiddlesticks' head where she is safe, though in stressful times she will exit the mech, usually with a weapon in hand.

Fiddlesticks stands up to 10 feet tall (with the ears down); her eye's intensity changes depending on her emotions. Not seen in the image are four panels on the underside of her head: the larger two under the tail piece are the entry panels for Cyrii. The smaller set under her eye is the retrieval panel, which has smaller, robotic clamp arms inside.

Personality: Cyrii is defiant, stubborn, and latches onto grudges easily, but with enough time to think she will still lean toward the rational side. She tries vainly to control her violent impulses, but she still has anger flares even at the slightest of things, and is insistent about doing things the way she wants to even if she gains no support for it (and ends up learning the hard way as a result). She strives toward a reputation for being the strongest adversary out there, which doesn't help her decisions when it comes to going off and doing her own thing versus following orders and advice; when all is considered in the end though, she will still submit to anything clearly superior to her. She values Fiddlesticks's opinions over anyone else's, but will still consider those of her peers. She has a deep enthusiasm for robotics and AI, and she has exercised plenty of her hacking techniques on her mech without permission from the Empire she's supposed to be fighting for.

Fiddlesticks' AI is "mapped" to Cyrii's, meaning her pilot went through an extensive personality-examination test to ensure that they both thought and agreed on similar things; essential for cooperation, considering that Xinschi-uual mechs aren't supposed to be able to move on their own without a pilot. So for the most part, Fiddlesticks' personality is a lot like Cyrii's with a few tweaks thanks to her base programming: she has less self-preservation, for one, and will stand up to anything even if it kills her; however, she is fiercely overprotective of her pilot to the point of violence. She is also a thrill-seeker; boredom is the bane of her. The mech herself is fairly psychotic, with hardly any acknowledgement of it, but with Cyrii's help she tries to simulate normal things like remorse (this will become more prevalent later on). Cyrii's constant tweaking of her mind also gives her some room to try manipulation techniques, and she actively tries to collect and digest as much information as she can in one sitting.

Note: because Cyrii almost never leaves Fiddlestick's head, they're constantly influencing each other's decisions, so when separated they have noticeable personality changes; Fiddlesticks in particular.

Weapons: Cyrii does have an electrical weapon, but it is only meant to stun enemies her size. She is otherwise defenseless and rarely exits her mech. The other abilities are all on Fiddlesticks:

-Turrets: Three-barreled, tip each arm. Fire scatter-shot rounds; more effective at close range (low DPS, high bullet count)

-Bayonets: Short; one on the outer side of either turret.

-Missile Launchers: Located in the shoulder casings. Missiles explode on impact, but are long-range and take time to lock onto a target.

-Last-Defense Lasers: Four, small, and semi-precise. Located around the eye. Emit high heat that can be controlled, but greatly lose efficiency the further the target is. Not used often.

Powers:

-Ammunition Fabricators: Creates ammunition by using compounds derived from materials (metal, rock, etc.) that have been "eaten", using the retrieval panel's arms. Waste from this process is compressed into an alloy that is spat out later. The useful compounds are used to supply the turrets and missile launchers.

-The Eye's Pupil: Acts like a solar panel. Concave surface absorbs energy to recharge the internal battery, which powers the lasers, electromagnetic defenses, and some internal functions.

-Electromagnetic "Ears": Two large pieces of metal along the tail piece that contain electromagnets. By manipulating the current through them, Fiddlesticks can attract all metal projectiles toward the ears as a minor defense, repulse them if they're moving slowly enough, and even use "shrapnel" defense by rapidly alternating between the two to blast attracted objects away from her, causing close collateral damage.

-Scanner: Simple enough, a scanner within a slot located under the lower left laser head. Scanning objects places a red grid projection on them. It can only pick up physical data.

Skills:

-Power-Jump Pistons: One joins each of Fiddlesticks' thighs and heels. Jumping straight up (she can jump up to five times her own height!) is built into her system, but she also figured out how to long-jump with them to cross gaps and to alter the force used in each leg so she can jump off of slanted surfaces on an angle.

-Melee Combat: The mech wasn't initially built for this. With some analytical help from Cyrii, she learned how to be more versatile with her bayonets and use her power-jumping pistons to her advantage. She still prefers bullets over kicking guys into the wall though.

-Hacking: The skill is specific to Cyrii, since for the most part Fiddlesticks will just brute-force things despite actively thinking about bypassing in a more clever manner. During her schooling Cyrii spent a lot of time studying AI and software engineering, but since being assigned to a grueling factory job by her Empire her skills have slackened considerably. However, with the right observations and knowledge, she is a decent hacker and can configure machinery "just to get the job done; no promises on the self-imploding part".

Other: Zirhon has a predominately carbon-dioxide atmosphere. Fiddlesticks can recycle air within her for up to 8 days, but breathing can be a complication for these two.

 

Username: rampaging wyvern (RWyvern, wyv)

Name: Takhorr

Age: 17

Gender: Male

Species: Nhyrhys

World of Origin: Kour (aka Aisherica)

Appearance: Bad photo of a collection of sketches

Takhorr is a long, bony and sinuous dragon. In his relaxed stance (illustrated in the linked image as a skeleton reference), he reaches about a metre high at the shoulder. His skin is scaleless, quite loose at points and displays tendons, veins and bones with surprising clarity. It is mostly a slate grey colour, reaching lighter shades around the chest and throat, and nearly black on the spine, top of the head and muzzle, back of the ears and both upper tendrils. His paw and whisker pads, claws and tail tip are black. On the left side of his head, from the base of the ear to nearly the centre of his head, are three whitish scars resembling stripes. His eyes are quite red.

Takhorr bears a pair of three dark spots on his upper lip. Each of these bears a single thick whisker. A collection of much finer whiskers grow on his chin. His palate sports a collection of long, hooked teeth that either open out or retract as the dragon desires. A number of these fangs can inject a lethal neurotoxin.

Takhorr has several unique physical features made for a life of climbing in the Khasry Range, including four long powerfully prehensile tendrils framing his face, hands bearing two thumbs, a whip-like prehensile tail and fourteen hairlike spines on his back. The last of these spines is very long and all fourteen carry small barbs capable of administering a spasm-inducing neurotoxin. Usually these spines lay flat, but once the dragon is threatened they raise to form a 'sail' of sorts.

His wings are long with a well-developed radius and delicate patagiums. Each wing bears two fingers, each finger being composed of two digits. With such a flimsy structure and a nearly non-existent breastbone, these wings are incapable of providing flight. Instead, they allow for gliding and a pretty awesome cape.

Takhorr's front limbs help with climbing. While at first the humerus is very short, the rest of the arm is disproportionately long. His right arm is bent and twisted awkwardly inwards halfway along. His hands are highly dexterous and have leathery pads worn rough from use.

On his neck are six spiracles, set in pairs of three on either side. Takhorr breaths primarily through these and can manually override them in favour of the more 'traditional' respiratory system for cases like speaking and sniffing out prey.

Personality: A smug, condescending little reptile, Takhorr tends to do whatever it takes to save his own skin. This has changed somewhat, as both the scars and bent arm are the result of him standing up for others. This selfish streak is a part of a general nhyrhys' personality, bred into the species through generations of living in one of the most inhospitable places in Kour. That said, he is not a coward and has learnt to stand up to some challenges.

A general rule to keep in mind that Takhorr does not like having a leader figure to follow. Nhyrhys typically live in large colonies with absolutely no order, resulting in some taking advantage of others; Takhorr is no exception, and being forced to be led gives rise to bad feelings towards said leader.

Takhorr is also quite a sadist. When he's not acting condescending, he likes to target psychological weakness and insecurities. Or he can torment through physical means - often, he acts like a cat playing with its prey. He has little respect or value for lives other than his kins' and his own. Why he has this sadistic tendency isn't certain, though it is a behaviour he is attempting to restrain.

Weapons: Fangs, claws, tendrils, neurotoxins.

Powers: N/A

Skills: Takhorr is very agile, in both body and mind. While his eyesight is weak, his senses of sound and touch are exquisite - his uppermost whiskers are capable of detecting heat and lead him to his prey in the darkest of environments. In a cave environment, the dragon is in his environment. He does not even need to see the terrain to be able to leap around it like it's his home.

Takhorr can read, write and speak Kour (the global language of his world)

Other:

- Takhorr's twisted limb is often painful and is guaranteed to be the cause of his eventual death in the Range.

- He prefers damp, cool environments.

- Is capable of producing high-pitched screaming and shrieking, used as long-distance communication.

- If any of you have watched the dubbed versions of Fairy Tail, Soul Eater, OHSHC... To put it simply, apparently Takhorr sounds like Todd Haberkorn.

Edited by Narvix

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Phaenon

 

He had been flying, hunting for his next meal. The wind brushed along his flank, combing through his feathers and stroking his scales. All it took was a blink, and Phaenon's world changed. Literally. Startled by the abrupt appearance of a towering structure, the grygon screeched. He flailed his wings and limbs, veering sharply to the left to avoid the solid object that had suddenly become too close. His tail slammed against the corner of the structure as he floundered, losing altitude until he came to an unfortunate crash landing.

 

Striking the top of another building, the grygon tumbled with a pained cry, another screech escaping as momentum tossed him off the rooftop and onto hard ground. Aching, Phaenon groaned, hissing and grumbling as he untangled himself. "Perfect, just perfect. Where in the heavens did that come from!" Gingerly, he flexed his wings and tested his body, inspecting for any broken bones or other injuries. Beyond bruising, it didn't look like he took much damage.

 

"Now... Where am I?" he breathed, blinking sharp green eyes. Looking about, he slipped out from the shadows cast by the cluster of buildings he'd fallen between. He plucked a chunk of stone from the ground, glancing up to locate where it had broken off of when he crashed against one of the rooftops. Tossing it aside, a hum vibrated through his chest. "Strange..."

 

Peering out from around the buildings, he paused. Beings of all sorts, flesh tones ranging the entire spectrum of color and bodies consisting of shapes even he couldn't list, passed before him. Few looked at him and seemed only mildly surprised or confused. That left Phaenon wondering; the races of Aclosie would have fled upon seeing his kind.

 

Metallic contraptions floated by and above the heads of the unusual beings, coaxing the grygon to stare. This world (he was certain it wasn't Aclosie) was vastly different from his own. Here, wingless creatures were not land-bound. There was nothing... primitive, about this place.

 

It unsettled Phaenon.

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Dusky stalked away from the scene. Again. Stupid Jolteons. Stupid Altezza..

 

Then her world changed in a flash. A heartbeat. The Flareon looked around.

 

"...!"

 

Metallic... things were everywhere. The grass beneath her paws was soft and springy, the sky a brilliant blue. Creatures of all shapes walked here. Some vaguely resembled Pokémon, while others made her stop and stare. There were forms she'd never seen before, not on any Pokémon or animal.

 

The buildings looked like futuristic ones she might see on TV when they aired sci fi. They were odd to her. No creature batted an eye at metallic things. Nothing stared twice at an oddly coloured Flareon like her. Strsnge. Something seems... off about this place.

 

But she can't see anything odd. Not now.

Edited by Dusky_Flareon

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Phaenon

 

Stretching his wings up, Phaenon beat them downward, propelling himself back into the air. The action startled most of the odd creatures that walked by, provoking some to make various sounds of surprise. Ignoring them, the grygon flew away from the area, rising steadily until he was high above the buildings. From here, he had a shocking view of the land below. The thriving city sprawled for miles in all directions, grassy land surrounding the edges.

 

A creeping sense of horror tickled his chest but Phaenon shoved it down. Now was not the time to panic. Powering his four wings, he flew elsewhere, searching. For what? He wasn't certain. Something pricked the back of his mind, propelling him in seemingly random directions until his gaze landed on an odd creature. Every being was odd, in this foreign land. But this one in particular...

 

Hovering high above the small, black- and red-furred animal, Phaenon considered his next course of action. Surely, the tiny creature would spook too easily? He needed to approach it in a manner that wouldn't cause distress. Beginning to spiral, he drifted towards the ground, landing with a thump and rustle of feathers some moments later. "Hello!" he practically roared, trying to grin through a rigid beak.

 

Yes, I believe this will work! he encouraged himself.

 

"You look lost, little creature of fur," he rumbled, lowering his serpentine neck to bring his bird-like face closer to the furry animal.

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Erin stopped.

 

She twisted around to take a look behind her, her feet staying in place but her hips turning. She was no stranger to getting lost in her thoughts and ending up elsewhere, but she could usually retrace her steps by walking back until she reached something familiar. This was not the case.

 

She looked up. Even the surroundings, while some of the skyscrapers were familiar, others looked like they were uprooted from some sci-fi movie from the eighties, right up to the glorious promise of a utopian society. But as usual, people simply walked around her as they continued on with their days, while she continued to stare into the sun. The people -- the people were suddenly different. Green skin, multiple limbs, all of them straight from science fiction. There were creatures too, and not only dragons. Fur, fang, feather.

 

Erin's mouth was slightly agape, before she clenched her lips into a thin line. She knew that this couldn't have been a mind trick. That also tossed out the possibility of reality bubbles, which were outlawed recently. Maybe it was a dream. She looked at her hands and her thin, outstretched fingers. The dream looked real enough. Too real. A science fiction convention, then? She would have heard of it in advance if something big like this came into town. Some of these people had really convincing costumes.

 

But, something kept pulling at her mind. What was the last thing she was doing before she found herself in this place... that definitely wasn't her hometown? She couldn't shake the feeling that it wasn't. She furrowed her brow. The feeling didn't fit in the bigger picture.

 

It would be too troublesome to flag someone down and ask them. Erin decided that she would gather information about the area first, so she could be home in time for dinner.

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Kristi

 

She was on the phone, gabbing away at her sister. Megan was silent as ever, letting Kristi take over the conversation with shopping experiences and random encounters on the subway. All she did was step through the front door of her condo, hold her hand out over the side table and let go of her keys.

 

They landed on a patch of grass instead of polished wood.

 

Kristi's eyes widened, the grip on her phone loosening until it slipped and hit the fertile soil that was at her feet instead of grey carpet. Frozen, the woman wasn't greeted by the old lady who sat on the corner of the couch, knitting away at a sweater that would never be finished, a permanent fixture to the home. There was no hallway stretching out to her left, no stairwell rising to her right.

 

It was open air that surrounded her, clusters of trees reaching towards a healthy blue sky. Panic clutched her chest and she couldn't breathe. Tugging on the hem of her shirt, Kristi tried to get a grip on her racing thoughts.

 

Kristi! Where are you?

 

Megan. Wherever they were, the sisters were still in the same place, close enough for Megan to reach out.

 

I'm... in a park. I think? Kristi responded, spinning in a slow circle to gain her bearings.

 

Stay there. I'll come to you, Megan ordered. Kristi didn't listen. Her feet were already in motion, carrying her in some random direction.

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Vulpes watched in amusement as Arctic was trying to swat at a worm. Her curiosity was highly amusing or highly annoying depending on what she was doing. Right now, she was being amusing. He yawned before scanning the sky for any potential threats. Part of him now hated the purple dragons that hatched every ten years. How come they were remembered and not any dragon else? What about poor Arctic- sweet little Arctic- who was orphaned during the war? Would her story get told?

 

If she hadn't blended in with the snow, she wouldn't be here. She didn't understand why or what was going on except hide and go seek. He waited with her for her parents to come back. They never did. Vulpes considered himself lucky once he convinced Arctic to come with him. She had been excited to see a dragon of a different color and was even more excited to see more than just snow.

 

He was now sniffing the air, rain was on the horizon. "Come along Arctic," Vulpes said as he stood. Arctic bounded to him in a heartbeat. "Big bwother!" she said rather cutely that made his heart melt. "I found somewing intwesting! It was weally tiny and..." Arctic paused, trying to think of the right word to say.

 

"A new color?" Vulpes suggested, lowering his head for Arctic to rub her head against his excitedly. "Oh bwother!" Arctic exclaimed. "You always know what to say!" Vulpes chuckled before he gently nudged her.

 

"Come on, we need to find shelter before it rains," Vulpes said, closing his eyes as Arctic climbed ontop his face. He reopened his eyes as he felt his precious little sister lay on his body. His world literally changed as he took a step forward, the forest being replaced by a city? How did they get here? Was it the mole creatures doing?

 

"Big bwother! What happened?" Arctic asked a bit terrified. "I...dont know," Vulpes replied a bit bewildered. He looked at the structures and realized they weren't created by the freelanders. He started to walk slowly, making sure Arctic wasn't going to freak out. They both turned their attention to the sky as they heard the roar of an unusual creature and saw a gray creature with wings in the air, unflapping.

 

What kind of creature could fly line that? He then noticed some other creatures, tall and multicolored, giving them a glance before going about their business. Well, they weren't cheetahs or agents of Malefor since they weren't attacking. Anger flared up in him again as he thought about the purple dragons. Of course Malefor and Spyro would be remembered. Ignitus and Cynder would also be remembered as well since they were friends of Spyro, Cynder being evil at first.

 

He started to move in one direction to get the creatures' attention off them.

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Today was the day; that first test out on a live battlefield. I was in a small party along with several other mechs, and we were sent out to a suspected rendezvous point of the Enemy's, far out in the badlands. Supposedly, just before our largest sun would set, we would ambush the Enemy and take out several of their leaders. Instead they anticipated our attack and ambushed us in turn.

It was chaotic, to say the least, but it didn't go as expected. I don't know if we won or lost. I don't even know where I ended up!

I had a bayonet aimed squarely at an enemy drone, who I had pinned against a boulder. He was there seconds earlier, damaging my hull and giving me a nice fracture across my eye's protective lens, but instead of the bayonet striking metal and rending wires, it hit glass.

Glass...? The drone turned into a glass shape! Shards of glass fell down onto cement, not stone, and the haze of the atmosphere had vanished.

Cyrii, my consciousness who was calling out commands and relaying information before, was now dead silent. I was frozen mid-thrust, the bayonet still stuck in this... dome? Huge cracks radiated out from the strike point. I was certain that we were looking at some sort of hologram, so I flashed my scanner on.

Cyrii said nothing. I said nothing. The data that came in said that this was clearly glass, specifically made from sand. The enemy drone wasn't glass before... Or a dome. Even weirder, looking past the dome was the definite shape of a steel building.

" Uh... New teleport technology? Did he escape?" Cyrii wondered aloud; considering she was in my head, no one else could hear the confusion.

And replace himself with a glass object at the same time? I questioned privately to her.

" Maybe he teleported us?" She mused. I tore the bayonet out of the dome, before taking a few steps back to take in these bizarre surroundings. There were a couple of screams; but not battle screams, or even robotic ones. Living ones! In shock, I raised the blast shield over my eye and swiveled around.

Huh? Where... What was this place?? This wasn't the badlands at all!

I looked down and saw several smaller, living things scattering away from me; many others that were nearby shouted in annoyance. The larger ones that were around reared up and either glared or watched warily. Some backed off; most of the looks were of confusion and caution.

I didn't believe what I was seeing. We were in some kind of city, someplace I didn't recognize. I was blocking off much of a large sidewalk paralleling a road, and a huge array of strange creatures - some with the strangest anatomy I've ever seen - were simply going about their daily lives in this place. I had interrupted the crowd flow on this sidewalk, but no one seemed to mind; they eventually ignored me and kept on walking. Bewildered, I scanned the nearest living thing to me, a very large creature which froze at the sudden light. Unsure of what else to do, Cyrii awkwardly listed off the information.

" Um... scaly... almost 300 lbs... membrane wings, flight capable... I've never seen that kind of face before. It looks almost like an isthugumus kyl." She gave me an overlay over my vision of the isthugumus, a gliding reptilian. The body structure matched, but... the small animal was still too different from this beast. It was also dumb; this thing acted intelligently.

 

The creature gave me an indignant look before it rolled its eyes and continued waddling down the sidewalk, pushing past me. It muttered something to a passerby, a smaller, upright-walking being covered mostly in clothing. It had a bald, expressive face, but plenty of hair on its head. The being looked at me, hesitated mid-step, and then decided to take a detour across the street. I looked down at the vast array of other, intelligent creatures surrounding me. They didn't believe I was a threat at all.

" Where are we?? I don't recognize any of this from an Apex city; and why is no one alarmed?" At the mention of our interplanetary allies, I opened up my scanner and checked every creature that passed in front of me. Nothing matched any of the races we were allied with. I switched my attention from living to nonliving things, and scanned the glass dome I had impaled; turns out, it was an overhang for a bench beside the sidewalk. All of the materials were comprised of recognized elements, but the structure of the bench itself matched nothing.

I looked up at the sky. Scanned it. Paused.

This isn't good.

" Um... Fiddlesticks... the sky is blue. BLUE." Cyrii's voice grew shaky; she only used my nickname when she really wanted my attention. " It's supposed to be yellow, not blue."

I scanned the sky, intending to pick up gas particles; it took several tries to have enough data. There was a wide array of trace gases, but two things stood out:

" Oxygen and... nitrogen...." Cyrii sounded weak.

We both had a moment of internal panic.

Cyrii you have to be kidding me we're going to DIE out here! Where are we?!

" I don't know!"

We have to figure something out! Regroup!

" I know!" Cyrii's anxiety was through the roof. " I know I know I know... Um! Just keep scanning things! We have at least a week to find something."

 

I did. Repeatedly I scanned as many things as I could in each burst, Cyrii and I both analyzing the results. I earned plenty of weird looks, but the last thing I cared about right now was courtesy; evident by the fact that I suddenly began to move again, expecting everyone to work around me. Instead I just caused the crowd to tangle up in alarm, trying to work around me but not expecting my trot to be so fast and practically flinging themselves out of the way.

" Slow down a bit, will you?" Cyrri took the time to scold me. I was tempted to ignore her, but I grudgingly did slow down to a march. The bristling crowd was more willing to work with me with that.

I disregarded the muttering creatures, searching for anything that might be an air supply refill station, or perhaps a creature that also needed carbon dioxide. Unfortunately, every person that passed me seemed to have no trouble breathing the poisonous atmosphere. All of the frantic scanning did net some information about the place though: pollutants were at a surprising low, for the dense population of creatures. Everyone seemed to be comfortable with one another, as I noticed very little tension, even between seeming polar opposites, from armored reptilians to jelly people and races of all sizes and shapes. With Cyrii muttering about the scanner's findings, I noticed that almost every being was a biological entity that could breathe oxygen and had similar body structures.

But none of it made any sense. Not one file we had described a mixed-race city that functioned so well. Not even the technology spoke of a particular race's genius!

 

Running along the sidewalk and watching the wide variety of vehicles fly by along the street, I eventually happened upon a split in the buildings, which opened up into a large garden of some kind. It wasn't made of stone or had a lot of vegetation though; it was a large expanse of very short grass, dotted by the occasional, alien plant, most of which were taller than I was. The carpet of grass was an unnatural, rich shade of green. I quickly scanned the grass, just out of curiosity.

" CARBON DIOXIDE!" Cyrii shrieked, making me stiffen up. " It's like our plants at home, Fiddlesticks! They breathe carbon dioxide!!"

But the green.

" I know, it's not yellow enough, but - hey, go scan that giant plant over there. I think it's a plant?" She redirected my attention to one of the large alien organisms. I approached it, scanning its brown trunk and eventually its leaves. " Yup, definitely a plant. Related to the grass too; it also breathes carbon dioxide."

So we need to find... a biofarm? I wondered dubiously. Do they have biofarms here?

" What do I know? This isn't even an Apex city. We don't even know how we ended up here!"

I swiveled away from the giant hard-trunk plant, looking around the expanse of grass. I noticed a being, similar to the one who decided to detour around me earlier, walking past. She was too far away to scan, but something about her posture and expression...

" She looks confused about her surroundings." Cyrii echoed my thoughts.

I suddenly had a random idea. Do you think she was also teleported?

" A sick Oscillin joke?" Cyrii asked bitterly. The Oscillin were a race that fought against the Apex powers, which we were a part of; transportation and deception were their specialty. I could neither confirm nor deny that the Oscillin were involved with this, but it felt very, very likely.

" 86% percent chance that this is an Oscillin thing." Cyrii betted. I didn't want to take bets though. I wanted to approach the confused being and see if she had the same experience we did, but considering I didn't know her race the chances of me knowing her language were extremely unlikely...

"... Binary?"

Oh yeah, Cyrii can interpret my "thought code". Binary might work. I responded. I cautiously approached the being, not wanting to alarm her; I stayed a safe distance away and kept my gaze over her shoulder just for good measure. No point in making it look like I was targeting her. Once I was close enough I flashed my scanner over her, partially to grab her attention and partially to assure myself that she was what she looked like, before letting out a series of low beeps of ones and zeros, hoping she would pick up on it.

 

((Apologies for taking a while; I had to chop down the post size significantly. I'm interacting with Kristi.))

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Kristi

 

Her panic was slowly growing as she kept walking, her eyes taking in the sight of unfamiliar buildings and monstrous creatures in the nearby distance. Kristi's thoughts were wild, her new surroundings only partially being absorbed in realization.

 

Where was she?

 

Light flashed in the corner of her vision, causing her to flinch and whirl to locate the source. Before her stood some sort of giant robot, her eyes widening. Stumbling back a couple steps, she nearly let out a scream until the contraption began to beep at her. Clamping a hand over her mouth, she stilled, her body trembling slightly from fear.

 

However, it didn't hurt her. Instead, it seemed to simply want to talk to her.

 

Swallowing hard, Kristi lowered her hand and gripped the hem of her shirt, twisting the fabric slowly. "I, uh...," she started. Was this thing a native to this place? "I-I'm sorry..." she tried, failing to project her voice any louder than a mumble. Clearing her throat, she shook her head. "I-I d-d-don't understand..." she breathed.

 

[[i'll post for my other two in a bit.]]

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Slow breathing, lower heart rate... must decrease body temperature...

 

A lone nhyrhys, clinging to the roof of a cave. Wings spread out and pressed flat, long claws digging into the smallest cracks for all the were worth, tail winding around every little hold it could find.

 

Barely a metre below, the whiskered back of a monster threatened to brush whatever hung a little too low.

 

Chak-chak-chak— the monster's clicking vocals rang throughout the cave. The sound of a burega hunting for its prey. From the nhyrhys' point of view, the neon patterns strobing and flashing across the burega's giant salamander body was quite enough to be able to know it was still hunting for him, in the typical stubborn burega manner. The light illuminated the cave and the nhyrhys' distinct form.

 

But those blank white eyes of its could not see a single thing. It, like most Khasrian creatures, relied heavily on sensing heat with specially modified organs. If he, the nhyrhys, could effectively become 'invisible' with the cold rocks he clung to, then survival would just be a matter of waiting. Even the only line of defence the nhyrhys possessed - neurotoxins - were useless against this enemy. A rule of thumb, no-one took on a burega without a swathe of fire and survived.

 

It had been ten minutes, and only now the burega interrupted its clicking with a long, low rumble. The bioluminescent patterns intermittently ceased to flicker, showing the burega was losing interest.

 

Takhorr's right arm, reaching as far as it could for a hold in the ceiling, was suddenly wracked with a sharp pain that radiated up the shoulder. With a sharp inhalation and trembling slightly, Takhorr gritted his teeth. His heart rate was increasing. Not now, not now! The burega still shuffled below him. Just a little longer...

 

The burega snorted, the glowing patterns fading almost completely from its body, and it began to rumble, moan and trill in a way that proclaimed to itself that the hunt was off. It even turned and began lumbering towards the cave exit, dragging its feet with unpleasant scrapes. Takhorr's arm, progressively weakening, finally gave out and let go of the ceiling. Almost losing his grip, Takhorr managed to let himself down swiftly and quietly, landing just shy of the burega's tail. The beast didn't react. Takhorr aimed to wait until it stepped outside before daring to move again.

 

Except things didn't pan out that way. The burega froze, only halfway out. Then it turned its head to 'look' back in, the multitude of fangs filling its grinning jaws gleaming. The distinct patch of something slightly warmer than the surrounding stone... The bioluminescent patterns flashed back up: the hunt was on once more.

 

Takhorr took a step back when his hind foot suddenly slipped on some kind of smooth surface, likely stone slicked with a film of water. The burega's hulking form twisted around and thundered towards the nhyrhys - all he could do was erect his spines in a futile last-ditch effort to save himself. So this was how it was going to end. His last view would be that of the manically grinning face of the Khasrian apex predator.

 

He was suddenly blinded by an increase of light. The burega, as sound dictated, seemed to stop, and the lethal bite never came. The silent ambience of the Range suddenly found itself replaced with incomprehesible noise, the cave roof melted away into a daytime sky, and the oxygen levels seemed to plummet.

 

Takhorr blinked, taking a deep breath. What was this? The stony floor was gone. Instead, he clung to the top of a large slope. A slope like many lying around the place, fixed to towering, shiny structures of many shapes. His paws had nearly no grip, leaving him scrabbling to stay up. The array of creatures in this environment... Not one was familiar. It was so busy, so bright. And Takhorr came to the realisation that he was out in the open.

 

Claws screeching on the alloy, Takhorr turned and made a leap for a small alley at the end of the slope. His wings spread out to slow his decent, yet he misjudged and his jaw ungracefully struck the edge of the neighbouring structure with a loud clang, snapping his head back and causing the nhyrhys to fall down into the alley. Not a problem; he landed on all four paws.

 

Clear of direct sunlight, Takhorr peered out at the many organisms inhabiting this place. He'd just watch their behaviour for a bit, first...

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((Woo, Rampaging is in!))

 

The being had a completely different reaction to the scanner than the other creatures did. As she suddenly whipped around, Cyrii's presence in my head jumped, and she made a seething noise that I associated with alarm; I was able to stay calm, and didn't twitch.

The being wasn't recovering, trying to make a hasty retreat before fear froze her in place. I ceased the stream of binary, wondering if that was the problem, but then she began making strange noises... her native language?

Cyrii!

" Yeah yeah yeah, I'm on it!" She snapped; she didn't like the fact that she was scared. While the being was still standing in front of me, I decided to give her another scan...

" No language match." Cyrii said. " No luck either, she's a carbon-based oxygen breather. Although... the clothes she's wearing matches those of the Creator entities. In fact, the fibers are almost identical!"

The Creator entities were the creatures that made me and the other mechs. This was good news; it narrowed down what she was!

The binary did not appear to be working. I said.

" No." Cyrii replied. " Hm, the data you gathered is... wait a minute... We've been doing this all wrong!"

What do you mean?

" We've been looking for either Apex allies or the Enemy. But what about neutral parties? Or unrelated foreigners?" Cyrii began inputting data into my console.

We have that kind of information?

" Just give me a bit."

 

I did. Although that involved staring at this strange being for a while, who was slowly becoming a nervous wreck. If we didn't hurry this up she might make a bolt for it. I wasn't sure what to do though... Cyrii did most of the thinking for me. I decided to simply crouch down and wait; folding my legs up under me reduced my height greatly, just below eye level of this being, so maybe it would help her calm down.

" I have something." Cyrii spoke again. " We have record of the Enemy trying to impress other races into their services, including more primal civilizations. According to the file, there's a race of particular interest to them, literally on the brink of the interplanetary frontier, but for some reason their development halted. The race is a Highly Adaptive class, more brains than anything else. Omnivores too, and they wear clothing because hair only grows in specific places on them."

Is this one?

" Don't know, visual data is limited. They respond to the word "Helloh" though. The Enemy's abductions suggest that this is some sort of greeting. They also say "leht goh" and "pleeze" a lot."

It's hard to portray to you how confusing these words were to us. Our language consisted of many vowels punctuated by hard consonants, often slurred together in some sort of consistent noise. For example, "boujevr" meant "hello", and was pronounced "boovair". So naturally, I was at a complete loss as to what to try first.

" Hello? That's the greeting... probably. Worse comes to worse, you offend her."

That's a bad idea. I responded factually. Regardless though, I tried it; luckily my voice sounded innocent enough, not abrasive or threatening like the factory default's. Cyrii continued scouring our limited database as I asked:

" Hello?"

Edited by skwerl56767

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Vulpes held his wings up, making sure Arctic wouldn't run off him, but she was content on staying put on him until he made sure it was safe. He looked up slightly and gasped as he caught the tail end of something. Another dragon? "Hang on Arctic," Vulpes said as he started to run. He tried to keep up with the flying dragon, but quickly lost it in the walking creatures. Why were there so many of them!? He sighed, realizing that finding the dragon again would be nearly impossible. He kicked a pebble and looked around. The tall structures were there and it made him feel crowded. He glanced over to something to see the dragon poking its head out!

 

"Arctic, keep quiet," Vulpes whispered as he walked over to the odd looking dragon. "Greetings, it's a relief to see a familiar species here." He looked at the dragon and realized he never seen a dragon of this particular type before.

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Kristi

 

As she stood there, trying to make her legs work, Kristi's eyes followed the giant machine as it... sat down? With it no taller than her eye level, Kristi waited for something else to happen. Another flash of light filled her vision for just a blink before a beam seemed to travel down her figure. Sucking in a sharp breath, she brought her arms in over her chest, heart skipping beats. "W-W-What ar-are you doing!" she questioned, voice cracking.

 

The light flickered off and she held her breath, waiting for the machine to gut her, riddle her with bullets, or... or something. Except, no weapons came into view. Instead of killing her or beeping at her, an uncertain voice drifted from the contraption.

 

It spoke English!

 

"H-Hi?" Kristi mumbled, slowly lifting a shaky hand to wave at the machine - albeit somewhat jerkily. "You... Speak? English?" she inquired, her panic ebbing just a fraction in light of some familiarity.

 

Megan

 

There were too many voices, too many thoughts.

 

Pressing the heel of their palm against their right temple, Megan grit their teeth and tried to focus. The population density had suddenly, significantly increased. And not all of the thoughts crowding their head seemed even vaguely human. Which, when they absorbed their new surroundings, made a lot of freaky sense. Creatures of all colors and shapes filled the street around them, bodies brushing against theirs. One oddity left behind a gooey substance on the side of their left sleeve.

 

"Ugh, gross..." Megan muttered, grimacing as they wiped their ick-covered fingers on their pant leg. Squeezing their eyes shut and pinching the bridge of their nose with a thumb and index finger, Megan growled under their breath. A migraine throbbed at the front of their head, causing their throat to faintly constrict as bile rose. This was not going to get any better, they were certain, so they might as well tough it out and push through.

 

Wanting to beat any nausea that would surely come, Megan inhaled deeply through their nostrils, letting out a steadying breath through their lips. Kristi.... Of course their sister would not listen to them and just stay put! A mobile human was harder to locate than a stationary one. But -

 

There you are! I thought I told you to stay put! I'm coming to you, Megan grumbled.

 

I'm... I think I'm talking to a... Robot, came Kristi's baffled response.

 

You're what?

 

It said 'hello' to me. What was I supposed to do? Just ignore it? What if it kills me because I offended it?

 

Are you insane! We don't know what's going on and you're making friends? The thought went out like a hiss, a growl at the back of their throat. Never mind! Just stay there I'l-

 

Megan wasn't watching where their feet carried them, crashing into another body. "Jeez! Damnit!" they grunted, reflexively grabbing at anything to arrest their fall. Fingers latched onto fabric and an irritated snort (was it irritated?) found Megan's ear before someone (or thing) yanked them off balance again.

 

Hitting the ground, Megan scowled and began muttering swears under their breath as they picked themself up. "For censorkip.gif's sake! I just want to find my sister!" Megan snarled, hazel eyes locking onto the first shape they found.

 

A human shape.

 

"Whoa..." they breathed. In all this body chaos, they hadn't thought about the chances of running into another human. "Uh..." Something felt wrong. They couldn't place it, staring at the woman before them until -

 

I can't read her thoughts.

 

[[Already mentioned to Mage: Megan ran into Erin.]]

Edited by Narvix

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'Familiar species'? Takhorr reached his head forward as far as his neck would allow, whisking and sniffing this strange orange dragon before him. His six spiracles flared with every non-sniff breath and his tendrils writhed on the ground.

 

Alright,, he had a clear enough picture, time to stop inspecting. Takhorr began to slink around the orange dragon, keeping low to the ground. "Familiar species?" he repeated, voice carrying cruel and condescending tone. "You aren't fit for Khasrian life, and nobody recognises you." A judging look thrown in the white dragon's direction: these two were just random creatures from the busy herd out there. His slow, silky smooth movements suddenly transitioned into a burst of speed out from the strangers' personal space and back in front of them, those flimsy wings flowing elegantly behind him as he twisted to a stop, balancing on his hind legs and giving the orange dragon a level stare, brows low and lips drawn back into a slick, thin smile.

 

"It's funny," he mused. "I should be dead right now. Clamped in the gob of a burega. But Knagua be damned, now I have to put up with you." Takhorr let himself back down on all fours, his long nails clicking on the ground. "Would I be correct in assuming you're expecting an introduction along the likes of the civilized people's? Takhorr's the name. It means 'sleight of hand'. Now censorkip.gif off if you don't want any dealings with a nhyrhys. It's not like I'll judge you."

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The response seemed positive... well, somewhat. The being was still shaking, probably from fear, but she did make a shorter version of the "helloh", except ending in a higher pitch. We were communicating! But did it mean the same thing?

" 'Hiee'? I'm pretty sure she's not saying 'yes sir'." Cyrii sniffed.

Wouldn't that be 'hieel'? I asked. She didn't respond, going back to her database search. I hesitated for a long moment, wondering what to do. The being then raised a hand and moved it in front of me, with a slight tilting of the wrist, and said a few more things. I wasn't sure what that meant either. What other words do you have?

" Well... you could try 'pleeze'. Stolen files from an Enemy base don't give much, you know."

What about images? To show?

" What? You want to draw something? You don't have the finite control to do anything other than fill things will bullet holes."

I pondered on that, though without Cyrii to help me a lot of my threads ended up terminating into nothing. Ever since my BIOS was edited one day - and most of my previous memory wiped - I haven't had much capacity for thinking; that was her job now. I could collect data... and interact with the world. That was it.

 

I struggled to think for myself.

" Stop it, you're using fuel! And air!" Cyrii snapped.

But I-

" I know, but you don't have the processing capacity for that. Besides, protocol. Just because you were hacked to make you more efficient doesn't mean you can be smart AND brawny. It's too obvious. It's..." Cyrii faltered. " The Empire... isn't even around anymore... They would know..."

Something suddenly clicked. The Empire. Our world. Symbols.

" What?"

Planet! I stood up and took a few steps away from the being, then looked straight down at the ground; or as well as I could, anyway. I charged up the lasers around my eye.

" Whoa WHOA what are you doing?! That's our emergency supply!"

I ignored Cyrii, and fired the lasers pinpoint on the ground, before moving my torso just a bit in every direction, etching a sphere and some continents onto the ground. Considering I was a computer the work was surprisingly finite, if a bit smeared from the grass trying to catch fire. Thankfully, it was green enough that nothing serious happened. I tried filling in the "oceans" in the planet drawing with a simple crosshatch pattern, and finally Cyrii understood my idea. When the lasers fell below half charge I stopped my work and looked pointedly at the being, then the sky, then back at the drawing, hoping to send a message of "where are we?".

" I take it back, some of your previous logarithms still work." She grumbled. " I'll be damned if she knows what you mean though..."

Edited by skwerl56767

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Hundreds of ship-to-ship ionized particle beams flickered out through the space around the Adamis deep space espionage station, crossing many kilometers in minutes.

 

"Thinker, we are being fired upon." Vost's voice spoke directly into his mind through the cortical link, accompanied by live combat data detailing the trajectory and composition of the incoming shots as they seared through the vacuum at nearly the speed of light. Numerous tubes irised open along Vost's length, Shard Missiles sliding out and warping themselves into the opposing fighters as the Black Shield flared in response to hits.

 

"Fire the Straight Gun, target the station's primary reactor." Thinker communicated, though it was more of an intent than a command in words. Immediately, the gap between the upper and lower blades of Vost's front three quarters began to darken as the building true vacuum obscured the stars behind it.

 

Vost appeared in the sky two nanoseconds before completion of the firing process, Thinker issuing an immediate abort sequence as the air displaced by Vost's sudden occupation of the space expanded outwards in a shockwave, a glass-rattling boom echoing out from half a kilometer above the city.

 

"Vost, location report. Check for extradimensional phenomena." Thinker asked the ship as he studied the landscape below through Vost's sensors, zooming in on the myriad of species. Nothing unusual for something like a Central Sphere world, but the technology was archaic. No stepspace signatures, either. "Interdimensional disturbance detected, probability of relation to our current situation is 98.8%. Star mapping shows we are no longer in Esa. Engaging point defence." There were three known species that use targeted dimensional shifts to isolate individual ships. "Deploy Proxy." Thinker had already begun the deploy command as he communicated. "Inadvisable, we are in hostile territory." The command was cancelled. "Compromise, then. Descend to five meters."

 

Vost dropped from the sky, falling level and at a constant speed like he was on rails before stopping suddenly, five meters from the city street.

Edited by SogYothoth

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Training was tough and arduous, but this was just ridiculous. Alan and the rest Spartan Team Garuda were among the many Spartan teams on Onyx when the world literally turned against them. Forerunner constructs known as Sentinels began attacking them, seemingly unprovoked and the Spartans had no choice but to fight against a technologically superior foe that wasn't like the Covenant. These Sentinels were tough SOB's. None of the weapons they used were effective except when the shields were down, and there was a slim chance of that as it was.

 

He was just about to fire his weapon when his world blinked from view and was replaced by a much more peaceful world, though his brain did not register the change in his surroundings enough to stop his finger from pulling the trigger on his MA5K carbine rifle, but his surprise was enough to keep from firing directly at a creature that looked like a dragon and a gryphon had a love child. His helmet was able to hide his shock through the polarized lense that is currently colored graphite. He lowered his gun and waved to the creature with his left hand while his right brought his gun to rest against his shoulder. "Sorry! I was in the middle of something when.... I don't know," he said, looking around in what could be considered a confused way.

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"A humanoid has appeared on the surface. The anomaly that brought us here is likely not an isolated occurrence." Vost stated as the sensor's visible spectrum imputs panned over to Alan's position. "Further speculation suggests that they are some form of soldier. Simplistic weaponry and energy shielding, as well as crude biological enhancements" He continued. "Vost, deploy Proxy." Thinker had already readied the override command.

 

"We agreed not to, if I become incapable of fabricating a new Proxy, we will have lost an important asset." The ship expanded the sensor view to planet-scale once again. "Trust my judgement, Vost. Besides, you analyzed their weapons. Would they be capable of damaging the Proxy?" Vost transmitted a feeling of begrudging acceptance in reply, as Thinker felt his consciousness shift focus over to the humanoid mechanical body. "Deploy twelve meters from the newcomer and attenuate the visual and auditory stimuli of deployment." The Proxy appeared in a flash of blue and a thud of displaced air, but before the sound and light could reach any living beings they were stilled by the wavelength manipulation of Vost's Dataprobe, mimicking the near-seamless arrival process that occurred with all of the others.

 

Thinker feigned surprise, looking about in an expression of bewilderment. "Where am I?" He questioned to nobody in particular, but the Proxy's voice was amplified to be clearly audible to those nearby. At a wordless command, Vost shot upwards into the thermosphere and began using the Dataprobe to transmit false signals to any attempts at ground-to-air or orbital detection.

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Erin's shoulder smacked into another body who was in a in a damn hurry, nearly throwing the both of them off balance. She shifted her stance, staying steady on her feet while the other human grabbed the corner of her coat to stay steady. Erin pulled the garment closer to her, shaking the other person off in the process, in case this was as lame attempt at pickpocketting -- not that she had anything that the common person would find valuable.

 

"Feh." Her huff sent a few loose strands of hair flying. This stranger had their knickers in a twist and Erin would rather mind her own business and walk away. She began taking a few steps, continuing her journey to nowhere in particular, but stopped and looked up at the sound of a jet passing overhead among the flying beasts.

 

"I guess this is... kind of weird..." she finally admitted to herself out loud.

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Kristi

 

When the robot started moving again, Kristi stiffened, following it with her eyes as it stood and stepped back. It's head turned downward and, after a moment, a laser started burning lines into the ground. Kristi jumped, startled by the sudden (though odd) use of what appeared to be a weapon. Initially, she stood, greatly confused and frightened by what the machine was doing. Once it had finished, it started... gesturing?

 

Tentatively, the woman inched closer, her gaze drifting from the machine to the picture it seemed to have scorched into the soil. "That looks like Earth!" Kristi burst out, fear vanishing in an instant to be replaced with surprise and recognition. "That's Earth but..." she trailed off, glancing around her before looking up at the machine. "I don't think we're on Earth. Or, if we are, it's in some futuristic time..." she mused.

 

Blinking slowly, she frowned. "Wait. You don't know where we're at, do you? You don't recognize this place, meaning..." The dots connected themselves in her mind as she worked out their situation. "You're in the same boat I am," she concluded.

 

Phaenon

 

Well, that hadn't gone as planned. As soon as he had started speaking to the small creature, the poor furry thing fled in terror. Maybe his smile had been too toothy? Shaking his head, Phaenon started moving again, staying on the ground instead of taking to the air this time. He wondered aimlessly, not sure if he should be trying to locate a certain building or individual who might help him.

 

Whatever he probably might need to think about, he knew it didn’t include being attacked by a humanoid creature made of strange metal. The brief, but exceedingly loud, assault caused Phaenon to reel backwards, rising on his hindlegs and spreading his four wings out with a startled roar. “Wha-!” he hollered.

 

The metal creature was talking, making incoherrent sounds that seemed merely like primal snarls. Returning to all fours, Phaenon regarded the strange thing with a tilted head and narrowed gaze. However, before he thought to prod the metal creature with questions, something else appeared suddenly and glanced about quizzically.

 

“Just what in the world…?” Phaenon murmured, reaching a clawed hand forward to poke the newest oddity in the back.

 

Megan

 

Shoving her disbelief and surprise aside, Megan raked fingers through her hair. At the other woman’s remark, she nodded slightly. “I’ll say. I’ve had one hell of an afternoon. I’m lost in some unknown place, filled with all sorts of… aliens, and I can’t find my sister,” she breathed, the reality sinking in. censorkip.gif....”

 

Staring at the surrounding buildings, bodies, and machines, Megan inhaled slowly and squeezed her eyes shut. “Doesn’t help that the population is denser than back at home…,” she grumbled under her breath. What was she going to do? Kristi’s making friends and-

 

Well, actually, that didn’t seem like a bad idea.

 

Blinking her eyes open, she held out a hand. “Call me Megan,” she introduced.

 

Event Scene

 

“Damn it! None of them landed where they were supposed to!”

 

“I told you the interception wouldn’t work. Why didn’t you listen to me?”

 

“Well, I had to give it a try! Better this than the other result, right?” Silence. “Good. Now pass me that welder.” Metal clicked and a flame ignited, light flaring for just a moment. “There, that should do it. Let’s try this again.”

 

Both figures watched the machine, shifting their gazes to the platform as a beam began to transmit. Within moments, there was a flash followed by the sound of several bodies - and heavy metal objects - hitting the platform. Groans or grunts of pain whispered through the air as limbs shifted and heads turned.

 

“Ah! There we go! See, June? I told you I could get it!”

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We were making progress! The being had recovered quite a bit now, interested in the planet image I had scorched into the ground. She continued speaking in her own language though... which was still a problem.

So we both concluded that we were on a planet, and judging by the being's expression, she was just as lost as we were. So... now what?

I studied the being for a bit longer. Anything? I asked Cyrii.

" I've sifted through the same data five times. I have nothing."

Maybe analyze what she said?

" Hey, there are a bajillion different ways to communicate to someone. I can't just give you a clue in ten seconds flat."

Clues, clues... There had to be something to work off of! Repetition, or tone, or something...

I decided to try scanning her again, but before I could open up my scanner everything suddenly changed.

 

" WHOAAA!" Cyrii cried out. I fell over in shock; or wait, was I pushed?! The ground was behind me, at least. Something struck my eye lens, fracturing it further. Something metal! I tried to push it off, but as it slid off something else tumbled on top of me too, now feathery. The metal something was heavy, and fell over onto one turret, pinning me. There were cries of alarm all around me.

Cyrii started screaming. " What's happening?! WHAT IS THIS?!?"

I can't move!

" Fight back! Fight back!"

I tried to move, tried to do something, but an immense amount of weight just came out of nowhere! Did something crash? Were we teleported again? Both?!

" Rotate!"

I tried to rotate. I was still pinned by whatever heavy metal object was on my turret, but I could at least face the thing and try to push it away from me. A couple of things slid off while I moved too.

 

Suddenly, a victorious shout. I stopped moving.

" ...What language is that?" Cyrii wondered aloud. The voice was muffled from me being pinned, but it definitely had a rhythm; someone somewhere was talking. Happy! I concluded that it was an Enemy trap. The entire city must have been a simulation! Why else would there be a happy someone after a pile of... things dropped onto me?!

I was thoroughly fired up now, and still struggling with this metal object; mostly angry at myself for not catching such an obvious tactic. For shame! I had better training than that!

" It's not working." Cyrii said flatly, referring to my attempts at pulling out from under the object.

RNnGhghghhhNNRnrhGhghh!

" Still not - HEY HEY! Put that rocket away! Limited ammo supply!" She snapped. I spat out a stream of angry binary at her; not that she understood it. " And stop beeping at me! Look, I'm trying to assess... where are we? The atmosphere is different... stagnant."

I tried to calm down, and ceased the binary. Cyrii studied my sensory data for a moment. " Scan that thing in front of you."

I did. The results were... bizarre.

" The heck kind of metal...? What's this weird disturbance around it...?"

If only I could move. I said bitterly. Cyrii started poking around in my database, looking for something in particular while I laid there like a pile of scrap metal.

 

" The elements used match those used in Apex spacecraft; well, some of them, anyway." Cyrii spoke up again. " So this thing must be light enough to push off."

Spacecraft?? I wondered dubiously. Someone dropped a SHIP on us? Not expecting an answer, I pulled my legs up and placed them against the object, readying my power-jumping pistons.

" Uh, careful, you might pull-!"

I fired them. There was a horrible screeching sound of metal scraping against metal, and I was thrown back several feet. Cyrii shrieked.

Ah hah! Success! Free from being pinned! Still laying on the ground, but free!

" ...your arm off..." Cyrii finished weakly. I rotated abruptly and pushed myself up off the ground, and a great weight fell off of me with a squawk. I backed up in alarm, hit a wall, and tried scanning the thing.

Feathers? Alive? Grey? What was that?? What was that next to it? What was THAT??

" What are these things?!" Cyrii echoed my confusion. I tried to scan them all, but I was looking at a literal dogpile! With my frantic scanning, I found something even more bewildering; the being we were talking to (or at least trying to talk to) earlier was one of the many creatures in the pile. It was an eerie coincidence...

 

I looked around to get my bearings. It was a very dark, decent-sized room, with the only visible object being a large monitor on one wall, displaying an unfamiliar planet; Cyrii was right, the air was stagnant here, so it must be well-sealed or at least closed off. There were two more strangers in the room, who were not part of the dogpile; instead they were standing in front of the monitor, below us, both excited. So they must have been the ones who let out that victory shout. One was a species I didn't recognize; the other one looked eerily similar to a Nevone.

I didn't have much in my database for Nevones. Squishy, passive, feel-good, appeasing amphibians. Beyond that, they worked for the Enemy.

Enemy spotted! I raised my turrets and narrowed my blast iris.

" Whoa now, that can't be-!"

Target acquired!

" FIDDLESTICKS, HOLD UP! Don't fire!"

I twitched. Nevone... scientist...

" His clothes are wrong!" Cyrii tried to assure me. " We're fine! We're fine. I'm sure he knows what's going on. We need to keep him alive."

I stayed tense, but gradually lowered my weapons. I still wanted to blast him to pieces, but I had to obey Cyrii's orders, no matter what she wanted me to do.

You better be right about this. I warned her. She didn't respond.

Edited by skwerl56767

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