Rumbles - The RPG

[Sol M]

Sol peered at the new arrival over Mcgaffer's shoulder. Her appearance and demeanor certainly didn't suggest that that was an enemy. It could be ruled out as a possibility at this point, but it didn't seem very likely either.

"Rick" she had said. Who was Rick? No one he'd met in the last twenty four hours, that was for certain. The closest was Richter, and...nah, couldn't be.

Her accent was familiar, and the fact that she held a candle was once more reassuring. Still, her unconventional appearance looked extremely out of place in the tunnel they were in, and left no one in doubt that this was an odd encounter.

In any case, he waited for Mcgaffer to respond before processing anything else.

[mcgaffer]

The Mysterious Mister Beadle suddenly mysteriously disappeared as Mcgaffer walked ahead of the group. It was the lack of a purple flaming Duck that first clued him in, and almost breaking his nose on the wall in the sudden darkness, "Sodding, bollocking hell!"

Mcgaffer's eyes started to readjust, there was still some small light in the tunnel, and even more just arriving apparently. The young woman with the lantern called out to them "Rick? Rick? Is that you?" Mcgaffer had been called a lot worse then Rick in his life so he let this slide, he noted her fear just after he noted her valuable resource, the light.

He called out in a calm soothing voice, one that he used for talking to recently deceased and confused souls, and stepped forwards slowly into the light "I'm afraid not. But we are friends looking to help. Did Rick come down this tunnel ahead of you?" Mcgaffer was suddenly in front of the girl as he finished talking and in his extended hand was a hipflask, it seemed as if it had appeared from nowhere. "A small drink to calm yourself. Then a small word about where you've just come from and then we'll see what we can do to help."

[FrenchGemini]

Okay, being blind was okay with FrenchGemini once in a while, but going in a dark , tight tunnel in which they couldn't see anything without the flaming duck of Beadle, who had disappeared to tell how sh***y the situation was, was really pushing it, reminded him of the long years in the capsule. The robot couldn't even use his flamethrower without harming someone... Ah, someone with a candle, a woman who looked for one Rick. He didn't know a Rick related to the situation... First, the Dormunsk guy, now that Rick... He had a lot of catching up to do (including catching his teleporter's manufacturer and tell him exactly how much good he thought of his device...). But he had at least learnt one thing since arriving here: let Mcgaffer do the talking part.

[Nik Hasta]

The Mysterious Mister Beadle suddenly mysteriously disappeared as Mcgaffer walked ahead of the group. It was the lack of a purple flaming Duck that first clued him in, and almost breaking his nose on the wall in the sudden darkness, "Sodding, bollocking hell!"

Mcgaffer's eyes started to readjust, there was still some small light in the tunnel, and even more just arriving apparently. The young woman with the lantern called out to them "Rick? Rick? Is that you?" Mcgaffer had been called a lot worse then Rick in his life so he let this slide, he noted her fear just after he noted her valuable resource, the light.

He called out in a calm soothing voice, one that he used for talking to recently deceased and confused souls, and stepped forwards slowly into the light "I'm afraid not. But we are friends looking to help. Did Rick come down this tunnel ahead of you?" Mcgaffer was suddenly in front of the girl as he finished talking and in his extended hand was a hipflask, it seemed as if it had appeared from nowhere. "A small drink to calm yourself. Then a small word about where you've just come from and then we'll see what we can do to help."

Suddenly the tunnel shook, another resounding boom echoing through passage in a manner that almost seemed to close to be the product of Stheno and the Warden's battle. A large chunk of the wall to Mcgaffer's right cracked and shifted into the passage, shoving the thief against the opposite wall. He was unhurt and the wall shifted again and retreated somewhat so the passageway was not blocked.

The woman screamed slightly hysterically and quickly made her way over to the group, doing her best not to cry.

Then the world twisted, some mysterious and unknown power pushed at the fabric of it and for a moment the lights flickered brightly and a tall dark figure stood hauntingly behind the were the woman had just been standing. They lingered for a moment and then was gone and the tunnel was dark once more.

[Sub-Zero MKA]

I couldn't have been the only one who saw that, he reassures himself after seeing the dark figure.

Applying a mask of apathy to hide his concern, he turns his attention to to woman.

[Sol M]

He had absolutely no idea what was going on at this point. The tunnels walls were shifting as if they had a mind of their own, the woman screamed hysterically on witnessing this, and yet moved towards the occurrence instead of away from it, something that was only likely to happen if there was something worse in the other direction.

And then the world changed as everything turned bright for an instant, as a haunting apparition greeted their eyes, only adding to all the confusion.

If they were being attacked by a mysterious, tall, dark figure, then either the attacker had slipped up and revealed their location or the Knights were being toyed with.

Of course, they might not actually be under attack. As far as he could tell, nothing seemed to be impossible at this stage.

Therefore, Sol snaked his arm past Mcgaffer and pointed his gauntlet covered hand down the hallway, directly at the woman, just before she could reach them.

"Not so fast. Stay where you are." He stated in a loud and clear voice.

In this straight tunnel, it was almost impossible to miss, and he'd hit whoever was behind the woman as well, especially if the woman had enough sense to duck when told. Unless someone could...shift the wall to block attacks or move through them entirely.

In any case, he wasn't about to let anyone enter the midst of their group, even if it was a very frightened civilian with a candle. That would be a terrible idea; he was out of his depth in terms of knowing what they were facing.

"When I tell you to duck, hit the ground." he ran on, without letting the woman fully process the situation enough to panic at having a weapon pointed towards her. "Now, mind explaining what you're running from and who you are? In that order if you will."

The situation seemed to be worsening by the moment. He really hoped this woman wasn't a threat to them...and had answers that would clear some of the prevalent confusion.

[Nik Hasta]

"When I tell you to duck, hit the ground." he ran on, without letting the woman fully process the situation enough to panic at having a weapon pointed towards her. "Now, mind explaining what you're running from and who you are? In that order if you will."

The situation seemed to be worsening by the moment. He really hoped this woman wasn't a threat to them...and had answers that would clear some of the prevalent confusion.

The woman skidded to a halt, almost tripping over herself in the process.

"Wait, please I..." she began to cry noisily, "I was out for a stroll with my boyfriend and I... I -"

She paused and peered into the gloom, holding up the candle to try and see better. She looked directly at Sol, vague recognition seeming to fill her face.

"Echo?" she said, "Echo, is that you? I thought you'd gone travelling to... London wasn't it? What are you doing here? Have you seen Rick?"

[Sol M]

The woman skidded to a halt, almost tripping over herself in the process.

"Wait, please I..." she began to cry noisily, "I was out for a stroll with my boyfriend and I... I -"

She paused and peered into the gloom, holding up the candle to try and see better. She looked directly at Sol, vague recognition seeming to fill her face.

"Echo?" she said, "Echo, is that you? I thought you'd gone travelling to... London wasn't it? What are you doing here? Have you seen Rick?"

I was hardly unusual for someone to mistake him for someone else in the relative darkness of this tunnel. His appearance usually tended to be such.

However, Sol did not know what she was talking about. There was no place called London on this planet that he could recall from the maps here, so it was probably somewhere else in this universe. Echo was also a name that was as unknown to him as Rick, perhaps more so, because Echo was an unusual enough name to be remembered, even if he wasn't committing it to memory. Besides, there was absolutely no logical reason for a civilian to take a stroll in the middle of a prison with her boyfriend.

It could all be an elaborate attempt to distract them of course. Any escapees would have to use their wits to get past anyone coming through the tunnel from the opposite side. Still, they could surely have come up with a more reliable way of getting close to enemies. Not to mention the fact that a member of the Knights had simply vanished from their midst. If someone could do that, then pointing a beam weapon down the hallway would be pointless.

"Calm down, you're not making much sense. If you were taking a stroll with Rick, how did you end up here? Take a deep breath, and tell me what happened." said Sol, his voice echoing down the length of the tunnel, distorted out of proportion.

He still didn't lower the gauntlet.

[Sub-Zero MKA]

The woman skidded to a halt, almost tripping over herself in the process.

"Wait, please I..." she began to cry noisily, "I was out for a stroll with my boyfriend and I... I -"

She paused and peered into the gloom, holding up the candle to try and see better. She looked directly at Sol, vague recognition seeming to fill her face.

"Echo?" she said, "Echo, is that you? I thought you'd gone travelling to... London wasn't it? What are you doing here? Have you seen Rick?"

London?...That's on....what's it called...oh, yeah Earth. That's on Earth.

Sub-Zero looks at the woman curiously, tilting his head slightly. She seems disoriented and confused. Clearly she's from Earth, for that is the only place where such a...unique accent could come from.

He listens to Sol attempt to calm her down, and hopes she starts making sense soon.

"You were out for a stroll...on a prison planet?"

[Nik Hasta]

London?...That's on....what's it called...oh, yeah Earth. That's on Earth.

Sub-Zero looks at the woman curiously, tilting his head slightly. She seems disoriented and confused. Clearly she's from Earth, for that is the only place where such a...unique accent could come from.

He listens to Sol attempt to calm her down, and hopes she starts making sense soon.

"You were out for a stroll...on a prison planet?"

The woman looked confused, both by Sub Zero's statement and her face showed the same kind of odd recognition from before.

"Prison? No... we were on our way back from Make Out Point after the dance and then... he was just gone into the woods. I heard sirens, the say the Reds are going to bomb us any day now and... I'm sorry, erm... oh gee... is that you Kyle? Kyle Rogers, right? You... used to run track in High School and I... I was a cheerleader. Nancy. It's me, it's Nancy Overton, I... is that really you?"

She started to walk towards the group, clearly thinking, at least, that she was among friends.

[FrenchGemini]

London was a city that appeared on Earths from various universes, but they weren't on Earth. Teleportation?... Now, that girl thought that Sub was a former classmate of hers, and he wasn't the only one who seemed familiar to her. French had to repress a laugh, because the sheer idea of a superpowered ninja running track in High School seemed somewhat ridiculous. But then, most of the Knights had a somewhat friendly appearance. What if HE walked forward to talk to her and get her feet back on, well not Earth?... He walked towards her.

"Listen to me, lady, we will help you, but first thing you have to do is to confront the goddamn reality. The guy here isn't called Kyle Rogers, but Sub Zero. Also, while he'd do fine running track, his specialty is... err, selling Ice cream. We aren't on Earth, but on the goddamn Crimson Bastion Planet, used to imprison somewhat nasty guys. And don't tell me you recognize me, please!"

[Nik Hasta]

London was a city that appeared on Earths from various universes, but they weren't on Earth. Teleportation?... Now, that girl thought that Sub was a former classmate of hers, and he wasn't the only one who seemed familiar to her. French had to repress a laugh, because the sheer idea of a superpowered ninja running track in High School seemed somewhat ridiculous. But then, most of the Knights had a somewhat friendly appearance. What if HE walked forward to talk to her and get her feet back on, well not Earth?... He walked towards her.

"Listen to me, lady, we will help you, but first thing you have to do is to confront the goddamn reality. The guy here isn't called Kyle Rogers, but Sub Zero. Also, while he'd do fine running track, his specialty is... err, selling Ice cream. We aren't on Earth, but on the goddamn Crimson Bastion Planet, used to imprison somewhat nasty guys. And don't tell me you recognize me, please!"

As French stepped towards the light from her lantern, the girl, Nancy it seemed, stopped her approach, clearly unnerved by his appearance.

"I-I don't think I know you sir," she quavered, her body trembling, "Please, Echo, Kyle, what happened? What's he talking about? We're on Earth right? I was just in the woods looking for Rick and... and..."

Her voice trailed off into mute terrified silence and she began to sob again.

[Sub-Zero MKA]

The woman looked confused, both by Sub Zero's statement and her face showed the same kind of odd recognition from before.

"Prison? No... we were on our way back from Make Out Point after the dance and then... he was just gone into the woods. I heard sirens, the say the Reds are going to bomb us any day now and... I'm sorry, erm... oh gee... is that you Kyle? Kyle Rogers, right? You... used to run track in High School and I... I was a cheerleader. Nancy. It's me, it's Nancy Overton, I... is that really you?"

She started to walk towards the group, clearly thinking, at least, that she was among friends.

Now Sub-Zero is really confused. Whoever this Kyle person is must favor him, which means he's incredibly good looking. But that's beyond the point, which is that this woman is either trolling them or is incredibly confused.

London was a city that appeared on Earths from various universes, but they weren't on Earth. Teleportation?... Now, that girl thought that Sub was a former classmate of hers, and he wasn't the only one who seemed familiar to her. French had to repress a laugh, because the sheer idea of a superpowered ninja running track in High School seemed somewhat ridiculous. But then, most of the Knights had a somewhat friendly appearance. What if HE walked forward to talk to her and get her feet back on, well not Earth?... He walked towards her.

"Listen to me, lady, we will help you, but first thing you have to do is to confront the goddamn reality. The guy here isn't called Kyle Rogers, but Sub Zero. Also, while he'd do fine running track, his specialty is... err, selling Ice cream. We aren't on Earth, but on the goddamn Crimson Bastion Planet, used to imprison somewhat nasty guys. And don't tell me you recognize me, please!"

Apparently tact isn't Gemini's strongsuit. Sighing, Sub-Zero interjects, "What he means is that we aren't on Earth, but a prison planet. Why don't you tell us what you were running away from or towards and maybe we can help you."

[Sol M]

This girl was, for whatever reason, refusing to make sense.

Sol kept an eye out for any signs of trouble as he attempted to placate the distraught woman. As well as an ear and any other sense organs that he could spare. Everything else he devoted to trying to figure out whether this woman was telling them what she actually thought was happening. The stench of sweat in this damp, cold air would be too overwhelming for any olfactory cues of concealment, and anything else would require him to touch her.

And was she fabricating all of this? What were the odds of her knowing two people who look, and possibly sound, like two people in their group? People who look like Sub Zero for that matter?

Shushing the other Knight's assertions that they weren't on Earth, he stepped closer, directing a look towards Sub Zero and French Gemini to indicate that they should be ready in case anything happened.

"Nancy? My eyesight must be worse than I thought, I can hardly recognize you. You look terrible, how long have you been running?"

Her voice trailed off into mute terrified silence and she began to sob again.

"There, there." He was within range of her now. He touched her gently on shoulder with his free hand, taking this opportunity to slide his gauntlet past her, and down the hall. It felt rather like standing on the edge of a precipice, or would have, were he completely human at the moment. Any moment now, one of them might disappear like Mister Beadle did.

"Look, it's going to be alright." his voice was gentle. Reassuring. An advantage of being able to alter your vocal chords at will: Unlimited voice modulation. Yippee. "We'll help you find Rick. But first, you need to tell us exactly what you saw while you were searching for him in the woods and whatever happened after. Please, it's very important."

He considered the range of physical cues that a normal human might give off under stress and tried to figure out how many of them the girl possessed. Not that he expected to be able to tell if she was telling the truth from those alone. It was amazing how running through a long dark tunnel for an extended period of time masked most of the easily observable signs of lying in humans.

[mcgaffer]

Mcgaffer was about to speak further when the world decided to try and reject reality, something Mcgaffer was actually fairly experienced at but he preferred the drunk version, "Bugger!"

Mcgaffer caught sight momentarily of a dark figure standing behind the woman as a bright light shone in the tunnel. The light and the figure disappeared quickly leaving Mcgaffer gaping into the darkness, "All I want to do, just once, is walk down a dark strange tunnel without something weird happening."

The others started talking to the woman, and pointing weapons (which is actually very good manners for the Knights, it meant they hadn't started shooting and poking with their weapons) giving Mcgaffer an opportunity to slip the hood of his Cloak over his head and search for lifelines in the area he'd seen the dark figure. He also slipped his Shaman's Souls out of a concealed pocket. If the disturbance was magical in nature then one of the Soul's would pick up the energy signature so he could start working out what he was dealing with.