Monsters On The Run

[Celadon's Penultimate]

Alex marveled within himself for a moment, at the dusty man's words, <<I KNEW IT! You aren't from here! And what do you mean Roman? I am Bohemian! And I should be just as suspicious of <i>you, dusty man! Where are you from?>>

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

<<"Roman. You know, white swarthy looking guys? Good at making wine, columns, and stealing ideas? Live right across the Mediterranean? Well, that's only what I heard. I'm Ammon, day laborer/Guardian of the tomb of Anephotep, great Pharaoh of Egypt.">>

[Celadon's Penultimate]

<<...I know who the Romans are...>> Alex huffed, <<What I don't know is why you thought I might be one of them. And you have a leg-up on me; if you spoke my language, why didn't you just ASK who I was in the first place???>>

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

<"Listen, I was meant to guard my boss for all eternity in a dark tomb. I wake up, thinking grave robbers have come in when, in reality I've failed so badly I was stolen from the tomb without even noticing. I wander around, I find my boss enshrined in some room, I take his organs because, why not, I've already messed up this badly. This unearthly wail comes through the building and I think, oh gods, these people have given him their own guardian. I break a wall, look back, and see big old white columns. Clearly Roman Architecture. I try to find water, this guy in a horseless chariot shows up and blows a hole in me"> he indicates the hole, <"I take him out, and the first thing I see when I walk outside is twelve of those chariots, at the head of which is a guy clearly outpacing them, headed right at me.">

<"I drew my own conclusions. Sorry, I'm a little jumpy.">

[Celadon's Penultimate]

Alex blinked.

<<I'm not from here, either. And I'm sorry about your employer. But, I only just found this place, myself. I have no idea where anything is, this weird language everyone seems to be speaking, or anything else about the time or place. I just...want to get home.>>

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

<Weird language? What do you...?>

It was at this point Ammon realized he was speaking Czech, and understanding what the other guy was saying.

<Yes!> he says, looking down at his bandages body. The spells were finally up and running. Now, he could get some answered. He looked at Alex, then carefully unrolled part of the bandage on his arm and extended it to him. <Here. Magic. Tie it around yourself somewhere, it should translate anything you read or hear. Call it a 'sorry for trying to crush your skull' gift.>

[Marvelous Miscreant]

The golem blinked slowly at the curious serpent man, studying him. The golem knew he was of supernatural origin on sight, and wondered somewhere it the magical nexus of energies that formed its mind, if this being could help him. The golem had little time to ponder on the thought as a deafening boom echoed across the hall and shattered a wooden chair.

The Golem turned in time to see a man in blue aim a metal tube-like device at his chest. There was another boom and a large chuck of clay was torn from the golem chest. The golem glanced down at the hole and poked it with his massive finger. Slowly, he looked back at the man in blue and deemed him a threat. In two massive steps he was in front of his enemy, towering over him. The golem swung a boulder sized fist down on the man and killed him in one blow.

The golem groaned. A deep angry noise that emanated from his torso, daring others to attack him. The golem then wandered back to look for the serpent man.

[Philote]

This living statue certainly was a fierce character, Hypatos almost worried that he would be in danger by siding with it. Not much could be done about it though, his own survival depended on him gaining this creatures trust.

Reemerging into the center of the room, Hypatos speaks slowly to the being <"Can you understand me? Can you speak? We have to make our escape!"> With his last statement, Hypatos motions out towards the broken wall of the building.

[Marvelous Miscreant]

The golem first nods at the being's first question, then shakes its head in response to the second. At the last statement, the golem follows obediently to the broken wall, pushing mangled furniture and debris out of its path effortlessly.

[Philote]

The statue moves off in the direction Hypatos had motioned, much faster than he had expected, leaving Hypatos to hurry along the path he had sent his new ally on. It would be a struggle if he had to keep instructing his ally, but if the statue was willing, its strength just might be the key to their survival.

The two exit into an intersection of roads. It was as Hypatos feared, it was very much the labrynth he had seen from above, with no escape in sight. Bright panels fill the stone walls to his left while traveling blue and red lanterns were visible in front of him, leaving only the rightmost path for him to lead his ally down.

[Celadon's Penultimate]

Alex graciously accepted the piece of withered bandage, and checked somewhere on his person where he could store it. His jacket pocket would do. As he stuffed the bandage into the pocket over his heart, though, there came a strange shuddering pain on that same side, causing him to gasp in surprise.

That same pain he had felt when Alex first awoke in this strange place.

He thought, for a second, to ignore it, but then put up a hand to the dusty man, as he decided to investigate. He pulled up his shirt, for the first time since he awoke, and felt to his side. Strange...he hadn't remembered exercising lately, but his obliques and his abs said otherwise. Up his side, his chest was more defined, too...He could barely feel his ribs...

What in the world--? Alex looked down, and spied something that made him briefly forget to breathe. Though subtle--Alex had to admit, it was subtle-- there on his side lay some thin material, nearly the size of a sheet of paper, stitched expertly across his underarm region. It was the same color as his skin, which he now noticed was much more pale than he knew himself to normally be.

And as he touched it, there came no pain, until he let his shirt and jacket fall back over his body. Almost as though that thin membrane was reacting to the sliver of bandage. Or the magic within it...

Alex stuck the bandage into his shoe (to keep it's magic effects without it reacting painfully with his side), and his mind briefly flashed back to when he first awoke in this place. What had that first officer said? It seemed important now. Facts? Fixed? Text?

Certainly not...

<<Fext.>> Alex felt increasingly sick with the sudden revelation, <<He called me a...a fext. But...but it can't be. It can't be. I'm not dead. And certainly not back from the dead. I can't be...can I?>>

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

<<What, you didn't know?">> Ammon asks. The poor kid didn't look like he was taking the news all to well. He put his hand on Alex's shoulder.  <<Hey, it could be worse. You could look like me.>>

He looked up and down the empty street, strewn with bodies and parked vehicles.

<<Look, we should probably get out of here before more of these guys show up. Or, at the very least, get off the street. We can hide in there.>> He says, pointing to an expanse of green that stretched out on this side of the street, separated bu a gate. He looked up at the sign.

Park. He wasn't sure he knew what that was, but any wilderness was good for hiding. Besides, green meant water. He had seen Alex's abs, and he was starting to feel just a little inadequacy about looking like a slab of dried heat.

[Tsubasa & Wen Tien]

Rei watched the two start moving towards the park she was in from a tree in the form of an ordinary fox. She'd woken up when the noise had started, a wailing noise that had pierced into her dreams. She had woken up expecting something to be attacking her, then realized that it was nearby but outside the park. She'd then shifted back to her fox form and watched the ensuing fight from the trees. The guy in bandages was strong by the looks of things, but so was the other, pale one. As they entered the park, she jumped down in front of them, before shifting to her main human form, and saying (in really bad Dutch), <<Hello, seem strong you do. Know where are we?>>

She wasn't sure she had gotten it right, but then she hadn't interacted much with any of the foreign Kirishitan losers other than to get free food.

[Marvelous Miscreant]

The golem moved quickly despite his bulk. He followed the gorgon with determined obedience, shielding his back from the crackling thunder of the humans' weapons with his massive clay torso. As they moved down alley's and street the golem did it's best to block the paths behind them as they fled by pulling down posts, collapsing fences and overturning dumpsters.

[Celadon's Penultimate]

The newly-discovered Fext stared, wide-eyed at the new creature that stood before him.

So...many...questions. Alex could scarcely begin.

<<...Uh, who--or WHAT--are YOU?>> Alex stammered, barely able to find the words, <<AND WHY IN THE DEPTHS OF HELL, DEATH AND DESTRUCTION AREN'T YOU WEARING ANY CLOTHES???>>

[Tsubasa & Wen Tien]

Rei watches as the face of the pale guy goes into a shocked look and grins as she realizes that she forgot about clothes, but really? It's not like they necessary for survival, maybe seduction, but not survival. Then he talks and her face falls as she realizes she doesn't understand most of what he's saying. She starts muttering to herself in Japanese, <<Why do I bother using foreign languages when I can't use more than basic words?>>

Rei raises her voice so that the two guys can hear her, <<Could you repeat in my language if possible? I can't really understand what you just said>>

[Celadon's Penultimate]

Alex raises an eyebrow, <<Your language? I can't speak you language, you goofy creature! I'm not from--wait. I...I understood that. I understood that...? I understood that! How...Dusty, is this your doing? I can understand her! So, um, now that I can speak what you speak, would you mind telling me...Uh, who--or WHAT--are YOU? AND WHY IN THE DEPTHS OF HELL, DEATH AND DESTRUCTION AREN'T YOU WEARING ANY CLOTHES???>>

[Tsubasa & Wen Tien]

Rei found the pale guy to be really amusing. Whether or not that lasted would be up to time alone. She quickly responded to his first question when he finished talking, <<My name's Rei and I'm a Kitsune, a fox spirit of Yamato. I'm over 500 years old and I have 5 tails.>>

Rei's tails appear behind her as she continues on to his next question, <<As for clothes, that's a human thing, I only use them really for ... certain purposes. I don't need them to survive anywhere. Now here's my questions: WHO are you two and WHAT are you two?>>

[Celadon's Penultimate]

Alex tries his best to keep eye contact above the Kitsune's neck, "A Fext. I'm a fext. Not living, but no longer dead. And apparently, much more powerful and tough than I look. My name is Aleksander Vlcek; I come from Bohemia, and I was born in the year 1616. I'm only 21."

[Gentleman Vaultboy]

Ammon doesn't even hear the question. Yamato, tails, question; these things meant nothing to him. Instead, he was marveling at the gods sick sense of humor.

A beautiful naked woman leaps from nowhere, minutes after he finds himself not equipped to deal with this sort of situation. This was a joke. This was some horrible, nasty, joke. Maybe this is exactly the situation the priest had had in mind; keeping him focused on his duty and all that crap.

<<You work for a god? If so, I've got some complaints.>>