Shel Applewood

Shel had rather hoped that everyone would just get along swimmingly from the beginning, so much more pleasant that way really. They still seemed to be a rather good sort though. Not uncommon for such a diverse group to bump heads. He'd traveled with enough strangers to know the difference between decent folk with a rough start and just all around bad company. This was most certainly the former. No one had pulled any weapons in anger, that wasn't always the case. Heavens, there was even a dwarf!

Shel loved dwarfs he did. They were often ever so grumpy and ever so fond of beer, so they always had one thing in common right from the start. More importantly they were about the same size as him so he could talk to them face to face without craning his neck at an angle until he was afeared it would get stuck like that. What's more he had packed away a Dwarfish delicacy somewhere or other. Oh wouldn't Treekle be happy when Shel gave him a nice thick strip of Traggot, boiled wolf hide that, just a little piece would last for an awful long time it was so tough.

But Esalia seemed to be about to speak, moving about slightly she was...doubtless soon to get things moving again, which was just as well to him. He had a bit of a tendency to let his mind just wander off aimlessly on one tangent or another. Thinking about Traggot at the moment. Such a strange thing to be a delicacy really, nothing to it once you knew how to make it. An old Dwarfen souse deep into has last bottle of brew had explained it to him once as they were traveling through hill and valley to his mountain hide out. Never made it. Got sidetracked by a broken down carriage and the farmer's daughter trying to get it back together. They'd had to lend a hand. Oh, he'd lost his train of thought, that's right it was peat. Peat was the secret to good Dwarfen Traggot, what you had to do was...

"Anyone who is skilled at scouting, get to it. Anyone not able to fight, come to me. Rintor..." the Mithra addressed the veteran human, "Would you like to pick a direction?"

"Might I suggest behind us," Shel chimed in in his high voice to the pair of them, Rintor and Esalia, "it seems only natural to move thata way," he said pointing in the direction they'd come out facing, "but near as I can figure this spot isn't anywhere significant in this land. One ways as good as the other I'd suppose."

Having heard Shel's advice, Rintor turns and squints in the direction of the horizon. There are mountains in the near distance ahead and to the left, which is... We don't even know our cardinal directions here. He thinks for a moment while others begin talking again. Perhaps sense will prevail over ego and ambition after all and his skills will be put to use. Some of that ego is your own, he reminds himself.

"We will need a defensible position," he tells Esailia, Shel, and the others closest by. "But first and foremost, we will need to find a reliable source of fresh water. I believe that our best bet is near the foot of the mountains, perhaps on somewhat higher ground but with access to a stream." Assuming that there's even water here in the sense that we understand it. He raises his voice slightly. "It is my opinion that we head for the mountains, so long as there aren't any strong objections. We stand to find both drinkable water and a defensible position over there, and perhaps," he adds wryly, "should we be so fortunate, even a place where our changeling can bathe to her heart's content."

"More than you'll ever understand, dwarf." Rhen responded haughtily. "I know your people only bathe once a week and use grit instead of water and soap, but some of us have hygiene standards. Unless," she flipped her hair over a shoulder, "You'd rather reek like an ogre orgy in high summer and let every predator under the sky know there's something tasty to investigate."

After a moment, she came over to him and lifted one of his braids. One near the ear, of course. "It would also be a shame to let a beard like that fall into disarray, no? I've been a dwarf maiden before. I know how much effort something that magnificent takes to maintain." She stood again, walking over to the Boshirian, unconsciously darkening her skin a few shades.

"If you find a good enough area to bathe in, you can join me." She flickered through a few female Boshirian guises she'd picked up or inherited. "If you like women, after all. I don't feel like being a man today." She resumed her red-haired, freckled form, though kept a slight darkening to her skin. She pulled out a mirror and decided she liked the combination. For now.

Finally, she walked over to the mithra. "Esailia, wasn't it?" She rolled the name sensuously through her lips. "I don't have any weapons, but I'll put a game face on if anything happens, alright? I have a few persona with claws and teeth." She inspected the other woman's body like a jeweller would a gem. "Somewhat like you. Maybe I'll show you." These people were going to be fun. Such diverse personalities to explore.

@Dusty@Force and Fury@Esailia

@sntabe


Esailia was glad that people were starting to realize she didn't want to be an overseer, just that no one else was seeming to stand up and take responsibility for the entire group. That's one of many things I'm glad I learned in my training... Her thought was interrupted by Zeke's question, and smiled "To be honest, Rintor's right. I have about six years of training, but no real field experience. I only wanted to get us quickly organized and moving, not start an argument about taking command. I'm no dictator." She tilted her head at the 'and-', but didn't press. No reason to interrogate him. And even if she wanted, she was hounded again by the Changeling, waving her attempts at flirting away "I don't think any of us will have time to mess around. But thank you for the offer."

The soldier looked back towards where Rintor was looking, and the mountains were indeed one of the best places in the visible land to find a potential base of operations "Agreed. Everyone, we're on the move!" She glanced towards Zeke, Rhen, and Shel "And if you three want to work together to form a map and decide on which way we want to call North, it'd be helpful. We don't want to lose track of where the portal opens. See if anyone else has anything to contribute to that cause as well."

Facing the kitsune Treekle gave a low sigh. “Aye lass, horse dung does transform into manure over time. How insightful of you, alas I still have no desire to shovel it because it is beneath my station. Should we happen to need willing dung movers however, I shall be the first to employ your services.” Giving Ayana a cheerful nod Treekle turned away only to be completely caught off guard by Rhen.

“The bloody nerve of that lass.” Treekle muttered to himself as Rhen walked away, his face a similar shade of red as his braided beard. “Grabbing my whiskers and insinuating a dwarf maidens have a beards, what utter nonsense. And we bathe just enough as need be, I certainly don’t smell like an ogre orgy.” His self-reassurance aside Treekle lifted his arm and took a quick sniff, wrinkling up his nose at the bitter scent. Rhen was lucky he had the restraint to keep from lolloping off her arm with his mattock when she grabbed his braid, and it left him too flustered to retort. A number of good comebacks filtered through his head in quick succession but all he managed was a quiet, “damn changeling,” under his breath.

The dwarf’s good spirits returned in short order however when Rintor suggested moving towards the mountains. Raising his fist into the air Treekle voiced his agreement with this proposition. A mountain would be an excellent place to start his research, rivers and baths be damned. And they didn’t seem that far off to him, he estimated they could reach them before the second sun descended below the horizon. But perhaps the scouts would know for sure, that being their job and all.

As soon as Esailia start commanding, Numzom started moving to the mountain, its big and tall, like a colossus, Numzom really hope that he can battle a colossus though, grasping into his fur, and stabbing him in the eye with his Khanda. As the half-Elf was deep in the imagination realm, he snapped out and continued walking with the party. "I think Esailia said something about water streams in the mountains yes?" asked Numzom "Yep,while you were deep down, I heard everything they say" answered Numbo straight.

After Numbo answered the question, Numzom felt lonely, he dont want to talk only to a Spirit, he did introduce himself though, maybe others will start opening up to him, or maybe he will be a loner in the night.

@Esailia

A scouting party, what fun!

But just as the halfling turned toward Zeke and Rhen he felt his tiny tummy a'rumbling. He turned to look at the mountains, the seemingly best place to set up camp. Oh wouldn't it be ever so much nicer to head out on such an expedition with a fully belly, and perhaps a bit of a snack packed up and ready for the nibbling? He certainly thought so. Always thought better with a full stomach he did.

"Perhaps," he began uncertainly, "perhaps after we set up camp?"

He reached in to his shirt and pulled out his mapping book, stuffed as it was with cheap paper sticking out of it every which way, holding his treasure in his left hand, then reached in to his bag and pulled out his Chef's Knife with his right. Gesticulating with the book he explained,

"A second point of interest, our cozy little camp in the mountains, makes it easier for us to map out whatever we might find. We could use dead ahead," he pointed in the direction they'd been facing as they left the portal, "as North for now, but..." He wiggled the Chef's Knife ever so slightly, "Might'nt it be good to get a bit of a stew going in the pot a'fore we set out? Why, I've got meat and potatoes and herbs and all in my bag packed away."

He smiled at the notion of a proper halfling stew, "A party is never better formed than about a good roaring fire with bellies full they say. Could get it going a'fore we leave and put the finishing touches on her when we get back."

@Force and Fury@BangoSkank

As the group walked, Esailia flipped a pair of almost invisible latches on the top of her helm, allowing her feline ears to pop up. Letting out a quiet sigh of relief, she rotated them around, almost stretching the muscles to their full extent before looking around, a tad embarrassed. Well, its not like it matters anyway, no one really knows and I shouldn't care what these people think of my feline aspects.

Esailia turned her gaze to Rintor, tilting her head slightly as she asked "So, I was thinking, once we get a basic camp set up, it'd be a good idea to build a lookout tower. Nothing big, but it'd help keep watch. What do you think?"

The Guardian blinked and glanced behind her, only just realizing she had spoken to Rintor over Shel, whom what she caught of it, was suggesting food. In answer, she called back to him "We can't risk the scent bringing curious creatures that may want a taste of more than the stew, Shel. If you're hungry, come up here and check the right side pocket on my pack." Esailia hefted the military issue bag on her back, shifting it to lower where it rested. "You'll find some dried jerky. Not filling, but if a strip lasts me a few hours of a training session, its bound to tide you over for the duration of this hike?"

( first of all sorry for being late i was out of town)
@Esailia@BangoSkank@Force and Fury
Tori walked a bit behind the general group, yet still listened to the questions asked and needed to be answered. " I think if we can find a good tree we can make something in there." After saying this Tori wanted to take it back, she didn't want to be rude and talk out of nowhere. She moved her hair from her face and just kept walking. She was hungry and didn't want to ask for anything, she took out a piece of bread, and ate a bit of it. She didn't bring much seeing as she thought she could find more animals. Tori admired how everyone was so calm and knew what to do. She wanted to be like them, yet right now she just needed to stay alive. She kept walking.

Ayana huffed at the Dwarf's dismissal of her indignation. She didn't like that he thought certain work was beneath him either. But, she didn't want to start a fight the first day on the trip so she left it at that. Maybe he didn't like shoveling dung because he was so short and his nose was so close to it... The thought of it made her giggle and her good spirits were restored. And so, she joined the group as they began walking toward the mountain that loomed on the horizon.

Then, their group leader, or at least the person who was acting as the leader, came up with an idea. "A watchtower? I think that's a great idea! Ayana said brightly. "We can even put a weather vane on top of it! I'm no carpenter, but I'd be happy to help you build it. I helped my family fix up their bar all the time when it needed repairs. It can't be that much different." Ayana walked in stride beside Esailia. She liked the Mithra's "let's get to work" attitude. Plus, she didn't have to feel weird about being the only person with animal ears. It was odd how few kitsune their were in the more urban areas.

@Dusty@Esailia



As the party neared the mountains, the grass became thinner, more sparse, and more prickly. The soil gradually faded from a dark brown to a light tan. The temperature was still pleasantly warm, though it was beginning to cool as the sun drooped lower in the sky. By its position, it was now late afternoon, approaching the evening. The mountains were still a half-day's hike away and it would likely be dark before they reached them. Still, the party drew close enough to them now to discern some of their features. They were a series of peaks that seemed to have valleys running through them, and swirling patterns in the stone that were made more intense by the orange backdrop of the sky. By the looks of it, the sun would be setting about 45 degrees away from them, making their mountains North-West-ish by virtue of sunset.

@Regitnui

As they neared the mountains, Zeke paid attention to the sun. There was nothing out of the ordinary about it, though he'd need a few nights to be sure. He didn't know whether this was a heliocentric or geocentric earth - that was, if it was even a planet at all. An idea struck him. What if it was a moon? Were they orbiting a greater planet now, and was that one orbiting still yet another planet? The thought was absolutely ludicrous, though fascinating and thus worth contemplating. But another time.

Kneeling momentarily, Zeke gathered a few solid rocks. They were abundant in this area, so he decided it would be best for him to take some now. He quickly stored them in his pack and pulled out a few of his wood rods. In order to help him make sense of this new world, he would need to run a few tests. That was precisely why he brought these rods, and so he began to work at them, boring holes and cutting notches with a utility knife. Hopefully he'd be ready for his first test by the time they set up camp. If he wasn't, though, it was hardly an issue. Being an astronomer, he'd have to stay up through the night anyway.

Zeke nodded slightly as Esailia talked, but refrained from asking her any more questions. Other group members wanted her attention, and he didn't feel like fighting for it - especially when he had nothing worthwhile to say. When she mentioned that he might work with others to determine cardinal directions or otherwise develop a map, he wasn't very enthusiastic, especially considering the people he was to work with. The halfling - Shel, was it? - didn't seem so bad, but Rhen was a different story.

As soon as Zeke was aware that a changeling would be entering the portal with him, he knew there would be problems. How could anyone trust a creature with the ability to change its appearance at will? It put him a little at ease that the changeling seemed so unsophisticated, and thus less of a threat, but still he couldn't know for certain whether that was accurate. Rhen could be hiding anything.

But as much as the changeling was dangerous, Rhen could be an even more formidable ally - provided Zeke would be able to withstand their apparent lack of maturity. It was for this reason that he approached Rhen and tried to strike up a conversation, thinking long and hard about the first thing he would say. Do you often use your face as a projection of your personal qualities? He coughed. "I've not met a changeling before. If you don't mind, er, what kinds of forms can you take?" he asked politely though curiously, absently whittling.

The party is still half way to the mountains, the mountains from the distance looked like a wave of rocks, possibly by a lava stream years ago, he's no geologist, but he can guess.

Numzom has not made any friends what so ever in this exploration, bummer, he has an idea, making friends with the Kitsune farmer, since she practically has the same attitude as him, he thought "Maybe ill talk to her, maybe".

The party still is walking, looking for a peak near a stream, and since no one is talking to him, he'll just talk to the spirit and munch an apple.

@Yuuta

Rhen had lapsed into silence after her initial round of flirting. Well, admittedly, she'd not stopped talking, just began dictating the expedition log again. "Was decided to set up camp at mountains visible from portal location due to defense considerations. With entry direction of portal taken as north, as no lodestone offered, mountains are NNE, estimated day's travel on foot. Travel time will be revised after journey completed."

She caught the quill between two of her fingers as the messy human in the blue cloak spoke to her. She had mentally dismissed him as soon as she saw him. Honestly, there were far better looking people to get entangled with, physically, emotionally or politically. He really did look like the bottom of the barrel, but her cousin had made a living down there. Not that Rhen would like it there.

She pulled a party trick she hadn't in a while: her hair turned to a spectrum from right to left, from white-blond through red and brown to deep midnight black. Similarly, her skin went in bands from pale elvish white through dwarven ruddiness and halfling chestnut to the darkest Bashirian black, hitting most human shades along the way. She also sharpened one ear to a fine elven point and the other to a drooping Bashirian lobe.

"I'm the girl of your dreams, honey," she deflected the question while answering it. "Or the man, if that gets you standing." She offered a grin her family had refined to be as charming and sexy as possible on a woman's face. Many a pocket had been fleeced when Rhen and her mother had worked together with that smile. She wiped her face with a hand, resuming the dark, freckled look she had previously. "Or you're not the sort to stand up for anything, are you?"

@sntabe

"A watchtower would be good," Rintor answered belatedly, having become a bit wrapped up in gently letting the changeling down. He no longer holds much interest in Earthly pleasures, or so he often tells himself. For the past few minutes, he's been trying to get the lay of the land distance-wise. At least the mystery of cardinal directions seemes to have been solved.

"However," he adds, "water must be our first priority, as our supply is not great and a warm stew sounds...delicious." He glances at the halfling and can't help but smile. Helpful little fellow - the type who's the glue of expeditions like this. "That's my reason for heading in the direction of the foothills. Valleys provide natural and predictable places for water to flow and collect. I suggest that we make a temporary camp in a defensible position before sundown. We'll have the entire day tomorrow to scout out and set up a more permanent position."

@Force and Fury@Yuuta

With her suggestion in the air for the jerky, she turned to Rintor and Ayana, nodding to both "I agree with setting up camp first, I said AFTER that. As for the...what? Weather vein?" Esailia tilted her head in a universal sign for 'Huh?', staring at the Kitsune curiously before continuing "If it helps with weather and you know how to set one up, we could give it a shot."

The Mithra looked over her shoulder, her face going neutral for a few seconds before her brows furrowed in thought, returning her gaze forward. Either the wildlife is scared of us or they prefer night in this world, but I don't like that we've not seen any creatures yet...

"Has anyone seen any animals yet?" Esailia called out as she started looking around more often, even going so far as to shoot Rintor a glance as if to gauge his reaction to the possibility.

@Esailia@Force and Fury@Yuuta
" I have not seen any animals lately,I thought there would be some though. Tori replys more confident this time. She wondered where the animals would have been if none were in the grasslands before. She could maybe easily shoot a bird or something if she spotted one. As she looked around she saw nothing but the reddish tone of the earth. " I'm not sure if large animals even come out so far." She said trying to sound like She knows. She kept walking.

@Regitnui @Esailia

Zeke smiled in response to Rhen, though it was only a courtesy. Affected since birth by monochromatism, Zeke was completely unable to distinguish any color. He only knew of color from the words of others, though was never able to grasp the concept. As such, he often forgot entirely of its existence, as was the case here. To him, it seemed as though the shadows on the changeling's face and hair shifted to the other side, with the occasional dark band in between.

He tried to hide his confusion, but honestly Zeke had no idea what he was looking at. Instead, he focused on Rhen's words. They were indeed correct about him not being interested in girls, though he didn't really care to mention that. Unfortunately, he had already revealed it by failing to recognize the flirtatious nature of the changeling's smile. "Well-" he realized, too late.

"Erm." He decided against saying something else, and instead maintained a prolonged silence. Good job. You were not only unsuccessful in conversing with the changeling, but you've also made yourself into an awkward fool. Congratulations. Zeke touched the tip of his nose with the knuckle of his index finger. Well, maybe so, but this is normal behavior in this regard. If anything, it makes me look more relatable.

Perhaps.

He continued working at the wood, vaguely paying attention to what the others were saying. "Maybe there are no animals because a large group of strange people just appeared from a foreign magical device," he muttered. Magic was viable here, since the portal could bridge and Rhen had obviously just used it, but that didn't mean that magic was actually an aspect of this world. What if they had introduced it by coming here? From what Zeke knew, magic could be self-contained, so this was entirely possible. And were there humanoids here to begin with?

Then he had another idea, one so profound and probable that it actually made him stop walking. The only form of life they had seen were plants. What if this was a relatively new ecosystem? These grasses would be the pioneer species, unable to support more than one or two tropic levels in a food web. He knelt to feel the ground. The soil was rough, which could indicate rocks had been recently broken down. The grass was the same way, a hardy species adapted for survival.

It made perfect sense. Zeke scanned the horizon - there were a few flowers and trees, but not many; the next stage of succession was underway. It fit too well. His heart pounded loudly, he couldn't breathe. Was it the truth? Would he be able to study a fresh, uncontaminated ecosystem?

But as he examined the mountains, Zeke released his breath in dismay. They were sedimentary, clearly eroded over time by wind or water or dust. They were not very tall. What reason would there be for old mountains to be near young plants? Unless it was the erosion of the mountains that helped create the soil? He thought furiously, though didn't have an immediate answer.

Shel was enjoying simply being out in the open world again, if you let your mind drift you could pretty easily forget that you weren't just going for a day hike out to the mountains. There was a certain pleasure to be found just putting one foot in front of the other, feeling your pack shift with every step. Particularly since they were not just trailblazers here but THE trailblazers. This was virgin territory, all of it. The only thing that could make this better would be a nice breeze. Maybe a good stew.

The Mithra asked if anyone had seen animals and Zeke replied quickly with a rather astute observation.

"That's a good point," Shel said, tilting his head back to help his voice carry while still keeping an eye on the ground below to avoid tripping, "Can't see any sign of other folk out here. Nothing deliberate, nothing purpose built out here. But..."

He paused, falling out of sync with the group while he peered about for a second then caught up.

"We've covered a decent distance now and I for one haven't seen a sign of any life at all. That is peculiar."

He caught up with the group and spoke to them in general but to Zeke in particular,

"No deer, no wee little rabbits, or something of the sort, that might make sense. Like ya said, scared off by new sounds and smells and all that." He sniffed at his armpits and scrunched his nose up in mock disgust, "Makes sense it does. What doesn't make sense though?" He gestures all around them, "No birds in the distance, no hawks or crows. No bugs in the grass, or on our clothes or flitting about. No lizards soaking up the heat on these rocks."

He pauses for a moment as an idea pops into his head.

"Just a minute yeah?"

Not waiting for a response he looks about for any large flat rocks in grassy areas. Finding one he kneels in close, looks back towards the group smiling, and slowly lifts the rock up looking under for any signs of life.

@BangoSkank @Esailia
Tori walks up to Shel, " where do you think they all went,i mean there should at least be bugs" she says. Tori moves her dark blue hair from her face. Tori takes out the bow she packed and an arrow, ' if i can find a bird anywhere even if it's little then i food can be made and we can set up camp' she thought to herself as she looked at the sky.
Nothing, nothing at all no birds, bugs or anything. Tori walks around trying to find water maybe there are fish there. " anyone see a pond or something?" she asks out loud. She looks at Shel to see what he is doing. 'hmm' she thinks to herself.

It was dark for a time as the man in the crate slept, the constant cheers of the crowd around this group of intrepid adventures and explorers were only screams melded with fire in the man’s mind. What this man saw in his dreams was beautiful at first. Dancing in a meadow, only him and a girl, she was short with fox like brown and red ears and tail, long soft blond hair flowed over her shoulders, deep caring blue eyes pierced his very soul, and the smile she had could warm any man’s cold heart. He reached for her grasping toward her beckoning Kind hand, yet his touch turned her to ash and the meadow was swept up with fire until it was all he could see.

Suddenly he stood in the center of a burning village, a familiar village, his village. Blood dripped off him and his ax, bodies strewn around him, all with familiar faces and a look of either horror or bewilderment frozen on the corpses, how could this man, their friend, do this? Then swirling through the smoke another man stood his figure imposing over the village like a giant. This man wore a black robe and a cracked red mask that allowed a broken smile to be shown through as he looked at this murderer before him and knew in that instant there was no one left for that man to turn to, to run to, he was in control.

The rocking of the cart woke him first and it took him a moment to take in his surroundings, the iron restraints were still on his arms, they allowed limited movement but were loud. The crate he was in was cramped and had items in it that read, at least what he could see, were seeds of some kind. Slowly he attempted to lift the lid, two hinges on one side and a small lock on the other, simple pine wood and iron rivets used in its construction. The sound of voices from outside the wagon made him freeze for a moment, casually he looked through some slits in the wood. Someone was driving the cart and the sky looked orange, “Dusk” he whispered to himself before giving himself a mental situation report and a plan.

First off he needed to get out of this crate but doing so will shift the rest of the load that is resting on top of said crate, then what? “Remember that time we got caught in the forest?” a deep dark voice echoed through his mind, “why hello to you too Argor” he whispered quietly. “Child, that time in the forest, break the lock or the crate then jump and roll out the back in one move. Then run and don’t look back.” The voice was a bit condescending but he had a plan, whatever guards were out there probably thought he was going to be out for a lot longer and were not going to expect him to be awake.

So he slowly wrapped his head in what manner he could to cover himself then waited and positioned himself to strike the lock and hinge that kept him in, after a few deep breaths to mentally prepare himself he began his escape. With a loud crack his fist splintered the wood and he pushed the crate open shifting the supply’s in the cart, in two steps he was at the back of the cart and with another lunge and a roll he was ready to start sprinting off. But he hesitated he knelt there on the ground his hands feeling the earth beneath him and slowly he stood looking at the earth slipping through his hands. “I don’t feel him” he whispered, “neither do i, the presence… its gone” Argor seemed confused. “We are free? WE ARE FREE!” he shouted as he looked to the sky and slowly looked around, “now, where the hell am I?”

@Yuuta