Post by Garoten Reklor on Jun 18, 2008 2:53:31 GMT
The sea was furious that day. Dark clouds swirled above the water, and a wind the likes of which none had seen for years tore across the water and forced higher and higher swells into the rocky cliffs. A typhoon was inbound from the west, one of the worst in recent memory, according to the Parmecian National Weather Center. Since most of the already sparse population of this section of the coast had headed inland or taken shelter, probably nobody noticed the bright flash of light above the cliffs - after all, lightning had been splitting the sky for nearly an hour now. There was none to discern the roar of an explosion from the rumble of thunder. The smoke and dust kicked up by the impact of some small, but hard object into the stone face of the cliffs was swept away so quickly by the tempestuous wind that even someone exceptionally observant would never have noticed it. The splash of that object falling into the water was swallowed in the storm swells. Completely unknown to anyone and everyone on Dragonia, an entity had entered the planet that had already changed one world and would very possibly do the same here.
In the darkness, he opened his eyes and gingerly rolled his neck, then his shoulders, testing each limb for any injury with care. He'd had worse collisions, but being hurled straight into the face of a cliff had been enough to cause a power failure and knock him unconscious. Satisfied that he'd sustained no major injuries, he leaned his head back took several deep breaths, noting the up-and-down movement that told him he was floating somewhere. Now to find out where...
"Rhia, initiate a full reboot, please."
Two beeps were the only response he received at first, then the darkness was broken by a single blinking white cursor in the upper left corner of his vision. Suddenly, words began appearing as if in thin air:
Full system reboot initiated...
Core OS online...
Diagnostics complete: external damage detected zones RF1, RF3, CF1, CF3, and LF4...
Restoring H.U.D...
All systems online...
His vision suddenly flooded with light, but not as much as he'd expected. It was dark, he was floating in an ocean or a very large lake, and the waves were tossing ever closer to the same cliff that had filled his vision upon entering this world. Fighting off a throbbing headache, he began to backstroke away from the cliffs and searching the area around him. Information scrolled before his eyes, updating him on the outside temperature, chemical balance of the water, wind speed and direction, and status of repairs. All useful, but not what he needed to know right away.
"Rhia, what's the status on the flight system?"
This time a smooth, feminine voice replaced the cursor from moments ago:
"Completely inactive."
"And the grapple?"
"The same, sir. It's going to be quite some time before repairs are complete. In fact, it's my personal reccomendation you get out this thing before it fills with water and you end up in real trouble."
Kyle Edwards grunted his disapproval, but the computer's logic was right. Without the ability to fly, a suit like this was just an anchor. With a sigh he relented.
"Okay. Go ahead and disengage the suit. I'll find a way out of this myself."
"Complying."
Slowly, the view that had only just filled his vision disippated and the familiar tingling sensation of the Armor of the White Knight fading away swept over Kyle's body. Then he was treading water in a stormy sea with nothing but sheer cliffs ahead and water behind. He had long been in superior physical shape - even before a series of genetic alterations that made him far beyond the normal human. He could tread water for hours if necessary, and he might even stand a chance of scaling the cliffs, but surviving being dashed against the wall by a storm surge wave was a slim possibility. There had to be another way. As he contemplated what to do, the would-be hero became aware of another sensation. It was something like the tingle of the teleportation system, but this feeling came from within - as if he was generating it somehow. As a matter of pure, simple habit, he turned his focus to this new feeling and began to analyze it. For his line of work, it was essential to be able to acurately identify what every sensation was telling him, even that gut feeling often referred to as instinct or a hunch - it had saved his life more than once. This, unlike those instincts, was tangible - real. More like pain, or being tickled, or the feeling of fullness after a large meal. This was something physically present, and it was growing by the second. By now Kyle was so intrigued that he was only moderately aware of his continued predicament with the ocean. Slowly he discovered that with focus, he could move the feeling from one part of his body to another. Focusing the thought on his hands created a warm sensation that grew to notably hot with more focus. Again, as a simple matter of course, he shifted the focus to his feet, noting the warmth again, then the heat. Still undamaged by these experiments, he pushed the envelope a little further, closing his eyes and turning the full force of his mind to the force inside. As he did, a new feeling rushed over him - cold - in his chest. Confused, he opened his eyes and looked down...ten feet down, to the surface of the water. His surprised gasp was chocked out by seawater, but only for a moment. No sooner had the surface calmed from his fall, then it exploded open again as he flew up and out.
The whole process had his mind reeling, but he hadn't survived for so long by letting strange situations get the better of him. However it might be explained, Kyle Edwards could fly...and he suspected he could do other things, but that wasn't the immediate priority. At the moment, priority one was to find the essentials - food, water, and shelter - and then find information. Where in the world had that device sent him?
Three hours later, our hero finds himself warm and dry in a small village inn, chatting with locals and and bluffing his way into useful information. Thus far he's learned that the inn is in the town of Estravia, on the continent of Parmecia, in a place - presumably a planet - called Dragonia. That much was a challenge to discover without raising suspicions, and he could sense the mood of the place shifting from casual wariness to something more ominous toward this inquisitive stranger. It was time to move on, but one last question came to mind out of nowhere:
"Anybody know where a skilled fighter can find work?"
A long silence, then a fat guy at the end of the bar spoke up with a glint of mischeif in his eye:
"I hear tell they're looking for heroes in Lavertia. Something about a rogue dragon in a backwater village called Itopu. But I wouldn't go there if I was you, pretty boy. You don't seem like the type for a job like this."
Kyle grinned. That same assumption had been his ace in dealing with worse than mythical creatures.
"I'll look into it...where's this village again?"
In the darkness, he opened his eyes and gingerly rolled his neck, then his shoulders, testing each limb for any injury with care. He'd had worse collisions, but being hurled straight into the face of a cliff had been enough to cause a power failure and knock him unconscious. Satisfied that he'd sustained no major injuries, he leaned his head back took several deep breaths, noting the up-and-down movement that told him he was floating somewhere. Now to find out where...
"Rhia, initiate a full reboot, please."
Two beeps were the only response he received at first, then the darkness was broken by a single blinking white cursor in the upper left corner of his vision. Suddenly, words began appearing as if in thin air:
Full system reboot initiated...
Core OS online...
Diagnostics complete: external damage detected zones RF1, RF3, CF1, CF3, and LF4...
Restoring H.U.D...
All systems online...
His vision suddenly flooded with light, but not as much as he'd expected. It was dark, he was floating in an ocean or a very large lake, and the waves were tossing ever closer to the same cliff that had filled his vision upon entering this world. Fighting off a throbbing headache, he began to backstroke away from the cliffs and searching the area around him. Information scrolled before his eyes, updating him on the outside temperature, chemical balance of the water, wind speed and direction, and status of repairs. All useful, but not what he needed to know right away.
"Rhia, what's the status on the flight system?"
This time a smooth, feminine voice replaced the cursor from moments ago:
"Completely inactive."
"And the grapple?"
"The same, sir. It's going to be quite some time before repairs are complete. In fact, it's my personal reccomendation you get out this thing before it fills with water and you end up in real trouble."
Kyle Edwards grunted his disapproval, but the computer's logic was right. Without the ability to fly, a suit like this was just an anchor. With a sigh he relented.
"Okay. Go ahead and disengage the suit. I'll find a way out of this myself."
"Complying."
Slowly, the view that had only just filled his vision disippated and the familiar tingling sensation of the Armor of the White Knight fading away swept over Kyle's body. Then he was treading water in a stormy sea with nothing but sheer cliffs ahead and water behind. He had long been in superior physical shape - even before a series of genetic alterations that made him far beyond the normal human. He could tread water for hours if necessary, and he might even stand a chance of scaling the cliffs, but surviving being dashed against the wall by a storm surge wave was a slim possibility. There had to be another way. As he contemplated what to do, the would-be hero became aware of another sensation. It was something like the tingle of the teleportation system, but this feeling came from within - as if he was generating it somehow. As a matter of pure, simple habit, he turned his focus to this new feeling and began to analyze it. For his line of work, it was essential to be able to acurately identify what every sensation was telling him, even that gut feeling often referred to as instinct or a hunch - it had saved his life more than once. This, unlike those instincts, was tangible - real. More like pain, or being tickled, or the feeling of fullness after a large meal. This was something physically present, and it was growing by the second. By now Kyle was so intrigued that he was only moderately aware of his continued predicament with the ocean. Slowly he discovered that with focus, he could move the feeling from one part of his body to another. Focusing the thought on his hands created a warm sensation that grew to notably hot with more focus. Again, as a simple matter of course, he shifted the focus to his feet, noting the warmth again, then the heat. Still undamaged by these experiments, he pushed the envelope a little further, closing his eyes and turning the full force of his mind to the force inside. As he did, a new feeling rushed over him - cold - in his chest. Confused, he opened his eyes and looked down...ten feet down, to the surface of the water. His surprised gasp was chocked out by seawater, but only for a moment. No sooner had the surface calmed from his fall, then it exploded open again as he flew up and out.
The whole process had his mind reeling, but he hadn't survived for so long by letting strange situations get the better of him. However it might be explained, Kyle Edwards could fly...and he suspected he could do other things, but that wasn't the immediate priority. At the moment, priority one was to find the essentials - food, water, and shelter - and then find information. Where in the world had that device sent him?
Three hours later, our hero finds himself warm and dry in a small village inn, chatting with locals and and bluffing his way into useful information. Thus far he's learned that the inn is in the town of Estravia, on the continent of Parmecia, in a place - presumably a planet - called Dragonia. That much was a challenge to discover without raising suspicions, and he could sense the mood of the place shifting from casual wariness to something more ominous toward this inquisitive stranger. It was time to move on, but one last question came to mind out of nowhere:
"Anybody know where a skilled fighter can find work?"
A long silence, then a fat guy at the end of the bar spoke up with a glint of mischeif in his eye:
"I hear tell they're looking for heroes in Lavertia. Something about a rogue dragon in a backwater village called Itopu. But I wouldn't go there if I was you, pretty boy. You don't seem like the type for a job like this."
Kyle grinned. That same assumption had been his ace in dealing with worse than mythical creatures.
"I'll look into it...where's this village again?"
