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Stygian Mirror     The City of Palaquin. A chain of islands upon which massive, time-worn humanoid statues have been built, their grey and green moss-covered forms holding up a massive island, as though elevating it towards the sky. All around the statues on the ground, buildings can be seen; and up they go, built into the legs and bodies of the giants too. One can assume tunnels and paths run through and on the arms of the titans, giving access to the landmass they hold up.

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    But where the city was once a sunny and beautiful sight for sailors and traders, it hasn't been so for the last century. Though it's currently mid-day here, the Sun at its highest and hottest, the skies are covered by a layer of dark clouds. The Sun, obscured, seems stuck in a perpetual eclipse, shining solitary and eerie rays upon the city.

    The particular Warp Gate used to get here, whether through an accident, coincidence or random selection, is located within one of the cities on the torso of one of the massive statues. The air is thick here, and not because of the height. It feels deathly, unfriendly, tainted. Yet... life here seems normal. Citizens wander about, carrying good from the markets. Children play in the streets. The only strange thing is that everyone here has fairly pale skin, perhaps because of the lack of sunlight.

    That, and the undead.

    Skeletons of various shapes and sizes wander here, some as servitors for the citizens, some as guards at various checkpoints. Occasionally one can see a spirit wander in or out of a building.

    The architecture is definitely Rome-inspired, though here and there buildings have been 'upgraded' with either Soulsteel or bone, giving a darker look to the marble buildings.
Lise     Thank you, Random Selection. Lise herself, clad in that green outfit of hers, exits the gate with a hefty sigh upon the air. She didn't know how these worked, she didn't even know what they were for but curiosity felt none the wiser and off she went to somewhere. Maybe it would have sent her back to Astoria or even Wendel. At least, that is what the Amazon would have wanted anyways. Fairy slowly appears from Lise's head, floating around the Amazon's long hair. "Lise, where did we end up? This isn't Njourn... or Astoria."

    No, this wasn't. Nor was this anything truely familiar to the Amazon herself. She peeks around, hand clutching the spear upon her back, a nervous look at the landscape before her and the dark skies. "Shade must be active in this world. Very active." she comments towards Fairy who gives a slight nod at the situation. "And... we seem to be high up. A mountain top?" a pause, "May...maybe this may be Laurent!"

    As soon as she says this, she's off like a rocket from the warpgate, pushing past some of the citizens... "I'm sorry, but home may be here!" pushing further and further, until a push hits a skeleton. The feel of bone upon her hand sends a shiver up her spine and quickly has her back off, clutching her spear even tighter...

    "Undead roam..."
Stygian Mirror     Lise pushes past citizens. They're not very notable; one woman was carrying a bag of exotic foods, another man a pile of rusty swords, presumably to the blacksmith across the street. If not for the thicker air, the feeling of death all over the place, and the undead, this would be no different from the average town or city in Lise's own world. In fact, technology here doesn't seem too dissimilar, it's very much a swords and knights world. Plus magic, evidently, given the undead.

    Bumping into a skeleton guarding a street corner doesn't seem to provoke a hostile response. The tall, bony figure glances sideways to the blonde amazon, the barest glow in its eyes indicating roughly where it's looking. It seems more interested in the fairy than the princess.

    It doesn't talk, though.

    Just kind of. Stares rudely. Is it even intelligent?

    Nobody makes a big deal of it, so Lise'll be the one to shape how that goes down. Past the corner and the skeleton, she can see the edge of the city; the sea, far below, and Creation, far ahead, with a massive mountain that seems to cut into the sky barely visible.
Lise     It's a tense minute. Fairy stares at the bony guard. Bony guard stares at Fairy. Lise looks between the two and then past the skeleton and gives a firm nod. "Pardon us. We may have become lost in direction towards a place we thought was home." with this... she backs away slowly to head /around/ that skeleton guard and through the corner. And if successful, she'll shuffle along towards the edge of the city. "Fairy, I think it best to be careful here, we may attract too much attention."

    Fairy slightly nods and dissapears back inside of the Amazon's head before heading forward. There's a giant mountain... maybe that's where her home is. "This doesn't feel like the same place." she whispered, footsteps tapping on the ground as she makes her way over. "What are your thoughts Fairy?" o O (I'm not sure, I don't sense any of the elemental spirits here though... nor do I know where the mana stones are...) comes that chiming voice inside of her head.

    This is what Lise needed. To be lost in a world she didn't know and beyond contact with those she hastily allied with.
Stygian Mirror     Elemental spirits; if Fairy tries, she can feel something like that here. Well, 'here'. She could tell that, far to the northeast, the concept of 'wood' has a place. Far to the southwest, fire makes its home. The massive mountain in the distance, far, far to the northwest, rings like earth. Water and air exist, but they're too far to sense. It's not so much 'elemental spirits', more like if parts of the world were defined by them.

    Eventually the bony guard turns his head back and continues staring dead ahead in the street. It doesn't move, much less does it respond. It's not a tour guide, it's a guard. It's true though that in a city like this, an amazon in bright green clothes and a fairy stick out. Everyone here is so pale-skinned, and dressed in generally darker shades of clothing.

    When she finally reaches the edge of the city, Lise can see up and down that the city is built in something. A mountain was a good guess, it's definitely stone. But no, she can see the massive statues from here, holding up the landmass above. It doesn't take a genius to figure out this city is built in the side of one of them. Well, its torso.

    She might start feeling like she's being trailed; two thin, frail men have started following her since she came out of the Warp Gate, but are only now getting closer. Cheap leather armor, short swords and knives on their belts. They're almost skeletal and bald, alive and human but barely. As Lise looks at the landscape, they get closer and closer.
Lise     o O (Wait...) Lise perks up... o O (This place is full of elemental energy. It's not what I know but it is comfortable... As if those parts were made from it...) "Really..." she pauses to look around the area. It was interesting seeing those giant humanoid statues... and considering where she is.... "Are we in a city in the statue?" she questions, possibly answering her own question. She gives a light shrug and leans against a wall.. "It's interesting here, isn't it Fairy?"

    It's here that Lise does a bit of introspection, taking a look out in the wider expanse of Creation... o O <It's strange, isn't it... to be in a world like this. To think I have not been out of the mountains and here... I'm seeing a new place... a new world according to Staren.> she looks up towards the sky, <Mother, Father... do you think they took Elliot somewhere other than our own home?> o O (Lise, there's a pair of beings nearby.)

    Snapped out of her little daze, she picks herself up and turns herself around to face the frail men. They were close enough to have at least Fairy sense them and Lise moves to snatch her spear from her back, getting into her practiced stance... and soon, in a wary but resting stance, the butt of the spear placed on the ground.

    "I think you should stop right there, I don't mean harm in this place." she calls out, "So please, do leave me be. I shall apologize in due time."
Stygian Mirror     The only really odd part here for Fairy is probably the fact the world only seems to have five elements, not eight. Can't have everything, right? Maybe now she'd notice the other particular feature of the city they're in. Magic! There's magic everywhere. The building blocks of Creation are Essence, and Essence is magic. It's plentiful and it's everywhere. With... one exception. Here, it's inverted. If you think of regular magic, or mana, as the energy of life, the energy here is that of death. To a spirit of magic like Fairy it could be uncomfortable, maybe. Or maybe not. It's easy to notice, at any rate.

    The two men stop, sizing Lise up. They look at each other and laugh, reaching for their swords. "Come on now, you're not from here. You disappear in that alley and nobody's going to look or question. You'd fetch a good price on the slave market. That little pet of yours too. What is that even?"
    The other man shrugs. "'unno, a god? Some tiny spirit? It'll sell either way."
    The first man resumes: "Right, so. Why don't you drop that spear and we won't have to get rough. You could scream but nobody here'll care."

    Lise has probably met men like this before. Typical bandits. Guess some things don't change no matter what world you go in, huh?
Lise     Lise sighs and Fairy's quite entranced with the world around her so she won't be much help here. She gives a light shrug then twirls her spear in a fanciful fashion. Helicoptering the weapon around, she drops back into her attack stance and shakes her head, "I'm sorry, I've no need to go with you, nor shall you sell me on a slave trade." she stares down the bandits, "Princess Lise will not fall to the likes of commoners such as yourselves!" o O (Lise, Lise, there's a lot of magic here!) "Fairy..." o O (I'm going to float you for a bit)

    And just as Fairy says, Lise starts to rise from the ground slowly, gaining four inches. "I do not think it shall be me that will be doing the screaming on Shade's Eve." she'll wait to make the first move here, at least she'd be able to claim self defense, if something like that even existed here. "So please, do drop your knives, I do not wish to hurt you two but if you shall pressure me..."

    "I will show you why I lead from the Castle that Never Fell!"
Stygian Mirror     "Shit, is she Dragon-Blooded?" the first man asks the second, at the sight of Lise floating. The second looks, and shakes his head.
    "This far out? No way. It's probably just that thing she's got with her. She's just a young girl pretending to be a warrior!"

    The two don't back down. Rather, they inch closer, one step, then two, clutching their swords. The blades are black, burnt steel and bone. Not magical, though.

    "Never heard of the Castle that Never Fell. But who cares, you're not going back there anyway. You know how many like you we've captured?"
    "I don't count," the second man says.
    "Well, more than ten!"

    They charge in, from both sides! They try to pincer Lise, with inhuman coordination. The only thing is... they're not very impressive. They're slow. Predictable. The only thing they have going for them is how they work in perfect unison, but in every other regard they're boring, normal humans. No match for an amazon, much less their captain.

    From a nearby rooftop, fox ears twitch, and red eyes stare down at the scene. A frown traces itself on a young woman's lips, hand reaching slowly for the Soulsteel sword on her hip, as she considers whether or not to intervene.
Lise     Dragon-Blooded? She'll have to ask Staren what that meant later, for now, she's got two bandits on her side. "Fairy..." o O (Okay!) Lise twirls her spear once more and "There will be no more captured from the likes of you two." she scoffs, already a few days into the Multiverse and she's beset upon by bandits and thugs. And she's without her army.

    This might be tough. Might.

    She holds her place a few seconds more to allow them the security of at least thinking they got their prey... and that's when Lise will strike. As soon as one gets close, Fairy floats the woman up and away before dropping the floating magic. It was brief and meant to close gaps but for a tiny escape measure it worked just fine.

    She kicks off the ground, rapid thrust after rapid thrust is sent forth towards the two men to knock them a bit away before she leaps at them, twirling the spear in mid air before shoving it forward with all her strength. Lise's personal move, the Whirlwind Strike. "I will make sure you never confuse another with just a young girl!"

    She hops away just a bit to size up the situation once more, ready to go back in at a moments notice... "Have you had enough?"
Stygian Mirror     It's not hard to knock them away; her circular strike catches both of them at once, countering the pincer attack perfectly. They're sent back, one landing on his ass and the other, still standing, leaping back in. Both have suffered a few bruises from the exchange of blows, and the one on the ground already has a nasty cut in one leg.

    "Shit, she's not just pretending!" the downed one shouts.
    "Bull, she can't be that tough!" the other answers.

    The man on the ground reaches for his knife. In support of the other man, he throws it towards Lise. It's a standard knife, not the throwing variety, so poorly balanced for the deed.

    The one still standing, despite bruises, pushes into melee again. He jabs and thrusts with his sword, not without skill, but far less than Lise. One could also call it reckless to run towards a girl standing near a cliff edge, really.

    On the overlooking roof, Mirror clicks her tongue, still watching. She seems undecided still. Technically this doesn't really concern her...
Lise     "I offered a chance at a retreat, you wish to not take it." the knife is thrown and is simply batted away by the spear. "I never pretend." she frowns, staring at the downed man, "I'm afraid you've made the wrong choice." " The sword does strike into the Amazon's green dress, hitting chain under it but fortunately not drawing any blood. "Lise, you're getting sloppy..." she mutters to herself only to use the spear as a shovel and scoop the man overboard... "May Shade save you." she calls out before turning to the downed man.

    She slowly stalks over towards him, shuffling in her armed stance, ready to beat some sense into him. "Your partner has suffered a terrible fate and you? I will give you one more chance to set yourself straight or you may suffer the same as he did."

    o O (Lise, something doesn't feel right around here)

    <Mmm... ok. I'll be careful.>

    o O (Thank you Lise...)

    "What shall it be? Will you learn from the error of your ways or shall you suffer the fate of your partner?"
Stygian Mirror     Lise effortlessly bats a knife away and scoops a man over the city edge. Considering they're several miles over ground level, it's easy to assume that man is dead. And he would totally be! If not for the sudden, streaking sound of half of a Soulsteel sword, trailing behind it a tether of black and purple Essence.

    Like a grappling hook it pursues the falling man, wraps around him, and drags him back up, not without inflicting several cuts to him in the process. He's dumped back on the ground, next to his partner, and the blade retracts back to the roof it came from.

    Mirror hops down, placing the blade back on her waist.

    "That's enough. Slavery is legal here. Technically, they haven't done anything wrong by city laws, but I admit I was about to kill them myself anyway. I think they've learned their lesson though. Right?"

    The man with the bruised leg, the one Lise didn't throw over the edge, nods firmly. The other is unconscious and bleeding, so.

    "Take your partner and get out."

    The downed man, assuming Lise will let him, picks his unconscious partner up and promptly escapes, as fast as the situation will allow him. Mirror sights, approaching Lise. "Sorry. You mustn't be from around here. This is Palanquin. The whole place. The land below, the cities all the way up, and the island up there. You're in Creation. Name's Mirror. I... work here, kind of. It's more like my lord owns the place."
Lise     Lise would have advanced further, if it wasn't for the sound of something streaking by her... "What in Jinn?" she mutters quietly, her spear still pointed towards the downed man... and more so that the man was deposited right near him.. A bit bloodier than she would have liked but hey... still alive. Fortunately. At least she thinks fortunately.

    When the fox-eared woman speaks, she twirls her spear and sets it back to latch on her back, giving a slight nod. "I see, then mayhaps I acted slightly brash then." theeeen comes the mentioning of killing them herself. Lise will let the man take the other go, she wasn't about to kill them, at least... not yet anyways. "You are right, miss. I'm not from here. I was traveling around and got lost through one of those gates of warping."

    "Creation... it's an interesting name for a place. Is Palanquin the city name that we're in?" and the question was answered nigh immediately after. "I see. I am Lise, it's good that you did not turn your blade against me, I do not think I could have dealt with a third assailant on my own." She gives a brief smile, "Thank you for coming, and saving that man. I think I may have a round drop available for him... assuming he will not try that again..."
Stygian Mirror     "Palanquin's the city, yeah," Mirror confirms, briefly, before shaking her head. "I wouldn't put it past them to try again. People like them, they don't really learn, they just say they did so you let them go. Sorry, a Shadowland must be a bit much for an outsider. My lord's ensured it's as great a place as it can be, but some things he has to keep a certain way."

    She gestures in the air vaguely, deciding to change the topic. "So, lost, huh? Well, there's... five or six of those 'Warp Gate' things in this city alone, so if you just wander back to one you can find your way out. I don't suggest staying overnight. It's not that the place doesn't have its charm, it's more that it takes getting used to. I doubt you'd be able to get any real rest."

    Considering the fact there's skeletons and ghosts here in plain 'daylight', Lise can probably make some guesses what nights must be like here. Doubtlessly none of those guesses make this out to be a tropical paradise, despite the location.

    "I guess I should've asked first, but, where're you from?"
Lise     Lise slightly nods, listening to Mirror, "I think the next time they run into a woman, they may think twice. At least, it's my hope." though, when the word Shadowland is said, she tilts her head in confusion. It's at this point, Fairy materializes again and speaks. "Shadowland? Does the elemental spirit Shade rest here? Is there a Mana Stone here?"

    "Eh... Yes, a bit lost." she comments, "We were trying to find home again and ended up here. Perhaps the gates of warping misled us to this place. My apologies for intruding upon your land." she looks at maybe a skeleton down the way... "Y...yes, this may be a good idea. We shall get to finding another warp gate to lead us back."

    When the question of where she was from is asked... "The Kingdom of Laurent. It's not here, I believe.. but its my former home. I've been trying to find it since I was ... somehow transported... somewhere."
Stygian Mirror     "I... erm... maybe? There's thousands of spirits here, I don't actually know if any of them are called Shade. That's probably a pretty common bandit nickname so I'd bet there's a few. Elemental spirits though, that's... trickier. Gods? There's a couple of those here and there. Elementals, maybe if you find someone who's into sorcery, they love to summon elementals. Mana Stone, though, I can't say I've ever heard of that. Or of Laurent, sorry," Mirror answers, earnestly.

    She'll escort Lise back to the closest Warp Gate; out of concern that she might run into more trouble, or that the scent of blood will have attracted worse. You never know, even in the middle of a city.

    "I can look, if you want. If I find anything I'll... use that broadband thing to let you know? I'd be curious to see your world, but it can probably wait. Kind of have places to be right now. I have an ad up with the Syndicate if you ever need to get in touch with me. I'm kind of a... mercenary? It's complicated."

    "Creation is big, by the way. There's nicer places than here to see. More than I could name off the top of my head."
Lise     Lise shakes her head, "It's fine, I know not to expect my hope to be answers come any time soon." a brief smile is given towards Mirror as Fairy retreats back into Lise's head. "Perhaps... I should come visit this place again when it is not so ...dreary." she follows behind Mirror, taking a look at that floofy tail. "I've never seen a person like you before, nor a weapon like what you carry." She tilts her head as Fairy speaks... to her at least. o O (Something's up with her. Something's trying to make me forget something... At least I think it is her...)

    Lise gives a slight nod and continues following, "If you do not mind, I shall reward you if you do find it." a smile is given for just a few seconds, "Broadband thing? It's okay, I shall ask the scholar I know about it. He is quite smart with concepts far beyond what I can understand..." she gives a nervous laugh before hmming, "I'll seek you out if I need your blade, Mirror. And perhaps, you can show me around the less... dreary parts of this Creation."
Stygian Mirror     "Less dreary? It... uh... I don't think it ever gets less dreary here. In Palanquin anyway. For mortals, I mean. The people who live here, the undead and so on, this is actually really comfortable for them. Shadowlands aren't really the greatest places for the living. Environments made for the dead." On the subject of her sword, Mirror avoids answering, although she almost went with 'thanks, it's people'. This girl doesn't seem like she'd take the news of what Soulsteel is too well.

    "Sure, though. I work for intel. Books, maps, lore, stories. My lord wants to know more about other worlds, so that's what I work for, not money. I'll take almost anything that helps with that."
Lise     "I... I see. I will give you as much lore as I am capable of when I can recover my castle, Mirror." she looks towards the Warp Gate and stares at it, nodding slightly. "Fairy, let's see if we can get back to our resting area or Canterlot... I have been meaning to take her up on her generous offer." with this, she moves towards the Warp Gate and stops to turn around.

    "Shall we meet again, MIss Mirror. Please try to have a good day. May Wisp light your path and Shade protect you from the dark." It's here she turns back around and heads through the gate.