cycleofages | 1st Flight

[He hadn't listened. The attempted explanation? He hadn't listened very well. Everything was new and strange and he didn't like any of it one bit. He'd almost thought, when he'd first opened his eyes and pulled his goggles down around his neck, that he'd woken up in the Airmen showers. But the bathroom was unfamiliar (and now smeared with soot here and there).

He couldn't shake the feeling of vertigo that kept hitting him, but he left the bathroom, listened to some of the explanation, and then tried to puzzle out the strange device he'd been given. He didn't have any idea how to work it or what it was supposed to do. In the slightest.]

whre m ai

wga ru okae palce

[It would be easier to type if he took off his flight gloves, but the thought didn't cross his mind. He didn't even realize the two garbled texts posted anywhere. The idea of a network was over his head.

At least, finally, he managed to turn on the video. Not that much could be seen because he'd smeared ash over the camera lens while trying to get the phone to work.]

Hello? Can anyone hear me? Bastion- [He was speaking English but his accent was foreign. Volstovic, to be exact, and for anyone unfamiliar with it, it came across as a blend of Russian and French. It sounded proper, just a hair shy of snobby, and though a little heavy was not unintelligible.] What is this thing, where am I. What is this language?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

You're speaking English.

[He sounds serious in his question so the least Elena can do is give him a serious reply.]

[He appreciated the information, though-]

What in the world is English? And how am I speaking it?

It's a language that's spoken here and I can't tell you why you're able to speak it. It might have something to do with how we arrive here. I don't have that many details. I'm sorry.

Where is 'here'?

[Clearly nowhere near Thremedon since he'd never heard this language before, but that was the only thing he'd been able to figure out so far. It was, though, perhaps better than being captured by the Ke'Han.]

If you don't lmpw New York I'm not sure how to explain it to you. The planet's name is Earth.

[She pauses for a moment.]

I can show you but we have to stop by the Hospital first.

I have never heard of 'New York'.

[Unless someone had a map that included Volstov and its relation to this New York, he was going to continue being lost.]

Why the hospital?

The people here want to make sure that you aren't carrying anything with you before going outside.

[She'd been told not to bite anyone, not that she'd plan to do that anyway.]

'Carrying anything'. What, exactly, are they expecting someone to be 'carrying'?

[Were they talking about diseases or weapons--because he had neither, and the mere implication that he was anything but clean in a health sense (no matter how filthy he was right now, covered in ash and soot) was, quite frankly, insulting.]

[In her case it's a werewolf disease but Elena is very skilled about not mentioning that.]

I think they mean pathogens since we're all from another world. I don't know a lot about it but ancient civilizations have been wiped out due to the common cold. I understand their worry.

[Another world. Was he supposed to believe that? Another country was hard enough to believe with these strange devices. He was still unhappy about being forced to speak a different language.]

Fine. We'll go to this hospital.

Can you make your way there? It's at the north east end of HQ.

[Elena dislikes calling the underground world HQ but she has no idea what else to call it.]

[He had no idea which way north east was; he'd lost all of his bearings, but he wasn't about to admit that. He was too stubborn.]

I believe I can, yes.

Then I’ll see you there. I’ll be waiting outside of the main entrance.

[His phone has a map and if he takes too long Elena can most likely track him down but she’ll wait patiently for now.]

I am not very good at writing either.
You are at hq which is under new york city.

[Good lord, why would you make him text more. Spoiler: he still hasn't taken off his gloves.]

i can write jsut fien i juts catn cuse this hthin

whta s new yokr citt

its a place.
i dont know very much about it

whatc ountry

its the united states of america
there are seven continents but I keep forgetting them

hte untied sates of whst

america
I have a map if it helps.
Where are you?
I can come and show you

i dont knoew

there may e ktchens gner

the kitchen
if youre there then I know where that is.

alirhgt

i will rwit

Ill be wearing a red hood

[As promised Grace arrives with a map held protectively in her arms and she's wearing a red hood. Her dress beneath the hood appears to be more modern the hood is old and worn.]

Are you Bastion?

[It's the name he'd said over the phones.]

[Amery was just as sooty as he had been when he woke up, with clean spots around his eyes. His uniform was intact at least, under the filth--the jacket was a royal blue, done up with silver buttons, and there were gold epaulettes on the shoulders. His pants were white, or they would be if they were clean, and tucked into knee high boots. He still hadn't taken off his elbow length thick leather flight gloves, either, but thankfully he didn't have to type on that horrid little device anymore so it didn't matter much.

What did matter was realizing that he had been talking to a child. He didn't handle children well, especially when they started repeating things he'd said.]

That is not- [He took a deep breath.] The Bastion is a place, not a person. [And often used impolitely as a swear, like he had done.] My name is Amery Vallet.

[Grace nods her head.] I'm sorry. [She's accustomed to misunderstanding things.]

It's very nice to meet you Mr. Vallet. I'm Grace.

[She holds up the map in her arms before turning to look for a good place to lay out the thin piece of paper.]

I brought this for you to look at. I have to return this copy but I'm sure I can ask to get you one as well. [She looks up at him curiously before pulling out the map of the city.] This is New York state and the city, where we are, is here.

[She's very articulate for a child.]

[She was awfully polite and well spoken for a child, but that didn't make him any better equipped to deal with her. Sometimes, he'd had trouble dealing with his own brother, and the man was a teenager. It was enough of a gap though, that Amery felt uncomfortable.

As much as he wanted to reach out and touch the map, he remembered his sooty gloves and instead kept his hands to himself. Better not to get it dirty.]

Ah. [Well, this didn't help at all.] None of this looks even remotely familiar.

[Grace nods her head and pulls another map from the bag at her side. The bag had been hidden behind her cloak before.]

I thought you might not so I brought this one too. This is a map of this world. I’m only just learning how to read it.

[She lays it out before looking up at him. She tries to be polite and she’s learning a lot about this world rather quickly.]

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