Patchwork Universe

John Angelis · Posted: Thu Apr 22, 2004 7:06 am Post subject: Exploration #1.

[OOC: Continued from Exploration #1, from Academy]

Angelis emerged from the mists, to find himself on a small hill, in a wood, overlooking a country estate.

Pausing for a moment, to take in the scene, John headed south through the woods, feeling calm, and at one with nature.

Lady Violetta Kingsley · Posted: Thu Apr 22, 2004 8:33 pm Post subject:

From his vantage point, Angelis could see that the calm did not extend as far as the manor house, and there seemed to be a remarkable number of people rushing about to little or no purpose. In the distance, he could hear the sounds of several people travelling through the woods - they appeared to be searching for someone.

John Angelis · Posted: Thu Apr 22, 2004 9:01 pm Post subject:

John made his way through the woods, attempting to remain unobtrusive.

Lady Violetta Kingsley · Posted: Thu Apr 22, 2004 9:19 pm Post subject:

Fortunately, the searchers did not appear to be going about their task with any great enthusiasm, and it was fairly easy for Joh to evade them, since they were also making a fair deal of noise. Save for one close brush with a distinctly rustic gentleman, who muttered something along the lines of "probably decided she can fly and jumped off a bloody tree" as he trudged past John's place of concealment, John was not much inconvenienced and was easily able to skirt the forest around the edge of the estate.

John Angelis · Posted: Fri Apr 23, 2004 7:58 am Post subject:

Angelis left them to their search, and trudged onwards, ever onwards.

In time, he reached another wall of fog. This pleased him greatly. Nice little squares, bounded by fog? Any fool could navigate *that*.

He pressed on into the fog. He seemed to walk in the fog for some time, much longer than before. Alarmed at this change in the rules, he reversed his course - and immediately found himself back in the woods. A small light of understanding lit in his eyes. He tried again, with similar results.

A broad grin spread over his face. He'd found a boundary. He turned left and began to follow the boundary, occasionally testing the fog to make sure it still was a boundary, until at last, he reached a corner, and stepped through...

John Angelis · Posted: Fri Apr 23, 2004 11:59 am Post subject:

Some hours later, Angelis returned.

He staggered through the fog, into the English countryside. Freezing and wet, he collapsed by the side of a country lane, in exhaustion. Hopefully, one of the people searching would find him instead...

Lady Violetta Kingsley · Posted: Fri Apr 23, 2004 8:56 pm Post subject:

Lady Beatrice's carriage emerged from the mists onto the lane and came to a rather undignified stop when the coachman spotted John Angelis lying in the road. "Beg pardon, ma'am, but there appears to be a person in the road. He looks like he's been for a swim in the lake."

Lady Beatrice leaned out of the carriage, clearly pre-occupied. "Well do something about him, Higgins. We need to get back - the Earl is waiting." The coachman, his expression unreadable, dismounted and dragged the prostrate Angelis to one side of the road. "Sorry about this, sir, I'll send someone back for you." The coachman remounted and drove on.

A few minutes later, another servant riding a cart came up the road from the manor house. Gently, he lifted John into the cart, wrapping him in a blanket as he did so. Without comment he rode back to the manor, where the Earl gave his orders. "Never seen the man before in my life. Find him a place to rest in the servant's quarters. Oh, and have someone wait outside the door to bring him to me as soon as he's rested. Maybe he knows something about Violetta, and I'd rather like to know what he's been doing in the lake."

The exhausted Angelis was carried upstairs to a comfortable, if somewhat plain room, where a couple of manservants helped him undress and put him to bed. A plate of bread and cheese, and a pitcher of wine were left at the bedside.

John Angelis · Posted: Tue Apr 27, 2004 9:17 pm Post subject:

John woke late the following morning. His eyes lit upon the bread and cheese, and all other thoughts left him for the moment. After a simple but enjoyable breakfast, he began to investigate his surroundings.

Finding the room otherwise plain, he dressed in the respectable country gentleman's attire that had been left out for him, which fitted him, more or less.

Leaving the room, he wandered gingerly through the servant's quarters until he ran into a footman. Or whatever the young man was, John had no idea.

"Err... I'm up. Could you take me to.... errr.... wherever?"

Lady Violetta Kingsley · Posted: Tue Apr 27, 2004 10:31 pm Post subject:

"Certainly, sir," said the servant, although the manner in which he said 'sir' suggested that he wasn't entirely convinced that John merited the epithet. Leading him down several flights of stairs and through a confusing warren of back passages that vaguely reminded John in some intangible way of Going Underground, the servant lead him to a doorway, which he politely held open. "If you'll wait in the Green Room, the Earl will be along to see you shortly."

John entered, somewhat puzzled as to why almost every item in the green room was, in fact, some shade of red. Aside from this peculiarlity the room was furnished in typical late Victorian fashion, even down to the modest covering of the legs on the large armchair to one side of the fire. John took a seat on a velvet sofa whose colour could only be described as puce, and passed the time staring at what were evidently a series of family portraits dating back quite some time.

After ten minutes or so, the Earl entered, closely followed by his wife, who, rather than taking an interest in Angelis, walked to the window and stared out at the sunny vista of the estate. The Earl took a seat in the armchiar, and turned to face John, all business, and did not trouble to introduce himself.

"Well, man? Perhaps you'd like to explain how you ended up in that state on my property. And in particular why you'd been in the lake. I presume there's a very good explanation for all of this, because i'd really hate to think you were a poacher. Still poachers don't usually turn up soaking wet in the middle of the day, so I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt for now. Out with it, man, on the double."

John Angelis · Posted: Thu Apr 29, 2004 2:30 pm Post subject:

John narrowed his eyes.

"I apologise if I have trespassed on your land. Had I not been dying of exposure, I would have taken my leave earlier."

"As for you lake, I have been nowhere near it. I had a mishap in the land just beyond the fog bank to the east."

Lady Violetta Kingsley · Posted: Thu Apr 29, 2004 7:53 pm Post subject:

The Earl's brow creased slightly at the sting in John's words but he forebore from comment. This look was replaced by one of open skepticism when John claimed not to have been swimming in the lake. When he mentioned the fog, the Earl stood up suddenly.

"Fog? There is no fog, or any other lake, for that matter. Just the road and Aldersley Village. You must've become confused man. But it sounds like you've been talking to Lady Violetta, and we're rather keen to find out where she's got to. I assume she told you about this fog - she's a little ... well, she sees things ... there really isn't a delicate way to put this, is there? My daughter is not terribly reliable, and you really shouldn't take anything she says too seriously.

"But where did you see her? She's been missing for four days now."

Lady Beatrice turned from the window and spoke for the first time. Although outwardly composed, there was a glint of stel in her eyes. "You are too generous in spirit, my love. I wouldn't be at all suprised if he hasn't caused her to disappear."

John Angelis · Posted: Thu Apr 29, 2004 9:02 pm Post subject:

John walked over to the window.

"Are you seriously trying to tell me that you can't see that fog bank?"

John paused.

"Look, I was about to start talking about this whole business with the fog banks, and what I've learned. But I realised that none of it makes any sense. If you hadn't seen it for yourself, then I'm sure it'd sound like nonsense."

"Now, if you say this Lady Violetta went into the fog bank, then I'm sure I don't know where she is, and there's every possibility that she's lost and can't find her way home. I don't know where home is from here."

John turned around to face them, cutting in as both were about to start speaking.

"I see this going two ways. Either you're going to be unreasonable, and I won't be able to help you. Or you'll come with me to where I can see the fog bank, and we'll try to work out why I can see it, Lady Violetta could see it, but you cannot."

Lady Violetta Kingsley · Posted: Thu Apr 29, 2004 11:27 pm Post subject:

The Earl and his wife exchanged brief glances. "All right," he replied. Show us this 'fog bank'." He stood and, removing a key from his pocket, opened a small door hidden in an alcove which lead out onto the front lawn. "After you. We really can't see it so you'll have to lead us there."

John Angelis · Posted: Sun May 02, 2004 3:04 pm Post subject:

John nodded.

"Alright then. Let's go take a look at it."

Angelis and party walked out to the east edge of the patch. As they approached, it was confirmed that Angelis could see the fog, and that indeed, no-one else could. By the end of the discussion, it was clear that in some ways, Angelis was considered crazy, but in others, suspicion was growing that somehow, something odd was happening.

"Right," Angelis announced when the party drew to a halt. "Now, to my eye, the fog is running in a dead straight wall, in a line that runs through those trees there, there and there."

"Now, I suggest that someone ought to step through that line, and others should stay here and watch what happens. Who would like to try first?"

Lady Violetta Kingsley · Posted: Mon May 03, 2004 1:57 am Post subject:

With a noise indicative of disapproval, Lady Beatrice stepped forward over the threshold of the mist and vanished immediately from John's view. Any sense of triumph John may have felt was short lived, since when he turned to the Earl, the elderly gentleman appeared to be addressing a remark to the fog.

"Yes dear, of course we can see you." There was a short pause.

"Quite. You see, young man, just as we told you. Can't argue with the evidence of your own eyes, can you?" Lady Beatrice re-emerged from the fog, her expression stern, and confronted Angelis. "I hope you'll forgive me for questioning your integrity, but it does seem like entirely too much of a co-incidence that you appear to be suffering from the exact same dellusion that Lady Violetta was shortly before her disappearance. Now would you be so good as to tell us what you've done with our daughter. I hope for your sake that she remains unmolested." She exchanged another long meaningful glance with the Earl - whatever the glance meant, it probably did not bode well for John.