Patchwork Universe

Dr James Kirby · Good Joined: 02 Jul 2004 Posts: 214 Location: Empire City

High above Aldersley, a large, black dirigible emerged from the fog to the east.

It was largely overlooked by all concerned. After all, if nothing could possibly be in the sky, what reason would there be to look up?

Dr James Kirby · Good Joined: 02 Jul 2004 Posts: 214 Location: Empire City

[From Empire City: Rude Awakening]

On top of the zeppelin, the raging struggle briefly abated. Kirby was momentarily dazzled by the sudden appearance of bright sunshine. Von Damme's curiously inverted vision, meanwhile, was plunged into darkness. The two released each other, and stumbled backwards.

Von Damme was quickest to react, his night vision kicking in while Kirby frantically attempted to pull the light amplification goggles from his face. Quickly grabbing a loop of mooring rope, he ran at Kirby, and smashed him across the back, sending him sailing over the side of the balloon. Kirby's goggles dropped at Von Damme's feet. He picked them up, and then peered over the side to see if he could spot Kirby's plummeting form.

"Auf Wiedersein Herr Doctor! And thank you for this gift, I'm sure it will come in very useful!"

Staggering along the gangway, back to the access hatch, Von Damme allowed himself a long, gloating laugh.

---

With the goggles off, Kirby could see again. Unfortunately, what he could see was the ground, rapidly approaching.

Still, the suit was designed for precisely these emergencies. He activated the Macro-Leap system's repulse system, and a gentle yellow glow surrounded him, counteracting gravity's pull to far less lethal levels. The power plant had not yet fuly recharged the system, but the repulse system was designed to be low-drain, and lowered him down to the ground, not gently, but not with the sickening crunch one might have expected. With his legs folding under him like a parachutist, Kirby came to the ground, somewhat shaken, but alive.

Kirby watched helplessly as the Zeppelin continued its way west.

---

[The Zeppelin now goes west to Rose Garden.]

Lady Violetta Kingsley · Posted: Fri Jul 09, 2004 2:03 pm Post subject:

Aldersley was probably not paying much attention to things heavenly at the moment, since preparations were in full swing for an event rather more close to the ground - the event in question being the Aldersley Hunt. Men and women in red jackets were trotting around the courtyard in front of the stables, the dogs were barking, and in general, much chaos had ensued. A couple of beagles had got loose, and the master of the hounds was chasing them around the manor house somewhat ineffectually while the Earl shouted enthusiastic and often contradictory orders to him. Lady Beatrice sat quietly waiting for the hunt to begin, taking in the fresh breeze of the day and oblivious to other concerns. While the hunt was not a large one, there were nonetheless an impressive number of horses and it seemed almost as if the grounds of Aldersley itself had caught the spirit of excitement that the hunt entailed. The atmosphere felt pregnant with promise.

With a shudder Dr. Kirby felt that unnerving sixth sense that tells one when one is being watched. To his great relief, however, the watcher turned out to be nothing so much as a six month old tabby cat, who dashed up and gave him a noncommital take it or leave it type sniff before moving off to pounce a nearby daffodil.

Dr James Kirby · Good Joined: 02 Jul 2004 Posts: 214 Location: Empire City

As the zeppelin drifted out of sight, Kirby took stock of his surroundings. He had fallen into what appeared to be woodlands. Had he fallen into some park somewhere?

He sat and listened. No sound of cars, or industry of any kind, just the sounds of nature, and of the suit's power plant whirring quietly to itself as it recharged the capacitors.

He recalled that the zeppelin had been travelling west. Disoriented, he tried to decide which direction was east, in order that he might begin the walk home. This led him to examine the sky, to see where the sun was. Which led him to realise that the sun ought not to be up at all.

He picked a random direction, and began to walk as he pondered. The Quiet Zone projector? This seemed implausible. This wasn't the Quiet Zone. There was nothing in the Quiet Zone - hence the name. But... perhaps... perhaps he had been thrown through the zone, to somewhere that also bordered it. After all, he had theorised that the Quiet Zone might be utilised in teleportation. But why should he have been teleported as he fell from the zeppelin? He then realised that the moment when the glare hit him must have been the moment of transfer. Perhaps the projector's beam was still active, and perhaps the zeppelin had passed into the beam as a result of his turning it... No, this was all conjecture. He'd have to get back to the lab, and run some tests.

He came out of his reverie to realise that he was walking along a country road now, attractively wooded on both sides. As he walked along, he saw a horse and cart in the distance - a rare sight in Empire, but still used by some tradesmen. He picked up the pace, and made for the cart, hoping to get his bearings.

Lady Violetta Kingsley · Posted: Fri Jul 09, 2004 2:15 pm Post subject:

The cart in question was being driven by Jeremiah Jones, brother to John and also a labourer on the estate farm. Turnips were piled in a somewhat haphazard fashion and the cart, fully laden, was progressing slowly down the road to the village. At the sight of Dr. Kirby, Jeremiah pulled up the horse smartly and stared openly at the man who stood before him. Realising his faux pas, he quickly got down off his cart to apologise to the Doctor, assuming him to be some visiting noble, for who but a nobleman would casually wear a suit of armour in this day and age.

"Beggin' your pardon, sir, but it ain't as if I ever saw a man wearing plate before. You'll be 'ere for the hunt I take it? It's over by the main 'ouse." A further odd thought occuring to Jeremiah, he asked "Is yer 'orse alright, sir? Yer seems to have lost 'im, if yer don't mind me sayin'."

Dr James Kirby · Good Joined: 02 Jul 2004 Posts: 214 Location: Empire City

"My horse? Um, yes, my horse. No, I haven't got my horse with me."

He looked at the man. His clothing seemed very old-fashioned, and his accent was unfamiliar. Some English dialect? He realised that his own accent, a European-flavoured US East Coast accent must betray him as not local.

"I seem to have got lost, I was walking in the woods, and I can't seem to find the house. Could you direct me, please?"

Lady Violetta Kingsley · Posted: Fri Jul 09, 2004 7:15 pm Post subject:

"Right you are, sir. Straight up this road back the way I came. Yer can't miss it. Best 'urry though. The hunt's nearly started."

Dr James Kirby · Good Joined: 02 Jul 2004 Posts: 214 Location: Empire City

Kirby wondered whether to speed up with a few small macro-leaps, but decided against it. He had no idea where he was, and didn't want to cause a scene. Instead, he settled for a brisk jog, assisted by the suit's strength.

Presently, he arrived in the vicinity of the stables. The scene looked again, old fashioned, but Kirby realised that these affairs were very traditional.

He approached the throng.

"Excuse me!" he called, in a clear voice. "I'm a little lost. Could I perhaps have the use of a telephone?"

Lady Violetta Kingsley · Posted: Sun Jul 11, 2004 1:12 am Post subject:

One of the assembled riders, a small weasly man who happened to be closest turned towards the sound of the doctor's voice. Taking in the oddness of Kirby's attire, he raised an eyebrow sardonically.

"You must have come from London, I suppose? An American if I'm not mistaken, although I can't quite place your accent. I'm not up in the city that often, don't get much of a chance to mix with you chaps. I'm afraid the Manor's a bit far out for a telephone. Your best bet would be to head back down the road towards the village and send a telegram from the sub post office there." He pointed back in the direction from which Dr. Kirby had come to where the round gradually wound it's way south through the woods.

"The hunt's about to start I'm afraid, so everyone's in a bit of a hurry. I imagine the Master of Hounds is going to be for it once the hunt's over. Anything else I can help you with?"

Dr James Kirby · Good Joined: 02 Jul 2004 Posts: 214 Location: Empire City

"No, no, that's quite helpful. I can get directions to the post office from one of the staff here I imagine? In which case, I shan't disturb your hunt!"

Kirby walked over to an ostler who didn't appear to have much to do, and asked a few pertinent questions about the layout of the local area, and the whereabouts of the village. Having satisfied himself as to the rough layout, he made his way out of the grounds and towards the village.

Lady Violetta Kingsley · Posted: Mon Jul 12, 2004 12:18 am Post subject:

It was with some surprise that Dr. Kirby turned a corner in the road to be confronted by a barrier made entirely of mist. What was particularly odd was that rather than petering out in the matter one might have expected mist to, it seemed to stop dead. The road was in bright sunshine, but straight ahead he could see nothing but faint shapes of shadow, one of which seemed to loom above wherever the road went to rather menacingly.

Dr James Kirby · Good Joined: 02 Jul 2004 Posts: 214 Location: Empire City

Kirby felt excitement welling up inside him, as he always did when presented with phenomena he couldn't immediately explain.

What was plain was that this was no ordinary fog bank. As far as his eyes could trace it, it presented a flat, uniform surface. He performed a macro-leap, and quickly cut in the repulsors at maximum. From a vantage point floating above the trees, he could see the fog, as a wall, extending into the distance on both sides, flat as a fluke. In the distance he thought he could see additional walls, orthagonal to this one.

Gently, he returned to the ground. He rubbed his chin. This wasn't the weather for mist and fog. The morning sun ought to have evaporated it. Momentarily frustrated by a lack of a field experimentation kit, he had an idea, and began combing the undergrowth for something appropriate. A bit of foraging turned up some likely candidates - some thistledown, a fine-leaved plant whose genus Kirby wasn't entirely familiar with, and even a small bird's feather. Kirby felt sure that where you to move these items through a fog bank of this apparent density, then moisture would quickly form upon them. He stepped just inside the boundary of the mist, and waved his test samples around in slow graceful movements.

He stepped back out of the mist, and examined the samples. As he had suspected - bone dry. Something was scattering light here, but it was not water vapour. Kirby decided to investigate, further, and walked into the mist intrepidly, intent on discovering the source of the phenomenon.

[OOC: If I'm not much mistaken - Academy?]

Lady Violetta Kingsley · Posted: Mon Jul 12, 2004 12:54 pm Post subject:

[OOC: Correct]

Dr James Kirby · Good Joined: 02 Jul 2004 Posts: 214 Location: Empire City

Kirby returned from the mist briefly, did a double take, and left again.

Presently he returned. He turned right, and impatient for his next piece of experimental data, performed an astonishing macro-leap, which took him perhaps half a mile east. Another swiftly followed, followed again by a smaller one that took him to the eastern boundary of the domain. If any of the locals noticed, they were in no position to give chase.

The boundary glimmered darkly, and strange shapes loomed. Kirby, once more, strode into the mist, to see what could be seen.

[OOC: to Empire City!]