Patchwork Universe

Jones · Posted: Mon Jul 12, 2004 11:28 pm Post subject: The Start of a Quest

[ooc: From 'The End of a Quest' thread in the map room]

Jane Jones had looked around for any sign of the direction her horse had taken, upon parting from Larkin and the others. The streets of the white city were scuffed with several tracks and it was by following these that she found several dead matches and cigarette ends, a part of a pack of cards with an unusual number of aces and then finally the map room.

Staring out at the strange arrangement of square slabs that were laid out on the floor Jane felt thoughtful. Others on seeing the map had made a note of its arrangement. Jane's gaze had gone instantly to a sign marked with a letter J and then sat down.

She had to sit or she would fall. It was one thing to be told about the existence of patches, entirely another to see them laid out so... 'coldbloodedly' was really the only word she could find for it. It didn't take long for her to reach a conclusion about what Larkin's mission was really about.

Crossing her legs beneath her, Jane drew her pack next to her and took out a packet of bread and cheese. If what she suspected was correct then the map wouldn't stay like this for long. If it moved, she wanted to be around to see it.

Her eyes travelled across the arrangement once again. The J, the tree, the slums, the desert, the rose garden, the dark sepulchre. The patches made a pattern... but what did the pattern make?

liason · Posted: Tue Jul 13, 2004 8:21 am Post subject:

Whilst Jane munched her food and pondered the mystery of the map a small, stone thing with lots of legs approached her pack. It looked a bit like a child's toy centipede with the exception of the circular saw attached to its face and the tiny crates strapped to its back.

After a brief examination of the pack, it scuttled deep inside and hid itself.

The Janitor · Posted: Tue Jul 13, 2004 7:10 pm Post subject:

As Jane watched the map, the images became blurred and increasingly hard to make out.

Eventually, the map once more became clear, but in a new arrangement.

Jane could see that some pictures were new, and bore a striking similarity to the images on the slabs that were taken from the storeroom.

Jones · Posted: Tue Jul 13, 2004 10:05 pm Post subject:

Jane considered the new arrangement. Obviously the lilac doomthing had done something with the slabs to make them appear on this surface which must be a map. Jane looked at the new pictures and imagined castles and churches popping into existence left and right.

She didn't much like the thoughts she was having.

The Janitor · Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 10:50 am Post subject:

Almost as soon as the image had cleared, it once again blurred.

After a few moments, the map could once again be clearly seen. It was in yet another new arrangement, but one quite similar to the last.

Jones · Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 11:00 am Post subject:

"Damn thing moves every five minutes," Jane said to herself. Standing up she decided she had better get moving, if only to be sure she was going where she intended to go.

"West, west, north, north, north," she repeated to herself and then hoisted her pack on to her shoulders again.

Leaving the room with the map in it she walked through the streets of the white city, heading west.

Jones · Posted: Sun Jul 18, 2004 11:16 am Post subject:

She walked for some time without meeting anyone and reached the veil of mist. Having crossed twice now without ill-affect she believed intellectually that the mist could not harm her but even so she needed a moment or so to compose herself before crossing over.

Taking a deep breath, Jane stepped forward.

[ooc: Jane (and the scavenger in her pack) now move to Juniper School: 'The Black Walker']