Tales of Aedrorynn {IC|CLOSED}

[Faal Lot Himdah]

Giant Crab Battle
Haefyn Peninsula

---

Wander's hatchet however never made contact, as the crab felt the sudden increase of weight on its back. In response it swung the side that Wander was on toward the ground, sending Wander off its shell, in the direction of Gerhard's charge. Before it could focus on Wander however it was distracted by the bullet that just entered its eye. It scuttled backwards and skrieched in pain. Meanwhile, Gerhard's charge would exit the cloud and be faced with Wander on the ground in front of him.

---

Shilo Weardhyll
Some Beach
Southern Haefyn Peninsula

---

"Don't meantion it." Shilo said without looking back at her, "Besides, its safer to travel in a group.... Wait do you see that?"

Shilo stopped and was looking up to the sky, and noticed a bird flying around. It looked like some sort of hawk. "Looks like a hawk. At least that means there is some sort of ecosystem here."

[Parcia]

Sean Roe

Yea, he pissed it off. It became apparent to him very quickly that the 3 bullets he fired were just pissing it off from this angle, and when it turned towards him, roared, and began to chase after him, he almost shit him self for real. "Oh shit!" He slung his rifle and turned tail to run, but the thing began shake up a cloud of sand around it. He stopped, reached over his back and drew the two and a half feet of sharpened steel from his back and got in to a ready possession.


He stood, the machete held high meant for a downward swing. The dust swirling around him as the beast thumped around him on the sand. He saw the claw shoot out at him out of the corner of his eye. He managed to side step just in time to miss the claw, seeing his chance, he swung downward lodging the blade in the thinner section of the armor, were the joint of the claw met the arm. He went to yank the blade out, but to his surprise, found it stuck. Thinking for a moment, he drew his side arm, planted the barrel of the gun next to the blade, and started pulling the trigger, emptying the 7 slugs in to the soft joint of the arm.

[Charlia]

"Hey, Sam! Whatcha doin'?"

Samantha would have completely frozen, had she been anyone else. Instead, her grip on the gun tightened, and she nodded stiffly. "That is... an acceptable arrangement," she replied coldly. "Please walk faster. The sooner we find someone who can tell us what's going on, the better."

It was transparently obvious that her 'please' was simply a formality, but at least she was doing that much, right?

Naranbaatar,
That was... Strange,
Southern Haefyn Peninsula

"Faster isn't the key to travelling long distances." Naro said, immediately devolving into the speech he typically gave inexperienced soldiers when they got curious as to why the horde moved so slowly. "It's moving at a constant speed that you can keep up even through the entirety of the night and then some that's the trick. If you sprint or gallop to a destination, you will simply tire your house or yourself out before you reach there. Whereas if you simply walk at a comfortable pace, you could make past where you would have to stop for a break and possibly even make it to the destination."

Looking back at Sam for a moment, Naro decided that learning a bit about his enemy would be useful. He turned back toward the front for a bit and picked up his pace a little. "My father taught me that. Did your parents teach you anything that you remember to this day, Sam? Perhaps how to so efficiently threaten strangers that don't want to hurt you?" he asked, chuckling slightly as his nip at her.

"Hmm. Parents. Let me think. No, can't say either of them taught me anything useful, except how to dodge when someone's throwing things at you, like, say, glass bottles. And taking care of the occasional injury. But those were more of 'learning by necessity' and less of 'sitting down and having a lesson with my father', since he was as likely to attack me as look at me. Any other pointless questions, or are you done?"

Shilo Weardhyll
Some Beach
Southern Haefyn Peninsula

---

"Don't mention it." Shilo said without looking back at her, "Besides, its safer to travel in a group.... Wait do you see that?"

Shilo stopped and was looking up to the sky, and noticed a bird flying around. It looked like some sort of hawk. "Looks like a hawk. At least that means there is some sort of ecosystem here."

Charlotte followed his lead, looking up at the bird and squinting to try and see it more clearly. "Well, that's a bit of a relief," she replied. "At least it's something relatively normal..."

But... There are a few plants around here, we already know there's an ecosystem... No, don't say that. No questions, no corrections, nothing like that. He might leave if you upset him and then you'll be alone again, and who knows when you might find someone else, or even if there is anyone else, you can't make him leave.

Just do what he wants and try not to make him angry. You can handle that, right?

...Right.

[Granis]

As the battle continued to rage around him, Wander sat up. He looked to where the battle was taking place, and really wasnt sure what to think. He looked down at the hatchet, still in his hands, and sighed.

"Hey Meira," he called, "maybe we should leave this to the people with guns for the moment! I don't think either of us have anything with the power needed to break its shell, an-"

And then he stopped, when he saw Sean slide under the crab, mess with bottom part of the shell, and then start yelling about 'frags'.

He looked over to the girl, a blank expression on his face.

"Did he just say he was using a grenade?"

He barely blinked as Sean sprinted away from the crab, running right between the two of them.

"I think..." He said slowly. "That we should probably run."

And then he joined the Vietnam soldier, sprinting away from the crab and hoping to god that Meire, along with all the others, were following them in their retreat.

[Vulnier]

Thomas "Tom" Montoya
A Beach
Southern Haefyn Peninsula

Thomas had been sitting at the base of a dune sipping at his canteen, resting for a time. But this also gave him time to think a bit on his situation, and it wasn't looking good. From what he could tell, he was alone without his regiment on potentially enemy territory with no food and no idea where he was. He grimaced at this thought. At least I got ammo... Thomas sighed, letting his head hang low for a few moments before looking up at the sky, wondering how he got into this mess.

It was then Thomas caught movement in the sky, looking to see a bird a ways out. Thinking it strange, he then traced it down with his finger to see two figures walking down the beach. Thomas scrambled to his feet as he saw this, nearly dropping the water out of his canteen. He rubbed his eyes, thinking it was a trick of the heat. But when the figures did not dissipate, a look of pure joy crossed his face.

Finally... Was all he could think, even thinking they could be from his regiment. Forgetting his Krag, Thomas stumbled over himself as he went between the dunes and the ocean. It was then he yelled "Hello!", waving toward the pair.

[Kwadai]

Kazimir Zhirov

Kazimir's eyes widened momentarily as the gunshots echoed over the otherwise eerily quiet beach just as they agreed to stick together as a group. Instinctively he whipped his head in the direction of the noise unsuccessfully trying to locate the source. "Well, it looks like we're not the only life around here", he said quietly, but there was a hint of something that was either concern or fear in his voice. Upon the direction to take cover of the left side as they walked to wherever they were heading Kazimir gladly obliged. Paul was definitely a soldier, strong, determined and a good leader. Or at least that was how Kazimir had taken to viewing him.

He then turned to Anna on her horse when she admitted her doubts about guarding her side. "Don't worry I'm not much better off, we just need to keep an eye out for any possible dangers", he assured her while moving over to the left. He couldn't help himself but smirk when she too corrected Andronikus on his city naming error, they were by all extents of the imagination one of the most unusual groupings anyone could have came up with. Whatever this was, chances were they would have more than enough time to figure out why none of them were on the same century. So long as the lasted long enough that is.

[Tracian Empire]

They tried to fight it. The American fired his weird rifle, and yet, all those bullets were useless.. the crab was unaffected. It had a thick shell, after all, pretty much like an armor... so the ashen haired boy couldn't help but compare it to those monsters of steel that he had seen in his last days on Earth. Slow, but deadly, nearly impossible to destroy.. they would need a lot of power to punch through that armor. Maybe if they would have had a T-Gewehr.. but the thought was useless. They had none. The crab suddenly started to move, creating a cloud of sand around itself.. and the German Feldwebel charged towards it, with his bayonet ready.. but Arno was unable to do it. It was suicidal..after months of being ordered to do such suicidal charges against enemy trenches, the young soldier was too afraid to even try. And yet, another of those weird persons around them decided to charge at it.. But then.. somehow fired a bullet, a bullet that finally managed to hit the monster, judging by its shriek of pain..but as the crab threw that weird guy on the sand, Arno was of course, unable to see that the bullet had hit the monster's eye, or that Wander had tried to go for the crab's legs, all because of the cloud of sand.

And the boy hesitated.. before he was even able to do anything, the American was caught in the crab's cloud of sand..and then, the others started to run, to retreat.. the fight seemed to be lost. But the gray eyed soldier was paralyzed in fear..he slowly but surely started to step back.. on the verge of just turning around and starting to run. But his discipline kept him there, as he continued to tightly grip his rifle while quivering, keeping it aimed at the cloud of sand...and that's when blood started to slowly drop from his wounded arm.. staining his gray uniform in even more red.

[Charlia]

Thomas "Tom" Montoya
A Beach
Southern Haefyn Peninsula

Thomas had been sitting at the base of a dune sipping at his canteen, resting for a time. But this also gave him time to think a bit on his situation, and it wasn't looking good. From what he could tell, he was alone without his regiment on potentially enemy territory with no food and no idea where he was. He grimaced at this thought. At least I got ammo... Thomas sighed, letting his head hang low for a few moments before looking up at the sky, wondering how he got into this mess.

It was then Thomas caught movement in the sky, looking to see a bird a ways out. Thinking it strange, he then traced it down with his finger to see two figures walking down the beach. Thomas scrambled to his feet as he saw this, nearly dropping the water out of his canteen. He rubbed his eyes, thinking it was a trick of the heat. But when the figures did not dissipate, a look of pure joy crossed his face.

Finally... Was all he could think, even thinking they could be from his regiment. Forgetting his Krag, Thomas stumbled over himself as he went between the dunes and the ocean. It was then he yelled "Hello!", waving toward the pair.

As soon as Samantha heard the shout, she turned, keeping the gun pointed at Naro while she did so.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, staring at the stranger. "Let me guess. You don't know. Or are you the person responsible for this nonsense? Come on, then."

If you are responsible... I have better things to do than deal with this.

[Dayganistan]

Zende Ahmad

As the group conversed amongst themselves, Zende felt a rumbling in the ground. It wasn't unlike the rumbling of an approaching armored vehicle. She picked up her SVD off the ground, ready to move as soon as the threat, if any, had revealed itself. A good sniper knew when their position was compromised and it was time to displace, and this seemed like it was about to be one of those times. The rumbling turned out not to be an armored vehicle, as a giant crab suddenly dug its way up from under the sand.

I'm dead and this is hell, no other explanation, she thought as she simply watched the thing in amazement. The American soldier from the Vietnam War fired his M16 at the crab, the bullets simply bouncing off. Not terribly surprising, she had seen plenty of 5.56 going both ways in Syria, she never found it particularly impressive against anything except unarmored targets. And this giant crab certainly counted as an armored target. She wasn't even sure the 7.62 rounds from her SVD, much more powerful than the American's 5.56, would do anything to the crab either and she didn't want to waste ammo. Who knew if she would be able to get any more. And the Browning Hi-Power, despite it's name, was not high powered at all firing 9mm ammo and certainly wouldn't do anything. The only thing that would probably stop the crab was an RPG or an American airstrike, and neither of those were likely to show up any time soon.

As the crab got more angered and started to kick up a cloud of sand, the only clear solution was to run away from it and hopefully, eventually, run into more people who could help. She drew her bayonet and fixed it to the muzzle of her SVD, she'd use it as a spear if it came to it, and then took off in the opposite direction of the crab. She didn't look back to see what was happening, anyone who hadn't yet retreated was either incredibly brave, incredibly stupid, or a combination of both and would likely end up dead. There were certain situations where she would be one of the incredibly brave ones, but without the equipment to deal with a heavily armored threat, it was almost suicide not to retreat.

As she retreated away from the crab, she spotted the young Austrian soldier. He was standing with his rifle raised, but he seemed to have no intention of firing. He was simply frozen in fear. Zende was familiar with the feeling, it happened when she first went to the frontlines. One of her comrades had snapped her out of it and since then, Zende had to do the same thing herself to countless YPG and YPJ fighters, many of them who couldn't have been older than 16, and it seemed like she'd have to try to do the same thing here. She ran over to the young Austrian, pushed his rifle down with her free hand, and looked directly into his face, making direct eye contact. She had also noticed the blood stain on the Austrian's uniform.

"If you want to live, you need to follow me," she said, about as calmly as she should given the situation. "There's nothing shameful in retreating to a better position if it means you get to live to fight another day. That monster is basically a tank and we have no weapons to deal with it. I also noticed you're bleeding, and if you follow me I can help you when we get to a safer position. I have bandages."

She quickly looked back in the direction of the crab, hearing several more gunshots. There was still a cloud of dust and she could only assume the thing wasn't dead yet.

"Come on, let's go before that dust cloud disappears and it can see us again," she said as she took off running again, tapping the Austrian's helmet just hard enough that he would hear it as she ran past in what she was hoping was a universal signal for "get moving." She ran until she made it off the beach, finding a small dip in the ground which she dove into. She peered over the lip of the dip, watching to see if the Austrian soldier had followed her. Or anyone else, for that matter.

[Hothnia]

Deleted... Ignore please

[Brusia]

Captain Paul Montgomery and Andronikos Arotras

When the Russian replied to Anna to inform her that she just needed to keep an eye out for dangers, Paul nodded in agreement and added: "So be certain you remain close-by, the farther off anyone wanders, the longer it will take the rest of us to reach them should they discover any danger."

Meanwhile, the Byzantine, still confused at the terms the others were using, replied to Anna: "That is alright, I am sure you did not mean any offense by it, but I have watched many friends fall to Bulgarian blades and would prefer not to be associated with those savages. Though I am not of the Turks either; my name is Andronikos Arotras, and I am a Roman born in the great city of Constantinople. I know not of this 'Istanbul' you speak of, but I am most certainly not from there."

After about a half-mile of walking and riding, the group approached a fence placed a few hundred feet away from the farmhouse they were seeking. There looked to be a few fields surrounding the farmhouse with paths running in between, but Paul couldn't spot anybody working them. He dismounted his horse and tied the reins to the fence, then turned to address the others: "I don't see anyone working the fields that we can speak with, so I suppose we shall have to approach the farmhouse. Be certain to remain on your guard however; for all we know, these people may be responsible for bringing us here, and if they're not, they still might not appreciate trespassers. I'll knock on the door to see if anyone is home, but I would recommend the rest of you spread out abit just in case anyone decides to try and fire at us. Miss Del Favero, if you wish, I may recommend remaining upon your horse for the time being, in case we should have to beat a hasty retreat." Pulling the still loaded carbine out of its holster on the side of his horse, Paul then approached Kazimir and offered him the weapon, stating: "If you are at all familiar with the use of a rifle sir, I would certainly appreciate it if you could cover me." After the Russian had a chance to accept or reject the weapon, the cavalryman started walking along the path with his hands up to try and show he meant no harm, while the Byzantine remained a little ways behind him and in one of the fields with his flamethrower at the ready...

[Faal Lot Himdah]

Giant Crab Battle
The Last of the Ninth Arrives
Haefyn Peninsula

---

When Zende dropped to the ground, a certain person was approaching from behind. He stopped when he was just behind her. If she noticed him, she'd see a fully armoured Roman, armed with only his sheild, a gladius and two pilla.

"Now what's going on here?" Appius spoke and stuck his two pilla into the ground, "A battle? Lucky me that the sand screen there is disipating. Lets see, oh a Demon Crab. Good on you for retreating. Unless you know how to take them down, you'll end up dead more times than not. Perhaps its time I get involved."

Meanwhile, the Demon Crab once again shrieked in rage and pain with Sean's latest assualt. Though it was not enough to stop it as it simply swung the injured claw towards Sean knocking him away. By time Sean would hit the ground, the crab had begun to approach him. It was then that up the hill, Appius had pulled a pilium from the ground and aimed at the crab.

"COVER YOUR EARS!!!" He shouted so all those who were fighting the crab or around him would hear. The crab's attention was caught by the shout and looked up at the Roman. It began to shriek once again, but the shriek was silenced by the boom of thunder and a lightning covered pilium hit it directly in the top part of its shell. The lightning covered pilium didn't bounce off like the bullets, instead it had broken through the shell and delivered a powerful shock, enhanced by the machette in its claw.

The crab was not taken down instantly by the lightning pilium, but it was paralyzed.

"ITS SHELL SHOULD BE PENETRABLE NOW!"

---

Suspiciously Placed Farmhouse
Haefyn Peninsula

---

As the Captain walked up the path, the door to the farmhouse opened slowly. But no one came out, nor was there any sound from the house. Or from anywhere else for that manner. The entire area was eriely quiet. That silence however was disrupted after a few moments by the sounds of number of things moving in the fields which were full of something that looked like wheat, except it was half the size. A few moments after the movement in the fields started, it stopped, but was followed by what could be described as a throaty howl.

[Hothnia]

Anna Del Favero

Anna looked over at the "Roman". "Roman? So your Italian? So am I! Well, my family's historically from Italy at least. As for Istanbul, it's Constantinople as its called in the modern day. Same city, different name." The group arrived at the farmhouse. Anna was just about to swing her leg over Lucky's back when she heard Paul say she should stay on her horse. " Why? Is it because I'm a girl? You think I'm weak and dainty? Well, it's not like that anymore! I'm coming with."

Anna began to dismount her horse before sliding back on. " On second thought, I'll stay here. My apparel isn't the greatest for running." Anna gestured towards her riding skirt. " Go head." Anna laid her head down on Lucky's neck and closed her eyes. What a day. I need some rest. And a bathroom. Anna began to fall asleep. She was woken by howl, an awful one at that. She lifted her head from Lucky's mane, looking around frantically. " Uh, guys, I think we should go. Now."

Gerhard Sweinger

Gerhard charged out of the sand cloud, his bayonet hitting nothing the entire time. Gerhard cursed. How were they going to kill that thing. He looked around himself to find Wander, on the ground. He heard a yell and turned around to see the American attacking the beast again. Gerhard searched for the likely Soviet and the Austrian boy but was unable to see them through the thick cloud of dust. Then, a sound like thunder echoed through the air. Gerhard fell to the ground and clasped his ears, turning towards the source of the noise. The dust cloud quickly blew away, revealing the crab, obviously injured and a man in Roman armor standing near the Austrian and Soviet girl. Then the man shouted that the crab could be killed now. Finally, something good to know! Gerhard leveled his rifle and charged at the paralyzed crab, this time determined to strike it.

[Tracian Empire]

As he was just standing there, paralyzed in fear.. Arno felt ashamed of himself. He hated himself..it was true. He was a coward. Even after everything he had been through, even if he should have been already dead..he was afraid of death. Afraid of being hurt. And in the middle of battle, he just felt as if his arms and legs were made of solid ice.. incapable of moving. The only desire that he was feeling was to turn around, to run away...and yet he couldn't move, as if one of his officers was behind, pointing a pistol at him. There was nothing he could do.. but running away would have been..dishonorable. At the very least, if he was going to die here, during the battle..it was going to be an honorable death. A death worthy of a soldier..and at the very least, they weren't in the frozen forests of Galicia.. facing the suicidal charges of the Tsar's soldiers, or the wild shouts of the Cossacks..it shouldn't be that painful..

But then, the ashen haired boy's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by that Arab woman from earlier, the one who apparently wasn't a Bolshevik. She pushed his rifle down with her free hand, and he nearly instinctively tried to resist, thinking about dropping his rifle and taking his knife or his shovel, like the older soldiers recommended in the case of the close quarter combat that was so brutal in the trenches..but she did not seem hostile. She looked directly in his gray eyes, and Arno tried to take a step back, just as she started to speak. She told him that there was nothing shameful if withdrawing if it meant your survival, that if he wanted to leave, he had to follow her...but she was wrong. Good soldiers had the right to retreat. They were important, they had to survive. He was just a weak coward.. he was completely useless. They were all useless..the entire Austro-Hungarian Army. They only existed as cannon fodder for their German allies.. that was what had happened over the past few days. The front was collapsing, the forest was lost.. and they had to hold their ground, so that the Germans could withdraw. It was all in the vain.. he was already dead, after all. She tapped his helmet, and that's what woke him up.. but he did not follow her.

Then, someone shouted for all of them to cover their ears... a boom of thunder was heard, and the young soldier fell on the ground, dropping his rifle, desperately trying to cover his ears. He gasped for air, as him suddenly dropping on the ground made the pain in his arm even stronger..but the lighting covered spear that hit the crab made him forget all about it. What...what was that? He had no time to think about it, as the same man from before shouted that the crab's shell was penetrable now..and this time, there was no hesitation. Arno took his rifle, aiming directly at the crab..he took a deep breath, careful not to hit any of the others.. and he fired his rifle in a quick succession, three times...shooting three 8×50mmR rounds right at the monster.

[Kwadai]

Kazimir Zhirov

As the group carefully walked further off the beach into a grassy area the landscape began to look more tamed, agricultural as was made evident by fence posts marking off primitive fields. Kazimir, looking left observed the area while the gentle sea breeze ruffled his dark brown hair. A few metres ahead Paul scouted their direction with Anna covering their right and Andronikus the rear. The young man briefly turned his attention away from the side he was meant to be watching to look at the rustic building in the distance that he presumed was the farmhouse mentioned by the cavalryman. The air hung with a calm but unnerving silence. Just like the beach before, this new setting seemed empty of life, human life at least. Kazimir stopped walking abruptly just as the others were slowing down. He shivered slightly even though it wasn't cold, and his clothes were warm. Something didn't feel right about the place.

Once Paul began expressing his concerns of the lack of people the American approached Kazimir holding a rifle with the instructions to cover him. "I've used similar weapons before, so I should be able to manage", he replied, taking the gun. It was more advanced looking than anything he had used in Russia though, so his response was definitely more of an assumption than a guarantee. Just as Paul continued forward the farmhouse door fell open, expecting a face he stares on in confusion when no one came out. At the same time a faint rustling could be heard through the nearby crops but this was soon followed up on by a bloodcurdling howl. Kazimir's hand unconsciously slid to grip the firearm as he slowly turned to see what made the noise but was met with nothing. "Well it sounds like we're not alone after all", he said quietly to the others.

[Parcia]

Sean Roe
Strange Beach
Wonderland

He smiled at the lamentation of the crab as the pain hit it, then saw the crawl moved, and suddenly found him self flying through the air. He landed with a thud and groaned. "Holy shit..." When the thing appeared over him, likely to finish him off, he was still stunned and barely registered his likely death before what sounded like a 155mm shell going off next to him.

This was enough to wake him up and he rolled to his feet, unslung his rifle, thumbed the safety to auto and sighted the M16 directly on the mass of grey flesh that was the fleshy bits underneath the crabs shell. If the kraut was wondering why he carried such a rifle, now he would know. He pulled the trigger and emptied the rest of the magazine in to the crab. All 17 rounds tore out of the rifle and in to his target, tearing up the soft part of the crabs anatomy.

His rifle emptied, he heard the unmistakable click of an empty weapon and he ejected the mag, flipped it over, and inserted the fresh one in to the rifle. Pushing the feed button on the side, he readied it again and fired, this time only going through another 4 rounds before the rifle jammed. He cursed this world and its shit weather, drew his side arm, only to find it empty, and reloaded.

[Vulnier]

Thomas "Tom" Montoya
A Beach
Southern Haefyn Peninsula

Thomas had been sitting at the base of a dune sipping at his canteen, resting for a time. But this also gave him time to think a bit on his situation, and it wasn't looking good. From what he could tell, he was alone without his regiment on potentially enemy territory with no food and no idea where he was. He grimaced at this thought. At least I got ammo... Thomas sighed, letting his head hang low for a few moments before looking up at the sky, wondering how he got into this mess.

It was then Thomas caught movement in the sky, looking to see a bird a ways out. Thinking it strange, he then traced it down with his finger to see two figures walking down the beach. Thomas scrambled to his feet as he saw this, nearly dropping the water out of his canteen. He rubbed his eyes, thinking it was a trick of the heat. But when the figures did not dissipate, a look of pure joy crossed his face.

Finally... Was all he could think, even thinking they could be from his regiment. Forgetting his Krag, Thomas stumbled over himself as he went between the dunes and the ocean. It was then he yelled "Hello!", waving toward the pair.

As soon as Samantha heard the shout, she turned, keeping the gun pointed at Naro while she did so.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, staring at the stranger. "Let me guess. You don't know. Or are you the person responsible for this nonsense? Come on, then."

If you are responsible... I have better things to do than deal with this.

Thomas was surprised by the lady's harsh tone, almost accusatory, but considering the circumstances, she did have a right to be so. Taking a few seconds, he grabbed his carbine, holding it in his left hand so as to appear non-threatening.

He began walking toward them, answering back the questions. "Well a moment ago I was just resting ma' legs, but if you mean to ask why we are here on this beach, then... yes, I dont know. But being responsible? That claim is just ridicules, especially considering I was jus' fightin' in Cuba with the 1st 'fore I woke up here."

As Tom drew near, could see that the second figure was a man, dressed in the strangest way, almost like a indian, but not quite. And the lady, while obviously wearing more, just had something about it... maybe more modern? It was then he saw the lady was holding something, and instantly recognized it as a gun.

Tom stopped about 12 yards from the pair, looking with concern at the 'gun' and the person in front of it before looking back at the lady. "Ma'am, I sincerely apologize if I'm intruding on your businesses... but why the hell are you holding this strangely dressed man at gun point?"

[Charlia]

As soon as Samantha heard the shout, she turned, keeping the gun pointed at Naro while she did so.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, staring at the stranger. "Let me guess. You don't know. Or are you the person responsible for this nonsense? Come on, then."

If you are responsible... I have better things to do than deal with this.

Thomas was surprised by the lady's harsh tone, almost accusatory, but considering the circumstances, she did have a right to be so. Taking a few seconds, he grabbed his carbine, holding it in his left hand so as to appear non-threatening.

He began walking toward them, answering back the questions. "Well a moment ago I was just resting ma' legs, but if you mean to ask why we are here on this beach, then... yes, I dont know. But being responsible? That claim is just ridicules, especially considering I was jus' fightin' in Cuba with the 1st 'fore I woke up here."

As Tom drew near, could see that the second figure was a man, dressed in the strangest way, almost like a indian, but not quite. And the lady, while obviously wearing more, just had something about it... maybe more modern? It was then he saw the lady was holding something, and instantly recognized it as a gun.

Tom stopped about 12 yards from the pair, looking with concern at the 'gun' and the person in front of it before looking back at the lady. "Ma'am, I sincerely apologize if I'm intruding on your businesses... but why the hell are you holding this strangely dressed man at gun point?"

"Because for all I knew, he was the one responsible for all this, despite his denials," she replied calmly, before putting her gun away. "But now that there are two of you... the likelihood of him actually being responsible is smaller. As for you... Are we the first people you've seen here, or have you seen others? Be quick, please, I don't want to waste time."

[Faal Lot Himdah]

Appius Servilius Minervalis
A beach, with a now dead Demon Crab
Haefyn Peninsula

---

With the three pronged attack on the Demon Crab, it fell. It could not avoid any of the attacks, nor was its shell hard enough now to deflect the bullets. It fell to the ground and laid their, the colour from its eyes gone from its now lifeless body.

"Is everyone down there alright?" Appius spoke to the group of them, "No loss of hearing? Any injuries?"

---

Suspiciously Placed Farmhouse
Haefyn Peninsula

---

Kazimir was indeed correct, they were not along. Little did they know, but a pack of creatures referred to as the Starved had begun their hunt, for human flesh. They were in the fields, staying hidden, waiting for the time to strike. They watched the now frightined humans as the humans watched the fields. After a moment of silence, a few of them started to move again. They were close enough in the fields now that the humans if watching the crops would see the crops moving as the Starved moved through them slowly.

One of the Starved, stepped out of the fields and on to the path that the humans used to approach the farm house. It stood their, blocking the path and watching the humans. The beast almost looked like a human on all fours, but upon closer inspection there were things that looked wrong. The arms were elongated and the legs shortened so that they were similar in length. The hands looked nothing like a human hand, instead they looked much more reptilian, still with five fingers, but only three fingers remained where they should have. The pinky and the thumb looked as if they where moved so that they where coming from the wrist but in the opposite direction of the others. Each "finger" had a claw on the end that looked like it could easily pierce armour. The legs looked as if they were put on the wrong way, they bent backwards despite appearing human like, while the feet were not feet, but looked like the hands.

But the limbs weren't the only thing that looked wrong. The things body had no hair, and the black as night skin was actually scales. The Starved's head looked like a mix between a human head and a lizards head. It was elongated, and its teeth looked much more like needles than normal teeth, covered by an almost black siliva. It also had no visible eyes. Following the body down it would also have been worth noting the spikes that where randomly along its back and sides. At the very back, a tail could be seen, covered in smaller spikes. Finally, the thing looked starved, you could easily make out the ribs, and bones all over the body.

The Starved on the path seemed to simply stare at the humans before releasing a nightmarish shriek. After the shriek it started charging them, along with the others in the fields.

[Charlia]

Appius Servilius Minervalis
A beach, with a now dead Demon Crab
Haefyn Peninsula

---

With the three pronged attack on the Demon Crab, it fell. It could not avoid any of the attacks, nor was its shell hard enough now to deflect the bullets. It fell to the ground and laid their, the colour from its eyes gone from its now lifeless body.

"Is everyone down there alright?" Appius spoke to the group of them, "No loss of hearing? Any injuries?"

"I'm fine," Meira muttered, climbing to her feet and glancing around, a scowl slowly crossing her face. "Just peachy. I'd say 'thanks' but I wouldn't mean it, and I try not to lie, so I won't bother. Just my luck," she continued, half to herself, "that of all the groups I could get stuck in, I wind up surrounded by men. No thanks. I'd rather hang out with Mr. Snips over there."

---

They'd kept walking, and eventually Charlotte caught sight of three more people--two men and a younger girl. "Um... S-Shilo," she said nervously, "look... More people. M-maybe they're friendly?"

Maybe they're responsible for all of this, too. Who knows? Well, at least there's one certainty. Men are all the same... All of them. Even Shilo will show his true colors eventually. They want one thing, and that's all anyone will ever want you for.

So at least you'll have something to do. Hopefully they can learn to share.

[Brusia]

Captain Paul Montgomery and Andronikos Arotras

When the door creeped open on its own, Paul got a good look inside the building and informed the others: "It doesn't appear that anyone is here." As he heard the rustling in the fields and growl however, he very slowly drew his revolver and saber, and after Kazimir pointed out that they weren't alone and Anna recommended leaving forthwith, Paul nodded in agreement and informed the others: "Move back slowly; no sudden movements." When one of the creatures showed itself, Paul leveled his revolver at it, while Andronikos stared and asked: "What manner of beast is this..." The Captain had never seen anything like it either, and had no desire to combat a group of creatures he knew nothing about.

When the Starved let out their blood-curdling screech, Paul yelled: "On second thought, run!" then fired a single shot at the head of the beast which had showed itself in the hopes of killing, or at least stunning it for long enough to get out of the field. After Paul fired at the beast and began to fall back, the Byzantine activated his flamethrower and fired in a wide sweeping motion, igniting the fields and path behind the group to cover their retreat. As the fire began to spread rapidly through the fields, Andronikos quickly fell back to the fence near the horses, with Paul a short distance behind him, his gun still leveled at the field in case Kazimir would need covering fire. While keeping an eye on the field, he told the Byzantine: "Get my horse untied!" then turned towards Anna and stated: "We may need to double-up, do you think your horse can handle carrying you and Mr. Zhirov?"

[Faal Lot Himdah]

Starved Ambush
Suspiciously Placed Farmhouse
Haefyn Peninsula

---

The bullet shot at the Starved's head went straight through, causing it to fall down dead. After a few seconds however the things cheat started to expand quickly until it bursted open and a smaller Starved emerged only to begin to eat the body of the Starved it came from. It made quick work of the dead Starved, and quickly grew to the same size as the one from which it came. It was only then that it turned and gave chase to the humans. The Starved in the fields that faced fire did not die. Nor did the fire do anything to really slow them down. They ran through the flames as if the flames weren't there. Their scales were flame resistant after all.

They were not just coming from the flaming fields now, they were coming from all directions, blocking all routes of escape. A couple of the closest ones stopped their charge and shot out their tongues much like a frog or chameleon. The tongues had what looked like a bone harpoon attached to the end of them. Only four of the tongues were on course to hit the humans, one for each human, and they would hit if the humans didn't react.

The humans would be faced with two options after dodging the tongues, stand and fight, or retreat into the farm house (note the door never fell down, it just was opened).

[Kwadai]

Kazimir Zhirov

Kazimir's face turned white with horror as he watched the hideous crowd of beasts emerge from the fields. The things were worse than anything he could have ever imagined, nothing more than what appeared to be a scaly corpse. Fortunately the American man fired straight through the front runner's head. Just as it fell to the ground it convulsed only to sprout a regrown version of itself "What!?", he exclaimed before jumping out of the way only barely escaping the attack of its barbed tongue.

Andronikus' flamethrower turned out to be equally inefficient at keeping the creatures at bay much to his dismay. If there were ever a time to panic, this was likely it. Kazimir proceeded to hold up the rifle to take aim, desperately taking a shot at the nearest two to keep them further from the group, at least temporarily. "We'll never outrun those things? Are the horses fast enough or do we run to the farmhouse?", he shouted directing the question at no one in particular even if it was obviously intended for Paul.

[Granis]

Appius Servilius Minervalis
A beach, with a now dead Demon Crab
Haefyn Peninsula

---

With the three pronged attack on the Demon Crab, it fell. It could not avoid any of the attacks, nor was its shell hard enough now to deflect the bullets. It fell to the ground and laid their, the colour from its eyes gone from its now lifeless body.

"Is everyone down there alright?" Appius spoke to the group of them, "No loss of hearing? Any injuries?"

"I'm fine," Meira muttered, climbing to her feet and glancing around, a scowl slowly crossing her face. "Just peachy. I'd say 'thanks' but I wouldn't mean it, and I try not to lie, so I won't bother. Just my luck," she continued, half to herself, "that of all the groups I could get stuck in, I wind up surrounded by men. No thanks. I'd rather hang out with Mr. Snips over there."[/quote]

"I'm fine, sir. Just a little bruised." Jeremy said to the armoured man. "Thank you for the timely rescue. I don't know what have happened there if you hadn't shown up."

He then turned to Meira, whose mood seemed to have taken an immediate drop.

"Meira, these men just saved our lives..." He said, a little confused as to why she was suddenly being so hostile towards them. "Without them, we would have been hanging out with Snippy, as in hanging from its claws and mouth! The best chance we have of survival is to stick together, at least for now."

And then he looked down at the sand, an uncomfortable expression on his face.

"And I probably wouldn't advise staying on the beach. There could very well be more of them under the sand."

After a moment of silence, he looked over to the crab, and then back to the armoured man.

"So are these crabs edible?"

[Charlia]

"I'm fine, sir. Just a little bruised." Wander said to the armoured man. "Thank you for the timely rescue. I don't know what have happened there if you hadn't shown up."

He then turned to Meira, whose mood seemed to have taken an immediate drop.

"Meira, these men just saved our lives..." He said, a little confused as to why she was suddenly being so hostile towards them. "Without them, we would have been hanging out with Snippy, as in hanging from its claws and mouth! The best chance we have of survival is to stick together, at least for now."

And then he looked down at the sand, an uncomfortable expression on his face.

"And I probably wouldn't advise staying on the beach. There could very well be more of them under the sand."

After a moment of silence, he looked over to the crab, and then back to the armoured man.

"So are these crabs edible?"

Meira thought she might burst out laughing at Wander's words, but she contained it to a subdued chuckle(which sounded oddly humorless). "Sorry, it's kind of rude to laugh at someone, isn't it?" she asked rhetorically, still trying to suppress her laughter. "Let's just say that your objection to my problem is my problem."

I'm not supposed to be here. Why am I still here?!