Drifting Pollen

From Realms Beyond — An Isekai Crossover RP (Now Accepting)

Anne Mayer

??? — Hunter's Lodge

Anne knew how it went. She'd gone through at least a dozen variations of this talk before, and had been on the receiving end of her fair share. Psychologists talked about desensitization, about hearts that turned to stone under the weight of too many deaths, but she'd never really felt that way—the pain persisted, every time. It just got harder to cry.

There was no sword skill or negotiating tactic to resolve this situation; all she could do was give Alvin the truth. She spoke softly, so that the others would not overhear. Clearly, so that he would not misunderstand. "Ywain died in the early stages of the attack. Fighting the Raven Heralds, as I understand it." She bowed her head slightly, feeling the need to pay her respects to the man. From the sound of it, he'd protected his home until the last, and it may have been because of his bravery that Alvin and Millie had even been able to escape at all. By extension, every villager in this lodge right now owed their lives to the commander.

Except that wasn't what really mattered, right now. A brother and sister had been left without a father, and no number of lofty accolades would ever fill that hole.

"Kendrick was going to tell you," she said, as she raised her head to once again meet Alvin's eyes. "He'll know more than I do... But please don't be too harsh on him. The loss hit him hard as well." The guard had been worried the boy might hate him, but Anne remembered what he'd said before that. Ywain did his damn best to raise them—and a lot of us under him did our best to follow. If there was anything that could help these kids now, it would be the bonds they shared with the rest of the town, the family that had cared for them in their own way since the very beginning.

@PKMNB0Y

From Realms Beyond — An Isekai Crossover RP (Now Accepting)

Anne Mayer

??? — Hunter's Lodge

Tired as she was, Anne didn't really show any visible signs of relief or relaxation when the two newcomers let down their guards. One less problem to deal with, she supposed. A thousand more lay in wait, like a horde of beasts with eyes aglow- but they could deal with those once everyone was out of the rain.

"Honestly, you're right to be cautious," she told them. "But we don't have much to go on, so we may as well trust each other until we can find out more. You can call me Anne." She tilted her head to indicate the direction of the lodge, then turned to limp back towards it. "The survivors have all gathered in one of the intact buildings over this way. It's not much, but there should be room for us to take shelter and exchange info with some degree of security." There was no way to make them follow her if they didn't want to, but as she'd just mentioned, it wasn't like they had much else to go on. She moved slowly enough, anyway, and that left them plenty of time to decide.

By the time she'd limped her way back, Lewa and Rayne were already returning with their own fresh face in tow. Anne, for her part, hailed them with a weary wave of her hand. "Good work." It seemed like everyone was in the same place now, and they could finally share info without any interruptions.

No sooner had she walked in the door, however, than she caught the look Alvin was giving her. Though she made no audible reply, her features spoke volumes in turn: tired, sad, filled with that bleak mixture of guilt and helplessness that so often accompanied bearers of bad news. Kendrick was supposed to be the one who told him, but... It was her he looked to, in the end. She would not turn away.

"Sanae. Would you fill in the others?" She seemed to know some of them already, which could turn out to be a vital clue. They could figure things out for themselves right now, though. "I'm going to check on the kids."

A slow limp across the room. Past the injured, and the nearly dead. She reached Alvin's seat and got down on one knee before him, so that their heads were at a level, where she could meet his eyes for a long few seconds before she dropped her gaze.

"I can tell you what happened," she said.

@PKMNB0Y

From Realms Beyond — An Isekai Crossover RP (Now Accepting)

Anne Mayer

??? — Razed Town

By the time Anne emerged from the lodge and limped her way to the source of the disturbance, the two strangers were already facing off. A tiny, silver-haired slip of a girl and a tall pale pretty-boy type, both dressed in completely different styles and carrying long blades. By the standards of the Knight Order, they weren't even that strange—Anne had fought alongside her fair share of weirdos in the past.

Just like the group at the church, however, the two of them spoke of places and people she'd never even heard of. The Netherworld? Wallachia? She rubbed one hand against her temple, already feeling a headache coming on. Just how much more of this nonsense would she have to deal with before the day was out?

"I expect she's here for exactly the same reasons as you." She spoke up as she came into earshot, though she doubted it was necessary to get their attention. Neither of them would have missed her approach even from a distance, and she could already tell enough about them to be certain of this fact. "Transported with little warning, across great distances, without any explanation nor obvious culprits. There are several of us here already, and we still haven't even worked out what planet we're on."

Her hands didn't stray towards her swords even as she drew nearer, and the green-eyed glare that fixed them both in turn spoke more of irritation than of fear. The scent of blood lingered thick around her, but it carried the same smell she did: chemical, artificial, and not entirely human to begin with. If he could sense the magic in Youmu's swords, Alucard would likely feel the blood-red power lurking within the Knight as well, though in her case it seemed less like magic than a curse, an insidious poison that slowly ate away at her even now.

"If you join us, we might manage to figure out some answers together. Or if you'd rather fight each other, then at least have it out somewhere else. This is a populated area, and the colonists here have already been through more than enough."

@Raineh Daze@VitaVitaAR@Vlad Tepes

From Realms Beyond — An Isekai Crossover RP (Now Accepting)

Anne Mayer

??? — Hunter's Lodge

It wasn't long before a few of the others from the church appeared, carrying a bloodied villager with them. Anne recognized Sanae, with her distinctive green hair, as well as the horned woman, who looked far too much like a Chimera for her tastes. On the other hand, she'd clearly been helping out the townspeople, and nothing about her movements gave off any kind of hostile intent. Under these circumstances, there's no choice but to trust her, whether I like it or not.

Anne's eyes followed Sanae around the room, and watched with curiosity as she used another Paranormal Power to stabilize each of the injured in turn. Just what bloodline was she from, to have so many different abilities? She wanted to talk to the girl, find out more about what she could do—but with so many villagers still in dire states, now wasn't a good time to interrupt her focus.

Instead, Anne slowly got to her feet and made her way over towards the horned woman. Unhurried, even a little reluctant about it, but she needed information. Once the other offworlder was in a position to glance her way, the Knight spoke up.

"It looks like both of our groups were successful... Were there any casualties on our side?" She was fairly sure she'd seen Lily come in with the others and find a quiet spot to rest, but Lewa and Rayne were still unaccounted for. "The children are unharmed, but the Heralds were specifically looking for the girl. If she's their objective, we can expect they'll be back before long—"

A commotion outside caught her attention. Unfamiliar voices, calling out across the village, one of them tense and aggressive. What the heck was happening now?

"...We should go and see what that is." She started towards the door, with more urgency now. The rest helped, it was a little easier to move around now, but she really hoped she wouldn't have to fight again this soon.

@Raineh Daze

From Realms Beyond — An Isekai Crossover RP (Now Accepting)

Anne Mayer

??? — Razed Town

Ywain. A man she'd never met, whose face she wouldn't even recognize. Anne knew intimately the nature of war, the inevitability of what had happened here, but even so she had to glance away before Alvin caught the flicker of grief in her eyes.

After all she'd seen and all she'd done, it still hurt every time. One more innocent man she hadn't been able to save, one more failure on a list that already stretched billions long.

"I understand." She matched the volume of Kendrick's voice as she met his eyes again. "He needs time. You should talk with him, though, once things here are—"

The Knight whipped around so fast it looked like she'd teleported. Someone had just appeared behind her, manifesting in the room without any sign of their approach. An assassin, concealing their presence with a cloaking field? She was already in a fighting stance, prepared to break their limbs in three places before they could manage a single strike.

Except it wasn't some killer Herald. Only a confused and frightened villager, freshly warped into the lodge by Rayne's helpful magic. Anne, of course, had no knowledge of this power, and could only blink in surprise while still frozen in her fighting posture.

"...Ah." She awkwardly straightened up and shuffled back a step, a sudden flush coloring her cheeks. "Sorry. I thought you were... My bad." Her insides were already cramping up from the sudden movement, and she realized all of a sudden just how tired she really felt. Kendrick was right: she couldn't take care of anyone if she was still this badly on edge.

She quickly excused herself to the huntsman, and sought out somewhere quiet she could sit and rest. Preferably with a clear view of Millie, so she could keep one eye on the girl while Joker looked after Alvin. This time may have been a false alarm, but she wouldn't put it past that Herald commander to send in a group of kidnappers while everyone's guard was down.

From Realms Beyond — An Isekai Crossover RP (Now Accepting)

Anne Mayer

??? — Razed Town

"Um- Well, that's not exactly-"

How to properly explain things to this old man? No, I got banged up on a completely different planet before I was suddenly warped across the galaxy through unknown means. My entire body from the neck down, excepting the right arm, has been regenerated with cutting-edge biotechnology that threatens to fall apart every time I push it too hard. I don't need herbs and gauze, I need emergency nanomachine injections and a warp gate straight back to Aegis before my remaining organs completely break down and I die in horrible agony.

...Somehow, she didn't think that would be very helpful in this situation. It was easier just to stumble along behind the villager and follow him into the lodge, then muddle her way through from there. Heedless of the armed bowmen who watched over the entrance, she hurried through the door and sought out the closest flat and reasonably sanitary surface where she could lay little Millie down on her side.

The mingled scents of blood and sweat, the groans of the wounded; these were all too familiar to Anne. This could have been any of a thousand field hospitals she'd visited, though few had ever been so bereft of proper medical equipment. She squared her shoulders, glancing around the room to get a rough headcount and pick out anyone who seemed to be in charge.

"Is Millie's family here?" Officer voice, loud and clear enough to cut through the general hubbub. "I have an unconscious child, possibly concussed. I need someone trusted to watch over her; I can assist with first aid for the wounded in the meantime." Dark bruises still bloomed across her skin, and she could taste blood somewhere at the back of her throat, a symptom of the havoc playing out inside her on a cellular level. However, the state of the village outside had her far more worried about the townspeople. If supplies were stretched so thin that herbs were being raised as a possible option for treatment, then they couldn't afford to waste any of what was left on a hopeless case like her.

@EchoWolff@PKMNB0Y

From Realms Beyond — An Isekai Crossover RP (Now Accepting)

Anne Mayer

??? — Cave Entrance

The child's tears were like a shard of broken glass, stabbing her through the heart. Anne lurched to her feet, heedless of the pain and sickness that still echoed through her nerves, ready to do whatever she could to help fix this, protect him, and wipe out the injustices that had led them all to this sorry state of affairs.

Except Joker was already there. A few gentle words, a warm embrace, a reassurance for a small soul in terrible pain. His simple act of kindness stopped Anne dead in her tracks, and the tension seeped out of her all at once, replaced with a soft smile that stayed with her as she watched over them for however long they needed.

Even in the midst of war, kids like them would strive to take care of each other, protect one another, and live on in hopes of reaching a brighter tomorrow. Just like her and Pray, so long ago...

It filled her with a different kind of resolve, just as fierce as before, but rooted in faith and optimism this time. So long as people were still willing to reach out and hold each other in times of need, so long as there was even a chance the children could grow up without fear and hatred in their hearts, then this planet could still be saved.

...I won't let any of them die.

After a few minutes, once she'd recovered and Alvin had a chance to calm down, Anne walked to the edge of the cave and peered out into the woods. A peaceful forest greeted her, leaves rustling in the wind, with nary a sign of the roving shadows from before. "I think it's safe," she told the others, and once again lifted Millie into her arms. "We can go back now, Alvin. I don't know what kind of state the village is in, but I'm certain the others will have protected all they could."

From Realms Beyond — An Isekai Crossover RP (Now Accepting)

Anne Mayer

??? — Cave Entrance

Anne managed to stand firm just long enough for the Herald to disappear from sight. As soon as the woman was gone, she stumbled over to the nearest wall and slumped against it, her breaths deep and haggard. A thin sheen of sweat covered her skin, as though she'd been running laps around the cavern for the last few minutes. Somehow, without knowing any of the context around this situation, she'd stumbled her way through to a nonviolent ending... And on top of being stressed from that, she'd had to maintain a state of battle-readiness for the whole conversation. Broken as she was, even this much effort took its toll on her.

"That's all," she said, her head leaned back and her eyes closed. "I'm beat. If any more Heralds show up, tell them we're not here." Joker was young, and seemed perfectly capable; he could handle the kids for a minute. She needed some time to gather her thoughts, without acting as a human shield for endangered children.

Without being fully conscious of it, she kept on turning the little box over and over in her hand. Intuition told her it was a clue, perhaps the key to unlocking this entire mystery, but the contents had only left her with even more questions than before. Without any recourse, she let out a deep sigh, and cracked open her eyes to look blearily at the others.

"How's Millie? Any sign she might wake up soon?" She phrased it hopefully, for Alvin's sake, but her words concealed the true depths of her worry for the girl. If that Herald woman had really gone and called off her subordinates, then the next step had to be getting the children some proper medical attention.

@PKMNB0Y@EchoWolff

From Realms Beyond — An Isekai Crossover RP (Now Accepting)

Anne Mayer

??? — Cave Entrance

Anne caught the box one-handed, and peered at it with a frown. It could technically be a trap, some kind of oddly-shaped hand grenade, but the circumstances told her that wasn't the case. Millie was still close at hand, within the potential blast radius, and the Herald woman had specifically mentioned wanting to retrieve the girl rather than eliminate her. That all but confirmed Anne's suspicions that the enemy wanted Millie alive, or at the very least intact.

...And that gives us a bargaining chip.

That white sigil may have been unknown to her, but she could tell its purpose. The tide must have finally turned back in the village, and someone up the chain of command was getting antsy, demanding results before the Heralds took any further losses. Time was on Anne's side now, and she very deliberately paused for a long few seconds before she responded.

"You'd have me trade an innocent young girl... For a gift box?" She popped it open with her thumb, just long enough to take a quick peek inside before she snapped the top closed again. "You people don't understand the value of human lives. Maybe if you did, you'd be a little less careless with your own."

The tone of her voice had changed. She let her anger show, her stubbornness, one hand clenched so tight into a fist that the Herald would be able to hear it squeeze. "You're not sure you can win, are you? Not without risking your prize in the thick of the fight. Maybe you really are stronger, but my allies could be here any minute—and if those idiots under Varst arrive first, they'll only screw things up for you even more." Everything she'd learned about the woman, her goals and her fears, Anne threw back at her now. If it didn't make her back down, then it might at least create an opening, a critical moment of hesitation.

"...So leave while you can. We'll keep Millie safe for now, and you can come back next time with more competent lackeys. At least this time, we can both walk away without losing anything."

@EchoWolff@PKMNB0Y

From Realms Beyond — An Isekai Crossover RP (Now Accepting)

Anne Mayer

??? — Cave Entrance

"Focus on protecting the kids first. They're what's most important here." Anne kept her voice low and her steps light, ready to leap into action at a moment's notice as they cautiously crept through the woods. She didn't doubt that Joker's support would be useful if they had to engage, but she didn't want him putting himself in harm's way for her sake. The adults protect the children... At least, that's the way it should be.

Fortunately, she didn't have to put that ideal to the test right away. The forest was crawling with Heralds, but Alvin clearly knew the terrain, and his quiet guidance helped them slip through in the end. When they reached the cave entrance Anne even allowed herself a small sigh of relief, which lasted all of half a second before she suddenly stepped out in front of the group.

Even out here on this unknown, far-flung planet, it seemed her luck was as bad as ever.

The enemy slipped out of the shadows with the calm stride of one wholly confident in her ability, a different breed entirely from the common soldiers who'd attacked the church. Anne glared back at her, and stood protectively before the others like a human shield. It was dark here, and her vision in her right eyes was still a little blurred, but even so she focused as best she could and zeroed in on the important details. Posture, footing, the way she laid her hand on one sword and seemingly let her guard down by glancing back for a moment. Every living creature had a pattern to how they moved, and reading that, predicting their intent, was a cornerstone of martial arts.

In the same vein, Anne deliberately played into the woman's assumptions and let herself appear more hurt than she really was. Heavy breaths, a small slouch, an uneven distribution of weight. Her hands didn't move towards her two swords, both sheathed at her left side.

"...From a tactical standpoint, it doesn't make any sense." She'd been wondering about this for a while, now. "Sending that many soldiers to search for a single child, even while your main force is under attack. If she was of high birth then maybe it'd be worth all that effort, but that clearly isn't the case here." Her eyes narrowed. "What's your angle? What are you even planning to do with her if we hand her over?"

@EchoWolff@PKMNB0Y