[b]Bartering with a Mouse:[/b]

[IMG]http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/mm243/jelost/L_zpse2bb539c.gif[/IMG]

The first to introduce himself was Simon Connor, a young man who appeared slightly older than Hato. He pushed up his spectacles, reaffirming them to a more comfortable position. Simon shared the same intent as Hato; To get to the bottom of this, and find out who are the perpetrators. As he pleaded that they find the silver lining soon, or his father would punish him with a disallowance of practicing, Shirudo seized the chance to observe his surroundings in more depth. As he guessed, they were in the middle of a forest, full of tightly knit trees, shrouded in veils of darkness and shadows. Anything could be hiding under the cover of night, watching them. But the feeling of eyes settling upon them was not present, meaning that they were alone. For now. It appeared to be a typical woodland scene, excluding the aura of doubt, the shiver-causing climate, and the fact that they were standing on a perfectly smelted sheet of metal. He had no time to admire the masonship, for the next man introduced himself.

The eldest of the lot, who kept a stern expression plastered onto his face. But unlike Hato’s austere composure, he was still recovering from the attack by the rat, which was now propped on the astronomer’s shoulder. Out of the corner of his eye, he was able to glance at the rodent, which was still preoccupied with the silver box, now in the palm of his hand. The full-blown adult’s name had a nice ring to it. It flowed better than most, chock full of vowels and consonants. Though he didn’t stride to appease the one who saved him from the assault, Hato had no need for empty thanks, and continued on with his analysis. The metal plate was cracked in half, a crime against perfection, by a few saplings slowly proceeding through the stages of growth. Next to them was a completely matured tree, which was bearing the lantern. His somewhat blurred vision focused on the red iridescent glow, attempting to find a meaning to its presence. 

Before he could pry anymore, the girl with the unforeseen undergarments spoke up. (I’ll edit in more stuff once Tatsua posts)

[b]”Well, glad we all have exchanged names. There’s a start.”[/b] Whilst he was distracted with his acquaintances, the vermin leaped through the open window of time, and dug its teeth into his index finger. To his surprise, the rat’s canines were more developed than most, he could feel their tips pecking at his bone. Albeit the fact that they were small in overall size, Hato winced in pain, but gulped back any external reactions. If he was fully awake, he would most likely be writhing in pain a little more. After all, his threshold for pain was almost nonexistent. Thankfully, his senses were still dulled from being abruptly knocked out. He had given the creature acceptance, and received betrayal in response. With a quick toss of the box, it landed in his free hand. He then asserted his focus on the rodent impeding on his well-being. Like he had done to many envoys of the church, claiming his research was blasphemy, he tried to wave it off. But the little mammal was attached to him tightly, leaving only one option; Appeasement. But he wouldn’t go through a deal without receiving something in exchange. 

Hato pressed the silver box against the forehead of the rat, adding a little force. Its bulging round eyes snapped to the creation, but it still refused to retreat from its current attack. He clicked his tongue, pressing ever so slightly, [b]”Let’s trade, alright? You let go of my finger, I’ll give you the box and not smush your brains out. Deal?”[/b] He chimed with a tint of malicious intent. Letting the rodent’s impertinent mind process what was currently happening, he turned to answer Alex’s question, [b]”Well, given our current location, we’re in the midst of taiga biome. We must be on the edge, as its snow consistency has dwindled exceptionally. As for how we got here- well, I believe I was knocked out while treating myself to a warm cup of coffee. But given the fact that we are here, we were of course moved to this area. By what, you may ask? We don’t know. I can’t properly calculate the trajectory of us in comparison to the constellations above, since we’re on too low terrain. Now, if you would take a look at this…”[/b] 

The astronomer trailed off, he tapped his heel on the metallic surface, then pointed the teeth-sunken hand to the rim. [b]”In case you haven’t notice, much like us, this plate of metal was put here. It was dug into the ground, covered around its edges, and left to nature’s whims. Carriages are too large to weave between the treeline, and traveling by horseback is too risky. That means this sheet was carried or lugged here. This would lead me to believe that there is hopefully a village nearby, which can give us our relative location in juxtaposition to our village. Or villages, if we derive from separate homesteads.”[/b] And with that, he concluded his analysis. He returned his attention to the creature nibbling at his finger, and increased the leverage of the silver box. [b]”I’ve given you enough time to contemplate your next choice. Make a decision now. Before I regain my frame of mind.”[/b]