Crane's Story

Kraedia; an ancient planet yet one so long studied. It was time to visit it for once. And the one way to do so was with the Star Gems. Thankfully Crane could activate them. Before doing so she did a long jump into the ring.

The cry of an eagle sprang from nowhere and briefly an outline of a glass eagle, larger than anything ever seen before, was briefly sighted in the air before heading for a perch. Which happened to not be as strong as initally hoped. Jumping quickly the eagle briefly became a human woman of sorts before disappearing completely and jumping off into the air as the perch crumbled underneath them.

Finally the massive glass barely seeable eagle headed for land. Only problem was, she was actually hungry. and had spotted a moving meal in the form of another predatory creature. A wolf. With a sharp Eagles cry the unseen eagle dived from a mile or more into the air towards the wolf down below before realising her error. With a startled shriek the eagle slammed into the wolf dead on.

It was not the best of landings, but it'd do.

Kristen had been drinking water from a lake when she heard the eagle cry out, not thinking much of it until Thunk something hit her square on her back, causing her to go flying right into the lake as she surfaced from the lake, looking around for what hit her, confused because now it was only she and a human. Shifting back herself she shook herself off and walked back onto the land. "Were you what hit me?" she asked, very shocked and bewildered.

Crane treaded water in the lake. "Sorry" She chirped out in a strange tongue. almost birdlike how it sounded, yet also very human. "For a moment I thought you were food, until I narrowed on you I realised my mistake. I was unable to slow down so rather then grab you up I slammed into you. Sorry about that." Crane sidestroked to the edge of the lake and pulled herself out of the water, using her innante gifts of of the Water Spirit Pearl to dry herself off. "I did not hurt you did I ?"

Kristen was shocked and her back still hurt a little. "All is fine, thanks for not you know, eating me" she said with a sheepish smile. "It's quite alright, I may be bruised tomorrow, but it wouldn't be my first bruise" she said taking a seat in the grass, raising a perfectly shapped brow. "How'd you dry so fast?" she asked, her dress still a bit damp. Leaning back on her elbows she allowed the sun to do the rest of the drying. "Name's Kristen, Kristen Monroe" she added with a more cheerful tone.

Jakob sat on the edge of the corner state, plucking at a tiny concert ukulele and softly twisting the knobs at the far end. The sight of the military android, wearing a white vest and matching pants over top of his exoskeleton, and tuning a tiny instrument with huge, armoured hands, looked outright comical. However, the mechanical man seemed to make playing the instrument work. With the precision of a machine, he could press down on the frets just enough to get the chords he wanted without unwanted buzzing.

The android only recently acquired the tiny instrument, and he planned to acquire and learn more in the future. After all, he had a long “life” ahead of him, and he had to do something with it. After fine-tuning, the android began to play a slow rhythm with a neutral set of sounds- a near-perfect set for the ordinary day at Gambit’s.

The brief cry of an eagle was heard outside as the door was flung open with a explosion of wind, the eagle cry much louder then before as the doors gently closed. Seconds later and a woman dressed in white appeared and took a seat, somewhat boredly at a random table, which also happened to be occupied with a single open seat. the woman sat and relaxed, briefly making an order for something to eat, in this case raw meat of some form. Any kind of raw meat for that matter.

The woman seemed quite calm, yet there was years of experience behind her eyes, scars of past battles married her fair skin. She seemed in a good mood for once. for once nobody tried to kill her. Yet. Today was a good day.

She needed a drink, where the hell was the service in this town ??

A thought crossed the android’s mind as he glanced amongst the patrons. With so many customers, there did not appear to be any active staff. It was a most unusual predicament, as there were usually automated drones designed for service.

Jakob was craving something stiff. Whiskey? Scotch? Jakob slung the uke over his back and hopped off from the stage. His lighter loadout made his armoured feet make contact with surprisingly little noise. The only one to place an order was a woman wearing a white robe and toting a sword on her side. The order: raw meat. Raw meat? Jakob pondered before his borderline instinctual “follow orders” directive kicked in.

He pushed his way into the back room. The kitchen was strangely empty. Jakob pondered for a moment if the inactivity was because of this late time of night. Regardless, the android found the meat locker and picked out a package of chicken breasts. After wiping down his armoured hands with a sanitizing cloth, the chicken breasts were unloaded from the foam and plastic packaging onto a plate.

The android stepped back out of the kitchen and took a slight detour to pick up a bottle of scotch, two glasses, and filled both glasses with a few chunks of ice. He also stopped by the computer and tapped down the items he had taken. After opening a tab for himself, the android picked up everything. Carrying the glasses between two large fingers, the bottle around the thumb of the same hand, and the raw meat in the other hand, Jakob made his way toward the table. He wasn’t entirely certain if the woman also wanted a drink, but he did not plan to look rude or selfish. He placed the plate in front of the woman, and set the two glasses on opposite sites of the table.

“You like Scotch?” Jakob asked in a well-copied polite metallic tone as he poured himself a drink, “Or would you like something else to drink?”

If the man, apparently made of metal, was to scare her, it didn't do any good, she had been against so much already nothing really phased her. But his drink offer was good.

"Scotch is fine" Came the soft voiced reply as the meat was set before her, flicking a knife from the table into her hand she carved into the meat, eating piece by piece the large slab of raw chicken. It was quite good in fact. Good enough for her at least. It had been a long time since she simply had some meat, in this case chicken, And when the offer of a drink was given she readily accepted with a simple nod in thanks.

Though it wasn't long before the alcohol started having a unwanted effect, in this case, it was making her rather tipsy pretty quickly. It was possible she'd pass out soon, but how soon was then the question. Crane never was good with alcohol, even at Neverland. But then again the stuff the pirates drank was so weak she never got drunk to begin with. Now scotch, that was a different drink completely.

Two shots of scotch later and Crane was pretty much ready to flatline into sleep where she stood. Maybe....

Tables weren't as comfy as beds though...

Jakob sat opposite the woman. The android was never programmed to feel dumbstruck, or even synthesize an expression of surprise. He did not expect the battle-worn woman to be such a lightweight. The android’s observations usually involved watching people of all shapes and sizes drinking each other under the table. Jakob- who technically could not get drink- could technically out-drink anyone.

What this display did ultimately do was remind Jakob of some ethical practices of bartending he stupidly neglected. Damnit, he thought to himself. He rushed to the bar once more and poured a tall glass of water- a most excellent reliever of a hangover short of a donair.

The android set the glass down at a distance so that the woman would not accidentally knock it over. The android them pulled his ukulele out front and began playing some soft tunes. He took it upon himself to make sure nothing terrible happened. After all, he was directly responsible for this woman’s predicament.

Jakob drank his scotch in between tunes, and otherwise provided the background music for the bar until something else would eventually come along. It was a long night.

Verror was sitting at an otherwise empty booth, now slightly less visibly shaken, when he heard the cry of an eagle, followed by the entrance of a mysterious warrior in white.

A man who appeared to be at least partly mechanical went over to her and then went off, coming back with food and drink. From the fact that he had operated the register himself, it seemed he worked here or something, so Verror got up and approached the booth.

"Er..excuse me?" he asked, "Does this place open up into different locations or something?"

He had no idea that he was currently in a pocket dimension; for all he knew this was just a regular building. In fact, the concept was pretty new to him.

As the android finished a tune and reached for his scotch, the blonde-haired man approached. The android snatched up his glass between two large, armoured fingers before he replied to the question. The passed-out woman remained slouched in her seat, of course. Jakob still made sure nothing bad happened.

"Well, Wing City does," Jakob replied, "We're currently in Gambit's- the tavern of Wing City,"

The android took a drink from the scotch as he got a better visual. The man appeared to be more than a man, but Jakob could only consider that possibility due to the unusual nature of what initially appeared to be a scar. More importantly, the man appeared to be new to the place. Jakob had never seen this one before. He continued. "Throughout the city are portals leading to different locations. If there ever was a full directory, I never found one."

Jakob finished his drink and poured another for himself. "Was there a specific location you were trying to reach?" He asked.

Crane twitched where she laid, head down on the table, sound asleep, dead to the world. Occasionally a flicker of pale energy wafted off her slender form. She murred in her sleep, something about five more minutes when the voices rang and she heard stuff. Someone complaining of a lost wallet.

What was a wallet ? Oh yeah, she remmebered, groggy she opened an eye, it took a moment to focus, but then she closed it, she was alright, asleep in a bar, no harm done.

Wait....

Asleep in a bar ?

The pale eye snapped open once more, still unfocused she looked around, her head hurt. What did she drink ?

Jakob stopped playing the ukulele for a moment as the smaller girl entered to complain about something. Apparently the ruckus caused by the expressed stress stirred the unconscious woman out of consciousness. The android waved a hand in front of the woman to try to get her attention. “You have been unconscious for around twelve minutes," The android explained in a professional, if cold, manner. "During that time, you have not been disturbed. I have provided a glass of water to help cure a potential hangover.”

Jakob then went back to his ukulele. He lifted his armoured legs and planted both feet on the table so he could lean his chair back. Balancing on the legs of the reinforced chair, Jakob continued to play his instrument. Though he wasn’t perfect yet, he did not care. He’d get good some day, and there was only one way to make it to that day.

Florazel Syro observes Crane, with the intention of getting some credits of her or whatever currency she possessed. From her attire, Crane looked quite she could afford some high quality stuff.
Overhearing that she has a hangover, she is the perfect potential for Florazel to trick. Florazel approaches Crane with a grin, adjusting her hat to activate it's hypnosis abilities.

Hey Miss, are you alright, can I see your eyes to see if they're dilated or not?

Swirls started fading in the pupil of Florazel's eyes.
She was cautious for Jakob though, as a fairy tattoo appeared on her hand. You can never be to careful with people who always look like they're smiling.

A brief flicker of light caught her eyes as she took in Florazel as the newcomer spoke. What hangover ? It didn't really matter all that much though at that point. Thankfully her vision also shifted slightly, everything she could see changed to a solarised color inverted view. Jakob appeared with a pale blue outline, and Florazel appeared with a gold one ? Gah, Sometimes Crane hated the Animus and what it did to her already skilled abilites.

In a stern voice Crane asked "What do you want ?" the hat seemed to have no effect on Crane, though she had slivers of silver or the like, a means to pay for items. a odd form of currencey, yet it did the job as expected. Besides, Crane wasn't always there. Only periodically was she in that town to begin with. Then again, being in that town was always an experience with near death events

What a surprise, the hat isn't working on this individual. Would Florazel have to resort to violence to get some sort of money off this woman? No, lets not be hasty now Florazel thought. If anything, with the right amount of trust, she could get this woman to do her bidding. Putting her arms behind her back and slightly leaning forward, Florazel smiled cheerfully towards Crane

Ah, you seem to be doing fine Miss, I was worried to see you passed out on the table there. My name is Amy, what about yours?

. It isn't wise to tell people your name when you're trying to steal from them. Florazel was still a bit worried about the presence of Jakob, but nerveless, Florazel had escape plans ready to go if needed. However the hat having no effect on Crane, put Florazel slightly on edge. She resisted the power of a magical artifact that hypnotized generals to kill themselves. What was Crane and how careful should Florazel be around Crane?

Jakob seemed preoccupied; he bobbed his head in rhythm with the strumming on his ukulele. Being a machine, no amount of magical hypnotism would have any effect. That much was obvious. What wasn't obvious was Jakob's feigned smile was, for once, genuine. Despite what the other two could possibly suspect, Jakob was not aware that the little one was trying to do anything untoward. What a cruddy guard he turned out to be.

The cash he acquired from his latest bounty, as well as the rest of his stash, were all stored in a compartment under the diamond-shaped plating of his exoskeleton. The most secure place the android knew was on his person, after all.

The tune he began to play was Somewhere Over the Rainbow by IZ. A simple song with simple chords. Then again, the ukulele's four strings make for simple chords.

"My name is Amy, what about yours?" the smaller girl asked.

"The Man with No Name," Jakob joked. He genuinely did not know the girl's intentions, but his deep metallic voice didn't sound supportive of that fact.

"Oh, no," Verror responded, "I was trying to get to Wing City. Basically just got here. Heard it was a...melting pot, of sorts." he looked around at the other people in the bar, specifically the two he was talking two.

"Looks like the rumours were true-ERNOOFFENCE." he added quickly.

"But, uh, yeah...this portal thing certainly expands the horizons. Thank you."

He was unsure what to do, but just then another walked in. He observed the scene playing out. This woman who'd just arrived seemed unusually interested in helping out a stranger. unsure whether to be suspicious or just put it down to cultural differences, he decided to stand back, taking this time to look around the bar and take stock of his surroundings.

Verror, having examined the bar's interior to his content, had a look at these three people, having their conversation. The one who'd just entered...Amy, she'd called herself, appeared a lot younger than the other two. She was having a peculiar conversation with the robed woman sitting at the booth, and seemed to acting strangely. At least, strange compared to what he was used to.

"Er...Miss..." he said nervously, addressing 'Amy', "Pardon me...it's just...you seem a bit young to be in a bar or tavern..."

At this point he was mentally hitting himself on the head for asking something that would probably cause some kind of offense. Fortunately for him, he was so tired and disorientated, it didn't show. Unfortunately, he might seem easy to manipulate.

Before he could get an answer form the young woman, Verror's attention was drawn away from the conversation and towards the front door, where what appeared to be someone made of metal with one eye stumbled into the room.

Verror left the other three to their conversation to see what was going on, but after a cry for help, the stranger had already collapsed. Rushing over to them, he saw more injuries than he could count, although they didn't seem human, so it was difficult to tell how serious it was. The again, considering they'd just passed out from it, it was probably quite bad.

"This doesn't look good...Does anyone know how to help this guy?" he called out, to anyone in the bar who might hear or notice.

It was with great displeasure that The Gentleman turned his attention to the mess that suddenly caused a scene within the tavern. Surely if had some kind of program or self repairing metal to fix itself right up or at the very least a bit of intelligence as Gambit's Bar was a poor choice to break down in.

"I can help." The Gentleman begrudgingly spoke up as he stood from his seat at the bar counter and turned to look at the wreckage and the attention it had drawn to itself. Douglas Weskit sauntered over to the machine but did not kneel down to assist the poor mechanized man. "However my services are not free and judging from what I can tell this machine will not last long without the proper tools or skills required to fix it." The Gentleman glanced over to Verror who seemed to be the most concerned patron thus far only to shake his head at the young man.

"I think you have done well enough at this point but unless you know how to fix this machine I suggest you take a step back." Douglas smirked like the devil himself only to pull up a chair next to the mangled mess of machinery and wait to see what the others in the establishment would do or ask.

Drek'thul a large humanoid wolf creature who was in the back of the bar sipping a dark ale watched the commotion in the front. Now this was entertainment he thought as he gulped down the last of his drink. he placed down a few gold coins to pay for the drink and hefted his bulk out of the booth. now it's time to go see what this commotion is. at a little over seven feet tall he towered over most occupants in the room. he looked down at the little droid thing. "I never understood how to work those things. i'm more of a sword lover myself, i mean i do carry a cannon of my own but i really don't use it." he said in a gravel tone. he then grabbed a pouch filled with various forms of currency and threw it down by the busted droid. "That bag of currency will go to whoever is willing to repair it. And if any of you get the idea to run off with it..." he hefted a large sword which slightly glowed. well, this is where the fun begins. he thought cheerfully, then circled around the room toward the door in case if someone tries to bolt with the cash.

The android, upon finishing another tune, slipped his ukulele back into it's case. He stood up from his table a decent distance away to get a better look at the commotion. The other droid seemed heavily damage, but it looked to be no worse than anything the hardened veteran had been through in the past. The android's tall, slim form stepped around the table to assist the Gentleman. Currently, he did not wear his extra armour plating. Instead, his diamond-shaped plate exoskeleton was mostly covered by a white vest and matching pants. Apparently the android developed a fashion sense sometime in the past.

He spotted the bag of cash left by the large... whatever it was. "No no," Jakob said, annoyed, and oblivious to the intention of the currency. "Those are not tools. Here, I got some." Some of the diamond-shaped plates all over the exoskeleton of his left arm shifted to reveal the interior mechanisms. From the hole, he produced a well-used set of tools. Jakob took a position directly across the table from the Gentleman who sat in a chair.

To the damaged unit, Jakob asked in a professional drawl, "Are you still able to communicate? Please relay your self-diagnosis." Any machine made in this day and age should be able to have some form of self-diagnosis system built-in. More importantly, in any machine, there were always systems that needed to be repaired before any other.

"That...that just brings the word 'mercenary' to a whole new level." Verror said disapprovingly to the stranger with the umbrella who was pulling up a chair to inspect the android.

He was just trying to find whatever currency he had on him when another person approached. For a second, Verror would have sworn it was another beserker, but then realized that the chances were they were probably not even human to begin with, let alone one from his world. The wolf-person dropped a bag of cash and threatened anyone who tried to run away with it. Also, a young man, with blue hair of all things, walked over to comfort the damaged android, also offering money to pay. Verror took a small pouch, emptied as much money as he could into it (while trying not to think about what he was going t do about food and shelter) and tossed it to where the other money was, for whoever could fix the guy.

the situation seemed to be getting only more confusing, but then the man he had spoken to briefly before came over to inspect the android. To Verror's relief, he revealed a set of tools.

Verror took a few steps back, waiting in case help was needed with any small tasks.