realityshifted | 01 - the hell is this

[This absolutely isn’t what Derek was expecting when he went back into that shop. For a moment, he’s disorientated. There’s obviously ground, and oxygen, but it’s just space.]

The hell?

[There’s no way this is possible. This goes against everything he’s learned in school, everything he’s – unless it’s some kind of spell. Shit. Of course it is. A shop that had appeared out of nowhere, of course there’s something supernatural behind it.

Derek growls automatically, then catches himself and cuts it off. If the Edison Group or one of the Cabals is behind this, he needs to move quickly. He scents the air, and what he smells doesn’t help at all. Something metallic, but, more importantly, people. And no one he recognizes. Which doesn’t mean anything at all, except that he’s very much not where he’s supposed to be.

And he doesn’t know if it’s just him that this has happened to, or if it’s Chloe and Simon as well.

He growls again, and keeps his guard up as he starts walking, following the scents that seem to be the freshest.]

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[Duo's been out running. Running himself and running the dog. Had to keep in shape, after all. He passed in front of Souza but stopped as he realized that Hilde wasn't following him anymore. Her tail was between her legs and hackles raised as she stared at Derek, crouching submissively. Looked strange for such a big Rotty to do.]

Oh, come on Hilde. You'll bark at a dragon but this guy scares you?

[Oh, great. Of course the first person he runs into has a dog with them. Now he's torn between the awkward, uncomfortable feeling he always gets at the way animals react to him, and being pissed off, because this is definitely not what he needs right now. It's also not going to be easy to explain.

He's on the verge of making some comment about how he's just intimidating, or the dog just smells his dog, or something, but then the first part of the guy's comment catches his attention.]

Wait. Dragon?

[Duo nods as he goes to put a leash on the poor puppy's collar.]

No shit. Some kid has a pet dragon around here. [This time he takes a good look at the kid.] Sorry. You just get here?

[He manages to refrain from just repeating 'pet dragon,' despite that the urge is pretty strong. He does raise his eyebrows in disbelief, though. Derek's seen some weird stuff, but dragon, seriously?]

Yeah. You happen to know where 'here' is?

Yeah.

It's called the Astral Plane. There's more information near a kiosk over near those buildings. [He points behind him.]

[He blinks at the mention of a kiosk, suspicious.]

Seriously?

[There's no way it can be that easy. None of the other places Derek's found himself stuck in had been nice enough to have a kiosk with information ready and available for us.]

[Emil may be of some interest, then, considering he spends his time around monsters. Not just wolves, but bears and cats and plants and ghosts and all manner of weird things one could only find in an RPG... or a Pokemon game. There's a hint of 'human' beneath all of that, but it's diminished somewhat by the musty scent of dark magic... and a hint of the metallic smell the Plane carries.

He's not making any trouble, though. He's too busy sleeping on top of the map he spread across a table.]

[Derek smells him before he sees him, and it instantly puts him on edge. Someone who smells like all of that can only be involved with the supernatural, which means this might be the Cabals or the Edison Group after all.

When he spots the guy, though, he's surprised enough to physically stop in his tracks. Huh. Okay, this was probably the last thing he was expecting.

He debates for a moment whether or not to wake him up, then shrugs. He's not going to pass up a potential chance for some answers.]

Hey.

[He was probably expecting something besides some shrimpy kid dressed in blue and black. He has a sword strapped across his back, but he doesn't even move to draw it when he's surprised. Instead, he yelps, flails, and falls off his chair.

Good job, Emil.]

Aaaaah--! [Oh god oh god -- oh, it's just a guy. Emil stares up at him, wide-eyed, then slowly and methodically picks himself back up. And rights his chair.] Um, I didn't mean to fall asleep like that. That's embarrassing... C-can I help you?

[Derek's not going to laugh. He's absolutely not going to laugh. He does, however, quirk a bit of an amused smile before he can stop himself.]

You fall asleep everywhere like that or is this place the exception?

[At the kid's last question, Derek shifts his weight slightly.]

Yeah. You have any idea what the hell this place is?

[Which just embarrasses Emil more. He might be somewhat tan, but he's still very pink in the face.]

N-no, not usually.

[He runs a hand through his hair, trying to tame it; one piece of hair pops back up stubbornly.]

Oh... This is the Astral Plane. It's a place where people from different worlds meet. It's actually... part of a big experiment ran by the people in the shop. You went inside a shop, right?

[Okay, Chloe spent enough time on the Plane for now. It was time to walk and think of home. Only she hadn't done this before, and was worrying over whether it would work or not. So she imagined the people who made her feel at home. Simon's laughter. Tori's snapped words. Derek's grumbling and growling.

...Only for a second it seemed as though he was right beside her. Lifting her head, Chloe looked around the Plane.]

Derek?

[The second he catches Chloe's scent, he follows it with a complete single-mindness. Some of the tension eases in him when he sees her, and he moves immediately to her side, checking to see if she's okay. No injuries that he can smell.]

Chloe.

[The relief in his voice is obvious, then he gives her a bit of a smirk.]

You had to go into the suspicious store, didn't you?

[Chloe thankfully spots him before he says her name, so she doesn't jump. The wide grin on her face showed how happy and relieved she was to see him.]

Derek. You don't know how happy I am to see you!

[Then she hears his question and winces a bit.]

Th-there was this-- [Ghost. Something she didn't quite understand, and the store drew her to it. Still, no use mentioning this to Derek now.] How long have you been here?

I might. Maybe about as happy as I am to see you.

[Of course, he doesn't know how long she's been here. For him, it hasn't been long since he last saw her. Long enough for him to worry, though, especially trying to track her through here.]

Not long. Maybe an hour? I waited a bit before going after you.

[And by 'bit', he means about half an hour or so, but that's beside the point. He's more concerned with her cut off sentence.]

There was what? Are you okay?

[She beams at him, happy and completely content to smile up at him.]

You followed me? [She should have known he would. She would have been upset had the circumstances not been as eerie as they were.] That's probably a good thing. I don't know what to make of this place, yet, but there are many unnatural things about it. Th-they experiment on people here, Derek. Apparently only those who were brought to this place can access it.

[She nods and gives a slight smile of reassurance.] I'm fine. A bit panicked and confused about how this place works, but nothing bad has happened at least.

01 - the hell is this

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