Zero Hour

[Brian]

Nathan now returns to Nothing out of the Ordinary.

It takes you very little time to return to your quarters.  Once there, you feel even more tired....

But you recieve a message from Lindsey just as you step through the doorway.  Hello?

[Bjorn]

Bjorn scrawls out a quick reply, Hello, before he can stop himself.  He curses his own stupidity.

[Brian]

I'm almost back to the keep; I just wanted to check out the General before I came back in.  There's a pause, then.  I don't know if I can send this image....

[Bjorn]

This time, Bjorn manages to restrain himself from replying again.  Instead, hoping that it will aid, he shuts down, as much as he can, awareness of his entire body, replacing it with an affinity for Lindsey's perceptions.

[Brian]

You can percieve things as Lindsey does ... which is odd, since her body is built quite a bit differently than yours.  But then, your current body isn't your original body, so this is just a passing disorientation.

You feel very cold, your feet hurt, your hands are sore, and it feels like someone threw something moderately heavy at your head.

You hear the sounds of someone groaning in pain, and you can see who the Dreadmarch chose to nail to the boulder.  It's a tall, fair-haired and fair-looking man in Storm-rider armor.  The nails they used are huge affairs, on the scale of railroad ties, as they didn't crucify him; they pinned his shoulders, wrists, elbows, knees, and ankles to the rocks beneath him.

He looks like he's in a fantastic amount of pain, no matter how you look at it.  "I was a king once," he manages between groans.  "K...king...."

This will serve us better in the long run, Linsdey sends.

Linsdey's hand reaches out and gently touches the storm-rider's hand.  He stills, breathing easier, and while the elements and nails will probably still kill him, from the looks of things, they're going to take a lot longer to do so, now.

I'm coming back.

[Bjorn]

Bjorn does not end the mindlink, but pulls his sensations back to himself.  Looking around, he takes stock of his surroundings, now that he's come back to himself.

[Brian]

You're in your room, lying on the floor.  Mirallia is standing over you and looking somewhat concerned.  Jeff is also in the room, crouched at your side.  "You alright?" he asks.  "Been awake too long, I'll wager."

[Bjorn]

"Yes," Bjorn says, "that's probably it."  Getting to his feet again, he nods at Jeff.  "Thank you.  I'll be fine."

[Brian]

He looks at you dubiously.  "I'll be on guard outside the door," he says.  "You can rest.  Just like when we were on the borders of Soth, remember?  We watch each-other's backs."  He smiles at that, and nods.  "Take it easy."  With that, he strides out of the room, closing the door behind him.

"I'm going to get some rest, as well," Mirallia decides.  "Before I do, is there anything I can do for you?"

[Bjorn]

Bjorn holds up a hand.  "Please," he says, almost begging, "sit with me for a couple minutes?  Lindsey is... almost back at the Keep.  I don't want to let the connection break before she is, and I think it will if I fall asleep."  He grimaces, and then lowers himself down on the divan.

[Brian]

Mirallia blinks at this, and nods, sitting on the divan just across the ante-chamber.  "What ... how do you know?" she asks.

[Bjorn]

"How do I know which?"  Bjorn asks, confusedly.  "That Lindsey is coming back?  Oh."  He frowns.  "I'd forgotten.  We'd talked about that before you met us in the courtyard."  

He hesitates for a second, and then sighs.  "I have the ability to... connect mind, so that people can talk to each other through me."  He frowns.  "It takes a great deal of concentration to do it here, though, and apparently there are those that can hear me when I wri... talk through it.  I haven't been using it much."

[Brian]

"Oh," she says quietly.  "You're a lorekeeper of your world?"

[Bjorn]

Bjorn looks down at his hands.  "No," he says, quietly.  "I was... born with this ability, apparently.  I never knew, until one day some people chose to hunt me down for having such powers.  Before then, I was..." he bites off his own words.  "Well.  Beside the point.  I did not study for this, and I could not teach it."

[Brian]

"Oh," she says, brightening.  "You've a hero of your world."