(no subject)

[righthandrook]

WHO: Evie Frye

WHERE: South Village Fountain

WHEN: March 16h

OPEN TO: OTA

WARNINGS: Nothing, will update if needed.

---

I. The Fountain


Water filled her nostrils at sudden consciousness. The Ganges? She didn’t remember being by the river or a river. But memories didn’t matter when what she needed to do was swim up and out of the water. Sunlight was glimmering above and easy enough to kick up to. Air was taken in sharply as she broke the surface. Blinking away water she saw this wasn’t a river at all. Instead the boundaries were distinct and she found herself in a fountain. One deep enough for a person to sink in. Unusual.


Pulling herself up the side, she landed quietly as possible with the squish of her shoes against ground. Instinct had her reach for a hood that wasn’t there. Evie’s hand reached up again, feeling for the missing piece of fabric that should have been there. And it was then that she noticed the color of her sleeve. And the strange change of fabric. And the strange lack of fabric. Arms out, she looked over herself. What sort of decency would allow this? They looked nearly like undergarments, so simple and plain. She liked the color at least, a deep blue. Self inventory found that her weapons were missing. No hidden blade, no blades at all, no bombs, nothing. That nearly made her feel as naked as the strange clothes. And a strange bracelet that looked nothing like she had ever seen before.


II. Strolling through Town


She was decidedly not in India anymore. And this looked not at all like England either. Which left, well, the rest of the world really. Just not any of the parts of it she had been to. The itch to pull up her nonexistent hood was still there, however she noticed there were some other people in similar clothing. And others in different outfits entirely that bordered from familiarish to not at all.


First step. Establish surroundings. Integrate with the population. Blend. That was doable. In theory. People liked to talk and once she was familiar with the layout of wherever she was maybe this anxious buzzing in her mind would stop. If she was here for now she'd need to know where things were, where to go and where people said not to go. Structures were being noted and mapped as she walked along, faces and voices observed as well in case there seemed to be ones that popped put for interest.


There was none of that instinctive viewing of her surroundings, not as it had been. There was no glowing of targets or information. Concern buzzed in her mind again but she had plenty of skills to sort people out while seeing them as they were. Maybe they were all important. It was a possibility. At least none seemed to give off the instinctive look of enemies. Which might mean nothing at all.

Comments

Strolling - because more fun honestly

[relentlessness]

Perhaps he should have had a closer look at the fountain, at those arriving that way. Not that his current perch is that far from there, but he hadn't spent much time watching the fountain. If only to keep himself from worrying each day that Evie does not arrive. Especially after Ezio had returned but so much older. It left him too many thoughts about what becomes of Evie after they are knighted that he doesn't want to think about it. So when he first sees a figure in blue moving through the village, he wonders if he's seeing things. A wishful desire to have his sister back. Perhaps he's not even awake. He rises though, tugging his hood - a hoodie that he wears beneath the black pea coat he was given on arrival - and tugs his jacket sleeves down over his gauntlets. Pacing from one roof to another, watching the form to assure himself that it truly is Evie and not just someone that reminds him of his sister. Only when he's certain does he rush ahead, dropping down to the far side of a building to come strolling around into Evie's path. "Oh. There you are. Took you long enough," he says, entirely casual though his voice likely reveals more happiness than his words do, having used the hood to hide the excitement on his face.

Re: Strolling - because more fun honestly

[righthandrook]

Evie could feel that itch of someone watching her, trained senses from an entire lifetime of following people and learning what it felt like. She could almost hear father in her ear tell her to pay more attention. She was in a strange and foreign place and inattention got one killed.

And then there is Jacob standing before her and it makes all the more sense. Because of course he would just stroll out, as if the entire world hadn't just been tilted on its side and shaken out of a fountain. She was torn between hugging him and punching him. That automatic inventory showed he looked more adapted. Even settled.

"Took me long enough?" her chin took a haughty, instinctive tilt. "Since when did you wait for me?"

Hearing his voice was enough to make the decision easier. Her arms went up and she hugged onto her twin. He was solid, real. That was a start.

[relentlessness]

"Haven't had much choice," he says, waving a hand dismissively though it's true. It's not like he had a say in it, but he can't even yet find words for how happy he is to see her there. With what he's been through since she had vanished before, he's definitely glad to have the family back that he needs more than he often can find words for. Though the sarcastic words don't do much to hide the truth of the emotion as his arms wrap around her, pulling her in close for a hug. Part of his gut drops though, not sure what to think about that comment because it doesn't feel right. Pulling back slightly, moving to push the hood back so he can meet her gaze. "Evie, how do you remember of this place?"

[righthandrook]

Her frown matched his question as he pulled back. It seemed ridiculous to ask, though she was starting to put very small pieces together. Slower than she would like but it wasn't as if there had been some handy reading material.

"What do you mean how? I don't remember this place." She answered, not letting her hands fall from his arms. "The last I saw you, you were giving Henry and I our send off to India."

[relentlessness]

Hearing of others suffering a similar affliction is one thing. Facing it with his sister is something else entirely. So when Evie admits she doesn't, his heart sinks as much as his shoulders. Yet for a moment that is forgotten as she goes on. "Wait, you and Henry left?" Not that he should be surprised, and if he's honest it means they've left him and the Rooks to hold London perhaps and there is something there to be proud in. Yet... Evie is going to leave him. Not that he's surprised, especially not leaving together, but he's indignant nonetheless. "How long is this after we were knighted? Because in truth, that is the last thing I remember before I was hauled out of that fountain... " By her but he's not sure he should tell Evie that, not yet. "And that was nearly three months ago."

[righthandrook]

This was a lot more time displaced information to absorb at once. But it did in theory make sense. After all hadn't she been greated by a man centuries dead? She took a breath and squared her shoulders because her leaving was not an arguement she wanted to have with Jacob.

"A few years after. The Indian brotherhood has a lot to teach us, lessons we can use to rebuild England's. You wouldn't believe some of the advancements they've made in non-lethal weaponry. You and the rooks had London mostly under control. And it's not as if I wasn't planning to visit. You were planning to visit too."

Three months was a far shorter time than a few years though. And since she had already lived past being knighted, she would have known if Jacob went missing. They might have been 'his' rooks but she had her own loyal ears among them to keep an eye on him. Even with her having gone to India.

Fountain

[eaglesonofnone]

He'd been to the north, up to the cave he'd scouted with Tony what he now realised was months ago. A stop to the northern village and then he'd been on his way home - in time to see a woman climb from the fountain.

More than that, a woman he recognised. The question that followed was if she would recognise him.

His footsteps were still Assassin-silent as he came to the fountain's side, removing his Mentor robe as he approached. "I beg your pardon," he said, his voice still Masyaf-accented. "May I offer you my robe? This is no weather to suffer in the cold and damp."

The cowl he wore, she would likely recognise - in form if not in detail. His accent, likely less so. But his bracers were probably unmistakable.

Re: Fountain

[righthandrook]

Perhaps she had been too involved with the strange clothes to hear the approach. She should have seen from the corner of the eye even if she hadn't heard. There was disappointment in that, the instinctive need to analyze for a threat in an increasingly unknown situation.

The cold and damp had not reached the point of necessarily registering yet. It should, she was wearing fewer layers than in this situation in England. And she had been adapting to warmer climates.

And there was the hood she was missing. Or like it enough. And her fingers went to the trigger that was no longer there, for bracers of her own that were no longer there. The accent did not sound as one of her Indian brothers. Nor was his face recognizable. But he was an assassin, there was no mistaking that. "I'm afraid I don't know your name, brother." Evie didn't reach for the robe.

[eaglesonofnone]

Without knowing, she'd answered his unspoken question - and it left him with an oddly unsettled feeling. She didn't remember him, and seemingly didn't remember the village. Would she remember Jacob? The possibility gave him a chill beyond that caused by the weather.

But he kept his voice steady as he answered, "I am Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, which will undoubtedly be difficult for you to believe. This place has a tendency to disorient all who arrive, but I will be glad to assist you as I can, Ukht. Sister." Then, after a lingering pause, he added, "Evie Frye."

[righthandrook]

It took everything in her power to not laugh. Not that it was funny outside of a sense of morbidity, but here she was climbing out of some strange fountain, in clothes she had never seen, and now a man was introducing himself as the great master assassin Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad. It was ridiculous, unfathomable, and then followed by the distinct chill down her spine as he knew her name. Which was rarely a comforting experience in an unknown situation with strangers.

"I see we are unevenly acquainted." Evie settled on at the introduction of this supposed grandmaster. "And me, here, unaware of where I've even arrived."

[eaglesonofnone]

"I have met you once before," he answered, "though it seems your memory of it is missing. Beyond that, I have spoken to your brother quite often."

More than spoken, all told - but best not to tell.

"He is here as well. And in dire need of your steadying influence."

But then he was motioning to their surroundings, his left hand bearing only four fingers, the ring finger very obviously amputated at the first knuckle. "Unfortunately, there is no true name for this place. We simply call it The Village. Most arrive as you did, swimming up through the fountain in an abrupt awakening. There are people here from many times and many worlds, not only our own. And quite a few are our Bretheren."

Strolling

[notyourrookie]

One thing that's he's still getting used to, is the shift between daylight and night. You don't get that on a ship. The Freelancers had lived by an artificial day/night cycle, every minute of the day mapped out for them. And in prison and in the... what he dubiously calls a medical facility, there'd been no sign of day or night. Nothing to help him to keep track of the days. Having some sort of natural cycle like this is a bit strange.

He's keeping a close eye on the sky while he walks, trying to judge if he needs to start heading back to the North village now, or wait a little longer. He doesn't want to be going back in the pitch black. He's still got enough situational awareness to jump out of the way when he nearly bumps into the woman as he dips out from the alleyway between two buildings.

"Shit. Sorry."

[righthandrook]

The risk of running into someone unintentionally was relatively love for Evie. There was far fewer people than she was used to and the whole waking up in a fountain somewhere not India had been a bit of a tip to be on high alert. Still, as much as she would cringe to admit, it was a shade overwhelming. And someone bumping into her was a closer miss than she'd like.

Still there was no actual bump, which meant they weren't a pick pocket. Did they have pick pockets here? Everywhere had pick pockets, it just seemed to be as natural as the sun or air. Not that there was anything particularly natural about the whole situation.

He seemed almost shocked at it and Evie finds an eyebrow raised in surprise. "No harm done." she answers, taking note of the stranger.

[notyourrookie]

Usually there wouldn't be much chance of Wash walking into someone either - on the best of days, he's still a paranoid, prickly, asshole. But everyone has an off day, and despite everything, he's potentially starting to relax here.

It was stupid of him really.

Still, the woman hasn't pulled a weapon, and she doesn't seem angry or aggressive at the moment, so he thinks he's probably got away with it this time.

"I usually pay more attention than this," he says, managing a small smile.

[righthandrook]

"Only usually?" Evie offered with a small smile of her own. There was no point in being needlessly antagonistic on her arrival. It was all new and overwhelming to her. And from what little she had gathered, she wasn't the only one.

And besides a near miss bump was hardly the worst that could happen with a stranger appearing from an alleyway.

[notyourrookie]

“I don’t normally have time to get distracted by being planetside,” Wash replies with a shrug. Normally he has a mission, something with a defined end goal and no time for sightseeing. It’s been a long long time since he was on a planet and didn’t have a mission that he needed to carry out.

Novelty could be kind of distracting.

Strolling: Or sitting

[clouded_heart]

Foggy's on a bit of enforced rest. He was in a bit of a fight and is very much a non-combatant. This, coupled with his naturally pale skin, makes the bruises stand out pretty vividly on him, on the side of his face above the thick, warm, purple scarf. But new faces draw a smile from him where he's sitting in the Inn's main room, working on what looks to be a small, hand carved crucifix. "Hey- ow. I haven't seen you before, so I'm guessing you're new?"

[righthandrook]

An inn was something familiarish for Evie at least. That was certainly a sentiment for stepping into it. And the warm, random friendliness brought on by it. Not Dickens today with his quests for creatures and unknowns.

She gave a smile to the bruised man greeting her. "I'm that noticeable?" she asked with a brief chuckle. It looked to be a crucifix of some sort in his hands that he was working on. He did not seem a man of the church, but then again she hardly knew how a vicar would present themselves here.

[clouded_heart]

"I keep an eye on faces, especially right now. I'm not really fit for duty until I heal up." He pushes a chair out for her with one foot, inviting her to sit and join him. "I'm Foggy." He offers out his hand to shake. "I'm usually one of the town butchers."

[righthandrook]

She considers for a moment before taking the offered seat. It was a question on what duty he meant but it was offered up. Unless butcher was euphemism, it wouldn't be the first she'd met. Though he didn't innately look the type.

She held out her hand and took his in return. "Evie Frye. Currently unemployed, unusually."

[clouded_heart]

He shook her hand firmly. His own hand was soft, even after working here, he had still spent years at a desk. "Good to meet you, Evie. And I'm sure you'll find something to pick up soon enough. Now the winter is starting to ease up, I suspect we're going to be moving into more outdoor work, building and drying timber and whatever else needs doing."

Strolling

[loyalrebel]

Malik is coming down from the North Village when he spots the seemingly new dark haired woman. There's a bag slung at his side, and he's wearing the outer layer of Altair's mentor robes as his own.

"Greetings, you seem a new face. Would you like some bread before I get to the inn with them?" He offers, nodding to her.

[righthandrook]

Evie could not help but notice the similarity to the robes she had seen by the fountain, offered up by a different man that the one before her. And if that meant another possible master, claimant of so, or something else entirely.

Still she gave a smile to politeness. "Is it custom to offer bread to strangers here?" she asked with gentle curiosity.

[loyalrebel]

He is certainly something, though that is mostly because he ended up with a sideways sort of promotion instead of properly being recognized as a Master.

"For me, yes." He nodded, looking amused "However I do operate the bakery up in the northern village so it is slightly less strange than it seems."

[righthandrook]

"That would make it slightly less so." She agreed. And she couldn't deny the fact that she was hungry. "Might I ask the name of the operator who is being so gracious?"