Module:RPG/Offworld Visitors from Space.json

[   {        "posts": [ {               "content": "\u003Cem\u003EAn unidentified, gigantic metal object resembling of a bird was spotted flying right besides what was obviously a medieval-era fortress. It wasn\u0026apos;t first such case - visitors from other planets weren\u0026apos;t entirely unheard of, albeit the last time happened such a long time ago, that it is practically myth and legend now. Despite being fully equipped with catapults, balistae and primitive canons, the men in the castle elected not to open fire at the unidentified flying object, based off the observation, that it\u0026apos;s going going to violently crash-land soon, and seemingly at a safe distance from the fort.\u003C/em\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cem\u003ENevertheless, someone had to be sent to investigate. Or rather, a squad, led by none other than the paladin Stephanus Tavilrond, riding on horseback, dressed in chainmail, accompanied by just one platoon of pikemen and crossbowmen - easy pickings for even a single individual with a gun, let alone an entire squad. Thus, starting a five-minute trek towards the foreign, extraterrastial means of transport, the medieval soldiers did, unsure whether the encounter will have them bumping into friends or foes. For the time being, they are sent merely to investigate - the last time this planet had visitors, it was demons crawling out from the ground. Now it\u0026apos;s a huge armoured bird. What kind of secrets is it keeping, from the people whose land it has unintentionally intruded upon?\u003C/em\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Stay back and don\u0026apos;t fire until I say so. If they\u0026apos;re not demons, I shall negotiate with them.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E \u003Cem\u003Eproclaimed Stephanus, upon setting sights on the downed vehicle, less than a minute of walking distance from its entrance. Surrounding the ship was a patch of grassy field, itself surrounded by a forest if one dares to walk a couple of minutes, containing a dirt road.\u003C/em\u003E\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T19:33:54.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637346834,                "user": "Stephanus Tavilrond"            },            {                "content": "Héloïse Masson  groaned quietly. As did the 153 remaining troops of the 94e Regiment d\u0026apos;Infanterie. The transport had, in it\u0026apos;s ballistic track in from atmo, managed to clip the top edge of a small hill. That had been their undoing. The observed part of their flight was actually going entirely according to plan. Falling was the mode of insertion for Siege infanterie, of course. But in clipping the hill, just as their retro rockets were set to burn, had rather seriously muffed the entire plan.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003ESo, now, of course, the dropship had settled into a dell, at about a 20 degree angle. The ablative skin had scorched the surrounds with absorbed heat, but as Stephanus came upon the landing site, it would simply be steaming, surrounded by blackened, flash-burned grass. It would be, following his arrival, an additional ten minutes before the unit had pulled itself together enough to try opening the loading door, which fell outwards as a ramp. It settled strangely, the 20 degree slant still an issue, but once it did, visible at the top of it was the slight, nimble brunette, clad in her Bleu uniform. Her sidearm filled her hand, as she squinted out at the surrounds. \u0026quot;Merde.\u0026quot;\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T20:15:29.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637349329,                "user": "Héloïse Masson"            },            {                "content": "Stephanus Tavilrond  was somewhat confused. This.... thing.... it has scorched the earth around it by landing. It was unlike anything they have ever seen before! Stephanus and his crew were too nervous to step any closer and examine, as they were still thinking about how this beast of a metal hunk could come alive at any moment, and fly again. There was awkward silence and tension in the air, as it took at least ten minutes before anything happened at all - at least, from the knight\u0026apos;s point of view. They awkwardly awaited until any signs of life would make their existence known - but in the end, there it was: a beautiful woman dressed in strange clothing that looked completely foreign, armed with some kind of metal stick vaguely resembling a crossbow.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Oy, you there!\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E - yelled the paladin, after taking down his helmet, revealing his own face, as a man with long brown hair and azure-blue eyes - \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Be you friends, or enemies?\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E he continued, asking a rather simple question. The accent had a clearly archaic quality to it, with aristocratic rolled Rs and precise articulation, in spite of the fact that he was yelling, obviously trying his most effective way to communicate with a near-literal alien from another planet. Well, one that looks exactly like his fellow humans, and he has no real knowledge that this spacecraft came from an another planet.... He asked for a simple confirmation, that he and his men won\u0026apos;t be shot at, basically. The more complex questions come later.\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T20:23:57.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637349837,                "user": "Stephanus Tavilrond"            },            {                "content": "Héloïse Masson  was quite fortunate her sidearm was a single-action revolver. Well, actually, \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003Ehe\u003C/span\u003E was. After six years on the lines at Artois, the usual response to unrecognized voices was a fusillade of lasrifle and heavy stubber fire. As it was, she pointed, not quite startled enough, just yet, to thumb the hammer back. She squinted, her photovisors, which also turned her naturally emerald eyes a deep violet, helped her spot, and focus on the man. He looked... Well, like a man, really. Considering their many enemies, \u0026apos;Some Guy\u0026apos; was a pretty welcome sight.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EAh...\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She hummed. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003ECamarades. Zat is, Friends, sir, oui.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She shouted in response, her replacement lungs allowing her to shout rather louder than him, without the words washing out into simple noise. Her accent was thick, but the voice beneath was a contralto, holding some vague ideations of being a singer, and held a touch of mirth. As her fellows mad their way to the ramp, to stand behind her, she chuckled. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003ESorry about ze landing. Not our best.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot;\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T20:35:29.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637350529,                "user": "Héloïse Masson"            },            {                "content": "Stephanus Tavilrond  wasn\u0026apos;t entirely sure how to progress further. The woman confirmed that she\u0026apos;s not here to attack them, now what? She even admitted, that it wasn\u0026apos;t a happy landing. \u003Cem\u003E~ Now what? Do I just ask them come down and come with me to the castle? Nah, they probably won\u0026apos;t... ~\u003C/em\u003E he thought to himself. That \u0026apos;some guy\u0026apos; was wearing medieval armour, in contrast to Héloïse\u0026apos;s far more modern-looking garb. But looks can be deceiving, and all it would take is one bullet, unless he is \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003Ereally\u003C/span\u003E lucky.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Well, comrades, I motion that you, uhm... Come down from your.... well....\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E he took out his sword to point at the ship, only to take it back to the scabbard \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;... whatever that is, and....well.... anounce thy presence to the local authorities?\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E he proclaimed to her, finally gathering up the courage to begin approaching the unidentified flying vehicle with his crew of crossbowmen and pikemen, awkwardly looking for any place, where they might expect Héloïse and her comrades to begin their exfiltration from the ship. Surely she doesn\u0026apos;t intend to just jump down from the place where she was standing? Either way, the paladin is, for all intents and purposes, implying, that he intends to at least aid in the process of smoothing things out. Even in a medieval world, paperwork is a must.\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T20:42:50.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637350970,                "user": "Stephanus Tavilrond"            },            {                "content": "Héloïse Masson  seemed to debate internally for a moment. Then, of course, one of her men stepped forward, and she seemed to externally debate. The debate wasn\u0026apos;t, of course, about if they should follow the directions, but rather how they would get out of the dropship. She then turned her attention back to the man, and smiled widely enough that he would hopefully see. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EOui. Give us... Per\u0026apos;aps one moment, sir.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot;\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EThe actual descent was fairly easy. After several minutes, the ramp was unbolted, and simply fell, with a mighty, metallic clang, to the field below. With it out of the way, several wrought-plasteel ladders were deployed, allowing the men and women to descend, with their packs and their helmets and their lasrifles with bayonets fixed, down to the ground. Indeed, once Héloïse descended, she\u0026apos;d retrieved her \u003Cem\u003ECarabin\u003C/em\u003E, the three-point sing keeping it secure across her chest as she climbed down the ladder. \u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EThe Strangers might note that, while all of the \u0026apos;aliens\u0026apos; wore similar bleu uniforms and helmets, most had cloth puttees. Héloïse, however, had shined, dark-brown, knee-length boots. This seemed to indicate her as the leader. That, of course, and the way she was able to simply simple to each man she needed to order about, say a few quiet words, and they went off to do her bidding. The troops, with these orders, assembled themselves into marching form, by Peleton and by section. Only once this was done did she wave at the \u0026apos;welcome party\u0026apos;. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EWe are prepared, Monsieur. Where do you need us to march, or shall we follow you?\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot;\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T20:54:55.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637351695,                "user": "Héloïse Masson"            },            {                "content": "Stephanus Tavilrond  wouldn\u0026apos;t realize how outnumbered he and his men were, until he saw them actually descend with their weapons, helmets and packs to the ground. The knight and his men couldn\u0026apos;t help but marvel at how shiny everything looked, and at their strange, crossbow-like metal weapons that they could carry with such finesse. The paladin gulped, realizing that he effectively has to give directions to a whole army, into his own fort, where any incident done by the foreigners would be his responsibility. He was tempted to inform them, that just one platoon would be enough to negotiate on the entire unit\u0026apos;s behalf - or that it would be highly unwise to minimize the amount of men guarding the vessel - but nevertheless, opted to play along. \u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003ENormally, he greets ladies with a kiss on the hand, but this time, he makes an exception - after all, this was a serious military matter. All he did was to simply make one glance at Héloïse, and inform her - \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;To Fort Redlight. If thou knowest not the directions, then follow me. It is less than ten minutes of walk.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E. Of course, being on horseback gave him a bit of an advantage. All of his companies were pedestrians. And so would be his new companions.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EIf he is followed, he leads them right onto the dirt path within the forest, leading to the fort, a medieval castle equipped with typical medieval siege engines and primitive cannons, where he\u0026apos;d be questioned for what brings such a strange group of people with strange clothes into the castle, with Stephanus reminding the absent-minded gatekeeper, that he had come back from the investigation, and is going to introduce the leader of the group to the leader of \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003Ehis\u003C/span\u003E group. The grandmaster will know far more than Stephanus does.\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T21:05:22.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637352322,                "user": "Stephanus Tavilrond"            },            {                "content": "Héloïse Masson  grinned at the horserider, during which he might, just barely, catch a glimpse of her augmented fangs. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EOui.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; Was her simple reply. She turned on her heel, a touch of flourish, to address her troops. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003ERegiment, par peloton, en avant!\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; After which, pleasing to her ears, the sounds of 153 boots began forward, in unison, following her, and the strangers that had greeted them. This was, of course, all well and proper. The Paitrens had landed on a strange planet. There was no oddity in needing to submit to the Local Authorities until contact could be made with a passing Imperial ship.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EThe marching, of course, being done by Paitrens, was covered soon by \u003Ca href=\"https://youtu.be/p3BHyOhVXmE\"\u003Esong\u003C/a\u003E. Héloïse hadn\u0026apos;t started it, but she happily lent her voice to it. This wasn\u0026apos;t a combat mach, after all. The bleu-clad troops were able to roll cigarettes, fill pipes, drink of their canteens and flasks, and relax, after their long journey, crash-landing or no. The Paitren spirit of Elan was on full display for the Strangers.\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T21:15:30.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637352930,                "user": "Héloïse Masson"            },            {                "content": "Stephanus Tavilrond  was still a bit confused by the fact, that he had one handred and fifty - and three - strange-looking soldiers marching behind him, all of the sudden singing about onions, but otherwise, he remained unphased. Some of the men marching behind Stephanus were happy to hear a song and found it funny, but the paladin himself felt a bit of tension. Arriving into the fort, the knight\u0026apos;s first direction was to the stables to unmount and present himself to the crew as a pedestrian once again, using a simple hand-signal to tell his own troops to get back to their stations and guard posts, as they were no longer needed. Now came the awkward part, where he, once again, had to inform Héloïse of something.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Alright, milady. I recommend that thou comest with me alone, or with a few trusted men. I\u0026apos;m afraid the grandmaster\u0026apos;s office won\u0026apos;t be able to fit all one hundred and fifty of you.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E - he stated this, as the most matter-of-fact thing ever. \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Come with me, and I promise we\u0026apos;ll try to sort it all out as quickly as possible.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E he said, unsure how to instruct her to follow him without doing what he\u0026apos;d typically do a lady in any similar situation - so, a bit awkwardly, he once again set himself in motion, walking towards a stone building that appeared to be a mixture of a chapel, a school, a library, or.... a tower? It was, for all intents and purposes, a multiple-floor building with the aesthetics of a chapel, but the inner contents of an office of sorts. Either way, Stephanus\u0026apos;s plan was to get inside the building with Héloïse accompanying him, and walk to the top floor to present himself to his grandmaster - a bearded man with gray hair, wearing similar looking armour to that of Stephanus\u0026apos;, but slightly more decorated. The inside of the building looks almost exactly what one might see in a movie about the renaissance, or a museum. A nice little office, with wooden tables, quills and ink, lots of parchments, scrolls and blank books.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EOutside, Héloïse\u0026apos;s troops could observe the rest of the fortress - a few armories, barracks built from stone and wood, a jousting field with medieval knights actually racing around on their horses with lances, a practice field for archery and melee weapons alike, stables, and so on and so forth. There were even some folks out there cooking cooking some kind of onion soup! Ah, the irony....\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T21:26:11.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637353571,                "user": "Stephanus Tavilrond"            },            {                "content": "Héloïse Masson  simply chuckled at his instruction. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EOui. Une moment, monsieur.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She nodded, and turned to her men, the collection of Peleton leaders that had come to cluster around her, barking out a series of instructions that essentially boiled down to \u0026apos;Stay here, don\u0026apos;t fuck with anything, try not to annoy the civvies.\u0026apos;, which made sense, of course. It was what she did while giving these instructions that was possibly an issue. She checked first the cylinder of her sidearm, ensuring it was loaded, before replacing it in the holster at her hip. Next she checked the battery pack of her LasCarabin, locking it into place, and testing the mounted bayonet for fastness to the barrel. Then, she seemed to almost materialize a \u003Ca href=\"https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/692766860470517843/911353733881942042/IMG_94182Bcopy.png\"\u003ENail knife\u003C/a\u003E from... Somewhere. She checked the edge on it, and replaced it to... Somewhere. Once she was finished, she turned to the man, and smiled, nodding for him to lead the way, following along alone.\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T21:35:46.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637354146,                "user": "Héloïse Masson"            },            {                "content": "Stephanus Tavilrond  simply nodded to Héloïse with no emotion in response to her smile. This was one soldier following procedure, and leading the other. Standard procedure, except there was absolutely nothing standard about this situation. Entering the office building, the knight simply leads Héloïse up to the top floor, knocking on the door, which is opened within a few seconds delay by the bearded man who is the supposed grandmaster of the knightly order Stephanus is a member of.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;So, Stephanus, you have returned.... and with company, none the less. What of the unidentified flying.... object? Metal bird?\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E asked the bearded man. Stephanus\u0026apos;s answer was no-nonsense: \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;It appears to be some kind of flying fortress, my lord. Its inhabitants appear to be humans just like us. Soldiers, from a country we don\u0026apos;t know. Standing right next to me is their leader.... Ge-... Capt...?\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E the paladin attempted to figure out what Héloïse\u0026apos;s rank might be, indirectly asking for her name, and asking her to introduce herself - and maybe introduce her nation and army as well.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EAnd so, the two armoured men are standing there, waiting for the outworlder to tell all the tales about how she arrived. For all intents and purposes, the two of them indirectly asked her to tell her side of the story.\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T21:42:44.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637354564,                "user": "Stephanus Tavilrond"            },            {                "content": "Héloïse Masson  allowed the man\u0026apos;s struggle to continue perhaps a moment longer than one might usually, before she shifted, to face both of them. She owed him an introduction, too, did she not? Her heels came together with a \u0026apos;click\u0026apos;, right arm coming up swiftly to take both steel helmet and kepi from her head, slipping them back behind her, both hands then clasping the rim of the helmet. Her brunette hair, done p in a bun, was of course then revealed. Violet, cat-pupil\u0026apos;d eyes regarded them both for a moment, before finally, she bowed, as best she could with her Carabin strapped across her front.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EI am Lieutenant Héloïse Masson, Commandant du 94e Regiment d\u0026apos;Infanterie de Siege.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She said, stiffly. Knowing, of course, that Paitren was a rare language in the universe, she \u0026apos;repeated\u0026apos;, as she straightened back to a position of attention. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EZat is, Commander of ze Ninety-Fort\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; Using the Hard T there, rather than her usual \u0026apos;z\u0026apos; in place of a \u0026apos;th\u0026apos;, \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003ESiege Regiment, from ze Planet of Paitre.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She finished, with a small smile. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EWe seem to \u0026apos;ave crashed \u0026apos;ere by accident. Many apologies, Monsieurs.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot;\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T21:51:49.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637355109,                "user": "Héloïse Masson"            },            {                "content": "Stephanus Tavilrond  - along with his grandmaster - took a bit of time to process this new information. Héloïse may have been laconic, there was quite a bit of density to the information she just emmited from her mouth. Yes, yes, she\u0026apos;s the leader of a military unit, the name of which wasn\u0026apos;t particularly useful information to the pair, but perhaps the most striking part was.... planet. \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EPlanet.\u003C/span\u003E Planet of Paitre. \u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Did she just say planet?\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E muttered the two knights in unison, effectively thinking out loud. After that, the grandmaster hummed, taking his hand under his chin to think, while Stephanus was merely standing there, doing literally nothing but glancing back and forth between Héloïse and his superior.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Well, alright. It is a relief to know, that the offworlders aren\u0026apos;t demons, but friendly beings. That, however... complicates things.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E said the grandmaster. \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;You see, the field that your.... ahem.... flying fortress has landed on.... It most certainly belongs to someone. We can offer you food, shelter, and papers to make your presence legal, but that giant bird.... It would make things a lot easier, if it were to be relocated\u0026quot;.\u003C/span\u003E he continued, while writing something on a scroll. A report. \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Nevertheless, as a sign of my goodwill, I am assigning Stephanus Tavilrond to be your guide, for the time being. He will accompany you to any official business regarding your accidental presence in this land. I will submit a report to the authorities of Grandfolk to make sure thou and thine men are accomodated like guests, rather than treated like bandits.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Grandmaster Frostang... I believe their.... vessel, for lack of a better word.... I don\u0026apos;t think it\u0026apos;s going to move any time soon. And even if it could, I don\u0026apos;t think it fit into.... well, alright, maybe it would, but....\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E Stephanus responded, replying to the notion of relocating Héloïse\u0026apos;s ship from its landing place into the most fitting open field within this fort. Besides the fact that it would take up quite a bit of real estate.... can it even be moved to begin with?\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T22:02:04.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637355724,                "user": "Stephanus Tavilrond"            },            {                "content": "Héloïse Masson  hadn\u0026apos;t taken notice of their confusion about \u0026apos;planet\u0026apos;, and awaited the end of the various lines of speech, before she opened her mouth, briefly exposing fangs, before closing it, and reconsidering. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EAh... Unfortunately, monsieurs, none of my number can actually... pilot ze Dropship. It is, ah...\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She waved a hand, as if trying to usher the word out. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026apos;Autonomous\u0026apos;.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She chuckled quietly, then. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EMany of my men call zem \u0026apos;Des boites de conserve\u0026apos;, or \u0026apos;tin cans\u0026apos;. Zey exist to be zrown at a planet wiz us inside. If we survive, we are on ze planet!\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She gestured, somewhat vaguely to her uniform. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EAs you can see, it was successful in zat mission. But at zis point it is at best a makeshift barracks where it sits, or, of course, it can be cut up and used as raw materials. Zose are, unfortunately, ze only options. But!\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She grinned once more. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EWe \u0026apos;ave our own food, and shelters zat we can assemble. As well, we \u0026apos;ave our weapons. So, if you \u0026apos;ave some amount of work you need of us, protecting caravans, or ozer such guard missions, we will \u0026apos;appily oblige, until we can contact ze Imperium to pick us up.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot;\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T22:15:14.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637356514,                "user": "Héloïse Masson"            },            {                "content": "Stephanus Tavilrond  couldn\u0026apos;t help, but be tempted to snicker, as the grandmaster\u0026apos;s offers proved to be completely useless in the end. Food? They alerady have it, albeit it\u0026apos;s bound to run out eventually. Shelter? Their ship \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003Eis\u003C/span\u003E the shelter. There\u0026apos;s not much this world can offer them, except a guarantee that they won\u0026apos;t bring harm to them. At least, not intentionally, that is.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Very well... There have been some incidents lately, and keeping away the bandits would be helpful.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E the grandmaster said, while trying to come up with at least one idea for a job he could give to these newcomers. However, if there is any job he can give them, it would be way down south, far away from here. \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;If you really wish to help us, there have been a lot of orcish raids lately down south. People get kidnapped and enslaved. If the Orcish menace could be permanently eradicated somehow.... ah, nevermind, I would need a royal approval for such a plan.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Perhaps I could have them patrolling the Shanty Quarters of Grandfolk. Those dangerous streets are full of crime, and in dire need of some law and order.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E Stephanus intervened. \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;By the way.... what is this Imperium you speak of again?\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T22:25:11.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637357111,                "user": "Stephanus Tavilrond"            },            {                "content": "Héloïse Masson  hardened instantly at the mention of \u0026apos;orcs\u0026apos;. It would easily be seen on her face, the slight narrowing of her eyes, lips suddenly drawn thin. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EWe will take ze Orcish Menace.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She declared, voice suddenly rather gravelly, raspy. It seemed the smoothness of her accent, of her voice, was being consciously held in check. The scar at her throat, easily seen once she raised her chin, somewhat haughtily. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EIf your sovereign is unhappy wiz zis undertaking, you can tell \u0026apos;im zat you could not \u0026apos;old ze \u0026apos;Newcomers\u0026apos; in check, oui?\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She smiled mirthlessly. Addressing Stephanus, once she\u0026apos;s \u0026apos;fixed\u0026apos; her voice, with some effort, she chuckled. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EWe would make poor Gendarmes. We \u0026apos;ave been in combat for over \u0026apos;alf a decade, monsieur. \u0026apos;eavy mitrailleuses are not for enforcing public drunkenness. But...\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She frowned, then, squinting at him. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EWhat do you mean; \u0026apos;What is ze Imperium\u0026apos;? Are you not an Imperial World?\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She looked suddenly... On Guard. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EWhat world is zis?\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot;\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T22:33:09.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637357589,                "user": "Héloïse Masson"            },            {                "content": "Stephanus Tavilrond  smiled, knowing that at least one problem will be taken care of - the Orcs. Sure, they can\u0026apos;t just order Héloïse\u0026apos;s men to take on the entirity of the Orcish horde - it would be 153 men against over 40 000 - but they can assign them to places, and have them teach a lesson to raiders. And that will be adequette. Of course, the two paladins neglected to mention \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003Eany\u003C/span\u003E of this to Héloïse. \u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Very well. Keep in mind though, that the journey from Grandfolk to Talon is at least three days on horseback. The Orcs seldom penetrate as north as Talon, so to catch them in the act, you will have to travel south even more. Stephanus will accompany you to smooth things over with the locals and anounce your presence to the authorities. After that, I presume the local military governor will provide further instructions.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E the grandmaster stated.\u003Cbr\u003EBut then, the Imperium was mentioned again. Imperial World? \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;What\u0026apos;s an Imperial word?\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E asked Stephanus, as if he just heard a completely new word. No, this wasn\u0026apos;t an Imperial World. None of its inhabitants were even aware of any Empire named Imperium even existing.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Lieutenant Masson.... I believe the room we\u0026apos;re standing in right now is within Fort Redlight, just a couple minutes of ride from Grandfolk, within the Kingdom of Etrand, on the continent of Artograch, on the planet of Artograch. The only empire that we know is.... well, we know three. One is south of us, the other two are accross the ocean.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E the Grandmaster corrected Héloïse. \u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Is the entire planet supposed to be part of an empire?\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E Stephanus scratched his head sarcastically, completely unaware of the existence of a large, spacefaring empire consisting of thousands of worlds, being able to obliterate life on an entire world within the snap of a fingers, all in the service of a god-emperor.\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T22:41:59.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637358119,                "user": "Stephanus Tavilrond"            },            {                "content": "Héloïse Masson  opened her mouth once more. Then, once more, closed it as she considered. This was... Actually incredible, if it was true. Paitre was... An odd world. It wasn\u0026apos;t terribly deep under the hold of the Imperial Cult. The Civil War had lessened much of the sway when \u0026apos;the bad guys\u0026apos; won via Imperial intervention. And then, the children of the losing side were drafted, and put into unwinnable situations so many times the unit had a \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E600%\u003C/span\u003E casualty-turnover rate, the men having killed or driven-away the Commissars assigned to them. So...\u003Cbr\u003EShe smiled widely, and shook her head. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EI will explain, if you would like. Ozerwise? It does not matter. Simply point us where you need us. And.. Ah, per\u0026apos;aps position us in a place you do not wish to use for farming, oui?\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She chuckled. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EOur mezod of warfare is \u0026apos;ard on ze surroundings.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot;\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T22:55:15.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637358915,                "user": "Héloïse Masson"            },            {                "content": "Stephanus Tavilrond  wasn\u0026apos;t particularly keen on visiting the south again, but as usual, he obeyed orders, like the good soldier he was. He was ordered to act as a guide to Héloïse, and that is what he will do.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;In that case, perhaps you could do, what we initially planned, and take up the initiative against the Orcs. Rain down fire and brimstone on them, and make them think twice about raiding our lands. Just keep a few alive to have them tell the tale to the others.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E the grandmaster said. Stephanus looked a bit worried, tempted to remind the grandmaster, that such a rash action could provoke an actual war with the Orcish tribes. A war that Etrand could win, of course, but with a cost most people aren\u0026apos;t willing to pay. And even with the aid of Héloïse\u0026apos;s men, armed with modern weapons, it\u0026apos;s still less than two hundred, against tens of thousands, occupying quite a large and hostile patch of land. Not only that, but the wider political ramifications....\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;So be it, my lord. I will accompany Lady Masson to the southern border to deal with the Orcish menace, and do my best to provide her with my services. On the other hand, what of her immobilized flying vessel?\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E he asked the question, albeit it was aimed more at Héloïse, than at his own grandmaster.\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T23:01:22.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637359282,                "user": "Stephanus Tavilrond"            },            {                "content": "Héloïse Masson  smirked. It wasn\u0026apos;t a usual expression for her, but the smug affectation did work well. She reached up, and rubbed at the spade-shape scar on her left cheek. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026apos;Lieutenant\u0026apos;, s\u0026apos;il vous plait. And as to ze ship, per\u0026apos;aps cut it up, and melt it down, for use as swords and arrow tips.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She grinned then. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EI will even happily bequeath ze hull to ze person zat owns ze land, so long as zeir new wealz warrants a show of gratitude. Like some sort of royal title.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She snickered.\u003Cbr\u003E\u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EAnd I do not zink defeating ze orcish menace in ze Souz will be \u0026apos;ard. I assume zey are armed similarly to yourselves, oui?\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot;\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T23:15:31.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637360131,                "user": "Héloïse Masson"            },            {                "content": "Stephanus Tavilrond  looked at the grandmaster, who looked back at Stephanus, in response to Héloïse\u0026apos;s last question. The answer was.... yes, for the most part. Well, yes, and no. Everyone in this world was stuck at a late medieval level of \u003Cem\u003E(military)\u003C/em\u003E technology \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003Eat best\u003C/span\u003E. But the Orcs also had the additional disadvantage of being a primitive tribal people that relied on instinct and emotion rather than drill and discipline, not even knowing what a formation is, let alone having any kind of standardized organization. \u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Eh, more or less. Except that they\u0026apos;ll be most likely half-naked and howling like monkeys. Easy pickings for archers.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E Stephanus replied. He didn\u0026apos;t bother to dissect Héloïse\u0026apos;s other sentence, but the grandmaster had an answer to that as well. \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Unfortunately, the matter of wealth and titles is beyond my authority, Lieutenant. The best I can do is to include thy questions and requests in my written report, and send word as soon as the royal court answers. In any case, I recommend that you set point tomorrow. Until then, my recommendation would be to visit Grandfolk. Stephanus will accompany you.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E finished off the grandmaster. \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Go now. I am going to give your guide his and your written instructions tomorrow morning. Take your time to get ready.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EStephanus just shrugged in response to the grandmaster\u0026apos;s long speech, looking over at Héloïse and smiling. \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;I suppose it means I\u0026apos;m stuck with thee, and we won\u0026apos;t be parting ways for a while.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T23:22:07.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637360527,                "user": "Stephanus Tavilrond"            },            {                "content": "Héloïse Masson  bowed, once more, to the grandmaster. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EOui, Monsieur. I appreciate your taking us in.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She flashed as winsome a smile as she could manage. A little charm with the leader of the local government couldn\u0026apos;t hurt, right? She then, of course, turned that same smile on Stephanus. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EAh, oui.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; She chuckled quietly, a small note of sarcasm entering her voice. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003ESuch a terrible fate, oui?\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot; The smile widened, once more showing off the tips of those inward-curved fangs. She held a hand out, though, intending on a simple, professional handshake. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EI imagine it will be a pleasure to work wiz you and your men, Monsieur.\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot;\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T23:43:35.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637361815,                "user": "Héloïse Masson"            },            {                "content": "Stephanus Tavilrond  responded to Héloïse\u0026apos;s statements with an awkward smile, offering his hand for a handshake - or rather, accepting her handshake, even though his hands were cladded in metal gauntlets. He was still wearing his armour, his uniform after all, as he was on duty! And after all this time, he still didn\u0026apos;t notice her fangs at all. He paid no attention to them. \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;I imagine the same, milady.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E he replied, as he escorted Héloïse out of the office, downstairs, and eventually out of the building. \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;So, we have the whole day ahead of us. My master recommended a visit to Grandfolk, most likely to take a bath and drink wine after that landing. Do you have a counter offer?\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E he asked her while escorting her out, back to the outside, where her men must have been waiting for her. This meeting between Héloïse and the order\u0026apos;s grandmaster, the whole exchange, the dialogue must have taken less than ten minutes, but to Stephanus, it felt almost like hours - and probably to Héloïse\u0026apos;s underlings as well.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Oh right, I neglected to mention... we can travel from Grandfolk to Talon by ship. But it\u0026apos;ll cost us.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E he said. Is money really an issue though? Everything costs gold, yes, but surely, they can exchange some things for gold.... right?\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T23:49:52.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637362192,                "user": "Stephanus Tavilrond"            },            {                "content": "Héloïse Masson  followed along, humming happily. Once they returned, they\u0026apos;d see her men, still happily smoking and waiting around, sitting upon their packs, long lasrifles across their lap or leaned against them. Just... Relaxing, in the sun. When she arrived, of course, this stopped, and to a man, they jumped back up to attention, awaiting her instructions. She hummed, them, rubbing her cheek once more, rather thoughtfully. Now that introductions had been made, and impressions taken, her control over the damaged sound of her voice fell, as though she no longer cared. The damaged, gravelly tone returned, though it was still soft, and feminine. \u0026quot;\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003EI zink it would be most advisable to find a plot of land for us to camp at, and return to for ze night, before you turn us loose upon your city, Monsieur~\u003C/span\u003E\u0026quot;\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T00:08:24.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637276904,                "user": "Héloïse Masson"            },            {                "content": "Stephanus Tavilrond  nodded, and simply opted to follow Héloïse. \u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Didn\u0026apos;t you say your ship was immobile? I thought it contained all the.... Nevermind.\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E he said, simply following Héloïse, only to remind himself to fetch his horse, and thus hurry to the stables to get his white horse back, and come riding next to Héloïse, giving out his hand as an offer to get her seated either in front of him, or behind him, on the very same horse. But even if the offer is rejected and she insists on walking, he directs the whole crew the leave the fortress.\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan style=\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003E\u0026quot;Very well then.... I think the outside of the fortress is perfect. It is close to the city, and if there is trouble, the castle is right at our doorstep. Hell, why not just pitch the tent within this fortress? There\u0026apos;s plenty of unused empty space...\u0026quot;\u003C/span\u003E he said. Yes, there is. Enough for maybe hundred tents, if that is what he meant by a camp.\n",               "date": "2021-11-19T00:12:25.000+01:00",                "hun": false,                "streamlinedDate": true,                "unixTimestamp": 1637277145,                "user": "Stephanus Tavilrond"            }        ],        "sectionName": "Near Grandfolk / Fort Redlight"    } ]