Welcome to Gaia! ::

From outside of the door voices could be heard, talking and laughing as people went about their daily lives unaware of the occupants of the room and indeed the room itself. Voices could be heard approaching the room as if to enter it and passing through the room unaware of its existence. The room in which the adventurers resided had begun to reflect the passage of time as if its supernatural nature was linked to the presence of Lady Amelia and the longer she was absent the less substantial it became. Day was becoming night and a coldness was creeping across the white room which had not been present before.

Aster had, in truth, recovered quickly. Seeing someone else working on his heart was a trifle disturbing. He made a mental note to go over the mechanism himself later. It wasn't that he didn't trust Erimentha, but rather that with all the modifications he'd made he needed to be sure that the device still matched his specifications. The original design the doctors had produced had been faulty and it had taken countless adjustments until it performed properly. In fact...it was precisely because of that time that he no longer feared having his heart stopped. Considering all the troubles he'd been having lately, he mused that it might be time to finalize his designs for the Mark Two heart...and quickly.

Tinker took the coins and with a tip of his hat he introduced himself.

"The name is Jeremiah Tinker, inventor and.... I'm an inventor...."

He gave a wide smile before bowing gently and turning towards the bar. Tinker figured that he should keep some information to himself for the time being.
Upon approaching the bar he overheard some gossip of a late business man and his missing art, he thought it rather inconsequential and went about his business purchasing 3 rooms. As requested the rooms for Lady Erimentha and Lord Aster connected to each other, Tinker's on the other hand did not as he had no intention of forming a lasting connection with these people.

The two men who had been discussing the death of the businessman watched the adventurers with interest, as they approached the bar for a couple of minutes before returning to their conversation. Laughing one of them got up and began to leave but as he walked past the bar he bumped into Mr Tinkers harness, apologizing he left. His friend came over and apologized “Sorry about that he has had rather to much to drink, he was telling me earlier he thought he saw you and your friends just materialize over their by the wall. As I said he has drank rather to much. You are not from around here are you, im sure I have never seen you in here before. If you don't mind me asking where did you come from....” and so he continued, like his friend he too had had to much to drink and had evidently become talkative. For almost an hour he talked and talked as people came and left following what seemed a well rehearsed dance in which the bartender without fail seemed prepared for almost everyone who came in. Mr Tinkers new friend commented on this “Isnt this place brilliant, no waiting no arguing everything runs like clockwork. you can talk about whatever you want and no one cares. No one even listens, soon everywhere will be like this if they have there way. This whole city will open up world after world for them to go to and make them all run nice and smoothly.”

Another man walked in and came over to the bar he ordered a drink and the bartender hesitated before making it. The man got up and walked over to where Aster and Erimentha were. He opened his paper and began to read. It wasn't long before the mans friend returned and patted Mr Tinker on the shoulder “Hello” he said amicably “Now what sort of nonsense has he been telling you, that im drunk probably.” he laughed as he placed a disk like object on the table and pressed the central button. Everyone in the room except for the man reading the paper the two drunks and the adventurers fell down instantly. “Brilliant isn't it like clockwork dolls” Mr Tinkers friend said as they produced highly carved pistols. Several more people ran in, these were wearing outlandish outfits with brightly colored hair and equally ornate weapons. Unlike everyone the adventurers had encountered so far they looked a mess. “Come on follow us.” Tinkers friend said without the slightest bit of threat “We need to get out of here it isn't safe anymore, not for us and not for you.” he stopped as if realizing he should give a bit more of an explanation “You are not one of her clockwork toys and she will kill you when she has what she needs from you. Don't think that she wont. We can get you away from here.” he turned to one of the new arrivals “Did you get it?” he asked the arrival nodded and patted a case.

They left the tavern with only three of them keeping pistols aimed at the adventurers however every time anyone moved unexpected the pistols would be readied. They hurried along back streets trying to avoid anyone who was not part of the twelve strong group. “How long do we have to get to the safe house?” One of them asked in a hushed voice. “Not long enough, if we had not detoured to avoid the patrol we could have made it. it seems she has changed her toys patterns with having deposited them here.” the man with the watch replied. “We had studied them for so long too.” he sighed. They continued in silence again weapons ready at all times.

In the distance a whirring began which grew louder and louder. “She knows the dolls must have woke up.” One of the party said as they all circled around the man with the case. From every house people began to walk out and look around, they were spotted in seconds. The man with the case pointed to a weapons shop “We can not let them get to it, quick we have to get their first.” So the group ran over forcing the adventurers to join them as the cities residents began to walk in unison towards them. “Grab whatever you can, we need to hold them off.” he said to everyone in general “I don't know if you know whats going on but they are building a weapon, infact this city is the weapon to destroy all life everywhere. She is crazy and she needs these to do it” he said to the adventurers patting the case “Fragments from the ship which crashed in the far north of this island. We can not let her get them or we are all dead.”

“Where do you think you will go.” a small metallic voice said as the bird landed at the doorway, it inclined its head and added “Did you really think you could hide from me I just let you collect what I needed for me.” the bird hopped forward and said “Place the case on the floor and you will not be killed. You have my word.” The clockwork people walked forward all of them following her will, as they fell to the groups weapons fire they stepped over the fallen bodies and continued to press forward. “Your words seem rather hollow to me sister” a voice said from behind the group and as the adventurers turned a young man sharing the same otherworldly beauty of Lady Amelia stepped through a door which had not been there before. The doorway opened out onto an airships platform in a place where the sky was red. “You are not welcome here.” Lady Amelia said sternly but the man was dismissive of her “Oh but I am sister, unlike you I don't care if you have forbidden me to go somewhere, you know I don't care for rules.” The group which had led the adventurers away from the bar began to fall back towards the doorway away from the clockwork people they indicated for the adventurers to join them. Seeing this the bird spoke to the adventurers “Stay, I have no ill will towards you. You were forced to follow them. If you stay you can help me erase creatures like them from all worlds. Surely you must see the damage that they cause. Join me and help me bring order to all of life” but Lady Amelia's brother spoke to them “My sister is quite mad, I assure you, just look at how she has made this world. She will kill you when she has had her fun. A brilliant mind but as you can see, really quite mad. She loves rules and order and will given the chance impose them on every living creature” the man said. “Come with me instead” he said smiling and for the first time they noticed despite his seemingly perfect beauty he exuded a feeling of constant change and disorder.

Which way do you choose to go. Back to Lady Amelia and her clockwork world where everything runs according to her will. Where she is building a machine to impose her will on all life. Or will you go to the world of her brother. A man you know nothing about, the only clues you have are the pirates who he claims are his. Do these pirates have the artifacts you are looking for, in which case you have them within your grasp if you follow them or do they have some other important component to Lady Amelia’s machine. Either way you are standing in the weapon shop because either choice you make you are going to need plenty of weapons (consider it leveling up, you only have time to take one thing, just let me know what you take) and perhaps most importantly how did the diametrically opposed brother and sister get so much power anyway?????

The small bird moved its head enquiringly and then having reached a decision it relinquished its control of the populous who returned to their everyday work. "Very well" it said hopping back towards the door but as it reached the doorway it turned its head again "You have achieved nothing but a respite, I am nothing if not patient and look forward to our inevitable conversation." it said in closing and departed.

The brother laughed and as the pirates past through the doorway he held out an arm and blocked the pirate with the case "While I do not share my sisters beliefs I agree that we will meet again." he took the case and opened it, within it was two mangled bits of machinery, one of which he took out and placed it on the table infront of him "Anyway I now have what I wanted and my sisters toy is useless, she will overcome the loss of these but it will take her time. Take this as a reward for making it easy for me to leave so peacefully, I am sure she would not have relented so easily if you had not been here." He closed the case and gave it back to the pirates. "Until we meet again, good luck. Oh and I almost forgot as you are staying here I would advise you to seek out the fire circus. It should be passing through the area just south of this city over the next couple of days, they are definitely not under my sisters control and I believe you will find something interesting if you do go there." He smiled and passed through the doorway which vanished.

Lord Ashen sat inside of the featureless room he had been locked in and smiled. He could not help it despite his current situation he had successfully proven his theories of inter-dimensional travel. He had been trying to work out where he had been taken when the door to the cell was opened and a woman entered. She moved to one side and the guards brought to chairs into the room and she indicated for him to sit on one of them while the guards left the room. "Lord Ashen it is a pleasure to meet with you at long last. My name is Lady Amelia and you have come to my world. While you were brought here by one of my servants who took it upon himself to act in my interest it was never my intention to bring you to this place. I can assure you that my servant has been punished accordingly. Now that you are here though I have a proposition for you. Help me to perfect your gateway. With the unlimited resources of my world imagine what you can achieve. You will be given whatever you need, whatever you want to help you to succeed."

Lord Ashen smiled he could get used to this world. He had heard tales about this Lady Amelia a goddess to the people of this place. With unlimited resources what could he build. Certainly not another gateway he had done one of them already, perhaps something to take her power.

At Asters touch the artefact seemed to hum as if responding to Asters hand. It felt fluid as if not entirely of this world and a feeling of energy ran through Aster as if an alien force reached out to him and suddenly withdrew as Aster placed the artefact away. The world outside had returned to normal and again the people of London had returned to their daily routine, completely oblivious to the dead bodies around the shop.