Welcome to Gaia! ::

Janus sat beside the crate with a quiet intensity, hurredly working at the nails that held the wood in place. He would have to work quickly to avoid detection, but it seemed as if the others on the boat were occupied with other matters, whatever they were. Fingers deftly working, he managed to unhinge the last of the screws, pulling the plank away from its place as quietly as he could. The boat rocked to one side, and he had to leap to stop one of the tiny screws making an unwelcome exit. However, he soon regained his balance and took the tightly-wrapped package in his hands from where it lay at his side. It wasn't heavy, but it was stiff like gunmetal. Apt, really, as his rifle and armour lay within. All he now wore was the shirt he had brought from home, the one he wore on off-hours, and uniform trousers and boots. Everything else would strike up too many unanswerable questions.

Sliding the plank back into place, he lurched his way across the deck, from the aft towards the others. The men seemed friendly enough, so much that they hadn't killed him at least. They'd even supplied him with a thick, burlap blanket which he had wrapped around himself to keep out the biting winds. Now seven of them gathered around something that they seemed to have taken on from the sea. As he approached, the thing stood up, and Janus started, suddenly moving forwards through the men and to the feet of his captain, at which he knelt.

"Captain Whitfield, sir!" he gasped, "Th-Thank God you're alright! I had almost given up on you!"

“Janus please, less with the titles until we know what’s going on we must abide by the regulations set down for unexpected and possibly hostile situations.” She was about the say more when one of the crew said that the other one was awake, she watched as they hauled Dawn to her feet and gave here something to drink. She sighed, -This doesn’t look good. It also doesn’t look like our time frame either, it might be more effective if Janus was to question the captain and crew, it seems unlikely their answer such strange questions from a woman. Now all I have to do is find someway to get him to understand my intentions, if I’m right, they won’t let us alone without a chaperone.-

She knew she could trust Janus to hide his more suspicious items or even destroy them if necessary, Dawn, a scientist for the company was unlikely to understand the nature of the situation. On the flip side, she shouldn’t have any dubious equipment, guns, poison et cetera on her person and Incendiax has a reputation for hiring only the very best in all fields so Dawn should be useful for the problem solving elements of the situation; how to get back to the right time frame being the most important one swiftly followed by the puzzle of how they all ended up there in the first place.

June approached Dawn with a friendly smile, she couldn’t ever remember talking to her before but she saw no reason not to be friendly, “Are you alright?”

A lone figure stood in the rain, staring up at the skies as if challenging the clouds themselves. One hand sat lightly on the hilt of his sword, sheathed harmlessly at his side. Had the authorities been around, they may well have ordered him along, but it looked like even the would be voice of the law felt the need to shelter from the rain. It was an unnaturally strong storm. He flicked his head, pushing some of the water from his jet-black hair, and pulled his cape closer around his tall form.

Another figure moved from the shadows of a wooden construct behind him, saying nothing. It didn't need to.
"Very well," he first figure said, his voice deep and powerful, "Let us begin."

"Roger." Janus replied, equally serious, though it was naught but a facade. Talking to complete strangers was not something he did all that well. He was trained to shoot, to move silently, and to NOT ask questions. However, Captain's orders and all, and he knew himself that it was the right thing to do. He nodded to the Captain, taking a brief look at Dawn, who seemed to be recovering, and looked about at the various ship-hands who had by now returned to manning their vessel. Janus picked out the one who wasn't actually working, the biggest of the men (who were all quite large, he found), and strode over, clearing his throat as he came near. The man turned his broad neck to face him.

"Sorry." Janus started, keeping his vocabulary simple, "We thank you for the rescue. We are on an errand." His mind worked fast, piecing together a scenario in his mind that made sense, "We have very little time. What day is it today?"

"Seventeenth." came the reply, the voice fitting it's user very well, "Of December. Storm season, so 'tis."

Janus was heartened to find that the man spoke English, though it was an odd accent he used, and he felt there would be strange turns of phrase to come that would match it. Nevertheless, he continued. "My thanks. Also, my companion and I have been having a dispute." Janus braced himself, "What year is it?"

At this the man looked a little puzzled, but scratched his head and answered "1593."

Janus feigned enthusiasm. "Ah, I was right!" He chuckled, and the captain chuckled with him, though probably for a different reason. He sighed.

"Not from around here, are ye?" the captain asked goodnaturedly, "Your speech is a bit queer, if you don't mind my saying so."

"No, not from here." Janus replied, unable to hide the sadness in his voice. He was already homesick. Suddenly, a thought struck him. "So this is the first time we have visited the port. What can you tell me of it?"

The captain laughed. "You must be from lands afar indeed to not have heard of London! The Thames Port isn't somewhere you'd want to be at this time of night, so you'd best make your... errand fast and leave. There's an inn called 'the George' that I would suggest you visit."

"My thanks. I shall bear that in mind." Janus replied, smiling, before starting to make his way back to Captain Whitfield.

"Hey." came the call from the captain, and Janus stiffened. The man was staring at the stars above, just visible through the clouds. "It's about half-past two in the morning, if you were wondering." he said with a grin.

Janus nodded, smiling as well and flushing a little, before continuing on his way. In a low voice, he reported his findings to June.

“Fantastic, we’re in the right time, almost the right place too, excellent. And it looks like our final companion is awake; Dawn, good.” she nodded to her resident scientist. “I don’t think this little incident of ours could have presented us with a better opportunity, I don’t think we’re too far from our proposed destination; the Tower of London.” She paused, deciding that it wasn’t safe to discuss any details before continuing, “I suggest we offer our services on this vessel if they’ll allow it and take a nap if they don’t.”

“Is there anything we could help with?” She asked the captain.
“I could think of something,” came a call from one of the crew which was met by a roar of laughter.
“I don’t think so,” the captain replied loudly, over the laughter, “Woman on good repute have no business working among men and she, at least,” he glanced over at Dawn, “Appears to have a good reputation.” it was then that June realised she was wearing trousers.

“Oh, o-of course.” she looked down.