Multiversal Mishaps (For Crooked)

[Tsona]

[All characters are 18+ and are being played as such.


A rainy and rather gloomy night cast the setting of a modest sized dorm, lightning briefly illuminating the brick surface. Inside, the building was quiet as a late night on a weekday often wasn't the time for staying up long hours (atleast not by choice anyway).However not all were sleeping, as strange flashes and what sounded like construction work could be dimly heard down in the basement level of the dormitory.


"ACK! Blasted wires, trying to shorten my lifespan before I even get to my next step..."

Fixing her glasses, a young woman by the name of Stacy was currently at work putting the latest touches on her new invention, and as she held it up by the lamp at her desk it seemed rather unordinary. A watch perhaps? It had the same shape of one and even had the little clock face on the front, but where the numbers would be signaling the hours were a whole host of little symbols and various buttons on the side of the device. She seemed quite pleased though, practically bursting with giddiness as she turned stood up from her chair, clad in only dark pajama bottoms, a matching tank top, and her long labcoat, giving her the look of some crazed scientist. Lifting up a small earpiece, she hooked it on and after some adjustments to the microphone, began to speak.


"Entry log 1. Omiversal device completed at..." Pausing to check the time, she nodded before continuing. "-3:24 AM. Date July 2nd, 2018. While I'm quite sure that this device shall actually project me forward and break the dimensional wall between, I am still hesitant on the control readings. Perhaps I shall build another device to help me record this data and not end up anywhere uninhabitle for human life or dangerous. However...the thought of waiting a second longer to test this device is simply too much to resist, and I'm sure whatever trouble that occurs can be solved with brain power! Preparing for launch in 5...4...3..." Her finger reached up, hovering over the button. "...2..." As her finger pressed down her last words were cut off as a large boom filled the room, papers whirling about as a flash illuminated the room even more brightly than the lamp did before fading away, leaving the room silent once more, no person in sight. One notable difference besides the things strewn across the floor however and the missing student, was the door leading up to the stairs to the rest of the building was open.

“are you up??”

“I am now. Thanks!”

“wiseass. can you do me a favor?”

“At 3 in the morning??? If it can be done from bed, deal.”

“it can’t.”

“No deal.”

“elly!!!”

“Fineee. What do you need?”

“i left my big chem final in my locker and i have to turn it in tomorrow or else i basically fail the class. can you pretty pretty pretty please go get it? i’m stuck w taylor tonight and she really needs me.”

“...”

“...elly?”

“Sorry, I was looking for an appropriate word but there’s not one in the English dictionary that properly conveys how not-interested I am in doing that.”

If only she could’ve found that word, maybe, Elly wouldn’t be stuck dragging her feet behind her at the ungodly hour of the night when not even the moon seemed to be awake. The bleak, post-modern design of the dorms was a perfect setting to visualize how much she just did not want to be there, right then. But, her clumsy roommate had a way with words, and if it meant free laundry for a month, she’d lose a night of sleep and retrieve that pesky paper they needed so much. Thank God no one else was awake at this hour either, because the ordinarily trendy Elly might be apprehended by the fashion police if they were around to see her; casually dressed in light-gray pajama shorts, a pair of black slippers, and an old, tarnished, red hoodie sporting the school sports-team on the front was her outfit of the night. The colors clashed horribly, too; if only because her jacket was a lazy cover-up for the mere sports-bra she wore underneath.

Like mentioned, though, at least no one was awake while she slugged through the halls of her dorm, backpack slung over her shoulder keeping the treasured papers inside. Or so she thought - heaven forbid, so would make sense. But then… the very walls around her began to rumble. “Uh?” She muttered. It started off small, quiet enough that Elly dismissed it as a product of her own exhaustion… but then, it grew, whiteboards and bulletins starting to tilt while the ground beneath shook. “Uh-oh.” Beginning to suspect worse, Elly grumbled to herself as she tucked down against the nearest wall and shut her eyes. When she re-opened them and found the world still shaking, clearly not the result of her own tiredness - then, it was time to panic. “What the hell?!”

Accompanying all this chaos that no one except her seemed to experience came a low, subtle droning noise… one that grew louder, and louder, until it overpowered even the sound of the shaking earth itself. “Aaaaghh!” Elly covered her ears and sunk to her knees, shaking her head to fight the fierce headache that was growing.

Then, just as suddenly as it came, it was gone.

The droning took a while to stop - but the earth was certainly stilled again. That didn’t mean Elly was any quicker to taking to her feet, no, she stayed put, not daring to move again until she was certain the ground wasn’t about to split open and swallow her whole. When no such thing happened, she sighed with relief. “What…” She muttered, “What the heck? Am I that tired?” Though she’d like just as much to dismiss her spell as fatigue, the fading drone led back to one particular - usually locked, but now open - door at the end of the hallway. The squeak of it’s hinges invited her to investigate, and Elly couldn’t help but be curious. But also…

“Nope.” Sitting right up, Elly moved hastily to her dorm room door and gripped the handle. Not today, said the universe; the door stayed fastly shut. With a blink, too tired to fully process what was happening, Elly tried again. Locked. Go figure. A quick pat-down confirmed her suspicions; her key was on the other side of that door, and the only copy was with her roommate… halfway across town, with another friend.

She turned back to the door. Life had a different plan for her today, it looked like.

“Hello?” Elly would cringe as she heard her own voice echo deep into the depths of the basement. She’d never been down there before, as it was usually restricted from students. The plumes of steam and humidity told her there was definitely at least a heater or a cooling agent somewhere within the walls, but it was too darn dark to see anything. That is, aside from the shining bulb of a lamp from the next room over.

“Heyyy, I don't want to start any fights, but people are trying to sleep,” Elly walked on down without a care in the world, ready to give what’s what to the noisy troublemakers. “I don’t know if this is maintenanceee, or just a prank or something, but could you please keep it down…” Her complaint trailed off, because no one was listening. The basement greeted her with a whopping no one there to hear her request. Typical. Maybe whoever was here hid when they heard her coming down? Instinct told Elly this wasn’t worth it, and that she should turn tail and find a couch to crash on for the rest of the night. But curiosity spotted the glint of silver laying on the table, scattered with notes underneath.

“EARLY BUILD,” the chicken-scratch writing read. By now, Elly was certain she was seeing something she wasn’t supposed to see. But the curiosity drove her on. “Insufficient power: greater fuel source needed?” For this wrist-watch-looking doo-dad? Elly pursed her lips as she picked the thing up, fiddling with it like a toy. Well, it was a watch, and watches are meant to be worn… interested, Elly slapped it on her wrist, and the sound of a lock clicking in place clued her in fast: this wasn’t a watch. The first red flag probably should have been the lack of numbers… fight or flight instinct kicked up and Elly knew it was time to call it a night. So she pulled against the watch. And it didn’t budge. “Huh.” Elly perked up an eyebrow, trying again. “What the…?” She muttered.

“Come off, darn it!” Elly hissed at the wrist watch, slamming her hand down on the dial and twisting it with her palm. Unwittingly, the gadget spun to a random icon and lit ablaze, and Elly vanished in a flash of light.

[Tsona]

But out of limitations comes creativity.


The first thing that came to Stacy was the noise. It wasn't deafening exactly but when you've been working in a room with only your own movements as a source of sound, you tended to be a little sensitive to everything else. A breeze blowing gently through the air. Leaves rustling as the chatter of birds called out to one an-

Birds?

The young scientist's eyes opened and she sat up, taking in everything as she looked in wonder. The tall trees surrounding her, thick vines hanging like tendrils from the branches. Large bushes that lightly rustled from either the breeze, or some hidden creature. The tall grass that tickled her back and legs. It had worked. Feeling a rather dopish grin spread across her face, Stacy quickly got to her feet, letting out a small cheer as she did a 360, taking in everything to confirm that 'Yes, this was not some fever dream, it was very very real'. "Hah! After months of work and nearly all of my savings at that shoddy cashier job, I did it. Take that Harvard!" Oh how sweet it was to see the fruits of her labor, still grinning as she bent down to retrieve her headset before pausing. "...well hello there..."

Glancing down, she finally began to notice the difference in her clothing, gone were comfortable pajamas and replaced with hiking boots, rather short cargo shorts that seemed to be constantly riding up, and an alarmingly too small tank top. Even her glasses seemed a bit different, the thick rectangular frame now replaced with a thinner circular one. Still, it only meant there were some bugs to work out and she could do that after a little exploring.

"Entry log 2. The experiment was a success and I seem to be in some sort of tropical area. So far I'm able to breath fine and my movements seem at norm though strangely where it was once night on my world, it seems to be daytime here. Continuing on for more data to record." She began to trek fodward, her grin returning once again as she walked through the shrubbery.

“...”

“Uggggggggghhhhhhhhh…”

The blinding light had disappeared just as fast as it had spawned, swallowing up Elly and seemingly the entire lab in it’s wake… yet when the freckled girl’s eyes opened, it wasn’t to any beakers or chemistry kits. The songs of distant crickets, chattering birds and the sway of trees in the wind told Elly before she even awoke that she wasn’t even inside, anymore. “Oh… ohhhhhh…” She mumbled, holding her head and sitting up. The hot, tropical sunlight beat down on her, poking through the heavy ceiling of the rainforest, concealed by leaves and home to many hiding animals shying from Elly’s sight.

“Where did I… did I get drunk last night, or…” She muttered, “Dream? Was that a dream?” Elly’s tired eyes scanned the perimeter, but there wasn’t another living thing in sight… save for the softly, swaying trees, and the hint of a nearby bug. “Bzzz…”

That quiet buzz quickly turned into a loud, very nearby “BZZZ” until it was practically in Elly’s ear. “Agh!” She yelped, swatting the air with her hands to bat away any oncoming insect attackers. The mosquito took up residence right on-top of Elly’s pale, bare arm and prepped it’s pointed nose for a refreshment. It didn’t get the chance. “Shoo!” Elly demanded, her hand coming down to smack the pest into oblivion. The mosquito barely dodged before buzzing angrily and flying off.

“Hmph.” Elly sulked, rubbing her uncovered arm… uncovered arm? Where did her hoodie go? Actually… what was she wearing?

Khaki shorts - well, not really shorts, so much as the bottom half of an apron with a backside to it - that connected into a fitting top, tied at the waist with a cloth belt. No sleeves and a very, very generous V-neck, with corset-like cords covering the top that gave anyone in the area far too much of a look at her cupped breasts inside… and her sports-bra was nowhere to be found. Who in their right mind would wear this in the rainforest?! What did she do last night?! Why was she in the rainforest?! At least, when dressing herself in the memory she didn’t have, she was generous enough to include a fitting peach bucket hat to protect against the sun.

[Tsona]

...



It had been only been roughly an hour by Stacy's calculations and already she was a bit unimpressed. Sure it was a lovely surrounding and besides the minor mosquito problem, she actually quite enjoyed the open air. But...that was it. Walking forward she glimpsed various colorful birds and even the rustle of quick moving animals but other than that, their was nothing. Where was the strange and wondrous beasts that prowled the jungle? The large tribes that could teach her their ways? Hell, she had even stopped her recording because she had gotten tried of describing "how the leaves rustled" and "another bird flying by".

With a small huff, it was lucky for her that she soon took in sight of what appeared to be a large stone structure, her eyes lighting up again and earpiece switching on. "Entry log 3! Finally some excitement here as I seem to have discovered some sort of strange monument...no. The entryway in front suggests perhaps a shrine or some sort of burial ground. Proceeding forward." Grabbing her phone (which strangely seemed unchanged), the dark haired woman switched the flashlight setting on before venturing inward.

---

At a crux between Elly’s place in the rainforest and Stacy’s was a third visitor, though one much more prepared and accustomed to the unconventional surroundings of the jungle. The calm atmosphere was interrupted by the the swish of a swinging machete as it cleaved through water-filled plants like butter, the hilt leading back to the firm grasp of a gloved hand. It had been a quiet venture through the woods, the woman had figured, too quiet. Usually, she didn’t make it this far before running into fellow bandits, or evil corporations, wild animals, archaic traps, dinosaurs, et cetera. A ‘peaceful’ trip tomb-raiding meant one where something was waiting to spring on her, should she let her guard down.

Rather than the roar of a famished tiger or the barked commands of a stern enemy leader, though, what alerted the bronze-skinned beauty that she wasn’t alone was the excited mumbling of… what sounded like a kid? The woman’s shoulders relaxed as she looked up and over to the source of the sound, eyes narrowing and blade rising again. She wasn’t about to call out to whoever that voice was, in case it was an enemy. Instead, her machete rose again, a few leaves made short work of later, until the source of the voice was revealed…

The woman ducked down beneath the thickest leaves she could find while listening intently to pick up on whatever keywords she could use to deduce this stranger’s identity. “Suggests”... “Entry-way”... “Burial ground”... was she taking notes? A field scientist? Out here?!

No longer burdened by the worries of a threat, the hunter revealed herself and ran her boots through the terrain ahead, reaching the entrance to the temple in no time flat. She didn’t even have the time to take in the beautiful look of the ancient structure - though she had seen plenty before. Clearing her throat, she called deep down into the shaft of the caves before Stacy could get far.

“Who the bloody hell are you?”

[Tsona]

Who the bloody hell are you?

Stacy nearly tripped as the voice suddenly cut through her speech, causing her to pause and slowly turn to face the direction of the speaker. Holding up her light, she squinted as she took in the new woman, eyes roaming up and down her body in a slow manner before she resumed speaking, mainly to herself. "First sign of intelligent...possibly intelligent life. Strangely enough the figure looks very human and with an accent similar to one from the United Kingdom region."

Walking towards Lara, the dark haired girl walked around her in a slow circle, suddenly flicking her phone screen to take a few pictures, continuing her analysis. "Bipedal and not seeming to contain any out of the ordinary features besides a rather large backside and chest. Toned limbs suggest exercise, perhaps a hunter of some kind? Attempting contact." Walking back in front of her, Stacy cleared her throat before speaking slowly."Hello. I am Sta-" Hesitating, she decided better to not give TOO much information away, instead saying. "I am a scientist that is investigating parallel worlds. While we seem to be similar humans, I assure you that as long as we cooperate, no harm shall come to you."

With her less-than-friendly greeting came a spark of light as the woman lifted an old torch off the dusty walls of the temple entrance and set it a flame with a single match, the dark corridors lighting up to give her a good look at just who she was dealing with. Since she was expecting a tall, well-dressed scientist, properly dressed for the climate, it was a bit of an unpleasant surprise to instead find some dumb kid wearing what was probably their father's work clothes. With a sigh, she loosened her shoulders and glared down at the nerdy girl while waiting for her to finish... whatever report she was making.

'Possibly intelligent'... 'large backside and chest'... 'hunter?' She blinked. Was she describing her? Her head reeled back, looking down at her own buxom bust and bottom. Sure, her features were well defined by her green tank-top and tight, khaki pants but... 'large?' That was a bit on the nose, wasn't it? Her brow furling, she already didn't like this kid. But a kid was a kid, and out here was dangerous, so she listened to her explanation and took it with a grain of salt.

"You've got the dialogue down, I'll give you that much." She muttered. With no regard for Stacy's obvious apprehensive approach, the huntress stomped her boots down further into the cavern to get a better look at her, giving the scientist a better idea of just who she was dealing with. 'Large' was a generous word to describe her breasts, especially now that she was even closer; her fierce eyes and well-toned abs just more details for Stacy to pick up as she approached. The woman had no idea that, in Stacy's world, she could be found on the box cover of video games under the title, "TOMB RAIDER." To her, what she was dealing with was just a runaway teenager.

"Do you greet every stranger you meet by describing their body?" She snidely asked, "If you weren't defenseless and alone out here, I'd have half a mind to smack you." Her eyes narrowed, kneeling down so she was closer in height to Stacy and lining up their eyes. "This is no place for children. Where are your guardians?"

[Tsona]

"-Interestingly enough it seems on this world the differences are minimal at a glance as due to my current location, I have no idea if their technology is as advanced or even moreso than ours. The woman, and I am quite sure it is a female, is now getting closer-"

Oh goodness she's actually getting closer.

From the angry glint in her eyes, Stacy wisely decided to stop her observation for a moment as she tuned into the other woman's words. As she was now about a foot away, the student's eyes began to wander and soon her cheeks were coloring as she looked away. "...very...interesting." However at being called a "child", the young explorer soon was glaring right back at the older one, eyes narrowing as she folded her arms across her chest. "You think a 'child' could build her own dimensional transporter? Or a 'child' could make the calculations necessary to map out worlds that are both similar in space and (roughly) having the basic environment that I can survive on? I am certaintly NOT a child and your hostile tone only proves that the inhabitants so far on this world are far less superior. Hot headed, big breasted, buffons!"

The last little jab was rather petty she could admit, but Stacy was too annoyed to care. After all, this was no new argument for her, many a times in life she had been treated differently due to being so bright and clever and yet talked down to like a small child when trying to explain her theories and inventions to 'professionals'. Perhaps this explained why rather than simply backing down as any rational person might do, she got even closer to Lara, looking up at her challengingly before giving a hard poke to her chest. "Now if you excuse me, I have a world to explore, starting with this temple, and I dont need a bimbo lecturing me!" With that, she turned on her heel and strode off, figuring she was done with the other woman.

Okay, perhaps ‘children’ was a bit of a stretch. This stranger was very clearly at least in high-school. Lara knew, though, that the unforgiving nature of the jungle didn’t care if she was a child, or a teenager, or an adult - without the proper equipment, she was good as dead. And even oddly perverted kids with no social etiquette couldn’t be left to wander the jungle on their lonesome by any self-respecting ‘heroine.’ That still couldn’t prepare Lara quite for the mouthful she was about to get…

“‘Big breasted?’” She repeated, her hand flicking to her chest with offense. What was it with this girl and her bust?! Sure, it was… generous, and could even be an inconvenience at times, but this girl had no right to keep calling her out on it! Oh, also, “...’inferior buffoons?!’” ...that too. “Just who do you think you are-” Lara began to complain, but not before her haughty new companion was already turning heel to her.

If this girl wanted to see ‘hot-headed,’ she had another thing coming, based on the mood Lara was in. Her hands balled into fists, watching Stacy strut off without a hint of having paid attention to what Lara asked. As she watched her leave, though, she did get quite the look at Stacy’s swaying hips, her tight shorts riding up and even showing the imprint of her rear through the fabric… an idea came to Lara, and her eyes narrowed. Longer legs gave her an advantage in catching up to Stacy quick.

“Now, you just wait a moment there, young lady!” Her voice echoed deep into the caverns while her hand shot out and grabbed Stacy’s wrist, quick to pull her out of them. “I think it’s clear you’re quite the imaginative bird, but if you think for a second that I’m about to let a lost kid like you wander this trap-ridden temple alone, you’ve got another thing coming!” Lara lectured her. “If there is a scientist’s brain in that head of your’s, then you’ll know to apologize and maybe, maybe, I’ll escort you back to the company you came with…”

One might expect Lara to leave the sentence there, but the Tomb Raider knew better - she didn’t want Stacy getting any ideas she was going to be left to wander this temple alone. “With or without a sore bum.” She growled the last part.