Friedrich's Time

<Rosenkrantz_GM> IT IS THE 41ST MILLENNIUM...
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The Consequence makes its way through the warp. Triumphant in its expedition. Surely, this will bring the ancient Dynasty's name back on the lips of voidfarers throughout the Expanse. What this investment in time and resources doesn't return in profit, it will certainly do in fame and renown.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Now a week into the voyage, in relative time, the Friedrich's dreams begin to form a theme.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The Raven.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> And tonight's rest is no different.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Friedrich finds himself in a beautiful open field with rolling hills, the warm light of a setting sun covering all he sees.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Far away, past an estuary visible from his vantage point, a lone but grand Estate.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Sophen. The Dynastic homeworld.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> You haven't been back on Sophen since you were quite young. Before you were sent off to become a flyboy, eyes set on the stars.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> But now, you sit, and you watch.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The call of a raven catches your attention, and you see it slowly glide towards the woods to your left, opposite the direction of the setting sun.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> There is something alluring, and yet there is dread, about the Raven's gaze as it lands on a branch and looks back at you.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> It calls, as though with intent. Calls for you.
* @Friedrich_Rosenkrantz Cautiously makes his way forward to the Raven, glancing around for threats
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The closer you get to the woods, the colder it gets. The sun setting behind you.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The Raven flaps its wings and moves closer into the woods ahead.
* @Friedrich_Rosenkrantz Checks his person, assessing the items he has
<Rosenkrantz_GM> You stand on thick rider's boots, with loose fitting trousers; a belt holds a bladed weapon - a saber - to your side. A horn-canteen strapped from your shoulder is covered by the long coat that keeps the cold at bay.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The foilage is sparse, at first. But the further you go, the harder to navigate it becomes. Thicker and more closely packed together by the meter.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> And yet, it is the attire you /don't/ have which matters to you. Something you are missing. Something you seek, in this place.
* @Friedrich_Rosenkrantz Strides deeper into the woods, using the saber to cut his way through
<Rosenkrantz_GM> You lose sight of the Raven, but along the way, its black feathers leave a trail. And in the distance you hear its occasional call.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Soon you realize you haven't been in this part of the woods before, and yet you follow.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The pale cold surrounding you is then met with a faint but obvious glow.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The Raven stops calling.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Its feathers, on the ground, and in the air, fade away.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> They fade into thick, black smoke.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The smell fills your nostrils, and you find yourself surrounded by a forest feeding an eager and growing inferno.
* @Friedrich_Rosenkrantz Searches for the quickest escape route
<Rosenkrantz_GM> You hear screams at some distance. The roar and crackle of the fire and trees drowning them out.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Your heart drops at the realization. The village is on fire.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> But... what village?
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The memory is faint.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> You rush towards the sounds, narrowly avoding getting encircled by the fire.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> And finally you think you find a clearance.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Cattle and other creatures stampede in a panic, you heard their calls and see their fleeting figures.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> A call for help pierces through it all.
* @Friedrich_Rosenkrantz searches for the source of the sound
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The village is almost entirely destroyed.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Flames consume buildings, pottery shattered.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> You make your way past it all, and find a woman on her knees, holding someone on the ground.
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "What happened here?"
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Bandits! Vile barbarians!" she says, pulling at your overcoat.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The man on the floor is in holy orders. A priest of some kind.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> If he isn't dead, he soon will be, without any hope at avoiding his fate. Burns, and scars deform his body.
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "And him?" he asks, gesturing with his sabre
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The woman rises to her feet, grabbing at you for leverage, as if climbing.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> She looks at you, at every inch of you, eyes filled with despair.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Finally, she looks you dead in the eyes.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "But your Aquila, Friedrich... where is your Aquila?"
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Her eyes are filled with tears, her face disorted into an expression of devastation.
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "What...are you talking about?"
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The sound of hooves in full gallop approach the village.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Friedrich! Get on, we won't let them get away!"
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Your father?
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Your father, in his hunting attire, sits atop a horse. With a length of rope, he leads another beast for you to ride.
* @Friedrich_Rosenkrantz takes the reigns as he eyes the situation with confusion, but mounts the beast anyway
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "Who are they?"
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Marauders, beasts!" he clicks his heels and gets to full gallop in seconds.
* @Friedrich_Rosenkrantz is taken by surprise, but quickly follows
<Rosenkrantz_GM> You ride through more woodland, and over a long bridge where you see the vicious attack happening. Another village. Its people nearly all butchered. A few of their sworn protectors valiantly holding their ground. It is a violent melee... a brawl.
* @Friedrich_Rosenkrantz looks to his father, waiting for a reaction
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Your father wields a hammer, letting it rest on the side of his saddle as he takes it in the scene.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "It is lost. A lost cause."
<Rosenkrantz_GM> You aren't sure if the words come from your father's lips, or your own.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> He yanks at the reigns to one side, closing the distance between your beast and his.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> He leans towards you, and grabs you by the forearm.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "You must fight, Friedrich. You must fight on, and take what is ours."
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "Didn't you just say this was a lost cause?"
<Rosenkrantz_GM> He lets you go, shaking his head, and guiding his horse to clear some distance between you.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "It is ours." he finally says.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> He charges forward, with his hammer ready to strike.
* @Friedrich_Rosenkrantz follows behind, gripping his sabre tightly
<Rosenkrantz_GM> You close in, and not a second after your father gores the first marauder, you savagely cut through another, while trampling a third.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Your beast spooks, however, and you are thrown clean off.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> One of the savage marauders sees an opportunity, and swings at you with his fierce blunt weapon.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Your instincts serve you well. You roll to one side, and the crude weapon slams next to you.
* @Friedrich_Rosenkrantz jumps to his feet, bringing the sabre around for a horizontal slash
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The swing falls short of its target. When you look at his face you realize that in your opponent's ferocity, he has lost all humanity in him. He is like a mindless beast. And yet as you recover, in an instance as though time itself slows down, you look over his shoulder. Away from the melee, from the violence... a man robed in black looks on. He smiles, looking right at you. His face shines, as though made of metal - reflecting the glow of the flames.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> In his hand, he holds a bundle of black feathers.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> A dead raven.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> A voice, as if in your own head calls as your eyes meet; /CAPTAIN/
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Again. As though a whisper, and yet with such volume as to pierce your ears: /CAPTAIN/
<Rosenkrantz_GM> In a split second, your assailant strikes at you once more, with deadly force...
<Rosenkrantz_GM> You wake up, in your chambers. Knocking at your door.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Captain, are you alright?"
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "Who is it?" he barks angrily
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Captain, the Navigators must speak with you."
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "Very well." he says, sitting up and shaking the dream from his thoughts
* @Friedrich_Rosenkrantz begins to stand and find his clothes
<Rosenkrantz_GM> The bed is damp. No doubt, the medicae staff will be making a note of this. Another night-terror. A matter for another time, perhaps.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> You get ready, and make your way out.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> Something is odd, however. Normally, you are waited upon at the base of the navigator's tower.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> This time, you don't walk but ten meters away from your chambers, and one of the Grandier servants finds you, escorted by House Guard.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Lord-Captain," the bald and pale servant bows.
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "Yes?" he answers, slightly off put
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Lord-Captain, as you know, our understanding of time is imperfect," the awkward serf looks for the right words.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "...the ebs and flows of the immaterium make these calculations all the more difficult."
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "get to the point navigator."
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Yes, of course," he bows again...
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "One such series of irregularities has had a most intriguing effect, my Lord."
<Rosenkrantz_GM> He reaches for a dataslate.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "We appear to have hit an unstable warp rift. But not to worry, the Navigator-Prime has found a solution to clear our way past this."
<Rosenkrantz_GM> He swipes twice at the slate.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Reports from the Astropathic choir, however, seem to suggest that, based on the fragmentary communications we have received from... the future," he tries to skim past those two words as quickly as he can, "it is possible that time-altering effects have and will continue to affect our journey."
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "How severe are they?"
<Rosenkrantz_GM> He looks up, making awkward eye contact for a few seconds.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Months."
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Possibly years."
<Rosenkrantz_GM> One of the House Guard that had escorted him to you, clears his throat.
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Likely months," he says, turning as if to reassure the trooper.
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "I don't think we have years to sit in the warp, Navigator."
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Ah, and that..." he wags his finger in the air, as if trying to point to an idea floating in the air, "that is where our inadequate understanding will matter."
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "For those of us aboard this mighty war vessel, a delay of perhaps a week is all we will notice."
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Upon reaching our destination, however, we will likely find that a significantly greater amount of time has indeed passed. Months... maybe years."
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "Are you sure of this?"
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "No."
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Yes."
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "The uncertainty in time differential will remain... uncertain, until we exit the warp. But the time dilation effects are almost certainly already in effect."
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "So what actions can we take?"
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Exit the warp as soon as possible. Complete our journey."
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "Can we make any communication prior to our arrival?"
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "We may. Though it is uncertain when these messages will arrive."
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "I want a general message sent to both Wilhelm and the Dynasty Reps explaining the situation."
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "Hopefully it'll arrive sometime before we do."
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "If it is any consolation, Lord-Captain, it may well arrive months before we departed, such is the instability in time at the moment!" he says with an undue excitement, considering the situation.
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "Alert the crew, prepare to arrive in unknown circumstances."
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "My Lord, if... I may. Your kind... the untrained on these matters, I mean, tend to be a nervous lot."
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "Perhaps this information need only be given as the need arises, closer to our point of arrival."
<@Friedrich_Rosenkrantz> "Are you suggesting we don't tell any of the ranking officers as well?"
<Rosenkrantz_GM> "This is a matter for your wisdom to determine, of course, Captain."