Rose On The Water

I - The Magician

24 Summersend, 1876, 12:06

About 5 hours after the Luminaire Metropolitan Police Department had first barricaded off the giant gate on Villeneuve Boulevard, the National Guard of Hearthrune arrived in Luminaire. LMPD Officer Camille Bonnay watched as the National Guard continued to surround the gate in scaffolding. Both sides of the street had been sealed off after the initial confusion subsided.

Then there was the problem of the man who came through the gate. The LMPD took him into custody the moment he came out. The officers that had been on scene when Bonnay arrived noted that the man wore strange attire and spoke an odd language.

Some of the other officers or guardsmen had floated around theories about what the gate could be, ranging from a gate to hell to a secret Coalition weapon unleashed on Hearthrune. One of the most common ones was that the gate was a gift from some higher power meant to assist Hearthrune, or the entirety of the Alliance in the ongoing conflict.

Whatever the gate was meant to do or where it led to is something for another time, though, as the current priority was just sealing it up and making sure it doesn't pose a threat.

As of the current moment, Bonnay was within the area marked off by tape and had been observing the National Guard building the enclosure.

The sound of construction and the smell was unpleasant. Bonnay had been on multiple construction sites throughout his life but National Guardsmen just worked differently, especially when it came to their engineers.

Bonnay looked into the gate, which seemed abnormally dark at all times. Except, Bonnay noticed something was off.

There was light. It was a dim light, but light nonetheless; the officers that were initially on scene noted that the inside of the gate had an abnormal ability to weaken light.

Bonnay watched for a moment as the light got brighter before he drew his revolver and shouted at the National Guardsmen around him. After a few seconds of men moving and shifting around, a few guardsmen armed with small arms appeared beside Bonnay. One of them shined a very powerful light into the gate, and the power of their light appeared to be enough to illuminate the source of the other light, which, as Bonnay and the Guardsmen made out, appeared to be a man.

No, not just a man, but multiple men.

There was a second of hesitation before the lead man from the party inside the tunnel shouted something out. It was incomprehensible, and Bonnay could only describe it as if someone had taken Gelenian and shoved it into a meat grinder.

Bonnay put away his gun and walked forward before shouting back in Gelenian, hoping that the men could understand him. The lead man looked at him oddly as Bonnay's voice reverberated throughout the tunnel, but nonetheless, he too put away his odd-looking gun and walked forward to meet Bonnay.

Bonnay, likewise, continued to walk forward to meet the man some 10 feet into the tunnel. As the two men walked closer, Bonnay began to make out the other man's features. He had light black skin and was dressed in a uniform that appeared to denote a position of authority compared to the rest of the men in his party.

When the two men had come close enough to meet, Bonnay extended out his hand, and the other man clasped it. The handshake is a greeting in many human communities, Bonnay thought, even the one where these odd people came from.

—

24 Summersend, 1876, 14:49

"So these men claim to come from the future?" Minister of Interior Affairs Gregory Montagne asked in a bewildered tone.

"Well, from what we can tell, yes, that is what they are saying. The language gap has been difficult to navigate but we've been able to communicate on a rudimentary level with them through mostly the showing of images and they likewise have done the same."

The entirety of the cabinet took a moment to consider the ramifications of what Prime Minister Claude Favager had just said.

Montagne spoke up again. "The first man that came through the gate, the lone one who looked like a policeman, have the second party asked about him?"

"Indeed they have. They want him back and we were able to get through that we were willing to, after everything was cleared up."

"Good, good. And what information have you been able to glean from him?"

"Well, he was mostly cooperative when we took him into custody, and he handed over the strange-looking firearm he had on him. We seized a variety of other items too that we don't know the purpose of, but we'll likely figure it out after we establish a proper diplomatic channel with whoever the people are on the other side of the gate. He's told us that he is a policeman, as his clothing had implied. When the interrogators asked where he came from, he requested that they bring in his uniform, so they did and he pointed to the patch on the shoulder."

"What was the patch?"

"They said it resembled the flag of Nagansett. It had a blue canton with white stars, as well as red and white stripes. At least, that's what they told me."

Most of the cabinet men looked lost in thought. Emile David, the Minister of Foreign Affairs was the one who spoke up this time. "Maybe they are related to Nagansett?"

"I doubt it."