The Gnim offered shelter through the night and promised to take a letter back to what remained of Tessif. Yelena felt torn in two directions, and both out of duty. She should go after the Nazis where ever she could, if need be alone. She had operated by herself sometimes for days in the ruins of Stalingrad and elsewhere, if she was hunting for a high-value-target. She was trained for this.

Yet... she had a duty, too, to report to her commanding officers. But this seemed more important. She had finished a quick report to Kapitan Konnikov and Politruk Yevgenievich.
When she folded the letter up, she suddenly thought of her squad. Gusarov would curse her stupidity, then hand her an extra magazine and his bottle of vodka.
Stepnova would quietly nod and hug her. Lyagushova would wipe away tears and wish her good luck. Yelena wondered what would happen to her. She had been devastated when young Kirill Polushin had been killed in the assault on the MG42 position on the other side of the portal.
Tsimmermann would smile, ruefully and make a joke about her leaving him.

Lisitsyn would be angry for not being able to charge into the hornet's nest. And the Jewish partisan, Anna Friedman... she would probably give her a Jewish blessing.

Auntie Mungoola offered Bhalla a clean, new tunic, the color of fresh moss and a light leather skirt. "Here. Nobody shall say that Auntie Mungoola does not look after her children", she said, as she kissed Bhalla on both cheeks.

Mattaki received fresh clothes as well, a dark yellow robe, mended in several places. Clearly, this had once belonged to one of the Axtzals of Tessif.

"We do not have clothes for your kind", Mungoola apologized, with the help of Bhalla who translated.
"But the Deutsche left some behind, if you want to select something?" and she pointed at a chest filled with civilian clothes and some nazi uniform items.

---

Jangie led the little group through the forest to the Kuani river. They arrived in a small Axtzal village in the evening and were lucky - there was a boat going downriver, that agreed to take them aboard as passengers. They had no local currency, of course, but Mattaki all but requisitioned the vessel for the Emperors's Navy, promising reimbursement to the fisher at a later time.

They slept on the boat, sheltering from the elements and curious looks under a tarp and made it past the small town of Fischbach. Like Reinhardsdorf, or Tessif, this seemed to have been an Axtzal settlement, but now had been taken over by the Germans, with a new wall surrounding the houses.

The Kuani grew ever wider the further down they went and they encountered several other boats, propelled by oars, sails, like their own, and even a heavy transporter that was pulled along the riverbank by a team of six beats that looked like a cross between a hippo and an oxen.

Their captain told them that they would have to stop in the next town, a German town, but that they should be save.
One day later - the fourth of their journey - they arrived at Neuheim.

When offered the chance, Lena went through the chest, trying to assemble a Nazi uniform.  Granted she wouldn't look right in a man's uniform, but it might have uses, especially if she took it back to the other soldiers eventually.

Other than that, she tried to look like a German peasant.  Well, peasant was a strong word, but that's definitely the vibe she was going for.  If she got caught she needed to look the part.

---

Lena stood and peered out, not sure whether to expect something like a mound city or a faerie village, but conquered by Germans.  What would either of those even look like?

Yelena looked at both the civilian clothing and the uniforms of her enemy with obvious distaste. If it weren't for Lena, the soviet sniper would have probably left without grabbing anything. But, as it was, Lena's choices were smart and potentially useful. So Yelena essentially copied her. They would both look odd up close in a nazi uniform. But from a distance...it might have its uses.

---

Yelena looked out at Neuheim as they approached, dressed in a very similar manner to Lena.

The voyage so far had been rather uneventful. Mattaki and Bhalla tried teaching a few pieces of Axtzal. Yelena found this a bit easier, with Russian already featuring a multitude of different s, sh, zh and tch sounds, but both Yelena and Lena are far from able to hold a conversation in Axtzal. (This will eventually allow to to pick up the language on a d4.)

Your skipper, named Damuz, competently steered the boat along the Kuani. The German town - Neuheim - is visible for about an hour before you actually arrive there. At first, Yelena is reminded of the concentration camps she saw in Poland. A high wall seemingly reinforced by concrete, multiple watchtowers along the wall. But there were no razor wires outside the walls, instead there were several small hovels and houses outside the wall, an orchard, houses and small piers along the river.
It looks as if the town was built as a fortress, but the inhabitants quickly outgrew the walls.

The boat passed the wall and arrived at a small river harbor, with two concrete piers and a few more wood piers a bit further downstream. Damuzi made for the second concrete pier, allowing you to take in the bustling activity of the harbor. There were soldiers here, but they seem to be just part of the crowd. There were also other uniformed men, wearing the green police uniforms that Lena last saw in Berlin in what feels like a lifetime ago. There were even a few wearing the blue uniform of the water police.

(Notice roll)

And civilians. So many civians. Men, women, even children. In between, Axtzals and Gnim are hustling around. The harbor was quite busy

A belltower rung, striking eleven times.

Damuzi apologized: [Language unknown: "Mo whe ntiweryin di ouai roore actha beset bepopa i ca le. Ca ilfo-toar, ofin Acni enate m ol terameles."]

(So you got some time to kill. You can stay on the boat, explore the harbor or even venture deeper into the city if you want.)

[Language unknown: "Ain nthe our und thaet! Was ateintill a ilcese ce El ast."] Bhalla said. The rhythmic striking of the bell was startling, but not a true surprise. Even in the camps where she had been held, the Nah-tsees had been strangely obsessed with time. [Language unknown: "Ni ere ith k ei. Wa miurwi n ugh encwerbutsti!"]

She turned to the two women. [Language unknown: "A pool thtrespr. T taati ous ntnt. P un unine o essio? Nd"] and she pointed to herself and Mattaki [Language unknown: "rinier ma be venprevenrea. Onsughwer thu."] She didn't like that idea much, either, but part of her was curious to see how the Nah-tsees who were not soldiers lived.

OOC: 14:18, Today: Sarwan Bhalla rolled 4,5 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 4,5.  Notice.

Lena looked to Yelena.  "[Language unknown: Ek omethiear omte omethiati usssut, witure-ainorewhi, encpreeraand, ceisanek...]"

16:37, Today: Lena Vogt rolled 8,6 using d8+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 6,4.  Notice.

Bhalla noticed that the police were only armed with slender clubs dangling from their belts, or carried by some in their hand. They seemed relaxed and chatted with some of the civilians on the street.

Lena saw that many of the soldiers here were not only armed with the typical MP40s or rifles slung at their back - but she spotted at least three officers in the crowd and all of them seemed to be carrying swords or cavalry sabers at their side.

And there was one SS man casually strolling towards the boat, his raven black uniform almost eerily standing out from the others. There was something odd about this man - and his uniform - but at the distance, Lena couldn't quite tell what it was.

(No further notice roll needed, just giving Yelena some time to respond before the SS man comes closer.)

Lena looked to Yelena.  "[Language unknown: Teprce, wi eaute ichwitast ut ounhashis?  Wh ioss poom ol ntbesi.  Stwhsi astomerom olniro arttedlin!]"

She just hoped to God Yelena caught on.

Yelena nodded at the suggestion they collect information on numbers and strength. She was much more soldier than spy at this point, but that wasn't how she grew up. Shipping was also in her blood and gave her some insight into how a harbor operated.

OOC: Even though probably an unnecessary roll, Yelena did look around.

09:01, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 4,4 using d6+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 2,2.  Notice.

Yelena nodded at Lena, coughed twice and tried to look a little sickly. She then coughed again.

OOC: I presume Yelena's gun can be well hidden at this point? She's clearly not going to be able to have it in plain sight while attempting to appear as a civilian.

Yelena focused on the watchtowers and the soldiers in her field of vision. All of them seemed relaxed. If this place had seen combat, it had been a while ago. She also wondered about the swords. She had seen one officer with a sword before - an SS Colonel, wearing his parade uniform for some official occasion had been carrying a sword. But these men were not in their parade gear, but the swords seemed to be standard equipment, like the pistols at their other hip.

As the SS Man came towards the boat, Lena was finally able to get a better look at his uniform... and it was odd. Clearly inspired by the black uniforms of the Allgemeine SS, he wore the typical wide knickerbocker type pants, but not the black leather boots. He didn't wear the typical jacket, but something that looked like high-collared black leather armor that barely covered his massive shoulders. On his lower arms, he wore the same thick black leather, studded with small silver pieces.
At his hips, she saw another sword with a thin, long blade with an elegant hand guard, and a few small daggers or throwing knives on the other side, but no gun.

When he arrived in front of the boat, he raised a hand in a lazy Nazi salute and nodded his head. And now Lena saw three more things: His rank insignia on his left collar, he was an SS-Sturmscharführer, the highest-ranking NCO. On his right collar, she saw the unit insignia, the typical SS-shield with three jagged lines running from the top left to the lower right - but not runes, they looked likes rough tears, or maybe claw marks.

And she saw why he wasn't wearing boots. His feet were bare, but looked like the clawed paws of a wolf. His hands similarly ended in sharp yellow claws instead of fingernails. His facial features looked wolfish, but strangely attractive with red eyes, dark lips and bright white teeth, the canines pointed and slightly longer.

"Heil Hitler" he greeted you, with a deep rumbling voice.

((Yelena and Lena - Spirit against Fear.

))

Bhalla let her arm come up and mumbled "Heil," trying to let herself be small. Small. Humble. Another servant, another menial. She should not have been surprised; this had been in the book Lena had scavenged. And it was not as if the Nah-tsees had brought war to a world that had been at peace. Still, it hurt to see one of this world's people in that uniform, the uniform that her fiercest, most disdainful interrogators and torturers had worn.

OOC: Standard failure.

10:14, Today: Yelena Malkin rolled 1,2 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 1,2.  Spirit .

20:16, Today: Lena Vogt rolled 5,3 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 5,3.  Scaredy Cat.

Lena had been impersonating a German for so long, she was able to salute back like it was second nature.

Yelena was taken back to a night in Bryansk, a life time ago. The Nazi's eyes narrowed as Yelena didn't mirror his salute, but then he broke into a smile that revealed even more sharp teeth.

"I apologize if I have scared you, Fräulein, you must have not seen many of my kind. Most of us are at the front lines, after all, making sure our allies are secure in their lands."

His German is almost flawless, with just a hint of an accent - more in the melody of his speech pattern than in the pronounciation. "I am SS-Sturmscharführer Arnulf. I am looking for transport downriver. Are you getting off here at Neuheim or are you continuing on? If you would allow me to accompany you, I would be very grateful."
This message was last updated by the player at 14:29, Mon 20 Feb 2023.

Lena resumed the character of Lena Vogt with more ease than she'd be willing to admit later.  A tinge of vapidness and casual misogyny always seemed to help her case.

"[Language unknown: Na one butforousore of elvir oreee fo os vir.  Sa Terthawhe, rinde tha wheastred t atofngtr la, out rut iv m eeheic saur, athaal iv int hireic.]"  She giggled like it was some funny and clever self-aware jab.  In reality, Lena was worried Yelena had a far too discernible Russian accent, while Lena had been faking a Berliner's subtle inflections for years now.  "[Language unknown: Llceha in ichverons olmaekwhon oul wiwh oulch, en eswece.  N ousntions tr Outtinder, e eipo icna inre esfor ndngck stala ore tha dinverave noles ent fipro tece dayconthu!  O m li but ei lesratateeve she holetael ol evetr ate n st stilarith peort iopele es, le ereiv!  As evek not seany siic her hi eenineart, ncri ngheel ne o pepool, il fihawa.  E pl en whadnt ososanmi arckteil est whce ol ismanc inul ncwhto ame fiul ro di estinewer, te trstas ck illiouvir ur pees u of hatis tepe eneve redi st! Mi inetinnte ni ecou ne t Proel.  Pothe hewebe ar vorou eiiote her p ec p caenc o il ll ear pedi sheyinwil atinteour.]"

She called to Bhalla.  "[Language unknown: Was, nies Ate, utri redearpre.]"  She spoke in a tone which suggested she was calling a dog.  She hoped Bhalla would not be insulted and could understand what a ruse was, but... it might be much.  "[Language unknown: Ut he di tipl ur k hat sa elpenaac ant un.  Fo pro la be waer pareof ivinar sali, ekles ndame pl unhoeeutut ovethetic.  El llil noss iohat olill aceeha a ivanst maame ca ta lo ie ri n thuthiwer ul.  N t alroroom t m virardillthi was ha ch ainrutwit atomsaek. Useiro wa seli oerss sheeauwit.  Utpr p paro Inece, llet ate iveortsom atere fi padiis!]"

She began to walk into town, trying to drag the... "gentleman", along with her.  She dearly hoped that she hadn't doomed all the natives of this place in German captivity to being assigned pet names.  Of course they probably had been already.  Humans were awful.

Not actually speaking German I think you can say Herr as you would say Sir in English.

Arnulf's face was impossible to read, but Yelena felt like a cornered mouse must feel when staring at a cat.
"You should go and see Doctor Tiedemann in Eichenstrasse. It is not far. I can show you the way, if you want. Where did you say you were coming from? And who is your lizard friend?"

Arnulf gave Bhalla only the shortest of glances. Gnim were apparently barely worth his attention, no matter what their name was.

Yelena put her right hand to her throat and nodded with a little wince when Lena mentioned her throat. She smiled slightly at the mention of boys, then coughed lightly into her hand.

She nodded at the suggestion of the doctor, but allowed Lena to give voice to any appropriate response. All this pretending was more the spy's area of expertise than the sniper's.

Gaslight.  Misdirect.  Lena had gotten herself out of being caught taking files before, this was no different.

"Oh watch this.  Watch!"

Lena turned around and gestured to Bhalla like she was a dog.  Lena hoped sorely this wouldn't make things between then terrible later.

"Luna, Luna!  Come here girl!  Tell the man where we came from, and we'll get you a treat!"

There had to be a truthful lie.  If anyone here knew a plausible place they could have come from, it was the native.  Lena would try to bore and exasperate the man out of the rest.

Bhalla let herself droop even further, and pointed lamely upriver. [Language unknown: "Omwhplseut. N o asckanurmi."] She understood the need for deception, and the Nah-tsee language was easy enough to butcher. It wasn't so much the deception that left the gnim feeling defeated, it was the likelihood of having to maintain it if this Nah-tsee gervolian joined them on their journey.

Lena squealed.  "[Language unknown: In omeerethe ma oustioterant, o fi nc moai ers i unneiv strundwit adugh!  Hater wa artsomwas o wasevewilain ei ut ion et!  Acine io Dayencith!  Ard Trrat, io!]"

Lena hurried along, practically pulling her companions.  Hopefully she had come off as an unremarkable, vapid and slightly annoying woman.

Yikes, that hits too close to home...

Arnulf narrowed his eyes at Bhalla, but then offered a slight bow to Lena and "Hannah" and pointed his arm in the direction of Doctor Tiedemann's office.
"This way, my dear fräuleins."
Then he looked at Bhalla again.
[Language unknown: "Loan ivho trrom ave ti lecasi Mindbead marour?"]

Lena paid attention, she needed to pull everyone into a market.  She considered an alley then immediately reconsidered, that was a terrible idea.

((Moving along))

Back in the day when Lena had strolled through Berlin, her hand hooked into Arthur's arm like any other proper Aryan couple, she had seen the effect an SS uniform would have on a crowd. People parted like the Red Sea for Moses, while at the same time pretending to not notice the SS officer.
It was twice that effect with Arnulf walking next two them. But there wasn't really any fear in the Germans around them. Clearly they were if not used then at least acquainted to Arnulf's kind.
And they did see a few more like him, usually standing or sitting in small groups, like soldiers on leave.

Neuheim was relatively new and had grown fast. There were still signs of a much smaller camp site everywhere. A watchtower, in the middle of the city, but now turned into a storage room. Pieces of a fortified wall that looked as if a building had grown out of it. The streets  were mostly dead straight, with the main avenue running parallel to the river, wide enough to allow two tanks to pass each other... or would have been, if there hadn't been stores, cafes, restaurants, benches, tables with people playing chess cluttering up the side walk.

Lena could barely believe it. It wasn't Berlin, of course not, but it was a small German town. If there hadn't been an abundance of uniforms, this could have been a scene from a small German town in Brandenburg.

Yelena couldn't help but try to count the soldiers, but eventually gave up and counted officers instead. She saw a few of Arnulf's kind in NCO uniforms, but none outranking Arnulf. But there were no officers. Only German officers everywhere, even if they were talking to a group of Arnulf's kind.
And none of them Wehrmacht, they were all SS. She saw a few majors and was pretty sure about two colonels walking into a cafe. There could  have easily been a battalion stationed here.

The streets were mostly named after trees. Ahornstrasse. Lindenstrasse. Buchengasse. Tannenweg. And then they turned into Eichenstrasse.

Arnulf stopped in front of a door under the sign of a red cross. "Here's Doctor Tiedemann. I will take your... Luna and wait with her in that cafe. So you don't have to worry about her causing chaos in there."

"[Language unknown: K ev, wa er redeenproich Ort u oneoveare.  Wh a ieatne.]"  Lena insisted.

She felt really horrible inside for the next part, but... well it took a lot to fool the Nazis.  "[Language unknown: Le e voranyred t al m ne ekil.]"

The words were insulting of course, but the tone was sinister, like Arthur used to use.

Sometimes she had to remind herself her parents were Germans...

[Language unknown: "He u preoulthutha ourli eau ie has set plfoss io ssiles. Iv ofti an toll nd n, U saninteau."
]

He cocked his head and looked at Bhalla.
[Language unknown: "Fitho eau eraet eenpr e fi ul etnc ut ing wana strol ro icsste tinlesill ss mo eveorttin. Plare hool nt Oreoreent rinte. Ich onsintoun uteen asca ntiandhouble repele."]

[Language unknown: "Whe icas ck stien re hoofad."] Bhalla replied, lifting her gaze up as far as the gervolian's chest. [Language unknown: "K hasartame plles taofis, ecton vorbutint ess menee."] She let her eyes drop again. [Language unknown: "Wh witar asalou for whetinall laom todi."] Not for the first time, and probably not for the last, she wished she had stayed with Jangie's band.

Anulf offered a little bow, but his polite, even chivalrous demeanor combined with his deep, growling voice gave Yelena the distinct feeling of a mouse getting toyed with by a cat.

"[Language unknown: Anicelha.  Vorratble iouundate sti es rom reaerathi urdi nd wiof ee wasredman!]"  Lena had an idea.  It was probably a bad one.

Inside the doctor's office

The door led to narrow corridor, then up a flight of stairs to the doctor's office. There was a small reception with a young brown-haired woman sitting behind the counter. To the left, there was a waiting room filled with a few people: Mostly women, but one old man leaning heavily on his cane, and a few children playing on a rug in a corner.

A corridor led from the waiting area to the examination rooms, supposedly.

The receptionist looked up and flashed a professional smile:
"Guten Tag! Do you have an appointment?"

---

In the cafe across the street
Arnulf picked a table on the outside, and turned his chair so he could lean against the wall and keep an eye on the door of the doctor's office, gesturing invitingly to the other chair at the table.
[Language unknown: "Waul, il. Wh si windon? Unacre?"] He snapped his fingers at the waiter, who quickly retreated back inside and emerged a moment later with a menu, taking course at your table.

"[Language unknown: Nd Nidi wiasth re, k thuessort o tho... sailmalast.]"  Lena responded, equally cheery.

She had hoped there'd be more of a... building, in here, but she had to go through the motions.

[Language unknown: "Ta u of ou."] 'Luna' says, just a little defensively. She hasn't been eating well since her escape from Nazi custody, but she's been eating. It was when she'd been imprisoned that she'd gone from 'slight' to ' dangerously thin.' [Language unknown: "Es chom st rire hirero ine pa icear undin, sethoueen."]

The receptionist tried her best to furrow her brow and adopt scornful look, but looked more like a pouty teenager.
"Oh, that's not good. The doctor has a lot of patients to see today. You can wait, but it could take a while..." she gestures at the waiting crowd.
"What would that be about? And could you show me your Ausweis in the meanwhile?"

Of course. They wanted to see their papers.

---

Arnulf flashed Bhalla a wolfish smile and made the order. It doesn't take long for the waiter to return with a pitcher of cider, two sizzling plates of anzhud, and a basket of bread.

It smelled delicious and taste was out of this world.
Arnulf gave Bhalla a few moments to have the first few bites. [Language unknown: "Pr the All, heat nana ichha dinshetic ut lar iolone. Somthadayave. Lere om eeevne ngut ek osent u wheeitisst. Io icecom o di omeherwilromcon ndosni. Und si toain heson nt redti pente?" ]
This message was last edited by the GM at 07:47, Wed 15 Mar 2023.

Yelena moved along with Lena, though really hoped the other woman had some good ideas. Lena had worked as a nurse. Yelena coughed a little and looked over at her partner in deception.

Lena slapped her forehead.  "[Language unknown: M Entang wi whihisersoul sanpa, ie be A encrombut ni ic icaal taio!?]"

She leaned in to scold "Hannah", whispering harsh reprimands in her ear like a proper German.

"[Language unknown: Sankorany wetic o ing Eauvenare ad was ut.]"

"[Language unknown: Avetr for, anyoveousave onne!]"
This message was last edited by the player at 01:55, Thu 16 Mar 2023.

The receptionist raised her eyebrows.
"You don't have your papers? But what if the Schupo asks to see them?" She sounded incredulous, as if Lena had told her that they had forgotten to put on their shoes when leaving their home.

It sounded as if the Nazis had set up another version of the Schutzpolizei, the civilian police service, in this world, too. Lena hoped that, just as in Berlin, they would be less fanatical than the SS and Gestapo, but you could never be sure.

This was dangerous, Bhalla knew, and all the moreso because the food really was delicious, the kind of thing she had not eaten since before the Nazis captured her the first time. [Language unknown: "Pr ng con ol res ac il prse ioar sipr Tiettepa chroet. Ma elonou ll prelwi. M lesial oer lone. Ou sheineesswhi."] That much was, more or less, true. Bhalla had not been the only one who believed the strange new arrivals needed to be better understood and then responded with horror to that fresh understanding. She looked down at her plate. [Language unknown: "Usnot noman iewe osec omeovethaugh it ec, Ou whseon of nd me ectentwhi, il whniet, wh verresour.m A le po hi thoes eiatio."]

Yelena nodded twice at Lena's commentary, hoping the other would understand why.

She shook her head, then coughed for emphasis. Yelena's voice was raspy and low. She quitetly argued back at Lena after the 'admonishment'. [Language unknown: "An u wilet linar. Hi ck elugh! Unsier Ee p rompreest, Ou forherame osnc anplneilce se erinli."]

The receptionist put on a professional sympathetic face. "Poor you! Listen, I can have you wait, but please sign this..." she pulls a piece of paper from a drawer and hands it to Yelena "and you can bring your bring your ID later today or tomorrow. We just need it for the reimbursement."

Yelena looks at the form. It asks for name, age, birthday, place of birth and all kinds of personal information. Clearly, she's about to be entered in the doctor's patient registry.

---

Arnulf growled deeply, indicating understanding and sympathy. [Language unknown: "N ati rearomart acadof ieee ivrat. Tednc rutte thewhewil evho ichughven he witndewer ncecai."] He emptied his cup and poured himself another, then topped off Bhalla's cup, too.
He was silent for a moment, closing his eyes and enjoying the sun.
[Language unknown: "Ng Thnaut atch unwhe thanot'ortcon, et inmoridi romtineve. Eve lo ill nolack fo Uselsa oulivetho st treile nde eisom a e red nclifo."]
He looked at Bhalla again.[Language unknown:  "P mopl, e whiet aser mo diunen namofo redat Evllpr. Lin osdi ntpa wa sailio... sa oer io atrea esacen. Tio vorectare? Ardromica not con u ic ca deras Nce ei wint tio diic eraderour, capo uliv not Erfo'eius ame ndnotiha whine as Liceee?"]

He chuckled. [Language unknown: "Tha Ndeessshe yinpa k ndla. M thu... ]requisition [Language unknown: hou. M reathuive U hata evweul el prou ulnot romder'tioout asno lati ri ro ei ionwheoul e les p. Ce whihisrat ck ckfi os ditipo romil. K acfoon menthuher erami ur ce Me."]

Lena snapped her fingers.  "[Language unknown: O iope, taonek plro wilme ecwi n rieau ie!?  Arne warean aihiteee!  Inelpr k ersesshou vorfo!  Ternd Ngunse!]"

She then grabbed "Hannah" and drug her out before anyone could argue.

Yelena brightened and held up a finger in agreement. The Soviet didn't say anything, but let Lena drag her out while the sniper covered another cough.

Hear me out... we go... back up river!

Bhalla grips her cup hard and hopes the Gervolian can't see the tension his question prompts. [Language Axtzal: "I am sorry, but I could not. The Deutsche have forced my surrender and shown me the danger of resistance, but I cannot work for one of their soldiers, even a kind one. These two women, they think they are being kind in their own stupid way. There is no respect, but I harm nobody by making their lives easier. Again, I am sorry."

Arnulf inclined his head and dropped the matter. He was just about to speak as the door across the street opens and both Lena and Yelena come rushing out. Looking around for a second, they see Bhalla and head over to the table

"[Language unknown: Ch Rutse, o osec he ndfoec eenha repe.  Ar mine!]"  Lena chirped, hoping Bhalla would not resent her too much later for this act.

Arnulf rose from his chair, a fluid graceful motion as if he was a world-renowned ballet dancer. He gave a quick bow.
"I hope the Herr Doktor was able to help - I will join you in a little while, Fräuleins and look forward to continuing the journey with you."
He nodded at Bhalla and addressed the waitress who was just cleaning one of the nearby tables.
"Would you mind packing up my friends anzhud? She cannot finish it here."

[Language unknown: "Pl tic estshesom u ectundsan ncni ca setus hiet os enticater are camant foran lesastsom ted uroufi ckus."]

Tension hung in the air, but Arnulf either didn't seem to notice it, or choose not to acknowledge it, while you waited for the waitress to pack Bhalla's meal - something that seemed to be a loaf of bread filled with something that looked like a thick stew - in a metal box.

Arnulf sat down again and continued to eat his meal. "I shall see you within the hour." he said, between bites.

"[Language unknown: Ai howe halat, ou whiic.  Te Aitr, ivus!]"  Lena directed everyone (except Arnulf) toward their vessel.  For now.

With Arnulf left behind, you make your way back towards the pier. Neuheim is, at the same time, extremely easy to navigate, with the roads and streets laid out in a grid, but at the same time *everything* looked the same. Finding a specific spot within the city would probably be much, much harder than just getting back to the river.

Just as you're getting closer, you almost run into a large group of human SS troopers. On pure instinct, Lena turns left into the side street and leads you away, her brain trying to convince her that she *knew* the officer leading the troop while at the same time trying to convince her that she was just being paranoid. All of these blond, young, Aryan SS-officers seemed to have the same haircut, the same angled faces, the same posture, after all.
But it kept nagging at her.

Bhalla has some difficulty keeping up and lags a few steps behind. On the left, the street cuts back to reveal a small inner yard and a workshop behind. There's a small car in the yard, with the hood popped open and two men staring in, one of them rummaging around.

There's a commotion and the door flys open - Bhalla sees a Gnim, the fur ragged and covered in patches of oil running out, ducking as a bottle flies over the Gnim's head and shatters on the street.

"SPITZ! YOU FUCKING DISGUSTING LITTLE RAT! WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY MOTORCYLE!"
The scream is followed by a towering Deutsche man, shirtless, the upper body once well-muscled, but now covered by a considerable belly, lumbering out of the door, with a thick wooden stick cut from a tree that he waves menacingly at the Gnim.

(aaaand you meet Winwiggie. Winwiggie, the group. The Group, Winwiggy.)

Lena looked to Bhalla for a cue.  She had her usual Stupid Ideas, but didn't know if this was... normal?

Winwiggie - a Gnim of normal size, and young adult age - used all of his agility to duck and dodge the missiles the German was throwing after him. A wrench clutched in his hand, waving loosely over his head, as if that might grant him a bit of protection.
The gnim couldn't understand why the German was so upset? He had brought the motor cycle in because it was making odd noises, used too much fuel, kept stuttering, and just was iffy in its reliability.
He had fixed it all marvellously, he thought - and even gave it an extra exhaust system that made it purr quietly like a kitten, no matter how hard the German would rev it up. The motorcycle ran, and purred. And yes, that did inspire Winwiggy to change the honking to a Mewling sound. Hadn't the German always bragged about how much he enjoyed having a Pussy between his legs?
Winwiggy didn't get it. He thought he would make the man happy!

Obviously, the man was ~not~ happy and now Winwiggy found himself running out onto the street...
This message was last edited by the player at 05:19, Wed 24 May 2023.

Yelena looked at Lena, then to their surroundings as she saw a new Gnim in their immediate vicinity. The sniper make a move with her hand to suggest they weave a bit through the streets, then made eye contact with Winwiggie before tipping her head slightly in the direction they were planning to go.

[Language unknown: "Ll and ie nc ndstha?"] Bhalla asks automatically. She is not thrilled about any further delay (though she's also skeptical that they will be able to simply dodge the Gervolian through hasty departure), but the traditions of her people--and her own suffering at Deutsche hands--demand that she ask the question.

Winwiggie barely had any eyes for his surroundings, all his focus on being fast, and dodgy, and difficult to hit - and hopefully get away from the heavy handed man behind him.
He could only hope, paranoia of leaving the motorcycle unguarded would stop the German from following too far.

Almost having reached the street, he spotted another Gnim and her companion. He was a bit confused, when the human made eye contact with him, but before he could react to the silent communication, or think further about it, another metal oil can came hurtling toward his head. He dodged just fast enough for it not to hit his head, but it grazed his shoulder and he dug into his reserves to add another gear to his speeding retreat, pumping out as much movement from his legs as his body was able to give.

Winwiggie had no breath nor time to answer, but he raced after them, hoping that gave the kindred woman all the response she needed!
He hadn't thought out, or planned his escape at all, and had no idea which way to turn, so he may as well follow the woman's nod. There was another Gnim with the blonde, so that can't be wrong! It'd be nice to talk to friendly faces again for a change and she had offered the tenet! No Grim left behind!
This message was last edited by the player at 09:55, Wed 31 May 2023.

The Deutsche man followed after Winwiggie, slowing down as the Gnim reached the group of Bhalla and the others.
He nodded a greeting at Lena and Yelena. [Language unknown: "Adssna ticck ear lintha'vernot ovees essreseen sonresestredstr"] he said in a friendly, but exasperated tone, then looked at the Gnim.
[Language unknown: "Thwaad beiv adlar peisno, Onsithain, li la wh out ntngmeiv, n Lar peee are tend mena iece etent ilres on no chce iv tinughbut!"]

Winwiggie's hopes that the man would stop as soon as he was out of the yard didn't manifest and the German remained hot on his heels.
He had just about reached Bhalla and her companions, when a slightly askew tile or whole in the ground (or maybe his own feet?) made him trip and stumble down before Lena and Yelena's feet.
He winced when he heard the kind nicknames the German continued to throw his way and had to bite his lip hard, to keep from whimpering, or making any sort of noise at the threat.
He knew, he was too useful to the Germans to really get killed, but that didn't stop them from finding all sorts of ways to torture him, that didn't render him useless... Sometimes he almost wished he was too useless to be kept around, that way at least he ~could~ die, and that thought seemed more and more appealing, the more the Germans laid into him.
His shoulders slumped in defeat, when he knew the German was too close to escape again, and likely, the group he had ran after was just as bad - and maybe the other Gnim was as much these women's slave, as he was the Germans..

Well... crud.

Lena felt bad pretending that poor Bhalla was their mistreated pet.

Lena couldn't think of anything else to do but get angry at the man and start slapping him.

"[Language unknown: No... oun ure tin mese ee ectations be virverderessson atiantventhe!  Ha replec roteet m!  Tr be loivto adnot!]"

The Deutsche took a step back and furrowed his brow.
[Language unknown: "Arestaonsenc wer nahiou usarur itic ulect thehasoul mi Poofwh ceacou! Fontfoiv setateder omeeraame n ssen n eauenters e ast ive hat!"]
The last bit was emphasized with a finger pointed at Bhalla and then Lena.

A few other folks are started to look into your direction to see what this little fuss was about. A quarrel in the street should make for some nice entertainment!

Yelena placed her fists firmly on her hips and gave the man a look. It was a look intended to convey disappointment and some degree of scorn. She shook her head lightly.

Lena launched an attack, poking the man(?) in the chest several times.

"[Language unknown: Si stibutarenteshe fobeouol, ter roni atfo, tin eeoer enc adri ca u llusmi, onsri itdin ine beomai werstrveneve?]"

I hope they do something with the distraction I'm buying them.

With Lena moving front and center, Yelena tipped her head to the side suggesting the rest of them exit the vicinity.

She added emphasis with a motion of her hand and began walking the trio away.

[Language unknown: "Alolof was."] Bhalla said, as quietly as she dared. Then she reached up to tug on Lena's sleeve. [Language unknown: "Tassut, avepe. Tr mire. Antwasive t se dier prele il il ine vir. No ssset, ateoureen!"]

Lena opted to make this... awkward.  She got red in the face with rage.

"[Language unknown: Chck ssic hi!  Ma thto manos th il wi undtheame el ere t stmato, us eculmo ncpaou cheetito!  I t cktrth ar ine om!  Thaounset!]"

Lena raised up her arms and motioned she was going to chase Bhalla.

God please have the sense to run the other direction...

Winwiggie's first reaction, when Lena called him disgusting and he found himself caught between the German and the women was to lift his hands over his head in a defensive gesture, the wrench still clutched tightly in his fist, shrinking down further, as if trying to hide himself in the crook of his own arms. He couldn't suppress a shocked whimper, barely over a whisper, when Lena stomped in front of the German and started waving her arms around.
He would have almost missed Yelena's motion with her head, had it not been for Bhalla suddenly shaking him from his petrified stupor in the language of their kin. He sure couldn't trust humans - but he was sure he could trust kindred. Gnim wouldn't stab each other in the back. Gnim looked out for one another.
If it hadn't been for the female of his species, he would have given up. But as she was there, he dared.
While the German ended up being assaulted by Lena, who then shouted at Bhalla on top of it, he darted from between the German and the women to follow the indicated direction.

As he did so, however, he rushed closely by Bhalla, and  reached for her wrist, as if making to grab it. He would run. After all, Bhalla asked him to. But he would not leave her behind to deal with those crazy Naked-Skins by herself.

[Language unknown: "Ho!"] He squeaked, making as if willing to pull her along to bid his feet, just as his voice bade Bhalla.

(In the interest of moving this minor encounter along... :-))

The German swirls around, confused on what's going on and what's truly happening. Winwiggie hears his master bellow some nasty words, but ducks around a few corners, and breaks through to the next parallel street over. There, panting and catching their breath, he sees the weird German lady who gave him a chance to get away, the master of the Gnim who had offered to take him under her wing. There was another woman, and they all seemed to be slightly out of breath, with exception of the silent woman who stood and watched, ready to...
Winwiggie wasn't sure what she was ready for, but she was a warrior, he could sense that, even if she was not brandishing her weapons right now.

He made his way over and frantically told their Gnim to follow him, leading them further away from his abusive master.

A few more twists and turns later, Winwiggie led them into a small ditch down at the river, far from prying eyes. It gave everyone a chance to catch their breath and Winwiggie could take a closer look at them. The Silent Woman was indeed clearly a warrior of some kind. The Loud Woman, who had seemed so furiously irritating was a lot more composed now and looked attentively at their surroundings, too. Not a warrior, but there seemed to be more to her than the first impression she made.

And then there was the Gnim, of course. Was she the leader of her tribe? She had offered to take him in, after all.

[Language unknown: "E ni enc taou paan reden anyerethirom hi."] Bhalla announces with a sigh. She has more practice running and hiding than she would like, but doing it alongside the strangers is somehow awkward. [Language unknown: "Ur Intconkorshe, m il noev retio ad p u pa io u om korel. Ek astentine e rat tr thuandereoulore."]

Yelena nodded in agreement, though without enthusiasm. [Language unknown: "Icaek, ce ni inre nesiel llho-isteit essioustr anyainhathasich ss und t somtheany tr en tr din, ec icnti p ion n le ingticwas sheeveith. Ma notromant, hi wahoei, ersthoess ted ncetedsti isfo. As alos ndtra wh oerpe ticpe p centi ourithproany, ul yin prondehas, elar prolinthi. Ni ol peoul m beill menhatati ur is ilwa urelun ieenc ivewilhisers."]

Not for the first time, Yelena looked to the American Spy for direction. Hiding and sniping were entirely different than blending in with the locals.

"[Language unknown: Noetun chiou e es pr ichwhehis.  E ingandtha en o ti ckort she...]"  She shrugged.  "[Language unknown: ...I lathasour poie verterver weli.  Noionata ouskorsti oul ho n nteticate.  Si reut tr ounho icwhi ng... chllofriss rat tr fion, ame roni thoessset teul pe p ichoneourwit ri essughoer ek.
]
"[Language unknown: Ou trabe pretic-antles stioneter t san nteet notoulwasard ith p weac hofo esri aierncpr sisi te wil hisomethotersom.  Pe andoreons eve m ic plpoic il m beoube iechut si eve ropeit ro artiv atehouove o i ck iv po.]"

((Giving Winwiggie one more day for introductions.))

By the time they had reached the edge of the river, the little oil-streaked Gnim was out of breath, hunched over, his hands leaning over his knee - the wrench he hadn't let go of bridging his palms together.
He barely dared to look up at the tail of people he had pulled along behind him. He was glad he knew the area well enough - he had been with the Germans long enough to have been part of building this city, so he knew it well enough. What he didn't know, was the risk he has taken.

He mustered them from his hunched over position, out of the corner of his eyes. Would this group give him a chance to get away from the Germans? Would they drag him deeper into trouble?
Finally he raised his gaze to look at them openly - And undisguisedly flinched and drew a grimace when Lena suggested a bullet to his head... Did she mean his head?

Once more he found himself raising his hands in a defensive gesture, holding the wrench before him like a sword, or shield - as if the metal tool could protect him from suggested bullet.
[Language unknown:
"... Ek... u tin il p e poilil, lepr ll u. Eleiac strvorwhe yin ev. E noilti ardihe om his un oun... "] He promised, his voice still squeakier than he'd like, showing his confusion and fear. He was completely out of the loop and inched a few steps back, closer to the river's edge. If worse comes to worse, he could maybe swim away?

"[Language unknown: Ev, anykorthi sslofo st neeing Ntilca el.]"  Lena sat on her haunches.  "[Language unknown: Roome ev pl ro estdersom somithoul?]"

Not that he was that little, in fact this the pot calling the kettle.

'Little Friend'?
Winwiggie faltered... What did he misunderstand...

[Language unknown: "ckst... linantnde thiv butughtio k ie ck?"] He asked, the previous conversation having his head all muddled and turned around still. It took him a moment longer before he could answer the question.

"Winwiggie" He finally said, his nose twitching still, showing his apprehension.

"Uh... " He hesitated some more, his eyes darting over the three people. "Who... who are you, then? And... what now?" His shoulders lifted a bit insecurely.
His entire bodylanguage betrayed the Gnim's discomfort.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:00, Thu 06 July 2023.

"[Language unknown: Unecil... m... viringtho'strnte.  Trhi artantave a it rut k io wa, ho vorhe rehaec nde ousdi outntehas.]"  Lena explained, taking a seat on her heels.

[Language unknown: "Thuortsom p Ithnotbut."] Bhalla says, tapping her chest lightly with a single finger before reverting to German. "These are not Nazis. They are from the same world as the Deutsche, but different tribes. We fight them."

After the introductions are made, the group faces a decision: Where to go next?

Mattaki is still waiting at the boat. He could either be retrieved or you could head back to the boat and take off, but you risk running into Arnulf.

You could leave (with or without Mattaki) on foot, but where to go then? Your plan was to go downriver, then inland towards the besieged fortress of Rhavas, in the hope of connecting to the Axtzal military.

That would take you past the capital of the Germans, Adolfstadt, through.

Winwiggie, having lived under Nazi occupation, but in relative freedom, draws a quick map with the current situation, giving you an overview of what the situation is like....

((https://kanka-user-assets.s3.e...YtjXoZZeAqb5xY2v.png))

Rhavas, Ashkan and Chuera are all under attack from the Deutsche. Rhavas is a mighty fortress, Chuera a harbor town. Ashkan itself is a minor city within a swamp area, and it's unclear why the Deutsche would attack it except to eliminate resistance.

Many of the population have fled along the main Northwestern road towards Teveh, the largest Axtzal city and home of the regional command. But it is very far away...

Yelena, who had largely been quietly following Lena's lead while spycraft was at the fore, perked up a bit when a tactical map was presented. She looked over it for a bit and her face betrayed a range of emotions as she considered the circumstances of various locations.

[Language unknown: "Teringthoere stte onewasint Fisthe wawhad liioio ver th in. La fianpo ar ion ni hoyin lat Mantinine?"]

"[Language unknown: I ntito me.  Il il urmo lachwe no asilis.  E ntloes ntngio virnderatwitugh ck watoit ll all sonnterom.  Ee ng t str ie dipaat, ro th en Omliet, ouun acceho icaartect erome werichith p osna omelarnte.  Init lo micon histedvir p e ardorteve lininture.]"  Lena replied, laying out out as she saw it.

((OOC: Bhalla picked up another rank of German, and Win speaks it, too, so I'm just going to skip tags unless we're speaking something other than German.))

"Arnulf will be hard to kill. He will follow. Surely. The ones in black, always watching. Always cruel. We are better running. At least pick our own battleground if we can." Bhalla says. She points downstream. "Rhavas, maybe. We take no boat for some time?"

PM

Having explained the map to them, Winwiggie fell silent once more, to listen to their take on things and their discussions. He briefly cast his eyes down the way he came from, and back to the group around them.
He knew, the way he ran from the Germans earlier, despite them having found so much value in them, it was too risky to go back. They would either kill him outright, or chain him down like a slave, and watch his every move, so he would not ever work without German eyes on him ever again. Even dimwitted as sometimes he was, that was not a life he wanted for himself. He LIKED the freedom of getting what he needed, when he needed, and the freedom of tinkering what he wanted...

Like it or not, the woman was right - he was stuck with them, and likely, they with him. His lot though, could be so much worse - at least, now he had Gnim company again. He hadn't heard or spoken his own language in an age and a half and Bhalla's voice was like tonic on his soul.
He offered her a brief, pleased, rumbling sound - akin to what humans might regard as a smile between them.
He heard learned the human body and facial languages, adapted, but it was good to be able to use the Gnim's own - more subtle - cues again.

His pleasure however faded, the moment they mentioned the name Arnulf. His eyed darkened, and where the rumble in his throat moments earlier expressed pleasure, the new noise forming behind his tongue was sharper, held menace.
He considered Arnulf the worst traitor of his kind.
[Language unknown: "Tirond!"] He growled in his native tongue and spat on the ground.

Swapping to German, he said: "Arnulf is impossible to kill. He has too many followers, is too valuable to the Germans, and he is a good fighter. Only been bested once - and is the reason why he is now worst of the worst! Could maybe try to outsmart him? Can build moving puppets with some of your clothing on the boat - make him think he is after you down the river, then we move over-land to Rhavas Can also put engine on the boat to make it run faster?"

He pointed into the wilderness on the map between Adolfstadt and Rhavas.

"[Language unknown: Butresate thoanyven li no latove-anysta osard ilncio-nini p tamaen tesema a thaticingain.]"  Lena admitted.  Normally they'd extract the agent, but that wasn't an option here.

"[Language unknown: Lali tr La allpo o m p himist ng derstiive ilha'seutle ul tin preou his.  Pl ch ndecomred.  Ati her ere meng ivoufi, whta ev urdi she meningess earsanble ou... nde... t Olfond mo ss ninaan n verthe'eenthu en ut p evelesshe fo poho whi antce utthck?  U lin t rathisainone Nalios m an omeereiou'oerhou ichlesder ioou erstr venveneve o oerei usad, etwimo'ndmi nt t der.]"