OOC note- updates will be slow if there are updates at all, my dudes- all I have at the moment is my phone for this. ;-; I'll do what I can, though! Short chapters for now, though.
Let's get ourselves started, then!
--
All he could remember was getting hit on the head, very hard. Between that and everything else that had happened, he was relatively content with what- or where he was- even if that only ended up being a particularly soft patch of grass somewhere.
'Salu'ir', as he was soon to become known as, was a regular guy- he held a job somewhere in the rolling city spires and lived elsewhere, drove this way and that, shopped here and there- if there was any word to explain or describe his life, it was 'boring'- so much so that he knew it and felt it, in fact, and became enamored in the ways of which to escape this reality. So much for that english major, hm?
For, soon, he found himself engrossed within the virtual worlds he could explore in his computer- 'Azeroth', 'Tamriel', alternate earths and alternate worlds, realities all contained behind a screen- somewhere he could be a hero, be a damned...-something-, that mattered, for worse or for better.
And, see, he never was the particularly 'social' type, so it was a mystery to him why a van had suddenly rolled up beside him and why out had come a masked thug who whacked him over the head with a club, causing the world to go black as he fell unconcious. And now, here he was, trying not to wake up, Ironically.
He supposed he'd have to find his way out of here eventually, so he opened his eyes and stared up.
The sky was oddly...golden-blue, little to no clouds. Trees reached up towards the sky with a thick green bark that seemed segmented, and... well, some smaller birds were chirping in the distance.
The man sighed- a small burst of wind made him thankful for the hoodie and jeans he'd grabbed. Fall was still on it's way, and soon winter's cold grip would take his small town.
He propped himself up on his arms and grabbed his phone from his pocket, tapping in the password before speaking. "Hey Siri." "How can I be of assistance?"
He smiled- technology was excellent.
"Where am I?" "Searching for nearest 'Baker of Pie'." Scratch that.
"You don't appear to have an internet connection, would you like to establish one?" "Yes." "Accessing... I'm sorry, but this service is currently unavailable. Try again later."
He glanced around. Trees and forests reached around in nearly all directions, stretching forward to an unending expanse. A road wasn't far from where he was standing.
I say road, I mean...like, one of those dirt paths, some gravel here and there. A path. Yeah.
He crossed to the path and looked around for a moment, looking to the sun briefly before picking a direction and hoping for the best.
--
Night was falling when he first saw the town. It was...quaint, smaller- a different type of architecture then he was used to, too, upon a closer look. But, he'd sort it all out in the end- right?
Admittedly, he was beginning to speculate that he had been taken far, far off from anywhere familiar- he was certain it was still -somewhere- close, just...not that familiar-territory familiarity.
That was only heightened upon spotting the small, squat creature at the edge of town. Sal lifted a hand to wave, but the figure was quickly retreating. But for the briefest moment...
He thought he saw ears on the short little man.
He shook his head and continued. Entering under the gate- some asian influence- and looked around. Everything was of the same influence as well, from the small houses to the open pavilions.
He looked up at a sign with a roaring fireplace next to a collection of characters he didn't bother reading, turning to enter through the door.
The man's gaze met wi-
Okay, what?
A...'sheep', huddled in a robe, looked his way and offered a smile, speaking in a fluent dialect of asian tong- before the gaze focused and they realized the human standing before them was- indeed- human.
The two froze. Seconds stretched into moments.
"AAAAAAAAH." "BAAAAAAAAH!" "WHAT. WHAT IS- WHA- AAAAAAAAH."
They pointed at one another, screaming. But the slam of a door behind Sal caught his attention, and he turned to face an armored figure- squat and short- brandishing a staff, pig ears flopping from the sides of it's helmet. It waved a spear in his direction.
"...WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!" Slowly backing away, his gaze shifted to look at the door at the far end and the stairwell it hid behind it- before making a break for it. Pressing the door aside, he jogged up the steps and wheeled to the left, eyeing a shuttered window- and jumping for it.
He fleflew past it onto a tiled rooftop, landing with an 'oompf'. He turned back to stare at the window, eyeing the shouting noises before turning and making a mad dash from rooftop to rooftop, ungraceful leaps and an unsteady momentum being all that carried the poor man away from the ruccus he'd made.
"Ohgodohgodohgod", he gasped, running over to an alcove and hiding behind it. Glancing down at the street below, he eyed a collection of 'animals' going about nervously, awakened in all the commotion.
"Okay, logically put this together, Al, you were kidnapped by men in a van and are now in a feudal-china-esque town in a bamboo forest, filled with animal people things."
"I got drugged." He decided. "Only... REASONABLE, explanation." Sal looked down at his hands, flexing his fingers which had become raw with gripping and running.
He was tired. But a quick movemen-
Thud.
--
He awoke tied to a chair, arms bound with rope. His clothing had been removed- down to his neon-green undies- and folded aside.
Fear gripped him in an all-too-familiar chill, a very real fear that seemed to magnify everything. He wasn't tripping on some injection, he was lost in a very new world where animals evidently evolved in man's place.
Or something similar, at least. He just knew that they weren't wearing fursuits.
The door opened, and a small figure entered- setting aside a small candle to light the small prison. It was clad in great brown-and-green robes, using a staff- though two great, twitching ears and a swishing tail trailed behind it.
It lifted a scroll out of nowhere, and the etched sigils pulsed quietly. Something ached in his head, a migrane throbbed and rumbled for a moment- before fading. He blinked blearily.
"...good, you seem awake, now." He looked down at the robed 'thing', blinking- it looked much more humanoid, between it's fur that tied together like one of those old chinese-master style ones. He chuckled, shaking his head. "I take it you understand me, as well, now?"
"...AAAAAAAAAAH-" He did what came naturally- in this case, screaming in mortal terror. A jab of the small man's staff broke him from his reverie. "Sht. No screaming."
"..." He looked over the figure as he spoke- small, harmless, but the hands...the fur was matted and rough, as if it had undergone intense abuse and was holding together.
"Am I in...where...okay, I'm just...confused." He blinked. "Can, uh. We...talk?" The small man seemed taken aback for a moment before sighing. "Oh god, another one." "Another what?" "Nothing."
"Alright, we can talk- as you're not going anywhere any time soon." He gestured to the chair. "You are in China, and through a scroll of Kung Fu- a lesson of the mind- you have come to speak our language- Chinese." He smiled- it was warm, an 'old man' smile.
"And you?" He blinked- traditional names wouldn't make sense here, as- well, china. Best he could do was try to blend in, so...think, damn it-
His memory turned to his WoW character roster- his rogue, Saluir. It would work.
"Salu'ir, uh- I'm a human, evidently those... aren't a thing- and I have NO IDEA what this is or why I'm here."
The small man waved a gnarled hand behind him. "...ah, rude of me. And, well- You don't seem like the type to be malicious," he stated. The door opened behind him, a goose wearing a golden vest and trousers offering a steeping cup of tea. He sat before him on the floor.
"I am Master Shifu- now, 'Salu'ir'- tell me your story."