Sigil 1 - Transferance

Legends of Steagarth

Sigil I - Transference

In DC, the neighborhood known as Deanwood wasn’t exactly known for its safety. But like any other place, it was simply one that had its issues, but had many just trying to make ends meet and live out their lives. Among them, in one of the many homes, lived the Rivers family, Dwayne Rivers, Tricia Rivers, and their son, Antwon T. Rivers. Antwon was well known for the good head he had on his shoulders, even if he was very rebellious in his younger days, guidance or not. Though eventually, he gained an outlet in being given kickboxing lessons, which he’d combined with two arts, Shotokan Karate,and Sambo.While he was a successful in local amateur mma matches, rather than his previous street fights, and had gotten a bit of buzz. Though, even so, many of those fights were self-defense, or the occasional idiot thinking it was a great idea to boost their reputation by fighting the guy known for being able to fight.

His graduation from high school was followed by him getting into DC’s Howard University, Majoring in political science, and he intended to minor in History. There, he had a bit of a reputation, to say the least.

The T in Antwon’s name, his middle name, was Turner. Dubbed such after Nat Turner, the reason was clear to see when one entered his home, Paintings of Pre Colonial Architecture, those of black Historical figures, and the all-too famous flag, three bands of red black and green, hung above the door. Antwon himself was a larger man, standing at 5’11, though not especially tall, somewhat above average, with a much more stocky build, though strong, not exactly chiseled. His head was cut low, a fade, simple, as he preferred it… While a thick coating of facial hair went down his cheeks and spread upon most of his chin.

His focus lay upon his laptop, where the document that was to be his paper was on screen, as he navigated the screen, going from source to source, looking to even the background of those sources to see if there was an agenda. That much was simply in his nature, after all. To look between the lines and never leave narratives unquestioned was how he was raised. His eyes narrowed, brows knitted What had been affectionately named by his mother as-

“I see the Turner Furrow is back…” The words came from a woman of a slightly darker shade than he, her locs twisted and wrapped into bantu knots.

“Ma… Just working on this paper.”

Eventually, joining them, was a man who looked to be almost a carbon copy of Antwon, save for age, at the very least, his hair mostly the same black color, save or some strands of white upon his beard, He nodded with approval.

“Checking your sources, checking their background, just like we taught you…” The man placed a hand upon his son’s head, ruffling it. An act which miffed him, somewhat, but not nearly enough to show annoyance. If anything, that was directed at the screen.

“Pre colonial Information can be hard to come by at times… Perhaps if they bothered to do Archaeology in the motherland, or listened to the oral histories passed down…”

His mother nodded.

“It is what it is, but you gotta keep looking…” He didn’t really find himself disagreeing with that, not in the least. If nothing else, he knew complaining wouldn’t do anything for him in this-

His thought process was cut off, as it seemed time had begun to freeze around him, circles of like, strange symbols he did not recognize, all gradually growing larger, as his vision grew obscured…

“W- What the Fu-”

…

Across the world, Overlooking Kanto’s Sagami River, was the Yamajiro, a mountain castle known as Kawagata-jo, built in the Muromachi period, it served both as a home to the Hanamori Clan, and controlled the inland route between Sagami Bay and the mountain passes of The Kai Province. Its strategic location allowed the Hanamori clan to extract tolls and host military deployments. Like many castles of its time, it was built with the mountain itself, the dirt of the mountain carved into fortifications, ditches and moats constructed with mountain streams, later additions packed stone into its foundations. Ports in the walls for arrows and guns, along with the encampments the clan built surrounding it, made it a tough nut to crack… However, even this clan could not hold out forever. When the Bakumatsu period came, so did the beginning of their descent into irrelevance…

Or, at the least, the main branch did. Hanamori no Kawagata, A cadet branch of the family in a less important fief within Kyushu, had arrived, Lead by Hanamori Suzaku. They welcomed the changes with open arms, in fact. Investing in industry, railroads, sources of profit not eliminated by centralization, and in time, this Branch, the Hanamori no Kawagata, had become the main branch, while the others atrophied. Working with the new government, building Warehouses, Textile Mills, getting into shipping, etc, until it became the Hanamori Zaibatsu, keeping its power even after the original system of nobility was dismantled. The compound only continued to be modernized, and even now, was still owned by the family. Now declared a cultural landmark, and serving today as a heavily privatized estate and historical archive.

Though the Zaibatsu was no longer an allowed form of company, Having been dismantled following American occupation. that did not stop the Hanamori from remaining relevant. Now, like their Zaibatsu Brethren, such as the still very well known Mitsubishi Zaibatsu, they simply adapted to the new structure, and kept passing the position of chairman down from Parent to child… Though the current Heiress, or one of the candidates, was not currently considered a good one by many, even if they bit their tongue. Her outfit was a simple one, Red silk pajamas, Her black hair just barely reached her shoulders, and her height was around the average, 5’4. Though there were more things of note, the anime posters and figurines spread across. As well as a bookshelf containing more… Steamy Manga, to say the least. and what was on her TV man of black hair covered one of his eyes, his arms crossed, looking away from the camera.

"Kazuki-kun is so dreamy in this scene!" she exclaimed, clasping her hands together.

"The way he protects the protagonist while maintaining his brooding distance... classic tsundere perfection!"

Her companion, an Asian Monitor Lizard, simply sat there, with the standard look of disinterest, as his tongue flicked the air… Leading to her leaning closer to him.

“Come on, Rokuro, don’t give me that look…” Count Rokuro, or Rokuro as he was commonly called for sure, a pet she had, though not one many would want to get near for too long. Eventually, she began to tap through the game once more, until, another stepped into the room, the paper door slid open, a man slightly older than her, with a head of slicked back hair, and a clean-shaven face entered, a three piece suit upon his body.

“... We pay for your tuition, you still stay here, yet, when I arrive, here you are still playing around rather than focusing on your studies…” The one in front of her was Hanamori Hideki, by far, considered to be the more favored one for the position of heir by most of the family, even if she was the granddaughter of the current chairman. Though both descendents of Hanamori Suzaku, the family, essentially Neo-aristocrats, even if corporate rather than having an actual noble titles, such didn’t exist post american occupation, had split into different branches even since his time. Hideki originated from a different branch, he was her second cousin, the descendent of Hanamori Susumu, their chairmans late sister, Hanamori Keiko.

“Come on, Hide-kun… It’s character Research…”

He scoffed at this. “Character Research, is that what you call it? Regardless, Your grandfather is calling a meeting in his study to discuss quarterly earnings and the future of the company… As for you… I’d suggest you get serious about all this soon… Your father maintains what was built by better men, I only hope you can manage even that…” He paused, as he looked over to Rokuro with squinted eyes.

“That brings me to another thing… See to it that you keep that prehistoric creature contained. The housekeeping staff complains about finding shed skin in the strangest places…” With nothing more to say, he exited, he had always held some sort of resentment toward her overly carefree attitude. What right did she have to keep her role as the heiress with her apparent lack of financial.. Anything? Let alone Logistics and corporate law… He slid the door closed behind him. That response wasn’t something she wasn’t unused to hearing, at this point, it’d begun to fall into the background, somewhat. She simply began to stroke Rokuro’s head, as she began to play her game once more.

“... At least I still have you, Kazuki-Kun…” Her thoughts were cut off, as she noted something… Strange, Glyphs, and circles appearing all around her, something that made her eyes widen, she jumped in surprise as she clutched Rokuro, who once more, seemed disinterested, simply tasting the air with his tongue.

“Magic circles… Runes? This must be…”

An excited smile came across her face, as she threw her hand up to the sky.

“Iseka-”

…

In the verdant highlands of Scotland, there lay a wide open pasture and farmhouse. Flocks of sheep, the famous highland cattle, with shaggy coats of orange that differed from the standard. It was a relatively isolated affair, only a few small farms scattered around surrounding it. Though, of note, was the young man standing among the sheep, in his left hand, there was a broadsword, one he’d gained in an auction, with a basket hilt, which he’d dubbed Mac an Duin. In his off hand, a much shorter sword he’d dubbed Cannie. Though at first he was attending to his tasks, depositing hay for the cattle, some of which he pet as they walked by, his attention quickly turned to something else. He stood with his back straight, and shoulders squared, as he took tighter hold of his blades. The man holding these blades was young, Auburn hair which reached his shoulders, and a taller, lanky body.

The sheep observed his practice, their occasional bleats seeming almost judgmental to Alasdair's ears.

"Aye, laugh if ye must," he called.

"But when the day comes that knights return tae glory, ye'll no' be laughin' then, will ye?"

He executed what he believed to be a proper parry, followed by a thrust, but the weight of the sword threw him off balance. His foot slipped on the damp grass, and he tumbled unceremoniously to the ground, landing hard on his backside with an undignified grunt.

The nearest sheep bleated.

"Critics, the lot of ye," Alasdair muttered, pushing himself back to his feet.

A border collie came bounding over the rise, its black and white coat a blur against the verdant landscape. It approached Alasdair with obvious concern, circling him and nudging his leg with its muzzle. The loyal shepherd who had bonded with him since he was a puppy…

"I'm fine, Angus," Alasdair assured the dog, reaching down to scratch behind its ears… The fact that the time of Knights and whatnot was long over, hell, it's been so long before the modern day was a well known fact to him.

“In a different time, a'd hae bin a knight, 'n' ye mah hound, eh?" Eventually, a booming voice sounded, one of a man with graying hair, who’d clearly grown somewhat smaller with age.

“boy, if you’re dane playing warrior, there’s wirk tae be done!” And there it was.

"right oan time, eh…” Alasdair trailed off, patting Angus once more, as he stood to his feet.

“well, ye heard da, round em up, angus." The dog began to run off to do just that, but yet, he found himself facing a different issue… Strange markings and circles, as the dog in front of him seemed to freeze, as did the rest of the world around him.

“Jings!”

…

Three from across the world, three now within a room darkened, lit only by candles and lanterns. The walls themselves were filled with Cartogue, paintings, and no small amount of decorations… As Antwon began to sit up, he rubbed his head, his eyes moving around. His own studies of history helped him somewhat, but not much.

“Man… Where the hell am I? This internal design, Baroque period for sure… But that doesn’t explain how I got here, or where I am…”

“Tch, Ye'r tellin me... Ah wis in th' middle o' somethin..” Antwon slowly began to turn in the direction of the voice, looking to see a second sitting there.

“I’m not the only one, then…” His eyes moved around the room, beginning to scan for anything out of place, and indeed, he did… He saw there a woman clutching what looked to be a large lizard in her arms, more than that, she seemed more dressed for bedtime than whatever situation they were in.“I can’t believe it, I’ve really been Isekaid! I even got to bring Rokuro with me!”

Her gaze eventually flew to the two who apparently were brought with her, something she assessed in little time.

“I even have a party! My name is Miyu, Hanamori Miyu!” She said with a smile. She walked over to him, holding out the lizard in her arms. “And this is count Rokuro.” Who, as usual seemed resigned, simply flicking his tongue, certainly not a usual pet in his neck of the woods, Antwon only gave a non-committal pat upon its head, before he turned his attention elsewhere.

“Hanamori… So we have a member of the Old Money with us, who seems to believe we’re in an rpg…”

“ Off to a great start” He stated, with a sigh, sarcasm clear in his tone.
“The Name’s Antwon, Antwon T rivers… What’s your deal, Scottsman?”

"Alasdair MacLeod, Aspiring Swordsman.” The man said with a bow. "And I'm no' sure I share the lass's enthusiasm for... whatever this is."

That much, he could not disagree with.

“Whatever the case is, It seems that somebody has summoned us here if what’s around us is anything to go by… Though magic should be scientifically impossible, here we are… Last thing I remember is doing my paper, before those circles appeared…”

“Aye, ah wis practicing wi' mah swords, herding mah flock wi' mah dug angus, neist thing ye ken, time stops, 'n' 'ere ah am."

Miyu gradually began to slide over to Antwon.

“But let’s get into what’s more important, Are we gonna get magic? Are we the chosen ones? Will we get to fight a demon king?” Her face got closer to his as each question came, only resulting in him placing his palm against her face, as she still extended her arms and reached for him.

“How should I know…?”

“"i ken yin thing... A've sel trained masell wi' thae blades, that cuid handle whit comes oor way…” Antwon looked at him with squinted eyes.

“Self training blades? What’s that gonna do… You’re a shepherd playing at being a knight…” Antwon summarizes bluntly.

Alasdair's face flushed with indignation. "And what exactly do you do that's so grand, then? Professional critic?"

"I'm a political science major at Howard University," Antwon replied evenly. "Focusing on revolutionary movements and historical patterns of resistance."

"Ah, so ye study about fighters instead of bein' one," Alasdair shot back with a smirk.

Antwon took a step toward the Scotsman "Think again… Made my own style with Sambo, Shotokan Karate, and Kickboxing.... Trust me, Sir Bagpipes, I know how to throw down when necessary, more so than you do…"

“Sir bagpipe?! you’d best tak' that back, shortie..” Alasdair shot back.

“Shortie? What is this, a Disney movie, you gonna threaten to give me a swirly next? Best pick something better, beanpole” Both began to step toward each other.

"tough blether, let's see if yer bite is as pure tough as yer bark..." While the brewing conversation continued, the third among them, who’d remained strangely silent,watched this with a blush building upon her cheeks.

“Oh my, count Rokuro… This… This reminds me of Omadake! two elite warriors from rival nations meet on the battlefield… but end up stranded together in enemy territory. One is a blunt, hot-headed soldier from the east; the other, a sharp-tongued noble… Scene for scene, it's right here!” Her mind began to recall the rather… Steamy scenes and CG, That only made her face burn hotter, as steam seemed to come from her ears.This seemed to cause some pause among the two, who glanced at her.

“Two elite warriors meet in neutral territory, sparks fly, grudges flare, one’s from a proud bloodline and the other’s like, super scrappy but principled, and then they both realize that maybe… just maybe… it wasn’t hate they felt all along.”

She gasped mid-rant. “they even have the same poses Antwon’s doing the ‘arms slightly raised, posture tense but cool’ stance and Alasdair’s going full ‘offended noble tilt. Don’t you see it, Rokuro?”

Rokuro himself had apparently gotten distracted, chasing what looked to be… Some kind of rodent-like creature throughout the room. Her statements took all attention away from what they were thinking about before, as their gazes flew to her completely.

“HUH?!” They shouted in apparent confusion, though, the two glanced at each other in annoyance and their synchronization.

“In the mountain’s cold winter nights, they have to sleep together, and stay close to maintain warmth, their passion grows, their affection,and, then…then… KYAAAA~” She squealed, as blood began to drip from her nose… Though, she eventually wiped it off, as she seemed to march across the room, appearing between the two.

“Don’t you two see the chemistry-”

“HELL NO!” They shouted in unison.

Though, this was not to continue in a Vacuum, as eventually, the door to the room swung open, In front of them were troops bearing armor. Clad in half-plate of burnished steel chased with copper inlays, their cuirasses seemed sculpted to mimic mountain ridges, jagged and geometric. Wearing fur-lined cloaks of deep alpine blue. Their pauldrons are large and angular. Their faces were obscured by Helmets visored, full-faced, with a narrow vertical slit for sight, crowned with ridged combs.from their belts hung sabers, and a pistol, though very early ones, in what looked to be a holster.

“looks lik' oor welcoming committee." Alasdair noted.

“That they are… Can’t tell what era that armor is from, doesn’t seem to fit any army i know of from my studies, but.. If they have holsters…” Antwon’s mind began to drift off as he attempted to decode this, all the while, their more excitable companion watched this with stars in her eyes.

“Whoa.. Real Knights, maybe even royal guards! If that’s the case, then the king should be-”

Apparently, she was correct in that regard, as the line of knights parted, entering were two figures. A man, who looked to be in his late 30s,’ with a coat covered in golden embroidery, a sword at his side, and a thick beard upon his face. His long locks a dark purple, a hair color which, though not natural in their world, may have been so in this one. Even without knowing who he was, his regal attitude was very visible. Beside him was a woman of advanced age, her hair graying, and green eyes bright as gemstones. In her hand, there lay a staff. Words came from the mouth of the regal man, and the old woman, but the words were none they could understand, which showed in their expressions… After some time, they noted this, and the old woman tapped her staff unto the floor, and yet again did the runes and glyphs appear, one under where it’d fallen.

“There… You should be able to understand now. So the Origin Shift spell was successful, then…” The regal man stated, gaining a nod from the mage.

“It would seem so, Your Majesty…” He only hummed, as he stepped forward.

“Welcome to this land, heroes of another world. I am Zalkrien the IV, 25th King of the Velmorran Realm…” A king, huh. While one among them looked excited, and one looked neutral, one in particular, Antwon, looked the exact opposite…

“Well, Zalkrien, I’d like to question why you took us away from our world without so much as asking…” Antwon noted, his two companions glanced over at him in surprise at his boldness, to talk to a monarch like that. One of the guards stepped forward, in little time

“You will speak to his majesty with resp-” However, he was cut off by the King extending his arm in front of him, a signal to halt.

He would need to Deescalate soon, lest the ones summoned get off on the wrong suit.

“I understand your anger, but we Had little choice.. Lady Mae only developed the Origin Shift spell over the past 30 years, we knew not how it would work, but in our situation, we needed to make the gamble…” In their situation? What could that mean? Perking up at this, however, was Miyu.

“Oh, so we’re going the chosen one route, are we gonna go on an adventure, get some more party members? Perhaps a dark brooding prince, a Mysterious elf-”

"let th' jimmy speak afore ye gang aff huvin ideas…” Alasdair stated with a palm on his face.

The king seemed to take this in stride as he gestured for them to follow.

“All will be explained in due time, for now, let us show you where you’ll be staying. I'm sure being transferred here must have had some effect…” Ultimately, they did follow, even if some of their suspicions hadn’t disappeared completely. The hallway outside of where they were had upon it a line of windows that gave them a view of the city around them. Houses forged of stone, most standing at three stories at the most were spread throughout, steep shingle roofs. Around the city itself were Hills and Mountains alike, the palace they were in apparently sitting upon one of them, given what they could see from here. This was an alpine country, that much was clear. But what was truly noted was the Mountain sized monolith in the center of the city, its base surrounded by what looked to be defensive fortifications…A gigantic crystal of a deep blue color, which shined in the light of the Two moons in the sky, Something that filled even the normally composed Antwon with surprise. If there was any doubt that this was not their world, it was certainly gone now.

Note- Well, there you have it, This is much more of a prototype, and I’m unsure if I plan to continue this one. I'd need to do a lot more planning, though there is some I have done that you all haven’t seen yet. But i’ll be upfront with the intent, things will not be nearly as simple as the normal Isekai Setup.