It Never Rains, But It Pours

[Harry Dresden]

Harry didn't trust any vehicle he could summon, with his emotions running on the passionate side, and reaching for a winged mount like the one he'd had in Camelot had caused a violent bit of feedback, which made it a no-go. The wizard didn't want to waste any more time than he already had trying to figure out what he could summon, so he took the direct route; he ran.

Harry's no Olympic sprinter, but he's pretty fast. He practices running, and regularly. His long legs help. So does the Winter Knight's Mantle. He didn't tap into the full strength of the Winter inside him, but part of it was constantly present. It didn't do much, but what it did do was let him keep up a good pace for a nice, long while. The fountain loomed in the middle distance, quickly looming larger and larger. Today it was a large stone number, several stories high, as opposed to what it had been when he appeared there.

After several minutes of running, Harry's feet hit the cobblestones around the Fountain, and he slowed, catching his breath and reaching down into the fountain to scoop up a drink of water. It wasn't the most sanitary thing, but he was thirsty. He'd managed to get two handfuls into his mouth before the hairs on the back of his neck stood up, instincts screaming at him that someone else was there.

When Harry's instincts yelled like that, he listened. He whirled, blasting rod appearing from the depths of his duster as though by magic, staff held in his left hand, shield bracelet shaken out and at the ready. He faced nothing but the white expanse of the Nexus. He slowly pivoted, trying to get a fix on whoever else was close by. "Hell's bells, I don't have time for this."

[Retane]

Retane barely had time to take cover as the footsteps got closer. The Namek crouched low and put his back to the wall, barely in the shadows of the fountain as the footsteps came to a halt. The Namekian peered around the edge to look on at a ruffled vagabond of sorts. The newcomer stared down into the fountain before he reached in and cupped a hand of water only to bring it in and drink it down.

He repeated it a second time, and the Namek could only try to get a better few of the stranger as he felt his guard was down. He was a dark cloak of sorts with brown hair. He seemed human in all aspects, similar to Arith. Retane didn't stop to wonder how he was able to discern that the mans race or even sex, nor did he have time to. As he was leaning out his fott had lost footing and he had to jerk back suddenly or fall forward and be exposed.

Retane wanted to curse himself for his folly. He knew he had made a noise of some sort then and that the vagabond had heard it. The Namek heard the shuffling of the human's feet once, and again and again. Retane could only guess that the man was wondering if his mind were playing tricks on him and trying to discern where he had heard the noise actually come from.

The Green Warrior simply shook his head in a low sigh and stood up and walked from his hiding spot out into the open.

The man's eyes snapped to and focused on Retane then as the Namekian folded his arms and looked sideways at the man. "Who are you?"

Retane noticed the staff in the man's hand. The question was simple enough, and the Namek could only look down at the ground wondering exactly how imposing he was looking right now. He was taller then the man, had a dark green vest and loose pants as well as black boots. He was most likely alien to the man with his green skin, pointed ears and antennae that protruded from his head. Fear hadn't actually struck the face of the man, but it was something more like anxiousness or something. Retane couldn't put his hands on it but he was certain that he did in fact look imposing enough.

"It was you that came upon me. Perhaps I should be the one asking that question before I give such an answer?" Retane opened his eyes and shot a glance to see what the stranger would do in response.

[Harry Dresden]

The being that stepped out to meet him was clearly not human. That wasn't exactly abnormal for Harry, though he hadn't seen anything quite like this before. It looked more like a humanoid slug than any sort of fae or demon he'd encountered. The being stood a little taller than Harry (a rare occurence), with two antennae, pointed ears, and solid green skin. A wereslug? Come on, Dresden. That's a stupid idea. Still, that left the question; "Who are you?"

The alien gave some sort of cryptic half-answer in response that basically amounted to "I was here first so you tell me." That drew a sigh from Harry. Maybe it was some sort of faerie. He kept the blasting rod trained on the slugman, aiming for center mass. "I didn't see anyone here. You walked out to meet me. Anyway, I'm just passing through." The being was, to Harry's dismay, between himself and the gate to Coruscant, the small dot on the horizon only standing out because of the permanent structure erected around it. "I don't have time to play games, Sluglord. Are you going to let me get past or do I have to break out the salt?"

[Retane]

"I didn't see anyone here. You walked out to meet me. Anyway, I'm just passing through."

Retane didn't move much but turned himself almost as if opening himself to be a target. The staff focused on his chest, where his arms were folded. The Namek wondered if it would hurt and if he wasould be fast enough to get out of the way. He knew though, that there was really nly one way to find out.

"I don't have time to play games, Sluglord. Are you going to let me get past or do I have to break out the salt?" The vagabond seemed content on passing through.

Still, Retane could see how anxious he was and quick to put up his defenses. He was unsure about the sluglord and salt comments but didn't allow his confusion to linger to much. The Green warrior dropped his arms and moved out of his way, "Namek."

The vagabond started to lower his staff as the green warrior moved out the way, 'What?"

" I am a Namek", Retane spoke with pride. "Not a Sluglord."

The human seemed to pause for a moment as he ook a few steps passed and shrugged, "What do you want me to say?"

Retane, paused for a moment thinking. "A trade..."

The vagabond stopped for a moment, "Whats that?"

"A name for a name. And maybe you could tell me where I am at?" Retane tried to contain himself though his voice faltered for a moment.

"You first?" The human offered after a few moments.

"Retane."

"Retane the Namek, huh?" The human cocked his head for a moment then nodded. "Harry."

The Namek looked on as the man started walking again, and he made sure to remember the name and face.

"You are in a Universe created by a god named Omni. Didn't he speak to you when you got here?"

Retane thought hard for a few moments, "No... I don' think so..."

Harry paused for a moment and shook his head, "I Don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing..." ANd he was onward.