NanoSteps -- the brainstorming thread

[ECSNorway]

Of all the places to find myself after a gate transition, aboard a train was far from the weirdest. Still, there was definitely something odd in the air. I could feel it, almost twisting, as I tried to extricate the bike from what seemed to be some rather choice furniture that it'd gotten jammed up in. After a minute or so, though, the feel had gone from noticeable to fingernails-on-chalkboard annoying, and I peered out between the slats of the car walls to see what I could see.

The town around the tracks looked normal, at first. I'd estimate the tech level as 1890's to 1920's at highest. Nothing seemed particularly out of place until I saw -it-. The portal, was the only word I could think of for it, arcing hugely above the buildings, and the tracks lead directly into its maw. Well, that decided -that-. I redoubled my efforts to get the bike out from where it was stuck.

Too late. The train sped up as it approached the portal, and I could feel the energy of the thing rolling over me as we approached it... and then passed through. The transition left me on the floor, emptying my guts into the furniture, hoping that I could finagle a way out of this before whoever it was intended for found out what had happened to it.

I'd just finally managed to extricate the bike from its prison when the door at the side of the car blew in. Perched on the edge, amidst the remains, were two women, twins, each with wild and spiky blonde hair. One was dressed in a rather nice duster and jeans, the other looked like a refugee from 'Barbie does Bondage', but both were sporting paired daisho and pistols. All in all, it made for an impressive sight.

The sensibly-dressed one reached out a hand to me. "Come with us if you want to live."

Since Bob asked. The world in question is Malifaux, a recent and IMO very well-done minis game. It's a Victorian Gothic/Steampunk sort of setting. A hundred years ago (ca. 1800), with Earth's magic fading, the greatest mages and sorcerors of the world gathered to punch a hole into another universe to try to find a new source of magic. They succeeded, and colonized the apparently post-apocalyptic empty world on the other side to mine for Soulstones, crystals that stored massive amounts of magical energy. A few years later, the portal was abruptly closed and the head of one of the colony leaders was tossed through with a note: "This world is ours."
More recently, the portal has mysteriously reopened, and an Earth desperate for new sources of magic has started recolonizing the other side. The natives are being a bit more cagey this time, infiltrating and skirmishing. The twins who greeted Doug are 'The Viktorias' - one of them is a mercenary from Malifaux-Earth named Viktoria, and the other is her Malifaux-borne Evil Twin. Each wields their world's version of a specific Masamune blade of particular power, and unlike most evil twin stories they've decided to combine forces for fun and profit.
--
Sucrose Octanitrate.
Proof positive that with sufficient motivation, you can make anything explode.