Who Are You? Who oo, oo, oo?

"Hey honey? You alright darlin'?" The thick accent cut through the fog of confusion. Jade stumbled and clipped the corner of something sharp. The light amps slipped, Jade gaining a half garish half normal view of the highly illuminated room.

"Urg.." She groaned as the pain in her hip blossomed, the time journey having muddled her brain slightly. She grabbed at the goggles and pulled them off rubbing her eyes.

"Steady on now darlin'" A hand gripped her arm and steadied her up again. "You been drinkin' too much? You lost your friends? Odd theme for a hen night..." The voice droned on. Jade's vision swam alarmingly into focus and she found herself at eye level with a charming young cowboy.

"Hi." She said, looking around.

"Hi." He smiled. "What's your name?"

"Jade... Jade Black..." She looked around, the noise and bustle of a busy casino began to assault her senses, she stumbled again, still dazed from the dark. She couldn't see anyone else, a dawning panic began to set in. "Cass?! Jay?!" She wheeled around, looking at the slot machines and the various card tables around the yawning chasm of a room.

"Hey now darlin' keep it calm. Now where d'you last see your friends?" He smiled in a disarmingly trusting way, teeth white and flashing a warm loving smile.

"Urh..." Jade thought about the plantation and the alien spiders. Perhaps not best to tell the sexy cowboy about it. She blushed as he straightened out slightly and raised one sculpted eyebrow, his checked shirt falling open to reveal a tanned and toned six pack. "I don't know." He eyed the strange goggles and looked over Jade again.

"Where are you from?" He asked gently, guiding her over to a seat by a bar. She noticed the embroidered nametag on his checked shirt. Chad.

"Blue Dwarf... You know, the JMC ship?" Jade said, hoping that maybe he had heard of the JMC, maybe he could even help her.

"Never heard of it.... Hey Mike! Can you get me a section five?" He looked behind him and half yelled down the bar. Another checked shirted cowboy with overly tight jeans nodded and moved off down the bar.

"Section five?" Jade queried.

"Yeah, it's a special drink for a special lady." He winked again, and his charm was working it's magic. Although, she thought she saw him glance over to one side. The man had obviously signalled at some point as several men in black suits were closing in around them. Ah, the Section Five 'drink' I get it now. Section Five must be crazy or lunatic drunkard or something.

"I, I think I need to go now." She stepped away from the cowboy and gulped as she noticed the advancing security. She didn't want to find out what laws or customs she had broken in this world already, what jail or torture awaited. She needed to at least find the others first.

"Yeah, maybe that's for the best. We ain't keen on crazy drunks in here." He shrugged, having realised the game was up and backed away from her. Jade's spine tingled in only the way it can as you are about to be grabbed from behind. She dropped to all fours as one of the guards lunged for her, his momentum sending him sprawling over her. She scrabbled out from under him, hitched up her skirts and belted for the door.

The security loomed in the doorway, scanning the crowds for her she looked down at her skirts and olde worlde dress, strange futuristic goggles and cursed under her breath. She ducked into a crowd of incoming gambling tourists and headed for the back of the room, in the hopes of finding something to get her out.

The security were closing in on her, guided by some unseen force. Almost as if the ceiling had cameras and they were being guided to her. Jade slowed to a stop as she passed the slot machines and side swiped a cup of coins. She threw it down one isle towards a guard, and the people on either side of her nearby exploded into a flurry of grabbing. They scrubbed about in the carpets trying to secure one extra quarter.

She had bought herself some time to get out, the neon sign over the staff door caught her eye. Bee lining for it she slipped inside and closed the door, glad that someone had left it on the catch this once. She locked it behind her and scanned the room, some sort of changing room for the staff. Cherry picking clothes that vaguely fit she ended up in a long brown skirt and an oversized hoodie over an oversized t-shirt. Grabbing all of the loose money from their wallets she again, slipped out of the side door and into a back alley.

*****

She had been walking for quite a while now, and whilst it wasn't the best looking bar, she was hungry and thirsty. At the minimum she needed coffee. She positioned herself in a booth by the window. She plonked her back down next to her, a chink from the bottles of wine that had been stashed away. A deep rooted habit had made her pick up a couple of bottles as soon as Cassandra had mentioned Alien Spiders. Who knows, it could have been an alternate evolution of the Hymenopterra right? She shrugged her shoulders and ordered a coffee and a hot breakfast bagel. She was just biting into the greasy bacon, egg and sausage bagel when someone came up to her;

<Snip>
“Hey. Name’s Kenneth. I travel through the multiverse fighting oppression, saving the underdog and searching for an edible pot noodle. I have no idea why I’m where I am, and I can’t leave. I’m hoping you have answers to my questions – if not, can I borrow some of the local currency, presuming you have some? That bar’s looking at me funny…”
</End Snip>

"Mmph?" She queried chewing and swallowing the mouthful of breakfast. The man plonked himself down opposite her and smiled broadly.

"Kenneth." He held out a hand.

"Doctor Jade Black." Jade said, hesitantly shaking the mans hand, unsure if he was for real or just another crazy.

"I sensed something from the 18th century, I assumed you were from that time? But You don't look much like a doctor from back then." He looked her up and down.

"No... You must have picked up on this." She held up one of the bottles. Alright, so he knew where they had been, STCP? Or was he the paradox? Whatever this guy is, Cass needs to know.

"Ah, that would explain it." He lapsed into an awkward silence.

"Urm... So..." Jade was trying to think of something to say when it dawned on her. "Hey if you can scan for 18th century stuff, can you scan for other stuff too?"

"Sure I can!" He grinned widely.

"Well then can you scan for other stuff like this?" She handed the goggles that Cass had leant her to Kenneth.

"It'll take a bit of an adjustment... And... But..." His face screwed up in concentration. "Shouldn't be a problem..." He trailed off noticing that Jade had become distracted. Her attention had been drawn to the front doors. Several policemen had entered the bar and were chatting with the waitress that had served Jade.

"Uh oh..." Jade said, finishing the bagel and grabbing the coffee to go.

"What?" Kenneth asked quizzically.

"I think we have to go. Come on." She said, pulling the hood up over her head and grabbing his sleeve to hurry him up.

<Tag! Why are they here, are they here for you or me or neither?! :D >

OOC - Phil I would have included you but I ran out of post to do it in! :( Sorry! :(

Also CSI: Vegas theme? No..? Well I thought it was a funny title. (Bagsie not recording this podcast as you'd have to sing the title! ah ha ha ha!)