crash_town | Ella's Arrival

Not far from the diner, a young woman was exploring the mysterious Western town. She had accidentally stumbled upon it while walking around Domino Canyon. Ella had passed through some swirling light source and ended up just outside the entrance. The sign above had read, Crash Town. After discovering her phone didn’t have a signal, she was trying to find someone who knew where a payphone was or at least let her borrow their cell phone.

Silky straight blonde hair cascaded to her slender waist. A light blue long sleeved shirt showed her curves. Hung on her hips were blue jeans with a light pink belt. Attached to the belt was a deck box with a pink cherry blossom design. Encircling her neck was a black velvet choker connected to a short gold chain. In the center of two pearls is a gold heart. Affixed to her feet were black hiking boots.

Having been raised in an orphanage for ten years, she was lonely until Maximillion Pegasus adopted her. She finally felt like her life had meaning and was happy. At fifteen, her father allowed her to finally attend high school in Domino City, Oregon. On her first day, Ella met her best friends, Yugi, Téa, Tristan, Joey and Bakura. Despite having only just met them, she felt an instant connection.

Passing what resembled a saloon, she didn’t notice a small group of men all wearing similar clothing and matching red scarves looking at her.

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Malcolm was kicking back in the saloon with some drinks, enjoying another celebration. He wasn't paying attention to what his men were doing outside.

"Well, lookie here," one of them leered. "A little lady! Not many of them around here!"

"Too few, if you ask me," said a second.

They and others all started to advance on Ella.

Suddenly feeling like she was being watched, Ella glanced behind her. A group of rough looking men were following her. She increased her pace hoping to lose them.

"Oh, now don't be like that," one of them leered.

"We just wanna say Hello," another said.

They pursued her down the street, hoping to close in and corner her.

“I’d rather you back off,” she replied,sounding annoyed. Ella began to run hoping to lose the group of men. Turning a corner, she bumped into someone.

"Well, that's just not friendly at all," one of them mock-pouted.

Ella had bumped into another Crewmember, who also leered at her. "This is our town," he said. "You're right welcome to come in, but you have to be nice to us."

While he was eating, Radley heard a great deal of commotion outside. Frowning, he got up to investigate. Malcolm's Crew often bullied people in town. Newcomers usually got waylaid by them.

He stepped outside to see the scene on the street. A pretty girl being chased. That was never good.

"You know, you're all on my side of town," he mused. "Malcolm might not like that you've strayed this far. I certainly don't like it. Anyone here is under my protection."

“Being nice goes both ways. Coming after me does reward you with kindness,” she replied, turning around. She gasped in shock seeing more of the men behind her. ‘There’s no way I can defend myself against all these guys,’ Ella thought. Suddenly, she heard the voice of another guy. He sounded a lot nicer than the ones coming after her.

The Crewmembers scowled upon hearing Radley's arrival. The ringleader was about to retort when he spotted something on Ella's belt.

"Well, lookie here," he grinned. "This little lady is a Duelist! Just what we need!"

"And after how you've treated her, she'll probably never want to work for Malcolm," Radley said. "I sure wouldn't wanna be in your shoes, telling him how you lost a potential Duelist." He folded his arms. "Why don't you just go crawling back to him now?"

The Bunch started to join him outside. There were far more of them than there were Crewmembers.

Ella touched the deck box at her side. ‘What are these guys talking about? Why do they want Duelists?’ she thought. She watched as more soon joined the nicer guy trying to help her.

The Crewmembers finally, sullenly conceded that they had lost the fight. Glowering at Radley and the Bunch, they turned to trudge off.

"Come on, boys," one muttered.

Some of them hissed obscenities as they passed. A couple still leered at Ella.

Radley stayed looking tough until they passed by. Then he turned to Ella with an easy smile.

"Sorry about that. Those guys have itty-bitty brains and usually don't even think with them. I'm Radley, and this is the Bunch."

The Bunch all chorused greetings.

Ella looked relieved whenever they left. “It’s not your fault sir,” she replied with a smile. “Nice to meet everyone. I’m Ella Pegasus.”

"Well, like I told them, I feel responsible for everyone over here," Radley said. "You must be new in town. Pegasus, you say? Maximillion Pegasus has a daughter named Ella, if I remember right."

Ella nodded with a smile. “That’s correct sir. I’m his daughter,” she said. “I stumbled upon this town while hiking in Domino Canyon. And I have no idea how that strange light source brought me here.”

"Oh, another one from the portal, huh?" Radley mused. "We don't get it either, but it brings people over a lot. And I'm sorry to say, it doesn't seem to work in reverse. Once you're here, you can't leave."

Scotch nodded. "It's some kind of spooky force! None of us get it. It's all around the town and the mountains! When we hit the invisible wall, that's it, we have to turn back."

"I can offer you a meal and tell you more about the town if you wanna come inside the diner," Radley offered.

Ella turned pale from learning more about the portal. Being in this place without her loved ones made her heart feel like it was breaking. Then again, most of the people here may feel the same way. “A meal and more of an explanation of the town would be great. I’m a vegetarian by the way. I hope that doesn’t cause too much of an inconvenience,” she replied, trying to remain calm.

"Oh, that's fine," Radley soothed. "We have vegetarian items on the menu." He and the others stepped away from the door so Ella could go inside the diner.

Ella's Arrival

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