Aether Shanties RP (PM if interested/Started)

[Cybele]

"Don't get me wrong though, Jason is a... Hard person to please when it comes to mechanics," Sheska said with a smirk.

"I'll keep that in mind, thanks," Roy said and headed down the stairs to the engine room after making sure he hadn't left any of his tools on the crate.

The hold of the ship was dark and got darker the further down he went. Roy disliked the dark and not being able to see but luckily Sheska's directions were pretty clear and he soon found his way to the engine room.

"Hello?" he asked as he stepped inside, squinting in the dark to see if Jason was there.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Zach listened to Eddie's service history with interest. It would seem like he had quite a few stories of his own to tell.

"So, what was it that first made you want to serve on ships?" he asked next.

 

[hiei82]

[HEADING=2]Adrianna[/HEADING]

"...a grey skinned female misbegotten." the man said, before placing a letter on her table. Adrianna picket the letter up and opened it briefly. She didn't bother reading the message - it would say the same things it always said. Instead, she glanced down to the bottom to confirm the signature at the bottom, as well as the wax seal.

It was in order.

From just his words, it was clear the man wasn't some simple ambassador - here to scream about the "injustice" of having his party invitation revoked - but a Chuno Ggun Inquisitor, hunting a pirate of some value. This wasn't the first time she'd met an Inquisitor before; it wasn't even the worst case she'd encountered them. In fact, all things said and done, it was once of the friendlier encounters she'd had.

"Shall I continue to refer to you Lt. Com. Ring, or would you prefer Inquisitor?" she asked, before proceeding - it was always good to know how to address a Chuno Ggun for as many of them preferred the subtle approach as preferred to revel in their authority. She waited until he replied before continuing.

"We did encounter a pirate vessel by the name Mermaid - approximately three days ago. We exchanged fire - both ships taking damage - then attempted a boarding. During that boarding, I remained aboard the vessel, so I cannot be certain of this specific Misbegotten, but my First Officer - Exeter St. John - reportedly engaged a Misbegotten of that description; removing her arm before The Mermaid managed to escape. Her injuries were reportedly serious; if she's still alive, then she is no doubt in search of a replacement arm in the City. While docking, we spotted The Mermaid in port here in Helium - Port 7, Dock 36." She said, giving the Inquisitor most of the information she knew about the vessel.

She debated internally for a few seconds before adding. "My Second Mate and I have put in motion a plan to sabotage the ship - with no traceable connection back to The Invincible or the Empire to protect the Heluim City trade agreements."

That was everything she knew. "If there is anything else The Invincible can aid you on, please allow me to know. That said, The Invincible is on an important mission of its own and has reasonable cause to attack The Mermaid. If you make a move on The Mermaid or its crew while in Helium, I ask you to keep the actions discrete so as not to delay our own mission."

 

[Arcanist]

"Hello?"

Jason perked up as he heard Roy's voice. He must have finished his errand with Sheska. He extinguished his welding stick and handed it over to the workman to his right. "Finish touching up this pipe. I'm gonna be busy showing this greenhorn around." The workman nodded in affirmation and turned to work as Jason walked to the squinting boy.

"Sorry about the dim lights. It normally isn't so dark around here - the boiler sees to that." He gestured to the engine block at the room's head - it was massive metal block taking up most of the floorspace, with copper pipes snaking every which way into the floor and ceiling. "We got lucky on our trip over here, you know. We had an... altercation, but the engine itself only took superficial damage. Like I said, tough old *****." He took out a cigarette and pressed it against the boiler's red-hot steel plating. It smouldered for a moment before lighting, and Jason placed it between his teeth with a grin. "One of the few benefits of working in this hellhole. Don't have to buy your own lighters."

He reached into his satchel and produced his clockwork arm. It appeared to be a nearly perfect facsimile of an actual limb wrought in intricate clockwork and steel - the only major addition it needed was plating to protect the delicate parts within. "Unfortunately for us, Sheska didn't walk away from that little scuffle as well as the ship. That's were I - and, by extension, you - come in." He placed it on the table and attached the wires protruding from the base of the arm to a voltmeter, and stressed each in turn. "As you can see, this may well be one of the most advanced prosthetic arms ever built. But... we have a couple of problems. First off, the thing took me three years to develop - it's not something I can recreate at the drop of a hat. And second, I originally developed it to fit myself in the event of injury. You'd be surprised how dangerous my line of work can be."

He turned to Roy, gesturing to the arm. "That means it isn't properly sized to fit Sheska. We'll need to retool it. My test to you," He reached once more into his bag and produced a length of measuring tape, tossing it Roy's way. "Is to take detailed measurements of Sheska's remaining arm and develop a plan to start this process. I'd do it myself, but we cast off as soon as the ship is able, so I'm strapped for time. Don't worry about wanting for equipment - we'll have plenty of that soon enough. I'll leave the arm in your care until your report back." He bit down on his cigarette, the smoke mixing with that of the coals in the boiler. "I certainly hope you're a good machinist, kid. If you break this arm, I'm gonna break YOURS and throw you off the ship myself. We clear?"

 

[Redryhno]

"So, what was it that first made you want to serve on ships?"

"Eh?"Eddie looked up again from his work over the cannons, though they were nearly done,"What's wid you and all these questions? I'm 'ere now, that's all that matters anyways. You don't see me asking you how you came to the idea that a bow was better in the sky than a gun. Or why a Groundling like youse up here in the fi'st place. Now do ya?"

With the final gun finished, or at least as much as Eddie was planning on doing, he threw the rag back in the corner and suited back up, holster and gun first and carefully, then the coat. Unfortunately, he forgot that he'd rolled his sleeves up and was forced to take it back off to correct his mistake.

 

[Ruedyn]

"I could possibly try and talk to either the Quartermaster Portnoy or Rear Admiral Lanestar herself, see if we can't arrange for something to be delivered to the ship during our lengthened stay here due to the request for a upgraded engine if I recall correctly. Should I prove successful, I'll need to know what size you are James, care to elaborate on that?"
"Yeah, sure I guess? I don't remember my measurements, might need to do, or redo, that one. Or I can go without the uniform for a little while longer? It's not THAT important..." James shrugged, his half truths and optimistic thinking were more outward thoughts than any real attempt at guile.
"Still, you're the superior here."

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Zach shrugged. "What can I say? I'm a curious soul." he answered, his usual easy smile returning. "Comes with the territory I guess. Back on the ground, it was my job to puzzle things out. Perhaps that's what I'm doing now, only with words instead of following tracks and the like... Look, point is I'm trying to gain some perspective. I left my home because in one way or another I was always trying to get somewhere else, and when I first saw a ship it seemed like the answer to all my questions, something that could take me places I couldn't even dream of. You though, you're Skyfolk right? Being up in the air must seem as normal to you as the ground did to me. So, was that enough for you? Are you here because you're looking for something else, or because you know you've already found everything you're looking for?"

 

[deathbydeath]

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?! GET THE HELL AWAY FROM MY THINGS!!!"

Yet again, Drustan Cynwrig found himself at odds with the dilenquent youth of Helium City. For three months, Drustan felt like he had become the focal point of all criminal youth activity, and not in the good way (if there was one). If they weren't fighting him, they were trying to rob him. If they weren't trying to rob him, then they were harassing him. If they weren't harassing him, then they were arranging for others to do what they couldn't. And if they weren't doing that, well, they still existed. As Drustan snatched his duffel bag of possessions from one thug and smashed in the face of another, he sprinted to the door of his temporary lodgings but was stopped; a smarmy teen with a slight crown of black hair threw himself around Drustan, wrapping his arms around the large Skyfolk's throat. Refusing to be stopped on his date with destiny, though, Drustan tripped himself, sending his considerable mass rolling over the threshold and crushing the young punk until he felt like an aged jelly. His ebony leather duster fluttering behind him, Drustan laughed a laugh of triumph, as he had finally overcome the last obstacle this godforsaken metropolis had to throw at him. He had been freed.

Seeing that the fence had yet to be installed, Drustan decided to teach he dock security a lesson and entered the same way he had before: by dropping off a large height from someone's roof. He strode again onto the Invincible, refusing to allow any of its majesty to slip from his mind. After standing on the deck for a couple of minutes being confused, he managed to triangulate the location of his new quarters by probing questions in the various crew members as they milled about the deck, doing whatever redshirts do.

As he approached his new abode, Drustan placed his things down by his bunk and sat down beside it. If he remembered correctly, then he was supposed to find the Admiral at 13-something. Sticking his head out of a porthole due to a lack of a clock, Drustan stared straight up, then drew his head back inside because the sun stared directly back. Desperately blinking in an attemp to get his eyes back, Drustan decided to take a nap, then go find the Admiral, as he remembered a fairly important-looking person trying to talk privately with her.

Concluding his thoughts, Drustan sat on his bed, leaning against the wall, and had his first content sleep in a long while.

 

[Redryhno]

So, was that enough for you? Are you here because you're looking for something else, or because you know you've already found everything you're looking for?"

"Hella the Skies, you ask too many questions. You was brought on to be another body, not ta talk our buddies to death. You wanta talk to sommone about feelings and philo-sulpheric quesions, go lookin' fer the guys in the engine room, or Isaacaiah. I'm just here for the ride, and I don't intend on gettin' off this tub till I die."

 

[Cybele]

Roy paid careful attention to what Jason told him to do, his eyes luckily adjusting to the dim light.

"I'll leave the arm in your care until your report back. I certainly hope you're a good machinist, kid. If you break this arm, I'm gonna break YOURS and throw you off the ship myself. We clear?"

Roy couldn't help but smirk. He had expected to be put to welding pipes, this was something much more difficult but also more interesting.

Roy had spent a good seven or so years apprenticed to an inventor so he liked to think that he knew at least a thing or two about engineering, though not nearly as much as he knew about firearms. Looking at the intricate clockwork arm however made him feel the same way he had felt on the first day he had started working for Mr. Cirrus and the inventor had shown him a small clockwork mechanism and told him to figure out how it worked - lost and awed.

Luckily Jason had only told him to come up with a plan and not actually retool the arm himself. Besides, Roy could make a gun out of nothing but a chunk of wood and piece of metal, how hard could it be to machine parts for an artificial arm?

"Do you have blueprints or something like that of the arm?" he asked, putting the measuring tape away. Getting the measurements of Sheska's arm could wait, first he'd need to figure out how the mechanical arm worked so he'd know what measurements he'd need to take and the blueprints would be a good place to get started.

 

[3quency]

"You wanta talk to sommone about feelings and philo-sulpheric quesions, go lookin' fer the guys in the engine room, or Isaacaiah."

"Say what?"
Isaac had been strolling through the bowels of the ship when his over-paranoid ears had picked up something that sounded like his name coming from the Cannon bay. He picked out Eddie's distinctive slur and a voice he didn't recognise. That was odd, he was able to pick out most voices, and even if he didn't know some crew-member's name he'd at least have an idea of what they sounded like. Must be one of the new recruits they'd picked up.

He'd entered the room, out of sheer curiosity and sure enough Eddie was stood chatting with a Neobedouin man whilst going about his work.

Isaac looked at the pair, before remembering why he was down here.

"Oh Eddie, you seen my fob? I think I dropped it somewhere around here during the battle and I need it back."

He pointed at the Neobedouin.

"New guy?"

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Zach inwardly sighed. He liked Eddie well enough, but trying to make conversation with him could make getting blood from a stone seem like child's play.

That was when a face he so far hadn't seen entered the room. Something about him raised the hairs on the back of Zach's neck, although he hadn't done anything to remotely intimidate anyone. It took what seemed like forever for Zach to focus properly and piece it all together. The way he stood, the way he talked, the look in his eyes... it was all there, even better hidden than it had been with Sheska, but none of it could elude Zach completely.

'Oh you have got to be fucking kidding me, another one?! What is it with this ship?'

"The name's Zach," he said, smiling pleasantly at the other man "and you are...".

 

[Redryhno]

"Oh Eddie, you seen my fob? I think I dropped it somewhere around here during the battle and I need it back."

"Eeeeeyup,"Eddie replied, quickly walking behind Zach and patting him on the back,"Zichary-Zoppity-Zap, this is Isaaciah,"He moved behind Isaac and did much the same,"Zippity-Zap, Isaaciah. Now you two enjoy your talk, and I'm not even sure what it is you're talking about, but Zichary sure does, he's like you. He likes words and talking."

After having positioned himself behind Isaac, Eddie took three steps backwards through the door and closed it behind him. Finally away from that weird Groundling, yeesh he'd been a motormouth. But it was back to the top deck for the Skyfolk, that and the beams above, he was done for the day, time for a nap...

 

[3quency]

The newcomer smiled at Issac.
"The name's Zach, and you are...".

But before Isaac could reply he was interrupted by Eddie.

"Zichary-Zoppity-Zap, this is Isaaciah," He moved behind Isaac and continued his "introductions. "Zippity-Zap, Isaaciah. Now you two enjoy your talk, and I'm not even sure what it is you're talking about, but Zichary sure does, he's like you. He likes words and talking."

And before Isaac could get a single other word out, he was gone.

"But what about... fine."
Isaac sighed and looked to the other man.

"Zach was it? Isaac Traynor, ships' navigator."
He held a hand out.

"You haven't seen an old fob-watch have you? Silvery finish and a cracked face..."

 

[Terratina.]

"Yeah, sure I guess? I don't remember my measurements, might need to do, or redo, that one. Or I can go without the uniform for a little while longer? It's not THAT important..." James shrugged.

"Not to worry, James. Perhaps we can find out during your medical exam."

Vasco injected the current conversation. So here was the engineer and her assistant, but the lout looked like a poor intimation of one of the gentry than someone with any skill with machines and their inner workings. Less monkey wrench and more monkey with a wrench, one might say. Nevertheless, the assistant could be simply be the brute in this pair. Indeed, they were quite a pair, both scarred and both scruffy. Maybe these would be the two jokers in the pack? Remembering the old proverb about appearances, his thoughts turned to other matters and he turned to Ciel.

"The same goes for you as well, madam. However, there is no rush." Dr. Roque said, "Garrett and myself are busy with the resupply mission as it is."

The doctor then turned to Silas, "Mr. Raincroft; may we take our leave. I am sure that all will be well with the help that is here."

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

"Can't say I have." replied Zach, responding to the handshake in kind. "I'll keep an eye out though, I am a lookout after all, so I'm good at spotting things. Not to worry, I'm sure you'll sleuth it out eventually."

With that he left the room. He figured he'd seek out the Crow's Nest next. It was his post after all, and a good place for him to be alone with his thoughts.

 

[Texas Joker 52]

-Sheska-

After Roy strode off and went below, Sheska swayed a little bit and had to grasp at the crate he had been using earlier as a makeshift table to steady herself. She kept there for a good minute before her head stopped spinning and she felt that she could stand straight. When she finished grasping it, she straightened, then blew out a breath. "I guess I drank more than I thought.", she mused as she started to head below herself.

As soon as she started down the steps, she nearly bumped into Zach, and after stepping back once, she quirked a brow. "Zach. I was wondering where you'd headed off to. Not causing trouble for the crew, are ya?", she asked, her dull eyes narrowing suspiciously.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

"Perish the thought!" Zach teased "Trouble is my sworn enemy. Where I walk, I leave only solidarity in my wake."

He stepped aside to let her walk past, but spoke up again when she had her back turned.

"Just out of interest... Back when you were serving at the Emperor's pleasure, how did you like to conduct your business? Was it a shot in the back, straight forward and efficient, or did you prefer the wire, so you could feel their last breath leave them?"

 

[Texas Joker 52]

-Sheska-

She merely quirked a brow when he replied, and she snorted once.

"Perish the thought! Trouble is my sworn enemy. Where I walk, I leave only solidarity in my wake.".

"Right, I'll bet.", she murmured under her breath before slipping past him.

That was when he spoke up again.

"Just out of interest... Back when you were serving at the Emperor's pleasure, how did you like to conduct your business? Was it a shot in the back, straight forward and efficient, or did you prefer the wire, so you could feel their last breath leave them?".

Her hackles rose and the wrapped package that she had been clutching under her arm promptly dropped. Her eyes widened, only to turn into a glare as she whirled around and lashed out. Her hand grasped Zach's throat in an iron grip, and she shoved him against the wall with a snarl.

As drunk as she was, her strength wasn't impaired in the least, and she slowly leaned forward until her face was in his. "Don't presume you know me, you little shit. I never served the Empire, not willingly.", she ground out between gritted teeth.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Even with Sheska's hand around his throat, Zach's smile never died.

"Credit where it's due, you're the most interesting Ggun I've met." he said, his voice slightly hoarse but still level. "You want to dispel my ignorance? Be my guest! I'd be careful where you put your hand though, you do only have one after all..."