[IC] Wasteland Soarers - Tales of the Dust

[6slyboy6]

Under the scorching sun, nothing survives. All you can see is a barren wasteland filled with elusive sand all around. Those who seek refugee, often find themselves in small towns in the Big Crack. Settlements founded before Ashuria even existed, living on what they can. Abundant water sources fuel the economy, and is used in everyday. But when one enters the Dunes, they will remain there forever.

It was another unbearable wasteland. The sun was sucking the Earth of its riches, ending all life and dulling any colors. If one was to pay attention to the sky, they could spot a small dot in front of the big blue. From far away it looked like a small black thing. But if one were to closer examine it, they could see it was another one of the airships that roamed the skies. But this one in particular was one of an interesting kind. It was a large dart-like shape with a small cabin attached to its bottom. Beautifully smithed and carved metal plates decorated the balloons top, reflecting sunlight like bright beacons. Along the bottom, a small tube run along into the cabin. The cabin itself was connected to the baloon with a ladder and the said pipe.

Levi was standing looking outside the window. He was headed straight south to a small village called Thrin. It was one of the many settlements in the Big Crack that dotted the maps. He had his shades on, and the cabins shutters were closed. This early the sun already scorched the paint of the ship. He carefully turned the wheel a few degrees right, to steer the ship towards a dim blinking light in the distance. The creeks of the fin and thge roar of the engine got louder for a few seconds, as the mighty beast steered towards it's leaders direction. He turned away from the steering wheel and walked to the back of the cabin to sit down for a second. The cabin was big enough for two people to get comfortable, with red fabric on the walls. In the back, there was a comfortable armchair with a small stained coffe table next to it. Along the sides there were a few smaller plants that lined the windows. They ended up in a small spiraling shelf on both sides, that marked the main cockpit. Few gauges and panels had their homes around the steering wheel, making it look like a group of buzzing insects around a corpse.

levi decide to water the plants. Most of them looked alien from most of the other plants they grow for eating. He had a rare collection of desert plants that could survive even the corching sun. They had black and purple leaves, and they grew beautiful red flowers in the winter.
A sight to behold. As he as attending to a brown spiraling bush, one of the gauges started flashing. He decide to abandon the cute little plant, and take a look at the gauge. It was showing a symbol of a water drop and shaked like a crazed maniac. Levi just shook his head. "Silly machines. I have to fix this after I land. Always the important stuff" With an ice cold impression, he stared outside the window, and looked at a dust cloud in the distnace. His thoughts wandered for almost an hour.

Levi pulled a rope that hang fromt he ceiling. It moved one of the metal plates on the balloon and gave of a light signal to the town. He could see the workers in the ship port do the same thing. He lined his ship towards the small canyon where the port laid. A small outcrop from the rock wall with numerous of machines and crates on top. The main part was carved from the rock thatw as once an arch connecting both sides, now foundation for the docks. From here many small metal terminals went outside, suspeneded mid air by cables and ropes. Levi pulled the chute, and the ship started descending. There were numerous empty spots, but his ship could only fit the biggest one. There was a huge crane next to it, probably for lifting cargo out of transport blimps. There where many others alongside the canyon wall that continously lifted salt from the depths of the Crack. Towns like this were the veins of the Big Crack, making the economy boom once the airships appeared. He manouvered around a small rock and descended slowly next to the port. The engines roared, and the metal plates screeched as the ship finally came to a halt. He pressed a button, and from the left side of his ship numerous smaller ropes launched them to the docks, where workers finally roped the blimp, making it come to a halt.

Levi stood up rolled down all the shutters in the cabin. He cleaned his shade, and opened the door on the left. Even down here, dozens of meters down below the surface, the sun blinded him for a mere second. he looked around the buzzing port and then made the small jump onto the platform.
The portmaster was waiting for him near a small building that was made out of scrap metal, and had a huge anchor attached to its front.
"Welcome friend to Thrin! What brings you and your mighty ship here? We rarely get such proud beasts in our tiny town."
The portamster was one of the Pale skinned people that had leading duties in towns. At first glance he looked like he wore a leather jacket but in fact it was nothing more than a thick fabric sheet around his neck. He was muscular and very tall, and had a gentle smile on his face. They shook hands and Levi repled: "I came here to resupply and recruit some hands for my ship. I will also need an accomodation fopr the night. What is the cost?"
"That would be 6 Dit and 20 Dim. My assistant will show you our finest Inn!"
Levi sighed as he heard the overpriced offer. But he had no other chance. If he was to fly to the nearest town without cooling his blimp, he could find himself in a falling wreck very easely. He handed the money over and followed the portmasters assistant.

The town was nothing special amongst the Dunes. It had multiple levels of streets suspended above each other. The floors were made out of metal and rotting wooden pallets. Small dwelling sprung on the inner side of the walkways, and cramped together as if they wanted to get warmer with each other. What amde this town visited tho was the spectacluar beauty of the Big Crack along this area. It was located near a smaller expansion of the canyon called the Serpent's Nest, and formed a magnificent Cauldron in the area. It was nearly a kilometre wide across, and smaller settlements spanned across the wall. There were many deeper than Thrin and even a few above it, but this palce was the most well known of all. Not all of them had ports, so tunnels were dug, and bridges suspended between them. It was like a set out of a fanatasy story. All the towns here formed a small nation with each other, Thrin being the beating heart of it. They were called the Dune Serpents, and had a good reputation for their salt and sulfur mining, as well as trading. As his thought wandered about the history of this place, his tour slighthly nudged him. He looked in the direction where he was pointing, and saw a small tavern slightly carved inside the wall. He gave the man 30 Dim whilst giving him a pat on his back, then he entered the building.

[boomlover]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ls_nDYHEZcw

The sun felt like a never ending wip. Hitting him with no mercy, He was protected but not by much. He wandered the endless dunes. He only saw sand and sand and more sand. There was a lot of sand. He saw the dunes rise and fall. It looked like an oil painting. If Crafty knew what that was anyway. This had been Crafty,s life since he had escaped the slave camp. Traveling town to town doing od jobs. Some of them where fixing equipment of any kind. Other times it was kiling people of any kind. However the last job had turned sour so he needed to get the heck out of dodge, Then in the distance he saw something.
I ravine it wasn't much but it would have yo do. However when he got closer he saw two things, One a pretty big town build along side the canyon side wich he had never seen before. The second thing he saw was one of the biggest airships he had seen in a long time. He then heard felt a bullet whizing by him and turned around. 5 bounty hunters looked at him. Most men would have run, Crafty did not. He turned around and got a sick look on his face." So" he said as he slowly turned around grabbing his knife in the processes."Who of you want to die first?" The roared and charged at him." Sloppy" he said as he grabbed the man closest to him by his arm and broke it before proceeding to cut open his neck.
" Very very sloppy indeed". He then turned to the rest of the men who where now scared of him he walked over to them and said." Who is next ?" They screamed and ran leaving him and there dead friend behind. He then walked to the town. But was stopped at the gate." Hail traveler what do you want?"Crafty looked at the man and said." Some nice peace and quit thats what" The guard did not really know how to respond to that so he opend the gate letting him in. He then made his way to the upper layers of the town and started searching for the captian of the giant airship.

[@slyboy6]

[RhineQueen]

Imogen sighed heavily, laying out of the beam arm of an unoccupied docking crane watching the traffic come and go, trying to guess the ship's destination by what they were equipped for and what they unloaded. It had been a slightly slow day at the shipyards, with fewer of the smaller ships that Elliott's docks could accommodate. Not a huge issue, but worrying for their finances if it kept up for too long. The big docks across town were owned by Forrest, a large, and not wholly unpleasant man, if a bit brash. He tended to bring in the largest trade ships that came through the ports and he and her father had a noticeable rivalry, but the two had been friends for as long as they had been in business and were by no means enemies.
She saw the distant black dot of an incoming blimp and raised her tinted binoculars to her face, looking out through the scorching air trying to pick out the ship's details through the heat distortion. The first thing she could note was the size and her face fell slightly. Balloon was clearly at least a B and her father's cranes could only accompany a C at most. She watched it's slow, drifting decent towards town and could pick out more details as it came. The balloon was s fairly standard beige canvas, but it was the armouring that caught her eye first. The etched brass gleamed in the sunlight, flickering like a beacon in the scalding air. She knew that plating, but only from stories told by drunken skymen who spoke in awed tones of a ship that lived up to it's namesake; a ship piloted by the son of Gabriel.
Imogen lowered her binoculars and rubbed her eyes before taking a second look. Her heart picked up it's pace as she saw the beautifully monogrammed nameplate come into view as the TSS Magnificent drew into Forrest's docks. She squeaked in excitement, holing onto the metal beams to steady herself as she stared wide eyed and slack jawed as she watched a legend from her childhood fantasies dock right before her very eyes. Her heart was nearly breaking out of her chest and she scrambled to her feet, climbing quickly down the crane arm, sliding down the ladder and running towards the main boathouse, dodging other dock workers, completely lost n her thoughts; swept up in the fantastical machinations that flooded her mind. She had to get on this ship. Or at the very least meet the captain. She squealed once more as the thought of meeting Levi, son of Gabriel crossed her mind. This was quite possibly the best day of her life. Even better than when she had gotten her falcon, Brigid three years ago. She quietly apologized to Brigid in her head.

[Desire]

Another day, so it seemed. Just like the last. There were no answers to be found at the bottom of his bottle. Or his barrel. Answers, but only short term. They would not help him in the long run. He needed to... do something with himself. Get his mind of things. Yeah... That's it. Have a little, fun. But he still needed a job, and all he had done his whole life was be a soldier in the military. The best. But now he was a soldier no more, and he was on his own. Alone, in this world. What an empty feeling. You know what else had an empty feeling? His glass.

Ash blinked a little, picking his head up off the end of the bar as he came back to the world of reality. He did that, sometimes, get lost in his own thoughts. Get very lost in them. Even worse than if you got stuck out there in the desert without a compass or a map. Well, there was the sun trajectory... No, no, he had to focus. Breathe. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5... Just count and breathe. Alright, he felt better.

Wearing a leather jacket, a grey shirt that fit his muscular figure well with the sleeves ripped off, ripped jeans and combat boots, he was one of the more intimidating figures in the tavern. Dark aviators on his face, a sawed off shotgun on his belt, and a bolt action rifle slung across his back. With a combat knife strapped to his thigh to top it all off and his military backpack with all his belongings, there was an air of dominance about him. And this was all passive, really. To be quite honest, all he was doing was spacing out and drinking his troubles away. But after so much drinking, his body had built up an immunity where non-liquor only gave him a buzz. But it was enough to get by.

The bartender was quick to note this, and had already came over with a full glass. When Ash had strolled into town not too long ago, the bartender had noted his quite intimidating appearance and offered him a job. He kept trouble out of his tavern and protected it, and he would be payed. But the ex-military man wanted no money, and only asked for food, a place to stay, and alcohol. And that was what he was granted. Yes sometimes he picked his own bar fights, with tough guys who thought that they were better than him, but he did his job and the place was quite safe. And mostly he drank alcohol to calm himself, trying to keep himself from getting into trouble.

Suddenly, a figure entered the tavern, and he turned to see a man with shades walk into the building. He seemed like of those big captain looking guys who had money and talked about their ship blah blah blah. Bunch of hogwash anyways, usually. But there was something about this man, he looked more esteemed compared to some of the other bums who walked in the place. A new face indeed. For why a man like this would be in the likes of this place was beyond his guess. Not like he cared either way. He turned to look at the now full glass in his hand, sipping from it a bit. Maybe that's what Ash wanted to do... Adventure out on one of those ships. See the world. Maybe even cause some havoc. It was a paying job, so he had heard. Yeah, maybe that's what he wanted to do... But then again, drinking was nice too.

[1n5tant Ar50n]

Another day, another dollar...or at least for today. Tyra had managed to hold down this job at the tavern for two weeks; she had a feeling that it wasn't going to last much longer. Shut it with the negative thoughts, she told herself as she stepped out into the bar. She could barely stand a job that had half the town's drunk men staring at her all night, but beggars couldn't be choosers, and Tyra was by no means the latter. She remembered briefly when her biggest concern was planning her outfits every day. In a way she missed not having any responsibilities, but in the last few months she'd seen more than she'd seen in her whole life before then.
And now she was in a bar, serving drinks. But, hey, a girl had to earn some cash. She cast a wayward glance at the tavern's "bodyguard", whose name had escaped her, and wondered vaguely how drunk he'd need to get before he passed out where he sat.
She nearly jumped out of her seat when an airship captain entered the tavern, and quickly tried to make it look like she was actually doing something useful. She glanced at the stranger out the corner of her eye; what adventure he looked like he'd had, and what Tyra wouldn't give to catch a ride in the skies. Only...she doubted that would provide her with a steady income...

[Voltus_Ventus]

Above him a ceiling fan hung, gently slicing wafers of air and dropping them down lazily to Nikola, all the windows were open, facing out to the canyon wall opposite, giving him a red, jagged vista. Nikola's office was tastefully furnished, a perk of being a clerk as opposed to a floor worker or an average white collar, his desk was oak, sturdy and large and littered with papers; a bristling in-out tray sat to his left, so well and truly crammed with papers, that people just started to put paperwork on the floor in unorganized piles. 'piles that I have to sift through' he thought frustratedly to himself as he dabbed his sweaty forehead with the back of his loosened tie. It was a warm day, everyday was a warm day, but today was unusually hot, when he entered the office that morning he had discarded his jacket onto one of the leather chairs that sat in the middle of the room, and went straight for his water pitcher, draining it quickly, normally he wouldn't let the heat get to him but there was no merciful, cooling breeze so the air was still and... 'hot'

Nikola stood up and went to the window, running his fingers through his drenched brown hair, he leaned out to try and catch a gust of air but instead was seared by the sun, reluctantly he reached to his left where a circular switch was mounted to the wall, he didn't need to look, he knew where it was, he turned it as far as it would go and the fan on the ceiling went faster. That would come out of his pay, 'Damn sun' he thought to himself, as he crossed to the opposite side of the rectangular room and started to close the windows. He pulled in each one and latched it shut, until finally he came to the last one that was to the left of his desk; as he leaned out to grab the handles, he heard a whir that he didn't hear before, most likely due to his fan, Nikola looked around before spotting the source of the noise.

An airship came gliding down from the mouth of the canyon, it's engines humming a deep, staccato tune as it passed above his office. Nikola leaned his body out the window and looked at the under-belly of the flying ship, impressed by its size and
elegance and its elegance for its size. Just then, one of the junior clerks knocked on the frosted glass window in his door.

"Come in!" he called out absentmindedly from half way out the window. As Nikola climbed back in, the junior clerk opened the door and stood within the doorway, half in and half out, He was a stout, broad shouldered boy, with a head of red hair. "May I ask how I can help you, Sam?" he queried.

"I'm not in need of any help Mr. Vanderbilt, sir. We was just wondering if you've seen that massive ship that just went by, it's caused a stir amongst the other Juniors." Nikola regarded Sam levelly, his mind somewhere between being bemused at their excitement and a tad annoyed that they allowed themselves to be distracted, though he really shouldn't have been talking, as between the heat and ship, he too was not concentrating on his work.

"Yes, Samual, I saw the ship in question and no, I'm not sure why it's here and I don't endeavor to find out unless it's here for salt. Now you go get back to your work, so I can get back to mine. Nikola shut the last window and latched it shut, the sound of the distancing airship being prevailed over by the fan, Nikola turned back to the door to see Sam still there, "Go on now, are you going to stand there like a log all day or are you going to get some work done?" He followed Sam out into the main work space, where there were rows of desks and typewriters, and irksomly empty chairs, "Come on people! Remember that you're payed on commission! the throng at the window quickly jumbled back into their seats at the reminder that they were there to earn money, Nikola looked at them one more time before becoming satisfied that they would continue working, he turned around and returned to his office.

As he sat back down onto his seat, he pulled open one of the drawers and produced a black ledger, flicking to the next blank page and past hundreds of full ones, he quickly jotted down the date and a note to himself, 'Find out about that ship that's got everyone so buzzed.' Nikola tried to keep the ship out of his head after that, but soon it became too hard to, it had derailed his train of thought and it annoyed him that he couldn't get back to work. He use to fly, years ago, seeing a ship that large and beautiful made him remember just how much he wanted to get back out there. Nikola looked down at his work and huffed, between it and his rampant thoughts, he was going to have a long day ahead of him.

[RhineQueen]

Imogen burst into the main boathouse, running to the upper catwalks where her father Elliott was overseeing the balloon repair of a D class that had run foul of some cliff faces recently. Elliott was a short, skinny man with thin, round glasses and wild hair that matched Imogen's, but cut shorter. He glanced to Imogen as she climbed up to him.
"Hello, Imogen." He smiled, turning his attention back to the balloon, shouting quick instructions to the workers on the floor before looking back at Imogen.
"What has you so riled up, dear?"
"The Magnificent just docked at Forrest's!" She exlaimed. "That means Levi is in town! I'm gonna meet the son of Gabriel!" She squealed once more.
"Hey now." Elliott crooned, gently placing a hand on her shoulder. "Calm down. Calm down. Are you sure it's Levi?"
"Yes. I'm sure. I saw the nameplate. It's the Magnificent. The actual Magnificent."
Elliott paused a moment and nodded. "Well then I suppose you will be running right over to Forrest's dock then?"
Imogen nodded quickly, hopping form one foot to the other. Elliott sighed and shook his head.
"Very well." He said. Go see Dexter on the way. Let him know where you're going and be back by six. You're on cranes tonight."
Imogen cheered and hurried back to the ladder, waving to Elliott.
"I will, dad!" She called. Elliott chuckled and smiled softly, pushing his glasses up his nose. He glanced back at the balloon repairs.
"Timothy!" He yelled to one of his workers. "Put that welding torch down!"

[boomlover]

Crafty was looking the canyon His Goggles reflected of the sun looking like two white spots. He looked over the canyon watching The miners doing there thing like little cogs in a machine. Crafty was never gonna be one of those cogs again. He wish he had a cigarette with him but he had smoked the last one a few days ago, And to make matters worse he was out of goddamn money too. And lets not forget the bounty hunters that where chasing him. All in all This was one of his bad days to be sure. But there was that airship, It looked like the only thing that didn't have any goddamn sand over it. And maybe just maybe he would be lucky enough to get on it. Now the problem was finding the man who owned it.

And then the port master walked up to him and said." A real beauty aint she?"Crafty grinned and looked at the man. His words sounded as cold as ice when he said." Indeed she is, However its about the captain who flies it.Not the ship itself Speaking of wich where can i find him anyway?"The man pointed at the bar, and then walked away really not wanting to have a conversation with him. He chuckled as he walked over to the bar. He then entered immediately spotting the captain. However since he wanted to know what kind of man he was dealing with he walked over to the bar took and took a seat.

[The Whacko]

It had been another long week for Grimshaw Fontaine. Endless hours pulling security for the caravans that came to and from Thrin, aqua cola and produce moved by the ton every month. It was enough to make his back ache like nails were driven in between the vertebrae, and the bitching from the dock bosses only made his migraines worse. It made him wonder if honest work was worth it.

The liqour helped to quell those thoughts most days, driving off the temptation to get back to easy life. The bad life. His bottle was empty now, though, and he clutched at his mask and goggles as he swept it aside and replaced it with a handful of coins. Always better to leave your bill paid without a word.

Then the kid showed up through the doors of the dive, and the big man's mustached face lit up at his words. A goddamn airship, and not a merchantman. Best of all, he was hiring. Grimshaw swore as he tried to straightennthe corners of the giant mustache, his bald head shining in the dim light as he approached. He waited for the crowd of kids that had started to gather about him, no doubt looking for work as well. He pushed past a few when the conversation died down, looking as professional as he could in his dirty, somewhat mismatched clothes. When he spoke, his voice was coarse, ugly, not unlike his face.

"Need crew, ya came to the right place, Cap. Won't find a better hand than Grimshaw Fontaine." It was a boast, to be sure, but he put enough from experience in his tone to put some weight behind it. "Been flyin' up and down this Wasteland since I was a kid. Handle a gun an' an airbag well as the other."

[6slyboy6]

The bar was hot and the air soaked of liquor. It was a big room filled with tables and chairs to the teeth, all occupied by some form of a wastelander. Most seemed to have come from the docks, the others just getting wasted or relaxing. As Levi entered the bar every man and woman took a quick glance at him. Some turned away fast, the others took a longer look at him. It wasn't every day that a captain in crimson jacket and shaded goggles walks into a bar like this. An aura of respect vibed around him as he made his announcement: "Lads and Gents! I am looking for a crew to accompany me on my next travel! Here is your chance to escape dock work! "

The humming of the bar stopped and half the people sitting jumped up and ran to Levi. All filled with excitement and hope in their eyes, they all wanted to talk to their rescuer from this boring life. It became very irritating only after a few seconds as everyone talked and Levi couldn't calm them down. They pushed each other away to get a better view of him. It was a huge mess of sounds and figures so he decided not to answer anyone till they calm down. That is until a hulking man with a fine mustache made his way to Levi, pushing the youngsters away. The man called himself Grimshaw and had a confident feel to his figurine. "Well then Mr. Grimshaw, shall we have a little talk? Please accompany me to a table." All the other man and woman trying to talk to him now became angry and started swearing at him. One by one they went back to their tables and ordered a drink. levi and Grimshaw sat down to a table in the corner. "Let's cut the formalities. I am on a quest to reach the Spring of Lies. More precisely a settlement near it. I need an experienced crew. You look like a prefect candidate. I will give you 3 Dis now and another 3 when we arrive. Deal?" Those who sat next to them started muttering about the huge amount of mone yhe was willing to pay, and started swearing about missing out on this adventure.

[Desire]

The bar was teeming with people, and it seemed a few new people were coming inside the tavern. There were already a lot of people at the tavern already, and they all seem excited about one thing: that god damn captain that had walked in. But oh, it got worse. Then he decided to open his trap and say he needed a crew. Well at that point the place went ape shit. People were all pushing and shoving, climbing over each other to get a chance to talk to him. That is, until a man who looked like he hadn't showered in days came to the front, but his head reflected more light than a clean mirror. And he looked middle aged. But apparently the captain seemed to like these qualities in a man, maybe it was the mustache. Who knows, but they seemed to sift through the crowd and sit a table a few feet behind Ash.

The crowd seemed to settle down, a little bit, and for good reason. It was giving him a headache. And as he downed his... Shit he couldn't even count right now, but it was a large number of alcoholic beverages he consumed before this particular one. Back to the point, as he did this, he was actually contemplating the thought of adventuring on a ship. It didn't seem like too bad of an idea. He had been on an airship once before, but not for long. He was hired muscle for a crime syndicate. He kept them safe, killed people, he got money. Now it was most likely going to be under different circumstances, but it would probably be the same gist.

Suddenly the crowd spoke up in anger, all milling up behind him and flooding around their table as each one wanted to join whatever adventure they planned to go on. They all wanted a fair shot. They all wanted to be rich. They all were butt hurt and needed a god damn tissue. Then somebody bumped into Ash's chair, spilling the last of his alcohol. He had a headache, there were loud, sweaty, annoying people around him, and now they spilled his alcohol... Ash broke the glass in his hand, placing the broken pieces on the edge of the bar. He reached into his holster, pulled out his shotgun (it had no bullets loaded) and cocked it before shooting up at the ceiling, a flash of gunpowder and a large boom in response. It got dead silent.

"Next time, it'll be loaded, and pointed at one of you assholes."

[The Whacko]

Grimshaw nodded to the younger man, promtply following his prospective employer and giving the evil eye to a fe of the louder voices in the crowd. He sat across from the captain, sitting straight and trying his best to not look like just another dirty raider....a task much easier said that done.

He was sipping in his sixth beer when head the job and the pay that the boy was offering. He nearly choked on his drink when he heard just how much was being offered. He only hesitated or a moment before he spoke again.

"Got yourself a deal, Cap." He said, offering one gloved hand to the young man to shake. The Spring of Lies might no have been the smartest place to head to, but Grimshaw wasn't going to complain, not with the hazard paid he was going to get. "Get your crew quick here, lot of people begging to get on a ship that ain't a merchantman here."

[RhineQueen]

@The Whacko @6slyboy6
Even taking a moment to make herself presentable, changeing into her least stained leather overalls and pulling her hair back into a loose ponytail, and grabbing a large bag of tools to look the part, Imogen was still out the door and scampering across town in reasonable time. She made good time towards Forrest's docks, vaulting through back alleys, exploiting all the secret shortcuts that she knew to get to Forrest's docks in half the time it would take by street. She quickly looked around for the man, picking out his large stature quickly.
"Forrest!" She called out running over to the man.
Forrest looked over to her and nodded curtly in greeting. "Well well. If it ain't Hollister's little girl? You come to sell your father's dock off finally?" He teased.
Imogen stuck her tongue out at him. "You wish." She chuckled. "I'm here because of a very specific ship I saw docking here earlier."
Forrest nodded knowingly. "The Magnificent, huh?" He said. "Should have guessed I'd see you around here soon when that vessel came through here. You just missed the captain by a few minutes, but don't worry, it looks like he was headed to Dex's place looking for a crew."
Imogen clapped excitedly, turning on her heel and waving as she hurried off. "Thanks, Forrest!"
"Don't say I never did you nothing." Forrest called after her.
Imogen quickly cleared the few blocks to her pop's bar, not the largest in town, but she could tell by the crowd of activity that news of Levi's arrival had spread quickly. She dodged her way through the crowd and into the interior of her pop's bar. Dexter would be loving all this extra business. She pushed herself up to the front of the crowd to see Levi himself talking to a bald man at a table. Her heart nearly stopped as she saw him. A real legend from stories she had grown up idolizing was sitting a few meters away from her, tangible and real as anyone else she had met. She almost squeaked, but no air came out. She took a moment and a couple of deep breaths to compose herself before stepping forward and extending a hand to Levi, putting on her best professional face, which was admittedly still cut with excitement.
"Hello, Captain Levi. I'm sorry to interrupt, but I just had to say that I'm a huge fan and it's an honor to meet you. I heard that you were looking for a crew and I was wondering if you had need of an engineer."

[1n5tant Ar50n]

Taking a moment to make sure Ash's stunt with the shotgun hadn't given her a heart-attack, Tyra cast Ash a venomous glare. "What the hell do you think you're doing shooting that thing in here!?" Tyra shouted at him. "Even if it isn't loaded, that's just the kind of stupid behavior that starts fights!"

In retrospect she realized that bitching starts a lot of fights too, but she had been too angry to care. If she'd sat a little closer to him she'd probably have lost her hearing for a few hours. Either way, the damage cost for the ceiling would be coming out of their paychecks and Tyra already was running tight on cash.

She was going to continue berating Ash, when she saw Imogen enter the bar, blissfully unaware of the previous havoc, and make her way straight to Levi, no questions asked. Tyra looked over at her, and, pushing aside her anger at Ash, wished for more than a moment that could be her. What she would give to travel away on an airship and see the world, on the famous Magnificent and her captain, at that. But what could she do? Shoot a gun? She bet anyone who'd managed to survive these days could do that. Ash had so kindly demonstrated it, and that was likely the most interesting thing to happen in here.

She pushed through the now timid crowd, trying to get a better look at the Captain anyway. She could at least dream.

[Voltus_Ventus]

Finally, all his work was done, piles of work had come and gone but he had dealt with them all with a brisk efficiency. It started to go dark outside, and that was the call for all the juniors to pack up and punch out, outside his office he heard sounds of clearing away and the clutter of feet on the wooden floorboards, the sound of clacking as people put their cards in the punch clock and cleared off, leaving a trail of echoed laughter and conversation behind them. Nikola remained in his seat a few moments longer, listening as at last the final person left and closed the door behind them, he released a long, exasperated sigh and rose from his chair. He moved like a breeze through his office and to the door, he stepped through and walked down the short hall to the main work area where all the chairs were tucked under tables and all the typewriters were stowed into their boxes, sat neatly by every typing machine was a tidy stack of papers, layers separated by colored card designating them to different departments and for different purposes.

Nikola went form table to table and turned off the green glassed desk lamps as he passed, picking up stacks of paper work and pulling chains with a practiced ease. He ferried piles of paper too and fro, dumping them into name designated cubbyholes for counting the next day, juniors were payed for every dozen copies of something or every sheet of calculations, every job payed differently but some were much faster, like copying, with the advent of carbon paper, a junior could make double the copies in half the time. Once done, Nikola returned to his office to pack his own things away.

Upon finishing, Nikola left the office, he was tired from a long day's work and felt he deserved an early night's sleep. He stepped out into the refreshing evening air and took in a deep breath; The entrance to the building opened to a wide ledge that had been converted into a foot path up the side of the cliff face to higher up the town's super structure, on one side of the foot path was the canyon proper and on the right side was a more space carved into the side of the cliff so walkers didn't need to walk to close to the edge. Soon Nikola found himself walking the creaky planks of the air dock, the wooden panels squeezing beneath his feet, as he walked, his mind went back to the ship he saw earlier in the day. The Elegant plates, the massive gas envelope and the sound, the sound it made when it went by his window, it was intoxicating. Nikola use to fly planes and felt that flying an airship was always a cumbersome experience, but on the instances he was a passenger aboard one he loved it, the voyage would be so smooth, turbulence would not bean issue because of their size, riding along on an airship was like walking on a cloud.

As he fantasized about the mystery ship, it came into view, on a pier all on its own, moored with multiple lines and surrounded by creates. It was massive, huge compared to the tugs, haulers and small cargo boats that propagated around the wooden docks and piers, it could probably lug tons upon tons of salt and sulfur with ease but the open cargo bays told him that it wasn't doing much of that, as they were clean and lacking in tell tale dry rust. He approached it to find a dock hand sat on a create, counting money in his grubby gloved hands.

"Boy! Who's ship is this?" The hand shoved his fistful of cash hastily into his jacket and snapped his head to Nikola, looking him up and down before narrowing his eyes and answering.

"Who's asking?" he replied wheezingly, Nikola raised an eyebrow.

"Vanderbilt, Nikola," He brushed his eyes over the man's dock jacket and spotted his companies sigil, "I am a Clerk in the company you are currently employed in." The hand looked as if he were going to be more cooperative.

Nikola stood in front of the tavern the dock hand directed him to and from the more lively then usual nature, he could tell that something was up. He was hoping the dockhand wasn't lying to him for some reason, he would get stern talking and maybe docked pay. He stepped in without hesitation into the dimly lit room, "Where can I find Captain Levi?" he called into the crowd.

[boomlover]

Crafty was sitting at the bar enjoying the shit what was happening around him. Watching those desperate people looking at the captain like some sort of god." Hell they would probably bow to him." He thought to himself. He then looked at those who actually seemed competent. The first one who had caught his attention was the strong looking man sitting a few chairs away from him. He looked just as crazy as him.The way he looked out of those eyes, Crafty could connect a little with them. he then looked at the man who was talking with the captain.
He just looked like the normal waste lander, but kinda old for one though.

Then it seemed that the rest of the people in the bar started growing restless. Crafty smiled and was already preparing himself for the coming bar fight. Then A shot was fired and everyone froze, including Crafty. "Next time, it'll be loaded, and pointed at one of you assholes." Crafty relaxed and sat down. He liked this guy He had guts he liked that about people. It was still silent, When suddenly A young women ran into the bar apparently not having heard the shot that just went of. She ran through the still stunned crowd to the captain and said."Hello, Captain Levi. I'm sorry to interrupt, but I just had to say that I'm a huge fan and it's an honor to meet you. I heard that you were looking for a crew and I was wondering if you had need of an engineer."

Crafty was still watching the scene developing before him. He had to admit that if he had lost self control he would be laughing his ass of.
however he was able to control and watched as another guy entered the bar. This guy Crafty did not like, like at all. Did not know why he just really disliked him already. "Where can I find Captain Levi?" hell even his voice sounded annoying. Crafty stood up and walked over to Levi, Pushing anyone out the way who was in it. He then approached the table looked at Levi and said. "Let me introduce myself, Im Crafty" He then showed his belt that was full of small tools." I fix things"
He pulled out his knife." And i kill things as well. So think you can use someone like me?"

[Flynn]

Levi takes the hand of the scruffy looking wastelander and shakes it firmly. "Welcome aboard then Grimshaw. I guess you're right. Wouldn't want to cause a barfi-" *BOOM* Levi stands up from the loud bang but quickly realizes it was just a warning shot from a guy who seemed like the bouncer of this bar. "Sheesh man... That was a bit of an overkill wasn't it. Just be quiet already. A little excitement never killed anyone."

And if speaking about the devil a young woman barges into the bar and approaches Levi, suddenly declaring that she's his biggest fan. "Why, I'm quite flattered that you think of me so highly young lady. And I am in need of a engineer now that you mention. Even my ship needs to be fixed up once in a while. But why would I hire you specifically? There are probably a lot of skilled engineers in this little town. Though I must say you did earn extra points for being my biggest fan and all."

Before the girl has a chance to react, a proper looking fellow enters the bar. He announces that he is looking for captain Levi, and just as Levi is about to raise his hand to make the man aware of his presence a muscled man with cold eyes walks up to him, pushing any aside that are in the way. "Crafty? Doesn't sound like the name of a killer." Levi stands up to match the man in height. "And is that supposed to impress me? Killed a lot of people? You're going to have to do better then just -tell- me you're good at fighting..." This man talking to Levi clearly needed a reality-check. Sure, Levi was a wastelander and he wasn't the nicest of guys, but that didn't mean he tolerated assholes. He crunches his knuckles and flexes his neck a few times before looking this man named Crafty straight in the eye.

[boomlover]

@Flynn Crafty smiled, He liked this guy thought he was strong. Wich was probably right, I mean an ex waste lander and now captain of an airship?
You had to be strong To make it to a captain of an airship. This had changed the situation drastically. Crafty had thought that the captain was just a smug asshole. However he showed guts Wich Crafty had respect for. However he had threatened him, And that was something you should not do to Crafty.
" I have two reasons why they call me Crafty." He puts his knife away." One My parents called me Crafty because i am good at fixing things." He then looked straight at Levi and smiled. And Walked very close to him." And two Because i'm very creative when it comes to hurting people." He then Lunched his head back and gave him a headbutt." NOW THEN LETS SEE WHAT YOUR MADE OF CAPTAIN"
( hope it's readable now?)

[RhineQueen]

@Flynn @boomlover
Imogen squealed in fright and jumped back as Crafty assaulted Levi. She stumbled backwards into the crowd, scampering to get away from this madman. Why anyone would want to pick a fight with the son of Gabriel was beyond her. The very concept that anyone would want to hurt Levi for any reason was so baffling she had to take a few deep breaths, scurrying to the edges of the room, ducking away from the impending fight.
"Oh god oh god oh god." She quietly muttered to herself, watching, alert to see if the situation would escalate.

[The Whacko]

Grimshaw had flinched only slightly at the sudden boom of shotgun behind him, but had started to calm when he saw that it was just some fella trying to get a point across. He'd done much the same before, when words didn't get it through thick skulls. He shrugged and sipped at his beer slowly, giving a skeptical eye toward some of the folk that had approached the captain. He recognized Imogen, the black-thumb girl he'd seen around town. From what he heard, her daddies had warned her against talking to him, thinking him a bad influence on their little girl. Not that he blamed them.

The kid calling himself Crafty, though, Grimshaw didn't care for. He frowned as he watched the boy approach his new boss. And then he headbutted Levi, and the wastelander shot up immediately, drawing his pistol from a holster at his hip. It was an ugly thing, handmade like most of the guns in this land. He scowled as he pointed it squarely at the newcomer's head.

"Best jus' take it back a few levels, boy. The Cap is my new bread and butter."