Lovejoy

The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

Imperial Drydocks, Cero, capital of T'sarae

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_{[written by Lovejoy & Drakey]}

"Tell me, T'sukasa, what does it take to get accepted into MUSE?"

The inquisitor's query caught the Head Engineer off-guard. Did the the young warpriest wish to attend the academy? MUSE was traditionally only open to those of T'saraen blood, which according to the reports he had read on the inquisitor, was the same blood that flowed within Father Rodion. Having such a talented and brilliant mind in the academy would be quite the get for MUSE, and the city of Cero as a whole. It really was a shame the Varyan church had gotten to him first.

"Well, Your Reverence, a mind of your caliber would certainly thrive there! I imagine you would easily be able to secure all the funding and support you would ever need for your projects. Unfortunately, your uh, superiors in the Faith would never allow--"

Head Engineer Amir's words were cut short when a young woman clad in a grease-streaked workman's uniform nonchalantly walked up to him and practically yelled in his face.

"She's ready for you, pops!"

Amir immediately went white. His face contorted in both anger and nervousness, and he mouthed a silent apology to Father Rodion before turning to the young mechanic. The woman seemed to be about Rodion's age, and her eyes were the same pale blue as Amir's.

"Deva. Do you not see that I'm in the middle of something?" the engineer scolded the mechanic. He turned to Rodion and, forcing a smile, attempted to smooth over the interruption.

"Please forgive my daughter, Father Rodion. She is a talented engineer but still has much to learn when it comes to showing respect to her betters."

The young mechanic narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing her father-- before seeming to finally notice Rodion standing there. She stared at him in silence for an uncomfortable amount of time, seemingly not sure of what make of him. Amir looked back and forth between the two, hoping, desperately that his daughter would say something. When she noticed the mechanical wolf sitting by Rodion's side, her eyes immediately lit up.

"Wow! Cool wolf, dude," she exclaimed, immediately kneeling down to examine the creature more closely.

"Deva! That is not how you address an inquisitor of the--"

"This is incredible! What does it run on? Ether? Is it Omestrian ether? But, how is it possible... How does it have sentience? Is there an etherdrive in there? Nah. Can't be. Those things are theoretical. Then how... How are you alive?" she asked the wolf itself in a hushed, almost reverent tone.

***

Rodion's eyes snapped to the T'sarean as he spoke of the Academy. Hmmm, apparently the man was of the mind that the Church would not allow Rodion access to the Academy. Well, that would have to change. Cataloging the goal within his mind, Rodion's attention snapped forward to a newcomer.

She was pretty, However, unlike other hot-blooded men of his age, Rodion's observation was just that, an observation. Rodion listened as the girl and her father conversed. When it finally ended, Rodion spoke to T'sukasa. "She was not rude. The girl, Deva, merely stated an accomplishment of pre-ordained task. It is rather counter intuitive to scold her for that, is it not?" Posing the question to the clearly flustered man, Rodion turned his attention back to the girl as she crouched down next to Madrys. Her questions coming out like a rapid-fire gatling gun.

"Madrys is alive, theoretically, in the same manner that you are." Dropping down to sit on his heels, keeping balance with his toes, Rodion tapped the middle of Madrys' back. "Release," the command came out as a whisper. Only Deva, Madrys, and Rodion could hear it. Almost immediately a hiss and a blast of vapor escaped as Madrys' back opened up. The steel fur rippled as her core, spinning and shining in place, became visible. The core floated in a sea of golden ether. Pulling a steel gauntlet out of one of his bags, Rodion donned the glove. Reaching out, he pulled Madrys' core out.

"Sadly, I cannot answer if it is an Etherdrive or not as my studies have been mostly self-conducted. So, I ask that you, who is apparently somewhat versed in the topic, judge whether or not Madrys does in fact use an Etherdrive." Holding Madrys' core up, Rodion began pointing out certain traits of the core. "If you look into the middle you will see a dot of blue ether. That is my own, and what imbues Madrys with her personality. If you move your attention to the actual construct of the core, you will see about fifty steel rings. However, there are hundreds of rings within her core. They are constantly spinning, constantly circulating the ether. THis keeps it in motion and stops the ether from dissipating."

Letting the girl study Madrys' for a bit longer, Rodion turned his attention to T'sukasa. "T'sukasa, If I remember correctly your daughter was speaking of something being completed. WOuld this be the Karamzina by chance?" Thinking for a second, Rodion responded to the earlier topic. "Also, T'sukasa, do not worry about the Church. As you know, I will be on a journey for a while and I do not know when I will return. As such, I ask that you will work within Cero to get my papers and acceptance into Muse while I am gone. Of course, I will not force you to do this. It is only if you wish to take up the task." Letting his comments translate within T'sukasa's mind, Rodion turned back to Deva.

"Any more questions, Deva?"

The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

@shylarah Yes it definitely would be interesting. However, this lady has just been introduced. Don't just assume that she'll be madly in love with Rodrion at some point. I don't really want to do the thing where any time I introduce a cute, similar-aged character for someone to interact with it automatically defaults to "possible love interest". If that kind of stuff does happen, I'd rather it happen organically, as a result of that character's personality and how players interact with them.

The point is, we don't know enough about Deva yet to start pinning her as "the other woman". Maybe she's just blown away by his smarts and isn't romantically interested in him? *I* don't even know that yet. :p

The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

@DrakeyOh shit I forgot about that. I could always make him pass it on to someone else, since he is the head engineer and the actual like, designer/architect of the Karamzina, so he does need to go.

The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

@Drakey

Well, yeah, I was planning on her and Amir coming along. I will say, Deva's character hasn't been explored much yet, so, maybe try to hold off on headcanon stuff until we see more of her. :p

The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

@Drakey Well, Rodion would need to convince Ragnar, if he really wanted one. Which probably wouldn't be too hard, considering how much Ragnar likes him.

@shylarahThat could be interesting! Ragnar would probably think she's too mercurial to care for an animal, but we'll see.

Also, I'll have the character stuff with Antonin and Father Magnus you wanted today.

The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

@DrakeyNot sure Ragnar would be comfortable leaving a wolf with Rodion. He's heard about the ether experiments, after all. Also, doesn't he already have a cool mechanical wolf?!

The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

Hey everyone,

Can I get a quick rollcall and update on your next post? I know most of you are working on stuff (and one or two of you are waiting on me to reply), but there's a few of you who I haven't heard from in a while. So yeah, just thought we should have a quick check in to see where everyone's at.

Thanks.

The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

@shylarahAbout to send you and Myst a prompt within the next hour or so!

The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

Tale's End Slums, Native Varya, City of Magnagrad

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"Anyone want a dog?"

Upon hearing these words, Ragnar's heart leaped from his chest. The Muraadan girl's pups would probably never make for ideal hunting companions. They were too small and would never grow to the size of their counterparts in the wild. She had oversold their worth, but, she was truthful about one thing though...

"Hassan, they're wolves, not dogs. And yes. I would very much like one. In fact, I'll take all three!" His joy and excitement getting the better of him, the young inquisitor snatched the three leashes from Hassan's hand.

"You two go in without me. I'll be out here, getting to know our new friends."

Ragnar turned to Stina and met the giant inquisitor's eyes before tilting his head towards Hassan, who was now making his way to the pub's entrance. The unspoken message was clear. "I won't be in there, so look after him. I know it's going to annoying but, please?"

Ragnar walked the pups across the wet steam-covered road towards an abandoned church. He sat on the short stairwell leading up to the entrance, his white fur cloak staining itself on the filthy wet steps. The pups jumped up to warm themselves inside its folds.

"There, there. Warm enough for you?"

They had not been allowed pets in the seminary, which had tormented Ragnar to no end for his first few years there. Muraadans were a wild, hearty people, and so were the animals they were bloodbound to keep and protect. His mother had kept a wolf of her own.

He remembered how it tried to protect them from those Lanostran brigands... The sound of its cry as the apostate drove his spear into--

Ragnar gazed at the pups, concentrating hard on their appearances. His mouth was dry, and he could feel his heart begin to calm itself. Sure, they were naught but skin and bones, and even now they were shivering in the cold, but to him, each one was beautiful in its own way. The largest of the pups, a female, was black as night, with dark indigo markings lining her shadowy fur. Her dark glossy eyes met his own without fear. The next pup was the color of Lanostran ice-- cyan blue, with golden eyes that would not meet him. A true half-breed if Ragnar ever saw one, but maybe a bit of a coward. The littlest of the pups was grey, brown and white, a smear of earth and snow. Not all that handsome, save for his eyes-- which were curious and attentive. They were a vibrant red, like an open wound.

With a sad smile, he began to pet them. "I'll find someone who will take care of you. Someone who will treat you well."

Across the street, Ragnar watched as Hassan opened the door to the pub and stepped inside. The sound of raucous laughter and music could be heard coming from within. Ragnar was silent as his brothers disappeared into the dark interior of the Shadow & Storm. He had wanted so badly to spend the night with them, to drink in a place that wasn't the seminary cantina, to laugh and be free for one single evening, but one thing that Hassan mentioned earlier had filled him with trepidation.

"We have much to do! Food, drink, merrymaking, maybe we find a woman for Ragnar here?"

The young Muraadan inquisitor sighed, his breath misting in the Varyan winter air. With the wolf pups competing for warmth inside his cloak, Ragnar continued to watch the pub.

***

Within the Shadow & Storm, the two inquisitors sat drinking at a far table, away from the floor where a crowd of soldiers, civilians, and what looked like a congregation of nuns were dancing up a storm. The pub itself was darkly lit-- with colored ether lamps casting a warm golden glow over everything. The place seemed to have been converted from an old Secular military bunker, as one could glimpse the telltale signs of ether burn and bullet holes on the metal walls and of course, there was no mistaking the drab industrial grey that was emblematic of Varya's military. The decor of the pub was plain, pictographs of old soldiers and warpriests lined the walls while the company flags from retired regiments and warbands hung in tribute behind the bar. The only decoration that seemed out of the ordinary for a place like this was the massive weapon, some kind of broadsword, that hung on the far wall of the pub. It lay atop a fancy-looking plaque. Etched in the gilded stone of that plaque were the words "Arrakin's Zweihander".

The band on stage was energetic, and the traditional Varyan volska they played was rhythmic and loud, the way Varyans liked it. There was hardly any melody, beauty or storytelling in the music of the empire, it only served to get one to yell, to drink and to dance. And that's exactly what the crowd was doing. The nuns were especially getting into it.

Hassan and Stina sat at their table, drinking and conversing. After tonight, their orders called for them to travel to the city of Cero in T'sarae, which would be a long and aggravating trip. This night would be their last in Magnagrad for who knew how long, and Hassan at least, was eager to make it one to remember fondly.

The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

@shylarah Oo, I'll keep it in mind. :p

Working on some replies right now.