Of Steam and Steel: IC (Mature) {Currently Open}

[Ghostwish]

Challam paused in mid-sip of the wine, and swallowed as he cast a side-long glance at the stranger. "And who might that be? Hopefully not my cousin. That emo bastard could cry black ink if pressed to." He said, and took a sip of the wine, before continuing to the incubus(?), "My clan always tells me there's a right way to drink this stuff, but I can never seem to get the hang of it. So who is this dingbat you speak of, Mr..?" Challam asked, awaiting his reply.

[Lisky]

Battle-Cruiser MOJLNIR

Bas gave a noncommittal shrug and replied with a toothy smirk, "Depends what type of action you're talking about, Paige.  If it's combat, probably not much for a few days, save for perhaps another pirate or 2... We'll be heading out for a supply run after we finish today's patrol.  Heading to northern Nhylamar for the night.  After that, we'll be doing a few more patrols, before getting into something a bit bigger."

He playfully strolled up next to the succubus and said in a wickedly playful tone, "If you'd like to continue the tour, up next, we've got the armory down stairs." 


In the Clearing

The being continued to flail as Stephan spoke.  Suddenly, Stephan could hear a faint buzzing... it suddenly grew louder.  The being stopped flailing, his arm suddenly pointed directly at the rodent.  A swarm of reddish tinted narrow-bodied insects exploded off of the adventurers arm and headed straight for Stephan.   He'd note that it wasn't bees... but wasps... and they didn't seem to pleased to see the winged squirrel.


Bar (Challam)

"Dequlin, Seme clan"  The feline replied with his own evil grin.  "And you've failed in two of the most important steps to truly enjoy that wine."

Waving for the bartender, the feline said, "Whatever he's having, please... i need to show him the failure of his ways." 

The evil grin grew more toothy as a fresh glass and more wine was poured.  Dequlin chided,  " Now, watch what i do, and if you can't get that much, i may have to call a proctologist to pull that head of yours, out of your ass..."

Swirling the liquid around, the tiger very daintily put the glass up to his lips, tipped the glass back, smelled the wine first, let it barely touch his lips, then, a few moments later, tilted his head back and sipped a small amount of the intoxicant.  A few moments of savoring were obvious as Challam could tell he was enjoying the bliss, even though the new-comer was protected by mind-shield.

[Tipod]

Bart coughed as the mare took off into the hazy sky, pushing himself up and hopping on his good leg. The pain subsided just enough for him to stand up, staring at the fleeing demoness with a scowl beneath his mask. "...yeah, that's right, get the fuck outta here! Tell your mom I kicked your ass!" Damnit, she just had to break something in his leg; those were the most annoying wounds to recover from. All he could do was hop along or sit until the bones knitted back together.

He stopped his tirade long enough to acknowledge Sethir, still hopping awkwardly. "...oh, yeah." The demon fished around through his jacket pockets, pulling out a small stack of thin, crumpled leaflets and handing one off to the incubus. "My cousin's running for superintendent on the local school board. Vote Hassan-Alan Thom'sen or he'll bitch me out again." The small scrap of paper was a smartly-designed and punctual advertisement titled, "Education, Not Indoctrination: A Treatise on Public Schooling," followed by a small list of bullet points for the ideal Nhylamar school system: more programs for low-income families, cultural sensitivity classes, emphasis on tolerance and other liberal values. The kind of values the wealthy, landowning Creatures of Nhylamar didn't want their children infected with.

[Tapewolf]

"You sure you don't want a cast for that?" Seth said, pointing at the leg.  Polymers were easy to create magically, it would take very little time or effort to simply encase his ankle in plastic.

He scanned quickly through the leaflet and blinked in mild confusion.  "That's very left-leaning.  I approve, but... weren't you waxing all 'survival of the fittest' earlier?" he asked, and stuffed it into a pocket of his jacket.

[Tezkat]

Train Crash, Nhylamar

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about those airship guns. They suffered a mishap, it seems. Technology, huh?"

The only other person left alive at the train crash eased his bike up alongside the two Creatures.  Obviously not a product of Nhylamar steam technology, the bestial contraption of leather and steel purred softly as he brought it to a stop, its black and purple wings folded tightly against its sides.

The youthful panther--he looked no older than his teens--sported a wide grin, seemingly quite pleased with himself despite a rather dishevelled appearance. Barechested under a dark coat peppered with small cuts and a few long gashes, he was covered in blood and soot. Matted blond hair hung over the leather and brass goggles on his forehead.

"Well, those pirates certainly bit off more than they could chew. Serves them right." He surveyed the devastation, then gazed across the grassy plains to the east, squinting against the morning sun. "Looks like they left a few stragglers."

Less than a mile down the tracks, a half dozen armed pirates were chasing the passengers fleeing back to Serabatos.

[Tapewolf]

"That's good to hear," Seth said glancing around at the newcomer.  "Nice bike, by the way." he said.  Then his headwings drooped slightly.  "Who's powering it, though?"

"As for the stragglers, I'll join you in hunting them if this guy doesn't need any help," he said, gesturing at the demon.  "Otherwise, I'll catch you up later."

[Tipod]

"I waxed 'every Creature for himself.' What chance do beings get when their landlord eats people's souls and the teachers break your kid's hand for giving lip?" The demon continued to hobble awkwardly before setting his foot down with a wince. "Don't know why my cousins bother with politics, though. Nobody in my whole family's been elected to anything in over 500 years."

Bart's brow quirked as the panther rode on up, still bending and shifting on his good leg. "You guys can go ahead, smack around whoever you want. I'll be fine." As much as he wanted to lay some more hurt on the damnable pirates, getting some food and crashing on a bench was top priority.

[Ghostwish]

"Dequilin?" Challam said incredulously as he quirked a curious eyebrow, "THE Dequilin?" He said, and grinned a bit. "You should really write the headmistress a letter some time. She can't seem to hold a conversation with one of us from Seme without mentioning you." He said, and then tried his own hand at the 'proper' way to drink the wine.

"Huh, it tastes better." He said, setting the glass down a moment. "I still don't see how Aunt always manages to get completely smashed off of it every meeting though." He said, and then looked over the feline again. "So what has you out here? I didn't think we had any holdings until further into the nation?"

[Tezkat]

Train Crash, Nhylamar

A hint of anger flashed at the disapproval in Seth's voice, but it was immediately buried, undetectable to anyone but an empath. The feline's cheerful expression never wavered. A layer of intense pain hid beneath that smiling mask.

"Oh, him?" The newcomer patted his bike. "In life, he was a murdering rapist asshole. Now, his spiritual remains feed my bike, just as his earthly ones feed the grass over his grave."

He jerked his head towards the pirates. "Shall we?"


Tezkat tore off towards the east, disinclined to debate bleeding heart liberal politics. If that Incubus harboured philosophical objections to soul execution, he might not approve of taking prisoners. In that case, Tezkat needed to reach the pirates first and ensure that at least one of them survived long enough to question. Creatures held grudges for a very long time, and he had to prepare for his next meeting with the Demon. He licked his lips. Oh yes... their next meeting would be very different.

[Tapewolf]

"If you're sure," Seth said to the Demon.  "And yes, I'll see if I can't vote for your cousin."

Turning to the other biker, he detected a faint surge of anger and made a gesture of subtle apology.  "I suspect that the fairness of the trial in these parts may often be index-linked to the demand for souls," he said. "But it sounds like you knew the guy, so I'll not quarrel over it."

"As for the pirates, yes...  I suppose we'd better get this over with."  He headed over to the bike and stowing his new-found weapon on it, helmeted up.  Short-range stuff like the katana and broadsword would be better for this sort of job - shooting while riding was not something you wanted to do when there was a crowd of innocents involved.

[insidexml]

Weapon check, was it? That made sense; it would hardly be a good idea to place weapons in the hands of a drunken patron. Sikici unstrapped the two thrusting daggers from his forearms, placing them onto the weapons rack as directed. The angel was expressionless as he watched the lion-demon give him a visual inspection, probably to look for any hidden weaponry Sikici might have. He didn't have any, so there obviously wasn't going to be much of a problem.

Wasn't that mythos thrown out of the club for 'getting handsy with the staff?' Sikici certainly didn't want to get an arm broken, even if he could just heal himself. Then again, it wasn't as if he had planned on 'getting handsy with the staff' in the first place. He didn't have any other questions, so he merely gave a nod to the bouncer and headed through the secondary door and into the club.

[SquirrelWizard]

"Well shit..." the thought shot through Stephan's mind as the wasp began swarming at him. He acted out of reflex, and whispered a few words to a spell.

Stephan wasn't sure if wasp could be disoriented by a flare spell, but it was worth a shot. As for the being? well it sucked to be him. Stephan shielded his eyes as a small bead of pure light appeared in the air between the swarm and him. Noiselessly it exploded in a eye searingly bright explosion of light that illuminated the camp like small sun. As quickly as it appeared, the light was gone, leaving Stephan to blink away the faint after image and, not waiting to see how badly the swarm was phased, he started to focus on another spell, one that would teleport both him and the being to the entrance of his wagon, and hopefully out of the cloud of insects.

[Azlan]

"Nani?  Er, I mean... what?"  Locke blinked several times at the owl before giving a slight nervous chuckle, "oh, my apologies.  I was thinking of a few unfortunate circumstances I have troubling me.  I seem to be in the need of some things that I am unsure of how to obtain."

Locke signed the intended receipt and took his card back.  Scoping up the altered coat, the cheetah nodded respectfully to the shop owner and exited.  His next stop was the market proper, he needed a conventional firearm and some bulk food stuffs, he might even buy the parts to build a clank or two.

[Lisky]

Battle-Cruiser MJOLNIR

Bas continued with the tour after dropping Paige's bags off in his quarters.   The tour continued, stopping in the mess hall for a afternoon snack.  She was escorted through the heart of the ship, shown the main soul-stone matrix, armory, and general workings.  She'd be given a brief rundown of her various tasks, shown both armories, and as the tour concluded, Bas headed back to his cabin for some rest.  Whatever Paige did was up to her, they'd be returning to port in a few hours.

Zelah's tour took considerably longer, she was shown everything, the collie took an especially long time in the armory.   She'd been assigned a new toy to play with, a large bore lever action scatter-gun to play with, she was also given several different types of shells to play with.

The airship would arrive in Wolksheem several hours later.  Unloading the crew at the main port, Bas and the newcomers would be the last off the ship.  In the main lobby, there were several individuals gathered around the port commandant's desk.  A dapper looking badger, and an rodent type angel.


Aeliseium Forest

The Storm-Scorps first shot did splinter the tree, however, while that cleared their own weapons to fire, it also cleared the line of sight for the steel giant in front of them.  All 8 revovler style light-cannons fired.  Plumes of dust, dirt, sand and shrapnel bounced off the Storm-Scorp.  As the brothers went to move, they'd both note the denting of the armor on the lower digits of both front legs.  Nothing serious, or even impeding, but they'd been dealt a glancing blow.

Their own follow-up shots  seemed to disrupt something, the heavy-bore artillery was aimed right at the mouth of the strom-scorp... but there was no ear-splitting roar... no fiery bath of death and metal.  The gun or it's feed mechanism were damaged.  The other shots, however, went wide as the raider mech moved with surprising agility for a Ahnk'Ator built raider.

A deep, hollow ratcheting sound echoed out, and both brothers could see the chambers being cycled, loading fresh shells into the cannon chambers.

On the outskirts, Lucy could see the ominous metal giant as it turned into the woods and knocking over trees.  A bolt of lightning smashed into the forest,  and the rippling air of a concussion blast whipped past the clearing.


Nhylamar Badlands

It didn't take but a few minutes to catch up with the pirates on foot.  They hadn't quite mingled with the crowd yet, and as the bikes approached, the half dozen individuals started forming up.  Tez was out front, but Seth wasn't far behind.  The sudden crackle of gunfire sounded as several of the pirates opened up on the bikes.  Tez could hear a round ping off just behind his leg.  Another clipped his side, leaving a dull burning sensation.  Seth was luckier.  The whistle of a missed round sailed by his ear, despite the helmet, and a couple plumes of dirt were kicked up.  The pirates had formed a rough, half-circle as the bikes grew closer, they gave up on moving with the civilians in an attempt to band together.   Another pair broke off from the civilians, and joined up in the circling move.  With them, the total was brought to a grand total of eight pirates.


The Club (Sikici) 

Sikici entered into the poorly lit room.  It was large, expansive, and several times larger than the outside walls.  The main bar had a collection of creatures and beings buying drinks from the staff.  Both men and women wore scant clothing, just enough leather to cover the right spots.  Around the other side was a stage.  There was a 'cubi doing a fan-dance, again being showy as customers attempted to get her to mess up her routine by tossing coins onto the stage, hoping she'd forget the fan just long enough to go for their money.  If Sikici didn't know any better, between the slightly sleazy crowd, and general aura of the place, he'd be fairly certain he'd just entered a strip-club.


At the Bar (Challam)

Dequlin gave a wicked grin, "I can't help it that a few freshman hadn't figured out what the 'real' fire alarm sounded like... They were just foolish to go running towards the courtyards..." 

Giving another shrug, the tiger replied, "I'm actually just out on a little adventuring at the moment... didn't expect to catch you on your return trip.  Though, now that you're here... perhaps i should warn you that a lot has changed while you were gone.  Probably for the better, but the territory is a hell of a lot larger, now.  If you need a place to crash, I'd recommend the White Pony, just a few blocks down."


In the Cart

Stephan's first spell worked at fairly well.  The insects did seem confused... he didn't get stung after all.  The few seconds it took to prepare and cast the jump-spell were long enough for the adventurer to recover.  The box Stephan had seen earlier made it's purpose obvious as the pair stood face to face... Well, not quite.   Stephan's face was facing the barrel of the boxy looking semi-automatic pistol.  "Where the hell are we?  What'd you do, Squirrely?!" 

The panther still looked disoriented, and Stephan could almost taste his fear... Bitter, almost like someone melted a tablespoon of butter in a cup of water... and then the squirrel was somehow compelled to drink the strange mixture.


Train Station

Kyirri would find nothing else eventful happen for the rest of the trip.  He arrived at his stop a few hours later, he still had his money, and nobody seemed to be following him as far as he could tell.  This train station was in a higher end area than his departure location's.  It was clearly geared towards the middle-class patrons.  Store fronts had decorative windows, and nigh-gaudy displays compared to the worn and grimy look the roo-rat was used to.   

[WhiteFox]

   Gabriel woke next morning, curled up on the pillow of his bed. Hazey midmorning sunglight streamed in through the rooms single window, and the air was slightly damp. Sitting up, he stretched, yawned, and shook himself out.
   He'd taken a bath in the washroom sink the night before. With all the dirt washed out, his brown fur was now a rich cinnamon and his hair was a dark golden blonde.
   Even if it were the smallest room available, it was certainly more than enough space for Gabriel.
   As he got out of bed, the first thing he did was take his brass pendant off the end table and loop it around his neck. Then he went to the washroom where his clothes were hanging on a line, and got dressed. He'd washed them in the sink too, and they were dry by now.
   I swear, without all the coal dust and road drirt, they weigh half as much.
   Either that, or I've worn them half-way through.
   Gabriel stumbled out the door and down the stairs, still dogged by sleep. The common room was nearly empty, except for a few patrons who had stopped for a staple meal.
   Gabriel hopped up on one of the barstools, and crouched on it's edge. His tail coiled around the columb for extra stability. "C'n I hav a drink?"
   "Gabe." Said the bartender, adding a breif wave in greeting. "Taps're workin well enough."
   The rat murmered a soft ice spell to chill his beverage. "They should be... I sure was." Gabriel said. He wasn't exaggerating, either. The taps had only needed a new gasket, but he'd spent a few hours last night crawling around in tight spaces, doing basic upkeep on the plumbing. "Anything in the pot for a hard workin' rat?" Gabriel wrung his hat in his hands, eyes round and sorrowful.
   The bartender cuffed him upside the head lightly. "There's something in the pot for paying customers." He said.
   Gabriel grinned, and set some coin on the table.



   Gabriel, astride Walsh, rolled out of the stables attached to the pub. Traffic was light, but in an hour or so lunch time traffic would have the streets packed.
   First things first. I totally need to get one of those pocketed vests the Nhylamar areo-navy uses. I should pick up a new pocket-torch too... the nozzle on my current one is starting to wear out, and the enchantment is fizzling a bit.
   Then it's off to the markets to look for work. There'll probably be a few pursers about, picking up supplies. Most people wandered around the docks, or trawled the pubs, looking for work. The only people you met at the docks were too busy to talk, while all you found at the pubs were drunken NCOs. Pursers, quartermasters, and first-mates were the ones Gabriel wanted to talk to, and the best time to catch them was when they were shopping.
   Any other supplies I need will depend on the job. One thing is for certain though; before I leave port...
   Gabriel found a spot to park and lock up Walsh in the commertial district, and continued on foot.
   ...I'm gonna buy a huge bag of jujubes.

[Tapewolf]

Realising that they were coming under fire, Seth did the wing-trick again, creating a gap in the back of this top so that the wings could escape.  He flattened them out into something that would protect him a bit more and dismounted the bike.

Since the pirates had apparently decided to stand their ground, the crowd would presumably carry on and thus separate themselves.  The wolf incubus considered that the best approach would be to kill the ones who were actually firing first, and then see if it was possible to negotiate some form of surrender.  If the pirates wanted to run for the border in exchange for some information - thereby retaining their lives and souls - he wasn't about to stop them.

With a sigh, he rearranged his wings to protect his head, leaving only a small gap to see through, and brought the shotgun to bear on one of the attackers.

[SquirrelWizard]

Stephan looked at the offending firearm with disdain, "Alright, its a show with a hostile audiance," he smirked, "Let's roll."

Stephan held his wand in front of him with both his hands as if he were holding onto a railing, and regarded the Being cooly, "Skill... magic... perhaps unholy pacts with those from beyond?" he let that linger for a bit, "But, that isn't the important question? Now is it? You see, I asked you a question earlier. A question to which I have yet to recieve, and I am still waiting for, an answer. Up until this point I have been pleasant, I rescued you from your swarm of bees, while you rudely accosted me with a weapon." he held up his hands revealing that he was holding nothing but his wand, "While I am unarmed I might add. A simple answer to my question, and we can part ways no harm, no foul. Honest." He smiled disarmingly, "But, first I would suggest you lowering your weapon. For, you see, the question you should be asking is; if up until now I have been pleasant, do you truely want to see me become... unpleasant?"

[Noone]

Kyirri kept alert throughout the entire trip. At the trip's end however, he was quite exhausted, least of all from the energy drain he'd been hit with. Fatigue made the back of his head bang, he was also feeling a bit hungry. He knew he could sustain himself longer, but it was uncomfortable, and it was hurting his perceptions. After meeting that cubi on the train, he was convinced that someone was after him, and would likely kill him after he picked up the book.

He glanced around at the store fronts with his blank gaze. Reminds me of the life I used to have... days could go by where I didn't have to constantly worry about being killed over half a crust of bread. I didn't have to worry about having my home broken into every time I left. He glanced around a bit, still ever alert. It all looked so nice back then, but I know better now. This place only looks nicer. The authorities are still just as crooked and the places are just as dangerous. I would know from empirical evidence after all. Bitter memories came back to him about that one night. His parents were murdered. Soul murdered in fact. To his knowledge, the authorities didn't even care.

He shook it off, spending only a moment brooding on his distaste of Nhylamar authorities. I'm thinking about things that won't matter. I shouldn't be. I need to stay alert. He kept his future attention focused on trying to find a place he could stay for some time, and get something to eat as well. He searched for an inexpensive, inconspicuous place.

[Ghostwish]

"A lot?" Challam asked, quirking an eyebrow, but then promptly placed his paw over his face. "Geez.. I really have been gone for a while, haven't I?" He said, before looking back to his clan member again. "I remember talk of expansion, I guess I had just forgotten how long it's been. Talk turned to plans turned to action turned to history by now." He said, and took another slow sip of the wine.

"I think I'll just hang around here for a bit, and try and figure out my aunt's secret to falling over drunk from this wine." He said, grinning. "I'll head to that inn you mentioned if things get too rowdy here. Why not fill me in on what's happened since I left?"

[techmaster-glitch]

Aelisium Forest

  Gaakronacht gritted his teeth and clenched his eyes slightly as dirt and debris exploded in front of him with the Ahnk'Ator steam-mech firing all it's autocannons. His pilot's light armor absorbed most of anything harmful, but a few things painfully pelted his face. He was already backing up the mech even as he had loosed his own volley, and before the trees blocked the mutual view of the two mechs, Gaak noticed the enemy seemed to be aiming it's primary cannon at them... but nothing fired. That was fortunate, as it was that there didn't appear to be any significant damage.
  After getting back in the trees, Gaak took the mech to the right, and began circumventing the clearing with the ruined village and the large steam-mech, keeping far enough behind the trees and other cover that the mech shouldn't be able to see them. While doing this, he also pulled out a protective mask from a compartment in the cockpit; behind him his older brother had already fitted his on.
  The brothers had fought mechs like this before (usually as part of a large team, but still), and they knew that in order to take out a large foe like this, hit-and-run while aiming to disarm it was necessary. Removing it's teeth, so to speak.
  "Quite a thick volley." Gezzemocht remarked to his brother.
  "I thought it best to not half-arse this one. We don't have any bigger friends to hide behind." Gaakronacht tensely replied.
  "Too true. When we come out to hit him again, go for whichever arm is close, try to take out those auto-cannons. Hopefully the chest-cannon's already out of commission for good, but if you get a chance, but send a shot or two it's way again, just to be sure. Maybe at the head as well, we don't know where the pilots are hiding. We've got to keep it off-balance. We got lucky with it's return fire there. If it gets a straight shot at us, we're in trouble."
   "Don't I know it..."

[insidexml]

Sikici wondered why the lighting was so poor in the room. Was it simply to save the effort of lighting the rather large room? Or was it just because they were lazy? Perhaps it was a mixture of both? Or perhaps it just created a certain sort of 'mood' in the club.

The angel took a look around the room, taking a quick look at some of its occupants. Here was Sikici nearly completely covered in clothing, and there were people, with barely enough leather to keep them covered. In fact, Sikici was relatively certain that such a small amount of leather couldn't possibly contain a bosom so large. And yet somehow, it did. Didn't that hurt? At all?

As he slowly meandered around the room, doing his best not to draw too much attention to himself, he noticed the cubi performing a fan-dance. Sikici had never seen a fan-dance before, or even been aware that people fan-danced. See, there was something you didn't see every day, although perhaps for good reason.

Now, if he didn't know any better, this wasn't just a normal club. This was a strip-club.

And that made the angel... uncomfortable.

[Paladin Sheppard]

Battle-Cruiser MJOLNIR

Bas continued with the tour after dropping Paige's bags off in his quarters.   The tour continued, stopping in the mess hall for a afternoon snack.  She was escorted through the heart of the ship, shown the main soul-stone matrix, armory, and general workings.  She'd be given a brief rundown of her various tasks, shown both armories, and as the tour concluded, Bas headed back to his cabin for some rest.  Whatever Paige did was up to her, they'd be returning to port in a few hours.

The airship would arrive in Wolksheem several hours later.  Unloading the crew at the main port, Bas and the newcomers would be the last off the ship.  In the main lobby, there were several individuals gathered around the port commandant's desk.  A dapper looking badger, and an rodent type angel.

After being left to her own devices Paige headed back to the Captain's set about disrupting Baseel's rest...In the best kind of way.....




When the Mjolnir docked the wolf succubus followed her Captain's lead and was nearly the last to disembark. "So whats the plan Skipper"? she asked in a playful tone.

[Tezkat]

Nhylamar Badlands

Tezkat grunted when the bullet grazed his side, a sharp reminder that the abandoned pirates still posed a threat. They were circling together, the way herds of feral beasts often did when frightened. Delicious terror. Had they even realized yet that two dangerous Creatures bore down on them, or was it merely the instinct of panicked prey? Pirate loyalty being what it was, it shouldn't take much to push them over the edge.

The other Incubus was closing atop some kind of steam powered bike. Tezkat veered off to flank the enemy and approach from downwind, giving his new partner the chance to reach them first. And hopefully draw most of their fire.

As he angled back to charge the group, Tezkat drew his sword and released his wings. Keeping them hidden didn't hurt any less, and he needed to make a strong impression. A simple glamour concealed any evidence of injury. Tears in the batlike membranes closed. His trouser leg returned to normal with no sign of the bloodsoaked bandages. Blood around his own wounds disappeared, creatively replaced by the sorts of spatter earned from slicing foes.

A ball of crackling blue electricity, not unlike the one that had razed the airship deck minutes earlier, appeared in his hand. It shot towards the pirates, raking the ground with a curtain of lightning as it flew. A loudening roar of thunderclaps announced its approach. It fizzled out just shy of the group, obviously meant as a warning shot, leaving only the smell of ozone and a trail of smoke in its wake.

It wasn't real. Such an awesome display of power far exceeded his talents in elemental magic, and he had no desire to waste expensive bullets when simple illusion would suffice. But the pirates didn't have to know that. He rode through the illusionary cover, real dust kicked up by his wheels mingling with the spectral smoke, and skidded to a halt right in front of the pirates.

"Good morning! Do you perchance know this man?" He held out his hand. A black flame burst from his palm and coalesced into an animated miniature of the chainsword-wielding jaguar. After giving the pirates a chance to recognize their boss, he snapped his fist closed, snuffing it out. "He ran away without finishing our duel, and I thought some new friends might tell me where he's headed."

He rested his blade back across shoulder in casual disregard for the guns pointed his way. No one with that Demon in his sights would show concern for such puny weapons. His confident half grin displayed a single white fang.

"Who wants to be friends, and who wants to be breakfast?" He licked his lips, hungry bloodlust in his eyes hinting that he might find either option agreeable. "I'm holding tryouts."

[Tapewolf]

Sethir was about to fire when the other rider called out.  He hesitated.

"I'm not opposed to making some kind of a deal," the wolf called out.  "Information - or your surrender - in exchange for a quick death, maybe a chance to run for the border.  "Otherwise... I can't vouch for the safety of your souls."

He re-adjusted his sights but paused before firing - he wanted to see what they had to say to the proposals.  Or what the other rider had to say to them, for that matter.

[Kafzeil]

The metallic beasts continued there skirmish, Lucy keeping watch.

The four legged mech tried flanking the larger one, moving in her direction.

Lucy cursed her luck. Trapped like a damn rat...

In desperation, She tried digging, shoveling away the earth around her foot to pull it free. But the question was would she have enough time to do this task and slip away unnoticed back into the bush.

She looked up from behind the fallen tree. The mech was right beside her own. And in that split second she was likely very visible.

[SpottedKitty]

Click. Click. Clunk. "Ow, dammit!" Zelah jerked her hand back and stuck her finger in her mouth to soothe the bruised claw-sheath she'd just caught (again) in between two sharp-edged chunks of metal. At least she hadn't managed to draw blood this time. With her other hand she laid the shotgun down carefully on the bunk beside her before she lost her temper and tried to throw it through the wall of her cabin. She liked the powerful new weapon Elkan had arranged to have issued to her when her tour of the airship brought them to the armoury. It had a lot more punch than her old Army-issue pistol, but it was so different from any gun she'd used before, it was taking a little getting used to. The exasperated 'Cubi twitched her ears, whiskers and headwings and lashed her tail a few times. Old habits and drills, some aided by the memory of amazingly loud sergeants, were hard to set aside. She'd spent the last couple of hours after her tour in her cabin, practicing reloading, working the feed, and stripping the gun, getting familar with it, and the damned thing was still biting her.

She'd just decided to have one more try at smoothing out her reloading technique when Elkan poked his snout in the door to tell her the airship was almost back at their base. She repacked quickly, finding room in her travelling bag — just about — for her newest acquisition and the boxes of various types of ammo that had come with it. Only a small effort was needed to hide her headwings. She hitched the bag over her shoulder and threaded her way through the corridors and stairs until she found the main loading ramp. Wolkshammer was already there, accompanied by the wolf Elkan had pointed out as one of the new pilots. The one who'd set her sights on the Captain, to judge from her tone of voice. She could see headwings sprouting from behind the wolf's ears: could she be another 'Cubi? Zelah strode down the ramp, glancing at the small group gathered around a desk off to one side of the extensive lobby, and stopped a winglength away, standing almost at attention. "Captain Wolkshammer," she said quietly to announce herself. Her whiskers wiggled and spread: she was getting an odd emotional read from the wolf and the Demon. They hadn't... had they?

[Mel Dragonkitty]

Addy noticed a large group disembarking from the big ship that had just docked. Great, more delays finding her missing ride.

[Tezkat]

Nhylamar Badlands

The wolf Incubus hadn't quite backed his play, but that was fine so long as the double threat served to further crush the pirates' resolve. Acutely alert to their thoughts, emotions, and body language, Tezkat's relaxed posture belied the urge to lash out at the first sign of his gambit failing. Even non-magical bullets fired in panicked desperation would be painful--possibly fatal--at this range, and he wasn't sure how badly the leg wound would affect his mobility. He inclined his head, Demon wings flaring slightly in a display of dominance as he waited for a reply.

[Azlan]

"oui, speedmew 'atch 'ere y're standin!"  yelled the liftermech operator as its mechanical bulk swung around to deposit the pallet of supplies on the elevator leading up to the dock where FH was tied up at.

"sorry!" replied Locke as he sidestepped the swinging loader mech, "hey wait a minute, what did you call me..."

However, it was too late.  The doors closed as the lift headed up to the dock.  Shrugging, the cheetah turned back towards the supervisor, "really, should that be a proper address for the client whom is purchasing your goods and services?"  Arguably it wasn't a lot of food stuffs, but still.

"True, but you shouldn't stand in the way of heavy mechs either."  The sable shrugged as he flipped through papers on his clipboard, "that should be the last of the bulk goods.  Food stuffs and... some mechanical parts.  Sign here please."  

As the liftermech exited the elevator, Locke signed the receiving document.  He had already inspected the goods upon purchase, and one of his clockwork minions had verified the merchandise.

"Thank you again."  He stated as the sable and his delivery crew departed.  Locke walked after them, heading in the same direction, back to the marketplace.  This time, he was in search of a gunsmith.  

[Tipod]

With Tez and Seth entertaining themselves with the pirates, Bart was left to sit back and keep his broken ankle set up nice and straight. It took several minutes for the splintered bones to knit themselves back together in a brittle bond just stable enough for him to limp comfortably on. Goddamn horse, never turn your back on a Goddamned horse--

He hobbled along in a rushed gait, keeping his distance from the pirates as he made his way towards the capitol.