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

[Mechanisto]

Sevoy Back Alley

Josephine's left eyebrow rose as Baseel commented on the use of her skills. It wasn't a gesture of suspicion, though.

"I am a mechanized cavalry pilot, and have had the pleasure of serving as a captain in a professional military force. My success was rewarded with a degree of social status, as is no doubt evident from my attire. For reasons beyond my control, my duty requires me to pursue more... independent endeavors. I am free to work as either a contract mercenary or as a privateer, but I am no common brigand; I have official royal sanction to pursue targets of opportunity as I see fit. I can provide a copy of my letter of marque if you wish to confirm it's authenticity."

"As for my business here... my vehicle is as fine a steed as one could hope for, but it has some unorthodox components. It's power source is starting to show it's age and I was hoping to find a replacement part sooner rather than later."

"I can purchase the part with valuables up front if nessecary... but I do prefer to work for my supper."

[Arroyo Milori]

Arroyo shook his head as an reaction to seeing the bolt of lighting. 'Shoot that almost got me. There no way these guys are pirates to have someone cast a spell so precise like that.' Arroyo knew he had to act fast. He grabbed onto the ledge of the ship and flung himself up into the air for a brief second, holding his sword in his other hand  and giving it one swing horizontal, the blades broke off into segments on a chain within the sword which extended it's reach in attempt to harm the trio that was searching for him.

The haze still was around, but probably not for long. Arroyo kept himself ready and his defenses up for anything thrown at him. After all, he still had the upper hand near his element.

[Kafzeil]

Great, I don't deserve to live. How nice. Lucy thought to herself.

She bit her tongue at the vile Creatures statemen, grabbing onto one of the handrails.Yeah, our Leaders are a bunch of great guys. Annexing smaller countries on a whim, executing anybody who can throw a fireball. But because they're Beings that makes them better then any otter creature with power, right. She bit her tongue wisely. She was too stressed to argue as it was.

Still, she rejected the idea of letting the the beavers kill her. A minor victory for her, at least.

she remained oddly quiet, she felt like a leper. The brothers pitied her, but at the same time she knew they likely saw as something to stay away from. She looked at the hull of the mech, for the first time today, she saw her reflection on the metal plating.

Her once shining emerald green eyes had taken a sickly yellow colour.  They weren't glowing, not yet, but is made her sick to see such a stark trait her entire family had gone, replaced by this mark of the Unholy magic.

[SquirrelWizard]

Stephan picked himself up off of the ground and turned back to his wagon. He reached up to his face, and felt the cuts burn and could taste the blood. Grumbling to himself; Stephan grabbed a clean bathrobe and a towel, and headed to the showers.

The showers consisted of a wood and metal stall attached to a water tank. The tank itself could be heated, and, with the filter on the bottom, the water used could be recycled. Stephan stepped into the stall and shut the privacy door. The water was lukewarm, the heat enchantment didn't have enough time to warm the tank, but Stephan could care less. He tried to clean his troubles away, wash away last night because today was beginning to look like a doozy.

[Mel Dragonkitty]

Dame Dr. Adelaide Monteque, known for being detached and calm, absolutely melted. The kitten reached out towards her and mewed softly.  Opening the door of the cage she lifted the white ball of fluff and feathers out and snuggled it under her chin. It was only then that she noticed the cubi from yesterday wiping something rather... biological looking from her ear. "I don't believe that particular animal is poisonous. Any fur lost will be purely cosmetic."

The kitten purred and snuggled down against Addy's chest. She quickly debated the purchase. While it would take another month or so she knew the new chapterhouse could use a cat. Pests needed to be kept out of the gardens when they were planted. That would leave plenty of time for this little darling to grow up. Having talked herself into it she took the kitten to the front counter. Once there a bit of rational thought kicked in, "Can you tell me about this cat? I've never seen one with wings before. How large will it get? Does it need special care?"

[Gabi]

Lamylar

Anabelle sighed, and looked around to see if anyone was hurt.

"Well, I'm glad we're not being invaded or something," she said. "I guess we should get things ready and leave before something really bad happens."

She looked at Renard while she started thinking of what to tell everyone as she left, and what to take with her on the journey. She hoped they could find out what exactly was going on and come back with help in time.

[JamesCray]

Clothing Store

The degree of attention he was being paid was likely what unnerved him, he was most decidedly not used to being the centre of attention, it always reminded him of that one time (not in band camp) that he had been attacked in Sevastia'Nyad. However, Johan took his time, tucking his cane under his arm and looking the umbrellas over in a manner that screamed indecision, picking each one up and examining it not just for aesthetics but for method of construction. When he was a child, he more often disassembled and reassembled his toys than actually played with them, and that nature remained. It was at least ten minutes before his eye fell on one of the taller ones, which happened to have a particularly hefty engraved metal shaft.

"My friend, you are a mind reader... Quite literally, I suspect," he murmured, under his breath, and then it was as if a switch had been thrown somewhere in the fennec's head, his entire demeanor shifted. He glanced at his cane, then back to the umbrella, and a grin like a child who had been told he may be getting a new toy spread across his face. Quickly, he turned back to the shapeshifter, his expression manic and his speech rapidfire.

"Listen, do you have a large piece of paper I can use? Or better yet, exactly how good are you at getting in my head, because I've just had an idea, and looking at how solid your work is, you're definitely a skilled enough craftsman to put it together if you can put what's going through my head together into something coherent." By the time he had said it all, he was practically bouncing up and down, hyperfocused.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Cyril sauntered through the market, following roughly behind Baseel and the white Dame Dr. Adelaide Monteque, attention more or less equally divided between the group he was following and the various stalls and stores around the marketplace. Who knew, maybe he'd find something to pass the time.

He'd organised himself with a top hat and cane, today, the cane extracted from his watch pocket, and the top hat from somewhere in his coat tails. He'd also brushed the odd imaginary crumb from his spotless white shirt, made sure the waistcoat and tails were perfect, the winklepickers were so shiny you could shave in them, and all the other checks were satisfied.

A brief wander into the bookstore didn't show anything of interest, although he did take note of the location for a later revisit, in case he'd missed something. He sauntered past the gun store, and had a brief look there for anything that might be new; unlikely, in his professional opinion, but worth a look none-the-less. He caught the proprietoress' eye, nodded in a professional, I-see-you-know-what-you're-doing-but-are-busy, I'll-wait-until-you're-free sort of way, and went on with browsing the varied hardware that was available, carefully investigating the magical componentry and contrasting it to what he knew to fill in the time.

[SpottedKitty]

Zelah watched the frog's routine with the packet of gum intently. Almost out of reflex he nodded and began to reach out with his left hand. His left wing reshaped into a tentacle, snaked out and stabbed a piece of gum on its sharp tip, then curled back and slipped the gum into his pocket before morphing back into a wing again.

When the 'Cubi heard the word "assassin", his gun hand twitched and his hair changed colour three times in as many seconds. He's admitting it? he thought in astonishment. But why should — wait, he's not serious? What's he thinking, what's he hiding...? Holy God, how many people has he got between his ears? His expression bounced rapidly from grim determination to ears-laid-back surprise and confusion as he tried to decipher the thoughts and emotions behind the frog's words. He blinked and shook his head, fluttering his headwings, and concentrated on keeping his tail from fluffing out too obviously. The frog might not be a danger to the Captain — probably — but he was downright weird. Zelah slipped his gun back into the holster hidden in his jacket pocket and took his hand out, empty.

"You just want to talk to the Captain?" he said, one ear and headwing cocked inquisitively. "All right, we'll wait until he's finished his business, then you can have your say. Mind if I ask just what you want, if it doesn't involve annoyed girlfriends?" A quirky smile twitched across the 'Cubi's muzzle, and his fluffed up tail fur began to settle down. He reached into his non-gun pocket (with his hand this time, not a wing-tentacle), took out the piece of gum he'd speared earlier, unwrapped it and popped it into his mouth.

There was only one obviously odd thing the frog might have noticed, if he had a good ear. Captain Wolkshammer had gathered his crew from all over the country, but the feline 'Cubi sounded as if he'd come from even further afield: when he spoke, his accent was pure Aeliseium.

[techmaster-glitch]

Aelisium Forest

  There was a long silence as Lucy said nothing. The brothers watched her for a while, then settled down into their cockpits. "We can see you still need time to think it over" one of them said, Lucy probably wasn't aware enough to figure out which. "We do have to pick someone up first, though..."
  The brothers walked the Storm Scorp around the perimeter, but try as they might, there was no sign of Lieutenant Ashlynn Taige, although the brothers weren't exactly trackers. Fearing the worst and slightly sick, they double-timed it to the garrison, with Lucy riding along.
  When they got to the garrison, they parked the Stomr Scorp on the outside and Gezzemocht went ahead into town. While he was there, he explained the entire situation to whoever recieved him; that they didn't find the bandits they were contracted to find, but stumbled on a lone Ahnk'Ator incursion group, and that Lieutenant Taige was missing in action. He then said they had to leave on a short trip immediately, though he skirted the fine details. He mentioned lucy, but didn't say anything specific about her. Gezzemocht also gave back most of the upfront credit pay they had been given, as their contract was unfulfilled. Gezzemocht assured he'd do everything he could to be back soon to finish the contract and actually collect the pay, but the brothers were well familiar that detours sometimes spiral into something unexpected. He played it safe as neither brother would ever take the risk of ever being known as mercenaries who absconded with pay and left an unfulfilled contract. They had a reputation (small as it was) to uphold, and they wouldn't tarnish it with mistaken dishonor.
  After that, Gezzemocht returned to the Storm Scorp, and they set off down the road, away from the garrison, eventually taking a turn offroad and heading for Nhylamar territory...

(OOC: if you don't like me jumping this ahead Bas, I can edit the post.)

[Tezkat]

Pirate Interrogation, Nhylamar

"Hmm... I figured as much. He wasn't exactly shy about wearing those privateer pins." The panther stretched out. "Oh well, I don't suppose there's any hurry to catch up to him, then. What with my blowing up his gun deck and killing most of his crew, he'll need time to repair and recruit once he finds a port."

He pulled off the brass goggles and ran his fingers through his hair. The golden locks were matted with blood and soot.

"In the meantime, I need to locate a bath and a change of clothes. My luggage sorta went up in smoke, and the splattered in blood and gore look isn't quite as fashionable as it used to be."

He fussed with his hair, having seemingly lost interest in the captive pirate.

[Tapewolf]

"Well," Seth said, looking down at their captive, "I guess you're free to go this time.  Try and make sure there isn't a next time."

Making sure he'd relieved her of any projectile weapons, Sethir released the feline and withdrew his tentacles.  Not completely, just in case she tried to do something stupid.

"Well," he said to the other Creature, "I guess I'd better think about reporting this to the authorities."

[Boog]

Really, all accents just fell under "Foreign." To Jeremiah. He remembered which countries had the food he liked, but he'd never been keen on Aeliseium cuisine. Hence, all he really knew about the cubi in front of him was that the guy was twitchy, didn't have perfect control over his shape... And what he'd gleaned from him taking the piece of gum. A decidedly reasonable, if not the most composed, person. Reminded him of a student he had back when he taught. Shame that boy had gone into performance art, but then, it was a field that attracted a lot of cubi. That was neither here nor there though.

He was trying very hard not to think about the fact that the fellow had come very close to shooting him.

The fellow's question was a bit inconvenient though. The frog grimaced as his voices all began clamoring at once.
Oh, nothing. I'm just afflicted with a curse that leaves me not entirely responsible for my actions or use of magic. I'd like his help in dispelling it, and making it so I don't do things like blacking out and waking up having done god knows what to god knows who. Mind if I go speak in private with the man you're plainly very protective of?
Well, don't say that.
No shit. Anybody have any ideas?
Did he hear that? We're dealing with a cubi.
Crap, hope not.
"I'd... Prefer to bring up the matter with the Captain," Jeremiah grinned sheepishly. "Nothing personal. It's just... Business stuff."
Smooooth.
Shaddap.

[Lisky]

Nhylamar Badlands

She looked between the two of them, "Right, thanks, i guess...  You shouldn't be seeing me again.  Either i make it to the border, and try something else... or i don't, and there's no evidence that i ever existed... either way, you've kept your end of the bargain."

She bolted off towards the tall brush, probably looking for a place to lay low for a little bit, and orient herself towards safety, as the whole of Nhylamar was not safe for her.


Pet Shop

The owner of the shop snickered, as he eyed the kitten, "Ah, she's simply the product of a few generations after an experiment to create the ultimate pest control.  These adorable little winged kitties were something from Savstia'Nyad, an experiment to help control their pest-bird problem.  They worked alright, but as the novelty wore off, they fell out of style a few years later.  They're quite rare, but all in all, they're simply your standard fare housecat, with the ability to fly."

He smiled a bit smugly,  "So long as they find a loving home, they're really quite lovely pets"

In the back, Paige would note all manner of feral creatures, some small, some not so small.  The wyvern, perched on it's roost cocked it's head to the side, as if curious about her actions with the slimy gecko.


On The Way To The Library

Taking a few turns down the increasingly crowded streets, Kyirri would find that he hadn't lost the worker.  In fact, as time progressed, and turns started becoming harder and harder to track, the canine seemed to start gaining ground.  However, as Kyirri crossed into a major road, his tail seemed to suddenly disappear.  There was no sign of the canine, anywhere.  The library was only a few blocks away at this point, that's what the memory of the map told him.


Sevoy Back Alley

Baseel grinned at the unicorn, and said, "Well then, perhaps a deal can be arranged.  I do know of channels with which to obtain a new source of power.  Both readily available, and completely legal.  If your services are available milady, I believe your talents could be employed with a little, uh, project I have been assigned to carry out, along with recruit for said project.  However, I understand that you may wish to hear more details... perhaps a back alley is not the best place to discuss proper business?"

Outside the alley, the activity seemed fairly routine, customers were shopping at the stalls and store, others were simply browsing.  The loud gunshot seemed to have chased the unscrupulous characters away from this particular district, at least, for the time being.

Bas hadn't really waited for a reply,  the tall demon slipped out of the alley right between Zelah and Jeremiah.  He tipped his head, and tipped his middle and index fingers on his right hand, to his eyebrow, to Zelah as he passed.  "How're you doing today, Zelah... and who's your friend?"


On A Boat

The uttering of a simple phrase in an oddly deep, and grating tone was all it took for the fog cloud to dissipate.  The mage stood there, black robed, carrying a dark staff with a white crystal set in the blackened, gnarly, wood.  The other pirates started moving in, while the mage, his face covered by an eerily  featureless metal plate,  pointed his staff towards the feline adventurer.  He started muttering something Arroyo couldn't quite make out, however, the crystal started glowing.

The other pirates seemed to be giving the feline quite a wide path too.


Off the Beaten Path

The trip in and out of the camp was fine, for the brothers.  However, once off the major roads things started getting darker and more ominous.  A tinge of something sharp, somewhat sweet, yet painfully acrid order filled the air.  A few moments later, the first signs of the smokey smell that filled their nostrils became apparent.  A great white cloud rolled off as they crossed a small road.   A flicker of flame danced above the forest as well.  Some building was quite clearly on fire near by.


Around The Wagons

Today was clearly not Stephan's day.  Getting himself cleaned up, he'd realized just a bit too late that he'd left the soap outside the shower stall.  As the realization hit, his headache suddenly stopped... and his hair felt... strange.  It felt as if his hair had exploded like a mad scientist's... and with it came the strange feeling that it was alive.  The water dripped off his hair, and fell in some new, and interesting way.  Furthermore, Stephan would note a distinct lack of soap, left outside his little stall of safety.  As if on cue, a milky white bar levitated in to view.  It was supported on something... strange,  smooth, and clearly of well toned muscle...   Wait... was it coming out of -his- back?!


Lamylar

Offering his own view of things, Renard replied, "Just give them the truth.  You want to remind them that the journey is but a few days.  You want to let the know that the goal of this expedition is to maintain the safety of the village, and furthermore, there is someone around to adequately perform your tasks until your return."

Scratching his chin, the feline considered a few other options.  "As for what to take, i'd suggest a days worth of food and water, at least 2 changes of clothing for standard travel, and a 3rd for formal  wear.  Besides that, what you take is up to you.   If you need help carrying things, being a creature doth have it's advantages."



Clothing Store  

The 'cubi gave Johan a bit of a confused look as he continued to work on the coat.  "Well, to be honest, it's just the words, mental images are a bit out of my league.  Think about it, more like listening to someone's inner voice.  Like, getting to hear everything someone thinks about saying, but then gets filtered out... anything more complex than the words, and things start getting balled together, and are tough to follow.   I do, however have some paper... several sheets should you need them."

A tentacle returned from the back room with a rather large sketch-pad.  If one were to flip through, they'd note several sketches for styles of clothes, and a handful of mechanical designs for more complex umbrellas and other gear that served a more specific purpose.  It seemed that this particular shop owner had a bit of skill with very small machines, as well as sewing and embroidery.



Mischief In The Streets

The badger would detect a range of spells imbued with the weapons, Concussion spells, strength and hardness enhancements, elemental damage spells, along with other more subtle spells.  A handful of the larger revolvers had an aura of fear around them, intimidation.  Some of the smaller ones he'd overlooked at first, he suddenly realized why, they were specifically enchanted to have just that effect, be seen as so small they were nigh worthless.  Upon closer examination, such an assumption would be quite folly.  

He could sense the various layers of the spells too... then enchanter, or enchanters had done quite a masterful job, and it showed in the prices.  The weapons were expensive, meant for only the most upper crust members of society.


Around the stage

A sudden flare on the stage drew the crowd's attention.  An otter popped onto the stage with an overly dramatic flourish of an arm.  "Good morning Ladies and Gentleman, today, i have a bit of witchcraft and socery to show you, something that none of you would -ever- seen before.  Something so outstanding! So Amazing! So sure that we will impress you, we will be giving away free samples... while supplies last, of course."

The otter disappeared behind a shielded curtain, in fact, as far as Locke could tell, the entire stage was a combination of enchantments and shields.  Whatever magic, probably potions, judging from the equipment the otter was producing, was behind those fields, it was clear that the owner of this wondrous magic wanted to be sure to hide the secrets from prying eyes.  Not only hide, but had gone to paranoia levels of security for such a display.  A pair of Sevastian built golems could be detected at the very edge of the curtains.  Whatever equipment they had was anyone's guess, but their magical aura radiated just beyond the edge of the now area now wrapped in the anti-magical curtains.


Gun Store

The petite gryphon chuckled, "Depends on how much cash you actually have... As you can probably guess, my wares aren't cheap.  Not cheap at all, in fact.  If you're talking a box of 10 pistols, well..."  She pauses and writes a number on a slip of paper.  "Or, if you'd prefer boxes of rifles, pistols and scatter-guns... well, that's a bit more."

More writing and hiding,  "Also note, these are the numbers -per box- ... so you'll have to multiply your order by how many guns you actually plan on getting...  As for ammunition, the calibers are are quite plainly etched on the barrel, right next to the tumbler... helps prevent confusion.  IF there's anything else i can do for you... please, just let me know"

She slid the piece of paper forwards, face down so that the numbers were still hidden from Bart's view.

[Gabi]

"I bet it does," Anabelle replied, looking at Renard out of the corner of her eye.

His response to her thoughts had caught her by surprise, but she wasn't about to let that trouble her. She'd just have to get used to having him around.

"I like to think things thoroughly," she said. "Just to make sure I'm not forgetting anything important. I can do it by myself, though. If you don't mind, I'll need a couple of hours to get everything ready. If there's anything you need to do before we leave, now would be a good time."

[SpottedKitty]

Zelah did his best to stifle his unease at showing his 'Cubi features. He shifted to a more attentive posture, ears and headwings perked, shoulders and backwings braced, and his tail curled neatly around his left ankle, when Wolkshammer came out of the end of the alley. "Captain," he said with a respectful nod, "I noticed this frog here following you from the airship dock. He says he needs to talk to you, some private business."

The 'Cubi didn't mention the cacophony of voices he'd sensed in the frog's head just a few moments ago. For one thing, he wasn't entirely sure: his ability to sense others' thoughts had led him on wild Mow chases before. For another, the voices had been just too fuzzy and unclear. The only thing he could tell for sure was that there were several of them, and at least a couple had sounded rather... excitable.

[SquirrelWizard]

Stephan glared at the bar of soap. "So help me... if she's trying to screw with me again, I'm going to rip her wings off." the thought ran through his mind, regardless of whether he could make good on the threat.

"Cant a guy take a shower in peace!?" Stephan whipped around to the entrance of the stall to confront who ever was behind him; which was nobody. As he spun around the tentacles moved with him, with the one offering the bar dropping it onto the floor of the stall. Confused, Stephan spun around trying to see where the tentacles were coming from, which resulted in him spinning in place for a couple of seconds before he figured out they were attached. "What in the?" he muttered and then it hit him. He knew Incubi could turn their wings into tentacles, he had seen his father do this on many occasions. But typically they also had... he gingerly reached up to his forehead and felt the new protrusions coming out of his head.

As he had reached up to inspect his new set of head wings, his tentacles had risen up with his hands in an almost sympathetic motion, which brought one of his tentacles in front of Stephan's face. It was at this point a series of events was set into motion that would soon leave Stephan laying on the ground in an unconscious heap.

First, the tip of the tentacle morphed into a draconic looking head and gave him an wicked grin. This in turn startled Stephan who took a step back onto the bar of soap on the floor. The soap shot forward and careened about the bottom of the stall while it threw Stephan backwards; who in turn cracked his head against the wall of the stall. Dazed, Stephan stumbled forward in an attempt to steady himself, where he stepped upon the bar of soap again. This time the soap sent him forward into the opposite wall of the stall with another crack, this time with his forehead. With a sigh, Stephan slumped and tumbled out, through the shower curtain, into an unconscious heap on the ground outside.

[Tapewolf]

"Well, it's been nice to make your acquaintance," Seth said to the panther.  "And thank you very much for your help with the pirates."  Fumbling with a pocket of his riding suit, he pulled out a wallet and extracted a card which he offered the other Creature.  It read "CLANDOVER ENGINEERING LTD" and gave his address and orb number.

Checking the bike, the incubus shifted himself back into Being form and donned his helmet.  He removed some clothing and other combustible material from a dead pirate and stuffed it into the firebox as fuel.  Lighting it, the wolf waited a little for the machine to reach operating temperature, pushing it close towards where the panther stood while he did so, just in case he had something else to say.
Otherwise, it was time to make the journey back to Nhylamar.

[Paladin Sheppard]

Cleaning the last of the Gecko's skin goop off her Paige noticed the Wyvern she'd looked at before watching her inquisitively.  Taking a chance the Succubus extended a tentacle towards the intelligent (for its size) beast.

Cooing softly she moved the tentacle close to it's perch and hoped it would hop onto it. 

[Mechanisto]

The Unicorn said nothing, but gave a nod before following him out of the alley. She also looked aside, giving Gabe a satisfied smile, welcoming him to follow.

She remained quiet as Baseel spoke to the two waiting outside; one seemed an acquaintance, and the other a possible recruit. No need to pester anyone with questions, she thought. He'll no doubt wish to explain things to us all at once.

[Kafzeil]

Lucy hadn't really noticed the smokey smell. Given that her sense of smell had vanished along with her pulse, this wasn't surprising. Then again, there was something else on her mind.

"But if there's any other ways we can help you in the meantime, we'll do what we can."

It had seemed like hours since she heard those words, and  due to the scattershot nature of her thoughts Lucy only remembered just this moment; The Note.

"Well...there is something..."The ocelot muttered, pulling out the note, looking at it. The way her yellows gazed upon it, that piece of paper clearly had significance. She almost looked like she could cry just from looking at it.

"I want you to make sure this gets to my mother."She told one beavers."No matter what happens, doesn't matter if I become an exile or an actual corpse, promise me this will reach her."

[Arroyo Milori]

Arroyo just stood there in the center of it all. "You know." Arroyo soon spoke up. "It's a bit odd for a mage working for a bunch of bandits that are commonly found at sea." His lips curled into a smile as soon as he saw an opening. He started to make a dash as soon as he heard an incantation-like murmur from the masked mage.

As soon as his steps were within his sword's whip-like range, he swung his sword once more in a horizontal fashion, possibly hitting a pirate or two, possibly hitting the mage's staff and causing his spell to be misdirected. But to be safe, Arroyo soon side stepped to the opposite direction where his staff was pointed and let his blade snap into its original form and raised his hand up, the water from the river suddenly raised up behind the Lion's back and fired a round of water, in a bullet-like fashion.

[insidexml]

Sikici had heard that brandy fixes were incredibly sweet. He liked the sound of that; it would hopefully offset the bitter taste of the alcohol. The angel never really drank, and on the rare occasion that he did, never very much. It was often during celebratory occasions or the like that he found himself consuming alcohol in any quantity.

As for food, well, once again, he was at a loss. What kind of food did they serve at bars/strip clubs? Wings? Peanuts?  "That'd depend on what you serve, wouldn't it?"

[techmaster-glitch]

Off the beaten path (Near Aelisium/Nhylamar Border)

  The bothers remained respectfully silent for the whole trip after they left the garrison town. As the Storm Scorp strode along, using its wheeled mode whenever the ground was flat enough. After a time, though, Lucy suddenly spoke up, jolting everyone out of their thoughts. The Storm Scorp hissed to a halt.
  She held up an evelope and explained its personal nature, and made her request to the brothers. There was a moment of silence.
  "Last words to one's family upon exile or death..." The younger brother Gaakronacht said softly from the forward cockpit.
  From the rear cockpit, Gezzemocht leaned forward and reverently accepted the letter, read the address on it, and gently tucked it into his jacket under his light pilot's armor. He then nodded to Gaak, who nodded back. Both brothers placed their fists over their hearts, and in Gezz's case, not entirely coincidentally over where he had placed the letter.
  "We promise, as soon as circumstances allow, we will deliver this letter in person." Gezz said.
  "Upon our word as defenders of Aelisium." Both said in unison.
  There was another silent pause, and the brothers set back into their cockpits, moving the Storm Scorp forward again. Very shortly, however, both brothers picked up the smell of smoke, and then saw it on the horizon. As they moved closer, they saw the flicker of a large flame.
  Gaak worriedly looked back to Gezz. "Are we still in Aelisium?"  
  Gezz checked a map from his cockpit. "...Yeah. We are."
  "Dammit..."
  The Storm Scrop's course altered, heading towards the fire.
  "I must apologize, miss Alighieri." Gezz said. "We have a duty to all of Aelisium. If there are any survivors, we must take this detour to render aid. But you need not be put in danger, we can let you off at the perimeter, and we will pick you back up as soon as our sweep is done. Do you want a weapon?"

[Noone]

Kyirri hadn't been tracking the worker any more than any other perceived danger on the streets. He minded his own business. He continued on towards the library, silently hoping to get there without any more delays. He did however, stay alert as always.

[JamesCray]

Clothing Store  
"Looks like you're definitely the right man for the job," Johan said, as he flipped through to a blank page, setting the umbrella and his cane abreast on the counter and began a rough sketch, narrating as he went.

"This one, the shaft is roughly the same diameter as my cane. I had the thought that we could cut and thread the umbrella shaft at the grip end, thus I could always have a free hand, even though I get to keep the use of this." the fennec said, twisting the cane's handle to free the slender, needle-like push-dagger within. "Personally, I avoid a fight whenever I can, but in my line of work, getting robbed could hurt a lot more than just myself."

[Mel Dragonkitty]

Addy held the kitten out and looked it in the eyes. "So you are a pest removal specialist, are you? Think you can keep a garden safe, little one?" In response all she got was a purr and a few sleepy blinks. "I think I will take her." Depositing the kitten with the clerk Addy went around the store picking out only the most absolutely vital supplies, such as a harness that exactly matched the blue of the kitten's eyes.

[Boog]

There were no words for how grateful Jeremiah was that the captain had showed up right then. Zelah had been friendly, sure, but there were few tactful ways of saying "I want him to help me commit fraud to obtain controlled arcane knowledge!"
"Jeremiah Ac'Gregor, at your service sir." The frog's voice practically dripped honey. He was laying it on thick. Really thick. Which is a good sign he was going to ask for a huge favor, if you knew the type of personality. "If I may compliment you on your choice of retainers, by the way?" He gestured theatrically to Zelah, "This young man acted on a rather remarkable degree of initiative. He's got good instincts, and offered me one of the most polite but effective threats of violence I've received in a long time. I don't suppose your organization has any of those employee review pamphlets I could fill out?"
"But I should get to the point. I've been looking for a man of your connections and reputation to aide me in a small, trifling matter, which I'd prefer to discuss in private if possible." He grinned, "I've managed to obtain a few useful contacts myself, getting this far, and I'm sure there's something I could offer in return for the assistance."

[Azlan]

To him, the amount of security and defenses seemed extremely paranoid for a simple snake-oil style huckster.  The cheetah slipped on a pair of jewelers glasses and manipulated the tiny loupes to focus his sensing apparatuses into a tight beam looking for the gaps in the layers of magical shielding.     

As he was bouncing tight beams off of things, Locke turned to the closest friendly looking person in the crowd.  Leaning slightly closer to that person's ear, he whispered, "what's this all about then?"

[Tezkat]

Nhylamar Badlands

The panther glanced back at the pirate girl as she disappeared into the brush. "Well, she was nice and helpful. I hope she doesn't die too horribly and painfully."

He accepted the proffered business card, inspecting it briefly. With a flick of his fingers, the card vanished into thin air--perhaps magic, perhaps simple legerdemain.

"Hmm... so you work in the capital? I'm heading that way with Alice." He cocked his head with the raised eyebrow of someone coming to a sudden realization. "Oh, right... she burned up in the train crash. It'd be awkward to stay at her place now, wouldn't it?" He frowned, but quickly shrugged it off and turned back to the Incubus. "I don't suppose you could recommend a nice cheap place to stay while I'm in town..."