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

[JamesCray]

Umbrella Shop

"Thanks Kaleb, I really appreciate it." Johan said, and dug around in the flap of his coat, before handing over the four gold, smiling, but then took on a sober look and held up his cane. "And trust me, I know it's worth it, I don't need this just to hide a dagger in."

He paused for a minute, breaking out of a train of thought involving unpleasant memories, and then smiled again. "Anyway, that's ground I don't need to tread again, so yeah, definitely going to get it enchanted. It was a pleasure to meet you, Kaleb, have a good day." The fennec bowed, turned, and headed off in the direction the Cubi indicated, certain the enchanter shouldn't be too hard to find. And yes, as the umbrella pops open, it becomes clear that Johan is very satisfied.

[Tapewolf]

Seth bowed his head politely to the mythos in the police station and thanked her/him/it.  They're going to be in real trouble if that creature ever decides to quit, he thought.

Mentally shrugging it off, he made his way to the door which had been indicated and knocked twice.

[Paladin Sheppard]

Smirking back at the Wyvern Paige turned to leave, "He may be my 'Boss' Samara but by no means is he my 'Master'. But we shall speak more when I return."

As she reached the bar in the company of the Angel/demon Sister, the Succubus heard Baseel's question about anyone having any.

"When do we leave?" She said fairly confident whatever the Captain had gathered all these creatures and beings for had to be for the sort of job she craved, dangerous, adventuress, and with a little good old fashioned mayhem on the side!

Paige was sure he'd fill her in on the job and the plan and inmore detail, in a more private setting.

[Noone]

Kyirri watched Bree as she cleaned up the messes which she had made. He didn't even blink throughout the whole fifteen minutes, his face was expressionless as ever. I have to wonder how someone that clumsy hasn't been mugged and killed in the streets yet... or how she even has the job she has. I'd get thrown on the streets if I did anything like that. She probably gets paid more than I do as well. He didn't feel a touch of irritation for the delays though.

Kyirri followed her when motioned to follow. He briefly raised an eyebrow when she mentioned having to clean up another mess, but his face quickly resumed it's general expressionless state. I'd better be careful that she doesn't accidentally misfire whatever wards they have on me though... she doesn't seem like someone that can be relied upon. More so than other strangers.

[SquirrelWizard]

Stephan watched the other cubi fade into the woodwork. He snatched up the letter, slit the seal with a letter opener and unfurled the parchment and began reading.

I hope this reaches you in good health.

As you may have noticed, you have undergone some changes. You have finally matured into an incubus/succubus. This change does not represent the end of the person of who you were, but instead a new chapter in your life. With these changes come new abilities, new experiences, and you will need training and guidance.

Training and guidance that we can provide within the sanctuary of the Succubus and Incubus Academy. At SAIA we can provide a safe environment where you can learn to master your abilities while being amongst others like yourself. If you are interested in attending then all you have to do is request attendence though the bearer of this letter.

Stephan put the letter down, "How did you find me? How did you know when?"

[insidexml]

Well, there wouldn't really have been a point in asking for winged volunteers if there was no need for the volunteer to use their wings. Otherwise, why specify that you needed winged volunteers? Simply asking for volunteers would have been enough. Unless, of course, the person who was asking had a thing for wings.

Excellent, more talking. Blah blah blah bullet, blah blah blah gun, blah blah blah spells, blah blah blah trigger.  Something about being able to use spells despite only having a gun on you. Sikici didn't really get the significance of that. Why not just walk? Lazy arses.

But oh well. Seeing as how the tiger had been given the opportunity, he might as well use it. So procedure and directions... push lever with thumb... aim...

...aim... where? Sikici could aim anywhere, couldn't he? Up, down, left, right, anywhere in between. Of course, aiming down wouldn't get him anywhere, since beneath him was a very solid stage. Aiming directly ahead would plow him right into the crowd, and aiming behind him... well, he wasn't quite sure what was going to happen if he aimed right behind him. The angel could try aiming above the crowd? Nah, aiming straight up seemed like a good idea.

So aim straight up... pull the trigger... pull hammer back...

...now what?

[Azlan]

Locke smiled, "I can fly alright, it is one of the most liberating and exciting memories I have as a cub.  Just too dangerous to do it nowadays."

A careful inspection was warranted as he wasn't too familiar with magical rounds and conventional firearms.  There did not seem to be all that much to this particular tool, but depending on capabilities it would fill his need.  Looking about, the cheetah considered where he might go and with a nod he made his decision.

Following the directions as he was instructed he took sighting forward to familiarize himself with the sight points before aiming skyward.  Running the calculations in his head he estimated the time and toggled the switch at the appropriate time.  Hopefully he'd find himself a reasonably high distance up.

[techmaster-glitch]

Burning Orphanage

   Gezzemocht worked furiously at the fallen wood with his crowbar as a child started to crawl out from underneath it. Dammit, making those holes was supposed to clear the way, yet obstacles just kept stacking up. Eventually, he managed to pry her out, taking her into his arms and moving her to the rear of the Storm Scorp. She was babbling, barely coherant and delusional. That didn't mean what she was saying wasn't what actually happened, though...
   Gezz got to the area behind the Scorp, and deposited the girl in the grass, allowing her to curl up. He quickly moved his goggles and mask off his face.
   "Stay, here!" Gezzemocht made sure the girl's eyes were looking into his own, and spoke in his most authoritative voice, carefully emphaizing each word. "Stay, here! You're safe now!" He then left and rushed back to the front of the mech.
   Gaakronacht was still struggling with the pinned arm. "This isn't good, Gezz!" He shouted down as Gezz reached the front again. "I'm going to try to fire the slug cannon at this log, that should split it in half. It'll certainly overpenetrate, I'll aim so it doesn't hit anything behind it. If that doesn't work, I can fire the sonic gun, that will reduce the whole log to splinters, but it'll probably bring this whole thing down!"
   "Wait on that second plan!" Gezz called back up. "I'm going to see if I can get anyone else!"
   Gaakronacht then began angling the Storm Scorp's body and "mouth" cannon at a good angle to hit the log on top of the arm, while Gezzemocht ran over to the first hole they made, wondering why no one had come through there yet...

[Boog]

Jeremiah paused mid-drink, his face noticeably blanching. He slowly set his glass down, and pulled his hat down a bit.

A factory. Underground. That was what the man was moving towards. No wonder his contacts hadn't suggested meeting Baseel yet, the man was on some gods-crazed mission to pick fights with the bugs. He'd gotten himself in over his head. SO far over his head.
But if it worked, he could get those books. And find his cure.
Is it truly worth the risks, sir?
"How-" Jeremiah licked his lips nervously, "Ah, how do we intend to get in?"

[Tezkat]

Streets of Nhylamar

Tezkat rode into the city, silently thankful that the streets didn't seem very busy. Crowds gave him terrible headaches, and he was in pain enough already. That was the first thing that needed attention. His shrapnel injuries were slightly more extensive than he cared to admit, and any trouble more dangerous than a handful of scared Beings could pose a serious threat until he recovered. The coins liberated from the pirates should buy him at least a minor healing potion. That would have to serve until his natural regenerative abilities had a chance to work their magic.

Already, the buzz in the back of his head was growing as he rode deeper into the city. Swelling Nhylamarin crowds broadcast their useless mental chatter to the whole world, with an unpalatable slop of random emotions mixed in for good measure. Sometimes he wished there was a way to turn it all off. Like right now.

He turned down yet another narrow side street, navigating from the memory of his last brief visit to the capital. If memory served--and it usually did--there should be a quiet little potion shop just around the corner...

[Arroyo Milori]

Arroyo just sat down and watched the river wind down into the horizon. Most people would have suffered from road hypnosis for staring for too long, but too much was on his mind.  He then diverted his attention to the pentagram on the deck of his ship, quite large but only a few spells he knows works well with it. Perhaps it was regret of not being able to stop them? Was he going soft on anyone he faced? Could his spells use more intensity next time he uses them? So many thoughts of how the battle should have went in his head, He looked at the mask he snagged from them, memorizing the mark in his head.

But then he realized something! The vague job in Lamylar. After all, that was the purpose of his trip. Though he was unsure if he's right for the job, the little skirmish back there did leave a wound of a sort...

[Lisky]

A Thin Cord Away From a Long Fall With an Abrupt Stop

Dangling above the rope, the signs of movement caught the wolf completely off-guard.  He turned started to square himself then promptly slumped to the floor.  The slug, as expected, passed through the plate-glass window, shattering little shards across the cabin.  The bullet passed through the window, through the 20 or so feet of air between it's initial entrance into the cabin, and the navigator in the little hanging gondola.  The bullet then hit the uniformed grey and white wolf just under his muzzle,  through the spine, and through the window on the other side. 

The being slumped, eyes rolling back into his skull, and blood pooling around his crumpled form.  The mythos has an easy time swinging in.  There was no one else on the bridge.  Clearly security was either slacking, or in other areas of the airship.  The windows had a double-handrail.  Mounted over and under, the over-rail clearly meant so that one could open a window, and lean way forwards, while holding one's balance above their head to pull them self back in.  This upper rail proved the perfect place to wrap the guide-wire.

As the mythos finished, a loud thump from the door near the rear of the rather spacious bridge signaled the entrance of security.  He'd have a few moments at most to prepare.


The Ditch

Lucy's staying put left her alone.  The smell of smoke and burnt flesh was all around her now.  The sound of buckling wood, heavy materials crashing against each other echoed through the trees.  Faint screams could be heard over the gentle breeze.  Staying where she was, the thing was gone, and she was all alone.  Safe for the time being.


Some Might Call Him, Tim... but, They'd Be Wrong

It turned out that Phil was a red and yellow phoenix.  His distinctly avian features showing as he was busy weaving some type of enchantment into a potted plant.  Blue and white arcane energies danced around as the avian continued his work.  As Johan reached the opened doorway, the phoenix gave him a nod to show he'd acknowledged the being's presence.

"i'll be wit 'ya in a moment laddie"  the phoenix said with a thick brogue.   He continued working with the plant for a few minutes before turning to the being.  "How can i help you today?"


The Precinct

Sitting outside the door.  A strange, lanky man.  Was it a man?  It was hard to tell, and as Seth went by, he couldn't even seem to remember what the man's face looked like, despite it being only a few seconds old.   He made his way past the suited man, and into the office.   The cubi standing behind the desk was dressed in a rather plain over-coat, suit, and pants.  A Green and black wolf, displaying both sets of feathery wings.  His clanmark, however, was hidden somewhere on his body.  If Seth hadn't seen the badge sitting in the left-breast pocket, he'd have probably mistook the man for some type of merchant or lawyer.   

Without skipping a beat, the wolf's eyes locked on Seth, he said in a bit of an edge tone, "What news have you of the train crash?  That's what you seem to be here about, anyways."


Barroom Briefing

The demon gave a smirk at Paige's eagerness.  He dropped the mind-shield just long enough to send her a quick message 'are you always this eager to jump into things,  Or am I just lucky?'   He then replied aloud, "We'll be leaving within the next few days.  Our path isn't quite so direct.  We're throwing a little misdirection into the mix, so, rather than a few hours, we're looking at about a week's travel time.

He listened as the new person, the frog being, expressed some rather obvious and serious apprehension.  Several members around the table seemed equally curious how one was going to enter an insectis facility.  Especially one that was buried several hundred feed under-ground.  "We know where a one of their major entrances are.  One that's normally designed to be used their transports to take things to and from other cities.  over-ground trains are an easy means of transportation... and the Insectis have several tunnels designed to be used by them.  We're merely going to follow them to their loading decks.  After that, we use the intel gathered from some very skilled, and very well placed spies.  We've got a map of their tunnel network, and we've got a high enough creature population, that i'm quite confident that, even in such confined spaces, we've got the advantage."


The Library

The first doorway loomed.  A pair of gryphon statues lined the doorway.  The statues were a white marble, with deep black eyes.  They eyes were a pitch, endless black,  They didn't seem to have any depth, simply due to their darkness.  They also seemed to be watching Kyirri.
 
Bree approached the door, slowly slid the key into the slot.  A soft click seemed to echo in the vacant halls.  Kyirri heard her say "just a moment" as she stepped through the door.  He could hear her fiddling with something that sounded like books on a shelf.  "There, you're safe to come through now."   She said, as she reappeared behind the doorway.

"The book is just a little ways back, now.  Watch your step though, there's a few more uh... goodies... to look out for."


The Wagons

"You think a headmaster of nigh unlimited power would tell me how she knows things, or what tricks she uses to keep track of all the new students?  Clearly you don't know much about our race at all."

Ed reappeared with a neutral expression on his face.  "Do you at least know what SAIA is?  Or, more importantly, who Fa'Lina is?"


Up on Stage, Taking Shots

Both Angels felt the ripple of exploding gunpowder roll through their shoulder, and, as each did as instructed, and pulled the hammer back to ready the next shot, they'd each feel a strange sensation.  One moment, they were of firm, solid wooden planks, Suddenly, their stomach's lurched, and they had the sensation of falling.  Wind whipping by their wings, hair and fur.  If either would look down, they'd note that they'd been warped over a quarter-mile up.   The ground was rushing up to meet them as they continued to fall, as well.


Why is the Village So Quiet?

The child continued to sob, seemingly inconsolably.  A peer around the corner reveals that the roof-timbers had caved in, blocking the path to the secondary whole.  The orphanage had turned into a preemptive funeral pyre.  It seemed like the town either didn't know... or were to busy with problems to help.

The first sign of something wrong came from behind Gezzemocht, a heavy creak of wood, the sound of falling shingles, and a very loud Thump from just behind him.  A dark form stood there, winged, dripping with darkness too deep for the light of day to penetrate.  It's features shrouded, but wings visible.  It spread it's blacked form, pulled a leg back for a split second, before sending a brutal kick towards the Aelisian being. 


Hunt for a Potion Shop

The hunt for the potion shop took Tez to the very edge of town.  He was on the very outskirts.   The alchemist was inside, a haggard looking mythos.  She appeared to be some type of naga, her body a jet black across her back, yellow scales covered her belly, and bright red diamonds ran down the centerline of her back.  She wore a simple corset, that covered her narrow, yet very distinctly feminine body in just the right places.  Her 4 limbs very precisely slicing, and mixing ingredient as she turned to the young feline, serpent tongue extending, she said with a playful hiss "whelsss, what do we have ssseeeerreee....  Sssssomeone who neeeedddsssss heeaaallinngggssss, perhapsssssss?"

[Tapewolf]

The Precinct

There was no-one in the office and Sethir's attention span got the better of him.  He found himself staring at a painting on the wall, a reproduction by the Demon artist Giotto Francini.  It bore in graphic detail a leather-winged and horned rendition of Jesus casting the first stone.

Someone came by, and as far as he could tell, shapeshifted.  Sethir ignored this.  Personally he rarely left his base form, not wanting to be accused of 'Cubi trickery, but if other people wanted to change their appearance in that manner it was none of his concern.

"Sethir Clandover," the wolf said, and bowed slightly.  As he did so he created a chink in his mind-shield, allowing his thoughts to be read and weakening the barriers covering his last few hours.

"I hope this doesn't take up too much of your time, sir," he said.  "For all I know you know this already, but I felt it was best to make sure in case it was important.

"I saved a few people from the crash itself," he began, "But I'm not sure that's of interest to you unless you are keeping tally of survivors or the deceased.  The pirate attack seems more pressing and given the rumours of war, some believed that the crash may have been deliberately caused by the Insectis.  The speed at which they arrived - uh, the pirates, that is - it may have indicated foreknowledge of the crash, which would be a matter of national security.

"However, along with a fellow rescuer I managed to capture and interrogate one of the pirates.  According to her, they simply happened upon the crash from the smoke, so it was an opportunistic raid and not premeditated.  The airship is called the Burning Rose, and its captain is one Harman Maribach.  He has a deal with the... Koshrikan navy, I think.  The usual sort of privateer arrangement, or so I understand."

"Is this helpful, or do you wish for more detail?"

[SquirrelWizard]

Stephan shook his head, "My father disappeared before he could really tell me much... it was probably one of the many things that was left undone in his wake." His voice was steady as he tried to maintain a matter-of-fact tone, "Now, I've vaguely heard references to SAIA... nothing much though. I always assumed it was a conclave or town somewhere. As for Fa'Lina" he glanced down at the note, "I'm assuming she runs the place."

He reached over and plucked a sheet of paper out of a bin, and picked up a pencil and sat down. As he hastily scrawled out a note he continued, "If anything I should probably look into this, as it could be something my father had set up. If not, then I can at least find out how long I've been watched and why. At the very least something useful might come of it." he finished the note and left it on the desk, "If you would kindly step outside there are some things I need to do before we can leave."

He waited for the other cubi to leave before he gathered up his stuff and locked up the wagon. He then walked over to Mary's wagon and traced his finger over the door inscribing a crude pictures which looked like a squiggle and a box; which would alert Mary that he had left and that a note explaining why he had gone. Satisfied that everything was in order, he finally returned to the incubus, "Okay, I'm ready to go, how do we get to this SAIA place?"

[Azlan]

Locke thought he had prepared himself, yet his heart raced as he suddenly found himself over 400 meters in the air.  The cheetah nearly dropped the pistol as the momentary panic gripped a hold of him.

Wings out, pulse racing, the angel dove on the crowd below.  Adjusting for his current velocity, Locke managed to buzz the crowd before pulling up into a loop and coming down slightly harder than intended on the stage.  He came to rest in a crouch, he blushed a bit and grinned slightly impishly as a wooden board cracked under his paws.

"My apologies old chap, thought to have a spot of fun at that while up there.  Exquisite result though."  Locke commented as he rose to a standing position.

[Kafzeil]

She breathed a sign of releif, before staring up. The screams...the smell.

The brothers.

Getting back on her feet she sprinted in the directioon of the diaster, the smoke billowing omniously ahead of her...

[Paladin Sheppard]

Keeping quiet for now (Not an easy thing for this Succubus) Paige waited for any further questions....She thought about wading through the small crowd to Baseel's side and draping herself over him as a sign of possessiveness, but she was sure that that would antagonize some of the hires...

[techmaster-glitch]

Burning Orphanage

   The girl continued crying as Gezzemocht left her, but it seemed like she'd stay put for the moment, at least. Unfortunately, when Gezzz went to check the first hole they had made, he saw that some of the roof timbers had already collapsed in... Gezz didn't even bother cursing. It was too late.
   Gaakronacht, meanwhile, had fired the slug-cannon right through the log on top of the Storm Scorp's claw. Yet more unfortune as it failed to break the log in half enough to let the claw out, but it did loosen it a but. It would just take some time...
   There was not much left they could do. Gezzemocht rushed back over to the little girl to giver her a closer check-over. Suddenly...there was more sounds behind him and the Scorp. Gezz whipped around....and saw a winged figure, features indicernable as it seemed to be clad in shadows themself.
   At this point, Gezzemocht knew they could actually die here. The Scorp was powerful enough to kill a creature, but usually not at such short range. The Scorp was a fire-support mech with nothing to support. And there was no way any of them could go at a creature on foot. with small arms.
   Knowing his little pistol certainly wouldn't do anything, Gezz did the only thing he could do.  He tried to shield the girl with himself even as the creature launched a kick at him, while Gezz yelled "CREAT-uhh!"
   Gaakronacht heard that behind him. And with that, he too reacted without hesitation. There was nothing left to do. The sonic-cannon module was mounted onto the pinned claw, and pointing directly at the log (but also into the orphanage) at point-blank range. As it now no longer mattered, Gaak fired it.
   The log was literally and instantly reduced to a cloud of splinters (as was anything else directly behind it) as a concussive blast pounded everyone's ears. Gaak ripped the claw free, already moving the Scorp's four legs to do a rapid 180-degree turn. The moment the Scorp was turned around and he could see the shadowed figure, before it was even perfectly lined up, he fired the sonic-cannon a second time at the figure, again at point-blank range. The general ground immediately turned into a massive shower of dirt, hopefully taking the shadowed figure with it...

[insidexml]

Well, that was certainly peculiar. One moment, he was standing on stage, and the next, whatho he was high up in the air. And quickly descending, to boot. That... no, that was hardly good at all. The other angel had spread his wings and was managing to descend rather nicely, and Sikici followed his lead, except without all the fancy loops and all.

No, rather, he just sort of glided back down to the stage as best he could, settling down upon the ground, knees still rather weak from the sudden transportation, hands a little shaky, but overall rather fine. The angel certainly wasn't keen to try that again. An interesting technological device, to be sure, but a frightening one if misused.

"A... very interesting contraption, indeed."

[Cogidubnus]

Thankfully, Alex had prepared a thousand times over for this already, and he acted with the fluidity of someone who had gone beyond needing to think about his movements.

His left hand spun his revolver once, putting it in the low-hanging holster by his hip in a reverse grip, and then drifting down towards the small, innocuous-looking lamp hanging on his belt. It seemed fairly ordinary. The panes, instead of glass, were made of dried, withered leaves, so thin as to be translucent. They seemed fragile, but upon testing were at least as strong as glass.
His hand fell towards knob that would have controlled the wick, if this lamp had one. A small inscription - "Hagekure" - was written in neat letters just beneath it.

His left hand turned the knob, and a dark flame sprouted in the lamp, plunging the cockpit into utter and complete darkness. His right hand aimed at the door, cocking back the hammer on the revolver. He could feel the rope on his harness tugging, but it would have to wait just a moment.

[Noone]

Kyirri followed Bree mutely. He took sharp glances around, as if half expecting to be zapped if he made a wrong step. He silently wondered how many traps and checkpoints this place had, and how, and if Bree could keep them all straight. I wonder how much longer this is going to take...

Still, he figured that as long as he just stayed silent and did as Bree told for now, he would be alright. He did so.

[Mechanisto]

Barroom Meeting

   The Unicorn, still dressed in an opulent ballgown that looked blatantly out of place here, raised a delicate hand as she addressed Baseel. "From the description offered, it would appear this mission will involve passage through a variety of environments. Underground tunnels, vertical shafts, factories and industrial complexes... I believe my mechanized cavalry unit would be uniquely well suited to such a variety of terrains. It also excels at in-close and urban combat, and has the endurance for extended operations."
   "Regarding the operation, however..." She seemed to steel herself for a moment. "I am a loyal soldier of a small industrial colony on the border between Nhylamar and Aeliseium. If the operation itself is located anywhere near my homeland, I would be happy to volunteer my services free of charge. All I would ask is to be given all repair and equipment expenses, and a full share of salvage and recovery rights."
   She clasped her hands and leaned forward. "Even if the operation is nowhere near my homeland, I'm still be content to participate. I've been making most of my income through salvage, as of late."

[Lisky]

Police Station

"Already aware of the situation... others have come forward.  Also aware of the pirates, and we also  know he usually makes port near the Aeliseium border, in Tacenta.  If you want to help with the investigation, the real concern is why a Class 6 earthquake hit nowhere near a known fault-line.  If you'd like to help with -that- mystery, we can point you to where the thing originated.  It hit just south of a small town, Kesslen.  No reports in from there... seems the damage was actually quite minimal"  
"if you go, i'd be happy to hear you finding... if you go elsewhere, you're free to do so... it's not like you're employed by my office or anything."  moving over to a map, the detective used a wing-tentacle to grab a map from a drawer, and pointed out the small town.

"Now, if you'll excuse me... i'm about to get some more bad news."  He waved a hand to the door, with a distinctly sour look on his face.  He was glaring towards the opposite end of the station from where Seth had entered.  
As he was all but thrown out of the office, Seth would note a pair of military uniformed individuals, both beings, and both looking cross and worried, waiting in the hall.  He'd also note the man from earlier was gone.


Where are we going, and why are we in this hand-basket?

Ed reappeared, his orange and black forming over what had once been a nice wooden red-brown.   He smirked, while holding a glowing hand up in an open-handed grasp, as if he had a large, invisible apple sitting in the palm of his hand, and he were examining the fruit.  He said, "oh, that's the easy part... or at least should be.  Just gotta wait for Raeleg to get here."  

As if on cue, a slender, dark-grey rat like thing seemed to appear out of nowhere.  It spoke in a high-pitched voice.  It's long, slender tail flitted from side to side.  It said, "Ed, we've got a problem... Fa put the school on lockdown.  No teleporting in or out it would seem.  Actually getting there is going to require you to take the main gate."
"you mean the gate in Voethfel"
"that's the one"
"you've got to be kidding me"
"nope"
"really? fuckin' really? of all the times to decide this, it had to be while -i- was out?"
"Is it really all that bad being trapped in the outside world"
"Well, it sure as hell will be if she doesn't lift this lockdown soon.  Cassie is going to be pissed if i'm late again"
"Ya... and what about Ethenia, and Gryson, and the others who'm you haven't seen fit to introduce me to."
"Raeleg, not the time for this... soo... how about teleporting me to the gate then?"
"can't do either.  Seems you'll just have to get their the old fashion way."
"damnit you little floating glow-rat... what good are you, anyways?"

The rat disappeared, and Ed gave a heavy sigh.  "looks like we're taking a ride.  Know the way to the nearest bank... Looks like we're taking a sky-ship or a train."


Funeral Pyre (what's left of the orphanage)

The kick delivered to Gezz was both powerful and brutal.  It took him square in the ribs, and sent him sailing several feet .  He'd find it hard to breath, harder than with the smoke  The shower of debris sent the small girl scrambling for cover, and the winged figure kicking off the ground, she spun in a high arch, putting a good 20 feet of distance between her and the mech.  The close-range shot hit where she'd just been not a second ago.  

The Sonic blast had a delayed effect.  However ,the roof caved in, as did the remaining walls.  A sadistic cackle echoing over the snapping, crackling flame.  The eerily feminine voice cooed from a nearby rooftop,  "You know, you can still taste them in the air... those little ones... Enjoy getting what's left of them out of your nose, lungs and fur. "  

The shadows dropped, an angel stood before them, she'd jumped again, her move shrouded by the smoke.  A tigress.  Tall, narrow, though not frail, with very predatory lines to her body.  Her base coat was an odd metallic blue-silver, somewhere between a polished silver and platinum.  Her stripes a deep purple-blue and her eyes were a deep, piercing green.   She cooed, chiding at the brothers, "Perhaps i'll let you live... i need someone to let the people know that Sel' Kar is back, after all." She snapped her fingers, nothing but a wispy black cloud stood where she'd been not a moment before.

Lucy arrived, just in time to witness the shower of splinters, and the strange shadowy shape disappear.  only to reappear again atop one of the houses.  Something else was off.  There was no signs of anyone else... the village seemed... dead.  There were no visible bodies, and the only structure with any visible damage was orphanage, still quite ablaze, and slowly falling apart.


Barroom Meeting

The presence of soo many new people was draining.  They mostly seemed eager to serve, or, at the very least, willing to do so.  The large demon wrapped up the meeting with a briefing on the route.  They'd travel south for the better 2 days, cross over the ocean, cut east at a specifically timed point, and use the costal mountains at Akhem Sapal for cover.  From their, they'd follow the train-tracks to the depot, using the expansive,  flat facility as a landing zone, and a very short term base of operations.  
After finishing the briefing, meals were had, drinks were served, and more private conversations had.  Baseel seemed to be rather consistently busy chatting with his XO, a female ferret angel.   As the pair of them eventually concluded, Baseel announced, "It seems we're going to have to get moving sooner than planned... certain events are shifting our time table... If you'd please follow me, I'll explain more on the ship."

Back at the ship,  Baseel announced "There have been signs of insectis activity near several border towns.  It's unclear if this is simply a probe, some type of renegade group, or the beginning of something bigger... whatever the case may be, these events are driving up our time-table.   We're heading out as soon as physically possible.  Welcome to the MJOLNIR ladies in gentlemen.  Looks like it's time for the hammer of thor to ear her name."
The XO was on the bridge, Baseel himself had retreated to his cabin, working out additional details using a projection globe.  The intelligence was surprisingly good, they had blue-prints of most of the inner-workings of the facility, along with projections of the city.  Baseel flashed a very toothy grin in the soft globe.  It seemed that, save for the time-table, everything was moving as planned.  


Some say you're a troubled boy, just because you like to destroy

The wheel around the door squeaked as someone undid the simple lock mechanism.  There were 3 beings who stumbled into the shadows.  The one up front was carrying a repeater pistol and a lamp.  He was some type of bear, difficult to see all his markings in the duality of the lighting.  Behind him, a pair of caninds, a fox and a coyote, both carried scatter guns.  It seemed the dark mirk of the mythos' enchanted lamp was combating the bright oil-lamp of the being.  The small ball of light they managed to create was enough to see a few feet around them.  

However, given that the lamp entered the room first, and the lamp was the first target that was presented to Alex, it was also the first thing his sights lined up with.  

The great thing about oil lamps is their relatively long-lasting capabilities.  An oil lamp, so long as it has fuel, can burn for hours at a time.  Given that this lamp was still full, it had hours of use left in it.  Or at least, would have -had- hours of use left.  The problem with an oil lamp is that it is filled with oil.  Flammable oil, and when that flammable oil comes in contact with a spark.  Say, the already burning wick of the lamp the oil-pan used to be attached to.  You have turned a simple tool of illumination, into a simple tool of immolation.

As if the loud crack of the revolver weren't enough to wake the ship.  The erratic steps on heavy metal plates, and screams of burning pain added to the noise, echoing through the gondola.  The alarm was raised.
Behind the mythos, the sound of shattering glass, and the heavy *Whump whump whump* of leathery wings flapping rapidly to build speed announced the arrival of at least one of  Alex's team members.



Up on stage, after shots

The stage creaked under the angel's slightly harder than expected landing, but the boards held.  When cracks seemed to appear, they shortly there-after seemed to seal up, revealing freshly cut, and well cared for blanks of very soft-grain wood.  

Sol was waiting for them, a big grin on his face as he watched Locke perform his acrobatics.  He had a bit more worried look as Sikici took his time, very carefully landing, and still looked quite wobbly from the experience.  "You see ladies and gentleman.  That's all there is to it.  Easy to use, though a bit disorienting the first time.  Perhaps it's time to show off some other features in a moment.  But, first, lets see how our volunteers enjoyed themselves."

He went to Sikici first, "You alright there, sir?  Looks like you're about to loose your lunch.  Here, have a seat."  With a sweeping gesture a chair appeared just behind the still disoriented angel.

Next, he approached Locke,  "You, my good sir, appeared to quite enjoy yourself.  A bit more of natural then our other volunteer.  Would you like to assist me in some further demonstrations?  I'll make it very-much worth your while."

In the library


Suddenly the squirrel stopped, and turned around, looking down upon the roo-rat.  "I just had an idea that would probably be far far safer.  Why don't you just wait here, and i'll go get mr. Arkman's book for you"
She beamed a bright smile at the being, as if this idea were the next best thing since sliced bread, or the discovery of fire.

She held out her hands, then disappeared behind another set of doors.  If Kyirri would try it, he'd find the door  quite locked.
A few moments later, Bree returned.  she carried a very large looking, iron-bound tome.  The book looked to weigh a heft portion of Kyirri's own body-weight.  Several symbols were inscribed.  Jagged squiggles, sharp angles, slashes.  They seemed somewhat familiar, but the roo-rat couldn't quite remember where he'd seen some of them before.  Certainly in the bookstore with mr. Arklan, but exactly where escaped the half-pint being.

"Follow me back, and we can finish this transaction... hopefully it's not too heavy for you."  The being girl seemed to carry the apparent hefty weight with ease.  It didn't effect her rather overly-sensuous walk, which, given the way was dressed, looked like she had the grace of a newborn giraffe.  

At the counter, the girl waited for payment.  A voice suddenly etched itself into Kyirri's mind.  A whispy, hollow voice.  It said ' I'm waiting for you outside, little one.  you -will- come with me, and you -will- give me this book.  Sadly, it seems, your contract with Mr. Arklan has been terminated... permanently   '


Municipal Center

"i'm sorry, but we just can use you at this time, Mr. Kalugin... we can't get your official paper-work because your previous employers are either dead, or yourself.  You can show our engineers your work, and if you meet their approval, then, maybe, MAYBE, we can talk again... but there's not much i can do for you until then."

The mythos at the desk looked like a perfectly normal jackal being.  He was average height, with a slightly chubby build, something many expected of  higher level bureaucrats.  However, should one try and take a punch at him, they'd quickly discover that the canid was nigh unbreakable.  His skin and flesh harder than steel.  He watched the soul-stone engineer carefully.  He didn't want to let the man go, but the higher ups had said no.  His hands were tied on the matter.

Down the hall, in the claims court.  There were several Cubi, Mythos, and at least one demon, all waiting for room 1213 to open.  This was where the ruling for salvage rights was going to take place.  The doors had been shut.  What this meant was anyone's guess.  Had someone gotten their first?  Was the judge still out to lunch?  Had the location been moved?

To answer all these questions, a demon appeared out of the door-way, the legally signed documents in hand.  Mr. Messua was greeted with a littany of glares and dirty looks.  Probably the only thing keeping the gathered crowd from tearing him apart were the pair of military uniformed demons in front of the Recruiters and Officer's Training offices.  It was fairly common knowledge that they kept some of their most powerful soldiers there as a trick to gather young demons and half-breeds.  A simply display of power and the claim that "with the proper training, and a couple of more years, you can do that too"  was usually all it took to get them salivating... often times drooling on the contract, while signing that dotted line.

The demon had the contract.  He had purchased the train-wreck's salvage rights.  Now, it seemed, was time to  collect, before someone less scrupulous decided to melt the wreck down, and wander off with the iron ingots.  Tracing the source of regular metal was rather difficult... most trains, including this one, weren't enchanted.  If he didn't get down their quick, someone might walk off with his recently purchased haul, and him unable to do anything about it.

[Chairtastic]

Oh what a wonderful morning/Oh what a wonderful day~

The minute word had reached Haien Messua of the train-wreck, he had been out the door.  He very nearly forgot his coat and walking around coins in the rush.  Of course, so had the other businessmen in the hall; Haien just had the luck of the judge being a personal friend, and making use of his fire-magic's ability to propel him at great speeds when jumping from a height.

It had taken more than a little work for Haien's silver tongue to get the judge, friend or no, to sign off on the contract.  He'd had to argue that him being the saintly soul he was-I knew giving those poor deadbeats more time for their rent would pay off one day-would put the metal to a good use, developing some of his country properties; and promising to contribute a portion to the arms-buildup.

Haien didn't like selling weapons.  A sword or a gun, once sold, could just as easily be turned on its previous owner to obtain more swords/guns.  But there was a market for them, and there was war on the horizon.  So it seemed Simon & Sons Refinery would be producing metal for the purpose of killing people.  How distasteful.

In the present, however, Haien elected to indulge the urge to gloat this one time, winking cheekily, and puffing a bit of smoke out through his nostrils, which then formed a hollow heart shape.  And with that done, he was moving like a man possessed.  There was no time to lose!

In short order, Haien was flying down the streets.  Not literally, mind you.  His wings were too thin to give him more than a boost while jumping, which coupled with his levitation and fire magics had him standing in front of his mothership establishment, The Devil's Deals in short order.  It was a large store, two stories tall, and its name proclaimed with a large sign of poured metal, each letter crafted and painted to look like green colored flames, with a smokey outline.  The ram hastily opened the door and went to the front desk where he would normally sit, and rang the bell meant to gain the employees attention, in an alternating pattern of longer and shorter jingles; a pattern all Haien's employees were trained to recognize, and drop whatever they were doing and get to the front desk.

Minutes later, all five store clerks were lined up in front of the desk.  Three of them were Beings, while the other two were a Demon, and a Gryphon (B).  All were dressed in The Devil's Deals uniforms; black pants and boots, with bronze tunics the seems stitched with green thread, and smokey gray at the collar and hems; except the Gryphon who was given a satchel of similar design to serve as a uniform.  The Beings were a set of triplets; or rather they behaved like triplets.  The trio all essentially had the same personality, same background, even dangerously similar names; naturally they were the best of friends.  T'was kinda freaky. 

The other two were both normal...er than the trio; a Demon Horse, and the russet-colored Gryphon.  As soon as they had stopped fidgeting Haien started speaking.  "Alright, we've got to make this fast.  Henna, Hanna, and Honna.  You get down to Simons & Sons and make sure they have the room to process a new shipment of iron."  The trio nodded, and left for their job; like all the ram's employees, they had been trained to not ask questions, to just do what they were told.  "Kali, you round up a salvage crew, and get them out to that new wreck in the wastelands.  Strongarm as you see fit."  The horse chortled, and went off to do his job.  "Bassoon, you're with me.  Come on, chop chop."  Bassoon flapped off, out of the store and around back, while Haien closed up the shop; putting money in the safe, getting all the alarms and traps in place, and locking all the doors leading in or out. 

By the time he was done Bassoon had the cart outside, and had strapped himself in.  Despite being modernized in the business sense, Haien still enjoyed traveling by Gryphon cart.  T'was great exorcise for Bassoon, and freed Haien up to counter immediate threats moreso than an automated contraption would.  Having spent far too much time, in his own opinion, getting all his ducks in a row, Haien hopped into the cart, and whistled for Bassoon to get the cart going.

[Tapewolf]

Precinct

Wondering if he should have used a message orb before coming in person, Sethir felt the detective's impatience and made as hasty an exit as would still be considered courteous.   Rumours of war, he thought, noting the military personnel waiting outside.  Maybe there is something to this business about the quake being deliberately induced.

The incubus paused outside the office, and considered what was involved in going to Kesslen, which seemed to be on the border with Ahnk-Ator.  As he did so the wings morphed slightly, switching over from their natural, Angelic form to something more demon-like.  If he did run into any Insectis troops or agents, he'd be in for a hard time whatever happened...  But there was no sense in risking being plucked first.  Maybe I should just hide them entirely, he thought.

[VAE]

The morning was indeed good for some... for others, it was less so.
One of the others was a tabby-patterned cat with rather large goat horns and batlike wings currently pacing in  office, 943C belonging to the Military Liaisons, looking rather disappointed.
He has spent the day so far waiting in several lines at the Bureau of Work, then getting his residence permits scryed at the immigrant office, then filling in the application forms and getting them stamped, and so far, the result could be characterised by a single, very round numeral.
This was mainly (or so he thought) the doing of the portly jackal office-mule who has decided his documents aren't enough to prove he can do his job properly.
"Look, of course i have mostly been self-employed! Do you think there are many around who offer a permanent soul engineer jobs?
They'd have to be building a private mech, or airship army, a factory the size of several villages, or spells whose AOE radii rank into kilometres.... and such folks generally tend to end as someone's necklace, ring, or desk lamp... "

This time the bureaucrat responded with a bit more interest, claiming his application will be considered if he shows his work to their staff... The chances were still rather lousy, but it was the best he could hope for.

These times weren't so great for Avram. After his last employer, an angel who had a massive factory with small single-purpose clanks doing most of the gross work in mind, did indeed end up powering the decorative lights on the logo of a competing cartel at their HQ  he was mostly working on his own.
The problem with that was that although some did want enchantments on weapons or items, and there were one or two showoff businessmen needing a soulpowered gryphonless carriage to demonstrate their power and affluence, most of the customers needed simple soul gem refills, which had the least returns of all the jobs as it had to involve other people, mainly to get the soul, and the reliable sources and methods he had mostly provided him with being souls only.... 
The chiefly used method was paying some poor being a relatively nice sum to wander along streets at night, almost inevitably baiting some unlucky mugger who would soon find himself in the customers' gem, or in a better case, a glass jar, though even an expert such as Avram couldn't avoid failures when using these primitive devices.... soulgems were expensive for a reason.
The local authorities didn't mind much - after all, it decreased street crime levels, for a given definition of "street crime" and the beings who got a few days' wage for a stroll which, let's face it wasn't that much more dangerous than a factory shift at some of the more avaricious employers,  weren't complaining either.
The second one, relatively safer if one didn't get discovered but also more expensive involved bribing a few penal officers in some of the prisons further from the capital, and harvesting the souls of those prisoners, whose deaths could be ascribed to natural causes afterwards - not like anyone considered it too important, if you knew who to choose.

Both of these worked nicely, however, in the months after the war started the state began to clamp down on private soul market, in order to secure a better supply for the war effort, not to mention the increase in internal security aimed to prevent sabotages threw a wrench into the cogs of the second harvest method....

"Allright, where and when do i have to go to meet your... engineers?" Avram remarked with a slight bitterness in his voice...
"I am sure they will find me capable enough, just as all of my previous employers"
Heh, demonstrate.... i designed the power supply for a flying fortress  when you were sucking on your mother.... why the hell are all of these damn penpushers beings? No wonder it goes like this...give a beggar a horse, he'll act like lord...The demon stood there waiting for an answer, apparently patient, but an observant eye could small  electric arcs flickering on and off between his claws, and a faint hint of ozone refreshing the office's otherwise stale air.

"

[Mechanisto]

Just arriving at the Mjolnir

   Josephine had been more than satisfied with the arrangements that had been made after the barroom meeting had adjourned. The journey to the airship, however, had left her irked. She was eager to move her equipment on board as quickly as possible, but was at the same time unwilling to miss even a moment of whatever briefing Baseel had to offer. Besides... you never knew what a moment's delay might cost you.
   She followed the group at a brisk walk, and tried not to look put out. Her... signature armament... was far too weighty to be loaded onto a small carriage or buggy. Moving it required a quad-flatbed; a huge freight platform that was driven by a set of six continuous tracks, measured two street-lanes wide, and weighted two long tons all by itself. She had rented one already, of course; one with a canvas covered top to conceal the contents. She even knew how to drive it... but only just barely. It had taken her almost an entire day to crawl the freight vehicle through the crowded city streets; it had been an ordeal that had left her feeling uncharacteristically cumbersome. It had given her a newfound respect for mechanical operators that was rarely held by hotshot battle pilots.
   The worst part, of course, was that the quad-flatbed had been transporting a vehicle that could have made the journey itself in a matter of seconds. But that would have been the very antonym of discreet. She kept her eyes open for Gabriel, and silently prayed the tiny grease rat could skillfully pilot a vehicle the size of a small cottage through a series of aggressively crowded streets.

[Paladin Sheppard]

Baseel and Paige's Cabin

Paige in one of her new 'dresses' sat on the bed she and Baseel were sharing and studied the Captain as he planned and plotted. Smiling she padded over barefoot to stand just behind him, then placed her arms around his shoulders and embraced him while her chest met the back of his head, and looked down over his head at the globe.

"Do you plan on sitting there all evening?" She purred into his ear before nibbling on it.

Before he could answer She span his chair around and sat in his lap facing him, and grinned......With alot of teeth.

[Kafzeil]

The Burning Orphanage or rather what's left of it

"by...the Gods..."

It was sad and sickening sight. There were very few words to describe the scene other then purest, vilest evil.

Then the disgusted turned to a variant of confused horror. Only the one building had been destroyed. She didn't know it's purpose but everything else had been...untouched. Like a ghost town. It didn't make a whole lot of sense.

Spying a winged figure, Lucy took her chance, hoping she still had the element of surprise, aiming her revolver and firing at the angel, a swift crack followed by stream of smoke rising from the barrel, hoping to miss her mark.

She had no idea what was happening, but frankly figures observing chaos on rooftops where a bad omen. She began to recall a story her father had told her when she was six and when she asked for advice if she ever had to fight a creature.

Look up.
Why?
They love hiding in rafter and on rooftops. Especially Cubi, though it also gives them a good vantage point. Thing is, They're also sitting ducks. Why i remember-

She shook it off. now was not the time to be thinking about her father. Clear your head girl.Remember his Golden Rule: hesitation kills. And hesitation Had in fact killed her once before.

[JamesCray]

Eye on the Birdie

The fennec stepped in, smiling warmly. Hooking his cane at his elbow, he dropped the tip of his newly acquired sabrella to the floor, leaning on it slightly before shifting away and partially unsheathing the concealed sword, and presenting it to the avian, transferring his weight back to the cane as soon as possible as he spoke.

"I was just talking with Caleb up the block, got this from him. Said you could make it much handier to have with. I'm a courier, so I run into a bit of trouble at time. Showing a seal and a blade is enough to get people thinking they'd better reconsider their, but the other times I've got to be able to cover my own escape. Cane's got a dagger in it as well, but I can't really hand that over to you unless you've got someplace for me to sit."