As he hears the whistle of the train, he can't help but be a little excited. Something about large machinery gets his blood pumping. Not speaking to anyone in in particular, "If you didn't know, the current train in use by the city is the Brindlehaus 285-E. It is quite the marvel of modern machinery." He leans forward, to get a peek of the approaching locomotive.
Kolbi is staying back as far as he possibly can without vanishing completely. He is, admittedly, a tad bit frightened and more than a little homesick. The people around him all seem to know exactly what to do, and yet Kolbi doesn’t have a clue as to what’s going on. The workers are all busy with their own tasks, the clerk seems to be upset with him, and the machines are much louder than what’s strictly necessary. Kolbi decides that, if he ever gets put in charge of this station, he will be offering a pair of noise-canceling headphones to each and every employee, effective immediately.
How should he get out of this predicament? Usually, when things get loud and scary, Kolbi has chosen to sneak off. That won’t work here — he’s far too exposed, and his shell is no longer offering him the camouflage he so often relies on. Perhaps he can use his trademark charm to get out of this situation.
“My, my, what a nice station this is. So . . . organized. We have nothing like this at home. Everything is dirty and shady at home. This . . .”He squints. “This is just so bright, and shiny. And the clouds! The clouds are really, really cool-looking . . . much better than the clouds at home.”
Maybe he should just shut up. Yeah, that’s probably the best course of action here. Clearly, something important is about to happen, and Kolbi would hate to miss it because he’d been blabbering about the clouds. Kolbi shuts up.
Astra awaits the imminent arrival of their train. She decides to strike up a conversation with one of the new recruits, with whom the clerk had made some particularly disheartening remarks. (She addresses Rhoda @HellolmL).
“Good afternoon. I am Lieutenant Andasca, though I have just now been recalled to duty. Last week, I was dressed much like yourself, at an archaeological site. You are also an explorer, of sorts, I take it?”
"An engineer, sometimes an explorer, much most of my expertise lies in engineering." She holds out her hand to shake "The name's Rhoda, nice to meet you."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Your friendly trans bard!
She/They pronouns
The Goddess of the Strings (thanks for the title Drummer!)
Astra accepts Rhoda’s proffered hand with an easy grace, giving it a firm shake.“A pleasure to make your acquaintance. An adventurer and an engineer! I think you should be just fine, whatever they have planned for us. I’m afraid I don’t know any more than you do, at this point.”
She turns to the Tortle (Kolbi @Nothic2SeeHere2), who momentarily looks as though they might withdraw back into their shell. “The sky is beautiful, always, though some of that is likely from the stacks, here in the city. You’re not from around here, I gather?”
“Hi, I’m Lieutenant Andasca.” She offers her hand. “As a navigator, I’m typically reading the sky through the clouds, shooting an azimuth. It is refreshing to appreciate the clouds in the sky, for what they are, their simple beauty.”
She turns to the Tortle (Kolbi @Nothic2SeeHere2), who momentarily looks as though they might withdraw back into their shell. “The sky is beautiful, always, though some of that is likely from the stacks, here in the city. You’re not from around here, I gather?”
He hesitates. “No. This is my first time in the city. It’s . . . it’s a lot. To process, to deal with. Did you all grow up here?”
Takuma leans down a bit and taps Kolbi's shell. "Hey!" He says softly. "Uh, I wasn't born here. Kind of. I was born in my family's manor, in the woods east of the city. Oh, and I'm Takuma, but feel free to call me Tak."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
⌜╔═════════════The Board══════════════╗⌝
...and started me on my way into my next chapter in life...
[Sorry for the late response, will probably be slower at weekends]
The steam and smoke is the first thing you can see, a pillar of it rising up from behind the buildings. It's getting closer too. More citizen cheers can be heard, although the workers and officers around are silent, having seen the train many times before. A loud - but muffled by state of the art silencers - screech can be heard as she slows down. The train turns round the bend, and comes into view.
"Number 059, 'Elegancy.' In service since ninety eight, but upgraded for military purposes last year. She runs on kings coal, using one of the latest model 6 furnace engines, but appliances are powered by electricity. Produced and sold to the national railroad by Markinsons Ltd, one of their finest works. A favourite of the people too. She was a passenger train, but due to her revolutionary running speed, power, and efficiency, she was moved to military service. Bullet proof, double lined, used to ferry important individuals, military personnel and equipment around the city without risk of assasination or theft. She's a beauty, and right on time for her midday stop."
Takuma leans down a bit and taps Kolbi's shell. "Hey!" He says softly. "Uh, I wasn't born here. Kind of. I was born in my family's manor, in the woods east of the city. Oh, and I'm Takuma, but feel free to call me Tak."
“Oh! So I’m not the only one!“ He smiles cheerfully. “It’s nice to meet you.”
"Number 059, 'Elegancy.' In service since ninety eight, but upgraded for military purposes last year. She runs on kings coal, using one of the latest model 6 furnace engines, but appliances are powered by electricity. Produced and sold to the national railroad by Markinsons Ltd, one of their finest works. A favourite of the people too. She was a passenger train, but due to her revolutionary running speed, power, and efficiency, she was moved to military service. Bullet proof, double lined, used to ferry important individuals, military personnel and equipment around the city without risk of assasination or theft. She's a beauty, and right on time for her midday stop."
Kolbi leans forward. In spite of his apprehension, he’s starting to feel a little more comfortable with the city. “And we get to ride that thing? Wow!”
Astra regards the small arsenal of swords and pistols present, amongst the group of recruits. The lieutenant refrains from ostensibly bridling, at the disparaging remark, but there is a slight edge in her voice.“I daresay we are all prepared for violence, should it come to that? Though, I do not believe that is primarily what the service has in mind, for this team.”
She considers the tortle, curiously. “The circumstances of my own recall to duty are somewhat different; but my understanding is that you have voluntarily accepted payment from the military office, reported to the military depot, and now boarded a military train? It is perhaps a bit late, to bemoan the ‘badness’ of the military?”
Astra accepts Rhoda’s proffered hand with an easy grace, giving it a firm shake.“A pleasure to make your acquaintance. An adventurer and an engineer! I think you should be just fine, whatever they have planned for us. I’m afraid I don’t know any more than you do, at this point.”
[Sorry for the late response, will probably be slower at weekends]
The steam and smoke is the first thing you can see, a pillar of it rising up from behind the buildings. It's getting closer too. More citizen cheers can be heard, although the workers and officers around are silent, having seen the train many times before. A loud - but muffled by state of the art silencers - screech can be heard as she slows down. The train turns round the bend, and comes into view.
"Number 059, 'Elegancy.' In service since ninety eight, but upgraded for military purposes last year. She runs on kings coal, using one of the latest model 6 furnace engines, but appliances are powered by electricity. Produced and sold to the national railroad by Markinsons Ltd, one of their finest works. A favourite of the people too. She was a passenger train, but due to her revolutionary running speed, power, and efficiency, she was moved to military service. Bullet proof, double lined, used to ferry important individuals, military personnel and equipment around the city without risk of assasination or theft. She's a beauty, and right on time for her midday stop."
"Is our task that important so as to warrant using this?"
"Yes and no. You've been called by the military office, so its polite of us to treat you as we would treat any non contract signed personnel. Only one of you are a part of the military, so if you were to be harmed or die, you wouldn't have formally acknowledged the risk, and so we would be held responsible for your death. The train is the fastest and easiest route to our destination, where we will get you all to sign military documents, and acknowledge the risk of death. Then it will no longer be on our heads if you were to die." He adjusts his glasses, maybe slightly annoyed that you all get the luxury of riding the train without any prior military experience. "Your task is not ranked too highly."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Long live the dragon slayers, long live the spider guild, long live the forums.
I want you to know. You are going to lose. You are going to lose badly. You’re going to lose badly and it’s going to be awesome.
"Is our task that important so as to warrant using this?"
"Yes and no. You've been called by the military office, so its polite of us to treat you as we would treat any non contract signed personnel. Only one of you are a part of the military, so if you were to be harmed or die, you wouldn't have formally acknowledged the risk, and so we would be held responsible for your death. The train is the fastest and easiest route to our destination, where we will get you all to sign military documents, and acknowledge the risk of death. Then it will no longer be on our heads if you were to die." He adjusts his glasses, maybe slightly annoyed that you all get the luxury of riding the train without any prior military experience. "Your task is not ranked too highly."
"Oh." She looks down, pretty obviously let down
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Your friendly trans bard!
She/They pronouns
The Goddess of the Strings (thanks for the title Drummer!)
Astra regards the small arsenal of swords and pistols present, amongst the group of recruits. The lieutenant refrains from ostensibly bridling, at the disparaging remark, but there is a slight edge in her voice.“I daresay we are all prepared for violence, should it come to that? Though, I do not believe that is primarily what the service has in mind, for this team.”
She considers the tortle, curiously. “The circumstances of my own recall to duty are somewhat different; but my understanding is that you have voluntarily accepted payment from the military office, reported to the military depot, and now boarded a military train? It is perhaps a bit late, to bemoan the ‘badness’ of the military?”
“I suppose that was out of line. My apologies. I’m not used to this concept, of needing all these people around just to defend something. I guess this city is sometimes more . . . malicious than my old home.” Kolbi chuckles. “I should stop using that as an excuse. I’ve been in the city for weeks now. The truth is that I’m scared. Seeing the workers here is one thing, but I’ve seen real, real militants. I’m sure you have too — you must have, what with your career. They were pursuing a very bad man, someone much worse than them. They thought he was hiding in the village. They searched everywhere. No one was harmed, but I was young, and they frightened me in a way that I was entirely unprepared for. I don’t think the government is bad by any means, but these people scare me. I’ll get over it, though. I have a hunch we’ll be knee-deep in real violence soon.”
Astra relaxes, insofar as she ever allows herself to relax. It does not show in her posture, but the momentary edge to her voice is now gone.
”Of course. With regards to the military, I have always been on the inside, as it were. It is of value, to see it through the eyes of others.”
”Knee-deep in violence, you say?! Ha! Let us hope not.”
Astra prefers to stand, rocking gently with the movement of the locomotive, a practiced stance anticipating and compensating for the motion. She looks out the window, piercing blue eyes gazing into space, absently polishing the pommel of her saber with her thumb.
Takuma leans down a bit and taps Kolbi's shell. "Hey!" He says softly. "Uh, I wasn't born here. Kind of. I was born in my family's manor, in the woods east of the city. Oh, and I'm Takuma, but feel free to call me Tak."
“Oh! So I’m not the only one!“ He smiles cheerfully. “It’s nice to meet you.”
"Mhm." He smiles back. "Great to meet you as well. I'm excited for what's in store for us."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
⌜╔═════════════The Board══════════════╗⌝
...and started me on my way into my next chapter in life...
[Sorry for the late response, will probably be slower at weekends]
The steam and smoke is the first thing you can see, a pillar of it rising up from behind the buildings. It's getting closer too. More citizen cheers can be heard, although the workers and officers around are silent, having seen the train many times before. A loud - but muffled by state of the art silencers - screech can be heard as she slows down. The train turns round the bend, and comes into view.
"Number 059, 'Elegancy.' In service since ninety eight, but upgraded for military purposes last year. She runs on kings coal, using one of the latest model 6 furnace engines, but appliances are powered by electricity. Produced and sold to the national railroad by Markinsons Ltd, one of their finest works. A favourite of the people too. She was a passenger train, but due to her revolutionary running speed, power, and efficiency, she was moved to military service. Bullet proof, double lined, used to ferry important individuals, military personnel and equipment around the city without risk of assasination or theft. She's a beauty, and right on time for her midday stop."
As he hears the whistle of the train, he can't help but be a little excited. Something about large machinery gets his blood pumping. Not speaking to anyone in in particular, "If you didn't know, the current train in use by the city is the Brindlehaus 285-E. It is quite the marvel of modern machinery." He leans forward, to get a peek of the approaching locomotive.
Kolbi is staying back as far as he possibly can without vanishing completely. He is, admittedly, a tad bit frightened and more than a little homesick. The people around him all seem to know exactly what to do, and yet Kolbi doesn’t have a clue as to what’s going on. The workers are all busy with their own tasks, the clerk seems to be upset with him, and the machines are much louder than what’s strictly necessary. Kolbi decides that, if he ever gets put in charge of this station, he will be offering a pair of noise-canceling headphones to each and every employee, effective immediately.
How should he get out of this predicament? Usually, when things get loud and scary, Kolbi has chosen to sneak off. That won’t work here — he’s far too exposed, and his shell is no longer offering him the camouflage he so often relies on. Perhaps he can use his trademark charm to get out of this situation.
“My, my, what a nice station this is. So . . . organized. We have nothing like this at home. Everything is dirty and shady at home. This . . .” He squints. “This is just so bright, and shiny. And the clouds! The clouds are really, really cool-looking . . . much better than the clouds at home.”
Maybe he should just shut up. Yeah, that’s probably the best course of action here. Clearly, something important is about to happen, and Kolbi would hate to miss it because he’d been blabbering about the clouds. Kolbi shuts up.
Terra Lubridia archive:
The Bloody Barnacle | The Gut | The Athene Crusader | The Jewel of Atlantis
(Sorry I didn't get any notifications y'all)
"An engineer, sometimes an explorer, much most of my expertise lies in engineering." She holds out her hand to shake "The name's Rhoda, nice to meet you."
Your friendly trans bard!
She/They pronouns
The Goddess of the Strings (thanks for the title Drummer!)
Astra accepts Rhoda’s proffered hand with an easy grace, giving it a firm shake. “A pleasure to make your acquaintance. An adventurer and an engineer! I think you should be just fine, whatever they have planned for us. I’m afraid I don’t know any more than you do, at this point.”
She turns to the Tortle (Kolbi @Nothic2SeeHere2), who momentarily looks as though they might withdraw back into their shell. “The sky is beautiful, always, though some of that is likely from the stacks, here in the city. You’re not from around here, I gather?”
“Hi, I’m Lieutenant Andasca.” She offers her hand. “As a navigator, I’m typically reading the sky through the clouds, shooting an azimuth. It is refreshing to appreciate the clouds in the sky, for what they are, their simple beauty.”
He hesitates. “No. This is my first time in the city. It’s . . . it’s a lot. To process, to deal with. Did you all grow up here?”
Terra Lubridia archive:
The Bloody Barnacle | The Gut | The Athene Crusader | The Jewel of Atlantis
“Speaking for myself, yes. Right here, in fact- in and around the depot. Military family.”
Takuma leans down a bit and taps Kolbi's shell. "Hey!" He says softly. "Uh, I wasn't born here. Kind of. I was born in my family's manor, in the woods east of the city. Oh, and I'm Takuma, but feel free to call me Tak."
⌜╔═════════════ The Board ══════════════╗⌝
...and started me on my way into my next chapter in life...
⌞╚════════════ Extended Signature ════════════╝⌟
[Sorry for the late response, will probably be slower at weekends]
The steam and smoke is the first thing you can see, a pillar of it rising up from behind the buildings. It's getting closer too. More citizen cheers can be heard, although the workers and officers around are silent, having seen the train many times before. A loud - but muffled by state of the art silencers - screech can be heard as she slows down. The train turns round the bend, and comes into view.
"Number 059, 'Elegancy.' In service since ninety eight, but upgraded for military purposes last year. She runs on kings coal, using one of the latest model 6 furnace engines, but appliances are powered by electricity. Produced and sold to the national railroad by Markinsons Ltd, one of their finest works. A favourite of the people too. She was a passenger train, but due to her revolutionary running speed, power, and efficiency, she was moved to military service. Bullet proof, double lined, used to ferry important individuals, military personnel and equipment around the city without risk of assasination or theft. She's a beauty, and right on time for her midday stop."
Link if you can't see the image: https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1168213252359061594/1170691221040148480/360_F_591020064_htASSc0IFGXITr8uXsBaHxvPFEd9mHE7.png?ex=6559f629&is=65478129&hm=d58c8e306d9c372054a274e23792ac899910356b0d505c5b4d2ea677e0412ff7&
Long live the dragon slayers, long live the spider guild, long live the forums.
I want you to know. You are going to lose. You are going to lose badly. You’re going to lose badly and it’s going to be awesome.
He hesitates. “Military? That’s bad, right? Don’t they hurt people, as a job? I don’t understand it.”
“Oh! So I’m not the only one!“ He smiles cheerfully. “It’s nice to meet you.”
Kolbi leans forward. In spite of his apprehension, he’s starting to feel a little more comfortable with the city. “And we get to ride that thing? Wow!”
Terra Lubridia archive:
The Bloody Barnacle | The Gut | The Athene Crusader | The Jewel of Atlantis
Astra regards the small arsenal of swords and pistols present, amongst the group of recruits. The lieutenant refrains from ostensibly bridling, at the disparaging remark, but there is a slight edge in her voice.“I daresay we are all prepared for violence, should it come to that? Though, I do not believe that is primarily what the service has in mind, for this team.”
She considers the tortle, curiously. “The circumstances of my own recall to duty are somewhat different; but my understanding is that you have voluntarily accepted payment from the military office, reported to the military depot, and now boarded a military train? It is perhaps a bit late, to bemoan the ‘badness’ of the military?”
Rhoda smiles
"Is our task that important so as to warrant using this?"
Your friendly trans bard!
She/They pronouns
The Goddess of the Strings (thanks for the title Drummer!)
"Yes and no. You've been called by the military office, so its polite of us to treat you as we would treat any non contract signed personnel. Only one of you are a part of the military, so if you were to be harmed or die, you wouldn't have formally acknowledged the risk, and so we would be held responsible for your death. The train is the fastest and easiest route to our destination, where we will get you all to sign military documents, and acknowledge the risk of death. Then it will no longer be on our heads if you were to die." He adjusts his glasses, maybe slightly annoyed that you all get the luxury of riding the train without any prior military experience. "Your task is not ranked too highly."
Long live the dragon slayers, long live the spider guild, long live the forums.
I want you to know. You are going to lose. You are going to lose badly. You’re going to lose badly and it’s going to be awesome.
"Oh." She looks down, pretty obviously let down
Your friendly trans bard!
She/They pronouns
The Goddess of the Strings (thanks for the title Drummer!)
“I suppose that was out of line. My apologies. I’m not used to this concept, of needing all these people around just to defend something. I guess this city is sometimes more . . . malicious than my old home.” Kolbi chuckles. “I should stop using that as an excuse. I’ve been in the city for weeks now. The truth is that I’m scared. Seeing the workers here is one thing, but I’ve seen real, real militants. I’m sure you have too — you must have, what with your career. They were pursuing a very bad man, someone much worse than them. They thought he was hiding in the village. They searched everywhere. No one was harmed, but I was young, and they frightened me in a way that I was entirely unprepared for. I don’t think the government is bad by any means, but these people scare me. I’ll get over it, though. I have a hunch we’ll be knee-deep in real violence soon.”
Terra Lubridia archive:
The Bloody Barnacle | The Gut | The Athene Crusader | The Jewel of Atlantis
Astra relaxes, insofar as she ever allows herself to relax. It does not show in her posture, but the momentary edge to her voice is now gone.
”Of course. With regards to the military, I have always been on the inside, as it were. It is of value, to see it through the eyes of others.”
”Knee-deep in violence, you say?! Ha! Let us hope not.”
Astra prefers to stand, rocking gently with the movement of the locomotive, a practiced stance anticipating and compensating for the motion. She looks out the window, piercing blue eyes gazing into space, absently polishing the pommel of her saber with her thumb.
"Mhm." He smiles back. "Great to meet you as well. I'm excited for what's in store for us."
⌜╔═════════════ The Board ══════════════╗⌝
...and started me on my way into my next chapter in life...
⌞╚════════════ Extended Signature ════════════╝⌟
Tak studies the train in interest. "Elegant indeed!" He gets on whenever the others get on, and stands as well, holding on to something.
⌜╔═════════════ The Board ══════════════╗⌝
...and started me on my way into my next chapter in life...
⌞╚════════════ Extended Signature ════════════╝⌟
”Well, don’t get too excited. Apparently, our task is not ranked too highly.”
Astra continues to gaze out the window, as though keeping a sharp lookout, for the shitstorm she is certain she is moving inexorably toward.
"Well then! Guess I won't. Personally though, I prefer positivity. To each their own."
⌜╔═════════════ The Board ══════════════╗⌝
...and started me on my way into my next chapter in life...
⌞╚════════════ Extended Signature ════════════╝⌟
[Sorry for any delays, I just need to see what MrAlienLlama does]
Long live the dragon slayers, long live the spider guild, long live the forums.
I want you to know. You are going to lose. You are going to lose badly. You’re going to lose badly and it’s going to be awesome.