αvεm cαεlι
-- A STEAMPUNK ROLEPLAY --
RASCAL07REARDON
GOLDFISH3D
Dearest Father,
By the time you have gotten this letter, I will most likely be quite far away from home. My actions are not against you, but rather my own desire for adventure. Here, on this airship, I finally feel like I belong in the world. I will write to you often and send you gifts from distant lands like Rocktow, Nippon, or the Orient. I will come back to visit some day but until then, pray for my safety.
Love,
Anna
ONGOING SYNOPSIS
The crew of the Avem Caeli has just been offered a job by the infamous Zebulon Preston in exchange for significant funds and some much-needed parts for the ship, but their last encounter with the man in the floating fortress ended in chaos that nearly destroyed their ship.
CHARACTERS
Name: Djani Barnowl Lawlor [JAN-i]
Job: Pilot and Navigator
Roleplayer: goldfish3d
Gender: Cis Male
Age: 23
Height: 6"4
Orientations: ---
Heritage: white father, [universe's equivalent of vaguely middle-eastern] mother
Appearance: Olive-tan-skinned, brown-eyed, with thick brown hair down to the nape of his neck. His eyes are very slightly almond shaped, and his nose has a bit of a hook to it. He's irrationally skinny, even though he can eat his body weight in pretty much anything and still ask for more.
Personality: Bubbly and excitable, he's always talking, waving his hands around and bumping into things. He can't keep secrets for his life, but he /can/ keep relationships- he has a habit of bonding to people in very short periods of time. He's a little obnoxious, but good at heart.
Bio: ---
Name: William
Job: Doctor
Roleplayer: goldfish3d
Gender: Male
Age: A few months
Height: 5"11
Orientations: ---
Heritage: Robot/Synthetic
Appearance: Made primarily of copper and brass, he has a brown shine to his plating. He has a single set of arms where a human would have them with another set halfway down his torso. He has two blue optics, a mostly-prehensile mouth and a purely decorative nose structure. His power core is on his belly just above his hips, with a clear, easily-removed glass panel covering his self-sustaining power source surrounded by the gears and cogs that make up his internal systems. He can walk like a normal human, but has retractable wheels in the soles of his feet for emergencies.
Personality: He's absurdly shy. He tends to follow Adam around, regarding him as his father figure and a protector. While he has the vocoder to talk with, he prefers to stay nearly silent at all times. His emotions are relatively unstable- Adam isn't the greatest programmer by anyone's standards- and he's victim to frequent overloads and periods of distress. Despite this, he's upbeat and suffers from a remarkably sunny disposition and, if he's comfortable with you, will actively converse and chatter and keep you company.
Bio: He was Adam Coult's creation; a clockwork synthetic human who ended up being a little more emotional and clingy than Adam had intended, but was undeniably loveable. He picked his name himself- after weeks of being called "kid" or "doc" or all manner of nicknames, he came across the name in the newspaper and decided it fit him, and he's been William ever since.
Name: James Benton
Job: First Mate/Quartermaster
Roleplayer: goldfish3d
Gender: Cis Male
Age: 32
Height: 6"2
Orientations: ---
Heritage: Caucasian
Appearance:Tall and muscular, he is easily the most physically intimidating members of the crew. He keeps his long brown hair in a ponytail, tied off at the nape of his neck with a black ribbon. His face seems to sport a constant stubble, divided only by the sharp scar that trails from his left ear across his chin. The only thing about his appearance that betrays his nature is his soft blue eyes, old beyond his years and a kind juxtaposition to the harshness of his features.
Personality: Tall and quiet, he rarely speaks unless he has something important to say- and nearly always, those words are to the captain. He is naturally distrustful, but once you've earned his trust and respect, he will stand behind you and defend you to his last breath. He's remarkably gentle, though not too fond of physical contact (although he does like to keep a hand on the captain's shoulder).
Bio: Born and raised in abject poverty, his father was a miner in the outer-city slums of Arma City, and by the time James was fourteen, had died of consumption. James started working not long after, doing odd jobs with his three older brothers while his little sister and his mother cared for the house at home. He did all he could for her, and promised when he left Arma he'd come back for her. He doesn't know where she is now.
He met the captain in a shipyard five years ago after she had put up ads calling for a crew, and has been flying on the Avem Caeli since.
Name: Adam Claude Coult
Job: Mechanic/Gunslinger/Tinkerer
Roleplayer: rascal07reardon
Gender: Cis Male
Age: 26
Height: 6"1
Orientations: Bi but male preference.
Heritage: Caucasian/asian. White mother, half-asian father.
Appearance: Pale olive skin, green eyes, and messy black hair. He has relatively diminutive sideburns along his cheeks. He's built like a brick wall.
Clothes: Loose fittting shirt, overalls, dark green cap, bandana around neck, boots, arm glove on left arm that holds his watch, wrenches, and a pressure meter, goggles on cap which has magnifing glasses, a small
Personality: He is talkative when he wants to be but other wise is solem. He has a well kept temper but will snap if something is agrivating him. He is convinced his son's solitude came from him and keeps a spare clock key in his side pouch incase Will breaks down intirely or his power fails. He is quick to make friends but opposes those who are buff or snotty. If people he knows are threatened he will fight to protect them. Hates corrupt authority. Speaks with a relatively heavy Irish brogue.
Bio: Originaly from Lamplight, his family moved to Grovesgear, an industrial town, where he found his love for mechanics and tinkering. He joined the Ashton Royal AirNavy at age 18 and stayed until he was discharged when he was 21 for disobeying captain's orders to keep the oppresive line instead of the defensive on the ship. He got a job at a clock maker's shop and in his spare time created his robotic son William. When the Avem Caeli docked in Grovesgear, he was hired to do repair work and was then offered a job with the Avem Caeli's crew.
Name: Emily Abigale Clay
Job: Captain
Roleplayer: rascal07reardon
Gender: Cis Female
Orientations: Straight
Age: 30
Height: 5"7
Heritage: Caucasian Anglo-saxon.
Appearance: Slender features, soft but sharp face. Blonde hair in a bun. Blue eyes. Left arm is copper clockwork.
Clothes: A blue captain's jacket with gold trim. Black pants and dark brown boots. Wears white gloves. War pins of jacket. Stopwatch in her jacket pocket.
Personality: A friendy but orderly woman, She is intelligent and is great at keeping relations with the companies the crew works for. Uptight and Stoic, she can keep her cool in times of crisis but relies heavly on her first mate.
Bio: Born in Woodworm, she recived tutoring then attended collage at the Ashton Institute for the Elite with her father's great wealth. She joined the AirNavy at age 24 then left several years later after her parents and fiance were killed in a Rocktow military air raid. She bought an airship to do jobs since she loved flying but dissagreed with the Royal AirNavy's way of commanding. She harbors a burning hatred against Rocktow and desperately wants revenge.
Name: Annabelle Jane Carpenter
Job: Writer, doccuments the crew's adventures
Roleplayer: rascal07reardon
Gender: Cis Female
Age: 20
Height: 5"4
Orientations: Bi male preference
Heritage: Caucasian Anglo-saxon
Appearance: Short brown hair, brown eyes, small soft face.
Clothes: Purple high-collared long-sleeve pleated dress, matching wide brim sun-hat.
Personality: She is a bubbly person but is very weary when meeting new people. She is always worrying about her family and how they will take her absence from their home. She otherwise is friendly and talkative. and is sometimes shy if not nervous.
Bio: Born in Lumberville, she is the daughter of the Jos Carpenter, the lumber business tycoon of Ashton. Growing up in wealth never allowed her the chance to live among the lower classes. She is an aspiring writer and is currently on a trip back home after visiting family in Newburyport. Deciding she like adventure rather than wealth, she now travels with the Avem Caeli crew and documents their travels, hoping it will make a good book.
Last edited by goldfish3d; 04-12-2014 at 02:53 AM. Reason: synopsis update
"...i am the excuse you give when you cannot follow the rules." - lucifer, the devil's carnival (2012)
Location: Wind City
Annabelle: She watched as the letter slid down into the mail slot and prayed it would reach her family within the next few days. She didn't her father to spend his vast wealth to retrieve his only daughter from the hands of what he called scum. The only problem with her father is his hypocrisy. He would employ the same type of scum to retrieve her from scum. But yet she still loved him, for he was her father.
Annabelle left the post office and headed to the Upper City where the airboats docked. Along the way she passed a bookshop and stepped inside, the door bell ringing as she entered. She was stuck still in awe at the collection of books that lined the shelves. Political writings and modern essays filled an entire bookshelf while romance, science fiction, and fantasy took up a whole wall. She was drawn the the glass display cases in the middle of the shop. Inside were ancient tomes and manuscripts, each garnished with archaic calligraphy that seemed to resonate a dull power.
A voice made her jump from her trance. "Beautiful aren't they?"
Anna looked up to see an elderly woman standing behind the counter. "Oh! Yes they are." She responed.
"My husband acquired them from Nippon in his younger years, they have been the pride of this shop for the past 25 years. The Alchemist's Guild keeps trying to buy them from me but I always decline." The old woman smiled. "Anyways, what are you looking to read, my dear?"
Annabelle glanced at the fiction books before asking, "What are the newest science fiction books you have got a shipment of?"
The old woman grabbed a book off of the display shelf behind her and passed it to Annabelle. The title read Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea by Jules Vern. "I don't know if you have read this yet but is one of the newest of his works. It is my personal favorite."
Anna looked the book over. "No...I haven't. How much is it?" She said enthusiastically.
"ϟ20 please." (ϟ is Electricium Gold Coins, a useless gold alloy that is only used as currency. Σ is Silver Coins, 10 Σ are worth one ϟ. λ is Copper Bits, 10 λ make up one Σ.)
Annabelle passed over the money and took the book, but before she could leave she found the woman holding out another novel.
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde "and here, have this. I'm not sure how it will do on the market but I want you to have it free. It was just released last month and if word gets out it is good then more people will want to buy it."
"Thank you kindly Miss!"
Location: Copper Raven Tavern
Captain Clay: Emily Clay was just about to give the toast to the success of the crew on their performance for the past month when she realized they were missing a certain new crew member. "Adam do you mind going to find Annabelle? It shouldn't take 20 minutes to mail a letter."
Adam: "Sure capt'n!" Adam stood up from his seat and left the tavern slightly irritated. The girl was taking away his time to drink. He had gotten no more than 30 ft down the street when he found her in a crowd watching street performers. "Annabelle, where 'ave you been?" He scolded, "We 'ave been waiting for you at the tavern."
Annabelle: "I'm sorry Adam. It is this place! It's just so beautiful and...different!"
Adam: Adam looked at her funny. "You are one loony gal, you know that?"
They both entered the tavern.
((Btw try to keep the currency in mind. An I thought this was going in adult.))
Last edited by Rascal07reardon; 04-10-2014 at 02:58 AM. Reason: Thought Crime
The creak of the opening tavern doors interrupted Djani's one-way conversation with William (much to the synthetic's secret delight). He turned around, hastily wiping his milk mustache off with the back of his sleeve before greeting the two crewmen who walked in. "Hey, there you are!" He patted the seat next to him, beckoning Anna over. "Come on; the captain wants to make a toast."
(( You said u wanted to keep the RP pg-13 tho??? If u think it'll get steamy we can open up a sode thread for diddling in the adult section, or ask one of the mods to move it. Also btw Djani's, drinking milk b/c muslims dont drink alcohol uvu ))
"...i am the excuse you give when you cannot follow the rules." - lucifer, the devil's carnival (2012)
Once Adam and Anna were seated at the table, Emily stood up, a mug of beer in her hand. "First off I want to personally congratulate Djani on saving us from that thunderstorm fiasco the other day. With out his excellent steering we would all be dead by now. Thank you. Now I also want to formally introduce the newest member of our crew, Annabelle Carpenter. Hopefully she will be with us for a while but if she takes to long to mail her next letter, we might have to leave her here!" Emily said the last part sarcastically. She held the mug up into the air. "For Order!"
Adam stood up next. "For Wealth!"
Anna said the first thing that came to mind. "For God and Country!"
Last edited by Rascal07reardon; 04-10-2014 at 02:59 AM. Reason: Weird
The enthusiasm of the crew came nearly to a dead stop at Anna's words. "For God and Country" was the sort of phrase one would hear from the National Guard or from the wealthy businessmen in the Capital. Out-of-the-way taverns in Wind City were not particularly friendly to people who spoke like that. After at least a few seconds of uncomfortable, stifled silence, Djani cleared his throat and set down his mug with a heavy thunk on the table, trying to draw attention away from Anna.
"So," he started, looking up to the captain and first mate at the head of the table. "what's next, ma'am?" He asked, folding his arms over the tabletop. "Do we have a new assignment?" He was going to have to talk to Anna later about this "nationalist" business.
(( i s2g im gonna write will and james soon i just picked the quIETEST CHARACTERS ))
"...i am the excuse you give when you cannot follow the rules." - lucifer, the devil's carnival (2012)
The captain glared at Anna, causing the young woman to shrink back in her chair. If the girl was going to want to travel with them then she would have to forget her loyalty to the crown. Clay didn't care what religion her crew followed but a political stance could provide them with problems, problems with clients and their reputation. But Emily knew that Anna was still new to all of this so she would was going to over look it just this once, hoping Annabelle got the message. She looked at Djani when he wanted to call everyone's attention.
"Well, there was a request for a 'cargo running' ship. Specifically the Avem Caeli. Our ship. We have to transport supplies from here to, unfortunately, Zebulon Preston's floating fortre-"
"WHAT?!?!?!?" Adam slammed his mug to the table and stood up immediately. "We can't go back to work for him! He made it very clear last time that we would be dead on sight!"
"Calm down Coult, his messanger said we are in his good graces again and we won't be attacked. Just buissness."
Adam sat back down. "Yeah," he muttered under his breath, "He's probably offed everyone else who worked for 'im."
Last edited by Rascal07reardon; 04-11-2014 at 10:31 AM. Reason: Moist
William felt a flare of anxiety bubble up in his circuits at the mention of Preston's name, and he cast an uneasy glance at Adam, vocoder buzzing static. He vividly remembered the crew's last encounter with the man in the floating fortress, and the thought of scrambling to fix the engines with Adam as the fortress turrets riddled the Avem Caeli with bullets again seemed, at the very least, unappealing. The more he thought about it, the more fear gnawed at his system, and he wrapped his hand around Adam's in an attempt to comfort himself.
"Ma'am," Djani spoke up again, leaning forward and almost standing up in protest, "Adam's right. Last time we took a job for him he almost shot us out of the sky; I don't think we can take that risk again!" Djani was usually the last one to go against captain's orders, but desperate times call for desperate measures, and he was loathe to fly his skybird into that fortress again.
Last edited by goldfish3d; 04-11-2014 at 01:41 AM. Reason: apparently 'blac' translates to 'baby poo green' in html code
"...i am the excuse you give when you cannot follow the rules." - lucifer, the devil's carnival (2012)
With William's hand in his, Adam rubbed his son's hand with his thumb. The robot's grip was unusually tight but he was feeling the exact emotions himself.
"We have no choice in the matter. He asked for us and he said if we refused we would regret declining his offer. He is also offering a large payment and some parts that would be crucial to our ship. We need to take this job. But the messenger said Zeb understands our weariness to take his job. We can dock at one of the outposts and unload our supplies there."
Emily sat back down into her chair. "But, I have a plan to keep us away from that madman. Djani and Adam, is it possible you could rig up a navigation panel to the motor of one of the life boats? That way we could send an unmanned boat to deliver the supplies."
Adam wearily nodded at the captain. Her plans usually worked.
((also, what type of ship are we? A balloon ship or a ship that some how can float. Like the battle ships from Last Exile.))
Last edited by Rascal07reardon; 04-11-2014 at 12:02 PM. Reason: Robo-erotic Subtext
(( i was thinkin like. the last exile airships b/c u cant do jack shit in a balloon ship lmao ))
Djani sighed, rubbing at the back of his neck as he mulled over his captain's suggestion. She was usually right, but something about going back to Preston's fortress gnawed at Djani moreso than any other risky mission they had completed. The fortress was heavily armed, and if they made so much as one mistake...
But there was no way Djani was going to go against his captain's orders- especially because he had been looking for new equipment for the dashboard for months after the old radio and radar started dying out, and the Avem Caeli crew didn't have nearly the funds to buy the parts. "Okay, captain," Djani surrendered, though still uneasy. He really, really hoped her plan worked.
Last edited by goldfish3d; 04-12-2014 at 02:43 AM. Reason: ding darn dangit wtfrpg. also SOMEDAY JAMES WILL GET TO SPEAK I SWEAR
"...i am the excuse you give when you cannot follow the rules." - lucifer, the devil's carnival (2012)
Anna leaned over to the First Mate. "James?" She whispered, "Who exactly is this Zebulon Preston?"
Last edited by Rascal07reardon; 04-12-2014 at 03:22 AM. Reason: Day 1 - My milkshake has not brought any boys.
James, who had thusfar been sitting beside captain clay and taking sips of his mug of ale, turned to face Anna. "Duke of the coal district of Arma City," he explained. "He's a tyrant and a thug and nearly took us down a few months back." He paused, looking up at the captain, and then back to Anna. "But we need all the money we can get."
Last edited by goldfish3d; 04-12-2014 at 03:48 AM. Reason: james benton, 6"2 200 pound teddy bear and captain clay's puppy dog
"...i am the excuse you give when you cannot follow the rules." - lucifer, the devil's carnival (2012)
"Well it sounds like you are more than just acquaintances, sir."
------
Emily sipped her ale one more before leaving the table. "We leave port in an hour. Finish up here. James, I want to speak to you privately. " The captain left the tavern quietly.
Last edited by Rascal07reardon; 04-12-2014 at 05:10 AM. Reason: *Throws stick* FETCH BOY! FETCH JAMES!
"We have... history," James muttered to Anna before standing up and following the captain to the back of the tavern.
Djani sighed, pushing himself out of his seat and grabbing his bag. "Well," he started, slinging the pack over his shoulder, "I'd better head back to the ship. Gotta go over the lifeboat schematics..." He trailed off as he left the tavern, preoccupied with getting the captain's plan to work. The last thing they needed was for him to overlook something- he wasn't keen on dodging Preston's bullets again.
Last edited by goldfish3d; 04-14-2014 at 01:05 PM.
"...i am the excuse you give when you cannot follow the rules." - lucifer, the devil's carnival (2012)
Location: Ship, Bridge
Clay gazed out the window at the sun sinking beneath the clouds with her hands folded behind her back. "Was I wrong to choose this job?" She asked James.
------
Location: Ship, Engine Room
Adam pulled down his goggles and turned the a massive valve crank on a pipe. The engines should now be full of fuel. He pushed a few buttons on the control panel and pulled the starter lever. The main engine erupted to life. Adam yelled into a pipe on his left. "Djani! The engine is ready!"
------
She collapsed into her bed, happy to be back on the ship. Anna pulled out 20,000 Leagues and began to read, liking the novel almost immediately.
Last edited by Rascal07reardon; 04-21-2014 at 12:46 AM. Reason: Day 4- A group of figures form in the yard.
(( emily is making me emotional hoW dID I GET ATTACHED THIS FAST ))
James gave a slow shake of his head, laying his hand over the captain's shoulder and giving it a gentle, reassuring squeeze. "No," he said, just loud enough for the two of them to hear, "you're a fine captain."
The comm system on the Avem Caeli had broken a while back, and the crew hadn't the funds to fix it- so a badly-welded copper pipe served as the next best thing. Djani slid his chair (which was mounted on a track at the front of the cockpit) over to the pipe and called back through. "Shukran jazilan, Adam," He said. He started to move away before a thought occurred to him, and he slid back. "Actually, can you come up here for a minute?"
William- who had followed Adam back to the ship as the mechanic had left- was busy counting and re-counting his stock, preparing for the upcoming journey. He was absolutely goddamn terrified of facing Preston again, but if that was what the captain wanted, he figured he had best be prepared (not that that stopped his hands from shaking).
((btw the shitty gratuitous arabic means "thank you v much" lmao ))
Last edited by goldfish3d; 04-14-2014 at 01:20 PM. Reason: my milkshake brings all the sad robots to the yard
"...i am the excuse you give when you cannot follow the rules." - lucifer, the devil's carnival (2012)
((UM OK))
------
"Alright. Thank you James. Can you please notify all nonactive deckhand arriving now of their duty? Then you can retire for the night."
------
"He flipped a few more switches before leaning into the pipe again. "I'll be right up boyo!" ((Gay time?))
------
CHAPTER VI
AT FULL STEAM
At this cry the whole ship's crew hurried towards the harpooner--
commander, officers, masters, sailors, cabin boys; even the engineers
left their engines, and the stokers their furnaces.
She put the book down as she heard a clanking sound. Hopping up from her bed, Anna followed the noise to the Medical Center.
Across the room she saw William shaking uncontrollably. She came up behind the robot and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Are you alright, Will?"
------
Last edited by Rascal07reardon; 04-22-2014 at 01:32 AM. Reason: "So if you're from Africa, why are you white?"