[center][color=red]Imperial Drydocks, Cero, capital of T'sarae[/color][/center][hr]


Amir studied the young mechanist as he spoke and felt his heart drop. Father Rodion wanted a place within MUSE and didn't seem to care that such a thing would involve moving heaven and earth to make happen. Though T'sarae had maintained some measure of independence after the fall of their Lord some two hundred years ago, it still lived under the yoke of the Varyan Faith. It had prospered within those two centuries, its people were free to build and to advance the world, as was their destiny. They were even granted the honor of being the first architects of the Varyan machine city. Yes, though T'sarae had long perished from this world, His people still thrived. But only as long as they worshiped at the Feet of the Ravenous Lord. Thus, the realm of the church was off-limits to them. Unfortunately, this included the young Father Rodion.

Amir steeled himself.

"Unfortunately, granting you entrance into MUSE wouldn't be left to my discretion, Your Reverence. If it were, you would've been a student there long ago," the Head Engineer told him.

"For a man of the cloth like yourself to join our academy, you would require a decree from one of the High Cardinals granting you leave from your inquisitorial duties to study within our halls. You would then need to devote everything to MUSE, which, I foresee as a problem.

Amir gestured to the dozens of warships lined up across the half-frozen bay.

"As you can see, war is coming. You are a war priest. They will want you to help subjugate that wild land across the sea, and unfortunately for us, and dare I say the world itself, I don't see them granting you a stay of absence from the slaughter," Amir spoke. There was a glint of sorrow in his eyes then, the deep blue within them seeming to turn grey. "After all, your Lord hungers. And He won't stop until all the world has been--"

"Dad. Let's show him to the ark."

Deva's words seemed to bring Amir out of whatever strange mood he was in, as the smile  returned to the middle-aged engineer's face.

"Of course. Please, this way Father."

The imperial drydocks of T'sarae were a huge coastal installation of different construction docks and service ports. It was the largest naval yard in all the continent and served as the home for the empire's vast armada of warships. Head Engineer Amir T'sukasa and his daughter, Deva, led Father Rodrion through the massive seaside complex, making sure to stay out of the way of the throng of workers and serviceman currently outfitting the armada for deployment to the east.

The trio made their way to a sophisticated-looking construction yard at the far end of the drydocks. "This is where we built her." Amir informed Rodrion as they approached its entrance. The Forge, as Deva called it, was the premier ship atelier in all the continent. It was where the future was being built, one steam ark at a time. At the massive gate leading into the port Rodrion spotted two Lanostran knights standing guard, their chrome spears and shields shimmering in the golden light of the aegisdome above. They were clad in the black and emerald armour of the Divine Lancers, a force of secular Lanostran soldiers said to be among the greatest in all the empire.  

"Sir Lucan, Sir Arsen."

Amir nodded his head to the two knights as he greeted them. Arsen and Lucan did not respond. They continued their watch without uttering a word as the trio passed by them.

When the three made their way into the Forge, they found it considerably less busy than the rest of the drydocks. Important-looking T'saraen engineers and scientists with pristine uniforms milled about the yard, which appeared newer and more advanced than the grease-stained wharves they had passed before. There seemed to be an air of quiet austerity within this place, it seemed more showroom than workshop. Deva, with her oil-stained uniform and the ether-burn scars on her arms, looked out of place.

There was only one ship moored to the dock. Rodrion studied it and saw an old beat-up vessel of grey steel and iron. The ship was positively ancient by modern standards, at least fifty years old. Painted on its front hull was a fading white circle inlaid with sword and rifle, the crest of the Varyan Secular Army. The ship was an ugly old thing, a big shoebox of hulking metal, lacking in the graceful design principles of the T'saraen-built vessels they had seen earlier.

"This is the VSS Grace. She'll accompany the Karamzina across the sea. I know, she may not look like much, but Gracey here is legendary. She's survived more battles than any other warship and managed to sink her fair share of Lanostran ships during the war, so she's got fangs. We've gutted her and replaced everything with new steam ark technology, modern ordnance and a few other surprises."

Deva smiled at Rodion, walking up beside him. "I've been working on her ever since I was little. She's not a looker but, she's my pride and joy. You'll find no better support vessel in all the imperial fleet."

The VSS Grace was indeed not a looker. Her outer hull was pockmarked and scarred by cannon fire and etherburn, but the vessel itself seemed intact and ready for deployment. Structurally, the Grace appeared short and squat, like a particularly fat turtle. The two massive ethertorches placed on each broadside made it appear as if it had wings. Thus, it looked like a particularly fat [i]flying[/i] turtle. Aesthetically, it appeared as if a blacksmith had taken an iron ingot from his forge, banged on it with a hammer a few times, and gave up halfway, but there was something distinctive about her design that the two engineers seemed to quietly appreciate. Rodion took a cursory glance at it. It could float and it could burn through ice, which was basically all that was needed for a support vessel, thus, it would do. 

"Let's move on."

Amir gestured for Rodrion and Deva to follow him to the far end of the Forge, where beyond the dock, the open icefield stretched on. A wide section of the ice around the Forge seemed to have been melted and was now a vast swath of dark frigid water. About two hundred feet away from the dock, a lone silver spire poked out from beneath the icy depths.

"Meet the Karamzina. Let's go down and see the rest of her," Amir said. There was a proud smile on his face. He nodded to Deva, who rolled down her work glove half-way to reveal a silver band around her wrist inlaid with an array of small buttons and keys. She entered a command into the silver band and suddenly, a section of metal floor beneath them began to sink into the earth.

"We're testing the Hearth Systems right now. She can keep about two-hundred people warm at once, and with enough oxygen to survive underwater for about a week before having to resurface, which is a new record for us. Deva thinks we can punch it up to two-hundred and thirty-nine people and two weeks underwater, thus, I'm indulging her and testing the waters," Amir said as the elevator continued its descent.

"We can do it, dad. Now's the time to try and overclock her capabilities. We won't be able to this once we depart."

When the elevator stopped, Rodrion stepped out and found himself in a large underwater chamber. At the far end of the chamber, a transparent barrier allowed them a view of the etherlit water on the other side, and floating there like some great sleeping beast, was the Karamzina.

Rodrion had never seen anything like it. The VSS Karamzina was smaller than most of the warships he had seen up above, but possessed a sense of grandeur and artistry that was all its own. Its sleek yet sharp form immediately called to mind the mythical leviathans that were said to prowl the deep sea beds beneath the lowest ice shelves of the world. Rodrion had seen such creatures depicted in ancient texts, and the steam ark's form factor seemed to have been created with those mythical beasts in mind.Its hull was colored pure white, the color of the Varyan sky, and painted on it Rodrion immediately recognized the red wings of Phoenix Warband's class insignia. The Karamzina didn't look much like a warship, but instead like some sculptor's masterwork. Its crafstmanship called to mind the statues he had seen in pictographs of Omestrian ruins.

"Shall we head inside? There's much I need to show you," Amir said, not bothering to hide the excitement in his voice.