Dyelli Beybi

Paradise Lost

Station Security

"Make your way aboard in an orderly manner!" the Security officer bellowed, "No running and no pushing!" He lowered his voice to address his two remaining security officers, "Aspen, Shamil, make sure this doesn't turn into chaos, clear the corridor as quickly as you can."

As the crowd of civilians began to move onto the ship, the man called over his communicator, "Anyone out there hearing this? Hello, Station Security?" the message was repeated a good three times before he turned to Vitiafa, "I'm not getting anything on comms. I don't know how much of the station is overrun. Can I suggest we move out to the Concourse where we can watch the approaches and fall back here if the bugs show up? We can seal the shutter to give us a few minutes to get moving."

"Hey!" one of the troopers called (presumably 'Shamil' from his deep, rough-sounding, voice), pointing threateningly at a man in the crowd, "No pushing. You'll all get on the ship."

Empire of the Clouds

@InfamousGuy101

Zoe Spyrou

"Oh, I'm sure they will," Zoe said, with an offhand wave in the direction that the officers had retreated earlier, "Its not their gold anyway and there are state actors with more of a say over what we do with it than our officers. There are Generals, Admirals, Ministers and Royals, for a start."

As the second song concluded she stepped back with a charming smile and small nod of the head, "Well Mr Carter, it is always a pleasure... but I suppose I should mingle a little."

Empire of the Clouds

@InfamousGuy101

Zoe Spyrou

Zoe wrinkled her nose, stepping in towards Carter, and placing her left hand lightly on her shoulder "Philosophy while dancing? How droll," she remarked dryly, "I would much rather focus on enjoying life than talking about it, just as I admire a beautiful clock but have no desire to learn how a clockmaker makes it 'tick'."

"In not such a short time," she continued, "We'll be in Mitteland and I wager this fun little escape from reality above the clouds will be a thing of the past. You'll scurry off back to the Main, while I'll probably end up getting pressed upon to 'do my duty for my family' or some similar nonsense," she gave a wistful smile as the music started up again, "It was fun while it lasted though, was it not?"

Empire of the Clouds

Aden

...

“Yes……remarkable.” Aden answered; a gaze flashing to a certain Elgan with curiosity before he remembered that his dance partner was still talking.

“Merchant family; always have to be ready to rub shoulders with your ilk.” Aden’s smile mirrored her self deprecating expression. “The better to line our pockets with frivolous purchases.”

The next steps of the dance were awkward; but they managed it. He adjusted his offhand and gave a snort as Zoe ‘revealed’ her intentions.

“Not to worry. I might not be Inburian but I’ll do my duty. At least for them.” He nodded to his arm; where his 46th Alpine patch would have hung. Though the patch was in the greatcoat which he had left in his appropriated locker.

Upon realizing the gesture was pointless without the marking; he gave a sheepish smile.

“My regiment…” He clarified. “…the 46th Alpine. Good lads. Got torn up on the border.”

@Terrans

Zoe

"My ilk?" Zoe gave a look of feigned outrage that she ruined slightly by smirking, "You might find we're not as bad as we seem."

She listened to his story, studying him closely, "I'm sorry," she said as he finished, "From what little I know of the last few days, we weren't ready. We thought we were, but we weren't. I've heard similar stories from others on the ship."

"As for your duty... I thought you might. Honour and dependability are some of the finest traits," she said sincerely, passing the compliment without quite saying it.

As the song drew to an end, she stepped back with a bright smile. It looked like Zoe had enjoyed the dance, "Well, Mister Robertson, I suppose we should swap partners, but do feel free to find me again for the next dance," she said, before adding with a smirk, "We should probably check your stitches as well. I am clearly trained to do that."

She paused, before her eyes alighted on Carter, "Mister Carter," she said by way of introduction. There was the not-so-subtly implication she was hoping he would ask her for the next dance.

Paradise Lost

John

John turned slightly, just enough to grab a fistful of Velia’s jacket and help haul her inside the shuttle. Once he saw her boots clear, his free hand slapped the control panel; the hatch securing in a rush of disturbed air and the hissing of hermetic seals.

The whine of servos from the rear of the bay showed the rear ramp mirroring the smaller hatch. Clanging shut and replacing the station lighting with the shuttle’s interior lighting. John paused to hit another button on the doors panel; engaging the combat locks. The only way the hatches and ramps would open now was either a pilot override or blowing them for an emergency exit.

“Ship’s sealed. Grab a helmet and survival rig from a locker.” John patted a pair of compact heavy duty cases bolted beside the path to the cockpit. “Just in case. I’ll get the ship spun up.”

John quickly clambered up the short ladder well and pulled himself into the pilot’s seat that sat above and behind the co-pilots station. Hand’s dancing as he brought the shuttle to life. The thrum of engines shaking the frame and John felt a slight grin dance to his face. Buoyed by the buzz he still felt and the air grip he always got when he got to fly.

@Terrans

Velia

"You got it," Velia fumbled the locker open, catching a helmet as it tumbled out, which she set to one side as she pulled out one of the survival suits.

She could feel her heart pounding in her chest as she pulled it on, zipping up at the centre, "I saw some of the images of panicked mobs destroying their evacuation vessels in the crush to get out," she said, processing her fears aloud, more for her own benefit than John's, "I do not want to go out like that."

She pulled the helmet on, clicking it into place, scrambling to buckle herself into a seat, "Done!" she declared a split second after she had buckled herself in, "Lets hope someone on the shuttle is sensible enough to open the docking bay doors. I've never not do a space walk to try to open it from our side," she declared, continuing to voice her fears, "Tell me if you need me to do anything."

---

Vitiafa of Endiohon

---

Vitiafa's head snapped to face the leading guard while she kneeled. Her widening eyes betrayed an otherwise stoic countenance as she listened to the man. She pulled herself up using Divaldo's mobility aid, nearly tipping it, and him along with it, over in the process

Gods help us all.

"Form a basic cordon," she barked to the guard. "Prevent a crowd crush the best you can. And deploy a team to the cargo entrance, people can more quickly embark there."

...

@Bingelly

Divaldo and Station Security

"Careful you clumsy tralk!" Divaldo snarled as his scooter wobbled dangerously. Though thankfully, he saw this as his opportunity to get onto the ship he'd been trying to invade for weeks and otherwise ignored everyone in the tunnel as he kicked his scooter into full gear, powering down the corridor at the speed of a drunken stumble.

"Are we letting people on right away?" the lead guard asked hurriedly. It was a good question as several people were trotting hurriedly towards them clutching whatever belongings they'd been able to grab in the moments before fleeing. The trickle was definitely going to turn into a rush...

Paradise Lost

The Boarding Tunnel

Vitiafa of Endiohon

---

With some quick taps on her communicator, John and Velia's devices both pinged and lit up.

The message read; Make haste. Station Security has noticed us. Not hostile.

Returning her attention to the crowd physically in front of her, Vitiafa glared at the grendari as she stepped over to him. Even on his mobility aide, the priestess towered over him, and so she kneeled before him. Though, before Divaldo's pride swelled with any ideas, she tussled his forehead like a child. She found the slimy, wrinkled texture disgusting, though her face showed little indication of such distaste.

"And any fool can wear a crown and call himself king and pretend to be powerful." she countered as she wiped her hand clean with a handkerchief. "If inspecting the ship shall put an end to your incessant protests, you may feel welcome too. You'll see that we are merely preparing the ship to leave. There is no great haste, however."

@Bingelly

"How dare you touch the Royal head!" Divaldo spluttered, without any real capacity to stop it from happening, "I will have you hanged! Hanged if you are lucky! I can be far more creative."

"Quiet!" the lead guard snapped, pressing a hand to the side of his helmet. And for a few moments Divaldo was actually stunned into silence having, seemingly, assumed that the guard was working with him.

"Saints!" the guard declared, breaking the silence before the amphibian had a chance to resume his bluster, "There are bugs on the station. The engineering team we sent to climate control stumbled into a colony. They've gone active and overrun the lower decks," he paused, giving that a moment to sink in for those opposing them in the boarding tunnel, "I understand you are getting the ship ready, but we need to get as many people as we can onboard, right now."

---

Velia

John

...

“Velia time to go!!!” The pilot had clambered into the crew hatch down the fuselage just after of the cockpit ladder well. He hoped none of the bustling bay noticed his “co-pilot’s” lack of flight suit, flight gear and the rest of the flight assorted paraphernalia that she obviously lacked.

@Terrans

Velia looked at the crowd, eyes widening slightly, then ran, darting after John, hot on the pilot's heels. She didn't need to be told twice what a stampede of people trying to get onto the small shuttle could result in.

Empire of the Clouds

Zoe

Aden

...

“Tell me Miss Spyrou. Is this dance an attempt to change my opinion or to gauge it?” He made sure to keep himself eyes locked with hers; no need to give away anything by glancing around the room. Her gaze was dark and piercing and he gave a defeated sigh as he answered anyways.

“Truthfully, the promise of pay is probably too tempting. I would keep an eye on the man. Especially if he starts to get foolish notions.”

A ache ran down his spine as Zoe adjusted her grip and Aden gave a reflex hiss as it landed on the tender scar.

@Terrans

"Does that hurt?" Zoe asked, lightening her grip as she studied Aden's expression, "I'll try to be gentle, but it is remarkable how well you're healed considering how recently you were hit," she assured him.

"You dance well," she commented as they moved across the floor, "This may be especially arrogant of me, but I hadn't expected you to have had much of a chance to practice this art," she gave a slight, self-deprecating smile, "Idle scions of noble houses have very little else to do, most others do not."

"But as for your prior question," she said, her expression turning back to her more usual one of slight amusement, "I'm neither trying to change your opinion nor gauge it. I have already guessed at it, and I'm usually relatively good at these things - though always excited to be wrong! I'm merely sharing my insights into the dynamics in our merry band so that you are prepared if Mitteland proves to be a crisis point."

---

Arkadios

<Snipped quote by Dyelli Beybi>

Volodar Naesandoral

"Captain, a word before we return if you will," Volodar gestured for Arkadios to pull off into one of the cabins with him. "What is your intent when we make land and make contact with the Mittelvolk? Miss Spyroe promised some of this adhoc crew payment in exchange for their service. A single bar of that gold could likely outfit a regiment or keep one in the field longer than our enemies, and I fear she may be overly generous for what amounts to a fortnight's worth of labor."

...

@Bingelly

Arkadios stopped in the corridor, chuckled, "You are thinking along the same lines that I am. I sense that Miss Spyrou, despite knowing the location of that vault, has very little idea as to the actual value of that gold compared to what someone might typically get paid. I would not have pledged the amount of money that she has."

He paused, then nodded as if confirming something to himself, "Given the need for those funds to support the war effort I would suggest that it might be fair to offer a substantial bounty to those who did assist with the recovery, far more than one would typically offer, in place of the promise of a percentage of the gold. It wouldn't be the same value as what Miss Spyrou has promised, but it would be in currency rather than gold bullion, which would be a lot easier to actually spend. While some of them might be upset, ultimately this would be in everyone's best interest."

Empire of the Clouds

@Crusader Lord

Looks great! Fantastic app.

The unknown force that attacks the camp could be Red Wyvern forces, if you wanted. Not super important, but they'd fit.

We can brainstorm a few relationships with other characters to get you into the RP if you like.

Paradise Lost

Boarding Tunnel

Vitiafa of Endiohon

Raising the grate to the boarding tunnel, Vitiafa measured the group that met her and Iorosinn. She counted 12 guards, armed and ready and a particularly pathetic and ugly xeno on a mobility scooter as she stepped forward.

"Officer Larci is away with a pilot, they left not long ago to retrieve his shuttle," the priestess answered as she stepped out into the open. Her hands were raised, cautiously but clearly establishing her as non-threatening for the moment. "We can call try to reach her communications if that is needed, but the pair should return shortly.

Her eyes narrowed angerly at the amphibian she towered over, though her hands remained by her shoulders. "Do not presume our motivations, either, and I assure you that they are honest."

@Bingelly

Sarvenolos of the Third Fane of Tekumo

---

...

“Oh, it’s you people again!” Sarve appeared seemingly out of nowhere from behind the group of armed guards, and Diavoldo. “I wondered whether you actually proceeded with your plan… well, it seems that you have actually gone ahead.” He slithered a little forward, casting a glance at the Gloriont. He even gave a wink, a little quirk he picked up from humans. “Please forgive the Gendari, he's displaying signs of senility and paranoia typical of advanced age. I mean, you did talk about getting the colony ship ready so that we can all proceed into it in an orderly manner, yes?”

@El Gato Naranja

There was an exchange of glances between the security officers. The presence of a member of clergy made the people in the ship seem less likely to be armed thugs stealing the rescue craft, "Ma'am," the guard who seemed to be in charge's tone had shifted. He seemed a lot less sure of what he was dealing with, "We'll wait to confirm with Larci, but assuming everything is in order, we'll be on our way."

Divaldo's eyes bulged in outrage. He motioned at Vitiafa with budgey fingers, "Any tralk can put on a fancy dress and pretend to be respectable!" he declared, "The snake assured me these were pirates, even if he is trying to ingratiate himself now."

The guard, however, ignored Divaldo. He paused, then motioned to one of the others, responding to some unknown message that must have been broadcast across station security coms, "Rajani, take the lads and look into that. I'll stay here with Aspen and Shamil. See if we can't get this nonsense sorted out."

"Nonsense?!" Divaldo tried to puff himself up further, though it still failed to make the grey amphibian seem any more threatening, "I am the Overprelate of all Grendari and Keeper of the Sacred Flame! My word carries the weight of mountains! This is absolute, utter incompetence of galactic proportions! I shan’t stand for this! No sir! Not while I still have air in my lungs..."

He didn't seem to be stopping any time soon. The guards ignored him, for all intents and purposes acting like the Grendari didn't exist. Apparently he'd done this before.

---

Velia

Meanwhile, in the shuttle hangar, Velia was leaning against a wall, playing with a loop of string strung between her fingers as John signed out the ship. The sound of raised voices from the far side of the hangar had her look up from her game.

A group of people seemed to be trying to barge their way into the bay. A member of station security physically pushed the leader back - a big looking man with a black beard.

"Hey John!" she called, "Looks like things are getting a bit heated over there," she paused, appreciating the accidental pun, "Want to get a shuffle on?" she suggested as she collapsed the cat's cradle, shoving the string back into her pocket.

Empire of the Clouds

Zoe

Private Aden Robertson
...
Aden could admit he had been thrown for a loop. The first reasoning was that Zoe had accepted his offer. The second was that she had been waiting for his askance.

Then he was out on the “dance floor”; fumbling into his position with distant muscle memory. Hands settling in her grip and side respectively. He felt off; the emotional torrent still bubbled under the surface, the song in the background was off-tempo for a waltz and Zoe moved easier and surer in her steps. Aden stumbling slightly as he almost stepped in her left foot.

“Sorry.” He met her gaze. Flashing a grin that was part nervous and part anticipatory. He ignored the slight ache of the stitches and moved for the next set.

He wasn’t sure when he noticed but his attention eventually found Mitunbaal’s. She was watching from the corner. Eyes locked on Aden and Zoe’s movement; but he got the impression Zoe wasn’t cause for her attention.

Aden might have said something; or perhaps returned the gaze of Zoe hadn’t returned from the latest step of the waltz and nearly off balanced him.

@Terrans

"Why you've made quite the impressive recovery Mister Robertson," Zoe remarked as she fell back in step with Aden. She was a graceful dancer, apparently practiced at this, if little of any practical value. Not surprising for a daughter on Inburian aristocracy. She still had that slight smile on her face as if amused by her own private joke, "So," she asked, eyes sparkling as she looked up at her dance partner, "What do you suppose our gallant Captain intends to do once we get to the Mitteland? Will he honour my promises of pay for those who were reluctant to retrieve the gold, or do you think he'll keep it all for the greater good on Inbur?"

She cocked her head to one side slightly as they turned in time to the music, "What is an honourable Captain to do in times such as these - when honour pulls in different directions? And what do you imagine our Mister Carter will do?"

---

Arkadios

...

Volodar's focus remained on the Captain over the rapidly assembling group on the dance floor. The frivolity of the civilians and the young soldier was to be expected. "I have some experience flying these crafts, Captain," Volodar nodded in reply. "Though I must warn you, it was a far smaller craft as it had been personally constructed. I do have faith I can see us delivered to safety should the need arise."

@Bingelly

Arkadios motioned for Volodar to lead the way if he so pleased, before setting off in the direction of the bridge. It never hurt to be careful, even if they weren't lurching out of control yet, "That is useful to know. I appreciate, Sir that you may have been reluctant to step forward to do any flying at this point. However, if tensions boil over, which I hope they will not after this little matinée, it is good to know we have someone else capable of piloting us to safety."

As they approached the bridge, Itzi's back was visible at the controls, "Well that puts my mind at rest," Arkadios commented mildly, "Shall we return to the party?" he suggested.