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[LB] Hitting the Bottom (LB 2.3, NB 2.3, CV 2.4, KA 2.4, Sn 2.5)
ALL,
As you're in your various areas on The Owl talking and reminiscing, your gentle descent into the Lower Depths stops. The ship settles onto what feels very much like solid ground. Snargle, you see nothing more than tentacle outside the cockpit, Mama Squid still has a hold on you.
Lady Blackbird, what are the legends about the bottom of universe?
Kale, how much time is left before the ship starts to succumb to the corrosive acids of the Blue and what's the system you're most worried about right now?
Oh and by the way, The Owl is currently leaking somewhere. What's that smell, Naomi?
As you're in your various areas on The Owl talking and reminiscing, your gentle descent into the Lower Depths stops. The ship settles onto what feels very much like solid ground. Snargle, you see nothing more than tentacle outside the cockpit, Mama Squid still has a hold on you.
Lady Blackbird, what are the legends about the bottom of universe?
Kale, how much time is left before the ship starts to succumb to the corrosive acids of the Blue and what's the system you're most worried about right now?
Oh and by the way, The Owl is currently leaking somewhere. What's that smell, Naomi?
Comments
They say that this is where you go when you die in a way you had not planned. That's why the deep dark ocean is so corrosive. That the squids were once angels. That the deep blue changed them, and yet they still sing. My mother spoke of all these things.
I know of more, but...it's...so hard to think. The trance has begun.
My eyelids feel heavy, and breathing takes effort. It is warmer in here than it should be. Warm like when our many limbs tangle. When we swim and sing side by side.
No, I am Natasha Syri, I am...where is my mate? My squid of the scorched earth?
He is not here. He is not a good mate. Not here with me. Not where he should be. Beside me is where he should be.
The tentacles that aren't really there writhe in disappointment.
Fertile. Fertile. Need a mate. The man that undressed for us. Muscles. Smooth. Good mate.
My skin prickles. I need air. No. Need lips. Need his lips...need...captain's...lips.
My legs wobble as I go to find him.
I wonder just how long I've been smelling that particular odor before I realize it. Sitting here, I was suddenly reminded of home -- my home as a girl, that is. It's a subtle thing, sweet-like but with a sharper tone underneath that leaves your nose twitching. I was thinking of home, thinking of those days spent helping out my parents after the harvest in the fall. After the crops were brought in, we'd have to pack them up for selling in these big old barrels treated with this kind of gummy wax that would insulate the food against the weather and seal it in real good so nothing would get shook loose in the truck. And I'm thinking I can almost smell that sealant stuff when I realize, well, I really can.
I give a tentative sniff of the air -- it must be stronger now, or maybe the way the air's moving around the ship, it got brought right to me. "S'that chrysaora?"
I don't know much about ships, but there ain't no reason they wouldn't use something similar to plug up all the gaps between plates and seal up the doors. Probably something more high-grade than the stuff harvested and mixed up on the farms back home, but it makes me wonder why I can suddenly smell it when I hadn't smelled it before? And that makes me think I don't wanna know the answer, that it's probably not good news.
I wake up jus as my head slams into the floor. I climb up the table an off the floor of the mess hall. I gotta blink for a while afore I remember how I got here.
One look at the now empty bottle a Grease Whiskey does a good job a remindin me.
I stand up and promptly take another trip to the floor on account of my damned blanket gettin tangled up in my feet. I kick it across the room--jus as it deserves--but when I'm starin at it my eyes get big.
It's still damn cold in here. That means the steam still hasn't recirculated. That means they's some kinda leak an we're venting steam. Steam we're really gonna need at this depth. Specially iffn we're gonna fly outta this deep.
I scramble up an to the Engine Room.
I reinforced the Owl's hull jus for this kinda stuff, but if we gotta hole somewhere the pressure could pop us like an overripe jellyfly. Worse it means deep gas is slippin into the Owl which'll make it a mite harder to breathe, and, ya know, live.
Yellin toward the Gobpit, Gonna need some help down here. Quick if ya please.
...
Wait a tic, did we stop?
Snargle recognizes Kale's tone and makes the quick trip down. "Problems?" Snargle does not like problems.
I'm already waist deep in the pressure mod furnace.
We gotta leak someplace. Hopefully one a the Brass-Beaters got a knick in. (Worst case, Mamma Squid's huggin a bit too hard an it's bowing the hull--in that case we got even bigger problems.)
I drop outta the furnace an wipe the soot offa my goggles. I might think a cleanin that out next time we port. If we survive that is.
Furnace is cold. Iffn I don't get it hot soon our Steam Drive's not gonna take us anywhere. Worse, it's not gonna modify our atmo an heat.
Oh, did I mention a leak means we're taintin our breathables with corrosive gas from the deep?
I hand her a chrysa-gun an prime it a coupla times.
I need ya to get someone ta find that leak so's you can plug it up. That sexy goblin hide a yours'll be able to withstand direct contact with the Deep. Jus hold yer breath.
I break out my coal torch an light it up.
I'd say we got a good quarter hour afore the Deep starts eatin through the hull.
Cyrus is meandering through the hallways of The Owl, somewhat drunkenly. He's mumbling to himself as he does so, mostly incoherently. He stops. What's that smell? Kale better get hisself lookin' at that...
Blackbird. That's who he's looking for. That's who he's always looking for. Through the fog of his currently somewhat booze-soaked brain he can see her face, hear her voice, feel her against him as they dance back on Haven. Booze has a way of cutting the fat for Cyrus. When he's got whiskey in the gut, he tends to know what he wants.
Cyrus rounds a corner and sees her. "Blackbird," he calls out. "I've been looking fer..."
He stops dead in his tracks and his mouth hangs open as he looks at her. She's stumbling, bleary eyed. Cyrus is stumbling and bleary eyed too, of course, but this seems different. He blurts out "You okay, Blackbird?"
I can hear his heart beat. No, that's my heart. So loud. Very loud.
"...you okay, Blackbird?"
I stop, staring at his lips move. Squid of the battlefield.
I take a step forward. My knees nearly give.
Fertile.
Need his lips.
"...please...kiss me..."
Snargle takes the chrysa-gun and decides that Naomi is the best choice as a partner for leak-patching. With a nod to Kale, Snargle heads off to find the fighter. Snargle is not in favor of leaks, and not looking forward to going out into the Deep, but this will be a story for later, if The Owl really has hit the bottom of the bottom.
Sealing these leaks before they get too bad sounds like a challenge. Kale, give me a roll to get the Owl heating up. You'll need two successes
For the work of sealing the ship, Snargle and Naomi, let's see how you're doing it. You'll need three successes for this, and failure means The Owl officially takes on the condition Busted and Leaking.
I'm not hard to find -- ship ain't that big. I'm a mite pleased someone else can smell what I'm smelling. Course, I knew it probably meant trouble, so I ain't much surprised when I hear what we gotta do.
Guess I got a nose for this sort of work. It's not the usual thing I do, but I've got a sense for when my surroundings change. Staying aware and reacting quick is the first part of surviving the pit. Take a helping die, Snargle!
Once I got Snargle pointed in the right direction, I duck into the engine room to check on Kale. Snargle said Kale's got more trouble'n he can rightly handle right now. I don't mind the dirt in the engine room -- I'll shovel coal in the furnace once it gets going so Kale can concentrate on getting the ship up and going. Take a helping die, Kale!
I spare a thought for where the Captain is, but he seems like a responsible chap. He wouldn't be off clowning around while his ship's floundering, would he?
Cyrus stammers and stumbles clownishly down the hall towards Blackbird. She seems... off, he thinks. He grabs onto her, as much to steady himself as to catch her. His head is still swimming, but he's starting to shake it off and come back to reality.
His mind wanders for a brief second, as he recalls his duties. What's that smell? What are Snargs and Kale doing right now? But Blackbird, right here in his arms, is taking up too much of his currently somewhat curtailed attention for him to dwell on those thoughts. He leans in, his face close to hers. She said to kiss her, he thinks, and squids know I want to. I have never wanted to kiss anyone more, but look at her right now! She ain't herself.
"Blackbird, he begins, the heat of her face and the beating of her heart right up against him. "You must know I want ta kiss you. You've brightened up this ship since the moment ya stepped on it, and there's nothin' that would make me happier than... well... you're with the Pirate King and you don't seem like yerself right now..."
Even as he says this, Cyrus is leaning closer.
"...so it just seems that... Maybe... it's not in our... best interest..."
Before he can fully get his thought out, he realizes he's kissing Blackbird.
Squid of the battlefield. His lips are warm. So warm.
Still want to find squid of the scorched earth. Left me all alone! Stupid mate! Bad mate! Want to know why!
My fingers cling to Squid of the Battlefied.
No, my tentacles do.
No, he is the captain.
No, he is my mate.
Good kiss. Warm kiss.
This...this...this...is not how humans procreate.
I am Natasha once more, for a breif moment...but I close my eyes, and submerse myself into this moment.
Cyrus Vance.
We should have done this sooner.
Ah ha, I was jus hopin a she-lummox might wander in here.
I climb outta the pressure furnace an grab one a the coal spades.
See that huge leaden oven? We gotta get that hot as possible as quick as possible or we'll start freezin afore we can choke to death from the deep smog seepin in or from gettin popped like a drowned rat's belly by Mama Squid outside.
I throw her a pair a 'bestos gloves.
Now, you don't know me so well, but let me tell ya--I would not wanna pass up the chance ta die by get popped by a Sky Squid so's we gotta make this quick.
Would ya do me the honor a heftin the furnace up as close to that steam exhaust up yonder? It'll speed up the circulation an I'm hopeful it'll get us warm enough to restart the steam drive.
Afore I light it up and start shovellin in coal I look at her, eye-to-eye since she's squattin to lift the furnace.
This is gonna get a tad hot, Bishop. The gloves'll help, but hold on long as ya can without meltin your hand off. Might be our only shot.
(Rolled: 7d6. Rolls: 3, 3, 4, 5, 5, 3, 3. Total: 26)
Snargle follows Naomi's nose to the leak, then picturing that spot on the exterior. Snargle affixes a small, bright light over the leak, to mark the leak from the outside. "Thank you, Naomi." Then it's out the double-hatch, quick as can, holding breath and climbing over the structure of the ship until the light shining out of the pinhole can be seen. Engage chrysa-gun!
1d Sky Sailor
1d Maintenance
1d Observation
1d Naomi
8d Pool
(Using Secret of the Lucky Break to keep all the dice.)
(Rolled: 13d6. Rolls: 2, 1, 3, 1, 5, 5, 6, 4, 6, 3, 2, 4, 2. Total: 44)
Working together, you repair the seals and shovel coal until you're able to get The Owl fired and warming up. Her turbines are spinning in no time. Of course, you still can't move quite yet, and you know the corrosive blue is still eating at the hull itself, so the metal will start falling apart and you're in a pile of trouble then. But for now, the ship holds.
Captain Vance and Lady Blackbird,
Amid your kissing and the like, you hear the steam engines spinning up. Funny how quiet it got when they cooled down.
ALL,
What do you do?
Cyrus slowly and with much effort pulls himself away from Blackbird.
"It sounds like our compatriots are up to somethin'. I hate to put an end to this here moment we're having, but mayhaps we should see what's goin' on, Blackbird?"
My eyes focus, and I step back, still tasting him on my lips. "...yes...yes, let's go do that."
Now that the furnace is heating up, this room's warming up right quick. I can feel the blaze of the fire on my face. I can feel moisture on my forehead, so I wipe it away with the back of my hand as I take a step back from the furnace soon as my job's done. My hands a bit black from the labor, and that's transferred to my face, like as not.
But we got bigger problems than how pretty I look.
"I can keep the furnace goin' here, if you need. I'm no good with the tinkering, but I can do that much. But it sounds like you best go find my lady and tell her she better give that squid out there a talking to."
I pull my goggles up an hand her the spade.
Thankee, Bishop. Keep on shovellin till you can see the black a the coal through the flame.
I salute the giant an sprint toward the guest cabins. It ain't long afore I hit a wall an almost fall over.
Not a real wall, I mean, though gettin concussed woulda been better than seein the Cap and the Lady havin a moment in the middle of the hall.
I wanna say somethin, but I can't. I feel's though I'm fallin even though we already hit the damn bottom of everything.
For some reason I think a the Cap's hat tumbling through the void like a falling star.
They back away from one another after, it's gotta be, six or seven lifetimes an I remember I'm even there.
Now that we's done savin yer damn asses, how's about you take a break from what's yer doin and tell this damn she-squid ta get her hands offa where they don't belong so's we don't pop open an/or get eaten by acid!
I turn on my heel an stomp back to the engine room.
I gotta bite my lip an put my googles back down. No need fer anyone to see what my eyes are doin.
Cyrus is a bit taken aback by Kale's outburst. He does his best not to show it. Putting his hand on Blackbird's shoulder he says "Don't rightly know what's eatin' Kale, but he's gotta point. Can you talk to the squid so we can start makin' moves to get outta here? I can help, if ya need..."
If you want to try and convince the Sky Squid to let you go, you'll need three successes. If you want the Sky Squid to carry you up to the air (faster than the Owl can fly), then you'll need five.
"Yes, thank you, Captain..."
I return to the cockpit with Cyrus Vance, and take the mic. My vision is already starting to go hazy again. I press myself against him, resting my freckled cheek against his chest. His scent keeps me here in the ship.
"...Mother. I must return. Must find my own way. Knot with my mate. Make my own babes. Sing my own songs. I will be brave, Mother."
Cyrus puts his hand on her shoulder and whispers to her "You got this, Blackbird. Just relax."
Key of the commander. Reroll! Also- take a die!
Then you pierce the blue mists and come out again to the open sky. To the port you see the Hand of Despair, it's aft high in the air, the ship is slowly sinking into the depths from which you sprang.
Captain Vance, would you brother go down with his ship? Is he on there even now? Or has he taken one of the lifeboats or a biplane to return another day?
What do you do?
I gotta hold on the frame a the engine room door as we're flung halfway cross the heavens. It's a genuine miracle my stomach somehow don't puke up everythin I drank a while ago.
I'm still bracin myself in the door when we drift to a stop. I take a gander down the hall an I see the light a the sun from the gob-pit.
Guess we're in the clear. Thankee, Bishop.
Still got my goggles down. I'm feelin ... I don't quite know what I'm feelin ta be honest, but I don't like it--and I'm damn sure hopin Bishop don't pick up on it.
I reach out for the coal-spade.
I can take it from here. They's probably gonna be lookin fer ya up front.
Seems Kale hardly left before he's back. There's that grating sound of the coal leaving the shovel and a crack from the furnace as it all settles, and I spare him a glance as the shovel digs into the coal again.
"Find my lady?" Something tells me he did -- mostly the way the ship suddenly shifts beneath my feet with a lurch. Quick as you like, I shift my weight, and I spear the shovel into the depths of the coal bin as a sort of anchor to keep from flying into the open furnace. I succeed, but, as we break the depths and the ship is tossed t'other way, a small shower of sparks and hot coals leap out in my direction. Most of 'em fall short, but my clothes probably got a few new holes in them. That's fine -- the holes go along with the coal smudges.
There's something off about Kale. I suppose I've gotten used to hearing that laugh in his voice. I guess you'd call it that. Even when he was dishing out orders down here while we were trying to get the furnace up and going, he might've snarked a line or a joke, and it wouldn't've seemed outta place. But he seems a bit despairing of our current condition for us having just escaped a squid. Even Captain Sulky's probably doing a jig right now, so for Kale to be so unanimated... It makes a girl worry and wonder.
"Maybe," I agree. I leave the shovel deep in the coal, but I begin to strip off the heavy gloves I was still wearing. "But, they probably don't need me up there, not right now, anyway. I got some time to spare before she finds some trouble, I suppose." I set the gloves into his outstretched hand, though I don't quite let go of them yet. "You need an ear?"
I stare at them gloves an do my best not ta even look up at her. She's tryin ta be nice, but I don't have much of an idea of what to tell her. Can't really pin down what's got me flailin.
I bite on my lip for a sec. Tastes like ashes. I clean em off a bit an make the mistake a lookin up at Bishop. I lift up my googles an look in her eyes. It ain't jus the booze--she's bein genuinely nice.
It's in my chest first, but then I notice my vision's all blurry--afore I know it I'm huggin Bishop like a tree trunk an blubberin into her chest like I'm back at the orphanage an someone jus swipped my candy.
I wasn't expecting a hug. And I sure wasn't expecting tears. I thought he might try to weasel out of this, or, maybe, he might actually wanna talk about something or other that was bothering him.
But this? It catches me completely off-guard, and I catch him out of instinct more than any decision to try and console him. As he sobs into my shirt, though, I relax a bit and let him have his moment to get it all out. If that's what he needs, it's the least I can do.
"There, now," I murmur once his sobs seem to have abated slightly. I don't push him away, though -- some people are just huggers, I guess, and I don't want him to think I'm impatient or nothing. "What's all this about?"
Where are you headed? Back to Haven to, I don't know, check on the people there? On to Nightport or straight to The Remnants? Somewhere else entirely?