Miles Farrum et Vapor ((Open, 9/28/12))

[Ty Gwynnia]

((I guess it's because linux users are fewer than windows users and they're excluding from a lot of things because people just don't want to alter anything for the system.))  

[transformersgirl13]

Hopefully it'll get fixed soon...  

[Silas Parrish]

((Let's give this one another go. Anybody still with me? How about a fight scene to get things moving! mrgreen ))

William smiled as sincerely as he was able.
"Well...good to have you aboard, Mr. Arnold Duce." He turned again toward Xander. "So...what say you? Satisfied you are, but certainly you can see room for improvement, yes?" He extended the arm of his machine with some difficulty. There was an oil leak, and the hydraulics were losing pressure.  

[Ty Gwynnia]

((Yeah! Do you have any news on where Blue might be?))

Xander looked William, and his Rustung, up and down slowly. Sarcastic comments came to mind upon looking at the man and the machine. But the look on Willie's face was one that said 'Yes, I know I've a long ways to go', so he nodded patiently to himself. "Aye, Ah think Ah can come up wit' a few improvements for ye..." A small smile grew on his face and he crossed his arms over his chest. "First things first, fix everythin' up with that before it becomes a pile o' scrap."

"Uh-huh..." The Royal Guard hadn't been aware of any royal families that the stranger was speaking of, much less ones that were good mechanics. But it couldn't hurt to let the captain know. If it was a lie it would be seen like all of the other schemes that had been brought up, mainly by people trying to get rich quick.  

[Silas Parrish]

((He's doing other stuff at the moment. He'll be back, though.))  

[Silas Parrish]

The pressure dropped too far below William's specification just then, and the arm fell uselessly, to swing in an almost comical fashion. Cursing angrily, William slapped at his controls in search of the emergency shutoff. He found it a moment too late, and the great machine came crashing down as a drop or two too much of its hydraulic oil drained onto the dusty ground.
William climbed out from beneath the heap of metal, wood and plastic, and dusted himself off with a cough.
"Uhh... that never happens."  

[Orcus Fieres]

Littner gave a questioning smirk at the guard and was then left a little bit disgraced. "Quite, now let's see your rustung before I question the legitimacy of this base myself. It isn't like you've very much to lose from my looking at you all, or is that as questionable as the legitimacy of my family name?" He meant the last bit of his statement to sound bitter, but his tone kept it from seeming too angry. It was one of the reasons the Littner family gained fame in Iberia, but it obviously didn't work with the northerners.  

[Ty Gwynnia]

Xander lowered his legs and leaned casually over the side of Fatum, his expression blank as he watched the other man fumble to recover some dignity with a few words. He fought back the urge to snicker and wound William's pride anymore. "...Nevermind! Change o' plans!" He called down with a lighthearted tone after a long moment of silence on his part. "Yoo go get a cart or two, an' Ah'll make sure nobody asks questions!"

The guard shrugged and nudged the door behind him open. " 'Cuse the asking, but we get a lot of guys like you who say that. Some of 'em even say they know the captain personally!" He turned his head to spit on the ground, then jerked his head back at the building he'd exited. "Go ahead and take a look around if you want to. Just make sure you let the cap' know who you are first. And keep your hands to yourself."  

[Silas Parrish]

William nodded, and tumbled out of the pilot's cage, earning himself a myriad of bruises and scrapes as he found his way to the ground. He compulsively pulled out his silver watch, wound it, set it to the wrong time, and stowed it in a different pocket than the one it had come from. He didn't notice the chain draw his shirt up into folds and wads.
He wandered off into the town, seeking a high place to survey the surrounding lands. He found one in an ancient-looking tavern, and swiftly climbed up the gutter, taking care to distribute his weight properly. Once at the top, he began seeking out nearby farms.  

[Ty Gwynnia]

When William left, Raphael spent a few more moments enjoying the warm sunshine in peace. Then he got to work positioning Fatum above it, standing with spread legs over much of the wreck so that people knew not to touch any of it. The arms creaked as they moved again to hold the church spire lengthwise in front of its crescent moon emblazoned chest. He knew he'd smelled change in the air that day, but he hadn't expected it to be from such a young looking man. The grey hairs didn't fool him one bit if that's what they were meant to do. There was a slyness to him, like a rat sniffing out territory that it'd just found, but there was also hesitation in his actions. No doubt he'd bolt if it was to save his own hide. But Raphael didn't care much. William held the promise of entertaining his normally boring days and if push came to shove, Raphael would shove in whatever direction was best for him with all of his might. Such dangerous thinking gets you into these situations, chimed a small voice. "It's the only kind that Ah live for." he replied to the air, and entertained the thought of darting off to find a bite to eat.

"So...uh, Leon," Erick said after a while. He and the other Royal Guard had been inspecting various dents and dings from the training match that would have to be buffered out of the Rüstung. "How've you been?"  

[Silas Parrish]

William did his best to contain a gleeful cackle as the breeze began to carry smoke to the old farmhouse. The grass fire was spreading quickly, but William had taken measures against the blaze going out of control. The tired farmer cursed once and dashed away to summon the fire brigade, presumably.
William ran over to the farmer's wagon, and easily commandeered it, driving the horses to carry him, and a load of various crops back to the shattered remains of his giant walking machine.  

[Orcus Fieres]

"Quite." Littner couldn't answer to very much else or he would explode on the guardsman. If it weren't for his respect of the military, he probably would have too. "Where is the captain, mind you?" He sat back in his Rustung and began pulling and turning levers and valves. The small changes were more so that ol' Crock-Shot didn't make and sudden, big movements as it tended to do in normal day-to-day walking and waving. "Might he be someone I can differentiate from the rest of you all?"  

[Ty Gwynnia]

After about 10 minutes of staring at the dirt from up high, Raphael decided that he would get something to snack on. Maybe a hunk of bread or a nice, juicy apple. His mouth began to water as thoughts of nice sandwiches danced in his mind. With some quick clambering and clinging, his feet touched the ground. "Stay here, Fatum. Ah'll be right back." A wide grin found its way on his face and he jammed a hand into a pocket, grabbing some crumpled currency as he walked quickly away. There was a vendor at the corner of the street that was still within view of the mess that littered the ground so he stopped there, keeping one eye on Fatum and the other hungrily on the food before him.

The Royal Guard bellowed laughter, tears even coming to his eyes. "If by that you mean will be easier to talk to than me, sure. I'm just the door guy. He's up in his office on the second floor. 'Can't miss it."  

[Silas Parrish]

"So... can you handle this assignment? I have all the currency you will require hidden somewhere for you. When you've finished the job, I'll tell you where it is."
The stranger nodded solemnly, lighting a cigarette with a match.
"Be warned. He is surrounding himself with powerful allies. We do not have long to stop him before the chain of events I have foreseen begins to come to pass," Aishe said, leaning across the dusty table to hear him better over the din of the rowdy tavern.
The stranger answered her in the affirmative, and stood to leave, dropping a few coins on the table, mumbling about exchange rates as he did so.
"Contact me if you have need of anything. This boy must be stopped at all costs, Mr. Underwood." Aishe added as the stranger turned to go.
"Cawl me Zeke, ma'am. Errbody does."

The day had ended by the time William finished loading every piece of the Rustung. He wiped at his brow, and glanced around for Xander. Likely the man had gone for some food. William decided to do the same, after stashing his machine parts in a nearby abandoned barn. He darted into the quickly darkening town. Life on the streets of Gateshead, England had taught him a great many things. Stealth was an ever-important skill to those who had not the financial means to feed themselves. Once he reached the inn in Essex, his vagabond's eyes began to dart around the premises, watching and learning. He noted where the kitchen was, by observing where the bussers emerged from, when carry their refuse to the filthy alleyway. He crept silently through the back door, and waited for the last busser to leave the kitchen. William quickly grabbed a spare smock, and threw it on before walking to the cupboard.
Hearing noise behind him, the cook turned and spoke in a thick Irish accent: "An' what're ye dewin' back thar, m'boy?" William froze, and put his devious mind to work. He responded with a faked Cockney dialect.
"There's a couple blokes out front, wanner me to see i' we had innay treacle tart left." The Irishman smiled warmly.
"Well, you'll find little of it in'ere. Hol' yer place, I'll fetch it far ya's." He waddled off into another room, where the baker's racks were lined up. William wisely assumed to take as little time as possible, for fear of discovery, and stuffed his knapsack with all sorts of goods from around the kitchen. He tore the smock off deftly, and hung it back in its place, just before darting off into the street. The sun had set during his time in the inn, so William didn't have to expend quite so much effort in hiding himself. He soon slinked away into the dark.  

[Ty Gwynnia]

"Hm..." Erick realized that, after 10 minutes had passed, Leon would not be replying to him anytime soon. He was engrossed in the mechanics of his machine and was even mumbling to himself about certain adjustments that could be made. So with a shrug, he wandered out of the training area and back to the main building not far away. The guard duty times were hopefully posted by that time and he wanted to see where he'd be posted.

Raphael examined the food for a long time before making his decision: a fairly large sandwich and a juicy red apple. He licked his lips as he handed over the money, then took the food. "Thank ye, lad. Ye 'ave no idea how much ye've save me from starvation." With a wink to the confused vendor, who only gave him a plastic smile, he walked off back to Fatum. A shock ran through him when he saw the mess of William's Rustung missing from the ground but with further examination of the roads revealing ruts, he realized that the man had arrived before him.
Rather than conducting a search for Willie, he leaned up against Fatum's leg and munched away at his small meal, scanning the people walking by for a glimpse of his new companion just in case.