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Post by Ludwig Beilschmidt on Oct 3, 2012 15:45:44 GMT -5
It was rare that Ludwig felt uncomfortable on an airship. The height had been unnerving at first, but he had quickly gotten used to that after his first few trips, and that aside, the convergence of machinery that created the vehicles didn't bother him in the least. He actually liked going on trips, just to spend time examining all of the mechanics at work. Today, however, Ludwig couldn't help feeling uneasy. Everywhere he moved around the ship, someone seemed to have their eyes on him. He wasn't that well-known, even with the few successes he'd had. Perhaps it was just the nature of the trip.
Ludwig normally traveled for work, and he honestly preferred that. Now, however, he'd been invited away from the city for a brief vacation by a great-uncle of his father, another noble. The greetings and letters and invites from relatives arrived every so often, and Ludwig usually foisted them onto his older brother and stayed with his work, or simply replied that he couldn't possibly come. Too many turn-downs got suspicious, however, and this particular great-uncle had threatened to come to the city instead to visit if one of the Beilschmidts hadn't taken him up on his offer. Ludwig scowled a little; now that he thought about it more, perhaps the great-uncle had just been making a joke. He was terrible at discerning those things in letters.
Bored and impatient with wandering around the cabin area, Ludwig sought out the door to the inner workings of the airship. Usually the crew didn't mind if he took a quick peek at things, especially when he explained he worked with machines, but to Ludwig's surprise, the door to the engine and steam exchange room was held shut with a thick metal chain and a sturdy padlock. The uneasiness he'd been fighting down returned full force: this was downright dangerous. Ludwig tugged on the chain, and, when it didn't budge, he put his ear against the door instead. He could hear the turbines and valves whirring and humming clearly, but there were other noises that he couldn't place.
"Excuse me, sir?"
Ludwig straightened up and smoothed the wrinkles out of his shirt before turning to face the crew member who'd addressed him. The man looked none too happy.
"I'm going to have to ask you to leave this area, sir, it's off-limits for passengers." Ludwig nearly took a step forward, but his attention returned to the chain.
"You know this is dangerous, right?" he asked, grabbing the padlock and tugging it again. "What if there's an emergency?"
"It's simply protocol, sir," the crew member replied, looking distinctly irritated. "If you don't leave, I am authorized by the captain to use physical force--"
"There's no need for that," Ludwig hastily interrupted, dropping the lock and raising his hands in a gesture of surrender. "I'm going." But he wasn't happy about it, not in the least. Ludwig didn't believe in things like luck or premonition, but it was hard to disagree that this day was turning out to be a distinctly bad one, and he had a feeling things couldn't get much better from here on out.
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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Oct 3, 2012 16:18:54 GMT -5
There were gunshots.
Arthur had crashed onto the ship with his crew, The Albion having slided up to the side of the ship. He knew about this particular bunch of nobles. He knows of the rumours of the sort of things that they'd been doing, and it was high time that they really found out for themselves.
Usually Arthur would wait until they had solid evidence. But he just really didn't like these Nobles -- he already knew that they were slimy.
Grinning to himself, he runs across the deck and shoots a gun out of someone's hand. They had a lot more power than his crew did, so he decided to use the element of surprise.
"By decree of... er. Me, I declare this an official takeover!"
His crew swarmed, and Arthur ducked as someone came barreling towards him. He watches them flip over the steps, thumping down them. He raises an eyebrow.
Really.
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Post by Ludwig Beilschmidt on Oct 3, 2012 16:56:29 GMT -5
In the middle of half-stomping back to the passenger section of the airship, Ludwig froze as what sounded like gunfire reached his ears. He had a split-second to look out the window and spot a second airship alongside the one he was on before the craft lurched and he lost his balance. The side of his head smashed into some of the woodwork on the walls, and by the time he'd regained his senses, someone had a hold of his shirt collar and was pressing what felt like a gun against his back.
"Don't move," a voice hissed in his ear. "We'll deal with the pirates." Ludwig almost felt relieved, but then realized whoever had grabbed him apparently wasn't with the pirates now swarming onto the airship. The man that looked like their captain announced the take-over of the ship, and whoever was holding his shirt eventually had to move the gun, so it aimed not at Ludwig but rather at the pirate crew, who were quickly overwhelming the nobles. Still too stunned to take much action, Ludwig raised his arms, trying to protect his head and hoping he wasn't about to get shot. When he realized nobody seemed to be paying him much attention (he certainly wasn't dressed too much like a noble... that must have helped) Ludwig stood to his full height and began looking for a way to escape, walking slowly along one of the walls to see if the airship had any means of getting him down to the ground in one piece.
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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Oct 4, 2012 9:38:50 GMT -5
All of a sudden Arthur finds himself in the centre of a circle, surrounded by Nobles and crewmates who had drawn their guns at him. He stands there, folding his arms.
"Now, this is hardly what I'd call fair..." He mutters. With a split second to spare he ducks as gunshots are fired in his direction, rolling onto his knees as his own crew quickly barricade and kill most of them. He sighs, getting up onto his feet.
Arthur stops, and frowns at the blonde male he can spot just under the deck. He's sure he recognises him....
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Post by Ludwig Beilschmidt on Oct 4, 2012 16:55:10 GMT -5
Another sudden volley of gunfire sounded, and Ludwig quickly dropped to his knees against the wall as bullets slammed into the woodwork above his head, showering him with splinters. A few people fell down, obviously injured or worse. Ludwig had always been able to keep cool in a crisis, but a motto was repeating in his head: get off the ship, get off the ship. When no more bullets flew, he stood back to his feet, looking wildly around for any kind of exit. He couldn't see the pirate captain anymore, but he had no doubt the man was still aboard somewhere; his crew were wrecking the place. One of the rougher looking men ran up to him with a gun, and Ludwig put his hands in the air.
"Don't shoot - I'm an inventor," he got out, and the man gave him a once-over, shrugged, and went back to harassing the nobles. Ludwig felt a little guilty; it had only been a half-lie, he was an inventor and a noble, but whatever these people had been doing to make the pirates so angry, he hadn't been a part of it, and he just wanted to stay alive.
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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Oct 4, 2012 17:05:43 GMT -5
There's a sudden cheer as a figure is dragged out onto the deck. He's shoved onto the floor. The captain of this particular ship. Arthur kneels down towards him, a gun pointed at his head, and grabs his collar.
"Now, this slimy secret was too much to truly pass up, even without solid evidence. Either you or the Noble that is truly in ownership of this ship is up to something that I'm putting a stop to. Do you understand me?"
When the Captain doesn't respond, Arthur kicks him in the stomach, winding him. He hisses.
"Now, tell me where they are!"
A few moments later and Arthur is leaping down the stairs towards the bowels of the ship, while his crewmates take over full possession of the ship, holding the Captain hostage. Arthur reaches the padlocked door, and swears to himself at seeing that it's locked.
"Shit." He mutters. He spends half a second thinking about shooting the lock itself, but in such a small space that probably wouldn't be best -- not to mention he couldn't be sure of any repercussions on the other side.
He sets to work bashing it with the butt of the gun -- there's obvious progress, but it takes a bit of work. He grunts.
"Come on..."
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Post by Ludwig Beilschmidt on Oct 7, 2012 16:55:40 GMT -5
The rousing cheer from the decks above made Ludwig pause, and he glanced up at the ceiling. He hadn't heard any more gunshots, which was a promising sign, and he himself hadn't been drawn into the mess, which also gave him some relief. But he'd made a loop around the deck and, so far, hadn't found anything that looked like a parachute, a smaller airship for emergencies... he felt hopelessly trapped. And he certainly wasn't going to sneak onto the pirates' ship, that would be certain death. Hesitating, he crouched down and tried to clear his thoughts. If he had some kind of motor--
He was rudely interrupted by the sounds of running feet and as he looked up, he spied the man that looked like the captain of the whole mess facing the locked door from earlier. To Ludwig's surprise, the man started bashing on the door with the butt of his gun, damaging the wood around the lock. Whatever was behind the door, he obviously wanted it... even though it sounded like it had been the engine room. Spying an opportunity to make a deal, Ludwig stood, hands in the air.
"Excuse me," he cleared his throat carefully. "Are you trying to get in there? I could get that door open... you wouldn't damage your gun any more. But..." Ludwig tried to think of a way to phrase it so he wouldn't be begging. "I'd prefer if you didn't shoot me for my efforts."
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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Oct 8, 2012 15:36:55 GMT -5
Arthur jerks up at the voice of the other, and he stops and stares as he approaches him. His eyes narrow incredibly suspiciously for a moment, but it's due to recognition, not paranoia.
He looks at his gun, looks to the door, and sighs. He could pick the lock, but he'd not thought ahead that he might need to get in -- and time was of the essence, anyway. His rather arrogant demeanor seems to dissolve as he beckons Ludwig closer to him, looking away to see if anyone had followed him. They hadn't.
"... Can you open it without damaging what's on the other side?"
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Post by Ludwig Beilschmidt on Oct 9, 2012 14:28:27 GMT -5
The way the other man jerked up suddenly startled Ludwig, and he took a step back, but he didn't run. When the man unexpectedly beckoned to him, he drew hesitantly closer. But it seemed his offer had rung true; the man just wanted him to open the door. Without damaging what was on the other side? It was reasonable that the captain didn't want the machinery damaged, of course... the ship might not stay flying without it. Ludwig nodded.
"Absolutely," he assured the other man, "but I'm going to need to borrow you gun. And, um, take it apart, briefly. I'll put it back together when I'm done with it." The offer to open the door had been one thing, but if this man wasn't willing to part with his weapon...
"I can use something else," Ludwig added quickly, going over a list in his head of things that might exist on the ship that could be helpful. "But it would take longer to find something else when the gun is right here."
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Post by Cpt. Arthur Kirkland on Oct 10, 2012 15:52:25 GMT -5
Arthur quickly shakes his head, handing him the gun over without hesitation.
"No, no, it's fine. Just hurry, please." He murmurs, standing back to allow the man to work. He looks back down the area, on guard for any free men trying to attack or stop him. None so far.
With his back to Ludwig, he pulls out a knife. He's not intending to attack or threaten him; he's standing guard over him, so nothing could attack him.
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