Lady's Grace, cutters!

 

“May the gods protect us from the boredom that is Mechanus!"

Factol Karan

 

 

Second Guild Day of Savorus, 126 HR

Krystall pushed her feather-adorned hat back and stared in disbelief at the means of transport that Krixxi had organized for them. It could probably be called a flying machine, even if it was hard to imagine this monstrous construct taking to the skies - and, above all, staying there. At the moment, however, it lay still on the ground, not far from the gate town of Xaos, where Krixxi had rented the thing from the Chaos Engineers. Ironically, it looked like a fish. A thirty-step-long fish made of metal plates welded together in a mess, with wings made of wooden poles and canvas whose wingspan was twice its length. On the back of the monster sat a dome-like structure, from which the wings protruded and in the lower floors of which a highly complicated-looking gearbox was mounted. The upper part of the dome was clad with wooden planks and even brickwork and had windows, a door, a small balcony ... This area was probably intended as living space for the crew. And the crew, of course, was supposed to be their group: the goblin mechanic Krixxi and the awakened rooster Figaro, the minotaur Blackhoof, the medusa Rakalla, Zamakis, the vampire and herself, the leader of the Razor Angels.

When she could finally tear her gaze away from the bizarre monstrosity, Krystall turned to the goblin woman. "Seriously? We're supposed to fly through the Outlands in this thing ?"

"Yeah, sure," Krixxi replied enthusiastically. "It'll be great fun! And a thrilling adventure! And a really great and exciting journey! You'll see."

"I don't know," Blackhoof said skeptically, pawing the dusty ground. "That doesn't look very confidence-inspiring. Besides, I don't like flying."

"It's totally confidence-inspiring!" Krixxi objected, throwing her arms up indignantly. "I mean, take a closer look at this beauty!"

"We did," Zamakis replied dryly. "That's exactly where our concerns come from." As dusk had fallen in the meantime, the vampire had ventured out of the shelter of their quarters and accompanied the group to the berth of the monstrous fish. However, she was still leaning against the wall of a nearby shed, in the shadow of the protruding roof.

The goblin woman waved her little index finger around in the air. "No offense, but you all don't know much about mechanics. But Figaro and I do. And we say: the fish will fly very well."

"Indeed," the rooster agreed, adjusting his welding goggles with his mechanical leg. "By the way, the vessel is called a storm barracuda."

"That's all well and good," said Krystall. "But I understand the reservations of Zamakis and Blackhoof. I also find the thing a bit ... suspicious."

"I think it's pretty fancy," Rakalla said as she looked at the huge construct over the rim of her dark-tinted glasses. "And I trust in the expertise of Krixxi and Figaro. It'll be fine."

"Have you joined the Ravagers after all?" Zamakis asked with a slightly sarcastic undertone. "I mean, because you obviously want to hasten your own demise with that thing."

The medusa briefly grimaced at her, but then turned her attention back to the barracuda. "No, seriously, why not? It's ideal for you, my dear undead friend. Under the dome up there, we can darken everything perfectly during the day. I mean, the Outlands have a sun. That doesn't exactly make traveling easy for you."

Krystall shook her head with a sigh. There was something to the alchemist's words. Without such a means of transportation, they would be forced to rest constantly during the day and, above all, to find suitable shelter in good time. And traveling only at night was not a very uplifting prospect for everyone else in the group.

"That's why I like being in Sigil so much," Zamakis replied. For a member of the Dustmen with so few emotions, her displeasure was quite obvious. "But I have to admit, that's a point for the barracuda."

Blackhoof snorted unhappily. "Ay, get it. But I really don't feel comfortable with it. What if the thing just falls out of the sky?"

"It won't!" Krixxi assured eagerly. "Not if Figaro and I are controlling it. We're really good at this sort of thing, you've got to believe me."

But the minotaur remained skeptical. "Yeah, but have you ever steered anything this big before?"

"Hey!" The goblin woman grinned, baring a row of pointed teeth. "Size doesn't necessarily matter, huh?" She pointed at herself and then at Figaro.

Krystall laughed. "Yes, you're right about that. And the more I think about it, the more points are in favor of the flying fish: Zamakis can travel more independently and comfortably, we can get around much faster by air and we're probably safer up there too."

"Unless dragons or something attack us," Blackhoof interjected.

"You're particularly pessimistic today," Rakalla said annoyed and her snakes hissed softly. "Even for a Bleaker, I mean. Don't make such a fuss."

"I just don't like flying," the minotaur replied, snorting but quietly, as if ashamed of his fears.

Krixxi immediately ran over to him and hugged him warmly - or rather his right leg, because she couldn't reach higher than his knee. "Don’t worry about it! Everyone has their dislikes. But you'll see, once we take off and glide through the clouds - I'm sure you'll like it too, big guy."

Figaro nodded in his measured way. "And if the height makes you uncomfortable, my stately friend, you can also stay inside the dome. There's even a small kitchen there."

Krystall smiled. The rooster knew that Blackhoof liked to cook and she thought the little hint at this point was quite clever. "Perfect!" she therefore supported him. "That means Blackhoof will be the ship's cook. I'll call it that because the barracuda is a kind of airship, right?"

"Oh yes!" Krixxi jumped up and down with excitement. "But the rest of us also need titles ... um, positions ... well, names ... you know. Krystall is captain!"

The leader of the Razor Angels laughed. "Really? Well, I'd find that appealing, if no one objects."

"That's fine," Rakalla said with a grin. "You take responsibility for everything. Nobody else here wants to do that anyway."

"Yeah, sure." Krystall jokingly poked the medusa in the ribs. "And the rest of you? Well, Krixxi and Figaro are the flight mechanics, that's undisputed."

The goblin woman nodded eagerly. "De fructo ... or as the word is. And Rakalla could take over as cannoneer. She always has such great explosive stuff."

"It's de facto ," Figaro corrected calmly. "Fructus means fruit in Olympic. Incidentally, I would also attribute explosive components to the Revolutionary League. But since the Anarchist is already captain and always emphasizes that she doesn't blow up anything ..."

"Which is true," Krystall interjected with a grin. "All that's missing is a post for Zamakis."

The vampire, who had been watching the whole discussion from the shadows with a deadpan expression, now raised one of her fine, dark brows. "Ship's doctor," she stated dryly.

This made everyone laugh heartily, and even Blackhoof's mood was lightened considerably by this remark. Zamakis herself did not laugh, but the smirk that quickly flitted across her lips like quicksilver showed that she had made the comment quite deliberately. The dry wit that the undead often displayed amused Krystall once again. Who said that the Dustmen had no sense of humor? Then they looked again at the barracuda lying on the ground.

"All right then, we're agreed?" asked Rakalla. "We take the flying fish to look for these two ominous people?"

Krystall nodded. "I'm with you. I mean, this bizarre vehicle fits perfectly with the absurd mission: a dead man in the Mortuary spoke to Zamakis and told her that we should look for a Keeper and a Proclaimer."

"And we don't know their real names or what they look like," the medusa added.

"True." Krixxi chewed thoughtfully on a strand of her pink hair that had fallen into her face. "Zamakis, why didn't you ask the corpse about it?"

"I tried," the vampire explained. "Unfortunately, he didn't answer. It was only the second time a deceased person has spoken to me without any spell. Unfortunately, I don't quite understand this gift yet."

"You can team up with us," Rakalla explained with a sigh. "All right, let's get started then."

Krystall nodded. "Do you have any idea how we should proceed?"

"Of course not," the medusa answered with a grin. "We'll just do something and then we'll see. Just like always."

"Sounds like an excellent plan!" Krixxi said enthusiastically.

"That's exactly not a plan," Zamakis retorted dryly.

"Excellent not a plan then," the goblin woman replied unconcernedly. "So, here we go. I need to take another look at the lower gearbox. I don't think it's running quite so smoothly ..."

Babbling to herself, she hopped towards the mechanical barracuda, while Blackhoof let out an exasperated snort at this information. Krystall chuckled. If this wasn't the beginning of a chaotic but memorable journey, what was?