Alice (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
fleshydisguise) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
bakerstreet2013-03-23 10:59 am
fleshydisguise) wrote in bakerstreet2013-03-23 10:59 am
Steampunk Ahoy!
"Imagine it... The Victorian Age accelerated. Starships and missiles, fueled by coal and driven by steam. Leaving history devastated in its wake." - Doctor Who
What To Do:
1. Post with your character's name and canon in the subject line. You can leave it blank but it would be exceedingly helpful if you were to kindly post a role for your character to give other taggers a jumping off point.
2. Tag other characters, using the RNG to pick a prompt if you so choose.
3. Have fun and play nice!
The Prompts:
01. Masquerade Ball - Dress in your best and don a mask for a night of mystery and enchantment. Will you manipulate suitors with the movements of a fan, try to work out who you do and don't know, or immerse yourself fully in the experience and do something you normally never would?
02. Airship Pirates - "With a crew of drunken pilots/We're the only airship pirates". You've taken to the skies in an airship, and now a pirate is what you are... Or what you're up against! Ruthless cut-throats or simply men fallen on hard times, these pirates are not marked with a good reputation. A fight just may be on the horizon.
03. Exploration - The Steampunk genre is not only marked by technology and a unique aesthetic, but by the spirit of adventure! Now's the time to look for new lands, or explore the wild, exotic places you've always longed to see! Be careful to avoid that colonialism nonsense, though. The natives aren't usually on board with it.
04. Cattlepunk - Steampunk in the Old West! What will you get when you combine steam-powered technology with the life of cowboys, saloons, and a thirst for gold? It's harder to beat the sheriff when he's got a metal heart and his revolver mounted right on his arm.
05. New Discovery - Besides finding new lands, there's finding new technology; new invention! Be it a new way to create steam power, a unique kind of animatronic, or something entirely unheard of, you could have just gotten your name down in history books! Is it the money you're in it for? Or just a love of science?
06. Factory Work - We can't all flutter our fans in the drawing room. Someone has to work to make all this steam power that everyone is going crazy over and, lucky you, you get to be a factory worker. Are you down in the hustle and bustle of the factory floor, laboring for a few shillings to keep your family out of the workhouse, or a factory owner looking down on your empire?
07. 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea - The advances in technology aren't just used above ground; you have a job to do beneath the waves, perhaps as a spy on enemy territory or a merchant trying to get to your destination faster. Or maybe you're just an explorer. Just watch out for the sea monsters.
08. Flesh Made Metal - Amputation? No problem. Clockwork limbs, eyes, and even hearts are available for those who can afford the necessary enhancements. Supposedly they've even created clockwork brains...animatronic creatures so lifelike you can barely tell they aren't human. What measure is a man?
09. Post-Apocalypse Steam - Something terrible happened to the world. Maybe it was a natural disaster, or maybe humanity has committed a grave crime against the planet. Either way, the result is a world forced into ages past - although with modern knowledge, perhaps it won't be quite the same as in the history books.
10. Revolution - Whether you're a citizen of a colonized nation, a plotter in the back streets of a city or simply a factory hand who is sick of poor treatment, it's time to rise up against your oppressor and fight for freedom! Let's just hope there are people willing to help you.
11. Wild Card - Roll again, pick a scenario that strikes your fancy, or come up with something not represented here!
[Meme taken and modified, with respect, from
brunettely]
oho
when she sees the young man just shy of collapse to the ground to tuck into his meal, she doesn't hesitate to approach him and swat down on her heels in front of him, eyes narrowed slightly in consideration. ]
You are an employee here?
Re: oho
Ah-- yes. Yes. This is my first day. Sorry, who are you?
[An incredibly pretty, odd looking girl, he notices secondly, but that's hardly important. Fashions change all the time.]
no subject
How do you find it? The working conditions. Are they amenable?
no subject
I don't think they'll be winning any prizes of the year in terms of cleanliness or, frankly, workplace environment-- but they're not the worst, either.
[a beat.]
My name is Remus, by the way.
no subject
Yes, they are filthy - that is what I told that foolish man. It is also crowded, do you think? And the air, it is full of dust and strange particles - [ there are hand gestures to accompany this part, but then she abruptly catches herself; she aborts said gestures midway to offer one hand in a curt, formal handshake. ]
It is good to meet you, Remus. Like the infant suckled by the wolf, yes?
no subject
Just so. My mother rather enjoyed myths.
[Finally he stands. He's a bit more knees-and-elbows about it than he wants, but still, he's up! And he earned a grin from this girl, so really, things are going all right. He offers her a hand as well.]
They are filthy, though, yes, and awfully crowded-- but there are so many people who need a job I can't precisely complain. The particles are dust-- well. Dust, asbestos, and god knows what else. Hardly good for the lungs.
no subject
It is not air fit for breathing. [ she's settled down some, now; sounds more thoughtful, just a tad unhappy. ]
We will fix it.
[ said with complete confidence and authority, as if it's a tick on her to-do list rather than a bold and unlikely statement. ]
no subject
[He frowns at her, more puzzled than disagreeing-- for now.]
I don't think-- I mean, to fix it, you'd have to talk to someone in charge-- and they'd have to clean the entire place, and keep it clean, which costs money, and even if they were so inclined-- which they aren't-- I mean, it would take months!
no subject
I am the one in charge. I will replace this boorish man with the ill-fitting trousers with someone more clever, and we will use water instead of your fire and smoke. It will clean the air, not put particles in it.
[ there's a pause, and it's clear from her smile that she means this as a perk instead of insult, but... ]
It will also make you less smelly.
no subject
I don't smell!
no subject
You only say this because you have been in the factory whose smell you have taken. In the morning, or after you have cleaned, you will find your clothes very foul.
But when we fix your machines you will smell much better. It will also be very good for your pores.
no subject
And who are you, precisely? You can't possibly own the factory, that's impossible--
no subject
[ GRINNING. although, actually- ]
However, my - what do you say, keeper of books? He is fussing over the papers. And precisely, I am Kidagakash Nedakh, Queen of Atlantis.
no subject
[That's the word that registers first-- queen, oh, bloody hell, he's been backtalking a queen-- and then where hits, and his first instinct is to scoff. Atlantis, right, and he's the king of Howandaland-- but of course Atlantis is real now, isn't it? Discovered half a year ago (although discovered isn't precisely the right word, Remus had argued when the newspapers published that headline; you can't discover a place if people already live there), and though the people seemed quite private, there had been talk of their queen venturing out soon to visit.
Which brings Remus back to his initial panic. He gives a hasty bow, his ears reddening.]
Do-- ah-- do I address you as your majesty, or--
no subject
You may address me as Kida.
[ because that's what he was asking, clearly. she seems entirely oblivious to his embarrassment, content to barrel ahead with more amicable (and direct) questions. ]
What is it that you do in the factory, precisely? [ because that's a good word, she likes it. ] Did you study for this job?
no subject
[Warily he straightens up. Easygoing monarch or not, Remus is incredibly aware of how delicate a situation might be. Mess this up, and Kida might become offended and leave to head back to Atlantis, and then they'd never want to come back to England, or trade with them, or have any more contact with the outside world--]
I'm training to be a welder. It means I put together the steel-- and no, I didn't. It's-- I mean--
[He wrinkles his nose, forgetting his fear for a moment as he tries to think of a way to phrase this that isn't patronizing.]
It's not a job that requires much education or study.
no subject
What is it that you have studied for, then?
no subject
[He gives her a little smile, regretful but trying to play it off.]
I'd rather hoped to be a teacher one day.
no subject
A teacher?
[ and apparently the smell doesn't actually bother her, because she takes a step closer in her curiosity. personal space ain't no thang. ]
Of course; you have the look of a scholar. [ skinnyyyy. ] What is it that you would like to teach?
no subject
[Remus takes a step back-- not out of offense, per se, but he's one who values personal space very much.]
Defensive things, though, I think. Or history. I quite like history.
no subject
Defensive? [ she's not quite sure she follows that, because her assumption is it's something to do with battle. he doesn't look like the type. ] Do you mean shields?
You should teach history. It can be defensive also; knowledge is a very powerful shield.
no subject
[A beat. He glances back toward the factory.]
Did the foreman simply not believe a woman could own his factory?
no subject
I suppose that is what he believed, yes. But as it will no longer be his factory, I will be saving him the trouble of catching up.
[ there's a thoughtful pause, expression sobering as she considers remus in studious silence. then, abruptly: ]
You should be my teacher.
[ the 'should' is there to be polite, but it sounds a lot like she means 'will'. ]
Unless you are married to this welder, of course. [ ... she means welding. ]
no subject
no subject
And see, you have just taught me 'welding'.
[ but she supposes he could do with more of an explanation since she's asking him a favor, so- ]
I would like someone who is not an overseer or an adviser. They see very little despite their high vantage points.
(no subject)