Steam Fueled

Change of Plans

Max ran through the crowd of faceless grey humanoid shapes. He hadn't the slightest clue why he was running, all he knew was that he needed to get away from something. He felt an urge. The urge to escape. An urge to find. He craved to arrive at a destination that was entirely a mystery to him. And, as if all in unison, a phrase was uttered by the shades of people streaming past him.

"... Take your hands off of him..."

The expressionless and emotionless ghost-like people had swiftly vanished. They had been replaced by a thick mist that was now creeping up on him. Those words echoed throughout the sea of fog that was now surrounding him. Max searched frantically for an escape, anything. The mists had all but swallowed him up.

"... Get away from him ..."

A light. It could be seen faintly in the distance. A lone shimmer in the endless field of shadow and darkness that encased him. Max ran towards it, longing for the embrace of sunlight on his body. However, the haze was beginning to feel heavier and it constricted around him. He felt as if his very life was being squeezed from him.  Choking began to overtake the young boy as the mists poured into his lungs with every breath. Still he kept running. It was his only chance.

"... Don't hurt him!"

The light was within mere feet of him when it slowly started to die out. His pace slowed to a stagger, and after that, a limp. Max collapsed to the grownd in front of the now sliver of warm golden flame. Hope was fading, as he could barely breathe through what now felt like blood in his throat.

And then, as if by some sort of divine intervention, the once spark of light burst into a wall of golden burning flame. Max's body was thrust upward and cleansed by fire singing away the very evil that had overtaken him. The flame engulfed him, and with that, he was blinded.

" Max, my god, are you alright," the familiar voice questioned him. "Maxwell, please! I saved you, please! Don't do this to me!"

Max's eyes fluttered open weakly. The Captain, on his knees, sat in front of him, hands on Max's shoulders. He shook the boy's body as if he were overjoyed to see him alright. Tears could easly be made out resting on his cheeks." Thank Icarus, your alive! If you EVER do that to me again..."

Max's back ached, however this pain was nothing compared to the pain he felt on his neck and in his lungs. he lay propped up on a filthy metal wall. The room was dark, and the only source of light seeped through a circular window blocked with bars. In fact, Bars were everywhere.

"W- what happened? Captain where am I-," Max's questioning was cut short by yelling emanating from the cell beside theirs. The Captian placed his face in his palms and let out an exhausted sigh. He crawled over to Max's left and sat as the boy did.

"I had to agree Max, they would of killed you! Those damn men came in here demanding this and that. I refused and-" he trailed off. " One of them gripped your neck."

Max turned his head, weakly, to face his friend. The Captian was wiping away fresh tears. "I though I'd lost you, Max," he managed to choke out. Max had never seen the Captain in this state before. So, he did the only thing he knew to do. Max leaned over and rested his head on the Captain's shoulder, softly.

The Captain rapped his right arm around Max and smiled. " This isn't how I imagined my return to the skies would turn out. We were suppose to have an adventure..."

"We're in a ship?" rasped Max. "Yeah, his Majesties Royal Navy can be thanked for our lovely accomidations..."

The Captain's usual tone was beginning to return to his voice. Sarcastic as ever. Death itself couldn't keep ol' Cap from cracking a joke. One of the many unique qualities this middle aged man possessed. "Knock knock, 'adventurers'," barked a uninviting voice. " His greatness requests your audience, immeaditly."

Two heavily armored figures stood outside their cell. Both looked extremely regal. Frilly blue feathers reached up from their steel helmets to suggest a place of authority. They had dawned steel plates, from head to toe. These plates were only interrupted by blue fabric.  It seemed that the cloth ran underneath the armor itself like a river. It finally poured out from under the armor to loosely rap around their knees, similar to a kilt. The pair laughed as they fiddled with the cell door, slowly opening it and proceeding into the "enclosure". "On your feet, scum, common'!" The armed guard grabbed Max's arm, roughly, and pulled him to his feet. "Keep your mitts offa' him! I'm more than capable of assisting him, myself," snapped the Captain shoving aside the man. " Touch my armor again, and I'll have your head!"

" Go ahead, try it, I know how much you Imperial boys love your public executions. Though, it would be awfully sad if you killed the men that the Emperor had just summoned," the Captain pointed out with a smirk. "Now, why don't you ruffians lead the way before I loose my temper!" The guards rolled their eyes and beckoned for the two to follow them.

" Don't try anything. I don't wanna' do something I'll regret, later," muttered one of the guards as they left the brig. Miles above the city they considered home, Max and the Captain make their way to through the massive ship. The balloon which keeps this Imperial Dreadnout  in the sky was , roughly, a quarter mile long and wider than a large lake. The engines that propelled it were huge to say the least. Ten of them were needed to move this beast towards its destination. Painted Blue and White, as most Imperial zeppelins are, it was a sight to see in the skies and even more in battle.

Flags draped over most sides of the ship and its balloon, adding a royal and majestic feel to an otherwise menacingly large war machine. It was the jewel of the Empire's fleet and the personal flagship for the Emperor himself. And, rightly so. Max could clearly tell the inner workings of the ship were more complex than anything he had seen at the docks, before. No smugglers ship, no matter how fast, could amount to the sheer complexity of this mammoth. Every hallway held something new for the boy to gawk at.

And, after passing through several parts of the ship, seeming many Imperial soldiers and engineers, they reached the mid-center. Max couldn't even begin to guess why the Emperor wanted to see an orphan boy and a drunken sailor, but he would soon discover the truth. As the two massive gilded doors were opened by more Royal gaurds, his throne could clearly be seen at the end of the room atop a small island of stairs. He stared blankly towards the two as they slowly approached him.

The Captain nervously pulled at his collar and his eyes darted around the room as if he were looking for a way out. Though, Max new there would be no way out of this situation. What ever they had gotten themselves into would take more than wit to get loose from.

Six gaurds now followed close behind Max and the Captain with the original two in front. They marched along until coming to the steps leading up to the Emperor's throne. He was dressed in elegant robes of satin and silk with only the finest jewels around his neck and on his hands. His crown, alone, must of cost more than an entire city makes in a years time. And finally, his robotic right eye. It was made of what looked like pure gold. The gears turned and twisted inside the contraption making it protract and retract in small ways like that of a telescope trying to focus itself. The man looked down upon them with a wolffish grin.

"My, my, Captain, it's been the longest time," scolded the Emperor whilst fiddling with the calibration of his oracle. "You do remember me, don't you? Oh, that doesn't matter, I suppose. However, reminiscing about old times is not why I summoned you here. My men tell me you've agreed to my little proposal, hm? I'm so happy we could... work something out."