Une Panne avec l'eau

[Deleted]

(The Starcrash on the way to Alfya. Mid afternoon. March 18th)

Loki awoke, feeling very refreshed. Her head no longer pounded at lound noises, or bright lights. That was a good sign. A very good sign.

First thing on her agenda. This ship had food.

Food was good.

Food was wonderful.

Foooood....

Loki stood up, and brushed her hair with her hands, before flopping her hat lazily over it. She picked up her coat, and opened the door, peeking out in both directions before heading to the empty kitchen. She grabbed a small bread stick and snapped it in half, before pulling out a small water sack, and filling it with water from the fresh barrels.

A cigarette would be good, and some fresh air too.

Taking her unusually modest pickings from the kitchen, the girl lurked out to the corridor, and walked through the steering room, hoping she would go by unnoticed for now.

Loki took it slow, taking in a better look at the ship than she had previously done. She took a sip of water and gave a refreshed sigh.

[Deleted]

<sub>Andy would be awake at this time. His other girls with the exception of Nerys would as well, but he wouldn't bother them now. The ship was currently idle as he directed it straight towards Alfya, but right now he was on break and relaxing. He felt much better since yesterday, and right now he was looking back at the charts at the front of the ship.

"Hm, so if I pass over this small island I might be able to head down to Jullistown and arc towards Alfya City..." He murmured to himself. Andromeda leaned back and sat down in his chair, slumping a bit.

"Maybe see if there's any bounties in Alfya or Jullistown. I'm in a slump..." He muttered. That payment was not enough and he already gave some to Loki. Unless she robbed him last night, the jerk.</sub>

[Deleted]

Loki heard a voice in the steering room and peeped in. Andromeda appeared to be muttering to himself about directions, and being short of cash.

Loki leant against the wall, munching contently on the crust of her bread while she thought about how she could help. He had given her a chance to lay low from Dula, she should at least pay him back some how, and she knew how she could do it.

"Howsabout I try raking in some cash around Alfya?" she suggested, not particularly caring that she had probably just appeared out of nowhere.
"I owe you for the ride anyway. It's the least I can do." she shrugged.

Not only would it help out the crew some, but it would also help Loki gain some orientation of the new city.

[Deleted]

<sub>Andromeda's eyes rolled up when he heard Loki. Oh there she was! She looked better as well, thank god. For a sec he thought she was going to get really ill but she seemed to be used to the ship now. He leaned back and grinned at the girl. So she wanted to rake in cash too? That would be good, because Loki was not known in the other places. Not near as much as Andy anyway.

"You'd like to offer? I give you my thanks, then. Heh." He looked over at the window where he could stare out at the ocean and then smiled. "Yes, there should be good opportunities for you in Alfya, my precious little thief~."

He stood up and then stretched up, his arms trying to touch the ceiling, but he wasn't tall enough to. He then turned around to address her properly, brushing his brunette hair back, without a care in the world.

"So how do you feel? Nice ship, huh?"</sub>

[Deleted]

Lokis' eyes lit up as Andromeda agreed to let her 'help him out financially'. She took a swig of water to help down her food and gave a small nod. Yes, there'd be plenty of oppurtunities, and especially new challenges.

Then Andromeda turned and asked her about his ship. She nodded again after taking another drink of water.
"It's nice. I can't say I can compare it to other ships since I aint ever been in one, but yeah. I'm pleasantly surprised about this whole flying buisness." Loki answered. She had probably been sound asleep through any turbulance or trouble, so she was still pretty naive about the whole concept of 'how do airship work?'.

"I feel a little out of place though. Everyones probably rushing around doing something useful while I stand here with as much of a clue as a perplexed potatoe." she said sheepishly, rubbing the back of her head.

"What ever one of those looks like." she shrugged.

[Deleted]

<sub>Well, she seemed pretty happy now. As of right now, the ship wasn't doing much anyway, but it wasn't intricate nor was it crummy, and it was fairly clean for a bunch of pirates, then again... Andy was surrounded by girls, of course he would know this. He then got up to walk over to the front of the ship, looking out at the ocean in the much larger window.

"Well, it's the best ship that I've had. It's fast, but still powerful, and that's all that I need." of course ships could still escape from his wrath, but he didn't mention that. "Flying's the best way to get anyway, young one."

He turned around to look at her again. Oh yeah? Godwine and Selena felt that way on their first try out. Nerys was just there, but she knew what to do as well, and that was managing everything. He folded his arms and tapped his chin.

"That's how Godwine felt when she first came aboard. She knew diddly squat about flying and then I taught her how to. She's a natural, yanno." He looked pretty proud of her, yeah.</sub>

[Deleted]

Loki stepped in to the room gingerly, and walked up to Andromeda, looking out the window with him. It was an awesome sight. Though there wasn't a lot to see, Loki felt very prideful looking down from such a height at the world. She could own this world if she wanted...

Though, she wouldn't have anywhere to put it if she did, so she dropped that sentiment.

"I wouldn't trust myself to fly. We hijacked one of those horseless transporty thingies once. I crashed it in to a tree within twelve seconds." Loki said, sounding a bit shamed. "I'd probably end up getting carried away and trying to take someone out if I tried flying an airship." she joked. Or was she?

[Deleted]

<sub>Heh, this is the view that Andy always sees, and it does indeed make him feel superior as well. It was, after all, an amazing sight to behold and he wasn't going to let go of this lifestyle any time soon. He looked over to Loki as she gazed with him and he spoke up, quietly.

"It's a beautiful view, isn't it?" He spoke up. Of course she explained what happens when she takes over the steering wheel and he just chuckled. All in a day's work, he supposed!

"I prefer flying over using one of those things any day!" He then looked out again, sitting down and resting his foot on his knee. Hm, what else to say. Well... let's get personal, shall we?

"Tell me, are you an orphan or a Dula Child?" If Loki didn't get the second word, he'd know for sure she wasn't one of them. Andy was, and it wasn't a very pleasant experience in his case. Nerys as well... and his twin brother. "I know for a fact Dulans usually try to avoid wandering around nighttime unless it's an emergency."</sub>

[Deleted]

Loki went quiet when Andy asked that question. She sighed and rolled her eyes at the fact that she would have to tell someone this sooner or later. Andromeda was a pirate right? This was between one theif to another, minus the knowledge of him being one of the most notorious men in the sky.

"My parents were captured and executed by Dula guards just under ten years ago." She said. "They were black market merchants down at the docks... I wont lie. I was born a crook, in a crooked family."Loki explained with a shrug. "The only reason I wasn't sent down with them was because I was out at the other side of town, swindling false clocks with a friend... Damn snoots turned on the very same people that they vended on in the name of 'market correction'." Loki sneered bitterly.

"I been on my own since I was fourteen. Had to learn quickly how to make it in Dula. Fortunately, the authorities weren't too bothered by small fry street urchin, so I spent my time so far living out of who evers pockets I could get my hands in to.... without getting caught that is. Never bothered with the theives guild either. Didn't like the idea of having too many connections."

Loki took a sip of her drink.
"I'm one of the reasons you don't go out to Dula at night. As you probably saw, I tend to get a little...umm... bolder?"

[Deleted]

<sub>Andromeda was indeed, a very infamous pirate, especially in Dula considering how effective he was at dodging criminals. It was in his programmed nature to kill and effectively destroy what little reputation people had, and Benjamin would have had a super soldier at his wake... if Andromeda hadn't had some humanity left in him thanks to Sine and Nerys (and his twin brother).

"Isn't almost everybody in Dula born a crook and a liar?" He leaned back, looking up. "Me and my brother were captured at the ripe age of six and taken away from my parents, who did nothing to save us. In the end, I helped my brother to escape.... at the expense of becoming who you see now." He paused. "It wasn't until I was about fourteen or fifteen before I managed to escape. If it wasn't for my training, I would have also been a small fry thief, but... I had bigger plans..."

He grinned. "Like you, I do like to get pretty... bold. Not only that I needed to get back at the entirety of Dula for what happened." Whether or not that was a double entendre, one would have to guess, but sexual or not, both were true. "I stole a ship, collected... well, mostly saved... a couple of female helpers named Godwine and Daniela in Seria, before I went in the pirating business." He failed to mention that right after he had escaped he pretty much snapped and went on a murder and rape spree that lasted for several years. "Nerys and Selena joined later. I will let you know it takes a lot to catch my eye in a level of interest beyond stealing or other various encounters."</sub>

[Deleted]

Loki looked over at Andromeda as he began talking about his past. She folded her arms and leant against the window as she listened intently to what he had to say.

Loki daren't ask if the conspiracy of Swire headquarters was true. There had been a lot of child kidnappings around Dula, lots of speculation going on about different theories, including Swire being involved. However, she decided it best not be brought up in casual conversation of this nature. Maybe she would learn another time, if she stuck around long enough.

"Heh...get back at Dula. I don't blame you. No one would blame you." Loki smirked, as she looked away out the window. "I been trying to do that for years, on the level of hassling the fancy folk by stealing their laundry. Probably not as ambitious as what you could have in mind though." Loki chuckled.

"The whole city is just one big..." she gesticulated a ball shape with her hands. "Lump of corrupt rocky stuff. It might not be pretty, but god knows it has potential. All rock has ore. Probably not gonna find some any time soon though. I might have made the right choice leaving when I had the chance."

The theif walked up to a board, holding a map. Loki examined the paper, reading all the country and city names. It made her feel small in comparrison. Despite what she had said previously, Dula was her world. It was what she knew, and both hated and loved, but there was nothing there for her any more.

[Deleted]

<sub>Oh, those speculations were correct, dear Loki. Andromeda wouldn't add any more details about it, though. For now he would just put his hands behind the back of his head and relax. Forget about the past! Now he could just do what he wanted, without anybody whipping him, stabbing him, ruining his dignity... Andy felt sick just thinking about it.

"I'm sure half the people would agree with me if I told them. That's why I don't bother with people who don't work for Swire Incorporated." He paused. "I heard there's been tensions though, with Dula and the other two countries." What if a war broke out? What would he do then?

"If it were up to me, I'd help anybody who wanted to leave the city." He explained. "I may be a psychotic bastard with tendencies to hurt people in many ways, but I have my reasons. I've seen what the corporate entities have done to Dula, and I wish to get rid of them. Whether or not one finds that a selfish goal or honorable it is up to them."</sub>

[Deleted]

Loki nodded, and began to get grim Ideas and thoughts that the corporates were the ones that had gotten her parents arrested and killed in the bigger picture. She shivvered at the thought. Loki had never thought of that as a possibility until now.

"It's more honourable than stealing clothes off a washing line at least, in my opinion." Loki responded.

"Yeah. I heard about that in the newspapers. Been going on for a while. Wouldn't be fair that the city was made to suffer because of some greedy weapons baron bastards." Loki grumbled. "I'd like to rob em blind and see how they manage without their big piles of cash."

Loki was starting to get a little hot headed about the whole situation. She'd always lived in pretty much general ignorance to most important events, she couldn't even recall the name of the current royal family of Dula come to think of it.

Maybe that's why she never thought about stuff like this, it wound her up.

[Deleted]

<sub>The man shrugged when Loki spoke up. Stealing laundry was pretty funny in his opinion. Leave them naked as they come out and such... which would leave Andy to do other um... things. Either way, he'd leave those thoughts from him as he listened to the younger girl. He looked back out at the ocean before speaking up, his voice a bit low and serious.

"You don't even have to do anything and they'll put themselves in the hell they created." He then closed his eyes, trying to calm himself down before he did anything stupid. Like pick Loki up and take her to the bedroom. He then adjusted his coat and finally changed the subject.

"So what do you usually swipe? Just shillings? Come on, I'm starting to know you enough to see you have some kind of goal or challenge."</sub>

[Deleted]

There was only one answer to that question Loki could give, with a look of guilty pride on her face. You gonna have to catch me first ohohoh~

"Anything that's not nailed down that I can sell on for profit." She answered. "I also like to cause as much inconvenience as possible with said object, be it because it's missing, or what it does." Loki then explained. "Kind of sadistic some might say, but it's kept me entertained for years. I think the best one up to date is the time I cleaned out a whole guard hut of its toilet paper." Loki, you barbarian...

Loki leant against the wall again. "Though, I'll admit, sometimes it's just to get back at all them snoots. I aint some athletic, powerhouse catburglar that you hear in them papers. I been skin and bone for years, but as they say, if you have the drive and the skill, you find a way." She then went on, sounding a little more sullen. "To be honest, that's pretty much been my life for a while. Sounds a little wasteful when you think about it, but what else am I s'posed to do?"