The Lost Cog (Nivansrywyllian, Ravenwoodwitch)

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Ebenezar -for his part- was still clinging to the beast's back, stabbing it viciously, to no avail. He might as well have been shouting at it, for all the good his blade did. He hung on tenaciously, even as Bolette strangled the beast.

What had once been a solid back softened, and then turned amorphous.

Ebenezar landed with a squelch, and he was drenched from jaw to boots in the creature's black sludge. His eyes were wide, and wild, and he stared down at the puddle, confused. Shaking, he got to his feet, and turned his big, blue eyes on his partner.

He looked as if he might pass out. His breaths were coming in rapid, and shallow, and his hands were shaking. "I'm fine," He insisted, although his tremulous voice betrayed him, as he climbed to his feet out of the fetid puddle. He turned his attention to his bladed gauntlet, and began to tug at the knife, sloppy with black. It was jammed with the sludge, and wasn't retracting. "We have to find Kira and 'Hiro." He added, stepping for the door, and looking about as relaxed as a stone soldier.
 
The thief quickly followed in step, putting a hand on the tinker's shoulder.

"Wow, hang on," she said, pulling him to halt. "Hiro and Kira aren't defenseless, and you look like death-warmed over..."

His complexion worried him; just by the green hue it had taken. She tried to get him to relax, to steady out his breathing too someone that was less hyperventilating, more terrified child in the dark. When he seemed to get back to normal, she smiled at him, eyes twinkling behind her mask.

"Thank you," she said. "That stupidly brave of you, but thank you. I'm certain you saved my life there."
 
Flitz gave a start when the thief's hand landed on his shoulder, and began kicking himself for jumping like a scared rabbit. The touch went a ways towards calming him however, and he felt some of the tension bleed out of his shoulders. Not all, certainly, but enough.

His eyes returned to the thief, and his throat went tight as he wrestled with the words his tongue didn't want to let free from his mouth. "I was afraid it would kill you," He admitted. "I wouldn't have been able to live with myself if it had." He glanced back to the puddle, and the gore that still stained the room from the unfortunate woman. It didn't look like Masahiro and Kira had gotten far in their cataloging of the crime-scene, before they'd left.

"I... Where have they gone? Masahiro wouldn't have left Kira, and Kira wouldn't have left a crime-scene. The beast can't have scared them off. Do you suppose they're still here?"
 
(I'm not entirely sure I grasp our Kira character, but here goes ^^;)

That was certainly new. Bo couldn't hide the blue on her cheeks, even with the mask on her face, but she did manage to give a crooked half-smile.

"Well, still," she said softly. "Thanks..."

"What in the HELL?" Kira called, coming in from the west doorway. "I walked away for five minutes!"

Five minutes was five too many, Boletta thought, but she kept the bitter thought to herself. Instead, she poked at the mass of black sludge and waited for some kindof reaction, when none came, she turned back to Kira, Mashiro following behind.

"That...used to be solid," she said. "Attacked me and Nezzy....wait, what were you even doing?"

"Checking to see if the crime-scene extended past this house," she said. "Thankfully not."

"Hmph," Bolletta let the thought go, but did stand back up to her full height. "We need to get back to base and tell the boss about this. If whoever killed that girl brought this-" she swallowed hard. "-Thing to life, than we got bigger problems."
 
Masahiro was -for once- stern faced and alert, rather than jovial and carefree. He approached the slimy tinker, concern painted plainly across his exotic expression. The brawler took the tinker by the shoulders, and eyed him in search of injuries. "Are you hurt?" He asked without preamble. His eyes swept to the less-splattered thief, "Did you get any of it in your mouths?" The foreigner treated everybody in Bowler's employ as family, and he took their safety very seriously.

"We're fine, 'Hiro." The tinker insisted, trying to wipe at the sludge on his jaw with an equally grimy hand. His voice was still unsteady, and a careful eye would catch the tremor in his hands. The adrenaline was wearing off. "It... Bo strangled it, and it died. Stabbing didn't work."

Masahiro glanced ponderously to his own partner. "What say we finish up here, Keeva, and let them get back to the Cog to debrief. The Jolly Man will know more about this strange ooze."
 
Keeva nodded. "I have what I need. It's time we go back and give our report."

"I think we'll stick to the ground this time," Bolletta said, crossing her arms. "I've lost my appetite for roof-walking."

The girl wouldn't admit it, but she was just as spooked as her tinker-partner. That thing was unnatural, whatever it was, and had given her a huge sense of fight. What had it even wanted? Were they targets or just unfortunate cases of being in the wrong place at the wrong time? And, looking back at the gorey scene one last time, she couldn't help but wonder what it had to do with that girl.

Why...

She shuddered, and than started walking..
 
The walk back to the Cog was a tense one, with all eyes swinging from shadow to shadow, although Masahiro tried to lighten the mood with bawdy tales of impropriety, likely picked up at the local taverns. It worked passably well. By the time they had all reached the doors of the Cog, Masahiro was gesticulating wildly, and the tinker had even allowed himself a tiny smile, despite the sludge coating him from jaw to boots.

"And so he said, 'I won't stand to be insulted by an imp!' And as you can imagine, the little fellow didn't like it so well, being called an imp. So he growled, 'Then sit!', and took a flying leap, and-" He opened the door, and made an explosion noise with his mouth. "Both feet in the man's face. I've never seen a dwarf jump so high!" Insisted the easterner, incredulous.

That got a grin out of the tinker, who put a grateful hand to Masahiro's shoulder. The brawler, for his part, didn't seem to mind horribly the black smear that it had left on his suit.

Ebenezar lead the way up to Bowler's office, though he allowed whomever got there behind him to do the honor of knocking. The call to enter came, and they all filed in.

Bowler's brows climbed right up to the brim of his hat at the sight of the dusty, slime-coated tinker.

"My word, sit, sit. Tell me what happened."
 
(By the way, I am recruiting people, as it were, for a new rp. Look if you're interested: https://www.iwakuroleplay.com/threads/the-new-camelot-limited-space.61878/)

(Whoops, forgot the colors for me. Ah well ^^ )

"Well...." Bo decided it was best for her to start. With Masahiro's absence, Keeva's disappearance, and Nezzy's shaking hands it seemed she was the one calm enough to give a proper report. "We found Miss Haverstead's body...I don't think she should be allowed to see it. It was gutted with the insides spread about in some kind of ceremonial fashion. We also found a strange machine that Mina might be able to identify...also..."

Her heart went in her chest, but she continued.

"Something attacked me and Ebeneezer," she finished. "It was...I don't even know. IT was just big, all black sludge that seemed sentient."

"And angry, from what I heard," Keeva added.

"Anyway," Bo continued. "It's dead now. My instincts are telling me that that thing is a sign of some very foul play going on. I think the circumstances behind Miss Haverstead's tragic death were a little more tragic than we thought."
 
Ebenezar hovered indecisively by one of the armchairs, as Bolette explained the encounter. "It wasn't always sludge, though." He interjected, finally sliding down into one of the seats. His limbs felt like water. "It could fly, I think. It looked like a beast. I stabbed it, and I stabbed it, and I stabbed it, but it wouldn't die... Miss Bolette got a cord 'round it's neck, and throttled it. It... Lost form."

Mr. Bowler let out a pensive noise, and nodded his jowly head as he watched his agents over steepled fingers. When the thief, and the tinker were finished speaking, he leaned back in the chair and gave each of them a comforting smile. "I see. You two have had a tough time of it. I want you to go clean up, and relax. I will send Wilhamina, Axibelle, Masahiro, and Keeva to examine the machine on site. Talk to one another. Being partners is important. Talk to me if you need." He made a shooing gesture. "But for now, go relax. There will be more work for you soon.

Ebenezar nodded slowly, and pushed himself up from the chair, leaving black smudges behind. He shuffled guiltily towards the door, aiming to get cleaned and fed.
 
The thief took the chance to get in a shower, something she needed badly. Removing the mask and letting the water run over her skin she took the time to finally think and process what just happened. She'd have been dead if it wasn't for Ebenezer, whose quick thinking in the field came as a surprise. Having him at your back was certainly advisable.

I should thank him somehow, she thought, getting out of the shower. But how?

In a wistful moment, she decided to go and see how he was doing. n She quickly got dressed and sauntered off to the Tinker's quarters. Her hand came up and gently knocked on the door.

"Hey Nezzy," she said playfully. "You okay?"
 
Ebenezar -for his part- was rattled. He doffed his own gear, and tossed most of the clothes into a pile by the door for burning later. He wanted no part of the stinking sludge that had permeated the cloth. The gauntlet, he set on his tinkering table, to be cleaned later. Into the shower he went, and he washed himself distractedly.

He didn't notice the water turning first lukewarm, and then cold.

A knock at his chamber door shocked him out of his stupor, and he hurriedly turned off the water. Shivering, he scrambled out of the bathroom. "A-A moment!" He insisted, casting about for clean clothing. He flew into a pair of undershorts, and tossed on a sleeveless undershirt. His suspenders were in the pile of goo-coated clothing, so when he pulled up his pants, he hung onto them with his free hand as he made for the door. He opened it, looking thoroughly disheveled.

"Miss Bolette," He said, surprised. "Did you need something?"
 
"I wanted to check on you," she said, leaning on the door frame. "You were all shaken when I last saw you. I was worried you were still upset."

And by the disheveled look, she guessed he hadn't completely gotten better; even if the scruffy look was nice on him. She smiled softly and stepped closer, hands behind her back, petite body balancing on one foot.

"You wanna talk about it?" she offered. "Might help."
 
Ebenezar looked back over his shoulder, at his room. It wasn't really suited to keeping company. Tools were scattered over most of the surfaces, along with whichever particular project he'd set down with them. A pile of clean clothes lay beside his bed, and a hamper retained the ones that were dirty in the corner. The clothes coated by slime were still in a pile beside the door.

He looked back to the thief, and he nodded his head quickly. He backed into the room, and left the door standing wide for Boletta to leave open, or close as she pleased. He quickly cleared off a low stool for himself, and gestured to the bed, as if to offer it as a seat for his guest.

"I've never been in a situation like that before." He admitted. He'd wait for Bolette to sit, or not, as she chose before seating himself, and releasing his hold on his waistband. "I mean... There was that thing at the college, but it was different. That was just smashing machines that got out of hand. This was... It was a monster, Bo."
 
The place had all the markings of a bachelor: Things scattered with little rhyme or reason, objects and projects left unfinished on the tables, and no real place for company. The girl smiled as she sauntered in and sat down on the bed. The tinker looked disturbed...she couldn't blame him.

"I know," she said. "I was scared too. I...I'm no fighter, It's why I've always stuck to the shadows, but even I've never seen anything like that. It was like something out of a penny dreadful."

She shuddered, and pulled her knees up to her chest.

"But you came through and saved me, Nezzy," she smiled. "You could think of it that way! You were a hero back there..."
 
Ebenezar colored at the idea. Heroes were all powerful, and witty, and handsome. Heroes weren't scrawny tinkers. And heroes didn't end up smelling like a copper-quarter chamber pot after their adventures.

He gave Bolette a grateful smile, and lifted a hand to scratch at his strawberry-blonde scalp. "Thank you, miss Bolette. Although I think you have the wrong of it. All I did was distract it a bit while you went to work with that lasso." He cleared his throat. "I've never seen a beast that could take a stabbing without so much as a blink of annoyance."

He rested his hands in his lap and took a deep breath. "A near death experience is no excuse for being a poor host, however. Can I fix you something? I... I think I've got crackers around. Cheese, maybe. Tea?"
 
She chuckled. "Sure, sure," she said. "Haven't had the stuff since my sister's old parties."

He was being too modest, she thought, but let it go all the same. Instead, she stood up to wonder about the room to eye the various projects. She had a basic knowledge of how machines worked, as it helped with lock picking, but she had no idea how to handle what she saw ahead of her. Hooks, wires, and springs to be added to who knows what. She stopped to admire what looked like a new light source, tilting her head to the side.

"It amazes me how smart you are," she said. "I couldn't come up with anything like this if I tried."

Unable to help herself, she reached out a finger to touch the glass.
 
Ebenezar nodded and stood up. He shuffled over to a gas-powered burner, and cleared it of whatever clutter surrounded it. He retrieved a tea pot, and filled it with water from the bathroom sink. When he was on his way back, he saw Bolette reaching for one of his inventions. Unconsciously, he felt tension grow between his shoulders.

It wasn't one of the more dangerous contraptions, so he didn't leap towards her to stop her from touching it, but it was fragile.

"Careful with that," He warned, although his tone was light, and relatively unconcerned. "It's fragile. Really, it's nothing special that I do. I just... See something that we need, or that can make life better, I just... Make it. Anybody can do it." He set the pot of tea on the gas burner, and began to heat it. "I'm no field agent though. I'm not quiet, or quick as you. I can't fight like Masahiro, or Mr. Bowler. Or even miss Metzger. She and Axibelle have a way with firearms, and I wouldn't want to get between them-" He paused, looking up from the tea pot.

"I'm rambling. I don't entertain guests often, I'm afraid."
 
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"I know, it's like we're having a conversion, so weird," she joked. "Feel free to ramble, I'm a good listener."

She sat herself down in his work chair, spying the sludge-caked clothes in the corner. She averted her eyes and went back to eying her partner. He was only just taller than her, and those baggy clothes gave absolutely nothing away about his figure. But there was something cute in watching him scuttle about, struggling to be a good guest. It reminded her of her mother in the early days.

"They do have a way with guns," she agreed. "Don't tell them, but I really don't care for firearms. I've never liked them much, and not on a practical sense...just in general."

Now I'm rambling, she thought. Wanna tell him all about why you hate them?

"Honestly, that lasso was the first time I was ever really...violent, you know?" she lowered her head, one arm going to the other over her chest. "I...don't kill. It's why I was so shaken back there...I-I don't like this kind of thing."

And there goes my biography; way to go Motormouth!
 
Ebenezar hiked up the trousers, which were in danger of pooling about his ankles in t he absence of his suspenders as the tea pot began to whistle. He pulled the pot off the burner, and turned the burner off, before rummaging around for some mugs in which he could serve tea. Finding none, he instead produced a pair of beakers, into which he stuffed a little packet of tea. Pouring the water over the tea, he grasped the bottle by the neck, and brought it over to his guest.

"Take it by the skinny part. The base will be hot. I've got an oven mitt around here somewhere."

He set the pot down on the counter, and went back to the table with the burner, only to drop to his knees and root about beneath it. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm not entirely certain that that thing was alive to begin with. Violent or no, you were very resourceful. I'd be dead if not for your quick thinking."

He frowned. "I don't think I properly thanked you for that, yet."
 
"Welcome," she said, sipping the tea. "I didn't know I had it in me; I'm a spy, not a rogue."

Such was their conversion, at least: means to demystify any sense of praise given by the other. Bollette had a sense that this was going nowhere, and decided to try and shift things to a more charitable angle. After all, she really didn't know that much about her partner, not beyond what the others had told her.

"Ebenezer?" she said. "I was wondering...and you don't have to answer if you don't want, but...you keep mentioning what happened at the academy. I didn't really get the whole story myself...is it true you built some kind of death robot?"
 
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