One of the tests needed for restoring a pirate to Protectorate Pirate status was dinner with the Royal Family they\u2019re pleading their case to. Since Reb was asking the Royanas, the dinner was\u2026awkward to say the least. Arsha and Reb spent half the meal glaring at one another. Rikuna decided to break the silence. \u201cIsn\u2019t this nice?\u201d she asked. \u201cWhen\u2019s the last time we got together like this, hm?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe only meal I remember sharing with her,\u201d replied Arsha, \u201cwas when she drugged me and my crew and tried to ransom us!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt cost me a FRIGHTFUL amount of people,\u201d recalled Reb. \u201cWe never fully recovered from the Splitters\u2019 actions on MY island.\u201d Rikuna gulped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEh heh, good times?\u201d she mumbled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo,\u201d said Arsha and Reb together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWould somebody please pass the potatoes?\u201d asked Elgrad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere\u2026aren\u2019t any potatoes, sweetie,\u201d reminded Hanako.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWell,\u201d said Elgrad, \u201cI figured the pirates who kidnapped our daughter and had five of her crew killed to be turned into Revenants by Dr. Borg could PULL POTATOES OUT OF THEIR ILL-GOTTEN GAINS!\u201d By the time he was shouting, he was pointing his fork at the pirates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cUncle Elgrad!\u201d snapped Rikuna. \u201cWe\u2019re here for a nice family dinner, not to fight over who killed who or who stole what!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo, let\u2019s have that conversation!\u201d hissed Melgem. \u201cPerhaps we can discover why those fool peasants seem to like you so much!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFool peasants?!\u201d snapped Foresna. \u201cAs a peasant, I take offense to that!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut why?! You emulate the rich too much! Putting sunglasses on dogs, taking photos of meals, and DON\u2019T get me started on data crystals filled with nothing but recorded plays!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAt least we\u2019re not fool enough to attack a cruise ship!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNow, you see here! We do NOT attack cruise ships!\u201d snapped Reb.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNot what I read from the news. What ship did you guys attack again? The Monkey Business<\/em>?\u201d Arsha and Foresna high-fived each other, then Arsha got an idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIs that what this is about?\u201d she asked. \u201cYou two are too embarrassed by that and so you felt like you permanently lost your touch at actual piracy?\u201d Reb\u2019s face went as red as her hair in embarrassment and fury. \u201c\u2026Your silence says yes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLook, it\u2019s not REALLY that,\u201d said Melgem, trying to help his wife. \u201cIt\u2019s\u2026that prophecy.\u201d Reb sighed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe Final Prophecy,\u201d she elaborated. \u201cNew Realms, unlimited resources, untold wealth, everyone with full bellies, it\u2019s not all that great for pirate business.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThen, by that logic, the Protectorate Pirate job\u2019s gonna go the same way,\u201d remarked Arsha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, it won\u2019t,\u201d said Reb. \u201cWhile Protectorate Pirates won\u2019t be attacking actual pirates, we DO get paid in making sure the minor threats, like stowaways, are taken care of.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLook, Rebby and Melly,\u201d said Rikuna, \u201cwhat you need is to spend some quality time with average people instead of famous ones like Arsha, and I know just how to do it!\u201d She then held up a flyer. \u201cWho wants to join me as we see the new Mechanica engine for the railway tomorrow? It\u2019s a new type of engine!\u201d Arsha sighed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFine, I\u2019ll do it,\u201d she grumbled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cArsha, wait!\u201d interjected Elgrad. \u201cYou\u2019re not seriously suggesting-?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMy crew\u2019s gonna hear about this, and I\u2019m telling them to take the proper precautions concerning them!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026Well, I guess I can\u2019t ask for more than that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cREB ROJAM?!\u201d yelped Denstra when the news reached her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cUnfortunately,\u201d confirmed Dalengor. \u201cHowever, she\u2019s not doing anything bad at the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cKeep security on standby when she does!\u201d ordered Denstra. \u201cI am NOT gonna suffer her a second longer than I need to!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s exactly what Arsha asked me to pass along.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGood. Make the necessary arrangements.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAye, Ma\u2019am.\u201d Dalengor then headed off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Four Mechanica engines were standing in front of their berths at the Largandra Railway sheds, awaiting their controller, Arsha, Reb, Rikuna, and Melgem. The railway was a small one at the western ends of Largandra, so there was no need for a massive fleet of engines. One of the engines, a Mechanica Tank Engine woman named Dulna, looked at her watch. \u201cWhat\u2019s keeping him?!\u201d she grunted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cRelax,\u201d soothed the express engine, a Mechanica Tender Engine woman named Gornula. \u201cIf anything, an arrival now would make him early.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou know how much of a stickler he is for timetables,\u201d said a Mechanica Tender Engine man named Jarnathu. \u201cI\u2019m sure he\u2019ll be here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere\u2019s a saying on my old railway,\u201d retorted Dulna, \u201cif you\u2019re not early, you\u2019re late!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSounds a little stressful, if you ask me,\u201d said the last Tender Engine, a Mechanica man named Henurya.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn my eyes, there are two ways of doing things!\u201d snapped Dulna. \u201cThe Great Varshenta Way or the Wrong Way! At heart, I\u2019m still an engine of the Great Varshenta Railway and-!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDon\u2019t we know it!\u201d groaned all three Tender Engines. Just then, they heard a horn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIs\u2026is that a new\u2026heavy goods type of horseless carriage?\u201d asked Jarnathu.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat\u2019s that purring noise?\u201d quizzed Gornula.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf I were a betting engine,\u201d remarked Dulna, \u201cI\u2019d say it\u2019s the engine arriving on the turntable!\u201d The engine was a Mechanica woman, but she had a different shape to the steam engines. She looked boxy and had no funnels on her shoulders, just radiator grills. There was no visible mana crystal supply and there was nothing for water storage. There WAS a cab, as the controller, a human man named Tophan, stepped out with Arsha, Reb, Melgem, and Rikuna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHello, Engines!\u201d called Tophan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHello, Sir,\u201d replied the Engines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSir, if I may,\u201d asked Dulna, \u201cis she the new engine?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cShe is, indeed!\u201d replied Tophan. \u201cHer name is Crysna.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhere are her funnels?\u201d asked Henurya.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI don\u2019t have any,\u201d replied Crysna. \u201cI don\u2019t run on steam power.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou don\u2019t?!\u201d yelped Gornula. \u201cHow do your pistons move?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI don\u2019t have pistons.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThen how do your wheels move?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI have a crystal-drive engine. One or two mana crystals a day and I\u2019m off.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou mean, the mana crystals are wired into you?!\u201d asked Jarnathu.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThey are.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s kind of like how a ship\u2019s engines work,\u201d explained Arsha, \u201cjust smaller, thus needing fewer mana crystals.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAs such, my type of engine is called a Crystal Engine,\u201d Crysna said proudly. \u201cI must say, I\u2019m excited to work here!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCrysna is here on trial,\u201d said Tophan, \u201cto help with shunting work. Dulna, I know you can do the work alone, but what happens when you break down? Your larger co-workers are rather\u2026clumsy when it comes to shunting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cTh-the term is awkward, not clumsy, thank you,\u201d mumbled Gornula as she looked sheepishly at her buffers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn any event,\u201d continued Tophan, \u201cCrysna needs to learn. Please teach her, Dulna.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, Sir,\u201d replied Dulna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As Crysna learned her duties and what branch line the two shunters run, Reb spoke with Arsha. \u201cTheir worthy Fat-\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLARGE Controller to you!\u201d hissed Arsha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026Their worthy LARGE Controller thinks Crysna needs to learn. Crysna\u2019s a Mechanica. She doesn\u2019t need to learn. Besides, she\u2019s a new type of engine.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019ve seen new types of ships that blunder their way through life unlike Endea. If Crysna wants to succeed, she\u2019ll heed Dulna\u2019s advice.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" One of the tests needed for restoring a pirate to Protectorate Pirate status was dinner with the Royal Family they\u2019re pleading their case to. Since Reb was asking the Royanas, the dinner was\u2026awkward to say the least. Arsha and Reb spent half the meal glaring at one another. Rikuna decided to break the silence. \u201cIsn\u2019t […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1374,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[97,239],"tags":[482],"class_list":["post-5474","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-three-realms","category-the-three-realms-book-6-the-eternal-age-of-unity","tag-fantasy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5474","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5474"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5474\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5475,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5474\/revisions\/5475"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1374"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5474"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5474"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5474"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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