Midsummer 15 (morning) 6107 RTR (Apr 19, 2008) Zahn and Amelia wake up to find Gunther causing a noisy disturbance.
(Amelia) (Gunther) (Stonebarrow) (Sylvania) (Zahnrad)
---

    Inside Zahnrad's Cabin.
    The inside is no more normal than the outside. The inside is much like that of an airship cabin, complete with hammock bed. One wall is lined with a bookcase that's crammed full of documents as well as books on mechanics and machines it's also apparently all in alphabetical order. A chest to the side is piled high with various gears, sprockets, springs, bars, and un-named thingies. A drafting table sits in the corner, with a design of a complex new waterwheel with some sort of strange, multi-geared connection to the power axle. However, along the edges of the plans are doodles of various airship designs, propellers, and wing-types. There is also a small stack of papers sitting on a side table with sketches of Eeee wings and various notes. On the edge is written 'Wing Structure. Subject: Reisender, Alptraum. Male Eeee."

The evening is rather uneventful, even with hosting a rather infamously amorous Lapi girl; Parsley. The trio eventually manage to fall asleep with Zahnrad sandwiched between the two women. As dawn came, Parsley awoke and had to leave for her chores. The two Kadies, however, continued to snore blissfully away. Eventually, though, Zahn awoke and carefully extracted himself from the bed. He got dressed and even fetched a small tray of dry breakfast goods for the two. When he returned, he found he had a challenge before him … he has to wake up Amelia…

Without Zahn to spoon against, Amelia has curled up into her customary ball with her tail wrapped around her.

Zahnrad scratches his cheek in thought. Figuring being in fist or foot range is not a good idea, Zahnrad grabs the long ruler that was propped in the corner. He stretches out, leans over, and gently pokes Amelia's backside with it.

A hand pops out of the fluffy mass to bat at the area, before scratching the poked spot.

Zahnrad pokes a spot right next to the previous one. "Wakey-wakey," he says.

The magical chant seems to do the trick, and the Kadie girls starts to uncurl, stretch and yawn after the second poke. "Is it morning already?" she mutters.

"Past morning. Parsley has already left for her morning rounds. I went and got some breakfast too. I hope you're feeling better this morning," Zahn comments as he puts the ruler away. "What exactly happened, anyway?"

"Just… something to do with Natasha," Amy mumbles, and manages to sit up. "What did you poke me with?" she asks, seeing that Zahn is wearing pants.

"A stick. What did you think it was?" Zahn asks as he grabs the tray off his desk and header over to the bed. Once there, he sits down.

"Elbow or knee," Amy says, with a grin. "Usually." Then she crawls to the edge of the bed to see what Zahn brought for snacks.

For breakfast it looks like Zahn brought some fresh bread, honey, and a bowl of mixed nuts. "Not going to tell me what you did with Natasha, are you?" he asks.

Amelia pauses in mid reach for the bread, and looks up at Zahn. "Magic test," she notes. "Don't tell anyone. I haven't decided what to do about it yet."

"That would imply that it went well," Zahnrad comments with a shrug and pops a couple of the shelled nuts into his mouth. "You get to announce whatever you decide. Not my place to say anything."

Amy's tail 'flurries' as she grabs some of the bread. "Thanks, Zahn!" she says, and gives him a kiss on the cheek. "Did you sleep okay, or did we crowd you last night?"

"Slept fine! Well, right up to the point Parsley started getting a bit feely in her sleep. Should have expected what Lapis seem to dream about," Zahnrad mutters. He waves a bit of bread at Amelia now, adding, "And I couldn't do anything either … except lay there and get … massaged."

A black fluffy tail drapes over Zahn's shoulder, and the tip brushes against his throat. "I should do something about that," Amy notes. "You'd asked earlier for a bit more… attention."

"Rrrrk," goes Zahnrad and he seems to freeze. "Uh … what did you have in mind?" he squeaks.

"Me? Ummm," Amy goes after chewing on her bread. "You mean after breakfast? What were you thinking of doing before I got back last night?"

Zahnrad finally gnaws down his bread. "Well … maybe trying to be a little more … male," the Kadie admits once he swallows. "I was going to try and be romantic, cuddly, and well, attractive."

"For me?" Amy asks, and notices the (now unlit) candles that are spread around the room.

"Of course for you. Who else would I do that for?" Zahn asks, confused.

"Oh, right!" Amy notes, and gobbles down the rest of her bread. "Tho wud dee Parflee dink?" she asks through a full mouth.

"She thought I wanted to bed her," Zahn admits a bit sheepishly. "When I explained things, she offered to tutor me … but I suspect that was a ploy to get me to, well … bed her."

"Did she give you any pointers?" Amy asks after swallowing her food, finally.

"A few. They were all about how I should be more assertive," Zahnrad admits as he plays with a piece of bread.

"No need to go into detail; I want to be surprised," Amelia notes.

"The surprise will be if I don't faint," Zahnrad mumbles.

Amelia tickles Zahn's chin with her tail again. "I can make sure you don't."

"So, um," Zahnrad says, fidgeting again, "You're okay with it if we get a bit more … physical with each other now and then?" Quickly, he adds, "But if you're not, that's okay! I can wait and … stuff."

"I don't want you to torture yourself, Zahn," Amy notes. "Parsley's just sped up the inevitable. So if you want to seduce me, you can go right ahead."

"It wouldn't be torture! Just, well, I want to try and be a little more … normal," Zahn admits, "Before someone better comes along and sweeps you off your feet."

"You'll do fine, so long as you avoid bringing me fish," Amelia predicts. "Are you gonna sweep me off my feet then?"

"Yes! And I won't even use the sweeping machine," Zahnrad promises. Speaking of machines … there's an odd whirring/rumbling sound outside. It's faint; barely noticeable, really.

Amelia rubs her belly, to make sure it's not the source of the noise.

Nope, not her stomach. Zahn's ears start twitching and he perks up. "What is that? That sounds like … aw Dagh, he better not have!" the Kadie squeaks and leaps up, sending nuts everywhere. He bolts for the door.

"Eeep!" Amy goes, falling over backwards onto the bed. "What is it?"

"It sounds like my motor!" Zahnrad says as he throws the door open and zips outside. He doesn't even cross the bridge … he jumps off it and starts hopping through the trees!

"Wait for me!" Amelia says, chasing after Zahn without bothering to get dressed.

Zahn is really hard to follow when he seems to be on a mission. The benefits of those prehensile toes become very apparent as he hooks, swings, and darts through the branches. He hits the ground running and makes a beeline for the dam area.

"Ow ow ow!" Amy complains as twigs smack her, but eventually she clears the trees and heads for the ground.

It's a tiring run once Amelia reaches the ground. As she approaches the dam, the rumbling grows louder. Not only that, there seems to be an occasional spray of water that blasts over the rim of the dam. Right about where a gathering of otters have taken up position and seem to be gawking.

    The Mint Dam
    The dam is an impressive structure that almost looks out of place when compared to the relatively backwater town of Stonebarrow. It's existed for generations and is currently under management through a joint effort of the Akwavi and Kadie clans (notably the Wingnuts). It spans a good sixty feet and is composed of earth and timber. The top is lined with three equally spaced waterwheels. One of the wheels powers the various Wingnut workshops that reside near the base of the dam. Another wheel powers the various mills that produce paper and other such items requiring milling, such as flour. The third wheel is for general use and powers many various places in the nearby town that require mechanical power. A menagerie of gearing, drive axles, and catwalks also line the top of the dam, interconnecting the wheels and providing service access to them.

"I'll kill him!" Zahnrad yells out ahead. "Dead, dead, DEAD!" he chants as he darts up the walkway.

"Don't do anything hasty!" Amy calls as she runs on all fours as best she can.

Zahnrad skids to a halt near the small gathering of otters. Now he too is staring out at the reservoir. It takes Amelia another minute, but she's soon up there with him and can finally see what is making all the racket: out on the reservoir is some sort of odd … boat? It looks like a small platform of wood on top of a fluffy pillow. Waves ripple away from the pillow as it flaps and vibrates. Sticking off the back of the boat is some sort of huge fan. It's whirring away and creating quite the wind, thanks to the belt-drive connecting it to … yes, that looks like Zahn's engine prototype. Two big slats of wood are placed behind the fan and appear to be rotated around through some sort of hand controls. Gunther is sitting in the center of the boat and cackling like mad. "It works!" he chitters.

"Where'd he get the time to build that?" Amelia asks in amazement. And then she wraps her tail around herself before the otters notice her.

"Well, it's a mix of older things, I think. That bottom part is an inflatable bag thing. We made that back when we were trying to make something to bounce on," Zahnrad tries to explain, just before shouting at Gunther, "IF YOU BREAK THAT ENGINE I'LL BREAK YOU!"

"So is it a boat? It doesn't even look like it's floating on the water!" Amy points out. "How does he make it stop?"

"Whee!" goes Gunther as the boat rumbles and zigzags around the water … and then runs up onto the land and goes zipping along the shore now!

"Who knows?" Zahnrad grumbles as he peers around. "Maybe I can pop the bag," he muses.

"If it sinks, how will you get the engine back?" Amy points out. She turns to the otters and says, "Why are you just standing here? Shouldn't be trying to jump onto that thing for a ride?"

"Right!" the otters call out in unison. They jump into the water … and the boat jumps out! It goes zipping across the dry land now. Of course, it doesn't look like Gunther can actually steer it very well…

"Ooooo," Amy notes. "That's pretty neat, if he doesn't run into the trees."

The otters are not discouraged. They chase after him on land now. Gunther does his best to dodge them … and at one point he even runs over one of the otters. The otter is unharmed, thankfully. He just looks a little puffy. But eventually the otters are all clambering onto the weird machine.

"Aw, my hovercraft is full of otters!" Gunther complains loudly. The weight seems to be too much and the whole thing shudders and starts to tip. There's a loud sound of flatulence as the airbag under it gives way and the thing collapses onto the ground. The engine emits several loud bangs, then sputters out.

"Well… on the bright side, I don't think anyone's been hurt," Amy notes to Zahn. "And… uh… the otters didn't steal it!"

"Yet," Zahnrad points out. He picks up a large board and marches towards the collapsed machine. "Come here, Gunther, I have something for you," he growls.

"Hey! No fighting!" Amelia yells, and tugs on Zahn's other arm. "He tested it out for you! It works! Don't be mad at him for that!"

"Of course it works! I built it," Zahnrad complains, still looking very much like he wants to brain Gunther with the board. But … at least he drops the board.

"Where'd you get that board, anyway?" Amy wonders, and then heads towards the crash site.

"Dam railing," Zahnrad mutters as he follows after Amelia. Gunther is sitting atop his deflated machine and trying to shoo the otters off. "Mine!" he yells at them, "Go back to your primitive boats that just float on water."

"You made a boat that growls and farts, Gunther," Amelia points out as she gets in range. "The question is why?"

"Because we live in a swamp!" Gunther calls back, "And their boats are limited! This one goes on land AND water!"

"Why do you need a boat on land though?" Amy asks, reasonably.

"To go through the swamp easier without having to carry the boat over the periodic land-masses or areas where the water is too shallow," Gunther asserts and crosses his arms.

"Or … because he's trying to show off for the two girls he's after!" one of the otters barks. "Make a better otter boat than otters!"

"But it goes too fast," Amy points out. "You'd hit the trees!"

"I can control the speed," Gunther claims, "And it'll have bumper things, eventually!"

"It won't have a power source, though! How dare you take my engine!" Zahn yells as he clambers up onto the thing. "I was having heat issues with it; you probably ruined it!"

Thinking about that, Amy says, "A flying boat with bumpers? They'll want to hit every tree with it! How will that save time?"

"It's not for the otters, it's for us," Gunther tells Amelia. Then to Zahn, he says, "Oh, get your underwear out of a knot. I redid the oil lines and adjusted the elevation of the flow tank. It circulates better now and keeps the temperature down. Plus the added fins cool better when the air from the propeller blows over them."

"You … wait, what?" Zahnrad says, jaw now hanging open as he stares at Gunther.

"The fins do make it looks faster too," Amy points out, and tries to shoo away the otters.

"The flow channel was too small. That's why it was overheating," Gunther explains. "What? I've been paying attention to your work. I thought of some improvements."

Amelia gets a pinch on one butt-cheek, then a slap on the other, as the otters dart past her. "Wait till ol' Emmett hears Amelia's running around in the buff!" they croon, "He'll be all over her."

"Yes, but … you probably did it wrong," Zahnrad says in a quiet voice, chagrined, as he looks over his battered motor.

The Kadie girl glares after the otters. "I know your mothers!" she threatens.

"Wut? They'll want their turn with you too!" the otters call out in unison, then dive into the mint river and swim off.

"Well… " Amy says, turning to the brothers. "If you're going to be bonding for a few more minutes, I'm going to go get dressed, okay? No killing, promise?"

"Well, it's not cracked," Zahnrad finally admits and sits down on the edge of the platform. He looks deflated.

"Oh, wait, you're naked," Gunther tells Amelia. "Aren't you cold?"

"Yes, I am!" Amy replies. "And using fast machines to impress Nene and Bebe is cheating, Gunther. Now I expect this to be all cleaned up by the time I get back," she says, then turns and marches back to the compound with her tail twitching madly.

"Since when is using machines cheating?" Gunther asks Zahn as he sits beside him. "Beats me," Zahn admits with a shrug. "I don't think it was a bad idea. Well, except for using my engine … and wait, my propeller, and … "


---

GMed by Jared

Previous Log: Early Morning MischiefNext Log: Tag-Team Exorcism
Thread Links
(Amelia)
(Gunther)
(Stonebarrow)
(Sylvania)
(Zahnrad)

Back to list of Logs 2226-2250


Log listings page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96
Recent Logs - Thread Listing

Home Page
Player Guide
Log Library
Recent Logs
Encyclopedia
Dramatis Personae
Art Gallery
Moz Ezley Asylum

Today is 15 days after Candlemass, Year 29 of the Reign of Archelaus the First (6128)