Séance And Sprocket (A Steampunk-ish RP)

[The Hearkened One]

"Sprockets? Well, those are just those metal wheels with teeth that fit into each other. Some of the newer machines in industry are made up of them. Make the things run," Nathan shrugged. "...Unless he was talking about..." a quick glance up to make sure nobody was at the door, "...the Sprocket Syndicate."

[Pilan]

Lily was quiet for a moment after Nathan had explained about the normal sprockets. She had also noticed that Nathan was a little careful when he mentioned the Sprocket Syndicate. Her brows furrowed a bit. "...so who are they supposed to be?" she asks, curious. Some part of her wanted to know as much as she can about them; though she couldn't figure why.

[The Hearkened One]

"You must be from out a-ways," he remarked. "The Sprocket Syndicate--or just the Sprockets, as they're sometimes called--are an organization of tinkerers. Everyone knows they're there, but no one likes to talk about them out in the open. In most cities like this, you could walk into a shop that’s a front for the Sprockets without even knowing it."

[Pilan]

Lily sighs lightly at his remark. "....yeah... you could say that, I guess..." she comments back, listening as he continued to explain. So the Sprockets were tinkerers. She had heard a little about tinkerers at least, though she couldn't explain why it bothered her. She blinks as she looks at Nathan. "Such as this place, by any chance?" she asks, though her tone sounded like she was trying to joke about it. "...I... assume they have a bad rep if the town's tight lipped about it?"

[The Hearkened One]

Nathan chuckled knowingly. "Trust me, Miss Lily. If I was a Sprocket, you wouldn't be breathing such fresh air right now."
He closed his eyes and raised his hands a few inches. Casting a spell?
Immediately he let his hands spring out. As he did so, the room filled with a fragrance only found in nature, far away from a city like Arula.
"I've consecrated the space in these four walls, blessed it to keep the stink of pollution out," he explained. "Sprockets aren't known to take kindly to associating with mages like me."

[Pilan]

Lily blinks as Nathan cast his little spell, allowing the room to smell better. "...goes to show... you can't peg a mage by looks alone," she comments with a light grin, only for it to fade as she heard what he said next. "...so... I take it they've been causing the mage families here trouble? That why the town's tight lipped about it?"

[The Hearkened One]

((Nathan's starting to look like a notable NPC, so I added him to the list of...notable NPC's. razz ))

He shrugged. "It's been an ongoing conflict between mage and tinkerer since anyone can remember," he said. "One side says the other is the trouble. The other side says the first is the trouble. Plenty of those caught in the middle just wish that an accord could be reached between the two. Myself included," he winked.

[Pilan]

Lily was silent as Nathan further explained, her brows furrowing. In a way, she guessed he had a point; a situation like this, both sides would be blaming the other. With her memories as they are, though, she couldn't remember herself where she stands. Was she someone that sympathized with the tinkerers, or was her line of thinking alongside the mages? Or was she like the family that helped her, just wishing for them to reach an accord.
"...I see... thanks for telling me this," she replies at last, skimming through the book again for more information about the city.

[The Hearkened One]

"No trouble at all." Not one to disturb a patron while she was reading, he himself returned to his own book.

((Gimme some indication as to just what kind of information Lily is looking for and I'll tell you what the book says.))

[Pilan]

((well, she was looking for the origins of the city, as well as any information about the mage families in charge of it over the years; assuming it has that noted within its pages.))

[The Hearkened One]

((Okay, I'll give you an origin story and the background on one of the prominent magic families.))

One particularly striking page of the book read as thus:
The bustling city now known as Arula was first settled in the late 1600's by a small band of mages led by Sir Theodore Dawnblaze. The area was largely unoccupied at the time, though many nomadic native Rubidian tribes were reported in the neighboring areas. Dawnblaze's documented aptitude for natural magic saw the small settlement grow and flourish in what appeared to be no time. To the date of this publication, his bloodline continues to run in the influential Dawnblaze family, one of the proud magic families that rules Arula. In keeping with their ancestors' legacy, they oversee much of the agricultural imports that are brought into the city from local farming communities.

[Pilan]

Lily read this and gave a light frown as she reads. Influential mage family, Dawnblaze, rules over Arula and oversees imports. She gave a light sigh after, that wasn't enough to trigger any of her memory. Influential family seemed to have sparked something, but that was about it. She sighs as she reads the book a little more before closing it and setting it down. She then had to frown. 'so this town grew and flourished thanks to that mage's natural magic,' she thought. That didn't add up; if that was the case, why was the city so industrial now? Had Theodore's descendents not share his ability?
She decides to open the book again and seek out anything about why the town seemed industrious.

[The Hearkened One]

((You're forcing me to make this up on the spot, just so you know. xd ))

The birth of the age of industry is debatable, but most widely believed to have occurred in the 1840's. It was at this time the non-magic population of Arula spawned a sub-class which would later become known as the tinkerers. From the beginning of Rubidia's history, non-magic folk have served mages in menial labor such as farming and house servitude. It was at the dawn of this industrial age that the tinkerers began straying from their humble roots and seeking ways to match the feats of their mage superiors by way of a newer practice they called "science." From the early 1840's until the present, tinkerers have brought about the industrialization of cities such as Alruna. The magic families found ways for the tinkerers' talents to be used to their benefit, and employed many of them building machines for industry and transportation. Many of the conveniences we have today owe their existence to the labors of the tinkerers.

[Pilan]

(yeah, sorry about that. I'll make up for it somehow)

Lily sighs as she shuts the book again. So the city became as it is because the mages allowed the tinkerers to perform their 'science.' Not that it mattered much to her, it was still mostly gibberish for her, with her current memories. She shuts the book with a light sigh. "...thanks for the help," she says to Nathan, getting up to return the book to him.

[The Hearkened One]

"Stay out of trouble out there, Miss, Lily," he bade her before she left. "And please, don't be a stranger," he added good-naturedly. "It's good to exchange a few words once in awhile without the printing press as a middleman."

((I'mma call it a night here. See ya.))