(journal notes on Footman's time in Cala Mondrago)
I had arrived in Cala Mondrago, after receiving a telegram that rather than travel to New Babbage, given the sensitive nature of my sample, Al Hazard was instead, sending his man to Cala Mondrago and would meet me there. As the Sparrowood was currentl being refitted for long term expiditions into unknown areas, I had taken a base F.I. cargo zepplin instead, the Voyinch.
It was a fairly cramped ride, the cargo zepplins are designed to be piloted by automoton, who need little space, or type omega logic engines, a new analytical engine based off my research into Miss Gizzy's cognigator, the end result is plenty of space for cargo, very little for people.
Once we arrived, it took awhile of wandering it's sandy streets until I found the location in the telegram, a small bar in a corner of what I think is either their residential district, or their business. After watching to make sure I didn't step in any camel piles, camel spiders, or scorpions, I made it into the bar. It was largely empty aside from a pair of barely clothed women in one corner, and a robed man in another. (interestingly, there didn't seem to be an actual bar in thsi bar, the bartender just stood near a wall and seemed to pull drinks out of his apron, as if by magic). I regretfully walked past the pair of ladies to the robed man.
Once I approached, he stood up and offered hs hand "Footman? I am Nikolai Krazamatic, I beleive I have a package for you." Once I saw his pale face, I could tell he wasn't native, from the paleness and name, i'd judge he was from one of the eastern european areas, possibly Russia.
We sat down and he pushed a drink aross the table "Before business, we drink." Taking the shot glass, I nodded cheers and pulled down my rebreather to take a drink. "Gods, you really are as bad off as I was told." "yes, lab accident, and a few weeks lost at sea without my medication did not help matters, so, let's get to the point, you have the item?"
Nikolai grinned as he pulled a copper and glass cylinder from his robe. "Yes, it is here and safe, my employer did not trust sending it to Babbage, too many things get lost in Bump."
"Your employer could have sent it by airship, we do have a few docking stations you know."
"He does not trust air travel either."
Thinking back on the various crashes I, or friends of mine had experienced, I could understand."
"very well, so the amount agreed, 45,000 Steeltopia calams."
Nikolai frowned, "I was told 55,000..."
"fine, here." I tossed the bundle of bills on the table and snatched the container from his hand.
"It was a pleasure doing business with you Mr. Footman." Nikolai got up and without saying another word, took the money and left. I finished my drink, looking at the container. It was a smallish glass vial capped on both ends by copper, with a small copper valve on one end. The vial itself was filled with a clear liquid, the important part though, was the small peice f faintly glowing flesh suspended in the liquid.
There's legends in New Babbage, mostly discounted by skeptics, despite the evidence found to support it. The old Empire New Babbage was built on the remains of, had powered many of their devices, not by steam, gas, or aetheric electricity, but through the aid of a creature reffered to as a 'cloud angel'. Then, whatever happened to cause the fall of the Old Empire, the magical dead zone in old quarter, and the 'clockhaven effect' that causes magical effects to either go wrong, or not work at all unless mechanically aided, these cloud angels stopped helping the old empire, and mostly dissappeared aside from occasional sightings over time.
The finding of old machinery with no apparant power source supports this.
I had preformed experiments in the past, attempting to harness other magical beings as a source of power, but fairies are hard to come by in Babbage, and the introduction of 'Reality Enforcement Devices" had caused an uproar among the magical based species in the city I didn't want to get embroiled in. I had attempted to redirect my research into ghosts, after my attempts at communication with an engineer at that time failed, and the incident with the SLenderman caused the development of the aetheric containment units. But that research hit a dead end when I found that rather than being magical themselves, ghosts aparantly just utilize the aetheric energy around them to manifest, and interact in the world of the living, wether magic, electric, or kinetic. (wich explains the ones seen in Clockhaven.)
And so, the sample of Cloud Angel cells that brought me to Cala Mondrago.
The cargo zepplin would have left by now to the Antarctic colonies, I would have to wait for the next one to New Babbage to rerout this way. So I took in the sights of the desert city.
The first thing on the agenda, there was a river flowing through it, and I had my pole, so some fishing was in order. I caught a few new species of fish to add to my aquarium at home after a few hours and so packed it in and went to be a tourist.
I could see both Steelhead and the Baron's people had set up a presence here, and Babbage itself seemed to have a small unserwater dome off the coast. Otherwise it doesn't seem that the culture is that impacted with the other steamlands. much of it still looked like I assume it would a few hundred years ago. But there were a few signs of technology, including a power plant, and moving pictures theatre. Magic seems much more common here as well, as there were a few proclaiming themselves to be djinn, or genies, more study would have to be taken.
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