Legend of Ransera

Reiner Dornkirk's head was still spinning from the insanity of the past two days. Granted, he'd shared his first taste of Gelerian schnapps with Eitan, and the air was lighter up here, plus the oxygen was sharing space in his lungs with the copious amounts of nicotine as he chain smoked his way through a terrifying, glorious day. But none that was the main source of his mental haze. It was that his humble, little life had just turned epic overnight. He'd met Captain Eitan Angevin and His Lordship, the Chief Science Minister of the Zaichaeri State. Sure, that state was in shambles and none of these ranks or titles meant what they had a season ago, but they meant a damn lot to Reiner Dornkirk.

He was finishing up yet another cigarette and looking out over the edge of the Windworld his cousin Stefan had created, as the young private who'd led him to the ceremony approached.

"Private Kämpfer!" Hazel eyes lit up, "Good to see you, man. Dienerin said you were going to snag me and set me up with a place to bunk somewhere?" He grinned broadly, "Looks like I'll be stickin' around for a while, brass willing." He noted, as he dropped the butt of his ciggy and stomped out the last dying embers.

"I'll just need to grab that duffel bag I left on the ship, and then we should be good to go." He started to step, but then hesitated, realizing he didn't remember where they'd come from. He'd been so focused on any number of other things, that he hadn't really paid much attention to the route down which he'd been led. That had been when he'd thought this was a long weekend. Now that it was an indefinite trip, he'd need to get the lay of the land.

"Uh... where's the ship, again?"

Reiner chuckled, shaking his head.

"I'm sure whatever it is'll be better than what I'm used to. Besides..." He put his hands on his hips and leaned backward to stretch his spine. "Last thing I'd want to do is get on some colonel's shit list because I got the cushy private suite. I got to bunk in one of those last night, and man oh man! I think if I got used to that I'd go softer than a Druskai's cunt." He wrinkled his nose,

"Which is to say I'm one of the-... Er, well I'm the last surviving Dornkirk black sheep. I'm about as fancy as canned ham. Grew up on the edge of the Grungeworks, where did you come up?" He nodded, and stepped alongside the airman.

"Ahh, I should have expected they'd take care of my stuff. The pidges can blast our city to shit with Dread Mists, but they can't take away that good, Zaichaeri efficiency." Reiner furrowed his brow at the mention of 'the Hall', recalling what Stefan had said before he was pulled away.

"The Hall? Is that the, um... White Night hall or whatever?" He gestured in the direction Stefan had gone with his thumb, "My cousin mentioned that. What is it, anyhow?" Lacking context, the notion of jealousy didn't even occur to Reiner.

He snickered heartily at the characterization of Dienerin. He hadn't known the man long, but he very much picked up what the other private was putting down even with so little interaction.

"Kuno it is! Pleased to meet you. Reiner, here. Some people call me Rein, but they're just as often lazy as friendly." He looked around and bit his lip, considering his options.

"Brass? Ha, ugh. I'm copper at best. But as far as plans go, I mean... Honestly, I'd love to get changed out of the, um... regalia." It was a bitch to clean, and he so rarely needed to wear his dress blacks that the shoes were barely broken in. His feet were killing him, after standing throughout the whole ceremony and then taking the walk with Stefan.

"Beyond that, a drink sounds awful nice. I already had one with Captain Angevin, and I hate to stop once I've started. Whether we land at a bar or pick up some bottles on the way back, I'm game for whatever."

"Fuck..." Reiner was taken aback that so much of the brass had been taken out- Even up here in this ivory tower in the clouds. This definitely seemed like the sort of set-up the Old Guard would have weaseled their way onto, and yet it seemed good old Dornkirk ingenuity had worked it out without them. He didn't know his cousin well, but he'd have wagered it was a conscious choice to prioritize useful, hard laborers over posh, pampered people who'd drain more resources than they replenished.

"Well, if anyone could keep a ship this size ship shape, it's Stefan." He said with unearned confidence about the man he'd just met for the first time in his life within the hour.

"I remember, I remember." Reiner held up both hands, as if in self-defense. "I'm just reminding myself by saying it out loud, because I still feel like I'm in a dream. I woke up in the rubble yesterday, and went to bed in silk. Sorry." He shook his head, and looked away. "Not to brag. I'm just reeling, over here." He chuckled and glanced back up and over to the other private.

"I wasn't even tired when I laid down! The bed just consumed me... Swallowed me right up. Probably some top secret technology they were testing out to cripple the enemy with comfort." Just thinking about it made him yawn. But Kuno's answer was enough to perk him right up with the excitement of familiarity.

"Ahh, one of the Smokefolk! I know the Smoke Stack very, very well. I was kind of on the border there, on Pfelzer Lane?" There wasn't much actual housing in the Grungeworks proper, but his family lived close enough that he felt somehow more accurate using that descriptor. Most in his neighborhood had.

"How old are you? We probably know some of the same people." He suggested, taking Kuno's cue and pulling out his own pack to join him for another smoke. He didn't need much excuse, but he was running low now. It was a consolation to know his bunkmate had the habit, too, so he'd know where to score reinforcements.

"Got a light? Mine's kaputt." Reiner's eyes followed Kuno's gesture, to regard White Knight Hall looming across the way. "Oh, wow..." He squinted a bit, as it seemed to gleam with a heavenly luster as if lit from behind with a celestial halo. At least to Reiner it looked that way, but he was used to greyer skies.

"What? He is my cousin!" The ZDC Private chortled, returning the firm handshake and nodding although he paused and sighed at the playful honorific. "Please! The actual Lord Dornkirk wouldn't even let me call him that, so I'm certainly not gonna stand for it outta you! Just... call me Reiner. Or, y'know... 'Private', if Dienerin is eavesdropping." He did have to wrinkle his nose bashfully at the next question.

"Actually, yes? I got invited to the, uh... 'The Hall' before Ste-... before my cousin was pulled away." It may have been all right to call Stefan by his given name when it was just the two of him, but it felt like he ought to be accorded more respect in third person than in second. But 'His Lordship' felt awkward, so he just settled on 'my cousin' because it was neutral as it was accurate.

"I was on the Northern Front waiting for the pidge invasion when the blitz hit the heart of Zaichaer. Whatever beer they have up here is gonna be manna from the heavens next to the piss they served at Camp Siegfried." He jogged up the steps after Kuno, finishing up his cigarette as he unlocked the door. He stepped inside, and looked around with a smile.

"See? This'll do just fine. Big as the house I grew up in." He exaggerated, only belatedly noticing the sleeping situation. "One bed, huh?" He took in a sigh, feigning deep discomfort as he found the nearest ash tray and snubbed out his butt.

"Then I guess it's a good thing you're takin' me out for a drink, first, huh?" He winked, and grinned impishly as he unbuttoned his jacket and took a seat on the edge of the bed, to unlace his shiny, patent leather shoes.

"Ah, you're an old man." The twenty-two year old replied, sucking in his teeth.

“I’m a Steel Centennial boy, myself.” Reiner felt like his head was in the figurative clouds since he'd been up here amongst the literal ones. It was nice to have a bit of grounding with someone from the old neighborhood, even as they both floated far above terra firma. He happily engaged with a bit of nostalgic discourse, and did his utmost to steer away from the reality that those days were never to be seen again for them or for the children of today or hereafter.

"I know, I know. Fancy!" Reiner chuckled, leaning in to whisper, "Truth is: I don't even like tea." He laughed a bit louder, "The only reason I even drink coffee is to wake me up in the morning. Not for the taste. Tea is just like hot salad water to me. But if you tell Dienerin or anyone else, I will choke you out and toss you over the edge of the... What do you even call a flying island? A Flyland?" He winced a bit at the portmanteau and shook his head, apologetically.

Reiner undressed rather meticulously. He hadn't been so ceremonious in his disrobing earlier, though that had only been a pair of briefs and a single sock, but with his dress uniform he took great pains to keep everything neat. The shoes were carefully unlaced to the point where he could pull them off without stretching the patent leather, then placed aside. He stood to remove and fold his jacket, followed by his shirt and slacks. With everything nice and tidy, he packed placed those items beside his duffel bag as he sought out something more casual to wear.

"Do you think I could borrow a jacket? I didn't know where I was going or how much cooler it would be up here when I packed."

Now that he was down to his undergarments, he took less care with the removal, pulling his undershirt over his head and replacing it with a fresh tank top. He pulled on a standard issue work shirt, leaving it unbuttoned as he sat back down to replace his black socks with army green ones to match the top. With matching trousers the ensemble was nearly complete. Finally came the boots.

Still seated on the bed, he looked up, brow furrowed as Kuno shared a more sensitive bit of his personal story than they'd really broached. He offered a warm, crooked smile.

"It's good to know he's done so much for you and all these people here. For all of Zaichaer, really. It's so weird that you've known him longer than I have..." He mused. Now it was Reiner's turn to be a bit jealous.

"Anyway." He dismissed it, "I'm ready when you are."

Reiner laughed at the threat,

"I'm telling you, Kuno! I'll choke you out and it's right off the edge of the New World you go! You're Smokefolk, you know us grungers don't do blackmail- Just black lung!" Maybe that was why they were both drawn to cigarettes. Having grown up around the smokestacks and flurries of ash, it just made them feel more at home.

"Uhh..." He held his hands out to either side and looked down at himself. It was a uniform, wasn't it? It was so casual at this point that he didn't really think anything of it. "I can... leave the shirt unbuttoned? I don't know. Will people be weirded out? I don't really care if they know I'm ZDC. It's not like it's anything to be ashamed of, whatever they may tell you when you're crammed on those floating sardine cans, flyboy." But Kuno was already finding him a replacement so, sighing, he obliged.

"I'm wearing my own boots, though." He could stand his ground on that, at least, as he slipped out of his shirt and tank top, replacing it with what the other private had on offer. He had to slip out of his boots to change pants, but these boots were more well worn than those dress shoes and he tended to wear them looser when he wasn't in a combat situation. He tugged his boots back on without bothering to sit this time, and finally slid the jacket over his arms.

"I don't think it will surprise you to learn that I'm no stranger to hand-me-downs?" He offered snarkily, rolling his neck and stepping back over to the door from whence he'd been ready to depart minutes ago.

Such as things were, Reiner didn't think to question the motives of his new roommate. He figured seeing a lone ZDC man in uniform might make people think about all the others trapped down on the ground, while they floated in safety above. He definitely didn't want to make anyone feel bad with unwelcome reminders. when they were all going to be out drinking to forget their sorrows.

He sort of ducked his head awkwardly, looking ever so slightly confused as the cap was placed on his head for him.

"Uh... thanks!" He shook it off and smiled brightly, "Yeah, I'm pretty low on smokes. I was just tryin' to be coy, so you wouldn't think I was a total fiend." He gestured for Kuno to lead on,

"Oh, um... Do you think my dress uniform would be all right to wear to tea tomorrow? Otherwise, I... might need your help again." A crooked, apologetic frown followed the vulnerable admission.