I first got interested in Steampunk about five years ago. In 2009 I spent my New

Year’s Eve at The Edison in LA. The Steampunk band, Abney Park was performing

that night and when I arrived I got to meet the lead singer Captain Robert. It was an

amazing concert and I have since become a huge fan of all Abney Park’s music.

Based in Seattle, the band’s name came from Abney Park Cemetery in London.

Originally a goth band, they have transformed and become the quintessential

steampunk band. For their transition into the steampunk world, Abney Park created

a back story that involved a plane they were on, colliding with a time travelling

dirigible called The Ophelia. The band commandeered this vessel and decided to

become Airship Pirates.

http://www.abneypark.com/

So worth a listen if you haven’t heard them before !

As the sun rose there was a rare sight on the horizon. It was an airship. At first the vessel resembled an elaborate cloud formation scudding as clouds do, but slower and with more purpose to its movement.

Jebediah saw the ship breach the horizon as he tended to his crops. He dropped his rudimentary tools with which he had been tending his field and ran with haste back to the small homestead he had built, that he shared with his wife and daughter.

Unaccustomed to his early arrival home the women stepped out from their home, stopping their household tasks, and ran to Jebediah.

Jebediah, his wife Elizabeth and their daughter Emma watched as the airship circled and descended slowly. It gracefully drifted from the sky, landing in a billow of dust, on a flat field just north of the homestead.

Following slowly

behind Jebediah,

despite his warning to

stay back, Emma

watched the huge

vessel with

fascination.

As they got closer, they saw the door open and out stepped a young man, having no obvious weapons, his hands in the air and a smile on his face. The stranger stood and in a clear voice explained his name was Irec. He was a traveller to these parts, along with his small crew and they sought nothing more than the hospitality they had heard spoken of at these far out posts.

In the early hours long after Emma and Elizabeth had retired to bed, the travellers thanked their host and returned to their airship for the night. Jebediah stayed a little while.

Suspicious but encouraged by his wife and the doe eyed Emma, Jebediah welcomed the

travellers. The women cooked a meal and they sat around an outdoor fire. From within the

magnificent airship the traveller brought out a generous supply of liquor and for the women small

trinkets and baubles that made Emma squeal in delight.

It wasn’t until the morning as the

airship became nothing more than a small speck in the distant sky, did Jebediah suddenly understand what had happened, and it wasn't until Jebediah called the name of his beloved daughter, Emma, that his greatest fears were realised. It was many weeks later that

Emma’s body was found in a

distant field discarded and alone.

It was Sebastian that had explained this mission involved another dimension that had sent out a distress signal that had been heard beyond time and space. Seren looked at the pictographic images carved on a small scroll of unknown origin. The story told on the scroll was obvious and sad and Seren turned the scroll hoping to learn more about its heritage.

Seren used the CDer and teleported to the outskirts of the small farm, her clothing already appropriate for this unusual place. A cover story revolving around her being a long, lost niece of Jebediah's wife. On the day of the airship arrival she was up early and waiting in the field she knew the ship would arrive in.

Seren smiled coyly and the Airship Pirate offered his arm. She allowed him to lead her into the small town where the women would make a feast. Seren and Jebediah had told the town a story about the airship and its pirates. The close knit community, under Jebediahs guidance, had agreed to assist in the plan they had devised.

As the night proceeded Seren boldly whispered into Irecs ear that she would love to see the inside of the airship. He smiled and led her by her gloved hand to the gilded steps that led into the large airship. He wound the ivory handle of a small gramophone and took her by the hand leading her into an elaborate dance.

Seren spoke of the view and her desire to travel from the small town, at which point, Irec smiled indulgently at her and explained she was free to come aboard and travel with them, in her own berth of course.

She agreed that she would like that and took leave to grab her belongings, meeting him back at the ship just as the hiss of steam escaped the engine. She took Irecs arm and looked from the window as the mammoth airship lifted from the ground.

The flight proceeded well as the airship drifted smoothly through the clear skies. It was not until that night that Seren was disturbed by a knock at her cabin door and then Irec attacked her.

Seren was prepared and

using a small tazer from

her bag, incapacitated the

vicious Irec, now well

aware of the fate of poor

Emma in a different place

and time.

She set the timer on a small explosive device and ran to the deck, parachuting from the airship and landing in a deserted field, in time to watch the airship shudder and then catch fire. She could see several makeshift parachutes plummeting from the sky.

When she had arrived back home Sebastian showed her another scroll, it had a picture of a young woman holding a child. Emma had gone on to marry and live a happy life.

Using the CDer Seren travelled

back to her own place and

time.