Garbage bags actually would potentially be a neat gift, due to being lightweight and watertight. We should check out supplies in general though, to see what we have.
What determines whether an object is better or worse at trapping spirits?

Hella lame? Dude, it's MAGIC! Plus, this is good for pranks on your friends and subtly pointing out people who don't want to be noticed.

>But your feasts host, Knight Sine. Could command the short one to release me.
Not that I have a problem with helping the kid, or opposing what amounts to slavery, but we have to be careful about asking for favors like that if we don't have something ready to offer in return. We're already depending on their hospitality. Push our luck and we go from nice foreigners we hope will share stuff from us to mean foreigners you lock up and take things from.

Especially since we're going to need to secure a sound of fuel, and since anyone in a position of power (especially military power like a knight) is going to pretty quickly start imagining the ways a flying machine could be useful.

tl;dr- this is a delicate situation, and we have to be careful not to demand too much too fast unless we think we can get away with it.

>we have to be careful about asking for favors like that if we don't have something ready to offer in return.
Well of course we can't just ask them to hand over their magic kid on a leash; what we should try for is trading some suitable item or bit of out-world knowledge for his freedom. Ideally this would be an item* that would be useful or impressive to them but less useful to us; asking Aara and Oira seems likely to help determine what might work for that.

* Out-world tech knowledge has no immediate cost to give, but I am not sure how much our characters have and in some cases it might be irresponsible in the long run to hand out the wrong sort info.

Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/05/30(Fri)16:32 No. 576541 ID: 20208d
File 140149277269.png - (257.96KB , 800x666 , 121.png )

You will test your spell on your squaddies when you see them again.

"Can this spell be whispered?"

>"Yes and spells usually work better on unsuspecting people."

"How does trapping spirits work? What would be the best object for trapping one?"

>"The object must have an 'inside' space, like a box or a barrel or a room. Spirits hate metal so the container usually is made of metal."


You get inside the chopper and start digging through the cargo with Aara and Oira.

Oira marvels at the "high quality paper and clear mirror" inside a notebook, Aara plays around with a flashlight. You go through the cargo list.

Belts, Binoculars, Blankets, Boots, Caps, Compasses, Duct tape, Lights, Folding chairs, Foam rollers, Garbage bags, Knives, MEG's, MRE's, Notebooks, Rope (nylon), Sleeping pads. Multiple counts of everything.

Oira says that the bigger the gift is the better impression it will make. And food is not considered suitable for gifting.

>>576541
Binoculars or a flashlight sound good, but those flashlights are irreplaceable, at least until we can jury rig a hand-cranked or water-powered electric generator.

Things to ask for more about the impressiveness of are the flashlight (we can't currently replace them, but we should have quite a few due to this being a cargo copter), the binoculars, the knives, maybe the compass though they probably have those. At some point we should also gather the crew to take stock of what useful science or engineering knowledge anybody might have to potentially trade.

About spirit trapping, I wounder if a battery would work to trap one in. Are spirits intelligent, animal-like, or some of each?

Huh, hang on, ask if a flashlight would be perceived as being powered by a spirit.

the knives would be nice, they are probably good steel compared to what they have.

>The object must have an 'inside' space, like a box or a barrel or a room. Spirits hate metal so the container usually is made of metal
...do we have aluminum foil? Aluminum was rarer and more valuable than gold before chemistry made it cheap. And there's the added bonus that it could make anything into a spirit trap.

>flashlight
Biggest drawback of that kind of gift is the eventual backlash when the batteries die.

Frankly, the notebooks are probably ONLY useful as a high-quality trading material. They're the perfect gift, because we have no use for them but the natives probably have nothing better than parchment. At best parchment half the quality of the paper in the notebooks we have. Giving away anything else is a bad idea because all the other things have practical use for us.

Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/05/31(Sat)13:38 No. 576653 ID: 20208d
File 140156870782.png - (198.49KB , 800x630 , 122.png )

Sadly you there isn't any aluminum foil in the chopper. You ask more about spirits, are they intelligent? And would people think the flashlights is powered by spirits.

>"Spirits are like mortals in some ways. Some of them are smart and others dumb, some are good and some are evil. The envoys will definitely bring someone who can see magic when they meet you so they will know what is magical and what is not."

"I was thinking of gifting a flashlight but it will eventually lose power and won't make light anymore."

>"Well that's just life. Torches will burn out, lanterns run out of oil, and the sun sets. Anything that makes light will go dark eventually."

You ask Oira if the notebook, knives, binoculars, flashlight and compass would make a good gift.

>"Definitely gift the notebook and these 'binoculars.' Glass lenses and mirrors are really expensive and good quality paper is valuable, even if our host can't write. Flashlight and compass and anything else you can spare would be favorable, but i have to tell you a thing about gifting tools. Gifting knives to a knight would be acceptable but gifting any tools to other nobles would be an insult since they are above manual labor."

Ok, so we know what things would probably make good gifts now. The other thing to factor into this is whether these gifts would be enough to get Knight Sine to sent Aara with us, or if we should come up with something more to offer for that (maybe a bit of knowledge).

>Anything that makes light will go dark eventually.
Yep, and if we have an estimate on how long these would last that could count as a selling point ("This scepter contains within it more than [time] of stored light.")

does anyone know how to whittle? and do the knives have a hollow handle? if they have a hollow metal handle it could be good as a spirit fighting thing. while whittling with a small knife could just be shown as a hobby thing.

Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/01(Sun)09:24 No. 576735 ID: 20208d
File 140163984372.png - (210.95KB , 800x666 , 123.png )

The knives have hollow handles to store small survival items, of course most people store smokes inside them. You could start carrying one of the knives with you should you suddenly need to 'whittle' someone.

The flashlights have a battery life of 20 hours.

You ask Aara if these gifts would be enough to get him sent with you.

>"I have never met this man so i can't tell. Still these fine gifts will surely make an impression."

Currently you are thinking of gifting a knife, binoculars, a compass, a flashlight and a notebook. All delivered inside a garbage bag lightweight, watertight "black gold" bag.

Sounds good. Carry on then.

don't say anything about the gifts before we know what kind of noble it is.

1/3 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/07(Sat)17:33 No. 577639 ID: e6f437
File 140218759010.png - (227.02KB , 800x666 , 124.png )

You pack the gifts and head back to your crew.

>"...Don't know what they are called in our world. So you could hire a crier to walk in front of you to shout 'make way, real gangsta coming through!'"

Hugo:
>"Welcome back captain, the servant has been hovering about at the door so i think the feast is ready."

Your men seem buzzed but none are apparently drunk.

It's time to use 'that.' You ask your men to gather around.

2/3 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/07(Sat)17:33 No. 577640 ID: e6f437
File 140218762252.png - (198.39KB , 800x666 , 125.png )

You tap your elbow and nose and then point at your men and say the magic word.

3/3 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/07(Sat)17:34 No. 577641 ID: e6f437
File 140218767840.png - (218.44KB , 800x666 , 126.png )

4x:
>"ATCHOO!"

It actually worked, guess you are a wizard now.

Your crew wants to know how did you do that and demands that you teach it to them too.

laugh a little. and say it's just repeating what you did, elbow, nose, magic word. now let's eat.

Haha, show them how to be wizards too.

Teach them the spell and file away the option to stage a mass sneezing assault.

>>577641
Haha sure, teach them the trick. Then tell them in a stern voice that with great power comes great responsibility, and they should never use their magic powers for evil.

1/2 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/08(Sun)10:09 No. 577730 ID: e6f437
File 140224736651.png - (283.15KB , 800x571 , 127.png )

You agree to teach your crew the spell, but only after having them promise that they won't use their newfound power for evil. With power comes responsibility.
Then you show them that all they need to do is mimic what you did and BAM, they are wizards.

You start following the servant at the door, your crew tries their new spell on each other but like Aara said, if you know the spell you can resist it.

You are led to a dining room and seated.

2/2 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/08(Sun)10:10 No. 577731 ID: e6f437
File 140224744314.png - (270.86KB , 1000x619 , 128.png )

There is a bowl of hot water in front of everyone and eating utensils are a knife and a spoon, the food presented seems to consist of pastries, soups and fish. And for drinks there is beer or wine.

Noah:
>"So are we allowed to put our elbows on the table?"

Nathan:
>"This reminds me of a vacation to the south. It would probably be best if we only eat hot food."

Jeff:
>"Or we could eat some MRE's afterwards, have the dyschezia even out the diarrhea."

No one else has showed up but Oira and Aara are starting to dine so you guess it's fine to start?

>>577731
Ask Aara if it's alright before digging in. The last thing you need is for everyone to walk in and be shocked at the foreigners trying to eat before they're supposed to or something.

>>577732
Yeah, Oira seems more occupied with cleaning her fingers in the washbowl (nice to see they use that tradition) than eating, while Aara, who just had a bath, thinks he's already clean enough. Plus, he doesn't get much good food anyways, so it's possible he's forgetting or doesn't know his manners.

By the way, you should probably tell your team the other stuff you were told about magic, like how spells are normally kept kinda secret.

Uh, I think Oira's playing *taster* now. Always be suspicious of aristocratic people who like your stuff that serve you something they aren't eating: Poisoning in human history was a traditional part of politics and I can't see why it wouldn't be here.

1/3 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/11(Wed)08:47 No. 578172 ID: e6f437
File 140250166704.png - (186.73KB , 800x599 , 129.png )

"So is it alright to start eating now or do we have to wait for the host?"

>"Why would we have to wait? Eating is first come first served, letting the food get cold would be an insult to the cooks."

"What about table etiquette?"

>"Eti-what?"

I guess these people have yet to invent strict table manners.

2/3 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/11(Wed)08:48 No. 578173 ID: e6f437
File 140250170973.png - (122.10KB , 800x448 , 130.png )

You observe as Oira takes a careful sniff of the different foods and then proceeds to stuff her face. so the food must be safe to eat.

3/3 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/11(Wed)08:49 No. 578174 ID: e6f437
File 140250176673.png - (165.72KB , 800x666 , 131.png )

As you begin to dine you share everything that you learned about magic and how it should be kept down low with your crew.

Hugo:
>"Hate to ask this but just to be safe. What is our plan if things turn ugly?"

Well I guess it depends on how ugly. Minor stuff we try to smooth over and keep casualties to a minimum if possible.

Major issues though we can either try to run for it or try to take over this fortress. Neither are ideal in the least. If we want to keep our stuff running we need a source of fuel in the short term and parts in the long term. If we want to get back home we need to find out how we got here and if anyone knows about any other portals.

Do not say the part about taking over the fortress out loud.

Well, our guns are better than theirs. If things get really bad we can probably just shoot our way out. Our rifles can even penetrate their armor, I bet.

However, if it just looks like things are taking a turn for the worse we can explain just how good our guns are, and they might back off and let us leave without bloodshed.

Pause to let everyone "Geht to dah choppah!" in sync, before elaborating.

I don't think taking over a fortress you are unfamiliar with is even feasible with only 5 men, no matter how comparatively well armed you are.
The only thing keeping from just up and running is Aara's statue-proximity thing. We can't bug out without him, but if things turn REALLY nasty we can grab him, do a quick hop above the city, and rain a little firepower on them while orbiting very closely, and land again. Try to aim for the centre of the courtyard (minimal casualties, and clears the LZ). Showing that you can beat them down with impunity and threatening to do it to the rest of the town if Aara's statue isn't provided should be a last-resort bargaining chip before moving to another town and starting negotiations again.

1/5 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/16(Mon)16:14 No. 578876 ID: e6f437
File 140296048389.png - (171.96KB , 800x666 , 132.png )

You go over some plans with your crew being careful about what you say out loud and using as much military jargon as possible.

You eventually conclude that if things go south you should hop on the chopper and run away while avoiding casualties as much as possible. Getting Aara with you would be a bonus but the statue-bind thing would have to be solved first. You could try intimidation since you possess powerful weaponry.

You dine in peace and eventually the servants start clearing the table. The door on the right opens and a voice announces something.

>"Here comes our host and the envoys." Aara translates.

2/5 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/16(Mon)16:15 No. 578877 ID: e6f437
File 140296050835.png - (114.10KB , 800x666 , 133.png )

Aara:
>"The tall one is Knight Sine and the short one is Cleric Cosine"

3/5 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/16(Mon)16:15 No. 578878 ID: e6f437
File 140296055896.png - (176.83KB , 800x666 , 134.png )

Aara:
>"These are the envoys of Hermes. Insi the builder, Leo of Rapla and Seer Okko."

Oh there is still someone coming...

4/5 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/16(Mon)16:16 No. 578879 ID: e6f437
File 140296058669.png - (133.15KB , 800x497 , 135.png )

>"Honored guests forgive us for being late, we had to go and see your magnificent flying ship before we came to meet you."

5/5 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/16(Mon)16:16 No. 578880 ID: e6f437
File 140296061503.png - (112.91KB , 800x800 , 136.png )

>"I am Tin. I will act as a translator in these talks so please, how may i serve?

It's a man made out of metal.

"i mean no offense but what are you?"

That is a spirit trapped in a metal container the shape of a man.

Maybe there is a tiny guy running it from the crotch.

You've got the Naki, the lions, grayskins and whiteskins, even a couple of guys named Sine and Cosine... And the one you're throwing a Tangent over is the man of steel? They already mentioned that Spirits can be bound to metal, it's not such a stretch to imagine a hollow humanoid statue housing a spirit--Besides, with spells to banish spirits and spells to imprison them, I'm quite certain there must be spells to control them or to even "convert" them.

Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/17(Tue)15:51 No. 579029 ID: e6f437
File 140304549695.png - (135.98KB , 800x609 , 137.png )

>Throwing tangents.

Hey everyone else might have been weird so far but at least they have been organic. This metal man moves with a eerie slowness and its voice is coming from inside its chest. Plus it is almost two meters tall and jacked.
You dare not even imagine what lies under its breeches.

"No offense but what are you? A spirit in a container?"

>"That is correct i am the spirit of tin occupying this body, which is naturally made out of tin. I was Created in the likeness of my master Hermes the Greatest and i am a walking testament of his mastery over the transmutation of metals. Now i work as one of his envoys here in the south."

>"Ah but i find myself prattling again. Since we are all bursting with questions i suggest that first one side asks three questions and then the other side asks three questions. Since you are the quests you should asks first, and that question about little old me need not count. Everyone is always surprised when they see me at first and i have tried wearing masks or paint but none have been adequate."

>"Oh damn i am babbling now. Please ask your questions."

hmm... how about the structure of nobility and who the people across the table are.

We know who they are. Remember we need to ask questions that a noble would ask.

Okay we know we can't ask about magic. How about we ask how their country is doing? What would they ask in return for permission to take the statue Aara is bound to? Lastly, ask if they have any messages they'd like for us to pass on to our home country.

...oh shit we should've asked about the current state in the country we're supposed to be from. We have almost no information that lets us properly impersonate them!

>>579050
Well, any time they ask you about your country, wave it off to Oira. She already knows your secret, and she also knows the Whiteskins. She'll be able to bluff her way through the questions.

Let's avoid asking about the statue so early on. Ask about the state of the country, wars, and trades. If their answers bring up the whiteskins or the Naki, you can ask them afterwards if they want any messages brought over--Or at least leave it as a suggestion.

Try and get everybody in good spirits, and then maybe bring up the efficiency of having a translator. At that point, you could easily continue the compliment into asking if Aara could come with you. Let's keep it a secret that we know about the statue.

>>579057
Directing questions to Oira makes some sense considering she's supposed to be our liason.

1/2 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/20(Fri)19:30 No. 579726 ID: 38fe63
File 140331780653.png - (179.11KB , 800x587 , 138.png )

You ask about the country's nobility, wars and trade.

>"The nobles are a collection feudal lords who own most of the land and are all subjects to the Grand Prince Ellipt whom rules from the capital."

>"We are currently living in a prosperous time of peace, there hasn't been a real war in decades. There are of course pirates in the new sea and occasional raids in the north but they are to be expected."

>"With peace comes commerce, trade is flourishing both here in the south and in the west."

>"Now for our questions. Who are you? Where do you hail from and who do you serve?"

You deftly slide the questions over to your liason.

2/2 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/20(Fri)19:30 No. 579727 ID: 38fe63
File 140331785004.png - (286.53KB , 800x666 , 139.png )

Oira starts spinning some bullshit story about your group and it seem to satisfy the the envoys.

Seems like it is your sides time to ask questions again. Should you ask about Aara now or try to lighten the mood first?

>>579726
Is... Leo fliting with Oira?
Well, that's not so important. What is is Sine and Cosine. Cosine looks like he's growing easier, but Sine looks... Well, suspicious, I guess would be the word, of you.

Hmm, I'd probably try to lighten the mood, first.

Also, FYI, I believe it would be "who rules from the capital", rather than "whom", as "who" is for the subject and "whom" is for the object.

1/4 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/23(Mon)18:47 No. 580456 ID: e6f437
File 140357447202.png - (395.64KB , 800x666 , 140.png )

>Leo flirting with Oira?

Actually that Leo guy is looking over Oira at me but i don't think he is actually flirt... Except now he saw me looking and is winking at me, time to do something before this gets awkward.

After announcing that the questions can wait for now, i offer the bag of gifts to the host.


>>579767
That is what i get when i go by ear and don't check.

2/4 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/23(Mon)18:48 No. 580457 ID: e6f437
File 140357451624.png - (413.68KB , 800x666 , 141.png )

The gifts seem to impress the host and the envoys, they all take turns marveling at the flashlight and feeling the plastic garbage bag. I try hyping the gifts even more by telling that the plastic objects are refined from 'black gold' and they are waterproof.

The mood has lightened up a little but still feels a bit formal. Maybe i should ask for more drinks.

>"Mister Tin man, sir?"

Speaking of drinking.

3/4 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/23(Mon)18:49 No. 580458 ID: e6f437
File 140357459010.png - (208.59KB , 600x525 , 142.png )

Noah is a lightweight and currently seems closer to drunk than tipsy.

Noah
>"I heard you talking about your face problem and i must admit that the lack of face is off-putting. But i have a solution called a marker. It is a pen that can draw on any surface and can be wiped off with water. So i want to gift this pen to you, but only if i can first draw you a face."

Tin
>"You people keep amazing us with these truly marvelous items, i would gladly do anything to make you more at ease. And will gladly accept that pen if you dare part with it."

Noah
>"Yeah sure we have like, thousand of these things."

4/4 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/23(Mon)18:50 No. 580459 ID: e6f437
File 140357464910.png - (30.46KB , 800x666 , 143.png )

Help Noah draw tin man a face.

Suggestion 2014/06/23(Mon)20:01 No. 580490 ID: 189a54
File 140357890784.jpg - (10.55KB , 200x167 , in every situation.jpg )

>>580459
A charismatic face, decorated with the war paint of our people's most famous hero.

just give him a black suit, a red tie, and paint his head pure white.

>>580494
I'm fairly certain we're limited to black.

Archivemode 2014/06/24(Tue)00:10 No. 580622 ID: e1609c
File 140359381353.jpg - (2.14KB , 200x167 , of course it was inevitable.jpg )

>>580459
Onlly the SWEePTEST of fayces..... for the facny man......

Suggestion 2014/06/24(Tue)00:11 No. 580623 ID: 2fd516
File 140359389875.png - (39.92KB , 800x666 , fakenose.png )

The perfect disguise.

Suggestion 2014/06/24(Tue)00:18 No. 580625 ID: 2fd516
File 140359431697.png - (48.66KB , 800x666 , yaranaika.png )

Maybe he shouldn't do this.

Suggestion 2014/06/24(Tue)00:23 No. 580630 ID: 2fd516
File 140359461282.png - (36.03KB , 800x666 , CAI.png )

The face of tragedy.

Suggestion 2014/06/24(Tue)00:44 No. 580632 ID: 2fd516
File 140359585974.png - (38.36KB , 800x666 , kawaii.png )

Uguuu

Is...there gonna be a single real suggestion? I would submit one but I can't art at all. I'd suggest an extremely simple face
>>580630
Like this one. but instead of the grin there, a normalish smile with a slight smirk.

>>580633
Actually, that was the CAI face from Asteroidquest. I only learned about it recently but it's =] and apparently shows up all the time.

Make it more of a :^) and I'll be happy with it myself.

Suggestion 2014/06/24(Tue)00:58 No. 580639 ID: 2fd516
File 140359672859.png - (36.95KB , 800x666 , smiley.png )

>>580638
If you say so.

Suggestion 2014/06/24(Tue)13:44 No. 580749 ID: 65e647
File 140364264532.jpg - (10.51KB , 224x224 , theymad.jpg )

>>580459
The only choice.

Suggestion 2014/06/24(Tue)16:48 No. 580808 ID: 68bbc5
File 140365372243.png - (39.15KB , 800x666 , idealface.png )

It should be a face of confidence and good humor.

Suggestion 2014/06/26(Thu)16:10 No. 581341 ID: 4d1168
File 140382425239.png - (188.32KB , 800x633 , 144.png )

Tin now has a face, he says that it looks adequate.

Insi:
>"Mister Rider?"

The 'builder' guy speaks up for the first time.

Insi:
>"This might be out of turn and bad form but i must insist on getting some answers, these gifts that you gave to our host only fuel my curiosity."

>"One. How does your flying ship fly? Okko said that she saw nothing magical about it."

>"Two. Why have i never before heard even rumors of this 'plastic' or about flying ships?"

>"Three. You don't seem to be talking the same language as your liaison? Why is that?"

Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/06/26(Thu)16:12 No. 581342 ID: 4d1168
File 140382434185.png - (364.29KB , 800x666 , 145.png )

>"Four. What is that item on your belt? May i see it?"

This guy sure is curious, and now everyone else in the room seems interested in the answers too.

I had a good laugh at some of the faces.

hmm...
one, explain that you need to aska question of your own first to answer this, have they heard of aerodynamics? (if the word fails to translate, then probably not) next ask if they know how a bird flies. if they do you can work with that, even if not you amy be able to use the same explaination. each of the blades, the long thin things on top, are like wings, and instead of flapping they spin. to go up they spin faster, to go down they slow.

two and three "think one of your gods may have moved us from very very far away"

four, say when you were met outside the city gates one the guards with the uhh, short one, had a similar weapon, point and pull the trigger and it goes BANG. your weapon is a small one of those. then remove the ammo (and make sure none are chambered) and pass it over.

If you show him the gun make sure to unload it fully before you hand it over. Tell them is a cultural weapon that your military carries. Almost never used but needed for ceremony and such. You can say it's a symbol of your rank or something.

As for your ship tell him that the land you come from has a special sort of wizardry called science. Its based on learning and taming all the natural forces of nature. Unlike normal magic it takes many many generations of "scientists" working with "engineers" to master the art.

The not hearing about us I am not sure if we should say we are from another world or say the land we come from is so far away its unlikely that anyone would have ever heard of it. Maybe we could say that we were testing a new science to let us travel great distances.

The language difference you can explain by saying that your old liaison retired and she is the replacement. Maybe show him some military hand gestures and say you have several languages that she has not fully learned your spoken one yet.

>"One. How does your flying ship fly? Okko said that she saw nothing magical about it."

The propeller cuts through air, kind of like a screw or drill through wood on a much faster scale. That movement is basically powered by small explosions. If that sounds to dramatic, just say it's conventionally stored energy.

>"Two. Why have i never before heard even rumors of this 'plastic' or about flying ships?"

Tell him you're still figuring that out. You similarly have never heard of many things you've seen here.

>"Three. You don't seem to be talking the same language as your liaison? Why is that?"

I suppose this could be explained as short notice- she was the first person you encountered, and you needed someone who knew the lay of the land quickly.

>"Four. What is that item on your belt? May i see it?"

If you want to remove the magazine and clear the chamber, it should be safe enough to give it to him. If people are offended that you brought a weapon, apologize and explain that you sometimes forget it's there- It's usually not used, anyway.

I thought it was three questions?

Um. Wow, I think we're screwed... but let me give it a shot.

1. We can't tell you exactly how it works, as those are trade secrets- let's just say it operates somewhat on the same principle as a gun does- via controlled explosions.
2. They're new inventions. Part of the reason we arrived here is to see how they like them.
3. Let's let Oira answer this one, since it pertains to her.
4. Say it's a miniaturized rifle, but don't let him touch it or inspect it carefully. I think he would be able to tell very quickly that they don't have anywhere near the technology to make something like it on this world.

>"One. How does your flying ship fly? Okko said that she saw nothing magical about it."
Our ship is a device constructed by out metalworkers and scholars. It burns oil or alcohol for energy, which it uses to spin the blades on top with such force the air pushes it upwards like the wind pushes a ship's sails.

>"Two. Why have i never before heard even rumors of this 'plastic' or about flying ships?"
We were on a journey when we were suddenly above a different ocean. We suspect one of the local gods might have transported us here.

>"Four. What is that item on your belt? May i see it?"
On our belt is a weapon similar to the firearm one of the guards had earlier. It is a symbol of our status as warriors, though you may examine it. (I vote against unloading it before letting him look at it; he knows what a gun is and unloading it in front of him might be an insult and might also lead him to asking more about how it works without black powder which is the sort of information that is irresponsible to hand out.)

>"Three. You don't seem to be talking the same language as your liaison? Why is that?"
(Answer after question four:) We do not have translators such as Aara or Tin in our land. On that note, we would like to request the services of Aara as we continue our journey.

>>581368
If we're gonna let him handle it, which I disagree with, simply turning the safety on without him seeing would be fine. If it's not already on, anyway. Come to think of it, it should be on since it's holstered.

>>581341
1. That's a military secret, we can't talk or our superiors will have our heads. I'm sure the nobles will understand.
2. The vessel is a new invention. Nobody knows what the deal with the plastic items is, that's the whole reason why you were carrying them.
3. We were never supposed to go out this far; we got pushed around by a storm, causing us to get lost. We don't know much about this part of the world, so we hired a local to act as a liaison.
4. That is my gun. Please do not touch my gun.

One: You ever notice how quickly the steam rushes out of a steam kettle? The top of our craft spins quickly through pressurized air, sort of like steam. The metal "blades" are angled at such a way that they grab onto the air and push it down; once it's spinning fast enough, it pushes down hard enough to push us up.
Two: Black Gold can be rare in some regions, while very common in others. It is surprising that you have not heard of it, but I cannot be the one to answer the why, now can I? Personally, I would believe the rumors would be about.
Three: Circumstance caused our group to be without liaison. Although we do not speak the same language, Oira was more than willing to assist us and become our liaison.
Four: This is a firearm, or a gun. I did see some of the people of the town carrying some, although this one is much smaller. The difference in size does not make it any weaker, though; simply by shaping everything carefully, we achieve stronger shot in compact form. Making things smaller is what our nation tries to do--except for things like the flying ship, we like having those at a steady, reasonable size. I can show you the gun, yes, but I would have to hold onto the ammunition to it while you take a look, and hold the gun if you examine the bullets. Needless to say, in such a small size, it is easy to accidentally fire it off if it had the ammunition inside it.

>>581354
I don't like the idea of playing trickery on them, they might actually have science--they definitely do know of metallurgy.
>>581364
>I thought it was three questions?
We'll take advantage of the fourth question as our chance to ask about Aara. Specifically, "It must be quite convenient to always have a translator available. I don't want to impose too much, but this child does not seem to be much liked here, could he come with us as our personal translator?"
>>581357
>Tell him you're still figuring that out. You similarly have never heard of many things you've seen here.
Actually, I like this answer, too. Maybe a compromise? We'd think that people would be talking about the achievements of both your nation and this one.

1/4 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/07/01(Tue)12:24 No. 582293 ID: e6f437
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"What does aerodynamics mean to you?"

>"... nothing."

"Alright then, you know how birds fly by flapping their wings to push themselves up? The rotors on our airship work as wings, though they work by spinning and not flapping."

>"Rotors... You mean the oars on top of the airship? But what power makes them spin?"

Oars? Well i guess the rotor blades could be thought as oars.

"The ship is powered by an engine. And an engine is uhh... Well it's a machine that does labor by burning fuel like alcohol."

This seems to give the builder a pause but before he can come up with more questions i remove the magazine and clear the chamber on my sidearm and hand it over to him.

2/4 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/07/01(Tue)12:25 No. 582295 ID: e6f437
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"This is my weapon and a symbol of rank from where i am from. I actually saw a guard carrying a firearm when we first arrived and my weapon is similar to that except smaller."

>"Ah, so it's a pistol. Though i have never seen one like this before."

The builder seems to be absorbed in examining your gun and barely pays attention to my explanation about why they haven't heard about these new inventions before. But i make sure to mention that in the short time that i have been in this land i also have seen many new things.

3/4 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/07/01(Tue)12:26 No. 582297 ID: e6f437
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"One of the new things that i was amazed by was little Aara here. We don't have such useful translators where we are from and since he seems to be uh, unwanted. I would like to request that Aara come with me as a personal translator."

Knight Sine is delighted by your request while Clerc Cosine seems shocked by it and they quickly get into a heated argument. Tin apologizes and says that he feels it is best he does not translate what is being said.

4/4 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/07/01(Tue)12:27 No. 582298 ID: e6f437
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Insi eventually returns your sidearm.

>"I thank you for your answers and i have something i would like to give you."

He rummages through his pouches and finally produces two small drums.

>"These are translators of my own making, and since they have become mostly useless since Tin joined our group i would like to gift them to you. When you speak into one of the drums, whoever holds the other drum will understand your speech."

You take the drum, when you shake it you hear something rattling around inside it like small pebbles.

obviously we must use it to actually talk to Oira and communicate better than merely pantomimes and whatnot.

>>582298
Oh, are these powered by spirits? Tiny hollow metal balls inside the drums, perhaps?

It seems acceptable to try out the gifts, so go ahead and try it out with Oira.
Ask what range from each other the drums operate at.

As tempted as I am to try out the new translator with a good old-fashioned "What hath God wrought?", let's just ask Oira if she can understand what we're saying.

Note: I suspect this to be an attempt to avoid needing to give us Aara, because we can't really claim to need 2 translators. Not sure how to counter it, yet.

Well, actually, this is Insi doing this, while the other two argue. Still not sure how to maintain a need for Aara.

>>582417
for talking to groups. the drum can translate to one person, but what if we need to tell 10 people something at the same time?

>>582426
Likewise, having a translator for groups won't negate the usefulness of the drums. The drums will allow you to speak directly with an individual, when sometimes you don't want to address the whole group. Honestly, these are some very impressive things we're seeing.

Having the drums means we don't have to worry about Aara being unreliable in his translations. It would also let us talk to Oira in private and quickly.

...wait a minute how far away can the drums be? We could also use them like walkie-talkies.

Whats the range no them.

>>582540
>>582623
>range
Let's not look a gift horse in the mouth, yeah? Just give it a quick test, such as "Testing, can you hear me, Oira?" and then show your gratitude.

1/2 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/07/03(Thu)18:33 No. 582698 ID: 857918
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"Are these powered by spirits?"

>"Yes, there are weak spirits bound to teeth inside the drums."

"What is the range on these things?"

>"They have a short range, they might work from different rooms but they are meant to be used face to face."

2/2 Keith "Easy" Rhyder 2014/07/03(Thu)18:34 No. 582699 ID: 857918
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"Testing one two, can you hear and understand me Oira?"

>"I hear and understand."

The voice coming from your drum is quiet, almost a whisper.

>"It is good to finally be able to speak without any freaky translators."

Oira starts lowering the drum but then seems to remember something and speaks again.

>"You should propose a toast and we will get to taste their best drinks."

Tin reminds that he is willing to answer any questions we might have.

a toast to friendship between our peoples.

Oh! That reminds me, we could use more fuel. Suggest a trade for a large quantity of their strongest alcoholic beverage.