But steampunk isn't anime,far from it.

I'm just saying, no anime or TV show references. Nothing like that. It stifles creativity.

This is going to be a romantic comedy RP??

On a most auspicious date, on a most inhospitable planet, there would be those that celebrated the completion of the harvest. It was most bountiful, at least as much as one could say for a planet covered in desert. Even in the more hospitable steppes, there were only two seas, one of water and another of sand. The coastal city of Legate would celebrate as well, being one of the more prosperous, inviting not only neighbors, but also the Crown Prince with his retinue of Royal Voulgiers under his command. Arriving from the Northern steppes on a small sand vessel, it would mark the beginning of festivities in earnest.

In the square, all walks of life would together enjoy the festivities. Various guilds, of various denominations and specialties, would hold their own events open to the public, be it competitions from one that specialised in martial prowess, to demonstrations and spectacles from the parts of magi and chemists alike.

It was amidst this laxity during the festivities, a guardsmen, almost asleep leaning on his arquebus, would notice a massive sand ship in the distance. It was of unparallelled size, the bloated red underside flanked by wooden paddles as it crawled towards Legate like a centipede. At first, the guard would attribute this to his drowsiness, but even after several blinks, he would turn to raise the alarm, if he were not cut down by an invisible entity. A temporal sensation delay spell, cast by a skilled mage no doubt, meant that the ship had already arrived. Discharging from the decks were the warriors of the Jagatai Khanate, their weapons drawn, sweeping through the mostly empty streets, surrounding the square. It would take moments, moments that would cost many lives, before the merrymakers realised that something was wrong. The grinding gears of the keep's gates and the hissing of steam alerting the wary. A slaughter was to ensue, as this was an act of war. It was admist this thunder of blackpowder, the cackling of the arcane and ringing of steel, did the first battle for Legate begin.

Exactly, it's a great theme. I'm almost tempted to tell him to write the story himself and let me read it. He's a pro at this.

The knight and his protege stepped into the square. His thick leather boots drowned out by numerous others. Being only in light mail with surcoat, he would glance about, eyes out for any would be assailants. Damocles the Giant, standing a good two metres tall, which was still tall even for his kingdom, looked down to his little charge. She was Princess Chataigne de Gavaroche, a mere 14 year old, standing just above his waist line. She had clasped onto his gauntlet in a vice-like grip uncharacteristic for girl her age. He smiled a little, relieved that she was still innocent enough but his heart sank, knowing that she would grow up to be another noblewoman, in a noble court. Not only that, but his liege, the King had arranged for her to marry with the Crown Prince of their ancestral enemies, the Kingdom of Lexmada. In effect, he was selling his own daughter and ultimately his own kingdom to ensure his people did not suffer any longer. Damocles understood the decision, although he viewed the Jagatai Khanate as a more suitable ally. Of the three countries, Gavaroche was slowly dying, swept up in the crossfire between the borders of the other the great kingdom and khanate. He hoped at the very least their Crown Prince was reasonable, or Damocles knew that he would make the Prince cry tears of blood. But now the princess tugged at his hand, willing to be released from his grasp to enjoy the marvels of the festival. She was anxious, Damocles thought, after that boring passage aboard sand ship, having eagerly awaited their arrival.

Sandships, and their fuel, coal, were the only real reason the Kingdom of Lexmada and the Jagatai Khanate were at war. The planet being mostly desert, the occasional steppes and mountain range breaking up what was essentially a sea of dunes, it was plain dumbluck that Gavaroche would have the biggest supply of coal underneath their lands, with more sites being discovered monthly. The Jagatai Khanate also possessed coal but they were originally nomads, only realising the value of a permanent settlement not long ago. However, this also meant they possessed a great military, their sandships ranging from small, swift single seaters, replacing horses and camels, to gigantic battleships big enough to cast a shadow over a modest village. That however, did not mean they were uncontested. Far from it, the Kingdom of Lexmada contained the greatest amount of saltpeter, an essential component in firearms. What the Lexmadans lacked in mobility, they made up with sheer firepower. Legend has it that a trio of travelling arquebusiers would appear in dire battles, rallying and leading town militia to victory against various Jagatai forces across the kingdom. It was a different story in Gavaroche, who with their giant stores of coal, began a revolution that would transform them. Using coal as a new power source, the possibilities opened up, such as mass production and flight. Flight, Damocle mused, was possible because someone was bright enough to light a bonfire under a bag. Still he was of the oldguard, retaining his trusted axe, even when he was presented with a sword and shield after the military reform.

It was at that moment that he noticed Princess Chataigne in front of him, watching a spectacle of the local magi and chemists. His shock was relieved and he wondered what kind of mage she would become. He couldn't see her become a Radical as much as he held a grudging respect for them. Pragmatic and with a clear disregard for the consequences their actions would have around them, they were often the ones who heeded the call to arms, or served as wandering vigilantes, bringing down the hammer of their indiscriminate justice on those that would do wrong. On the other hand, he didn't favour the Puritans as much despite Princess Chataigne's similar disposition, their weak-willed ways and their idealistic outlook on the world giving them not much practical use in harsh reality. But well, he was not an Inquisitor, nor did he have a proper grounding in the works of the Inquisition to be able to judge. A good thing too, Inquisitors were those that policed the magi, being magi themselves, and despite their ominous name, they were neutral on practically all affairs of state, being an independent organisation, answering to no one but themselves, function as a universal Mage's Guild. Then it struck him, not a moment ago, he was still holding hands with the Princess, but for her to move without him noticing was next to impossible. He scanned various faces, some of them confused, a juggler having dropped the items he had juggled, a chemist having added an excess amount of reagents to name but two. Damocles also noticed that they were standing to the south, which was behind him. Turning around as quickly as possible, there were figures that were moving along the city walls. Too many to be city guard and catching a glimpse of a flag that flew behind the wall, he knew it could only be the Jagatai Khanate.

For them to employ a powerful mage to cast temporal sensory delay spell and close in on the port city of Legate, he knew not why, but if it had something to do with Princess Chataigne, he'd be damned to not do a thing about it. Quickly formulating a plan, he shoved his little way into the crowd towards his charge. Then there were the first screams, wickedly curved blades cutting down townsfolk and it was then the crowd erupted into panic. He had closed to within a mere metre from the Princess before a figure was about to strike her down.

"Milady, behind you!" he shouted with all his might.

She calmly turned around before an explosion of blood erupted between them. Damocles almost tripped in horror, managing to catch the bloodstained princess in his arms as she fell backwards.

"Jeez Damocles, you worry to much, I can handle myself you know," she chided him childishly.

"Milady please refrain from causing me and by extension, you father, any undue stress," he answer.

She had taken down her attacker with a hidden flintlock pistol. Where she had acquired it from, Damocles didn't care, all that was important was to bring her to safety while she was still unharmed.

"Shall we pay a visit to your fiance Milady?" he asked her.

"I know its against tradition, but it doesn't seem like we have much of a choice," she paused, whipping out her wand and melting the face of their next assailant before continuing, "given the circumstances."

She was definitely leaning towards Radical, Damocles thought inwardly and readied his sword and shield as the two made for the city keep.