Un: TerribleTinkerer [Text]

[badnewsandshitlist]

I had not originally intended to make any formal announcement regarding my workshop. However, after seeing Sophie’s recent notice advertising her own establishment, I was reminded that certain opportunities are best stated plainly rather than left to rumor. With that in mind, I am opening a limited number of workshop roles and apprenticeship positions at my facility, Contingency Plan, located at Guardiandocks.

---

APPRENTICES, SPECIALIZED ASSISTANTS, AND COMMISSION LIAISON SOUGHT - CONTINGENCY PLAN

Location: Guardiandocks
Proprietor: Percival Fredrickstein von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III

About the Workshop
Contingency Plan is a private commission workshop dedicated to precision mechanisms, fine instrumentation, custom-designed devices, restoration of delicate constructs, and experimental craftsmanship requiring exceptional technical accuracy. Work conducted here is specialized, often singular, and demands patience, discipline, and refined hands.

Open Roles

- Precision Craft Assistants
- Fine Mechanism Assemblers
- Instrument and Device Restoration Assistants
- Drafting and Measurement Assistants
- Client Liaison and Commission Coordinator
- Apprentices (limited positions)

Apprenticeship Opportunities
Candidates who possess curiosity, patience, and a genuine desire to learn advanced craftsmanship are encouraged to apply, even if formal training is limited. Applicants without prior workshop experience should present a small drafted design, schematic, or blueprint of their own creation demonstrating attention to measurement, structural logic, or mechanical imagination. Apprentices will receive direct instruction in specialized fabrication methods, tool mastery, and commission-based workshop practices.

Client Liaison Position
Applicants with strong interpersonal skills may apply to serve as Commission Coordinator, responsible for greeting clients, clarifying commission requests, maintaining orderly records, and managing consultations that require tact and composure.

Application Instructions
Interested candidates should present themselves in person during consultation hours with:

1. A brief description of any prior experience (formal or informal)
2. Examples of prior handwork or a drafted schematic/blueprint (required for applicants without experience)
3. A short written note describing what they hope to learn or contribute

Applications are accepted only at Contingency Plan during posted consultation hours.
Those seeking routine labor should apply elsewhere. Precision, curiosity, and discipline are valued here.

Comments

@justsophie

[sophielicious]

if we can help you in anyway, please let me know.

[badnewsandshitlist]

Kind of you to offer, Sophie. If you happen across candidates whose abilities deserve sharper tools and stricter instruction, you may send them my way. I will extend the same courtesy should I meet anyone better suited to your own work.

[sophielicious]

i mean i know a fuckload of nerds so just tell me exactly what kind of things you're building and i'll see with them

as for me, just come eat when you'd like and if i need something built i'll let you know. that's kinda the whole point

[badnewsandshitlist]

At the moment I am working on redesigned specialty arrowheads with interchangeable functions, several refinements to firing mechanisms based on recent models I have studied, and, somewhat to my own surprise, a series of small mechanical toys. Precision at a smaller scale has proven useful, even if the choice says a great deal about how effectively I have been distracting myself lately. The workshop is outfitted with leather, wood, and metal stations, all available for those working under the roof.

And yes, I will come eat. Left to my own management I have been doing a remarkably poor job of remembering the basic maintenance of my own person. Vex always had the better head for such things.

[sophielicious]

You just made the list of 'fuckload of nerds'. Wait, what's your name? Have we met? I'll pass the ideas forward.

... I'll just add you to the daily deliveries list, man. You sound like a disaster.

[badnewsandshitlist]

Percival Fredrickstein von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III, Lord of Whitestone. We have not met yet, though I suspect the name tends to arrive before I do.

If I am being added to the deliveries list, I will accept the arrangement gratefully. Left to my own scheduling, meals have developed an unfortunate habit of losing arguments with ongoing work, and it is rarely a contest they win.

Un. The Phoenix // Text

[dangerbird]

»Greetings lord de Rolo,

I am writing to inquire about the expected duties of the Drafting and Measurement Assistant position, as well as the skills that would be desired for such a role. If you could give further detail on what you are looking for any illumination you provide will be appreciated.

I look forward to your response.

— Joshua Rosfield

[badnewsandshitlist]

Joshua,

The drafting and measurement role is straightforward in concept, though less forgiving in practice. Most of the work involves turning working concepts into clean, readable technical drafts, checking dimensions across component plans, and keeping measurement records consistent as commissions develop. You would also assist with instrument calibration and help maintain the workshop’s schematic archive so nothing drifts out of tolerance between revisions.

The skills that matter most are steady drafting habits, comfort with precision measuring tools, and the patience to verify figures before anything proceeds to fabrication. Speed is pleasant. Accuracy is required.

If you decide to apply, bring along any drafting samples or measurement-focused work you have. I would like to see how you think on paper.

un; champion (text)

[twin_blade]

Nice to see you've crawled out of your hole.

[ Vax has not seen much of Percy since Vex'ahlia left. Maybe this is a sign that Percival is ready to go back to living again. ]

[badnewsandshitlist]

Try not to sound so surprised, Vax. I was under the impression I had merely relocated to the workshop, not been declared legally deceased.

But yes… I suppose stepping outside before I fossilize entirely seemed like a reasonable experiment. If it goes poorly, you are welcome to say you predicted the outcome and look unbearably smug about it.

[twin_blade]

You were this close.

[ Vax might have sent out a search party. Eventually. ]

But I'm glad I don't have to bury you yet. Not that you'd stay dead here.

[badnewsandshitlist]

Good to know I would have been searched for eventually. I will try not to make a habit of testing how long that timeline actually is.

I appreciate it, Vax. I am not planning to die this week if I can help it. I seem to have acquired rather a lot of things worth staying alive for.

[twin_blade]

I would prefer you didn't.

[ Vax would like to hear from Percy, at least once in awhile, to know he's doing okay. ]

Oh yeah? Like your new business?

[badnewsandshitlist]

It is no replacement for Vex’ahlia, but when one mistress is absent, another tends to claim the schedule. The workshop has been doing precisely that, and with far fewer arguments than she would allow.

How have you been, Vax? And if you find yourself with an hour to spare, I could show you the place properly. I suspect you would enjoy seeing where all my time has gone.

[twin_blade]

[ Vax chuckles as Percy speaks of his sister. Vex would give him a hard time about various things. ]

I've got more hours to spare than I need. Sure, I'd like to see it.

[badnewsandshitlist]

[ Percy had not meant to recreate Castle Whitestone, yet piece by piece the stonework, the light, the careful order of the place had begun to echo it. He realizes, perhaps a little late, that he worked harder than necessary to make it feel that way, and that he has been there nearly all hours of the day since opening it. ]

Then I will expect you. Mornings, afternoons, evenings… I am usually there regardless, so come by whenever it suits you. I would like you to see what I have built. It really reminds me of Home.

[twin_blade]

[ Home? Vax's heart aches a little at the thought. He wonders if it will feel better or worse to be reminded of it face to face. ]

I'll be there tonight.

un: Jay.T | Text

[leastdramatic]

You mind having a part-timer? I got Grease Lightning to take care of but learning from your workshop could be interesting.

[badnewsandshitlist]

Before I answer, tell me what you are hoping to learn. Are you looking for an apprenticeship or an actual position on the staff? Either way you would be working alongside me, but the expectations are different, and I would rather be clear about that from the start.

[leastdramatic]

Apprenticeship. I got experience in doing some modifications in firearms and vehicles. But I've never really done smithing before. Plus, I'm still interested in picking your brain on how you do your guns.

[badnewsandshitlist]

You are welcome to ask questions, but you will find I explain things best while they are being built rather than in long lectures. Since you already have modification experience, we can start you on one of the firearm refinement projects currently on my bench. Work through that with me and you will learn far more than I could explain in conversation alone.

Bring any notes from your previous projects when you come in. It will give me a clearer sense of where to begin.

[leastdramatic]

That all sounds good to me. Learning by doing is the best way for something like this. I'll bring over my stuff whenever you want.

I know our guns don't have the same levels of tech but there's stuff some universal concepts we can work out.

In person

[artofrevenge]

[ The man advertising positions is undoubtedly a lord, one high and used to getting what he wants and people to serve him. After all, the whole advertisement was for assistants (and apprentices, though Mizu cannot imagine apprenticing for a lord, even were she willing to become anyone's apprentice besides swordfather's). However, through all the high minded formal language, one fact became clear, one fact important enough to Mizu to drive her to show up, whatever the man's station, personality, or nature. He was in possession of a forge.

So Mizu finds her way to his strangely named establishment shortly after the advertisement was posted. Then she returns during the consultation hours with some of the time in between spent muttering about anyone whose shop looks as grand as the oddly named Contingency Plan. Mizu enters dressed as ever in her sixteenth century Japanese garb. She feels ill matching to the stately features of the place, but her discomfort doesn't reach her confidence in her skills. That, she's sure of, whether or not this lord is capable of seeing them. ]

Hello, I am here about the posting.

[ Best to get straight to the point. ]

[badnewsandshitlist]

[ The consultation chamber holds a quiet stillness, broken only by the faint shift of papers on the round table. Percival de Rolo stands nearby, sleeves rolled and a thin line of graphite still marking one cuff, as though he had meant to clean it and forgotten somewhere between tasks. When the visitor speaks, he straightens a fraction too quickly, clearing his throat with the subtle air of someone who has spent rather too long speaking only to his own work. ]

Right. Yes.

[ A brief pause, then a small, apologetic nod. ]

Your name, if you please. And what sort of work you do.

[artofrevenge]

[ Despite the hours being when people are invited to stop by and the recent posting that very well could increase the chances someone will come, the lord is disheveled with a messiness that must come, Mizu is certain, from the confidence and power of his position. Others might be obliged to dress well to meet customers or those seeking employment, but he does not. Instead, it feels as though he's only paused working because of the interruption and will return to it the moment she's gone.

Mizu tries not to let the feeling of intruding press upon her. It was invited, and Mizu's as good, if not better, than anyone else who might wish to gain access to the working spaces he wrote of. ]

My name is Mizu, and I am a swordsmith.

[ She reminds herself of the wording of the posting, as she memorized the section on application before she came here. ]

I apprenticed to Master Eiji, the best swordsmith in Japan, since I was young. I had my own forge on the last world not my own in which I lived and made weapons for those customers I accepted.

[ She briefly motions toward the sword at her side. ]

My sword is of my making. It would be my preference to make weapons that suit their wielder, but I know how to smith other things, as need be.

[ Mizu would do worse to have access to a forge for her work. ]

[badnewsandshitlist]

[ Percy listens without interruption, the unfamiliarity of the name meaning little compared to the confidence with which she speaks it. Apprenticeship under any long-standing master implies years of repetition, patience, and correction, and that alone is enough to hold his attention. When her gesture indicates the blade at her side, his gaze shifts there with quiet professional interest. ]

I may not know Master Eiji personally, but a craftsman who produces a smith worthy of claiming that apprenticeship has my respect. Swordsmithing is not my own specialty, which makes your experience all the more valuable here.

[ He inclines his head slightly. ]

If you are willing, I would like to see the blade. From there we can decide what sort of place this forge might offer you.

[artofrevenge]

[ This lord has no means of knowing Master Eiji, or at least the least likely. Given his appearance and Mizu's knowledge of the white men in Japan, he could not have interacted with anyone who knows of Master Eiji in twenty years. He hardly looks old enough to have been of age before, so that the most Mizu could imagine, were he of her world, is that he heard of Master Eiji or saw one of his blades when he was a boy. However, Mizu's not once come across anyone of her world in her years away, so even that minute chance is most unlikely.

He gets a small measure of respect for treating Master Eiji well. It surely would have gone poorly if he were rude about the unknown master smith. It's something across the gap between the man of his station and Mizu.

She cannot help the hesitation to share her blade, to hand it over to a stranger to inspect. It's so personal an item and the sword made for herself, no one else. Her sword. Her soul. However, it's also one of the only items she's made she has on her person. It's certainly the one that best showcases her skill. So Mizu knew, in coming, that he would want to see her sword and that to gain access to the forge, she would need to share it.

She closes her eyes, takes a deep breath, and centers herself. Then Mizu draws her sword, the one reforged from the first blade she made, stronger and less brittle due to its better balance. It retains the same blue, the wave pattern, and the distinctive sound when it resonates. Mizu holds the blade in two hands and holds it out toward him. ]

It is the fastest way for you to see what I am capable of.

[ She can hardly expect to make something to showcase her skills. Nor would she want to make a sword simply for the act of making it. Swords have souls, and they belong to people. She would need the right person to make the right sword for. While one person comes to mind, he does not need a sword. So she offers her own, much as it feels wrong to let a stranger inspect her sword. ]

text, un:emberflit;

[sweetmilk]

I am not interested in your postings, however I have a different proposal. You have seen some of my schematics when I had commissioned your work in Auriel, and I have seen your work.

As we have similar skills and, I assume, projects in mind, an affiliation between your workshop and mine could benefit both of us.

[badnewsandshitlist]

I remember your schematics, Viktor. You do careful work, and I would not object to our workshops keeping a working relationship.

What sort of affiliation are you thinking of? If the projects overlap in the right ways, it could be worth seeing how our efforts might complement each other.

[sweetmilk]

Techmaturgy leaves little room for error. I learned that young, as most do, through failure and on occasion, explosive failure.

As my workshop has recently arrived without some of my more refined tools, trading your craftsmanship and resources for what innovation, technology, and fine detail work I can offer would be more than an equal partnership.

[badnewsandshitlist]

An exchange of resources suits me. While your own workshop settles, you are welcome to make use of the stations here, and I would be interested in seeing what we produce when a project has both our hands in it.

My only request is that anything prone to explosive failure be tested somewhere other than my building. I have grown rather fond of the walls.

[sweetmilk]

For transparency, I do work odd hours, but I am willing to adjust them temporarily for project work when necessary.

And, should it alleviate your concerns, my last explosive failure was 24 years ago.

[badnewsandshitlist]

Odd hours do not concern me. I keep much the same schedule, and the workshop is rarely idle.

I will have a workshop access key cut for you so you may come and go as needed. It will grant entry to the fabrication level and shared stations. The more sensitive storage remains separate, as I am sure you understand.

Maintain your impressive record of non-explosive operation, and I expect the arrangement will serve us both quite well.

[sweetmilk]

That is acceptable. I have no interest or reason to infringe on what you consider sensitive. It would be hypocritical of me to demand otherwise.

I would hate to ruin my record, so you have nothing to worry about.

[badnewsandshitlist]

Let us try not to tempt fate quite so enthusiastically, Viktor. Statements like that almost make one curious to see whether the record can survive deliberate testing.






Almost.

I will have the key prepared for you shortly.

[sweetmilk]

I do not believe in fate, so there is nothing to tempt as far as I am concerned, but if you are superstitious, I will avoid voicing such things.

Deliberate stress testing, however, I do believe in and have no issues with.

Tell me when it is ready and I will pick it up.

[badnewsandshitlist]

I am not superstitious. I am simply familiar with how often confidence precedes an inconvenience. I once had a friend who declared herself a god shortly before discovering what a thousand-foot impact actually entails. Since then, I have preferred deliberate stress testing to accidental discovery. It tends to be less messy, cheaper on the coin purse, and far less likely to require a resurrection spell.

With that philosophy in mind, I will send word when the key is ready.

[sweetmilk]

That does not sound like confidence but arrogance. Regardless, I let my work speak for itself. I do not need to seek praise nor am I interested in fueling an ego. Neither are valuable uses for my time.

If you need anything from me in the meantime, you know how to reach me.