Word: Fob

fob

\ FOB \  , noun;

1. A short chain, usually with a medallion or similar ornament, worn hanging from a pocket.

2. A small pocket just below the waistline in trousers for a watch, keys, change, etc.

verb:

1. To cheat someone by substituting something spurious or inferior.

2. To put (someone) off by deception or trickery.

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“It's late.” Henry said, looking at his pocket watch.

“I told you. It's always late.” Adam replied, rolling his eyes.

“Yes, you did. But still, I can always hope.”

“Why do you insist on taking an airship? Walkers are more reliable.” Adam said, referring to the large mechanical devices used for land transport. They tended to look like a lumbering beast rather than a reliable method of transport though.

“And they're also slower. Besides, I like the view.” Henry said, shutting his watch and placing it back in his pocket. The small gold chain hung loose from the end, instead of clipped to his shirt as was usually done.

“Not when you consider the time. Airships are always late. Walkers are always on time. It makes up for their slower speed.”

“That depends entirely on how late the airship is. Right now, it's not even five minutes late. If it arrives soon, then it will still be quite a bit faster than those lumbering metal brutes.”

Adam sighed and shifted his backpack. It was a clumsy looking thing, made of a patchwork of leather and metal. It was also quite a bit heavier than it looked, and hefting it around everywhere made his back hurt more than he liked to admit. Henry watched his friend struggle with the thing, but said nothing of it. The two of them simply waited for their chosen method of transport to arrive.

After a few more minutes of waiting, it did. The large Zeppelin slowly descended into the airfield, it's many propellers kicking up dust and dirt as it did. Henry looked quite happy with this. Adam just looked annoyed.

“See, only ten minutes late. That means it will still arrive at the capitol a good hour or so before even the fastest Walker.” He said triumphantly.

“Yes, I know. Let's just leave it and get on the damn thing.” Adam said, trudging up the the lowering ramp to admit passengers onto the airship. They were stopped briefly by a man taking tickets for the journey, but the two flashed their tickets, and were given no real trouble before boarding.

It didn't take long for all the passengers to arrive and board the large vehicle, and it was soon lifting off into the air. The sound of the smoothly oiled gears could be heard as the propellers picked up speed, lifting the massive balloon higher into the air. Henry listened to the clockwork with great appreciation.

“Ah now that is a fine sound, isn't it? You don't get this kind of music with a Walker, now do you?”

“No, I suppose not.” Adam said. He did have to agree. The large land vehicles did tend to have more of a stuttering thump to them, rather than an airships constant hum. Henry went over to a small, round window and looked down at the ground growing smaller as the ship rose higher.

“And how can you argue with the view?” He asked

“Heights always make me nervous.” Adam said. That wasn't quite true. It was falling from a great height that bothered him, even when he knew he had a device that would allow him to survive the fall. Being held aloft in an airship was, for him, only slightly different than being on the ground.

The trip was well underway, and the two men went on mingled with some of the other passengers. Adam found himself a group of pretty young girls to try and woo, while Henry busied himself talking shop with a group of older gentlemen who were apparently builders of some kind. Both were quite happy with the groups they had chosen to associate with, and the trip was quite pleasant.

That is, until a shot from a pistol rang out among the crowd. Some of the passengers screamed as a group of ten rough looking men pulled weapons from their clothes, brandishing them at anyone who got close. A guardsmen that had been brought along for safety advanced on them quickly, but the hijackers were ready. One of them pointed a large, thick gun at the guard, and pulled the trigger. A dull thump sound came from it, and a flurry of small needles shot out, peppering the guard, who promptly fell.

“Anyone else?” Said the shooter. Nobody else moved. “Good. Now then, this airship now belongs to me and mine, as do any valuables you might have. My men here will come around and you are to put everything of even the smallest value in their bags. If you do, you can be fairly sure that you'll live. If not, your chances are much lower. Trying to resist puts you in an early grave.”

Most of the passengers were obviously terrified, shaking like leaves as the crooks went around. Henry and Adam nodded to each other, and moved slowly to the back wall, farther away from the criminals. Henry took out his watch and flipped a small notch on the bottom open, revealing a hidden hole. Into this, he plugged a thin wire from his belt, and let the chain dangle away from his hand. Adam slid a few of the thin metal panels on his own belt aside, revealing a number of buttons, switches and dials. He pressed one of the larger buttons, and three thin metal tubes shot up from the back of the belt into his backpack. Then they both simply waited.

When a robber approached the duo, they made no moves to indicate their intent. The masked robber went up to Henry first, and immediately eyed the gold watch in his hands. He held out a bag and waited for Henry to put something inside. Henry didn't move.

“Alright, let's get that thing in the bag.” The robber said.

“No, I don't think I will.” Henry said. “I am rather fond of this watch.”

“Oh a wise guy, eh? Well, let's see how you do after I've run you through.” The robber said, taking out a small, thin knife. He reached to grab the watch by the chain, using the knife to scare Henry into letting it go.

“I wouldn't touch that if I were you.” Henry said. The robber payed no heed to the warning, and grabbed the thin chain. Suddenly, he let out a horrid scream, and his body fell, twitching. “I warned you.” Said Henry. The scream caught the attention of the other robbers. Without any word from their boss, the eight remaining grunts rushed at the two men.

Henry flipped open the watch and pressed the joint the hands were attached to. The chain suddenly lengthened greatly, more than tripling in length. He closed the watch and began spinning the chain around, the faint hum and crackle of the powerful electric current running through it reaching only his ears.

Adam hit a button on his belt, and three long metal arms shot out of the backpack, one on each side on him, and one arching over his head. Each of the arms had several joints, and ended in a large, unpleasant looking spike. When they saw this, the robbers slowed, now much more wary of their targets, being unsure of what these weapons were capable of.

It was all the two needed. Henry lashed out with his chain, using it like an electrified whip, catching the robbers by the wrist or ankle, causing them to collapse almost immediately. Adam used the controls on his belt to maneuver the arms to slash and thrust at any who dared approach him. Many were cut down, but more stayed away. For those, he simply pressed a button and the point on one of the arms opened, the thud of an air cannon ringing out, firing a metal net at the hapless robbers.

It took all of five minutes for the two of them to deal with the robbers. Now there was only one left: The boss. By now, he was not favoring his chances very highly. But, this one would not be taken nearly as easily as his men. He leveled his gun hastily at the two and fired. Adam's mechanical arms were able to block all but a few of the incoming needles, the rest being those that had scattered too much to do any damage at the range they were at.

Now it was Henry's turn to rush in, swinging his chain at the criminal. The man tried to avoid it, but was unable to do so completely. The chain caught him by the ankle, delivering it's powerful current into the criminal's body. Henry retracted the chain back to its original length and unplugged it, sliding it back into his pocket as Adam retracted the metal arms.

“And that's why I prefer airships. They're much more entertaining.” He said smiling as the rest of the passengers looked on in wonderment.

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New genre, go!  This time, it's steampunk.  At least, it's supposed to be steampunk.  It's kind of hard to do that particular genre in writing, since it's such a visual style.  If your wondering, this is a bit about the genre.  Yeah, it's kind of visual, and really hard to do with such a short story.  Oh well, I did my best.  Hope you all like it anyway.