COAL REBELS [A STEAMPUNK SHORT STORY]

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Hover blades whistling in the air as Ruben speeds by, he squeezed through his leather gloves, revving the hover-cycle a tad bit more, loose gravels scattering in the air. He adjusts his dark shaded goggle in a typical fashion with his black helmet firmly fitted. Following an unusual route back from the factory, He takes a brief glance backward, looking through the trail of steam he left behind.

"I don't think I'm being followed," He thought to himself.

He takes in a gulp of fresh of air through his mouth, It seems he had been holding his breath since he left the factory. his heart pounding as he unclips the black leathered satchel fastened to his waist, he takes a brief look inside, therein sits a shiny black ball, its surface as smooth as glass, the cause of all his troubles.

Suddenly, through the dense cloud of white-smoke, he could hear the soft chugging of engines in the distance, the soft chugging slowly builds up as this speeding van gets closer, accompanying it, is a volcanic cloud of steam and a monotonous sound of sirens. Hot drops of sweat rolls down his forehead, drying up in the breeze as they touched his bushy brows, He could remember how it all began before it all went south.

**6 months earlier**

Ruben rubs his hands in an anticipating manner, standing in his make-shift workshop littered with cogs, winding gears and black oil. He faces an almost oval shaped metal chamber, its curved edges interrupted by bulging iron bolts. He looks through the thick glass opening into this vibrating apparatus, his eyes peering from an uneven brass decorated goggles. A black round glistening ball of coal sits in the chamber burning violently as he pokes the pressure gauge in an impatient manner.

"Dang it... It can't hold on much longer," He muttered.

He had been working on a bio-engineered coal, A new strand that would increase the efficiency of steam engines astronomically, He pulled at his wrist taking off his full armed length gloves. He took a look at his partner standing by his left, folding his arms while shaking his head.

"Maybe we should add a little bit of the activator to speed up the reaction before the pressure mounts," His partner said rubbing his coal-stained chin.

"You crazy fool..." Ruben chuckled "any explosion here would kill us, we are lucky this steel walled vacuum has held on for this long,"

Ruben takes a brief look at his partner with a friendly smirk on his face, Titus had been his assistant for quite a while, He's a bit on the crazy side but also resourceful, after all, he came up with the idea of steel reinforced chamber walls for the vacuum but Ruben has to keep a level head in this operation or things could easily get out of hand, Their operation has to be in secret away from the noses of the queens guard.

"Tisssssss..." sounds from the vacuum chamber interrupted his train of thought, puffs of steam bleeding out of the now cracked and calming chamber, Titus rushed to the scene twisting at a row of copper valves.

"Welp... we lost another chamber " Ruben sighed in hopeless frustration, He takes off his top-hat squeezing it in his hand with desperation.

"I could go get some more scraps from the junkyard," Titus said innocently in an encouraging tone.

"Scraps ain't going to cut it no more, Titus," He retorted "We would need a custom-made titanium chamber from the ironsmith, now... If only it wouldn't cost an arm, a leg and a bit of my soul," Ruben said sarcastically.

They looked at each other puzzled and wondering about the next step, all of a sudden they were jolted by loud knocks on the crude wooden door. They turn their heads at the door, looking suspensefully as the bangs got louder.

"Turn off the furnace," Ruben whispered with widened eyes.

Ruben unfastened his goggles as he took silent steps to the door, his heart beating like drums.

"Open the door by the order of the Queen!" A smart voice yelled through the old wooden door. "We know you are in there!"

Ruben looks back at Titus with clenched jaws as he held the door handle; unlocking it with a sigh of regret. Three heavily armed officials stormed in like the wind, surrounding the workshop in a twinkle of an eye. They stood at three corners with cocked rifles, brass barrels pointed sharply at them.

Ruben stood dazed with his hands up. Everything seemed like a tragic movie in his eye, his skin felt numb in the suspense as he took steps in a backward motion. A high ranking official walks into the workshop, ducking his head as he passed through the wooden door with his tall and lanky frame, The tall official takes off his hat, tucking it under his arm in one motion.

He walks in with an aura of arrogance, his overall leather coat sweeping through the air, The dead silence in the room interrupted by the knocking steps of his black boots against the concrete floor.

"It seems you gentlemen have been really busy," The tall official spoke in a calm but authoritative manner "We got intelligence that you've been operating an illegal coal operation here..." His voice met by dead silence. The official smiled as he saw some notes on the desk.

"Well, well, well..." He chuckled as he combed through Ruben's blueprint and research notes. "...Round them up boys," He commanded his subordinates who swiftly arrested Ruben and Titus.

They were kept in separate holding cells, Ruben sat down worriedly, soft white moonlight shines through the small holes in the concrete window. Surprisingly, He was not bordered that all his research were seized because he was hiding something more terrible.

Ruben and Titus were members of the rebel group against the crown, they were among the engineering unit tasked with developing gadgets that would give them the advantage over the monarchy. If they were caught that would be the highest form of treason punishable by death.

He could hear tinkering noises of keys outside the cell, the wooden door busted open suddenly, the same tall official walked in swiftly holding a gas lamp that lit up the dark cell. The yellow light illuminating his already prominent cheekbones.

"Hello Mr. Ruben," he greeted as he sat down taking off his hat and adjusting his lapel decorated with bronze medals, his eyes peering downwards at the prisoner "There has been an interesting turn of events..."

Ruben braced himself with his bushy brows facing downward, he had assumed the worst of the situation.

"Our scientists took a look at your blueprints... and they were fascinated by your research"

Ruben's downwards brows slowly rose as he listened with anticipation.

"As a subject to the crown, your work is now a property of the royal house, you are to begin work in the factory as a top research scientist." The tall official leaned closer, the same air of arrogance slowly building up around him "...In other words, we are throwing you a bone... take it and run with it."

Ruben's worried eyes were fully alert by now, He takes a huge breath outwards letting out the hot air of suspense trapped in his lungs.

"Could this be all..." Ruben thought to himself as the tall official left the cell shutting the door behind him, "they haven't caught up to us?" He whispered, letting out a lucky smile from the corner of his mouth.

This is my submission to the Steampunk contest by @neoxian This is my first time writing in this genre, I got carried away with the plot and couldn't round it up in one writing, that is how much I enjoyed it. thanks for reading :-). you could also take a look at my previous story in the supernatural genre GHOST FLIGHT [A SUPERNATURAL STORY]