A Steampunk Story

I am in the process of writing a steampunk story and have decided to publish it here and hopefully garner some helpful ideas from the community as things move along. For those not in the know, steampunk is basically Victorian Science-Fiction, usually quite dark, featuring steam powered advanced technology accompanied by slick Victorian fashion.  I have decided to blog my thoughts and the basic details and background of the as well as post the story as it develops. Here is the very general outline of situation and an outline of the parallel universe as I see it.

SITUATION

The World Powers

The year is 1885, the great colonial empires of Great Britain, Russia and France dominate the world. Of the lesser powers, the upstart Prussia is bulling its way through any opening it can see, vying for a place at the table of the great colonial powers and the ancient, somewhat decrepit Spanish Empire is sitting quietly in a corner twiddling its thumbs, decaying, but happy in its dementia, believing it still had some relevance. Imperial Japan is advancing by leaps and bounds and has become a modern power under the Emperor Meiji.

The Americas

In the 1760's, when King George III and the British Parliament were confronted by colonial settlers demanding "no taxation without representation", they thought it a marvelous idea and the king ordered that a properly elected government of the colonies be set up to govern the colonies and send representatives sit on the privy Council and help in the rule of the Empire (a shame to waste all that talent). This along with lower taxation (at least in the short term) pleased the majority of the populace and offered advancement for the more ambitious colonials. Soon the various militant malcontents were rooted out and hanged or packed off to the Australian colonies and the American colonies (states, since 1875) have become the happiest, most productive and fastest expanding part of the Empire. 

In North America, Russia holds Alaska and the northern part of the western seaboard, the Mexican Empire (closely allied with France and lesser European powers) holds the entire Central American land bridge and upper California with their eastern border to the Republic of Texas and British Imperial America somewhere, ill-defined, in the Rocky Mountains.

Technology

Technology has advanced with great leaps being made in metallurgy and the application of scientific theory. The steam engine and electrical generation enabled by steam technology provide the motive power of the age. The steam traction engine has been made much more compact and is now the object of mass production in the colonies, leading to massive agricultural expansion and the personal vehicle, a steam car, is now being introduced. Steam ships make up virtually all surface  vessels and some effective submarines are in the trials stage. Air travel has been practical for some years and the airship has been adapted for military and occasionally combat service. Heavier than air flight is limited to gliders and light, flimsy, steam/electric powered ornithopters (flapping wing machines).

New technologies are being constantly discovered as every gentleman with too much time on his hands sees himself as a gentleman-inventor and every world government is looking for that special invention that will place them with an advantage in the Great Game.

The Pleiades Class of Airship

Her Majesty's Airship Maia is the central feature of this story; the vessel, her crew and attached Rifle company.

HMAS Maia is the first ship in the Pleiades class of Air Cruisers. She is intended for scouting, screening and independent action as may be required over land or sea (so expanding the writ of the Admiralty). She is massively armed, for an airship, with the new technology of recoilless weapons allowing for 5 inch recoilless rifles to be mounted on extendible sponsons. Thee Maia also has the ability to drop impact fused ordinance from both of her holds if required. For lighter weapons HMAS Maia also mounts several Maxim weapons in 1 inch and 0.303 inch calibres. All Royal Naval Air Service crews are female, the smaller size and lesser weight being of vital importance at the beginning of the development of this technology and tradition keeping this system intact.

Attached to the  HMAS Maia for her trials and tactical development phase are the men of C company, 3rd Battalion, The Kings Royal American Rifles. 

I will post the major characters next.

Your thoughts would be appreciated.