Chapter Three Hundred and Eighty-Two - Southbound

Chapter Three Hundred and Eighty-Two - Southbound

Chapter Three Hundred and Eighty-Two - Southbound

Sails are checked, fuel bunkers at full, the engines purring like its brand new, and Ive greased everything thats supposed to move and bolted down everything that shouldnt, Awen said all in one big breath. Were fit to fly, Captain Broccoli.

I nodded, then turned to Clive. Scallywags and the boys are at their stations, captn, he said before clicking his pipe into place between his lips.

Adjusting my hat, I looked across the Beaver Cleavers deck. My friends and crewmates were all assembled at their posts. The Scallywags, Oda, Joe, and Sally, were ready to tug sails into place. Steve was with Gordon by the mooring line. Awen, of course, was nearby, wearing a rather stained set of overalls with some tools looped into her belt.ity stood by as well, willing to help, but clearly not sure how, and Caprica was similarly lost. That was fine, wed show them how to do a thing or two to keep the ship in tip-top shape.

Our ship's cat, Grand Admiral Orange (Retired), was snoozing on one of the figure heads, as she was wont to do, and Amaryllis...

Amaryllis came out from the lower decks and turned to glance up to me where I stood by the poop decks wheel. Stowaway check complete, she said. Were clear.

Caprica shot me a look at that, but she didnt say anything, not before I grinned and started barking orders. Alright! Lets go, everybun! Lines away! Engines to quarter speed, Clive. Amaryllis, signal the tower that were taking our exit now, please. Keep those sails in tight until weve cleared the docks!

The Beavers deck became a hive of chaotic activity for a moment, and I did what I could to help direct it.

Really, I wanted to be down there helping, but Clive had told me that someone keeping others on task was sometimes more important than having one more pair of hands on deck. Plus from up here, I could tell where the help was needed and could keep an eye out for things beyond the ship itself.

The Storm Towers massive internal dock was filled with literally hundreds of ships, so there was a lot to keep an eye on as we moved out of our mooring and into the towers centre. It was hard to tell who had the right of way at the best of times, but fortunately, the dwarves and elves of the Storm Tower had devised a system using flashing lights and magical holograms to indicate who could move and who had to stay still.

I kept glancing at that until our turn was up.

Alright, were climbing, I said. Slow and steady Clive, this isnt a race.

Aye aye, captn, he said as he adjusted another lever with a satisfying clunk.

The Beaver lurched slightly, then started to rise up past the other levels of the dock. We started to spin a little, I noticed, probably because of all the shifting winds within the microclimate of the tower. Gordon! Deploy the aft sail to half! I called.

Aye! he replied before adjusting the sail. It slowed the spin down considerably, and I gave a satisfied nod.

We crested out of the domed top of the tower, and with a bit of power to the Beavers engines, we pushed forwards and out into the open midday sun.

I laughed as a cool wind from the north swept across the deck and took with it the heavy industrial scent that filled the Storm Tower. The crew cheered, but we quickly got back to work. The traffic here was no less busy just because it wasnt confined within the cramped tower.

Direction? Clive asked.

I glanced at the ship compass built into the railing far from anything metallic. Current heading is east-south-east, take us due south, please, I said.

Clive nodded, then spun the wheel a little. The rudder creaked and the engine rumbled beneath us, shaking the entire deck with an all too familiar purr.

Speaking of purrs, I glanced down as I felt something around my leg, and noticed Orange had moved from the front of the ship to be closer. Had the cold ruined her nap spot? I scooped her up into my arms and let her tuck herself into my chest for warmth.

I returned to the wheel, taking over from Clive so that he could refill his pipe and take a bit of a break while I navigated us away from the Storm Tower. The further we went, the fewer ships were in the air. It was very apparent once we flew past the limits of the city and its many suburbs and little farming communities. The air traffic went from bustling and kind of scary to only a few scarce ships dotting the sky to the east and south.

The eastward traffic was probably from Sissifin, the Snowlands second largest city, and the rest probably came from Stormshark, though that city was coastal, so I imagined more freight was probably moved over water instead of through the air?

Of course, I was just speculating. However, that sounded about right. I knew air travel was faster, but it also came with hard limits on weight and a higher cost overall for fuel and crew and ship maintenance.

A sea-going ship in poor repair wasnt great, but it would probably not sink. An airship in poor repair was a disaster.

Fortunately, the Beaver Cleaver was not only the nicest ship in the sky, he was also in good shape, what with Awen always being hard at work fixing all the little bits and bobs that wore out and broke.

I had to think of a cute gift to give her for all her hard work. Maybe some tools or something?

No, it wasnt usually a good idea to get someone a hobby-related gift, not unless you also know a lot about the hobby and what that person in particular needed.

Maybe wed see what they had in Codwood! I was looking forward to seeing another new town! One from a nation whose towns and cities Id never even visited before.

Hey, Clive, I said.

Hmm? he asked.

Ever been to Codwood?

He nodded. Small place. Or was, about six... seven years back. Growing at the time, though. Lots of trouble with the cervid, I think.

Oh? I asked, ears perking at the sound of potential trouble.

Tensions, ya know?

I bet I could help with that! Plus it would be nice to practice with some of my new skills. Id just unlocked Social Butterfly by merging a bunch of skills, and Id barely used it yet. So hopping my way into a heap of social trouble seemed like a great way to grind the skill.

Youre having what lady Albatross would call ideas again, arent ya captn? Clive asked.

Huh? Oh, no, just planning ahead is all! I said. Fortunately, Cleaning magic was great at wicking away sweat.

I refocused on flying the Beaver straight and true and keeping an eye out on the skies for any signs of trouble.

It would take a day or two to reach Codwood, so maybe I could use that time productively. I wasnt grinding my skills as much as I could recently, and with all the adventures we were having, well, it would make sense to make sure I was at the top of my game!

No more lazy buns! It was time to get to work!

... But maybe only after supper.

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