Objectively, the paperwork didn’t take too long to complete - maybe an hour. Subjectively, it seemed to take forever. There was the expected form where the airship and its owners were registered, along with the expected duration of the visit. There was an affidavit swearing that the airship didn’t carry any prohibited merchandise, which Maryn had had Dan look over, just in case some of his alchemical supplies were on the list. There was a form for maintenance, which would authorize the crews at Cloudreach to board Stonewing and inspect it for any required maintenance - which Frankie had flatly demanded that Maryn refuse.

  An untold number of forms later, Lyra finally nodded. “The paperwork appears to be in order. Welcome to Cloudreach. Don’t make any trouble, and we won’t have any trouble. You’ve set your expected stay to be fewer than three days, but if you need to extend that for any reason, you can fill out a Stay Extension form here. Failure to do so will result in the impounding and eventual confiscation of your airship. Any questions?”

  “I’d like to know why there are so many forms for what’s supposed to be a short visit,” Frankie muttered, only to be hurriedly hushed by Dan.

  Maeryn looked at Lyra flatly, her patience long since expended from reading and signing so many forms. “No, Skymaster Lyra. If there’s nothing else…?”

  The official gathered the papers and placed them in a packet, handing them off to an aid to be filed somewhere. “Indeed. Tempest Terrace is on the port side of the city. When you leave the airfield, you’ll be on the main street. Follow it until you reach the large fountain, then make a left. Follow that street until the end, and you’ll have reached Tempest Terrace. It’ll be easily identifiable by…” Lyra sighed, rubbing her forehead tiredly, showing the first sign of human emotion since they’d met. “... by the sound of explosions and chaotic bursts of wind.”

  Maeryn blinked, then glanced at her friends. They looked just as nonplussed as she felt, which was no help at all. “Right. Thanks.”

  Lyra nodded absently, then straightened, her fiercely stern expression returning. “I recommend spending your walk there looking for a place to stay. We don’t get visitors from Geova much anymore, but we do have enough trade with other Zephyrian settlements to warrant having a few inns.”

  Maeryn nodded as she stood from her chair and stretched slightly. It was sensible advice, after all. “Thanks for the tip. We’ll do that.”

  “Oh, and Captain Maeryn?”

  She paused on her way to the exit, looking back to meet Lyra’s gaze. “Yes?”

  Lyra took a moment before responding, visibly choosing her words carefully. “Tensions are high, and Geovans aren’t held in high regard at the moment. Be cautious whom you reveal it to. You’d be wise to get what you need and leave as soon as practical.”

  Maeryn paused, digesting that. “Got it. That lines up with what I want anyway; much as I’d love to explore and play tourist, duty awaits.”

  “We are of like mind, then. May the wind stay at your back.”

  That sounded like a traditional Zephyrian farewell. Thankfully, Maeryn had thought ahead and done some research in the months prior to leaving Geova. “And may your sails carry you well.”

  Surprise flashed across Lyra’s face before her expression firmed once again, though this time Maeryn thought she could see a hint of respect somewhere in the corner of her eyes. Lyra said nothing more, and Maeryn led her friends out of the office.

  “Someone care to explain to the girl who doesn’t do subtlety and social stuff?” Frankie asked outright.

  Maeryn opened her mouth, but Dan beat her to it. “Geovans aren’t liked right now. I expect that the Zephyrians blame us for the mana depletion the same way a lot of us blame the Zephyrians. We can probably expect to be hassled if it becomes public knowledge, and if a fight breaks out we’ll probably be blamed.”

  Frankie glanced at Maeryn, who simply nodded her agreement. “Depths take it,” she swore. “Right. So. What’s the plan, Rin? Are we heading straight for the researchers, or what?”

  Maeryn bit her lip thoughtfully. “I think… we should split up when we get to the fountain. Dan should go to the researchers. Frankie, you know better than I do what Stonewing might need to stock up on, so hit the market and figure out how much it’ll cost to get the basics. I’ll find us a place to stay for the next day or two. We’ll meet up at the fountain at sunset.”

  “All of us should keep an eye out for quick money-making opportunities as well; I know we all brought our savings, but it’s hard to say how long we can make that stretch,” Dan suggested, folding his arms as he thought.

  “Good point. Yeah, that too,” Maeryn agreed. “Also, keep an ear out for anyone who might want to join our mission. We’ve got some room, and having a Zephyrian or two on our team might make things easier if we end up going to another flying city. Don’t advertise it if you do; we’ll talk about it tonight.”

  “Got it, Captain,” Frankie acknowledged with a playful salute.

  Discomfort squirmed inside of Maeryn’s stomach like one of Lakehollow’s eels. “You know you two don’t need to call me that,” she said quietly.

  “We know,” Dan replied. “But like it or not, you’re the leader of this expedition. Frankie and I have our specialties, and I know you’re relying on me to figure the Mist out, but you’re the one who puts us where we need to be.”

  “Besides, we trust your judgment,” Frankie added with a shrug. “And you listen. Hard to ask for more. If it weren’t for you, neither of us’d be here. Even knowing that the Elders weren’t gonna succeed in staving off Critical Mana Depletion, we’d be back at home trying our best, instead of pulling something crazy but sensible like this.”

  The eel in Maeryn’s stomach didn’t particularly like that, but she couldn’t think of an argument either. She let it drop for now, fully intending to bring it up later.

  She turned her focus instead on the buildings on either side of the street. There weren’t many people outside, and they were all headed in the same direction - towards the fountain. The buildings themselves looked like enormous warehouses, leaving Maeryn with a single possible conclusion. “Storage district, do you think?”

  “Mm,” Frankie hummed with a little nod. “Makes the most sense to me. It’d let airship trade run efficiently if their drop-off and pick-up was close to the airfield. Reduces the amount of time that a steam engine can cool before you’re up in the air again, which reduces mana upkeep cost. Wouldn’t surprise me if some of these warehouses have smaller airships, too. For scouting or something.”

  Maeryn frowned. The airfield hadn’t seemed that busy to her; not a single other airship had come or gone in the time they’d been there, and that struck her as odd. Surely a flying city would have more traffic than that? Back in Geova, the train ran nonstop… But then again, Geovan settlements were connected and didn’t change distances from each other.

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  The discrepancy nagged at Maeryn, but she put it out of her mind for now. She could ponder that particular mystery later. Or, better yet, maybe ask a friendly Zephyrian to explain it. But for now, she needed to pay attention to her surroundings, and take in as much as she could.

  Finally, the seemingly endless string of warehouses came to an end, and the three of them came across what looked like an entertainment district. There was a large park on one side of the main road, with dozens of children playing under the careful watch of their parents. Laughter and childish shouting filled the air, and mouth-watering smells emanated from various businesses nearby.

  Maeryn had to tear her eyes away from a particularly sweet-smelling bakery, ignoring her stomach’s annoyed grumble. “You just ate this morning, shut up,” she ordered it grumpily.

  “I hear that,” Dan agreed with a sigh. “I could swear, that guy with the kebabs can tell that I’m this close to giving in. What about you, Frankie?”

  There was no response.

  “Frankie?” Maeryn stopped and looked around. Much to her amused disgruntlement, she saw her friend at a different vendor. She shook her head with a sigh. “Go get your kebabs, Dan. We’re not going to do well on an empty stomach.”

  “And this is why you’re the best boss I could ask for.” Without giving her a chance to reply, Dan immediately split off, and Maeryn could almost hear the knowing grin on the kebab vendor’s face.

  She watched as Dan struck up a cheerful conversation with the vendor, his easygoing nature winning the man over quickly. Nearby, Frankie sounded like she was haggling with another vendor, her determined expression clear even from a distance.

  “C’mon, give a girl a break here,” she coaxed the amused-looking cook. “Your stuff smells so good, and you’re asking me to choose between it and the parts I need for work. Can’t we come to some sort of agreement?”

  “I hear what you’re saying, miss, but stars above, if I give it to ya any cheaper I’ll be taking a loss, and ya wouldn’t want that for me and my little ones either.”

  Frankie pouted for a moment. “What about a little trade? I’m pretty good with steamtech - even got a job maintaining city pipes and stuff back home, and I’m the primary mechanic of the airship my captain’s flyin’. If I can tweak your setup a bit to make it a little more efficient, would that be fair trade?”

  The cook eyed her for a long moment, his gaze flicking over her tools and attire. “Ye can look, but no touching till I say you can. But if ye do manage to get a bit more out of her, then I could see my way to giving you a bowl or two of food, sure.”

  Frankie grinned, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “Deal!” She immediately began examining the cook’s steam-powered stove, her fingers itching to make adjustments but holding back out of respect for the cook’s caution. “You won’t regret this,” she assured him.

  “We’ll see.” The man caught sight of Maeryn watching the interaction. “Oi! This one yours?”

  Maeryn’s cheeks pinked slightly at being caught and came a bit closer. “Yeah, she’s my engineer.”

  “Ye seem a bit young to have an airship of yer own. Where ya from?”

  Maeryn swallowed nervously. Better to be honest, she supposed. “Vert.”

  “Vert…?” The cook scratched his chin. “Ain’t that…?”

  “Okay!” Frankie piped up, interrupting him. “Here’s what I’m thinking. Your rig’s pretty good, but you can get a bit more out of her if you reroute this section over here. I figure this stove was originally set up as a combination fireplace and stove, and you adapted it for this?”

  “How could you tell?”

  Frankie pointed at a particularly large pipe. “That pipe right there’s designed to take a lot of heat from the steam and heat up the area around it. Which is good for cold homes, but not so great on warm days like this, I bet. If you use a smaller pipe to connect these two bits instead then you’ll get more cooking time for less steam. You might even be able to add a valve here to control the steam flow better.”

  “Well, I’ll be… I think yer right. Do ye got what ye need to get it done now?”

  Frankie fidgeted for a moment, then hung her head. “I don’t have the right size pipe on me,” she admitted.

  “Eh, it’s fine. I ne’er woulda thought of it. Go ahead and have a bowl. It’s on me.”

  “Thanks!” Frankie said, brightening immediately. “I’ll keep an eye out for the right pipe while I’m in town. Maybe we can get it fixed before we leave.”

  “There’s another bowl in it for ya if you do,” the cook offered with a knowing grin.

  “Yes!” Frankie exulted, pumping her arm in triumph. “You’re the best.”

  “Just doin’ my part. The world needs more engineers like ye. Go on ‘n’ eat. I gotta talk to your captain for a sec.”

  Frankie sent a sidelong glance at Maeryn, as if asking if it was really okay for her to leave. Maeryn gave her a tiny nod. “Gotcha. Thanks, old man.” She took her bowl, a little less enthusiastic than she’d been a minute before, and went to go sit on a nearby bench.

  The cook then turned to Maeryn. “So. Vert, huh?”

  Maeryn fought back the urge to wince. Discovered as a Geovan in the first hour. She was absolutely terrible at this. “Yeah.”

  “We don’t get many Geovans up here. Especially after the mana depletion problem got more well-known.” The cook narrowed his eyes, folding his arms confrontationally, and leaned in slightly towards Maeryn. “Why’re ye here? Lookin’ for evidence that flyin’ cities are the source of all yer woes?”

  “N-no!” Maeryn stuttered, then took a deep breath and gathered herself. She met the cook’s suspicious gaze with a glare of her own. “The mana depletion rate doesn’t match up with that theory at all. It’s been getting faster, and unless you all have been purposely making your flying cities more mana-intensive as a way to kill us all - which doesn’t make sense to me - then there must be some other explanation. Something we haven’t figured out yet. The Mist probably has something to do with it, I think, but I’m no researcher. That’s why we’re here. To have one of our top researchers meet up with yours to see if we can fill in the holes.”

  The cook strummed his fingers across his arm in contemplation. “Hmph. A Geovan with more than rocks and steam in their head. That’s novel.” He leaned back and nodded reluctantly. “Stay out of trouble. And, a little tip? Ye might want to pick up some Zephyrian clothes and try to fit in better. Ye might get less hassle that way.”

  “Oh.” That was an excellent idea, now that he mentioned it. “Do you have anywhere you’d recommend?”

  The cook jerked his thumb over his shoulder. “Down the street, about halfway between here and the fountain. On the right. Look for Feathers and Fabric. They’ll treat ye right.”

  “Got it. I’ll check it out after we find an inn for the night.”

  “G’luck with that.” Clearly done with the conversation, the cook’s eyes finally left Maeryn’s as he began scanning the area for more potential customers.

  Maeryn blinked, then took the hint and walked off to join Frankie and Dan, who were almost done with their food already. Her stomach rumbled, clearly upset that her friends had gotten to eat and she hadn’t, but Maeryn paid it little mind. Her to-do list was growing larger, and if she didn’t start writing some of it down she was sure she’d forget parts of it soon.

  She reached into her bag and pulled out a small notebook. After a moment of tapping the end of her pencil against her chin in contemplation, Maeryn quickly jotted down her thoughts. She would write a fuller entry that night after supper, in order to track what she’d learned. One never knew when knowledge might come in handy. “Maybe I should draw a map, too…?” She dismissed the idea for now - this was hardly the time - but promised herself that she’d think about it later.

  With that completed, Maeryn glanced at her friends, who were now chatting and laughing over their meal. Despite her own hunger, seeing them relaxed brought her a measure of comfort. They trusted her to lead, and she wouldn't let them down.

  “All set?” she asked as they finished up.

  Dan nodded, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “Yeah. That kebab hit the spot.”

  “Ready when you are, Rin,” Frankie added, standing up and stretching. “Onwards, then?”

  “Right. Towards the fountain, then we split up. Dan, you head to the researchers, Frankie to the market for airship supplies, and I’ll find us an inn. Let’s go.”