He walked away with Tazo before he could say anything else to them. Tazo quietly asked, "What were they doing?"

Vonn waved vaguely. "It's that lightning power I've talked about. I've been _wanting_ to build something to show it off. The current can flow through people and some other materials, not just metal rails. They're lucky they haven't learned to make their wand more powerful, or they might hurt the kid. How did they recruit him anyway?"

"Not sure I want to know," Tazo said. The two of them went to check on the Hammer and Feather restaurant.

The Aves in charge had needed to hire outside help, since Birb was too busy being an Engineer and had pointedly refused to just cook and wait tables this time. That meant she was currently an amusement park ride operator, but Vonn wasn't going to tell her that. He looked around the crowded restaurant with its extra outside tent, its pinball machine and pool table.

And found Selen, scarfing down a snack at a crowded table of strangers. She'd brought her red-feathered friend along. "My favorite owl-chemist! When did you get here?"

"Just a few minutes ago. I'm a dye seller now, among other things. So I'm about to open up."

"Come see the new airship! We're doing up-and-down rides."

"Where is it?"

"Look for the boat flying over the town with a giant hovering balloon. Subtle, I know."

Selen snorted. "Must've missed the last time it was up. I'll come over once our stall is set up. We're doing photography too! Can I borrow space for a darkroom?"

"Sure! Just save time for having fun."

Vonn and Tazo left her for now, and went to relieve Birb. Vonn was up in the sky again with with a young Elf and an Aves, pointing out the blighted land and describing yet again how the battle played out. The printer kids had wanted to make a cyclorama, a kind of movie precursor. But it was too ambitious a project for them while cranking out handbills and game pamphlets for sale.

While he was thinking about that project, the Elf tourist leaned way overboard and tumbled, screaming. Vonn turned, lunging toward him. The man slipped free from his rope harness. Vonn ended up balanced on the very edge of the hull, staring at the shouting, falling man. The bracelet on his wrist flared to life and wind erupted around him. Vonn hopped back and grabbed the anchor rope to scurry down it himself but his own harness held him back. He leaned over the edge instead while people surged around the Elf. "Reel me in!" he shouted to the ground crew Kobolds.

The airship took time to lower, with its gasbag kept running. He fidgeted and barely remembered to keep checking the controls. Then the Kobolds called for his attention and he looked out from about ground level. The fallen man was sitting up, battered and wide-eyed. Vonn let out a breath.

Selen came flying from the east. She called out and flashed her pale wings, fighting to clear a space for herself near the victim. Vonn did his duty by staying on deck but he fidgeted while Selen and another medic looked the man over.

Finally the Elf brushed them aside and stood up shakily so he could stagger over to Vonn, looking more confused than angry. "What just happened?"

Vonn gulped. "The harness slipped free, sir. I'll double-check all the knots."

Selen said, "But the bracelet worked?"

The Elf looked at the large brass ring, now cracked and depowered. He shuddered and rubbed one bruised shoulder. "It did. I didn't break anything, anyway. I... suppose I leaned pretty far, and you had two safety systems."

Vonn's fur prickled. "I'm sorry anyway, sir. I'll refund your money and my sister and I can do basic healing."

The Elf waved him off and gave a forced laugh. "I'll live. Just go on. Am I the first person to fall out?"

"Yes...?"

"A record, then! I'll be able to tell my friends."

Vonn wasn't sure that was great advertising, but it was sure better than reporting the first crash death.

Selen clapped her talons together. "So! Vonn, can I ride? I'm a lightweight, so you can find somebody brave to be another passenger." She looked around and said, "Any takers for a free trip?"

Right away, she got Vonn to get the up-and-down ride going again. A Human guy came along, double-checking his own harness. Once they were up in the air, Vonn told Selen, "I would've told the crowd 'hey, here's the co-inventor of this thing', but it didn't seem like the time."

She feather-smiled. "I'll let you claim full credit for this incident. Make better harnesses though. Maybe a custom job."

"Yeah." He turned to the other passenger, saying, "I wrote a book about Engineer work. One of the points she reminded me to add was about the value of safety systems."

The Human chuckled nervously and kept well inside the hull.

#

Vonn and company made good money with their "amusement park ride". Soon though they got approached by a merchant who wanted to fly out to Ralator's area with a small cargo, both for speed and for the novelty.

Vonn said, "With decent wind we might get there in one day instead of several. Can't carry much though."

Birb piped up. "Without a big heavy fox captain, you can carry more!"

"What, you'd take him there yourself?"

"Why not?" She stood up as tall as she could, which was still only up to Vonn's chin.

"I suppose."

Tazo said, "He's just not anxious to let anyone fly off with the thing."

"I understand," Birb said. "I'll bring 'er back safe."

#

Vonn, Selen, Tazo and Birb hung around in the workshop that night since the restaurant was still crowded. The fair would be going for a few days. They talked business for a little while but then pushed all that aside and played their usual dice game, telling a story about a war on greedy sky pirates.

Tazo said, "Is that a real thing, anyway?"

Vonn had gotten the idea from war stories from Polestar. "No, this is based on a war at sea. The other world did have sky battles, but not like this. Here we've had one crash, one injury besides mine, and some combat use of aircraft already. It'll be different here." Come to think of it, he really should invent a safer rope harness... another time.

Birb said, "We don't have to use flying machines for fighting."

"Usually we won't. But it'll happen." He shook his head. "Where were we?"

"Fighting with swords on the deck against Captain Murad."

"Right. Roll to dodge..."