The clouds gathered beneath the city like foam on the waves of a stormy sea. Arsha stood at the railing, the cold air running over her thickly gloved hands as bright sunlight warmed her face. Her goggles were pushed up over her forehead, the leather strap pulling her hair back. She closed her eyes and listened to the sounds of the city. The creak of the wires, the hollow booming of the wind against the canvas balloons, the soft humming of the lightning crackling through the floatstones.
Sunlight scattered off the myriad windows, off the brass and steel of the railings and support struts. Wind hammered at the wood-panelled walls of the many structures that had been lashed, bolted, and welded together over the years, to form a single vast and labyrinthine mass, suspended high above the clouds.
Ships dotted the skyline around her, fat bellied galleons and trade cogs drifting on the breeze as they waited for permission to dock. Here on the upper levels it was still quiet, the university only barely creaking to life as students slouched towards the first lectures of the day, but down at the docks she knew it would be a riot of activity as ship after ship was unloaded, their cargoes whisked away to the storehouses before filtering up to the shops and cafés of the merchant districts.
She heard the sound of a door closing. Her father's footsteps were slow and solid as he crossed the observation deck towards her.
“I thought I might find you out here.”
His hands settled on her shoulders, and he leaned down to plant a kiss on the top of her head. She smiled up at him. He was clean shaven, his hair neatly combed and waxed. That meant he had a meeting today, probably with the dean and the bursars.
“Morning, Daddy. Are they making you sign things?”
“A final review of procedures, for the arch-dean. Just formalities. We'll still be setting off early tomorrow.”
“They'd better not try to change anything now. You've been planning this for months.”
“They all take months of planning sweetheart, and a lot of paperwork. But it's mostly just saying the same thing in a dozen different ways, so that everyone will agree that you meant it when you said it. Even if you didn't.”
“Like, 'I, Professor Rishi Chandra, promise not to do anything incredibly silly or dangerous whilst running around the middle of an uncharted jungle exploring ancient Ur ruins that no one's seen for a thousand years'?”
He laughed.
“Yeah, I've been telling them that one for years.”
“But you still make me stay at the camp,” she added, scowling.
“Taking stupid risks is my prerogative. Keeping you safe is my job. At least until you're sixteen.”
“That's not even a year. What difference is a year going to make?”
A look of uncertainty flashed across his face.
“You forgot again, didn't you?” she said, grinning.
Creases lined his face as he squeezed his eyes shut.
“You can't be fifteen already.”
“And three months.” She stuck her tongue out, laughing at his pained expression. “You got me a holographer, remember?”
“No... That was your fourteenth, surely...”
She shook her head.
“Fourteenth was the new sending stone. You had it engraved.”
He nodded.
“So,” he sighed, “apart from embarrassing your old man, what are your plans for the morning, young lady?”
“I'm supposed to meet Shani after her first lecture, so we can go down and wait for Milima and Abasi at the docks.”
“How long before they pull in?”
“About an hour, I think. Look.”
She pointed at one of the ships drifting low over the clouds. It was a slender little thing, dwarfed by the trade-ships that surrounded it. A sleek body with wide canvas wings, two float-stones mounted on outriggers just above the twin propellers. It was an explorer's vessel, and it was the only place she'd ever really thought of as home. The Triskelion.
“It'll be good to see them again. You remember we've got dinner planned tonight?” he said.
“Meet at the department, six thirty. I remember.”
“OK, well, I'll see you there. Now I really should get going. You've had breakfast, right?”
She rolled her eyes.
“Go sign your papers, Daddy. Or whatever they want you to do. I bet it's all really boring.”
“Crushingly dull.” He gave her shoulder a squeeze. Then he was gone, long strides carrying him across the observation deck.
She took one last look at the open sky, and then she followed him inside.
On her way down to the café, Arsha stopped in at the apartment to collect a few things. Their lodgings were on loan from the university, whilst her father and his assistants were staying in Skytower, and in the three months they'd been living there she still hadn't managed to make it feel like any kind of a home. She snatched up her bag from the back of a chair, and was turning to leave when she heard a soft trilling sound from atop the dresser, as Penelope lifted her head from under her wing and shook her feathers out. Mother-of-pearl eyes gleamed under shining silver eyelids as the tiny mechanical bird cocked her head from one side to the other.
“Well come on then,” Arsha said, standing impatiently in the doorway. With an almost musical sound of metal wings fluttering, Penelope crossed the short distance to land on Arsha's shoulder, tucking herself up just under the wave of her hair. She reached up to stroke the back of Penelope's head, the little bird twisting to nuzzle her fingertips. Though her metal body gave no heat, Arsha always felt sure there was a spark of warmth when the little autom pressed up against her.
By the time she reached the café where they'd agreed to meet, Shani was already sitting at a table overlooking the concourse. Her long plaits were pulled back in a loose braid today, and she wore a bright green tunic with silver embroidery. Like her mother, Shani had skin the colour of polished ebony, and a smile like sunlight.
“Hey you,” she said, as Arsha slipped into the chair across from her. “Ordered you a coffee.”
“How was your lecture?” Arsha said, depositing her satchel. As she settled herself, she felt Penelope poking her nose out from under her hair. With a friendly chirp, the little bird dropped down onto the table.
“Ugh. Boring. Markus goes on and on,” Shani said, tickling Penny under the chin with the tip of her finger. “Hey, want to see something neat?”
Arsha nodded, and Shani produced a small object from her bag; her sending stone, the crystal a deep amethyst with squared off corners, set in a brass frame.
“This is a new weave I've been working on. You link it to your harmonic, right, and it listens to all of the waves that are playing in your area... And then, you just, you know, whistle or hum a little at it, like, any song you have in your head, and it finds you the wave that's got the closest thing to that. So, you know, whatever kind of music you feel like listening to, it'll find it for you. Come on, grab your stone and I'll swipe it over to you.”
“That's really cool,” Arsha said, smiling. “But, I don't think I'll be able to use it much. Most of the time we can barely even get the Guild station. I don't think they'll even have that where we're going now.”
“Yeah, Tyren's really the middle of nowhere huh? Hey, don't worry, you'll find ways to entertain yourself. Maybe you'll meet some nice Tyren boys, eh?” Shani smiled and gave her a friendly slap on the arm.
For a moment, Arsha tried to return the smile. Then her face fell, and she felt a twisting knot tighten in her stomach.
“It's not going to be the same,” she said, miserably. “Not without you. First Elim left, and now you're here studying, and it's just me...”
With a solemn look, Shani gave her hand a gentle squeeze.
“Maybe it's time to think about what your father said. Going to the Guildhall to study. Boarding school could be a lot of fun. I bet there's a bunch of kids there whose parents are explorers or archaeologists just like your dad,” Shani said. With a shrug she added “Or captains, like mine. It's not like we're the only ones that have, like, weird parents and stuff.”
“Yeah, I know. It's just... What if I hate it there? What if no one likes me? Or what if I don't make any friends, or I'm no good at my classes, or...”
“None of those things are going to happen. Arsh, you're like one of the nicest people in the world, and you're smart, and you're fun, and I love hanging out with you. My friends all think you're awesome. Do you have any idea how crazy that is? University students are not normally impressed by fifteen year old girls.”
Arsha felt her cheeks tingle, and for a moment she had to pretend to scan the concourse as a smile crept across her lips. At that moment a waitress arrived with their order. Arsha was blowing the steam off her coffee when Shani's sending stone chimed. She waved a hand over the crystal, and the message flickered into view, suspended over the surface in faintly glowing letters of light.
“Oh, hey, that's Mum and Dad. Someone missed a slot, so now they're pulling in to dock already. Come on, we gotta go.”
They drank their coffees quickly and snatched up their bags.
“Come on,” Arsha waved at Penny as they set off. The little bird swept into the air, gliding over their heads as they walked.
Once they left the brightly lit concourse, the corridors of Skytower grew tighter and darker, ceilings low and crowded. Arsha had to coax Penny back down onto her shoulder for fear that she wouldn't have room to fly. They made their way down a creaking old stairwell, and emerged into the bustling chaos of the docks. Arsha breathed in the familiar scent of canvas wax, smoke and engine oil. Keeping to the upper catwalks, they watched as the dockers worked the level below, carts laden with crates and barrels being hauled by broad shouldered men and women in grease stained overalls.
Eventually the girls found their way to the dock where the Triskelion was pulling in. Through the tall windows that ringed the catwalk she could easily see the ship ahead of them, floatstones still dancing with energy even as the propellers were slowly coming to rest. She could almost hear the the canvas snapping in the wind.
“Hey, hold up,” Arsha said, pausing to reach into her bag. She pulled out her holographer and raised the viewfinder to her eye. Gently squeezing the capture, she froze a few stills of the Triskelion in the dock.
“Are you done playing with that that thing yet?” Shani laughed, as Arsha tucked the holo away in her bag again.
They made their way down a small stairwell, and through a heavy door that lead them out onto the pier. As they stepped outside, the wind struck them both like a hammer. Arsha pulled her goggles down as Shani produced a scarf from her bag.
The Triskelion's deck was long and flat, save for the vast form of the conning tower that rose up over the aft. The bridge had a curved window across its entire front, giving a clear view over the deck. Just below, at the base of the tower, was the heavy iron hatchway that lead inside. As they crossed the deck, Arsha saw the hatch swing wide as two figures emerged. With a sudden thought, she pulled out the holo from her bag again and caught a quick still of Abasi and Milima as they were stepping out onto the deck.
“Seven Names Arsha, did you really have to?” Milima called out to her, laughing as the wind whipped around her. Abasi heaved the door to and turned just in time, as Shani flung her arms around the both of them. Arsha caught a few more quick stills, as the couple embraced their daughter. Then the three of them were strolling towards her, Shani clinging to her parents arms as she walked between them.
“Hey you,” Abasi said, his voice booming like thunder as he threw an arm around her. She squeezed her arms around his rotund waist, and pressed her face to his chest as the man towered over her.
“Uncle Abasi. How was your trip?”
“Long,” Milima said, peeling Arsha away from her husband, and pulling her into a fierce embrace. Milima smelled of cinnamon and nutmeg, a sure sign that there was a fresh load of pastries and cakes waiting aboard the ship.
“So, listen, we've got dinner at seven,” Shani said, “Arsha's dad booked some super fancy place in Upper East. What do you guys want to do to kill time until then?”
“Oh I don't know dear. Whatever you like,” Milima replied.
“Is Liam going to be joining us at all?” Abasi added, with a curiously hopeful look.
“Ugh, no.” Shani made a face. “Liam and I, uh... We kind of split. Look, it's a really long story.”
“Oh sweetheart,” Milima said, putting an arm around her daughter. “If you want to talk about it we could find somewhere quiet...”
“Maybe later.” Shani smiled, and patted her mother's arm. “Come on, let's head up.”
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