Wait, wait, don’t tell me!

Miriam stifled a chuckle as she stepped into the mess. Many of the crewmembers had partaken of the gremlin’s brew. All of them were feeling the after effects now. They were themselves again – but themselves with what was possibly the worst hangover ever.

“Good morning,” she sang, as she sat down between Neil and Alistair. “A fine morning, is it not?”

“No,” Neil said. He set a hand against his head and then sighed. “My head is pounding and my mouth feels like I chewed sawdust.”

“How can something taste so good on the way down,” Alistair said, his voice raspy, “yet so foul on the way up? That’s what I don’t see.” He chuckled and said, “That was good brew, though. I wouldn’t mind more.”

“I’d be careful of that, if I were you,” a soft voice said. It was the captain. Malcolm chuckled and patted Alistair on the shoulder. “You’re not much taller than me to start and last night… well, you weren’t taller than me at all.”

Both men looked stunned. Neil turned to Miriam and shook his head. “That… that was faerie drink,” he said, his voice faint. At Miriam’s nod, he asked, “What did it do to us?”

“Wait,” Alistair said, eying the captain with great unease. Malcolm was smiling like the cat who’d caught the canary. “I don’t wanna know. If you’re gonna tell him, wait until I’ve left.”

Malcolm chuckled softly and then headed over to the table where the officers were seated. “Good morning, Gregory,” he sang cheerful at his first mate.

Miriam stifled a laugh and then poured herself a cup of tea. “Pass the eggs, Alistair,” she said, as she focused on getting her breakfast eaten. She looked up with an expression of innocent surprise when Alistair bolted out of the room. “Something I said?” she asked, looking at Neil.

Neil laughed and shook his head. “He never could hold his liquor,” he said, giving her a playful wink.

Oh wow, look at you now, flowers in the window

“What is that?” Neil asked, stepping fully into the room.

Miriam looked at the wind sprite and shrugged. “It’s a little gremlin,” she said. She tickled its ear again, earning a giggle from the small being. “They’re a big help with small enchantments, plus they have some skill with mechanical things.”

The gremlin chirped and hopped down from the console. He tipped his hat politely and then set it upside down on the floor. He proceeded to rummage inside it for a few moments, before he drew out a bouquet of flowers. These, he presented to Miriam.

“Why thank you,” she said. She smelled them and added, “They’re quite lovely.” She patted the top of the gremlin’s head and set the flowers by the window.

Neil chuckled. “You seem to be quite popular with these… gremlins,” he said, arching an eyebrow.

Indeed, most of the other gremlins were rummaging in their hats in search of some sort of gift. The gremlin who had given her the flowers chattered at them in a scolding manner and waved at the place they were meant to channel their power.

Miriam laughed and said, “I’ll give all of you cookies, but you need to do your work first!” That got their attention. They let out a cheer and returned to the task for which she had summoned them. She gave Neil a smile. “They are far more interested in my cookies than me.”

“They only want to use you, eh?” Neil said. He gave a mocking sigh and said, “Like so many men have sought to use men in the past.”

“So unlike yourself,” Miriam said, arching an eyebrow. He looked hurt for a moment, then they both laughed. “I think you should return to your duties before our young captain becomes cross.”

“Too right,” Neil said. With a jaunty bow, he swept out of the room.

Miriam could hear his rich tenor voice as he sang on his way back to the wheel room. She shook her head and focused on the task of keeping the gremlins she’d summoned working. The mischievous sprites were easily distracted.

Tomorrow I will have no shame

Miriam hurried into the engine room. This place supplied power for the entire ship. A furnace did the job of heating the air in the balloon, giving the airship buoyancy. However, without a magineer, they were drifting on the wind currents.

As she entered the room, Miriam sighed. She stepped over to the control panel and touched one of the glyphs. “Spirits of air,” she murmured, “hear my call. Answer my cry for aid: guide this ship. Propel her on her way!”

The effect was immediate. Her hair swirled as a wind spirit answered her call. The gryphon was a beautiful creature. Its fur and feathers were snowy white. Green eyes gazed at her from the eye disc. It let out a cry and then the airship increased speed, following the course that Neil had laid in.

Miriam’s brows furrowed. “This next part’s tricky,” she told the spirit. “We’re going to travel to another world through a portal. The weave around this portal swirls and rolls, like waves. Are you ready?”

The gryphon clicked his beak. He laid down in the field that was made to contain his kind. His eyes closed. Miriam summoned her power and let the gryphon absorb it. Her gaze was on the chart that was tracking their progress.

They entered the portal without any difficulties. Miriam gazed over towards a window and her eyes widened at the swirling lights and colors that surrounded them. A moment later, they emerged on the other side, in clear blue skies.

Miriam sighed and looked up at the gryphon. “Noble spirit,” she said, “You may return to your home with my thanks.”

The gryphon bowed his head at her. Then, wind seemed to sweep around the room. As it died down, the gryphon vanished from view.

Neil peered in and sighed. “I was hoping to see what you’d summoned to pull that off,” he said, as she looked up. He chuckled, shaking his head. “Captain said that’s the smoothest ride he’s ever had through the Stormcoast Portal. You’ve got a job!”

Miriam smiled. “Good,” she said. She sat down and said, “Little spirits of wind, guide this ship on her way.” Minor wind sprites answered her call and the ship began to move at a smooth, steady pace. One sprite flew over and landed on the edge of the console in front of her.

As Neil laughed and left the room, Miriam reached out and tickled the little sprite’s ear. She was there under false pretenses, but she didn’t feel a bit of guilt. One way or another, this was her ship.

Be beautiful, brief, and blinding

Miriam stepped boldly into the wheel room of the airship. Neil cleared his throat and said, “Captain, Miss Miriam Brighten, here to apply for the post of magineer.” He gave her a faint smile, then stepped over to the maps and charts, to check their course.

The captain turned to face her. “Thank you, Master Neil,” he said. He was a slight man, with a shock of black hair that fell around his face in tangled waves. His round face gave him a childish appearance that made Miriam want to grab hold of him and smooth out the mop of hair.

However, he had a sort of presence that told her he was no child – or at least, not a normal one. She honestly couldn’t say if he was a child or a member of one of the groups of Kenzeans that so resemble them. His bearing made her think it was, perhaps, the latter.

He looked her over briefly, then said, “I’m Malcolm Emerson, captain of this vessel.” He turned away and looked out at the horizon. “As you can see, we have an engineer to handle normal flight. What we need is someone capable of navigating through portals.”

He turned to face her again and arched an eyebrow at her. “Can you do that, Miss Brighten?”

He was so self-assured that, for a moment, Miriam was a little afraid of him. Then, she remembered something her father always used to say. Straightening, she nodded. “Sir, I believe I can.”

“We’ll see,” he said. He whirled to face Neil. “Master Neil, lay in a course for the Stormcoast Portal. Miss Brighten, to your post, please.”

“Aye, captain,” she said, whirling around.

She was nearly to the door when the captain called, “And, Miss Brighten!” She turned back to face him and he gave her an impish smile. “Do try not to get us killed, right?”

“I will do my best, captain,” she replied. Then, she hurried off. That answered two questions. She was a member of the crew, for she was certain she’d see them safely through the portal. Also, the captain was definitely a child. However, it raised another. Just how had a child laid claim to her grandfather’s airship?

Girl meets airship. Girl loses airship.

Miriam hurried through the crowd, clutching the papers in her hand. Somewhere in this place, her grandfather’s airship was docked. She needed to find it quickly. She broke through the crowd and stumbled to a stop.

There, right in front of her, was the ship. It looked almost like the sea going vessels she’d practically grown up on. The biggest difference was the lack of sails. Instead, a large canvas balloon took their place. It was the most amazing thing she’d ever seen.

Her eyes widened as it started to move. She was too late. Someone else had laid claim to her grandfather’s legacy. For a moment, she nearly gave up. Then, she frowned and clenched her fists. Shoving the papers into his jacket, she ran forward. She jumped, just catching the ladder as they were bringing it up.

A young man blinked at her as she stepped onto the deck. “Well,” he said, “that was a near thing, miss.” His voice was soft and vaguely lilting. He smiled at her and then bowed. “Welcome aboard.”

“Thank you,” Miriam said. The ship wasn’t hers, not yet. However, she wasn’t about to give up without a fight. After all, she was a Starbright, wasn’t she?