Arvin turned his attention to the farming lands of the plains before his eyes slowly moved to the distant mountains. Ansora was his next destination, and it was still a weeks flight away. He closed his eyes and took a moment to breathe in the fresh air in. He hadn’t realised how claustrophobic he’d been in Auksand until now. He looked back, and thought of Talia, how could someone live without even stepping outside of their city?

He hadn’t been to Auksand before and he knew that it was the caring city. Other cities that he had been to, had held onto their heritage and their good relationships with the outside world. The great opening of Auksand was quickly disappearing from Arvin’s view as his airship began descending. He frowned and looked up to see that Belmont’s repairs were holding. Without warning, his gondola was swung forwards by a strong wind and his whole dirigible went rushing down a tight valley. With cliffs on either side, he saw farmers, their animals and their homes fast approaching.

Farmers began yelling and waving their hoes in the air to show Arvin that he was getting too close. This was confirmed when he crashed into a sheep and sent it flying ten meters into the air. Luckily it landed in a river with a slightly shaken, bahhh! A farmer dived out of the way before Arvin managed to catch a slight updraught from the wind, and he was thrown into a valley. His airship broke twigs off trees as he travelled fast, trying to dodge farmhouses and the bridges. Passing a house, he let out a burst of gas and his airship flew upwards before an up-draft caught him and elevated him further.

“Yes!” Arvin called as he flew.

Soon the wind settled down and Arvin was cruising at a comfortable height. He lay down on his front and looked down at the environment below him. Little hamlets of farms dotted the ground, each one with old machinery and cattle that came to the height of your shoulder. Arvin had found that they didn’t want to develop their farming. It was a peaceful life and they were peaceful people, content living with the animals and working the land. They were also hardy folk, with strong bones and sturdy figures. Both their sons and daughters were stoic, and the wives would be the ones to keep the farms safe from wolves. It was not an easy life, but it was a good one. Each hamlet had a family that made brandy out of barely in their fields, so you could never be sure if the farmers just talked funny or if they just loved brandy too much. Either way, they were nice folk, but not ones to be around for a long time. Arvin did enjoy their company when they came to Ansora in passenger airships to trade. A night out with a farmer was a good one, just don’t wake up with one lying by your side while you are waist-deep in the thermal lake.

Arvin sat up and took his shoes off before he tied them onto the frame. He climbed out, onto the edge of his gondola and hung off a rope. He watched as Auksand got further away, slowly disappearing into the ground. It seemed so dark from up here, like looking into a deep, unlit cavern.

Soon Arvin was in the clouds. He heard movement and he looked around. Wisps of cloud moved past him and he heard a bird chuff. Arvin felt his airship rock as the metal ground upon rock, and he turned to see the mountain that they had been blown into. Swiftly, he went to the platform and steered the airship out of harm’s way.

“I’ve only just repaired you. Don’t go getting yourself broken so soon,” Arvin told his airship, and she seemed to reply as the wind whistled through her propellers. Arvin smiled as they continued to rise high, above the clouds.

Five days passed as Arvin flew, drifting on the south-westerly wind towards home. When morning came on the sixth day, sunlight beamed down and lit up the outer parts of Ansora. To any unfamiliar aeronaut, without having any knowledge of the city they lay inside of the mountain, they would just see a wall of windows near the peak and a huge platform promenading out with two stories, and with four huge pillars rising from its top. Beaten down by the weather, these were the only parts visible outside of the main city. The upper story of the platform acted as one of Ansora’s communal areas, where celebrations were held and people were free to roam, like a park in a town or city of our own. The only building on the platform was the air traffic control tower, and it governed the rules of the sky when it came to the flight of all airships.

Arvin turned his attention to the air traffic control tower as he neared the platform and he watched as a blue flag was raised, giving him the all-clear to proceed to the landing deck, which was the lower story of the platform. In return, he pulled out a white flag that had two horizontal stripes across it and dropped it over the side. Once he had held it there for a few seconds, he folded it in half. The two horizontal stripes on the flag was the signal for a pilot to report their intention, destination or previous flight path, and folding a flag in half, made the signal a question to the other party. Air traffic raised another flag, and this time it was white with a large black square signalling that the answer was negative and Arvin did not have to report the outcome of his latest job today. He would be sure to go up in the morning, however, as they needed to log the event, any casualties, fatalities and rescues.

In relief, Arvin put the flag away and set his course for the landing deck. He was tired after his long journey, and he was looking forward to some warm food and his soft bed. With careful precision, he landed his airship onto the enclosed lower deck of the platform. He walked across the deck and grabbed a hook hanging from the pulley system on the ceiling. He attached it to the frame of his airship as his envelope slowly deflated, and he picked up his bags. It wasn’t yet 7am, so the deck was clear of people. He made his way to the door as he heard the mechanism begin to move and his airship was lifted into the storage system.

Through the door lay a rabbit warren of very old, carved tunnels. They had been hand-dug so they were spacious enough for two people with a little bit of headroom for comfort. They had been improved over time, becoming ever so slightly wider and higher. Some tunnels had beautifully carved patterns on the walls, while others had names of loved ones who had died and those of lovers. An elaborate system of pipes ran throughout the tunnels in the walls and the floor, pumping water up from the thermal lake. Arvin soaked in the warmth from all directions and his frosty fingers and toes began to warm up. He worked his way through the tunnels, he grew weary. He was nearing home now and he longed just to fall into his bed.

When he finally arrived at his door, that was half-hidden by the rock, he rummaged in his bag for the key. Inside of his home, rugs lined the stone floor and beautifully decorated fabrics hung on all the walls. There was minimal furniture, but there was enough to make it feel like home. Dropping his bags onto the floor, Arvin made his way straight to the bed and collapsed onto it. He had not even managed to pull a blanket over himself when sleep took a firm hold of him.

It was 4pm when he next awoke, which he confirmed when he looked at his small watch in one of his bags.

“No!” He exclaimed before he grabbed his keys and rushed out of the house. Monti was coming out of his afternoon briefing and Arvin promised that whenever he was back, he would meet him directly after it.