Seren sat on the bed and looked over her two new books, What Was Never Covered and Tricks & Ties. The first one contained a collection of essays and thoughts from several masters, touching on speculations that the ten elements weren’t the only ones out there. It looked interesting, if quite thick, and she’d already decided to tackle that chapter by chapter, little bites well chewed to make the reading go down easily. The other book was thinner, put together on a rigid texture of paper, and contained the many things someone could do with thread abilities. Thankfully Anks hadn’t read Flames of Passion, Grounded in Earth, and Seeking Clouds yet, so the bored crewmember was happy for the trade, and she had written the names down to buy the series again for the previous owner. After that, though, she had retreated to her ship to get ready for their landing in Viadora.

“Someone did not make this book very well, did they?” She looked closer at Tricks & Ties again. The spine had been sewn together, showing that the book was homemade and had been a part of someone’s personal collection at one point. “Maybe it was handmade by the writer? I can’t imagine it being published like this.”

Either way, that was going to be a last read. Or she could sell it and put the money toward engine repairs.

She took the time remaining and tidied up the room. The last bit of beef jerky was eaten, the bed was made and smoothed out, the new books were put away behind the yellow ribbon, and... she was finished.

“That took too little time,” she moaned, looking around. Dishes. She could wash the cup! A few steps took her to the sink, where she turned on the water and rinsed out the one Captain Juji had used. He was a strange captain. During the meeting, it had sounded as if Joelle had been the one in charge, and he was along for the ride... then again, she was finding out that she knew little about sky pirates and flying. Like air elementals!

“They would be at home in the air, wouldn’t they? Which would make them the perfect sky sailors, so why not?” Her hands shook out the water and placed the cup above in the holder. Then she started on the second one. “They can control winds, so ships could safely go anywhere they wanted.”

That was another mystery, but one she might be able to solve. Finishing the last cup, she stood there, listening to the plinks of water dripping in the sink. Jo had given her two gifts before she’d left the Crimson Cloud. The first had been a threaded friendship bracelet. It would allow Jo, and only Jo, to find Seren and ask for the promised favor. The threads were black, red, and white, coming to a point with an arrowhead pattern, but that had mattered little since, as soon as the ends were tied together, they all went invisible.

“My little trick,” she said when Seren had asked about it. “No one else will see it, so they won’t ask you about it.”

“Could another threader see it?”

“It’s possible,” she’d admitted. “If they have a higher skill and power than I do. Yet, there’s a code of honor among threaders; if it’s invisible, we know it’s not meant for us. For the few people who do take notice, they should quickly ignore it. If not, then you’ve got a problem.”

Seren had nodded at that, then turned her attention away from the threads and to a slim pamphlet.

“This holds the Sky Guild’s purpose, how they help us pirates, and the rules you’ll need to know. It looks deceivingly slim, but I suggest reading it several times before getting your license.”

Seren smiled, looking to where she’d stored the pamphlet. With three books removed from the shelf, it fit without a problem.

“Perfect. I can read over that until we berth.”

She grabbed it and turned to the bed, but hesitated. She’d just made it, and if she sat on it again, then she’d mess it up. An idea occurred to her. Shoving the book under her shirt, she left the room and headed back out into the open. The Crimson Cloud was busier than it had been when it had pulled up beside her. Now, besides the three or four people on the deck, there were many more in the rigging and Jo was stomping up and down the boards, shouting orders.

Seren took a deep breath and climbed up the side of her ship, sitting under the tree and seeing only clouds laid out before her. Then she pulled out her pamphlet and started reading. It only took about an hour for her to drop it in her lap and heave a sigh loud enough to rival the air rushing by.

“This. Is so. Boring!” she complained to the upper tree’s branches. They waggled in the wind, nodding at her observation. “All this talks about are rules, fees, and licenses, and two of those don’t apply to me; I don’t have any money for fees and I don’t have the paperwork or a license.”

That part had been very clear.

To gain a license, you must have enough crew members to sail your ship, all membership fees paid, and paperwork providing your knowledge of wind, weather, and navigation.

“And my ship isn’t really a ship, so do I need a crew member? Where would I fit them? Do all of us have to know maps and charts and stuff? Ugh! This thing is generating more questions than it’s answering!”

She sat up straight, then froze at the sight in front of her.

Their ships had dipped below the clouds while she had been trying to decipher the rules of the Sky Guild, and from here she could see an entire city spread out underneath her feet. What stood out most was a giant mushroom, ships swarming around it. Its cap was a dark red, and there were many little white circles, almost like eruptions, scattered across the surface. Below the cap were several tall buildings at about half the height of the stalk, each of them at a distance, and the ground was dark with the buildings clustered there.

“... how many people live here...?” she whispered, her eyes growing wide and tearing up in the wind. She tried to imagine how many times her small family of three would fit into the homes she saw, then had to stop trying to think of impossible things. They drew closer. More details emerged. There were bridges, wooden ones, that created a pentagram around the mushroom by anchoring at the tall buildings, which were actually five pillars with buildings at the tops! From there, she could see something allowing colorful boxes to float in the air and continue vertically, even as the bridges stayed at the same level.

Her thoughts went back to earlier when Jo had explained how they were going to work the system.

“Docking won’t be a problem as you’ll be attached to us. The headache will start in three days. On that day's sunrise we’ll be leaving, which means you’ll have finished and stamped the paperwork to take off with us, and we’ll release you to fly on your own, or you’ll pay for the berth each day you use it.”

Seren had snapped off a salute.

“Three days should be more than enough time to get everything in order,” she had promised.

And now... with all the buildings below, the people she would go through to find the few she needed... three days looked nowhere near a proper amount of time to gather everything.

“Okay.” She held her breath, then wiped away the tear tracks from the side of her head. “Okay, Seren, you completely misjudged this, but that’s okay. You still have the spells in the satchel, as a last resort, and I’m sure there’s some way to make a bit of money on the side. Like... running errands or something.”

A sense of unease twisted in her stomach.

“Which would require me to know people and places.”

Her eyes focused on the nearest pillar. All white, with little bits and bobs of color moving around it. They had painted the other towers different colors, and a brief thought wondered if there was any specific meaning.

“I could also be overthinking everything,” she muttered to herself, a high-pitched laugh slipping loose. “I mean, they have paperwork. A guild. Officials. They’ll know where to send me, and as long as I follow that I’ll be fine.”

The nearer the city came, the more that uneasy feeling hardened.

“Stop thinking,” Seren ordered herself. She couldn’t, though. This was going to be her first time for... almost everything. Her first time in a place other than home, her first time dealing with other people besides family, there would even be new foods and drinks here—Language! Would she be able to speak with them!?

Captain Juji and Jo had been easy to talk with... but when talking to Anks about book trading, Seren had noticed a small accent, rolled ‘r’s and giving the last part of words a higher tone.

“I can’t panic,” she told herself. “Panic is quicksand that sucks me in deeper and doesn’t let go. It’s the mind killer, the spirit killer, and the progress killer. If I want to move forward, then I can’t panic.” She spread her hands out to grasp the wind and imagined her whole body taking in gold dust while exhaling a white fog. After closing her eyes and doing that for a few minutes, she stopped, shook herself off as if she was wet, then opened her eyes again.

“Right! I know I can do this.” The mushroom was growing closer, quicker than she thought, and now she could see that the white dots on the red were actually bays for ships to dock in. A few of them were busy, but mostly they were quiet. The Crimson Cloud listed to the right, dipping around the side of the stalk. The other ships she saw were darker colors, brown, black, and a few green ones. Hopefully, her shell would not be a problem. She’d rather keep it the cream and orange it was, especially if she had to return it.

“When,” Seren corrected herself aloud. Although... Maybe if she made enough money flying transport, she’d be able to pay the previous owner for the ship. It was a nice dream. And one very far beyond reach.

It wasn’t long before the moving colors changed into bigger blurs, and from there into other beings. It was fascinating to watch the hole they were approaching. At least ten people were in there, three standing nearest to the open sky. As one they reached out together and grabbed the Crimson Cloud. There was a slight jolt, but Seren was already holding on to her tree, prepared for it.

As for the Crimson Cloud, they were prepared, too. They had sailed into port under wind power, but at some point the sails had been packed away, leaving an almost skeletal look with three tall and empty masts. Now, with the jolt, those masts were cranking, retracting into themselves, and allowing the ship to become smaller.

“That’ll never be a problem for me,” she laughed, thinking about how tiny her ship was in comparison. Also, as long as the propeller was working, there would be no need for sails.

Sunlight fell away as they were pulled in and set lightly upon a curved bed of wood. Now the others jumped in to help, throwing colored threads over the ship and tying them to metal posts coming up from the floor.

“Bri!” Captain Juji’s voice rang out and echoed. She watched as he jumped from the bow and landed on the floor; a quick peek showed Jo was at the side of the ship, standing in a prime spot to eavesdrop. “Lovely to see you, my favorite little note-taker! Is that a badge of even more responsibility I see perched on your delicate chest?”

The person he was addressing, with a clipboard clutched in their hand, strode forward. Seren had to cover her mouth when the two stood side by side. The captain was just as he’d been earlier, looking most like a pirate with his feathered hat and half-shirt. In contrast, Bri was wearing two colors, a white top with long sleeves that cut off three-quarters of the way down their arms and a long skirt the same color as the top of the mushroom. A flat black fabric wrapped around their midsection connected the two. The badge Juji had mentioned was pinned at the top of the black part. Even their hair was at odds, one side a flyaway mess and the other tightly braided against the skull.

“Captain Juji. Still the flatterer I see.” There was a slight nod. “And yes, you see a change in status.”

“What’s your full name now? Up to twelve letters yet? Or am I later than I thought and you’ve achieved fifteen?”

Twelve letters? Seren’s brows furrowed. Did people’s names here change as they became older?

“Nine. Bri-arr-shi.”

Briarrshi.

“Well, you’ll still be Bri for me.” Captain Juji stepped forward and enveloped Bri, giving them a giant hug. Bri, Seren noticed, didn’t hug back, but they also didn’t attempt to get away. “And because I love you Bri, I brought you a gift.”

“I ask the gods daily what I did to be punished with you, but they still haven’t answered me. Perhaps tomorrow.” They looked at him and flipped over a hand. “Well? I’m waiting.”

Juji turned and let out an ear-piercing whistle, motioning for Seren to join them. She did exactly that, sliding down the nose of the cone and hitting the ground with a bone-jarring thump. It took a few strides to be at his side, but thankfully, by the time she did so, any lingering pain had gone away.

“Who is this?”

Captain Juji placed his paws on Seren’s shoulders.

“This is your gift. A sweet, young, naïve woman who needs to gain a license for her craft.”

Briarrshi turned her head.

“That ‘craft,’ looks as if it belongs in the ocean. Possibly a restaurant, depending on the type of food it originally contained.” There was a hard stare. “You may refer to me as Briarrshi, Berth Manager, and she. Anything else will gain you a demerit.”

“Ah ah ah,” cautioned Captain Juji. “I told you, she, the lovely, sweet Captain Serii, is a gift. An innocent who is looking to gain the title of captain for the first time in a guild. A blank slate.”

Seren kept looking between the two, listening and following the words, but not understanding any of the deeper meanings she felt flowing past her.

A quick head snap, and Briarrshi was back to staring at the captain.

“...you’re right, this is a gift.” A slow smile spread over her, and when she showed her teeth, there was a flash of color. “Captain Juji, it’s possible that you’ve placed me in your debt.”

“Never,” the captain swore, bowing and doffing his hat. “I simply ask that you remember me fondly every now and again. Captain Serri, until we meet again.”

As he walked off, Berth Manager Briarrshi placed her open hand on Seren’s shoulder.

“Follow me.”