It had been three days since Niles agreed to take the Guardian to the small city of Skyhook. She didn’t speak much, apart from answering a few questions he’d asked her. It was a welcome change from the average Guardian Niles was used to. At first he thought Emma was going to be a problem, but after their deal she seemed to relax in the way of authority, though she still seemed tense and bothered.

Maybe she knew some of the people that died on that barge, he thought. His musings drifted to his pilot. She had not spoken to him much over the last few days, if at all, unless she had to. Instead she spent most her time brooding at the helm, glowering every time Emma emerged on deck. He knew it was because Skyhook was close to Norbridge and he’d chosen not to go there. But he’d travel to Skyhook for this Guardian’s money? It’s not like that, he told himself. Skyhook was a day and a half from Norbridge and the two provincial territories were not one and the same.

“We’re there, Captain,” Andrea told Niles, putting emphasis on the last word.

Emma was at the prow of the barge looking on at Skyhook. Niles moved up beside her. “As soon as we dock I get my reward?”

Emma hesitated for a moment. “You haven’t caught a glimpse of the bags of money I keep under this duster of mine have you?”

That obviously meant he wasn’t going to get paid as soon as he thought he might. When then was he going to get his reward so that the Dusty Maiden could go on her way, back to normal life without hitches? For all he knew the Guardian would walk off his barge and he’d never see her again. She’d probably chock having been rescued up to, “aiding a Guardian in need.” Niles was not going to let that happen. “When we land I’m accompanying you.”

“No you’re not,” Emma said.

Niles felt his eyes widen when he opened his mouth. “To hell I’m not, lady. For all I know you walk off my barge and disappear.”

Emma breathed out an exasperated breath. “Fine,” she said.

“And I’m bringing my pilot with me,” Niles added.

“Fine,” the guardian said again.

She was young. Maybe that’s why she wasn’t so pigheaded as most other Guardians—drunk with authority.

Skyhook was in full view now and the Dusty Maiden would be docked in a few tries after Andrea finally got it right.

Apart from this hanging swaying experience, Niles thought, and the fact that if the skyhook ever broke or was intentionally cut everyone would die, this city is a beautiful place. The structures made him think of bird nests and the city a colony of bird nests. Each house, each shop, restaurant, and even the Guardian stronghold, was suspended from the skyhook all connected by long bridges with brass railings.

Docking, from what Niles could tell, was a pain. It was unconventional at best and in order to land, Andrea would have to position the Dusty Maiden directly over a skyhook so that the workers on duty could tie ropes onto the cleats positioned at the base of the gondola. Keeping a sky barge with a gasbag ten times the size of its gondola steady was a tricky thing, especially in a city that was suspended hundreds of meters off the ground where frequent air currents traveled.

For a fleeting moment he wondered, as he did on many occasions, what the landing procedures in the floating city of Skydrift were like. He had always wanted to see that floating city.

Andrea swore one last time, bringing Niles out of his reverie before she was able to keep the Dusty Maiden steady enough to dock. After the barge was securely stationed to the cable below, two men approached the gangplank. One of the men said, “Welcome to Skyhook. Your port docking fee can be paid hear, or in the main office.

“I’ll pay here,” Niles said. He gave the man the port fee and then turned to Walter who was behind him. “You’re in charge until I get back.”

“All right, Cap,” Walter said.

“Are you ready?” Niles asked Emma.

“Of course. Let’s go,” she said, stepping off the barge.

“Andrea, come on,” Niles called as he followed Emma off the Dusty Maiden and onto a slender bridge leading to the main docking platform. The bridge seemed to sway as Niles crossed. He knew any sway he was feeling was negligible, but it caused his stomach to lurch even though the platform was surrounded by a cage.

For some reason he never felt a fear of heights when on his barge—even when unconventional maneuvers were being done.

“You’re fine, Niles,” Andrea said as he made to cross. When he landed on the other side, in a smile she added, “Chicken.”

Emma turned around. “Keep up,” she said, slightly impatient.

“We got it,” Andrea said.

Niles knew Skyhook was larger than it seemed. Hundreds of houses, shops, and other small structures hung from the massive suspension cables overhead by inverted v-shaped supports. Many of them had arcs built across brass-railed suspension bridges making it easier to get from place to place.

“I don’t remember there being so many windmills here,” he said to nobody in particular. There were thousands of them hanging across thinner cables overhead and many more perched on the roofs of houses and other structures like small white chimneys. Niles usually had the Dusty Maiden’s prop batteries recharged in Daura which also had thousands of windmills. But this place was obviously a major exporter of electrical power now. The power output here might be as large as what they produce in the capital, he thought.

“Almost there,” Emma said.

Niles noticed about half a dozen actual hard landing platforms. “I don’t remember seeing those the last time we were here either,” he said, pointing at the platforms only supporting one Guardian war barge.

“I don’t think they were here the last time we made port, Niles,” Andrea said, “which makes me wonder why they made me dock using the skyhook.”

“Those platforms are recent developments,” Emma said. “They were constructed for Guardian barges so they could land and take off quickly in case of attack.

“Ah,” Niles said.

Emma started moving up a steep ramp leading to another bridge that crossed horizontally to this bridge’s forward construction. She continued for about a hundred more feet before stopping at a small yellow house with several windmills on the roof. “We’re there,” she said, before pushing open the door.

Niles followed with Andrea close behind. He could feel the small structure sway slightly as they entered what looked like the main living area.

“Hello,” Emma called. “It’s me.”

Niles heard a rustling in one of the back rooms. Then a middle aged voice said, “Oh. Just in time. I was beginning to worry about you.”

“Jon, there’s a problem,” Emma said, her voice slightly tremulous.

The man entered the main living area and froze as soon as he saw Andrea and Niles. “Who are these people?”

Emma was about to answer him when Niles put out his hand. “Captain Niles Wentworth of the Duty Maiden.”

“The Dusty Maiden?” the man said curiously, shaking Niles’ hand. “Jon Swords... never heard of your boat, though.”

Jon shot Emma what he thought seemed like a serious look.

What’s up with these two? he wondered

“Jon,” Emma said—Niles instantly noted the desperation in her voice. “Skydawn was destroyed...”

Jon’s eyes went wide. They darted to Niles, then back to Emma. “What do you mean destroyed?” he said heatedly.

“We were hit by pirates,” Emma said. “I was the only one to make it out alive.” She gestured to Niles. “Captain Wentworth and his crew saved me. They brought me back here.”

Jon’s eyes looked unfocused. He was obviously in wild thought. “Skydawn... destroyed?” He paused for a moment. Then said, “I just... I can’t believe it.”

“We need to find a new barge,” Emma said.

“Listen,” Niles said. “I’m sorry for the loss of your friends, but I really need to collect my reward and that letter you promised me, Miss Brightwater.”

“Reward?” Jon asked. He seemed surprised.

Guardians usually commandeered what they needed when they needed it without the promise of reimbursement should the property be damaged or destroyed. It was odd Emma didn’t try to commandeer Niles’ barge. She had mentioned it, but he had refused flat out. It would have been six against one if she had tried to force Guardian law on them. Luckily she was smarter than that.

“Yes,” Emma said. “I promised the captain a reward for rescuing me and bringing me here.”

Jon backed into a chair seemingly in deep thought again.

Andrea gave Niles a look. It was the kind of look that meant this was the part where they got cheated on their payment.

“Alright,” Jon said, getting back to his feet. “I owe you a reward, so it seems. Unfortunately I don’t have it hear in Skyhook.

Niles clenched his jaw. He nearly gritted his teeth but didn’t want to make an over threatening presence to the two Guardians who might decide to draw their weapons. “So this is the part where you tell us you have our payment, but first you have to ‘go and get it while we wait here.’ Right?”

“Not at all,” Jon said. “All you have to do is take us to Daura City and we can get your reward.”

Niles felt no mirth as he chuckled. “Hold on,” he said. “Now we have to take you two to the capital?”

Emma raised an eyebrow. She looked confused, but then her face changed when she glanced toward Jon.

Niles thought he saw the middle-aged man pass a very minute nod her way.

“You want your reward, don’t you?” She asked.

“Can’t you send word to your Guardian temple that we’ll be coming to get it without us having to fly you places?” Andrea said.

“I suppose we could,” Jon said, “but we really need to get to the capital.”

“Well...” Niles said impatiently. “Go to the capital then. You don’t need us. In fact I’m pretty sure I spotted a Guardian barge or two on the walk up here.”

Jon glanced in Emma’s direction but she didn’t say anything. Then he turned back to Niles and said, “We’ll increase the reward.”

Something wasn’t right. “Increase the reward?” Niles asked, and then he laughed. “Because you really want to get to the capital via my barge. You just love the Dusty Maiden, is that it?” He stepped forward into Jon’s space. “I don’t buy it.”

“You don’t have to,” Jon said. “You can take us to Daura, or you can forget about your reward. In fact, Guardian law—“

“Yes, yes! I know all about your damn Guardian law,” Niles interrupted.

The two men held each other’s gaze for several moments. Then Niles turned to Andrea for her silent opinion on the matter.

She made a kind of half shrug that seemed to be saying, “I don’t know about these two.”

Niles breathed in deeply. He was trying to weigh the possible cons in letting the two Guardians aboard his barge. Strictly speaking there wasn’t anything they could really do to harm the Dusty Maiden or her crew, but something just seemed off with these two. Why would two Guardians need his barge when there were barges all over the place?

Niles let out his breath in a long exhale. “Fine,” he said pointedly. “I’ll take you both to the capital. Then you get my reward. Agreed?”

“Agreed,” Jon said.

As soon as Jon agreed to his condition, Niles wondered fleetingly if he was making a mistake. He and his crew could certainly use the extra money, but he wondered if he was letting his greed get the better of him. If he’d decided to leave them in that house while he and Andrea headed back to the Dusty Maiden, the city would most certainly dock their pay for a late delivery, and even more so now because of the extra time wasted. Would it have been better for him to accept their losses and run, or stay the course in the hopes that the two dodgy Guardians would actually pay them and make up for everything?

“Get whatever it is you’ll need for the trip,” Niles said. “You have five minutes.”

“Very well,” Jon said.

Niles and Andrea stepped outside the front door of the suspended house. “This is a bad idea, Niles,” Andrea said.

“Yeah, well we need the money. Stopping to save Miss Brightwater has made us late and especially late now that we’ve gotten side-tracked even more that we brought her here.”

Andrea didn’t say anything.

He regarded her for a moment and thought she seemed a little down. She didn’t like the deal he’d made with the Guardian who called himself Jon Swords, but that was not it. It seemed more like disappointed than anything else. Norbridge was only a day and a half out from Skyhook and the Dusty Maiden wouldn’t be heading in that direction when they left port. The pilot was probably hoping he’d change his mind, but how could he? If there really were pirates skulking around the city, then it was too dangerous. Besides he had promised Swords he would take them to Daura. He couldn’t just go back on that deal so they could go rushing into a potentially dangerous situation.

The door opened. Jon and Emma stepped out and walked across the miniature suspension bridge and onto the main walkway. “We’re ready,” Jon said. He was carrying the same bag he had in his hands when they’d entered his house, except now he had a second bag which he handed to Emma.

As they made for the Dusty Maiden, Niles asked Jon, “So why Skyhook?”

“What do you mean?” Jon asked.

“Why did you choose to live here? It’s small and out of the way.”

“You just said it, Captain.”

They walked on for a little while longer. Niles could see the Dusty Maiden tethered to the skyhook.

“So as a Guardian, what exactly are your duties?” Andrea said.

“We protect and defend the people,” Jon said. “But if you’re asking what qualifications I bring to the Order. Well then, I’m an archaeologist, linguist and occasional advisor to the High Council.”

“What does the Guardian council need with linguists out here?” Niles said. “Everyone speaks the standard, and if they don’t, they probably aren’t worth talking to anyway.”

Jon didn’t answer that. “Ah, your Dusty Maiden. You have a wonderful cargo hauler, Captain Wentworth.”

“Yeah...” Niles drawled.

As soon as they were aboard the barge the dock worker who’d greeted Niles as he had stepped off earlier said, “Thank you for traveling to Skyhook. We hope to see you again soon.” Then another worker below bellowed, “Release the hooks.”

Andrea already had the props throttled up and as soon as they were un-tethered the Dusty Maiden started to cruise up and forward out of Skyhook.

“Miss Brightwater,” Niles said.

“Yes?”

“You already know where your bunk is,” he said. Then he turned to Jon indicating the cook. “James, here, will show you where you can bunk down, Jon.”

“Thank you, Captain,” Jon said cordially before trailing James down the companionway and out of sight.

“Alright, Andrea. Take us to the capital.”

“Already on it, Captain.”