The Ballad Of A Semi-Benevolent Dragon

Chapter 20: The Ship Takes Flight

Doomwing looked upon the sky ship. A week had passed since he had last seen it, and the dwarves had been hard at work. His magic had put the pieces together, but the process had been rough at best. The dwarves had painstakingly worked on the joins, hammering, welding, and using all manner of magic to ensure that that the sky ship was well and truly back in one piece.

The ancient dwarven script on the hull and throughout the sky ship had been restored. Gone were the faded etchings and time-worn symbols. Instead, they had been carved anew and filled in with fresh ink crafted from materials designed to conduct magic and contain spell craft. The sails had been replaced, and the complicated mechanisms of the interior had been restored or replaced with incredible attention to detail.

The parts he had given the dwarves had all been carefully matched and fitted into the correct positions, and the scaffolds bustled with activity as the dwarves continued to work on the vessel. But for all their efforts, the sky ship was still on the ground. Despite how far they had come, despite the exhaustion that filled their bodies and the immense effort they'd put into everything, the sky ship remained stubbornly unable to fly.

"I see that you have failed," Doomwing drawled as Prince Harald came forward to greet him.

"Great Doomwing" The prince was shamefaced. "We have done everything we can, but you are right. We have failed. We gave it everything we had I want you to know that but it was not enough. We we are not worthy of this ship."

Doomwing stared down at the dwarf. For a moment, he saw the dwarves of an Age long gone, bright-eyed and resolute, their hearts and minds turned to the sky and the endless horizon. What would they think of this distant descendant of their land-bound kin? Would they praise his efforts, or would they mock his failure?

His lips curled. He knew what they would do, and it was that knowledge that allowed him to soften his tone ever so slightly when he replied.

"I gave you an impossible task, Harald. You could never have succeeded."

The dwarf looked up at him. "You did?"

Doomwing gestured at the sky ship. "The work that you and your followers have done is worthy of praise. The makers of this vessel would be proud of what you have accomplished. However, this sky ship was never going to leave the ground."

"Why?" Harald asked. "Was it something we did?"

"No." Doomwing shook his head. "You must have grasped the general idea of how the sky ship operates. Explain it to me."

Harald nodded quickly. "Aye. The dwarven script on the vessel lightens how much it weighs. The spell-stones within the ship reduce or even cancel the effects of gravity while the spell-stones on the exterior of the ship produce the forces required to first lift the ship into the sky and then propel it. The sails can also be used to fly, but they require a strong magical current to be effective, and we do not have one here." Harald bit his lip. "We tried to activate the spell-stones, but we were never able to keep them active for more than a second or two."

"There is a reason for that." Doomwing gestured, and an image appeared beside him. "In essence, the spell-stones crystallise a particular spell, allowing it to be used when sufficient magic is run through them. The problem is that spell-stones of this size and power require a significant investment of magical energy before they are properly primed and ready for use. Without that energy, they will stutter and fail when activated. However, once active, the actual expenditure of magic is more manageable."

Harald's eyes widened. "No wonder the magical conduits leading from the core of the ship to the spell-stones are so thick! They would need to be that thick in order to withstand the massive surge of power required to activate the spell-stones."

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"Precisely," Doomwing said. "The core of the ship is a crystal designed to store vast quantities of magical power. You may have noticed that the controls allow for both the steady release of lower quantities of magic and the sudden dumping of huge quantities of magic. The former is for when the sky ship is already aloft whereas the latter is for activating the spell-stones for flight. In truth, however, it was common practice to leave the spell-stones active whenever possible to minimise wear and tear on the crystal."

Harald ran a hand through his beard. "If we set up equipment to collect magical energy from our surroundings, we should be able to collect enough energy to activate the spell-stones in perhaps a month or so"

"Why wait a month?" Doomwing chuckled. "You did not succeed but you achieved far more than I expected. I had thought I would come back to a half-finished sky ship, and I would still have been content with that. To see you get this far I can only praise your hard work and skill. I have no desire to wait a month. I will charge the crystal myself."

"Oh!" Harald bowed low. "Thank you, great Doomwing!"

"Think nothing of it." The dragon smiled faintly. "It has been too long, I think, since a sky ship sailed through the clouds."

Doomwing reached out to the crystal at the heart of the sky ship with his magic. He had to be careful here. His reserves of power were so vast that it would be trivially easy to overload the crystal and turn it into an explosive. Thankfully, his control was equally impressive, and he filled the crystal with his magic until it was full.

"Go," Doomwing said to Harald. "The crystal is ready. You and your followers were the ones to repair the sky ship. You should be the ones to take it into the air for the first time."

Harald ran through the sky ship until he reached the bridge. His most trusted followers were there with him, and the finest of his artificers and engineers stood ready and waiting in the most important parts of the ship. The dwarven script that allowed the bridge to communicate with the various areas of the ship flashed, and he cleared his throat before speaking.

"Draw power from the core," he said. "Activate the spell-stones that can free us from gravity's hold."

The crystal heart of the sky ship flashed, and magic began to flow into the spell-stones throughout the ship. The spell-stones began to hum, their dull surfaces slowly gaining shine and lustre as magic filled them. The spells crystallised within their depths glittered like stars, and the hum grew louder, no longer discordant but harmonious.

"Keep feeding magic into them," Harald said. "If I'm right, there are safety mechanisms built into them that will cut the power before they're overloaded. Doomwing said it'll take a fair bit of magic to get them going, and he was kind enough to give us plenty. Let's not be stingy."

The hum from the spell-stones grew until it was a chorus that filled the entire ship. It echoed down the corridors, rang out over the deck, and filtered up onto the bridge. It was beautiful, and Harald could have listened to it forever. But it was changing now, turning from a hum to a roar that reminded him more and more of the mighty artifacts his people used to carve open the mountains and harvest the bounty of the earth.

The pulsing light of the spell-stones settled into a sustained glow, and Harald felt the ship shudder beneath him before the magic within the stones rippled to life in earnest. The ship jerked in its moorings, no longer pressing down on the scaffolding but free to move in the wind. He and the other dwarves looked at one another in awe, and he stared out of the vast pane of enchanted glass that allowed him to see the open sky.

They were swaying back and forth, bobbing up and down like a ship in water.

"Father" His son, Leif, could barely speak, but he managed to force the words out. "We're we're flying!"

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"Not yet, son." Harald grinned. "We're floating. If we want to fly, we'll have to get the other spell-stones working." He cleared his throat and spoke to the dwarven script that would convey his orders to the dwarves tending to the core. "Run power to the spell-stones for flight." He then addressed the dwarves who were in charge of those stones. "Have us rise, lads, but make it slow."

"What about the moorings?" his son asked.

"Have them cut the moorings," Harald said. "I'll not have anything tie us down, not now."

Doomwing felt a sense of nostalgia sweep over him as the Stalwart Guard took to the skies for the first time since the end of the Third Age. It was not graceful, not in the hands of those who'd never flown before. It was clumsy and slow and ugly, but it was flying, and that alone was enough to make his own heart soar.

Had he really missed the sight of a flying sky ship this much?

No.

That wasn't it.

He had missed what the sky ships of the Third Age had represented.

He had flown alone many times, for that was the way of dragons. They lived with their parents when they were young, but they left as soon as they were able, keen to explore the world and increase their strength. It was a solitary lifestyle, but it made dragons strong. A dragon must be able to stand alone against the world, or so he had been taught.

Yet there was joy to be found in companionship. He had spent many years soaring alongside the sky ships, and he had come to care for the dwarves, elves, and dryad who loved the sky as much as he did. To race through the skies alone was a fine thing, for there was little that made a dragon happier than to know that all he looked up was his.

Yet the thrill of the hunt was often better when it was shared, and he had passed many a night with the elves and dwarves of that bygone Age, exchanging stories, discussing magic, or even playing cards. Those memories had never faded, not after all the years that had passed, and they returned to him now, drawn to the forefront of his mind once more as he watched this relic from the Third Age take flight.

He truly was a sentimental fool.

He could almost heard Ragnar laughing at him in that good-natured way of his. The dwarf would have loved to see this, and he would have praised the dwarves mightily for what they had achieved before stomping into the bridge to explain how they were doing it all wrong. Yes, his friend had taken flying seriously, and he had learned how to draw every ounce of speed and manoeuvrability out of a sky ship although his first love had always been battle.

Many times had Ragnar stood on the bridge of a sky ship yelling orders as he raced Doomwing. He'd never won. No sky ship ever made could match a dragon in full flight, but it was the race that had mattered most, the challenge, the thrill of matching himself against the best. Doomwing had humoured him, and perhaps he had slowed down a few times, if only to give Ragnar a glimpse of victory before speeding away.

"The core has enough power to fly for a week without recharging," Doomwing said. "Use the next two days to grow acquainted with the sky ship's operation and to ready your belongings. We leave once I am confident you can fly that thing without crashing into the first mountain we come across."

"What if we run out of magic?" Harald asked, his voice projected out into the open air by speakers forged of crystals etched with dwarven script.

"I will provide you with more if required, but that should not be necessary. We will be flying along several powerful currents of magic that flow through the sky. You will have a chance to practice using the sails and to replenish the core's store of magic." Doomwing chuckled. "And if necessary, I could always just use my power to carry you back."

After all, he was already carrying a group of tree folk with him. To his surprise, the tree folk had not been troubled by flying. If anything, they seemed to find it fun, and he could see them watching the sky ship intently.

"Well," Doomwing murmured. "You were serving Rhizophora. She has always been a bit odd. It's no surprise you lot are a bit odd too."

The tree folk just stared back at him before giving him the equivalent of a shrug.

Lydia blinked. "They actually managed to fix a sky ship and get into the air without killing themselves?"

Doomwing smiled toothily. "I gave them some help, but they did most of the hard work." He nodded at the dryad. "You're looking better."

"I feel better." The dryad smirked. "Ever since you dealt with that sky whale, I've been able to draw as much magic from the area as I need." She gestured at some tree folk who had gathered. "These are the tree folk who meet your needs. They're also holding the plants you wanted. They should be fine until you get back to that dryad of yours."

"Excellent."

"By the way," Lydia said. "Did you wipe out the wolves?"

"They were in the way," Doomwing said. "One of them even tried to eat the phoenix egg." The egg itself was hidden from view and protected by multiple runes. He didn't want anyone else stealing his prize, not that he thought he would run into anyone with the strength to take it. However, he didn't want to run the risk of it being damaged during a scuffle. "Why do you ask? Don't tell me you wanted me to spare them."

"I don't really care what happened to them," Lydia said. "But, apparently, the goblins and centaurs found out. They've been celebrating for days, and with the sky whale meat and parts you left them, those celebrations have been pretty rowdy."

"Oh? Have any of them been able to ascend?" Doomwing asked. If they had, it only made them more interesting. "Or did they kill themselves in the attempt?"

Leaving those parts to the goblins and centaurs was both a gift and a test. A foolish person would greedily devour as much as they could and probably kill themselves in the process. A wiser person would carefully consume what was safe, gradually building their strength until they were able to ascend.

"A handful," Lydia said. "Derzu was one of them."

Doomwing thought back to the wise goblin. "That doesn't surprise me. What form did his ascension take?"

"I'm not sure of the exact name, but he seems to have developed abilities suited to leadership and command over groups ranging from foragers to warriors."

"Hmm" Doomwing chuckled. "I see. That suits him, I think. You should keep a close eye on him. With his new abilities, the goblins and centaurs will be far more effective. It wouldn't surprise me if they try to establish a permanent settlement too. If his ascension has taken the form I think it has, then he will be most effective when he can stay in one place and command as many people as possible."

"I will keep watch," Lydia said. "Do you think they will try to establish a proper nation of their own?"

"It wouldn't surprise me."

"That might be a good opportunity for me," Lydia murmured. "They will need allies, and with their help, I could greatly extend my reach. Not to mention, a permanent settlement will mean crops" She shook herself. "What will you do now?"

Doomwing flexed his wings. "I will continue my journey home. I do not wish to dawdle." He glanced back to the sky ship. The dwarves had done well to improve, but every now and then, they made mistakes that needed to be corrected. Now was one such occasion. The sky ship was listing to the side, and his keen senses could pick out the panic spreading through the vessel. "The magical conduits to some of the flight stones are in need of repair. They are transmitting magic poorly, which means there is more power being used to lift one side of the ship than the other."

"Ah." Lydia made a face. "I think I will stay on the ground. It's easier that way."