Fianna Kelly Versus the Jeebees: A Collection of Steampunk Stories (11 page)

We
had stayed the night within walking distance of the aerodrome, but Gerald
insisted that going by wagon would save time. He said that we needed to arrive
well in advance of the departure time in order to get Bradan loaded. I felt
sorry for Bradan because he would have to travel in the cargo hold since he was
too big for the gondola. For the next hour, Gerald was busy with arrangements,
Bradan was busy being shuffled around, and I was not busy at all.

I
was so happy when I looked about to see my friends riding up the road. I hadn't
left word for them, but the news had spread quickly about my travel plans.

"This
is wonderful!" I said. "You are all here to see me finally get my
feet off the ground."

They
all started talking at once and I loved it. Gerald chose that time to give me
my boarding pass.

"Gerald,
these are my friends: Darina, Bevin, Melissa, and Sheela. My friends, this is
Gerald."

"What
do you do Gerald?" asked Melissa.

He
replied, "Right now, I have made a deal with Fianna's father to make sure
she arrives at her destination safely and on time or else face some very severe
penalties."

Darina
responded, "Ah, an escort. Keep her away from shoppes during the day, the
pubs in the evening, and the four of us anytime."

"Thanks
for the support, Darina," I said.

Melissa
said, "After your brothers told us where you were going and when you were
leaving, they told us how you were going and what your father's demands were to
allow it."

Bevin
added, "So have a fun time and don't forget about us when you are in the
souvenir shoppes."

Darina
looked at my boarding pass. "Is this a window seat? You know she's a
virgin flyer and deserves the best view."

"Gerald
says I will have my own airship once we reach London so I will have plenty of
room to bring home surprises," I boasted.

They
all tried to talk at once, but Melissa was first. "Your own airship? What
competition gives those out as prizes?"

I
looked over at Gerald. "Your turn."

"Well...
She needs to be in a certain place and at a certain time. The schedules for
commercial airships were not flexible enough for our needs."

Melissa
pressed on. "So you just gave her an airship?"

I
interrupted before he could answer that. "I will even have my own flag on
it."

Darina
asked, "Can we go along? I bet you have enough room for four more."

I
smiled sweetly and looked at Gerald. The other women followed along with their
best pouts. "They followed me here, can we keep them?" I asked.

"How
about you take them for a ride when we return? We are on a tight schedule."

Bevin
was first to reply. "Do you promise?"

I
answered quickly before Gerald could think. "We promise. I'll let you know
when I'm headed home and you can watch for my airship to land in the meadow
behind Sheela's house. I believe 'tis big enough."

I
addressed Gerald, "I'd like to check on Bradan before we go. Can we do
that?"

He
replied, "That should be no problem as long as we don't get in the
way."

That
was much easier to say than to do. Men were everywhere with luggage and boxes
of all sizes. I had no idea how they managed to stay out of each other's way.
We cautiously walked to get to where Bradan was placed a few steps at a time.
They had tied him down to a large wooden board and that was in turn secured to
the walls so it would not shift.

"How
are you doing?" I asked.

IMPROPER
LOCKDOWN

I
asked him, "How can we fix that?"

REAR
LEG MUST BE FREE

 I
called to a nearby worker. "Can you help us?"

The
stevedore asked, "Why does it need that? It is more secure when we tie
down all its legs."

Gerald
replied, "The automaton knows the airship is not always on an even keel,
but it needs to stay as level as it can. With one leg free, it can adjust
itself as necessary."

The
stevedore relented. "Normally, we'd put items like that in a sling, but
that wouldn't work either. I guess with two legs secured fore and aft, it won't
shift much."

I
looked at Gerald and asked, "How did you know that?"

He
replied, "It just made sense."

Gerald
and I started to board the airship as my friends waved and shouted at me. I ran
back and gave them all hugs. Once inside, we found our seats next to a small
window and I waved to them. It was difficult to accept that I was finally going
to be flying. I kept getting goose flesh on my arms whenever I thought about
it.

It
was a weird feeling as we rose into the air. The entire ship leant backwards as
we went up and my ears kept getting plugged. Gerald pointed out the women near
us who would cover their face with a fan as they yawned. I thought that a bit
pretentious, but I followed their example. My ears would clear for a moment or
two and I'd have to do it again.

I
had seen some sparse, fluffy clouds from the ground and Gerald brought my
attention to the window as we went through them. It was like the thickest fog I
had ever been in. Water droplets formed on the window and were swept away. We
flew above the clouds and I looked down at them. They looked like giant sheep;
so soft and thick with wool. I felt like I could just walk out and go to sleep
on them. That would be a sleep I would not wake up from, unfortunately.

The
ship levelled off and I could stop clearing my ears at last. As I expected, it
was an uneventful flight to London. I spent most of it looking out the window.
It began with looking at clouds or the water below them. Then we flew over land
again and I could see farms and roads and towns. There were tiny things moving
on the roads below us, which had to be wagons and carriages.

It
was near sunset when we arrived. Gerald said the winds had not been favourable
and it took longer than usual. Since Bradan was loaded first, he would be
unloaded last. It didn't matter much since he would be loaded onto my airship
as soon as he was taken off this one.

While
we were waiting, a man came up to us. Gerald introduced him. His name was Ethan
and he was one of the aviators who would be piloting my airship. He addressed
Gerald, "We rechristened it as 'Clover' this morning. It seemed more
appropriate than the former name."

I
looked over at my airship. It was a huge silver sausage-shaped balloon with a
gondola affixed below it. The name "Clover" was written in thick
letters taller than me on the side of the balloon. In the middle were two huge
fans extending out from the gondola. It had the usual fins at the rear. On a
rope between them and the bottom section was my flag, blowing gently in the
breeze. The setting sun reflected orange off the balloon and it was truly a
sight worth seeing. I said, "She's wonderful! I love her! Her name is
perfect! How soon until we are flying?"

Gerald
replied, "It will take an hour to transfer your automaton and finish
loading provisions."

"What
kind of provisions?" I asked.

"We
will have a well-stocked icebox when we leave. More than enough to see us
through the trip there and back... twice."

I
stood and waited, trying not to shuffle my feet like I did when I was a young
girl outside church. I would have loved to go into the city and browse the
shoppes. I thought about the last time I was here and all the fun I had in the
pubs too. I watched the cargo being moved between ships to pass the time
instead.

"I
wonder if I can teach something smaller and lighter to do what Bradan does.
'Tis a lot of work to get him settled properly on airships."

"What
were you thinking of?" asked Gerald.

"A
puppy would be nice. I've been told that Saint Bernards are very
intelligent."

 We
watched the stevedores secure Bradan in the centre of the cargo area on my
airship just like he had been in the other airship.

Ethan
announced, "We are ready to embark when you are, Miss."

I
replied, "Please... Before we go, could you tell me where everything is
lest I become hopelessly lost inside of her?"

"I
can do that. Let's start at the front. At the bottom is the control pod. That
is where myself and the other aviator will fly your airship from."

"Does
it take both of you to fly it?"

"This
ship only needs one, but we take turns to keep alert."

"Please
continue. I will try not to interrupt."

"Feel
free to ask questions as you wish. Behind the control pod is the sitting room.
The forward door opens into it. The stairs to the upper level are also
there."

"My
airship has an upper level?"

"Yes,
it does. Above the control pod is your stateroom. It has the best view on the
ship with those large windows allowing you to see where we are going and to
each side. Directly behind your suite are the rooms for the crew and passengers
as well as the galley. Our rooms are not as nice as yours, of course, but are
still quite spacious compared to the cabins in commercial airships."

"I
didn't see any cabins on the ride here. We were in the sitting area the entire
time."

Gerald
responded, "The ship we were on was built to hold as many people as
possible for daytime trips and lacks the amenities for long distances."

I
asked him, "Oh. How far as we travelling?"

He
replied, "The trip across the North Sea is actually shorter than the one
you just took."

Ethan
resumed his description. "Amidships is where the engine room is. It spans
both floors for ease of servicing. Behind that, also on both decks, is the
cargo area. That is where your automaton is now. You can reach it via the
central hallway on the upper deck; just a short walk from your suite to its.
The aft section contains our fuel, water, and hydrogen tanks. They are placed
far from the occupied sections in case something should go amiss."

I
asked, "Shall we go aboard, gentlemen? I am anxious to see inside my
airship."

Ethan
went first and pushed the door inwards to allow me to enter before him. The
sitting room was nothing to talk about. Just two square tables with open frame
chairs around them; all secured to the floor. There were benches secured near
the walls so one could sit and see out the windows. To the front of the airship
were two nicer looking chairs in front of consoles for the pilots. Another man,
who they introduced as Asher, sat in one. It was interesting that the pilots
had windows down near their feet so they could see what was beneath the ship.

At
the other end was a metal spiral staircase leading to the upper deck. I ran up
them. I was stunned when I reached the top of the steps. There was no ceiling
above the hallway and I could see all the way to the top of the balloon. The
lights were dim here and it took a minute for my eyes to adjust. Above me were
dozens of huge bags held in netting to the frame of the balloon. To my left,
the hallway went toward the rear of the ship. I went to my right.

Unlike
below, where the furnishings were merely functional, everything up here was
much nicer. I opened the doors to the cabins as I went forward to see how they
looked inside. They all had a writing desk fitted to one wall, a bed fitted to
the other, and a chair. Each room had a small window too. The galley was the
size of two rooms and everything was in cupboards with toggles to hold them
shut. Next to the galley was a single comfort room with a sink, commode, and
small tub. It even had a sign on it that could be changed to show it was in
use.

At
the end of the hall was my stateroom. The door was locked, but the key was
hanging on a lanyard next to it. I unlocked the door and put the key around my
neck like a necklace. As I expected I had my own comfort room plus a small
sitting area. Everything in here was wonderful. The lamps were in shiny brass
fixtures and it even had paintings on the walls. The chairs were wide and had
soft cushions on the bottoms and backs. In the centre was a round table about
four feet around made of dark woods and polished so it shined.

Double
doors opened into my sleeping area. The doors slid to each side so I could
enjoy the full room. The last person here had left the curtains open and the
view was breath-taking. The sleeping area was as big as the other half of my
suite. It had a large bed with soft pillows and nice sheets. I just didn't care
about that now. All I wanted to do was stay here and look out my windows...
No-one was here to say I couldn't. It was so very wonderful!

I
heard the engines start and saw the ground crew cast off the mooring lines. I
watched in fascination as we slowly rose straight up into the sky; quite unlike
how we climbed above the clouds this morning. It was as if the city was all
mine, and the higher we rose, the more of it was mine. We made a slow turn,
leaving the sunset behind us and headed Northeast. No more having to go along dirty
roads that went in the general direction that I wanted to go. From now on, I
would go in the direction that I wanted.