Elise Runs and Dorothy Falls

Chapter 34

The biggest problem with trying to repair a ship when surrounded by enemies, in their case, was the crawling. Being unable to sit in his captain's chair annoyed Tyrio to no end. A captain should always have his chair! Fortunately his lab had no windows, so that worked out fine.

"There's one other major problem," said Albbenaro after a few hours of miscellaneous repair work on the bridge.

Tyrio couldn't imagine another problem rivaling the separation of him and his chair, but he let Albbenaro shoot.

"The only way we can reach the engine room is by going outside."

Drat. And not just going outside! Climbing a ladder and opening a big, squeaky hatch! Tyrio spun around on his lab stool and frowned. Since we haven't yet been in Tyrio's lab this story, it's worth noting it was very dark and full of glass, potions, and mechanical apparata. A fair bit of the glass and machinery had shattered, however.

"That sucks, you're 100% right, Albb," said Tyrio. "How are we going to...?" Then he froze. "NO!" he shouted suddenly, leaping up with a big grin. He slapped Albb on the back. "No, it's going to be just fine. We have Jet, remember? We just relay HIM any orders we have!"

"Is he really qualified to handle sophisticated refitting and repair? It's hard enough work for you and me."

Tyrio continued to pat Albb on the back perfunctorily, like a coach who knew his team had lost but couldn't face reality. "We'll figure something out. We always do...!" Tyrio had a way of making encouragement sound really useless.

Father Sergius, in the meantime, had been spying on the creatures outside and trying to make heads or tails of the place. He had yet to do so. Of course, it was still daytime. Things would change when the suns gave way to the moon, although he hadn't any way of knowing that (unless he had been to the Onaime before, which he had not).

Relaying information to Jet worked well enough for now, but at some point both Tyrio and Albb knew they would need to get into the engine room themselves. Jet had absolutely no chance of fixing the heater or the belly grid. Only through the access tubes via the engine room could Tyrio reach the gunnery bays in both the underside and the bow. And without those critical repairs, they were no threat to anyone.

In some vague way, Tyrio thought that maybe under the cover of night he would be able to slip his way in. When night finally fell, Father Sergius walked into the rec room where Albb and Tyrio took a break.

"You both should see this."

Arriving on the bridge, they first noticed the lights—thousands of lanterns lit in the darkness, from red to blue and from the sky to the earth. They flew on kites, hung on posts, and sat in clusters, like acorns, on the sides of the path for as far as they could see. A veritable parade met their astonished eyes, and more and more ships docked by the minute, bringing in hundreds of monsters. Whether they had scales, feathers, or skin, they all seemed ready to have a good time.

"Some have been docked a while," said Sergius quietly, "but only when a bell rang over yonder did... this... begin."

As the creatures walked past, many looked their way. Not frequently did a goblin zeppelin roost on the lawn of the Onaime, and certainly not one showing such scars of battle. When a particular group of mephitis took interest and approached, the three remaining crewmembers prudently beat a hasty retreat into the rec room. They couldn't even afford to light the gas lantern without drawing attention, though. The only one who liked the atmosphere was Germón, who stretched out on the couch because he was cat.

"How about a small candle on the table?" suggested Albb, "and screen off the porthole?" Outside the revelry continued, and they rightly suspected the night had only just begun.

"Do it," said Tyrio. Soon they had covered the porthole and lit a small candle on the card table. Albbenaro sat down with the deck.

"Guess we're going to play a little poker," he said, dealing out the makings of five-card stud. To Tyrio's surprise, Father Sergius already knew how to play, and well at that.

"I wonder how they're doing in there," mused Albb at some point. "Think they're all right?"

Father Sergius looked toward the window, but of course it was dark.

"We can only hope," he said. Their night would wind away with poker and wondering. The girls, locked in that huge, dazzling world of spirits, on the other hand, had a far more interesting night. This will be the last time we pick up on these three until another book.