Airship City

Chapter 12

For some time the light seemed to get no closer, just brighter. Suddenly the corridor ended on a balcony or walkway that encircled a large void, which was open to the sky above; this was where the light was coming from. Joseph walked out onto the balcony, and peered over the railing at its edge. He could see into a shaft, easily thirty feet across, that disappeared down into the bowels of Aeropolis. The edges of the decks below made concentric circles that narrowed into gloom, where he could just make out rhythmic movement. A deep, throbbing bass note rose from the depths.

As Joseph peered downwards, trying to make out what he was seeing, the sound began to increase in pitch, and the movements seemed to speed up as well. A slight breeze touched Joseph’s face, blowing from below. It quickly grew stronger, until his hair was blown backwards from his face, and yet it continued strengthening. Eventually he had to step back out of the blast of air, as his eyes were watering from the strength of the airflow. He realised that there must be a giant fan at the bottom of the shaft, but whether it was for ventilation or height regulation he couldn’t have said.

Movement on the next deck down caught his eye. A small group of young men, dressed in greasy overalls and with blackened hands and faces, were gathering at the lower rail. Suddenly, with a loud whoop, one of them climbed up over the railing and launched himself into the howling gale. He spread his arms and legs out from his body, slightly bent, and was instantly caught by the airflow, which lifted him up into the air.

As he rose above Joseph’s level, he pulled his arms and legs in a little, which caused him to stop rising, and then to ever so slowly drop downwards. With small hand movements he rotated himself so that he was facing his mates, and then he drifted slowly towards them. They were cheering and hooting, laughing and shouting above the din of the airflow, and two of them climbed up on the railing and hauled him in as he drifted into range.

No sooner had he touched down, to great acclamation and slaps on the back from the group, than a second young man, larger and heavier than the first, launched himself into the airstream. He was much less skilled, falling nearly all the way to the next level before managing to position himself into the configuration for ascending, and even then, his movements were jerky, and his progress was anything but smooth. As he rose over the edge of the railing, his eyes met Joseph’s, and there was instant animosity in his gaze.

He floated slowly, in fits and starts, over to the railing in front of Joseph, and seized it as Joseph stepped back. Then he proceeded to haul himself over the railing, managing to gain his footing without falling over, although his movements were nowhere near as graceful as those of the first lad.

Straightening up slowly, upper lip curled in a sneer, he called over his shoulder. “Hey boys, lookee what we got up here!”

There was a clattering and a clanging on a stairwell, and in seconds the whole gang was pouring out of a corridor to the left of Joseph, and forming a loose circle around him. They stood, arms folded, staring at him, some with curiosity, others with animosity. Joseph looked apprehensively from face to face, trying to find someone with a friendly expression. But no-one was smiling. The howl of the airflow in the shaft suddenly diminished, and then fell away to silence.

“Who are you, boy? And why are you trespassing on ‘prentice deck?” demanded the heavyset lad.

Joseph felt his anger rising, despite the implicit threat of the gang. “I’m not trespassing on your stupid deck! If anything I’m trying to find a way to get off of it!” 

There were murmurs of anger at this. The other boy turned to the crowd. “Stupid deck, is it?” He turned back to Joseph. “Maybe it is, but it’s our deck, matey. And we don’t take kindly to people trespassin’ and making disparagin’ comments about her.” He looked around his audience, a smirk on his face. “Especially not beanpoles.”