The plains gave way to foothills as they traveled north. It was at this point that Sam told them to keep an eye out for the offshoot path. The road they were on was a partly gravel road, but was clearly unmaintained for large stretches. Sam warned the other two that the offshoot would be even less clear, likely just a dirt road made from passing wagon wheels, so it came as a shock when a fork in the road had signage that pointed the way to the Sky Ferry quite boldly. Only Sam complained, as he had been hoping this would be his little secret, as unsensible as that seemed.
As they progressed along the path, they rose quite high into the foothills, the path winding back and forth to compensate for the steep angle. As they looked back where they had come, the sprawling expanse of the plains greeted them. They couldn’t see Mego from where they were, to Elody’s express disappointment, but Hugh pointed out that was only proof of how far they had come.
In the other direction, the mountains that had only been distant rises were now coming into startling perspective. The jagged peaks were cloaked in snow and ice, and no sign of vegetation could be seen from here. It was a wonder how anything could survive up there, much less how a city could exist in such a hostile environment. Even from their current height, the temperature plummeted, but all of them were already geared for the cold, so they weren’t bothered. Conversely, Hugh seemed quite at home in the mountainous chill.
After a long climb upwards on a switchback road, at last the wagon reached something approaching level ground. The mountains rose up menacingly ahead, and in the near distance stood something entirely out of place- a metal platform, with a small station attached to the side. Enormous metal crooks stood in a line, leading from the station, up into the mountains. Neither Hugh nor Elody had ever seen anything like it before, but Sam was elated to see this.
“Finally!” He exclaimed, “Its about time we got here!”
Hugh and Elody shared a look.
“Is… this the sky ferry?” Elody asked.
“Sure is!” Sam said, before continuing in a less excited voice, “Well, sort of. This is where we get onto the sky ferry. Ain’t here right now, I guess. Oh well, lets go let the guards know we’re here for it.”
As they got closer to the platform, they could see the operation in greater detail. The giant metal crooks did not mere stand in a line, but rather held a cable in the air, presumably stretching all the way into the city. The station was also easier to see, split into two portions, a larger and smaller part. The larger part had plenty of doors and windows, looking quite domestic, while the smaller part looked more like an office, with metal walls and even glass windows. As they approached, one of those windows opened and an arm stuck out and waved to the oncoming wagon.
They pulled up near the station, finding a pair of Ratkin guards inside. The one who had waved them on was all smiles, an eager young man in a plain, grey uniform who was happy to have something new to distract him.
“You must be here for the ferry!” He chirped happily.
“Yep, sure are,” Sam said, looking around. “This is a lot for just two of you. Is this really it?”
“Oh, no sir! There’s five others in the lodge. Two of us take a shift at a time,” the guard informed Sam. “Sir, I’ll need your paperwork before we can allow you onto the ferry.”
"Right, right, gimme a minute,” Sam grumbled as he fished inside the cabin for the appropriate paperwork.
Hugh and Elody got out at this point, each taking in the sight. From this vantage, the mountains formed a horseshoe around them, the opening offering a view of the plains and foothills they had just come from. After taking it all in, Elody moseyed up to the guard station.
“So, where exactly is this ferry? Is it invisible?” Elody asked, trying to not sound like an idiot.
“No ma’am! It’s extremely visible, it’s just not here now. It should be back in,” the guard checked a schedule, and then a clock on the wall of similar design to Hugh’s wristwatch, “less than an hour now!”
The other guard, a smaller, older man than the first, wearing the same grey uniform, put down their book unhappily as they covered their ears.
“Must you always shout so much?” They complained.
“No can do, sir! I have to make sure all travelers can hear me!”
“May never shouts, yet everyone can hear her just fine,” The older guard grumbled.
“I rather like his youthful enthusiasm,” Elody said, adding fuel to the fire.
"You hear that sir! She likes my enthusiasm!”
“Why are you still shouting when I’m right here next to you?”
“Sorry Sir!”
Finally, Sam produced the requisite paperwork and presented it to the guard. Despite the playful attitude, they paid close attention to the work at hand, and carefully investigated everything.
“Everything seems to be in order Mr. Samengawin, Sir!”
Sam’s eye twinged at the mention of his full name. Before he could say anything, the older guard got out of the station and made toward the platform, where Hugh was investigating the mechanism that was attached to the large metal crook that stood at the center of the platform.
“Please step away from the platform while we wait for the ferry!” the guard hollered as Hugh stood looking up at the mechanism.
“Hm? Sorry, I got distracted. How does this work? I see a wheel attached to the cable-”
Hugh was cut off as the tiny Ratkin guard grabbed Hugh’s forearm- a humorous sight, given the inherent difference in size- and tugged on it.
“Sir,” he said, steadfast, “I insist you leave the platform immediately, for your own safety.”
"Sorry, of course,” Hugh apologized as he stepped off. “I would love to know how that works, though.”
“Not the time, Hugh!” Sam called out to him. “You’ll have plenty to look at once we get to the city.”
“Oh, it isn’t complicated!” Said the younger guard, still sitting upright within the station. “It’s a common question, and we have full clearance to tell anyone how it works! This ferry isn’t just for convenience, its also a proof-of-concept from our city, and our hope is that this impresses other nations by showing off the sheer utility and power that can be brought to bear to benefit all people!”
“By which he means the Rhyth,” Sam muttered to Elody.
“It’s quite simple, really!” The guard continued, “The primary cable system holds a platform of its own, a moving gondola! The gondola hangs stably from the cable, so we merely move the cable on a circuit and the gondola with it!”
“But how do you move the cable at all?” Hugh wondered.
“We spin wheels, using heated air or water to push them, and then use a system of gear to adjust the speed and power!”
“Gears?” Hugh asked, having trouble understanding the word.
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
“Yes sir! Toothed gears. The teeth interlock and when one spins, the other spins too!”
Hugh, taking the idea of teeth quite literally, grimaced at the grisly description.
“Such a hideous maw must be dangerous…” Hugh commented.
“Oh, yes sir! If you put your hand into them while in motion, you won’t have a hand for much longer! Hence the caution around the platform!”
“Why don’t they get loose?”
“I don’t think I understand the question, sir! If you have more questions, you should consider visiting the Gear Barrow in Hearth, they have regular workshops on this topic!”
Hugh turned to Sam, ready to beg. Before he had the chance, he was cut off.
“Yeah, you can go. Was kind of half the point of coming here anyways,” Sam said.
Hugh let out a sound like a huge whuff that was an equivalent to a whoop, based on context.
“Sometimes, I swear, yer like a large dog,” Sam said with a shake of his head.
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Seeing the gondola come down on the cable was simultaneously awe-inspiring, yet also incredibly dull. It was visible from very far away as it slowly approached beneath the metal crooks, leading to a brief moment of excitement that quickly turned to boredom as the platform seemed to barely inch any closer. It was that much more surprising when it seemed to speed up as it got closer. The contraption was much larger than any of them could have imagined, making even Hugh feel small in comparison.
The gondola was ringed by tall, sturdy metal fences, with a gate at opposing ends. On it was a mountain of goods in crates, both wooden and metal- a strange sight for most. Accompanying the mountain of wares was a small army of laborers, poised to begin moving as soon as they were able. As the gondola came towards the station, it slowed down dramatically with the loud screech of metal-on-metal. The gondola came to a tidy halt atop the platform, and the front gate opened. Two attendants on board took a thick sheet of ridged metal and slid it off the side, forming a ramp for a man rolling a cargo-laden dolly to disembark from.
Sam looked on with envy at the treasure trove of wares as the workers hauled the crates off with practiced efficiency. Some workers began assembling wagons and carts to haul the goods abroad, while a few brought crates to the lodge where the guards resided.
Once it was unloaded, one of the attendants called out for them to board. In the time they had waited, another three groups had shown up for the Sky Ferry, one with a wagon, one group on various mounts, and the last was a group of pedestrians. Each group walked up the ramp, showed a stamped paper they had received from the station guard after showing the requisite paperwork, and handed over a nominal fee. The wagoned groups were shown to specific positions, while the others were free to go wherever. Compared to the sheer volume of what came down the mountain, the platform felt empty by comparison going up.
Once all the passengers were aboard the strange craft, the conductor- one of the attendants who wore a boxy hat- called out for other passengers.
“AAAAAAAAAAnyone ELSE?” They called out with a variable volume that would have been sing-song, if not for the serious tone.
Once they felt confident that they weren’t missing any passengers, they looked to the guard station, where they saw the plucky young guard holding up a green board. With that, the conductor closed the gate and gave the two groups with wagons several wedges; they were meant to be placed beneath the wheels of the wagons, to ensure they didn’t move. Once they were secured, the conductor called out once more.
“Please grab a hold of the side as we begin movement! Please observe as many points of contact as possible!” He ordered, demonstrating by holding on not just with his hands but also by wrapping his tail around the linked metal wire.
Elody and Sam didn’t have any issues, but Hugh was having greater difficulty, and was advised to sit as he braced a corner of the fence. As Elody wrapped her tail against the fence, she awaited the movement with baited breath.
It wasn’t long, as the entire gondola jerked with the sudden movement. Elody expected another screech of metal, but the only sound this time was a shudder as they began, then a whine from where the gondola made contact with the cable. The cold mountain air whipped her hair about with great fervor as the large platform ascended the mountaintop.
“You may walk about freely now!” The conductor informed the passengers.
Elody happily did so, turning around to look out over the edge of the gondola. As she did so, she realized just how fast they were going. As they watched the craft descend, it seemed to be going at a snail’s pace, but now she realized that it was fast, but its size and the distance traveled tricked her into thinking it slow.
She walked over to where Hugh was looking over the fence. The fence was large to any Ratkin, Timberfolk, or Adstrani, but the enormous Frostwalkers were a different case, and Hugh was able to peer over the fence unobstructed. He seemed to be lost in thought, a common occurrence for the curious soul.
“What’s on your mind, big guy?” Elody asked as she approached. She didn’t face him, but rather looked on at the mountainside rushing past them with him.
“This is,” He said, and paused, searching for the right word.
“Fantastic? Unbelievable?” Elody offered.
“Something like that,” He breathed.
There was a lull in the conversation before he continued again. Elody wanted to speak, but feeling that Hugh needed to express something, withheld her thoughts. Instead, she took the time to clear her head until he felt ready to speak. Eventually, he resumed.
“This is impossible. Or, it should be.” Hugh shook his head, then laughed. “I love this. I didn’t know this could exist, but I love this. I want to know how to do this, myself.”
"You want to make a Sky Ferry?”
“Perhaps not literally this. But I want to learn how, and I want to make something like it. Maybe something using magic? Or perhaps I can do even better. Perhaps I can learn how to tame those godsawful gears and mix that with magic. Who knows?”
Hugh laughed. Elody smiled at him, but her face soon sobered.
“You’re trying very hard not to think of home, aren’t you?”
Hugh went rigid for a moment, answering the question without words.
“How did you-?”
“Lucky guess,” Elody quickly interjected. “Or maybe its projection. Thinking about home is what I’m doing, and I wish I weren’t. I wish that Rudy were here to see this too.”
“I wish that I could show my parents this. To show them that you can do such wonderful things in this world.”
Elody looked at Hugh, shocked. “Your parents didn’t approve of you learning magic?”
“No. They saw it as a waste of time.”
“I thought you said Maril was the most singly respected member of your village!”
“That does not mean she can change anyone’s mind when she likes. She is why I could learn at all,” Hugh explained.
“Oh,” Elody said, schooling her face. “Well maybe, that's why you’re out here at all.”
Hugh turned to her. Despite his sheer bulk, he looked small and confused in that moment, his body language begging for elaboration.
“She knew how everyone else in your village felt. People, at least where I come from, seldom change their minds about a thing once they’ve got an opinion on it. They need something big to force them to reconsider.”
Elody took a breath to consider her next words before continuing.
“I think, perhaps, she knew that you would never succeed in your own home, you needed to go and find people who would encourage you, and work with you. You’re no different, and I don’t think you would have left if you weren’t forced to, even if that would be better. So, she forced you, in the end.”
The rushing wind filled the pause with a constant murmur of sound. Elody’s hair flitted through the fence as Hugh’s fur parted where the wind struck him hardest. Hugh’s eyes searched the rock faces around them as he thought about what she said. Elody said nothing, wanting him to digest what she had said before she said the wrong thing and dug her own grave.
“So, what you are saying,” Hugh said after ruminating for a few minutes, “Is I need to have something big to show them when I get back.”
“I mean, that’s not quite what I was getting at, but that works too!” Elody acknowledged. She had been trying to convince him that maybe his home wasn’t best for his interests, but she was happy to impart this message as well.
The sound of air became prevalent again in the ensuing silence. They stood there together, watching the mountainside below them rush away. Neither of them said anything for a long time. It was Hugh who broke the silence this time.
“Do you think I can do that?”
Elody thought about the question for a moment.
“I mean, I’ve only known you for a few weeks, but,” She breathed in deeply, “Yes, Hugh. Yes I do. And I’ll help you if you help me, when I need it.”
Hugh bowed his head at this, gently bonking his forehead against the top of the fence.
“Thank you, Elody. That means…” He trailed off for a moment. “I genuinely cannot describe how much that means to me. I will hold you to that.”
Elody patted the large Frostwalker on the shoulder.
“Fair warning though- I’m rubbish at magic.”