The story so far:

The River Kingdom is blessed with the presence of three people from Earth. They've not only invented airships, photography and a few other tricks, but explored living dungeons and studied an exotic type of magic. Now, inventor Vonn and his friends have been summoned to the capital city, by air, a feat that perhaps only they can do.

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Vonn Firetail, former Human, held a letter from his King requesting his presence and an explanation of how airships worked. He'd had time to steady his breathing and calm his twitching ears. Outside his workshop stood a crystal-powered flying boat of his own design.

The first person he wrote to was Selen Moonlit, inventor of hot air balloons and colored chalk and crude photography. He wrote with a fountain pen, on paper the two of them had helped make cheaper lately, and used the secret language called English. "The trip could take months. I don't know how to handle it. Are you in?"

Vonn shivered in the early summer heat. The products of his workshop would change transportation, war, and communication at the very least, and increasingly powerful people had begun to notice. And worry.

He dashed off a note to this region's local Baron, his sponsor. Then he went outside to prep the ship for the royal agent who'd brought the letter. That Human now planned to cross the wide Starry River to the east, to the Baron's swampy mining town, and to go on from there to the wizard tower and soon-to-be university. Traveling in style, by air, was both a convenience and a way to confirm that Vonn's invention really did work.

Vonn stood outside the Rising World Company's workshop. Its walls and chimneys were brick, its roof slate, its doors large enough for Centaurs. A waterwheel dipped into a side channel of the Little Star River that fed eastward into the southbound Starry. A hangar of canvas and wood sat next to the main building, and beside that was a trampled grass field with a wonder on it.

The flat-bottomed wooden boat named Rising World stretched about eighteen feet long, just big enough for a cabin below the deck. Along its sides stood oar-like tubes of sculpted bone that could create a downward stream of hot air. A cloth gasbag resembling burlap, tied to the hull, was slowly inflating to be several times the size of the boat itself.

Vonn walked beside the vessel, running one four-fingered hand along the smooth wood. He'd built this one as a conservative design, larger than his last creations but not fully utilizing the secret of the latest technology. He planned on careful and steady improvement with few explosions.

His older sister was at work. Tazo, age nineteen and already a more advanced Mage than many professionals, wore a leather apron and gloves as she set things up. She'd opened a locked chest of colorful crystals to install them, starting with the fire-aligned stones being used to fill the gasbag.

The messenger watched with interest. He asked, "What precautions are you taking with the other technique?"

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Tazo said, "We should speak of that privately, sir." A few townsfolk had gathered to look.

Vonn grinned and waved. The town of Shieldpoint, resting at a river join and marked by a huge white boulder, was a frequent stop for traders and travelers. The resident mad scientists still drew attention from the farmers and beekeepers and shady riverside businesses.

"Later, then."

Vonn asked his sister, "You're all right with captaining?"

She saluted, a gesture she'd picked up from him. "You have a few days before we get back. What will you do?"

"Chase my tail in a panic."

The King's man laughed. "His Majesty isn't angry. Not even for that border stunt, or so I hear. Half the reason for summoning you to the capital is to see if you can get there with this contraption."

Tazo warned him, "We need to emphasize that airships are still very new, and not reliable yet."

Vonn nodded. "And you should meet my friend Selen. A lot of what I do, she shares credit for."

The messenger studied the siblings. Both of them were ordinary at first glance for this village: they had the red-orange fur, narrow muzzles, and bushy tails of the Vulin species. Like most Humans he stood at least a head taller than them. "For your age, I would have expected more brashness."

Vonn said, "We've learned to be careful, sir."

"If the stories I've heard are true, I'm not sure of that. But I look forward to the ride."

Tazo loaned him one of the brass bracelets she called slowfall rings, as part of Company policy to make safety gear the norm. Vonn inspected things with her, and then the two Centaurs arrived.

Polestar, like Vonn and Selen, told most people the half-truth that he had memories of another world. His new wife Ashfall was an indispensible part of the Company for her heavy-duty smithing. Vonn told them the news.

The young, champagne-colored stallion whistled. "How can I help?"

"First, do you want to go?"

"I'm not ready for a long trip on that thing; no offense. And if you're gone, who'll mind the store?"

He'd taken a jaunt on the airship, enough to prove it could be done and that Centaurs, unlike horses, could vomit. Vonn said, "Okay. I also need to talk with the apprentices."

Two Kobolds with scales that looked and smelled like forge embers had been with him for most of a year. The deal had been that he'd train them up to the skill level that the world's governing System called Engineer 4. Then he'd send them back east with a shiny set of machine tools, the world's most advanced type. They weren't going to be thrilled at having the boss abandon them.

The royal messenger had been watching Vonn pace, while Tazo continued setting up. He said, "Because of the inconvenience, I'm authorized to fund you slightly."

"Much appreciated. I also need to keep my lord the Baron happy, though, and my employees. Do I personally need to go? I want to, but..."

"Definitely."

"All right. I'll manage." Vonn focused on helping his sister inspect the airship, using a checklist on a clipboard. (Clipboards were yet another of the Company's products.)

Mom showed up. The candle-making fox grinned widely, stopping by on some errand. "Yet more testing?"

Tazo waved down from the deck. Goggles perched on her forehead. "Sort of! Can you grab one of our minions, please? Need crew."

Mom went into the Company building to fetch them. Vonn frowned at a hinge on the jet tubes that he'd been wanting to redesign. They should swing outward to compensate for roll, and be easier to deactivate.

A squat, muscular lizard-man stepped out, followed by his brother. Both Kobolds were in the world's top ten sky pilots, meaning they'd flown at least once and had an official System skill point in Flight. "On short notice? We need to pack."

"Just for a short trip," Tazo assured them. "Vonn, stop playing with that."

Vonn quit peering at the tube connector. "You're clear to launch." He rechecked the rope fasteners anyway.