Law and Magic

NaNo Part 9

The air port was built upon the back of the small area of the city that jutted just north of the large arid plane that was behind it. There as a sense of ugliness to the plains that surrounded the entirety of the capital city of Tarsis. The whole area was covered in bush land and rock. The entire area looked like it was exactly the same and no matter where you turned, the flat lands stretched on towards the horizon. The only thing that altered the landscape even a little was Palabana Gorge. The gorge was a large jagged cut in the otherwise, boring landscape. The gorge was a long crevasse that was easily over 4500 meters deep. The airport that was stationed to the city, hung what many thought was precariously over the edge of the gorge. It was a work of metal and stone construction that kept it alive. From the base up, it looked like a wonder of bridges, mooring masts, and decks that were flattened out and held into place by the wonders of architectures. Along many of the docks, there was long white flat expanses that both the artisan and architecture guilds came together to make.

Hundreds of people in the Royal as well as Judicial Airforces were scrambling across the strange tarmacs, trying to get thing done. As the scrambled this way and that, they ignored Rania and the Judge as well as the strange person who was covered with a shawl in such a way that her face didn't show at all. Rania thought how much the shawl looked like a royal veil of mourning, and then realized quite belatedly, that in fact it was. For all the years that she had been trapped in the Cloisters, she had been mourning. The princess, whom all thought was a murderer, was in reality, the most caring sibling ever, continuing to mourn her brother and his death.

It was an interesting thought, but she was forced to put the thought aside as Balthendis ushered at her to follow. She quickly tried to keep up with the Judge. She was still dressed in her Clerk Major's uniform, so no one really stopped her; however, she was on occasion given strange looks. As she continued behind the Judge and Dam'menda VonBruins, some people looked like they were going to question what she was doing on the air fields. As soon as they saw the Judge in front of her, many of them kept their mouths shut. Judges were laws unto their own and no one really stopped them.

They scurried past several different skiffs as well as a few light cruiser class ships. There were several people who were moving about in Durgas, as well as making a few maneuvers in fighter class ships known as Seirs. Soon they were able to reach the true airships that the Judges used. In front of them the Carrier class ship known as Sati was looming into view. Seventeen tiers, and twenty eight different carrier bays. These ships were actually made for sending troops and other smaller fighter ships into battle. She had an elegant design that was made with sloping parts and white alabaster metal. She was a design that had a swooping bridge as well, one of the new half-bridges. It was made to appear as if it was a glass dome on the ships front.

That was not what they were headed to though. They walked a little past the beautiful ship and Rania noticed the engine block behind the ship, clutched in arching spires of metal as if the ship was an octopus, clutching at a conch shell. The thin spire inside the massive block seemed too delicate and Rania was impressed by what was known as a myst spire to everyone. Most of the ships ran on myst, an energy that was created when certain magics, electricity, and the usages of Gate Crystals. The gate crystals, when arranged just so, and placed within a myst spire, made the myst which powered the engines. Everything else was beyond Rania because she did not want to become an engineer. They died too easily in her estimation.

Soon they came up to the ship that they would be flying, the Iferitus. The Iferitus was a large ship that had a swooping bridge that made the front of the airship look like a gigantic whale. The upper half was swooped low in dark reds and gold, with swirls all over the front. The sides were opened in a large cavernous space under the Bridge, with two mounted cannon turrets underneath. On the sides and towards the back great giant wheels of turbine engines could be seen, silently spinning with three mist spires attached to them for a total of six spires. On the top, the deck was splayed out much like a peacock with something that looked like a spinning rotor. This rotor had giant symbols painted on it to look like the phoenix from the Imperial flag. The myst spires however were another thing, they were known as Corrigan spires for as tall as they were, they also had small concentric rings that "floated" around then so that there was a centrifugal force that was also helping to power certain parts of the ship as per a back up.

Hanging towards the bottom, a large circular disk was based on the bottom as well, and it was placed just below the bridge line. It was from here, that smaller ships could be deployed, and if necessary, called back into the fold. Little golden plates were also all over the sides of the ship in what appeared to be rows, and Rania soon realized that they were all supposed to be guns and cannons. She turned to Balthendis who had paused for only a moment to look at everything.

"You're kidding right? There is no way that they are going to let that ship into Mangarian territory. It's a battle ship!"

The older Judge looked at her and raised a single eyebrow. "What did you think we were going to send you in, a clipper?"

"It would seem more appropriate. After all, they are a little less imposing."

Judge Balthendis looked at her with a stern eye. "We are sending one of our highest into their fold. We are sending a Judge. Judges might like to occasionally lark about in one of the cruiser class ships. However, when we send a Judge, we send them in style, and we send them with force. The Iferitus is part of the 6th fleet. I don't expect anything less from them that the ability to not ask questions. Judge Gixanna was due a partial promotion at some point anyways. Why not give her a cruiser class ship? Did you prefer that we send you in one of the ships that the Judge Magister's use then?"

"No. I mean we are supposed to be diplomats right? So why are we going in force?"

"My girl, when it comes to the relations of countries, it is always wise to have a full force that you can count on to send in case something goes wrong. Yes, we are sending you into a large country, but we are sending you mostly unarmed. If anyone were to figure out who the princess was, then we could be in deep trouble."

Maria murmured from underneath the veil saying, "Hopefully that will not be the case."

They walked towards a large flat platform that had a running motor on it. The electricity was palpable in the air, and soon, the platform jerked upwards and they were riding an elevator up into the belly of the beast that was the Iferitus. The lights that were on the side of the elevator flashed and then there was a sudden jolt and the whole elevator was engulfed into the underside of the huge airship.