After just a few steps, Salome could no longer see the entrance of the tunnel.

  She was surrounded by gray, nearly black rock as they pressed deeper into the unknown depths of stone. Lanterns cast dancing shadows onto the walls, creating an eerie spectacle amid the echo of their footsteps.

  She couldn't tell how long they had been walking when suddenly a quiet whistling echoed through the tunnel, followed by a barely audible, silky rustling. As this rustling enveloped her, the tips of her hair gently lifted and settled again. Salome’s expression brightened—wind! There must be an exit somewhere ahead!

  She quickened her pace, overtaking Kiran, who made no attempt to stop her. With every breath, the gentle breeze grew stronger. Wrapped in rising turbulence, she finally reached the end of the tunnel. A sharp right turn led to an open wooden door, and she was certain that the path upwards lay beyond it.

  She began to run, rounded the corner without slowing—and skidded to a halt in a wide, circular chamber.

  Countless lanterns hung along the walls, illuminating the space all the way to the ceiling. Indeed, the wind came from here, blowing in through a large opening in the rock partially covered by wide wooden planks. But what loomed before this opening, filling more than half the chamber, took Salome’s breath away.

  A ship. A massive wooden ship!

  Yet, it looked entirely different from the steamships that rattled up and down the rivers back home, or those she had seen illustrated in books, sailing along the coasts of Fundament. While it had a similarly streamlined hull, instead of a thick, smoke-belching funnel, it had a long, elongated… In truth, Salome had no idea what exactly it was. It resembled a gigantic fish wrapped in wine-red fabric, complete with a tail fin. Curiously, it lacked side fins—instead, these were attached to the sides of the ship’s hull.

  Numerous ropes and metal braces stretched around this fish-like structure, seemingly to hold it in place, and a net of particularly thick strands and chains connected it to the railing. Additionally, at the very front of the bow, there was a large, carved dragon’s head that stared grimly toward the opening in the rock. The peculiar ship was surrounded by a wooden framework, with numerous ladders and planks presumably intended for maintenance and repairs. Various masts rose upward, fitted with winches and pulleys, and ropes stretched everywhere—so many that keeping track of them all was impossible.

  Van entered the chamber shortly after Salome, letting out an impressed whistle when he spotted the strange vessel.

  “I figured you'd hidden a ship somewhere, but a galleon? You can't seriously be planning to travel with that?” he remarked.

  “Of course not,” answered Kiran, stepping through the wide door right after Van. “The Glass Dragon is reserved strictly for official journeys and emergencies.” He passed Van and climbed onto the ramp leading to the wooden scaffold.

  “The Glass Dragon, huh… fitting name,” Van murmured.

  “Van, what by the pillars is that?” asked Salome, pointing at the strange fish-shaped structure.

  “What? It's a ship. What else would it be?” He looked at her blankly.

  “No, above it! That… thing!” Struggling for words, she gestured energetically at the plump, red body floating weightlessly just above the deck.

  “Oh, you mean the balloon?” Van said. “Every ship has one.”

  Salome stared at him, eyes wide. Van furrowed his brow before suddenly realizing. “Oh right, you've never seen an airship before! I nearly forgot.” He laughed.

  “Can it really… fly?” Salome asked incredulously.

  “Of course. This one especially well, if I'm not mistaken. Damn, I'd love to get a look inside the cockpit…!”

  “But how does it work? The… balloon, I mean?” Salome asked excitedly, her gaze darting across the ship in wonder.

  “Has something to do with hot air,” Van replied lightly. “And a few other, slightly more complicated things. Pocket storms, Propositions and so forth… If you like, I can explain more later.”

  Salome nodded eagerly when suddenly Kiran’s voice echoed down from the scaffolding above.

  “What are you waiting for? It won’t stay dark out there forever, you know?” He strode across the planks and disappeared somewhere behind the towering ship.

  As Salome climbed the ramp up to the wooden scaffolding, she didn’t take her eyes off the balloon for a single moment, examining it closely. Van explained that the strange tail fin served as the rudder, steering the ship by swinging side to side.

  It turned out that behind the majestic galleon, two smaller airships were hidden. They had a similar structure—rudder, balloon, and all—but were nowhere near as splendid as the Glass Dragon. These were simple boats rather than proper ships, secured with ropes to four thick wooden posts. Strangely, these ropes didn’t seem designed to prevent the boats from falling onto the ground just a few meters below.

  Kiran was busy loosening some of the ropes.

  “What, you’ve got nothing better than these cutters?” Van said, disappointed. “I'd rather travel with that beauty over there.” His eyes flickered toward the large ship with excitement.

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  “Keep your hands off Master Lom’s airship,” Kiran hissed, glaring at him.

  “Alright, alright,” Van raised his hands defensively. “Just joking. We couldn’t fly it with just three people anyway.”

  Kiran wrinkled his nose and continued fiddling with the ropes. Van sighed.

  “Here, hand it over,” Van said to Salome, reaching out. She passed him her bags, which he took and then hopped neatly over the gap between plank and boat. The vessel barely swayed upon his landing, almost as though floating on water. Unfazed, he walked to the stern and opened a small door, revealing steep steps descending below deck.

  Salome stepped cautiously to the edge of the scaffolding and peered over the railing. The deck was clean, polished as if recently scrubbed. She could hear Van’s muffled footsteps beneath the planks. Glancing furtively at Kiran, engrossed in his work, she took a step back and jumped over the gap just as Van had done before. When she landed, she had to flail her arms to keep balance; it swayed more than expected.

  “What are you doing?” asked Kiran, frowning at her. He climbed gracefully over the railing—far more elegantly than she had—and began loosening the ropes from the inside. “Come here, give me a hand. Do you see that knot over there?” He pointed to a nearby rope. “They’re easy enough to untie, once you know how.” He grasped one of the loose ends protruding from the thick knot, folded it back, and pulled the shorter end. The knot started to unravel almost by itself. “Do the same with all the knots on the other side. The sooner we're out of here, the better.”

  Salome nodded and headed to the opposite side of the deck. “Why do we have to leave at night, anyway?” she asked over her shoulder.

  “This harbor—well, we call it a harbor—is located on the underside of the island,” Kiran explained absently. “Normally, the opening is invisible from the outside, but whenever a ship leaves the harbor, it appears as if it came from nowhere. If another vessel happens to be nearby and sees that, it could endanger the secret of the city. It's purely a precaution.”

  While Salome busied herself untying the remaining knots, she raised her gaze toward the half-concealed opening through which the wind constantly blew. Were they really going to sail out through there? Her stomach knotted as she thought about the endless abyss that would soon open beneath her feet. Would it be as frightening as the mirror world? The memory of those thin, transparent paths sent a shiver down her spine.

  Yet, excitement surged within her as well. What would it feel like to fly aboard this ship? How would it be, gliding freely between the sky and the sea of clouds? She could hardly wait.

  Finally, Van reappeared on deck. He had removed his coat and raised an eyebrow when he saw what Salome was doing. She realized abruptly that she'd been pulling the wrong end of the rope absentmindedly.

  “At least there's a cabin for each of us,” he said. “I half-expected hammocks or something like that.”

  “Oh, I’m so pleased that everything meets your standards,” Kiran replied sarcastically. Van ignored him and headed toward the bow, where the cockpit was located. When he opened the door, Salome caught a glimpse of a wooden wheel, various levers, and iron instruments. Van looked around appreciatively. “You certainly can’t fault the cleanliness, I’ll give you that.”

  “Finished with your inspection yet?” asked Kiran, stepping up beside him. “And let’s get one thing straight: I’m steering the ship. Don’t even think about telling me what to do, navigator or not.”

  “Whatever you say,” Van replied, shrugging his shoulders.

  Salome made a mental note to ask Van about this whole navigator business later.

  “Are all the knots undone, Salome?” Kiran called from the cabin.

  “Yes!” she replied, releasing the last rope. Suddenly, she realized what she'd done. Weren’t these ropes holding the ship in place?

  Panicking, she leaned over the railing and peered along the dock. All the ropes now hung slack, dangling into the gap between scaffolding and boat. Yet, the vessel hadn’t budged an inch.

  It was floating!

  She stared in astonishment at the plump balloon overhead, hearing a faint hum emanating from inside it. Heart racing, she hurried to the other side and saw that all those ropes hung slack as well.

  Kiran surveyed the deck and nodded approvingly. “Well then, it’s about time we—”

  “Not so fast!” interrupted a deep voice.

  Salome, Kiran, and Van spun around simultaneously, staring up toward the dock. Standing there was none other than Master Lom.

  “You weren’t planning on leaving without your last passenger, were you?” he said, a broad grin baring his teeth and amusement glittering in his sharp, slit-pupiled eyes.

  “M—Master?” Kiran stammered, bewildered. “But what…” He broke off as someone stepped out from behind the stout man.

  It was Sori.

  She smiled down at them and waved cheerfully.

  “Master, what is the meaning of this?” Kiran asked.

  “Isn’t it obvious? Sori is going with you!” Lom laughed heartily at Kiran’s confused expression.

  “But why? What reason could she possibly have for joining us?” asked Kiran.

  “Well,” Lom said thoughtfully, “because she asked me to be allowed to do so. Rather insistently, in fact.”

  Sori smiled innocently.

  “Usually, I’m not easily convinced, but after our conversation today, I reconsidered.” His tone grew serious. “It seems she had the same vision as I did.”

  “What?” exclaimed Kiran incredulously.

  “Remarkable, isn’t it?” Lom rumbled. “The same images, even from the same perspective. She described everything exactly.”

  Kiran stared at Sori as though seeing her for the first time. The girl nodded to him and then gracefully leaped onto the deck.

  “Master, are you sure about this?” Kiran asked skeptically.

  “Nothing happens without reason,” Lom replied, folding his arms behind his back, “not in this world. This girl’s presence here in Adamer was unusual from the very start—I knew that immediately. Sori knows nothing about your journey’s goal, yet she insisted on joining you. Because of her memory loss she cannot discern the motivation behind her desire, but if her wish is strong enough that even I couldn’t dissuade her, it must mean something. Strange things are happening in this world, and I will not let my stubbornness stand in the way of solving its mysteries.”

  He studied them carefully. “Keep your eyes open. Who knows what awaits you out there. Ah, one more thing. Here, catch!” Abruptly, he tossed a bright, plate-sized object toward Salome, who barely managed to grasp it. She examined it curiously: it was a transparent, triangular piece of glass within which a golden light seemed to pulse.

  “Is that what I think it is?” asked Van, gazing in amazement at the disc. Its warm shimmer reflected in his eyes.

  “Precisely. It’s one of my scales,” Master Lom said.

  Salome held her breath as she realized what she held. Reverently, she turned the scale, admiring its deep, golden gleam.

  “Always keep it with you,” said the large man. “Take good care of it. It’s part of me, and I’ll always know where it is. And don’t worry,” he added with a smile, “it won’t break. That much is certain.”

  As if this concluded matters, Lom folded his arms behind his back again and turned away to leave.

  “Master!” called Kiran, reaching out toward him. “Master, I…”

  The large man paused. He turned halfway back toward Kiran and said softly, “Take good care of yourself. I believe in you.” Then he left without looking back.

  Kiran opened his mouth but closed it again without speaking. Instead, he squeezed his eyes shut tightly and bowed deeply. He remained like that for a moment before abruptly straightening and striding toward the cockpit.

  “Let’s get going,” he declared resolutely.