Chapter 67: Race Time
By the time the first qualifying race began, the Skyyard had attracted nearly everyone in the Sanctuary.
People crowded the observation decks wrapped around the upper half of the tower. Others gathered on rooftops or along the hills beneath the course. Food stalls had appeared near the base of the lifts, and several innkeepers had placed tables outside so their customers could watch the glowing checkpoints from around the Sanctuary.
Max stood on the official platform beside Captain Brakka. From there, he could see the starting docks and most of the first half of the course. Dungeon projections hovered above the railing, showing the sections hidden behind the forest and hills.
Eight miniature airships floated beside the tower. Their balloons and hulls were identical, but the crews had covered them with temporary flags, ribbons, and painted party symbols.
One vessel had so many silver streamers tied to its rigging that Max was surprised it could still move.
"They passed inspection?" He asked.
Brakka squinted at the ship. "The decorations weigh less than half a sack of flour. They will not make the vessel slower."
"What happens when those streamers wrap around the altitude fins?"
"Then the decorations will make the vessel much slower." The dwarf made no effort to hide his anticipation. "They might even crash."
The favorites occupied the first dock. The Storm Riders had completed the practice course faster than any other adventuring crew. Their pilot, Jarek, wore a red scarf and had spent the morning telling anyone who listened that the race had already been decided.
Quin stood with Anna on the observation deck below. Mira and Garrick were beside them. The girl had Brakka’s practice map unfolded across the railing and kept comparing it to the rings appearing in the distance.
Max had offered them places on the official platform, but Mira said she wanted to hear what the adventurers around her were saying. Garrick had followed because he did not intend to let his granddaughter stand near a sixty-meter drop without him.
The Sanctuary protections would catch anyone who fell but that did not make the old man less concerned.
At the sixth dock waited a party called the Five Knots. They had chosen the name after discovering that none of them could tie the same knot as anyone else. Their practice times had been ordinary. They had not crashed often enough to become famous or flown well enough to attract attention.
Their pilot was a young woman named Tessa. She checked every station before taking her place at the wheel. Her navigator repeatedly mimed the actions needed for the first three turns. The engineer confirmed the mana level. The other two inspected the rigging and ballast.
"They look serious." Max said.
"Serious crews are harder to laugh at. But they tend to finish." The dwarf standing beside him said.
A brass sphere rose above the starting docks. The crowd counted down as its light changed from red to yellow. When it turned green, eight sets of clamps released.
The Storm Riders shot away from the tower. Their engine flared bright blue while their side sails opened together. They reached the first checkpoint before two other ships had cleared their docks.
The crew covered in silver streamers immediately drifted sideways. One ribbon caught around a support line. Their rigging controller pulled the wrong rope while trying to free it, and the vessel turned until it faced the tower again.
Brakka leaned over the railing. "A strong opening! They have already discovered a direction nobody else considered."
Max ignored him and focused on the projections. The first section carried the crews above the forest. Warm air rose through the treetops and lifted the ships toward the second ring. The Storm Riders used the current perfectly. Their vessel climbed without losing speed and passed through the checkpoint with a clear lead.
The Five Knots entered fifth.
Tessa did not chase the leaders. She held a steady line while her navigator counted down the distance to the rising current. Their rigging controller adjusted the altitude fins a moment before they reached it. The ship climbed smoothly while the deckhand shifted one iron ballast block toward the rear.
They left the forest in fourth place.
"The wind above the lake is coming from the west." Mira said on the deck below.
Quin looked at the map. "It is marked from the south."
"The course changed it. Look at the flags on the seventh ring." She pointed out.
Brakka heard her and checked one of the official instruments. His eyebrows rose. "Good eyes." He said.
The third checkpoint stood above the hills. To reach it, every ship had to turn sharply while climbing. Jarek forced the Storm Riders through at full speed. Their hull tilted so far that one crew member lost his footing. Luckily the adventure who was assigned to the rigging was able to lash out with a rope. The member who lost their footing quickly grabbed it before tumbling over the railing.
The Storm Riders lead grew.
Behind them, two ships reached the ring at the same time. Neither crew interfered deliberately, but both pilots refused to yield. The vessels bumped. A pulse of Sanctuary magic softened the impact and pushed them apart.
One missed the checkpoint. The other spun halfway around before regaining control. The Five Knots passed both.
"Second place." Anna said.
Mira shook her head. "Third. The Copper Owls are lower."
The hidden projection confirmed it. Another ship had descended along the far side of the hill and gained distance by avoiding the collision.
The next three checkpoints led toward the lake. The course descended in stages, tempting pilots to dive for speed. Two crews descended too quickly and had to waste time climbing back to the fifth ring.
The Storm Riders remained ahead. The Copper Owls followed. The Five Knots stayed close behind them.
When the ships crossed the shore, the altered wind struck. The Storm Riders’ navigator shouted something Max could not hear. Jarek turned the wheel in the opposite direction. Their vessel entered the crosswind. It lurched toward the course boundary while three crew members fought to change the sails.
"Their navigator saw it, but the pilot did not listen." Brakka pointed out.
The Copper Owls corrected too late. They remained inside the course but sailed past the seventh ring.
Tessa turned before her ship reached the lake. Her navigator had seen the same flags Mira noticed. The Five Knots approached at an angle, allowed the wind to carry them sideways, and passed through the center of the checkpoint without losing speed.
They took the lead and the crowd roared.
Jarek recovered quickly. The Storm Riders cut behind them and began closing the distance. Their engine was stronger only because their engineer was willing to keep it near the edge of overheating. Blue light leaked through the vents while the final three rings appeared around the tower.
"They will catch them." Garrick said.
Mira kept her eyes on the map. "Only if they can land."
The final checkpoint was not the finish. Every crew still had to return to its assigned dock and complete a controlled landing. Striking the padded posts did not disqualify them, but a vessel had to remain under its crew’s control when the clamps closed.
The Five Knots passed through the last ring.
Tessa reduced power. The crowd shouted at her to go faster. Even Max wondered whether she had slowed too early. The Storm Riders remained at full speed and moved alongside them.
Then the tower filled the course ahead.
"Reverse fins!" Jarek shouted.
His crew pulled ropes and reduced the engine at the same time. The airship’s bow lifted. Its hull swung across the dock instead of lining up with it.
The Five Knots had already prepared. Their deckhand moved the final ballast block. The engineer released short bursts of power while Tessa held the wheel steady. Their ship drifted forward at walking speed.
The Storm Riders struck a padded post. A bell rang, and the recovery system pushed them away from the tower.
The Five Knots crossed between their dock markers. When the docking clamps closed, a golden light surrounded their vessel.
[First Skyyard Qualifying Race Complete]
[First Place: Five Knots]
[Crew: Tessa Venn, Orin Moss, Belda Crane, Kesh Arlow, and Min Farrow]
[Monthly Grand Race qualification granted. Qualification remains active for three months.]
For several seconds, the five winners stood at their stations as if they did not understand what had happened. Then their engineer screamed and threw both hands into the air. The crowd took up their party name.
The Storm Riders completed their second landing attempt eleven seconds later. Jarek stepped onto the dock and immediately began explaining that the crosswind had changed without warning. His navigator walked away before he finished.
Max opened a portal to the winning dock. Anna, Quin, Mira, and Garrick joined him while Brakka presented the Five Knots with a brass qualification emblem.
"You best prepare yourselves. The monthly course is longer and the winds are worse. But most importantly, me and my crew will be racing." Said Brakka.
Tessa looked at him. "You did not enter today."
Brakka appeared insulted. "Dwarves do not steal places in the qualifying races. We wait at the Grand Race so the best adventurers have the honor of losing to us."
A flash of light came from above the dock. The Dungeon Core recorded a picture of the five winners standing together beside their ship. A framed copy appeared on the Skyyard wall beneath a new heading.
{Qualifying Race Champions}
{Five Knots - First Qualifying Race}
Mira studied the picture, then looked toward the practice ships.
"I want to learn navigation." She said, causing Garrick’s expression tightened.
"The map room is on the second floor." Brakka told him before he could object. "No height, no moving deck, and no chance of falling. If she passes there, she can try the wind platform."
Mira folded the map with a satisfied smile.
Max looked at the framed winners. The race had produced no powerful treasure, and nobody had fought a single monster. Yet the five ordinary adventurers were receiving more attention than many parties earned from clearing a dungeon level.
People liked prizes. They also liked having proof that they had done something first.