"Usually not very. Mostly we just set aside a crate or two when we're hauling some. D'you think there'd be enough of a boost from a fresh catch to make a noticeable difference if I made new barrels? At least if we hunt something near home?"

"Maybe. It would have to be very fresh, I think. Perhaps if bones were extracted from a dying specimen, which was then killed as the blasting occurred... We would have to experiment."

"Science!" she replies with a grin. "Probably the easiest thing to get that close to home is a crab, maybe a giant angler or a megalops."

"Will that work? You'd have to use their exoskeleton."

"Eheh, yeah, dunno whether that would work." She scratches the back of her head sheepishly.

Then looks up brightly. "Oh! Behemoustache! Those roam the whole southern coast, one'll turn up for sure!"

"Mm, yes, that will work nicely. We kill one, drag is carcass somewhere I can work and we'll get you something with a little more death in it."

"Oh this is gonna be so fun!"

"Maybe we should hang around Port Carnelian for a little longer than usual? See if one turns up close to home, so we can work on it right by our workshop?"

"Oh but I can probably improvise a blast furnace on any ol' island if we're in a pinch, and then we can just box up the stygian pig iron until we loop back home on schedule and I can get at the rest of the tools we'd need."

"But I don't wanna put Sable and Neo in the position where they have to choose between helping me scribe Correspondence unprepared on a random island or waste the kill."

"We have some time, we can bring it up over dinner. Perhaps there's a safer way to approach this."

"Yeah. At the very least, the girls'll probably be willing to take some extra time staying close to Port Carnelian while we look for one."

She takes a moment to admire the cannons. "These must've been quite the project."

Ruby smiles warmly as she runs her hands over one ripple-patterned barrel. "They really were. Thirteen different cast pieces per gun, carefully timing my pours to use the hardest and deadliest for the liner versus the safest for the outer casing. And then rifling her was a trial all its own."

"It's beautiful." She runs her fingers along the side.

"Thank you," she replies with a soft smile. "My next project was gonna be some personal weapons, but if your plan works, I need to redo these babies first."

"It will be tricky. I think it will work best if the bone is taken from its dying body. How far inland is your workshop?"

"Same building as the loft we live in when we're not on the Handbasket, a warehouse Sable bought us and converted just barely off the dock."

"Very convenient." She steps back from the gun. "Shall we head back?"

"Yeah, we probably should. Hailey'll be done with the stew soon, I bet, and we've got some fresh bread she made on the trip to London. Should be a good dinner."

"I'm excited. Lead the way."

Ruby chatters happily about ammo blends as she heads back to the galley, where the smell of a flavorful beef stew wafts out.

The Viric-Eyed Lookout, apparently Hailey, is stirring a large pot of stew, while also packing cuts of meat into a barrel to cure. A tray of bread rolls is sitting on the counter beside the stew pot. "Hey you two, stew's almost done. You have fun showing off, Rubes?"

Ruby giggles and nods, blushing slightly. "Yeah! Lilith even had a neat idea to improve our stygian steel for a new round of forging!"