"I do have to set it up again in almost every town I visit - wide-ranging communication is not so much a thing here. But I've worked out the mannerisms."

"News can take a while to travel, but – like you say, there are mannerisms. Sorcerers tend to be less serious, have various little trinkets on their person, and pretty much the only people who go out at night."

"Hm."

He takes the basket of carrots and puts it in a box. "Next, inspecting the gas cells. We're looking for any small holes or tears, especially near seams. You'll probably be able to hear it and smell it if there is a leak - I deliberately dope my gas with a foul scent."

She nods and follows over to the gas cells.

In a cavernous room, perhaps up to half or three quarters of the entire airship, taking up much of the space there, are about a dozen large bulbous brown canvas(?) bags. There are ropes and ladders and valves and pipes and other machinery and a catwalk near the top.

Nick investigates and writes down the readings on the valves.

And Evara looks around for any small holes or tears or apparently very obvious signs of a leak.

Nothing seems out of place, though she has to climb around some to check every spot.

She's fine climbing around, so long as nothing looks particularly breakable when she goes to stand on it…

The most dodgy thing she tries to traverse is a vertical rope net like those used in playgrounds sometimes.

That's fine.

"Everything seems good," she says, making her way back to Nick.

"Excellent. You can never count on that after a hard flight. I think that's all the chores I'll impose on you - I'll run engine check myself. Better check on Akien to see that he hasn't broken my tools or anything first though."

Shrug. "I'm like ninety percent sure he'd ask before he did anything risky – unless there's something unexpectedly breakable?"

"Don't mind me, that's the selfish paranoia talking."

Akien-wards!

"Haven't blown up my workshop yet, have you?"

"Nnnnoooot yet, nope."

He stands back from the bark-stripped twig he has inside a circle of various trinkets. It does not seem to have changed visibly, yet.

"It's not working as expected? Should I get a bigger timber for you?"

"No, no, I'm pretty sure it's working, it's just slow and kinda inside-out."

"I see. Well, we're done with the most crucial tasks to make sure my ship can keep going tomorrow - I've got a bit more work to do but Evara's done to my satisfaction - unless you volunteer for more work."

"I should stay with this if we don't want any accidental fusing of the metal – could get messy."

Evara shrugs. "I'd like to look at the books sometime? Starglass could be useful. But I can help out some more."

"I'll fetch you a couple of books. It's about sunset. I have electric lights - but I don't like running them when I don't have to, so lights-out is as soon as your metal experiment finishes, Akien."

"… Maybe I should've got started on the lights, first. But yeah, okay, shouldn't be too much longer."

"Well, I haven't made the things I want you to enchant yet as I had urgent work to do to keep the ship afloat tomorrow. I'll do that now."

"Mm, but – I mean, could've just used something from my bag in the meantime." Shrug. "I can sleep soon,  that's fine."