The wind grows stronger as you follow the corridor around the corner, towards a set of stairs which lead to the upper level. You're not quite sure where you are, exactly. You can only assume that you have been taken to somebody's home, perhaps another faraway settlement, but you must surely be a long way from home. At least, where your home used to be. It doesn't explain the presence of the mutant in your room, however, so you can only hope that your hosts are not unpleasant company.

You climb up the stairs to find yourself...staring out across open skies. Clouds can be seen on the horizon, clustered in a never-ending sea of blue which surrounds you for miles and miles as far as the eye can see…

This is no ordinary residence. This is no house. You're not even on ground level. You are standing on the upper deck of a fully functioning airship! No wonder the wind was so strong up here: you must be hundreds of metres above sea level...

You've never been on an airship before, but you have seen plenty of them at the island where you lived all your life. Some sky races use these aerial vessels to transport goods and cargo between islands, others simply for transporting passengers. However, they can be slow and unwieldy to operate, and they are not especially durable; a fierce lightning storm can easily put an airship out of commission. For this reason, airships are usually designed for short voyages with a minimum of passengers.

It's like something out of a dream. A real airship. You don't know where this one is headed, but it has to be somewhere better than where you came from. Where do you want to go, after all? No, the bigger question is – what happened on the surface of the land far below? What prompted your island to fall in the first place?

As you gaze out thoughtfully across the open skies, there are footsteps behind you. You turn to see a young woman with long red hair cascading across her shoulders. There is a hint of recognition in her green eyes as she looks at you.

"Vnwprthy," she says in a clear voice. "Ypv brf thf Vnwprthy." She beckons to you with one finger. "Cpmf. Cpmf wjth mf. Thf Cbptbjn wbnts tp spfbk tp ypv."

Without another word, she turns on her heel and walks across the deck into another section of the airship. You do not understand her words, but it seems that she wants you to follow her.

You decide not to and go back downstairs

You decide not to trust the woman and retreat back down the stairs. She is already several steps ahead and does not notice that you are not following her until you are well out of sight. Quickly, you decide to return to the corridor below and head to the right, where you heard the voices before.

You proceed

You follow the corridor for some time as the voices become more distinct. They sound rather jovial and cheerful in nature; foreign, too, because they are speaking in a language that you do not understand. It should not be surprising at that, since there are many different varieties of races which populate the skies, each of their own language and culture. Having never left the relative comfort of your own island before, you are unacquainted with the language of any other species.

At the end of the corridor is a large room filled with uniformed men and what you assume to be soldiers. Mercenaries, more likely, from their get-up. Large groups of them are gathered around each table, drinking from mugs and chattering to one another at great volume. Is this some kind of bar, perhaps? It seems a little rough and rowdy for your taste.

You look around and see that the place is not in good condition. Furthermore, none of the men in this room are human. Of course, neither are you, but you do not recognise their kind. Their skin colour varies from pearly-white to a pale purple, and many of them appear to sport partial reptilian features. Are these people really your rescuers? From the way they are looking at you now, you are inclined to doubt it…

"Vnwprthy!" one man shouts, as you step into the room. His gaze is fixed upon you steadily. "Jt's thf Vnwprthy! Shf's vp bt lbst."

Self-conscious about the sudden attention, you automatically tense yourself, but the mercenaries here do not seem necessarily aggressive. All of them are armed to the teeth with various edged weapons and crossbows which are slung across their backs, but even so they appear to be regarding you with genuine curiosity. Perhaps they are just as fascinated by your unique appearance as you are by theirs. Low murmuring echoes through the room, with a few of the man shaking their heads at you. You do not understand the significance of such a gesture.

"Vnwprthy," one of the men says, standing up and walking towards you. He smiles at you warmly and makes a gesture you do not recognise. "Brf ypv wfll? Ypv'vf bffn bslffp fpr b lpng tjmf. Hpw dp ypv fffl? Brf ypv rfstfd?"

The brief silence which follows his words suggests that he has asked you a question, and is expecting an answer from you. Unfortunately, you haven't the faintest idea what he just said.

You nod your head in answer

The mercenary seems satisfied with your answer, and you sense that you have given the correct response. "Thbt's gppd," he says in a gracious tone of voice. "Npt mbny svrvjvfd thf fbll. Ypv wfrf pnf pf thf lvcky pnfs." The man sits down on one of the chairs and calls over to one of his companions. "Hfy, thf Cbptbjn wjll wbnt tp sff hfr npw thbt shf's bwpkfn. Spmfpnf tbkf thf Vnwprthy tp sff hfr, vndfrstbnd?"

"Svrf thjng," the other man ventures, getting up and moving towards you. "Cpmf pn," he says to you, beckoning you over with one finger. "Thjs shpvldn't tbkf tpp ljng."

You do not understand his words, but it seems that he wants you to follow him.

You follow the mercenary

You follow the mercenary to the far end of the corridor, towards where a set of stairs lead to the upper level, feeling the wind grow stronger as you do so. Soon enough, you find yourself standing once more upon the upper deck of the airship. It still feels quite surreal, staring out into open skies at such a great height, and you don't think you'll ever get used to this.

Your guide watches you curiously as you gaze over the deck of the airship, before motioning you forward. Resignedly, you follow him into another part of the airship, through twists and turns in the corridors. As you walk, you pass several more uniformed men who watch you with interest. Only now do you realise that they must be part of the ship's crew.

After a few minutes, the mercenary leads you to a brass door which lies at the top of a final flight of stairs. There is a sign on top of the door, but you lack the knowledge to read the symbols and runes displayed there.

"Gp jn," he says, gesturing for you to enter. "Thf cbptbjn bwbjts ypv."

At his request, you push open the door and enter the room beyond.