Golden Braids and Dragon Blades: Steampunk Rapunzel

Chapter 10: Jolly Old London

My eyes widened as the city of London slowly appeared on the horizon. First, I saw the small villages at the edges of the city. Their slate or thatch roofs dotted the vista below. Then more and more airships appeared in the sky, each with a unique marking on the balloon signifying its name. The ship we flew in boasted a sparrow on the balloon, the ship’s name the same.

I stared as the familiar shapes, places I had seen in drawings or photographs, came into view: Saint Paul’s Cathedral, Tinker’s Tower, and London Bridge.

“Jolly old London,” Mother said.

“It’s magnificent!”

Mother smiled lightly, but that familiar tremor worried her mouth once more…even in the guise of a man who looked built to work the shipyards.

“What is it?” I asked.

Mother shook her head. “Nothing. I’m sorry, Rapunzel. We won’t be going into the city. When we dock, I will arrange for another ship. I’ll have you stay on board the Sparrow until our passage is secured.”

“All right,” I said, trying not to sound disappointed. It wasn’t her fault, after all.

Turning back, I looked over the rail at the city below. Odd scents wafted up. I smelled dust, refuse, and people. The strange, sick smell was punctuated with the clean scents of freshly baked bread and the sweet tang of roasting meat.

Estrid sneezed.

Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who found the city’s perfume an unusual concoction.

The crew shouted to one another as the ship pulled into port. Working quickly, they docked the vessel and secured it in place.

“Sir,” the pilot called to Mother.

Her eyes scanning the other airships, Mother hadn’t heard.

“Sir,” the man called again.

I tugged Mother’s sleeve. “Sir, the pilot is calling.”

Mother grinned. “Right,” she said then turned and went to the man.

I watched as travelers debarked other vessels or stood in line to board a waiting transport. Massive ships hovered at the uppermost platform. The London hub, with three tower levels and dozens of airships, was a busy place. Gently lifting my wicker crate from the deck of the ship, I balanced it along the rail. A moment later, three sets of eyes looked out.

“Look, girls. See all the people?” I whispered.

Mother returned a moment later. “All right, Rapunzel. Stay put. The captain will keep an eye on you until I return. I know which ship I’m after. There,” she said, pointing to an airship hovering on the platform overhead. The ship had the insignia of a wolf’s head on a hammer. “I’ll be back.”

I set the basket down and leaned back into my seat. “All right. See you soon,” I said lightly, trying not to let my worries show.

Mother turned to leave but then paused.

Turning back, she bent and looked me deep in the eyes. She smiled. Even though she wore the illusion of a man, she had the same dark eyes I knew well. “We’ll be out of all this mess and safe soon,” she told me, pushing a loose tuft of hair behind my ear.

I smiled at her.

“Love you,” she said, kissing me on the forehead.

“Love you too.”

She then turned and debarked the ship.

Sighing, I pulled out my new book. “Well, Miss Austen. Let’s see what misadventures you have in store now,” I said then flipped the book open to the first chapter of Sense and Sensibility.

* * *

When something goes wrong, it seems like it all happens very suddenly.

First, my stomach began to twist. My hands shook. And then a strange feeling, like being too close to a lightning strike, took over my body.

In the very same moment, the three small cats in the wicker crate began meowing and hissing loudly.

I looked up, pulled away from Miss Austen’s depiction of the very miserable condition of the Dashwood sisters in the wake of their father’s premature death to see a man standing on the platform not far from the Sparrow.

There was a meanness to his looks. Had I not been able to feel that there was something wrong, I most certainly could have discerned it from his features.

He was a large man with black hair and a heavy brow. He stared at me, his eyes gleaming. Sparks of red flickered in his eyes and between his fingers. I gasped. Blood of Mordred.

Again, the sisters hissed, and the box as my feet rattled.

The man’s gaze went to the crate.

“No,” I whispered. Dropping the book, I snatched my bag with one hand and the crate with the other. I cast a glance at the platform above. I couldn’t see Mother anywhere.

I backed slowly toward the far side of the ship, stepping onto the bench. The man moved toward me.

“Oi, what you on about, miss? Get down from there before you fall,” the pilot called then followed my gaze.

The dark-haired man jumped off the platform and onto the rail of the Sparrow.

“What the hell? Get off my ship,” the pilot yelled at him.

To my shock, the dragon blood pulled out a pistol, aimed it at the pilot, and then shot.

The sound of the gunshot rang through the air.

The pilot held onto the spokes of his wheel for just a moment before he slipped to the deck of his ship. A moment later, there was panic as the people on the platform screamed and rushed in every direction. From below, I heard a guard’s whistle and shouting.

My eye flashed toward the airship platform above me. I didn’t see Mother anywhere.

“Come here,” the man growled at me, motioning with the barrel of his pistol for me to get down.

Hooking my arm around one of the ropes that connected the balloon of the airship to the gondola, I climbed up onto the rail. “You won’t shoot me.”

“You sure about that?”

“Yes.”

He smirked. “You’re right. Now, come down. I’ve been looking for you for a long time, blood of Anna.”

The wicker crate rattled once more as the dragons fought to get out.

The man’s eyes went to the basket. “What’s in there?”

I looked down the platform, hoping for a sign of Mother, but she was nowhere to be seen.

“Lookin’ for your faerie guardian?” the man asked with a laugh. “Well, you’re not going to find her. We’ve been watching her. Now, at last, we have you. Why don’t you just come down from there, and we’ll have a little talk.”

“No,” I whispered, my eyes glancing upward. Where was she?

The man laughed. “We’ll be real gentle. I promise you that. Come on.”

“You, hold there,” an airship tower guard yelled at the dragon blood.

Frowning, the dragon blood turned once more and shot the man. The officer crumpled to the ground.

A wind blew in from the Thames, ruffling my long hair. On the breeze, I heard a soft whisper: Your knight. A princess needs a knight.

I heard a strange metal sound zip close by and then heard the splintering of wood. A moment later, a massive figure swept in alongside me and landed on the rail of the airship.

Gasping, I turned to find Ewan there. At once, he drew his pistol and leveled it on the dragon blood.

“Pellinore,” the thug said then spat. “Like a damned fly. Get out of this, Ewan.”

“Sorry. Rescuing damsels in distress is listed under Article 7, Item 22. It’s a requirement. You, on the other hand, I have a license to kill, if necessary.”

The dragon blood sneered then raised his weapon, aiming it at Ewan.

Ewan got his shot off first.

The dragon blood dodged, but the shot rang true, striking the man in the shoulder.

“Oi! Ewan? Why don’t you dodge this,” another voice called from the platform. I turned to see another man who looked very much like the first standing there. He was holding an odd-looking weapon, a sort of musket with a wide muzzle.

Ewan’s eyes went wide.

“Rapunzel, hold on,” Ewan said, grabbing me quickly around the waist. He activated a switch on his belt then we jumped. As we fell from the rail of the airship, the dragon blood’s weapon blasted. There was a strange buzzing in the air and I saw a flash of blue light.

My arms wrapped around Ewan, I squeezed the strap of my bag and the handle on the crate held so tightly that it made my fingers hurt. I couldn’t drop them. No matter what, I couldn’t drop them. Ewan’s device unspooled quickly. He activated a button, and the line slowed as we neared the ground.

“Mother,” I said, scanning the platforms.

A shot from above rang out. A bright ball of blue light came hurtling in our direction. The ground near my feet exploded, grass and earth flying everywhere.

“Rapunzel, I need to get you out of here. Now,” Ewan said. Taking me gently by the arm, he led me away from the airship towers and back toward the city.

“But my mother…”

Another shot rang out. A flash of blue light hit a lamppost nearby. The glass on the lamp exploded and the post buckled.

“We’ll find her. She wouldn’t want you to get hurt. We need to go. Now,” he said then led me away.