Fly home.

Meanwhile, you're up behind the helm along with Tom, Vodrani, and then Peony at your side. There are many below, now mostly relaxing after all that's transpired. Luna has her legs crossed as she sits upon a crate at the far end of the deck, sewing something on her lap. Anastasia stands near her, watching curiously. Ariusia seems bored, though a short time after Niki returns from the bow, the two of them begin to spar, much to the dismay of those attempting to get out of their way. Meti sits upon the bow-side railing and casts a wistful stare down to the sea far below.

Alice steps up to the helm as well. The glow of her eyes peer back and forth across the complex magical machinery that make up the steering mechanism. "This is truly all amazing to behold."

"Considering how amazing you are, that's high praise," you respond.

"The flattery is unnecessary," she says with an obvious glowing blush in her cheeks. "I have seen many things, though I did not know there was a land where flying ships were unsurprising. I wonder what it is like there."

"We'll check it out sometime. Really push the limits of Bunny Hop. If I can warp that far, we could go on a date to a far off land and be back in time for dinner."

"D-Date?" she replies quietly.

As you converse, Eva hops up to approach the rest of you. "Is it my turn yet?" she asks.

Tom looks over to the bunny. "Oh yeah. Feel free to give it a spin. It's a lot easier once you're already in the air.

She grabs hold of the wheel with a big smile on her face. The breeze sends her lilac hair blowing back. Her attention then shifts to you. "Don't I look amazing?" she asks.

"You're a natural-born pirate queen, Eva," you say.

There are many others beyond those from Castle Phoenix present as well of course. Gwynevere remains in her own corner, along with Anyana still content in her barrel, and Nelli nearby. She watches those nearby with untrusting eyes. Those such as the busty harpy in the long, white shirt, or the slime of pure black. There's also the goblin and the gnome, who are holding hands as they enjoy the view as well.

Vyzia the red dragon stands way far above all others in the crow's nest. Her thoughts are elsewhere.

You look to Alice and begin to undress. "Can you do something for me?" you ask.

Her entire face flashes a bright cyan. Her hair isn't long, but she still brings her fingers back through it, parting it from her eyes as she prepares to tie it back. "Y-Yes, if I m-must."

After removing your scale leather armour, you hand it out towards her. "Can you carry or wear this for the time being? This ship is huge. I don't think Peony's radius covers the entire thing. I feel kinda bad she's so restrained. I mean of course if you want to keep following me around you can, but I'm about to climb up to the crow's nest there, and I don't want it to feel like I'm yanking on your leash."

"Oh. Of course I can do that," Alice replies. She takes the suit and squeezes it against her chest. Her eyes turn to Peony, and then she offers a subtle smile. "I would be honoured to be your tree."

Peony giggles. "All right. I'll explore a little, if that's all right, Alice. But don't go too far, m'lord.

You take hold of the ladder leading high up the center mast.

From behind, you hear Peony whisper, "Does it smell like him? May I check?"

Then Alice replies, "It does, yes. And you may."

It takes some time to scale such a towering beam, though you do eventually reach the apex. You thought you were high up before, but from the crow's nest, you can see so far that you swear you can even spot the Kunzite Kraken in the far distance. It's difficult to tell. The horizon bends a few miles out, and while you aren't so high to where you can't see the ocean, there are still light clouds at this elevation, shrouding your far view with a faint white haze.

Vyzia hardly reacts to your presence.

You clutch the railing and stare off in the same direction. "Hey, Vyzia. How do you feel about everything that's happened? You must be happy to finally leave the island, right?"

Her brow furls, and her own grip around the wood tightens. Her scaley red tail whips up and down with an audible crack against the boards of wood beneath her feet. "Not until Thunderbeard is at the bottom of the sea."

You scoot closer. "We'll get him. Don't worry. After we rest up and fix the ship up the rest of the way, we'll sail back out and he won't stand a chance."

At last, she shifts her gaze to you. "Kyle. You are a mighty leader."

Flapping through the air comes the teal-haired harpy girl from before--short bob cut, glasses, and quite the bosom beneath a long, white, baggy t-shirt, as if wearing a dress that only barely reaches her thighs. With each thrust of her winged arms, her body bounces, and when she lands upon the railing nearby, the aforementioned shirt wafts upward to reveal a tiny pair of navy panties. "Are you doing all right up here?" she asks.

Vyzia sighs. "I'm fine."

"You know, magical technology is pretty amazing," you say. "We don't just have airships, but also beings like Alice down there. A fully sentient, man-made girl who can fire lasers from her arms and come apart like a doll. Back home, we recently discovered how to make batteries to run a GameBoy."

"... I don't know what you're talking about."

"What I'm saying is, don't give up hope. I'm sure we can find some way to repair your damaged wings."

Much to your surprise, you spot a hint of colour in the dragon's cheeks as she looks away. "I don't care about that. I just want the others to be safe."

"You're so strong the way you are," says the harpy. "So even until then, I know you can protect us. But also, you shouldn't have to anyway!"

You place a hand upon the dragon's arm. "You'll have a home at Castle Phoenix if you need it. That extends to the others too. We've still got plenty of room. And hey, with a second dragon, I don't think anyone will attack us ever again."

"A second?" Vyzia asks.

"Yeah. I'm uh... sure you'll get along fine." A cold sweat comes over you.

The harpy now turns to you. "So how far away do you think we are?"

"Probably just one more sleep. This is way faster than being in the water. Oh, speaking of which..." You slip a hand into your pocket and withdraw a small metal slab with rounded corners. It has a pair of lips carved into the front, and a small ear on the side.

"What's that?" She hops into flight once again, though just to bypass the dragon overheard, and last directly in front of you. She squats down and peers at the object curiously.

"A Sending Stone," you answer. "If I talk into it, my message will be carried to the other I left back home."

"I think I've heard of something like that before."

You raise the ear-side to your lips and speak. "Hey. It's Kyle. I've got a weird job for you guys. Whoever is listening, I need to talk to Laira especially."

After a pause, a familiar voice responds. "Oh, Master! It's so nice to hear your voice. I'll find her immediately."

"Good to hear you too, Yin."

You lean back against the mast and take a deep breath. It's been a longer journey than you first expected, though you're getting used to that being the case. Nothing is ever simple. After a short wait of fingering the Sending Stone between your hands, a voice comes out from its lips, though it isn't Yin this time.

"Does it work like this? Hello?" Laira asks.

You raise it back up. "Heya, Laira. We should be arriving back home in about a day, but I need you to do something if you're free."

"Ooh. Do you have something you want me to make? Lay it on me!"

"Don't think too hard about this, but we need some place to land a flying ship. A frigate. Here, after I explain, I'll get the proper measurements."

"That's an easy one. I thought you maybe had the supplies to craft a legendary weapon or something. A dock to plop down a boat? Not a problem. You can leave it to me."

You look up at the two others. "Wow. She didn't even question it," you think aloud.

The harpy flaps her wings and takes off once again. "I'll talk to the others about measurements."

"You sure a day is long enough?" you ask the Sending Stone. "Because we might be able to stall a little."

"More than enough," Laira replies. "I'll work and work until I'm soaked with sweat. Count on it."

You turn your head slowly to the tingle of somebody else's presence approaching. When your eyes reach the top of the ladder, you spot the peering eyes of Fang barely at the top. Her pink hair isn't difficult to miss.

She peeks back and forth and whispers, "Did I hear something about sweat?"