Orin stood in the crowd that had swarmed the skyport to watch the launch of the Harani. His experience - and that of his coworkers - was different than the others gathered there. They were watching years of their work leave, possibly the last time they would see the fruits of their labours. Before they could even build the vessel they had to design and construct the skyport. The machine priests had told them that it could not be completed on land.
A cool wind came from upriver and filled the sails of the first skyship. It also cooled the sweaty brows of Orin and his shipbuilders who had been busy making the final touches until the very last minute. Orin felt a tinge of melancholy as the ship pulled away from the dock and into the clear sky.
What a Ship Is
A skyship is built in much the same way as a traditional water-bound vessel. It has a wooden hull, sails, and rigging. It differs in that instead of a wooden rutter it has a larger canvas one that allows it to steer in the wind and some sails on the sides that allow them to move the ship vertically.
The most important component of the ship is the
floatdrive. This crucial technology - created by the
Machine Priests - is what allows a skyship to - as the name implies - float. It does not provide any propulsion in any direction. The knowledge of how to create these devices is a well-guarded secret and it is believed that tampering with a
floatdrive in any way will result in a lethal visit from the
Machine Priests.
What a Ship Really Is
The launch of the
Harani – the first skyship – brought a new era to the skies. To the people of
Breharan it is a time of moving on from the shadow left by the
Time of Darkness. Not only have they built towns and cities which would have been unsustainable during the storms of a few centuries past, they can now even travel to the islands they have been able to see for even longer.
To the nations, these vessels are a way to expand and collect more resources. To make new discoveries that may save lives - or take them. It also allows them to cross large swathes of open sky that
Ketzlat did not have the reach to fly across.
Evolution of the Skyship
The first skyships – many of them still in service – were constructed by shipbuilders from Tamazee and reflect the design of their sailing vessels. It can take many years to complete a skyship and as such the evolution of them has been slow. Some changes have been made to improve the steering of the vessels and the older vessels have been retrofitted with these improvements as well. The overall design of the skyship hull has remained the same though some vessels vary in size and shape with their intended purpose.
If there have been any changes to the
floatdrive, such changes have not been made public knowledge.
Stub Article
This article is just a stub for now and will be expanded upon later.
Old Article
This article was written in the past and does not meet my current standards for any number of article quality, layout, or content.
In-Progress Article
This article is being worked on, perhaps not at this very moment, but it is being worked on.
A Ship of Fame
No one can argue that the most well known skyship ever to sail was the
Harani. It was the first of its kind and discovered many islands, animals, phenomena, and more. The maps of the sky that they brought back were extremely useful and the stories they told and journals they wrote were important sources of knowledge for scholars, future explorers, and artists of all kinds.
A Ship of Infamy
There was once a skyship little different from any other. One designed to move people and cargo between
Breharan and the nearby islands. It disappeared on a standard journey when it was hit by a storm. The next time the ship was seen it attacked other merchant vessels. Now known as the
Scarlet Storm it is the flagship of the
Stormfleet pirates.
We have explored all of the closest islands on our route and have set a course for the gap. This is a large stretch of empty sky that surrounds Breharan and the nearby islands. It is a space that the Skyfarers and their ketzlat mounts would not have been able to cross. Now we enter truly uncharted skies.— Darosi, Journal No. 1
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