letter to cam #17

[thisvorlunatic]

You would not believe the month I've had.

I really did mean to get back to you within a few weeks of my last message, but circumstances intervened. On the other hand, it seems to have worked out all right this way, because there's an Ash and Stars tour coming up and I'm not dead yet. How would you like to attend a concert in addition to raiding the comm nets?

Comments

[thisvorlunatic]

"I suppose that makes sense. Did it take a while to get used to the wings to begin with?"

[from_scratch]

"Yeah, but I was pretty busy learning to fly to pay a lot of memorable attention to shrugging. I have notes on it but somebody advised me against manifesting my computer here and the memory's a bit distant."

[thisvorlunatic]

Snort.

[from_scratch]

Scroll scroll.

[thisvorlunatic]

The passage of time. (Towards the Ash and Stars concert. Eee.)

[from_scratch]

And eventually: "It's about time to go, yeah?"

[thisvorlunatic]

"Just about. Shall we?"

[from_scratch]

"If I can stagger out there, sure." Cam gets up carefully and makes use of walls between the console and the lightflyer.

[thisvorlunatic]

Miles is tempted to offer a hand once or twice, but refrains.

The lightflyer is neat and sleek and, once both of them are in it, proves very capable of flying.

[from_scratch]

"Nifty little thing."

[thisvorlunatic]

"Thank you."

[from_scratch]

"Is it as easy to fly as it looks? Is it just atmo it needs or gravity too?"

[thisvorlunatic]

"I've never actually tried flying one with atmosphere and no gravity, that's something of a difficult condition to come by, but I wouldn't expect it to thrive there. I am probably making it look easier to fly than it is but perhaps not by much."

[from_scratch]

"If it didn't need gravity it might be more convenient than flying between the plane of gold and my house under my own power or via shuttle. I could make air on the way."

[thisvorlunatic]

"It's possible I could find you a similarly convenient vehicle that can handle the lack."

[from_scratch]

"That'd be neat. I mean, shuttles can be little and cute, but they have other drawbacks."

[thisvorlunatic]

"Which drawbacks in particular?"

[from_scratch]

"Noisy in atmo, the fuel options range from 'smelly' to 'radioactive' - daeva don't get radiation poisoning but it annoys people who keep pets and gardens and delicate equipment if you irradiate them - and they're a little harder to fly than this looks."

[thisvorlunatic]

"I can probably come up with a few options. Remind me after the concert."

[from_scratch]

"Will do."

[thisvorlunatic]

Flying, flying.

A city appears! It has that same mixed-century look as the lake house, but more of it. There is at least one actual castle, and many more big stone buildings with a generally castle-like appearance. The streets are very narrow; the ground vehicle traffic looks a touch cramped. The few obviously modern buildings look terribly out of place amid their older neighbours.

"The city of Hassadar," announces Miles.

[from_scratch]

"What a charming mishmash."

[thisvorlunatic]

"Barrayar will do that."

They arrive in the city and get the lightflyer tucked away and themselves to the concert venue. The view from the ground is, if anything, more charming than the view from the air.

[from_scratch]

Cam walks with some difficulty but without doing anything that leaves him conspicuously less injured than he should be.

[thisvorlunatic]

It'll do. Somebody makes a rude remark to Miles in passing as they approach the venue, but he ignores them.

And then they are at the concert. They have not-great-not-terrible seats.