"Unfortunately for the bandits, the monster we had awakened was sapient enough to have a sense of decency and devoured their leader first. Winsom and I made like the wind, and the bandits tried to as well, but they were laden down with treasure and succumbed to collapsing stairways and falling ceilings one by one!" Gerardo narrated excitedly, posturing with his wings and talons. "Winsom and I escaped alone in the end, bricks from the falling entryway shaving several hairs from my tail! And of all the place's vast treasure, the only thing that made it out was a single gold coin tucked in Winsom's hat." He drooped sadly. "Which promptly was spent, by him, at a rather unsavory location the moment we got back to town... so really all we got is the story. But it's a good story, is it not?"
"I dunno, Gerardo." Slipstream rocked back and forth in her hammock, the gentle bobbing of the ship causing it to sway. "Sounds like it was just Tuesday for you."
"Heh. It was a good story." Shinespark nodded in appreciation, then tilted her head. "What's it have to do with me and Grenada, though? Something about your friendship with Winsom?"
Gerardo shrugged amicably. "Oh, nothing, really. But that's the point. Her ship has sailed and there's nothing you can do save for moving on, so you might as well have a good time of it. Did I successfully take your mind off things?"
Shinespark wanted to protest glumly, but caught herself. Talking about it more would definitely put her mind back on it, and he was right: she had stopped and enjoyed the story. "Thanks, Gerardo."
"My pleasure!" Gerardo beamed and held a talon fancifully to his neck. "Always gratifying to be of service to our captain."
"Mhm." Shinespark's tail twitched once, still laying on the tool chest. "Do you three talk a lot about Varsidel in here, then?"
"Definitely," Nyala answered from the side of the room. "I have no memories and Slipstream has few experiences, so we do a lot of listening. It's fun, hearing about so many things."
Gerardo bowed. "And I did spend the better part of a decade traveling Varsidel's cities and sandscapes. It's hardly the only thing I have to speak on, but it's a popular one."
Slipstream giggled. "When I try telling stories, they're mostly secondhoof ones about things that have happened to travelers I met at the skyport. You hear a lot of the craziest things, working at a helpdesk. Other than that, my life has just been typical teenager stuff. It's not all that special."
Gerardo grinned. "Says the self-proclaimed normal to the runaway, the amnesiac and the child ruler. Your experiences are just as out there and interesting as any of ours, and I've said it every time you take the storytelling wheel."
"But I..." Slipstream blushed. "I mean, you're a much better storyteller than me..."
"At least you have stories to tell," Nyala countered. "You're much luckier than me. I love it when you talk."
Shinespark smiled, still sitting to the side. "It's nice how our crew is big enough that we can have circles of friends for everyone. You all sound like you have a good time up here."
"Oh, it's very much enjoyable," Gerardo confidently assured her. "Perhaps a little self-indulgent, pandering to my love of having an audience, but it's a two-way street when these two love being one! How about you, though?" He shrugged toward the window, the sun still climbing in the sky. "Since you're here, care to share a story of your own? We've practically sanctified the walls of this room with shared thrills and excitement and knowledge, and would love to have you join us."
"...I could." Shinespark tilted her head. "What would you like to hear about?"
Gerardo beamed and bowed, flourishing with a wing. "Absolutely whatever you have to say. Surely there must have been interesting happenings as the leader of Sosa, and I believe you were in the business of listening to your subjects and hearing their woes, as well? You could make like Slipstream and tell someone else's story if you feel it's worthwhile. Or..." He taloned his chin. "Have I ever heard the story of origin behind your brand? I recall yours was quite special, after all. Surely it had an interesting way in which it manifested as well."
Shinespark lifted her head, looking back at her orange flank. "I'm not sure I've told it, actually. And we certainly thought it was special..." She sighed. "It made me so similar to a folk hero, I decided to be one too. But I could tell that. Sure."
Everyone settled back to listen, Gerardo reclining in the pilot's chair and Slipstream rocking in her hammock. Nyala turned her head so it would look more like she was listening, and Shinespark took a long breath, stirring her memories.
"It was around seven years ago, I think," she began. "I was twelve, so that's right. It was right before Arambai left Ironridge. Times were getting hard and everyone was worried, and the moon glass had fallen and Sosa was under a lot of pressure... I had started finding out more about just how bad our problems were. One night, Dior and I snuck out and walked all the way to the Sky District, where they were still working on the skyport. We... brought all the Sosan employment records we could possibly carry and slipped into the construction offices, just two random fillies no one would recognize. I think I even dyed my mane. I was a real firebrand as a kid. Too much energy and enthusiasm."
She swallowed, gaze trailing off into the past. "We got the attention of someone... I don't even know who, or how high up. And then we tried to explain they were hurting us and our friends and families and loved ones down in Sosa. We thought we had a case in the way only two dumb kids could, and they looked at us for a whole second and then shooed us away. Wouldn't even give us the time of day, much less a reply. Couldn't even dignify us with a no."
Her teeth had started to grit in pain. "We also... I don't know if you were around him long enough to notice, but Dior has a permanent limp in one hind leg? It's not very severe, but you can notice it if you're looking."
Gerardo hummed. "I noticed that when I first saw him. I mistook it as potential damage from my sword, since I believed him to be Braen at the time. That has to do with this?"
Shinespark nodded. "Thinking that was Braen was just a coincidence. That was... from an injury that had to do with this. I'm still not sure I want to talk about that part, but you can easily use your imaginations."
"Two unwelcome foals in a mountaintop construction zone..." Slipstream gravely nodded.
"Yeah." Shinespark just looked away, then back at Gerardo. "Regardless, I got my cutie mark while I was carrying him home. First got to complaining, then thinking, and then I got excited about the prospect of Sosa making airships for itself, to beat out their competition and make them go away. And suddenly, Dior was yelling in my ear to go back down. And that's when I realized I had it."
"...Huh," Slipstream murmured.
Shinespark nodded. "It's a mark that means a lot of things. Letting me fly and making me like a hero are almost side-effects, I think. I originally got it for wanting to build airships, and us doing experiments on it was the backbone of how we built this technology. Being able to build this ship is what it was really for."
"That's quite special," Gerardo remarked, a smile on his face. "Then again, tales of brands usually are, what with their scarcity... but that's not to devalue your experiences. Thank you for sharing that."
Shinespark folded her ears. "It was no problem."
"Well." Gerardo cleared his throat, resetting the subject. "I'm not exactly sure how to follow that, but... who wants to hear about the time Winsom got in a turnip-eating contest with the head of a syndicate that had established ownership of an oasis town?"