The green Saursune trotted closer and gave a reassuring hum before repeating the keen and walking to the middle of the airship. My muscles trembled at the thought of going inside.

The female circled around me with a hum and slid under my arm until my hand rested on her shoulder again. She set one of her hands on the doorstep and waited, not pulling away from my hand.

I swallowed hard as my mind flew. If I went inside, this airship could take off. I might never find my way back. Was this a trap? What kind of dangers were inside? Our village had always avoided all Saursune structures—it was how we survived for so long. We had barely even gone within eyeshot of a farm, and entering the airship seemed even more dangerous than going inside a farm building.

I was only three paces from the open door, and most of the interior was visible from where I stood. I didn't see anything potentially threatening. Oddly enough, the fur cushions were arranged a lot like the resting hides near a crystal.

That still left the trap theory, and I had no way to disprove it. The grass-woven figures had been moved beside the airship, not inside it! What if the return trip part also hadn't been the full truth?

The green Saursune repeated the back-and-forth circle with a keen, and when I still didn't move, he lay down and whined a lot like the youngsters had. I glanced at the brown female, hoping she'd understand the fear in my eyes.

Her hand left the doorway, and she circled behind me, nudging my back toward the door very gently, before sliding under my hand again. She hummed reassuringly as she waited for me, no trace of impatience or annoyance that I could see.

I swallowed hard. If it was a trap, it was a very subtle one since they could have easily shoved me inside. My first step forward could barely even be classified as a step, but the female hummed a deeper encouragement.

Several foot-shuffles later, my feet were in front of the threshold as the female stood halfway inside, her shoulder still beside mine. The floor wasn't even knee-high, an easy step, if I had attempted it.

I stared at the interior, seeing nothing but walls and fur cushions. No crystal. No sacks of grain. And I saw zero reason to go inside to share energy with a Saursune. I was also far too aware that these two could drag me inside if they chose.

As if sensing my growing reluctance and alarm, the green Saursune rose to all fours and padded to the back of the airship. He lifted a hand to the wall and pulled part of it off—no, it swung like the door in the old village—letting us see a previously hidden crystal with a single spire.

They had a crystal inside an airship? How? Crystal formations had huge root systems, even if they were knee-high like this one was. Something about it seemed strange though. It wasn't as clear, and instead of light reflecting deep inside it, it seemed to glow from the base. Was this a different type of crystal?

The male looked between me and it as he gave another soft keen. Memory of the crystal formation inside the woven airship suddenly began to make sense, although it also left me more confused. Why show me this crystal? I wasn't sure I could port to a crystal that moved around, and even if I could, I certainly wasn't about to try when it was in an airship!

Their attempt to coax me inside no longer seemed quite so suspicious. I peered at the strange crystal, so different from any other I'd seen before.

My gaze shifted to the doorway in front of my knees. Was I really going to try this? For three sacks of grain... I took a deep breath and lifted my foot up. It was a lot harder to convince myself to actually step up.

I was actually inside an airship.

It seemed impossible.

I had to be insane.

My legs quivered as my courage faltered yet again. The odd glowing crystal was only ten paces away—why was I going closer? Oh, right. One of those pictures had shown me placing both hands on it. And the grain...

If this was a trap, I was well and truly inside it now. There was no easy way to back out now, not when I had come this far. Ten paces. That was it. That was all that stood between me and the promise of three sacks of grain. Just ten—

I frowned. That number couldn't be right. Not when the door was closer to this end, and the crystal was on the far wall. I glanced around again, paying more attention this time.

The side walls had numerous windows that kept the small space from feeling claustrophobic—was that really glass? It looked so clear... But, where were the windows I'd seen on the front?

The wall on my left was far too close. There must be a hidden room, probably where the control panels were like in the old human planes. The rest of the space was open with fur cushions along the sides.

The brown Saursune took a tiny, tentative step forward, my hand still on her shoulder. Swallowing hard and hoping I wasn't about to regret this, I cautiously stepped forward. She kept pace with me, humming the entire time. Ten paces had never felt so far.

I was very glad the door remained open.

The unusual crystal was partway up the wall. I wouldn't have to lean over to touch it, but was that what they wanted? I tilted my head at the green Saursune sitting beside us. I looked between it and him, trying my best to look confused. He reached into a pouch hanging on the wall and pulled out more wooden tiles.

He held out two identical to the charcoal sketches he'd left on the map. A porter's hand on a Saursune's shoulder with blue flowing into it, then he covered it with one showing the porter with both hands on a crystal. Alas, I was no wiser. The first one looked like an energy donation, but the second one was still a mystery.

I turned my head to the brown Saursune and pushed my senses through my hand, only to find the "wall" between us firmly in place. That put my energy sharing theory to flight.

She reached up, and I stilled as her clawed hand lightly wrapped around my wrist. She carefully moved my hand off her shoulder, and while still holding it, reached toward the crystal. Her grasp was loose enough I could have pulled free, but I let her move my arm.

The moment she set my hand on the crystal I knew it wasn't a regular crystal. Light didn't immediately shimmer through my veins. It didn't greet me, and there was no "identity". This wasn't a crystal I could port to.

She reached for my other hand and also set it on the crystal. I blinked at it, then gazed at her in confusion. She glanced between the cards and me, also seeming kind of at a loss with the language barrier.

Her hand reached out again and gently tapped my chest twice, right above my heart, then a claw carefully trailed down my arm, to the crystal, and tapped it twice.

You couldn't share energy with a crystal, although that was what she seemed to be asking for. It just wasn't possible. Or...at least not with the crystals I was familiar with.

Furrowing my eyebrows, I carefully sent my senses through my hands and there was...nothing. No shimmer I usually associated with crystals, and not even the vague somethingness I felt with the Saursunes.

Even though I was certain it was pointless, I pushed some of my energy out of my hands. To my surprise, the stone lit up from within even as the energy vanished from my senses.

I wasn't sure how it was working—there was no connection that I could sense—but the contact seemed to be all that was needed. I poured more energy past my hands and was fascinated to see my struggles in maintaining the flow were mirrored by the flickering glow in the crystal.

Grant had said the Saursunes used the crystals to somehow power their ships. Could this strange crystal be how they stored that energy? Yet, now that I thought about it, I never saw the Saursunes doing anything with the crystals except—except when an airship had passed over the half-grown crystal at our backup location and stopped for a bizarrely long time. Could the energy only come from growing crystals? It would remain a mystery since there was no way for me to confirm or deny that theory.

My energy disappeared the instant it touched my palms, so the crystal was clearly absorbing it somehow. Were the Saursunes also able to use their energy to power their airships? We'd already noticed they eagerly sought out porters, so they must not create much, which was probably why they had arranged such a generous trade to get me to come here.

Despite my slow and cautious "sharing", it didn't take long before my legs felt the effects. I still couldn't tell how much energy I had left, which made it really hard to know when to stop. Erring on the side of caution, I pulled my hands away. The glow in the crystal immediately subsided to a glow a bit brighter than when I'd first seen it.

The energy drain was still catching up to me, leaving me a bit dazed. The brown female pushed her shoulder against my hand with a hum. Leaning against her as we walked back seemed quite logical, and she didn't seem to mind.

It took me a couple of steps to realize we weren't heading directly to the door.

My feet stopped right in front of a large fur cushion against the wall. She slid out from under my hand and lay down on it, tapping the open spot beside her with her hand. I blinked at her, then sent an uneasy glance at the open door. A nudge against the back of my knees caught me off guard, and I stumbled over the edge of the fur cushion, falling to my knees with a startled yelp.

The brown female hissed at the male who was backing away with his head down. Her tail curled around me, and she reached over to nuzzle my arm before sending another glare at the other Saursune.

I carefully eased away, making sure not to step on her tail, and got to my feet. The furs were some of the softest I'd ever felt and the setup was almost identical to most resting areas, but I couldn't bring myself to take a break inside an airship. Had we been outside, maybe. But in here? Not a chance. That door could close at any time.

The female got up and moved her shoulder under my hand as she gazed at the door. That was all the incentive I needed to follow her. Going out was far easier than coming in, and I breathed a sigh of relief once both of my feet were in the grass.

She guided me across the meadow and glanced over her shoulder as the green male bounded past us with one of the big fur cushions in his jaws. He dropped it near the base of a tree. After bowing his head in my direction, he trotted back to the airship.

The female guided me over to the fur and lay down on it, tapping the open area again. I hesitated, but the energy drain and my recent scare left my legs kind of shaky. And we were outside... Gingerly, I stepped onto the hide and sat down. My legs appreciated the break, but my nerves still needed more time to settle down. The open sky, trees, and grasses were a familiar, relaxing sight.

I shifted so I could see the airship. Its mere presence made me uneasy, but far less now that I had actually ventured inside. The door was still open, and I presumed the other Saursune was in there somewhere since I didn't see him.

I was going to have a lot of explaining to do when I got back...