Harlaan

He was tempted to reach out and knock Crike out of the rigging as the towline up into balloon sail took him up through the rigging, around the helix mast. Harlaan was also quite convinced that one day, Crike would be the Runagate's captain, and was quite impressed by her ability to hang on to the day-to-day running of the ship like a barnacle, without ever personally taking on a lot of work. Crike displayed natural leadership and survival skills, and in a roundabout way, Harlaan wanted her to reach her full potential.

Still, in a crisis, all hands on deck meant just that. All hands. On deck.

Sighting a skywhale was not an unusual occurrence, of course, but skywhales were often accompanied by Remoras, and Remoras would be a problem.

Harlaan's own natural talents involved clarity of sight through the fog in the Swirl. He probably could have been a competent navigator, if not a dreamguide, and had considered volunteering to try his hand at the job when the previous dreamguide left, but he preferred to keep his eyes open. Ultimately, he wanted the other members of the crew to succeed and grow their own abilities. They were a young crew, barely out of dry dock a year now, and as the most experienced of the crew, Harlaan felt a strong need to keep the Runagate safe.

In a crisis, an inexperienced crew was a massive liability, but what better way to learn than through crisis?

He quickly ascended through the heat of the balloon sail to the viewing nest above. The sail was designed to serve several purposes: when it was filled, in dock at a geothermal port, as the name suggested, it could balloon up to several times its resting volume, creating a enough lift for a vertical ascent substantially higher than their cruising altitude; the Runagate could then sail down, using the helix of additional sails to spiral into the winds of the Swirl; periodically, as the balloon sail deflated, it could be rigged to create more lift from those winds.

In the event of an unplanned rapid descent, Harlaan considered, the balloon sail could be used like a parachute, to slow the descent process. Of course, the sail itself was constructed so as to be very durable, necessary in the winds of the Swirl, and could be used as a shield if the skyship came under fire, but only as a last ditch measure. Safer to make a rapid planned descent and avoid conflict. Everything happened in the Swirl in manifold dimensions.

All of these dimensions, strategies, dreams and such were in Harlaan's thoughts as he reached the viewing nest.