The need for the latter had never been put to the test because no one in the history of the village could remember anyone ever attacking Bakrabru. No one would want to. The Rovers were engaged in building some of the most deadly airships in the Four Lands, some of which were always kept armed and ready for use. It made better sense to engage them in commerce than war.

“Don’t the Druids ever come here?” Railing asked suddenly.

Farshaun pursed his lips thoughtfully. “Not in the last few years. They don’t often leave Paranor these days. Not unless they are tracking down rumors of lost magic. That’s become their whole purpose in life.”

“So this visit must be important,” Mirai said.

“Must be. Maybe they need a new ship built. We’ve given them good ships over the years. Given them the best.” The old Rover glanced over at her. “Don’t let that get back to the Federation, though. We do business with them, too. Got to keep everyone happy.”

They passed through several clusters of cottages and outbuildings that had been walled away to form compounds built to withstand attack. Most looked a bit unready for such an event, the brick and adobe walls starting to show cracks and the metal hinges on the gates rusted. Farshaun wondered suddenly if they were taking things too much for granted at Bakrabru. Just because no one had ever attacked didn’t mean they couldn’t do so now. All it took was a change of mind, and that was the sort of thing that could happen on a whim.

They were still not within sight of the airfield when the black hull of the Druid airship hove into view, still several hundred feet off the ground as she maneuvered into position for a landing. She was long and sleek, built for speed and maneuverability. Her light sheaths had been trimmed to about half of what she could call on when at full sail and flying for speed. But even the reduced amount of canvas was impressive, and all of them stopped to watch as she came about and gave them full-on views of her elegant lines.

“That’s a beautiful ship,” Redden whispered.

“She should be,” Farshaun declared, giving him a look. “I built her.”

They started walking again, the younger three moving closer to the old man. “For the Druids?” Railing pressed.

“For the Ard Rhys herself. For Khyber Elessedil. She came to me looking for a flagship, one that would stand up to anything the Federation might be flying. Something that would outfly and outperform any other airship, but something, too, that looked so impressive you couldn’t help stopping in your tracks just to admire her.”

“Like we did,” Mirai said, smiling.