I realized I needed a break from more than just my training. I needed a reprieve from all things airmaking. I arrived at the city gate near sundown, which meant I had to show my traveling pass to a guard before I could enter.I hiked through the city’s steepening streets, drawing nearer and nearer to the mountains as the last rays of daylight went to sleep. I needed a place to stay, but as I found the first star in the night, I stopped and smiled. It felt so good, so freeing, to be here in Hesterton, against these mountains, experiencing this dark night.Up ahead, I spied an inn, and I went in to inquire about a room.“It’s nearly the fall festival,” the innkeeper said. The stout woman gave me a once-over, her eyes stern and sharp.“Are you full, then?” I asked, thinking of the traders who’d likely be here from their summer homes in the mountains. “When does the festival begin?”“Day after tomorrow,” she answered, a slight accent to her words. “But I have one room left, if you don’t mind the wind.”“I don’t mind the wind,”
