Cinda shrieks. "How do you accidentally deflate an airship's balloons?"

"Who puts in a switch to deflate the balloons, and then doesn't label it? That's like taking the safety off a gun!" I run over to help Cinda drop sandbags, but it won't help- we're sinking fast.

"It was supposed to be a minor technological advancement, not something for you to flick around-" Vallagher is fruitlessly trying to reverse the deflation.

"Um, hate to break it to you, but the ship is kind of on fire!" Cinda drops another sandbag off the side. I scream and bump into her- and she falls over the side.

"Vallagher, do something!" I wave my hands about uselessly.

Cinda is holding onto the railing of the ship with one hand, but her knuckles are white on the metal and she won't be able to cling for much longer. "Get- a- rope!"

"Oh, right!" There's a long coil of rope beside me on the deck, and I tie a quick knot over the railing and then drop the rope. Cinda has a surprising amount of strength for a young girl, and she grabs onto the rope. She's been dangling for too long to pull herself up, however, and so she dangles there like a pendulum.

The ship's fire has spread to both balloons, and we're falling fast. There's a lurch and a horrible grinding sound, and one of the ropes holding the balloons to the ship snaps. We're now flying at a full diagonal. My impractical boots, with their soft leather bottoms and delicate heels, have no grips at all, and I go sailing across the deck and smack hard into the railing. The breath goes screaming out of my lungs, and my corset makes it nearly impossible to refill my lungs in my current state.

The entire wooden deck is shaking beneath me, and I don't know how much longer we'll be able to stay in the air. I hear a scream, and Madison goes falling from the balloon rigging with his coattails aflame. He lands hard beside me and throws his coat off. His boots are practical, and he stomps on the flame as hard and fast as he can.

Vallagher throws what looks like a bag at me. "Open it!" He pulls his own bag open and straps it onto his back. "I'll grab Cinda on the way down!"

"What?" My voice is shrill with disbelief. "You want me to jump off of this airship wearing a bag over my shoulders?"

"Just trust me, Sophie!" I can see the fire reflected in the pupils of his dark eyes. "You're going to have to jump."

I can see Madison standing behind me, wearing a bag that's he's pulled open. Billowing out is a giant sheet of olive-colored fabric stamped with a factory name. "I'm not going to do it!"

Vallagher grits his teeth. "Either you jump or we push you, but you can't go down with this ship. The longer you stall, the more likely Cinda is to have to let go of that rope."

I cross my arms stubbornly. "There is no way on Earth that I'm jumping off of this thing."

There's a strange tearing noise, and a cloud of olive fabric surrounds me. I can hear Madison's voice behind me. "Good thing we're up in the air, then!" He whoops and then shoves me off of the airship.

If I thought the wind on the ship was bad, this is a hundred times worse. It buffets my body, toying with me and pushing me in every direction at once. The olive fabric whips behind me, making a noise like the roar of a beast. My descent slows a little, and I can see in my periphery the others falling with me. Madison has his arms out and his head thrown back, as though he lives for this sort of thing. Sarah looks a little bored with the whole thing, as though back in her golden days we weren't so reckless as to light ships on fire. Vallagher has an expression of determination on his face, and he's holding Cinda close against him. She's curled up in a ball, her porcelain skin already marred by long scratches and angry red burns.

"Run!" Madison sounds like he's barely there, but I can hear his voice just faintly. Obediently, as I'm really in no position to refuse, I begin to pedal my legs frantically in the air.

The ground nears, and I'm the first one to hit it. Immediately, I see the sense in what I was instructed to do. Instead of landing flat on my face, I more or less stumble down on my feet before collapsing on the ground. My lungs are screaming for breath, and my corset is too tight for me to respond in the proper manner.

Three thumps, as Madison, Sarah, and the Vallagher-Cinda bundle land beside me. Madison's hair is smoking and his coat has been more or less eaten away, but he's grinning maniacally. Sarah looks unphased. She shakes her head at us, but then begins to dab at Madison's face with a handkerchief. "You kids."

Vallagher's face is covered in soot, and there's a nasty burn above his eyebrow. He seems not to care, however, and bends over Cinda.

She's not looking too good. Her hair is tangled and draped partially over her face, and when we brush it away, there's a combination of blood, cuts, and burns nearly sealing her eye shut. Her hands, calloused and large as always, are slashed across with fresh rope burns. Her lips are stained red with blood, and Vallagher begins to cry a little. He kisses her forehead over and over again, and when her left eye flutters open, the tears fall harder.

"Oh, my Cinda." He cradles her against his chest, and she laughs. The sound is weak and rusty and more of a rasping cough than anything, but it is one hundred percent Cinda's.

We're sitting in my backyard, quite worse for the wear. There's a sizzling, cracking sound, and the flaming remains of the airship land beside us, not much more than a few chunks of blackened wood. The adrenaline rush finally leaves us, and we all begin to either laugh or cry hysterically.

Marius opens the door to the carriage house, a look of bemusement on his face. He takes in our injured, charred, manic state, the flaming wreck of the ship, and the crumpled parachutes. "Ah, Lady Sophie. I was wondering when you'd return home."

I rise shakily to my feet. "You were looking for me, Marius?"

He nods. "The Inventor wants to see you."