Ah… South China Sky. Those were different skies back then. We drank lambanog like water and peeled and ate balut with our fingers. No legatee or elder ever look at you with as much disdain as a group of bored mamogs, their disregard for your very existence was enough to sober up the most soused miserable sop. We found fortune, we lost friends…

but we how lived…

And the songs we sang…

Look to the sky for freedom, 
look to the sky for wealth, 
look not to the sky contented, 
avertigo prepare yourself…

 

The first measure of balut is…

Like hanging on rigging 2 bù from the swaying deck 6 Li above the ground,

Like wilfully crossing the bayancowan of another ship just to zuke them.

Like nothing you can describe to someone who wasn’t there.

 

…

 

To truly understand the conflict in the local skies you must look 5000 Li to the northwest. The skies over most of the known world have been precisely cut up and apportioned to various mercantile interests. These interests have been carefully hoarded, guarded and exploited for several generations.

As extensive as the trade is over the main land routes, it offers little in the name of chance or advancement for an ambitious Avertigo. The trade from remote islands, on the other hand, is exotic, from pearls the size of mandarins to that foul bean that rich matriarchs brew, it finds favour in the conurbations around the guildhalls and especially so for a young factor hoping to get noticed.

They say Nanjing is eager to resolve and allot the trade rights for these islands and regulation is eminent. So jinrishi jinribi!

 

…

 

There were people already on the islands, when the first scout ships discovered them. These are uniformly water borne tribes with primitive technology and are constantly raiding each other.

The Cuyo and Aeta near North Danger Reef are offshoots of bigger island tribes to the east. They will trade pearls for brass needles and cheap rice wine. To the south the Orang Laut will trade a hundred taels of the finest poppy for a sack of year old millet. They are usually very pliable and a simple show of force and warning shots brings them quickly to the trade stools.

Its all good trading but if you’ll take my advice; keep well clear of the skies around the Union Banks.

 

 

The islands between Union Banks and Namyit are rumoured to be the richest islands in the Nan Fang Hai. They say any factor that can trade there would win a decree from from Nanjing and be raised to be a Guizu. They say if you fly over those islands you could get from Tizard to Nanshan well under a week.

 

They say those islands are infested with pirates and even the Singasari shashou dare not trade there for fear of being clawed out of the sky.

 

They say a lot of things and somethings, the wise should hear…