Jerrence

Some might see the Riftrunner and think that it's the most advanced vessel that dragonkind has ever created. But only Captain Jerrence knows that that's true. After all, he built most of it! And more importantly, he's the only one with the skills to pilot it. And it's not just because the controls are so complex that you need four arms to work them. The true piloting skill isn't in the physical world. It's in your soul. You need to feel what your vehicle wants. Hear the engine as your own heartbeat. Close your eyes and steer by the vibration in the controls, trusting your vehicle to lead you to glory.

Jerrence started his piloting career as an amateur mechanic, building improvised vehicles out of scrap parts. There was no lack of useful components in the Wiretangle Walk. And after Jerrence was finished there were usually more. Not because his contraptions broke apart or crashed. Never! What kind of pilot do you think he is? Everything he built worked perfectly. It's just that the machine he built to fly things to the top of the Tangle had too many spinning blades and cut some very important cables apart. And maybe he got a bit carried away with the giant turbo-drilling machine. And the less said about the vehicle that could grind across the wires connecting the various Lighting Farm spires the better.

Being banned from every workplace around was worth it once he got the ornithopter working, however. A flying machine, with buzzing insect wings and prototype rocket boosters. Sure, he could always fly with his own wings. But this was so much better. A flying deathtrap capable of shifting from hovering in one place to flying faster than any dragon could hope to fly under their own power. On some days he'd be breaking speed records in the air above the Charged Barrens. And on others he'd be threading needles between stone outcroppings in the lower reaches of Carrion Canyon. In the pilot's seat is where he belonged.

But a true pilot can never be satisfied. Which is why the Riftrunner exists. The greatest vessel for the greatest pilot. Let the crew think they're here for research, exploration, or meeting creatures from other worlds. They're really here so that their captain can chase ever greater tests of his piloting skill, flying through locals far stranger than anything Sornieth can throw at him.

Though he can probably find some time for the crew to pursue their own interests as well. Loblolly's excitement to meet new friends is infectious. Cyrus's theories of inter-dimensional phenomena are fascinating. And Lotorc's doing something with plants? Was it that she's looking for some sort of alien plant that can be used to make an even more delicious type of paper? Sounds great! Jerrence can certainly find the time to travel to other planes that have lots of plants so that she can do that.

Of course, that's only if Kirko will let him. She's not even the captain, yet she still keeps trying to tell him not to daringly fly his ornithopter between crystals falling from the Crystalspine Reaches. Yes, he's using the concussive mineral sample extractor they'd prepared for their expeditions to knock those crystals down in the first place. No, he won't save those explosive charges for later — this is why he got them in the first place! It's almost as if she doesn't want him to be practised and ready to fly the Riftrunner once he gets it up and running. And that's basically mutiny! This is Jerrence's interdimensional research vessel, and if he wants to send it screaming into a rift leading into a realm of fire and lava, then that's his decision.

After all, he built quite a lot of it. Everyone in the crew did their part, of course. They welded the fuselage, installed levitation crystals, that sort of thing. But Jerrence drew the original blueprints. He handled all the moving parts and and electrical systems. And most importantly, he added more arcane graviton-warp boosters and lightning electro-charged mechanojets than anyone has realized. The Riftrunner will be the fastest thing to have ever existed — once he can get the power systems working. Arcane and lightning technologies don't always play nicely with each other, and so far they've had a habit of exploding in every direction instead of just the one that pushes the ship forwards. But Jerrence won't give up. A true pilot never abandons their vehicle.

His failed attempts to get the engines online haven't been entirely useless either. Jerrence is making progress in crafting something that can contain the incredible amounts of magical and electric power the propulsion systems require. He's created some crystal canisters that don't instantly explode when infused with both arcane and lightning energy. They do explode if you try to get the energy back out, however. Still not great, but they do make a handy weapon in a pinch. Just toss one and get ready to run for your life from the maelstrom of electricity and magic you've unleashed. That power is why he keeps a few of these electromagical devastation charges strapped to his body for easy access at all times. Perfectly safe, as long as he never crashes any vehicles. And that'd never happen.

While he might be the first true pilot, that doesn't mean Jerrence wants to be the last one. He's always on the search for other dragons with a pilot's heart. And without a doubt, Phidi is one such dragon. He's not worried about her habit of jumping between interests faster than a swift volt jumps between wires to chew. She does that because she hasn't found her true calling of piloting yet. Phidi's quite interested in learning how to pilot the ornithopter as well, she just hasn't managed to make time for it yet. And once she does, hopefully she be interested in building her own. Then, finally, Jerrence will have someone to race against. After all, there's no point in being the greatest pilot without a rival to challenge you for that position.