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THE GRAND STORY OF THE SEEMINGLY IMPOSSIBLE ADVENTURES OF BARON BRITPOP BLASTFURNACE

Learning To Fly

Baron Britpop Blastfurnace • Part 27

Mark Starlin
5 min readMay 16, 2020

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Cover design by Mark Starlin (royalty-free image by Andrey_Kuzmin)

Learning To Fly

Captain Peanut Butter ordered the crew to sail back to Mayaguana so he could try out his flying balloon.

Once we arrived, we unpacked the crate and unfolded the balloon sack. Then attached it to a wicker basket that was large enough to hold two men and a small cast-iron box stove. It was decided that I would accompany the Captain in the basket since I was the most qualified person to attend the furnace.

The crew filled the stove with wood and started a fire. Then the Captain and I climbed into the basket. The crew handed us the stove, which we placed in the center of the basket. Soon, hot air started coming out of the vents of the stove. Four of the crew held the balloon opening over the stove, and gradually the balloon began to fill with heated air. As it filled, it began to rise and slowly take shape. Everyone was excited.

Finally, the balloon was full, and to our delight, it began to rise off the ground. The crew let out cheers as we slowly rose into the sky. As we climbed higher than the masts of a ship, I glanced down at the crew below. They looked like bugs running on…

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Mark Starlin
Mark Starlin

Written by Mark Starlin

Old bones. Young heart. Uniquely arranged words.

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