"And seatbelt on....you'll need it," she adds as she increases the engine's revs and sends her hand to another gear. As she does, something changes in her face; sharpens, focuses. For all she's at ease in her chair (and she really is, looking right at home), she is also a pilot and now she looks it.

"Here we go," Esfir murmurs as the Baba Yaga rises up. Straight up, and quickly, until she's cleared the spaceport walls. Then the ship tilts (there is artifical gravity, yes, and you could walk around right now, but there is still a sense of tilting beyond the visual) and zooms into the sky.