Everyone shows up for travelling with their gear.  Hamit Nur is last because of taxi drivers and being from out of town.  Trip is uneventful, until… the end…

Electrical storm of large intensity is directly below us.  Five small craft seem to be approaching from behind us.  Molly notices that the airship’s magnetic “drive” while impressive, is about to be affected by sunspots that her colleagues at the planetarium predicted…  We lose thrust and the maneuvering engines are needed to help maintain altitude.

Then we get struck by lightning.

The five planes appear to be air-pirates.

Clara moves the Icarus up and forward, accelerating to maximum speed.  She calls out orders to the rest of the Intrepids, instructing us to begin to repair the damage, man the guns, and work on the engines.

Brief discussion ensues – Molly will assess the damage, Alex will man the guns, and Rex will fiddle with the engines.   Molly puts out a fire, Alex fires on the pirates (some fall back) and Rex is able to increase the engine speed.

Clara tries to take us up to the new max speed but has trouble doing so.  Molly attempts to make some repairs but has no effect.  Alex fires and once again hits her target (he dodges in response, but falls back).  Rex attempts to overclock the turbine by lowering the ramenstein valve, but forgets to disengage the safety first (no change).

Clara tries to pull away and angle away.  Molly goes and joins Alex in the gunnery well; they both fire on the leader.  Rex is able to repair some damage to the ship.

Some hail strikes the windscreen.

Clara tries for speed.  Tries.  Alex helps navigate by pointing out flock of birds.  Molly shoots the pirates.  Rex plugs the TVM into the Vandaley generators.  We all relive the last second and a half or so, fully cognizant of it.  The ship comes back running very smoothly, maximum speed increased.

Clara tries for speed again, and gets up to just shy of maximum.   Alex continues to help navigate.  Molly goes back to Rama to find that he has repaired much of the damage.  Rex mans the guns and shoots the leader.  One of the pirates gets hit by lightning.

Clara finds the ship buffetted by the storm, but heads into a thunderhead hoping the pursuers will take more damage.   Molly works on the repairs with Rama.  Alex mans the guns again.  Rex attempts to use the TVM to move the Icarus through space. 

The lead pirate has a lightning cannon and fries us.  It burns, it burns us…

Clara continues to drive us toward the storm, hoping that the lightning gun will get overcharged and blow up.   Molly mans the guns again and shoots at the lead pirate.  Alex does the same.  Rex uses the TVM and blips us forward.

The lightning gun pirate uses it to zip forward towards us and then disappears.

Clara continues ahead full.  Rex keeps the engines running at full.  Alex shoots at the next lead pirate.  Molly and Rama spot the cloaked pirate leader (briefly).

One of the pirates goes into a dive.  The cloaked pirate leader fires the lightning gun at us again.  Ouch!

Clara holds the ship together.  Rex works on repairs.  Molly calls out bearings for Alex to shot at the cloaked pirate.  Pirates shoot at us again (except for one who crashed and one who gave up).

Clara continues to fly the ship.  Rex and Molly work on repairs.  Alex starts pushing things out the cargo hold in an effort to lighten the load?  The pirate re-materializes right next to the cockpit and shoots Clara with the lightning.  Bzzzzzap.

Rex heads forward after announcing his intention to do so.  He meets Molly and takes the wheel, while Molly attempts to wake Clara.  
Clara wakes up.  The pirate boards the ship, but Alex hears her.

Alex and the pirate battle with crowbars and feet. 

The ship gets struck by lightning three more times.  Clara is able to land the airship just on the edge of the scrubland by the coast.  The goats are surprised.