The journey from the site of the crash to the Ottoman Empire was a long one. The captain maintained a high altitude to keep them safe from the clutches of any Russian Empire airships, except Lady Sally insisted on flying low over Kiev to appreciate the glittering, gold domes of its many churches.
When she wasn't entertaining herself with her slaves, she often stood at the great glass window in her playroom gazing at the clouds as they flew past below her, or admiring the scenery from afar as the patchwork fields and villages sped by.
They passed over the Crimea and then turned south-west across the Black Sea, heading towards Istanbul. They covered the final stretch in the early hours of the morning, and Lady Sally got up at dawn, taking up a place at the front of the gondola to gaze upon the sun rising, and the approaching minarets of Istanbul.
She sighed, wrapping her silk dressing gown around her, whilst still allowing for a peek of cleavage, "This is a magnificent view is it not?"
The captain's eyes could not fail to stray to Lady Sally's breasts, "It certainly is," he agreed.
As the airship slowed to make her descent, they both admired the sun dancing on the blue waters of the Black Sea, and the view of the isthmus on which the exotic city of Istanbul perched.
Although the Ottoman Empire had experienced grander days and was past its peak, it was still the point where eastern and western trading routes met. It required careful manoeuvring because, as well as being a busy airship station, it was a chaotic one. The captain weaved the giant dirigible through the traffic of airships from across Europe and the Far East to seek out an empty mooring mast with enough space to accommodate the vast bulk of
The Corseted Domme
.
He saw from the cockpit how Lady Sally's airship was causing a stir. He flew low and watched the awe struck looks and excited waves as the giant, silver dirigible circled around the airship station looking for a berth. Lady Sally, who had retired to get dressed ready for her shopping expedition, would have been pleased to see the furore her airship was creating. Eventually, he found a suitable mooring mast, and the rigger-men hooked up the lines from the tip of the airship to pull her in. After the enforced landing in the Russian Steppes it was good to have her secured to a proper mast. The captain was relieved to find hydrogen filling stations so the air bags could be refilled.
The people of Istanbul had never seen an airship as huge and magnificent as
The Corseted Domme
. A crowd gathered at the foot of the mooring mast to find out who owned this most magnificent of dirigibles. There were men in turbans, women with their heads covered in silk scarves, and bare-foot children. By the time the party were ready to disembark, an impromptu market had formed around the airship, the merchants not wishing to miss an opportunity to sell their wares.
When Lady Sally emerged, she was the perfect image of the calm, implacable, Edwardian gentlewoman in the midst of the scene of chaos that now surrounded the airship. As soon as they stepped out of mooring tower they were greeted with a blast of heat. Of course, Lady Sally was prepared, having insisted on taking most of her wardrobe, including her summer dresses. She was in an elegant, cotton dress in cream, which displayed her hour-glass figure to perfection. Perched on her head was a wide-brimmed hat secured by a wide bow of material tied under her chin.
Victoria, sweltering in her maid's dress, huge bustle and layers of petticoats followed with a large fan to cool her mistress down. The captain who had brought no wardrobe with him whatsoever was in his working clothes, his normal white roll neck jumper and flying boots. Luckily, his wide-brimmed fedora hat shielded his face from the sun, but he still looked distinctly uncomfortable in the scorching heat.
A crowd gathered around the party, and they were welcomed with cheers and waves. The children were as excited as those back in Yorkshire who greeted the launch of
The Corseted Domme
. They were familiar with airships but had never seen anything as grand as this.
At first Lady Sally felt pleased at the welcome she received, but as the crowd bustled around her, she soon changed her mind.
A kebab was thrust in her face, "Lady... you want kebab. Good kebab. Good price..."
A hand covered in jewellery waved in front of her, "Lady... you want bangle. Finest silver. Two for one, good price."
Offers of food and goods were tolerable though barely; other offers were definitely not.
"Lady... you want man, give you good fucky. Come with me. Good price."
"Lady... you want fanny sucky. I take you. How much you offer for good fanny sucky."
The attention soon became wearisome, and Lady Sally was relieved to be approached by Mustafa Shagazade's man with a steam-driven carriage to transport them to the Grand Bazaar. There was a full entourage as the men, dressed in smart linen suits, were required to help carry Lady Sally's shopping. The carriage was laden with several trunks, for the safe packing of said shopping. The captain, melting in his roll neck jumper, was extremely envious of the cool suits. He wanted to stay behind and supervise the filling of the hydrogen bags, but Lady Sally insisted all available hands were needed for the shopping expedition.
They were dropped off at the merchant's offices off Sultanahanet Square in the heart of the old city. This was Lady Sally's first visit to Istanbul, and she was thrilled to be there. She had travelled to Samarkand before, to seek out a special weave of silk with aphrodisiac properties she had read about in the third Earl of Rudston's journal, and to discover more about her silk route heritage. She loved the exoticism and sensuality of the east.
Mustafa Shagazade was a portly middle-aged gentleman with a black moustache that curled up at its ends, dressed in a turban and light blue kaftan
"Ah, Mr Mustafa, how delightful to meet you after all these years. I trust business is good."
"Lady Sally, it's a pleasure," he enthused, whilst lasciviously eyeing up her perfect figure and abundant décolletage bursting out of the cotton dress. "But I'm afraid to say business is only average. There is less trade going across land along the silk route, and more being transported by airship. There's now an airship route direct from Ishfahan to Berlin, bypassing Istanbul. And then there's been the Balkan Wars, and the threat of new wars..."
"Oh, I'm terribly sorry to hear that," offered Lady Sally.
"I know you are here for the shopping, so let me be your guide around the bazaar. But first you must join me in a glass of mint tea."
"That would be delightful, Mr Mustafa," replied Lady Sally with alacrity. It may not be China or Indian tea, but it was still tea, and mint tea was exceedingly refreshing. At least he was well enough acquainted with her tastes not to offer her Turkish coffee, which would have been simply vile.
The party settled onto the divans outside the merchant's trading emporium. They were served glasses of mint tea from a huge silver pot and accompanied by sugared almonds. They reclined on the seats to sip the sweet liquid.
"Please, Lady Sally, before we go into the bazaar, let me offer you a delicacy of the region."
A servant brought out a brass bowl containing an unappealing ball of meat swimming in a thin, white fluid. Lady Sally did not wish to offend her generous host by declining it, but had no intention of sampling it.
