ONCE UPON 24 TIMES: STORY XXI

Story the Twenty-First:
Nine of Wands -
The Flying Ship - Le Chevalier Fortuné
The Fool's Errand (Steampunk AU?)

Alice/stair - the crossdressing shero - Lieutenant of the military who lost the war
the gifted men did not get drafted because of their powers - regarded now as "assets"
Herr Cules - super strong lumberjack, uproots trees as if they were carrots and carries them to the lumbermill as easily
Swift/y (more surely Skimbleshanks) - super fast railway guard, able to catch moving trains on foot, needs lead weights and tying up his legs like a four (4) to walk
Deadeye (Name left unchanged) - one-eyed sniper with a sun-monocle, violet eye, superb marksmanship - shot the duck at the head of a V formation right between the eyes (female?)
the herbalist who hears the grass grow and wears an ushanka with earmuffs on top (female/child of either gender?)
the one with super lung power - powers wind-powered mills and is an exceedingly loud talker
the exceedingly deep quaffer, who gets drunk as easily as his thirst is quenched (ie rarely)


COMMENTARIES
There are many versions of the tale (type ...) but the ones that have influenced me the most here have been The Fool of the World, from Slavic lore, from which I took the airship; and the French Chevalier Fortuné (or Fortunio), by Madame d'Aulnoy, from which I took the bifauxnen shero. The leading character Alice-stair's backstory is taken from both Brave (the Pixar film) and the life of Queen Christina (I just wanted a single-mum household for this tale). Alice being raised as Alistair for want of a male heir also recalls bifauxnen anime series like La Rose de Versailles.
The articles from both the Usurper's Journal and the Soothly Quibble are a satire of right-wing and left-wing press respectively