Merok scowled at the little dragon. The flicks, while not hard enough to break skin, were leaving reddened welts underneath his robes. "Alright. Just stay in place for a moment."
The warlock went around the craft, chanting and tracing the runes around the outside in turn. As he did so, magical power began to funnel into the craft, causing it to shake. The first runes had been binding runes to keep the craft grounded, but it'd be obvious that the vessel wanted to go. Badly.
The rumbling intensified until he got to the last rune. Light from the runes blasted through the chamber, causing sigils sewn into the robes to glow as they protected him from the power radiating into the chamber. He kept his hood up, going by feel more than by sight so that he could shield his eyes from the intense light.
Merok scrambled into the craft, closing the door behind him and twisting a wheel to latch it in place. When he pulled down his hood, the lower half of his face was reddened and black where it had been exposed to the light. He took a swig from a potion hidden in his robe. It would be painful for a while, yet, but the skin would heal.
He got into his seat and latched himself into place. Once he was fully secure, he said, "Hold your pet tight." Then he said a command word in a language forgotten by mortals, but Iona would recognize as "Cut". The magical bonds restraining the craft lashed out as they were severed, scraping out rock at the edge of the cavern. The vessel hurtled at supersonic speed out of the cavern.
As they went, a porthole in the side showed the landscape rapidly descending around them. The air went from a mix of blue and white to indigo, and then to black. Before long, nothing could be seen but the still stars in the distance, while they began to float weightless against the straps.