Children of Sol

IX. The Children

Water dripped down from the crooked ceiling, the dripping a punctuation on the end of an eerie silence that seemed to absorb even their footsteps. They were deep in the inhabited levels of Nirvana now, past the press of the crowds. Their path had taken them through shattered glass and crime-infested neighborhoods. Shay stayed close to Kgosi and Alyssa, her heart hammering in her chest as she felt that oppressive sense of hostility, that unspoken you don't belong here sensation. The shadows that lingered after violence grasped at her as they passed through these dark passageways, their fingertips brushing over her skin and leaving cold in their wake as they whispered nightmares into her ears. At some point on the walk, Alyssa grabbed her arm to stop her from being swept away from the crowd and had yet to let go.

"I've got a bad feelin' 'bout this one, Cap." Alyssa glanced over at the briefcase meaningfully.

Kgosi was tense, his shoulders squared like he was ready for a fight. His eyes were roving, looking for threats and safety together. He seemed to have relaxed a little now that they were away from the crowds and anything that would disguise someone's approach. "Then let's get this over with ASAP. Shay, do you feel anything?"

The sensitive took a deep breath and did her best to focus. She could sense alien minds ahead, shifting and shimmering like an aurora in a spectrum of emotions well beyond what she could comprehend. "Qif'yhn. I think two." She frowned slightly. "They have three humans with them."

Alyssa frowned. "Bodyguards, prob'ly. What the hell are they doin' workin' with Gnaksa? They don't even understand credit or cash."

Shay shrugged slightly as Alyssa let go of her arm. "If he has something that they want or need and can't get elsewhere..."

"I s'pose that's fair." Alyssa checked the charge on her blaster just before they rounded the corner carefully.

There, standing in the street, were two of the tall, crystalline beings. They shined like obsidian even in the dull lights of this abandoned section of the spaceport. Their many-faceted eyes were difficult to see against the almost matching background, mostly notable only as lumpy protrusions from their angular faces. Their mouths were covered by the breather masks that provided them with the methane they needed to survive. The three human men were not patchwork like Alyssa, but they had desperate, hungry eyes and grim lips. All of them were armed, though the body armor they wore was old and scarred. It was probably battlefield pick-up, acquired after the original owners were killed. At least, that was Shay's assumption based on the burn marks and bloodstains.

The sensitive felt the vibrations emanated by one of the qif'yhn as it began to speak. It took a moment for the translating skillsofts to kick in. "Deep waters carry driftwood to the waiting shore. The poem in motion carries the case, the steel dancer breaks the wave, the Enlightened listener follows in the wake."

Alyssa set down the briefcase. "From Gnaksa, as promised."

The qif'yhn reached into its small satchel, moving at the typical pace for its race: slowly. It was graceful, with all the elegance of a performer at the ballet. "Lines upon lines converge in approval of this. Spirals twist before the wind. Beauty bequeaths every syllable."

Kgosi grimaced a bit. Qif'yhn were not easy to carry on a conversation with. It was always difficult to sort out the meanings, particularly when they didn't want to discuss something. Qif'yhn did not, as a rule, lie. They viewed such blatant deceptions as crude and unevolved. Talking around things, however, was par for the course. "Do you have what you promised to Gnaksa?" Mention of 'payment' would probably just confuse the matter further.

"Green growth flowers beneath the summer sun." It pulled something out of the pouch and Shay felt a vibration buzz in her body when her eyes fixed on the delicate blue crystal that was glowing slightly in the palm of the qif'yhn's hand. She could see that it was inscribed with all kinds of dev'ylani symbols. She had seen stones like it before in the temple on Ahiri, sacred relics that resonated at the touch of the Enlightened.