The Namura Stone (The Ammonite Galaxy, book 6)

Chapter 16

SIX SCRAMBLED DOWN the shaft to the ortholiquid lake with very little respect for his own safety. His mind was trembling. As soon as he had stepped onto Pictoria he had an unbearable sense of anticipation; such an intense expectation was flooding his whole body that he hardly noticed his surroundings.

The trimorphs, who had been waiting for him at the top of the shaft, chattered warnings at him.

"You will fall if you keep up this speed, you know."

"If you really want to see Diva, you should slow down."

"Yeah, like I am going to take your advice," retorted Six. "Now get out of my way. I am in a hurry." He batted at the twins, who simply hovered just out of reach.

"There is a ... Look out!" The twin spun. "... If you would listen to me a bit more, I might be able to help. I was about to tell you about that spider when you put your great big hand right on top of it."

"It won't bother anyone anymore."

"It could have been a scorpion; then who would have been laughing?"

"All right, all right. I'm listening. How is Diva?"

"Fine. Still a bit shaky. But she can move around on her own now. You will see. At least, you will if you slow up a little."

Six ducked as a bat swooped down at him. "Can't you two do something useful and keep the local fauna off my back?" he complained.

The twins exchanged a flicker of lights. "We can," said one of them. "But we can't see why we should. They are only bats, after all."

"They have very sharp teeth," muttered Six, panting a little now from the exertion. He clutched tighter at the rope as another bat dive-bombed him. "Ouch! Do something will you? You know these things are vampire bats."

He slipped, his hold on the rope loosening for a moment as another of the flying mammals sank its teeth into him. Then the trimorphs began to pulsate and moved to protect him. The bats immediately stopped their attacks on him.

"Thank you."

"Diva would be angry with us if you fell."

"Nice of you."

"Yes, isn't it?"

At last Six slid down the final couple of metres of the rope and arrived at the bottom of the first shaft. He quickly unfastened the rope and began to half-run, half slide down the scree slope which was the next part of the journey down into the depths of the pothole.

The twins were now joined by the visitor.

"Diva is fine," he told Six. "She is just getting used to being a morphic. It is a bit of a change, you know."

"I don't."

"No. You wouldn't. Well, you are still just a transient, aren't you?"

"What's wrong with being a transient?"

"Nothing. Just that they seem a bit ... inadequate."

"You are the one who is inadequate. You lost out when they were dishing out the brains."

"At least I am a morphic. I am not limited to a pair of legs, like you."

That was true. Six suddenly realized that Diva would now not be limited to a pair of legs, either. It was a chilling realization. She might not even be interested in a transient like him, not now that she was practically immortal! The thought made him stop, and he gave a small shiver.