"What a magnificent view." Hernando smiled. "I know this airship doesn't travel as fast as an Earth airplane, but it has its advantages."
"It does." Olivia enjoyed taking in the panorama below. She relaxed into Hernando's arms and sighed.
The denizens of Penumbra City dwelled in perpetual late afternoon or twilight. It depended on how you looked at it, Olivia decided. In this part of town flat-topped, adobe-styled buildings huddled together in a convoluted narrow maze of streets, punctuated by broad shopping plazas filled with colorful bazaars. A multitude of public fountains shot upward and water droplets caught the glint of the increasingly bright sunlight as they traveled southward away from the city toward the polar region.
"Amazing how the old city has sprung back to life these last couple of years. Humans and Quadsangs have flocked here in great numbers, and the Overseers who despised the light have been able to return to the dark side. I see now why my parents wish to retire here," Hernando said.
"Your parents want to live here?" Olivia squeezed his hand. "Great, because I do, too. I couldn't get enough of the shopping when we got here yesterday. We've gotta stay longer on the return trip."
"Women and their shopping." Hernando laughed. "I thought you'd shopped enough for a lifetime while back on Earth."
She stuck out her tongue. "Pfft! A girl can never shop enough."
Penumbra City's economy was primarily agricultural because of the nearby farms which fed the rest of the planet, but the city also encouraged craftsmen such as textile weavers and spinners. They created the beautiful cloth and tapestries she'd admired in Clan Alpha House. The newfound BloodDark fashion industry had just begun, too. How could she ever grow tired of designer duds?
Valori should really see this, Olivia had thought as they strolled through the bazaar the day before, admiring the locals' craftwork. Or did becoming a high priestess put a crimp in Valori's interests in sewing and fashion?
"Too bad this is just a two-hour trip, eh?" Caveman's grin filled the observation deck as he entered it a half hour later. He came to stand beside Hernando and Olivia and sighed. "Ah... These airships are the smoothest form of travel. No need for rails or our poor excuse for roads."
"I feel sorry for those who are traveling by land transport right now." Hernando pointed to the desert track below. "When we passed over them, I noticed how uneven the trail is they're following. The ruling council has to consider developing airships for public transportation all over the planet."
"Good idea." She grinned at him. "You know, Earthlings would love to come here and travel this way. It would bring in a lot of tourism money."
"Yes, it would, but we have to consider what else it could bring." Caveman's typical sunny disposition darkened for a moment before returning. "Are those things what I think they are? Those are rock-jumping sheep along the mountainsides up ahead." His eyes glowed with excitement as he pointed to his right. "Look at them jump! Magnificent creatures. They never miss their footing."
Olivia gasped with delight. Watching the brown, shaggy-coated, horned creatures jump from outcropping to outcropping among the rocks in the deep valley below was the best entertainment ever. All too soon, the airship passed over the graceful animals, leaving them to their frolicking.
"I thought the rock jumpers had gone extinct a while back." Hernando sighed. "There's so much we don't know about our own planet. The idea of sharing it with others before we have a chance to enjoy it for ourselves seems wrong, somehow."
Caveman nodded. "It does, but we can't deny it. We're not alone in the universe. Our ancestors come from Earth. We can't forget our heritage."
"You can't," Olivia agreed. "There's no use pretending you're something you're not."
Hernando chuckled. "Sounds like you've made up your mind about who you are."
She pouted. "Why, I'm Olivia of the Clan Brown, of course."
"You sure you're not Lauren, mail order bride of Clan Alpha?" he teased.
She stuck her tongue out at Hernando and laughed. "I'm never going to live down my foolishness, am I?"
He hugged her and kissed the top of her head. "I make more than my share of foolish mistakes. You're always free to hold me accountable on those."
They passed the next ten minutes in happy contemplation of the terrain below them, noting an occasional wild animal or unusual rock formation. The rocky spires cast long shadows in the strengthening sunlight since they had already crossed the dividing line between the dark and lighted side of the globe. Behind them, they spotted the shadows of the other airships following their lead like beads on a string.
"Well, I know we shouldn't keep our Earth cousins from visiting us, but we might have to exercise some precautions from now on." Caveman pointed to a dark circular object on a wide plain ahead of them. "If I'm not mistaken, I see movement."
Hernando leaned forward and dropped his arms encircling Olivia. "It must be our destination, but how... I thought we had a while to go yet."
"We do, according to the Alphans," Caveman agreed. "What we're seeing, I think it's some distance away."
Olivia gulped. She pressed her face closer to the observation window. "Whoa. The thing out there is beyond huge. It's enormous!"
Moreau, who had been conversing nearby with family members, approached and announced, "The protective device lies ahead. However, my father claims it's grown since the last time he saw it in person."
"Grown?" Caveman furrowed his brow and narrowed his eyes. "You're not saying it's organic, are you?"
"No, but it is biomechanical in nature. With the help of Earth technology, we have built small robots to repair the structure, and these robots are self-replicating."
Nanobots run amuck? Something about the idea gave Olivia the creeps. "Who is in charge of these small robots?" she asked.
Moreau hesitated, his brow furrowing. "We are. Our technicians are not there at present, so
