So how is this possible?
Mytroubled thoughts wore me down until they were lost somewhere, falling away inthe dark as I finally fell asleep.
Chapter 6
Iopened my eyes slowly to the waking traces of the dawn. I gazed idly around fora moment and then closed my eyes again, seeing behind my eyelids the residualimage of the wooden ceiling above. Sunshine rays made a random pattern on thewooden cottage wall, leaving an artistic design of soft yellow-white shimmeringimages.
Itook a deep breath.
Air.
No!
Oxygen.
Itwas downright intoxicating. It was rich and powerful and natural, bringing withit the fresh green smell of this planet’s flora.
Itwas early morning. I hadn’t had a Vision. The night had released me to a deep,dreamless sleep, allowing for a complete and thorough rest I hadn’t felt sincechildhood.
Iopened my eyes again, slowly, deliberately, and enjoyed the soft rise of themorning light, the natural start of the day. The Earth’s day.
Earth.
Earth.
I’m on Earth.
Ismiled at the thought.
Iwas walking on a ghost planet. A natural, green ghost planet.And no one in Uni knew about it.
If they did, would they want to comeback?
Somewherebehind this cottage, I heard voices: men’s voices, women’s voices, and other tinyvoices that might have been female but were somehow different. They were allmuffled, and I assumed it was because people were still in their cottages.
Amoment later, I heard soft footsteps crossing the wooden bridge and stepping ontomy platform.
Therewas a knock on the wooden wall, just on the side of the leaf curtain. Iremained silent, waiting. I didn’t know what I should do, although I felt thissituation needed some response.
Therewas another knock.
Ithought about it again and decided that knocking on the wood of the bed framemight be the best reaction.
Therewas a soft laugh outside, and I heard Tania’s voice. “May I come in?”
“Yes,Tania, please, do come in,” I said and stood up.
Shemoved the heavy leaves and stepped forward.
“Don’tworry about it. I know it’s confusing for you,” Tania said with an empathetic expressionas she came in. “Even more so for you than for other Jumpers, I imagine. Manyof the others do have some recognition of the old customs and ways. Beforeentering a cottage, one knocks to say, ‘I am here! Can I come in?’ And then theperson inside comes to the door and lets them in, or gives them permission tocome in. Just so you know for the future.” She smiled. “How do you feel today?Did you sleep well?”
“Islept well. I appreciate your concern.”
Tanialooked at me, and again her face gave me the impression that I had said somethingunusual. I decided to ignore it. I knew it was bound to happen.
“Good,I’m glad. I see you didn’t feel comfortable taking off your suit,” she said,looking at my dark gray skinsuit. “It’s quite understandable.”
Shewalked to the bedside and folded over her arms the beige robes she’d left forme the night before. “I know those special suits can handle being submerged,but you should really take it off when you take a bath. It is so much better.Trust me, you will enjoy it.”
Shesmiled and motioned for me to follow her.
Iwas not at all certain that I would take off my suit when we came to whatever apool was to do whatever a bath was, but I followed her all the same.
Wehad to walk through the tree village and over several platforms and woodenbridges to reach one of the trees with a way down to the ground.
“ShallI go first?” Tania asked, arching her eyebrows.
“Yes,please do.”
Taniastarted climbing down, skillfully placing her feet on the protruding woodenrods placed in the tree trunk as stairs.
“Tania,do you have information on Stevanion’s health state?” I asked as I slowlyfollowed her.
“Iwent to see him just before I came to you. He’s feeling better, but I think heshould stay in the hospital cottage for another day or two,” she said as sheclimbed down. When she reached the ground she looked up, waiting for me to descend,and then started walking again.
“Iguess you have many questions,” she said, turning her head toward me.
“Yes,Tania. I do. Have you been living here for the past five thousand years?”
“Forheaven’s sake, no, not at all! We were cryo-preserved. Frozen. We woke up onlynine years ago.”
“Wasthis the plan, to wake up at this specific time?”
“Oh,no! We were supposed to wake up one hundred years after the start of the cryo.But the de-freezing schedule was overridden. As far as we can tell, we weren’tsupposed to wake up at all.”
“Whenwas the cryo-preservation performed?”
“Thatwas 2231. We were supposed to de-freeze in 2331.”
“Andthe News came in 2232,” I said. I didn’t need to access nanoprobes for that. Itwas a famous year; everyone knew about it. It was the year when scientistsdetermined that Earth had an expiry date. “By the time you were supposed tode-freeze,” I said, “the Earth would have been dead, nothing but rock andsand.”
Shenodded. “We only found out about the News and the Evacuation when our first Jumperscame. We had no idea what had happened when we woke up.”
“Thismeans that whoever overrode the hundred-year wake-up plan did not want you towake up on a dead planet,” I said.
“Notonly that. I think the idea was to save us from the solar blasts, too.”
“Whatdo you mean?”
“Well,our cryo-crèches were located in the CPC, the Cryo Preservation Center. Andthat was in the city… well, on the outskirts of the city, but still, the city.”
Ilooked at her for a moment, then said, “I assume thisis not where you de-froze, then.”
Taniashook her head. “No. New place altogether.”
Shemoved aside a long branch that blocked her way and held it for me as I passed,then continued. “We were about four walking days’ distance from the city, and… wewere underground.”
Ilooked at her. “Underground? That saved you from the solar storms and the EMP.That is how your cryo-crèches were still working.”
Tanianodded. “We were transferred to… some kind of industrial undergroundinstallation. Well, some of us were transferred, anyway…”
“Ido not understand.”
“I’mnot really sure myself. It was maybe fifteen to twenty meters underground, andthe immediate surroundings
