Chapter Eight
JADE STOOD IN THE FRONT ROOM OF THE cottage and noticed it had been cleared of dust and the grimy windows washed. She went into the back room followed by Alex, Ro, and Kendis. Except for the missing dust and grime, the room looked much the same as it had the last time she saw it. The cardboard boxes were still in the corner but had been neatly restacked. The tall window full of blankness still dominated the back wall.
Setting their bags and crates down, they stood quietly staring at the window. Ro broke the silence.
“You really went through that?” she said unbelievingly to Jade.
“Uh-huh,” she replied. “Tally went out and came back in okay so I figured it was safe.”
They stood there for a moment longer. Suddenly, Maggie’s bodiless head appeared in the window.
Jade heard two sharp intakes of breath and a small girlish scream. She turned to look at her companions. She had forgotten to mention that effect of the window. “Okay, which one of you shrieked?” she asked with a grin.
Three sets of eyes rounded with astonishment, blinked at her. Then Ro’s eyes crinkled up. She grinned and pointed at Alex, who shook his head, eyes still round, and pointed at Kendis. Kendis ignored them both and stared at the window.
Maggie stepped all the way into the room. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle anyone,” she apologized. “I’m just moving gear outside.” She waited expectantly for a few seconds.
“Could I get some help with that?” she finally asked, when no one volunteered.
Kendis was the first to spring into action. “Oh, sorry, Leader,” he said grabbing the strap of a largish bag. He walked to the window and, without hesitation, dipped his head and stepped through.
Jade gave an amused glance at Alex and Ro and followed him with her two bags. Bypassing the steps, he jumped down off the porch and set his bag among the growing pile, looking down across the meandering stream. Jade put her load down and watched him. She knew what was drawing his attention: the door beyond the stream.
Hesitantly, she touched his arm. She didn’t especially want to get zapped again but it didn’t happen this time. He whipped his head around at her, questioningly.
“Ah, we need to finish bringing the gear out,” she said backing up a step feeling uncharacteristically intimidated. Up close, his eyes seemed even greener than they had before, an almost glowing emerald. She noted they had gold flecks in them. So intense and marvelous, she thought. Her face flushed and she hoped he wouldn’t notice.
“Right,” he said, eyes sliding past her, and he climbed back on the porch, this time using the steps.
Jade imagined she could almost feel a pull from him as he went by.
Alex emerged from the window, bags in hand, followed by Ro and Tally.
sent Jade, privately, relegating Kendis - reluctantly - to the back of her mind for the moment. She was curious about what Sparrow had wanted but knew they wouldn’t have time to discuss it right now.
With a tilt of his head, Tally sent an acknowledgement.
Out loud she said, “Er, I didn’t think of this before but how in the world will Dots get through that window? She’s ‘way too wide to fit!” Dots wasn’t just big, she was huge.
Maggie was coming back through, followed by Morgan and Rachel. They plopped their loads down and turned to watch as Sparrow, upper body bent almost double, stepped out. It straightened up as it moved away from the window to allow Kendis, who was coming out behind it, arms laden, to step out onto the porch.
Ro opened her mouth to answer as Sparrow dropped the rather large crate it had brought out with it to the side and pushed it to the edge of the porch. It stepped down to the ground and turned to Jade.
“Dotshea has a special ability,” it sang before Ro could reply, as it opened up the crate and began to lift articles out. “Watch.”
The Elvwist tended to use mind-speak almost exclusively among themselves except when they sang, but made an effort to vocalize at least part of the time when with Humans. Sparrow often said to its students that Humans helped keep them from forgetting normal speech. It actually had a beautiful voice as did all Elvwists and even its vocalizations with Humans sounded more like singing than talking. Sparrow’s voice was a low alto, almost tenor.
Alex said it reminded him of the ancient recording of a musical instrument called a saxophone that he’d once heard.
Ro watched in amusement as they all turned to watch as Dots came bounding through the window.
“What the …! How in the world? I didn’t know she could do that!” sputtered Jade, mouth dropping open.
“Shards!” managed Alex in amazement. Kendis just stared.
Dots plunked her little self down on the porch and grinned up at them. She looked extremely pleased to have surprised everyone.
“Taa daaa,” she sang in her same beautiful contralto. She was minus her ribbons and was a little smaller than Tally.
“Dots! I didn’t know you could size-shift,” exclaimed Jade. “That’s fantastic!”
Ro nodded, grinning “She started doin’ that while she wuz still jus’ a pup. She’s gotten much better with her control in th’ last coupla years. Real handy when she needs ta git ina particularly tight spot.”
Jade looked wistfully at Dots as everyone else moved off with Sparrow.
“I don’t have any talents although this last psychic tester seemed to think I have potential. It didn’t know what kind, though.” She reflected. “Maybe I should just start trying to do different ones. Can you be taught an ability? I mean, if you have potential?”
Dots puzzled it over, then shook her head doubtfully. “I don’ know. I tried to teach Ro once, but she never got th’ hang of it. No one else has ever asked.” She looked speculatively at Jade. “Didja wanna try?”
“Sure,” said Jade. “Later, when we have some time. I think we need to get to the door first.”
She looked around. Everyone was watching Sparrow assemble the paraphernalia it had removed from the first crate. Kendis had brought out two others of the same size.
It said it was a large hover-cart for carrying all their gear. It was working fast, fingers whirring. They went back in to finish bringing out the rest of the gear. By the time they got it all and let the drivers know they could go, and Maggie had a last talk with the guards who would be stationed at the cottage, a half hour had gone by.
Everybody went back out and watched Sparrow finish putting the hover-cart together. It clicked the last piece into place and closed a small switch on the simple control panel. The hover-cart rose up silently about a foot and a half and waited to be loaded.
“This cart will now operate by mind control,” announced Sparrow. “I have programmed it so it will respond to either of us. It will hold all our gear and it can adjust its size and parts of itself to become shelves, or columns which can be used as tables or benches. It is an evolved vehicle and can make other adjustments to itself over time. It can hold all of us at once but, in that case it would not be able to move very fast.”
It smiled ruefully. “Unfortunately, I was unable to secure a riding vehicle that could fit either through the window or be quickly assembled, and would suit all our needs in time for this trip.”
Maggie shrugged. “No one thought we would be riding in luxury anyway, Sparrow. Besides, I need the exercise.” She chuckled. “I’ve been sitting far too much lately and definitely could stand to tone up in certain areas. Walking should do it nicely.”
They started loading their gear onto the cart. Maggie climbed aboard and arranged it neatly in the center.
They crossed the stream in single file. By then, Dots had resumed a larger size, though not quite as big as she normally was - she reduced her height and made herself less wide saying she didn’t want to be too large for a tent - and Jade, Alex, and Kendis had watched in fascination as she changed. Ro had brought her ribbons to re-tie her hair once they got across the stream.
She would have kept her diminutive proportions but it was much easier to keep up with the group at near her regular size. Besides, she wouldn’t enjoy the stream as much if she remained small.
She had no intentions of using the moss covered stones on which everyone else was carefully stepping across. Instead, she jumped right in and waded across, splashing all the way. How she loved water!
They all made it over to the other side without anyone getting seriously wet. Sparrow, Maggie, Rachel, and Morgan, headed off toward the door, Sparrow leaving the hover-cart for Tally to operate. Anybody, except Jade, could operate it but Tally could do it best.
Everyone else turned and waited, watching Dots cavorting in the stream, smiling at her delight. Tally shook his head. He just did not understand how anyone could actually like that stuff!
Some things about Dogs - and Cats - hadn’t changed since the Change.
Dots emerged and moved off a ways from everyone, then gave herself a vigorous shake, spraying water everywhere. She felt good! Ro tied her bangs back up and they took off after the rest of the group.
They came to a halt a few feet from the door and stood there in silence. Sparrow abruptly strode over and began running its hands over the surface. Jade started forward but Maggie laid a hand on her arm, shaking her head.
she sent,
Jade nodded and hopped up to sit on the edge of the hover-cart to wait. She caught a motion out the corner of her eye as Tally jumped up to settle himself beside her. They watched Sparrow and waited.
Sparrow slowly ran its seven fingered hands all around the edges of the door, pausing every few minutes as if listening. As its fingers came down the left side, at a point directly across from the indentation, they were startled to hear a dull throb as if a heart had pulsed once. Sparrow stopped and stood looking at the area where the sound had come from. It quickly ran its hand across to the indentation and pushed. Nothing happened.
Jade realized she had been holding her breath and let it out. She heard several disappointed sighs. She looked at Maggie.
Maggie sent on a broad link.
They were nodding in agreement when Sparrow, who was still staring at the door, suddenly snapped its head around and sang urgently:
“Jadewyn! Tally! Dotshea! Come here now!”
They went on the double without hesitation. They grouped themselves beside Sparrow. It reached down and scooped up Tally.
“Quickly,” it said, “move your feet across the door, here.” It held Tally near where they'd heard the sound.
Tally moved his front paws over the space and another throb sounded.
“Dotshea,” started Sparrow, but Dots had anticipated it and had already reared up and started running her paws next to the area where Tally had run his.
Another throb.
Jade stepped immediately beside Dots and began running both hands the rest of the way to the indentation. The door throbbed twice - then stopped. For a heartbeat. Then it pulsed once more. Slowly at first, then picking up speed as it went, the door began to dissolve from the middle out.
A familiar odor hit their senses: a faint aroma of almonds. The dark edging around it disappeared and it kept going until the rectangle took on the shape of a square about fifteen feet wide and fifteen feet high. It stopped.
After more than two thousand years, the way to the outside of the Dome was open.