by Dale Furse
‘I want my mother,’ Cay-Meka sobbed as she collapsed, mumbling, onto the porch swing.
As her cousin rambled on, Nell thought about her promise to her father. She didn't notice Cay-Meka had stopped waffling and was crying quietly, nor did she notice Sam was watching her. After several minutes, pacing up and down the veranda, she shrugged her shoulders and said, ‘I've got to try to talk to these Wintars myself. We have to find them.’
Sam spun away from the railing. ‘Hang on. You can't go off half-cocked. Dad'll know what to do.’
Nell nodded. Sam's father's people knew the area better than anyone.
Sam caught Nell and Cay-Meka's hands and steered them into the living room. He shut and locked the glass doors and headed to the phone. ‘I’ll ring his mobile.’
Sam listened for several seconds. Nell sighed. Carl wasn’t answering. As she thought that, Sam made a no-luck face.
He put the phone down. ‘I think we should go to my place and ring one of my uncles.’
‘Uh!’ said Cay-Meka. ‘Why can’t you use that thing?’
‘I don’t know any of their numbers. I’ll have to look them up. Anyway, our place is easier to lock up.’
‘Okay,’ said Nell. ‘Let’s go.’
Sam nodded and headed for the front door and Nell followed.
‘Wait,’ Cay-Meka said. ‘How far is it?’
Nell said over her shoulder, ‘Not far.’
When they reached the end of the glow from the spotlights, Cay-Meka stopped dead. ‘I can't.’ she said.
Nell stopped and looked at her.
Cay-Meka continued whining. ‘I cannot go in the dark.’
‘Just how many kangaroos do you have loose in that top paddock?’ Sam asked, jabbing his finger at Cay-Meka’s head.
Distress filled Cay-Meka's eyes and once again Nell softened towards her. She said to Sam, ‘It's okay, leave her to me.’ Her hand rested on Cay-Meka's shoulder. ‘We'll be with you, and anyway, we know this part of the beach like the back of our hands.’
‘There is no night on Linque.’ Cay-Meka stepped back into the light. ‘I cannot see.’
‘Well, we're not cats either but we manage,’ Sam said.
‘I mean,’ Cay-Meka continued with quivering lips, ‘I'm nearly blind out of the light. We have no night on Linque.’
‘Oh, I see,’ Sam said, and looked at the glowing house. ‘So that's why David … um, Dar-tern, has all the lights.’
‘Of course,’ said Nell. All the floodlights made sense. Her father needed them and he probably assumed she would too. That's why she was never allowed to go past the glow of the lights at night. ‘Dad said they stopped the crocodiles from coming near the house but they're really because he can't see in the dark.’
‘No true Phib can,’ Cay-Meka said, narrowing her eyes.
‘What's that supposed to mean?’ Nell demanded.
‘You are cursed. Only Wintars can see in the night and only Phibs can swim in the ocean.’
Nell put her hands on her hips. ‘There's a first time for everything.’ She hoped she wouldn't be the first. Coping with one set of abilities was going to be hard enough and anyway, it was impossible to gain both parents’ abilities. ‘It could be that I'm just used to the dark. I've lived here all my life and we have a night every twelve hours or so,’ she said.
Sam stepped out of the light. ‘I'm not Wintar but once my eyes adjust, I can see pretty well.’
‘Yes,’ said Nell. ‘It's not that I can see in the dark, not the same as in the daytime anyway. The moon and stars help. Look, I promise you'll be all right. Just don't let go of my hand. Okay?’
Doubt filled Cay-Meka's eyes, but she nodded anyway.
Nell tightened her grip. She turned away and closed her eyes, hoping to read Cay-Meka's mind. She thought she might be able to find out what Dar-Seldra had said to her, but Cay-Meka immediately blocked.
‘Don't try that on me,’ Cay-Meka huffed.
Nell shrugged. ‘It was worth a shot.’ She took a step but Cay-Meka didn't budge.
‘I don't think Mother is near here.’
‘What makes you say that?’ Sam asked impatiently.
‘I don't feel Mother's presence. Do you?’ Cay-Meka asked Nell.
Nell let go of Cay-Meka's hand and closed her eyes. She searched her heart and mind. A strong connection with her family coursed through her and she knew, if Dar-Seldra was anywhere on Earth, she would have felt her. ‘You might be right. I can't feel her either.’
‘I think we should go to Corl and find Dar-tern,’ Cay-Meka said.
Nell's mind was awash. Her father wouldn’t be happy if she left the house at night. What would he say if she left planet Earth? Hang on. He said no one could see the house. He said no one could even see half of Cape Hollow. ‘What about the protection?’
‘Obviously, there is no protection. If there was, they wouldn't have been able to take Mother.’ Cay-Meka looked from Sam to Nell. ‘We must go. We are not safe here anymore.’
‘She's right,’ Sam said, as if he'd been thinking the same thing. ‘But how are we going to get to Corl?’
‘What do you mean, 'we'?’ Cay-Meka said. ‘You can't come with us. The councils wouldn't allow such a thing. We don't even know how your Human body would endure space travel.’
‘Well, tough luck on the councils.’ Sam puffed out his chest.
Nell hoped that was going to become a habit.
Sam continued. ‘I'm sure my Human body can cope with whatever yours can. Mum would kill me if I let Nell go anywhere with you by herself.’
Sam questioned Nell with his eyes and Cay-Meka, smug, looked as though she expected Nell to stop him.
Although she was glad Sam wanted to protect her, Nell was certain his parents wouldn't be pleased with him travelling to another planet. Never had so much turmoil brewed inside her. Her back and feet itched and the knot in her stomach had been replaced by a brick. She put her hands over her eyes. Her head ached as shapeless visions flitted across her mind.
When the pictures stopped, she grabbed Cay-Meka's and Sam's hands. ‘We should go to Dad. Where is this spaceship of yours?’ she asked Cay-Meka.
‘Over there,’ Cay-Meka answered, and pointed towards the mangroves south of the house.
They hurried as quickly as they could with Cay-Meka jumping whenever a palm frond brushed against her. On the way, Nell tried to remember just when her eyesight had improved. She could see through the night as easily as if it was day.
CHAPTER NINE
OVERWHELMED BY A SENSE OF URGENCY, NELL SEARCHED for a sign of the spaceship. Something gold glittered in the moonlight.
Sam must have seen it because he said, ‘This way.’ He ran ahead.
Nell stopped and stared at the ship.
Trailing his hand over the ship’s outer skin, Sam walked slowly around its oblong shape.
Nell thought it looked too small to go such a long way and unless it was like Doctor Who’s TARDIS, there wasn’t enough room for them to walk around let alone sleep. She assumed it would take days or even months to get to Corl.
Before she could ask Cay-Meka, Sam said, ‘Is it gold?’
‘No, it is okfor,’ Cay-Meka said. ‘A magnificent metal Corls use to build the ships. Sam, I really don't think you should travel. We don't know if you will survive. No Human has ever travelled before, at least no Human that I know of.’
‘What do you call this thing?’ Sam asked, ignoring Cay-Meka’s warning. ‘They always have names for them in shows like Star Trek.’
‘It’s a skark, but I really do think you could be harmed or even killed.’
‘I’ve always dreamed of alien visitors and going to different planets.’ He looked at Nell as if he expected her to be as enthused about the prospect as he was.
She wasn’t. She was as worried about going as he was delighted. ‘I don’t know, Sam. I’m scared enough for me. But what if Cay-Meka’s right? What if you get hurt? It would be my fault.’
‘Rubbish
. It’s my choice and Humans have gone into space before and they were okay with it. If you’re worried about Mum and Dad, don’t be. Dad would be ecstatic and jealous, and Mum would never stand in my way of anything I had a chance to do. Now, how do we open it?’ Sam’s face flushed with excitement as he banged on the outside surface.
He obviously had no intention of being left behind and although she was worried about him, she had a strong feeling he could withstand the journey. Whether that was because she had connected with him or not, she didn’t know. She hoped she was right.
Cay-Meka eyed Nell.
Nell shrugged. ‘Don't look at me. I've never been able to stop him from doing anything … ever.’
‘That's true,’ Sam chuckled, and held his hand palm up to Cay-Meka. ‘Hand over the keys,’ he said.
Nell inspected the egg-shaped craft. The flat underbelly sat directly on the ground. No flaws on the smooth, shiny metal indicated a door, let alone a keyhole.
‘There is no key,’ Cay-Meka said as she pushed his hand away. ‘Get out of my way.’
He rushed behind Cay-Meka.
‘Meka. From the family, Cay,’ Cay-Meka said in an official voice. Nearly before she finished, an opening appeared in front of them.
Sam pushed past Cay-Meka and leapt inside. ‘Check this out.’
Nell hesitated and her stomach lurched. Could she really be going to another planet? Swallowing hard, she followed Sam and Cay-Meka inside.
‘There's no console or levers or anything,’ Sam said as Nell joined them. ‘How do you fly this thing and why aren't there any windows?’
He was right. It was empty except for the golden metal seats. Three on each side, each with arm rests. There were no windows and Nell could see no source for the soft light.
‘You don't fly it. You travel in it,’ Cay-Meka said, as if talking to a small child. Sam went to sit. ‘No,’ Cay-Meka said, and tried to haul him back up, but his bottom had already made contact. The door swung shut with a sound like a child sucking on a straw. ‘Sit!’ Cay-Meka managed to yell.
Panic took hold of Nell as she saw Cay-Meka fall onto a seat. The air around them changed into swirling blues, yellows and oranges. It was as if a rainbow was trapped in the ship. Nell tried to back up into a seat, but her legs wouldn't move. Breathing fast, she looked down at her unmoving feet. They appeared to meld into the floor. She couldn't tell where her legs stopped and the metal floor began. She collapsed onto the warm metal floor.
Sam’s body began to waver. It looked like he had been pushed through large washing machine rollers. Cay-Meka's body behaved the same way and both pulsated with all kinds of shades of purples, reds and greens. With the other colours twirling around them, dizziness filled her and she thought she would be sick. She wondered why she wasn't blacking out as she struggled to control her rolling body. A loud ringing sound burned into her brain. She fought to place her hands over her ears, and won. The noise quietened. She was on a roller coaster, except that this ride whooshed backwards and forwards at ten times the speed.
Unable to close her eyes, she watched as her fellow travellers stopped rolling and spun around her. It was as if she stayed still and the ship was a spinning top. Colours of all hues imaginable began to twist, turn, bend, and then straighten. She was inside a kaleidoscope. Her eyes closed for a few seconds and when she opened them, everything had returned to normal.
Cay-Meka gaped at Nell. ‘You spent the entire time on the floor?’
Nell nodded.
‘So what?’ Sam asked.
‘She could have died. Actually, she should have died. No species can survive travel in a skark without the protection of a seat.’ Cay-Meka regarded Nell with suspicion. ‘Are you all right?’ she wanted to know.
Nell nodded again and stood up. Other than slight wooziness, she didn't think there were any ill effects.
‘What was it like?’ Cay-Meka asked, as if she didn't believe Nell.
Nell shook her head. ‘I couldn't explain it in a zillion years.’
When Sam and Cay-Meka stood, the skark's door opened.
‘What are you on about, Cay-Meka, and why haven't we left?’ Sam asked.
Cay-Meka looked at him blankly and Nell saw through the open doorway that they weren't in Cape Hollow any longer. ‘I think we did leave,’ she said, and pointed out the doorway.
Sam gaped. ‘No way! That must have been the quickest trip ever.’ He turned back to Cay-Meka. ‘You sure we're not still on Earth?’
‘Of course we're not, and all travel takes the same amount of time.’
‘Minutes?’ Sam asked, as if he didn't believe her.
‘Yes, minutes.’ Cay-Meka screwed up her nose at him.
‘Well, where are we?’ Sam asked, and jumped out of the skark’s open door.
‘Corl,’ Cay-Meka replied, following. ‘All skarks return to Corl.’
Nell took a deep breath and went outside. They stood in a giant car park. However, instead of cars, there were rows and rows of shiny gold skarks. Cay-Meka took their hands and guided them onto a moving walkway, wide enough for five or six people to stand shoulder to shoulder.
‘Where are we really?’ asked Sam.
‘This is Kafir, the largest city on Corl.’
His head twisted in all directions.
‘Where are we going?’ Nell asked. ‘We have to find Dad.’
‘He's here,’ Cay-Meka said. ‘Can't you feel him?’
Nell stilled and closing her eyes, searched for her father's presence. Within seconds, warmth washed over her and she smelt her father's cologne. The aroma reminded her of the ocean at home. He might have stood right in front of her. She opened her eyes and was disappointed he wasn’t there. She sighed, and said, ‘Yes, I can feel him. He's here.’
‘He'll be at the Corl council building,’ Cay-Meka said and looked hard at Nell as if she was searching for something. Fear flitted across her face.
‘What are you doing?’ Nell wanted to know. ‘What do you know that I don't? I know Dar-Seldra told you not to say anything, but Dar-Seldra's not here, and I think I have a right to know what it is.’
Sam stepped to her side. ‘Yeah, come on, Meka.’
‘My name is Cay-Meka.’
‘Okay, come on, Cay-Meka, what's going on?’
She shrugged. ‘Actually, I don't know much.’
Sam snorted.
‘My aunt told me about another cursed child.’
‘Cursed?’ Sam and Nell asked in unison.
‘She was of mixed heritage, and like you, Nell, she had dreamt of flying and swimming. My aunt said she inherited both parents' abilities.’
‘You?’ Sam said to Nell and laughed. He made a cross with his fingers and pretending to be scared, backed away a step. ‘Oh, no. You're a curse.’
Nell rolled her eyes at him. ‘Maybe I am. I have had dreams of both. I don't know if I have some abilities of both my parents but I think I need to find out.’ She looked at Sam. ‘You do realise that I'm different from all of them?’
Sam screwed up his nose. ‘Ha! You've always been different.’ He paused for a moment. ‘You're the most different person I know.’ When she gave no reaction, he smirked. ‘Oh, cursed one.’
‘That's what my aunt said, and she should know. She's on the Linque Council,’ Cay-Meka said.
‘What aunt?’ Nell urged.
‘Cay-tatel, my father's sister. She's no relation to you.’
Nell was glad she didn't have another relative who thought she was cursed. One was enough. ‘And?’ she urged the girl. ‘What happened to this other girl?’
‘All right.’ Cay-Meka threw her arms in the air in defeat. ‘She went mad. Cay-tatel said she had killed people.’
‘What people?’ Nell asked.
Wringing her hands, she looked like a child nervous at being caught telling a forbidden secret.
‘Well? What people?’ Sam asked.
‘I don't know,’ Cay-Meka said, staring at her hands. ‘You'll have to ask Dar-tern.�
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Nell was pretty sure her cousin was lying, but didn't push her. She didn't need to touch her to see she was afraid. Of her or Dar-tern, she wasn't sure. It didn't matter what people thought anyway. But the thought of someone like her going mad and killing people had Nell wondering if she might do the same. Cay-Meka and her aunt obviously thought so.
‘Don't listen to her,’ Sam said, jabbing Nell with his elbow and nodding towards Cay-Meka. ‘I think I know who's crackers.’
‘Yeah. I think I'd know if I was going crazy and wanted to kill people.’
Cay-Meka gave a shy smile. ‘I just hope you will warn us before you try to.’
They fell silent, each consumed with their own thoughts, until the end of the walkway.
An elevator, that Cay-Meka mumbled something at, took them down to ground level. Nell had no way of knowing how many floors they travelled.
When the elevator’s doors opened, Nell's mouth fell open. The street was wide, and on either side, people, obviously of different worlds, displayed their wares on okfor tables. It was like the Cairns show. There was shouting and music. Grey-metal, windowless buildings reached into the cloudless, turquoise sky on either side of the smooth-surfaced street. She thought of the skark. It didn't have any windows either. ‘Don't the people here like windows?’ Nell pointed up at the buildings.
‘They have windows,’ Cay-Meka replied. ‘You just can't see them during the day from the outside.’ She swept her arm before her. ‘This is a trading corridor, and as you can see, it’s very busy, so stay close to me.’
They followed Cay-Meka down the middle of the chaos. Sam hit Nell repeatedly with the back of his hand. ‘Check that out,’ he said each time there was something amazing to look at.
A pole-skinny, purple person pushed colourful necklaces at everyone passing his table. 'Mit gems,' he kept yelling at the people. If someone didn't stop, he made a circle with his thumb and finger and waved it at their receding backs as if he was saying 'okay'. However, Nell had the distinct impression he meant to be rude.
Some large, long-necked birds flew above them. Their faces were wrinkled and pinched, and just like the pictures in the book of Gramlax, their seahorse bodies were covered in wispy tufts of black hair that sprouted haphazardly out of their white skin. People rode on the backs of some of the birds.
