stretched clear to the sky and disappeared in the clouds. How tall was it, I wondered? A mile? Two miles? Maybe three? There was no way to know for sure, but I’d have said at least two.
And directly behind Raithskar was a sight I had never expected to see. From out of the mists at the top of the great escarpment, water cascaded down the almost sheer face of the cliff. At its base was a rainbow-crowned lake which foamed continuously as the tons of water thundered into it. The lake narrowed to a river, which rushed down the slope and through the city.
This had to be the source that wound up miles later as a treacherous salt bog. The Skarkel Falls—the name surfaced from my memory.
The base of the falls was shrouded in mist—the water, falling from such a height, virtually pulverized the lake, sending up an endless spray of water vapor.
I could see then why Raithskar glittered so in the sunlight. Even this far from the falls, there was
moisture
in the air, cooling off the fearsome heat of the desert. Invisible droplets coated the roofs of the city, causing them to shine as though they were polished.
After the hot, dry journey, the coolness of the city called out to me.
* * *
Keeshah and I had traveled through the night. From his back I had watched the dimly-lit countryside change around us. The vegetation in the swamp had grown denser, the mucky ground gradually solidifying to support short grasses and bushes. I saw trees more frequently, and they seemed taller and healthier—although I had seen larger manzanita bushes in California. Just as the land began to look all overgrown, with fields of grass and shadowy clumps of growth that might almost have been wooded areas, the moon set.
The blackness was complete; it was as though I had been suddenly blinded. The cloud layer had diffused and distributed what little moonlight remained, so that I hadn’t noticed the gradual dimming.
Frightened in the abrupt blackness, I ordered Keeshah to stop. He did, but he protested.
*
Soon there
,’ he said.
*
Can you see through this darkness?
*
*
No. Follow road smell.
* He was panting heavily; he had been running for hours without a break.
*
We’ll wait till dawn,
* I told him.
I slid off his back, and when I moved away from him he was completely invisible. But we were still together. He was a large warm presence in my mind, and I was no longer frightened of the dark.
*
Rest, Keeshah.
*
He agreed—not with reluctance, but with some puzzlement. I heard him moving around in the bushes, settling to the ground. I lay on my back in the tart-smelling grass and looked up into the darkness.
As though the sky had been waiting for me, the clouds broke apart and I was looking at the stars.
But not
my
stars.
I had spent enough romantic moonlit nights gazing into the sky to know that for sure. There wasn’t a single constellation up there that I recognized. And there was one bright configuration that I knew I had
never
seen. Then the clouds swept together and left me again in darkness.
I’d had enough of questions today. So the stars were different—I listed that among things to think about and sort out later. It was another datum, only that.
I was emotionally drained, tired past the point of sleeping, afraid that if I slept, I would dream of unfinished puzzles, mazes with no end and no beginning, paths that led only into other paths. So I listened to the night.
Riding with my head on Keeshah’s body, the soft sound of his paws striking the ground had blocked out all other aural input. I had noticed the landscape changing visually; now I became aware of the different sound of it.
The desert had been so quiet. The cry of a bird had been an intrusion out there. Now I could hear the flutter of wings all around me, and the soft rustling of small animals moving through the grass and bushes. Skittering sounds made me think of squirrels and their nervous, rush-and-stop zigzags.
What did these night creatures look like? Would I
And directly behind Raithskar was a sight I had never expected to see. From out of the mists at the top of the great escarpment, water cascaded down the almost sheer face of the cliff. At its base was a rainbow-crowned lake which foamed continuously as the tons of water thundered into it. The lake narrowed to a river, which rushed down the slope and through the city.
This had to be the source that wound up miles later as a treacherous salt bog. The Skarkel Falls—the name surfaced from my memory.
The base of the falls was shrouded in mist—the water, falling from such a height, virtually pulverized the lake, sending up an endless spray of water vapor.
I could see then why Raithskar glittered so in the sunlight. Even this far from the falls, there was
moisture
in the air, cooling off the fearsome heat of the desert. Invisible droplets coated the roofs of the city, causing them to shine as though they were polished.
After the hot, dry journey, the coolness of the city called out to me.
* * *
Keeshah and I had traveled through the night. From his back I had watched the dimly-lit countryside change around us. The vegetation in the swamp had grown denser, the mucky ground gradually solidifying to support short grasses and bushes. I saw trees more frequently, and they seemed taller and healthier—although I had seen larger manzanita bushes in California. Just as the land began to look all overgrown, with fields of grass and shadowy clumps of growth that might almost have been wooded areas, the moon set.
The blackness was complete; it was as though I had been suddenly blinded. The cloud layer had diffused and distributed what little moonlight remained, so that I hadn’t noticed the gradual dimming.
Frightened in the abrupt blackness, I ordered Keeshah to stop. He did, but he protested.
*
Soon there
,’ he said.
*
Can you see through this darkness?
*
*
No. Follow road smell.
* He was panting heavily; he had been running for hours without a break.
*
We’ll wait till dawn,
* I told him.
I slid off his back, and when I moved away from him he was completely invisible. But we were still together. He was a large warm presence in my mind, and I was no longer frightened of the dark.
*
Rest, Keeshah.
*
He agreed—not with reluctance, but with some puzzlement. I heard him moving around in the bushes, settling to the ground. I lay on my back in the tart-smelling grass and looked up into the darkness.
As though the sky had been waiting for me, the clouds broke apart and I was looking at the stars.
But not
my
stars.
I had spent enough romantic moonlit nights gazing into the sky to know that for sure. There wasn’t a single constellation up there that I recognized. And there was one bright configuration that I knew I had
never
seen. Then the clouds swept together and left me again in darkness.
I’d had enough of questions today. So the stars were different—I listed that among things to think about and sort out later. It was another datum, only that.
I was emotionally drained, tired past the point of sleeping, afraid that if I slept, I would dream of unfinished puzzles, mazes with no end and no beginning, paths that led only into other paths. So I listened to the night.
Riding with my head on Keeshah’s body, the soft sound of his paws striking the ground had blocked out all other aural input. I had noticed the landscape changing visually; now I became aware of the different sound of it.
The desert had been so quiet. The cry of a bird had been an intrusion out there. Now I could hear the flutter of wings all around me, and the soft rustling of small animals moving through the grass and bushes. Skittering sounds made me think of squirrels and their nervous, rush-and-stop zigzags.
What did these night creatures look like? Would I
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