New Gillion Street, page 16
Matriarch Qhidarn reached for her staff, which detached from the table without a spoken command. She rose from her seat, which then just simply disappeared into the ground, and inclined her head once. “You are safe now. I will return after speaking to the Council.” She then departed through the gap in the wall, which closed behind her.
As soon as she was gone, there was a collective expelling of breath.
“Well, that was unexpected,” said Bingwen, echoing what was on everyone’s mind.
“That’s for sure,” I agreed. “We’ve just spoken with one of the indigenous! If you’d told me a few months ago that this would happen, I would have laughed, but yet, here we are.”
Lia crossed her arms. “But will they help us?” she asked, her voice tinged with frustration. “All this sitting around is growing tiresome. We need to get back to New Gillion Street. I’ve been away from Carmela for far too long already!”
There was anguish in her voice and on the faces of the others. I felt the same despair, but I believed wholeheartedly that the indigenous were the only real chance of saving our children.
“There’s nothing we can do about it right now. We’ll just have to wait and see what this Council says and hope they take pity on us.”
We remained at the table without speaking, each lost in our own thoughts. After a short time, a new doorway formed in the wall, breaking us from our dark moods, and in stepped another one of the Narda. They were larger than Matriarch Qhidarn, and without any streaks of grey in their hair. Clearly, they were younger, and they moved at a quicker pace when they approached us. They didn’t have a staff but still wore a moss belt similar to the Matriarch.
They spoke at quite a rattling pace, although the translation which emanated from their belt was steady. They bounced on their feet in obvious excitement - a far cry from the calm and poise of the Matriarch.
“Hello, my name is Dhedru. I will be your guide. I’ve been authorised to show you our home and answer any appropriate questions that you might have.”
Our guide, Dhedru, was practically jumping up and down in enthusiasm for the task. They beckoned us to follow and then abruptly made their exit. Bewildered as we were, we hurried to catch them.
We came to a small room entirely covered in moss, where Dhedru was waiting for us. As soon as we filed inside, the wall closed behind us, and seats materialised. We sat down and looked to our excitable guide.
The translation boomed all around us, as though the very walls were speaking, which they were. “Now that you are all here, we can start,” said Dhedru. “I think the place to begin is the Tarn. This is where we Narda socialise.”
Dhedru then muttered into the air, which curiously wasn’t translated, causing a ripple to pass through the whole of the room. The floor began to vibrate, and then the ground jolted. My stomach lurched, and I felt a slight pressure in my head. I could only imagine that we were moving, either descending or ascending, like the old lifts of Yuthea that I had read about in ancient fiction. I took Lillian’s hand in mine, and I gave her a reassuring squeeze, mostly for my own comfort. The room continued to tremble with the occasional wrinkle on the surface of the moss until there was another faint jolt, followed by three quick, successive ripples.
“We have arrived. I will depart first, and you will follow me,” said Dhedru.
Our guide then strode towards the wall, which opened, and then stepped out. We slowly climbed to our feet, and exchanged glances until everyone’s eyes fell on me.
I peered at Lillian, who smiled. “You’re the one who’s most excited to be here. You better go first.”
I didn’t argue, because she was right. I wanted to see. I took a deep breath and ducked through the doorway.
What I saw caused my breath to catch in my throat.
“Welcome to our city, Miamulnar,” said Dhedru.
I heard her words, but I didn’t register them. All I could do was gaze at the sight before me, craning my neck upward. We appeared to be at the bottom of a great hole, which I believed to be artificially made. The night sky glittered high above. A track of moss circled from the bottom to the top, as though some titan had twisted an enormous screw into the ground and then removed it, leaving grooves. Along those tracks moved square structures made of emerald moss, similar to the one we had just frequented. There were thousands of windows in the spaces between the tracks, and most were lit from the inside.
Dhedru pointed skyward. “We have come down from the top. It is quite a long way.”
Our guide then repeatedly grunted in what sounded something like laughter. I didn’t want to appear rude, so I returned the gesture with my own laugh, but that brought Dhedru to an abrupt standstill.
“Sorry, yes!” I quickly said. “Wonderful! Quite a distance for sure.” I then added another laugh, to show that it was a perfectly normal gesture for a human.
Dhedru gazed at me for a moment and then pointed down. I’d been so busy staring above that I hadn’t realised that there was a below. We’d come out on the level above the nadir. Beneath our feet was a large body of water, where a multitude of the Sloths was swimming and playing. My mouth fell open and stayed there. The rest joined me and gazed around, mimicking my own reaction.
“This is the Tarn,” said Dhedru. “Come, let me show you.”
27
Dhedru led us down a short ramp onto a fenced-in walkway, hewn from the strange plant that dominated the metropolis. The bottom of the city, the Tarn, was shaped like an enormous bowl filled with clear water. Various moss walkways, ramps, and platforms were dotted throughout, including another walkway around the bottommost fringe that rested on the lapping liquid.
“This is where we come to relax and see others of our kind,” said Dhedru, the monotone translation coming from her belt. “We love to swim any chance we can get.”
I could barely hear her over the splashing. There were hundreds of the Narda galivanting in the water. The adolescent brown-haired youths chased after each other in the deeper water in the centre, whilst the elders, with their light-brown, blonde, and greying hair, bobbed in the shallower ends.
Well, if I was the spokesperson, I decided that I should be the one to make some enquiries while Dhedru led us around the periphery. “Excuse me, can I ask a few questions?” Dhedru nodded, so I continued. “We humans have different types, male and female. Is it the same for you? So far, I only know of the Matriarch.”
Dhedru grunted briefly. “Yes, of course. There are not as many males as there are females in our culture. Almost five females to every one male are born.”
I watched as young Narda clambered up a towering, moss structure, very much like a diving board, and then backflipped off the tip and into the water to the evident appreciation of those watching, who applauded with vim.
“Erm, which are you? Male or female?” I dared to ask, but I couldn’t help myself, since I was so enthralled with the Narda already.
“If you don’t mind me asking,” I quickly added, just in case I had offended.
Dhedru stopped bouncing and stared at me. “Why, a female, of course.”
I nodded and then leant over to my fascinated wife, out of earshot of our guide, who was still chuckling at my question. “I can’t tell the difference at all,” I whispered. At that, she stifled a giggle.
Having completed a circuit of the pool area, we ascended once more to the next level. I couldn’t help but feel jealous of the Narda in the water. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d had a shower. I dreaded to think what I smelt like.
We then headed up two more levels and emerged into a long narrow room. Inside, we found a few adult Narda who seemed to be taking care of a group of children, judging by their diminished size and fuzzy flaxen fur. Each of the young, maybe thirty, had their own moss bassinet, which rocked them gently by its own nebulous cognition.
“This is where our newly born young are kept before they are old enough for teaching,” explained Dhedru.
“That substance, what is it?” I asked, pointing at the nearest bassinet. The concept brought memories of my own children being taught by Lillian and my heart ached to think about them.
Dhedru’s head cocked. “This is the Orenu. It nurtures us and protects us from a very young age.”
I gazed at the emerald foliage in wonder. “Do your people make it?”
She solemnly shook her head. “No, it is not made by us. It is alive. We nurture it, and it nurtures us by symbiosis.”
I stayed with Dhedru, while the rest of the group fanned out and cooed over the young. “Symbiosis?”
She slowed her bobbing. “Yes, it is a hive mind. It helped us learn the ways of the forest. It protected us and taught us how to be civilised.”
I placed my hand on the nearest bassinet and watched as it rippled. “Amazing.”
“Our God, the Holy Mother, sent it to us. We give thanks to Her every day for bestowing such a truly wonderful gift upon us.”
Lillian came to my side. “This is remarkable, darling,” she said, and I could tell she believed it.
I tapped the moss. “Symbiosis, dear. It’s a symbiote, called Orenu. Our guide has just filled me in. This stuff is alive. It saved us in the forest when we first arrived. Now, I have no doubts.”
Dhedru had wandered away and called for us to leave the creche.
We entered another one of the lifts and then proceeded to climb many levels higher, where we came to what our guide described as the school. There, we found many young Narda lounging on mounds of the Orenu with their eyes closed, while the symbiote rippled and radiated around them. Dhedru explained to us that they received their teaching in those moments of meditation directly from the Orenu. It educated them on their history, giving them information about the forest and the planet, as well as the ways of the people. It taught them everything they needed to know and all of it was directly pumped into their minds, as if it were their own thoughts. I could barely process what I was being told, such was my excitement.
The Orenu shaped the Narda’s culture, while the Narda, in turn, propagated the symbiote throughout the city, the forest, and much of Neo-Yuthea. It was a thoroughly unique arrangement, and utterly fascinating.
We were then led to a higher level, to the habitation levels. We saw many of the Narda going about their daily business on the rungs of the inner loops. None of the Narda seemed that surprised or even that excited by our presence.
When I asked our guide about that, she just laughed. “The word of your arrival has been spread around the whole Miamulnar.”
We continued higher. There were levels for markets and trade, but they appeared to be nothing more than the business of artisans, with many spaces hewn into the rock that focused on the making of jewellery, fashioned from precious stones and rope, and opaque creative works made from rock and wood. It reminded me of our own way of life on New Gillion Street.
One level consisted of what Dhedru described as something resembling a restaurant, with large open spaces and lengthy narrow tables, but they were sparsely populated, with only a few Narda eating bowls of fruit and vegetables or drinking clear water from deep stone containers. Dhedru clarified that eating was purely for pleasure, as the Orenu provided all necessary sustenance and she was surprised to hear that was the only way we ate. She promised to bring some food for us later, although we didn’t technically need it.
As we drew closer to the top of the city, the night sky began to brighten, and with it, Dhedru started to yawn. “It is nearly time for rest.” She led us towards an opening nearby. “We must now return to the rooms provided for you.”
Even though our tour had provided something of a distraction, I hadn’t forgotten why we were there. “Hold on,” I called. “What about the Council? Matriarch Qhidarn said she would speak to them and make a decision.”
Dhedru didn’t stop, calling over her shoulder in her haste. “Do not worry. These things take time.”
Before I could ask any further questions, she directed us to another lift, which promptly returned us to our room. Dhedru had begun to produce great, deep yawns. She ignored our questions about the Council, her eyes barely open, bade us farewell, and left.
I joined the others and collapsed into the seats around the table. The sightseeing excursion around the city had taken its toll. Despite our frustration at not receiving an answer from the Council, the group began to nod until beds expanded out of the walls. Somehow the Orenu had interpreted our yawns of tiredness and our need for rest.
Everyone else fell straight to sleep, including Lillian, who looked exhausted, but I wasn’t ready for sleep. I listened to the snoring of the rest of my fellow exiles. For a short time, I just watched the rise and fall of Lillian’s chest as she slept. She looked so peaceful and content. It could have been so easy to forget why we were there, especially after the excitement of the day, but I wouldn’t let myself, not yet.
I rose, and walked to the window where I peered out, taking a deep breath of the fresh air. The river babbled below, safely enclosed within the dark forest. It was picturesque and beautiful. It already felt like many days ago that we were lost in that shadowy interior and near death.
My mind wouldn’t allow me respite. Rachel and Alex had been in New Gillion Street without us, all alone, for days. What had they been doing? Were they in Number 20? Were they being guarded all day, every day? I shuddered.
I returned to my seat. Something had been bothering me since we had tried to flee New Gillion Street. The beast seemed to have been drawn around the same time that we had all felt that sharp pain in our ears. It seemed unlikely that it was a coincidence. I folded my arms and tried to get my tired mind to work. Why did that fiend show up when it did?
Abruptly, I remembered the metallic object in Mr Zand’s hand. Through the hazy horror of our attempted escape, capture, and subsequent exile, it came back to me. What was that? It looked very familiar, similar to a whistle…
A memory struck me, like freezing cold water, splashed in the face.
I had seen that whistle before.
Patchy memories of a drunken walk to Mr Zand’s house with the gnome in my hand dripped back into my weary mind. I had found a whistle that made no sound inside his house.
That realisation brought something else…
Agony.
I put my hands to my face as an awful understanding spread through my mind.
The gnome.
The bloody gnome.
Lillian had said that it was left on the doorstep and that I must have done it as a prank while I was drunk, but she was wrong.
Now I remembered!
I’d left the gnome at Mr Zand’s!
It all made sense to me then. That strange comment he made just before we were banished, the beast, everything. He must have kept a close eye on me after that.
Our plan to escape had always been destined to fail, and it was all my fault.
That awful truth settled heavily into my stomach like undigested food.
I felt a tide of despair beginning to wash over me, but I took my hands away from my face. It would do me no good wallowing in my own sorrow and stupidity. I vowed to undo what I’d done. I swore to get back to New Gillion Street and save my children.
Exhaustion swept through me then. It was as if, with that revelation, all my energy was spent. I stumbled toward where my wife was sleeping and waited as the Orenu seemed to read my mind, expanding the bed, so that there was enough room for two. I threw myself down and slipped my arm around her waist. I only hoped that she could forgive me for my mistake.
28
We were roused from sleep by the return of Dhedru. The sky had begun to darken now that night approached, and accordingly, she was back to her usual excitable self.
“My friends. You must come with me immediately. You have been summoned to meet the Council at once. This is amazing news. It is a great honour. We must head to the Council Tree.”
Jaya stood first and brushed sleep from her eyes. “Thank you. We appreciate this opportunity.”
“A… tree?” said a bewildered Dora.
“Yes, the Council Tree. Come. We must go.”
Our guide turned on her furred heels and departed the way she had come, her hair flowing in her wake, and we rushed to follow her.
I was still rubbing the sleep from my eyes as I walked alongside my wife, who looked a bit more alert than myself. “Did she say a tree?”
“Yes, she did. I’ve given up wondering what’s happening anymore,” she shrugged.
“I just wish we could hurry this along! We need to get back to Alex and Rachel.”
A look of sorrow passed across her face and I almost felt guilty that I’d mentioned it.
As before, Dhedru gave the Orenu some rapid instructions, and our transport vibrated and then jolted into movement. After a short trip, we disembarked to find ourselves at the top of the city. I peeked over the edge of the mountain of Miamulnar, but only managed a few seconds before vertigo took hold, and with a queasy stomach, I stepped back.
I put my back to the precipitous drop and took in our new locale. We had arrived at a rocky landscape with shrubs and hardy plants dotting the dusty earth. The Three Sisters sat high in the sky against a starry backdrop. The air was pleasantly cool, with a light breeze gently blowing over the arid landscape.
Dhedru was moving again, leading us along a well-worn path, close to the edge. The river effervesced and frothed miles below. In the distance, I saw a colossal tree. As we came closer, it loomed up in front of us at the terminus of the path. It was an immense old thing, long dead. It was a husk of a once-great tree, the bark bleached of its colour.
When we reached the base of the trunk, I could make out a great many Narda littered throughout its branches, with patches of the moss symbiote either underneath them or nearby, connecting them all together.
