The force in the lift began to
lessen as they reached an opening of a branch. They all followed Elijah out
into the branch tunnel. It was dim after the brightness they had first
experienced. Not too far along the tunnel of the branch leading away from the
trunk was a set of windows. They stopped briefly to admire the view. Reagan
judged they were three quarters of the way up the tree and well above the
forest. They could see for miles and miles.
“Wow” Layla said stepping back from
the windows. “That is high.”
Windows continued to dot the walls
as they walked further out in the branch. They could feel a slight breeze that
was growing steadily stronger. They reached a place where the tunnel branched
into two slightly smaller tunnels. It was unnoticed at first but obvious once
Reagan began to look for it, the tunnel had been narrowing slightly. The group,
following the Raven, turned down the left hand side of the split and after a
dozen steps was greeted with an opening stretching before them. It was the source
of the breeze. A large green deck stretched out from the opening. Another green
“leaf” covered part of the deck.
“This is where I would have landed.
But obviously your vehicle could not make a landing here. So we walked, and
floated. Take a look if you would like.” Elijah spoke calmly. His feathers
ruffled slightly in the breeze wafting in from the opening in the branch to the
landing pad.
Reagan, Clara, and Olivia walked
out on the deck. It was made of a very sturdy ceramic. Layla hung back. “No thanks.
I can see fine from here,” she offered at their quizzical looks.
Reagan now noticed that each leaf
hanging from the branches surrounding them was much thicker than he had first
realized. Each one served as a room, or in clusters of leaves, as a whole house
possibly. He could also make out other landing areas, usually near branch
junctions. He walked near the edge and peered down. He could see the trunk
stretching down to the ground far below.
He realized that many of the trees were similar to this one, housing a
whole community of Ravens. He stepped a little closer and noticed the lack of a
guardrail around the deck. Of course, what need would a bird have for
guardrails? It was a long, long way down. Maybe Layla had the right idea. He
moved slowly back from the edge. He sighed and moved to join her in the tunnel.
Clara laughed at him. “A space
captain afraid of heights?” She mocked, as she stood motionless near the edge.
They resumed their walk and came to
a cluster of leaves. Elijah rang a discrete buzzer at the opening. And they
waited. It was not long until an aged Raven appeared whose dark feathers had
mostly turned gray. He slowly inspected his guests. He greeted Elijah coolly.
“You have brought me humans.” It
was not a question, but a statement directed at Elijah.
Read another sample here
Read another sample here
