Chapter 4

A grainy image of a woman flickered to life, standing in the laboratory with them. Shadow jerked away, Amy following suit. Hologram projectors were the last thing he'd expected to find in a cliff dwelling.

"Shorah!" the woman said, "Rekoahn trecleft previn legloen brem…" she paused and put a hand to her head, "Oh yes, not in D'ni, they won't understand…"

She walked around, speaking as she did. "Once again, the stream in the Cleft has begun to flow. It was dry for so long. The water is flowing in from the desert. The storm is coming." She held up a finger as if teaching. Her blue eyes were watching them both, as if she could actually see them, instead of being a hologram.

The woman was dressed in uncommon tribal clothing, apparently made from furs and beads. Her hair was braided into dreadlocks, and a tattoo covered her right eye and part of the left side of her head. Shadow, for once, could only stare and gape at the sight. Amy, too, seemed shocked into silence.

"Have you heard of the city? The deep city? The ancient URU?" she asked, "Where there was power to write worlds. For thousands of years the city lived, lived beneath the surface. Keeper of the secret, keeper of the power, keeper of the Ages… always keeping. The city grew proud, and then it died."

The hologram danced a lilting waltz to the other side of the room. "Water flows where it wills. It seeks its own path uncontrolled except that it flows downward, always downward. D'ni, the city of Ages, of other worlds died. But now it breathes again, it awaits. Some will seek that destination. But YOU should seek the Journey."

The image of the woman walked over to the far side of the lab, where the shelves had been carved. "It's as a fine tapestry, complex beyond comprehension, but now torn. We will show you remnants, pieces of the tapestry… pieces of the Journey." As she spoke a seventh cloth appeared on the wall as she reached out to touch it. "Find these remnants, these Journeys… seven… seven in each Age… seven here in the desert. Consider it a quest… no… a request."

She bowed her head for a moment. "Worship." Her head came up again, "The water flows downward and there it pools and collects and finally, once again, it reaches the roots… and the tree begins to grow again."

Again, she looked straight at Shadow and Amy, "I am Yeesha. My parents brought me to this place. We will bring you."

The hologram walked over to the imager and pushed the button, vanishing from sight.

Shadow and Amy remained frozen for a moment before looking at each other in surprise. "I wasn't expecting that," Shadow admitted, his red eyes wide with shock.

Amy said nothing, but stared back at him with her infinite green eyes. Shadow forced himself to look away, instead walking over and touching the seventh cloth. The whole hand lit up, and he heard a strange trilling sound.

"Now what?" he asked Amy, "You've found most of the answers here, where to next?"

Amy seemed to come to her senses. "There's a tree at the far end of the Cleft," she said, "There's a door with that hand icon on it. Maybe we should try touching it now…"

Shadow nodded. "Good idea."

It didn't take long to reach the tree. Shadow, this time, reached out and touched it. The hand glowed for a moment, and the door receded into the ground. A ladder led downwards, accompanied by a short tunnel. Shadow jumped in.

As soon as Amy was down, the two of them walked through the tunnel. A cave sat at the end. There was a large podium, and atop it rested two books. Shadow and Amy walked up to it and examined the books. Both of them were thin, and had a belt attached to them, as if they were designed to be worn around the waist. Shadow opened his. Inside was a picture of an island in the clouds. Amy's was the same.

Shadow touched the picture. It felt alive. Before he realized what was happening, he felt a sickening sense of motion. There was a sensation of size, as if he was standing before the maw of some great beast. Amy reached out for him, but he was aware of her hand passing through his shoulder. The next moment, everything faded to black.