Part 4 (2/2)

We pulled up slowly in our skimmer. All I could do was applaud. Forget anything they've ever shown on those network stunt shows, this was hands down the most amazing thing I had ever seen.

”Oh, no,” Uncle Press called out to him. He was trying to sound angry though I know he wasn't. ”We all play by the same rules. We pa.s.sed the buoy first.”

”But the race was to Grallion!” answered Spader. ”That buoy isn't Grallion. Almost doesn't count.”

Spader was laughing. So was Uncle Press. Maybe this trip to Cloral was going to be fun after all.

”Spader!” came an annoyed voice from above the dock.

We all looked up to see a woman wearing what looked like some kind of uniform standing on a catwalk above the dock. She looked ticked.

”Wu Yenza,” Uncle Press whispered to me. ”Chief aqua-neer.”

”Spader's boss?” I asked.

”Yeah, Spader's boss.”

”Uh-oh.”

Yenza looked to be in her thirties. She had short black hair and was in pretty good shape. I guess all aquaneers had to be in good shape. She wore a black outfit that was similar to Spader's, but it had long sleeves with yellow stripes near the cuff that gave it a kind of military feel. I'd go so far as to say she was kind of hot, in an older woman way.

”Now, Spader!” shouted Yenza. She then stormed off.

Spader turned to us and gave a little shrug. He didn't look all that nervous about the slamming he was sure to get.

”Let's call it a tie, right, mates?” he said with a smile. ”Sn.i.g.g.e.rs on me at Grolo's, soon as I can make it!”

With that he turned and bounded up the stairs that led off the dock and into the bowels of Grallion - and to deep trouble for him.

”He's doomed,” I said.

”Nah. He'll get yelled at and told never to be so reckless again. But they won't do anything to him. Everyone likes Spader. He's the best aquaneer they've got.”

We maneuvered the skimmer to the dock, tied it up, and stepped onto the floating platform.

”You didn't answer my question,” I said.

”What question was that, Bobby? You've got so many.”

”Is Spader the Traveler from Cloral?”

Uncle Press didn't answer right away. He busied himself getting our air globes and fins out of the skimmer. I knew he wasn't ignoring me, but the fact that I didn't get a simple yes or no made me nervous.

”Yes,” he finally answered. ”Spader is the Traveler from Cloral.”

”Iknewit!” I shouted.

”There's just one thing. Spader doesn't know it yet. He has no idea that he's a Traveler. We're going to have to tell him.”

Uncle Press grabbed our gear and walked toward the stairs. I stayed there a moment, letting those words sink in. Here I had just met a guy who seemed to love everything there was about life - abouthislife - and we now had the job of telling him that it was all going to change. In my short time of being a Traveler, that was the hardest thing I had to deal with -finding out that my life wasn't what I thought it was, and having to leave it behind.

I didn't look forward to being the one who had to bring someone else's world cras.h.i.+ng down around them.

CLORAL.

from the moment I first left my home in Stony Brook, I'd been jumping from one disaster to the next. It seemed like-I was always scared, or confused, or scaredandconfused. There were a few times when things didn't totally suck, but for the most part I was getting slammed every time I turned around.

But after spending some time on Cloral, I am very happy to write that the next few weeks were actually pretty great, for a change. From the second we stepped onto the habitat of Grallion, I felt safe. But it was more than that. As I learned about Grallion and how the floating habitats worked on Cloral, I felt as if I had found a place that had gotten it right. The Clorans had a society and a way of life that was like a perfect machine, where every piece and every person played an important part. Everyone relied on everyone else, and they respected each other for the roles they played.

That's not to say there weren't problems. The Clorans weren't mindless Disney animatrons who lived only to serve or anything like that. Far from it. They had their own opinions, and they didn't always agree with one another. It was the big picture that they kept in perspective. There were no wars and no tension between people of different races. There didn't seem to be any cla.s.s distinction either. Meaning, though some people had more responsibility than others and got paid more salary, no one treated anyone like a second-cla.s.s citizen. It was amazing.

I tried to figure out how such an ideal society could exist, when supposedly evolved societies like ours on Second Earth always seemed to be at one another's throats. The best theory I could come up with is that it was because each and every person on Cloral faced the same big challenge - they had to deal with living on the water. Yes, they had created these amazing boat cities that made you feel as if you were on dry land, but you weren't. You were floating. That meant anything could happen. A rogue storm could wipe out an entire city. Growing enough food to feed the entire world was an ever present worry. A simple virus could endanger an entire habitat. This was not an easy life. These people were united by a common cause - survival. Any other disputes were trivial compared to the larger challenges facing them every day.

But I'm getting way ahead of myself. Let me tell you what happened right after Uncle Press and I arrived on Grallion.

Since Uncle Press had been there before, he gave me a tour. As we climbed up from the depths of the docks, I noticed two things. One was that the inside of this barge was a labyrinth of machinery, pipes, engines, and pumps. I looked down long catwalks where workers busied themselves keeping the giant floating habitat running.

The second thing I noticed was that nothing seemed to be made out of metal. I'm not sure what the material was, I guess you would call it plastic or fibergla.s.s or something. But all the walkways, pipes, supports, girders, and even the machines looked to be made out of the same kind of lightweight material.

When we walked on the stairs, rather than the sharp clanging sound of metal, our footfalls were almost silent, as if we were walking on carpet. I guess it made sense. You have to use lightweight stuff when everything has to float. And here's a weird thing: Even though the underbelly of GralUon looked like a vast factory, it wasn't all that loud. You could tell the place was alive, but it wasn't much noisier than Stony Brook Library on a busy Sat.u.r.day. Pretty cool.

”What do they do here?” I asked Uncle Press as we climbed the stairs. ”Do they just float around fis.h.i.+ng and racing skimmers?”

”Every habitat has a specific purpose,” was his answer. ”Some manufacture materials, others process food, some are financial centers, others mine raw materials.”

”And what about Grallion?” I asked.

”See for yourself.”

We had reached the top of the stairs, where a door opened onto the main surface. We quickly stepped out into the sun and I got my first look at Grallion. Mark, Courtney, I'm not sure I can find the right words to describe it, that's how awesome a sight it was.

First, did I say Grallion was big? Well, big doesn't cover it. It was enormous. I felt as if I had reached dry land. But after having been below, I knew this wasn't dry land at all. This was a vehicle, but unlike any vehicle I had ever seen. Now, are you ready for this? Stretching out in front of me for as far as I could seea was farmland. I swear. I saw acre upon acre of flowering plants, fruit trees, and vines heavy with colorful vegetables.

Yes, Grallion was a giant, floating farm!

”This way,” said Uncle Press, and walked off.

I didn't move at first. I couldn't. I wanted to get my mind around what I was seeing.

”You'll get a better view over here,called Uncle Press, laughing.

He knew I was blown away and he was enjoying it. I ran after him. I wanted to see more. He led me up the stairs of a tower, and from this higher vantage point I got a great view of the farms of Grallion. I saw that there were very distinct sections, broken up by walkways where farm workers could travel. There were even small electric vehicles that moved quickly and silently along roads that criss-crossed each other. To our far left I saw row after row of fruit trees. Many of them bore fruit that looked like apples and oranges, but there were trees with cl.u.s.ters of unfamiliar fruit as well. Some were bright green tubes that looked like balloons hanging from the branches. Other trees had great purple orbs the size of grapefruits. Others were covered with pure white fat berries. They all looked ripe and ready for picking.

Directly in front of us were rows of thousands of individual plants that grew out of the dirt. Yes, dirt. At least I think it was dirt. It was brown and looked soft, so if it wasn't dirt, it was a good imitation. Some plants bore small fruits and vegetables, others looked as if the whole thing would be picked like lettuce, or pulled out of the ground like a carrot or a potato.

To our right were aisles of fences where viney plants grew. This section held the same dark green, pickle-looking fruit that we had found in the cavern underwater. Another area of vines was covered with fruit that looked like round white disks. This odd fruit looked fragile and fluttered when the wind blew.

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