THE END OF BEGINNINGS

TWENTY-FIVE

At the base of a stout tower a pair of doors with panels of frosted glass slid smoothly apart.  A bath of brilliant sunlight washed across the metal threshold.  Ganos Lal squinted into the bright daylight as she exited the small transport chamber.  She breathed in the sweet, ocean air, enjoying the pleasant softness of it.  She reveled, quietly, in the warmth of the afternoon enveloping her.
She'd been spending too much time in the laboratory her father had commissioned for her.  Ganos had been excited for the space in the city.  Despite the delay in its completion, the sixteen-year-old was already putting it to good use.  The breeze billowing gently through her hair made Ganos wonder if it had been too much use.  Yes, she thought as she crossed the long dock, it's good to be outside.  The break will be nice.  And seeing Moros again...  Ganos sighed.  I have missed him so.  How much will that wild planet have changed him?
Ganos was looking up at the endless, blue sky when she arrived at the landing pad.  There were others already there.  The five men standing at the edge of the empty platform looked at the young girl as she arrived.  She regarded them briefly with a subtle nod.  She wasn't sure who they were specifically.  Ganos only knew that they were an entourage for Moros and his father.  They had arrived a few days earlier.  They had been mostly keeping to themselves.  Occasionally, two or three would be spotted walking quietly about the various sections of the city as they patiently awaited the arrival of the Aurallios.
Ganos kept stealing glances of the men who stood near her.  She couldn't recall ever actually meeting someone from Camrial, let alone see them up close.  Well, she corrected herself, other than Moros' stepmother.  But she'd never seen Sidonia wear an outfit or colors typical of the citizens from that distant city.
The five men at the edge of the landing platform were all wearing clothes of muted, earthy tones.  The one Ganos assumed to be the leader of the little group, a tall, broad-chested man with shoulders that looked like they could be as thick and round as his head, wore a dark, muddy green-hued waistcoat over a pale brown shirt.  The brightest spot of color on his torso, other than his copper hair, was the faded maroon scarf that wrapped around the back of his neck with each end tucked under his lapels.  Ganos was aware the soft length of cloth had some sort of cultural significance, but she wasn't sure what that was.  Each of the men had one, all of them pale maroon in color, but each wearing it differently.
Ganos, by comparison, was a beacon in the daylight compared to the men from Camrial.  She wore a long, white dress that hugged her tight frame comfortably.  It complimented her body without flaunting it.  She just wasn't that type of girl.  Draped over the top of her back and around her shoulders was her favorite shawl.  It was a rich, pearl blue in color with bright, silver inlays.  She loved the way the silky cloth always felt cool against her skin.  Her sun-kissed, umber hair was pulled back into a long pony tail that curved and hung over her right shoulder.  Decorative bands of silver and ivory kept the long, smooth strands in place in the billowing breeze that swept across the dock every few minutes.
The leader of the five Camrial men shifted in place.  His name was Ulref Kem Toleg.  Ganos turned her head slightly at his movements.  He lifted his red stubble-covered chin, his eyes looking knowingly toward the vast, blue heavens above them.  "Hmph," he kind of grunted.
"Pardon," Ganos asked properly.
"They're here," he said simply.  His voice was soft without being entirely gruff.  She wasn't prepared for how thick his accent was.
Ganos watched him curiously for a moment then looked up toward the sky.  A thin, vaporous cloud was gliding swiftly across the endless sapphire sea.  She couldn't spot anything else.  The wind where they were standing was barely tainted by the din of the inbound and outbound ships dotting the sky over the mainland.  "How can you tell," she finally asked.
"I've spent a great deal of time on the Pilgrim in my day," Ulref answered.  "I love that ship as much as I love the Aurallios.  Maybe more.  I know the sounds she makes when she breaks atmosphere.  And the call of her engines...there's nothing else like them."
Ganos cocked her head slightly.  "Impressive.  But I still don't see them."
"Aye, you will in just a minute," Ulref said, his head turning to look back over his shoulder in the direction of the heart of Atlantis and the crowded mainland beyond it.