The Namura Stone (The Ammonite Galaxy, book 6)

Chapter 25

THERE WAS A very great treat in store for Raven. She was glad that all her cuts and scratches had finally healed, because they were to visit Valhai for the first time. The leader of Sell wanted to hold some sort of a ceremony to honour Tallen's sister, and since the children had never visited Grace's home planet, they had decided to take all of them this time.

Raven couldn't wait to go bare planet and see the brilliant night sky for herself. Aunt Grace had told her about the planet many times.

But first there was another ceremony to be endured. The head of Sell had invited them all to some sort of dinner. Raven was not looking forward to it, but her father had told her that they would be the only guests, so she was hoping it wouldn't be too much of a trial.

First, they were taken to the 21st floor of the 256th skyrise, and Aunt Grace showed them all around the luxurious accommodation. Raven raced Temar around the outside corridor, shouting with laughter at the way his short little legs pumped uselessly, trying to make him go as fast as she could. Then Tallen took pity on Temar, hoisted him up onto his shoulders, and beat Raven easily. Raven begged Bennel to do the same, but he shook his head in his usual serious way.

"You weigh too much, Raven. You are a big girl now."

"I am not!"

"You can run faster than me!"

"Yes, but you are old." Then she thought and tried to make it right. "Not really old, Bennel, just a lot older than everybody else. Nice old." Then she looked at him in a worried fashion until his face wrinkled up into a smile, and she could relax.

Tallen put his burden down to the floor again with care, and Raven patted the toddler's head fondly, empathizing with his wish to be faster than she was. "I guess you won this time, Temmy." Then she spotted a small door. "Look! What is that?"

It turned out to be a small triangular-shaped room with a rexelene wall on the outside. They gasped. It was their first view of Valhai, and their mouths dropped open.

Raven jumped up and down. "Look! Look! Look at all the stars! And that must be Cian. Oh, I can't wait to go bare planet."

Grace came up. "We will go tomorrow. You are going to meet Arcan."

"But we know Arcan."

"Not the real Arcan. Not as he is naturally."

This seemed complicated and the children stared at each other. Arcan was not the real Arcan? What could this mean?

Grace smiled. "You will see tomorrow. Now, who is going to have a bath before we go to the 1st skyrise for dinner?"

Raven wrinkled her nose. "Do we have to?"

Grace shook her head. "I wouldn't have had to ask your mother twice."

"Did she like baths?" Raven found this hard to believe.

Her father and Ledin exchanged a knowing grin. "Getting your mother out of a Mesteta wine bath was like coaxing a warthog out of the mud." He led them across the receiving chamber and past the magmite columns that led into the voting chamber. "Come on, the sleeping rooms and the baths are through here."

His intention was to lead them along the corridor which skirted the voting chamber, but as soon as the younger members of the party saw the voting room they were inside. The sight of the four chairs sitting in solitary splendour was too much for them.

"Look! They are sized according to our heights!" Raven clambered up into the second smallest one and looked across the room imperiously. "Come on, Temmy! Get into yours!"