02 Quetzals Flock

QUETZAL'S FLOCK
They clasped each other in an embrace. Eridos smiled sardonically as Nuraghe
limped out of sight.
"I wonder if we will ever be friends, Kane Ashford. Somehow, I doubt it!"
The Bole interjected. Kane jolted into alertness. Eridos' lips tightened. Kane
eyed the metal cube, it appeared to have suffered no damage during the onslaught of
crazed Picun.
"My sensors record the imminent departure of the Ship from its present coordinates."
Kane and Eridos limped to the rise of ground which surrounded the Arch on
three sides. They were witnesses to the marvellous sight of the Ship rising from its
distant nest. It was monstrous, a great, bloated, shimmering spheroid, which had
expanded under his command and had made itself ready to evacuate the People of
Jubal. From their vantage point, they could see the reaction of the tribesmen. They fell
in awe to their faces, as it glided towards them and then hovered over their heads. It
filled the sky and cast an immense shadow on to the plain.
It landed gently, hardly disturbing the crust of the surface. Eridos let out a
jagged breath and his jaw muscles tightened into knots. For a moment, Kane thought
that he might repudiate his agreement and try to board her. He knew the Masters
would not allow it. Eridos must have known too. He contented himself with watching
the embarkation.
Hammadi had a tight control of the herd and the people. A steady stream of
white clad figures walked through the perimeter skin of the Ship. They were
swallowed through the force field. The Picun were led through another area. They
were a little more trouble, but this was solved by the herders leading them, one by
one, until they were all safely aboard. In the end, two figures remained, otherwise, the
plain was empty, except for the great bulk of the Ship.
Even from the distance, Kane and Eridos could see that it was Hammadi and
Nuraghe. The two brothers lifted their hands in a final salute. Kane already sensed
that the distance between them was something more than the few kilometres of the red
plain. They would never meet again. The people of Jubal were now the People of the
Ship in the fullest sense of the phrase. Kane glanced at Eridos, his face was impassive,
the only sign of emotion being the familiar tightening of the jaw muscles.
They watched as the two brothers walked into the side of the Ship and were
swallowed within. It took them time to find their way to the great open platform of the
control room. Kane could visualise their progress through the Ship, perhaps pausing
here and there to reassure or advise those who were no more than simple herders and
who were now transported into an environment they couldn't even have imagined in
their dreams.
The Ship began to rise, vast, silent, destination unknown. It was beyond the
business of the two solitary figures who remained. It rose swiftly, decreasing in size
rapidly, until the tiny speck disappeared.
"So, now we are alone, Kane Ashford. The only two left."
"There's still one other, Eridos - Urartu. He told me he would remain in his
cavern until the floor burst under him and he was overwhelmed by fire!"
"And what about those who tended the fields around the Crag Caverns?"
"I don't know, perhaps they stayed also - or maybe, Urartu sent them to Obeid
and they went on the Ship."
"I am surprised that you admit to things you do not know, my great, Lord
Quetzal!"
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