| The Second Angel Part 5 By Keiko The launch pods holds true to their name only insofar as being launched from the Shell. Once in the air, it is dependent upon the skill of the pilot to judge when best to extend the wings in the pods, to glide with steel wings upon what currents of air flowed in the sky. Among Tali's many talents was a knack for flying anything. He knew the maps of the skies by heart, in which direction the air flowed, and how best to guide an aircraft upon those winds. Of all the fliers in the Shell, I trusted none so much as I trusted him, and not just because he could teleport us elsewhere if the flying pod was to fall. The first Dome was not far, relatively, so beginning our journey within a launch pod was reasonable. Tali skillfully manipulated the pod, descending ever slowly down towards the ground. We didn't talk much. We never did, when beginning a mission. It was another one of those things between us. I needed the silence to think and reflect on the mission as much as he needed it to concentrate on flying. We landed with a bone-jarring thump in the forests near the Dome, sliding several hundred meters before the trees finally stopped our crash. Landing is never gentle, with these pods, despite Tali's best efforts to make it so. We untangled ourselves and climbed out of the pod, the interior of which is always padded for these violent landings. As far as I knew, the launch pods are a science known only to the Shell, for it is one of the few ingenious inventions of Endo that ever worked. The pod included wheels that could be unfolded from the bottom of the pod, so that we could drive it back after a mission. There was no other way to transport these things. During our mission, it would be safely stashed away under a camouflage of foliage. Tali and I divided the work. I climbed the trees and threw down leafy branches; he piled the branches onto the pod. Soon, the launch pod was buried beneath a pile of leaves and branches. Taking a last cursory look around, I took the lead in the direction that I knew the Dome to be, with Tali trailing slightly behind me. Within an hour of walking, we came in sight of the Dome. The midmorning sun glistened off remaining shards of glass still intact to the ivory structures. Most of the Dome was covered in climbing vines and other plantation. What little that peeked out from beneath the foliage showed that this particular Dome had been a rich one. Gold-washed metal plates?of what sort was yet to be determined?that offset the glass were imbedded with small gems; diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and sapphires. Some had been picked off by ravens and magpies, but the ones remaining shown that the Dome had been home to some talented gem cutters. The Dome itself was huge, one of the biggest ones on the continent. We had to walk quite a bit around it to find an entrance. It was a small side gate, with heavy steel doors that were bound tight by gnarly tree limbs that had grown through the cracks. I tried the doors; they wouldn't budge. "Stand aside," Tali proclaimed. I did. With a swift, whirling kick, Tali knocked down the entire doorframe, along with the doors. The doors fell backwards into the Dome with a resounding crash that resonated throughout the forest. Nesting birds took to the air with fright. Tali grinned unabashedly at me. I just rolled my eyes, and together we entered into the Dome. The small side door we found opened into a long sheltered courtyard, overgrown with flora and dripping with willows. Overhead, the Dome was still intact, the thick panels of glass curving upward and disappearing into the trees. The ground was covered with dried leaves that crunched under our feet as we made our way through the courtyard. The courtyard itself was rectangular shaped, except at the other end, where it opened on one side into what appeared to be another long courtyard, similarly overgrown with plants. And at the end of that courtyard, another opening lead to more courtyards. We walked for what seemed hours in the endless labyrinth of gardens and courtyards. Some that we passed had dried water fountains, while others still trickled with water. We were not worried about getting lost. After all, why bother with keeping track of where we are if Tali could just teleport us to wherever we had been? But I was sick of wandering aimlessly, and by the indication of the glass Dome overhead, we were still nowhere near the center of the Dome. I could not believe that the entire Dome was just a series of gardens. "Tali," I said, when we came to the next courtyard. "This is weird. We've been walking for quite a bit, and it feels like we've just been walking along the rim of the Dome." Tali stared at the glass panels above him. "Yes, I think I know what you mean. There is a tree over there by the wall. We can climb up and take a look." We clambered up the tree, I up one branch, Tali up another. The leaves were thick and the climb took longer than we'd thought it would. When our heads finally burst free of the top of the tree, we found ourselves shielding our eyes from the sudden brightness of the noon sun. When my eyes cleared, I gasped. Next to me, Tali forgot to breathe. The Dome lay before us like a miniature model. We could see clearly from one end to the other. Vines and other plants swathed the glass panels of the Dome from the ground up, lessening gradually as it approached the top of the Dome roof. Light filtered through the vegetation where it could, illuminating the interior of the Dome. At the very center of the Dome roof, a ray of pure, unadulterated sunshine soared down through the air to the center of the Dome floor. And at the center of the Dome was an immense ivory statue, glowing with the light of the sun. Even from this distance, it was impossible to mistake shape of the statue. It was that of an angel, wings unfurled, hands stretched outward in an offering. I squinted at the statue, trying to measure the distance between where we were and the center of the Dome. "Tali? Can you teleport us there?" Tali looked. "That... seems to be within my range. We'll give it a try." He slid an arm around my waist. "Hold on tight, if it's out of my range we might appear in midair and fall." I shut my eyes, and felt branch under my foot disintegrate. For a short endless moment, I floated. The only solid thing was Tali's arm around me. A heartbeat later my foot touched solidity and I stepped back, opening my eyes. Only to find that we had appeared on the shoulder of the ivory angel, more than three hundred feet above the ground. "TALI!" panicking, I lost my balance and began to fall back, off of the statue. Tali lunged forward, grabbing my hand as I pulled him off as well. The last thing I saw as the wind rushed past me was the face of the angel, staring off into the distance, his wings arched behind him. Then we were on the ground, Tali's arms tight around me as I huddled in his embrace. "It's alright now. It's okay. I'm so sorry, Satori." Tali was murmuring over and over again, hands rubbing my back soothingly. Safe, I listened to his heartbeats for a moment, then pulled away. "I'm fine now, thanks." I said, hoping my face didn't show how scared I'd been. Keiko's Rants: I'm sorry if this is progressing very slowly. I'm kinda working on two sections of the story at the same time and am attempting to link the two together. Part 4 Part 6 Back Main K & K |