Then there were the churches. Saint Bride dating back to the Sixth Century. The Chapel of the Pyx in Westminster – also an impressive sight even though nothing was left of the medieval palaces – and All Hallows by the Tower that contained a Seventh Century Saxon arch with recycled Roman tiles and beneath the crypt had a Roman pavement.
It was an unbelievably sunny day and Iso-bel had to wear sunglasses every time they were in the open, since her blue eyes were very sensitive to light. She envied Ran-ald's charcoal eyes or even Jes-syd's amber ones – they weren't as badly off in the sun like her. Ran-ald wore sunglasses more out of fashion than of need.
Iso-bel couldn't miss a stop at the British Library after Jon showed them Saint Pancras Parish Church and freed them for the evening. Her father had spent hours in there, studying illuminated manuscripts, and she was very curious.
She took a picture of the Magna Carta and sent it to her father along with other images of her London tour. Jes-syd took a picture of her and Emma-lin in the Entrance Hall with rows of bookshelves behind them, and they sent it to Kim-ash.
Then the four of them headed back to the hotel, where they met the Felines who had gone back another way and they decided to have dinner all together. Fikri was an ambassador's son who was a seasoned traveler – a tiger walking on his hind legs and talking very easily to strangers. Jyrki looked more like a lioness, although he was male, and was a business man on vacation.
They were a cheerful company and they managed to drag along K'uryss, the Draconian tourist who pretended he couldn't care less about Humanoids. The Caroids were nowhere around the hotel lobby, so they gave up looking for them.
They all sat together in the hotel's restaurant and spent a couple of hours eating and talking and joking. According to Emma-lin, Fikri and Jyrki were better than Ran-ald, "Heck, even K'uryss is better than Ran-ald!", but Iso-bel ignored the comments as she undressed and prepared for bed.
Her father had commented on the pictures by then, so she wished her family good-night and switched off her light as Emma-lin slid in her bed with a long sigh.
"I hope Kim-ash gathers her wits and joins us before we leave," she muttered switching off her own lamp. "I'd love to have some backup against that asshole."
"Stop bothering him and you'll be fine," Iso-bel said in the darkness. "You should have chosen someone if you were so afraid of the rest of the company."
"If it were six of us as originally planned, it wouldn't be that bad!" Emma-lin complained. "Now I feel like I'm intruding in your relationship! Am I spoiling your vacation, Iso-bel?"
"No, you're not," Iso-bel answered patiently. "But stop bickering with Ran-ald. We're here to explore planets, not relationships."
Emma-lin sighed. "Good night, Iso-bel..."
"Sweet dreams, Emma-lin."
***
The wakeup call brought the four of them in the breakfast room where again they saw the Felines and the Draconian, but no Carians. They took their backpacks to the roof and gave them to Henry and climbed on the flying van, but still no Carians.
Jon checked his watch and looked around the roof terrace, worried, tapping his foot. He tried to call the Carians' room, but got no reply. Their luggage had been left near the shuttle before Henry got to it, so the driver had no idea of where they were.
"We could have done a last trip to the river shore," Iso-bel said, looking out of the window.
"Glad it's a small group," Jes-syd said. "Just imagine if we had to wait for fifty people to get onboard!"
"There they are!" Fikri screamed, pointing at the sky with his paw.
What had looked like two birds was fast approaching, revealing the two Carians who slightly shifted shape as soon as they touched down. Eagles in the sky, they turned back to their human bodies with eagle heads as their wings folded and almost vanished. They didn't need clothes more than Reptilians or Felines, and Jon looked impressed. It must be the first time he saw something like that.
"Sorry, we were taking a last look to this fascinating island," the male said. His name was Hian and his bride was Haopia. They quickly climbed in the shuttle and sat in their seats, followed by John's frown.
"So, we're ready to take off," the guide said, using his mike again. "We're only half an hour late, so we'll still make it on time to Dubai. Our flight time is a little under five hours."
Henry closed the shuttle door and took off while Jon gave a little history of their next destination.
"I like it's the most expensive city in the area," Emma-lin said, leaning forward to speak to Iso-bel between their seats. "And that it has great malls. Do you think we can do some shopping?"
"It depends on what you want," Iso-bel replied. "You might find something to make Kim-ash envious, though."
Emma-lin chuckled and sat back. "I think she's already envious, and sorry she didn't come anyway!"
"I'm glad you didn't color your hair," Ran-ald told her, serious. "Iso-bel and Kim-ash look ridiculous. I wonder what possessed them."
"I was happy secondary school is over," Iso-bel said. "It's not permanent, it will go away with a few washes!"
"It looks good on their straight hair, but my curls would have been a mess," Emma-lin said. She was very proud of her natural curls and she was actually surprised by Ran-ald's compliment. "One can't always do what one's friends do even if one loves one's friends, right?"
"Absolutely," Ran-ald said. "Can you see me with a mop of wild hair like Jes-syd? Me neither."
Iso-bel and Jes-syd guffawed. If they could be the reason their friends stopped bickering, that was fine with them.
In Dubai the group split, since Felines weren't too fond of water and K'uryss decided he preferred sleeping on dry land. The young Sire and the Carians were taken to the Water Discus Hotel that had been built in the Persian Gulf off the coast of Dubai.
Part of it sat thirty feet underwater and the other half floated twenty feet in the air. It could hold up even during the severest of storms and ensured safety at all times. It sat on five sturdy legs fixed to the seabed and the upper discs were suspended above the water surface. Apparently it was safer than any hotel on the coast, since it was tsunami-proof. And the underwater disk automatically surfaced at once in the event of any danger.
The Carians had their room in the upper discs, but the Sire had underwater rooms that opened on the ocean's flora and fauna. Fish, jellyfish, corals, sea turtles all swam outside of their rooms.
"Neat!" Emma-lin said, delighted, as colorful fish passed by the glass opening. Iso-bel took a picture of her. "Hey, look, there's even a flyer with the names and images of what we see!"
She flipped through the pages as Iso-bel looked over her shoulder.
"Hey, I wonder if we'll see a shark!" she commented. "Oh, look at this beast! A-ha, so that's what they look like!"
"A whale! I'd love to see that!" Emma-lin's eyes were wide in wonder. "It's like visiting an aquarium!"
"Except we're the ones locked in." Iso-bel chuckled. "That fish is probably wondering what we are!"
Emma-lin giggled. "I've never been the object of study by a fish!"
"There's always a first time! Did you know the dolphins and whales of Earth were aware of Saurian control while the Humanoids were not? Dolphins were the ones who petitioned the High Council!"
"Aah, that's why they're not really coming over to see us... they know us! So you think we can talk with them?"
"If they come close enough, why not?"
Iso-bel chuckled and sent the picture to Kim-ash, then they went out again.
Jon showed them around the shopping capital of the Middle East, took them to the top of the tallest man-made building of the world, the Burj Khalifa, to see the landscape, and then he left them to their own devices around lunchtime. They knew where to take the ferry back to the hotel whenever they tired of exploring malls and souks and the city itself.
A visit to the Bollywod Parks was necessary for Iso-bel since her grandfather and his partner had loved to dance to Bollywo
od tunes, and she wouldn't miss the Krrish ride for anything. The others humored her and actually enjoyed it. They did the Ra.One ride and a couple more, and then dined at the park before splitting.
Iso-bel and Jes-syd decided to watch the sunset from the beach. They sat on the sand of crushed shell and coral that gleamed white under the last rays of sun. They saw the Carian couple flying towards the setting sun and envied their wings for a moment. The Carians didn't even need to take the ferry back to the hotel.
When the sun vanished below the horizon, they took their clothes off and went skinny dipping in the sea, staying close to the coast since they weren't used to the waves and the currents. They could swim, but the ocean intimidated them.
While they sat on the beach to dry themselves in the cooling air of the night, a solitary sperm whale stopped by to say hello. She was old and tired, and had seen so much happening on the planet – barely escaping death dozens of times until whaling was finally forbidden – but she was so happy to meet two alien Humanoids she could talk to, that she offered to take them to their hotel on her back.
Delighted, Iso-bel rode the cachalot holding to Jes-syd's waist while he held to the whale's blowhole. They asked her why she had wandered into the Persian Gulf, and she answered she was going home.
She deposited them at the hotel's pier and they thanked her for her kindness. They watched her swim away and head for the beach. As soon as she was stranded, a beam hit her and she vanished.
"I guess she had a rendezvous with a starship orbiting Gaia," Jes-syd said with a grin. "I sure hope she has a safe trip to her home world."
Iso-bel sighed. "Let's get some sleep."
As they went down to their rooms, they exchanged a long kiss in the elevator and another in the corridor between their rooms.
Then they said good-night and opened their room doors. Iso-bel stepped in and gasped. Emma-lin and Ran-ald were on one of the single beds, naked and wrapped in bed sheets, fast asleep in each other's arms.
Iso-bel smiled and retreated quietly. She went to knock on Jes-syd's door. He opened with a worried look on his face.
"Ran-ald is not here..."
"He's over there with Emma-lin," she said, pushing him inside the room. "I think we can share the room for the rest of the trip – or at least tonight!"
Jes-syd brightened and put the "do not disturb" sign on the door.
They had already had sex during the three years they'd been together, but doing it in an underwater room opening on an aquarium made all the difference.
Iso-bel nestled against Jes-syd and dozed off, happy.
***
The wakeup call meant that Iso-bel crossed Ran-ald in the corridor before going back to her room. The boy avoided her gaze and Emma-lin's usually pale complexion was as red as her hair when Iso-bel got in the room.
"I don't know what possessed us, it was those dolphins!" She whined, quickly repacking while Iso-bel put on a clean shirt after a trip to the bathroom.
"The dolphins made you have sex with Ran-ald?" she asked, amused.
"I... yes! Well, they sent us those soothing messages and their dance outside the window was so mesmerizing and..."
Iso-bel chuckled. "And now you regret it? Or have you changed your mind about Ran-ald?"
Emma-lin scowled. "I bet you were happy to spend the night with Jes-syd."
"Don't change subject, Emma-lin. Was it a good time?"
"Um... yes..." Emma-lin looked away as she muttered something else. But her mind was shielded, and Iso-bel assumed she didn't want to talk about it. She shook her head and finished packing.
They headed for breakfast in the upper disk and saw the Carians at another table.
"We won't fly off again," Haopia assured. "See you at the shuttle."
Emma-lin and Ran-ald avoided each other's stare and Jes-syd raised his eyebrow, skeptical.
What did he tell you? Iso-bel transmitted.
The dolphins made them do it. Jes-syd rolled his eyes.
Why not? She smiled. They are the other intelligent species on this world... They can't communicate with the locals, but with Sire telepaths? Piece of cake!
Jes-syd grinned. I guess you're right, honey. They'll have to get over it. I think they quite enjoyed each other's company anyway.
Gaia's magic... Iso-bel thought about what awaited them, the next stop where Kol-ian Vaurabi had spent years and her father merely days. I think Delhi will make them fall into each other's arms. And they won't be able to blame the dolphins! Or whales!
After breakfast, they grabbed their backpacks and took the ferry. Henry waited for them on the pier and they were the last onboard, since the Carians had flown ahead of the ferry. But they were perfectly on time to start their next leg of the trip. New Delhi was only a couple of hours away, it would be one of the shortest traveling time of their journey around Earth.
"Delhi used to be the capital of the country called India," Jon said. "It's a city that bridges past and present – great historical past and even greater present. Once upon a time part of that empire I mentioned in London, it is now a free city with interstellar spaceport and all the facilities you could wish for. The metropolis has expanded through the centuries, and it has been built and destroyed many times. You will see the difference between Old Delhi and New Delhi with your own eyes."
Iso-bel was very excited at the thought of walking the same streets her father and his uncle had walked so many years before. She'd have to send copies of the pictures to Kol-ian, the other half of her grandfather Ker-ris who still called him "my wicked brother-in-law" after thirty-five years since his wife's death and thirty-four of undying love and mind link.
They all had rooms at the Taj Mahal Hotel New Delhi in the heart of Lutyen, featuring modern Indian-style decor and luxurious rooms with a view. Since they wouldn't visit the real thing, they may as well sleep in a place called like the ivory-white marble mausoleum commissioned in 1632 by the Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan, to house the tomb of his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal.
"I bet Hian and Haopia will fly there, since it's such a monument to conjugal love," Emma-lin said. Again she shared the room with Iso-bel, but hopefully after another couple of nights she'd finally agree to sleep with Ran-ald.
"One should spend years exploring here," Iso-bel replied, looking out of the window. "I mean on this planet."
"We're not all Kol-ian Vaurabi, who was on the run anyway." Emma-lin shrugged.
"Let's go, we have only one night here, since it's so close to Dubai!"
They barely dropped their backpacks before joining the rest of the group for their city tour with Jon in what felt like scorching heat to Iso-bel. Again sunglasses protected her eyes from the bright sun.
She took off her shoes and walked on the red bricks of Shah Jahan's mosque, then enjoyed a rickshaw ride through the alleys around it. She took off her shoes again to walk through a Sikh temple and on the warm marble of its artificial lake. In the mosque she had to cover her body, in the temple her hair.
Locals constantly asked for pictures with her and her friends, which was kind of fun. Her pale skin, but mostly Emma-lin's hair were truly exotic, especially for the children. She declined men's requests, but couldn't say not to youngsters.
She stared at the top of the Qutub Minar – the tallest brick minaret in the world – trying to imagine a young Kol-ian Vaurabi with retractile wings brooding up there. It wasn't easy in plain daylight.
She took as many pictures as she could, and her feet hurt that night when she finally made it to bed, but she was happy. She had seen everything she wanted to see on Earth, now she could relax until the end of the trip.
Emma-lin was unusually quiet, so they switched off the light barely saying good-night to each other. Iso-bel hoped her friend was considering switching rooms, and then she fell asleep, dreaming of spending the rest of the journey in Jes-syd's bed.
***
Flying to Tokyo took five hours and a half after a final morning spent in Delhi. They left afte
r an early lunch and landed in Tokyo for dinner, which they had at the hotel's restaurant. Jon and Henry sat at a nearby table and they could hear their conversation or pretend to ignore it.
"Are we on Xi-kong?" Jyrki asked, noticing how the locals looked different from the rest of the world.
"China and Japan have people like the Xi-kongians," Iso-bel told him. "And the continent called Africa would make you think you've just landed on Ulba'wis – although in centuries past they've been taken everywhere as slaves, so now you find them also in Europe and North America."
"You are well-versed in Earth's history," Jon said, staring admiringly at her.
"My father likes illuminated manuscripts and calligraphy and he has transmitted his love for history to me," she answered with a shrug.
"Not to mention that he's the nephew of Kol-ian Vaurabi," Jes-syd added with a chuckle.
"Would you like to become a guide?" John suggested. "The company I work for is always looking for guides willing to show the planet..."
"You must love a place to guide people through it," Iso-bel replied. "And I'm barely starting to know Earth."
"Well, you know more of Earth than I will ever know of Marc'harid." Jon shrugged.
"Would you like me to tell you some stories of our planet?" Emma-lin suggested with an impish smile.
Ran-ald glared at her, but she ignored him.
That guy is old, Jes-syd transmitted. I sure hope she's not going to have sex with him only to spite Ran-ald!
Maybe she's actually trying to force Ran-ald to do the next move, Iso-bel transmitted back as Jon muttered and excuse and looked away. He was probably aware of the age difference and didn't want to mix work and pleasure, especially not with a young telepath.
Emma-lin shrugged and looked at the three single travelers at their table. "Are you guys married?"
"No," Jyrki answered. "I don't have time for a relationship."
"I have a betrothed," Fikri added. "But she didn't want to visit this backward planet – although it's less backward than expected, so I'll make sure to come back with her."
"It looks like a great place for a honeymoon," Iso-bel said, staring eagerly at the Carian couple who nodded.
Star Minds Third Generation Snippets Page 5