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Here, today—Hrunk's attention moved to those on the plaza between him and the trees. There were some—old cobbers and many from the proper current generation—who raised their arms to the sun and then lowered them to embrace the earth and the promise that the long sleep should represent.
But the air around them was mild as a summer evening in the Middle Years. And the ground was warm, as if the sun of the Middle Years had just set and left the afternoon heat to seep up at them. Most of the people around them were not acknowledging the departure of light. They were laughing, singing—and their clothes were as bright and expensive as if they'd never given any thought to the future. Maybe the rich had always been like that.
The cool-colored lights in the trees must be powered by the main fission plant that U
In the forest, the people danced in piles, and some of the youngest ones ran up into the trees to play with the fairies. The music became frantic as they walked to the center of the grove and started up a gentle incline that would lead to the bottom estates. By now he was used to the sight of out-of-phase people. Even though his instincts still called them a perversion, they really were necessary. He liked and respected many of them. On either side of him, Arla and Brun were unobtrusively clearing the way for him. Both his guards were oophase, about twenty years old, just a little younger than Little Victory must be now. They were good cobbers, as good as any he had ever fought alongside of. Yes, case by case, Hrunkner U
"Hey, old fellow, come dance with us!" Two young ladies and a male pounced on him. Somehow Arla and Brun got him free, all the time pretending to be jolly dancers themselves. In the darkened space beneath one tree, U
U
The three walked higher and higher, up the first slopes of the crater wall. Ahead, the mansions of the Late Waning stretched in a ring of light all the way around the wall. Of course, none of these was more than ten years old, but most were built in the parasol-and-bauble style of the last generation. The buildings were new, but the money and the families were old. Almost every estate was a radial property, extending up the crater wall. The mansions of the early waning, halfway up the wall, were often dark, their open architecture unusable. U
Between the lights of the bottom forest and the ring of estates, there was shadow. The woodsfairies took off, their wings faintly glistening, to fly back to the bottom. The sulfur smell was faint, not as sharp as the clean chill of the air. Above them, the sky was dark but for the stars and the pale disk of the sun. That was real, the Dark. U
Arla Undergate's answer was serious. "I'd opt for the mob, of course. But...that was very strange."
"Scary, you mean." Brun sounded downright uneasy.
"Yeah," said Arla. "But did you notice? A lot of those cobbers were scared, too. I don't know, it's like they're all—we're all—lazy woodsfairies. When you look up andsee the Dark, when you see that the sun has died...you feel awfully small."
"Yeah." U
"C'mon. The funicular station is around here someplace."
FORTY-ONE
Most of the midlevel mansions were huge things, stone and heavy timber frontis-halls, extending back to natural caves in the crater wall. Hrunkner had been expecting some kind of "Hill House South," but in fact Underhill's place was a disappointment. It looked like a guest house for one of the real mansions, and much of the space inside was shared with security staff, doubled now that the chief was in residence. U
"Sergeant?" It was General Smith, standing in the doorway. "Sorry for the delay." She wore an unmarked quartermaster uniform, very much like Strut Greenval used to wear. Her figure was almost as lean and delicate as ever, though her gestures seemed a little inflexible. Hrunkner followed her back through the security section, and then up winding wooden stairs. "We've had some good luck on this one, Sergeant, you catching Sherk and me so close to your discovery."
"Yes, ma'am. Rachner Thract set up the itinerary." The stairs circled round and round between jade walls. Closed doors and an occasional darkened room showed to the sides. "Where are the children?" The question slipped thoughtlessly out of him.
Smith hesitated, certainly looking for some complaint in his words. "...Junior enlisted a year ago."
That he had heard. It had been so long since he had seen Little Victory. He wondered how she would like the military. She had always seemed a tough little cobblie, but with a piece of Sherkaner's whimsy. He wondered if Rhapsa and Little Hrunk might still be around.
The stairs emerged from the crater wall. This part of the residence presumably had existed in the early part of the Waning Years. But where before there had been open courts and patios, now triple-paned quartz stood strong against the Dark. It dimmed all the far colors, but the view was naked and stark. The city lights glittered across the bottomland, circling the heat-red lake at the center. A cold fog hung in the air above the water. It glowed dimly with all the light from below. The General pulled the shades on the view as they ascended toward what must have been the original owner's high perch.