Chapter Six
The pod plunged downward, and all I could think was how nicely pointed the treetops were—perfect for popping bubbles.
Then a puff of wind caught the pod, and with a jerk we went airborne. The pod spun dizzyingly, the world a churning mash of ground, sky, and spaceship—and stabilized at last. Above my head the bubble gleamed like polished glass, and above that…
“Your planet is very beautiful,” Meervit said quietly in my ear. “And I have seen quite a lot of them.”
There was the sky, in all its nighttime splendor. It was one of those rare, clear winter nights; the moon, almost full, hung high like a silver coin, and stars pierced the black of the sky like diamond dust.
And I was finally outside the ship, for the first time in… I’d lost track of the days. Buoyed by the light b
