Unbondable by Evangeline Anderson

Author:Evangeline Anderson [Anderson, Evangeline]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Evangeline Anderson

Nineteen

It turned out to be a really good thing Raak had the big adjustable sunshades because the surface of Xephron Five was even brighter than it had appeared on the viewscreen.

Everywhere Kara looked she saw nothing but reflective surfaces. It was, she thought, like walking through the hall of mirrors at a carnival she’d visited with her mom once, down on Earth.

It was really hard to tell where they had landed and what was around them due to the fact that all the surfaces were covered in the mirror-like finish but Kara thought they might be surrounded by some kind of plants. Plants with really big leaves that showed her own reflection when she tried to examine them, which was beyond strange.

“Where are the people?” she asked Raak as she carefully touched one of the leaves to see if the mirrored surface was hard or soft. To her surprise, it was, in fact, soft and flexible, just like a plant leaf back home.

“You’re touching one right now.” Raak sounded amused.

The leaves of the “plant” Kara was touching rustled and a high, tinkling voice like glass wind chimes said,

“Greetings, visitors.”

“Oh!” Kara dropped the “leaf” she’d been fondling and jumped back, her head swirling with questions.

What if the leaf wasn’t a leaf at all? What if she’d just been groping a strange alien like some kind of pervert? Maybe she’d actually been stroking a breast or a…but it didn’t bear thinking about.

“I’m so sorry!” she babbled to the creature she’d mistaken for a mirrored plant. “I didn’t know you were sentient! I’ve never been here before.”

“No offense is taken, visitor,” the tinkling voice told her. “We are unlike your kind and you are unlike us, as you sadly have no reflective surfaces.”

“Oh, um, yes. Very sad,” Kara agreed quickly, trying to be polite. She was relieved the plant creature didn’t seem to think she’d been groping it.

“Greetings,” Raak said to the mirrored plant person formally. “We have come to make exchanges with your Kaji, Qi.” He pronounced the name like “Kwi” with a long I sound.

“Ah, yes—I am certain our Kaji will be pleased to see you,” the plant person said, rustling its leaves again. “But you must be willing to enter his Palace of the Unseen. Will you do so?”

“Gladly,” Raak said, nodding again. “If you would please lead the way?”

“Of course.” The mirrored leaves rustled again. “Come.”

It started moving off from them and Kara hastened to follow. She was trying to keep her eyes on the plant person and not lose it in the forest of other, almost exactly similar creatures, but it was almost impossible. Everywhere she looked, there were plant people with huge, mirrored leaves that reflected her own image back to her.

It really is like a hall of mirrors, Kara thought as she and Raak made their way through the bewildering maze. How in the world does anyone know where they’re going around here?

But no matter how strange it was, Raak seemed to know exactly where he was headed.

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