Against the backdrop of civil unrest, the ship calls in at one of Solbrecht's spaceports, providing the opportunity for several members of the crew to return home. As they deal with family matters, Raeth decides to investigate the increased hatred a...
Author's note: For this chapter some very special thanks are in order. I would like to thank Lyssl, the creator of the Orkeht race. You are no longer here with us and hopefully you're in a better place right now. May you rest in peace. I feel like I'm carrying a huge legacy and I would like to do it with the utmost respect. Thank you so much for being a part of this fandom. Your creations will live on. I hope you don't mind that I've used your old nickname for a character of mine.
I would also like to extend my thanks to Arrow Tibbs, for allowing me to use the name of Lanali for Baika's little sister. You've become a good friend and a great help with preserving the little bits of what's left of this fandom. Thanks for reading my stories and for inspiring me.
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Baika, Jacky and Freya
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Original artwork by EpsilonGruis
"That's it! That's our dome!" Baika cheered, pointing at the bright reflections of the sun on the roof of transparent panels that covered her community.
Having dropped the shuttle from its high altitude flight down to about a hundred steps above the great savannas of southern Solbrecht below, Freya slowed its forward momentum, steering the shuttle using the control yoke extended from the console, scattering one of the huge herds of grazing rehkaana as they passed low overhead. With Baika as her copilot and navigator she had managed to beeline to her friend's home, passing over several other communities like it. All of them seemed to be located close to the small lakes that dotted the vast dry grasslands with their scattered trees and large patches of jungle-like greenery like small oases in these hot dry parts.
One thing that the southern Orkeht tribes, collectively known as the Oghuni Teh Neywa had in common was the shared roof, which collected solar energy, filtered UV radiation, provided localized on-demand spots of shade and offered shelter against the rain. In addition to that, the climate below the dome was regulated to maintain optimal conditions in all seasons. This was as far as these specific tribes went in utilizing technology to make their lives easier, for despite the conveniences offered by the communal roof, they still lived in a strictly traditional way.
"And that's the city we sometimes trade with," Baika explained further.
She pointed at a collection of skyscrapers not far from her community's roof, which Freya estimated couldn't be more than a cycle's walk from her home. Leaning over her friend's shoulder from the seat behind her as they approached the small landing zone just outside the dome, Jacky couldn't stay silent either.
"Wow, I can't wait to see it."
"You won't have to for much longer," Baika laughed. "I'm gonna give you girls the grand tour." Her excited tail slapped Jacky's leg by accident. "Whoops, uiisa."
The landing zone was nothing more than a flat patch of grass on which only one other craft was parked and that one seemed configured for atmospheric flight only. From their point up in the sky, they could see straight through the dome which appeared to hold an entire village underneath, as well as a huge tree in the center of which the crown almost came close to meeting the panels at the top.
