Acorna’s Search by Anne McCaffrey Read Free Book Online Page A

was a famous spot for lovers’ meetings, I think. I’m glad your dream was a happy and peaceful one. Let us turn our duties over to Maati and Thariinye, and perhaps you’ll find your parents again in your dreams.)
    (I hope so,) she said.
    But Acorna had no more dreams during the rest of the night. It was a quiet one, with none of the alarms and emergencies that had marred their last stay at this place. Even Roadkill stayed out of trouble, using his new commode when the occasion arose, disappointing the plants.
    In the morning, the four Linyaari, machetes and toporecorders in hand, and their cat, his claws and fangs ready for trouble, began to survey the area.
    As cold as the night had been, the day was hot. The thin atmosphere made for extreme temperatures in both directions and the plant cover seemed to emit heat of its own as the day drew on. The plants also emitted something else, something that made all of the Linyaari itch. In the end, they controlled their reaction by healing each other with their horns periodically. RK was not so troubled. When he accidentally brushed against one of the carnivorous plants and felt it shrink from him, he amused himself by charging it, clawing its stem, and peeing on its roots. If his smug expression was any indication, he enjoyed the process mightily.
    The tasks they were engaged in were tedious, the whole process of the survey was slow going, and being where they where was depressing because of all of the associations the Linyaari had with this place. To see it in its present state and contrast that with what had once been there was heartbreaking.
     
     
     
    “We used to swim in the lake,” Aari said. “Laarye and I would jump from the ledge at the top of the waterfall and dive into the pool at its base. It terrified my parents when we did that. We’d have big parties there—here.”
    “I think we’re about in the middle of where the lake once was now,” Acorna told him. She was shin-deep in some sort of itchy slime she hoped, for everybody’s sake but especially RK’s, was not terribly toxic. The cat was sulking a short way away, pretending to bask in the sun and sending resentful looks toward Maati, upon whose shoulders he had been riding until the girl shooed him away with an unusual show of irritability. The cat, even with his coat grown back to only half its length, was an uncomfortable neckpiece to wear in the heat of the days here. This place was right on the equator of Vhiliinyar, even though their altitude saved them from some of the worst effects. Acorna pitied the teams at the lower elevations who would be getting the worst of the heat. They were suffering enough right here.
    At least it would cool off later. During the cool nights they’d spent in this place, the stars had shone brightly in the thin atmosphere, and the bright sphere of the Moon of Opportunity had reflected the glory of Vhiliinyar’s sun with a comforting glow. It had seemed a remarkably stable and benevolent beacon compared to the planet’s volatile surface.
    Just as Acorna thought that, the ground rumbled and trembled beneath their feet and suddenly a great jet of water burst from the surface into the air, spewing the smell of rotten eggs into the skies along with thousands of gallons of yellowish water. All around them, including from one nasty vent just under Acorna’s feet—feet which she had to shift in a hurry—smaller eruptions imitated the large one, as the earth suddenly boiled with scalding hot mud and water.
    Suddenly there was a cat-colored blur as RK streaked back toward the flitter.
    The Linyaari didn’t even stop to think. RK clearly had the right idea. They took off after their cat, moving as fast as they could through the unstable ground. Suddenly Thariinye cried out. They turned around to see that he had become much shorter—or rather he appeared to have done so. A closer look revealed that he had sunk into the ground, and his struggles were only sinking him faster.