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It was cold and dark in the bottom of the canyon. Anneyn climbed carefully upwards toward the dawning sky, rocks and pebbles clattering lightly under her feet.
In the dim light were many kinds of strange plants, some with formidable thorns. Touching one proved to be a stupid idea.
She’d read about and seen numerous videos of planet Earth, but being here was absolutely astonishing. The air smelled fresh and clean and alive, with subtle notes of some cool, spicy fragrance perhaps from a plant.
Overhead, the sky was lightening on one side. That had to be east. This was West Texas, U.S.A., a canyon below the University of Texas McDonald Observatory, or so she hoped, if the computer’s research map had been correct.
Eventually she reached the top of the canyon to discover a hard, smooth surface along the crest, extending out of sight around curves both above and below her. A highway, she realized. And there! There was the observatory: two silver domes on two peaks a good ways off, glinting softly in the first light.
That’s what I want, Anneyn thought. Sucking her prickled finger in the dawn stillness, she began walking up the road toward the observatory.
After rounding two or three curves it had grown light enough to see the horizon. The view was stupendous. Hills and mountains receded into the distance, in a silence that could almost be heard. The curvature of the earth was visible, yet impossibly far away. A contrail marked the sky, high overhead like a silver scratch. Had the escape pod made one earlier? She had no idea.
The pod had landed in the edge of a range of rugged desert mountains, in one of many canyons that opened out to a giant plain in front of her.
Looking down and to one side she could see that the canyon she had clambered out of was full of huge boulders at the bottom. There were small trees here and there, and more clumps of low trees in adjacent canyons. She'd been expecting a denser forest, but perhaps this area was too dry to support one.
There seemed to be only one highway across the plain. Where it disappeared among the hills on the horizon, a handful of lights twinkled dimly. If that was a town, it was the only one around for as far as she could see.
Walking in the silent, chill air was exhilarating. Her shoes made a crunching sound in the gravel just off the pavement, but progress was easier, quieter, and faster on the hard, black surface. The cool, gentle breeze smelled wonderful.
She became aware of a sound down the highway behind her. At first a faint sigh, it grew louder, and she had almost decided to jump down into the canyon when two lights appeared.
It was an automobile, a vehicle used for transport.
In no time at all it passed her, and then red lights brightened on the back end. It stopped, two white lights came on, and it slowly rolled back to where she stood. A glass panel slid down. She had almost decided to run for the canyon when a woman's head appeared in the opening and a voice said, "Hey, miss, you need a ride?"
Anneyn forced herself to act calmly and stepped toward the automobile. The dark face in the window was smiling, and the voice had been kindly.
Finally, she stammered "Oh, thank you, no. I'm just walking up to the observatory."
"Oooh, that's a long walk on a cold morning," the woman said. "I work there. That's where I'm going. Get in. I'll give you a ride."
She had seen enough movies to know that passengers rode next to the driver, so she walked to the other side, quickly studied the handle mechanism, opened the door, and got in. The car gathered speed up the mountain.
Who should speak first?
Fortunately, the woman spoke again.
"Going all the way to the observatory! They don't open for visitors until nine o'clock! You’ll have to wait. You want to see the stars?"
"Uh, no, ma’am. I want to talk to the director, to Dr. Harcroft."
"I know him! My name is Mrs. Delbosque. I clean his office! That Dr. Harcroft, he's a very smart man. He knows everything about the stars. But he's very messy. You wouldn't believe the mess he makes in just one day.”
“That would be wonderful, Mrs. Delbosque...” I need a name! My family name? I know there’s a similar name used on earth.
“My name is, uh, Darcy.”
“Well, Darcy, I can show you his office. Those people, they stay up all night looking through their telescopes, but they sleep late. You might not see him until lunch time. I hope you are patient."
Smiling, she nodded at the driver—a bit of good fortune, perhaps. There's one thing less to worry about. If only the rest went as smoothly.
