Virginia Hamilton by The Gathering: The Justice Cycle (Book Three) Page B

have to have plants and grass and food for their spirit. You can’t just serve them little pills of food and stuff. And all of it done in that breakneck speed—that’s what’s so fantastic about computer machines.”
    “Do you ... do you think there was war?” Levi said. It had been on his mind, making him irritable. There was that troubling thought that life on earth had ended and then been re-created in this Origin. “Is Dustland the whole world? Asia and Europe and everywhere? With just the domes as what’s left of the living?”
    “Well, I mean to ask,” Justice said. “I don’t really want to. Who wants to know that part? But we have to, don’t we?”
    Levi sighed, and nodded. Dorian, being healer, projected soothing thoughts to them. He touched their shoulders and brought calming insight to them. Levi thought to tell them how really well he felt.
    “Something in the air does it. I feel better, too,” Dorian said. “Lee, I bet you’ll be real better when we get back home.”
    They hurried to catch up with Celester and Thomas, who were talking quietly as they strolled along.
    “Excuse me,” Justice said, “but I want to know where you’re taking us, Celester. And what happened to everybody?”
    Celester turned his pale, liquid gaze on her. They, had stopped now, bunched around Celester on the path.
    “I mean you no harm,” he toned, with such vibrant melody Justice felt almost ashamed of herself for questioning him.
    Celester tilted his head toward her. There was a warm, deepening shade in his eyes. And if it were possible for a face without expression to smile, his did, through his eyes. Gently he reached out and touched her cheek.
    She suddenly felt like the kid she was back home, needing someone to protect her. Celester. Someone like her dad. Her dad and her mom.
    Home!
    But the moment of longing passed as swiftly as it had come. She was moving again along the walkway with the others and Celester. Feathery plantings fell away and left off completely. They walked within splendid gardens that were part of terraced lands. The huge terraces were landscaped into stairs leading to the hydrafields below. Lovely, scented plantings carpeted the terraces. Trees were uniformly small and neat, silver, green or orange. Water bubbled from the ground, flowing in a stream down the terraces.
    Creatures the size of chipmunks and the color of lemons, with the transparent, shiny wings of dragonflies, darted here and there among the foliage.
    Taking it all in, the four sat down, gingerly making themselves comfortable in a circular area of low, spongy ground cover. They were bunched close together. Here they felt strongly the presence of the dome, with themselves locked within it. The domity had a murmuring, vibrating sound. They sensed the thudding of hydrapumps. The undercurrent of sound, the sunshine and shade made them feel lightheaded.
    Where had the shade come from? Justice wondered. She looked up, seeing fluffy clouds above the terraces. Gentle rain caught in the sun rays before falling like a mist onto the terraces. Light and shade, misty rain, thudding and murmuring of pumps and the alien landscaping produced an atmosphere beyond mystery.
    “It can rain in a dome?” Dorian whispered, barely moving his lips.
    “It can,” responded Celester, kneeling beside them. “It can snow as well. Most atmos phenomena can happen in domity. We do compute the most suitable climate for all. Yet the soil plain, human breathing and perspiration often change the balance. We constantly readjust climate.”
    Darkest shades hung above the far fields. Rain sprayed, sparkling in the sunlight. They heard a clear voice in the distance. It was a golden, angel sound, yet somehow artificial. The Voice sang in falsetto with tones trembling in a high register. As the sound grew louder, they could tell it was too full for solo singing.
    Out of the gray underbelly of a full-blown cloud came a floating vehicle. It hung motionless in space,