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| The Crescent Lake |
1. Low
-Coldplay
"Better a diamond with a flaw, than a pebble without."
-Confucius
UFOtext=
I. London Town
The cold sun greeted the New Year. London Town awakened, & the rosy spirit of Christmas passed away like a dream in the night.
"Where is the Yin diamond now?" asked the Count.
"Who can say for sure. The mystery of the missing Yin & Yang diamonds now becomes a perfect symmetry- two black shooting stars lost in a blink of galactic history."
The Count smiled faintly- with irony. The eyes of Princess Lei fell stricken. The London Owl sat up high & unruffled.
"Listen." said the Count.
"Over the last few days I spoke with a few unsavory characters- business partners of Yogi, shall we say."
The Count then paused in a moment of thoughtful equilibrium. He continued.
"Yogi's fingerprints are on the Yin diamond. The highest black market bidders are to be found in the Far East. That leads to the trail of stars in the Silk Path. And that leads to a small island gateway- best known to smugglers & thieves."
"Kiritimati?" asked the Princess.
"No my Lady. The Pearl of Dreams is only a myth of the ancient Dark Island galactic dynasties. That is- a myth in the eyes of many, such as Yogi & the Mule- but a certain truth witnessed by our own eyes. And to our very own eyes we must be true."
The Count gazed warmly upon the Princess, as if she were an exotic jasmine bloom, forever open in the summer crescent of a tropical ring world.
"And the name of this gateway to the Silk Path?" asked the London Owl.
"To the people of the Far East, it is known as Yueyaquan. Others know it as the Crescent Lake- a small island of water in the vast inhospitable ocean of sand dunes known as the Gobi desert."
And the cold sun of London Town rose like a white moon in a vast ocean of invisible stars.
II. The Humming Dunes
Astira checked her i6 hyperspace link. No Joshua. Disappeared that one.
"No word." said Astira.
The Dragon stood, facing away and toward the high dunes. The red sun rapidly sank below the dunes. Suddenly, the stars lit up the visible dome of darkening sky.
"The Mule leads only to danger. The future of our galaxy remains in dark peril. Joshua is now one bright star missing from the sky."
Astira stood grim & silent. Only the mad eerie humming of the dunes could be heard. It never stopped. Ever. She quietly put away her i6.
"We need to pack up & load the sand crawler." said Jamu.
"We need to crawl at night when it is cool & we cannot be seen."
"You mean freezing cold at night- like witch's tit." said Astira.
She walked awkwardly in her trek boots, each step sinking ankle deep, trapped in loose packed sand. Frustrated, she quietly whispered a curse. Then, after tedious struggle, she finally jumped on board the low riding sand crawler. Relief.
Jamu mounted his camel & lead the sand crawler up the steep dune. Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks & turned around.
"Lay low. There's a ship!" whispered Jamu.
And no sooner had his words died on the humming dunes, the starless shadow of a huge black ship flew eerily silent over the small group of travelers.
"Who the hell flies so low & crazy?" hissed Astira.
The Dragon turned calmly to Astira.
"The Mule."
And the cold night stars carried only the humming of the dunes.
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