“I feel as if the ground ought to bump and sway like the plane,” said Nora, with a giggle. “You know — like when we get out of a boat.”
“Well, I jolly well hope it doesn’t,” said Jack. “I don’t want an earthquake just at present.”
The sun was very hot. Pilescu got out some marvellous sun-hats for the five children and for himself and Ranni too. They had a sort of veil hanging down from the back to protect their spines from the sun. None of them were wearing very many clothes, but even so they felt very hot.
“I’m jolly thirsty,” said Mike, mopping his head. “Let’s have a drink, Ranni.”
They all drank lemonade, sitting in the shade of the plane. The sun was now getting low, and Pilescu looked at the time.
“There’s nothing more we can do today,” he said. “Tomorrow we will find some local people and see what we can get out of them by questioning them. Ranni thinks he can make them understand, for he picked up some of their language when he was here hunting animals for the Baronian Zoo.”
“Well, surely we haven’t got to go to bed already?” asked Nora in dismay. “Aren’t we going to explore a bit?”
“There won’t be time — the sun is setting already,” said Ranni. As he spoke the sun disappeared over the horizon, and darkness fell around almost at once. The children were surprised.
“Day went into night, and there was no evening,” said Nora, looking round. “The stars are out, look! Oh, Mike — Jack — aren’t they enormous?”
So they were. They seemed far bigger and brighter than at home. The children sat and looked at them, feeling almost afraid of their strange beauty.