In the morning he lazed about the camp with Santee while Cully, after a last tune-up of the limping engine, lifted the sled toward the sea with Kimber as the first passenger. It was an hour before the sled returned and the engineer ordered Dard into the listing craft. They flew slowly, skimming the barrier, and Cully did not take him all the way down the sea valley to the cliff house, but dropped him with his pack at the edge of the ancient fields.
Dard swished through the tall grass. He could see people moving in the distant fields, more of them than had been about when he had left. More of tthee sleepers had probably been aroused.
Then a clear, lilting whistle announced the boy, some years younger than himself, who came driving before him three calves. He stopped short when he caught sight of the battered explorer and smiled.
“Hi! You’re Dard Nordis, ain’t you? Say, you musta had yourself a time-seein’ them ruined cities and the lizards and all! I’m gonna go out and see ’em, too-when I can get Dad to let me. I’m Lanny Harmon. Can you wait ’til I stake out these critters? I’d like to go back with you.”
“Sure.” Dard eased his pack to the ground and watched Lanny tether the calves in the pasture.
“They sure do like this kinda grass,” the farm boy explained as he came back. “Hey, let me carry that there pack for you. Mr. Kimber said you had a big fight with some giant lizards. Are they worse’n those flyin’ dragons?”
“They sure are,” Dard replied feelingly. “Say, is everybody awake now?”
“Everybody’s that’s goin’ to.” A shadow darkened the boy’s face for a moment. “Six didn’t come through. Dr. Skort-but you knew ’bout him, and Miz Winson, and Miz Grene, Looie Denton and a coupla men I didn’t know. But the rest, they’re all right. We were awful lucky. Whee- look out!”
Dard overbalanced as he tied to stop in mid-step and landed on the ground beside Lanny who had squatted down to sweep away the grass and display a dome of mud- plastered leaves and grass.
“What in the world?”