Chapter 8

The City of Ib

            After giving Jonah a chance to take in the full view of the city from the outside, Rasheed had the clockwork horses pull them up to the gate where he hopped down from the cart and approached the recess which held a single Ibian. 

            “Purpose?” It asked, looking up at Rasheed.

            Rasheed looked down at the Ibian.  It was around four and a half feet tall with dark green scaly skin that was speckled with light brown motes.  It wore a dark gray uniform of military design with a small hat that was shaped like a little paper boat that sat upon its head. 

            The Ibian's head was almost humanoid in its shape, though larger than a human's head in relation to the rest of its body.  It only had slits where its ears and nose would be if it were human and its black eyes were large, oversized almost, compared to the rest of its face.  Its mouth was extremely wide with thin lips and razor sharp teeth that looked as if they could bite right through bone if necessary.  It looked up at Rasheed with apparent irritation as it waited for him to respond.

            “Cut the crap Ikthis,” Rasheed said smiling at the little Ibian.  “I am here to trade, as always.”

            “Approached the city from the wrong direction, you did,” The Ibian countered.  “Approach from the south, you do, when coming to trade with Ib, Rasheed.” 

            “I'm trying a new route.  Thought I would try my hand at perishables from the fields of New Cardeth, see how well they do here.  If they sell as well as I am hoping, then I will be altering my whole route to come here whenever I travel between New Babylon and New Cardeth.”

            “Ah, I see.”  Ikthis said seeming to cheer up.  “Wishing luck on your trading, I do.”

            “Oh, and one last thing, I have need of a doctor while here.  We got attacked on the wastes before we reached the ferry at the Thane River and had a major injury.”

            “Injury, you say?”  The Ibian asked looking concerned.  “Your daughter, so lovely, I do not see.  Injured, she is?”

            “Actually no.”  Rasheed replied.  “She is fine.  It is her betrothed, Jonah.  He was injured by one of the shapeless when he pushed her out of the way of its attack.”

            “One more, you have, than usual?  Been here before, has he?”

            “No, he has never been out of New Cardeth before.”

            “Then registered, he must be.  Time, there will be for that later.  Doctor, he must have soon.” The Ibian typed something into a device hidden below the window of the recess.  “Upon entering, met by hospital attendants, you will be.  Take care, we shall, of this Jonah.  Wedding, planned to hold, when is it?”

            “Not sure, they haven't discussed it as far as I know.  We may be here for a while depending on how long it will take for Jonah to heal, so we may have it while we are here, if they wish it.”

            “Have it here, they should. Coming soon, the Ceremony of the Moons shall be.  Special, this ceremony is.  Eclipsed by Sila, Illsa shall be.  Very rare event, is it, for eclipse Sila, Ilsa does normally.  On that night, very special ceremony shall occur.  Perfect for weddings, it is, when love runs true.  Integrated into ceremony, the wedding shall be, if desired.”

            “Really?”  Rasheed replied looking pleased.  “I will discuss it with them and maybe they will do it.  It would be an honor if they could.”

            “Great honor indeed.”  The little Ibian replied seeming to smile.  “Open the gate, now, I shall, met by attendants, you will be.”

            Rasheed returned to the cart and climbed aboard as the massive gate pulled back slightly before lifting quickly into the wall above.  Rasheed drove the cart forward and into the city beyond the gateway. 

            Once they passed through the gate and reached the other side, Jonah could see an elaborate network of gears.  The gate started to shut behind them once the cart was clear giving Jonah a glimpse of how the door worked as the gears churned, first lowering the gate then pushing it forward into the wall, sealing them into the city. 

            All around them, Ibians of all different color combinations walked on the sides of the wide street that the humans found themselves on.  Some of the Ibians stopped to look at the group curiously while others ignored them completely.  Jonah, upon seeing the Ibians en masse, realized that the only way he could tell the difference between the males and the females was by the clothing that they wore.  Other than that, they all appeared to be the same.  He mentioned this to Alissa who giggled at his ignorance, and she informed him that supposedly the only part of them that was different between them was a single piece of anatomy that made them female or male.  Even that was questionable because if the female to male ratio became unbalanced for any reason, they were capable of changing sex in order to keep the population numbers up.  He asked her how they breastfed their young since all of the Ibians appeared to be flat chested, and was informed that they did not have the need.  The Ibian young, she informed him, were hatched from eggs and were developed enough to start eating solid foods as they emerged from the egg. 

            Just inside the gate Rasheed drew the cart to a stop and informed the group that they were waiting for an attendant from the hospital that was supposed to meet them to tend to Jonah.  Within minutes a sleek black vehicle that reminded Jonah of the horseless carriages of New Cardeth pulled up.  An Ibian, wearing a white uniform with a button-up top and skirt that stopped above its knees, got out and approached the group.

            “Greetings.”  She said, offering a curtsy to them.  “Thak, I am.  To Doctor Sliss, I am to take the one who is hurt?”

            Rasheed started.  “Thank you for coming so quickly.  The injured one is named Jonah.  He is on the back of the cart with my daughter.”

            Thak nodded, walked to the rear of the vehicle that she had driven up in and opened a hatch at the rear of it.  She pulled a large flat board out of the back that had a box attached to the side of it with strange glowing lights.  She carried it around the rear of the cart as Rasheed and Alissa were helping Jonah down from the cart. 

            Placing the board on the ground, she instructed them to place Jonah on the board, lying down.  When Jonah was on the board, she strapped him down securely with straps that could not be seen until Thak pulled them out of the board itself.  She then went around to the little box punched a couple of buttons, causing the board to lift itself up into the air, defying gravity. 

            Basheer, always curious, ran up to the board and looked under it.  Seeing nothing under it, his eyes widened and he excitedly told his father who, having noticed it himself, just nodded, not knowing what to say.  Alissa didn't seem fazed by the board that appeared to be floating on thin air; instead, she asked Thak if she could go with Jonah because she didn't want to leave him alone in a place he was unfamiliar with.  Thak agreed.  Thak then commented that they hadn’t had enough opportunities to study human females before and asked Alissa if she would mind submitting to a physical examination as well the possibility of an internal exam using their machines.  Grateful to be able to remain with Jonah, Alissa agreed. 

            Jonah was loaded into the back of the vehicle and, once the hatch was shut, both Thak and Alissa climbed into the front before driving off.

            Rasheed took Basheer, who was still commenting excitedly about the floating board, and loaded him back up on the cart.  Once again on the cart, Rasheed drove off heading toward the center of the city.  Just before he reached the massive square that held the statue with the Moonstone in it, he stopped outside of a massive building that was labeled ‘Department of Commerce’.

            He went inside and was greeted by the secretary who sat behind a desk that was just inside the door.  She informed him that it would be a couple of hours before a licensing agent could get to him, so Rasheed told her he would go across the street to the inn, or hotel, as the Ibians called it, and get rooms for his family before returning.  The secretary told him that would be fine and that if an agent became available before he returned she would send someone to retrieve him.

            Rasheed returned to his family and drove the cart across the street to an impressive looking building that had a large archway leading to the door inside.  Parking the cart off to the side so that it would be out of the way Rasheed and his family unloaded themselves then went inside to get a couple of rooms, one for Rasheed, Lilly and Basheer, the second for Jonah and Alissa.  When Basheer asked why his sister and Jonah would get a room to themselves, Lilly told him that they needed space where they could have some privacy.  Basheer, at only ten years of age, was confused by this answer persisted, and soon Lilly told him that he would understand when he was an adult.  He knew at that point to drop it, though he was still confused about it.  Deciding that he would ask Jonah when he returned to them, he let the subject go.

            Rasheed left his wife and son in the hotel as he walked back across the street to the Department of Commerce.  Once inside he took a seat in one of the few conveniently human sized chairs in the lobby to wait.  After a couple of hours, the secretary called him up to the desk and was giving him instructions on which office to go to, when a brown male Ibian with purple speckles and wearing a formal suit, approached.  Upon seeing him, the secretary fell silent.  He greeted Rasheed as if they had known each other for a long time and Rasheed responded in kind. 

            “Hello Silas,” Rasheed said as a way of greeting the Ibian.  “How is business?”

            “Good, it is.  As well, with you, I hope?”

            “Yes, it is, though I am trying a slightly riskier endeavor this time.”

            “Oh?”

            “I thought I would change my route since I love this city so much, and while I was in New Cardeth I thought to myself, what could I bring from there for trade that would be worth the change in route, then it hit me.  The one item that is guaranteed to sell no matter what is food, so, for now at least, I have fruits and vegetables, as fresh as they come from the fields of New Cardeth.”

            Silas looked at Rasheed thoughtfully; nodding as he listened then asked if he could inspect the perishables to make sure there was not anything that could be harmful to Ibians on board.  Rasheed agreed, knowing that despite the friendly exchange that appeared to be occurring, if he refused Silas could make things difficult.  Rasheed knew that the chances of Silas giving him any trouble about anything were small but didn't want to push any buttons unnecessarily. 

            They walked across the street to where the cart was parked and Silas slowly examined everything on board.  Soon he was finished and, having found nothing toxic, informed Rasheed that he was good to sell. 

            “Draw up the paperwork this evening, I will.  Delivered to you, it shall be first thing in the morning.”  Silas said after shaking Rasheed's hand.  “Oh, one last thing to mention, I must.  Betrothed, your daughter is, I hear.  Also, here her mate is, I am told.  If here they wish to be wed, twenty-eight days till the next Ceremony of the Moons remain.”

            He handed Rasheed a piece of paper with an address upon it and told Rasheed that a female Ibian there by the name of Isis would help plan the wedding for the two if they desired to have their wedding there.  Rasheed told him that he was sure that they would be honored to participate in such a manner on such a special night and that he would make sure that they knew of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity as soon as possible to get an answer from them.  Silas nodded, seemed satisfied, and shook Rasheed's hand before heading back across the street.