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Luke patted her hand reassuringly. “I know, you don’t like open landspeeders. But we’re almost there,” he said. “Look—you can see the track for the Rift Skyrail. The guidebook said it’s the fastest aboveground train in five sectors—”

The last hurdle was Arrival Screening—another line, a droid greeter, an IRR screening for their bags, a discreet security sweep of their persons, and three questions from a human examiner who had much the same demeanor as the district censor on Lucazec.

“How long do you plan to stay on Teyr?”

“We’re not sure, are we, dear?” Luke asked. “How long does it take to really see the Rift at its best? Our reservation is only for three days, but we’re hoping that we can extend it now that we’re here.”

“Three days,” the examiner repeated. “Are you now, or have you recently been, infected with any transmissible class B or class C agent?”

“No, no,” Luke/Li said, smiling at Akanah. “We’re fit as can be. I just hate to travel when I’m sick, don’t you?”

“Do you have in your possession any lethal weapons, proscribed drugs, unlicensed technology, or other articles in violation of the General Visitor Agreement?”

“Oh, gracious, no,” Luke said. “We’re here to have fun.”

The examiner passed two traveler’s aid cards through an encoder. “Welcome to Teyr,” he said, handing the cards to Akanah. “Enjoy your stay with us.”

Between the Prye Folas spaceport terminal and the Skyrail station was the broad green expanse of Welcome Park. Luke and Akanah stopped at the first open bench they spotted, tucking their bags protectively behind their feet.

“I think we’re finally officially here,” Luke said. “How are you doing?”

“It’s not what I expected,” said Akanah, looking around.

Luke held out a palm. “Let’s see that,” he said, nodding toward the traveler’s aid cards Akanah still clutched in her hand.

Distractedly, Akanah handed one of the cards to Luke, who began to study it. The card had a tiny display screen that took up half of one side, with some universal-symbol command keys below. On the back was a line drawing of the structure that stood at the center of the park—a ring of more than a hundred small kiosks surrounding a two-story-high carousel display.

“I have to go do a Li Stonn thing,” said Luke. “Stay here—I’ll be right back.”

When Luke got closer to the structure, he could see that the band at the top of the carousel said “Visitor Information Center” in Basic and several other common languages.

There were short lines of people waiting at every kiosk for a chance to select their areas of interest and have that information transferred to the cards, where they could browse it at their leisure. While they waited, most looked up at the carousel display, which was offering colorful one-minute documentaries on the geology of the Rift, the building of the Skyrail, and the shopping opportunities in Prye Folas.

“Pickpocket’s paradise,” Luke muttered, and turned away.

Just then, Luke felt the momentary tickle in his senses that meant he was being watched. He scanned the park carefully as he returned to the bench where Akanah sat, but the feeling did not return, and nothing he saw raised his alarm.

“I need to know what region we’ll—” He stopped as he saw that she was struggling against tears, her eyes faraway and forlorn. “What’s wrong?”

“Everything’s wrong,” she said. “I just know they’re not here.”

Luke sat down sideways beside her. “Why? You thought you’d be able to feel them, and you can’t?”

She was not too upset to be indignant. “No—we’re not that careless, to broadcast our presence even on the Current.”

“Then what’s the matter?”

“I told you—everything’s wrong.” She shook her head sadly. “This isn’t our kind of world. It’s everything we’re trying not to be. It’s too crowded, too loud, too organized and artificial. If they were ever here, they won’t have stayed very long.” Bowing her head, she began to sob quietly. “It’s too late. It took me too long to get here—”

Edging closer, Luke drew her into a comforting embrace, brushing away the worst of her despair with caressing thoughts.