Chapter 42
The vibrations were supplied by the people all gathered around the colony’s Great Tree, hands and heads raised to the giant hole that had been blown in the roof from a rebel bombing during the last gala. The orange light of the late day sun was clearing the top of the palace walls that lay in rubble, to cast shadows of the Great Tree’s branches. The people were humming and singing. At their feet lay the brittle, dry leaves of the Great Tree. The colony’s Tree was no more.
Lina flared her nostrils. All around, mixed in with the scent of decay, were the pheromone mixtures of sorrow and regret. She felt a tear streaking down her right cheek. It was hot and slow in its journey.