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clifford_a-_pickover_surfing_through_hyperspacebookfi-org

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THE GODS OF HYPERSPACE 159<br />

The manatee near Tanya produces xylophone-like notes as it gently<br />

touches her long hair. These are the sounds audible to humans. You<br />

guess that the manatee is also emitting sounds inaudible to the human<br />

ear.<br />

"They're singing!" Tanya says as her eyes dart back and forth from<br />

manatee to manatee.<br />

The songs of the space manatees become more sonorous. You imagine<br />

the sounds traveling for hundreds of miles, resonating with the<br />

songs of great invisible beings swimming to distant dimensions in the<br />

darkness.<br />

You wave to the manatees and turn to Tanya. "What do they want?"<br />

The sounds suddenly die, replaced by two deep voices, speaking in<br />

unison. "Greetings, travelers. Welcome to our world." Balls of light and<br />

little rainbow arcs come from their eyes.<br />

"Oh God!" Tanya cries. "They're so beautiful."<br />

The manatees stare at you for several seconds, as if assessing you.<br />

Again, you can't help thinking the space manatees look ancient, full of<br />

wisdom, possessing mighty minds that you can never fully penetrate. The<br />

manatees also look kind. Their hyperspherical eyes are omniscient.<br />

The manatees speak again. "Follow us so that we may lead you to<br />

higher dimensions in safety."<br />

As the manatees slowly turn, a great tail goes swishing over your body.<br />

"C'mon," Tanya says. "Let's follow them."<br />

The manatees leave a stream of lights in their wake that you find easy<br />

to follow. Occasionally you see vortices spiraling away from you, like<br />

miniature tornadoes. You stay away from them, just in case they are sufficiently<br />

strong to affect your motion.<br />

You point at other manatees emerging from great polyhedral domes<br />

that float in space. "Look at them!"<br />

It seems that the new manatees are coming out of the domes to<br />

watch the beautiful lights emitted by the manatees in front of you.<br />

The brilliant colors form a dazzling display as the lights skim over the<br />

domes like shooting stars, rising high into space and then swooping<br />

gracefully to form chains of interlinked light trails.<br />

Ahead is a 5-D city. The manatees never stop as they pass it by, but<br />

you turn your head so you can see the nearest building replete with manatee<br />

statues of translucent glass.

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