Leaving the colonies here bereft. We have existed in isolation for a very long time, Finadd. Longer than you might believe.’ ‘Almost seven thousand years.’ The Ceda smiled. ‘Language changes over time. Meaning twists. Mistakes compound with each transcribing. Even those stalwart sentinels of perfection – numbers – can, in a single careless moment, be profoundly altered. Shall I tell you my belief, Finadd? What would you say to my notion that some zeroes were dropped? At the beginning of this the Seventh Closure.’ Seventy thousand years? Seven hundred thousand?
