Read Online Crucible of a Species by Terrence Zavecz - Free Book Online
Authors: Terrence Zavecz
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with streaks of light that flashed icy blue, glowing ribbons as the Argos pierced the wall of the maelstrom.
A jolt threw the captain from his chair and something slammed into the side of his head. The ship swung violently, a grinding crash filled the bridge. Systems in the command center went dark. Through blurred vision, Lee saw someone pulling himself up and into the helmsman’s station.
Then all was quiet. A swirling wall surrounded the Argos, flooding the bridge with a blood red glow. Dr. Nolen’s voice rose on the edge of panic as it carried through the room. “The drives are active, we shouldn’t feel any movement ….”
A second series of shudders rocked the Argos and the surrounding clouds turned black. Streaks of light ripped the skies, lighting the bridge with ghostly white-yellow flashes. Whistles and warning klaxons saturated the ship.
The violence stopped as abruptly as it started and the pale red illumination from the surrounding clouds filled the bridge!
“Ensign Li, have engineering shut down those damn klaxons!”
“Aye aye, Captain.”
A deathly calm settled over the bridge. The ship had lost headway and lay in a tranquil region with the fury of the Red Spot swirling around in distant walls of red and black. Streaks of blue and green played along the ramparts of their dark prison and in the distance ahead lay a black abyss permeated by flickering, livid points of light.
Two glowing threads of blue light lay off to port. They entwined and spun in a slow, almost hypnotic fashion -- a ghostly, haze-coated cable plunging into the black depths below.
“Ensign Waverly, plot a course away from this turbulence. Initiate slow movement inward toward that vapor trail.”
The helmsman spoke up, “Captain, we don’t have full power on the drives. They must have sustained damage. Lieutenant Anderson reports his people are working on the problem but he doesn’t have a time estimate for repairs yet.”
“Acknowledged, Mr. Sassaman. Please have Engineering give us best speed.”
Dr. Thompson was surprised to observe the vapor trail remain unchanged as they pressed closer to the center of the tunnel. The threads serenely spun and twisted off into the abyss in an existence independent of the chaos surrounding it. A thought entered his mind, “Captain I suggest you pull away from that string, If the lines we see are residual particle trails, then I fear what may be at their center could rip us apart.”
“Make it so, Mr. Sassaman. Continue on course but hold us off at this distance. Any other suggestions, Dr. Thompson?”
“I apologize for the interruptions Captain, but I believe we need to leave. We’re obviously inside the Red Spot. This calm region, rather like the eye of a hurricane, is the last thing I or anyone else ever envisioned. Of even greater concern, we are heading directly into the heart of Jupiter. I suggest we turn the ship around. Try to head out through the top of the tunnel.”
“Just what makes you believe we are heading in towards the planet, Dr. Thompson?”
“Judging by what your sensors are reporting, there is a surprising preponderance of gravitons heading in the same direction as we are. When viewed from above, the top of the Red Spot appears almost like an open drain flowing inward, toward the planet. I would therefore surmise we are moving inward. I have no idea how fast we are travelling but I’m quite surprised we haven’t struck the solid surface by now.”
“Mr. Sassaman?” The captain asked.
“Sorry sir, but I cannot swing her around. There are no waves travelling in a direction that we could hope to even tack along much less follow. All of the waves move in the same direction and in synchronism like some gigantic laser beam.”
Dr. Nolen was startled out of his silence, “Why, that’s impossible! You …”
Captain Lee’s command rang out, “Well we aren’t waiting to crash. Tack outward, we’ll try to break through the walls again. Helmsman
A jolt threw the captain from his chair and something slammed into the side of his head. The ship swung violently, a grinding crash filled the bridge. Systems in the command center went dark. Through blurred vision, Lee saw someone pulling himself up and into the helmsman’s station.
Then all was quiet. A swirling wall surrounded the Argos, flooding the bridge with a blood red glow. Dr. Nolen’s voice rose on the edge of panic as it carried through the room. “The drives are active, we shouldn’t feel any movement ….”
A second series of shudders rocked the Argos and the surrounding clouds turned black. Streaks of light ripped the skies, lighting the bridge with ghostly white-yellow flashes. Whistles and warning klaxons saturated the ship.
The violence stopped as abruptly as it started and the pale red illumination from the surrounding clouds filled the bridge!
“Ensign Li, have engineering shut down those damn klaxons!”
“Aye aye, Captain.”
A deathly calm settled over the bridge. The ship had lost headway and lay in a tranquil region with the fury of the Red Spot swirling around in distant walls of red and black. Streaks of blue and green played along the ramparts of their dark prison and in the distance ahead lay a black abyss permeated by flickering, livid points of light.
Two glowing threads of blue light lay off to port. They entwined and spun in a slow, almost hypnotic fashion -- a ghostly, haze-coated cable plunging into the black depths below.
“Ensign Waverly, plot a course away from this turbulence. Initiate slow movement inward toward that vapor trail.”
The helmsman spoke up, “Captain, we don’t have full power on the drives. They must have sustained damage. Lieutenant Anderson reports his people are working on the problem but he doesn’t have a time estimate for repairs yet.”
“Acknowledged, Mr. Sassaman. Please have Engineering give us best speed.”
Dr. Thompson was surprised to observe the vapor trail remain unchanged as they pressed closer to the center of the tunnel. The threads serenely spun and twisted off into the abyss in an existence independent of the chaos surrounding it. A thought entered his mind, “Captain I suggest you pull away from that string, If the lines we see are residual particle trails, then I fear what may be at their center could rip us apart.”
“Make it so, Mr. Sassaman. Continue on course but hold us off at this distance. Any other suggestions, Dr. Thompson?”
“I apologize for the interruptions Captain, but I believe we need to leave. We’re obviously inside the Red Spot. This calm region, rather like the eye of a hurricane, is the last thing I or anyone else ever envisioned. Of even greater concern, we are heading directly into the heart of Jupiter. I suggest we turn the ship around. Try to head out through the top of the tunnel.”
“Just what makes you believe we are heading in towards the planet, Dr. Thompson?”
“Judging by what your sensors are reporting, there is a surprising preponderance of gravitons heading in the same direction as we are. When viewed from above, the top of the Red Spot appears almost like an open drain flowing inward, toward the planet. I would therefore surmise we are moving inward. I have no idea how fast we are travelling but I’m quite surprised we haven’t struck the solid surface by now.”
“Mr. Sassaman?” The captain asked.
“Sorry sir, but I cannot swing her around. There are no waves travelling in a direction that we could hope to even tack along much less follow. All of the waves move in the same direction and in synchronism like some gigantic laser beam.”
Dr. Nolen was startled out of his silence, “Why, that’s impossible! You …”
Captain Lee’s command rang out, “Well we aren’t waiting to crash. Tack outward, we’ll try to break through the walls again. Helmsman
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