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Authors: Lois McMaster Bujold
Tags: Fiction, Science-Fiction
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vaguer, farther away from Rodeo and home. They had not planned on a downside detour in any version.
Tony and Claire had surely hidden themselves by now in the shuttle's cargo bay. There was no way for Silver to warn them—should she betray them to save them? The ensuing uproar was guaranteed to be ghastly—her dismay wrapped like a steel band around her chest, constricting breathing, constricting speech.
She watched on the control booth's vid display in miserable paralysis as the shuttle kicked away from Page 29
the Habitat and began to drop toward Rodeo's swirling atmosphere.
Chapter 4
The dim cargo bay seemed to groan all around Claire as deceleration strained its structure. Buffeting, accompanied by a hissing whistle, vibrated through the shuttle's metal skin.
What's wrong? gasped Claire. She released an anchoring hand upon the plastic crate behind which they had hidden to double her grasp of Andy and hold him closer. Are we sideswiping something? What's that funny noise?
Tony hurriedly licked ar inger and held it out. No draft to speak of.He swallowed, testing his eustachican tubes. We're not depressurizing.Yet the whistle was rising.
Two mechanical ka-chunks, one after the other, that were nothing at all like the familiar thump and click of a hatch seal seating itself properly, shot terror through Claire. The deceleration went on and on, much too long,confused by a strange new vector of thrust that seemed to emanate from the shuttle's ventral sid e.The side of the cargo bay to which the crates were anchored seemed to push against her. She nervously put her back to it, and cushioned Andy upon her belly.
The baby's eyes were round, his mouth an echoing o of bewilderment. No, please, don't start crying!
She dared not release the cry locked in her own throat; it would set him off like a siren. Patty cake, patty cake, baker's man,Claire choked. Microwave a cake as fast as you can... She tickled his cheek, flicking her eyes at Tony in mute appeal.
Tony's face was white. Claire—Ithink this shuttle's going downside! I bet those bangs were the airfoils deploying.
Oh, no! Can't be. Silver checked the schedule—
It looks like Silver made a big mistake.
I checked it too. This shuttle was supposed to be picking up a load of stuff at the Transfer Station, then going downside.
Then you both made a big mistake. Tony's voice was harsh and shaking, anger masking fear.
Oh, help, don't yell at me—ifI don't stay calm, neither will Andy—thisw asn't my idea. . . .
Tony rolled over on his stomach and levered his body away from the thrusting surface of the—the floor , downsiders called the direction from which the vector of gravitational force came—and crept to the nearest window, pulling himself alongside it. The light that poured through it was taking on a strange diffuse quality, diminishing. It's all white—Claire, I think we must be entering a cloud!
Claire had watched clouds from orbit abovefo rlhours, as they slowly billowed in the convection of Rodeo's atmosphere.They had always seemed massive as moons. She longed to go look.
Andy was clutching her blue T-shirt. She rolled over, as Tony had, palms to the surface, and pushed up.
Andy, turning his head toward his father, reached out with his upper hands and tried to shove off from Page 30
Claire with his lowers. The floor leaped up and smacked him.
For a moment he was too stunned to howl. Then his little mouth went from round to square and poured out the vibrating scream of true pain. The sound knifed through every nerve in Claire's body.
Tony too jerked at the noise, and scrambled down from the window and back toward them. Why did you drop him? What do you think you're doing? Oh,make him be quiet, quick!
Claire rolled onto her back again, pulling Andy onto the elastic softness of her abdomen, and patted and kissed him frantically. The timbre of his screams began to change from the frightening high-pitched cry of pain to the less piercing bellows of
Tony and Claire had surely hidden themselves by now in the shuttle's cargo bay. There was no way for Silver to warn them—should she betray them to save them? The ensuing uproar was guaranteed to be ghastly—her dismay wrapped like a steel band around her chest, constricting breathing, constricting speech.
She watched on the control booth's vid display in miserable paralysis as the shuttle kicked away from Page 29
the Habitat and began to drop toward Rodeo's swirling atmosphere.
Chapter 4
The dim cargo bay seemed to groan all around Claire as deceleration strained its structure. Buffeting, accompanied by a hissing whistle, vibrated through the shuttle's metal skin.
What's wrong? gasped Claire. She released an anchoring hand upon the plastic crate behind which they had hidden to double her grasp of Andy and hold him closer. Are we sideswiping something? What's that funny noise?
Tony hurriedly licked ar inger and held it out. No draft to speak of.He swallowed, testing his eustachican tubes. We're not depressurizing.Yet the whistle was rising.
Two mechanical ka-chunks, one after the other, that were nothing at all like the familiar thump and click of a hatch seal seating itself properly, shot terror through Claire. The deceleration went on and on, much too long,confused by a strange new vector of thrust that seemed to emanate from the shuttle's ventral sid e.The side of the cargo bay to which the crates were anchored seemed to push against her. She nervously put her back to it, and cushioned Andy upon her belly.
The baby's eyes were round, his mouth an echoing o of bewilderment. No, please, don't start crying!
She dared not release the cry locked in her own throat; it would set him off like a siren. Patty cake, patty cake, baker's man,Claire choked. Microwave a cake as fast as you can... She tickled his cheek, flicking her eyes at Tony in mute appeal.
Tony's face was white. Claire—Ithink this shuttle's going downside! I bet those bangs were the airfoils deploying.
Oh, no! Can't be. Silver checked the schedule—
It looks like Silver made a big mistake.
I checked it too. This shuttle was supposed to be picking up a load of stuff at the Transfer Station, then going downside.
Then you both made a big mistake. Tony's voice was harsh and shaking, anger masking fear.
Oh, help, don't yell at me—ifI don't stay calm, neither will Andy—thisw asn't my idea. . . .
Tony rolled over on his stomach and levered his body away from the thrusting surface of the—the floor , downsiders called the direction from which the vector of gravitational force came—and crept to the nearest window, pulling himself alongside it. The light that poured through it was taking on a strange diffuse quality, diminishing. It's all white—Claire, I think we must be entering a cloud!
Claire had watched clouds from orbit abovefo rlhours, as they slowly billowed in the convection of Rodeo's atmosphere.They had always seemed massive as moons. She longed to go look.
Andy was clutching her blue T-shirt. She rolled over, as Tony had, palms to the surface, and pushed up.
Andy, turning his head toward his father, reached out with his upper hands and tried to shove off from Page 30
Claire with his lowers. The floor leaped up and smacked him.
For a moment he was too stunned to howl. Then his little mouth went from round to square and poured out the vibrating scream of true pain. The sound knifed through every nerve in Claire's body.
Tony too jerked at the noise, and scrambled down from the window and back toward them. Why did you drop him? What do you think you're doing? Oh,make him be quiet, quick!
Claire rolled onto her back again, pulling Andy onto the elastic softness of her abdomen, and patted and kissed him frantically. The timbre of his screams began to change from the frightening high-pitched cry of pain to the less piercing bellows of
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