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Authors: Charles Sheffield
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horizon. As Lola and Spook ran along the ramp to the entry hatch above the ship's engine and pusher pad, the silver of the ship's curved side had an orange-yellow glimmer. Lola turned her head. She saw a lightning flash, high in the sky behind them, which, as she watched, blossomed into a rosette of crimson and white. And then the ramp cover was over them, and they were being hustled aboard.
Every passenger seat seemed to be taken, but a man wearing the grey uniform of Lunar Service gestured to them to sit down next to him on an attendant's foldaway bench. It was a space designed for only one person, and Lola and Spook could barely fit. She wriggled her hips, trying to avoid the seat arm. She had been to space before, and she knew how uncomfortable even a couple of gees of acceleration could be.
The hatch was closing. This was the time for a flight attendant to stand up and give them the usual three-minute lecture about safety procedures, exit points, and the use of belts, hatches, and free-fall barf bags.
But not today. Before Lola could fasten or even find her belt, a powerful vibration filled the cabin. The seat swiveled so that they were lying on their backs. She was pressed hard into the cushions. She heard Spook's grunt of protest. He was wedged in between her and the bony lunar serviceman.
"What's happening?" It was Lola's turn to ask that question.
"We're taking off." The man was almost too casual, and she noticed he was wearing the chevrons and crossed bars of the Lunar Defense League. She saw the name tag on his pocket: Audie Coline. "In a bit of a hurry," he went on. "Don't worry, though, we're perfectly safe."
"But those. " Lola knew quite well that they were taking off—that's not what her question meant, and he must have known. One of the ship's small circular ports was on his left, and she lifted a lead-filled arm to point. Another rosette was blooming in the sky, on the northern horizon. Off to the west, the sun had reappeared as the ship lifted higher.
"Nothing to get excited about." Coline was answering her but he was turning to look at Spook, managing a grin that was turned oddly lopsided by the ship's acceleration. "The spaceports are operating on an emergency basis, and as you saw for yourselves they're totally screwed up. Heads should roll down there, because we've been expecting something like this for quite a while. We should have been ready. It's the Belt government's idea of a show of force, letting us know what they could do if they really tried. They've sent a bunch of probes into cislunar space."
"They're attacking Earth?" Lola was suddenly terrified, not for herself and Spook, but for the parents they had left behind.
"No. The probes have dummy warheads. The Belt wants to make the point that since they can beat our deep radar detection system, Earth and Mars should meet their economic demands. But the point they've actually made is quite different. See that?"
He gestured at the port next to him, apparently unaffected by the acceleration. The ship was curving off toward the east, already into the last minute of its laser-boost launch. Farther east and high above them, another bright blossom of light was growing. Beyond it the Moon was visible in its thin crescent phase.
"The Belt has just learned that the Armageddon Defense Line up there can pick off anything they send into cislunar space, without hardly trying. Wish I'd been on Luna to help. You can't see it without a scope, but we're targeting their probes and blowing them up."
"All of them?" Lola remembered the frightening ground vibration and failed lighting. "Something hit while we were in the tunnel on the way to the spaceport."
"Quite true." Coline seemed delighted. "The Armageddon line knocks off everything the Belt sends with no trouble at all—but some clown on Earth couldn't resist having a go with the ground-based spaceport perimeter defense. That equipment is half a century old, and it's never been used. They should have
Every passenger seat seemed to be taken, but a man wearing the grey uniform of Lunar Service gestured to them to sit down next to him on an attendant's foldaway bench. It was a space designed for only one person, and Lola and Spook could barely fit. She wriggled her hips, trying to avoid the seat arm. She had been to space before, and she knew how uncomfortable even a couple of gees of acceleration could be.
The hatch was closing. This was the time for a flight attendant to stand up and give them the usual three-minute lecture about safety procedures, exit points, and the use of belts, hatches, and free-fall barf bags.
But not today. Before Lola could fasten or even find her belt, a powerful vibration filled the cabin. The seat swiveled so that they were lying on their backs. She was pressed hard into the cushions. She heard Spook's grunt of protest. He was wedged in between her and the bony lunar serviceman.
"What's happening?" It was Lola's turn to ask that question.
"We're taking off." The man was almost too casual, and she noticed he was wearing the chevrons and crossed bars of the Lunar Defense League. She saw the name tag on his pocket: Audie Coline. "In a bit of a hurry," he went on. "Don't worry, though, we're perfectly safe."
"But those. " Lola knew quite well that they were taking off—that's not what her question meant, and he must have known. One of the ship's small circular ports was on his left, and she lifted a lead-filled arm to point. Another rosette was blooming in the sky, on the northern horizon. Off to the west, the sun had reappeared as the ship lifted higher.
"Nothing to get excited about." Coline was answering her but he was turning to look at Spook, managing a grin that was turned oddly lopsided by the ship's acceleration. "The spaceports are operating on an emergency basis, and as you saw for yourselves they're totally screwed up. Heads should roll down there, because we've been expecting something like this for quite a while. We should have been ready. It's the Belt government's idea of a show of force, letting us know what they could do if they really tried. They've sent a bunch of probes into cislunar space."
"They're attacking Earth?" Lola was suddenly terrified, not for herself and Spook, but for the parents they had left behind.
"No. The probes have dummy warheads. The Belt wants to make the point that since they can beat our deep radar detection system, Earth and Mars should meet their economic demands. But the point they've actually made is quite different. See that?"
He gestured at the port next to him, apparently unaffected by the acceleration. The ship was curving off toward the east, already into the last minute of its laser-boost launch. Farther east and high above them, another bright blossom of light was growing. Beyond it the Moon was visible in its thin crescent phase.
"The Belt has just learned that the Armageddon Defense Line up there can pick off anything they send into cislunar space, without hardly trying. Wish I'd been on Luna to help. You can't see it without a scope, but we're targeting their probes and blowing them up."
"All of them?" Lola remembered the frightening ground vibration and failed lighting. "Something hit while we were in the tunnel on the way to the spaceport."
"Quite true." Coline seemed delighted. "The Armageddon line knocks off everything the Belt sends with no trouble at all—but some clown on Earth couldn't resist having a go with the ground-based spaceport perimeter defense. That equipment is half a century old, and it's never been used. They should have
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