not going to let that stop me.”
With a swift, decisive movement, Whips sent himself sliding over the edge and into the water.
Sakura finally let go. “M-Mom? What happened? That didn’t make any sense , the whole end of the . . . the land, it tipped up , and it’s over there ,” her voice was rising higher and shaking, speaking faster, “like, floating, and the LS-5 , it was hit and then it’s gone and we’re—”
“ Sakura .” She spoke her daughter’s name firmly but quietly, taking her by the shoulders, looking her in the eye. “Sakura. Stop.”
The girl’s brilliant blue eyes locked on hers. With an obvious effort Sakura forced her mouth closed and stood there, shaking, then closed her eyes. Slowly they opened again, but they were less wide, more focused, more there , and Laura let herself relax a tiny bit. “Sorry, Mom.”
“It’s okay, honey. We’re all near that panic. We just can’t let it catch us. And I have no idea what happened.”
There was a splash, and they saw Whips emerging from the water. “I’m back, Laura.”
The dull colors on his back echoed his tone of voice. “I still can’t believe what I’ve seen.”
There were sounds of running behind them, and she turned to see Akira, with Caroline, Melody and Hitomi close behind. They came here as fast as Hitomi could run, she guessed.
She took a moment to hug her other daughters and take a rib-straining one from her husband. Then she turned back to Whips, whose colors were now brighter but slowly rippling. “All right, Harratrer, what did you see?”
“A lot. But . . . I don’t know exactly what it all means.” He took an audible breath. “Once I get out past where you can see the shallow water, it just . . . drops away. Farther than I can ping. Even when I shout as loud as I can, there isn’t a return from the bottom.”
“But . . .” Melody started, then stopped.
“Go on, Melody,” Laura said.
“But . . . I thought your people could ping to the bottom of the Europan ocean.”
“Some of us can. I couldn’t manage that, but . . . there are other noises. I think the bottom’s a long, long way down below even that level.”
“We’re sitting on a cliff tens of kilometers high?” Caroline said in disbelief. “That’s impossible. Even underwater that should—”
“Not a cliff,” Whips said, cutting her off. “I don’t know what we’re standing on, but . . . once I get down maybe thirty meters or so, there’s nothing but water in all directions. Well, that’s not true, I detect some stuff in the direction that’s, well, inland, but there’s always water in that direction eventually.”
Laura and Caroline exchanged disbelieving glances. “Whips, are you saying that, well, there’s nothing supporting the land we’re standing on?”
“Nothing as far as I can tell.”
For a moment they all stared at each other, trying to come to terms with that ridiculous, impossible statement. Laura turned and looked back at the immense stretch of land behind them, vanishing into hills on the horizon, then over to the black wet towers of what had been the land across from them. “You looked at that piece that . . . well, is floating there?”
“Yes. It is floating. Nothing under it anywhere.”
“Coral,” Caroline said slowly. “The rock . . . I noticed it looked rather like coral. But I never thought . . .”
“Coral?” repeated Melody incredulously. “But shouldn’t that sink ?”
Caroline bent over, searching, and found a chunk of rock that had been broken off by LS-5 in the crash. Laura watched as her oldest daughter flung the rock far out into the water.
The white-pink rock plunged into the sea. And a moment later, bobbed to the surface.
“There were cases of floating coral on Earth,” Caroline said, her voice starting to become more animated, excited, “and some pieces could drift for hundreds of kilometers, last for many months. Mom, Dad, this is amazing. If Whips is right, we’re
With a swift, decisive movement, Whips sent himself sliding over the edge and into the water.
Sakura finally let go. “M-Mom? What happened? That didn’t make any sense , the whole end of the . . . the land, it tipped up , and it’s over there ,” her voice was rising higher and shaking, speaking faster, “like, floating, and the LS-5 , it was hit and then it’s gone and we’re—”
“ Sakura .” She spoke her daughter’s name firmly but quietly, taking her by the shoulders, looking her in the eye. “Sakura. Stop.”
The girl’s brilliant blue eyes locked on hers. With an obvious effort Sakura forced her mouth closed and stood there, shaking, then closed her eyes. Slowly they opened again, but they were less wide, more focused, more there , and Laura let herself relax a tiny bit. “Sorry, Mom.”
“It’s okay, honey. We’re all near that panic. We just can’t let it catch us. And I have no idea what happened.”
There was a splash, and they saw Whips emerging from the water. “I’m back, Laura.”
The dull colors on his back echoed his tone of voice. “I still can’t believe what I’ve seen.”
There were sounds of running behind them, and she turned to see Akira, with Caroline, Melody and Hitomi close behind. They came here as fast as Hitomi could run, she guessed.
She took a moment to hug her other daughters and take a rib-straining one from her husband. Then she turned back to Whips, whose colors were now brighter but slowly rippling. “All right, Harratrer, what did you see?”
“A lot. But . . . I don’t know exactly what it all means.” He took an audible breath. “Once I get out past where you can see the shallow water, it just . . . drops away. Farther than I can ping. Even when I shout as loud as I can, there isn’t a return from the bottom.”
“But . . .” Melody started, then stopped.
“Go on, Melody,” Laura said.
“But . . . I thought your people could ping to the bottom of the Europan ocean.”
“Some of us can. I couldn’t manage that, but . . . there are other noises. I think the bottom’s a long, long way down below even that level.”
“We’re sitting on a cliff tens of kilometers high?” Caroline said in disbelief. “That’s impossible. Even underwater that should—”
“Not a cliff,” Whips said, cutting her off. “I don’t know what we’re standing on, but . . . once I get down maybe thirty meters or so, there’s nothing but water in all directions. Well, that’s not true, I detect some stuff in the direction that’s, well, inland, but there’s always water in that direction eventually.”
Laura and Caroline exchanged disbelieving glances. “Whips, are you saying that, well, there’s nothing supporting the land we’re standing on?”
“Nothing as far as I can tell.”
For a moment they all stared at each other, trying to come to terms with that ridiculous, impossible statement. Laura turned and looked back at the immense stretch of land behind them, vanishing into hills on the horizon, then over to the black wet towers of what had been the land across from them. “You looked at that piece that . . . well, is floating there?”
“Yes. It is floating. Nothing under it anywhere.”
“Coral,” Caroline said slowly. “The rock . . . I noticed it looked rather like coral. But I never thought . . .”
“Coral?” repeated Melody incredulously. “But shouldn’t that sink ?”
Caroline bent over, searching, and found a chunk of rock that had been broken off by LS-5 in the crash. Laura watched as her oldest daughter flung the rock far out into the water.
The white-pink rock plunged into the sea. And a moment later, bobbed to the surface.
“There were cases of floating coral on Earth,” Caroline said, her voice starting to become more animated, excited, “and some pieces could drift for hundreds of kilometers, last for many months. Mom, Dad, this is amazing. If Whips is right, we’re
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