leaped halfway to the airlock hatch in a single step. He still wasn't used to this gravity, and his long legs often took him farther than he expected.
Wolverton went through the airlock, got his helmet and suit off as quickly as he could, and hung them next to his bunk. Turning, he glimpsed his lanky form, freckled face, and ginger hair in the mirror through the open bathroom door. He rushed past it to the briefing room, a relatively spacious chamber at the intersection of the compound's two main bunkers.
Everyone had already gathered there.
The babble of many voices confused him, but he soon saw something downright disconcerting.
Two Nozakis.
One of them spoke, and she wore a pressure suit without a helmet. The other was seated, listening along with everyone else, and she wore a blue thermal jersey and leggings.
"We don't know where it is right now,” the suited Nozaki—presumably the one he'd just been with—was saying, “but a very large mining machine has come through the bubble, and it may be out of control. It's tearing up the surface with abandon."
Some cross-talk followed.
"Here's a thought,” Wolverton said from the back of the room, as soon as there was a lull. He felt self-conscious when everyone turned toward him. “What if its purpose is to strip-mine the entire surface?"
That brought on quite an uproar.
"It could happen,” Nozaki said in a loud, firm voice. “We have to be prepared to evacuate base camp if it comes this way."
Another hubbub followed.
"What will we do if it destroys base camp?” the astrophysicist Jyoti asked, once things quieted down enough for her to be heard. “We can't live outside for long."
"We can call for hoppers to get us out of here,” said Zaremba. The overhead lights reflected on his shaved pate. “But that'll take some time."
"The best thing to do,” Labutunu said, “is to move building materials and everything we need for survival to another site. We'll assemble a makeshift compound and pump air into it. We can manage until we evacuate the asteroid."
"I don't understand how this thing got down to the surface,” said the bespectacled Dr. Linebarger, M.D.
"The bubble sometimes brushes the surface,” Nozaki explained.
"The alien artists make a broad brush stroke,” said Duvic, the head mineralogist, stroking his gray beard.
A few people laughed at his comment, taking some edge off the group's fear.
"There may yet prove to be bubbles,” said Jyoti, her dark eyes widening with enthusiasm, “enveloping entire asteroids, even entire planets. This is very exciting."
"A little too exciting, if you ask me,” said the Nozaki who was unencumbered by a pressure suit. Wolverton admired her trim, athletic figure as she stood up.
Since he'd come to LGC-1, he'd sometimes wondered why he'd seen Nozaki so often. Now he knew why, and he understood what she'd meant by “incontrovertible evidence."
"Let's get busy,” the suited Nozaki said.
Everybody pitched in. Some people were assigned to gather essentials, while others assisted Labutunu outside with the heavy equipment. Sentries were assigned, and pictures from the flyby were examined.
"There it is,” the unsuited Nozaki said, pointing at a hologram taken from space.
The flyby's imager had picked up the digger as it tore its way into the asteroid's crimson dawn. It kept going right through the searing heat of the hydrogen shell.
"Hard radiation doesn't even slow it down,” Jyoti said.
"Maybe it uses GaCrux's hydrogen shell as a smelter,” Wolverton ventured.
"It looks like it's going to circumnavigate the asteroid, its path diverging each time it comes around,” the unsuited Nozaki said. “It will almost certainly reach this point sooner or later."
"In which case,” Duvic said, looking at Wolverton, “your hypothesis is going to become a propecy fulfilled."
"You may be responsible for saving the lives of fifty-two people, Wolverton,” the suited Nozaki said.
Her praise made him feel good, but
Wolverton went through the airlock, got his helmet and suit off as quickly as he could, and hung them next to his bunk. Turning, he glimpsed his lanky form, freckled face, and ginger hair in the mirror through the open bathroom door. He rushed past it to the briefing room, a relatively spacious chamber at the intersection of the compound's two main bunkers.
Everyone had already gathered there.
The babble of many voices confused him, but he soon saw something downright disconcerting.
Two Nozakis.
One of them spoke, and she wore a pressure suit without a helmet. The other was seated, listening along with everyone else, and she wore a blue thermal jersey and leggings.
"We don't know where it is right now,” the suited Nozaki—presumably the one he'd just been with—was saying, “but a very large mining machine has come through the bubble, and it may be out of control. It's tearing up the surface with abandon."
Some cross-talk followed.
"Here's a thought,” Wolverton said from the back of the room, as soon as there was a lull. He felt self-conscious when everyone turned toward him. “What if its purpose is to strip-mine the entire surface?"
That brought on quite an uproar.
"It could happen,” Nozaki said in a loud, firm voice. “We have to be prepared to evacuate base camp if it comes this way."
Another hubbub followed.
"What will we do if it destroys base camp?” the astrophysicist Jyoti asked, once things quieted down enough for her to be heard. “We can't live outside for long."
"We can call for hoppers to get us out of here,” said Zaremba. The overhead lights reflected on his shaved pate. “But that'll take some time."
"The best thing to do,” Labutunu said, “is to move building materials and everything we need for survival to another site. We'll assemble a makeshift compound and pump air into it. We can manage until we evacuate the asteroid."
"I don't understand how this thing got down to the surface,” said the bespectacled Dr. Linebarger, M.D.
"The bubble sometimes brushes the surface,” Nozaki explained.
"The alien artists make a broad brush stroke,” said Duvic, the head mineralogist, stroking his gray beard.
A few people laughed at his comment, taking some edge off the group's fear.
"There may yet prove to be bubbles,” said Jyoti, her dark eyes widening with enthusiasm, “enveloping entire asteroids, even entire planets. This is very exciting."
"A little too exciting, if you ask me,” said the Nozaki who was unencumbered by a pressure suit. Wolverton admired her trim, athletic figure as she stood up.
Since he'd come to LGC-1, he'd sometimes wondered why he'd seen Nozaki so often. Now he knew why, and he understood what she'd meant by “incontrovertible evidence."
"Let's get busy,” the suited Nozaki said.
Everybody pitched in. Some people were assigned to gather essentials, while others assisted Labutunu outside with the heavy equipment. Sentries were assigned, and pictures from the flyby were examined.
"There it is,” the unsuited Nozaki said, pointing at a hologram taken from space.
The flyby's imager had picked up the digger as it tore its way into the asteroid's crimson dawn. It kept going right through the searing heat of the hydrogen shell.
"Hard radiation doesn't even slow it down,” Jyoti said.
"Maybe it uses GaCrux's hydrogen shell as a smelter,” Wolverton ventured.
"It looks like it's going to circumnavigate the asteroid, its path diverging each time it comes around,” the unsuited Nozaki said. “It will almost certainly reach this point sooner or later."
"In which case,” Duvic said, looking at Wolverton, “your hypothesis is going to become a propecy fulfilled."
"You may be responsible for saving the lives of fifty-two people, Wolverton,” the suited Nozaki said.
Her praise made him feel good, but
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