seriously, what’s this about?”
Just then, the ground rumbled. It felt like Naples had indigestion. I knew that sound.
“Oh,” I said. “Hot fire sky. A volcano.”
“Mountain goes up,” Win confirmed. See, now if she’d said that right away I would have gotten it.
I looked at the peak and saw a faint curl of smoke work its way out of the center.
“How long do you think I have?” I asked her.
“Ears hurt.” She felt the same thing that had sent the birds away. Not the best forecasting method around but it would have to do.
Just then the mountain ejected a larger mass of smoke and running seemed like a very good idea.
“Okay,” I agreed. “Let’s run, shall we?” The proper thing to do would have been to warn Adolphus and his wife first, but they were in Rome on business at the time, so I was obligation free. I ran.
I headed down the hill, taking the most direct path I knew of to the shore. Any boat close to the mountain would be rendered useless by a big enough pumice rock or flaming ember—wood boats and all—and I was betting that any boat owner with half a brain would know this and act accordingly. Getting on one of those boats before they left would be a good thing.
And then, as I was halfway to the dock, Mount Vesuvius erupted. It began with an earthquake tremor, which knocked me off my feet, leaving me prone and looking up at the top of the mountain, which put me into position to see something amazing. The entire top cone of the mountain rocketed skyward in a million pieces propelled by an enormous column of ejecta that spread outward in all directions. It looked a bit like those mushrooms I’d been picking for Win, only writ large and much deadlier. As horrifying as it was, I don’t know that I’ve ever seen anything quite so magnificent.
My immediate and very human reaction was to sit there and watch, as one rarely gets a chance to see something this extraordinary. (I’d been sleeping when the volcano off Crete blew.) Fortunately I had Win to watch my back.
“Move now!” she urged, tugging at my earlobe.
Snapped from my reverie, I got to my feet and stumbled down the hill as the ashes began to rain down from the initial blast. I’d gotten about twenty paces, still turning from time to time to admire the view, when a massive chunk of pumice landed right where I’d been admiring the volcano. That sealed it. It was time to get the hell out of Herculaneum, and fast.
As I sprinted through town, I came across dozens of neighbors who didn’t seem at all inclined to motivate themselves toward the shore. They just stood there and watched. Either they simply didn’t comprehend the peril they were in or they knew there was no place to run and figured they might as well catch the show. I wasn’t quite at that point. I’d swim to Capri if I had to.
When I reached the shore I found . . . no boats.
“Oh, Hades,” I said.
“Where boat?” Win asked from her perch on my shoulder.
“It’s the middle of the day. Everyone’s fishing in the bay right now.”
“No boat?” she clarified.
“No boat.”
Another massive blast from the mountain shook the Earth and sent me to my knees. Ashes were starting to rain down in force and the sky had darkened considerably. Clouds were forming over the mountain. If prior experience served, lightning would be next.
I shuffled through my options quickly. There weren’t many. “Win, do you know where Torre del Greco is?”
“Tory . . . ?”
“. . . del Greco. It’s down the beach from here. I need you to fly ahead and see if there are any boats there. I know you can fly very fast.”
“Very fast.”
“Yes. See if there are boats there.”
“You stay here?”
“I’m going to run as fast as I can along the shore. I’d just like to know if there’ll be a boat waiting for me. Okay?”
“Okay.”
“And Win? If the air gets too bad and you don’t think you can make it back to me, don’t. Just fly off to somewhere
Just then, the ground rumbled. It felt like Naples had indigestion. I knew that sound.
“Oh,” I said. “Hot fire sky. A volcano.”
“Mountain goes up,” Win confirmed. See, now if she’d said that right away I would have gotten it.
I looked at the peak and saw a faint curl of smoke work its way out of the center.
“How long do you think I have?” I asked her.
“Ears hurt.” She felt the same thing that had sent the birds away. Not the best forecasting method around but it would have to do.
Just then the mountain ejected a larger mass of smoke and running seemed like a very good idea.
“Okay,” I agreed. “Let’s run, shall we?” The proper thing to do would have been to warn Adolphus and his wife first, but they were in Rome on business at the time, so I was obligation free. I ran.
I headed down the hill, taking the most direct path I knew of to the shore. Any boat close to the mountain would be rendered useless by a big enough pumice rock or flaming ember—wood boats and all—and I was betting that any boat owner with half a brain would know this and act accordingly. Getting on one of those boats before they left would be a good thing.
And then, as I was halfway to the dock, Mount Vesuvius erupted. It began with an earthquake tremor, which knocked me off my feet, leaving me prone and looking up at the top of the mountain, which put me into position to see something amazing. The entire top cone of the mountain rocketed skyward in a million pieces propelled by an enormous column of ejecta that spread outward in all directions. It looked a bit like those mushrooms I’d been picking for Win, only writ large and much deadlier. As horrifying as it was, I don’t know that I’ve ever seen anything quite so magnificent.
My immediate and very human reaction was to sit there and watch, as one rarely gets a chance to see something this extraordinary. (I’d been sleeping when the volcano off Crete blew.) Fortunately I had Win to watch my back.
“Move now!” she urged, tugging at my earlobe.
Snapped from my reverie, I got to my feet and stumbled down the hill as the ashes began to rain down from the initial blast. I’d gotten about twenty paces, still turning from time to time to admire the view, when a massive chunk of pumice landed right where I’d been admiring the volcano. That sealed it. It was time to get the hell out of Herculaneum, and fast.
As I sprinted through town, I came across dozens of neighbors who didn’t seem at all inclined to motivate themselves toward the shore. They just stood there and watched. Either they simply didn’t comprehend the peril they were in or they knew there was no place to run and figured they might as well catch the show. I wasn’t quite at that point. I’d swim to Capri if I had to.
When I reached the shore I found . . . no boats.
“Oh, Hades,” I said.
“Where boat?” Win asked from her perch on my shoulder.
“It’s the middle of the day. Everyone’s fishing in the bay right now.”
“No boat?” she clarified.
“No boat.”
Another massive blast from the mountain shook the Earth and sent me to my knees. Ashes were starting to rain down in force and the sky had darkened considerably. Clouds were forming over the mountain. If prior experience served, lightning would be next.
I shuffled through my options quickly. There weren’t many. “Win, do you know where Torre del Greco is?”
“Tory . . . ?”
“. . . del Greco. It’s down the beach from here. I need you to fly ahead and see if there are any boats there. I know you can fly very fast.”
“Very fast.”
“Yes. See if there are boats there.”
“You stay here?”
“I’m going to run as fast as I can along the shore. I’d just like to know if there’ll be a boat waiting for me. Okay?”
“Okay.”
“And Win? If the air gets too bad and you don’t think you can make it back to me, don’t. Just fly off to somewhere
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