Tachyon Web Read Free Page B

scrapes and bumps followed under his feet as they came to a complete stop in slip-fitting tracks. The door slid shut at their back and atmosphere poured into the air lock with an intense but brief roar. A flashing red light on the control board turned a solid green. There was a loud hiss as the ferry’s seals peeked open. Eric felt a sudden rush of fear and almost asked to be taken back. What kept him was nothing heroic. He simply thought of how lonely and bored he would be over spring break, and quickly climbed out.
    They found Strem and Jeanie on the control deck. Their hellos were brief. With the tension in the room, they could have been going into battle.
    A three-dimensional holographic cube dominated the center of the bridge, projecting schematics of their course in relationship to the planets, the latter’s gravitational fields wavering in the haunting red background glow as though they were living ghosts. Taking a seat at the navigational computer, Sammy performed a quick systems check. As he did so, the transparent holographic cube sparked with unwinding white threads representing possible courses for Excalibur on its way out of the solar system. Eric noted how each line curved around a bright red dot – Mars and Cleo.
    “We have clearance,” Strem said, coming up behind Sammy, glancing out the windows, which were uncovered turned toward the cloud-shrouded Asian continent. “Let’s get out of here.”
    “One minute,” Sammy said. “The ferry is still clearing. Did your uncle get the seal on the Preeze Cap repaired? The board shows minor pressure discrepancies.” The Preeze Cap was a sophisticated circulation pump that helped keep the gravitation drive from overheating. It used old-fashioned ethylene glycol.
    “Yes,” Strem said. “Did you need help plotting our course?”
    “Absolutely not, thank you.”
    “Are you as scared as me?” Jeanie asked Eric, leaning beside him against the unlit panel that held the setting for the hyper drive. She was dressed in a black leotard, and her bushy brunette hair was tied with a yellow ribbon in a ponytail that reached to her waist. Sweat glistened on her bare arms from dancing to burn off her nervousness before they had arrived.
    Jeanie was one of the school’s cheerleaders and, after graduating, planned to study ballet, which she would certainly excel at – she looked graceful simply walking across campus. An uncomplicated person to the extent of being slightly dull, she compensated for any personality deficiencies with a fresh beauty that occasionally made Eric wonder if he wouldn’t chase after her if, say, Strem were to meet a sudden and unexpected accident.
    Eric thought of Dentenia; she had similar seductive legs, and Strem had been right that she knew how to answer the phone. But he had been wrong about her automatic yes. She had given him a brisk no just before hanging up. He was still wondering why he had caller her – at least when Carol and Barb didn’t want to see him, they were polite enough to say they had to wash their hair or something.
    “I’ve done worse things,” Eric answered with a straight face.
    “When?” Jeanie asked.
    “In another life.” He nodded towards Strem. “How did he talk us into this?”
    “The same as always – he kept on at us until we said yes.” She squeezed his hand. “Isn’t it exciting?”
    “Ask me after we get back home.”
    “We can go,” Sammy pronounced. He glanced up at Strem, who nodded decisively. Sammy’s right hand moved and as it did, so did the ship, India slipping from the windows and being replaced with starry space as Excalibur turned its back and main drive on the world below. The lights dimmed and the white streak with the holograph turned orange. A low deep hum filled the room, swiftly shifting into a high-pitched whine before suddenly cutting off into a ringing silence. Strem laughed and Jeanie gasped and Eric smiled as the Earth began to shrink like a colorful ball thrown into a