sensation. “Turn
around,” she said, “and look over this way.”
“What?” Barbary suspected a trick, for Heather was directing
her to face the side wall. “Why?”
“Just do it, trust me, quick!” She pushed Barbary around,
not very hard. Barbary could have resisted, but she decided to give Heather a
chance. She faced the wall. It was glass — she had not realized that till now
because the metal casing beyond was featureless and very smooth.
Its edge passed up the window, like a shade rising, and
suddenly Barbary was looking out at the station, from inside it, with the
universe beyond.
“Ohh…” she said. Heather squeezed her hand.
The stars were as beautiful as they had been from the
observation deck of the transport ship. But the overwhelming sight was the
station, a huge wheel within a wheel spinning past the stars. As they dropped
through one of the spokes, the wheels grew larger, much larger than she had
expected, even knowing the dimensions, even seeing the station on the screen in
the transport’s lounge.
Shadows in space were very black and distinct. Some distance
away, a silvery craft sprang suddenly into view. Invisible one moment, the next
it was in plain sight. Nothing was out there for it to hide behind — then
Barbary understood that it had been in the shadow of the station. She was used
to thinking of shadows as falling on a surface, not as great lightless volumes
of space stretching out into infinity. She shivered.
“It’s beautiful,” she said to Heather.
“I want to show you everything! We can drop off your bag and
go see the labs and the garden and the observatory —”
“You mean right now?” Barbary said, stricken.
“Sure!”
“Heather, honey, Barbary’s been traveling for a long time,
she’s tired,” Yoshi said. “Let’s get her settled before you two start
exploring.”
“Okay, sure, that makes sense,” Heather said, sounding
downcast. “But there’s an awful lot to see, and you need to be able to find
your way around.”
“Hold tight,” Yoshi said. “Feet on the floor?”
The elevator braked. Barbary’s stomach lurched. She was
afraid that after all, after going through everything, now at the end of the
trip she would throw up. She fought down the queasiness.
The tilt vanished: the floor steadied and leveled out. They
had stopped at the inner wheel, which was about halfway to the outside rim of
the station. Barbary thought she weighed maybe half here what she did on earth.
It was hard to tell, though, after several days in nearly zero g. The elevator
doors opened. Yoshi and Heather glided out.
“Why did we stop on this level?” Barbary asked.
“We live on this level,” Yoshi said.
“Oh… The booklet said all the living quarters are out on the
rim.” The rim rotated with an acceleration of one gravity.
“Most of them are,” Yoshi said. “But we live here.”
Heather, walking faster, left Yoshi and Barbary a little way
behind. Barbary wondered what it was that she and her father were not telling.
Chapter Five
Barbary followed Heather. The corridor rose before and
behind them, for it followed the arc of the station’s inner wheel. But though
Barbary could see that the hall curved upward, she felt as if she were walking
down a gentle incline. It was a very strange sensation.
Heather turned right, into a crossways hall, and both the
curve of the floor and the perception of going down disappeared.
Barbary followed Heather around a second right turn. Now
they were walking the opposite direction from the way they had started. Again
the hall looked like it rose, but this time Barbary felt as if she were walking
up a shallow incline.
She had no chance to ask what was going on. A few paces
beyond the corner, Heather opened a door and went inside. Yoshi followed.
Barbary entered a small, sparsely furnished living room.
Of course it had no windows. People who lived in space
needed more protection from solar radiation and cosmic rays than
around,” she said, “and look over this way.”
“What?” Barbary suspected a trick, for Heather was directing
her to face the side wall. “Why?”
“Just do it, trust me, quick!” She pushed Barbary around,
not very hard. Barbary could have resisted, but she decided to give Heather a
chance. She faced the wall. It was glass — she had not realized that till now
because the metal casing beyond was featureless and very smooth.
Its edge passed up the window, like a shade rising, and
suddenly Barbary was looking out at the station, from inside it, with the
universe beyond.
“Ohh…” she said. Heather squeezed her hand.
The stars were as beautiful as they had been from the
observation deck of the transport ship. But the overwhelming sight was the
station, a huge wheel within a wheel spinning past the stars. As they dropped
through one of the spokes, the wheels grew larger, much larger than she had
expected, even knowing the dimensions, even seeing the station on the screen in
the transport’s lounge.
Shadows in space were very black and distinct. Some distance
away, a silvery craft sprang suddenly into view. Invisible one moment, the next
it was in plain sight. Nothing was out there for it to hide behind — then
Barbary understood that it had been in the shadow of the station. She was used
to thinking of shadows as falling on a surface, not as great lightless volumes
of space stretching out into infinity. She shivered.
“It’s beautiful,” she said to Heather.
“I want to show you everything! We can drop off your bag and
go see the labs and the garden and the observatory —”
“You mean right now?” Barbary said, stricken.
“Sure!”
“Heather, honey, Barbary’s been traveling for a long time,
she’s tired,” Yoshi said. “Let’s get her settled before you two start
exploring.”
“Okay, sure, that makes sense,” Heather said, sounding
downcast. “But there’s an awful lot to see, and you need to be able to find
your way around.”
“Hold tight,” Yoshi said. “Feet on the floor?”
The elevator braked. Barbary’s stomach lurched. She was
afraid that after all, after going through everything, now at the end of the
trip she would throw up. She fought down the queasiness.
The tilt vanished: the floor steadied and leveled out. They
had stopped at the inner wheel, which was about halfway to the outside rim of
the station. Barbary thought she weighed maybe half here what she did on earth.
It was hard to tell, though, after several days in nearly zero g. The elevator
doors opened. Yoshi and Heather glided out.
“Why did we stop on this level?” Barbary asked.
“We live on this level,” Yoshi said.
“Oh… The booklet said all the living quarters are out on the
rim.” The rim rotated with an acceleration of one gravity.
“Most of them are,” Yoshi said. “But we live here.”
Heather, walking faster, left Yoshi and Barbary a little way
behind. Barbary wondered what it was that she and her father were not telling.
Chapter Five
Barbary followed Heather. The corridor rose before and
behind them, for it followed the arc of the station’s inner wheel. But though
Barbary could see that the hall curved upward, she felt as if she were walking
down a gentle incline. It was a very strange sensation.
Heather turned right, into a crossways hall, and both the
curve of the floor and the perception of going down disappeared.
Barbary followed Heather around a second right turn. Now
they were walking the opposite direction from the way they had started. Again
the hall looked like it rose, but this time Barbary felt as if she were walking
up a shallow incline.
She had no chance to ask what was going on. A few paces
beyond the corner, Heather opened a door and went inside. Yoshi followed.
Barbary entered a small, sparsely furnished living room.
Of course it had no windows. People who lived in space
needed more protection from solar radiation and cosmic rays than
Similar Books
