Forward in Time by Ben Bova

Author:Ben Bova [Bova, Ben]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 0802755623
Publisher: Walker & Co.
Published: 1973-10-01T21:00:00+00:00

The exec showed us to a tiny stateroom with two bunks in it. Part of the picket’s crew was on shore leave, and they had a spare compartment for us. I tried to sleep, but spent most of the late afternoon hours squirming nervously. Around dusk, Ted got up and went to the bridge. I followed him.

“See those clouds, off the southern horizon?” he was saying to the lieutenant. “That’s her. Just her outer fringes.”

I checked back with THUNDER headquarters. The planes had seeded the low-pressure trough off Long Island without incident. Weather stations along the coast, and automated observation equipment on satellites and planes were reporting a small storm cell developing.

Barney’s face appeared on the viewscreen. She looked very worried. “Is Ted there?”

“Right here,” he said, stepping into view.

“The computer run’s just finished,” she said, pushing a strand of hair from her face. “Omega’s going to turn northward, but only temporarily. She’ll head inland again late tomorrow. In about forty-eight hours she’ll strike the coast somewhere between Cape Hatteras and Washington.”

Ted let out a low whistle.

“But that’s not all,” she continued. “The storm track crosses right over the ship you’re on. You’re going to be in the center of it!”

“We’ll have to get off here right away,” I said.

“No rush,” Ted said. “We can spend the night here. I want to see her develop firsthand.”

Barney said, “Ted, don’t be foolish. It’s going to be dangerous.” He grinned at her. “Jealous? Don’t worry, I just want to get a look at her, then I’ll come flying back to you.”

“You stubborn . . .” The blond curl popped back over her eyes again and she pushed it away angrily. “Ted, it’s time you stopped acting like a little boy. You bet I’m jealous. I’m tired of competing against the whole twirling atmosphere! You’ve got responsibilities, and if you don’t want to live up to them . . . well, you’d better, that’s all!”

“Okay, okay. We’ll be back tomorrow morning. Be safer traveling in daylight anyway. Omega’s still moving slowly; we’ll have plenty of time.”

“Not if she starts moving faster. This computer run was just a first-order look at the problem. The storm could move faster than we think.”

“We’ll get to Miami okay, don’t worry.”

“No, why should I worry? You’re only six hundred miles out at sea with a hurricane bearing down on you.”

“Just an hour away. Get some sleep. We’ll fly over in the morning.”

The wind was picking up as I went back to my bunk, and the ship was starting to rock in the deepening sea. I had sail-boated through storms and slept in worse weather than this. It wasn’t the conditions of the moment that bothered me. It was the knowledge of what was coming.

Ted stayed out on the bridge, watching the southern skies darken with the deathly fascination of a general observing the approach of a much stronger army. I dropped off to sleep, telling myself that I’d get Ted off this ship as soon as a plane could pick us up, even if I had to have the sailors wrap him in anchor chains.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.