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Back The Skies of Pern
Chapters (64)
  1. Other titles by Anne McCaffreyPublished by Ballantine Books:
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright
  4. Dedication
  5. Contents
  6. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  7. INTRODUCTION
  8. PROLOGUE
  9. At a Gather—6.15.30
  10. Part 1
  11. Turnover at Landing—1.1.31 Present Pass Aivas—Aivas Adjusted Turn 2553
  12. Benden Weyr—1.1.31
  13. Southern Hold—1.1.31
  14. Healer Hall—1.1.31
  15. Back at Landing—1.2.31
  16. Fort Hold—late night—1.1.31
  17. Fort Hold Runner Station—1.2.31
  18. Keroon Printer Hall—1.3.31
  19. Benden Weyr—midday—1.3.31
  20. Monaco Bay Weyr—five days later—1.8.31
  21. Part 2
  22. Ruatha Hold—local time 12:04 in the morning—1.9.31
  23. Telgar Weyr—local time 4:04 in the morning—1.9.31
  24. Benden Weyr—local time 6:04 in the morning—1.9.31
  25. Harper Hall—local time 1:00 in the morning—1.9.31
  26. Landing—local time 10:12 mid-morning—1.9.31
  27. In the Conference Room at Landing—1.9.31
  28. Monaco Weyr—10:22 in the morning—Timing it
  29. In the Conference Room at Landing—local time 1:10–1.9.31
  30. Sunrise Cliff Seahold—timed-back
  31. In the Conference Room—local time 2:12 at Landing—1.9.31
  32. Back at Landing—local time—3:40
  33. Harper Hall—5:00 in the morning, and Southern Hold—2:00 in the morning–1.9.31
  34. Landing—late afternoon—1.9.31
  35. Same time at Keroon Printer Hall—local time 11:15—1.9.31
  36. Later, on an unusually bright evening at Landing, Sunrise Cliff, and Honshu Hold—1.9.31
  37. Part 3
  38. Honshu—1.10.31
  39. Circle Runner Station—1.18.31
  40. Harper Hall
  41. Benden Weyr—
  42. Benini Hold—east Monaco and Honshu—1.20.31
  43. Harper Hall—1.28.31
  44. Honshu Hold—2.1.31
  45. Fort Hold—2.13.31
  46. Printer Hall at Wide Bay—same night
  47. Honshu Hold—2.9.31
  48. Night at Wide Bay—2.9.31
  49. Ruatha Hold—late evening—2.9.31
  50. Core Hold—two days before Council Meeting—2.26.31
  51. Part 4
  52. Honshu Weyrhold—2.26–27.31
  53. Council Meeting at Telgar Hold—3.1.31
  54. Honshu Weyrhold—3.01.31
  55. Interim at Benden and elsewhere
  56. Honshu Weyrhold—time passing slowly
  57. Landing—3.21.31
  58. Honshu Weyrhold—3.21.31
  59. Southern Hold—3.23.31
  60. Honshu Weyrhold—3.27.31
  61. Benden Weyr—3.27.31
  62. Cove Hold—same day, same approximate time
  63. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  64. What’s next onyour reading list?

At that point, Erragon visibly tensed, leaning slightly forward on the balls of his feet in an attitude that confirmed F’lessan’s bad feelings about the alteration in probability of impact. He wasn’t certain that the error ellipse of impact was reassuring. Unless the comet suddenly pulled itself up in an escape parabola. Estimate to Perigee decreasing: 1500 seconds, or 25 minutes, F’lessan told himself. He also didn’t like standing around, watching, in a room full of people who didn’t seem to realize what could happen. The tension was palpable but everyone was so focused on the screen, too scared to ask questions or to break into the concentration of Stinar or Erragon.

New figures at 1200 seconds, from the Yoko’s synchronic orbit over Pern, gave coordinates of Range 71377km, Yoko latitude 45.IN, Yoko longitude 118.4m. The magnitude was –5, which was bright enough and getting brighter and the fireball was suddenly moving a degree every minute. He stepped right beside Stinar and Erragon.

“Where will it impact?” F’lessan murmured for their ears only.

“We still don’t know that it will,” Stinar said softly, restlessly shifting his feet, turning his head sideways so that his words just reached F’lessan.

“There’s a three-hundred-kilometer range error,” Erragon said as if that was significant.

“Where?” Stinar demanded.

“Right now, the range extends along the farther Eastern Island Ring.”

“On the islands themselves, or in the sea?”

Stinar took the hand-control unit from his pocket and punched in a command. The monitor opened a small window in the right corner, while the Probability Impact percentage rose steadily into the 50’s and the error ellipse—that narrow band along the far islands to which the Fireball was inexorably aimed—got smaller. The new window showed the Eastern Sea as it must be seen from Yoko, and the scattered islands of both Eastern Rings. A wide band was superimposed over the upper islands.

“Looks more like the islands,” Stinar said with a little shrug.

F’lessan knew that the islands were uninhabited, too far out in the Eastern Ring Sea to be attractive for anyone, even Toric, to hold; except whichever island currently housed the Abominator exiles—and no one but N’ton knew where that was.

“I don’t like that,” Erragon said, stiffening.

“Why?”

“Those islands are all volcanic. An impact on them might trigger eruptions all along that chain,” he said, pointing.

“Then we’ll just hope it falls in the sea,” Stinar said with a slightly nervous laugh.

“That will produce other hazards,” Erragon said solemnly.