The Return of the Cloud

Venus- chapter one, Something is Coming

Chapter 1. Day One: Something's Coming

The six crew members clung to their seats, fingers gripping hard as the shaking ship rose and accelerated up into the blue Venusian sky. No one ever spoke during this time- the atmosphere and mood was always too intense and the volume of sound too extreme. The shaking lasted for less than two minutes but in those two eternal minutes all thoughts and feelings were focussed on 'When will it stop?!' The juddering continued, blurring the faces of the crew members and the big fat dials and levers of the rocket controls. This was only Brian's second lift off, the other being when he left Earth six months before. He hadn't yet gotten used to the fears and thoughts of lift off and its physical effects. He was beginning to feel sick already- not from the vibrating and shaking but from the horrible thoughts of possible catastrophe that were rocketing around in his head. He tried to avert his thoughts by looking out of the round window just five feet away but all that this showed him was the empty blue sky. He looked at the others, each wearing helmetless astronauts suits and ear protectors and strapped to their seats. In spite of the blurry expressions on the others' faces he could see that his crew mates must be sharing his feelings. The pounding sounds continued and so did the nervous feelings shared by all. Then, the drama began to ease and the sky began to darken. Within five more minutes they had reached space. Had they all been speeding on the highway at a hundred miles an hour it would have taken them an hour to travel the same distance.

In orbit, everyone was relaxed and smiles abounded. The relative quiet of the engines now allowed the chat to start. Brian chose not to listen. He hadn't yet got over the lift off. Leaving Earth just six months before had been his first experience of space flight and it had been a shock to his body and mind. He was undecided as to whether or not this second experience had been any easier. It would be several more minutes before the gravity would be turned on and seat belts could be removed. Meanwhile, as his nerves returned to normal, he became aware of a conversation beside him. A lady had just said that as much as she had loved her time on Venus, she couldn't wait to get back to a normal life on Earth. She'd missed the food, her friends and family, T.V. and Earth's multitudes of possible entertainments but what had surprised her most was that she had also missed just about everything that she had thought she never liked- commuting, house cleaning, her neighbours loud dog- even her boss. Brian sympathised with her and others added their thoughts about the nostalgia they were feeling after only six months away from home. It was then that Brian's attention went back to the window and the starry vastness outside that he was now able to witness. He tried to lean outwards, stretching his seat belt to its max, and peer through the tiny window at the myriad of tiny twinkling stars. His view wasn't at all panoramic but it was good enough to show the wonder. He stared in fascination and amazement, as all would generally do when orbiting. As he stared at the stars and at the beautiful turquoise hazy surface of Venus, he saw something unexpected. He watched and was puzzled at what he thought he was seeing. At first he squinted to refocus his eyes. Then, his eyes widened and his mouth slowly fell open. Finally, in a tone that matched his excited face, he just had to call out, "Look! Look! What is that?"