The deck shuddered slightly as the main fusion drives opened their nuclear hearts to the universe.The deck shuddered slightly as the main fusion drives opened their nuclear hearts to the universe. There was no perceptible motion outside the main window. "Kolya!" he heard behind him. He bit his lip and sighed, cursing quietly. "Kolya, here you are." Nickolai looked up at his mother, a rotund woman given to dressing with far too much flash. "Hi, Mom." "Hello, Kolya. How are you?" "Fine, Mom." Nickolai fervently wished that this particular encounter with his mother end rather quickly. He reflected that that was usually the case. But at sixteen years old, wry thoughts like that did not bring a smile to his face. "I have a book for you, Kolya. I bought it groundside and I thought you should read it." She reached into a pocket and held out a standard datachip. He took it. The title read "What every Terran needs to know when visiting Pendor." "Why this one?" he asked. "Because it's got good, common sense, Kolya. You should read it." Good common sense? Nickolai sighed and put it in his pocket. "I'll read it later, Mom." "Kolya, you should start reading it now." "Mom, I'm going to have plenty of time before we get to Pendor." His mother sighed and shook her head. "Okay, Kolya. Suit yourself. I'm only trying to further your education." She turned around and with imperious footsteps tread out of the lounge. Nickolai sagged back into the overstuffed chair and sighed. Why did he, out of every kid on earth, why did he have to have a mother? "Parents can be such a pain, can't they?" Nickolai whipped around at the voice. The face that went with that voice startled him, so much so that he almost tumbled out of his chair. "I'm sorry. |