Chapter Twelve

Ensign Hal Kepler hunched over his data terminal working feverishly. He wiped his tired eyes and yawned.

“One more time,” he muttered to himself as he scanned the search results. He knew he had to make sure that he did not miss anything. One sli-up and the captain might never give him another chance.

Ever since Hal had been assigned to the Boadicea, he had tried to make a positive impression on Captain Leiber. However, it seemed that impressing ‘Old Stoneface’ was impossible. He usually treated Hal with indifference, which was much preferred to the stern glare he had seen the captain bestow on crewmembers who disappointed him.

According to the search results, what happened to Forrestal’s atmosphere could not happen. The only similar incidents of a planet’s ionosphere becoming opaque involved highly contaminated industrial planets. Forrestal was a nearly pristine wilderness planet. The two pieces of information just did not seem to fit.

The rescue mission could not begin until he solved this riddle. Kepler knew that this was his chance to shine. He tried to think of any natural occurrences that could mimic severe pollution.

The answer hit him like a lightning bolt. He sat up straight and exclaimed, “A volcano!”

Everyone on the bridge turned toward him, startled by his outburst.

The captain raised an eyebrow, “New information, Mr. Kepler?”

“Sir, the atmospheric changes could be the result of volcanic activity.”

“A volcano? This sounds a little extreme for a volcano to cause.”

Ensign Kepler paused for a moment, thinking carefully. “I agree, sir.”

Frowning, the captain rose and walked over the Kepler’s work station. “Please explain.”

“Well, Sir, I agree that a single volcano, no matter how big, probably couldn’t cause such a widespread problem…but a series of them might be enough.”

The captain turned to face Kepler, giving him his full attention. “How sure are you of this?”

“It’s just a theory, but it’s the only one that makes any sense. The combined gas output from multiple volcanoes is the only thing that could replicate the atmospheric contamination that causes this type of problem…unless the survey team missed a highly industrialized civilization down there.”

“I doubt that, Ensign Kepler.” The captain gave him a dark look. “It just doesn’t make sense that they would miss an imminent disaster either.”

Kepler shrugged apologetically.

The captain paused for a moment. “As this is the only theory we have, we will go with it. However, I need more information…quickly.”

“Yes sir, I’ll try to confirm it.” Kepler hunched over his terminal once again, desperately trying to think of a way to confirm volcanic eruptions though the haze of Forrestal’s ionosphere.