AW’s August 2012 Blog Chain: Fire & Ice

Tweet of the Day: Writing Excuses 7.32: Astronomy 101 for Writers

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Look at the calendar, yep, another month, another Blog Chain.

Drum roll please…..

You can do either or both, compare and contrast, or anything else that suggests itself. Write wherever the prompt inspires you, fiction or non-fiction, prose or poetry. Do try and keep things at a PG-13 level, though.

Instructions:
Simply post your blog’s URL in this thread to join. Each post should be less than 1000 words if possible. Read and comment on other participants’ posts if you possibly can–they’ll be doing the same for you!

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Bright sunlight reflected off the surface of the ice sheet. Not a cloud in the sky, and none to be expected at -80 °C. If it weren’t for our hardsuits we would be both blind and frozen to death.

“We should have sent in a rover,” said Robert at the head of our three man column. He had been complaining about the mission ever since we landed.  I heard Michael’s loud groan over the radio.

“This is not a job for a rover, Robert, even if we had one,” I said.

“It’s not a job for the top geologist in the sector either,” said Robert.

“You sound like a wee girl sent to bed without supper,” I said.

“No I don’t. It’s just a matter of perspective, is all.”

“Perspective…” I had enough of his whining, “Robert, can you do me, Michael and the universe a favor?” I asked.

“What?”

“Could you shut the f–” a tremor cut my curse short. Followed by another a few seconds later. My hardsuit’s computer called out a warning in a soft feminine voice.

WARNING: Increased seismic activity detected. 2.7 Mw.

The tremors continued, followed by more warnings.

2.9 Mw

3.0 Mw

“Back to the shuttle, run dammit run!” I said over the radio.

3.4 Mw

The horizon wobbled as the ice beneath our feet thundered. Robert dove head first into the open hatch. I ran up to the cockpit and set the thrusters to full power.

“Sierra 1 to Iona, do you copy?”

“Sierra 1 this is Iona, what’s your status, over?”

“We are en route. We detected increasing seismic activity in our area,” I said.

“Understood Sierra 1.”

“Would you look at that!” said Michael.

I looked up from the controls. A wall of  dark mud, crowned by tongues of fire stretched from horizon to horizon. As we gained altitude the cleft on the ice ran for hundreds of kilometers. But it was not until we reached orbit did we understand the magnitude of what was happening. Angry red lines, tens of thousands of kilometers long crisscrossed  the surface of the planet. The kilometer deep ice sheets broke up under the intense pressure from within. A pall of dark smoke, made up of methane, steam and carbon dioxide spread across the atmosphere.  The end of a planet wide ice age occurred before our very eyes.

I slapped Robert on the shoulder, “Now that’s why we do what we do, you pansy!”

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That’s my take on Fire & Ice. Make sure to visit the blogs below and watch your step! 😀

Participants and posts:
orion_mk3 – http://nonexistentbooks.wordpress.com (link to this month’s post)
Ralph Pines – https://ralfast.wordpress.com/ (link to this month’s post)
areteus – http://lurkingmusings.wordpress.com/ (link to this month’s post)
Catherine Hall – http://theelephantinthetemple.blogspot.com/ (link to this month’s post)
bmadsen – http://www.bernardmadsen.com/ (link to this month’s post)
pyrosama – http://matrix-hole.blogspot.com/ (link to this month’s post)
meowzbark – http://erlessard.wordpress.com/ (link to this month’s post)
BBBurke – http://www.awritersprogression.com/ (link to this month’s post)
writingismypassion – http://charityfaye.blogspot.com/ (link to this month’s post)
wonderactivist – http://luciesmoker.wordpress.com/ (link to this month’s post)
SuzanneSeese – http://viewofsue.blogspot.com/ (link to this month’s post)
randi.lee – http://emotionalnovel.blogspot.com/ (link to this month’s post)
Proach – http://desstories.blogspot.com/ (link to this month’s post)
BigWords – http://bigwords88.wordpress.com/ (link to this month’s post)
magicmint – http://www.loneswing.com/ (link to this month’s post)
tomspy77 – http://thomaswillamspychalski.wordpress.com/ (link to this month’s post)

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