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| Cover by Danielle Fine |
A visor covered her eyes, overlaying the murk-dimmed outlines of the Bones of the Sea with a neon-bright schematic to guide her. The discoid base of the structure measured a modest ten meters in diameter that was matched by the height of the twelve arched legs. Its klingeln framework, impenetrable to scans, had become encrusted with the native corals and simple marine species that comprised the entirety of Ulto Marinos’s life; nothing more complex or dangerous than jellyfish and microscopic plankton. She knew that having compiled a full catalogue of them in her free time and as part of her pre-survey safety check. After all, who wants to work in an area with venomous critters? Study had revealed that below the disk the construct formed a huge tear-drop shaped body thirty meters long and buried in the soft silt and mud of the seabed. The overall shape vaguely resembled an old Terran cephalopod – a squid. No one knew where it had come from or what it had been intended for … and no one cared. It was causing an obstruction to the seagrafters, and the corporation wanted it removed. Out of their way.
© 2009-2013 Copyright Philippa J. Green All Rights Reserved
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Ooo, intriguing!! Great snippet!
ReplyDeleteQuite descriptive, and I have a feeling the corporations are going to have their plans foiled.
ReplyDeleteGreat set up with a foreboding lead in at the end. Some really great descriptive words throughout.
ReplyDeleteGreat snippet - and I agree with the sense of foreboding. An ancient squid, in the depths - could it be that she has discovered sunken R'lyh?
ReplyDeleteI, too, sense that foreboding tone, and like T.M., I was struck by how descriptive this was. Because of that and the tone, and simply the fantastic pace you've set, it's totally engrossing, Pippa. Beautiful.
ReplyDeleteOh yah, I remember this part.... :D
ReplyDeleteSilly corporations. I think TM's right, and they're in for some trouble.
ReplyDeleteThat's the problem with corporations. The bottom line is everything.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who spent a lot of time studying marine biology in undergrad, I approve :). More please!
ReplyDeleteOh. They want to move it...
ReplyDeleteNothing good can come from that...
Great snippet!
Very descriptive. Lovely stuff!
ReplyDelete