Rachel DycekThe great volcano of Pavonis Mons looked like a noble beacon as the storm approached from the north. Through Percival’s trapezoidal windowports Rachel could look out at the Martian sky and see bright stars even during the daytime. In the distance the lurking haze from the wall of windborne microfine dust swept into an impenetrable murk.
The uphill slope of Pavonis was shallow, taking forever to rise from the Tharsis Plain. The shield volcano had oozed thick lava and slowly built its cone in the low gravity over thousands of years, sliding out in a gentle slope, flat and inexorable until it pushed clear of the lower atmosphere.
Scrambling ahead on its numerous legs, gliding over all obstacles, Percival made steady progress, kilometer after kilometer. Rachel hunched forward, le
