Shockwave

I set the paper aside and saw a brief flash out my window. Probably a jeep driving on the dirt road that led to the temporary shelters. I got headlights through my window from time to time. I ignored it.

The next paper in my stack was all about potential ballast issues. The Hail Mary kept its center of mass along its long axis by pumping Astrophage around as needed. But we still wanted to keep things as balanced as possible anyway. The ESA crew had rearranged several supply bags in the storage compartment to more adequately balance—

The window shattered as a deafening explosion shook the room. Glass shards nicked my face as a shockwave knocked me clean out of my chair.

After that: silence.

And then: sirens in the distance.

I got to my knees, and then to my feet. I opened and closed my mouth a few times to pop my ears.

I stumbled to the door and opened it. The first thing I noticed was that the small triplet of steps that once led to my door were several feet away. Then I saw the freshly disturbed earth between the steps and my door and I understood what happened.

The steps are anchored into the ground with four-by-fours sunk deep like fence posts. My portable has no such support.

My whole house moved and the stairs stayed put.

***

Chapter 21