SUNGLASESS AND ROCKETS Part 2: The Machine

FOR LOVE OR MONEY

All eyes turned to see a particular subject, cap and dark glasses, who was hurrying in through a side door.

"Wait up!"

We stopped tentatively a few feet away from the central hatches.

"Major!" he exclaimed, quickening his pace toward us. "What's going on here?"

Flabbergasted, I noticed that besides the cap and the glasses, the unexpected visitor was wearing jeans and a heavy leather jacket, like aviators wear.

His outfit did not make any parallel to the moon base.

"We have a situation," the Major explained.

Our exceptional savior came closer, placing himself right in front of us. I noticed that he sported a thick brown mustache and that his cap was allusive to the Pittsburgh Pirates!

He raised his eyebrows over the glasses and snorted out.

"Professor Masterton!" he greeted. "I'm sorry about this misunderstanding!" He turned to Darwin and me quickly. "Gentlemen, nice to meet you." Ignoring our escorts he went straight to shake our hands, but they opposed bringing their arms between.

The pleasant character smiled, vexed.

"Give me a second," he requested and headed to the meeting table.

I observed that Voodoo walked around the table swiftly, and toward us.

"Mr. Wright," he said without losing his temper. "This is a restricted area. Didn't you read the signs?"

All the way to the back, at the table, you could see the silhouettes fixing themselves in their seats as a sign of annoyance, and Mr. Wright couldn't care less about it. Reaching the edge of the sublevel he said naively:

"I saw professor Masterton getting in the elevator at the Hangar and I followed him. What wrong could the best scientist known on this base have possibly done?

The three prisoners watched the scene puzzled.

"Do you know him?" Darwin whispered.

"I don't think so..." the doctor replied.

I did know who he was: he was our guardian angel in person.

And Voodoo dismissed him at once:

"If you'll excuse me I'm in the middle of a meeting," he turned half way. "I'll see you in fifteen minutes, at enclave 23, along with the rest of—" He came to halt and turned toward us. "Major, what the hell are you still doing there?"

The Major cleared his throat mortified.

One more time we started on our way out.

Mr. Wright, still at the sub level, signaled a stop to our guard, but he ignored it. Then, he rushed to our squad.

"Why are they held prisoners? This is Professor Masterton and his crew!"

"Do you have the slightest idea of who Professor Masterton really is?" Voodoo was heard objecting. "He is a terrorist who had planned to sabotage the experiments..."

The door was getting closer.

Mr. Wright stopped turning to us from the board table. He hesitated and finally ran quickly toward us.

"Major! Wait!"

He went ahead of us and fixed himself firmly a few steps from the exit hatches. Pushing him aside was the easiest thing in the world for the guards. Even so, Mr. Wright persisted and threw himself again in front of the group. The hatches opened on one side each.