panel?”
“In about an hour,” Xander said. “I pasted up the program sheets onto the walls of the main corridor. And I plan on being out there with a loudspeaker to announce things if I have to. And I’ve actually had a bit of a brainwave, at that.”
“Being?” Andie Mae, who hadn’t slept much that night, said while trying to smother a jaw–cracking yawn.
“I’ll get the damned ‘bots to go on the panels,” Xander said. “They owe us that much.”
“They don’t owe us zip,” Dave said morosely. “All they want are some nebulous ‘answers’, and anything else – ”
“They do so ,” Xander interrupted. “If they’re actually doing the ‘boldly go where no man has gone before’ move and taking us on an unscheduled freaking outing to the Moon…”
Dave snorted. “It’s hardly the final frontier, Xander. We’re just retracing some ancient footsteps. Or engine burns, anyway. To the Moon and back – once a small step for man – ”
“Engine burns,” said Lester Long, one of the volunteers, thoughtfully. “Er, just how are we performing this magical mystery tour, if one may ask? This is hardly – if I understand what you’ve said correctly – the most aerodynamic of shapes to sail around the cosmos in.”
This was an old argument. “Neither was the Borg cube,” Xander snapped. “Aerodynamic doesn’t matter where there isn’t, you know, air .”
“Fine out here – but how did we get out of our air – and if we plan on coming back, how do they intend to accomplish that little miracle? We’re a hank of rock, no better than a meteor, and we’ll probably do a spectacular re–entry. Come back in with a bang. A big bang. Tunguska will be nothing on us.”
“Boom,” Libby said faintly.
“ Big badda boom,” Lester said helpfully.
“You’re still applying our physics to any of this?” Dave asked incredulously. “We’re just as likely to come back in and turn into a bowl of petunias on re–entry as we are to flame out.”
“A very warped Infinite Improbability Drive,” Libby said.
“Hell, yeah!” Xander said. “To Infinity, and beyond! That might be entertaining all by itself. But when we come back – if we come back – whatever that schedule is – we still have a con to run, and a bunch of people who paid good money to be here. Our responsibilities didn’t end just because we got hijacked, and I’m damned if I’m going to let the android crew just sit back and ignore us now. They have to entertain us. Seriously. I plan on having Sim’s guys stand guard on the panel rooms if necessary. But they will play.”
“Do they know that yet?” said Andie Mae sharply. And then relented. “Oh, Xander. I’m on your side. I’m on my side, on my con’s side. Of course I’ll back you. I just don’t know how it’ll work out. The only one with the gift of the gab in that sense seems to be Boss – the rest have been pretty monosyllabic thus far. But it’s worth a try and there will certainly be a measure of increased attendance because people might just come along to gawk and point. Fine with me. Go do.”
“Right,” Xander said. “I have stuff to see to. I’ll report back later.”
“Speaking of our guests or masters or our Tin Man greatgreatgreatgreatgranchildren,” Dave said, “anyone seen them this morning?”
“We’d better find them,” Andie Mae said. “If Xander gets his way he’s gonna want them, and I still want to talk to that Boss creature. And I emphatically don’t want them wandering around screwing with everyone else’s minds. Or listening to some of the drivel that they might get eagerly told by some of the fringe elements out there. I wouldn’t want them to get the wrong end of the stick about us. They might decide that we’re too bizarre by half to bother saving, after all – collateral damage, send the rock into the sun, be done with us…”
“You really think they’ll return us?”
“They’d better,” growled Andie
“In about an hour,” Xander said. “I pasted up the program sheets onto the walls of the main corridor. And I plan on being out there with a loudspeaker to announce things if I have to. And I’ve actually had a bit of a brainwave, at that.”
“Being?” Andie Mae, who hadn’t slept much that night, said while trying to smother a jaw–cracking yawn.
“I’ll get the damned ‘bots to go on the panels,” Xander said. “They owe us that much.”
“They don’t owe us zip,” Dave said morosely. “All they want are some nebulous ‘answers’, and anything else – ”
“They do so ,” Xander interrupted. “If they’re actually doing the ‘boldly go where no man has gone before’ move and taking us on an unscheduled freaking outing to the Moon…”
Dave snorted. “It’s hardly the final frontier, Xander. We’re just retracing some ancient footsteps. Or engine burns, anyway. To the Moon and back – once a small step for man – ”
“Engine burns,” said Lester Long, one of the volunteers, thoughtfully. “Er, just how are we performing this magical mystery tour, if one may ask? This is hardly – if I understand what you’ve said correctly – the most aerodynamic of shapes to sail around the cosmos in.”
This was an old argument. “Neither was the Borg cube,” Xander snapped. “Aerodynamic doesn’t matter where there isn’t, you know, air .”
“Fine out here – but how did we get out of our air – and if we plan on coming back, how do they intend to accomplish that little miracle? We’re a hank of rock, no better than a meteor, and we’ll probably do a spectacular re–entry. Come back in with a bang. A big bang. Tunguska will be nothing on us.”
“Boom,” Libby said faintly.
“ Big badda boom,” Lester said helpfully.
“You’re still applying our physics to any of this?” Dave asked incredulously. “We’re just as likely to come back in and turn into a bowl of petunias on re–entry as we are to flame out.”
“A very warped Infinite Improbability Drive,” Libby said.
“Hell, yeah!” Xander said. “To Infinity, and beyond! That might be entertaining all by itself. But when we come back – if we come back – whatever that schedule is – we still have a con to run, and a bunch of people who paid good money to be here. Our responsibilities didn’t end just because we got hijacked, and I’m damned if I’m going to let the android crew just sit back and ignore us now. They have to entertain us. Seriously. I plan on having Sim’s guys stand guard on the panel rooms if necessary. But they will play.”
“Do they know that yet?” said Andie Mae sharply. And then relented. “Oh, Xander. I’m on your side. I’m on my side, on my con’s side. Of course I’ll back you. I just don’t know how it’ll work out. The only one with the gift of the gab in that sense seems to be Boss – the rest have been pretty monosyllabic thus far. But it’s worth a try and there will certainly be a measure of increased attendance because people might just come along to gawk and point. Fine with me. Go do.”
“Right,” Xander said. “I have stuff to see to. I’ll report back later.”
“Speaking of our guests or masters or our Tin Man greatgreatgreatgreatgranchildren,” Dave said, “anyone seen them this morning?”
“We’d better find them,” Andie Mae said. “If Xander gets his way he’s gonna want them, and I still want to talk to that Boss creature. And I emphatically don’t want them wandering around screwing with everyone else’s minds. Or listening to some of the drivel that they might get eagerly told by some of the fringe elements out there. I wouldn’t want them to get the wrong end of the stick about us. They might decide that we’re too bizarre by half to bother saving, after all – collateral damage, send the rock into the sun, be done with us…”
“You really think they’ll return us?”
“They’d better,” growled Andie
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