TSJ #36, Chapter 3: Return to Neptune

THE FOLLOWING WEEK was a busy one. To Tom’s immense relief, the logistics surrounding the Challenger‘s repair were finally worked out. Ned Newton at the Swift Construction Company manufactured the final replacement parts Tom needed and shipped them to the Swift’s spaceport at Fearing Island, where they were loaded onto the Cosmotron Express. The mighty spaceship was scheduled to depart for Neptune the following day. If all went well it would not return for several weeks.

Bud Barclay oversaw the final preparations for departure, which allowed his friend Tom to stay at Swift Enterprises and work in his laboratory. He flew back to Shopton the night before the expedition left. He planned to spend the night with the Swifts and then fly Tom to Fearing Island early the next day.

Tom met Bud at the company airstrip and offered him a ride home. Soon the two friends were speeding down the highway in a silver atomicar, headed toward the Swift residence. It was almost midnight and the sky above was cloudless and clear. There was no moon. The winter stars shone brilliantly, but their beauty was lost on the young inventor. His mind was far away, brooding over the many problems that faced him.

“Hey, thanks for taking care of everything for me,” Tom said at last. “There’s been so much going on here at the plant that I just haven’t had the time to get away. If you hadn’t gone to Fearing for me I don’t know what I would have done!”

“No problem, skipper,” Bud replied. “But say, how did today’s meeting with the Barclay Group go? Anything good happen?”

Tom shrugged. “It went fine, I guess. Dad has really been more involved with that project than I have. He’s been working with them on their design for Astronopolis.”

Bud shook his head. “Don’t tell me that’s what they decided to call the City of the Future! That’s a terrible name. Do they not have a marketing department?”

“It’s better than Swiftopolis,” Tom said, smiling. “Besides, it’s ancient Greek for ‘star city’. It kind of makes sense.”

“I don’t know if you realize this, chum, but people don’t really speak ancient Greek anymore. Why not just call it ‘Star City’ and be done with it?”

“I think the Brungarians have already taken that name. It’s what they call the place where they train their cosmonauts. Besides, do you have any idea how hard it is to get a committee to approve a name? I’d rather tackle the Black Cobra than a well-entrenched committee any day!”

“I know what you mean,” Bud agreed. “So what’s their plan?”

“They’ve got their work cut out for them,” Tom remarked thoughtfully. “The main thing they need right now is a starship. Over the past few days I’ve put together a rough design for something that should meet their needs. When I presented it this morning they were happy with it, so I’ve sent it off to Ned Newton so his team can flesh out the details and begin construction. The ship should be ready in a couple months. While the Behemoth is being constructed the Barclay Group is going to put together all the equipment they need. They seem to be a pretty well-run organization, so I imagine by the time the ship is ready they’ll be ready too.”

“What about your claytronic stones?” Bud asked. “Are those going to be ready in time?”

Tom sighed. “They asked me the same question. The truth is, Bud, that project is not going very well. I’ve made progress on getting the stones to form shapes but they’re unbelievably slow. Yesterday I started another small-scale experiment that I think might actually work – but it won’t be finished for another four days. At that rate it would take the rest of time to create anything as large as a city! It’s just a mess.”

“You’ll figure it out,” Bud said confidently.

“I’m sure,” Tom said absently. “I’m actually much more concerned about what to do with Irene. I really thought Tom IV would help me. Now that he’s turned me down, well, I’m kind of at a loss.”

“What are you going to do?” Bud asked.

Tom shook his head. “I don’t know. For now I guess I’ll go get the Challenger. Then – well, we’ll see. Maybe I can get him to come around, or maybe something else will come up. There’s just got to be a way I can save her, Bud. There’s just got to be.”

“You know, I’m a little surprised at all this,” Bud remarked. “For the longest time you had moved on, skipper. You hadn’t even mentioned Irene for ages, and now she’s all you can think about. What changed?”

“I found out it might be possible to get her back,” Tom replied. “That’s what changed. Now it’s all I can think about. I’m going to rescue her, Bud, one way or another. I won’t rest until I do.”

Tom pulled into the Swift residence and the two left the car and headed inside. Tom was soon fast asleep.

The next morning Tom got up early. After taking a quick shower he went downstairs to the kitchen and ate breakfast. He was surprised to see that there was no one else there. His mother was not in the kitchen, but she had gotten up earlier and fixed the family waffles and bacon.

As he ate his father came downstairs and entered the room. “Good morning, son,” he said cheerfully. After going outside to get the newspaper he settled down at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee. “Are you and Bud ready to go to Neptune?”

“I think so,” Tom replied. “It’ll take a while to fix the Challenger, but at the same time it will be a great learning experience. We’ve never had to repair a ship in space before – at least, not on this scale. This is a great opportunity to develop skills that will be priceless in the future.”

“I agree,” Mr. Swift said. “I wish I could go with you but I’m afraid BG Industries needs me here. They’ve licensed just about everything we’ve ever built, and the challenge of transferring all of that knowledge is quite significant! After all, it’s one thing to purchase an atomicar, but it’s an entirely different matter to manufacture them. Fortunately Ned Newton has been extremely helpful in that regard.”

Tom looked up in surprise. “They’re going to be building atomicars?”

Mr. Swift nodded. “They’re going to be building everything, son! After all, once they reach Epsilon Eridani they’re going to be a long way from home. They have no desire to build a colony that is dependent upon Earth for survival, so they are looking for ways to manufacture everything they need once they get there.”

“They’re going to have a rough time getting started,” Tom remarked. “After all, the planet they found doesn’t even have a breathable atmosphere! I’m sure my atmosphere makers can supply one but given the size of that planet it’s not going to happen overnight. It will be many years before they’ll be able to walk on the surface without a spacesuit.”

“It will also take time to build the city and the factories that will support it,” Mr. Swift added. “But at least they don’t have to worry about finding raw materials to work with. Your space solartron will be able to supply them with everything they might need.”

“And they can always make a quick trip back to Earth if they’ve forgotten something,” Tom added. “That star is only ten light-years away, which is just a short jump for my kronolator.”

“True, but they’re hoping that won’t be necessary. Part of the idea behind this is to learn how to build colonies far from home. Ed wants to use this as a dry-run for building colonies in remote corners of the galaxy, far beyond the point where they could return to Earth for anything they might have forgotten. BG Industries sees this as the first step in a much larger project.”

Their conversation was interrupted when Sandra Swift came into the kitchen. She helped herself to some waffles and sat down at the table. “You and Bud are leaving today, aren’t you?” she asked.

Tom nodded. “Got a big trip ahead of us! We’ll probably be gone for at least a month, sis. I’ve never had to repair a kronolator before.”

“I wish I could go with you,” she said jealously.

Tom smiled. “You’re welcome to join us but I’m afraid it’s not going to be like last time! I think the days of battling the Space Legion have finally come to an end. This time all we’re going to be fighting are fried circuits and damaged wiring. If you’re not familiar with a soldering gun then you’ll probably be bored to tears.”

“But aren’t the Space Friends coming?” Sandy asked.

“They are, but I doubt we’ll see them. As soon as we get to Neptune we’re going to drop them off and let them do their own thing. They’re going to spend the entire trip scouring the Space Legion’s Neptunian base for who-knows-what. You could join them, I guess, but I don’t know how interesting that would be either.”

His sister sighed. “I guess you’re right. Still, at least take me with you the next time you go see Tom Swift IV. I’d really like to get to know Mandy a little better! We never get to see each other.”

Mr. Swift looked up in surprise. “I didn’t realize you’d been to see him recently. Did he need something?”

Tom shook his head. “No, Dad. I went to ask him about using his time trigger.”

Mr. Swift frowned. “Isn’t that dangerous, son? If I recall-”

“He said no,” Tom finished. “As you said, he felt time travel was too dangerous.”

“I agree,” Mr. Swift replied. “I believe that there are some areas Man is not intended to touch, and time travel is one of them.”

Bud Barclay walked into the kitchen. He grabbed a handful of waffles and looked at Tom. “Say, we’ve got to get going, boss! If we don’t leave we’re going to be late. We’ve got a flight to catch.”

Tom stood up. “I’m right behind you, fly-boy!”

“Take care, Tom,” his father called out. “Contact me when you get there.”

“I will,” he promised.

The flight to Fearing Island was uneventful, and the launch went off on schedule and without incident. The Cosmotron Express was packed with equipment and personnel. Tom and Bud oversaw the operation of the crew while Charles Winkler set up shop in the ship’s galley. After the spaceship had left Earth and was on its way the Texan cook wandered onto the bridge. “Well, brand my boots, but it’s shore good to have a lot of mouths to feed,” he remarked to Tom.

“We’re just glad you came, pardner,” Tom replied. “And the good news is that if we ever get lost out in space we can just tell the rescue party to be on the lookout for that shirt of yours. I bet they can see it from Earth!”

Chow beamed. He had a penchant for wearing brightly-colored shirts and this one was no exception. The bright red shirt was covered in neon-yellow sequins that glinted in the light. The sequins formed the pattern of an eagle, rendered in a classic Native American design. Tom wondered briefly where he had found such an outlandish shirt, and decided he really didn’t want to know.

Thanks to the spaceship’s kronolator it took them less than half an hour to reach Neptune. As soon as they entered orbit around the gas giant they dropped off their Space Friends and started scanning for the Challenger. It didn’t take them long to find it.

“It’s just where you thought she would be,” Bud remarked.

Tom nodded. “That’s orbital mechanics for you! The math works out every time. It looks like she’s been deserted ever since we left.”

The young inventor gave the command to approach the derelict ship, and they were soon within visual range. The Challenger was truly a depressing sight. Tom knew the Space Legion had done a lot of damage to his beloved spaceship, but he had forgotten just how bad she looked. Large portions of the ship’s hull were deeply scarred, and there were multiple places where the hull plating had been vaporized entirely. Few of the ship’s repelatron dishes were intact.

The first order of business was to obtain a complete damage report. After the Cosmotron Express was maneuvered into position opposite the Challenger Tom began giving orders. He personally led a team of people over to the derelict and they began cataloging all of the systems that needed repair.

“Our first assignment will be to restore hull integrity and life support systems,” Tom remarked to Bud. “There’s just no way we’re going to be able to repair the ship’s kronolator while wearing a spacesuit. Once we’ve got life support restored everything should be much easier.”

“Lead the way, boss!” Bud replied. “Just tell me what to do and I’ll get to work.”

It took nine days of intense, tiring work to patch up the ship’s battered hull, and it took several more days after that to jury-rig the ship’s life support systems to the point where they would work again. After the system was operational Tom turned the repairs over to his crew so he and Bud could focus on the burnt-out kronolator. It took the crew five more days to finish repairing communications, navigation, sensors, propulsion, and the other interior systems. When they had done all that they could do Tom thanked them and they returned to the Cosmotron Express. After Chow and a small skeleton crew had transferred to the Challenger the Cosmotron Express left Neptune and returned to Earth.

“There’s no point in making all those people stay out here any longer,” Tom pointed out. “After all, the only system left to fix is kronolator and that’s really just a two-person job.”

“Or a two-genius job, you mean,” Bud quipped. “I don’t even begin to understand how this thing works, and here I am trying to repair it! I feel like a dim-witted baboon that’s trying to fix a jet aircraft engine with a banana and a couple of leaves.”

Tom laughed. Before he could say anything, however, Chow walked into the room, pushing a cart laden with food. Tom looked up in surprise. “Wow! Thanks, Chow, I appreciate the service. But you didn’t have to do that!”

The balding cook shook his head. “Y’all are quite a sight, you know that? I don’t know how you two keep from starving. I fixed dinner three hours ago, Tom! Brand my skillet, if I didn’t come down here and feed you y’all would waste away to nothing.”

“I guess we lost track of time,” Tom remarked. “Sorry about that – and thanks.”

Tom and Bud quickly dug into their three-inch-thick steaks. As they were eating Chow spoke up. “Hey, boss, Donnie gave me a message for you. Said somethin’ about seein’ a dot on a scope. He thinks there might be someone else out there.”

“Really?” Tom asked. “That’s odd. He must have spotted another vessel. I wonder who it could be?”

“Maybe it’s our Space Friends,” Bud suggested.

Tom shook his head. “I talked with them just this morning. They haven’t left the Space Legion’s base yet and aren’t planning on leaving anytime soon. That dot must be something else. I think I’ll go talk to him.”

“Not until you finish eating, pardner,” Chow warned. “Ya gotta eat sometime, Tom.”

“I will – I promise.” The Texan gave him a warning look and then left the room. The two quickly finished eating and then went up to the bridge, where they found Donnie McGinnis at the helm. They asked him what was going on.

“It happened just a few minutes ago,” Donnie reported. “We’re pretty far away from home so I’ve been keeping a close watch on the scope. Ever since we got here the only vessels I’ve seen have been ourselves and the Cosmotron Express, and now that she’s gone back to Earth there’s just us. But a few minutes ago another ship appeared. I couldn’t get a good reading on it, boss, but it seemed to be a lot smaller than the Challenger. It was hard to get a fix on it.”

“Was it at the extreme end of our range?” Tom asked.

Donnie shook his head. “Not at all – it was kind of close, actually. But the reading was faint. It was almost like the ship wasn’t really there. After about a minute the dot disappeared and I haven’t seen it since.”

Tom frowned. “You know, there might be something wrong with the scope. It was pretty badly damaged in the fight and could easily be picking up phantom readings. It could also be detecting bits of debris left over from our battle with the Space Legion – it’s just hard to say without more information. Let me know if it happens again, will you? I’d hate for us to collide with something we didn’t know was out there.”

“I will,” Donnie promised.

Over the next twenty-four hours Tom and Bud made rapid progress. All of the kronolator’s damaged components were finally replaced, and the two teenagers began putting the monstrous machine back together again.

“We should have her operational by the end of the day,” Tom said at last.

“It’s about time!” Bud remarked. “Let me tell you, skipper, doing a complete tear-down and rebuild of a warp drive is no cakewalk. I don’t know how you keep all those tiny wires straight.”

“It’s all right here in the circuit diagrams,” Tom said. “The tricky part is going to be testing it before we turn the drive back on. If something goes wrong – well, anything could happen.”

“Let’s hope it doesn’t,” Bud replied. “Say, whatever happened to that dot that Donnie saw? Did anything ever come of it?”

“I’m not sure what to think. He’s seen it a couple times since but it always goes away after a few moments. I’ve checked the unit and as far as I can tell it’s functioning normally. It may be that a bit of space debris is floating out there and every so often it’s at just the right angle for us to spot it. I’m really not too worried about it.”

Bud was about to say something when Tom suddenly held up a hand. “Do you smell something?”

Bud stopped. “Hey, now that you mention it, I do! It smells kind of like strawberries. I didn’t realize we could smell the galley from here.”

“We can’t,” Tom said. He suddenly felt dizzy and nauseated. The room began to swirl. Instantly a feeling of panic shot through him. “Bud! I think we’re being poisoned! That gas must be-”

He never finished his thought. A moment later Tom and Bud slumped to the ground, unconscious!