Chapter 13

Sultry: Another country heard from: 13

"Sultry?" asked Cassie, "Where are we?"

After casting her eye ... and a few rune-stones, Sultry said "Umh ... Earth. That's my house." She pointed at the house on the hill. "I'm not sure when."

A 1923 T model Ford rattled its way down the street, through the crowd of Cassandrians without leaving any dead or wounded behind. The car pulled up at the general store Bowser pump and a black suited slim young man stepped out of the T model and greeted the teenager hurrying up to the pump.

"Good afternoon, Doctor Shingle. Gasoline today?"

"Yes, Jimmy. Ten gallons, please."

"Yes, sir. Ten gallons of Socony."

A teenaged girl, obviously Jimmy's twin sister, came out of the store and began washing the T model Ford's windows while Jimmy turned the hand crank that operated the pump that filled the glass canisters at the top of the service station Bowser pump.

The twin five gallon canisters were soon full. Edith, Jimmy's sister relieved Jimmy at the hose and nozzle and asked the Doctor to check the gasoline level in the glass canisters. She handed him a notebook and a pen.

While the Doctor was carefully observing the contents of the cans, Jimmy checked the air in the tires ... one was low and Jim went in the store and retrieved the air pump and filled the low tire. Then he opened the hood and checked the oil and water, the water in the battery and the battery connections.

The Doctor had written down the amount of gas in the little Socony supplied notebook, returned the pen and book to Edith and agreed that there was ten gallons in the twin reservoirs. Edith opened the valve on the nozzle and gravity filled the fuel tank on the T model Ford.

"House call?" Edith asked.

"Little Johnny Shingle seems to have fallen off the barn roof. Mrs. Shingle opined that he had broken his arm," the Doctor said.

"You going to set it?" asked Jimmy.

"If it's broken, Jimmy," the Doctor said. "I will."

Jimmy had aspirations of medical school and asked, "May I come and watch?"

"Why, yes," Doctor Shingle said. "Your strength might come in handy. I'd appreciate the help."

"You go ahead, Jimmy. I've got this," Edith said. She was even grinning. Edith was 'mechanical' and there was a crank throw to grind on Banker Shingle's 1920 Kline Touring. The automobile was over the grease pit behind the store and she couldn't wait.

Jimmy retrieved a seat towel for the front-seat of the Ford, the Doctor climbed in the car, and Jimmy turned the hand crank. Car started, Jimmy seated himself, the T model made a U turn away from the pump and drove through the recently arrived group, never physically touching any of them.

"Sultry, it's my opinion," the Powers that Be said, "That you turned the set pin the wrong way. Counterclockwise is invisibility mode."

"I didn't know that."

"Hit the reset and see what happens."

They were back on Chaos.

Seven said, "Hold up, Sultry. Let me see the watch." The back was removed, the Powers put their thinking caps on. Four said, "I know."

"What?"

"Wrong satellites. It's reading off Earth. Give me a minute." He discorporated and disappeared.

Seconds later he was back with the watch.

"Sultry?"

"Yes?"

"Step over here ... look ... there's a new lever ... says Ch, E, Cr ... see it?"

"Yeah," she looked. "Ch is Chaos ... E is Earth ... Cr is Crossroads. Mighty fine, Four."

"Thanks Sultry, took me four years."

"So I move the lever ... FOUR YEARS!?!"

"We are god scientists you know."

"I keep forgetting that ... So, I move the lever to Ch and that'll use the Cassandrian Spy Satellites?"

"You're a smart woman, Sultry."

"You guys make it easy," she said. "Look at that ... he's blushing."

"Thanks a lot, Sultry."

He reincorporated with his peers, looked at Sultry and said, "Well?"

"Oh ... yeah ... Eva ... right." She spoke to the watch ... pushed in the set button and they watched as Eva was kidnapped.

"Aren't you going to stop 'em?" Cassie asked.

"Nope ... I want to follow them. I think these people have my husband."