Chapter 11

"Rosie! What happened?"

"Who was that?"

"Where did Red go?"

"Is she okay?"

Everyone was upset at what they had just seen and began talking over everyone else. Alex tried to grab hold of the situation and calm them down.

"Children, children," Rosie was trying to get their attention. Alex realized a stronger approach was required.

"Everyone, quiet down!" he screamed at the top of his lungs. That got their attention and they all looked to him. "Rosie wants us to listen."

"Thank you, Alex," she said. "I am beginning to receive a signal from Garth. I think you should all pay attention and listen."

Garth's image popped up on the monitor. He had taken off his helmet and placed it on top of the control panel facing him. He spoke directly into the camera. "Well, I'm sure you've all seen what just happened. I want all of you to remain calm; I'm going to go after her. I wish I could talk to you guys and find out how you are. Listen, Red is a big girl, and I don't mean that because she really is a big girl, but she can take care of herself. I'm going to send a signal from her ship to the K-P so they can help. Also the signal is going to be cut for a few minutes, but I'll start sending again when I get outside. Garth out."

The screen went blank. Rosie projected a holo-image of herself out into the room. "I think being in the room makes everyone a little more comfortable. Don't you agree?" They all turned toward her as she continued, "Garth is doing the correct thing and Red is a... big girl, as he so eloquently put it. "

"Well, Rosie what if something happens to him?" Jody asked.

Tasha shook her head in agreement and continued, "Then we can't even help him and really have no way of getting home."

"But we'll have food," Ethan chimed in with the most helpful thing he knew how.

"Thank you, Ethan," Rosie said looking at Ethan and then turned to Tasha. "Tasha, and all of you... should that eventuality come to pass, you will be just fine here until such time as the K-P mounts a rescue operation. I will take care of you."

Mavis had been sitting close by the group writing in her journal. She looked up "Rosie, we know and appreciate that, but what about Garth and Red. It might be too late for them by the time the K-P get to us."

"Mr. Garth will not let that happen. He's too smart..." added Yavi.

"... Of an engineer. He'll figure out something," Farhad finished.

Garth lay on his back looking at the maze of wires and electronics under the Rascal's control panel.

"I can't figure this thing out." His knowledge of electronics was extensive, but there was so much custom work Red had done, he wasn't sure which wire was which. If he did try something and screwed it up, then there's no telling what might happen. There were at least six different wires of varying colors not connected to anything at all and to make it worse, they came from different pieces of equipment. He knew that the longer he waited the more danger Red could be facing.

"Damn!"

He yanked himself out from under the panel and stood up in the cabin. For a short moment he thought about taking Rascal to go for help, but K-P headquarters was a long way from this point in the zone. It might be an hour till he got there with having to thread his way through everything in the junk zone. He knew the kids would be okay with Rosie, but if something did happen to him he just wanted to be sure.

The K-P knew about the kids and assuming they called Folden Station and told the parents. In a couple of more hours the parents would be worried. They'd call the K-P and they would come out to investigate and find out about everything. He put his helmet on, latched it shut and moved to the back of Rascal and began to open the outside hatch.

Mavis was sitting back in her chair writing.

Things are really getting exciting now. Red has disappeared in the wreck of the old Fletcher and Garth is going after her. I hope she's okay. I'm sure she is cause she's really tough and can take care of herself. I know I would do the same thing if Alex were in trouble like that. I'm not afraid or anything. I mean it feels really safe here with Rosie and everyone else and I know the worst that would happen is that I would get Yavi and Farhad to somehow fix the bus. It was really kind of strange. Red was looking in one of the windows and the inside looked like HG Wells lived there. Maybe he does. Maybe he really did invent a time machine and he traveled forward in time and what Garth and Red really found was his time machine. Anyway, Red was looking in the window and then all of a sudden it went black like someone covered it up. Then when she went inside the airlock her camera went crazy and then it went black. And just before it did I thought I saw...

She stopped writing in her book and looked at Rosie's holo-image like a light bulb had just gone off over her head. She sat upright in her chair, "Rosie?" she asked.