"Colonel Morris and General White," said the serviceman, again pointing the torch in the Colonelâs face.
"Wright, General Wright!â answered the skinny Colonel in a decidedly annoyed tone of voice. "What's the matter Sergeant, canât you read?"
The Sergeant, who had pronounced the Generalâs surname incorrectly on purpose, smiled slightly and said, "Iâll get someone to accompany you. Follow those men," and with a nod ordered the two servicemen to lead them to the prison.
The Colonel slowly started the Jeep. He hadnât gone barely a dozen metres when he heard a shout behind him, "Stop, Sir!"
The blood froze in the veins of the vehicleâs two occupants. They remained motionless for a few very long moments, until the voice continued saying âYouâve forgotten your documents."
The corpulent General drew such a large sigh of relief that all the buttons on his uniform risked popping.
âThank you, Sergeant," said the thin man holding out his hand towards the soldier. âI'm getting old faster than I thought."
They set off again in the jeep and followed the two soldiers who, proceeding apace, quickly led them to the entrance of a low and decidedly shabby building. The youngest soldier knocked on the large door and went in without waiting for an answer. Shortly afterwards, a large, completely bald, coloured man, with the stripes of a sergeant and the face of a tough guy, appeared on the threshold and stood to attention. He saluted and said, "General, Colonel. Please come in.â
The two officers saluted in response and, trying to ignore the various pains that were starting to reappear, entered the large room.
âSergeant" said the thin guy with determination. âWe have a written order here from Colonel Hudson authorising us to pick up General Campbell," and he handed him the yellow envelope.
The large sergeant opened it and took his time reading the contents. Then, fixing his dark, penetrating eyes on the Colonelâs, he sentenced, "Iâll have to check."
âGo ahead,â replied the officer calmly.
The large coloured man drew another sheet of paper out of a drawer in the desk and carefully compared it with the one in his hand. He looked at the Colonel again and, without showing any emotion, added, "The signature is the same. Do you mind if I call him?"
âItâs your duty. But letâs try and be quick, please. Weâve already wasted too much time," replied the skinny Colonel, pretending to be about to lose his patience.
By no means frightened, the sergeant slowly put a hand into the pocket of his uniform and drew out his mobile phone. He dialled a number and waited.
The two officers held their breath until the serviceman, after pressing a key on his phone, laconically commented "he canât be reached."
"So, sergeant, shall we get a move on?" exclaimed the officer with a decidedly more authoritarian tone than before. "We canât stay here all night."
"Go and fetch the Generalâ, the large Sergeant ordered one of the soldiers who had accompanied the two officers.
After a couple of minutes, a totally bald man, with a large moustache and grey eyebrows, and two small bright black eyes, appeared on the threshold of the door behind the sergeant. He wore the uniform of a General, but one of the four ordinance stars was missing on his right shoulder. He was handcuffed and, behind him, the soldier from before held him at gunpoint.
The General jumped for a moment at the sight of the two officers, then, guessing the plan, remained silent and looked as sad as he could.
âThank you, Soldier," said the skinny Colonel, removing his Beretta M9 from its holster. âWeâll take this scumbag now."
Theos spacecraft - Action plan
"Isnât it exciting to think that the two of us are going to save the Earth, my love?" said Elisa, gazing at the Colonel with the eyes of a loved-up kitten, as she reached for his hand.
ââMy loveâ? Isnât that moving a little fast?â Jack chided her frowning.
Elisa winced, then when the Colonel smiled affectionately and stroked her cheek, she realised he was teasing her. âSwine! Donât play tricks like that on me again or Iâll show youâ and she began pummelling his chest with both hands.
"Okay, okay" whispered Jack, hugging her lovingly. âIt was just a silly game. I wonât do it again.â
The sudden embrace had a calming and relaxing effect on Elisa. She felt all the tension she had accumulated up to then, suddenly melt away like snow in the sun. After all that had happened in the last few hours, it was just what she needed. She melted into his arms and slowly closing her eyes, leant her head against his strong chest and let herself go completely.
Azakis, meanwhile, had slipped into the dreadfully cramped H^COM booth and was waiting for an answer to his communication request on the holographic screen in front of him.
A series of multicoloured waves, starting from the centre of the screen, began creating an effect similar to that of a stone thrown into the calm waters of a pond. All of a sudden, the waves gradually began to fade and the hollowed and time-marked face of his Elder superior, started to appear.
âAzakis," said the man smiling slightly, while he slowly lifted his bony hand in greeting. "What can this poor old man do for you?"
"We revealed the truth to the two terrestrials."
âA bold thing to do," commented the Elder, holding his chin between his thumb and forefinger. âAnd how did they take it?"
âLetâs say that after their initial legitimate amazement, I think they reacted very well." Azakis paused briefly then said, in a very serious tone, "We suggested using the superfluid toroid to them."
âThe toroid?" exclaimed the other, rising to his feet so fast even a youngster would have been jealous. âBut it hasnât been fully tested yet. You do remember what happened last time, donât you? We could create an uncontrolled gravity fluctuation with that thing and thereâs even the risk of creating a mini black hole."
âI know, I know only too well" replied Azakis quietly. âBut I donât think thereâs an alternative. This time, if we don't use drastic measures, Kodonâs passage could be fatal for the terrestrials."
âWhatâs your plan?"
âThe orbits of the two planets are estimated to intersect in just under seven days. If you could get them to prepare the toroid and have it brought here to me at least a day in advance."
âThatâs not much time, you know."
âYouâll have to leave me a small margin for the positioning, configuration and activation procedure."
âIâve got a bad premonition," said the Elder running a hand through his silvery white hair.
âPetriâs with me. Itâll all be fine."
âYouâre two clever guys, I donât doubt that, but be very careful. That thing could become a lethal weapon."
âYou just try and let us have it in time, leave the rest to us. Donât worry."
âOkay. Iâll get back to you as soon as everything is ready. Good luck."
His superiorâs face vanished from the monitor that went back to showing the same multicoloured waves as before.
Azakis slowly rose from the uncomfortable