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Book: America's Galactic Foreign Legion - Book 20: Time Machine by Walter Knight
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Authors: Walter Knight
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Deputy Director Manny Lopez. “Not likely. I will brief the President in Washington. The President will go nowhere near Dallas.”
* * * * *
Captain Sally Ride, commanding the modified space shuttle Challenger and six crew members, approached Asteroid 449 Hamburga, a cold carbonaceous rock fifty-five miles in diameter, out in the Asteroid Belt. Challenger was humanity’s first visitor, a joint venture by private enterprise and government. The military intended to place sensors to listen for alien life beyond the Solar System. McDonald’s Corporation sought to claim its first asteroid in an ever growing hamburger-flipping empire. Mars and Asteroid 449 Hamburga were just the beginning. Quarter Pounders and Chicken McNuggets would boldly go where no man had gone before. Burger King comes in second again, those punks!
But, something was terribly wrong. Jets failed as Hamburga got closer. Explosions filled the cabin with smoke. Out of control, Challenger crashed into solid rock, bounced in low gravity, and came to rest in a small crater. The crew was still alive, but not for long. Challenger lost air pressure. They donned their spacesuits, but the Grim Reaper would claim them soon. In the cold vacuum of space, no one can hear you scream.
The sight of a large alien space ship filled the portals, settling next to the wreckage. What the hell? Captain Ride desperately pressed her face against a portal for a better look. She could see writing on the side of the craft, USGFS Czerinski .
* * * * *
Stanford University and the McDonald’s Corporation successfully lobbied Congress to bypass time-travel protocols and mount a rescue mission for Challenger . Orders came directly from the President: Save Sally Ride.
Now I led legionnaires down the ramp of our shuttle to the wreckage. The mission was to escort the Challenger crew aboard, effect repairs, and send them back to Old Earth. Captain Ride was destined for greatness, not death on an asteroid.
I tapped on a portal, motioning to be allowed in. Captain Ride pointed to the other legionnaires, alarmed by their armaments. Oh, good grief. “Do you want us to leave?” I radioed.
“Good point, sir.”
The main hatch popped open. I led Captain Ride to the Czerinski . Legion techs initiated repairs, duct-taping fuel lines and gaping holes. Ha! Another use for duct tape, saving Challenger.
“My name is Colonel Joey R. Czerinski,” I said, introducing myself. “I’m from the future. We are here to save you. Your crew is being debriefed, but you and I need to speak privately.”
“Czerinski, same as your starship?” asked Captain Ride. “You make quite a first impression on a girl.”
“It ’s a token of gratitude from a grateful nation,” I bragged. “I also have a boulevard named after myself on New Colorado.”
“Poland conquered the stars?”
“Not yet.”
“You will take me to New Colorado?” asked Captain Ride, brightening. “My Polish hero and savior intends to whisk me off my feet and across the galaxy? You had me at the portal.”
“My orders are to send you back to Old Earth to do great things. You are to make a difference for America.”
“I want to make a difference on New Colorado,” argued Captain Ride. “There is no going back.”
“Hold out your arm,” I ordered, injecting meds with a hypo. “It’s just an inoculation against space induced osteoporosis, cancer, solar radiation, space rot, bird flu, and some other nasties my crew carries. Damn sand mites get everywhere. As a bonus, I included a complementary micro chip that slows aging.”
“How shall I ever repay you, Colonel Czerinski? I’m overwhelmed by your generosity.”
“How about sex?” I blurted out, giving it a shot. “We could make history, the first humans to do it on an asteroid.”
“That would be quite a legacy, but I ’ll pass,” answered Captain Ride stiffly. “Have you no couth?”
“No, not really. I’m in for the duration. It’s been a
* * * * *
Captain Sally Ride, commanding the modified space shuttle Challenger and six crew members, approached Asteroid 449 Hamburga, a cold carbonaceous rock fifty-five miles in diameter, out in the Asteroid Belt. Challenger was humanity’s first visitor, a joint venture by private enterprise and government. The military intended to place sensors to listen for alien life beyond the Solar System. McDonald’s Corporation sought to claim its first asteroid in an ever growing hamburger-flipping empire. Mars and Asteroid 449 Hamburga were just the beginning. Quarter Pounders and Chicken McNuggets would boldly go where no man had gone before. Burger King comes in second again, those punks!
But, something was terribly wrong. Jets failed as Hamburga got closer. Explosions filled the cabin with smoke. Out of control, Challenger crashed into solid rock, bounced in low gravity, and came to rest in a small crater. The crew was still alive, but not for long. Challenger lost air pressure. They donned their spacesuits, but the Grim Reaper would claim them soon. In the cold vacuum of space, no one can hear you scream.
The sight of a large alien space ship filled the portals, settling next to the wreckage. What the hell? Captain Ride desperately pressed her face against a portal for a better look. She could see writing on the side of the craft, USGFS Czerinski .
* * * * *
Stanford University and the McDonald’s Corporation successfully lobbied Congress to bypass time-travel protocols and mount a rescue mission for Challenger . Orders came directly from the President: Save Sally Ride.
Now I led legionnaires down the ramp of our shuttle to the wreckage. The mission was to escort the Challenger crew aboard, effect repairs, and send them back to Old Earth. Captain Ride was destined for greatness, not death on an asteroid.
I tapped on a portal, motioning to be allowed in. Captain Ride pointed to the other legionnaires, alarmed by their armaments. Oh, good grief. “Do you want us to leave?” I radioed.
“Good point, sir.”
The main hatch popped open. I led Captain Ride to the Czerinski . Legion techs initiated repairs, duct-taping fuel lines and gaping holes. Ha! Another use for duct tape, saving Challenger.
“My name is Colonel Joey R. Czerinski,” I said, introducing myself. “I’m from the future. We are here to save you. Your crew is being debriefed, but you and I need to speak privately.”
“Czerinski, same as your starship?” asked Captain Ride. “You make quite a first impression on a girl.”
“It ’s a token of gratitude from a grateful nation,” I bragged. “I also have a boulevard named after myself on New Colorado.”
“Poland conquered the stars?”
“Not yet.”
“You will take me to New Colorado?” asked Captain Ride, brightening. “My Polish hero and savior intends to whisk me off my feet and across the galaxy? You had me at the portal.”
“My orders are to send you back to Old Earth to do great things. You are to make a difference for America.”
“I want to make a difference on New Colorado,” argued Captain Ride. “There is no going back.”
“Hold out your arm,” I ordered, injecting meds with a hypo. “It’s just an inoculation against space induced osteoporosis, cancer, solar radiation, space rot, bird flu, and some other nasties my crew carries. Damn sand mites get everywhere. As a bonus, I included a complementary micro chip that slows aging.”
“How shall I ever repay you, Colonel Czerinski? I’m overwhelmed by your generosity.”
“How about sex?” I blurted out, giving it a shot. “We could make history, the first humans to do it on an asteroid.”
“That would be quite a legacy, but I ’ll pass,” answered Captain Ride stiffly. “Have you no couth?”
“No, not really. I’m in for the duration. It’s been a
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