socket, Edsel had to resist the urge to dive onto the ground and cover his head with his arms.
The plug was a perfect fit.
âIt didnât do anything,â Hoagy said, looking a little disappointed. He pressed the button and wiggled the stick. âSee? Nothing!â
âOh well, I thought it was worth a go.â Edsel felt a little disappointed himself. Not that heâd wanted anything bad to happen to the little guy. He was just expecting ⦠well, something. Anything.
âCan you put the glass bit back down, Edsel?â Hoagy asked.
âSure. Now?â
Hoagy gave him the thumbs up. âReady.â
âAll right, ready to go.â And reaching up, Edsel took hold of the dome and gently lowered it into place. If anything, the tingling in his fingers felt a little stronger now, and as the edge of the plexiglass reached the rim of the cockpit, he felt the dome lock itself down, as if there was some kind of suction within the cockpit.
Grinning widely, Hoagy gave Edsel another thumbs up. He was a spaceship pilot, no mistake, and not wishing to cramp the little guyâs style, Edsel stepped back a short distance. He watched as Hoagy took hold of the joystick, waggling it about a bit. Then, as if in slow motion, Hoagy extended his index finger towards the green button.
And he pressed it.
From within the canopy came a bright blue flash, not bright enough to blind anyone, not even as bright as headlights. But Edsel knew immediately that it was the same flash heâd seen through his eyelids the night before. Yes, at night it would have been a whole lot brighter, and probably a whole heap bluer. But there was something new, or at least something he hadnât noticed the previous night. It was a sound, a kind of high-pitched, wailing sound. For a moment Edsel wondered if Hoagy was okay, until he realised that the high-pitched wailing sound was Hoagy, screaming as if his leg was being gnawed off by a crocodile. He thrashed around inside the dome, bashing at the plexiglass and screaming something a little like âAaaaargh!â and something like âGet me out! Get me out! Edsel, please! Get me out!â
Confused, Edsel pulled at the silver handle at the side of the Egg, and with that same faint psst heâd heard the night before, the lid lifted off the cockpit. Hoagyâs screaming was even louder now, and he almost knocked Edsel over in his rush to get down. He didnât even stop to pick up his bike. He just ran, as hard and as fast as he could, and didnât stop until heâd crossed the street without looking, reached his house, dashed up the driveway, through the front doorway, and slammed the door behind him.
Edsel scratched his head and blinked. Then, once heâd recovered from the shock of what heâd seen, he hurried over to Hoagyâs house and rang the doorbell.
Hoagyâs mum opened the door. She seemed a bit distracted. âEdsel, what happened?â she asked, glancing over her shoulder towards the wailing sound coming from within the house.
âI ⦠I donât really know,â Edsel said, and in a way this was true. He certainly hadnât expected anything like this. âHoagy was playing in the spaceship thing in my yard, and the next thing there was a ⦠a blue flash, andââ
âYou didnât electrocute him, did you?â Mrs Wendl asked sternly. âDid you plug something in that you shouldnât have?â
âWhat? No! No, I promise it was nothing like that.â
Hoagyâs voice had lifted a couple of octaves. âThere was a man!â he screamed from the next room. âA silver man!â
âA what?â exclaimed his mother, spinning around.
âA what?â said Edsel. He shook his head at Mrs Wendl. âThere was no silver man, I promise. There was no man at all. Really, it was just a flash of light, and thatâs all!â
Mrs Wendl frowned at Edsel and began to
The plug was a perfect fit.
âIt didnât do anything,â Hoagy said, looking a little disappointed. He pressed the button and wiggled the stick. âSee? Nothing!â
âOh well, I thought it was worth a go.â Edsel felt a little disappointed himself. Not that heâd wanted anything bad to happen to the little guy. He was just expecting ⦠well, something. Anything.
âCan you put the glass bit back down, Edsel?â Hoagy asked.
âSure. Now?â
Hoagy gave him the thumbs up. âReady.â
âAll right, ready to go.â And reaching up, Edsel took hold of the dome and gently lowered it into place. If anything, the tingling in his fingers felt a little stronger now, and as the edge of the plexiglass reached the rim of the cockpit, he felt the dome lock itself down, as if there was some kind of suction within the cockpit.
Grinning widely, Hoagy gave Edsel another thumbs up. He was a spaceship pilot, no mistake, and not wishing to cramp the little guyâs style, Edsel stepped back a short distance. He watched as Hoagy took hold of the joystick, waggling it about a bit. Then, as if in slow motion, Hoagy extended his index finger towards the green button.
And he pressed it.
From within the canopy came a bright blue flash, not bright enough to blind anyone, not even as bright as headlights. But Edsel knew immediately that it was the same flash heâd seen through his eyelids the night before. Yes, at night it would have been a whole lot brighter, and probably a whole heap bluer. But there was something new, or at least something he hadnât noticed the previous night. It was a sound, a kind of high-pitched, wailing sound. For a moment Edsel wondered if Hoagy was okay, until he realised that the high-pitched wailing sound was Hoagy, screaming as if his leg was being gnawed off by a crocodile. He thrashed around inside the dome, bashing at the plexiglass and screaming something a little like âAaaaargh!â and something like âGet me out! Get me out! Edsel, please! Get me out!â
Confused, Edsel pulled at the silver handle at the side of the Egg, and with that same faint psst heâd heard the night before, the lid lifted off the cockpit. Hoagyâs screaming was even louder now, and he almost knocked Edsel over in his rush to get down. He didnât even stop to pick up his bike. He just ran, as hard and as fast as he could, and didnât stop until heâd crossed the street without looking, reached his house, dashed up the driveway, through the front doorway, and slammed the door behind him.
Edsel scratched his head and blinked. Then, once heâd recovered from the shock of what heâd seen, he hurried over to Hoagyâs house and rang the doorbell.
Hoagyâs mum opened the door. She seemed a bit distracted. âEdsel, what happened?â she asked, glancing over her shoulder towards the wailing sound coming from within the house.
âI ⦠I donât really know,â Edsel said, and in a way this was true. He certainly hadnât expected anything like this. âHoagy was playing in the spaceship thing in my yard, and the next thing there was a ⦠a blue flash, andââ
âYou didnât electrocute him, did you?â Mrs Wendl asked sternly. âDid you plug something in that you shouldnât have?â
âWhat? No! No, I promise it was nothing like that.â
Hoagyâs voice had lifted a couple of octaves. âThere was a man!â he screamed from the next room. âA silver man!â
âA what?â exclaimed his mother, spinning around.
âA what?â said Edsel. He shook his head at Mrs Wendl. âThere was no silver man, I promise. There was no man at all. Really, it was just a flash of light, and thatâs all!â
Mrs Wendl frowned at Edsel and began to
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