"You fixed it!" cried the amazed Simms. "Ed! Ed! Come here! He fixed it! It works!" Ed returned to stare at the radio in disbelief.
"Hey, that's pretty damn good. What about asking him to fix the rest of the ship?"
"I'll try. Hey, Melancholy! Fix up our rocket ship, okay?"
The purple sphere sidled forward until it stood directly beneath the escape hatch. Then it looked up at Archie.
"It wants to get in," explained Archie. "Do we still have that old ramp I stole on Mercury?"
"Right here."
Together they lowered the ramp. The purple sphere sidled forward and vainly attempted to climb upward.
"He's too heavy," said Simms. "We'll have to jump down and push him."
"Don't like," said the cautious Bailey. "Then he's on and we're off. That's too much like suicide."
"We can trust him. He fixed the radio, didn't he?"