"Look at him!" said Astro. "I'm twice his size. He figures if a big guy like me is scared, then he's got a right to be scared too!"
Roger grunted in appreciation of the way Astro had treated Alfie's fears and turned back to the loading of the fuel.
Major Connel walked over and watched them transfer the last of the fuel into the tanks.
"How much have you got there, Astro?" he asked.
"I'd say enough to sustain flight for about three hours, sir. Considering we'll have such a big load."
"Ummmmh," mused Connel. "You know we're up against big odds, don't you?"
Roger and Astro nodded.
"If Tom doesn't come back soon, we'll be so far into the pull of the sun, even a ship the size of the Polaris wouldn't be able to break out."
"How much time have we got, sir?" asked Roger.
"Not too much, Manning," said Connel. "Of course we can blast off in the jet boat and get up a few hundred miles, in case Tom does come back. Then he won't have to bring the Polaris down here. But if time runs out on us up there, we'll have to come back and take our chance on Junior being blasted out of the sun's grip."