Standing at the hatch outside of Vidac's room, Tom and Roger waited for Astro as he climbed up the ladder to join them. The big cadet finally made the top and stood breathing heavily.
"By the rings of Saturn," he grumbled, "I'm so tired I could sleep right here. Right now!"
"Yeah," growled Roger. "You'd think Vidac would give us a break after what we've done."
"We'll have plenty of time to rest on this trip," said Tom. "This is just the beginning. I'll bet by the time we reach Roald we'll be wishing we had something to do to pass away the time."
He turned and pressed the annunciator button and the hatch slid open. The three cadets entered the room and snapped to attention.
"Polaris unit reporting as ordered, sir," said Tom.
Vidac swung around in his chair and stared up at the three cadets, a hint of a smile curling his lips.
"You've done a fine job, boys," he said. "The fleet is in good formation." He paused as he settled back in his chair. "But I'm not the one who believes in idle hands. I've assigned you to Professor Sykes. He needs help in charting the unexplored regions of space we're approaching. And you three need that kind of training. Report to him in one hour."
"One hour," gasped Roger. "But we're completely blasted out!"
"Yes, sir," agreed Astro. "Couldn't we log some sack time before we start another assignment?"