THE ALIEN SPACECRAFT was beautifully designed and well equipped. The Starmen had spent more than two days exploring it fully and tracking its electronics systems. It was planned for a crew of twenty. The galley was not stocked, but Zip assigned some of St. George’s men to store their food in it. The storage area inside the ship included spacesuits for the entire crew. The suits were shaped slightly differently from what the Earthmen were used to. They squeezed a little in the chest and were somewhat baggy between abdomen and knee, especially for the shorter men, but they could be used.
Joe and Mark were working to the point of exhaustion, trying to figure out the controls in the cockpit. Mark had to trace innumerable leads from the panel through the walls of the craft back to the wings, tail, and especially the propulsion compartment. The Starmen found the work exhilarating but time-consuming. Mark estimated at the end of the second day that he had figured out about 80% of the control panel, including all the major systems. Joe confirmed his reckoning and, without even igniting the power, was learning to pilot the alien craft. Both Starmen kept Zip informed of their progress.
It was still up to Zip to find a way to escape from the asteroid. Even if they could pilot the ship, it was certain that the pirates would locate them by radar within seconds of their departure and the chances of their escape would be practically nil.
The atmosphere tanks supplied with the spacesuits were empty, so Zip had to fill them from large storage tanks of pure gases he found to one side of the hangar. Since Zip was unable to read any labels, he had to analyze the gas in each supply tank to determine which gases the tanks contained. Once he had succeeded in identifying nitrogen and oxygen, he was able to fill the tanks for the spacesuits with a mixture similar to that of air on Earth. This project was tedious and physically demanding, but St. George’s men assisted him with the heavy work. Since the gravity was so low, two men were easily able to move even the largest equipment needed for the work. By the end of the second day, all the tanks had been filled.
That evening, Zip put on one of the spacesuits and practiced operating it and moving around inside the hangar. When he was satisfied that the mixture of air was breathable and that he could maneuver in the suit, he took off the helmet and walked over to where Joe and Mark were sprawled under the spacecraft with a panel open over their heads. The deep green of the highly reflective metal hull was marvelously soothing to the eye. For a moment, Zip paused and wondered about the race that had built the ships. Then he called out to the others.
“Joe, Mark—I’m going through the airlock to see what’s out there.”
Joe skidded out from under the hinged panel. “Are you sure that’s wise, Zip? We don’t know where the pirates are.”
“That’s why I’m going out. I have a plan for our escape, but I have to explore a little bit outside to see if it’ll work.”
“Want some company?”
“Thanks, I do, but I’ll take George. You and Mark keep up the work.” Zip went over to where George St. George was sitting at a table with several other miners.