Chapter Forty-Six
“ALL ABOARD”
As Baba began to walk across the launch room toward Mike Watkins’s office, she noticed the air beginning to take on a peculiar chemical smell, a slight caustic smell hinting of chlorine bleach. Is that from Pegasus as it disappeared just a few seconds ago? She thought to herself. Little did she realize the smell was ozone? The air was beginning to stir as though the wind was blowing through an open window right before a storm. She turned and looked back toward the center of the enclosure where Pegasus had been sitting. What was she seeing? Was that exhaust fumes left after Pegasus disappeared? No, there was no exhaust; she knew Pegasus had no form of ‘motor’ capable of creating any type of fumes. Its mode of operation was more akin to electromagnetism than to the internal combustion engine, regardless the vapor was starting to take shape, and rotate. What was that crackling noise? Are those sparks of lightening? Yes, it was, she thought! Well, not lightening exactly but the swirling, twisting wind did cause an excessive discharge of static electricity. What was happening? Was that a church hymn she hears, yes... yes, she thought. Amazing Grace - was she being deceived by her ears?
Mike leaned against the circular wall, arms folded with an ear-to-ear smile. Watching Baba in all her amazement was causing quite an amusing show to the watching group of Pegasus workers. From his office window, Ryan Rousseau could be seen watching the developing event also, but there was no joy on his face, only contempt for his failed efforts to sabotage Pegasus’s flight.
“What’s wrong Baba?” Mike yelled above the wind and music to Baba who was now standing, motionless watching in awe as the phenomenal event took place in front of her eyes. “Have you seen a ghost?” he inquired again.
“Mike! Mike! What is happening? Did something calamitous happen to Pegasus. Is something wrong? Why didn’t it leave as it was supposed to Mike?” She asked as she hurried over to where Mike was standing.
“Leave Baba? Leave you say? Baba, Pegasus is not leaving, it is coming back!”
Not fully grasping Mike’s explanation she asked, “What went wrong Mike? Is Bob inside of Pegasus? Is he okay?”
“What you are witnessing is Pegasus returning from Texas. The Captain should be fine if he got out of Pegasus when it arrived in the cow pasture. In a second or two Pegasus will be sitting right here where it was just a short while ago – empty! Even though Pegasus has been gone for minutes, hours or even days in the Universe to which it traveled, in our time it will only have been gone a few seconds.”
As he spoke, the rustling of the wind, the whining high-pitched noise and the soft sound of the piper playing his pipes began to subside as Pegasus commenced to materialize in all its shining glory – sitting right where it had been only a moment or two earlier.
Baba watched in stunned silence. She finally uttered, “Well I’ve never...”
“Baba I do not have enough time right now to fully explain the flight peculiarities of Pegasus – just suffice it to say if the ‘Departure’ and ‘Return’ indicators are the same Pegasus will de-materialize and re-materialize within seconds of our current time; however, to the time-travelers it could be hours or days to them.”
Mike reached for the microphone hanging on the wall. Keying the switch he said, “Okay gentlemen, it’s your turn, ‘All Aboard”. At this announcement, Sam Lin, Si Lei, Bud and Lou emerged from the room where they had been waiting and walked to the loading platform and stopped.
Mike walked up to the assembled group, “Men, I just want to say a couple of things: Pegasus is a scientific anomaly - we have attempted to time shift her six different times, and she has only worked once. One time out of six is not great odds; however, we must assume Captain Scarburg, Forrest and Olive Marie’s last trips worked. Even if they did, that only brought the odds up to only a fifty-percent chance of success. This is just another way of saying we have a one in two chance this thing will work correctly.”
One of group added, “Or a one in two chance IT WILL NOT.”
“Yes your right. You must be one of those ‘glass half empty guys’, Mike said laughing; “however, saying you are not going on a dangerous mission would be an understatement. We think we can get you to the roof of the Texas School Book Depository at 9:00 a.m. on Thursday morning November 21, 1963. Remember I said ‘think’, and exactly thirty-two hours later, at 6:00 p.m. Friday I, along with the rest of the Pegasus flight control group, will attempt to move the machine from the School Book Building to the cow pasture northwest of Celina, Texas. One of the reasons Pegasus will remain on the roof for twenty-fours hours is to provide the communication link so you can use your cellphones while on the ground in Dallas; however, your phones will only work if you are within five miles of the Pegasus roof base station. Remember too, Captain Scarburg arrived on Thursday, so he should be somewhere in the general vicinity. Forrest and Olive Marie supposedly are around the Dallas area too, we think. The reason we are moving it back to the cow pasture is just in case Forrest and Olive Marie, for some reason, get an opportunity to return, they will go to the place where they arrived. They will not know about the landing on the School Book Depository.
“Okay, enough said, here are your options: there will be a five-minute window Friday evening starting at 6:55 P.M. This will allow you to enter Pegasus and be transported to the cow pasture close to Celina. If for some reason, you miss this narrow window of opportunity you must and I repeat, you MUST physically be at the cow pasture no later than 11:55 on Saturday, November 23. As I said earlier, at best, we have only achieved a success rate of fifty per cent. I might not ever be able to get Pegasus to return to retrieve you if you miss this Saturday deadline. You could be stuck in the 1963 Alternate Universe forever. You have each been given a map pinpointing the cow pastures’ precise location. I repeat, be there!! This is not a threat this is a WARNING!! Pegasus WILL leave without you!! I cannot stop its return. Enough said, LJ, Rocky, Bud and Lou please say your goodbyes and mount the loading platform and get yourselves strapped in, we will energize Pegasus for your departure in ten minutes.”
The time was 3:20 Friday afternoon, December 7, 2012.