A hangar opened up, and Ann wondered how the starcraft would move into it. Then she looked further and realized that it was actually a huge, long passage. They would have to walk all of the way along it, until they reached the headquarters.
They were shown inside and Ann saw that there was a series of moving crates on a line, like a primitive open monorail. She soon discovered that it was not at all primitive. The vehicles moved at a greater speed than the Sydney suburban limits. She almost feared that she would fall out the back of her speeding crate, but the box-like car moved rapidly and with stable balance along the rail below it.
The cars could only take one passenger each, but their movement was so rapid, that Ann could barely notice the passing walls of the passage. She would not even contemplate jumping from one of the cars. With an alien in the first car, and another in the last, the children would be delivered to their captor like goods on a rapidly moving conveyor belt.
"Wait! There's still one thing I can do," thought Ann, "If I activate the anti-gravity triangles and float straight up, then it won't matter how dazed I am from the speed of those cars. I can just float up there until I get my head together, and, using their own speedy monocars against them, I can watch them flash past below me so fast that they cannot even aim straight to shoot at me. I'll have to work up the courage to take the leap. It's a good thing I had the stationary practice from those buildings in North Sydney."
She coiled her legs, by sitting on them with her feet flat on the floor of the monocar. There were schoolchildren in front of her, as well as behind. She would not be seen preparing for the jump. It would be over and done with before they could take any action. She unfolded the triangles, locked them in position, gripped the controls and leaped into the air. She looked down, and thought that the cars appeared to move even faster than they were going when she was riding on one of them. It was merely the effect of relative velocities. She then made an exhausting flight until she located a hatch in the roof, which she opened. She climbed out onto the roof and then flew along above the tunnel, heading in the same direction as the cars below. She would find a way into the headquarters, a different way, and surprise them.
* * * *
Meanwhile Butler One had traced the path of the starcraft and landed nearby, close to the runway. He opened the cylinder and floated down to the ground and rolled out towards the hangar, which was now closed. Butler One tilted his left arm into position and fired its laser tube at the hangar doorway, and had soon cut out a small opening. He extended his probes outwards and knocked the artificial door in. He was met by three aliens, who proved to be no match for his right arm stun blaster.
Then he had only to examine the near end control deck for the monocars. He used his own anti-gravity to float into the nearest car, and then extended his probe. He was following the others from a distance.
* * * *
Ann located an entry to the complex at the end of the passageway. She stole in and soon located a purple skinned boy working a master computer in a large control bridge.
"So you control things and give your orders from here," said Ann.
"...."
His speech was not of any benefit to Ann. She did not understand the language. She was able to knock him unconscious with her exolimbs, and did so. Now she could use her bracelet communicator to contact Butler One. They had soon explained their situations to each other and formulated a plan. Butler One told Ann how to rewire a small detonator on her costume to be activated by a time program on the computer. Ann connected the two, leaving the detonator disk in the main complex. Then she grabbed the purple skinned war child and waited to hear from Butler One.
* * * *
The robot took a short time to reach the end of the long passageway, and a little longer to stun the aliens with his blaster stun cannon. Ann then directed him into the main control complex, where he was able to interface with the master computer. Butler One then sent orders in many languages, commanding the aliens to return the captives to their own planets and then return to the War Design World. It turned out that there were other long passages and other starcrafts. The aliens obeyed, not knowing that Butler One was in control of their master computer with its communication circuits.
"They have all been ordered to return after delivering their passengers, Miss O’Malley."
"Good. Now if you can send a message through space, using that master computer, to reach the authorities of the more influential worlds in this area, they can be here to round up these people pirates afterwards, when they return."
"I can also take eighteen of our own students back to earth in the starcraft, while you use your remote controls to follow in Wildstar with the others, Miss O’Malley.
"That will be good, Butler One."
* * * *
Many hours later, the students were delivered to the airport in Sydney. They had been able to make vertical landings on an unoccupied airstrip, and Ann had put her mask on, in order to avoid recognition. It covered her entire face and provided her with the necessary anonymity.
* * * *
"The people of your planet will have no problem believing in alien life forms now, Miss O’Malley."
Ann felt too tired to answer. Wildstar was flying towards the Freedom Fields forest.
"Why do you not speak to me, Miss O’Malley?"
"Somebody stole my voice," said Ann jokingly, "Oh no, don't you say anything. Just don't. I'll say it first. How can anyone say 'Somebody stole my voice,' if they don't have a voice with which to say it?"
1996….
Ann took Martin into her bedroom and lay down and put him on the pillow beside her face.
“I’ll go on with the story, but this is more comfortable,” she said.
“And I can see into your mouth while you’re talking,” said Martin, “Which is a nice preview for being eaten later.”