With the ceremony over the party broke up in noisy, almost human chatter. Jim was trying vainly to follow what was being said to him by a Martian nearly three times his height when Frank said, "Jim! You see that sun? We're going to miss the scooter!"
"Huh? That not the real Sun; mat's a toy."
"No, but it matches the real Sun. My watch says the same thing."
"Oh, for Pete's sake! Where's Willis? Gekko-where's Gekko?"
Gekko, on hearing his name, came over; he clucked inquiringly at Jim. Jim tried very hard to explain their trouble, tripped over syntax, used the wrong directive symbols, lost his accent entirely. Frank shoved him aside and took over. Presently Frank said, "They'll get us there before sunset, but Willis stays here."
"Huh? They can't do that!"
"That's what the man says."
Jim thought. "Tell them to bring Willis here and ask him."
Gekko was willing to do that. Willis was carried in, placed
upon the floor. He waddled up to Jim and said, "Hi, Jim boy!
Hi, Frank boy!"
"Willis," said Jim, earnestly, "Jim is going away. Willis come with Jim?"
Willis seemed puzzled. "Stay here. Jim stay here. Willis stay here. Good."
"Willis," Jim said frantically, "Jim has got to go away.
Willis come with Jim?" "Jim go?"
"Jim go."
Willis almost seemed to shrug. "Willis go with Jim," he said sadly.
"Tell Gekko." Willis did so. The Martian seemed surprised, but there was no further argument. He gathered up both boys and the bouncer and started for the door. Another larger Martian-tagged "G'kuro" Jim recalled-relieved Gekko of Frank and tailed along behind. As they climbed the tunnel Jim found suddenly that he needed his mask; Frank put his on, too.
The withdrawn Martian was still cluttering the passageway; both their porters stepped over it without comment.
The sun was very low when they got to the surface. Although a Martian cannot be hastened his normal pace makes very good time; the long-legged pair made nothing of the three miles back to Cynia station. The sun had just reached the horizon and the air was already bitter when the boys and Willis were dumped on the dock. The two Martians left at once, hurrying back to the warmth of their city.
"Good-bye, Gekko!" Jim shouted. "Good-bye, G'kuro!"
The driver and the station master were standing on the dock; it was evident that the driver was ready to start and had been missing his passengers. "What in the world?" said the station master.
"We're ready to go," said Jim.
"So I see," said the driver. He stared at the retreating figures. He blinked and turned to the agent. "We should have left that stuff alone, George. I'm seeing things." He added to the boys, "Well, get aboard."
They did so and climbed up to the dome. The car clumped down off the ramp to the surface of the ice, turned left onto Oeroe canal and picked up speed. The Sun dropped behind the horizon; the landscape was briefly illuminated by the short Martian sunset. On each bank the boys could see the plants withdrawing for the night. In a few minutes the ground, so lush with vegetation a half hour before, was bare as the true desert.
The stars were out, sharp and dazzling. Soft curtains of aurora hung over the skyline. In the west a tiny steady light rose and fought its way upwards against the motion of the stars. "There's Phobos," said Frank. "Lookie!"
"I see it," Jim answered. "It's cold. Let's turn in."
"Okay. I'm hungry."
"I've got some sandwiches left." They munched one each, then went down into the lower compartment and crawled into bunks. In time the car passed the city Hesperidum and turned west-northwest onto the canal Erymanthus, but Jim was unaware of it; Jim was dreaming that Willis and he were singing a duet for the benefit of amazed Martians.
"All out! End of the line!" The driver was prodding them.
"Huh?"
"Up you come, shipmate. This is it-Syrtis Minor."
CHAPTER FOUR
Lowell Academy
"Dear Mother and Dad,
"The reason I didn't phone you when we got in Wednesday night was that we didn't get in until Thursday morning. When I tried to phone on Thursday the operator told me that Deimos had set for South Colony and then I knew it would be about three days until I could relay a call through Deimos and a letter would get there sooner and save you four and a half credits on a collect phone call. Now I realize that I didn't get this letter off to you right away and maybe you're not going to get it until after I would have been able to make a phone call if I had made it but what you probably don't realize is how busy they keep you at school and how many demands there are on a fellow's time and anyhow you probably heard from Frank's mother that we had gotten here all right and anyway you look at it I still saved you four and one half credits by not making that phone call.
"I can just hear Phyllis saying that I am just hinting that the half-and-four I saved should be turned over to me but I am not doing anything of the sort because I wouldn't do anything like that and besides I've still got some of the money left that you gave me before I left as well as part of my birthday money and with careful management I will not need any more until you all come through here at Migration even though everything costs more here than it does at home. Frank says it's because they always jack the prices up for the tourist trade but there aren't any tourists around now and won't be until the Albert Einstein gets in next week. Anyway if you simply split the difference with me you would still be a clear two and a quarter credits ahead.
"The reason we didn't get here Wednesday night was because the driver decided the ice might not hold so we laid over at Cynia Station and Frank and I just fooled around and killed time until sunset.
"Frank and I have been allowed to room together and we've got a dandy room. It was meant for just one boy and only has one study desk but we're mostly taking the same subjects and lots of time we can use the projector together. I am talking this letter into the study desk recorder because tonight is Frank's night to help out in the kitchen and all I've got left to study is a little bit of history and I'm saving that to do it with Frank when he comes back. Professor Steuben says that he does not know what they are going to do if they keep getting more students here with no more room, hang them on hooks maybe but he is just joking. He jokes a lot and everybody likes him and will be sorry when he leaves on the Albert Einstein and the new headmaster takes over.
"Well that's all for now because Frank just got back and we had better get to work because tomorrow we have a quiz on system history.
"Your loving son,
"James Madison Marlowe, Jr. "P.S. Frank just told me that he didn't write his folks either and he wonders if you would mind phoning his mother and telling her that he is all right and would she please send his camera right away, he forgot it. P.P.S. Willis sends his love. I just asked him. P.P.P.S. Tell Phyllis that the girls here are dyeing their hair in stripes. I think it looks silly.
"JIM"
If Professor Otto Steuben, M.A., Ll.D., had not retired, Jim's life at Lowell Academy would have been different. But retire he did and went back to San Femando Valley for a well-earned rest. The entire school went to Marsport to see him off. He shook hands all around and wept a little and commended them to the care of Marquis Howe, recently arrived from Earth and now taking over.
When Jim and Frank got back from the space port they found the first arrivals gathered around the bulletin board. They crowded in and read the item that was drawing the crowd:
SPECIAL NOTICE
All students are required to keep themselves and thenquarters neat and orderly at all times. The supervision of these matters by student monitors has not proved satisfactory. Therefore formal inspections by the Headmaster will be held each week. The first such inspection will be at ten hundred, Saturday, the 7th of Ceres. (signed) M. Howe, Headmaster