When in Rome

Making the second attempt to climb Joo-Nine was slightly easier than the first time, mainly because Wub wasn’t carrying his tools on this attempt. Of course even on the first climb he didn’t need this tools to reconnect a loose cable that he found on Joo-Nine’s tachyon pulse unit.

What he did use to help reconnect the cable was the object that protected him from the effects of the blaster rod. He figured that the cable came loose when Joo-Nine was moved to Lord Zonar’s flagship.

This time around his goal on top of Joo-Nine was to find the diagram of the Arcevar Nover system and to find the fighter pilot who went up before him to look for the diagram. Wub would have called the fighter pilot’s name but no one on the floor of the main chamber knew the fighter pilot’s name. After walking to other side of the Joo-Nine Wub noticed the fighter pilot was lying down on the surface. He approached the fighter pilot.

“Are you alright?” asked Wub

“Yes I am.” replied the fighter pilot.

“Why are you lying down on this surface?” asked Wub

“I thought I heard something coming from the bottom of this device.” replied the fighter pilot.

“Heard as in talking?” asked Wub, he then lied down next to the fighter pilot.

“No,” replied the fighter pilot “more like a sound from a machine.”

“Did you find the diagram of the Arcevar Nover yet?” asked Wub

“No I did not, but I think we should look for it if we can not find the source of that sound.” said the fighter pilot.

“We?” asked Wub

“Yes,” said the fighter pilot “it is part of the calling of being a seeker of knowledge.”

“Since when?” asked Wub

Unknown to Wub and the fighter pilot a rod with a box on top of it appeared from an opening behind of them.

“When the two of us made the climb on *cough*.” replied the fighter pilot.

“*cough*?” asked Wub

“Yes, *cough*,” replied the fighter pilot “it is what the Arcevar Nover call it.”

“I will remember that.” said Wub. “This sound you heard can you describe it further?”

The box on top of the rod rotated, when it did it made a sound.

Thinking the sound came from the fighter pilot, Wub said, “You are right it does sound like a machine.”

The box on top of the rod rotated again and it made a sound.

“You sure make a convincing machine like sound.” said Wub.

The fighter pilot didn’t know what the technician was talking about, he first glanced at the technician. He heard the sound again, this time it was behind them, he turned his head toward the sound and noticed the box on top of the rod that came from an opening on top the surface of Joo-Nine.

“If we can not find the source of this sound we should stop looking for it and either look for the Arcevar Nover diagram or rejoin Tarn and the rest on the floor of the main chamber.” said Wub.

“Say what do you think of Tarn?” asked Wub. The fighter pilot did not respond to him. “He is strange to us but I sort of enjoy him.” Still no response from the fighter pilot.

“Or maybe the Arcevar Nover placed the diagram on the bottom of this outer marker.” rambled Wub “There are different, so who is to say that they think differently from the rest of us? And why are you touching my arm?”

The fighter pilot touched the technician’s arm, he turned and asked “And why are you touching my arm?” The fighter pilot then made a gesture to the technician to look in the back of them.

Wub looked at the fighter pilot’s gesture to look in the back of them he then noticed the opening on the top of Joo-Nine, then the rod coming from the opening and then box on top of the rod. The box moved and when it did it made that machine like sound.

Wub and the fighter pilot looked at one another, looked again at the box on the top of the rod that came from the opening on top of Joo-Nine, then looked at one another again and then both of them yelled “Tarn!!!!!”

Posted by Helen at November 13, 2002 11:24 PM