Buckle Up

After they boarded the bus that would transport them to the shuttle and settled in to their seats, Dawn asked Stephan, "Speaking of that cruise we were talking about taking earlier, have you christened the boat with a name yet? I have heard that it is a tradition to bestow a name on new ships before they set sail."

"Honestly I never thought about it. I've always thought of it like a car or an ordinary plain vehicle." Stephan responded.

Holly and Rachel then joined in and supported Dawn's proposal by Holly saying, "You may think of it as just a rocket Stephan, But it is a special rocket that will be the first with the engine of the future and will be the first to carry people to other planets. So, given the occasion, you should give it a name that means more than just 'rocket 2A' or 'quantum engine 1' or whatever boring name you would otherwise give it."

Stephan gave in and replied, "I'll think about a name and will let you know what I've chosen when we get there." He then asked Greg, "Speaking of ships, Greg, which Challenger class shuttle are we getting treated to? Is it one of the newer ones or is it that old Enterprise 2 from that second batch of shuttles they made before the White House told them to only spend money on that Mars trip that took them like ten years to get enough funding for?"

Greg chuckled and responded in an imitation of an old man's voice, "Hey there youngin! Us old folks knew how to build dependable vehicles instead of you ankle biters and your disposable junk!"

Acting like a fashionista, Rachel haughtily responded, "Don't you know that those old clunkers you geezers obsess over don't ever work as well as the new stuff! And don't get me started on how the new stuff always looks sooooo much better!"

They all laughed as Greg answered Stephan's question from earlier, "Well, my lady, if you prefer new and fancy and all then you should like today's ride because we're gonna be going up in one of the new models. And, Stephan, as for names, you should be able to see it well enough to make out the name after we top this hill."

Topping the hill a moment later Stephan looked and said, "They named it Tesla? Did you guys sell out and let the big companies start branding the new shuttles?!"

Greg laughed heartily and replied, "Ouch man. I thought you would like the name because the brass didn't sell out but actually listened to the little guys and let us name this round after some of the prominent scientists and inventors that played a big role in getting us to where we are today. Like Tesla , Einstein, Webb, and even Asimov."

Nodding while he thought it over, Stephan apologized, "I have to say sorry then because those are deserving choices and, if I didn't have history with your top brass trying to milk money from me and my successful inventions I probably wouldn't have jumped straight to the conclusion that it was a corporate name instead of the original owner of the name."

Oh, I truly understand man. Trust me, I do." Greg responded, "And you're not the first VIP we've had that jumped to the same conclusion too."

A moment later they pulled up to the launching pad and got out of the bus. They all then boarded the elevator platform and rode it up to the boarding level and let the technicians check them all over and make sure they were set up right as they helped them into the shuttle and buckled them into their seats.

A short while later, Greg announced in a flight attendant type of voice, "Alright guys. Welcome to the only boring part of this trip. Now that we're buckled in and set to go we have to wait for the techs to check the rockets and couplings. Wait for them to unhook us when it all checks out. And then, after they turn things over to Mission Control to start a countdown for us, we have to wait for them to push the button when it hits zero. If possible, your pilot suggests catching a little bit of a nap during this boring hour or so long wait while me and my copilot do our part of double checking everything before liftoff."

Having been thinking about the field device that had been at the center of his fight with NASA over the engine's patent since their talk earlier, Stephan asked, "Hey Greg, I've been thinking about the field device thingy we talked about earlier and I was wondering if we get to see it in action? Or if they shot you down on you being able to take it with you this time?"

"That, my friend," Greg chuckled, "Is this little box plugged in right over here." as he pointed to a box plugged into the center console between him and Angie.

Curious what the box did and the story behind it that Stephan had mentioned, Dawn asked, "What is this you guys were saying about that box and what field stuff does it do?"

Pointing to the box, Stephan partly answered, "That is the box that NASA tried to use to steal my patent for the rocket engine from me so they could basically blackmail me into building the engines for them before I could build them for myself. As for what it does, I'll have to leave that part to Greg."

Greg then continued, "It is patented as a force field generating device and it basically creates a force field that surrounds the ship and blocks any solid matter from impacting the ship while redirecting any energy or radiation it encounters into the battery it uses to remain functioning."

"Sounds important but it looks like Angie dismissed the device's relevance when you described it. Why would she do that?" Rachel interjected.

"Because," Angie crankily replied, "The damn thing only works when dippy turns it on. Nobody else has ever been able to get it to power up without him being present. Which ranks it as a waste of time in my book."

Defensively, Greg objected, "That is because they weren't putting in the code right. And with it being as powerful as it is, it needs a coded start to prevent it from being accidentally turned on and causing harm." He then added, "Plus the size of the field needs to be calibrated before it is activated or it could severely damage any unprotected people, ships, or rockets in the way of the field's path."

"Very much interesting." Stephan volunteered, "Any chances of you showing me how to activate it and letting me take it with us when we board the boat?"

Greg chuckled and answered, "Yes to the activation part but I can't let you take off with this one. I can, however, let you purchase this second one that I brought should you show interest."

Laughing, Stephan looked over at Holly and jokingly complained, "You lied! You told me that by going up on a NASA shuttle that we wouldn't have to deal with any salesmen or telemarketers we'd have to deal with on the corporate flights but looky what I found!"

Holly gave a helpless shrug and started to reply when she was interrupted by Mission Control calling over the radio, "Tesla flight 1642, everything checks out on our end. Everything 10-4 and good to go on your end as well?"

"Tesla flight 1642 is clear and ready for launch." Greg called back on the radio then told Stephan, "If you're so much against salesmen, then how about we work out a trade? I'll let you use the other device if you return it free of charge, let me board the ship to calibrate it, and, if that engine works even half as well as you have predicted, you take another look at hiring me on after letting me pilot one of the next few test flights."

Stephan shook his finger at Greg and told him, "You sneaky little man. You went and dangled that device out there as bait and then used it try and weasel me into hiring you on or at least letting you pilot one of the next few flights. I think you've found your true calling and, instead of hiring you for Engineering, I'm gonna hire you for Marketing instead."

Greg laughed along and gave a serious reply, "Hell man, i'd start out as the janitor if that was the only way for me to get my foot in the door cause folks think working for you is like being a starter for a major league baseball team."

Holly laughed as she swatted Rachel's shoulder and told her, "See! I told you we should have made us some jerseys."

The radio then announced came alive with a countdown for the last minute and Greg, double checking everything was sset to the right position, ordered, "Ok people! Let's make sure we're all buckled up head to toe. Straps are tight. Any carryon luggage is secured in the overhead compartments. And let's all keep our heads facing front and laid to rest in the head rests because this is gonna be a rough ride for a short bit in 3.... 2... 1...annnnnd now!" as he ignited the rockets and they quickly lifted off after a brief second of the rocket's force building up enough forceful propulsion to lift the shuttle.