Her face flushed, and the caramel skin of her neck and cheeks became a nice rosy hue. “It’s not broken,” she insisted. “There’s something odd about you.” She peered at him. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d swear you were anAdamou.”
His nose scrunched. “A what?”
She shook her head, and waved her hand around. “Never mind. It’s not important. I’d better take care of this before that ass comes back.” She raced to the strange-looking bronze contraption the Ozevroc had thrown at her feet. Grabbing it, she made a quick adjustment before heading to another part of the massive room. “I might just have enough time to do this.”
Ari watched in astonishment as she announced, “Display!”
Nestled against the farthest wall was some type of a rectangular machine that phased into sight. It appeared to have a brushed-metal finish and rounded edges with parallel compartments next to each other. The thing was taller than him, like a refrigerator on steroids. On one side was a control panel with holographic interfaces that made no sense to him. And on the other side were two separate oval-shaped chambers, one on top of the other.
Morgan approached the machine, gripping the cylinder in her hand. She pressed the screen and the top panel turned blue. She placed the canister inside, then tapped the holographic touchscreen again.
The crazy thing lit up with internal lights that shifted from blue to green. In the lower chamber, a green light surrounded tiny robotic arms that sprang to life. With blinding speed, they created another canister identical to the one nestled on the top shelf.
Ari’s eyes widened when both chambers turned from bright green to a soft blue.
A sharp whistle sounded.
Morgan whooped with her fists in the air. She grabbed both cylinders out of the machine. “Refraction!”
The massive machine vanished from sight.
“Now let’s see if they work!” She rushed to an obvious worktable and swept aside a pile of parts that clattered to the floor. With care, she placed the identical canisters next to each other. Her fingers flew across the surfaces with quick, deft precision. Soon the machines hummed to life, with bright-orange lights under the control panels.
“Are you hungry? Tell me what you’re craving, and I’ll make it happen for you.”
Dang woman was practically jumping for joy.
“Huh?” Ari put the hair blocking the side of his face behind his ear. “Food? These things make food?” His stomach growled. Crud. When was the last time he ate? As usual, no clue.
The only thing that popped into his head was, “Steak. I want a rare T-bone steak with a baked potato smothered in real butter.” Hopefully, that was something he liked.
Morgan looked him up-and-down. “Yeah, I can see that. I’ll make sure it’s a double portion. Any other veggies?”
Ari shuddered. “No, I don’t think I eat those.” Whatever “veggies” were. They didn’t sound too good.
“What are you, a five-year-old?” Morgan turned to the chamber and pushed several buttons. “We’ll start with that and try other things later.”
After a few seconds, the upper part of the cylinder on her left opened. Resting inside on a plate was a thick, oddly shaped slab, its surface seared with mysterious grill marks and exuding a familiar, savory aroma. Beside it sat a brown, wrinkled oval, split open to reveal a fluffy white interior dotted with a melting yellow substance. Wrapped next to the plate was a white cloth with the tips of a fork and knife poking out.
The sight and smell from it might be foreign, but it was intriguing enough to make his mouth water.
Morgan jumped at the sound of clacking claws getting louder outside of the hangar. “Quick, take this and hide behind that machine over there.” She slammed the cylinder closed with the food inside and shoved it into his arms. She pushed on his chest with the flat of her hands.
Gripping the cool metal of the canister, he stepped back. Glancing over his shoulder, he spied the area she was pushing him to.
“Hurry, before Bugurr gets here.” She shooed him. “If he sees that, he’ll steal it from us, and we’ll get stuck eating tasteless protein cubes.” She turned her back on him to face the doorway.
Was Bugurr the shorter gold Ozevroc? Not waiting to find out if he was right, Ari rushed to the hiding place she pointed to and crouched behind it.
Sure enough, the ocher-colored alien strode in with two of his buddies close behind, each carrying a weapon.
It didn’t take Morgan long to snarl, hiss, and gurgle at the alien as she handed him the original cylinder.
He answered with a sputtering noise by pressing his lips together, then sticking his tongue out. With a huff, the Ozevroc turned on his clawed paws and left. His minions followed without a garble or hiss.
Ari waited to make sure they didn’t come back before he came out of his hiding place. “Can we eat now?” The aroma from the cylinder in his hands was driving him crazy. The painful pinch gripping his stomach made his hands shake.
“Yeah. Take your food and sit over there.” Morgan nodded to the same box crate he’d sat on before. Opening the cylinder, she took out his plate of food and shoved it back into his hands. Then she put the empty cylinder on the workbench and punched several buttons and knobs on its surface.
