“Where did it come from, Joe?” Zip asked. “I don’t know, Zip! I woke up before anyone else and noticed these crates. I jumped up, looked around but didn’t see anybody. I opened the first one and saw the fruit. That’s the whole story.” “You don’t know it’s safe! You took a chance, Joe!” “What kind of chance, David? Where were we going to find water, much less food? We were done for without this.” “Not too much of a chance, I think, Zip,” whispered Mark to the red-haired Starman. Zip turned his head and looked at Mark curiously. “The food’s okay. Let the men distribute it and I’ll tell you what I know.” “Okay,” Zip nodded. He turned to George. “Let the men take the crates apart and see what we’ve got here. We’ll eat and then we’ll make plans.” George took over operations while the three Starmen stepped aside. “What do you know, Mark?” asked Zip. Mark told the other Starmen what he had seen in the middle of the night. “Hmmm. Hard to credit it, that the original builders of this wonder are still here,” mused Zip. “Why would they let Earthmen come in and take over? I gather from what we’ve learned and what we’ve overheard that the pirates have been active here for over a dozen years, and George found this place over fifteen years ago.” “The pirates haven’t really taken over, Zip,” said Joe. “It looks as if they haven’t gone beyond the first few levels! Something’s kept them out. Only George was able to get beyond the floor where the warehouse is. Maybe that’s why Zimbardo wanted to find him and keep him alive. George doesn’t know too much about this, this, I don’t know what to call this place, but he knows more than any human living.” “Whatever the truth is, we have some friends,” contributed Mark. “They don’t want to be seen, but they’ll help us. I’ll bet a golden asteroid that they’re the ones who destroyed the airbot. I think we need to be ready to see what happens next.” “You’re right, Mark,” said Zip. “We’ll have to be prepared to move.” The Starmen went back to the group. Everyone was seated on the floor or on chairs, eating a welcome and refreshing breakfast. The four men who had been rendered unconscious by the airbot had benefited from a good night’s sleep and were back to normal. Mark reached into one of the crates and took out one of the items that looked like a large cracker. He saw that several of the miners were eating them. Zip had also taken a bite out of one and was chewing thoughtfully. “What do you think of these crackers?” Mark asked. “Survival food,” opined Zip. “The fruit is delicious, though.” When everyone had finished breakfast, George St. George asked, “What should we do now, Mr. Foster?”