“Thank you, Sir,” Garry said. Presently Officer Mulroy stood up. “Here we are, fellows,” he said. “Let’s get our things together quickly. I can’t afford to miss my blast-off on the _Orion_. I have a sailing date for Mars in a few weeks, and the stars wait for no man!” 2. BLAST-OFF Once inside the gate, Mr. Mulroy spoke to a uniformed officer, who saluted. The officer turned a tiny dial on a lapel button he wore and spoke into it. Garry knew this to be a subminiature radio transmitter which was in wide use. Presently, a square little “T-Car,” or tote car, drove up. It was painted green and white, streamlined, and had seats inside. It had a convertible top which was opened now because of the pleasant weather. The baggageman put the spaceman’s things in the compartment, then invited his passengers to enter at the door he held open. Garry and Patch felt very important as Officer Mulroy motioned them in ahead of himself. They felt even more important as they sank down into the soft seats and were joined a moment later by this high-ranking officer of the Space Service. The swift little car whisked them off to the Operations Building, to which Officer Mulroy had to report before his flight. When the baggage had been unloaded outside and the T-Car had moved off, the spaceman said to the boys, “Wait out here, until I sign up and get my instructions. Then we’ll carry my things aboard the _Orion_.” While they waited, they turned their attention to the space craft some distance away. Its blue, satiny sides reflected the glow of thousands of lights on the field. Red smoke still curled up into the night, warning of the approach of blast-off time. And yet there was still a little while to go, for the spiderwebs of the gantry cranes still hugged the sides of the three-stage space vessel. Workmen were swarming all over the platforms, making last-minute checks on the ship. There was a high wire fence around the _Orion_ and only one entrance through it. A uniformed official was checking tickets as the passengers went through the gate. The official checked Officer Mulroy’s ticket, and Mr. Mulroy told him it would be all right for the boys to help him carry his baggage aboard. The boys’ new friend took them down some steps into a concrete tunnel that led to the launching pad. On the way they stopped at a little room where Mr. Mulroy was weighed. “Weight is a very important factor on a space ship,” Mr. Mulroy said, as they were on their way again. The tunnel led to an elevator that ran up the side of the rocket. The elevator cab rose and rose, high into the black night. Finally, Officer Mulroy pressed a button and said this was where they were to get off. Garry and Patch followed their friend out into a corridor of the space ship. Officer Mulroy searched the doors they passed, then recognized his own, Stateroom 17. He drew out a key and unlocked the door, then preceded the boys into the room.