Astrid Maxxim and Her Amazing Hoverbike (7 page)

Austin was given a clean bill of health by Dr. Martinez in the infirmary, but Astrid and the two Valeries still felt that they should go home with him and explain to his grandmother what had happened.  The elderly woman was so happy that Austin had brought some friends home, that she did
n’
t seem to mind him having been dropped on his head.  They sat in her living room as she plied them with cookies and milk and told several stories of her work at Maxxim Industries when Astri
d’
s father was a boy.  Astrid in particular was fascinated when she talked about the girl invento
r’
s grandfather creating the plans for the campus.  She was going to ask her father about it, but by the time she got home she had forgotten.

It had been St. Patric
k’
s Day all day, but since it was Saturday, Astrid had
n’
t even noticed.  If it had fallen on a school day, everyone would have been scurrying to make sure they had something green on.  Since it was the weekend, nobody seemed to bother.  Astrid had worn her lab coat most of the day, but her radiation badge had been green.  That evening though, Dr. Maxxim had made a feast of corned beef and cabbage in honor of the day.

“
Wha
t’
s all this about
,”
asked Astrid.
 “
W
e’
re not even Irish
.
”

“
Everyon
e’
s Irish on Saint Patt
y’
s day
,”
her father replied.

“
If you say so
.
”

“
Get into the spirit, Astrid
,”
he continued.
 “
I think we ought to celebrate all the holidays, not just Christmas, Thanksgiving, and the Fourth of July
.
”

“
I’
m not complaining
,”
said Astrid.
 “
I like corned beef
.
”

“
Well, w
e’
ll do it up right for the next holiday too.  What is it?  Earthday
?
”

“
Easter
,”
corrected Mrs. Maxxim.

“
Excellent
,”
said Dr. Maxxim.
 “
W
e’
ll put a big decorated egg in the center of the table and eat a bunny rabbit
.
”

After dinner, Astrid went for a swim and then curled up on the sofa in the family room with Jane Auste
n’
s
Sense and Sensibility
.  She had read about thirty pages when her phone rang.  She answered it to find Denise on the line.

“
Wha
t’
s up
?
”

“
Do you want to come over and spend the night
?
”

“
Sure
,”
said Astrid.
 “
Why the late notice
?
”

“
I’
m just bored out of my brain
,”
said Denise.
 “
My dads decided to go to a movie and Dennis is busy working on something for school
.
”

“
Let me ask my mom and, unless you hear back from me,
I’
ll be right over
.
”

Astri
d’
s mother gave her consent, and when Astrid returned from packing an overnight bag, her mother was waiting to drive her to Denis
e’
s house.

“
Tha
t’
s really not necessary, Mom. 
I’
ve walked from here to Fourth Street a thousand times
.
”

“
It will be dark before you get there
,”
replied her mother.
 “
I wo
n’
t have you gallivanting all over town after sunset
.
”

“
I doubt kidnappers will be waiting along the way
,”
said Astrid, but complied with her mothe
r’
s wishes and a short time later walked up to the front door of the Brown-Richards home.  When she rang the bell, Denis
e’
s older brother Dennis opened the door.  Astrid gave the quic
k“
all clea
r”
wave to her mom sitting in the car, and then stepped inside.

Dennis, three years older than Astrid or Denise, was a senior at Rachel Carson High School and was one of the contenders for valedictorian.  He was class president, captain of the debating team, and vice president of the environmental club.  He was tall and muscular and played in just about every sport for which the school had a team, though his passion was swimming.

“
Hello Astrid
,”
he said, closing the door after her.
 “I’
m glad yo
u’
re here.  Now Denise can quit bothering me
.
”

“
I hear yo
u’
re working on a big project for school
,”
she said.

“
Nothing too spectacular. 
I’
m going to be one of the guides on your field trip so I have to make sure I know everything I can about the desert.  It would be just my luck to have you or Christopher in my group asking questions I ca
n’
t answer
.
”

“
Finally, yo
u’
re here
,”
said Denise, hopping down the stairs.
 “
Quit wasting time talking to him and get up here
.
”

Astrid followed her friend up to her room and they immediately jumped into the video console edition of
Dream Date
.  Whether he was a dream or a dud though, none of the dates, to Astri
d’
s way of thinking matched up to Toby, or even Dennis.  Just before 10:00, Denis
e’
s dads arrived home and they all gathered downstairs in the dining room for hot fudge sundaes.  Afterwards, Astrid climbed into Denis
e’
s bed while Denise climbed into her sleeping bag.  They talked about school, boys, and hot fudge sundaes until they fell asleep.

The next morning over a breakfast of Spanish omelets, Astrid asked Mr. Brown how the prototypes for the new hover vehicle were coming along.

“
Give me a chance to get started, Astrid
,”
he laughed.
 “
I should have all of them ready by the week after next.  We may have to tweak the design to get your control systems and servos mounted.  Will you have everything ready by then
?
”

“
I think so
,”
said Astrid.
 “
Do you think you could get one chassis ready by the end of this week, so I could see how the internal parts are going to fit
?
”

“
I think so
.
”
 
Mr. Brown replied.
 “
Just remember,
I’
ve got work I need to do for your Dad too
.
”

“
Thanks
,”
said Astrid.
 “
I ca
n’
t wait till we can fly our hoverbikes all around town
.
”

“
Do
n’
t you think hovercycle sounds cooler
?”
asked Denise.

“
It sounds faster and more powerful
,”
said Astrid.
 “
but hoverbike sounds like something fourteen year old kids could ride.  Besides, using the hoverdisks for both lift and acceleration, I doubt w
e’
ll get higher than ten feet or so, or travel faster than about twenty miles per hour
.
”

“
Tha
t’
s good
,”
said Mr. Richards.
 “
And yo
u’
ll wear a helmet too
.
”

They had just finished eating when the phone rang.

“
I
t’
s for you, Astrid
,”
said Mr. Richards.

“
Hello
,”
said Astrid, putting the phone to her ear.

“
Astrid, please you must come at once.  We need you
.
”

“
Mrs. Diaz?  Wha
t’
s wrong
?
”

“
I
t’
s Valerie
,”
replied her frien
d’
s mother.
 “
Sh
e’
s very sick
.
”

“
Did you call Dr. Lower
?
”

“
No, no.  I
t’
s my other Valerie
.
”

“
You mean Robot Valerie
?
”

“
Aye, si
,”
said Mrs. Diaz.
 “
She feels week and she wo
n’
t eat ever since you turned her into a robot
.
”

“
I did
n’
t turn her into a robot
!”
said Astrid, exasperated.
 “
Sh
e’
s always been a robot
.
”

“
Please come and help her
.
”

Mr. Brown gave Astrid and Denise a lift over to the Diaz home where they found Valerie and her mother wringing their hands as Robot Valerie lay rather stiffly across the sofa. 

“
I tried to get her to eat some chicken soup
,”
said Mrs. Diaz.

“
She ca
n’
t eat
,”
said Astrid, more exasperated than ever.
 “
Sh
e’
s a robot
.
”

“
But sh
e’
s so week and she feels so sick
,”
said Valerie.

“
Did you plug her in
?
”

“
What do you mean
?
”

Astrid lifted Robot Valeri
e’
s right arm and pressed a small recessed button.  A compartment door opened and she pulled out a retractable cable.  Unlike the rest of the United States which used NEMA 1-15 two prong or NEMA 5-15 three prong electrical outlets, Maxxim City and Maxxim Industries used an Excalibur interface plug, a smart plug capable of channeling a wide variety of power levels and data at the same time.  Astrid plugged the tiny square plug into a matching outlet on the wall of the Diaz living room, right behind the end table.

“
I feel better
,”
said Robot Valerie.

“
I’
m surprised you managed to go this long without a recharge
,”
said Astrid.
 “
Why did
n’
t you plug yourself in
?
”

“
I did
n’
t know I had to
.
”

“
I’
ll put together a manual of all your components
,”
the girl inventor said.
 “
In the meantime, remember the words of Mrs. Greene from Health Class last year
?
”

“
Oh, yes
,”
said Robot Valerie.
 “
I
t’
s your body.  Learn about it
.
”