"Two hours ago we were still in space expecting to splash in," said Tom.
He opened one of the containers and offered it to Astro. "Take it easy,
Astro," said Tom. "Unless we find something else to drink, this might
have to last a long time."
"Yeah," said Roger, "a _long_ time. I've been thinking about our chances
of getting out of this mess."
"Well," asked Astro, "what has the great Manning brain figured out?"
"There's no chance at all," said Roger slowly. "You're wrong, Corbett,
about this being midday. It's early morning!" He pointed to a
chronometer on the bulkhead behind Astro. "It's still running. I made a
mental note before we splashed in, it was eight-O-seven. That clock
says nine-O-three. It doesn't begin to get hot here until three o'clock
in the afternoon."
"I think you're wrong two ways," said Tom. "In the first place, Captain
Strong probably has a unit out looking for us right now. And in the
second place, as long as we stay with the ship, we've got shade. That
sun is only bad because the atmosphere is thinner here on Mars, and
easier to burn through. But if we stay out of the sun, we're O.K. Just
sit back and wait for Strong!"
Roger shrugged his shoulders.
"Well," commented Astro with a grin, "I'm not going to sit around
waiting for Strong without eating!" He tore open a plastic package of
roast-beef sandwiches and began eating.
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