Lunar Colony by Patrick Kinney Read Free Book Online Page A

Turning around, he noticed that the red arrow turned green. He took a few steps forward, out into the hall,and saw that the frequency of the blinks and beeps had increased. “It must be leading me to Salerno!”
    With his spirits high once again, Glen exited the medical facility and hopped into his rover.

On Salerno’s Trail
    The rover raced across the moon, following the locator device’s tracking signal. Glen looked down at the device, which he’d placed on the passenger seat, and saw that the green arrow was flashing more and more rapidly.
    I guess I’m headed in the right direction,
he thought. As he used his left hand to steer, he used his right to take out the journal and flip to the map.
It looks like the signal is leading me to something called the biodome. That must be where Salerno is hiding!
    Glen was happy, knowing that soon enough he’d have Salerno and be allowed to return home. With his foot pressed to the floor, he said, “I’m coming for you, Commander.”
    But then something distracted Glen, and he veered off his path to have a better look. It was another obelisk, identical to the one he’d seen beforebut with different engravings. Glen fumbled for the notebook and found what he was looking for.
    “Aha!” he said. “Here it is, Number One. This must be the first structure Salerno found.” He was mesmerized by the towering object and burned to know more about it. What did its strange engravings mean, how did it get here, and most importantly, what was it used for?
    “Son, do you copy? I say, do you copy?” It was Slayton’s voice. He’d been barking over Glen’s headset for several minutes, but it was just now that Glen heard him, so fascinated was he by the mysterious structure in front of him.

    “Yes, sir, I copy,” Glen said, shaking himself from his daydream.
    “Son, you’re wasting time. Now, quit stalling and get back on track!” ordered Slayton.
    “Yes, sir, I will. But what can you tell me about these stone structures I’m finding out here?” Glen asked.
    “Jeez-a-loo!” Slayton shouted. “Don’t tell me you’re turning into Salerno and getting all mushy-brained over those things.”
    “No, sir, I’m not. I’m just wondering—”
    “Well, stop your wondering,” Slayton said. “I don’t know what those things are, probably just natural rock formations. Truth is, I don’t really care. What I do care about is finding that missing astronaut. Do you copy?”
    “Yes, sir, I copy,” Glen said quietly. He walked back to the rover, feeling torn. He
did
want to find Salerno and get home, but his curiosity was hard to ignore. Despite what Slayton said, there was no way those structures just
happened
. Someone or something put them there. But who? And why?
    Glen tried to shake these questions from hishead as he drove. The green arrow of the locator device was now beeping wildly, and he saw the biodome up ahead.
    Parking the rover outside, Glen stepped out and entered the building. Unlike the other facilities, which were filled with white corridors and many rooms, the biodome was just one open space. Plants crawled up the enormous glass walls all the way to the domed ceiling, which was also made of glass.
    I think I’ve heard about this place,
Glen said to himself.
This is where the astronauts grew their food and did experiments on vegetation.
He looked around and was astonished at the size of some of the vegetables. There were apples and tomatoes the size of basketballs.
That’s amazing,
Glen thought.
I wonder why their fruits and vegetables grow so big. Maybe it has something to do with the moon’s gravity.
    Glen was considering this when he noticed a spiral staircase, its rails covered in plant life. From the ground, Glen couldn’t tell where the stairs led, but it looked like they practically reached the ceiling. He decided to make the long climb to investigate.
    When he reached the top, high abovethe ground, he saw a door marked STORAGE . Not knowing what he’d