"Cold enough for you?"

"Didn't notice," Blancanales shouted back. "Been busy."

"You all know where you're going? Who you're meeting?"

"We thought you knew!" Lyons answered, slapping his forehead in mock surprise. "Now we're all screwed up."

The copilot laughed sarcastically. "A joker. Dig this dude. Whoever sent you doesn't like you. 'Cause you're going to a place called the Stone Age. Where the snake is king. Where Satan ain't born yet — and when he is, he's going to hightail it out."

His eyes wide with shock and amazement, Lyons looked to Gadgets and Blancanales, then back to the copilot. "But the travel agent said it would be nice... so unspoiled... like Hawaii, but without the crowds."

Still sneering, the copilot shook his head. "Hope you keep your sense of humor down there. Now listen," he said, warming to these cavalier characters, "you're in luck. You'll have a good man waiting for you at the airstrip. He'll hold your hand, try to keep you alive. When my plane went down, he's the man who found me and brought me out. Just you all treat him like the proud son of a bitch he is, and you'll get along fine."

The plane lost altitude. They felt the atmospheric pressure pushing at their ears. The copilot gave a quick salute and started back to the cockpit.

Lyons called out, "Hey! Tell us what goes on!". Laughing, the copilot shook his head no. "And spoil the surprises? Ifyou come back, we'll swap stories." Still grinning, he closed the cockpit door behind him.

"Well, what do you make of that?" Lyons asked the others.

"He's the joker," Gadgets smiled. He went to a port and looked out. He hurried back to his pack and retrieved the Instamatic. "Take a look out there. Beautiful!"

Blancanales whistled as he peered out. "A world of green."