Prologue

Down in the Baja California peninsula in Mexico in the city of Tijuana lies a small Hotel that draws in a bunch of American tourists with a lot of American cash. Many people come because they can’t afford a stay in California. Others because they were tired of American sights and needed somewhere else to go. No matter what your reason, however, it was just a nice seaside place to go.

Alexander Tulliver, a rough and lean sort, had a Harvard degree, which is probably necessary to deal with the travel agents and such like the one he is in the process of "talking" to.

"Okay, for the THIRD time, listen carefully. I --- need --- a --- ticket --- out --- of --- here," he enunciated carefully and slowly.

"Mr. Tulliver, as we said, your trip includes round-trip airfare, however, with the current local problems prices have sky-rocketed and the ticket is thus null and void. Understand?" replied the Travel Agent for Cross & Cross Travel.

Alexander glanced at his watch, groaned, and shouted, "Understand. Understand! How can you be so blind, I need to be back in New York by 5:30 PM tomorrow, before jumping a flight to London, or else my career is destroyed, and you’re asking me to understand!"

Before harshness ignites, an average sized penguin comes up to this same Travel Agent, "Umm. Sir, Do I have to register Space Ship liftoffs with a Travel Agency or do I go directly to the Government?"

The Travel Agent after glancing at a sheet of paper on his desk, sighs, and directs the penguin to a door just down the hall with a sign expressing "Unknown Complaint Dept./Space Shuttle Dept."

The Travel Agent turns back to ...