He pushed buttons and flicked switches. None of them seemed to do anything and he was beginning to grow disappointed -- when suddenly the machine thrummed to life. His heart raced along with the engine and he let out a roar of delight.
On a hunch, he gently slid one of the handgrips forward. The craft rolled out of the cargo pod and the Grendler let out another victorious roar. The other Grendlers jumped away from the machine and watched him in awe.
He tried the buttons and switches again and now they each produced a satisfying beep or blink when activated. Strange symbols glowed on the display and a human voice emanated from the console.
AUTO PILOT ACTIVATED.
And then, in one magical instant, he found himself levitating straight up, hovering above his friends and even the land itself. His brethren stood and stared up at him and collectively uttered a universal "Woooo!"
PRE-SET DESTINATION CALCULATED.
The aircraft rotated a quarter turn and then flew off out of sight. Again -- "Woooo!" What else could you say?
The craft touched down with a ker-thunk on the uneven terrain. Slowly, the pilot extricated himself from the cockpit to survey his new domain. Well, this was just beyond spiffy. The Grendler couldn't possibly have found the words to describe it even if his vocabulary had included eloquent terms like "spiffy." More gadgets, more gizmos, tantalizingly-sealed boxes, and the biggest honking comm dish on the planet.
What the Grendler thought at this moment cannot be accurately translated into English but the general sentiment could roughly be expressed as, "Oooo. Eat your hearts out, buckaroos. I am king of the world! Woo-Hoo!"
THE END
