Time seemed to drag into a segmented fragment. As the bulk of the Moon and Earth diminished into mere specks of light, the only constant was the sun. this shone through the domed canopy of the ship at an unchanging angle. Although the trip in real terms would take only hours, for Joner, Hippy and Sniffy the journey would take months.

Hippy sighed as he once again pondered the aliens explanation if interplanetry travel. Getting up from the coffee table on the lower level, he walked over to the control panel and turned the luminosity filter to high (which blocked the suns light and replaced it with a softer red fluorescence). He decided to join Joner and Sniffy in the virtual dream rooms The lights outside boths 1,2,3 and 4 all emitted a static green glow, indicating that the rest of the ships occupants were present. Hippy shut himself in the final booth....

He lay on the bunk and pulled up the keyboard and moniter. Unlike a normal dream experience, which is chaotic and for the most part uncontrolable, this virtual experience sent images to the conscious mind and the type of dream was programmed beforehand. He typed in keywords and selected items from the menu. This would enable the system to to draw on elements from its own databank and also his personal experience. There was no visable apparatus, so after replacing the keyboard in the slot in the wall, he lay flat, closed his eyes and listened to the faint crackle of the system.

The dream came apon him and he once again found himself sitting in the lower deck of the ship, sitting with Joner and Sniffy. They briefly acknowledged hippys presence with a brief nod then resumed looking out the canopy.

Never before had Hippy appreciated this sensitive side to the two, as Joner stared smilingly at the celestial beauty. Sniffy too looked up wide eyed, not even bothering to wipe away the snot and drool running down his face. Still suffering from a head~ache from his former session of contemplating the stars , Hippy shrugged and decided to use the ships small sauna and spa facilities.

He walked through the corridor, past the dream rooms and regeneration capsules till he saw the familiar steam vents outside the bathroom. Fumbling with the latch, he prised the door open, allowing a big waft of steam to escape. The light had automaticly come on and eagarly he shut himself in. He glanced around for Burkle and Squibcheese, who he recently had not seen, which was uncommon on a ship this small when their bulk was so large. Undressing blindly in the steam was not as difficult as opperating the locker, but before long he was emersed and happily bathing in the spa~bath. The regular sloshing of water became intermitant. When the mist obscured siloette of taps at the far edge of the bath rose up, below which appeared two large green eyes.....then Hippy realised that he was not alone!