Hearing more human sounds and a muffled voice from inside the curious cylinder, Rowan redoubled his efforts to find a way in. Finally, he detected a circular panel. That had to be an opening. However it fastened, though, the locks seemed to be inside. He would not let that stop him, not with someone or something inside he badly wanted to see and maybe speak to. He pulled a fine-tipped laser torch from the pocket of his flight suit and began to slice around the circle.
“If you can hear me, get back. This is going to get hot,” he warned. He heard no response, so he kept working. All at once, the panel fell inward. He lost no time sticking his head in after it.
A slender man lay on the floor, face down, as if he’d collapsed while trying to get up. He wore a dust-stained white shirt and dark
