CHAPTER ONE BACK IN TIME Luis Sanchez sat on his back porch knees pulled to his chin He stared at the large shed in the field just past his backyard It seemed like a dream but just an hour before he had been on a spaceship He and his best friends Tyler and Casey Jenson and Tyler's robot cat Steel had snuck into his dad's shed Tyler and Casey had found a strange looking key at their dad's house They had brought it over sure it would fit the big lock on the shed They were right They knew there was something secret their fathers were working on inside but they'd never dreamed it was a time machine A time machine
We were on a real spaceship We battled aliens and a robot And I was the captain Luis said out loud We sure did a voice said from behind him Something tapped him on the head Luis yelled and jumped off the porch He glared at Tyler who was doubled over laughing You should've seen yourself Tyler said He grinned and waved his arm a crutch swinging wildly Casey helped Luis stand I didn't think someone who loved adventure as much as you would be so jumpy she said Luis shrugged I was thinking about Tesla's Time Twister And what Dad was going to say when if I tell him about what we did Steel rolled over to Luis and sat by his foot Luis bent down and rubbed the head of the cold metal robot cat
Casey said If we tell our dads we'll be grounded for a really long time For all time Look Tyler shouted Luis turned around Past the backyard fence the shed seemed to glow A loud hum came from within What's going on Casey asked It's the Time Twister Luis said his voice coming out in a squeak Someone turned it on Tyler shook his head But there's no one in there We locked it when we left And your dad isn't home Luis swallowed hard What if they had messed up the machine and it was going to explode or pull the whole neighborhood into some other time He started across the yard toward the shed Are you nuts Casey asked She ran after him her jacket full of tools and gadgets clinking as she went
I have to check it out Luis said We're the ones who got it going again What if something bad is happening Tyler moved past them his metal crutches glinting in the sun Maybe I can fix it I'm the one who wants to be an astronaut someday I know the most about robots and machines Luis was gasping for air when they got to the shed door He pulled the strange tree shaped key from his pocket He unlocked the huge lock As before it set off sparks before it opened He opened the door slowly At the back of the building on a wooden platform Tesla's Time Twister shimmered with a white glow We forgot to put the tarp back over it Casey said Our dads will know for sure someone was in here Luis walked toward the machine They'll also know when they see it glowing We have to
