The lot was full of trash.

[Whirligig Girl]

Written as a prompt from my English teacher.

The lot was full of trash.

Gregomun Kerman approached the lot. And it was full of trash. He had only come to the lot because he was invited--along with several other investors--to see the demo of a new "propulsion device for reaction of space-flight." The administrator, Gregomun, intended to see how this related to the Kerbal Space Program, and he was thus far not impressed. The area around the mining town in the mountains just west of the space center generated lots of construction waste, and there needed to be a hauling company to take care of that. The cold, thin air at the mountains made the setting more uncomfortable. Gregomun definitely should have brought a coat. He looked back at the lot. Still, full of trash. Lots of trash. The lot was full of it.

The lot was square in shape. A small shack on one side, presumably an office, and on the other side was a larger building, made from scrap as well. A sign hung over the gate which read "Jebediah Kerman Junkyard and Hauling Company" The administrator sighed, and made his way through the gate and across the piles of rubbish strewn across the area. Plates of scrap metal, an old steam engine, and plenty more pieces of junk he couldn't even recognize littered the piles. The smell was surprisingly not that bad. No waste chemicals or organic, spoiling, rotting food or other waste of that kind. And not a single bit of material was compacted into cubes. This was no normal junkyard. A few Steam Trundles were parked alongside the fence. "They definitely live up to their hauling name." The Administrator murmured to himself, approaching the test stand where the other Investors were waiting. The test stand was made out of wooden planks, surplus piping, and what looked like some kind of structural connector. "Stolen or bought from Kerlington?" The Administrator wondered. The chairs, of all shapes, sizes, and comfortability, were protected by nothing, the mystery of the object--covered by stitched together cloth--would almost certainly be unsafe. Gregomun settled into his chair, one of the other investors handed him some heavy-duty headphones and safety goggles. "You're going to need these." He said.

Gregomun was starting to question his safety. The cold of the mountains and the messy, dirtiness of the junkyard getting to him. Of course, perhaps it wasn't best to wear a suit to a junkyard. He checked his watch. An investor yawned. a piece of scrap fell down from one of the taller piles as a aerobird landed on it. Looks were exchanged between the investors. Finally, what seemed like an eternity later, the door of the larger building opened, a Kerbal walked out. He didn't seem to notice the investors or the test stand. He promptly ran back inside. A piece of debris fell off of a pile as the door slammed shut. Finally, another Kerbal, dressed in yellow overalls and a hardhat, stepped out. "My apologies. I overslept." The Kerbal's accent was not indicative of where he was from. The investors moaned. One of them had already left. But Gregomun was giving him the benefit of the doubt. The Kerbal stepped up to the test stand, and brushed off his overalls.

"Hello, investors. I'm Jebediah Kerman." The investors whispered amongst themselves, perhaps in surprise that this young Kerbal was the namesake of the company. "The device I have to show to you today is called the 'LV-T15 Racket Engine.' It uses Liquid Kerosene and Liquid Oxygen, and it burns it rapidly, creating a spire of plasma that creates a really loud noise, hence the name." Jeb pointed to the "fuel tanks" to the side of the stand, which appeared to be the smokestacks of old steam-shunter locomotives. "The FL-T200 Fuel Tanks, carrying the Fuel and Oxidizer, will hopefully be connected directly to the Racket Engine directly in the future." Gregomun noticed the pipes leading from the fuel tanks to the test stand. The cloth still covered the machine. Jeb swiped the cloth off of the engine, breaking off a small piece of what looked like metal macaroni. "Well, that wasn't important anyway. Probably." The machine was a complicated mess of pipes. A steam-dome formed the base of the machine, a bell on top of it, and piping was everywhere. "Any questions before we being?" The investors were silent. "Alright then."

Jeb pulled the lever to open the throttle, and pulled a chain to ignite it. The first sight was a rush of white smoke coming out of the nozzle, followed by a huge flash of light, and then the white smoke became a blue-white column of plasma, burning the atmosphere around it and producing a noise so loud it would have annihilated everyone's ears had they not been wearing headphones. Also, they don't have ears. The heat radiating and convecting off of it reached the investors, and it was HOT. Really hot. Gregomun had had enough. He took of running, but then the REAL fun started. "NOW THE ENGINE HAS BEEN IGNITED, WE CAN THROTTLE IT UP!" Jeb yelled, though his voice was only audible because of what must've been magic. Jeb turned the throttle lever forewards, bringing even more fuel into the engine. The Kerosene was increased, and the white-hot exhaust turned yellow, but became even taller. The engine was glowing red, but was somehow not melting. The throttle was built up more and more, until finally it was at full thrust, broken through the test stand and pushing down in a vain attempt to move Kerbin. And it might work too! The air was blowing away from the Racket Engine at an insane rate, blasting trash away from the piles. The investors ran away for dear life. Jeb merely laughed.

Finally, the kerosene and oxygen ran out, and the engine suddenly sparked out. He looked back at his audience, all he could see was fallen, burnt, and disintegrated chairs. He looked further, the direction of the mountains, and saw the investors running away. But not Gregomun. As scared as he was, he was convinced this "Rocket" engine would work perfectly for the space program. "Jebediah Kerman." Gregomun started. "Consider yourself funded."

Of course, now, the lot wasn;t full of trash anymore. All but the heaviest pieces of junk had been swept away by the huge updrafts of the engine. The lot was more of a charred crater than a junkyard now. But it didn't matter. Jebediah Kerman's Junkyard and Spaceship Parts Company was about to get the best Research and Development facilities in the world. Not that the best were really that great. But they were a Kraken of a lot better than a lot full of trash. They were probably even better than a lot that wasn't full of trash. And the money would definitely be able to rebuild Jeb's junkyard. Kerlington's Command Pods, Jebediah's Rocket Engines, and a few bits and bobs from other startup comapnies, the Space Program was shaping up. And the Vehicle Assembly Building would be finished soon. Gregomun knew there would be good times ahead. Good times on a lot that was not full of trash.

[Excalibur.]

Its good!

[Wabbit]

Awesome! Have some rep good sir!