THE THIEF

Class 9 Term-IIISupplementary Reader

2

Yarmuk – one of the top thieves of the solar systemMalkin – Yarmuk’s friendNewly married coupleWandering patrol boatSpace Craft MIG-31Two grey – Clad men

CHARACTERS

Yarmuk meets one of his old friends Malkin

who informs about Planet-X, inviting him to

have drinks and meal.

Mixing a tranquillizer, Yarmuk obtains the address of the man who knows the co-ordinates of Planet X.

The next night, Yarmuk drives over to the address he has got from Malkin.

Using a gas-gun to sedate the occupants of the house, he uses a hallucinogen to get the information from the head of the house about Planet-X.

He searches for a suitable spacecraft by visiting some dealers and picking up their catalogues. At last, he decides to handle an MIG-31.

Roaming the local Space-Port on the third day, Yarmuk sees a well dressed young couple, who come by MIG-31 to a hotel for their Honeymoon.

So, Yarmuk also checks in into the same hotel late that night. And then, he breaks into the Couple’s suite to capture space-port parking lot pass, electronic card, and hyper-wave Radio key.

As soon as he gets all his needs, he immediately checks out by explaining to the clerk that he has to hurry due to his wife’s serious illness.

Taking a heli-taxi to the spaceport, he enters the parking area with the things he has stolen from the couple.

Using his wife’s illness as an excuse again, he gets immediate permission to blast off with MIG-31.

Wandering patrol boat challenges him. He identifies his ship successfully but fumbles when asked for pilot’s personal particulars.

He is ordered to return to the spaceport for an investigation.

Near a planetary mass causes him blackout temporarily and gives the ship an awful jerk.

Regaining consciousness, he finds himself in the Planet-X.

The Planet X

Landing at planetary capital space port, he pays entry fees and gets a taxi to a hotel.

For two days he roams the capital city and finds the people extremely disciplined and honest, no policemen, no guards or watchmen.

Most of the stores and shops do not have any salesmen or assistants or cashiers either.People walk in, pick up the items of their choice, punch out required code on the computer and put in credit cards.

Yarmuk picks up a pair of socks and pretends to, absent mindedly, forget to punch the computer but nothing happens.

He has located three posh jewellery shops in the main market. They have no attendant or assistant.

He walks into one, fills a suitcase with the choicest pieces. Within ten minutes suitcase is full, worth 50 million credits.

He checks out the hotel to get taxi, asking the driver to wait while he collects his luggage prior to proceeding to the space-port.

Two grey-clad men from National Guard come out from behind a pillar, one holds a sten-gun while the other snaps hand-cuffs.

Planet-X is a world of Telepathists, Mind readers and clairvoyants.

Yarmuk could only stammer and gets 10 years imprisonment in the alien’s jail.

deftly - skillfullytranquillizer - a drug used to make person drowsycaliber - superior qualitysedate - cause to be quiethallucinogen - psycho active drugsuperimposed - lay over on somethingsuite - apartmentstratosphere - the atmospheric layerhyperspace - an imagined spacechortled - laugh quietlyreconnoitered - exploring, lingeringsauntered - wandering

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Look up the dictionary and find the meanings for the following words.

Project: Why Pluto is not considered as a planet? Discuss and present.