<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
The Call
Chapter 7
VII
The General Manager of Roswell Used Car Sales walked out of his office with his arm around the shoulder of his newest salesman, as though they had been bosom buddies since birth.
“I’m sorry, Zwolinski, I know I said we liked our sales people aggressive, but… well, you just can’t lock people in the office, pull out a scalpel, and tell them they’ll be dissected unless they sign… as much as I wish we could. I mean, don’t get me wrong, Dume, I’m lovin’ the idea! It’s just that, well… there are these silly laws, you know! But, hey, I’m gonna give you a day’s pay and wish you all the best, huh? Is that a deal?”
Dumas Zwolinski took his fifty bucks and walked away. As he was passing the corner newspaper vendor, a car stopped and tooted. The driver held 25 cents out the window, and the newspaper boy ran out and handed the man a paper. While the boy was distracted, Zwolinski put a paper under his overcoat and walked on. At the park, he sat down on a bench and opened the classifieds. After perusing the classifieds for a few minutes, he sat up suddenly and tore out an ad. Then he walked off quickly, leaving the paper on the bench.
Seven blocks down Main Street, Zwolinski came to his destination and entered an old, professional-looking building. Inside, he was met by a well-dressed, professional-looking gentleman, who invited him into his office.
“So, Mr…?”
“Zwolinski… Dumas Zwolinski, at your service.”
The professional-looking gentleman smiled. “Do you have any experience, Mr. Zwolinski, in medical experiments and lab work?”
“That’s why I’m here,” said Zwolinski. “You won’t find anyone more qualified in a lab than I, I can assure you!”
“Very well, Mr. Zwolinski, you’re hired then.”
“Just like that?” Zwolinski looked surprised… but then he smiled, knowing that his professional and imposing demeanor and great experience had finally paid off with dividends.
“When do I start?”
“Right now if you’d like…”
The professional-looking gentleman led Zwolinski into another room. It was a very large and well-equipped lab. Zwolinski’s eyes widened with delight at the “toys” he was seeing around him.
The professional gentleman opened another door and motioned for someone else to come in. As Zwolinski watched, twenty-seven young men and women came into the room.
“Mr. Zwolinski,” said the professional gentleman, “These are my medical students. They’re studying to be doctors through the University. I’m their professor.”
“Are they going to be hanging around here… I mean, in the lab with me,” Zwolinski asked.
“Yes, that will be necessary, I’m afraid. In this unit, we’re studying the prostate.
Zwolinski watched as twenty-seven rubber gloves were snapped briskly on over twenty-seven hands, each with an upstretched index finger, and every eye was on Zwolinski… who felt suddenly ill.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>> </center>
Meanwhile, on Antar, Michael and Maria were at the palace talking with Max and Liz about the potential upcoming trip to Earth, or “Eluymer,” as it was known on Antar.
“What do you think, Michael? You think there would be any problems… any dangers… you know, with the kids and all?”
Michael shook his head, “Probably nothing too serious, Max; Earth has seen disasters before.”
Max grinned, but he wasn’t letting Michael off that easily. He pursued the question, asking Michael what kinds of defenses they might be able to devise.
Michael thought for a moment, “Well, the new granolith has invisibility capability. We know it works, because we used it, and not one person ever saw us!”
“Yeah, that did work beautifully, didn’t it? That will be very important, but we’ll also need a place to hide the new granolith, and we’ll need some other defenses… for unexpected contingencies.”
“I’ll ask Varec to come up with something,” Michael said. “Did he offer any suggestions when he was here last night?”
“Not really… we talked about it, but only briefly. There was a rabbit to get rid of and… some other stuff.”
Michael looked puzzled. He started to ask, but after living on Antar with three kids ranging from 5 to 8 years old, nothing much surprised him any more.
Liz proceeded to tell Maria about AnDasniya conjuring up the rabbit to eat her gojos for her. Maria laughed out loud, and Michael snickered. Liz also told her about Taz and Zorel. Maria nodded.
“Zorel told us about that when we got home. We had a talk with him about using his powers recklessly. He seems to think there’s no danger, because he’s in total control, but we explained that things don’t always go according to plan. I think he understands… I hope so, anyway.”
Liz smiled and nodded, “Well, no damage was done except to the seat of Taz’s pants… and it was kind of funny! But we could never let them know that, of course!”
At that moment, 6-year-old Kryys Anthony, Michael and Maria’s middle child, came running in from outside.
“Daddy, Daddy, look what Jayyd did to me again!”
Kryys had been turned green from head to foot, with green hair. His fingers and toes were silver. Jayyd was right behind him,
“I like Kryys this way, Mommy! He looks better.”
“Jayyd, I’ve told you before, there are no green Earthlings, no matter what you’ve seen on the menu at the CrashDown,” Maria said. “Put your brother back like he’s supposed to be.”
“But he looks better… Oh, all right…”
Five-year-old Jayyd Alejandra waved her hand up and down quickly, and Kryys returned to his normal color. He looked down and wiggled his toes just to be sure.
“That’s all Jayyd knows how to do is change colors. I wish she’d just get over it,” Kryys said, exasperated.
“Well, you can’t do anything,” Jayyd reminded him harshly. It was true. Kryys’ older brother, Zorel, was fairly adept at power blasting, and Jayyd, at just 5 years old, had already proven herself able --and quite willing-- to manipulate colors. But Kryys, to his own embarrassment, had no known powers at all.
“Jayyd, that wasn’t very nice,” said Maria, “You should apologize to Kryys.”
“But it’s true, Mom… Oh, all right… Sorry, Kryys.”
“A lot of important people don’t have any powers. You know that, Jayyd. I told you about some of the most important people on Antar who don’t have any powers, and look how successful they are! Kryys has his own gifts, he’s… he’s very handsome! He looks just like his dad! And he’s very bright!”
Jayyd looked at Kryys then at Michael. Even at five years old, she was smart enough not to tackle that one. Besides, she had told more than one other child that her daddy was the most handsome daddy on Antar… whenever she wasn’t telling them that he was the most handsome daddy in the universe! She just wasn’t ready to say the same about her brother.
"By the way, Kryys," said Maria, "You really were kind of cute, though, all green with silver toes and fingers!"
Kryys waved his hands in the air and rolled his eyes with an exasperated, "Ohhh!" Then he turned and left the room.
“You know, Liz,” said Maria, “I was just thinking… you said that Varec told you that they had traced the descendants of the three girls on Michael’s Moon to their living relatives. We know that you’re the most direct living relative of MayaSabriena, but wouldn’t that mean that there are others out there who are descended from those girls, too… from the other two girls, especially? Bear with me here, you guys… if any of these ‘descendants’ are closely related enough, genetically, is it possible that your daughter Maya could contact them… communicate with them, you know, telepathically the way she does? It’s just a thought, but do you think that, if they have Antarian DNA, enough of it still left, they might be able to, I don’t know, hear Maya’s call and act as ‘kid protectors’ or something with us when we’re on Earth… Oh, I don’t know what I’m saying… I’m just babbling.”
“No, no,” Max said, leaning forward in his seat, “It’s not such a bad idea really. Anyone who still has enough Antarian DNA left to hear Maya’s call might just be able to understand the message telepathically, you know, and help out. It could be the edge we needed. Besides, they’ll be regular citizens and won’t look suspicious. All of us… well, we’re disappeared people… hunted people. As long as no one knows who we are, we’ll be okay, but if we’re recognized, the kids’ll be in danger. If other people were with us to act like the kids were with them, though, the kids, at least, might escape any notice or suspicion. It really could be the edge we need to make this work. What do you think, Michael?”
Michael shrugged and raised his eyebrows slightly.
“It might work. It’s worth exploring as an option.”
“Liz?” asked Max.
“I don’t know, Max, I guess it could work, because Maya can tell whether the people she communicates with mentally are honest or evil. So at least we would know that the people she chose to communicate with were good people and would help. I think it would really be cool anyway to meet some of the descendants of the girls from Michael’s Moon.”
Maria nodded vigorously… “Yeah, that would just be super!”
Eight-year-old MayaSabriena Claudia (named for the girl from Michael’s Moon and for Liz’s Grandma Claudia) was called into the living room, and Max and Liz explained what they would like her to do, which was to see if she could mentally communicate with any of the descendants of the three girls from Antar who might be living today on Earth. It wasn’t something that would happen immediately. Maya would put out the call at random opportunities, whenever she was alone or not busy with something else. It might take several days or a week to get any feeling for whether this was going to be successful or not. Anxious to start right away, Maya placed the heels of her hands to her temples, curled her fingers up, and relaxed, allowing her mind to roam across the galaxies. Then she looked up and smiled. She had made the first call. Now she would wait to see if there was any reply.
---------------------End of Chapter 7
Roswell Stories by Island Breeze (isndbreeze, Gerry Carr)
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Island Breeze
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Life In The Stars
Last edited by Island Breeze on Sat Jul 23, 2005 8:29 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
Across the Universe
Chapter 8
VIII
Somewhere in New York, 16-year-old Lisa sat up suddenly in bed. It was the middle of the night in New York. Lisa had had “visions” before, small glimpses from time to time of children playing, of a beach and a golden-colored sea, of things that couldn’t possibly exist. She had chalked it up to an overactive imagination and excessive creativity. After all, she told herself, she was a teenager now, and that could be a pretty alien experience in itself.
But this was not like any “glimpse” that she had ever received before. This was something more… definitely something much more. This had been so real. For a moment there, it was almost as if someone was in the room with her.
Lisa wondered if she ought to make sure that she was alone and safe, but somewhere within her she knew that she was. Deep, deep within the depths of her being, within the vast depths that stretched back through over 12,000 years of DNA, Lisa knew…
So did Sabrina and Nina and Andrea… so did Lauren and Margo and Krys… so did Veronica and Roselle and a very few other individuals around the country, people from different walks of life, of different ages, living in different states, but who all shared an unknown bond, their forgotten Antarian heritage.
In the palace, Maya looked at her parents and smiled…
“Sabrina and Lisa said they’ll help if you ask them to… Nina, too. There are some others, I think, but I can’t contact them while they’re awake and doing something that makes their minds busy. Can I go play again now, Mom?”
Liz smiled and nodded… “Sure, Maya. You can try some more later. Go play now. Thanks!”
“Welcome, Mom.”
Michael raised his eyebrows and chuckled… “Sabrina? Lisa? Nina? She even knows their names? I’m impressed!”
Max nodded and smiled.
-------------------End of Chapter 8
Note: I’ll leave this chapter short. I’ve really gotta get some sleep! (Otherwise, I might not hear if Maya calls me. LOL!) Anyway, if your name’s not there and you’re Antarian let me know and I’ll have Maya contact you! If your name is there and you don’t want to be, let me know. Otherwise, I bear no responsibility for any emotional or physical distress these kids might cause you if you’re needed to help out! (Even if Max can fix it!) Keep that in mind. That’s my only disclaimer!
Across the Universe
Chapter 8
VIII
Somewhere in New York, 16-year-old Lisa sat up suddenly in bed. It was the middle of the night in New York. Lisa had had “visions” before, small glimpses from time to time of children playing, of a beach and a golden-colored sea, of things that couldn’t possibly exist. She had chalked it up to an overactive imagination and excessive creativity. After all, she told herself, she was a teenager now, and that could be a pretty alien experience in itself.
But this was not like any “glimpse” that she had ever received before. This was something more… definitely something much more. This had been so real. For a moment there, it was almost as if someone was in the room with her.
Lisa wondered if she ought to make sure that she was alone and safe, but somewhere within her she knew that she was. Deep, deep within the depths of her being, within the vast depths that stretched back through over 12,000 years of DNA, Lisa knew…
So did Sabrina and Nina and Andrea… so did Lauren and Margo and Krys… so did Veronica and Roselle and a very few other individuals around the country, people from different walks of life, of different ages, living in different states, but who all shared an unknown bond, their forgotten Antarian heritage.
In the palace, Maya looked at her parents and smiled…
“Sabrina and Lisa said they’ll help if you ask them to… Nina, too. There are some others, I think, but I can’t contact them while they’re awake and doing something that makes their minds busy. Can I go play again now, Mom?”
Liz smiled and nodded… “Sure, Maya. You can try some more later. Go play now. Thanks!”
“Welcome, Mom.”
Michael raised his eyebrows and chuckled… “Sabrina? Lisa? Nina? She even knows their names? I’m impressed!”
Max nodded and smiled.
-------------------End of Chapter 8
Note: I’ll leave this chapter short. I’ve really gotta get some sleep! (Otherwise, I might not hear if Maya calls me. LOL!) Anyway, if your name’s not there and you’re Antarian let me know and I’ll have Maya contact you! If your name is there and you don’t want to be, let me know. Otherwise, I bear no responsibility for any emotional or physical distress these kids might cause you if you’re needed to help out! (Even if Max can fix it!) Keep that in mind. That’s my only disclaimer!
Last edited by Island Breeze on Sat Jul 23, 2005 10:12 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
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Life In The Stars
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The Truth Will Set You Free
Chapter 9
IX
Tess was sitting in the CrashDown Café across the street from the j’koozzeen, sipping a milkshake through a straw, when Alex and Isabel came in with their daughters, Mareeya and Ceelya, after a morning at the beach.
“Hi, Tess,” said Mareeya, spotting Tess in the corner booth.
Tess looked up… “Hi, Mareeya! Hi, Ceelya! …Hey, guys! Out for a morning at the j’koozzeen?”
“Yep,” said Alex. And I just love it that the CrashDown is right here! I always knew Jeff Parker was smart, but putting the CrashDown across the street from the j’koozzeen right here was sheer genius! He has more business here than he ever had on Earth!”
Tess smiled and nodded. “You guys want to sit with me? I’ve got this whole huge booth all to myself!”
“Okay,” said Isabel, “Sure.” The four of them scooted into the booth across from Tess and ordered shakes for everyone. The CrashDown girl was back with the shakes in a flash.
Alex wasn’t sure if he should ask or not, but he couldn’t bear not knowing any longer…
“Tess, have you heard what the scientists over at the lab discovered about… about Liz?”
Tess shook her head. Isabel looked at Alex as though to say, “You aren’t going to do this, are you?” but Alex seemed to be on a roll. He had started, and once Alex had started anything, there was no stopping him, as anyone who knew him knew well.
“It seems that those three girls who left the camera on Michael’s Moon had the DNA of the royal line.”
Tess was startled. “How is that possible? I don’t remember anything about any royal heirs ever being missing.”
“Well,” Alex said, “after they compared all the royal Antarian genealogies to the DNA trail, they discovered that the genealogies were wrong. It seems that about 500 years before those three girls were born, one of the palace diplomats and his wife switched their baby for the royal baby, probably when it was born. The scientists think they may have paid off a doctor or nurse to help them. Then their baby and all their descendents grew up as that branch of the royal family. Pretty dirty trick, huh?”
Tess sat quietly, thinking for a while. At end, she said,
“So the girls on Michael’s Moon were the royal heirs but never knew it?”
“Yep.”
“Then Liz is descended from…?”
“Yeah, the royal line.”
“And I’m…?”
Alex didn’t answer. Isabel suddenly was very thirsty and started sucking vigorously on her straw. She was counting the ways she could kill Alex herself when they got back home… Well, okay, not really kill him… maybe just hurt him a little. Ooooh! If only she didn’t love him so much!
Tess was fidgeting with her straw and thinking…
“You know, Alex, in a way… I know you won’t understand it… but in a way, I’m sort of glad if I’m not really the direct descendent of the queen. I mean… it always kind of bothered me that Max chose Liz over me… when I was the rightful queen. I know I never said so, but it did. But if she’s the rightful queen, I don’t think it bothers me so much. That sounds weird, even hearing myself say it, but I kind of like just being me.”
Tess sighed then smiled as she thought about it… “I guess what I’m trying to say is, it’s a real downer knowing that everyone is always looking at you and thinking that you were the rightful queen but you weren’t chosen. Does that make any sense? Besides, do you know how hard it is to get a guy to pay attention to you when they think you’re the queen’s direct descendant? They all figure I’m untouchable. It makes dating harder than… getting a pawgor to sit still for a root canal, you know?”
“I thought somebody ought to tell you,” Alex said, nodding his head sympathetically.
Isabel and Alex knew what Tess had done in the other timeline only because Max and Michael had told them about it. In this timeline, Tess had never shown any inclination toward violence or treachery. This was probably because, in this timeline, Nasedo had been living with a woman who had raised Tess as her own. Tess always knew that Nasedo was not married to her “mother” and that neither of them was her real parent. But the negative influences that Nasedo had had on Tess in the old timeline were greatly ameliorated by the influence of a caring “mother” in this timeline. Nasedo had taught Tess all the things in this timeline that he had taught her in the old timeline. But in this timeline, Nasedo had not been her only influence.
Even the scientists at the lab couldn’t explain it, but it appeared that when Max and Michael went back in time they affected more than just what came after they went back. They may also, somehow, have had a more limited effect on some things that happened prior to their arrival. So far, this was the only thing they were aware of, though. They didn’t see how it was possible, but they had no other explanation for it.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
The next day, Alex and Isabel were walking with the girls in the park when they spotted Tess sitting on a bench by the fountain. Only this time, she was surrounded by several very handsome young men who seemed to be quite enjoying themselves talking with her.
“You know,” Alex said to Isabel, “Do you get the impression that maybe it wasn’t that guys were afraid to talk to Tess but maybe that Tess couldn’t forget her place in order to allow them to ever get close enough to talk to her?”
Isabel looked at Alex…
“Sometimes you’re very deep, Alex!” She shook her head. “I’m glad I let you live last night…
Just don’t ever do that to me again!”
Alex and Isabel both laughed, as their girls ran off through the park chasing a flock of long-tail golden Zerpia birds.
--------------------End of Chapter 9
The Truth Will Set You Free
Chapter 9
IX
Tess was sitting in the CrashDown Café across the street from the j’koozzeen, sipping a milkshake through a straw, when Alex and Isabel came in with their daughters, Mareeya and Ceelya, after a morning at the beach.
“Hi, Tess,” said Mareeya, spotting Tess in the corner booth.
Tess looked up… “Hi, Mareeya! Hi, Ceelya! …Hey, guys! Out for a morning at the j’koozzeen?”
“Yep,” said Alex. And I just love it that the CrashDown is right here! I always knew Jeff Parker was smart, but putting the CrashDown across the street from the j’koozzeen right here was sheer genius! He has more business here than he ever had on Earth!”
Tess smiled and nodded. “You guys want to sit with me? I’ve got this whole huge booth all to myself!”
“Okay,” said Isabel, “Sure.” The four of them scooted into the booth across from Tess and ordered shakes for everyone. The CrashDown girl was back with the shakes in a flash.
Alex wasn’t sure if he should ask or not, but he couldn’t bear not knowing any longer…
“Tess, have you heard what the scientists over at the lab discovered about… about Liz?”
Tess shook her head. Isabel looked at Alex as though to say, “You aren’t going to do this, are you?” but Alex seemed to be on a roll. He had started, and once Alex had started anything, there was no stopping him, as anyone who knew him knew well.
“It seems that those three girls who left the camera on Michael’s Moon had the DNA of the royal line.”
Tess was startled. “How is that possible? I don’t remember anything about any royal heirs ever being missing.”
“Well,” Alex said, “after they compared all the royal Antarian genealogies to the DNA trail, they discovered that the genealogies were wrong. It seems that about 500 years before those three girls were born, one of the palace diplomats and his wife switched their baby for the royal baby, probably when it was born. The scientists think they may have paid off a doctor or nurse to help them. Then their baby and all their descendents grew up as that branch of the royal family. Pretty dirty trick, huh?”
Tess sat quietly, thinking for a while. At end, she said,
“So the girls on Michael’s Moon were the royal heirs but never knew it?”
“Yep.”
“Then Liz is descended from…?”
“Yeah, the royal line.”
“And I’m…?”
Alex didn’t answer. Isabel suddenly was very thirsty and started sucking vigorously on her straw. She was counting the ways she could kill Alex herself when they got back home… Well, okay, not really kill him… maybe just hurt him a little. Ooooh! If only she didn’t love him so much!
Tess was fidgeting with her straw and thinking…
“You know, Alex, in a way… I know you won’t understand it… but in a way, I’m sort of glad if I’m not really the direct descendent of the queen. I mean… it always kind of bothered me that Max chose Liz over me… when I was the rightful queen. I know I never said so, but it did. But if she’s the rightful queen, I don’t think it bothers me so much. That sounds weird, even hearing myself say it, but I kind of like just being me.”
Tess sighed then smiled as she thought about it… “I guess what I’m trying to say is, it’s a real downer knowing that everyone is always looking at you and thinking that you were the rightful queen but you weren’t chosen. Does that make any sense? Besides, do you know how hard it is to get a guy to pay attention to you when they think you’re the queen’s direct descendant? They all figure I’m untouchable. It makes dating harder than… getting a pawgor to sit still for a root canal, you know?”
“I thought somebody ought to tell you,” Alex said, nodding his head sympathetically.
Isabel and Alex knew what Tess had done in the other timeline only because Max and Michael had told them about it. In this timeline, Tess had never shown any inclination toward violence or treachery. This was probably because, in this timeline, Nasedo had been living with a woman who had raised Tess as her own. Tess always knew that Nasedo was not married to her “mother” and that neither of them was her real parent. But the negative influences that Nasedo had had on Tess in the old timeline were greatly ameliorated by the influence of a caring “mother” in this timeline. Nasedo had taught Tess all the things in this timeline that he had taught her in the old timeline. But in this timeline, Nasedo had not been her only influence.
Even the scientists at the lab couldn’t explain it, but it appeared that when Max and Michael went back in time they affected more than just what came after they went back. They may also, somehow, have had a more limited effect on some things that happened prior to their arrival. So far, this was the only thing they were aware of, though. They didn’t see how it was possible, but they had no other explanation for it.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
The next day, Alex and Isabel were walking with the girls in the park when they spotted Tess sitting on a bench by the fountain. Only this time, she was surrounded by several very handsome young men who seemed to be quite enjoying themselves talking with her.
“You know,” Alex said to Isabel, “Do you get the impression that maybe it wasn’t that guys were afraid to talk to Tess but maybe that Tess couldn’t forget her place in order to allow them to ever get close enough to talk to her?”
Isabel looked at Alex…
“Sometimes you’re very deep, Alex!” She shook her head. “I’m glad I let you live last night…
Just don’t ever do that to me again!”
Alex and Isabel both laughed, as their girls ran off through the park chasing a flock of long-tail golden Zerpia birds.
--------------------End of Chapter 9
Last edited by Island Breeze on Sat Jul 23, 2005 10:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
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Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
Call of the Wild
Chapter 10
X
At Valenti’s ranch estate, Jim and Kathleen watched cautiously as 7-year-old Danyy approached, for the first time, the pawgor’s enclosure, which Jim had recently extended to a height of 18 feet… “just to be safe.” Danyy had frequently sat in his bedroom window and “talked” with the pawgor. Jim didn’t know if what his son did was actually talking telepathically, mind reading, or what; all he knew was that Danyy understood the pawgor, and the pawgor understood Danyy… totally.
Danyy smiled as he walked up to the enclosure and reached through the mesh to rub the top of the pawgor’s head and its back. The pawgor responded by purring and narrowing its eyes into that satisfied cat look.
“Okay,” Jim said to his son, “Since you think you can control him, I’ll knock the fence down and you can lead him to the HoverTraveler.”
Danyy looked at his father… “You don’t need to knock the fence down, Dad.” He turned around and looked at the pawgor again, and the pawgor leapt over the fence without straining a muscle. Jim’s mouth dropped open with shock…
“That fence was 18 feet high! He didn’t even need a running start! Why didn’t he…”
Danyy grinned, “Because he was my friend… and he wasn’t afraid. He likes you… and he likes Mommy… and me. He knew he could leave anytime he wanted to; he just didn’t want to yet.”
Jim turned suddenly pale. “The pawgor could have jumped over the fence and up into your window without even getting a running start or exerting itself! My God, Danyy! If I had known! If you hadn’t had your special gift!”
Danyy smiled and touched his father on the arm,
“Don’t worry, Dad. He’s our friend.”
Jim was shaking. He wasn’t afraid for himself. There wasn’t much that scared Jim, and he had seen more than most people would see in ten lifetimes. But the idea of his son being hurt --maybe even eaten-- by any wild animal gave Jim a feeling that he was not accustomed to and disliked intensely… fear.
Jim shook his head to try to regain his composure, telling himself that since nothing bad had happened, he could chalk it up to a learning experience.
“Come on, Danyy, get in the HoverTraveler and tell kitty here to get in with us. Where’s your mother?”
They looked around. Kathleen was lying on the grass where she had fainted.
Jim ran to her side… “Kath, what happened?”
“Your pawgor just jumped your 18-foot fence, Jim!”
“Yeah,” Jim said, matter-of-factly. “He did.”
Kathleen punched Jim weakly on the arm.
“We could have all been ‘kitty food’ for a pawgor, Jim! Do you realize that?”
Jim helped Kathleen up. She looked at her son and smiled slightly, shaking her head incredulously as she watched Danyy running and playing chase-the-ball around the yard with the pawgor. Kathleen turned and kissed Jim on the cheek.
“What was that for, Kath?”
“For tonight, Jim! I’ve got a headache now, and that’s probably all you’ll get.”
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Danyy got into the front seat of the spacious HoverTraveler and called to the pawgor to come. The pawgor jumped onto the seat beside him. Though still only half-grown, the pawgor didn’t leave a lot of room for Danyy and his father in the front seat. It was, to say the least, crowded. Kathleen sat in the back.
After everyone was in the vehicle, Jim pulled the HoverTraveler out and drove down his drive toward the street… then he headed off toward the Nan-torel.
As Jim drove through town, people turned to look and point, calling to their friends to come look quickly. It was probably a sight that no one on Antar would ever see again… It was certainly one they had never seen before! The pawgor had its head out the window, its short ears pushed back by the wind and its extra-long tongue hanging out the side of its mouth beside its two eighteen-inch-long tusk-like front teeth. The pawgor was seriously enjoying the wind blowing in its face as the HoverTraveler accelerated to cruising speed and left the town behind, headed out across the plains to the Nan-torel.
Some Antarians merely shook their heads and commented about how odd the “aliens” were. But the truth is the Antarians never tired of learning about the Earthlings or their adventures, and they were always delighted to hear any new bit of gossip or information. This would provide talk in the barbershops and salons for at least a few weeks!
The HoverTraveler pulled up at the edge of the Nan-torel, and Jim got out and opened the door for the pawgor to get out. The pawgor hopped out with Danyy right behind it. Danyy hugged the cat around the neck, and the pawgor purred. Then Danyy let go, and the pawgor leapt into the Nan-torel with a starting leap that carried it close to a hundred feet. It almost seemed to fly, its massive bulk moving so fluidly and effortlessly through the air. Once inside the forest, the pawgor turned and looked momentarily at Danyy, at Jim, at Kathleen… Then it disappeared into the deep dark depths known as the Nan-torel, the most dangerous place on Antar… “home” for the pawgor.
Danyy looked at his father and smiled.
“The pawgor said, ‘Thanks,’ Dad.”
Jim nodded. He had understood that himself.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
The next day, Kathleen drove over to Michael and Maria’s house with Danyy to see if Maria would like to go shopping with her for their upcoming “vacation” to Earth. Maria had already heard about the pawgor’s ride in the HoverTraveler.
Kathleen laughed, “Yeah, Jim and Danyy decided if we were going to take a vacation to Earth, the pawgor would have to be released… It was all well now anyway.”
Kathleen told Maria about the pawgor jumping over the fence and Danyy playing chase-the-ball with it around the yard. Maria’s eyes grew wide as she listened with one hand over her mouth, giggling in spite of herself. It was both awesome and funny at the same time, especially when Kath described how she had awakened lying on the grass with Jim asking her if she was okay.
“Kath, I think you guys are going to be known as the pawgor family for a very long time,” Maria laughed. “The pawgor in the hover vehicle is all the talk of CoruzAntar right now.”
Maria and Kathleen both laughed.
“I’m afraid so,” said Kathleen.
“Come on, Kath! I’ll get the kids. We can all go shopping for our trip before Michael gets back.”
Maria called Zorel, Kryys, and Jayyd; and the four of them, together with Kathleen and Danyy, piled into Jim’s HoverTraveler, which was a sort of wide, extra large, hovering SUV.
“You think there’ll be room for all of us,” asked Maria.
“Honey,” said Kathleen, “After seeing Jim get that pawgor in here with all of us yesterday, I think this thing can carry anything!”
Both of them laughed then Kathleen drove them to the shopping district to shop for the trip to Earth.
--------------------End of Chapter 10
Call of the Wild
Chapter 10
X
At Valenti’s ranch estate, Jim and Kathleen watched cautiously as 7-year-old Danyy approached, for the first time, the pawgor’s enclosure, which Jim had recently extended to a height of 18 feet… “just to be safe.” Danyy had frequently sat in his bedroom window and “talked” with the pawgor. Jim didn’t know if what his son did was actually talking telepathically, mind reading, or what; all he knew was that Danyy understood the pawgor, and the pawgor understood Danyy… totally.
Danyy smiled as he walked up to the enclosure and reached through the mesh to rub the top of the pawgor’s head and its back. The pawgor responded by purring and narrowing its eyes into that satisfied cat look.
“Okay,” Jim said to his son, “Since you think you can control him, I’ll knock the fence down and you can lead him to the HoverTraveler.”
Danyy looked at his father… “You don’t need to knock the fence down, Dad.” He turned around and looked at the pawgor again, and the pawgor leapt over the fence without straining a muscle. Jim’s mouth dropped open with shock…
“That fence was 18 feet high! He didn’t even need a running start! Why didn’t he…”
Danyy grinned, “Because he was my friend… and he wasn’t afraid. He likes you… and he likes Mommy… and me. He knew he could leave anytime he wanted to; he just didn’t want to yet.”
Jim turned suddenly pale. “The pawgor could have jumped over the fence and up into your window without even getting a running start or exerting itself! My God, Danyy! If I had known! If you hadn’t had your special gift!”
Danyy smiled and touched his father on the arm,
“Don’t worry, Dad. He’s our friend.”
Jim was shaking. He wasn’t afraid for himself. There wasn’t much that scared Jim, and he had seen more than most people would see in ten lifetimes. But the idea of his son being hurt --maybe even eaten-- by any wild animal gave Jim a feeling that he was not accustomed to and disliked intensely… fear.
Jim shook his head to try to regain his composure, telling himself that since nothing bad had happened, he could chalk it up to a learning experience.
“Come on, Danyy, get in the HoverTraveler and tell kitty here to get in with us. Where’s your mother?”
They looked around. Kathleen was lying on the grass where she had fainted.
Jim ran to her side… “Kath, what happened?”
“Your pawgor just jumped your 18-foot fence, Jim!”
“Yeah,” Jim said, matter-of-factly. “He did.”
Kathleen punched Jim weakly on the arm.
“We could have all been ‘kitty food’ for a pawgor, Jim! Do you realize that?”
Jim helped Kathleen up. She looked at her son and smiled slightly, shaking her head incredulously as she watched Danyy running and playing chase-the-ball around the yard with the pawgor. Kathleen turned and kissed Jim on the cheek.
“What was that for, Kath?”
“For tonight, Jim! I’ve got a headache now, and that’s probably all you’ll get.”
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Danyy got into the front seat of the spacious HoverTraveler and called to the pawgor to come. The pawgor jumped onto the seat beside him. Though still only half-grown, the pawgor didn’t leave a lot of room for Danyy and his father in the front seat. It was, to say the least, crowded. Kathleen sat in the back.
After everyone was in the vehicle, Jim pulled the HoverTraveler out and drove down his drive toward the street… then he headed off toward the Nan-torel.
As Jim drove through town, people turned to look and point, calling to their friends to come look quickly. It was probably a sight that no one on Antar would ever see again… It was certainly one they had never seen before! The pawgor had its head out the window, its short ears pushed back by the wind and its extra-long tongue hanging out the side of its mouth beside its two eighteen-inch-long tusk-like front teeth. The pawgor was seriously enjoying the wind blowing in its face as the HoverTraveler accelerated to cruising speed and left the town behind, headed out across the plains to the Nan-torel.
Some Antarians merely shook their heads and commented about how odd the “aliens” were. But the truth is the Antarians never tired of learning about the Earthlings or their adventures, and they were always delighted to hear any new bit of gossip or information. This would provide talk in the barbershops and salons for at least a few weeks!
The HoverTraveler pulled up at the edge of the Nan-torel, and Jim got out and opened the door for the pawgor to get out. The pawgor hopped out with Danyy right behind it. Danyy hugged the cat around the neck, and the pawgor purred. Then Danyy let go, and the pawgor leapt into the Nan-torel with a starting leap that carried it close to a hundred feet. It almost seemed to fly, its massive bulk moving so fluidly and effortlessly through the air. Once inside the forest, the pawgor turned and looked momentarily at Danyy, at Jim, at Kathleen… Then it disappeared into the deep dark depths known as the Nan-torel, the most dangerous place on Antar… “home” for the pawgor.
Danyy looked at his father and smiled.
“The pawgor said, ‘Thanks,’ Dad.”
Jim nodded. He had understood that himself.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
The next day, Kathleen drove over to Michael and Maria’s house with Danyy to see if Maria would like to go shopping with her for their upcoming “vacation” to Earth. Maria had already heard about the pawgor’s ride in the HoverTraveler.
Kathleen laughed, “Yeah, Jim and Danyy decided if we were going to take a vacation to Earth, the pawgor would have to be released… It was all well now anyway.”
Kathleen told Maria about the pawgor jumping over the fence and Danyy playing chase-the-ball with it around the yard. Maria’s eyes grew wide as she listened with one hand over her mouth, giggling in spite of herself. It was both awesome and funny at the same time, especially when Kath described how she had awakened lying on the grass with Jim asking her if she was okay.
“Kath, I think you guys are going to be known as the pawgor family for a very long time,” Maria laughed. “The pawgor in the hover vehicle is all the talk of CoruzAntar right now.”
Maria and Kathleen both laughed.
“I’m afraid so,” said Kathleen.
“Come on, Kath! I’ll get the kids. We can all go shopping for our trip before Michael gets back.”
Maria called Zorel, Kryys, and Jayyd; and the four of them, together with Kathleen and Danyy, piled into Jim’s HoverTraveler, which was a sort of wide, extra large, hovering SUV.
“You think there’ll be room for all of us,” asked Maria.
“Honey,” said Kathleen, “After seeing Jim get that pawgor in here with all of us yesterday, I think this thing can carry anything!”
Both of them laughed then Kathleen drove them to the shopping district to shop for the trip to Earth.
--------------------End of Chapter 10
Last edited by Island Breeze on Sat Jul 23, 2005 10:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
Just Us Guys / Girls
Chapter 11
XI
While Kathleen and Danyy were off shopping with Maria and her children, Jim called and invited his first son, Kyle, to go fishing with him. Jim lived far out in the country, and his estate was near some of the best streams and rivers on Antar. Kyle had decided to accept the invitation.
Father and son plodded along the edge of the beautiful Starkeen River, wading in the shallows at the edge, climbing over rocks, carrying their fishing gear and a lunch on their backs. After following the shore of the river about three miles into the woods, the two Valenti’s came to a site that looked like a good place to stop. There was a large clearing on their side where they could relax and prepare their gear, and there was a fine outcrop of rocks from which they could fish jutting out into the river.
Jim pulled out his fly rod, a type of fishing gear unknown to the Antarians until Jim had introduced the concept and some enterprising Antarian businesspersons had produced and marketed it. Jim received a nice little paycheck every now and then on the side based on the sales of his “invention.”
Looking at the deep dark waters off the end of the rocky outcrop, Jim decided to leave the fly rod in “camp” and use the casting rod and reel. The Antarian rod and reel was common here. It very much resembled an Earth rod and reel, with the exception that the reel was located further forward on the rod, and the longer handle was generally held underneath the arm. The only other difference readily noticeable was in the eyelets, or guides, that the fishing line fed through. On Earth rods, the eyelets are simple loops, usually made of wire or steel, but on Antarian rods, the eyelets are short -about 1-inch-long- glass tubes attached to the top of the rod. The line is fed through these smooth tubes, which act as the guides.
Jim walked out onto the rocks, and Kyle followed, carrying his rod and reel and a kit with lures and other tackle in it. They sat down near the end of the outcrop on the downstream side, so that the current would carry the lines away from the rocks and not into them.
It was a pleasant fishing spot. The huge trees at the edge of the clearing reached out over the edge of the river with their huge canopies, providing shade to a portion of the outcrop.
Jim wasted little time getting his lures, which were also his own creations, into the water; and in no time at all, the float attached to his line zipped beneath the surface. Jim pulled the end of his rod high then began reeling. Whatever was on the line was giving him a run for his money. First it made a beeline for deep water and headed downstream, adding the pull of the current to the stress on the line. Jim let off a bit on the mechanical drag to compensate but kept his finger gently on top of the line to give it just the amount of drag that he felt was appropriate and which he could alter readily. As often as he could, he would raise the tip of the rod high then let it down slowly as he reeled in line. After a few minutes, Jim had the fish to the surface. He could see that it was big, but he still couldn’t tell what it was.
Just before Jim got the fish to the rocks, it found a new reserve of energy and headed off again across the river, this time leaping out of the water and somersaulting three times. It was an Antarian King trout. That’s what Jim had named this species anyway, because it looked like a trout and grew so large. Antarians called it a “lymrix.”
Jim finally reeled the lymrix up to where he stood on the rocks. He lifted it from the water, showing it to Kyle, who seemed impressed. It probably weighed a good 40 pounds.
“What do you think, Kyle? You want to try some fish tonight or are you sticking to the gojos and badas?”
Kyle grinned, “I’ll stick with the gojos and badas, Dad. They’re healthy, you know!”
“Yeah,” said Jim, “So is fish!”
Jim lowered the 40-pound lymrix back into the water and patted it gently on the side as he moved it forward to aerate its gills and show it the way back to whatever was “home.”
“Okay guy, you’re in luck. My son doesn’t want to eat you, and I think you should go back home and make a lot of new little king trout babies for now. Maybe we’ll meet again some day.”
The lymrix suddenly seemed to come to life, leaving Jim’s hands with a powerful flick of its tail, heading for deep water and safety.
Jim sat down on a rock in the shade beside Kyle. He was puffing a little from the exertion this fish had given him, but Jim was a consummate outdoorsman and in the peak of health. He would recover quickly.
“It’s kind of nice just being out here, just the two of us like this, son,” Jim said to Kyle. “This is something I always wanted to do back on Earth, but…”
“Yeah,” Kyle agreed, “we never seemed to get to do anything together, did we? I was into football and getting a letter and all, and you had your sheriff’s work… Then there were all the problems with the alien task force jerks…”
Jim nodded.
Jim and Kyle spent the rest of the morning fishing and talking… just father and son stuff. Neither of them got another bite. Oddly, they had both forgotten to tie a lure onto their lines.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Maria and Kathleen had gone into Kyyk’s, one of the largest department stores on Antar, with the children, to shop. Maria called Jayyd over to try on a T-shirt with a cute picture of a porpoise on it.
“What do you think, Jayyd?”
Jayyd looked at herself in the mirror then waved her hand, changing the color from yellow to blue.
“Uh-hum!” she heard a voice behind her say. Maria and Jayyd both turned around to see a clerk standing there. The clerk merely pointed to a sign on the wall:
“Molecular alterations and color changing of clothes not allowed unless the items are returned to exactly as they were before. Remember that your abilities and ours may not be the same and we may not be able to undo what you have done satisfactorily. So if you change it and don’t change it back, you buy it. We hope this will not inconvenience you too much. Thank you for shopping at Kyyk’s.”
Maria and Kathleen looked at each other and burst into giggles.
“I don’t think I ever saw that one in K-Mart,” Maria said.
Kathleen snickered, “If there was one, the alien task force probably got it and dissected it.”
They both laughed.
“It’s okay,” Maria said to the clerk, putting the T-shirt into her cart. “We’ll take it. I like it better blue, anyway.”
Jayyd looked at her Mommy and broke into a large grin.
Kathleen wandered briefly to the other side of the aisle to look in the ladies’ wear section, and Maria caught up with her after a few minutes. Kathleen held up a blouse for Maria’s approval.
“Is this darling or what?”
“I approve,” said Maria. “Very chic!”
“I just wish I could find one in a pastel green instead of this bright green, but it’s still too darling to pass up.”
Maria grinned, “Jayyd, honey? Would you mind?”
Jayyd smiled from ear to ear and waved her hand… The blouse changed color.
“Better!” said Kathleen, “Much better! Can you make it just a little lighter, Dear?”
Jayyd waved her hand again, and the color changed slightly.
“Oh! That’s perfect!” said Kathleen. “That’s exactly what I’ve been looking for!”
Jayyd was grinning like a Cheshire cat now. She loved nothing better than using her power and getting praised for it!
Zorel rubbed Jayyd lightly on top of the head and smiled,
“If you can use my services, Aunt Kathleen…”
Maria and Kathleen laughed, “Thanks, Zorel! We’ll keep that in mind, Honey… but right now, I don’t think that any of the clothes would be helped by power blasting!”
“Except maybe that one,” snickered Kathleen, pointing to some ridiculous fluffy tutu-like culottes that no Antarian or Earthling --well, maybe except Howard Stern posing for a Hooters billboard-- would be caught dead or alive in.
Zorel started to lift his hand, but Maria was too quick, after eight years of experience, and stopped his hand before he got it up.
“She was kidding, Zorel!”
“Oh.”
Maria picked out a couple of blouses and some slacks that she liked, and Kathleen found another blouse and several pairs of slacks. Jayyd was in Heaven changing colors for her mom and Kathleen. But she was really delighted and proud of herself when a couple of ladies nearby asked her if she would change the colors of their blouses slightly, too… and paid her four yaronins each (about a dollar, a yaronin being about a quarter) for her help.
Once Maria and Kathleen had finished shopping --at least for the moment-- in the ladies wear section, they took the kids to the children’s clothes department. Maria quickly found several shirts for Kryys and Zorel and a few pairs of pants for each. She got Jayyd a nice jumpsuit and several blouses and pants. Kathleen found several very pretty shirts and some nice pants for Danyy. And they got new shoes for everyone.
After shopping most of the morning, the kids were getting tired and hungry, so Maria, Kathleen and the kids all stopped at Kykks’ Luncheon Niche. Kykks’ Luncheon Niche was a nice small restaurant with a good selection of Antarian sandwiches and light foods as well as “French-fried” bada tubors and shebble or yegg burgers, a testament to the influence that the CrashDown had had on Antarian society since Jeff had brought it here.
Danyy, Zorel, and Kryys ran over to play an Antarian version of video games while the food was being fixed, but the food came out quickly. None of them were complaining! They were a growing bunch of kids… and right now, they were very hungry!
Back at Maria and Michael’s house, Kathleen kissed Maria and Jayyd on the cheek and thanked Maria for her company and Jayyd for her help with the colors.
“Oh, I had a wonderful time,” said Maria. “We’ll have to do this again! Thanks so much for inviting me to go with you!”
“Yes, we certainly will have to do this again, Maria!” Kathleen agreed. “I had a wonderful time, too! I think I'm ready for our trip now!”
Kathleen and Danyy said goodbye to Zorel, Kryys, and Jayyd; then they waved and drove off toward the Valenti Estate in the Antarian countryside.
<center>End of Chapter 11
tbc…</center>
Just Us Guys / Girls
Chapter 11
XI
While Kathleen and Danyy were off shopping with Maria and her children, Jim called and invited his first son, Kyle, to go fishing with him. Jim lived far out in the country, and his estate was near some of the best streams and rivers on Antar. Kyle had decided to accept the invitation.
Father and son plodded along the edge of the beautiful Starkeen River, wading in the shallows at the edge, climbing over rocks, carrying their fishing gear and a lunch on their backs. After following the shore of the river about three miles into the woods, the two Valenti’s came to a site that looked like a good place to stop. There was a large clearing on their side where they could relax and prepare their gear, and there was a fine outcrop of rocks from which they could fish jutting out into the river.
Jim pulled out his fly rod, a type of fishing gear unknown to the Antarians until Jim had introduced the concept and some enterprising Antarian businesspersons had produced and marketed it. Jim received a nice little paycheck every now and then on the side based on the sales of his “invention.”
Looking at the deep dark waters off the end of the rocky outcrop, Jim decided to leave the fly rod in “camp” and use the casting rod and reel. The Antarian rod and reel was common here. It very much resembled an Earth rod and reel, with the exception that the reel was located further forward on the rod, and the longer handle was generally held underneath the arm. The only other difference readily noticeable was in the eyelets, or guides, that the fishing line fed through. On Earth rods, the eyelets are simple loops, usually made of wire or steel, but on Antarian rods, the eyelets are short -about 1-inch-long- glass tubes attached to the top of the rod. The line is fed through these smooth tubes, which act as the guides.
Jim walked out onto the rocks, and Kyle followed, carrying his rod and reel and a kit with lures and other tackle in it. They sat down near the end of the outcrop on the downstream side, so that the current would carry the lines away from the rocks and not into them.
It was a pleasant fishing spot. The huge trees at the edge of the clearing reached out over the edge of the river with their huge canopies, providing shade to a portion of the outcrop.
Jim wasted little time getting his lures, which were also his own creations, into the water; and in no time at all, the float attached to his line zipped beneath the surface. Jim pulled the end of his rod high then began reeling. Whatever was on the line was giving him a run for his money. First it made a beeline for deep water and headed downstream, adding the pull of the current to the stress on the line. Jim let off a bit on the mechanical drag to compensate but kept his finger gently on top of the line to give it just the amount of drag that he felt was appropriate and which he could alter readily. As often as he could, he would raise the tip of the rod high then let it down slowly as he reeled in line. After a few minutes, Jim had the fish to the surface. He could see that it was big, but he still couldn’t tell what it was.
Just before Jim got the fish to the rocks, it found a new reserve of energy and headed off again across the river, this time leaping out of the water and somersaulting three times. It was an Antarian King trout. That’s what Jim had named this species anyway, because it looked like a trout and grew so large. Antarians called it a “lymrix.”
Jim finally reeled the lymrix up to where he stood on the rocks. He lifted it from the water, showing it to Kyle, who seemed impressed. It probably weighed a good 40 pounds.
“What do you think, Kyle? You want to try some fish tonight or are you sticking to the gojos and badas?”
Kyle grinned, “I’ll stick with the gojos and badas, Dad. They’re healthy, you know!”
“Yeah,” said Jim, “So is fish!”
Jim lowered the 40-pound lymrix back into the water and patted it gently on the side as he moved it forward to aerate its gills and show it the way back to whatever was “home.”
“Okay guy, you’re in luck. My son doesn’t want to eat you, and I think you should go back home and make a lot of new little king trout babies for now. Maybe we’ll meet again some day.”
The lymrix suddenly seemed to come to life, leaving Jim’s hands with a powerful flick of its tail, heading for deep water and safety.
Jim sat down on a rock in the shade beside Kyle. He was puffing a little from the exertion this fish had given him, but Jim was a consummate outdoorsman and in the peak of health. He would recover quickly.
“It’s kind of nice just being out here, just the two of us like this, son,” Jim said to Kyle. “This is something I always wanted to do back on Earth, but…”
“Yeah,” Kyle agreed, “we never seemed to get to do anything together, did we? I was into football and getting a letter and all, and you had your sheriff’s work… Then there were all the problems with the alien task force jerks…”
Jim nodded.
Jim and Kyle spent the rest of the morning fishing and talking… just father and son stuff. Neither of them got another bite. Oddly, they had both forgotten to tie a lure onto their lines.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Maria and Kathleen had gone into Kyyk’s, one of the largest department stores on Antar, with the children, to shop. Maria called Jayyd over to try on a T-shirt with a cute picture of a porpoise on it.
“What do you think, Jayyd?”
Jayyd looked at herself in the mirror then waved her hand, changing the color from yellow to blue.
“Uh-hum!” she heard a voice behind her say. Maria and Jayyd both turned around to see a clerk standing there. The clerk merely pointed to a sign on the wall:
“Molecular alterations and color changing of clothes not allowed unless the items are returned to exactly as they were before. Remember that your abilities and ours may not be the same and we may not be able to undo what you have done satisfactorily. So if you change it and don’t change it back, you buy it. We hope this will not inconvenience you too much. Thank you for shopping at Kyyk’s.”
Maria and Kathleen looked at each other and burst into giggles.
“I don’t think I ever saw that one in K-Mart,” Maria said.
Kathleen snickered, “If there was one, the alien task force probably got it and dissected it.”
They both laughed.
“It’s okay,” Maria said to the clerk, putting the T-shirt into her cart. “We’ll take it. I like it better blue, anyway.”
Jayyd looked at her Mommy and broke into a large grin.
Kathleen wandered briefly to the other side of the aisle to look in the ladies’ wear section, and Maria caught up with her after a few minutes. Kathleen held up a blouse for Maria’s approval.
“Is this darling or what?”
“I approve,” said Maria. “Very chic!”
“I just wish I could find one in a pastel green instead of this bright green, but it’s still too darling to pass up.”
Maria grinned, “Jayyd, honey? Would you mind?”
Jayyd smiled from ear to ear and waved her hand… The blouse changed color.
“Better!” said Kathleen, “Much better! Can you make it just a little lighter, Dear?”
Jayyd waved her hand again, and the color changed slightly.
“Oh! That’s perfect!” said Kathleen. “That’s exactly what I’ve been looking for!”
Jayyd was grinning like a Cheshire cat now. She loved nothing better than using her power and getting praised for it!
Zorel rubbed Jayyd lightly on top of the head and smiled,
“If you can use my services, Aunt Kathleen…”
Maria and Kathleen laughed, “Thanks, Zorel! We’ll keep that in mind, Honey… but right now, I don’t think that any of the clothes would be helped by power blasting!”
“Except maybe that one,” snickered Kathleen, pointing to some ridiculous fluffy tutu-like culottes that no Antarian or Earthling --well, maybe except Howard Stern posing for a Hooters billboard-- would be caught dead or alive in.
Zorel started to lift his hand, but Maria was too quick, after eight years of experience, and stopped his hand before he got it up.
“She was kidding, Zorel!”
“Oh.”
Maria picked out a couple of blouses and some slacks that she liked, and Kathleen found another blouse and several pairs of slacks. Jayyd was in Heaven changing colors for her mom and Kathleen. But she was really delighted and proud of herself when a couple of ladies nearby asked her if she would change the colors of their blouses slightly, too… and paid her four yaronins each (about a dollar, a yaronin being about a quarter) for her help.
Once Maria and Kathleen had finished shopping --at least for the moment-- in the ladies wear section, they took the kids to the children’s clothes department. Maria quickly found several shirts for Kryys and Zorel and a few pairs of pants for each. She got Jayyd a nice jumpsuit and several blouses and pants. Kathleen found several very pretty shirts and some nice pants for Danyy. And they got new shoes for everyone.
After shopping most of the morning, the kids were getting tired and hungry, so Maria, Kathleen and the kids all stopped at Kykks’ Luncheon Niche. Kykks’ Luncheon Niche was a nice small restaurant with a good selection of Antarian sandwiches and light foods as well as “French-fried” bada tubors and shebble or yegg burgers, a testament to the influence that the CrashDown had had on Antarian society since Jeff had brought it here.
Danyy, Zorel, and Kryys ran over to play an Antarian version of video games while the food was being fixed, but the food came out quickly. None of them were complaining! They were a growing bunch of kids… and right now, they were very hungry!
Back at Maria and Michael’s house, Kathleen kissed Maria and Jayyd on the cheek and thanked Maria for her company and Jayyd for her help with the colors.
“Oh, I had a wonderful time,” said Maria. “We’ll have to do this again! Thanks so much for inviting me to go with you!”
“Yes, we certainly will have to do this again, Maria!” Kathleen agreed. “I had a wonderful time, too! I think I'm ready for our trip now!”
Kathleen and Danyy said goodbye to Zorel, Kryys, and Jayyd; then they waved and drove off toward the Valenti Estate in the Antarian countryside.
<center>End of Chapter 11
tbc…</center>
Last edited by Island Breeze on Sun Jul 31, 2005 12:52 am, edited 1 time in total.
-
Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
Across Seven Galaxies
Chapter 12
XII
The day that everyone had been looking forward to with great anticipation was finally here. Max and Michael, together with Maria, were doing a last minute check of those present, and it appeared that everyone who planned to go on the trip was present and accounted for. Seven-year-old Danyy Valenti and "almost-seven-year-old" Liz-JoLee z'Varec were first up the ramp together onto the new granolith, followed closely by Jim and Kathleen then Varec and Amy. Mareeya and Ceelya followed next, and right behind them came their parents, Alex and Isabel. Next up the ramp were Rayyn and Taz, followed by their parents, Kyle and Jeliya. Jeff and Nancy Parker, who had decided to take the trip even though the Evanses had decided to stay on Antar, boarded after Kyle and Jeliya.
Noticing a pattern of two’s going up the ramp, Maria sighed with a dramatic flair and looked at Michael… “If someone tells me that the person piloting this thing is named ‘Noah,’ I’m out of here!”
Finally, Liz boarded the new granolith, herding her kid’s and Maria’s in front of her… Maya, Andya, Leesa, Alyyx, Zorel, Kryys, and Jayyd.
“That’s more like it,” laughed Maria, “I guess it won’t be a sea cruise after all!”
Max smiled, “Unless the kids all took their baths early today…”
Maria looked at him quizzically.
Max shook his head, “Never mind… Looks like we’re all here. I guess the three of us can go onboard now and get ready to fly!”
Michael smiled and put an arm around Maria, then they walked up the ramp with Max onto the new granolith. The ramp retracted automatically behind them. Max had told everyone to meet in the dining room for pre-flight instructions, so the three went straight to the dining room and found that everyone was there.
Max looked around the room… “I asked you all to come here so we could assign positions to each of you in order to make this a fun and safe trip… I’ll be your Captain; Michael and I will be co-pilots. Kyle has already agreed to be the onboard coordinator. He will assign rooms and set the daily agendas such as meal times. Several people have agreed to do occasional duties during the trip, too, such as, uh, being babysitters…”
“Babysitters!” Zorel exclaimed, scrunching his nose up. “I’m eight years old.”
“That’s good, Zorel, because we have lots of jobs to give out, too!”
Zorel sighed and suddenly became very quiet.
Max smiled… “With regard to the ‘babysitting,’ an activity room for children will be open on most days for several hours, and Amy and Jeliya have both said they would be willing to supervise it on occasion. I think Alex, Isabel, Liz, and some others said they might, too. The purpose of the activity room is to give the parents an occasional opportunity to be alone onboard and enjoy the gardens and the arboretum and other areas of the ship while the kids can play games and have fun under supervision. So if you feel like being alone… drop the kids off at the activity room and they’ll be supervised. Of course, the kids can play with each other and by themselves, too, just like they do when they’re at home…
Maria and Liz will be your liaisons for information on where to go and what to do… kind of like your Love Boat Cruise Directors.”
Maria and Liz looked at each other and giggled.
“Varec and Liz will be our Science Officers…”
Everybody laughed.
“But thoughts of Mr. Spock aside," Max continued, "Varec and Liz are the people to come to with your questions about the universe, planets, solar systems, stars, quantum physics… physical bodies…”
Amy grinned at this last item and looked dreamily at Varec. Varec must have noticed, because he turned redder than Antarians usually do, even in the heat. And he was feeling the heat!
“Finally,” said Max, “Kathleen has agreed to teach a class…”
“Awwwwwwwww…” most of the children said at once. “It’s summer!”
Max grinned… “Well, it’s only three times a week for one hour a day, so that you can learn things about Earth. You need to know how to act to stay out of trouble and some things about what you might see on Eluymer. And Kathleen’s husband, Jim… well, we thought he could be the sheriff and throw you in jail if you don’t go to class.”
Jim gave the kids a friendly but stern and authoritarian grin. The kids all looked at him, trying to size up whether Max was joking or serious.
“That’s it, guys! Michael and I are going up to the control room, and we’ll be getting this ship off the ground and off into space as soon as we get up there. Anyone who would like to can take the ascension chamber up to the top floor, where the observatory is, and watch from there as we leave Antar. It’s thirty-three sectors now, almost second cycle, which would be about 8:30 AM as we reckon time on Earth… In Roswell, right now, it’s about 4 AM.
Oh! By the way! I’ve arranged for an escort that you will not want to miss, as we depart, so by all means, I recommend that everyone go to the observatory where you can have an unobstructed 360-degree view. You won’t regret it!”
Max and Michael left the dining room and took the ascension chamber to the control deck and bridge. After the chamber returned, the guests began to make their way up to the observatory. The ascension chamber, which accommodated six or seven people at a time, had to make three trips.
Once in their control seats, Max and Michael activated the ship’s systems. Max passed his right hand over the console, which came to life. Michael passed his hand over the co-pilot’s console, and it came to life. Both consoles were now dedicated to their pilot’s control. Michael placed a crystal into a recessed area beside the console, and the ship began to rise. The guests in the observatory waved one last time at the team of scientists who had gathered on the high scaffolds in the inner ring of the laboratory to witness the ship’s departure. Many of these same scientists had designed, engineered, and/or helped build the fantastic machine on which the guests were now embarking for their journey through space… the “New Granolith.”
Emerging majestically from the open roof of the huge lab, like some lost scene out of the movie Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, the ship rotated slowly and headed off in the direction of the Golden Sea, rising quickly through the clouds and into the sky. There, it was immediately met by three “slipstreams…” small ramjet propulsion, sub-space, atmospheric flyers similar to, but not as large as, fighter jets… and these took up escort. As the New Granolith flew out over the Golden Sea, Max’s old friends, the jah-ees, suddenly appeared, eliciting gasps from many of the children and even from some of the adults who had seen them before… during the battle for Antar… and again at Max and Liz and Maria and Michael’s weddings. After circling the New Granolith and the smaller slipstreams a couple of times, two of the jah-ees assumed outside positions on each side next to the slipstreams, and the fifth jah-ee flew ahead of the ship, giving the entire formation a “V” shape.
For anyone who might have been watching from below, it would have been an awesome sight! As the New Granolith banked, the slipstream escorts and the huge jah-ees dipped or climbed with it on their respective side, maintaining a perfect formation. It was as though the entire formation were one solid form gracefully gliding and climbing through the atmosphere.
At an altitude of 42,000 feet, the maximum ceiling for the slipstreams, the pilots gave a final salute and pulled back on their yokes, taking the “jets” over in a wide, graceful backward loop then heading straight down, back into the atmosphere. The jah-ees stayed with the New Granolith. In fact, the jah-ees seemed totally comfortable and at home this far out in space and continued to accompany the New Granolith, much to the delight of its occupants, until Antar was over 45 miles behind them. Finally, the birds rolled over and regrouped, flying one final time by the observatory dome and then by the huge bridge window where Max was, as though saying, “Hurry back, friend.”
Max replied with a mental image that indicated gratitude to the jah-ees.
The jah-ees performed a couple of rollovers, playing tag with each other, then corkscrewed and whirled downward… downward… downward… toward Antar and their island home.
Once the jah-ees had departed, Max took the New Granolith to intergalactic cruising speed, and Antar disappeared behind them, as lines of starlight flew past the ship. The occupants of the New Granolith were on their way. Their next stop would be the planet Antarians called “Eluymer,” The “Blue Water Planet…” the planet known as Earth.
<center>End of Chapter 12
tbc…</center>
Across Seven Galaxies
Chapter 12
XII
The day that everyone had been looking forward to with great anticipation was finally here. Max and Michael, together with Maria, were doing a last minute check of those present, and it appeared that everyone who planned to go on the trip was present and accounted for. Seven-year-old Danyy Valenti and "almost-seven-year-old" Liz-JoLee z'Varec were first up the ramp together onto the new granolith, followed closely by Jim and Kathleen then Varec and Amy. Mareeya and Ceelya followed next, and right behind them came their parents, Alex and Isabel. Next up the ramp were Rayyn and Taz, followed by their parents, Kyle and Jeliya. Jeff and Nancy Parker, who had decided to take the trip even though the Evanses had decided to stay on Antar, boarded after Kyle and Jeliya.
Noticing a pattern of two’s going up the ramp, Maria sighed with a dramatic flair and looked at Michael… “If someone tells me that the person piloting this thing is named ‘Noah,’ I’m out of here!”
Finally, Liz boarded the new granolith, herding her kid’s and Maria’s in front of her… Maya, Andya, Leesa, Alyyx, Zorel, Kryys, and Jayyd.
“That’s more like it,” laughed Maria, “I guess it won’t be a sea cruise after all!”
Max smiled, “Unless the kids all took their baths early today…”
Maria looked at him quizzically.
Max shook his head, “Never mind… Looks like we’re all here. I guess the three of us can go onboard now and get ready to fly!”
Michael smiled and put an arm around Maria, then they walked up the ramp with Max onto the new granolith. The ramp retracted automatically behind them. Max had told everyone to meet in the dining room for pre-flight instructions, so the three went straight to the dining room and found that everyone was there.
Max looked around the room… “I asked you all to come here so we could assign positions to each of you in order to make this a fun and safe trip… I’ll be your Captain; Michael and I will be co-pilots. Kyle has already agreed to be the onboard coordinator. He will assign rooms and set the daily agendas such as meal times. Several people have agreed to do occasional duties during the trip, too, such as, uh, being babysitters…”
“Babysitters!” Zorel exclaimed, scrunching his nose up. “I’m eight years old.”
“That’s good, Zorel, because we have lots of jobs to give out, too!”
Zorel sighed and suddenly became very quiet.
Max smiled… “With regard to the ‘babysitting,’ an activity room for children will be open on most days for several hours, and Amy and Jeliya have both said they would be willing to supervise it on occasion. I think Alex, Isabel, Liz, and some others said they might, too. The purpose of the activity room is to give the parents an occasional opportunity to be alone onboard and enjoy the gardens and the arboretum and other areas of the ship while the kids can play games and have fun under supervision. So if you feel like being alone… drop the kids off at the activity room and they’ll be supervised. Of course, the kids can play with each other and by themselves, too, just like they do when they’re at home…
Maria and Liz will be your liaisons for information on where to go and what to do… kind of like your Love Boat Cruise Directors.”
Maria and Liz looked at each other and giggled.
“Varec and Liz will be our Science Officers…”
Everybody laughed.
“But thoughts of Mr. Spock aside," Max continued, "Varec and Liz are the people to come to with your questions about the universe, planets, solar systems, stars, quantum physics… physical bodies…”
Amy grinned at this last item and looked dreamily at Varec. Varec must have noticed, because he turned redder than Antarians usually do, even in the heat. And he was feeling the heat!
“Finally,” said Max, “Kathleen has agreed to teach a class…”
“Awwwwwwwww…” most of the children said at once. “It’s summer!”
Max grinned… “Well, it’s only three times a week for one hour a day, so that you can learn things about Earth. You need to know how to act to stay out of trouble and some things about what you might see on Eluymer. And Kathleen’s husband, Jim… well, we thought he could be the sheriff and throw you in jail if you don’t go to class.”
Jim gave the kids a friendly but stern and authoritarian grin. The kids all looked at him, trying to size up whether Max was joking or serious.
“That’s it, guys! Michael and I are going up to the control room, and we’ll be getting this ship off the ground and off into space as soon as we get up there. Anyone who would like to can take the ascension chamber up to the top floor, where the observatory is, and watch from there as we leave Antar. It’s thirty-three sectors now, almost second cycle, which would be about 8:30 AM as we reckon time on Earth… In Roswell, right now, it’s about 4 AM.
Oh! By the way! I’ve arranged for an escort that you will not want to miss, as we depart, so by all means, I recommend that everyone go to the observatory where you can have an unobstructed 360-degree view. You won’t regret it!”
Max and Michael left the dining room and took the ascension chamber to the control deck and bridge. After the chamber returned, the guests began to make their way up to the observatory. The ascension chamber, which accommodated six or seven people at a time, had to make three trips.
Once in their control seats, Max and Michael activated the ship’s systems. Max passed his right hand over the console, which came to life. Michael passed his hand over the co-pilot’s console, and it came to life. Both consoles were now dedicated to their pilot’s control. Michael placed a crystal into a recessed area beside the console, and the ship began to rise. The guests in the observatory waved one last time at the team of scientists who had gathered on the high scaffolds in the inner ring of the laboratory to witness the ship’s departure. Many of these same scientists had designed, engineered, and/or helped build the fantastic machine on which the guests were now embarking for their journey through space… the “New Granolith.”
Emerging majestically from the open roof of the huge lab, like some lost scene out of the movie Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, the ship rotated slowly and headed off in the direction of the Golden Sea, rising quickly through the clouds and into the sky. There, it was immediately met by three “slipstreams…” small ramjet propulsion, sub-space, atmospheric flyers similar to, but not as large as, fighter jets… and these took up escort. As the New Granolith flew out over the Golden Sea, Max’s old friends, the jah-ees, suddenly appeared, eliciting gasps from many of the children and even from some of the adults who had seen them before… during the battle for Antar… and again at Max and Liz and Maria and Michael’s weddings. After circling the New Granolith and the smaller slipstreams a couple of times, two of the jah-ees assumed outside positions on each side next to the slipstreams, and the fifth jah-ee flew ahead of the ship, giving the entire formation a “V” shape.
For anyone who might have been watching from below, it would have been an awesome sight! As the New Granolith banked, the slipstream escorts and the huge jah-ees dipped or climbed with it on their respective side, maintaining a perfect formation. It was as though the entire formation were one solid form gracefully gliding and climbing through the atmosphere.
At an altitude of 42,000 feet, the maximum ceiling for the slipstreams, the pilots gave a final salute and pulled back on their yokes, taking the “jets” over in a wide, graceful backward loop then heading straight down, back into the atmosphere. The jah-ees stayed with the New Granolith. In fact, the jah-ees seemed totally comfortable and at home this far out in space and continued to accompany the New Granolith, much to the delight of its occupants, until Antar was over 45 miles behind them. Finally, the birds rolled over and regrouped, flying one final time by the observatory dome and then by the huge bridge window where Max was, as though saying, “Hurry back, friend.”
Max replied with a mental image that indicated gratitude to the jah-ees.
The jah-ees performed a couple of rollovers, playing tag with each other, then corkscrewed and whirled downward… downward… downward… toward Antar and their island home.
Once the jah-ees had departed, Max took the New Granolith to intergalactic cruising speed, and Antar disappeared behind them, as lines of starlight flew past the ship. The occupants of the New Granolith were on their way. Their next stop would be the planet Antarians called “Eluymer,” The “Blue Water Planet…” the planet known as Earth.
<center>End of Chapter 12
tbc…</center>
Last edited by Island Breeze on Thu Aug 04, 2005 3:10 am, edited 1 time in total.
-
Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
Just Another Day on the Granolith
Chapter 13
XIII
After seven days in space, the crew and occupants of the New Granolith had pretty much settled in and become accustomed to their new routines. Today, like any other day, the children were occupying themselves playing in various parts of the ship, and the adults were occupied with various individual pursuits. Jim and Kyle Valenti were watching videotaped football games with Jeff Parker. Amy and Varec were enjoying a walk in the gardens. Max and Liz were together in the control room, and Michael and Maria… well, no one was sure where Michael and Maria were, but wherever it was, they had gone together and didn’t leave a “here’s-where-we-can-be-found note.”
The New Granolith was truly a small city in space. It had 7 different levels. The bottom level, Level 1, was the cargo and storage bay. This level was also where the off-ship vehicles were kept and where the “pod room” was located, a special watertight room that housed a small submarine, which Michael had christened the “Maria Mia.” Level 2 was the galley and dining area. Level 3 was the living quarters. At the end of the corridor on level 3, there was a lounge with video games, a TV, and other types of entertainment. Level 4 was the bridge and control deck. It housed the pilots’ consoles and seats and other critical flight control equipment as well as the engines. Level 5 was the gardens, where many of the vegetables eaten onboard were grown. Besides vegetables, the gardens sported beautiful flowers and walking paths, one of which led to a small waterfall and pond. Level 6 was the arboretum, a small arboreal park. The trees in the arboretum supplied all the oxygen needed for interplanetary travel.
The arboretum was a great place to take a walk. It had a long path through the trees with several interesting stops along the way. The path through the arboretum began and ended at the same place, so there was no need to turn around and return the way one had come. The path had been designed to meander back and forth through the trees, giving the stroller the maximum possible walking distance, about a mile and a half. At a point that lay in the actual center of the arboretum, there was a gazebo with a porch-type swing; but further along on the trail, there was a small clearing where one could lie down by a clear little brook that provided water to the trees, have a picnic, or swing on a two-person swing suspended by vines from high up in one of the trees.
Level 7, the topmost level, was the observatory, a bubble-domed room with a 360-degree view of space. Among other things, the observatory boasted a couple of sofas for relaxing and watching the stars zip by and two special seats for remote viewing with RV goggles. Maria liked to escape to the observatory with Michael when no one else was there. It was her favorite place on the ship. She loved lying on the sofa with her head on Michael’s chest, listening to his heartbeat and watching the stars zip by in their celestial brilliance through the dome of the New Granolith as it sped along on its journey through the cosmos.
This is where Michael and Maria were right now. Michael was lying on the oversized Antarian sofa along the back wall of the observatory, his arms around Maria, who was lying in front of him, her head against his bare chest. Michael loved the feel of Maria’s hair on his face and the smell of her skin against his. When he had been living on Antar, before he and Max had gone back in time to rescue Liz and Maria (and wound up rescuing everyone), these were the things Michael dreamt of at night, the things that drove him wild with sadness over his loss of Maria. He would never take them for granted. Michael, more than anyone except Max, who shared his pain because of his own loss of Liz, knew the importance of the “little things.”
Michael breathed deep, inhaling Maria’s essence, the perfume of her existence… and he nestled his face against hers, letting her hair cover him, losing himself in her --in everything that was “Maria.”
Maria moved her hand slowly over Michael’s well-muscled arm, removing the rest of his shirt and pressing herself even closer against him as Michael slowly but deliberately, one piece at a time, reduced Maria to her natural state while they lay watching the stars zip by.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
At the end of the corridor, the ascension chamber opened again and Amy and Varec stepped out. They were met by 8-year-old Zorel.
“I’m sorry, Gram, PaZyy… but no one can visit the observatory right now.”
“Why not, Zorel?”
“Dad said there was going to be a heat wave in the observatory for a while and no one could go in there. He paid me to stand guard here and let anybody know if they came up in the chamber.”
“Heat wave? Oh my! That sounds unpleasant,” said Amy. “I guess we can go back to the gardens for awhile.” She looked at Varec. Varec nodded.
Varec looked at Zorel, sizing up the situation. Varec had helped build the New Granolith. He knew better than anyone what was likely to be a problem and what was not on his ship… he knew…
“Okay Zorel. I suppose your dad’s working on it right now, right?”
“Yeah.”
Varec smiled… “I know how hot it can get in there. You’re doing a great job, Zorel. Be sure you don’t let anyone get past here till your dad says it’s okay! It must be getting really hot in there! But I’m sure he knows how to handle it. We’ll come back when it’s… fixed.”
“Thanks, PaZyy Varec!”
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>></center>
Kyle and Jeliya had gone to the arboretum for a walk. As they rounded a corner on the path, they heard a flutter of wings and looked up to see a creature fly over that looked like a bat… a large bat with fangs.
“Wha…!” Kyle exclaimed.
Just then they looked over to see a full-grown pawgor emerge from the trees.
“Okay, I know we didn’t ask for pawgors and rob-jettas on this voyage,” Kyle exclaimed. “What’s going on here?”
The pawgor pounced… then disappeared in mid-air.
Kyle and Jeliya looked around and saw Andya on the path in front of them. Mareeya and Ceelya Whitman came running up beside Andya.
“What is going on here, Andya,” asked Kyle, “Does your dad, Max, know that you’ve turned the arboretum into a dangerous jungle?”
“No, Uncle Kyle. We were just playing. We were pretending that Mareeya was Dad when he was running from Kivar’s soldiers in the Nan-torel, because she can blow the animals away with her big wind. Ceelya can make small power bolts come out of her fingers, so she’s playing one of Kivar’s soldiers shooting at Dad. And I’m just… making this into the Nan-torel for our game.”
“Well just unmake it, Andya! Right now! What if someone walks in here and gets eaten?”
“Oh, everything gets undone when I make them go away, like the gojos came back.”
“Well, make the pawgors and rob-jettas go away… and anything else you may have here.”
“Okay, Uncle Kyle.”
“Jeliya and I are going to continue our walk. Can we do that without getting eaten?”
“Oh, sure, Uncle Kyle!” There were only three pawgors and two rob-jettas. I already got rid of the rob-jettas and the pawgor that was here. The other two pawgors are over by the brook. We’ll go get them now!”
“You do that, Andya,” said Jeliya.
The girls ran off to find the other wild pawgors. They found them by the brook as expected. Andya waved her hand and one of the pawgors disappeared. Now there was only one. She raised her hand, but the pawgor leapt and disappeared into the trees before she could finish. The girls chased off after it. After an hour of looking, they still had not found the last pawgor. They decided to go find Zorel and a couple of the other kids and enlist their help finding it, but as they were nearing the end of the path, they heard a scream. Racing to the door, they were just in time to see the pawgor leap into the glass ascension chamber as Isabel ran out of it.
Looking at Andya, Isabel asked, in a not-too-amused tone, “Just what was that?”
“Sorry, Aunt Isabel! We were playing King Zan in the Nan-torel and we’re trying to get rid of this pawgor. It’s the last one.”
They turned and looked at the ascension chamber. It was gone. Someone had called it to another level.
<center>End of Chapter 13
tbc…</center>
Just Another Day on the Granolith
Chapter 13
XIII
After seven days in space, the crew and occupants of the New Granolith had pretty much settled in and become accustomed to their new routines. Today, like any other day, the children were occupying themselves playing in various parts of the ship, and the adults were occupied with various individual pursuits. Jim and Kyle Valenti were watching videotaped football games with Jeff Parker. Amy and Varec were enjoying a walk in the gardens. Max and Liz were together in the control room, and Michael and Maria… well, no one was sure where Michael and Maria were, but wherever it was, they had gone together and didn’t leave a “here’s-where-we-can-be-found note.”
The New Granolith was truly a small city in space. It had 7 different levels. The bottom level, Level 1, was the cargo and storage bay. This level was also where the off-ship vehicles were kept and where the “pod room” was located, a special watertight room that housed a small submarine, which Michael had christened the “Maria Mia.” Level 2 was the galley and dining area. Level 3 was the living quarters. At the end of the corridor on level 3, there was a lounge with video games, a TV, and other types of entertainment. Level 4 was the bridge and control deck. It housed the pilots’ consoles and seats and other critical flight control equipment as well as the engines. Level 5 was the gardens, where many of the vegetables eaten onboard were grown. Besides vegetables, the gardens sported beautiful flowers and walking paths, one of which led to a small waterfall and pond. Level 6 was the arboretum, a small arboreal park. The trees in the arboretum supplied all the oxygen needed for interplanetary travel.
The arboretum was a great place to take a walk. It had a long path through the trees with several interesting stops along the way. The path through the arboretum began and ended at the same place, so there was no need to turn around and return the way one had come. The path had been designed to meander back and forth through the trees, giving the stroller the maximum possible walking distance, about a mile and a half. At a point that lay in the actual center of the arboretum, there was a gazebo with a porch-type swing; but further along on the trail, there was a small clearing where one could lie down by a clear little brook that provided water to the trees, have a picnic, or swing on a two-person swing suspended by vines from high up in one of the trees.
Level 7, the topmost level, was the observatory, a bubble-domed room with a 360-degree view of space. Among other things, the observatory boasted a couple of sofas for relaxing and watching the stars zip by and two special seats for remote viewing with RV goggles. Maria liked to escape to the observatory with Michael when no one else was there. It was her favorite place on the ship. She loved lying on the sofa with her head on Michael’s chest, listening to his heartbeat and watching the stars zip by in their celestial brilliance through the dome of the New Granolith as it sped along on its journey through the cosmos.
This is where Michael and Maria were right now. Michael was lying on the oversized Antarian sofa along the back wall of the observatory, his arms around Maria, who was lying in front of him, her head against his bare chest. Michael loved the feel of Maria’s hair on his face and the smell of her skin against his. When he had been living on Antar, before he and Max had gone back in time to rescue Liz and Maria (and wound up rescuing everyone), these were the things Michael dreamt of at night, the things that drove him wild with sadness over his loss of Maria. He would never take them for granted. Michael, more than anyone except Max, who shared his pain because of his own loss of Liz, knew the importance of the “little things.”
Michael breathed deep, inhaling Maria’s essence, the perfume of her existence… and he nestled his face against hers, letting her hair cover him, losing himself in her --in everything that was “Maria.”
Maria moved her hand slowly over Michael’s well-muscled arm, removing the rest of his shirt and pressing herself even closer against him as Michael slowly but deliberately, one piece at a time, reduced Maria to her natural state while they lay watching the stars zip by.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
At the end of the corridor, the ascension chamber opened again and Amy and Varec stepped out. They were met by 8-year-old Zorel.
“I’m sorry, Gram, PaZyy… but no one can visit the observatory right now.”
“Why not, Zorel?”
“Dad said there was going to be a heat wave in the observatory for a while and no one could go in there. He paid me to stand guard here and let anybody know if they came up in the chamber.”
“Heat wave? Oh my! That sounds unpleasant,” said Amy. “I guess we can go back to the gardens for awhile.” She looked at Varec. Varec nodded.
Varec looked at Zorel, sizing up the situation. Varec had helped build the New Granolith. He knew better than anyone what was likely to be a problem and what was not on his ship… he knew…
“Okay Zorel. I suppose your dad’s working on it right now, right?”
“Yeah.”
Varec smiled… “I know how hot it can get in there. You’re doing a great job, Zorel. Be sure you don’t let anyone get past here till your dad says it’s okay! It must be getting really hot in there! But I’m sure he knows how to handle it. We’ll come back when it’s… fixed.”
“Thanks, PaZyy Varec!”
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>></center>
Kyle and Jeliya had gone to the arboretum for a walk. As they rounded a corner on the path, they heard a flutter of wings and looked up to see a creature fly over that looked like a bat… a large bat with fangs.
“Wha…!” Kyle exclaimed.
Just then they looked over to see a full-grown pawgor emerge from the trees.
“Okay, I know we didn’t ask for pawgors and rob-jettas on this voyage,” Kyle exclaimed. “What’s going on here?”
The pawgor pounced… then disappeared in mid-air.
Kyle and Jeliya looked around and saw Andya on the path in front of them. Mareeya and Ceelya Whitman came running up beside Andya.
“What is going on here, Andya,” asked Kyle, “Does your dad, Max, know that you’ve turned the arboretum into a dangerous jungle?”
“No, Uncle Kyle. We were just playing. We were pretending that Mareeya was Dad when he was running from Kivar’s soldiers in the Nan-torel, because she can blow the animals away with her big wind. Ceelya can make small power bolts come out of her fingers, so she’s playing one of Kivar’s soldiers shooting at Dad. And I’m just… making this into the Nan-torel for our game.”
“Well just unmake it, Andya! Right now! What if someone walks in here and gets eaten?”
“Oh, everything gets undone when I make them go away, like the gojos came back.”
“Well, make the pawgors and rob-jettas go away… and anything else you may have here.”
“Okay, Uncle Kyle.”
“Jeliya and I are going to continue our walk. Can we do that without getting eaten?”
“Oh, sure, Uncle Kyle!” There were only three pawgors and two rob-jettas. I already got rid of the rob-jettas and the pawgor that was here. The other two pawgors are over by the brook. We’ll go get them now!”
“You do that, Andya,” said Jeliya.
The girls ran off to find the other wild pawgors. They found them by the brook as expected. Andya waved her hand and one of the pawgors disappeared. Now there was only one. She raised her hand, but the pawgor leapt and disappeared into the trees before she could finish. The girls chased off after it. After an hour of looking, they still had not found the last pawgor. They decided to go find Zorel and a couple of the other kids and enlist their help finding it, but as they were nearing the end of the path, they heard a scream. Racing to the door, they were just in time to see the pawgor leap into the glass ascension chamber as Isabel ran out of it.
Looking at Andya, Isabel asked, in a not-too-amused tone, “Just what was that?”
“Sorry, Aunt Isabel! We were playing King Zan in the Nan-torel and we’re trying to get rid of this pawgor. It’s the last one.”
They turned and looked at the ascension chamber. It was gone. Someone had called it to another level.
<center>End of Chapter 13
tbc…</center>
Last edited by Island Breeze on Thu Aug 04, 2005 8:23 pm, edited 3 times in total.
-
Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
Don’t Eat the Grelliats
Chapter 14
XIV
Andya placed her hand on the sensor and waited with Mareeya and Ceelya for the ascension chamber to return to the arboretum. It returned quickly… and empty. Andya guessed that wherever the pawgor had gone, it had not gone far in such a short time, perhaps the next floor down. That would be the gardens.
The three girls quickly crowded into the chamber and rode down one floor to the gardens. The door opened. They saw nothing but decided that this was the most likely place to look, so they set out along the path looking for the errant pawgor. Ceelya was the first to spot it. It was in the gardens, sniffing the vegetables for something that might be edible to a pawgor. It stopped at the grelliats.
“Noooo!” yelled Mareeya, “Not the grelliats! I love grelliats! He’ll eat them all up!”
The pawgor walked around the grelliats in a circle then lifted one rear leg.
Mayeeya gasped, Ceelya put both hands over her eyes, and Andya stood momentarily dumbstruck as the grelliats were bathed in an amber rain. Then she seemed to remember what she was there for and waved her hand. The pawgor disappeared.
Mareeya cried, “It had to be the grelliats! My favorite food! Now I’ll never be able to eat grelliats again!”
The three girls were wallowing in the misery of their situation when they realized that someone was coming. Quickly, they ran back to the path. It turned out that it wasn’t actually “someone.” It was the harvester droid, the little robot that supplied the vegetables to the diner droid that prepared all the meals. The girls watched as the little droid floated through the rows of vegetables, collecting badas, gojos, harlats… and grelliats for the evening meal.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Meals on the New Granolith were always a festive occasion. One thing that had never been a problem for the ‘Earthlings’ was getting used to the Antarian food. The Antarians were gourmet food preparers by reputation! The guests had first tried Antarian food onboard the New Granolith as they departed from Earth on their way to Antar. The names of the foods had sounded odd… even a bit daunting or unappealing, but the food… well, that had taken no time at all to get used to! And the little diner droid had become an instant hit with the guests from the moment of that first Antarian meal.
The little droid went around the table now asking each guest, as it did at each meal, what he or she would have to eat. Then it rolled quietly back to the food preparation area.
Jeff Parker smiled and shook his head. “I just keep seeing that little droid wearing Lizzie’s CrashDown uniform and those antennae,” he laughed. The other guests who had come from Earth laughed, too. They remembered! On the trip to Antar, during one of the meals, the little droid had appeared wearing Liz’s CrashDown uniform and antennae. Jeff had almost choked on his pashita bread when he spotted it. He had immediately given Liz and Maria that “look,” and the two of them had slouched down guiltily in their chairs, laughing hysterically. All Jeff had been able to say was, “Your CrashDown uniform Lizzie? Aw, geez!”
A day or two before that incident, Phil Evans had joked to the little droid that he, being a lawyer, could help it start a droids’ union. A couple of days later, the little droid managed to get the biggest laugh of the evening when it rolled over to Phil, after serving the dinners, wearing the CrashDown dress, and asked him to explain about the union thing again. The group of displaced Earthlings would not soon forget that… nor many of the other things that happened on the New Granolith during that first trip.
But this was another trip, and the little droid was returning with the dinners. As he set each perfectly prepared meal in front of the guest who had ordered it, he politely said, “Enjoy your dinner.”
After the droid had served everyone and gone, everyone began to eat. Michael stabbed several of the grelliats with his fork and lifted them toward his mouth… but as he went to put the fork into his mouth, he noticed Andya, Mareeya, and Ceelya leaning forward in their chairs, their eyes larger than usual. Michael held his fork there for a moment, his mouth open, then slowly lowered the fork back towards the table. The girls seemed to relax. Michael lifted his fork and opened his mouth again. Again he noticed that the girls’ eyes all became suspiciously large, as though they expected something to happen. Michael looked back and forth at the three girls… then, slowly, he put his fork down…
“I think I’ll pass on the grelliats today.”
Isabel looked at Michael, surprised, then she noticed Mareeya’s plate…
“Mareeya! I think this is the first time I’ve ever seen you not ask for grelliats. Did you forget?”
“No, Mom.”
Isabel looked at Alex and shrugged, “I guess she’s finally getting tired of grelliats.”
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
The next day, as the girls were walking together in the gardens, a strong arm came down on Andya’s shoulder from behind, startling her. She looked up…
“Dad! Wha… What are you doing here?”
“I thought I might find the answer to one of life’s great mysteries here.”
“Really? What mystery?”
“The mystery of what was wrong with your Uncle Michael’s grelliats last night and why you girls didn’t eat any grelliats yourselves.”
“Oh… you noticed?”
Max nodded.
“I don’t guess you would believe it if we told you that we just got tired of grelliats?”
Max shook his head.
The girls explained what had happened. Max listened calmly.
“I hope you’ve learned something from this,” Max said. “And I don’t just mean about the grelliats… Everybody here uses the arboretum and the gardens. Turning them into your own little “fantasy land” wasn’t being very thoughtful of everyone else who wanted to go there. And it could have been dangerous.”
“We’re sorry, Dad. We didn’t mean for it to get out of hand.”
“I know. I’m not mad at you. But I do have a little chore for the three of you.”
Andya, Mareeya, and Ceelya looked at Max inquiringly.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
After lunch, Zorel and Liz-Jolee followed Andya, Mareeya, and Ceelya into the back of the galley food preparation area and asked them if they wanted to go play.
“I can’t right now,” said Andya.
“Mareeya? Ceelya?”
“We can’t either.”
“Why not,” asked Zorel.
Andya pointed at three large tubs full of grelliats… and three large tubs full of water. We have to wash grelliats.
<center>End of Chapter 14
tbc…</center>
Don’t Eat the Grelliats
Chapter 14
XIV
Andya placed her hand on the sensor and waited with Mareeya and Ceelya for the ascension chamber to return to the arboretum. It returned quickly… and empty. Andya guessed that wherever the pawgor had gone, it had not gone far in such a short time, perhaps the next floor down. That would be the gardens.
The three girls quickly crowded into the chamber and rode down one floor to the gardens. The door opened. They saw nothing but decided that this was the most likely place to look, so they set out along the path looking for the errant pawgor. Ceelya was the first to spot it. It was in the gardens, sniffing the vegetables for something that might be edible to a pawgor. It stopped at the grelliats.
“Noooo!” yelled Mareeya, “Not the grelliats! I love grelliats! He’ll eat them all up!”
The pawgor walked around the grelliats in a circle then lifted one rear leg.
Mayeeya gasped, Ceelya put both hands over her eyes, and Andya stood momentarily dumbstruck as the grelliats were bathed in an amber rain. Then she seemed to remember what she was there for and waved her hand. The pawgor disappeared.
Mareeya cried, “It had to be the grelliats! My favorite food! Now I’ll never be able to eat grelliats again!”
The three girls were wallowing in the misery of their situation when they realized that someone was coming. Quickly, they ran back to the path. It turned out that it wasn’t actually “someone.” It was the harvester droid, the little robot that supplied the vegetables to the diner droid that prepared all the meals. The girls watched as the little droid floated through the rows of vegetables, collecting badas, gojos, harlats… and grelliats for the evening meal.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Meals on the New Granolith were always a festive occasion. One thing that had never been a problem for the ‘Earthlings’ was getting used to the Antarian food. The Antarians were gourmet food preparers by reputation! The guests had first tried Antarian food onboard the New Granolith as they departed from Earth on their way to Antar. The names of the foods had sounded odd… even a bit daunting or unappealing, but the food… well, that had taken no time at all to get used to! And the little diner droid had become an instant hit with the guests from the moment of that first Antarian meal.
The little droid went around the table now asking each guest, as it did at each meal, what he or she would have to eat. Then it rolled quietly back to the food preparation area.
Jeff Parker smiled and shook his head. “I just keep seeing that little droid wearing Lizzie’s CrashDown uniform and those antennae,” he laughed. The other guests who had come from Earth laughed, too. They remembered! On the trip to Antar, during one of the meals, the little droid had appeared wearing Liz’s CrashDown uniform and antennae. Jeff had almost choked on his pashita bread when he spotted it. He had immediately given Liz and Maria that “look,” and the two of them had slouched down guiltily in their chairs, laughing hysterically. All Jeff had been able to say was, “Your CrashDown uniform Lizzie? Aw, geez!”
A day or two before that incident, Phil Evans had joked to the little droid that he, being a lawyer, could help it start a droids’ union. A couple of days later, the little droid managed to get the biggest laugh of the evening when it rolled over to Phil, after serving the dinners, wearing the CrashDown dress, and asked him to explain about the union thing again. The group of displaced Earthlings would not soon forget that… nor many of the other things that happened on the New Granolith during that first trip.
But this was another trip, and the little droid was returning with the dinners. As he set each perfectly prepared meal in front of the guest who had ordered it, he politely said, “Enjoy your dinner.”
After the droid had served everyone and gone, everyone began to eat. Michael stabbed several of the grelliats with his fork and lifted them toward his mouth… but as he went to put the fork into his mouth, he noticed Andya, Mareeya, and Ceelya leaning forward in their chairs, their eyes larger than usual. Michael held his fork there for a moment, his mouth open, then slowly lowered the fork back towards the table. The girls seemed to relax. Michael lifted his fork and opened his mouth again. Again he noticed that the girls’ eyes all became suspiciously large, as though they expected something to happen. Michael looked back and forth at the three girls… then, slowly, he put his fork down…
“I think I’ll pass on the grelliats today.”
Isabel looked at Michael, surprised, then she noticed Mareeya’s plate…
“Mareeya! I think this is the first time I’ve ever seen you not ask for grelliats. Did you forget?”
“No, Mom.”
Isabel looked at Alex and shrugged, “I guess she’s finally getting tired of grelliats.”
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
The next day, as the girls were walking together in the gardens, a strong arm came down on Andya’s shoulder from behind, startling her. She looked up…
“Dad! Wha… What are you doing here?”
“I thought I might find the answer to one of life’s great mysteries here.”
“Really? What mystery?”
“The mystery of what was wrong with your Uncle Michael’s grelliats last night and why you girls didn’t eat any grelliats yourselves.”
“Oh… you noticed?”
Max nodded.
“I don’t guess you would believe it if we told you that we just got tired of grelliats?”
Max shook his head.
The girls explained what had happened. Max listened calmly.
“I hope you’ve learned something from this,” Max said. “And I don’t just mean about the grelliats… Everybody here uses the arboretum and the gardens. Turning them into your own little “fantasy land” wasn’t being very thoughtful of everyone else who wanted to go there. And it could have been dangerous.”
“We’re sorry, Dad. We didn’t mean for it to get out of hand.”
“I know. I’m not mad at you. But I do have a little chore for the three of you.”
Andya, Mareeya, and Ceelya looked at Max inquiringly.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
After lunch, Zorel and Liz-Jolee followed Andya, Mareeya, and Ceelya into the back of the galley food preparation area and asked them if they wanted to go play.
“I can’t right now,” said Andya.
“Mareeya? Ceelya?”
“We can’t either.”
“Why not,” asked Zorel.
Andya pointed at three large tubs full of grelliats… and three large tubs full of water. We have to wash grelliats.
<center>End of Chapter 14
tbc…</center>
Last edited by Island Breeze on Fri Aug 05, 2005 2:08 am, edited 1 time in total.
-
Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
A Time for Dreamin', Candy, and Stargazing
Chapter 15
XV
It was déjà vu, but this was one “déjà vu” that Max hoped he would be lucky enough to have to deal with for many, many years to come. They had just reached the little clearing beside the brook in the arboretum, and Liz put her arms seductively around Max’s neck. The two-person swing suspended from high up in the trees swung above them, as Liz pulled Max down to the ground with her and pressed her lips to his passionately, at the same time unbuttoning his shirt. It was pleasant here, with just the sounds of the brook and the rustle of the tree leaves. They would not be interrupted; the children were all in Kathleen’s class for the next hour, and all of the adults were involved in other activities… Max had checked.
Max returned Liz’s kiss with every bit of the passion she had put into hers… and added a bit for interest… his own interest… as he ran his strong hands gently over her body, somehow --seemingly effortlessly-- removing some piece of clothing with each sensual pass. He kissed her lips then her neck, slowly working his way down as though he were a sculptor crafting a masterpiece… her body… and his kisses were the chisel. Then he looked deep into Liz’s eyes. Max’s eyes conveyed fully the amazing love that he felt for Liz… and the great fortune that he had always felt he had been granted to have found her.
Liz smiled and looked into Max’s eyes, as though searching for his soul, making her own connection with whatever it was that made Max Max. She was beautiful. She found Max irresistible, handsome beyond what seemed right for any one man… and something more, she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. She was sometimes tempted to think that such perfect love must be a mind warp… or that maybe Max had had Madame Viviane slip her a love potion back on Earth… but she knew that that wasn’t it. She knew… What it really was… was love!
The sound of the cool, clear water running through the little brook beside them was pleasant… the abundance of oxygen from the trees filled them with energy… and their love filled them with joy.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
In the gardens, one floor down, another couple had the same idea… with the kids and everyone else being occupied for at least the next two hours. Did I say two hours? Well… it was supposed to be one hour, but Michael had cut a little deal with Kathleen… keep the kids in class for an extra hour today and he and Maria would return the favor for her and Jim sometime.
Had one walked through the gardens at this moment… and happened to pass the pond and waterfall… one would have seen clothes strewn out on the rocks: a shirt, a blouse, a skirt, pants, shoes… yep! It was all there! And in the pond one might have found one female and one male specimen of a new species, Cosmovoyagius mermaidicus. Michael and Maria, swimming along the sandy bottom, fifteen feet below, rose to the surface together, locked in a passionate kiss and embrace.
Maria giggled and looked into Michael’s eyes. Michael smiled, overwhelmed by the love he felt for Maria, the love of his life, whom he had once thought lost forever… the love he would never, ever take for granted again. Michael released Maria and dived under the water, pushing her toward the waterfall.
“Wha…! Michael!” Maria giggled, as the water from the falls poured down over their heads. Michael locked his lips to Maria’s and pulled her soft body against his, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, with one hand on the back of his head, pulling herself even closer, if that were possible, feeling the warmth of Michael’s body against hers.
“You wouldn’t let me drown under here, would you,” Maria giggled.
Michael grinned, “Uh, uh… I know how to give mouth to mouth resuscitation.”
“Oh, I’ll vouch for that,” Maria said, giggling as though she had had a few drinks. But it wasn’t drink that made Maria giddy around Michael, especially when he was all wet and in his natural glory! It was love… and maybe just a modicum of pure, untamed, wild animal passion. Okay, maybe more than a modicum. Okay, well, maybe… a lot… more…
As Michael dragged a giggling and more-than-willing Maria further and further under the falls, like some aquatic caveman abducting the delight of his eyes, he turned around and discovered something that no one had told him about. Behind the falls, there was a shallow “lagoon” and a beach… a small, rather dark and private beach! Just the kind of place Michael might have dreamt about for a time like… right now.
Maria tossed herself down on the beach behind the falls and pulled Michael down on top of her.
“They may never find us here,” said Maria.
Michael’s eyes gleamed. At the moment, he rather liked that thought. Yes! At the moment, he liked that thought a lot!
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Alex and Isabel had always enjoyed watching the stars together, so it was no surprise that, like Michael and Maria, Alex and Isabel enjoyed spending time together in the observatory whenever possible. It was an amazing experience in the observatory, lying there on the oversized Antarian sofa, watching the stars zip by in their celestial splendor, with a 360-degree view of nothing but space all around. It gave Isabel the feeling of being one with Alex, hurtling and tumbling through space like two stars, joined together, blazing their own unstoppable path through the cosmos to wherever their love led them. It was as though only the two of them existed and they needed nothing more than each other’s love to survive… and thrive on.
Alex kissed Isabel passionately under the stars… their stars! Whenever they were together, every star was theirs and theirs alone! The stars smiled on their kisses… The stars witnessed their love, their passion. The stars! Yes, the stars belonged to Alex and Isabel… especially today… especially now!
Alex pulled Isabel down onto the sofa with him, never once breaking the contact that he had with her lips. He pulled her close. What happened then was witnessed only by the stars, and the stars have yet to tell the secret.
<center>End of Chapter 15
tbc…</center>
A Time for Dreamin', Candy, and Stargazing
Chapter 15
XV
It was déjà vu, but this was one “déjà vu” that Max hoped he would be lucky enough to have to deal with for many, many years to come. They had just reached the little clearing beside the brook in the arboretum, and Liz put her arms seductively around Max’s neck. The two-person swing suspended from high up in the trees swung above them, as Liz pulled Max down to the ground with her and pressed her lips to his passionately, at the same time unbuttoning his shirt. It was pleasant here, with just the sounds of the brook and the rustle of the tree leaves. They would not be interrupted; the children were all in Kathleen’s class for the next hour, and all of the adults were involved in other activities… Max had checked.
Max returned Liz’s kiss with every bit of the passion she had put into hers… and added a bit for interest… his own interest… as he ran his strong hands gently over her body, somehow --seemingly effortlessly-- removing some piece of clothing with each sensual pass. He kissed her lips then her neck, slowly working his way down as though he were a sculptor crafting a masterpiece… her body… and his kisses were the chisel. Then he looked deep into Liz’s eyes. Max’s eyes conveyed fully the amazing love that he felt for Liz… and the great fortune that he had always felt he had been granted to have found her.
Liz smiled and looked into Max’s eyes, as though searching for his soul, making her own connection with whatever it was that made Max Max. She was beautiful. She found Max irresistible, handsome beyond what seemed right for any one man… and something more, she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. She was sometimes tempted to think that such perfect love must be a mind warp… or that maybe Max had had Madame Viviane slip her a love potion back on Earth… but she knew that that wasn’t it. She knew… What it really was… was love!
The sound of the cool, clear water running through the little brook beside them was pleasant… the abundance of oxygen from the trees filled them with energy… and their love filled them with joy.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
In the gardens, one floor down, another couple had the same idea… with the kids and everyone else being occupied for at least the next two hours. Did I say two hours? Well… it was supposed to be one hour, but Michael had cut a little deal with Kathleen… keep the kids in class for an extra hour today and he and Maria would return the favor for her and Jim sometime.
Had one walked through the gardens at this moment… and happened to pass the pond and waterfall… one would have seen clothes strewn out on the rocks: a shirt, a blouse, a skirt, pants, shoes… yep! It was all there! And in the pond one might have found one female and one male specimen of a new species, Cosmovoyagius mermaidicus. Michael and Maria, swimming along the sandy bottom, fifteen feet below, rose to the surface together, locked in a passionate kiss and embrace.
Maria giggled and looked into Michael’s eyes. Michael smiled, overwhelmed by the love he felt for Maria, the love of his life, whom he had once thought lost forever… the love he would never, ever take for granted again. Michael released Maria and dived under the water, pushing her toward the waterfall.
“Wha…! Michael!” Maria giggled, as the water from the falls poured down over their heads. Michael locked his lips to Maria’s and pulled her soft body against his, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, with one hand on the back of his head, pulling herself even closer, if that were possible, feeling the warmth of Michael’s body against hers.
“You wouldn’t let me drown under here, would you,” Maria giggled.
Michael grinned, “Uh, uh… I know how to give mouth to mouth resuscitation.”
“Oh, I’ll vouch for that,” Maria said, giggling as though she had had a few drinks. But it wasn’t drink that made Maria giddy around Michael, especially when he was all wet and in his natural glory! It was love… and maybe just a modicum of pure, untamed, wild animal passion. Okay, maybe more than a modicum. Okay, well, maybe… a lot… more…
As Michael dragged a giggling and more-than-willing Maria further and further under the falls, like some aquatic caveman abducting the delight of his eyes, he turned around and discovered something that no one had told him about. Behind the falls, there was a shallow “lagoon” and a beach… a small, rather dark and private beach! Just the kind of place Michael might have dreamt about for a time like… right now.
Maria tossed herself down on the beach behind the falls and pulled Michael down on top of her.
“They may never find us here,” said Maria.
Michael’s eyes gleamed. At the moment, he rather liked that thought. Yes! At the moment, he liked that thought a lot!
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Alex and Isabel had always enjoyed watching the stars together, so it was no surprise that, like Michael and Maria, Alex and Isabel enjoyed spending time together in the observatory whenever possible. It was an amazing experience in the observatory, lying there on the oversized Antarian sofa, watching the stars zip by in their celestial splendor, with a 360-degree view of nothing but space all around. It gave Isabel the feeling of being one with Alex, hurtling and tumbling through space like two stars, joined together, blazing their own unstoppable path through the cosmos to wherever their love led them. It was as though only the two of them existed and they needed nothing more than each other’s love to survive… and thrive on.
Alex kissed Isabel passionately under the stars… their stars! Whenever they were together, every star was theirs and theirs alone! The stars smiled on their kisses… The stars witnessed their love, their passion. The stars! Yes, the stars belonged to Alex and Isabel… especially today… especially now!
Alex pulled Isabel down onto the sofa with him, never once breaking the contact that he had with her lips. He pulled her close. What happened then was witnessed only by the stars, and the stars have yet to tell the secret.
<center>End of Chapter 15
tbc…</center>
Last edited by Island Breeze on Fri Aug 26, 2005 11:38 pm, edited 2 times in total.
-
Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
Class is in Session
Chapter 16
XVI
Kathleen Topolsky, who was now Kathleen Valenti, was the perfect choice to teach the children from Antar what they should beware of on Earth and how to avoid unwanted attention for being “different.” Having lived on Antar for about eight years now, Kathleen was also fairly knowledgeable about Antarian ways and could teach the children how Earth ways differed. But perhaps most importantly, Kathleen had herself once been a part of the very organization that posed the single greatest threat to the children and their parents on Earth, the Alien Task Force Special Unit, a renegade unit of the FBI.
“Yes, Zorel?” Kathleen acknowledged 8-year-old Zorel’s raised hand.
“Aunt Kathleen, where’s our clock? Hasn’t it been an hour yet?”
Kathleen looked at the wall where the clock had been and smiled.
“Well, Zorel, we took the clock down for today… I want to talk about the difference between how time is kept on Antar as opposed to how it is kept on Earth. I’ll put the Antarian clock back up later.”
Five-year old Jayyd Guerin raised her hand, “Don’t they use the same clocks on Earth?”
“No,” said Kathleen. “On Earth, the day is 24 hours. On Antar, the day is 27 of Earth’s hours, and we divide it into 100 equal divisions called ‘jodarish,’ which means ‘sectors.’ Each ‘sector’ is one one-hundredth of the 27-hour day, or about 16.2 minutes on Earth. An hour on Earth is sixty minutes. How many jodarish would that be on Antar?”
Zorel raised his hand quickly.
“Yes, Zorel?”
“It would be 3.88 jodarish.”
“That’s exactly right, Zorel! Very good! You are used to referring to the time of day as first, second, and third cycle on Antar, beginning at daybreak. Each cycle is thirty-three and a third sectors or jodarish. But on Earth, you will have to tell time in hours and minutes, and each Antarian cycle is exactly 9 Earth hours.”
Kathleen went through all the intricacies of Earth time keeping. The children had no trouble understanding. The truth is most of them had already been exposed to Earth time keeping through at least one parent. Having fairly well mastered this concept and terminology, the children were ready to continue on to another topic.
Kathleen looked at the group in front of her and grinned… it was hard not to… here she had spotted a situation in which Antarian children were simply dealt a cruel disadvantage over Earth children in school… or at least the children would see it that way…
“Liz-JoLee!” Kathleen said loudly. All the children turned and looked at 6-year-old Elizabeth JoLee z’Varec. Her eyes went from black to normal.
“Where were you just now, Liz?”
“Oh, I’m sorry, Aunt Kathleen. I was just thinking about what we might see when we get there and I guess I… I started daydreaming.”
Kathleen smiled, “I know that all of you are aware, since all of you have at least one Earth parent, that Earth people do not have a zatiyor, the dark inner eyelid. In fact, I believe a few of you do not have one either.”
Seven-year-old Danyy Valenti raised his hand, “I don’t.”
“That’s right,” said Kathleen. “My son, Danyy, doesn’t have one. His father, Jim, and I are both from Earth… though his father has picked up a few… unusual abilities since coming to Antar.
Six-year-old Alyyx Evans raised his hand, “I don’t have one either, but my sisters do. And Kryys Guerin doesn’t have one, but Zorel and Jayyd do.”
Kathleen nodded, “Well, on Earth, no one does, so you must be very careful about using the zatiyor to shut yourself off and daydream or whatever when you’re in the presence of Earth people.”
Kathleen continued, “Who can tell me something about Earth history? Who were George Washington and Abraham Lincoln?”
Seven-year-old Kyle Rayyn was quick to raise his hand.
“They were the first and sixteenth presidents of the United States.”
“Excellent, Rayyn!” Kathleen encouraged him. “Let’s see… Let’s take someone who’s been in the news a lot… does anyone know who… Janet Reno is? She was in the news a lot recently.”
Six-year-old Ceelya Whitman raised her hand…
“Was she George Washington’s wife?”
Some of the kids laughed.
“No, silly,” said Zorel. “She’s that comedienne on ‘Saturday Night Live’ that we saw on Earth cable, the one that walks through walls.
“Okay,” said Kathleen, “Maybe that was a bad choice… it’s not that important. I guess some Earth kids might think that, too, so… we’ll let that go… but just so you know, she was a political appointee in the Clinton cabinet. She was his Attorney General, and she was in the news a lot.”
“Oh!” Zorel said, waving his hand again… “And she was a character on ‘South Park,’ too! She jumped out of an airplane dressed like the Easter bunny so she could get into this house to find these three girls and send them back to Romania.”
“South Park?” Kathleen repeated, a bit shocked.
“Yeah, it’s a cartoon.”
“Yeah, I know what South Park is. You watch that trash, Zorel?”
Zorel snickered. “It’s funny.”
Some of the other kids were chuckling and nodding their heads.
“It’s dumb,” Kathleen said, “and I don’t think kids like you need to be watching that kind of stuff. All the good things Earth has to offer… and this is what the Universe watches?”
“My Dad watches it,” Zorel said.
“Michael watches South Park… and lets you watch it?”
“No, he records it sometimes and watches it after we go to sleep. If one of us comes down, he changes the channel and says he was watching the news.”
“Michael records South Park? And your Mom knows about this?”
“Sure. Sometimes she watches it with him, and I hear them laughing.”
“Okay,” Kathleen said, “Moving right along…
Who can tell me some of the common children’s stories on Earth?”
Andya raised her hand first.
“Alice in Wonderland!”
All the kids laughed. They knew why Andya would think of that. They remembered the rabbit and the gojos.
Leesa added, “The Wizard of Oz, Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and Cinderella.”
“Very good, Leesa!” said Kathleen. “Have you read all those?”
“My Mom has read all of them to me since we’ve been able to download the internet through the cable link. I like some of those stories. They’re kind of like some of the Antarian stories we have.”
Kathleen nodded, “Yes, that’s true! Some themes are universal. What are some of the favorite sports on Earth?”
Kryys Guerin raised his hand first… “Football! My Dad likes that. And baseball and… and hocky, and basketball… and soccer.”
“Good, Kryys! Very good!” Kathleen encouraged. “What are the most common table board games that you should know?”
Maya was quick on this one, “Monopoly, checkers, chess, and… scrabble?”
“Those are all good ones,” said Kathleen. “You see, guys, on Earth, if you had never heard of monopoly or checkers or football or baseball… or of Cinderella or Snow White, it would seem very strange, just like being on Antar and never having heard of Jaht-Roo or the story of Frebel-Ish.”
“That would really be strange!” laughed Zorel.
Kathleen smiled. She knew that what she was teaching these children could be very important to them, maybe even save their lives. And these children were all extremely bright and fast to learn. Kathleen was actually enjoying her tenure as “teacher” onboard the new granolith.
“Children, you may go now. Class is over. I’ll see you all back here day after tomorrow. And I believe that will be our last class before we reach Earth.”
“Yay!” all the kids yelled at once.
Kathleen wasn’t sure if that ‘yay’ was because they were reaching Earth or because it was to be their last class. But she smiled… She had a suspicion that the children were actually enjoying learning about where they were going. And she was enjoying being their teacher… a real teacher, doing something important with her life… maybe even making amends.
-------------------------End of Chapter 16
Class is in Session
Chapter 16
XVI
Kathleen Topolsky, who was now Kathleen Valenti, was the perfect choice to teach the children from Antar what they should beware of on Earth and how to avoid unwanted attention for being “different.” Having lived on Antar for about eight years now, Kathleen was also fairly knowledgeable about Antarian ways and could teach the children how Earth ways differed. But perhaps most importantly, Kathleen had herself once been a part of the very organization that posed the single greatest threat to the children and their parents on Earth, the Alien Task Force Special Unit, a renegade unit of the FBI.
“Yes, Zorel?” Kathleen acknowledged 8-year-old Zorel’s raised hand.
“Aunt Kathleen, where’s our clock? Hasn’t it been an hour yet?”
Kathleen looked at the wall where the clock had been and smiled.
“Well, Zorel, we took the clock down for today… I want to talk about the difference between how time is kept on Antar as opposed to how it is kept on Earth. I’ll put the Antarian clock back up later.”
Five-year old Jayyd Guerin raised her hand, “Don’t they use the same clocks on Earth?”
“No,” said Kathleen. “On Earth, the day is 24 hours. On Antar, the day is 27 of Earth’s hours, and we divide it into 100 equal divisions called ‘jodarish,’ which means ‘sectors.’ Each ‘sector’ is one one-hundredth of the 27-hour day, or about 16.2 minutes on Earth. An hour on Earth is sixty minutes. How many jodarish would that be on Antar?”
Zorel raised his hand quickly.
“Yes, Zorel?”
“It would be 3.88 jodarish.”
“That’s exactly right, Zorel! Very good! You are used to referring to the time of day as first, second, and third cycle on Antar, beginning at daybreak. Each cycle is thirty-three and a third sectors or jodarish. But on Earth, you will have to tell time in hours and minutes, and each Antarian cycle is exactly 9 Earth hours.”
Kathleen went through all the intricacies of Earth time keeping. The children had no trouble understanding. The truth is most of them had already been exposed to Earth time keeping through at least one parent. Having fairly well mastered this concept and terminology, the children were ready to continue on to another topic.
Kathleen looked at the group in front of her and grinned… it was hard not to… here she had spotted a situation in which Antarian children were simply dealt a cruel disadvantage over Earth children in school… or at least the children would see it that way…
“Liz-JoLee!” Kathleen said loudly. All the children turned and looked at 6-year-old Elizabeth JoLee z’Varec. Her eyes went from black to normal.
“Where were you just now, Liz?”
“Oh, I’m sorry, Aunt Kathleen. I was just thinking about what we might see when we get there and I guess I… I started daydreaming.”
Kathleen smiled, “I know that all of you are aware, since all of you have at least one Earth parent, that Earth people do not have a zatiyor, the dark inner eyelid. In fact, I believe a few of you do not have one either.”
Seven-year-old Danyy Valenti raised his hand, “I don’t.”
“That’s right,” said Kathleen. “My son, Danyy, doesn’t have one. His father, Jim, and I are both from Earth… though his father has picked up a few… unusual abilities since coming to Antar.
Six-year-old Alyyx Evans raised his hand, “I don’t have one either, but my sisters do. And Kryys Guerin doesn’t have one, but Zorel and Jayyd do.”
Kathleen nodded, “Well, on Earth, no one does, so you must be very careful about using the zatiyor to shut yourself off and daydream or whatever when you’re in the presence of Earth people.”
Kathleen continued, “Who can tell me something about Earth history? Who were George Washington and Abraham Lincoln?”
Seven-year-old Kyle Rayyn was quick to raise his hand.
“They were the first and sixteenth presidents of the United States.”
“Excellent, Rayyn!” Kathleen encouraged him. “Let’s see… Let’s take someone who’s been in the news a lot… does anyone know who… Janet Reno is? She was in the news a lot recently.”
Six-year-old Ceelya Whitman raised her hand…
“Was she George Washington’s wife?”
Some of the kids laughed.
“No, silly,” said Zorel. “She’s that comedienne on ‘Saturday Night Live’ that we saw on Earth cable, the one that walks through walls.
“Okay,” said Kathleen, “Maybe that was a bad choice… it’s not that important. I guess some Earth kids might think that, too, so… we’ll let that go… but just so you know, she was a political appointee in the Clinton cabinet. She was his Attorney General, and she was in the news a lot.”
“Oh!” Zorel said, waving his hand again… “And she was a character on ‘South Park,’ too! She jumped out of an airplane dressed like the Easter bunny so she could get into this house to find these three girls and send them back to Romania.”
“South Park?” Kathleen repeated, a bit shocked.
“Yeah, it’s a cartoon.”
“Yeah, I know what South Park is. You watch that trash, Zorel?”
Zorel snickered. “It’s funny.”
Some of the other kids were chuckling and nodding their heads.
“It’s dumb,” Kathleen said, “and I don’t think kids like you need to be watching that kind of stuff. All the good things Earth has to offer… and this is what the Universe watches?”
“My Dad watches it,” Zorel said.
“Michael watches South Park… and lets you watch it?”
“No, he records it sometimes and watches it after we go to sleep. If one of us comes down, he changes the channel and says he was watching the news.”
“Michael records South Park? And your Mom knows about this?”
“Sure. Sometimes she watches it with him, and I hear them laughing.”
“Okay,” Kathleen said, “Moving right along…
Who can tell me some of the common children’s stories on Earth?”
Andya raised her hand first.
“Alice in Wonderland!”
All the kids laughed. They knew why Andya would think of that. They remembered the rabbit and the gojos.
Leesa added, “The Wizard of Oz, Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and Cinderella.”
“Very good, Leesa!” said Kathleen. “Have you read all those?”
“My Mom has read all of them to me since we’ve been able to download the internet through the cable link. I like some of those stories. They’re kind of like some of the Antarian stories we have.”
Kathleen nodded, “Yes, that’s true! Some themes are universal. What are some of the favorite sports on Earth?”
Kryys Guerin raised his hand first… “Football! My Dad likes that. And baseball and… and hocky, and basketball… and soccer.”
“Good, Kryys! Very good!” Kathleen encouraged. “What are the most common table board games that you should know?”
Maya was quick on this one, “Monopoly, checkers, chess, and… scrabble?”
“Those are all good ones,” said Kathleen. “You see, guys, on Earth, if you had never heard of monopoly or checkers or football or baseball… or of Cinderella or Snow White, it would seem very strange, just like being on Antar and never having heard of Jaht-Roo or the story of Frebel-Ish.”
“That would really be strange!” laughed Zorel.
Kathleen smiled. She knew that what she was teaching these children could be very important to them, maybe even save their lives. And these children were all extremely bright and fast to learn. Kathleen was actually enjoying her tenure as “teacher” onboard the new granolith.
“Children, you may go now. Class is over. I’ll see you all back here day after tomorrow. And I believe that will be our last class before we reach Earth.”
“Yay!” all the kids yelled at once.
Kathleen wasn’t sure if that ‘yay’ was because they were reaching Earth or because it was to be their last class. But she smiled… She had a suspicion that the children were actually enjoying learning about where they were going. And she was enjoying being their teacher… a real teacher, doing something important with her life… maybe even making amends.
-------------------------End of Chapter 16
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The Hammock in the Everglades
Chapter 17
XVII
“An elevated tract of land rising above the general level of a marshy region; also called a hummock,” Sabrina repeated to herself, looking up as she closed her Webster’s College Dictionary. “I knew that!” She shook her head and reaffirmed her decision. She had already decided what she would do.
At the same time, somewhere in one of the most secluded areas of the Florida Everglades, another airboat with a Seminole Indian guide was arriving at a hidden, never before visited hammock. The guest paid the Indian guide, who was thanking the Spirits for such an unexpectedly profitable day.
“Hi!” said Lisa to another person who was already there, as she stepped onto the hammock. “You’re Nina! I know we never met before, but… I feel like we’ve known each other… like forever!”
Nina smiled and nodded. “I know what you mean! You don’t have to tell me who you are… You’re Lisa! I already know you, too!”
As they talked, another airboat arrived, and another passenger got off and stepped onto the hammock.
“Hi, Lisa! Hi, Nina!”
Nina and Lisa both grinned. “Hey, Sabrina! Glad to meet you! I mean… we know who you are and everything, but I know we never met!”
Sabrina nodded and looked toward the water; another airboat was approaching, and three more passengers got off onto the little hammock.
“Hi, Krys, Andrea, Lauren,” said Nina, Lisa, and Sabrina all at the same time without waiting for introductions. Krys looked at the three who had arrived before her and returned the greetings; so did Lauren and Andrea.
Soon, the little hammock had all the air of big a family reunion.
“Tracie! Denise! Roselle! Hey! So glad you made it,” said Lauren, who turned around to see the new arrivals.
“Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” said Tracie, smiling. Denise and Roselle nodded their agreement.
“Does this kind of remind you of that scene in ‘Close Encounters’ where all the people are gathering… or maybe the one in X-Files with all the people on the bridge,” Nina joked.
Sabrina and Andrea nodded.
“Not the X-Files one, I hope,” said Lisa, laughing. “As I remember it, that one didn’t end so well!”
Nina laughed, too. “Yeah, you’re right! But somehow I know that this isn’t like that… this is important, and it’s more than just… us. It’s hard to explain, it’s like… our heritage… our very existence on this planet… something deeper. I feel it inside me.”
Lisa, Sabrina, and Andrea agreed.
Krys walked over and joined them. “Didn’t it seem kind of odd telling the Indian guide how to get here? And we’ve never been here before!” She grinned. “This is weird, but it feels so… normal! If that isn’t weird, I don’t know what is!”
They all agreed.
“Yeah,” said Nina. “It’s that little girl, Maya… she’s been guiding us and telling us everything we need to know… even who everyone is. It’s incredible. I know her… I never met her, but I know her …just like I know each one of you. And I know all those people who are coming from… Antar.”
Tracie, joining in the conversation, added, “I know that I didn’t have to come, but something in my body… in my core, said that I should. It wasn’t the little girl who made me come… I mean, she contacted me, but it was… it was something in me… in my own past that made me come.”
The others nodded. They understood all too well. No one could quite put it into words, but they all knew and understood. Somewhere, in the depths of their beings, somewhere in the DNA trail that each shared that hailed back over 12,300 years to a long forgotten alien heritage, their past was calling… and they were here, each of them, today answering that call.
Just beyond their sight, waiting and watching from the sea of sawgrass, an old Indian guide looked at his mysterious companion and smiled. His companion nodded and smiled, too.
"All is going according to plan."
The old Indian nodded.
------------------------End of Chapter 17
The Hammock in the Everglades
Chapter 17
XVII
“An elevated tract of land rising above the general level of a marshy region; also called a hummock,” Sabrina repeated to herself, looking up as she closed her Webster’s College Dictionary. “I knew that!” She shook her head and reaffirmed her decision. She had already decided what she would do.
At the same time, somewhere in one of the most secluded areas of the Florida Everglades, another airboat with a Seminole Indian guide was arriving at a hidden, never before visited hammock. The guest paid the Indian guide, who was thanking the Spirits for such an unexpectedly profitable day.
“Hi!” said Lisa to another person who was already there, as she stepped onto the hammock. “You’re Nina! I know we never met before, but… I feel like we’ve known each other… like forever!”
Nina smiled and nodded. “I know what you mean! You don’t have to tell me who you are… You’re Lisa! I already know you, too!”
As they talked, another airboat arrived, and another passenger got off and stepped onto the hammock.
“Hi, Lisa! Hi, Nina!”
Nina and Lisa both grinned. “Hey, Sabrina! Glad to meet you! I mean… we know who you are and everything, but I know we never met!”
Sabrina nodded and looked toward the water; another airboat was approaching, and three more passengers got off onto the little hammock.
“Hi, Krys, Andrea, Lauren,” said Nina, Lisa, and Sabrina all at the same time without waiting for introductions. Krys looked at the three who had arrived before her and returned the greetings; so did Lauren and Andrea.
Soon, the little hammock had all the air of big a family reunion.
“Tracie! Denise! Roselle! Hey! So glad you made it,” said Lauren, who turned around to see the new arrivals.
“Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” said Tracie, smiling. Denise and Roselle nodded their agreement.
“Does this kind of remind you of that scene in ‘Close Encounters’ where all the people are gathering… or maybe the one in X-Files with all the people on the bridge,” Nina joked.
Sabrina and Andrea nodded.
“Not the X-Files one, I hope,” said Lisa, laughing. “As I remember it, that one didn’t end so well!”
Nina laughed, too. “Yeah, you’re right! But somehow I know that this isn’t like that… this is important, and it’s more than just… us. It’s hard to explain, it’s like… our heritage… our very existence on this planet… something deeper. I feel it inside me.”
Lisa, Sabrina, and Andrea agreed.
Krys walked over and joined them. “Didn’t it seem kind of odd telling the Indian guide how to get here? And we’ve never been here before!” She grinned. “This is weird, but it feels so… normal! If that isn’t weird, I don’t know what is!”
They all agreed.
“Yeah,” said Nina. “It’s that little girl, Maya… she’s been guiding us and telling us everything we need to know… even who everyone is. It’s incredible. I know her… I never met her, but I know her …just like I know each one of you. And I know all those people who are coming from… Antar.”
Tracie, joining in the conversation, added, “I know that I didn’t have to come, but something in my body… in my core, said that I should. It wasn’t the little girl who made me come… I mean, she contacted me, but it was… it was something in me… in my own past that made me come.”
The others nodded. They understood all too well. No one could quite put it into words, but they all knew and understood. Somewhere, in the depths of their beings, somewhere in the DNA trail that each shared that hailed back over 12,300 years to a long forgotten alien heritage, their past was calling… and they were here, each of them, today answering that call.
Just beyond their sight, waiting and watching from the sea of sawgrass, an old Indian guide looked at his mysterious companion and smiled. His companion nodded and smiled, too.
"All is going according to plan."
The old Indian nodded.
------------------------End of Chapter 17
-
Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
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Life In The Stars
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Close Encounters of the Antarian Kind
Chapter 18
XVIII
Onboard the new granolith, the guests were crowding into the observatory, hoping to get a view of Earth that few will ever know, as the new granolith hurtled through space fast approaching its destination. Max slowed the ship’s speed from interplanetary cruising speed to approach speed, less than one sixtieth the former speed of the ship as it had cruised through space. The “blue water planet” lay just ahead. Eluymer! After sixteen days, they were here. They had arrived at the planet known to its inhabitants as “Earth.”
The new granolith, with its invisibility shield and other stealth technologies engaged, dropped into Earth orbit then into the atmosphere as the group in the observatory cheered. The ship glided over the Atlantic at a high altitude, right at the edge of space. As they neared the east coast of America, the children were quick to pick out the Florida peninsula far below. Zorel, who was at least as sharp as he was mischievous, also pointed out, quite correctly, where Texas was as well as Mexico and Canada… and New Mexico, the state where his father had been “born” and had grown up. As the new granolith hurtled over the U.S., Zorel competed with Kryys, Maya, Leesa, Mareeya, and several of the other children identifying states and landmarks, pointing out California, the Baja peninsula, and the Gulf of Mexico.
Max and Michael brought the new granolith down slightly as they passed over the Pacific Ocean and northern Hawaiian Islands, cruising between the twentieth and thirtieth parallels. They were approaching the coast of southern China. From their altitude, the children could pick out countries across the African and Asian continents and as high up as Europe as they passed over southern China, India, Pakistan, Saudia Arabia, and the northern portion of Africa before arriving at the Atlantic Ocean again.
Max and Michael reduced their altitude considerably as they passed over Africa and the Atlantic, dropping down to 15,000 feet. As they approached the coast of Florida, Max and Michael brought the ship down to about 3,000 feet and the new granolith glided in over Saint Augustine, oldest city in the United States. The new granolith was an entire, seven-level, compact city, but it flew as gracefully as a pelican, curving to the left and following the coastline south in the direction of Miami.
As they dropped the new granolith down to under 1,000 feet, they picked up an escort, but it was not the fighter jets that Max and Michael had picked up on their first trip here… it was a flock of pelicans that glided along beside them on both sides of the ship. The children were fascinated by the pelicans, which were like no birds they had ever seen on Antar, although even a pelican could not compare with the amazing jah-ee.
The invisibility shield and newer stealth technologies were working like a dream. The new granolith glided unmolested and unnoticed along the beaches of east Florida then turned inland at Palm Beach, aiming southwest toward the heart of the Everglades. The line separating the inhabited areas of east Florida from the Everglades was sudden and dramatic. They had arrived over the “sea of grass,” the land of sawgrass and alligators… the Florida Everglades.
Max, with Maya standing beside him to point the way, now guided the new granolith to their initial destination, one small hammock out of thousands in a very secluded and unexplored area of this amazing sea of grass.
Maya pointed straight ahead and just to the right, “There it is!”
Max and Michael looked where Maya was pointing. Indeed, just ahead lay a substantial, but almost hidden, little hammock, and on it were people. These were not just any people, though. These were ancient Antarians… These were the remaining living descendants of the original MayaSabriena, AnDasniya, and JoLeesa, who had themselves been the rightful heirs of the royal family of Antar, though they had never known it. These people were the closest living relatives who still had any Antarian DNA… and of Max’s wife, Liz, the true Queen of Antar.
Max brought the new granolith directly over the hammock and hovered there at an altitude of just under a hundred feet. Eight-year-old Maya put the heels of her hands to her temples and allowed her fingers to close tightly as she sent out a message. Everyone on the hammock looked up. They saw nothing, but they knew... their past and their future had just met.
A brief light emanated from the bottom of the still-invisible ship, and the hammock was again a secluded tract of land rising just above the sawgrass. The people who had once been there were gone, as though they had never been there at all.
From a distance, hidden in the sawgrass, the mysterious man watched and motioned for the old Indian guide to stay down. Then he took a pen and a notebook out of his pocket and made some notes. “Yes! Yes! It won’t be very long now!”
-----------------------End of Chapter 18
Close Encounters of the Antarian Kind
Chapter 18
XVIII
Onboard the new granolith, the guests were crowding into the observatory, hoping to get a view of Earth that few will ever know, as the new granolith hurtled through space fast approaching its destination. Max slowed the ship’s speed from interplanetary cruising speed to approach speed, less than one sixtieth the former speed of the ship as it had cruised through space. The “blue water planet” lay just ahead. Eluymer! After sixteen days, they were here. They had arrived at the planet known to its inhabitants as “Earth.”
The new granolith, with its invisibility shield and other stealth technologies engaged, dropped into Earth orbit then into the atmosphere as the group in the observatory cheered. The ship glided over the Atlantic at a high altitude, right at the edge of space. As they neared the east coast of America, the children were quick to pick out the Florida peninsula far below. Zorel, who was at least as sharp as he was mischievous, also pointed out, quite correctly, where Texas was as well as Mexico and Canada… and New Mexico, the state where his father had been “born” and had grown up. As the new granolith hurtled over the U.S., Zorel competed with Kryys, Maya, Leesa, Mareeya, and several of the other children identifying states and landmarks, pointing out California, the Baja peninsula, and the Gulf of Mexico.
Max and Michael brought the new granolith down slightly as they passed over the Pacific Ocean and northern Hawaiian Islands, cruising between the twentieth and thirtieth parallels. They were approaching the coast of southern China. From their altitude, the children could pick out countries across the African and Asian continents and as high up as Europe as they passed over southern China, India, Pakistan, Saudia Arabia, and the northern portion of Africa before arriving at the Atlantic Ocean again.
Max and Michael reduced their altitude considerably as they passed over Africa and the Atlantic, dropping down to 15,000 feet. As they approached the coast of Florida, Max and Michael brought the ship down to about 3,000 feet and the new granolith glided in over Saint Augustine, oldest city in the United States. The new granolith was an entire, seven-level, compact city, but it flew as gracefully as a pelican, curving to the left and following the coastline south in the direction of Miami.
As they dropped the new granolith down to under 1,000 feet, they picked up an escort, but it was not the fighter jets that Max and Michael had picked up on their first trip here… it was a flock of pelicans that glided along beside them on both sides of the ship. The children were fascinated by the pelicans, which were like no birds they had ever seen on Antar, although even a pelican could not compare with the amazing jah-ee.
The invisibility shield and newer stealth technologies were working like a dream. The new granolith glided unmolested and unnoticed along the beaches of east Florida then turned inland at Palm Beach, aiming southwest toward the heart of the Everglades. The line separating the inhabited areas of east Florida from the Everglades was sudden and dramatic. They had arrived over the “sea of grass,” the land of sawgrass and alligators… the Florida Everglades.
Max, with Maya standing beside him to point the way, now guided the new granolith to their initial destination, one small hammock out of thousands in a very secluded and unexplored area of this amazing sea of grass.
Maya pointed straight ahead and just to the right, “There it is!”
Max and Michael looked where Maya was pointing. Indeed, just ahead lay a substantial, but almost hidden, little hammock, and on it were people. These were not just any people, though. These were ancient Antarians… These were the remaining living descendants of the original MayaSabriena, AnDasniya, and JoLeesa, who had themselves been the rightful heirs of the royal family of Antar, though they had never known it. These people were the closest living relatives who still had any Antarian DNA… and of Max’s wife, Liz, the true Queen of Antar.
Max brought the new granolith directly over the hammock and hovered there at an altitude of just under a hundred feet. Eight-year-old Maya put the heels of her hands to her temples and allowed her fingers to close tightly as she sent out a message. Everyone on the hammock looked up. They saw nothing, but they knew... their past and their future had just met.
A brief light emanated from the bottom of the still-invisible ship, and the hammock was again a secluded tract of land rising just above the sawgrass. The people who had once been there were gone, as though they had never been there at all.
From a distance, hidden in the sawgrass, the mysterious man watched and motioned for the old Indian guide to stay down. Then he took a pen and a notebook out of his pocket and made some notes. “Yes! Yes! It won’t be very long now!”
-----------------------End of Chapter 18
Last edited by Island Breeze on Thu Jul 21, 2005 10:28 pm, edited 15 times in total.
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Island Breeze
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Life In The Stars
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Meet the Aliens
Chapter 19
XIX
A door slid open diagonally from the floor, disappearing into the upper right hand corner of the opening. The former inhabitants of the Everglades hammock now found themselves inside a small room looking through the open door at four not-so-alien-looking young men, who were actually handsome, two equally beautiful young women, and a small girl.
Eight-year-old Maya walked up to the door and took two of the people in the transport room by the hand. Smiling, she led them out to the others, followed by the rest of the group. Liz and Max took their hands and welcomed them onto the new granolith as Maya introduced them…
“This is Nina and Lisa… and this is Krys… and Rachel.”
Liz gave them each a hug, and Max kissed each one warmly on the cheek…
“Thank you so much for coming. I’m Max Evans. This is my wife, Liz, Michael and Maria Guerin, Alex Whitman, and Varec. The others are waiting to meet you in the dining galley.”
After managing to catch her breath, Nina replied,
“We’re all happy just to be here. It’s like I know each of you already! And Maya! I feel like we’ve been friends forever almost!”
Lisa agreed, “I know now that some of the things I see sometimes that I thought were in my imagination are things that Maya is seeing… and I have a connection with her somehow… with all of you! Do you really have a golden-colored sea where you come from?”
Max nodded.
“Oh, wow! I wish I could see that,” said Lisa.
Max smiled at her, “Some day, maybe you will, Lisa… It’s your heritage, too.”
Michael walked up to several others of the group from the hammock.
Maya introduced them, “This is Lauren… Tracie… Denise… Roselle… and Andrea…”
Michael gave each one a kiss on the cheek, and Maria gave them each a hug and welcomed them to the new granolith.
“This is Sabrina and Trude,” said Maya…
Alex smiled and kissed them each on the cheek. Then he gave them each a hug for Isabel, who had stayed in the galley helping prepare things for the new guests.
“And this is Andrew,” said Maya.
Liz gave Andrew a hug and a kiss on the cheek, and Max smiled and shook his hand.
Maya introduced the remaining few visitors then each one was escorted to the galley by the person or persons who had welcomed them. As they arrived in the galley, they were introduced to Isabel, Amy, Jim and Kathleen Valenti, Kyle and Jeliya, Jeff and Nancy Parker, and the children. Places had been set at the table for everyone, and Max motioned for everyone to sit. Shortly, the little droid came out and asked each individual what he or she would like to drink, much to everyone’s delight.
The food had already been placed on the table and was passed around so that each person might serve himself or herself as desired. The little droid went through the list of foods, explaining, as best his programming allowed, how each food was similar to any existing Earth food.
“The entrée is shebble broiled in Ama leaves. A shebble is a longhaired beast that looks like a cross between a yak and a longhorn steer. Ama leaves are unlike anything you have on Earth but might be compared to large spinach leaves. Gojos are similar to green peas but slightly smaller and much tangier in taste. Badas are similar to little red potatoes. Grelliats have no match on Earth. You might compare them to extra large green bean pods filled with something that tastes like spicy meat pie… but they are vegetables. Harlats are sort of like broccoli or asparagus… something in between. I don’t eat… I’m just a droid. If you don’t agree with the comparisons, please remember that I can only tell you what I have been programmed to say, and my… ‘programmers’ have a hard time agreeing on tastes…”
Max and Michael looked at each other and grinned, raising their eyebrows slightly.
“Well, he wasn’t programmed to say that! Do you get the feeling he’s becoming just a tad independent?”
Michael nodded, “Yeah, the little guy's definitely developing an attitude, isn’t he!”
After traveling most of the day then making their way to the hammock by airboat and waiting there for some time, the guests were hungry, so no one was complaining about the food. In fact, they all seemed to enjoy it quite a bit.
Sabrina looked up at Maya and smiled, “Thank you, Maya! That was very helpful! Thank you, too, Danyy!”
Max and Michael looked at Sabrina inquiringly. Sabrina smiled and explained,
“Maya just let me know that she asked Danyy to use his power to communicate with non-human life forms, and she used her power to telepathically communicate his power from the ship so that there would be no mosquitoes on the hammock to bite us.”
Max looked at Michael, “I didn’t think of that! The Everglades are full of mosquitoes!”
Nina nodded, “Yeah! Big, mean ones! Some of our mosquitoes are so big they have FAA numbers painted under their wings!”
Everybody laughed, and Michael shook his head… “Good one!”
Max looked at Maya, “How did you know to do that, Maya? We don’t have mosquitoes on Antar. You’ve never seen one before.”
“…but I can feel their thoughts,” said Maya. “When Sabrina got bitten by a mosquito, I felt her thoughts, so I knew what they were and that there would be a lot of them there, so I got Danyy to help me make them go away.”
Krys shook her head, “Can I borrow her some time …when Dad takes me fishing?”
Everyone laughed. “We’ll have to set her and Danyy up in business for themselves,” Andrew said, grinning. They could make a fortune!” Everyone agreed lightheartedly and looked at Danyy and Maya. Both were smiling, proud that their efforts had been noticed and appreciated.
It was turning out to be a pleasant day for everyone aboard… but their adventure had just begun.
-----------------------End of Chapter 19
Meet the Aliens
Chapter 19
XIX
A door slid open diagonally from the floor, disappearing into the upper right hand corner of the opening. The former inhabitants of the Everglades hammock now found themselves inside a small room looking through the open door at four not-so-alien-looking young men, who were actually handsome, two equally beautiful young women, and a small girl.
Eight-year-old Maya walked up to the door and took two of the people in the transport room by the hand. Smiling, she led them out to the others, followed by the rest of the group. Liz and Max took their hands and welcomed them onto the new granolith as Maya introduced them…
“This is Nina and Lisa… and this is Krys… and Rachel.”
Liz gave them each a hug, and Max kissed each one warmly on the cheek…
“Thank you so much for coming. I’m Max Evans. This is my wife, Liz, Michael and Maria Guerin, Alex Whitman, and Varec. The others are waiting to meet you in the dining galley.”
After managing to catch her breath, Nina replied,
“We’re all happy just to be here. It’s like I know each of you already! And Maya! I feel like we’ve been friends forever almost!”
Lisa agreed, “I know now that some of the things I see sometimes that I thought were in my imagination are things that Maya is seeing… and I have a connection with her somehow… with all of you! Do you really have a golden-colored sea where you come from?”
Max nodded.
“Oh, wow! I wish I could see that,” said Lisa.
Max smiled at her, “Some day, maybe you will, Lisa… It’s your heritage, too.”
Michael walked up to several others of the group from the hammock.
Maya introduced them, “This is Lauren… Tracie… Denise… Roselle… and Andrea…”
Michael gave each one a kiss on the cheek, and Maria gave them each a hug and welcomed them to the new granolith.
“This is Sabrina and Trude,” said Maya…
Alex smiled and kissed them each on the cheek. Then he gave them each a hug for Isabel, who had stayed in the galley helping prepare things for the new guests.
“And this is Andrew,” said Maya.
Liz gave Andrew a hug and a kiss on the cheek, and Max smiled and shook his hand.
Maya introduced the remaining few visitors then each one was escorted to the galley by the person or persons who had welcomed them. As they arrived in the galley, they were introduced to Isabel, Amy, Jim and Kathleen Valenti, Kyle and Jeliya, Jeff and Nancy Parker, and the children. Places had been set at the table for everyone, and Max motioned for everyone to sit. Shortly, the little droid came out and asked each individual what he or she would like to drink, much to everyone’s delight.
The food had already been placed on the table and was passed around so that each person might serve himself or herself as desired. The little droid went through the list of foods, explaining, as best his programming allowed, how each food was similar to any existing Earth food.
“The entrée is shebble broiled in Ama leaves. A shebble is a longhaired beast that looks like a cross between a yak and a longhorn steer. Ama leaves are unlike anything you have on Earth but might be compared to large spinach leaves. Gojos are similar to green peas but slightly smaller and much tangier in taste. Badas are similar to little red potatoes. Grelliats have no match on Earth. You might compare them to extra large green bean pods filled with something that tastes like spicy meat pie… but they are vegetables. Harlats are sort of like broccoli or asparagus… something in between. I don’t eat… I’m just a droid. If you don’t agree with the comparisons, please remember that I can only tell you what I have been programmed to say, and my… ‘programmers’ have a hard time agreeing on tastes…”
Max and Michael looked at each other and grinned, raising their eyebrows slightly.
“Well, he wasn’t programmed to say that! Do you get the feeling he’s becoming just a tad independent?”
Michael nodded, “Yeah, the little guy's definitely developing an attitude, isn’t he!”
After traveling most of the day then making their way to the hammock by airboat and waiting there for some time, the guests were hungry, so no one was complaining about the food. In fact, they all seemed to enjoy it quite a bit.
Sabrina looked up at Maya and smiled, “Thank you, Maya! That was very helpful! Thank you, too, Danyy!”
Max and Michael looked at Sabrina inquiringly. Sabrina smiled and explained,
“Maya just let me know that she asked Danyy to use his power to communicate with non-human life forms, and she used her power to telepathically communicate his power from the ship so that there would be no mosquitoes on the hammock to bite us.”
Max looked at Michael, “I didn’t think of that! The Everglades are full of mosquitoes!”
Nina nodded, “Yeah! Big, mean ones! Some of our mosquitoes are so big they have FAA numbers painted under their wings!”
Everybody laughed, and Michael shook his head… “Good one!”
Max looked at Maya, “How did you know to do that, Maya? We don’t have mosquitoes on Antar. You’ve never seen one before.”
“…but I can feel their thoughts,” said Maya. “When Sabrina got bitten by a mosquito, I felt her thoughts, so I knew what they were and that there would be a lot of them there, so I got Danyy to help me make them go away.”
Krys shook her head, “Can I borrow her some time …when Dad takes me fishing?”
Everyone laughed. “We’ll have to set her and Danyy up in business for themselves,” Andrew said, grinning. They could make a fortune!” Everyone agreed lightheartedly and looked at Danyy and Maya. Both were smiling, proud that their efforts had been noticed and appreciated.
It was turning out to be a pleasant day for everyone aboard… but their adventure had just begun.
-----------------------End of Chapter 19
-
Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
The Beginning of a Vacation
Chapter 20
XX
After everyone had finished dining, Max invited the new guests up to the observatory for a “most unusual” view. As the last of the guests arrived in the observatory, Max asked them what they saw. The guests looked…
“I don’t see anything out there but blackness,” said Andrew. “Did it get dark already? It seems too early still.”
Max smiled, “Well… it is night I guess where we are… Check out the horizon.”
Everyone looked toward the horizon and saw light breaking, then the crest of a large orb -a large blue orb- rose over the horizon… It was the Earth! For just a moment, they were confused… then they realized where they were…
“We’re behind the moon…” Andrew exclaimed. “We’re passing behind the dark side of the moon, and Earth is rising over the horizon!”
Max nodded, “Just before everyone was seated for dinner, Michael brought the new granolith here behind the moon where it would be completely hidden… just to be safe. Even though the ship has excellent stealth technologies, including a very excellent invisibility factor, we are still safest when we are concealed in a secluded place where nobody can accidentally collide with us because they can’t see us.”
Andrew nodded, “Yeah, I guess a small plane or something could fly right into you and never see you. Do birds ever fly into the ship?”
Max shook his head, “It hasn’t happened yet. We think that they can sense our presence or see us somehow. On our way here, we even picked up a flock of pelicans that escorted us along the coast.”
As the new granolith emerged completely from behind the moon, the dark sky shone brightly with the beautiful blue orb that was the Earth, leaving the guests breathless.
“It’s so much more beautiful from out here,” said Andrea. “I’ve seen pictures and all, but they don’t compare! This is incredible! This is just awesome!”
The group agreed.
“I can see the atmosphere like a thin shell around the Earth,” Lisa noted.
Max nodded, “That’s what the Commander of Skylab IV, Gerry Carr, said when he looked at the Earth from space… he compared Earth’s atmosphere to the skin on an apple.”
The new granolith glided back toward the Earth, as the Earth seemingly grew larger and larger. Twelve minutes and thirty-two seconds later, the new granolith skipped on the top of the atmosphere like a flat rock skipping along the top of a calm pond. Then like the rock, which sinks into the water, the new granolith glided into the atmosphere, heading towards Florida. Coming in from the north this time, the ship passed over Canada then, shortly, over New York, where Lisa tried to spot the general area where her home might be, but they were still pretty high up.
The ship glided down along the east coast then in across Orlando, stopping above Lake Apopka… it settled into the waters of the lake and sank to the bottom.
Michael, who was currently in control of the ship, looked at Varec. Varec nodded and passed his own hand over a console, and a small sonar-like monitor rose out of it. With the help of this device, Varec guided Michael and the new granolith beneath the waters of the lake to the entrance of an underground river that they had scanned long before arriving at Earth.
Now the new granolith cruised beneath the ground following the coursing underground river for several miles. Arriving at a good-sized spring, the ship settled on the bottom.
“Well guys,” said Max to the new guests and to the children and their parents who had come from Antar… “Our vacation begins here.”
“Where is here?” asked some of the guests.
Max smiled… “Disney World.”
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>> </center>
The guests and passengers of the new granolith spent the night onboard, as it was already, by this time, a bit late and nightfall had arrived. In the morning, they awoke to find breakfast ready and a four day Disney World pass at each of their places at the table.
“Where did you get these,” asked Andrew.
“Wow! These look so real,” said Nina, who had seen plenty of Disney World tickets and knew what they looked like.
Max grinned… “They are real. Michael and I went out this morning very early and waited for them to open so we could buy them. But we won’t need them to get into the park, only maybe to travel between the parks… we’re already inside the park.”
Indeed, during the night, the new granolith had moved from the bottom of the spring to a secluded and fairly well-hidden area behind the MGM Movie lot from which the guests and passengers would be able to come and go without being readily seen.
The ship didn’t actually sit on the ground. It had an anti-gravity lock system that allowed it to remain “locked” in a floating position while hovering above the ground at a set altitude. The normal “parking” altitude was fifteen feet, and Max felt that this was sufficient in this case. The ship would remain invisible as long as the invisibility factor remained on.
The guests and passengers were all led to the transportation room, which was rather crowded. Max moved his hand over a console, and a handprint appeared. He laid his hand on top of the handprint and placed a small crystal into the recessed area to the side of the handprint. The room brightened for a moment then was empty…
The guests and passengers of the new granolith were on the ground.
If anyone had been there to see it, the guests would have seemed to simply appear out of thin air. However, on this day, no one had seen the new guests arrive… And thirteen eager children were raring to go!
--------------------------End of Chapter 20
http://www.55on.com/55factslarge4.html
Gerry Carr, member of Skylab 4 crew, on viewing earth from outer space:
I would look at the earth's horizon and see the earth's atmosphere. It is very beautiful. It is blue and white and gold and orange. And it is so thin and fragil. That atmosphere is all that keeps earth habitable, but it's no thicker than the skin on an orange - no, thinner than that, like the skin on an apple. There's no way to explain how clearly you can see the fragility of the earth. You have to have been there.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>> </center>
No, it's not me! Just happen to have the same name! Skylab IV was aloft from November of 1973 to February of 1974. Gerald P. Carr (Gerry Carr) was Mission Commander. But my Dad had a signed picture of him and some correspondence about geneology stuff.
The Beginning of a Vacation
Chapter 20
XX
After everyone had finished dining, Max invited the new guests up to the observatory for a “most unusual” view. As the last of the guests arrived in the observatory, Max asked them what they saw. The guests looked…
“I don’t see anything out there but blackness,” said Andrew. “Did it get dark already? It seems too early still.”
Max smiled, “Well… it is night I guess where we are… Check out the horizon.”
Everyone looked toward the horizon and saw light breaking, then the crest of a large orb -a large blue orb- rose over the horizon… It was the Earth! For just a moment, they were confused… then they realized where they were…
“We’re behind the moon…” Andrew exclaimed. “We’re passing behind the dark side of the moon, and Earth is rising over the horizon!”
Max nodded, “Just before everyone was seated for dinner, Michael brought the new granolith here behind the moon where it would be completely hidden… just to be safe. Even though the ship has excellent stealth technologies, including a very excellent invisibility factor, we are still safest when we are concealed in a secluded place where nobody can accidentally collide with us because they can’t see us.”
Andrew nodded, “Yeah, I guess a small plane or something could fly right into you and never see you. Do birds ever fly into the ship?”
Max shook his head, “It hasn’t happened yet. We think that they can sense our presence or see us somehow. On our way here, we even picked up a flock of pelicans that escorted us along the coast.”
As the new granolith emerged completely from behind the moon, the dark sky shone brightly with the beautiful blue orb that was the Earth, leaving the guests breathless.
“It’s so much more beautiful from out here,” said Andrea. “I’ve seen pictures and all, but they don’t compare! This is incredible! This is just awesome!”
The group agreed.
“I can see the atmosphere like a thin shell around the Earth,” Lisa noted.
Max nodded, “That’s what the Commander of Skylab IV, Gerry Carr, said when he looked at the Earth from space… he compared Earth’s atmosphere to the skin on an apple.”
The new granolith glided back toward the Earth, as the Earth seemingly grew larger and larger. Twelve minutes and thirty-two seconds later, the new granolith skipped on the top of the atmosphere like a flat rock skipping along the top of a calm pond. Then like the rock, which sinks into the water, the new granolith glided into the atmosphere, heading towards Florida. Coming in from the north this time, the ship passed over Canada then, shortly, over New York, where Lisa tried to spot the general area where her home might be, but they were still pretty high up.
The ship glided down along the east coast then in across Orlando, stopping above Lake Apopka… it settled into the waters of the lake and sank to the bottom.
Michael, who was currently in control of the ship, looked at Varec. Varec nodded and passed his own hand over a console, and a small sonar-like monitor rose out of it. With the help of this device, Varec guided Michael and the new granolith beneath the waters of the lake to the entrance of an underground river that they had scanned long before arriving at Earth.
Now the new granolith cruised beneath the ground following the coursing underground river for several miles. Arriving at a good-sized spring, the ship settled on the bottom.
“Well guys,” said Max to the new guests and to the children and their parents who had come from Antar… “Our vacation begins here.”
“Where is here?” asked some of the guests.
Max smiled… “Disney World.”
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>> </center>
The guests and passengers of the new granolith spent the night onboard, as it was already, by this time, a bit late and nightfall had arrived. In the morning, they awoke to find breakfast ready and a four day Disney World pass at each of their places at the table.
“Where did you get these,” asked Andrew.
“Wow! These look so real,” said Nina, who had seen plenty of Disney World tickets and knew what they looked like.
Max grinned… “They are real. Michael and I went out this morning very early and waited for them to open so we could buy them. But we won’t need them to get into the park, only maybe to travel between the parks… we’re already inside the park.”
Indeed, during the night, the new granolith had moved from the bottom of the spring to a secluded and fairly well-hidden area behind the MGM Movie lot from which the guests and passengers would be able to come and go without being readily seen.
The ship didn’t actually sit on the ground. It had an anti-gravity lock system that allowed it to remain “locked” in a floating position while hovering above the ground at a set altitude. The normal “parking” altitude was fifteen feet, and Max felt that this was sufficient in this case. The ship would remain invisible as long as the invisibility factor remained on.
The guests and passengers were all led to the transportation room, which was rather crowded. Max moved his hand over a console, and a handprint appeared. He laid his hand on top of the handprint and placed a small crystal into the recessed area to the side of the handprint. The room brightened for a moment then was empty…
The guests and passengers of the new granolith were on the ground.
If anyone had been there to see it, the guests would have seemed to simply appear out of thin air. However, on this day, no one had seen the new guests arrive… And thirteen eager children were raring to go!
--------------------------End of Chapter 20
http://www.55on.com/55factslarge4.html
Gerry Carr, member of Skylab 4 crew, on viewing earth from outer space:
I would look at the earth's horizon and see the earth's atmosphere. It is very beautiful. It is blue and white and gold and orange. And it is so thin and fragil. That atmosphere is all that keeps earth habitable, but it's no thicker than the skin on an orange - no, thinner than that, like the skin on an apple. There's no way to explain how clearly you can see the fragility of the earth. You have to have been there.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>> </center>
No, it's not me! Just happen to have the same name! Skylab IV was aloft from November of 1973 to February of 1974. Gerald P. Carr (Gerry Carr) was Mission Commander. But my Dad had a signed picture of him and some correspondence about geneology stuff.
-
Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
Zorel Feels The Force
Chapter 21
XXI
The “guests” from Earth had been thoroughly briefed by Max onboard the new granolith as to the purpose of their having been contacted and what was being asked of them. All of them had been given the chance to back out. But Max knew that no one would. He could tell that everyone here was commited to this effort, to these children whom they had never actually met before, and to their own formerly lost, but now refound, heritage.
Kathleen Valenti had volunteered to “organize” the group. Her decision was to place each child under the direct supervision of his or her parents plus one guest escort per child.
Kathleen gathered the children around her…
“Alright, everyone is staying together… we aren’t going to split up, and you’re not to run off on your own… but each of you will have a special protector or escort. Maya… you will be responsible to your parents and to Nina. Andya… I’m putting you with Lisa. JoLeesa… you’re with Krys, and Alyyx… you’re with April. Of course, your parents, Max and Liz, will be with all of you, too. Zorel… your protector-escort is Lauren, Kryys… yours is Denise, and Jayyd… you’re with Roselle. And the three of you will be with your parents, Michael and Maria, too. Mareeya… your protector is Sabrina, and Ceelya… yours is Trude… and your parents, Alex and Isabel. Danyy… you’ll be with your Dad and me, and your protector is… Andrew. Liz-JoLee… besides your parents, Varec and Amy, your protector is… Andrea. Rayyn… your protector is Rachel, and Taz… your protector is Tracie… and of course your parents, Kyle and Jeliya. Anyone not assigned to watch a specific child will help with them all; and, of course, all the escorts and the parents will be watching out for all of the children, too.”
“Nina has volunteered to be our guide here,” said Max. “So, Nina… lead the way!”
Nina grinned. She could hardly decide where to start first. As they looked around them, they noticed that the line at ‘Star Tours’ appeared tolerable.
“Let’s go in!” urged Zorel, who was fascinated by the giant Imperial Walker from “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back” standing out front.
“Yes, let’s,” Andya and several of the others said.
After a not-too-terribly-long wait in line, the group was seated in the simulator, and the doors closed. C-3PO began narrating what was presumably to be a gentle, pleasant ride… but which would turn into a runaway “flight,” hurtling through space toward the “Death Star” with Luke Skywalker at the controls of their “X-Wing fighter.” Luke plunged into the trough that encircles the Death Star, bouncing back and forth between the walls, dodging laser fire… trying to connect with the “Force” in order to shoot a laser missile into a tiny vent opening leading to a critical area of the Death Star… It was the Death Star’s “Achilles heel,” the only place where it might be destroyed.
Luke fired and missed. He fired again… and again he missed…
“Luke! Feel the Force!” said a mysterious voice from beyond, the voice of jedi master, Obi-Wan-Kenobi.
Suddenly, a surge of greenish laser power hurtled right through the room, making a direct hit on the tiny opening, which was obliterated.
As the group exited the ride after it was over, some of the “riders” were commenting about the realism. One lady with a very high hairdo had had the top of her hairdo singed. It was still smoking. Inside the ride, MGM personnel were checking the screen and shaking their heads.
Once they were away, Michael turned to Zorel and gave him that look that only a father can give.
“What?”
“You know what!”
“Well he wasn’t hitting the right spot… I had to help him… just a little…”
Lauren started to apologize, “I didn’t see that coming… I…”
Michael and Max both started laughing. They laughed until they thought they would split a gut, “Welcome to our lives, Lauren! Twenty-four/seven! …reality, Antar style!”
“I’m sorry,” Zorel said apologetically.
Nina and Lauren explained to Zorel that the things he would see here weren’t always real and that Luke was supposed to hit the target with his next shot… it was all planned that way.
“They’re good kids,” said Max, smiling. “They just have to learn.”
“Where can we go next?” Zorel was already asking.
The other children, too, were anxious to see something new.
“Well, how about the Muppets 3-D Adventure,” said Nina.
“Okay,” said Zorel… “If it’s as good as ‘Star Tours!’”
Lauren looked at Zorel, “Zorel, if something in this show looks like it’s coming at you… maybe, say, it looks like you’re going to get hit in the face with a pie or something… don’t blast it! Okay?”
“Okay,” Zorel agreed. “I understand… It’s just an illusion, right?”
Lauren and Nina both nodded.
The Muppets 3-D Adventure went without a hitch, and the children loved the effects. After that, Nina led them to the “Backlot Tour,” also known as “Catastrophe Canyon.”
“Will that really fly,” Ceelya Whitman asked, fascinated by the little flying saucer from the Disney film, “Voyage of the Navigator. “I wish I had one of those to play with!”
Trude explained that it was used in a movie and didn’t really fly.
The tanker explosion got everyone’s attention, but the highlight -especially for the kids- was the deluge of water that they had not expected. Jayyd wound up sitting in Roselle’s lap, and several of the children very nearly wound up on top of each other trying to get away from the torrent of water as it cascaded toward their tram. They were still laughing long after they had left the ride.
The Backlot Tour ride had put them off right by a place called “The Loony Bin,” so the group went in and checked out all the special cartoon gadgets, gags, and sets. All of the children had to have their pictures taken lying underneath the steamroller. Taz was having a great time opening the crates and boxes, listening to the unexpected sound effects. To tell the truth, Varec was helping him open them and seemed to be enjoying it as much as Taz.
Exiting on the other side of The Loony Bin, they came across “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids,” and all the children had a ball pretending to be ant-sized on the giant sets.
Finally, Michael pointed to one last place that stood out that they had not visited, the “Tower of Terror.”
Nina smiled, “Are you sure you want to go there?”
“Who, me? Michael Guerin? It doesn’t look so scary,” Michael said.
Nina led the group to the “Tower of Terror.”
“Piece of cake!” said Michael as they exited after the “ride.”
Maria grinned as she put her arm around Michael to help him walk straight.
If their vacation continued to be as successful as this day had been, it would surely be the vacation of a lifetime. The children weren’t the only ones enjoying it. The parents and escorts were having a great time! For everyone, it had been a blast… in more ways than one. The group made its way back to the new granolith, and Max used a remote device programmed to his DNA to activate the transporter. One second, they were standing behind the Backlot… the next, they were gone.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
In front of one of the little shops not far from where the group had just been, a previously “inanimate” movie prop character slowly raised its head and took out a pen and notebook then casually scribbled some notes.
--------------------------End of Chapter 21
Zorel Feels The Force
Chapter 21
XXI
The “guests” from Earth had been thoroughly briefed by Max onboard the new granolith as to the purpose of their having been contacted and what was being asked of them. All of them had been given the chance to back out. But Max knew that no one would. He could tell that everyone here was commited to this effort, to these children whom they had never actually met before, and to their own formerly lost, but now refound, heritage.
Kathleen Valenti had volunteered to “organize” the group. Her decision was to place each child under the direct supervision of his or her parents plus one guest escort per child.
Kathleen gathered the children around her…
“Alright, everyone is staying together… we aren’t going to split up, and you’re not to run off on your own… but each of you will have a special protector or escort. Maya… you will be responsible to your parents and to Nina. Andya… I’m putting you with Lisa. JoLeesa… you’re with Krys, and Alyyx… you’re with April. Of course, your parents, Max and Liz, will be with all of you, too. Zorel… your protector-escort is Lauren, Kryys… yours is Denise, and Jayyd… you’re with Roselle. And the three of you will be with your parents, Michael and Maria, too. Mareeya… your protector is Sabrina, and Ceelya… yours is Trude… and your parents, Alex and Isabel. Danyy… you’ll be with your Dad and me, and your protector is… Andrew. Liz-JoLee… besides your parents, Varec and Amy, your protector is… Andrea. Rayyn… your protector is Rachel, and Taz… your protector is Tracie… and of course your parents, Kyle and Jeliya. Anyone not assigned to watch a specific child will help with them all; and, of course, all the escorts and the parents will be watching out for all of the children, too.”
“Nina has volunteered to be our guide here,” said Max. “So, Nina… lead the way!”
Nina grinned. She could hardly decide where to start first. As they looked around them, they noticed that the line at ‘Star Tours’ appeared tolerable.
“Let’s go in!” urged Zorel, who was fascinated by the giant Imperial Walker from “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back” standing out front.
“Yes, let’s,” Andya and several of the others said.
After a not-too-terribly-long wait in line, the group was seated in the simulator, and the doors closed. C-3PO began narrating what was presumably to be a gentle, pleasant ride… but which would turn into a runaway “flight,” hurtling through space toward the “Death Star” with Luke Skywalker at the controls of their “X-Wing fighter.” Luke plunged into the trough that encircles the Death Star, bouncing back and forth between the walls, dodging laser fire… trying to connect with the “Force” in order to shoot a laser missile into a tiny vent opening leading to a critical area of the Death Star… It was the Death Star’s “Achilles heel,” the only place where it might be destroyed.
Luke fired and missed. He fired again… and again he missed…
“Luke! Feel the Force!” said a mysterious voice from beyond, the voice of jedi master, Obi-Wan-Kenobi.
Suddenly, a surge of greenish laser power hurtled right through the room, making a direct hit on the tiny opening, which was obliterated.
As the group exited the ride after it was over, some of the “riders” were commenting about the realism. One lady with a very high hairdo had had the top of her hairdo singed. It was still smoking. Inside the ride, MGM personnel were checking the screen and shaking their heads.
Once they were away, Michael turned to Zorel and gave him that look that only a father can give.
“What?”
“You know what!”
“Well he wasn’t hitting the right spot… I had to help him… just a little…”
Lauren started to apologize, “I didn’t see that coming… I…”
Michael and Max both started laughing. They laughed until they thought they would split a gut, “Welcome to our lives, Lauren! Twenty-four/seven! …reality, Antar style!”
“I’m sorry,” Zorel said apologetically.
Nina and Lauren explained to Zorel that the things he would see here weren’t always real and that Luke was supposed to hit the target with his next shot… it was all planned that way.
“They’re good kids,” said Max, smiling. “They just have to learn.”
“Where can we go next?” Zorel was already asking.
The other children, too, were anxious to see something new.
“Well, how about the Muppets 3-D Adventure,” said Nina.
“Okay,” said Zorel… “If it’s as good as ‘Star Tours!’”
Lauren looked at Zorel, “Zorel, if something in this show looks like it’s coming at you… maybe, say, it looks like you’re going to get hit in the face with a pie or something… don’t blast it! Okay?”
“Okay,” Zorel agreed. “I understand… It’s just an illusion, right?”
Lauren and Nina both nodded.
The Muppets 3-D Adventure went without a hitch, and the children loved the effects. After that, Nina led them to the “Backlot Tour,” also known as “Catastrophe Canyon.”
“Will that really fly,” Ceelya Whitman asked, fascinated by the little flying saucer from the Disney film, “Voyage of the Navigator. “I wish I had one of those to play with!”
Trude explained that it was used in a movie and didn’t really fly.
The tanker explosion got everyone’s attention, but the highlight -especially for the kids- was the deluge of water that they had not expected. Jayyd wound up sitting in Roselle’s lap, and several of the children very nearly wound up on top of each other trying to get away from the torrent of water as it cascaded toward their tram. They were still laughing long after they had left the ride.
The Backlot Tour ride had put them off right by a place called “The Loony Bin,” so the group went in and checked out all the special cartoon gadgets, gags, and sets. All of the children had to have their pictures taken lying underneath the steamroller. Taz was having a great time opening the crates and boxes, listening to the unexpected sound effects. To tell the truth, Varec was helping him open them and seemed to be enjoying it as much as Taz.
Exiting on the other side of The Loony Bin, they came across “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids,” and all the children had a ball pretending to be ant-sized on the giant sets.
Finally, Michael pointed to one last place that stood out that they had not visited, the “Tower of Terror.”
Nina smiled, “Are you sure you want to go there?”
“Who, me? Michael Guerin? It doesn’t look so scary,” Michael said.
Nina led the group to the “Tower of Terror.”
“Piece of cake!” said Michael as they exited after the “ride.”
Maria grinned as she put her arm around Michael to help him walk straight.
If their vacation continued to be as successful as this day had been, it would surely be the vacation of a lifetime. The children weren’t the only ones enjoying it. The parents and escorts were having a great time! For everyone, it had been a blast… in more ways than one. The group made its way back to the new granolith, and Max used a remote device programmed to his DNA to activate the transporter. One second, they were standing behind the Backlot… the next, they were gone.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
In front of one of the little shops not far from where the group had just been, a previously “inanimate” movie prop character slowly raised its head and took out a pen and notebook then casually scribbled some notes.
--------------------------End of Chapter 21
-
Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
Land of the Magic Mouse
Chapter 22
XXII
The group began the second day of their “vacation,” transporting from the new granolith to the ground below behind the back lot of the Disney-MGM Studios.
“Well,” said Michael… “Lead us on to our great adventure, Nina!”
“Yeah!” all the children agreed enthusiastically. “Where are we going next?”
“I think we should go to the Magic Kingdom,” Nina replied, “you know, just because it is, after all, the best of the four parks…
We’ll have to stay and watch Spectro-Magic at night… and the fire works, which are set off by Tinkerbell flying from one of the stairs of Cinderella's castle into the trees by the crowd. We also have to ride the ‘Its A Small World’ Ride, ‘Snow White's Scary Adventure’, ‘The Mad Hatter's Tea Party,’ the ‘Haunted House’ -by far my all time favorite as cheesy as it is- ‘…Splash Mountain,’ ‘Space Mountain,’ ‘Alien Encounters,’ the ‘Carousel of Progress,’ ‘Pirate's of the Caribbean,’ the ‘Jungle Cruise;’ and of course we have to watch the shows, lots of shows. We have to have our pictures made with Mickey, Minnie, Tigger -my personal fav-, Pluto, Goofy… There is also Toon Town where Mickey and Minnie both have houses… and they are so cute with the cartoon-themed houses. There is so much to see and do that in order to do Disney justice, four days is not really long enough! But… we’ll do what we can!”
Michael laughed, “Sounds great to me! You can breathe now, Nina!”
The children all agreed that it sounded great and were unable to hide their obvious eagerness to get there, so the group headed off to catch the monorail to the Magic Kingdom.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
“Magic Kingdom, straight ahead!” said Nina. The monorail came to a gentle stop, and the doors opened automatically. After passing through the gates and entering the Magic Kingdom park, the group walked down ‘Main Street USA’ toward Cinderella’s Castle.
“Wow!” said JoLeesa, “What a really cool castle! It’s got all those towers and things!”
Nina smiled, “Yeah! We’ll see it inside a little later. It’s a lot of fun!”
After looking at the Disney Magic Kingdom attractions map, Jayyd, Ceelya, and Liz-JoLee, three of the youngest children in the group, begged to see Mickey’s Toontown Fair first, so the group took the old train that goes around the Magic Kingdom and got off near Mickey’s Toontown on the back side of the park. It turned out that all the children, and apparently even the adults, had a great time seeing Mickey and Minnie’s little houses, Donald’s boat, and all the other fun things there.
After Mickey’s Toontown, Zorel and Danyy wanted to try the roller coasters, so Nina took them all over to Frontierland to ride ‘Thunder Mountain Railroad.’ Jayyd was just tall enough to ride, and she wasn’t about to be left out! As they waited in a lengthy line that wound back and forth, they watched steam and water blow from geysers in the mountain. The group finally boarded the train themselves, and they were off… Immediately, the “train” became a runaway, hurtling through mines and tunnels and around the precipices on the edge of the mountain.
Over the mountain they went… then down, down, down… faster and faster… through the mine. Huge boulders fell, and wooden arches collapsed in front of the train, appearing to block the tracks, dooming the speeding runaway train. Then the train dropped suddenly, passing beneath the fallen arches. Soon they were out of the tunnel and careening around the edge of the mountain then down toward the geysers and dinosaur bones that stuck out of the ground. Kyle and Jeliya seemed to be having a great time… so did all the rest of the group.
After the ride came to an end, they all exited, laughing and comparing opinions. Varec was very impressed by the scientific aspects of the “train,” and if his huge smile was any indication, he had also enjoyed the ride. Max and Michael were having so much fun they were beginning to look like two children in a candy store.
“I want to ride another roller coaster,” Zorel stated emphatically.
“Okay,” said Nina. “There’s ‘Space Mountain…” but since we’re over here already, let’s ride ‘Splash Mountain.’ That’s a really cool ride!”
After standing for several minutes at the fence and watching the log boats plummet several stories down from the mountain cave opening into the water below, Zorel and Danyy couldn’t wait to get on. The group had to take a special number and return to get on this ride, since the lines were quite long. Finally, they were all seated in several log boats, and their adventure began.
At first, it seemed rather gentle, even slow… as the log meandered its way around the outside of the mountain then into the mountain, where Brer Bear, Brer Fox, Brer Rabbit, and a huge cast of animatronic characters sang "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" and other songs of the ‘Deep South’ and joked and played for them. By the time they arrived at the hill leading up to the big drop, they had almost forgotten about the coming plunge… almost… but not quite! The final hill jogged their memory as the log was pulled slowly up… and up… finally settling over the edge of the cave opening, tilting down, then plunging several stories almost vertically, as torrents of water sprayed the occupants. Then the log boat settled once more into a slow, pleasant meandering journey until it reached its final destination.
After dismounting, Nina told the group that she had a surprise for them. She took them by the desk inside, and the staff pulled up several pictures on the computer for them to see… a photograph of each boat just as it had plunged over the edge of the cliff.
There was Amy in the front of her boat, holding the bar in front of her, eyes closed tight, but wearing a huge smile. Beside her was Varec, grinning from ear to ear, one hand in the air and the other around Amy. Jim and Kathleen were in the back of the same boat; both had their hands in the air and huge grins, looking like veteran riders. Between Varec and Amy in the front and Jim and Kathleen in the back of the boat were a number of children and adults, with varying looks ranging from “delighted terror” to “I-think-this-is-fun-but-shoot-me-if-I-ever-agree-to-do-it-again.”
The staff printed out an 8x10 picture of each boat and put it in a special souvenir folder. Max paid for each person in the group to receive a photograph of his or her boat.
Michael and Max were enjoying the looks on Maria and Liz’s faces as they had plunged over the cliff. Zorel’s eyes were wider than anyone had ever seen them, but Jayyd, the youngest of the group, seemed to have taken the sudden plunge with nothing but a smile on her face.
The photographs became almost as big a hit as the ride.
After Splash Mountain, the group went to see the ‘Country Bear Jamboree,’ where they could sit for a while and just relax and watch the show. Everybody loved the hilarious, wisecracking bears and the wonders of the animatronics that went into their creation. The children laughed and laughed at the funny jug-playing, washboard-playing, fiddle-playing bears and their funny way of talking and singing. They also got a real kick out of the talking moose head and other talking wall-mounts and the girl bear that came down out of the ceiling on a swing over the audience. The escorts had explained to all the children beforehand that what they were going to see were animated fake animals, not real animals, and even the youngest of the children seemed amazed and impressed by this fact as much as by the show.
Next, the group saw Tom Sawyer’s Island, rode Mike Fink’s Keelboats, and climbed into the giant Swiss Family Treehouse. They were surprised to learn that, despite its real looks, the huge tree that holds this multi-level treehouse is made of vinyl and has 800,000 vinyl leaves.
By now, some of the group realized that they were getting hungry.
“Where do you think we should eat, Nina,” asked Max.
This was like asking a child in a toy store to pick one toy. “We simply have to have dinner at one of the many restaurants that do Character Dining,” Nina replied. “My favorite is at the Contemporary Resort where there is a place called ‘Chef Mickey's’ where Goofy 'cooks' for you and the others come around while you dine and visit you… it’s a buffet-type place. I also like dinner at the Crystal Palace in the Magic Kingdom where the characters come to see you. I once had dinner at Cinderella's Castle and the staff came around all dressed as palace servants, princes, and princesses. That was fun! But you need priority reservations to be sure to get in…”
Just then a man walked up to Nina and handed her something then walked away. Nina started to ask him what it was, but then she looked at the object in her hand. It was reservations for a family-style Character Dinner at the Liberty Tree Tavern Restaurant.
“Thank you,” Nina said, looking up… “What do you want for these…” but the man was already gone.
“That was strange,” said Nina, not knowing what to think. I’ve never had that happen before!”
Since they had the reservations, the group decided to try it and were delighted. Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, and other characters posed with them for pictures as they ate. Jayyd gave Pluto a big kiss on the nose, and Pluto put his hand over his mouth, seeming shy and delighted. Minnie and Mickey waved and walked around the room interacting with the diners. So did Chip and Dale. Everyone had a great time, and dinner was a big success. They also enjoyed the food, which was constantly refilled, family-style, until everyone had had all they wanted.
Varec carefully put the top back on a bottle of half-finished Birch Beer, a flavorful brew similar to Root Beer, and started to put it into his pocket.
“What are you doing,” asked Amy.
“I’m going to find out how this is made and synthesize it when we get home.”
Amy shook her head and smiled at Maria and Liz. They smiled, too. The day wasn't yet done, and everyone was having a great time in the Magic Kingdom.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
In Roswell, New Mexico, someone else was eating his mid-afternoon lunch, but he was not in a good mood, and his lunch consisted mostly of… another beer. Along with the other patrons at the bar, he was watching sports on the TV over the bar and drinking, when someone began flipping the channel. For a moment, the channel settled on a view of large crowds walking around somewhere. Zwolinski was uninterested and unamused by the changing of the channel. But as he looked, he became suddenly very interested…
“Turn it up! Turn it up, dammit! Turn it up! I need to hear what they’re saying!”
It was an advertisement for a new Disney World production, and a live camera somewhere in Disney World had taken some footage within the last couple of hours showing visitors walking around in the park.
Zwolinski looked again… closer… then he leapt from his seat onto the bar, putting his face almost into the screen, grabbing the TV with both hands, almost pulling it off the wall.
“It is him! It is! He got rid of the pointy hair, but I still know him… And there! There’s the other one! I’ve got them! I’ve got them!”
The patrons of the bar were less thrilled than Zwolinski, who was standing on one particularly big guy’s hotdog, his foot grinding it into the counter with the beers he had kicked over. The other patrons pulled him down off the bar by the feet, dropping him on his head… but Zwolinski didn’t seem to care. He was out the door and gone.
-----------------------End of Chapter 22
Land of the Magic Mouse
Chapter 22
XXII
The group began the second day of their “vacation,” transporting from the new granolith to the ground below behind the back lot of the Disney-MGM Studios.
“Well,” said Michael… “Lead us on to our great adventure, Nina!”
“Yeah!” all the children agreed enthusiastically. “Where are we going next?”
“I think we should go to the Magic Kingdom,” Nina replied, “you know, just because it is, after all, the best of the four parks…
We’ll have to stay and watch Spectro-Magic at night… and the fire works, which are set off by Tinkerbell flying from one of the stairs of Cinderella's castle into the trees by the crowd. We also have to ride the ‘Its A Small World’ Ride, ‘Snow White's Scary Adventure’, ‘The Mad Hatter's Tea Party,’ the ‘Haunted House’ -by far my all time favorite as cheesy as it is- ‘…Splash Mountain,’ ‘Space Mountain,’ ‘Alien Encounters,’ the ‘Carousel of Progress,’ ‘Pirate's of the Caribbean,’ the ‘Jungle Cruise;’ and of course we have to watch the shows, lots of shows. We have to have our pictures made with Mickey, Minnie, Tigger -my personal fav-, Pluto, Goofy… There is also Toon Town where Mickey and Minnie both have houses… and they are so cute with the cartoon-themed houses. There is so much to see and do that in order to do Disney justice, four days is not really long enough! But… we’ll do what we can!”
Michael laughed, “Sounds great to me! You can breathe now, Nina!”
The children all agreed that it sounded great and were unable to hide their obvious eagerness to get there, so the group headed off to catch the monorail to the Magic Kingdom.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
“Magic Kingdom, straight ahead!” said Nina. The monorail came to a gentle stop, and the doors opened automatically. After passing through the gates and entering the Magic Kingdom park, the group walked down ‘Main Street USA’ toward Cinderella’s Castle.
“Wow!” said JoLeesa, “What a really cool castle! It’s got all those towers and things!”
Nina smiled, “Yeah! We’ll see it inside a little later. It’s a lot of fun!”
After looking at the Disney Magic Kingdom attractions map, Jayyd, Ceelya, and Liz-JoLee, three of the youngest children in the group, begged to see Mickey’s Toontown Fair first, so the group took the old train that goes around the Magic Kingdom and got off near Mickey’s Toontown on the back side of the park. It turned out that all the children, and apparently even the adults, had a great time seeing Mickey and Minnie’s little houses, Donald’s boat, and all the other fun things there.
After Mickey’s Toontown, Zorel and Danyy wanted to try the roller coasters, so Nina took them all over to Frontierland to ride ‘Thunder Mountain Railroad.’ Jayyd was just tall enough to ride, and she wasn’t about to be left out! As they waited in a lengthy line that wound back and forth, they watched steam and water blow from geysers in the mountain. The group finally boarded the train themselves, and they were off… Immediately, the “train” became a runaway, hurtling through mines and tunnels and around the precipices on the edge of the mountain.
Over the mountain they went… then down, down, down… faster and faster… through the mine. Huge boulders fell, and wooden arches collapsed in front of the train, appearing to block the tracks, dooming the speeding runaway train. Then the train dropped suddenly, passing beneath the fallen arches. Soon they were out of the tunnel and careening around the edge of the mountain then down toward the geysers and dinosaur bones that stuck out of the ground. Kyle and Jeliya seemed to be having a great time… so did all the rest of the group.
After the ride came to an end, they all exited, laughing and comparing opinions. Varec was very impressed by the scientific aspects of the “train,” and if his huge smile was any indication, he had also enjoyed the ride. Max and Michael were having so much fun they were beginning to look like two children in a candy store.
“I want to ride another roller coaster,” Zorel stated emphatically.
“Okay,” said Nina. “There’s ‘Space Mountain…” but since we’re over here already, let’s ride ‘Splash Mountain.’ That’s a really cool ride!”
After standing for several minutes at the fence and watching the log boats plummet several stories down from the mountain cave opening into the water below, Zorel and Danyy couldn’t wait to get on. The group had to take a special number and return to get on this ride, since the lines were quite long. Finally, they were all seated in several log boats, and their adventure began.
At first, it seemed rather gentle, even slow… as the log meandered its way around the outside of the mountain then into the mountain, where Brer Bear, Brer Fox, Brer Rabbit, and a huge cast of animatronic characters sang "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" and other songs of the ‘Deep South’ and joked and played for them. By the time they arrived at the hill leading up to the big drop, they had almost forgotten about the coming plunge… almost… but not quite! The final hill jogged their memory as the log was pulled slowly up… and up… finally settling over the edge of the cave opening, tilting down, then plunging several stories almost vertically, as torrents of water sprayed the occupants. Then the log boat settled once more into a slow, pleasant meandering journey until it reached its final destination.
After dismounting, Nina told the group that she had a surprise for them. She took them by the desk inside, and the staff pulled up several pictures on the computer for them to see… a photograph of each boat just as it had plunged over the edge of the cliff.
There was Amy in the front of her boat, holding the bar in front of her, eyes closed tight, but wearing a huge smile. Beside her was Varec, grinning from ear to ear, one hand in the air and the other around Amy. Jim and Kathleen were in the back of the same boat; both had their hands in the air and huge grins, looking like veteran riders. Between Varec and Amy in the front and Jim and Kathleen in the back of the boat were a number of children and adults, with varying looks ranging from “delighted terror” to “I-think-this-is-fun-but-shoot-me-if-I-ever-agree-to-do-it-again.”
The staff printed out an 8x10 picture of each boat and put it in a special souvenir folder. Max paid for each person in the group to receive a photograph of his or her boat.
Michael and Max were enjoying the looks on Maria and Liz’s faces as they had plunged over the cliff. Zorel’s eyes were wider than anyone had ever seen them, but Jayyd, the youngest of the group, seemed to have taken the sudden plunge with nothing but a smile on her face.
The photographs became almost as big a hit as the ride.
After Splash Mountain, the group went to see the ‘Country Bear Jamboree,’ where they could sit for a while and just relax and watch the show. Everybody loved the hilarious, wisecracking bears and the wonders of the animatronics that went into their creation. The children laughed and laughed at the funny jug-playing, washboard-playing, fiddle-playing bears and their funny way of talking and singing. They also got a real kick out of the talking moose head and other talking wall-mounts and the girl bear that came down out of the ceiling on a swing over the audience. The escorts had explained to all the children beforehand that what they were going to see were animated fake animals, not real animals, and even the youngest of the children seemed amazed and impressed by this fact as much as by the show.
Next, the group saw Tom Sawyer’s Island, rode Mike Fink’s Keelboats, and climbed into the giant Swiss Family Treehouse. They were surprised to learn that, despite its real looks, the huge tree that holds this multi-level treehouse is made of vinyl and has 800,000 vinyl leaves.
By now, some of the group realized that they were getting hungry.
“Where do you think we should eat, Nina,” asked Max.
This was like asking a child in a toy store to pick one toy. “We simply have to have dinner at one of the many restaurants that do Character Dining,” Nina replied. “My favorite is at the Contemporary Resort where there is a place called ‘Chef Mickey's’ where Goofy 'cooks' for you and the others come around while you dine and visit you… it’s a buffet-type place. I also like dinner at the Crystal Palace in the Magic Kingdom where the characters come to see you. I once had dinner at Cinderella's Castle and the staff came around all dressed as palace servants, princes, and princesses. That was fun! But you need priority reservations to be sure to get in…”
Just then a man walked up to Nina and handed her something then walked away. Nina started to ask him what it was, but then she looked at the object in her hand. It was reservations for a family-style Character Dinner at the Liberty Tree Tavern Restaurant.
“Thank you,” Nina said, looking up… “What do you want for these…” but the man was already gone.
“That was strange,” said Nina, not knowing what to think. I’ve never had that happen before!”
Since they had the reservations, the group decided to try it and were delighted. Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, and other characters posed with them for pictures as they ate. Jayyd gave Pluto a big kiss on the nose, and Pluto put his hand over his mouth, seeming shy and delighted. Minnie and Mickey waved and walked around the room interacting with the diners. So did Chip and Dale. Everyone had a great time, and dinner was a big success. They also enjoyed the food, which was constantly refilled, family-style, until everyone had had all they wanted.
Varec carefully put the top back on a bottle of half-finished Birch Beer, a flavorful brew similar to Root Beer, and started to put it into his pocket.
“What are you doing,” asked Amy.
“I’m going to find out how this is made and synthesize it when we get home.”
Amy shook her head and smiled at Maria and Liz. They smiled, too. The day wasn't yet done, and everyone was having a great time in the Magic Kingdom.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
In Roswell, New Mexico, someone else was eating his mid-afternoon lunch, but he was not in a good mood, and his lunch consisted mostly of… another beer. Along with the other patrons at the bar, he was watching sports on the TV over the bar and drinking, when someone began flipping the channel. For a moment, the channel settled on a view of large crowds walking around somewhere. Zwolinski was uninterested and unamused by the changing of the channel. But as he looked, he became suddenly very interested…
“Turn it up! Turn it up, dammit! Turn it up! I need to hear what they’re saying!”
It was an advertisement for a new Disney World production, and a live camera somewhere in Disney World had taken some footage within the last couple of hours showing visitors walking around in the park.
Zwolinski looked again… closer… then he leapt from his seat onto the bar, putting his face almost into the screen, grabbing the TV with both hands, almost pulling it off the wall.
“It is him! It is! He got rid of the pointy hair, but I still know him… And there! There’s the other one! I’ve got them! I’ve got them!”
The patrons of the bar were less thrilled than Zwolinski, who was standing on one particularly big guy’s hotdog, his foot grinding it into the counter with the beers he had kicked over. The other patrons pulled him down off the bar by the feet, dropping him on his head… but Zwolinski didn’t seem to care. He was out the door and gone.
-----------------------End of Chapter 22
-
Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
Haunted By the Past
Chapter 23
XXIII
Agent Stone of the FBI shook his head… “Zwolinski, you’re not an agent anymore… your unit doesn’t even exist anymore, for God’s sake! How do you expect me to give you men for a mission? What proof do you have that there are ‘aliens’ in Disney World?”
Agents Mitchell and Sanders, standing stiffly off to one side, snickered and looked at each other. Agent Sanders made a circular motion with one finger beside his head, and Mitchell nodded his agreement.
“Zwolinski, you’re a wild card! …You’re a… a loose screw… a loose cannon! You’ve been discredited in the FBI! It took all our connections and everything up to the President himself to straighten out the mess you left us in! The best thing you could do would be to turn around and walk out of here the way you came in.”
Zwolinski scowled, picking up his papers. He huffed then turned and walked out the door, but not before leaving them with a final word…
“I’ll be back! If it’s proof you want, it’s proof you’ll get! But I’ll be back! Count on it!”
Agents Mitchell and Sanders looked at Agent Stone then at each other, shaking their heads…
“Pathetic…” Mitchell said. “The man’s a certified loonytoon!” The three men chuckled and went about their regular routines again.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Meanwhile, in the Magic Kingdom at Disney World, Max, Michael, Liz, Maria, and all the other Antarians, children, and escorts were having the time of their lives! After finishing dinner, they had gone to see a couple of shows, one of which was the “Hall of Presidents.”
Nina kept thinking about the mysterious man who had walked up to her and given her the reservations right when they needed them. It worried her a little… she didn’t know why… but he had seemed nice enough. He certainly wasn’t any Zwolinski. She decided to put it out of mind and enjoy the show. “Someone just being nice, doing a good deed, probably.”
The life-sized, lifelike “presidents” in the “Hall of Presidents” particularly impressed everyone. All the presidents were animatronic, but they looked, sounded, and acted quite real. When Abraham Lincoln stood up and spoke, introducing all the presidents from George Washington to the current one, as each one stood up in turn, many in the audience got goosebumps… the feeling that they were actually in the company of these historical figures.
Even the Antarian children were impressed, having learned about some of these men during their studies with Kathleen Valenti during the trip to Earth. Seeing them “come to life” now in front of them was delightful.
After visiting the “Hall of Presidents,” Nina made sure that the Haunted Mansion, one of her all-time favorites, was next on the list. It was one that she absolutely did not want them to miss. Inside the mansion, the group jumped into the little moving canopied seats in groups of three. The seats rotated this way and that as they carried everyone through the Haunted Mansion, delighting the children to no end; and the realistic-looking dancing ghosts surprised and delighted everyone.
When a ghost appeared in the seat next to the riders in each car, the children tried unsuccessfully to find and catch it.
After seeing the Haunted Mansion, Nina took them to “Tomorrowland” another section of the Magic Kingdom. Here, the older children and some of the adults rode “Space Mountain,” which has always had a reputation for being an awesome roller coaster. As they climbed into the small, narrow cars, they saw that the vehicles are meant to be little spaceships. Soon, they found out why. As they plunged over the top of the first hill, they felt as though they were hurtling through the darkness of space, dropping, climbing, and careening in sharp turns that they could not see until they happened. Visually, they only saw ‘stars’ streaking by. The ride was mostly in the dark.
The “Carousel of Progress” was next on the agenda. Here, the guests watched a show “starring” a family and the family dog. It started with a scene set in the early 1900’s or late 1800’s. The man, who was animatronic –as were his dog and his family- boasted of and showed off all the family’s “new-fangled inventions, gadgets, and conveniences” that had made their lives so much better in this “wonderful time in which they lived.” When he finished, he sang a catchy song about it being “the best of times,” as the entire audience, which was on a carousel, rotated to the next scene… It was the same man and his family in what was probably the 1920’s… And so on it went, each scene becoming more and more modern, illustrating the progress that mankind has made over the last century.
The “scientist” in Varec in particular was utterly enthralled and delighted by this show that illustrated in such an entertaining way how inventions and conveniences had developed on Earth over the past century. On Antar, where civilization is far more ancient and advanced, science and invention far outpace that on Earth, so to Varec, this was a return to a distant past that he could not readily reach out and touch until now.
When the group left the Carousel of Progress, it was night already, and Nina took them to a place near the castle where they could watch the upcoming “SpectroMagic Parade.” The crowds were already gathering in huge numbers along the parade route in expectation of the parade. For many visitors to the park, this would be the highlight of the visit, and the parade route is always crowded well before parade time with people trying to get a good place from which to watch the show.
After a fairly long wait, filled with anticipation, the guests heard music; soon, they saw the approaching floats. It seemed that the parade went on forever! And everyone loved it from beginning to end!
A bit later, they watched as Tinkerbell flew from the stairs of the castle into the trees next to the crowd and set off one of the amazing fireworks shows for which Disney World is famous. Then Nina led them to the monorail, and they returned to the ship to wait for tomorrow… and another wonderful day full of adventure.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Meanwhile, at a cheap little motel outside of Kissimmee, Zwolinski was looking through videos and photographs he had taken late in the evening at the Magic Kingdom. He set several photographs aside, carefully laying them out in order on the bed: Michael, Max, Liz, Maria, Amy, Sheriff Valenti… then he sat up suddenly as though he had seen a ghost. For a moment, Zwolinski seemed shaken, but then he regained his composure and laid the photo down by the others… Kathleen Topolsky.
------------------------End of Chapter 23
Haunted By the Past
Chapter 23
XXIII
Agent Stone of the FBI shook his head… “Zwolinski, you’re not an agent anymore… your unit doesn’t even exist anymore, for God’s sake! How do you expect me to give you men for a mission? What proof do you have that there are ‘aliens’ in Disney World?”
Agents Mitchell and Sanders, standing stiffly off to one side, snickered and looked at each other. Agent Sanders made a circular motion with one finger beside his head, and Mitchell nodded his agreement.
“Zwolinski, you’re a wild card! …You’re a… a loose screw… a loose cannon! You’ve been discredited in the FBI! It took all our connections and everything up to the President himself to straighten out the mess you left us in! The best thing you could do would be to turn around and walk out of here the way you came in.”
Zwolinski scowled, picking up his papers. He huffed then turned and walked out the door, but not before leaving them with a final word…
“I’ll be back! If it’s proof you want, it’s proof you’ll get! But I’ll be back! Count on it!”
Agents Mitchell and Sanders looked at Agent Stone then at each other, shaking their heads…
“Pathetic…” Mitchell said. “The man’s a certified loonytoon!” The three men chuckled and went about their regular routines again.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Meanwhile, in the Magic Kingdom at Disney World, Max, Michael, Liz, Maria, and all the other Antarians, children, and escorts were having the time of their lives! After finishing dinner, they had gone to see a couple of shows, one of which was the “Hall of Presidents.”
Nina kept thinking about the mysterious man who had walked up to her and given her the reservations right when they needed them. It worried her a little… she didn’t know why… but he had seemed nice enough. He certainly wasn’t any Zwolinski. She decided to put it out of mind and enjoy the show. “Someone just being nice, doing a good deed, probably.”
The life-sized, lifelike “presidents” in the “Hall of Presidents” particularly impressed everyone. All the presidents were animatronic, but they looked, sounded, and acted quite real. When Abraham Lincoln stood up and spoke, introducing all the presidents from George Washington to the current one, as each one stood up in turn, many in the audience got goosebumps… the feeling that they were actually in the company of these historical figures.
Even the Antarian children were impressed, having learned about some of these men during their studies with Kathleen Valenti during the trip to Earth. Seeing them “come to life” now in front of them was delightful.
After visiting the “Hall of Presidents,” Nina made sure that the Haunted Mansion, one of her all-time favorites, was next on the list. It was one that she absolutely did not want them to miss. Inside the mansion, the group jumped into the little moving canopied seats in groups of three. The seats rotated this way and that as they carried everyone through the Haunted Mansion, delighting the children to no end; and the realistic-looking dancing ghosts surprised and delighted everyone.
When a ghost appeared in the seat next to the riders in each car, the children tried unsuccessfully to find and catch it.
After seeing the Haunted Mansion, Nina took them to “Tomorrowland” another section of the Magic Kingdom. Here, the older children and some of the adults rode “Space Mountain,” which has always had a reputation for being an awesome roller coaster. As they climbed into the small, narrow cars, they saw that the vehicles are meant to be little spaceships. Soon, they found out why. As they plunged over the top of the first hill, they felt as though they were hurtling through the darkness of space, dropping, climbing, and careening in sharp turns that they could not see until they happened. Visually, they only saw ‘stars’ streaking by. The ride was mostly in the dark.
The “Carousel of Progress” was next on the agenda. Here, the guests watched a show “starring” a family and the family dog. It started with a scene set in the early 1900’s or late 1800’s. The man, who was animatronic –as were his dog and his family- boasted of and showed off all the family’s “new-fangled inventions, gadgets, and conveniences” that had made their lives so much better in this “wonderful time in which they lived.” When he finished, he sang a catchy song about it being “the best of times,” as the entire audience, which was on a carousel, rotated to the next scene… It was the same man and his family in what was probably the 1920’s… And so on it went, each scene becoming more and more modern, illustrating the progress that mankind has made over the last century.
The “scientist” in Varec in particular was utterly enthralled and delighted by this show that illustrated in such an entertaining way how inventions and conveniences had developed on Earth over the past century. On Antar, where civilization is far more ancient and advanced, science and invention far outpace that on Earth, so to Varec, this was a return to a distant past that he could not readily reach out and touch until now.
When the group left the Carousel of Progress, it was night already, and Nina took them to a place near the castle where they could watch the upcoming “SpectroMagic Parade.” The crowds were already gathering in huge numbers along the parade route in expectation of the parade. For many visitors to the park, this would be the highlight of the visit, and the parade route is always crowded well before parade time with people trying to get a good place from which to watch the show.
After a fairly long wait, filled with anticipation, the guests heard music; soon, they saw the approaching floats. It seemed that the parade went on forever! And everyone loved it from beginning to end!
A bit later, they watched as Tinkerbell flew from the stairs of the castle into the trees next to the crowd and set off one of the amazing fireworks shows for which Disney World is famous. Then Nina led them to the monorail, and they returned to the ship to wait for tomorrow… and another wonderful day full of adventure.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Meanwhile, at a cheap little motel outside of Kissimmee, Zwolinski was looking through videos and photographs he had taken late in the evening at the Magic Kingdom. He set several photographs aside, carefully laying them out in order on the bed: Michael, Max, Liz, Maria, Amy, Sheriff Valenti… then he sat up suddenly as though he had seen a ghost. For a moment, Zwolinski seemed shaken, but then he regained his composure and laid the photo down by the others… Kathleen Topolsky.
------------------------End of Chapter 23
-
Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
Yo Ho Ho… It Be Down Ye Go, Mate!
Chapter 24
XXIV
The group transported to the ground very early for their third day at Disney World and arrived to find a small surprise.
"Whoa!" said Zorel as he looked around. "This isn't the MGM Studios!"
"No kidding!" Danyy agreed, looking around.
"Looks familiar, though," Maya said. Andya and Joleesa agreed.
"Yeah, …Yeah," said Zorel. "I know this place! This is Tom Sawyer's Island… not far from the fort and the cave."
Max smiled watching their initial confusion and final enlightenment.
"Michael and I decided to move the ship during the night," Max told them. "Here we'll be closer to the things we want to see today. Also, it might not be a bad idea to move the ship often… just in case."
Rayyn looked at Rachel, "Did you know about this?" Rachel smiled. Taz looked at Tracie; she just smiled, too.
"They did," said Mareeya. "They all knew it. They just wanted to see if we would notice."
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Meanwhile, at MGM Studios, Zwolinski was first in line and just entering the park as the gates opened. He headed immediately for the last place he had seen the "aliens" when they were returning to their ship the night before. Zwolinski had brought along a huge backpack and several sidepacks loaded down with specialized camera equipment, heat sensors, night vision lenses and goggles, an infrared detector and camera with special film… and basically everything that the well-dressed spy shouldn't be without… plus a well-hidden automatic pistol and ammunition. He was having a bit of trouble coordinating everything and walking at the same time, but it was obvious that every single piece of this equipment was a "treasure" to him. As he arrived at the area behind the Backlot Tour ride, "Catastrophe Canyon," he set everything down and took out each item, one piece at a time, then began taking pictures of the open sky around the area.
Soon, Zwolinski had acquired a small crowd of curious onlookers.
"Uh… sir, we were just wondering…" said one older, baldheaded man with a heavy New Jersey accent, "Just what is it you're taking pictures of?"
Zwolinski tried to hustle him away with just a look, but he wouldn't be discouraged. His wife repeated the question, grating on Zwolinski's nerves all the more.
"Birds! Okay? I'm a bird lover! Now scram… all of you! Get the hell outta here."
The old man looked at his wife. She shook her head, "He ain't no boyd luvah, Joey… If he's lookin' fuh boyds, it's jus' t'pull theah fethahs out." He nodded.
After two hours of taking pictures of every inch of sky in the area, Zwolinski found himself facing a new group, a Disney security team, who also wanted to know what he found so interesting about the skies here. As his actions were highly suspicious, and as he was unwilling to tell them anything more than he had told the old New Jersey couple, he found himself being politely but firmly escorted out of the park.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Not one to be easily deterred, Zwolinski returned an hour later with somewhat less equipment and entered the Magic Kingdom. At the same time, Max and company were enjoying some of the attractions that they had not seen the previous day in the Magic Kingdom. They were just getting into several boats to cruise the "Pirates of the Caribbean" ride when Michael and Zwolinski spotted each other at the same time. Zwolinski jumped into a boat two boats behind the last boat in Max and Michael's group, forcing the other riders out so that he would have it to himself.
As the boats meandered through the ride, some of the children noticed Michael and Max whispering and looking back at Zwolinski. Zorel, especially, with his keen ears, picked up quickly on their situation and the danger they faced. As the riders floated into the large open cavern sea where the pirate ship lay at anchor shooting fake cannonballs at the passing boats, Zorel decided to give the cannons a little "oomph," but for this he needed Liz-Jolee's help. Leaning over, he whispered into her ear, and she nodded, glancing back cautiously at Zwolinski. The next three cannonballs that were fired from the pirate ship turned out to be real, with a little help from Liz-JoLee z'Varec, and Zorel guided them to their target with three rapid-fire power blasts. All three cannonballs rained down smack in the middle of Zwolinski's boat, which promptly sank in the middle of the lagoon, as the animated pirates raucously sang "Yo, Ho, Ho…"
Michael was quite proud of his son, Zorel, and of Liz-JoLee z'Varec as well, and was letting everyone know it as they exited the "Pirates of the Caribbean" ride. Max and Michael decided, however, that since Zwolinski appeared to be alone -something they could handle- and since it might be awhile before he dried out and could find them again in any case, they should not let him keep them from seeing the rest of the attractions. Liz and Maria agreed. So did Jim and Kathleen and all the others. The escorts weren't sure exactly what they were facing in this man, Zwolinski, but they agreed, too, trusting in Max and Michael's decision and their abilities.
The fact is, the Antarian "tourists" were able to enjoy the rest of the morning and a wonderful Character Lunch at Cinderella's Palace without Zwolinski finding them or spoiling their fun. Everyone was delighted with Cinderella's Palace, and Nina was all smiles.
It was after lunch, when they were getting into the little flying ships that carry visitors through the Peter Pan ride, that Zorel spotted Zwolinski looking around nearby and notified his Dad, who passed the word on to Max. At first, Zwolinski didn't see them, but as the last car was going in, Zwolinski caught a glimpse of one of the riders and realized they were the ones he was seeking. He rushed past the crowd and jumped into one of the ships behind them, pushing the children aside who had been about to get into it. As the little ships rolled along the rails into the attraction, the rails abruptly ended and the ships rolled off the end of the rails… but they didn't fall… they flew… passing over the land and over the sea, dropping down lower near the pirate ship where Captain Hook and Smee were firing at the visitors as they passed overhead. Of course, the cannonballs weren't real, and no one ever really gets shot down… well, not until today anyway. It wasn't one of Zwolinski's more brilliant days… shot down by pirates for the second time at Disney World. Zwolinski plummeted about ten feet, landing like a giant on top of the little sets, hurting only his pride for the most part. He did not take long getting out and back on the trail of the ones he had declared his "enemies."
After "Snow White's Adventure," the group ended up at the "It's A Small World" ride. "It's A Small World" is a gentle, pleasant ride from beginning to end, in wide boats that pass slowly through jungles and countries inhabited by nothing more dangerous than thousands of animated dolls of the world, as the sound system plays, "It's a Small World After All…" There are no cannons… no pirates… so when Zwolinski spotted the group floating into this "safe" ride, he commandeered a boat and followed them in. Somehow, though, his boat got caught up in a freak whirlwind and sank, which had never happened before in the history of Disney World.
Mareeya Whitman received lots of congratulations from the other children after they exited. They knew that the power to control wind was one that only Mareeya among them had. She smiled guiltily… but proudly.
Nina had secured priority tickets early in the morning for the group to have dinner at "Chef Mickey's" in the Contemporary Resort. This turned out to be a great hit, especially with the children, as Goofy cooked for them and the characters all came around to "say hello" and have their pictures taken with the visitors.
After dinner, the group headed back to the ship for the night before Tom Sawyer's Island closed. Their run-ins with Zwolinski today had seemed almost comical, and to the children, even fun, but the adults knew that Zwolinski was dangerous. He carried a gun, which he would not hesitate to use on any of them without remorse or pity. His only goal in life was to capture and dissect them in the "White Room." He was unstable. And although any of their powers vastly outweighed his meager abilities, he could not be dismissed as a danger. Sooner or later, Max and Michael and the other adults knew, Zwolinski would exact his vengeance or would have to be dealt with one way or another.
----------------------End of Chapter 24
Yo Ho Ho… It Be Down Ye Go, Mate!
Chapter 24
XXIV
The group transported to the ground very early for their third day at Disney World and arrived to find a small surprise.
"Whoa!" said Zorel as he looked around. "This isn't the MGM Studios!"
"No kidding!" Danyy agreed, looking around.
"Looks familiar, though," Maya said. Andya and Joleesa agreed.
"Yeah, …Yeah," said Zorel. "I know this place! This is Tom Sawyer's Island… not far from the fort and the cave."
Max smiled watching their initial confusion and final enlightenment.
"Michael and I decided to move the ship during the night," Max told them. "Here we'll be closer to the things we want to see today. Also, it might not be a bad idea to move the ship often… just in case."
Rayyn looked at Rachel, "Did you know about this?" Rachel smiled. Taz looked at Tracie; she just smiled, too.
"They did," said Mareeya. "They all knew it. They just wanted to see if we would notice."
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Meanwhile, at MGM Studios, Zwolinski was first in line and just entering the park as the gates opened. He headed immediately for the last place he had seen the "aliens" when they were returning to their ship the night before. Zwolinski had brought along a huge backpack and several sidepacks loaded down with specialized camera equipment, heat sensors, night vision lenses and goggles, an infrared detector and camera with special film… and basically everything that the well-dressed spy shouldn't be without… plus a well-hidden automatic pistol and ammunition. He was having a bit of trouble coordinating everything and walking at the same time, but it was obvious that every single piece of this equipment was a "treasure" to him. As he arrived at the area behind the Backlot Tour ride, "Catastrophe Canyon," he set everything down and took out each item, one piece at a time, then began taking pictures of the open sky around the area.
Soon, Zwolinski had acquired a small crowd of curious onlookers.
"Uh… sir, we were just wondering…" said one older, baldheaded man with a heavy New Jersey accent, "Just what is it you're taking pictures of?"
Zwolinski tried to hustle him away with just a look, but he wouldn't be discouraged. His wife repeated the question, grating on Zwolinski's nerves all the more.
"Birds! Okay? I'm a bird lover! Now scram… all of you! Get the hell outta here."
The old man looked at his wife. She shook her head, "He ain't no boyd luvah, Joey… If he's lookin' fuh boyds, it's jus' t'pull theah fethahs out." He nodded.
After two hours of taking pictures of every inch of sky in the area, Zwolinski found himself facing a new group, a Disney security team, who also wanted to know what he found so interesting about the skies here. As his actions were highly suspicious, and as he was unwilling to tell them anything more than he had told the old New Jersey couple, he found himself being politely but firmly escorted out of the park.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Not one to be easily deterred, Zwolinski returned an hour later with somewhat less equipment and entered the Magic Kingdom. At the same time, Max and company were enjoying some of the attractions that they had not seen the previous day in the Magic Kingdom. They were just getting into several boats to cruise the "Pirates of the Caribbean" ride when Michael and Zwolinski spotted each other at the same time. Zwolinski jumped into a boat two boats behind the last boat in Max and Michael's group, forcing the other riders out so that he would have it to himself.
As the boats meandered through the ride, some of the children noticed Michael and Max whispering and looking back at Zwolinski. Zorel, especially, with his keen ears, picked up quickly on their situation and the danger they faced. As the riders floated into the large open cavern sea where the pirate ship lay at anchor shooting fake cannonballs at the passing boats, Zorel decided to give the cannons a little "oomph," but for this he needed Liz-Jolee's help. Leaning over, he whispered into her ear, and she nodded, glancing back cautiously at Zwolinski. The next three cannonballs that were fired from the pirate ship turned out to be real, with a little help from Liz-JoLee z'Varec, and Zorel guided them to their target with three rapid-fire power blasts. All three cannonballs rained down smack in the middle of Zwolinski's boat, which promptly sank in the middle of the lagoon, as the animated pirates raucously sang "Yo, Ho, Ho…"
Michael was quite proud of his son, Zorel, and of Liz-JoLee z'Varec as well, and was letting everyone know it as they exited the "Pirates of the Caribbean" ride. Max and Michael decided, however, that since Zwolinski appeared to be alone -something they could handle- and since it might be awhile before he dried out and could find them again in any case, they should not let him keep them from seeing the rest of the attractions. Liz and Maria agreed. So did Jim and Kathleen and all the others. The escorts weren't sure exactly what they were facing in this man, Zwolinski, but they agreed, too, trusting in Max and Michael's decision and their abilities.
The fact is, the Antarian "tourists" were able to enjoy the rest of the morning and a wonderful Character Lunch at Cinderella's Palace without Zwolinski finding them or spoiling their fun. Everyone was delighted with Cinderella's Palace, and Nina was all smiles.
It was after lunch, when they were getting into the little flying ships that carry visitors through the Peter Pan ride, that Zorel spotted Zwolinski looking around nearby and notified his Dad, who passed the word on to Max. At first, Zwolinski didn't see them, but as the last car was going in, Zwolinski caught a glimpse of one of the riders and realized they were the ones he was seeking. He rushed past the crowd and jumped into one of the ships behind them, pushing the children aside who had been about to get into it. As the little ships rolled along the rails into the attraction, the rails abruptly ended and the ships rolled off the end of the rails… but they didn't fall… they flew… passing over the land and over the sea, dropping down lower near the pirate ship where Captain Hook and Smee were firing at the visitors as they passed overhead. Of course, the cannonballs weren't real, and no one ever really gets shot down… well, not until today anyway. It wasn't one of Zwolinski's more brilliant days… shot down by pirates for the second time at Disney World. Zwolinski plummeted about ten feet, landing like a giant on top of the little sets, hurting only his pride for the most part. He did not take long getting out and back on the trail of the ones he had declared his "enemies."
After "Snow White's Adventure," the group ended up at the "It's A Small World" ride. "It's A Small World" is a gentle, pleasant ride from beginning to end, in wide boats that pass slowly through jungles and countries inhabited by nothing more dangerous than thousands of animated dolls of the world, as the sound system plays, "It's a Small World After All…" There are no cannons… no pirates… so when Zwolinski spotted the group floating into this "safe" ride, he commandeered a boat and followed them in. Somehow, though, his boat got caught up in a freak whirlwind and sank, which had never happened before in the history of Disney World.
Mareeya Whitman received lots of congratulations from the other children after they exited. They knew that the power to control wind was one that only Mareeya among them had. She smiled guiltily… but proudly.
Nina had secured priority tickets early in the morning for the group to have dinner at "Chef Mickey's" in the Contemporary Resort. This turned out to be a great hit, especially with the children, as Goofy cooked for them and the characters all came around to "say hello" and have their pictures taken with the visitors.
After dinner, the group headed back to the ship for the night before Tom Sawyer's Island closed. Their run-ins with Zwolinski today had seemed almost comical, and to the children, even fun, but the adults knew that Zwolinski was dangerous. He carried a gun, which he would not hesitate to use on any of them without remorse or pity. His only goal in life was to capture and dissect them in the "White Room." He was unstable. And although any of their powers vastly outweighed his meager abilities, he could not be dismissed as a danger. Sooner or later, Max and Michael and the other adults knew, Zwolinski would exact his vengeance or would have to be dealt with one way or another.
----------------------End of Chapter 24
-
Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
The Cat, The Mouse… And A Jackass
Chapter 25
XXV
A very frustrated Dumas Zwolinski paced the floor of his cheap motel room talking to himself…
"Dumas, you idiot! Somebody ought to kick your stupid ass to Kansas! You've been such a jackass! You've been acting like a retarded dog chasing its own tail around in circles! The cat doesn't rush into the mouse hole after the mouse! It waits patiently and quietly outside the hole until the mouse comes out then pounces… bam! No more mouse! It bites its head off! You've got to be the cat! …It plays with the mouse then kills it.” He smiled to himself… “That's what the White Room is for."
He was feeling better just thinking about the possibilities.
"Yes… yes! I feel like today will be lucky for me. I will be the cat! No more dog chasing its stupid tail."
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Meanwhile in EPCOT Center, sometime during the wee hours of the morning, Max had "parked" the new granolith at its standard 15-foot altitude directly behind "The American Adventure," on the back side of the International Lagoon. When the gates of EPCOT opened in the morning, everyone transported down ready to go, starting with "The American Adventure," where they got a fantastic review of American history through storytelling and animatronic characters. After that, they checked out the other international pavilions around the lagoon, tasting a few of the special delicacies in some as they went.
Back on the front side of the lagoon again, the group headed for "Spaceship Earth," the huge trademark sphere that stands at the entrance to EPCOT. Nina explained that everything in EPCOT celebrates discovery, science, invention, history, and progress and that EPCOT is an acronym for "Experimental Prototype Community of the Future.
The group loved the exhibits and attractions in "Spaceship Earth," and they loved "Innoventions," where they got to see what Earth people think future inventions may look like. From there, they rushed over to "The Living Seas." Here they rode a wonderful ride through an underwater environment and saw the Coral Seas Restaurant, where one can sit and eat while watching huge sharks, rays, fish, and SCUBA divers swim by the glass beside them. Mickey Mouse even swam by with a SCUBA tank on as they watched, waving to the diners who were eating. Many of the members of the group had chosen this as the place to have dinner today, and Nina had secured priority reservations for them for 4:30 PM, which was still hours away.
After seeing the attractions at "The Living Seas," the group went to "The Land" then to "Imagination." In "Imagination," they took a whimsical tour through a changing futuristic world, where they saw a space station being built in front of them by space-walking astronauts and other fantastic things while being followed by a weird-shaped blimp with talking characters that narrated some of what they were seeing.
Before going into this ride, several of the children had spotted Zwolinski and knew that he had seen Max and Michael. They had waited for Zwolinski to follow them in, but he did not. Already, they had spread the word to the others. When Zwolinski did not follow them in, it took Michael no time at all to figure out what he was up to… He would be waiting when they got to the other end. Michael was frankly amazed that Zwolinski hadn't thought of this before now. As Max and Michael discussed what to do, it was little Jayyd who came up with the idea that everyone liked best. She waved her hand several times up and down, making sure that she hadn't missed anyone.
As they came to the end of the ride, the group split up, with the "protectors" taking the child each one was responsible for and another adult member of the Antarian group so that they would appear to be families. They walked past Zwolinski, who never suspected a thing as they passed right by him.
Andrea was trying so hard not to laugh while looking at the others, at least until they were out of sight of Zwolinski, that she thought she would split a gut.
"Somehow I feel like some good fried chicken right now!" Michael mused.
Maria elbowed him in the ribs, "That's so cliché, Michael, for gosh sakes!"
"No it's not!" Andrea laughed, finally letting it all out. "There's nothing like good, down-home, southern fried chicken!"
"Word!" Lisa added, in her best imitation of a good southern accent.
Nina giggled, "You go, girl!"
The "cat" was still waiting by the exit for its prey to come out long after they had departed. In fact, they visited Disney's Animal Kingdom while Zwolinski remained glued to the exit by "Imagination." Zwolinski knew they had gone in… He knew they had to come out… sooner or later. And patience was the virtue of the cat. Unfortunately, it was a short suit of Zwolinski's (The other being intelligence). After waiting two hours, he had had enough and rushed into the exit to find his prey. Another hour's search, though, turned up no aliens for Zwolinski to nab.
At 4:30, the group returned to EPCOT and had their dinner at "The Living Seas" in the Coral Reef Restaurant. They had decided to just remain as black "Earthlings" for now. It would be a long time before Zwolinski caught on, and it would give them some room to breathe. At least for awhile, they would be able to walk right past Zwolinski and not even be recognized. And the children were having a ball being part of this different Earth group. In reality, they were not part of any Earth race, at least not a hundred percent. They were Antarian.
As they were leaving the restaurant, a lady approached Kathleen Valenti and pointed at her son Danyy. "I just love that T-shirt your little boy is wearing! Where in the world did you ever find it?"
Kathleen looked at Maria, and both of them smiled, "A place called 'Kyyks.'"
"I don't think I've ever heard of 'Kicks' before! Is that far from here?"
Kathleen nodded, "Yeah, it's… uh… really far!" Maria nodded her agreement.
"Well… I just want you to know it's just darling! I'll have to watch for this 'Kicks' place," said the lady. "I would just love to get one like that for my little grandson!"
Kathleen and Maria looked at each other for a moment, then Kathleen opened a bag she had on her arm and took out another T-shirt just like it… a spare she was carrying for Danyy.
"Here, you can have it for your grandson. I don't think you'll find 'Kyyks.' It's very, very far away and sort of hard to find."
The lady was taken aback by Kathleen's generosity. She grabbed Kathleen and hugged her,
"You're one of the kindest people I've ever met! My daughter is just going to love this for Tommy! Thank you! Bless you, Dear!"
Kathleen was one of the "good people" now, no longer part of Zwolinski's former crowd, but she still had a hard time accepting others' gratitude, especially when it came with an emotional response attached. She hugged the lady back with a warm, "You're welcome," hiding the fact that her eyes were misting up and tears were starting to run down her cheeks.
The group stayed at EPCOT to watch the late night laser and fireworks display over the International Lagoon, "IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth." It was a fitting end to their visit to Disney World, as the lasers danced and sliced through the sky and the fireworks exploded in the greatest, most magnificent and power-packed show any of them had ever seen. All the children applauded, as did the entire group and the rest of the huge crowd that had assembled around the edge of the lagoon to watch the show. Then the Antarian "tourists" made their way back to the new granolith behind the "American Adventure" pavilion and Max beamed them up with his remote transporter pad. Their next stop would be the Blue Ridge Mountains.
-----------------------End of Chapter 25
The Cat, The Mouse… And A Jackass
Chapter 25
XXV
A very frustrated Dumas Zwolinski paced the floor of his cheap motel room talking to himself…
"Dumas, you idiot! Somebody ought to kick your stupid ass to Kansas! You've been such a jackass! You've been acting like a retarded dog chasing its own tail around in circles! The cat doesn't rush into the mouse hole after the mouse! It waits patiently and quietly outside the hole until the mouse comes out then pounces… bam! No more mouse! It bites its head off! You've got to be the cat! …It plays with the mouse then kills it.” He smiled to himself… “That's what the White Room is for."
He was feeling better just thinking about the possibilities.
"Yes… yes! I feel like today will be lucky for me. I will be the cat! No more dog chasing its stupid tail."
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
Meanwhile in EPCOT Center, sometime during the wee hours of the morning, Max had "parked" the new granolith at its standard 15-foot altitude directly behind "The American Adventure," on the back side of the International Lagoon. When the gates of EPCOT opened in the morning, everyone transported down ready to go, starting with "The American Adventure," where they got a fantastic review of American history through storytelling and animatronic characters. After that, they checked out the other international pavilions around the lagoon, tasting a few of the special delicacies in some as they went.
Back on the front side of the lagoon again, the group headed for "Spaceship Earth," the huge trademark sphere that stands at the entrance to EPCOT. Nina explained that everything in EPCOT celebrates discovery, science, invention, history, and progress and that EPCOT is an acronym for "Experimental Prototype Community of the Future.
The group loved the exhibits and attractions in "Spaceship Earth," and they loved "Innoventions," where they got to see what Earth people think future inventions may look like. From there, they rushed over to "The Living Seas." Here they rode a wonderful ride through an underwater environment and saw the Coral Seas Restaurant, where one can sit and eat while watching huge sharks, rays, fish, and SCUBA divers swim by the glass beside them. Mickey Mouse even swam by with a SCUBA tank on as they watched, waving to the diners who were eating. Many of the members of the group had chosen this as the place to have dinner today, and Nina had secured priority reservations for them for 4:30 PM, which was still hours away.
After seeing the attractions at "The Living Seas," the group went to "The Land" then to "Imagination." In "Imagination," they took a whimsical tour through a changing futuristic world, where they saw a space station being built in front of them by space-walking astronauts and other fantastic things while being followed by a weird-shaped blimp with talking characters that narrated some of what they were seeing.
Before going into this ride, several of the children had spotted Zwolinski and knew that he had seen Max and Michael. They had waited for Zwolinski to follow them in, but he did not. Already, they had spread the word to the others. When Zwolinski did not follow them in, it took Michael no time at all to figure out what he was up to… He would be waiting when they got to the other end. Michael was frankly amazed that Zwolinski hadn't thought of this before now. As Max and Michael discussed what to do, it was little Jayyd who came up with the idea that everyone liked best. She waved her hand several times up and down, making sure that she hadn't missed anyone.
As they came to the end of the ride, the group split up, with the "protectors" taking the child each one was responsible for and another adult member of the Antarian group so that they would appear to be families. They walked past Zwolinski, who never suspected a thing as they passed right by him.
Andrea was trying so hard not to laugh while looking at the others, at least until they were out of sight of Zwolinski, that she thought she would split a gut.
"Somehow I feel like some good fried chicken right now!" Michael mused.
Maria elbowed him in the ribs, "That's so cliché, Michael, for gosh sakes!"
"No it's not!" Andrea laughed, finally letting it all out. "There's nothing like good, down-home, southern fried chicken!"
"Word!" Lisa added, in her best imitation of a good southern accent.
Nina giggled, "You go, girl!"
The "cat" was still waiting by the exit for its prey to come out long after they had departed. In fact, they visited Disney's Animal Kingdom while Zwolinski remained glued to the exit by "Imagination." Zwolinski knew they had gone in… He knew they had to come out… sooner or later. And patience was the virtue of the cat. Unfortunately, it was a short suit of Zwolinski's (The other being intelligence). After waiting two hours, he had had enough and rushed into the exit to find his prey. Another hour's search, though, turned up no aliens for Zwolinski to nab.
At 4:30, the group returned to EPCOT and had their dinner at "The Living Seas" in the Coral Reef Restaurant. They had decided to just remain as black "Earthlings" for now. It would be a long time before Zwolinski caught on, and it would give them some room to breathe. At least for awhile, they would be able to walk right past Zwolinski and not even be recognized. And the children were having a ball being part of this different Earth group. In reality, they were not part of any Earth race, at least not a hundred percent. They were Antarian.
As they were leaving the restaurant, a lady approached Kathleen Valenti and pointed at her son Danyy. "I just love that T-shirt your little boy is wearing! Where in the world did you ever find it?"
Kathleen looked at Maria, and both of them smiled, "A place called 'Kyyks.'"
"I don't think I've ever heard of 'Kicks' before! Is that far from here?"
Kathleen nodded, "Yeah, it's… uh… really far!" Maria nodded her agreement.
"Well… I just want you to know it's just darling! I'll have to watch for this 'Kicks' place," said the lady. "I would just love to get one like that for my little grandson!"
Kathleen and Maria looked at each other for a moment, then Kathleen opened a bag she had on her arm and took out another T-shirt just like it… a spare she was carrying for Danyy.
"Here, you can have it for your grandson. I don't think you'll find 'Kyyks.' It's very, very far away and sort of hard to find."
The lady was taken aback by Kathleen's generosity. She grabbed Kathleen and hugged her,
"You're one of the kindest people I've ever met! My daughter is just going to love this for Tommy! Thank you! Bless you, Dear!"
Kathleen was one of the "good people" now, no longer part of Zwolinski's former crowd, but she still had a hard time accepting others' gratitude, especially when it came with an emotional response attached. She hugged the lady back with a warm, "You're welcome," hiding the fact that her eyes were misting up and tears were starting to run down her cheeks.
The group stayed at EPCOT to watch the late night laser and fireworks display over the International Lagoon, "IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth." It was a fitting end to their visit to Disney World, as the lasers danced and sliced through the sky and the fireworks exploded in the greatest, most magnificent and power-packed show any of them had ever seen. All the children applauded, as did the entire group and the rest of the huge crowd that had assembled around the edge of the lagoon to watch the show. Then the Antarian "tourists" made their way back to the new granolith behind the "American Adventure" pavilion and Max beamed them up with his remote transporter pad. Their next stop would be the Blue Ridge Mountains.
-----------------------End of Chapter 25
Last edited by Island Breeze on Sat Jul 23, 2005 8:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
-
Island Breeze
- Feedbacking Sci Fi King
- Posts: 1791
- Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:11 pm
- Location: South Florida
Life In The Stars
<center> <<<<<>>>>> Life In the Stars <<<<<>>>>> </center>
A Smoky Mountain Perfect Night
Chapter 26
XXVI
Onboard the new granolith, Jayyd was changing everyone back to their normal color…
"Wasn't my blouse light blue," asked Amy.
"Yeah," answered Jim. "And my shirt was beige… now it's… green."
Jayyd grinned, "I changed some of the clothes colors, too, so the bad man wouldn't recognize us if he remembered the clothes. I'll change them back if you can tell me what color they were."
Jim grinned, "Oh, I don't know, Jayyd. I think this shirt looks great green. Why don't we just leave it that way. I've got too many beige shirts anyway."
"That was really good thinking, Jayyd, changing some of the clothes colors, too," said Kathleen. "You're a pretty smart little girl!"
Jayyd smiled. "I'm almost six! I'm not so little anymore!"
"That's right!” Kathleen nodded. “I meant that you're a very smart 'big' girl!"
Jayyd grinned.
Max and Michael had already been changed back and had gone to the control room to pilot the ship north to the Smoky Mountains. In the new granolith, it was a fairly quick zip from Central Florida up to Tennessee.
Once there, the group moved quickly to visit several surrounding sites on their agenda, starting with "The Lost Sea" in Sweetwater, Tennessee, between Knoxville and Chattanooga.
After paying everybody’s admission, Max led the group in. A guide met them, and they began walking down a very long path into the depths of the cave. Suddenly, about half way down, the guide stopped…
“I’m going to show you what total darkness is like,” she said. Then she pressed a button, and all the lights in the cave went out.
Zorel held onto his Dad, Michael… "Whoa! I can't see you… I can't even see my hand! I didn't know it could be so dark!"
After a few seconds, the guide turned the lights back on, much to everyone's relief, and they continued down the trail. The guide pointed out where moonshiners had once worked hidden stills in the cave and where Civil War soldiers had once mined potassium from the guana-rich dirt.
Down… down… down… the group continued to go deeper and deeper into the cave. Finally, they arrived at the edge of "The Lost Sea." There they found passenger boats waiting to take them for a ride. As they rode in the quiet electric boats, they noticed quite a few large trouts swimming beneath the water.
“The temperature in the Lost Sea cave is a constant 68 degrees,” the guide said, “…winter or summer, day or night… it never changes… and the cave is an officially designated bomb shelter.”
Everyone felt an odd sort of joy at seeing the sun again, as they emerged from the cave. But their visit to the Lost Sea had been an experience that none of them would soon forget.
After their descent into the cave of The Lost Sea, Max took the group up… on a climb up Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga… to "Rock City.” Near the top of the mountain, they crossed a long swinging rope bridge over a breathtakingly deep gorge. Then everyone managed to squeeze between two solid rock walls called "Fat Man's Squeeze," and they walked through some caves and out onto a path along the edge of the mountain. Finally, they arrived at “Lookout Point” on the top. From there, they could actually see several states at once. After enjoying the view, everyone went into the gift shop at Lookout Point to check out the souvenirs.
From "Rock City," on Lookout Mountain, the new granolith carried the visitors eastward into the higher Smoky Mountains near Gatlinburg, Tennessee. They settled over a clearing near a river that coursed down the mountain through the forest, and some of the group decided to camp out there overnight in tents. The less adventurous stayed onboard the new granolith.
During the night, Kryys was awakened by noises. He got up and peeked outside. Two black bears were nosing around the tents looking for food.
“Danyy! Danyy! Wake up! Look! What’s that outside,” he said, shaking his friend, Danyy Valenti out of his sleep.
Danyy looked out the front door of the tent.
“I don’t know, Kryys. I’ve never seen one of those before.” Danyy climbed out of the tent and stood face to face with the larger of the two bears. It looked at Danyy then shook its head. Kryys wondered if Danyy’s powers worked on Earth animals. He had his answer in minutes. Danyy and Kryys went back to bed. The bears were now standing guard outside their tent. With the bears on guard, they knew they could sleep safely.
Across the clearing, in another tent, Kathleen closed the flap of her and Jim’s tent door back then rolled over and looked at Jim, smiling… "Did you ever think you would have a son who could get bears to stand guard for you instead of eat you?"
"He's pretty unique," Jim said… "kind of like his mama, I'd say."
Kathleen grinned as she unbuttoned Jim's pajama top and kissed him on the face and neck… then on the lips… at the same time teasingly removing the rest with her feet and toes. Jim had already taken care of that little detail where Kathleen was concerned, acting quickly and smoothly, like a magician pulling a tablecloth out from under dishes without breaking them. Kathleen rolled over on top of Jim's muscular chest and abs, and Jim smiled then closed his eyes. With the bears standing guard outside, they were certain not to be bothered tonight. Tonight, by the river, was their night… their perfect night.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
The next day, all the children were telling those who had chosen not to rough it about the bears and the night sounds in the forest and how much fun they had had. Jim Valenti was almost as enthusiastic as the children… maybe more so, as was Kathleen, whose feet almost didn't touch the ground as she walked.
Maria watched Kathleen and smiled…
"Looks like the forest and the outdoors agreed with someone, huh?"
Liz smiled back. "Yeah… I think so."
tbc
A Smoky Mountain Perfect Night
Chapter 26
XXVI
Onboard the new granolith, Jayyd was changing everyone back to their normal color…
"Wasn't my blouse light blue," asked Amy.
"Yeah," answered Jim. "And my shirt was beige… now it's… green."
Jayyd grinned, "I changed some of the clothes colors, too, so the bad man wouldn't recognize us if he remembered the clothes. I'll change them back if you can tell me what color they were."
Jim grinned, "Oh, I don't know, Jayyd. I think this shirt looks great green. Why don't we just leave it that way. I've got too many beige shirts anyway."
"That was really good thinking, Jayyd, changing some of the clothes colors, too," said Kathleen. "You're a pretty smart little girl!"
Jayyd smiled. "I'm almost six! I'm not so little anymore!"
"That's right!” Kathleen nodded. “I meant that you're a very smart 'big' girl!"
Jayyd grinned.
Max and Michael had already been changed back and had gone to the control room to pilot the ship north to the Smoky Mountains. In the new granolith, it was a fairly quick zip from Central Florida up to Tennessee.
Once there, the group moved quickly to visit several surrounding sites on their agenda, starting with "The Lost Sea" in Sweetwater, Tennessee, between Knoxville and Chattanooga.
After paying everybody’s admission, Max led the group in. A guide met them, and they began walking down a very long path into the depths of the cave. Suddenly, about half way down, the guide stopped…
“I’m going to show you what total darkness is like,” she said. Then she pressed a button, and all the lights in the cave went out.
Zorel held onto his Dad, Michael… "Whoa! I can't see you… I can't even see my hand! I didn't know it could be so dark!"
After a few seconds, the guide turned the lights back on, much to everyone's relief, and they continued down the trail. The guide pointed out where moonshiners had once worked hidden stills in the cave and where Civil War soldiers had once mined potassium from the guana-rich dirt.
Down… down… down… the group continued to go deeper and deeper into the cave. Finally, they arrived at the edge of "The Lost Sea." There they found passenger boats waiting to take them for a ride. As they rode in the quiet electric boats, they noticed quite a few large trouts swimming beneath the water.
“The temperature in the Lost Sea cave is a constant 68 degrees,” the guide said, “…winter or summer, day or night… it never changes… and the cave is an officially designated bomb shelter.”
Everyone felt an odd sort of joy at seeing the sun again, as they emerged from the cave. But their visit to the Lost Sea had been an experience that none of them would soon forget.
After their descent into the cave of The Lost Sea, Max took the group up… on a climb up Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga… to "Rock City.” Near the top of the mountain, they crossed a long swinging rope bridge over a breathtakingly deep gorge. Then everyone managed to squeeze between two solid rock walls called "Fat Man's Squeeze," and they walked through some caves and out onto a path along the edge of the mountain. Finally, they arrived at “Lookout Point” on the top. From there, they could actually see several states at once. After enjoying the view, everyone went into the gift shop at Lookout Point to check out the souvenirs.
From "Rock City," on Lookout Mountain, the new granolith carried the visitors eastward into the higher Smoky Mountains near Gatlinburg, Tennessee. They settled over a clearing near a river that coursed down the mountain through the forest, and some of the group decided to camp out there overnight in tents. The less adventurous stayed onboard the new granolith.
During the night, Kryys was awakened by noises. He got up and peeked outside. Two black bears were nosing around the tents looking for food.
“Danyy! Danyy! Wake up! Look! What’s that outside,” he said, shaking his friend, Danyy Valenti out of his sleep.
Danyy looked out the front door of the tent.
“I don’t know, Kryys. I’ve never seen one of those before.” Danyy climbed out of the tent and stood face to face with the larger of the two bears. It looked at Danyy then shook its head. Kryys wondered if Danyy’s powers worked on Earth animals. He had his answer in minutes. Danyy and Kryys went back to bed. The bears were now standing guard outside their tent. With the bears on guard, they knew they could sleep safely.
Across the clearing, in another tent, Kathleen closed the flap of her and Jim’s tent door back then rolled over and looked at Jim, smiling… "Did you ever think you would have a son who could get bears to stand guard for you instead of eat you?"
"He's pretty unique," Jim said… "kind of like his mama, I'd say."
Kathleen grinned as she unbuttoned Jim's pajama top and kissed him on the face and neck… then on the lips… at the same time teasingly removing the rest with her feet and toes. Jim had already taken care of that little detail where Kathleen was concerned, acting quickly and smoothly, like a magician pulling a tablecloth out from under dishes without breaking them. Kathleen rolled over on top of Jim's muscular chest and abs, and Jim smiled then closed his eyes. With the bears standing guard outside, they were certain not to be bothered tonight. Tonight, by the river, was their night… their perfect night.
<center> <<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>> </center>
The next day, all the children were telling those who had chosen not to rough it about the bears and the night sounds in the forest and how much fun they had had. Jim Valenti was almost as enthusiastic as the children… maybe more so, as was Kathleen, whose feet almost didn't touch the ground as she walked.
Maria watched Kathleen and smiled…
"Looks like the forest and the outdoors agreed with someone, huh?"
Liz smiled back. "Yeah… I think so."
tbc
Last edited by Island Breeze on Sat Jul 23, 2005 8:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.