Chapter 6.
   Bugs 
   From “Stellar Graffiti”, Copyright 2001 Richard Allan Olson
         




   “Aquatoo,” said Viro, hoarsely, “if you know which one of us is ‘Luna’, then please show us where Luna is.”  The three of them watched in absolute amazement as the little animal waddled over to the girl, stood beside her, and blinked back up at them. 

   “Unbelievable…” said Viro.  “It understands.” 

   Luna giggled.  “Go ahead!  Ask him something else!” 

   Viro dropped to his knees in front of the creature.  “Aquatoo… if you really do understand us… tell me, have you ALWAYS  been able to understand us?”  The animal shook its head.  “Fascinating.  Do you know what has happened that makes you able to understand us NOW?”  Again, the Aquatoo shook its head.  “Incredible.”  Viro looked up at his companions.  The three of them were stunned.  “Aquatoo, do you remember which one of us found you, before, when you were free and living in your pond?”  The creature nodded and turned to face Luna. 

   Viro was practically pale.  “That proves it.  This ordinarily dumb animal can not only understand and reason, it has cognitive memory, as well.  And there’s no explanation for it.  None whatsoever.  It’s a miracle!”  He stood up and laughed.  “A true stumper, here, at the end of the world!” 

   Suddenly, something occurred to Milo.  “Aquatoo,” he said, “are you hungry?”  The animal shook its head.  “Is that because you already had something to eat?”  The creature nodded.  “Show us where you found the food that you had to eat, Aquatoo.” 

   The little animal waddled off in the direction of the stone picnic table, where earlier, the trio had shared lunch and conversation.  The three of them followed.  When they arrived, the Aquatoo stood next to the table and looked up at Milo. 

   “What is it?” asked Viro. 

   Milo crawled under the picnic table and looked around a while.  Shortly, he climbed back out and scratched his chin, thoughtfully.  “Well, I can’t find it.” 

   Both Viro and Luna were mystified.  “What are you talking about?” Luna finally insisted.  

   Milo hopped up on the table.  “Yesterday.  I only took one of my Flora Orbs.  The second one, I sort of… well, I took a bite out of it, and then I tossed the rest under the table.  Now I can’t find it.  I thought that maybe the Aquatoo had eaten it, and that might explain what’s going on, here.”  

   “Come to your senses, man!” exclaimed Viro.  “That couldn’t possibly explain the mind-boggling transformation this creature has undergone!” 

   “Well, I got to thinking about it, because I remembered you said the Orbs had psychoactive chemical properties…” 

   “I said MILDLY psychoactive!  Look, we are standing here with a dumb animal that, for some reason, is now able to carry on a fairly intelligent conversation!  This sort of thing doesn’t just HAPPEN, by eating something it might very well encounter in the wild, anyway!” 

   Milo thought about that.  “Something it MIGHT encounter in the wild…” he said.  “Something WE might encounter in the wild, for that matter.  Remember, Viro, that was a previously undiscovered species of Orb.  You can only speak of the known  members of the genus to which you THINK it belonged.  But you really didn’t know anything about it, did you?” 

   “Well, the effects on us were harmless enough, as you, yourself, can testify.” 

   “Yeah,” Milo breathed heavily, “well, maybe if YOU ate one of those things that was half the size of YOUR head, like the Aquatoo may have done, something similar might happen to you, too.  Or perhaps there’s a delayed reaction… and with this animal, it has already set in… perhaps, because its body is so much smaller… who knows what could still happen to us?”

   Luna interjected.  “Now, Milo, there’s no reason to be so alarmed.  We are all just fine, and so is the Aquatoo.”  She bent down and scooped up the little animal.  “You feel alright, don’t you, small one?”  The creature hesitated a moment, then nodded.  “See?” said Luna. 

   Viro began to laugh vigorously.  “This normally dumb creature is ‘alright’, because it just informed us that it is!”  He laughed some more.  “Now that’s logic!” 

   Suddenly, Viro stopped laughing and looked back in the direction of his home.  He seemed instantly distracted.  Milo and Luna noticed that, for some reason, he had become strangely distant. 

   “Viro, what is it?” asked Luna, as an odd chill shivered through her.  Viro said nothing.  He seemed to be in a trance again, but this time it appeared to be more like a dire, urgent preoccupation.  Finally, with a voice that quietly resounded with complete certainty, he said, “We’ve got trouble.” 

   “What’s the problem, Viro?” asked Luna.  “Is it another divination?” 

   Viro glanced around, anxiously.  “No, it is here and now… and it is danger… and we’ve got to get far away from this place… as fast as we can… and we have to move… now!”  

   Viro ran off.  Milo and Luna looked at each other very briefly, then they sprinted off after him.

   The Derelict had almost finished setting, and it was an eerie, twilit world through which the trio fled.  Luna’s blood raced as she ran barefoot through the long grass in the shadows of the garden.  Being younger and fitter, Milo and Luna quickly caught up with Viro.  Together, they ran towards the beach, then struck a line along the shore, in the direction of the docks and the boat slips.  They had almost reached their destination, when suddenly, something appeared that made them stop in their tracks, and stare in utter amazement and horror. 

   A large alien nightmare came scuttling towards them at an alarming speed.  The creature, a huge, uncanny insect, carried its segmented body on numerous legs.  It moved with a cold and sinister precision, a rapid blur of knitting needle appendages.  There was no time to react.  The nightmare creature was upon them.  It seized Viro with several fore limbs and lifted him into the air, holding him immobile.  Another pair of extremities unfolded from the insect’s body, and deftly opened his torso as neatly as a surgeon’s scalpel.  Viro screamed as the alien began to examine his internal anatomy.

   Before Milo and Luna could even think to move a muscle, two more of the insect creatures came from behind and snatched them both.  Terrified, Luna managed to cry out Milo’s name as she struggled in the grip of a dozen powerful clamps, but Milo had been taken, as well.

   Luna fought against a strength that would not relent.  Suddenly, she felt her body grow numb, and she could feel that her muscles would no longer respond to her commands to resist.  Then, a presence, something cold and vile, entered into her mind.  She could feel it clawing open her consciousness and climbing into her thoughts, her awareness, her memory, her very being.  The creature examined her for what seemed like two horrific minutes.  Then, much to Luna’s shock, it suddenly dropped her, and she fell down into the sand.  She was afraid to look up.  When she opened her eyes, it was just in time to see the other insect creature holding Milo in its clutches, examining him for a time, then dropping him to the ground, as well. 

   For several minutes, Luna made no effort to move or speak.  She was in a state of semi-shock from the ordeal.  At length, Milo leaned over her.  His breathing was very shallow. 

   “Luna…?  Are you… are you alright?” 

   She inhaled deeply, and convulsed a few times.  “It was…It was in my head!  In my mind!  It was looking at my mind!”  Luna started to weep softly. 

   “That’s right!” said Milo.  “That’s what happened to me, too… like it was trying to steal my thoughts…”

   Then, Milo thought of Viro, and looked around for him.  There he was, a short distance away, laying torn up and tattered and still, the sand beneath him stained dark red from blood.  

   After a few more minutes, Luna was sitting up, and her senses were returning to her.  “Where’s Viro?” she asked.  “What happened to Viro?” 

   Milo pointed to where he lay.  Luna gasped.  She started to crawl towards Viro’s body.  Milo followed.  When they got there, Luna leaned across Viro and put her ear to his lips, listening for a sign of breathing. 

   “He’s still alive.” she said.  “Perhaps just barely… but… Viro!  Viro, are you there?” 

   There was no response.  Luna said his name again.  His eyelids fluttered.  With evident difficulty, he managed to barely open his eyes, and focused a nearly lifeless gaze upon the girl.  At first, he appeared confused.  Then he blinked, as recognition returned.  He started to speak, but choked, not having the strength to make his vocal chords resonate.  When he finally did manage to say something, it came out as the faintest of whispers.  “A day… full of… surprises.”

   Luna let out an amused sigh.  A tear rolled down her cheek. 

   Then Milo said, “Listen, my friend… I have to give it to you straight.  You’re in really bad shape.  That thing tore you up…”  Nearly choking on his words, he pulled himself together, and continued, “And I want you to know… if you feel that you want to leave us… well… that’s alright.  You’ll be just fine.  Remember what you said… it’ll be just like waking up.”

   Viro managed a smile.  “As from… a dream.” he whispered.  He closed his eyes, inhaled deeply, and then let it go, his body giving up its last breath. 

   Milo and Luna looked down at Viro’s motionless form, sadly, then her tear filled eyes met his.  They stood at Viro’s feet and locked in an embrace.  As the girl wept, Milo thought how tragic it was, to finally become friends with this old acquaintance, and then to lose him, now, so soon afterwards.  He wanted to say something in memory of Viro, but, having only really known him a short time, wasn’t quite sure what eulogy what be appropriate. 

   Then, a very familiar voice issued from behind them.  It was Viro’s voice, and it said, “Incredible!  What do you suppose those creatures WERE, Milo?” 

   They turned around at the sound, and stared at what they saw, utterly dumbfounded.  It was Viro, himself, standing only a few feet away, appearing as he always had.  They glanced back down at the torn and lifeless body on the ground, then they looked back up at the apparition of Viro that was just standing there, apparently intact and quite alive. 

   Milo stuttered.  “But… But…” 

   Only Luna had the presence of mind to say it.  “Viro, you just died!” 

   The apparition seemed confused.  “I just WHAT, you say?”  Luna stood aside and looked down at the torn corpse.  Upon the sight of his own, lifeless self, Viro was incredulous.  He just stared at it for many long moments.  Then, he looked at Milo with an expression of quizzical fascination. 

   “I AM dead!” he exclaimed.  “I remember it now!  I remember everything, now!  Everything!”  He started to laugh his typical, privately humorous laugh.  Something about it suddenly gave Milo a cold chill. 

   Then, the apparition of Viro began to change before their eyes.  Where moments ago it appeared to be made of flesh and bone, now the form began to look vague and ethereal.  As the change continued, Viro became a translucent, luminous figure, with shifting veils and multicolored undertones.  The other two stared in awe.  Luna reached out to touch him, but her hand passed right through the image that she saw.  Finally, she said, “Viro!  What is happening, here?  Tell us!  What?” 

   Viro raised his head and looked to the east.  The morning sun had just peeked over the edge of the sea.  He then turned to the darkened western horizon, where the mammoth Derelict had only recently set.  Absently, Viro started walking into the west, seemingly oblivious to Luna’s question.  The girl skipped a few steps ahead of him.  “Viro?” she implored.

   Without stopping or looking to either side, Viro smiled.  “It is as I said when I died, Luna.”  His apparition stepped off the ground and slowly began rising into the air.  “It’s just like…waking up!”  With that, Viro changed into a brilliant flash of light that suddenly streaked off into the western sky, disappeared over the horizon, and then was gone.

   Luna blinked up at the sky.  She dropped to her knees and started to laugh.  It was a helpless, confused, gentle sobbing of a laugh.  Milo could only stand and stare in astonishment at the inanimate body laying on the sand.  When he finally spoke, he seemed to be addressing the corpse, itself, almost angrily.  “What?  What is it?  Well?  What is happening?” 

   It was at this timely moment that the Aquatoo came waddling out from the concealment of the palm fronds at the edge of the beach.  It headed straight for the girl.  When Luna saw the creature, she let out a cry of relief.  “There you are!  You were hiding from the monsters, weren’t you?”  The animal nodded.  “Were you afraid?”  Another nod.  “So was I.” 

   Milo looked up from Viro’s body and watched the girl and the animal in conversation, his mind reeling.  He tried to clear his state of disorientation by focusing on what he thought they should logically do next.  “Those creatures that abducted us were not of this world, that much is obvious.  The Saurians will certainly want to hear about this encounter.  We must set sail for their nearest outpost immediately.  Besides, we have no further business here.  I’m going to the compound to collect our provisions.  While I’m gone, I want you to get the skiff prepared.  As soon as I return, we set sail.  Do you understand?” 

   Luna smiled up at him with wet, green eyes.  “Yes, my eternal love.” 



   By mid afternoon, they’d put a considerable distance between themselves and Isle Viro.  It was another bright, blue and green day, but Milo and Luna still mourned the passing of their friend.  The sea voyage back to the west, they knew, would be shorter by almost a full day, due to favorable wind currents in this direction.  Again, Milo was at the helm, and he solemnly carried out the task with grim responsibility.  Luna sat in the hold with the Aquatoo. 

   “Do you remember the day I found you?” she asked.  The animal nodded. 

   “Was I the first… BIG person you ever saw?”  The creature shook its head. 

   “You mean, a DIFFERENT big person found you before I did?”  The Aquatoo nodded again.  “I KNEW it!” Luna exclaimed.  “I knew you had to be an escaped specimen!  Why else would you be found so far from your natural range?  Oh, if only you could speak!  You could tell me of the adventures you had that led you to the place where I first met you!” 

   Milo glanced at her, but he didn’t say anything, nor did his somber countenance change.  Noticing his sour expression, Luna gave him a mock scowl in return, then turned her back on him.  Then, she heard his voice saying, “Sweet, pitiful child.” 

   Luna spun around and said, “What do you mean, ‘Pitiful’?” 

   Milo looked at her, puzzled.  “I didn’t say anything.” 

   “Yes you did.  I just heard you say, ‘Sweet, pitiful child’, as clear as a bell.” 

   Milo gaped at the girl.  “Luna, I’ll be honest with you.  That’s what I was thinking to myself, but I didn’t… say it out loud… I swear I didn’t.”  There was no doubt in her mind he was telling the truth.  They stared at each other, and an eerie shiver crept upon them both.  Finally, Luna took Milo’s hand in hers and smiled strangely. 

   “Milo, think of a word.  Any word at all.  Think of it, but don’t speak it aloud.” 

   Milo laughed and shook his head.  “Oh, no.  You’re not going to have me believe that you-” 

   “Come on!  It must be tested!  Scientific rule number one!” she said, with a grand gesture.  “Now, think of a word!” 

   “Alright, I will.  Give me a moment…”  He thought for a few seconds.  “I’ve got one.” 

   “Good.” said Luna.  “Now, just think about the word… as if you’re repeating it in your head…”  Luna closed her eyes and concentrated very hard.  Several moments later, she looked up at him, opened her mouth as if to speak, but hesitated, uncertain. 

   “Well?” said Milo.  “What’s my word?” 

   Luna tried to pronounce the word she had in her mind, but it was difficult.  “Thermo… dynamics.  Is that even a word?”

   Milo’s jaw dropped.  He groped for a response.  “Unbelievable.  That was the word.  You read my mind.  There’s no other way you could have possibly known that word.  It’s a scientific term, translated from the Saurian language.  Thermodynamics.  Incredible.  You have just demonstrated telepathy.  This is… amazing.” 

   Luna bounced happily.  “It just came to me.  I could hear your voice in my head, saying the word.  Milo, I can read your mind!” 

   Milo scratched his chin.  “Yes.  I wonder why.  It seems as if you’ve changed, somehow.  Like the Aquatoo, you are now gifted with a new level of awareness, for some reason.  This makes me wonder… can I read YOUR mind, as well?”

   “Try it.  I’ll think of a word.”  Luna gave the matter some consideration.  “I’ve got one.  Now, I’m going to repeat the word in my mind, over and over, as if I were speaking it aloud, but to myself.  Are you ready?”  Milo nodded, then closed his eyes and tried very hard to open his mind to hers.  He tried to listen for her thoughts, for a sign of something in his mind, coming from the outside.  Then he felt a genuine presence, and looked up with a start. 

   “Rectangle?” he asked. 

   “Triangle!” said Luna, with great pride.  “A little too close for coincidence, wouldn’t you say?  Did you hear my voice in your head?” 

   “I’m not sure I ‘Heard’ anything… it was more like… a sudden awareness of a thought other than my own.” 

   “Well, if at first you don’t succeed, let’s try this again.”  Luna thought up another word.  “Are you ready?” 

   Milo nodded, and closed his eyes again.  This time, after a lengthy period of silence, he answered with a confident certainty.  “Marketplace!” 

   Luna hollered up at the sky.  “You got it, boy!  You know what I think this is?” she said, suddenly mock serious, “I think we’ve been spending entirely too much time together.”  

   “Luna!” Milo sputtered, “this phenomenon is called ‘Telepathy’!  Even the advanced Saurians do not possess this ability to read the thoughts of another mind!  For beings such as US, this… this is impossible!  We have to examine this new skill… test it… subject it to the scientific method!” 

   “Oh, must it be scientific?  I agree we should practice it some more, but-” 

   “Sure!  Whatever you say!  Alright, then.  It seems logical to proceed with word combinations, and then move on to short sentences.  You seem to be better at it, so how about if YOU-” 

   “Milo, shut up, before you cause us to lose our concentration, alright?  Now.  I’m thinking of three words.  Ready or not, here they come.” 

   Milo caught himself, and relaxed his mind.  He listened very quietly, calmy taking as much time as he needed.  After a while, he grinned and opened his eyes.  “That’s sweet.  I lump you, too.”  He laughed.  She laughed back, and pushed him playfully.  “I mean, I lug you, too.” 

   They spent most of the afternoon experimenting with their newfound ability, and in time, became quite proficient with it.  At one point, Milo insisted they try communicating from opposite ends of the boat, facing away from each other.  The test still proved successful.  As the day went on, they became more adept with the ability, and it became quicker and easier.  By sundown, they were conducting an entire telepathic dialogue with lengthy sentences.  Later that night, by the rust light of the rising Derelict, they stopped the boat at a small island to gather berries.  Even standing on opposing ends of the island, they were still able to communicate by pure thought, alone.  Back on the boat and under way again, they “spoke” all through dinner.

   The girl finally thought to turn her psychic attention to the Aquatoo.  Much to her disappointment, she could not pick up any thoughts from the creature, nor was she able to project her own “thought words” into its mind. 

   (“I wonder why he can’t read me.”) thought Luna. 

   (“It must have something to do with the wavelength of the neural signals of its brain.”) replied Milo.  (“The Aquatoo’s thoughts just don’t transmit or receive at the same frequency that ours do.  But we still need a good scientific explanation for how this animal can understand and answer us in the first place!”)   

   (“Milo, wake up and kiss your sweet science goodbye!  You are currently reading my mind!  Dumb animals are thinking!  The dead have risen from the grave!  It’s the End of the World, and even the Saurians don’t have a clue about anything!  Face it!  Your ‘scientific method’ packed up and left town four or five days ago!”) 

   (“It’s no use.  Even after all that’s happened, I’m still compelled by reason.  There must be a cause and an effect.  There is no such thing as a nonsensical event or phenomenon.  Somehow, everything must always add up.”) 

   (“Well, let’s say that it DOES always add up.  But the figures are just way beyond our comprehension.  In that case, the only real nonsense is the notion that you can ever add it all up yourself.”) 

   Milo peered up at the distant towers and canyons of the sprawling Derelict.  (“Not yet, at least.  Remember what Viro said, just before he left this world…”) 

   Luna also turned to gaze skyward.  (“Yeah.  I wonder where he is, right about now.”) 

   Throughout the rest of the night, they took turns at the helm, so they could both get some much needed sleep.  Shortly before noon the following day, they spotted another tiny boat heading towards them from out of the west.  As the boat drew closer, they counted a crew of seven; apparently two couples and three children.  Upon meeting, the two ships dropped anchor. 

   “Ahoy!” Milo greeted them.  “By chance, is this vessel bound from the Seaview village?” 

   A plump, round woman on the other boat responded, “Aye, captain.  Out since yesterday, noon.  And you?” 

   “That is our village, as well.  We’ve been away for a while, and now we are on our way back.” 

   The woman looked at her companions, whispered with another woman for a few moments, then turned back to Milo and said, “So, you haven’t heard the news, then?”

   Milo responded, “You mean, the news from the Green Ones, about the end of the world?” 

   A little confused, the plump woman said, “Eh, yes.  That’s right.  So you’ve not been away for very long.” 

   “Well, we heard the news five days ago, when the Green Ones first presented it to the Council.”

   Upon hearing this, the woman’s face turned red.  “What?” she demanded, angrily.  “The Saurians told this to the Council FIVE days ago?”  She was livid with rage.  “That’s not how the general public found out about it!  Rumors began, said to have originated from one of the Council Elders, themselves.  When confronted, the Council admitted to a recent meeting with the Saurian delegation, but assured us that rumors of the world coming to an end were absurd and simply not true.  Then, a group of dissidents approached the Saurian ground base, to ask the Green Ones themselves to either confirm or dispel the rumor.  That is when we learned the terrible truth!  It was discovered, at about the same time, that every single member of the Council had mysteriously fled from the village.  Some had left with their families, others without a word to anyone.  That was about two nights ago.”  The woman finished with her hands on her hips and a nod of her head.  

   Milo turned to Luna, fighting the indescretion of laughing out loud, but she could hear his laughter in her mind.  (“Politicians!”) he thought.  Then he turned back to the occupants of the other boat and said, “And generally speaking, of what frame of mind were the villagers when you left, yesterday?” 

   The woman replied, “Many have taken to celebration, either because of the revelation, or in spite of it.  The marketplace and into the village as well has become quite unruly with all of the festivities and the rioting.  Some of us have left… into the jungle, or to sea.  Our party is on its way to the Quassoon village, to rejoin the elders of our family.  That is where we wish to be, if this is truly the end.” 

   “Well, I think that’s a wonderful idea!” exclaimed Luna.  She hung from Milo’s arm and smiled at the children, pointing a teasing finger at them.

   “There’s a great big storm chasing us!” said one of the younger boys. 

   “Is that right?” asked Milo.  The plump woman explained, “We’ve been able to stay about twenty minutes ahead of it all morning.” 

   “That’s not happy news for us west-bounders.” said Milo.  “You’d best be on your way, and we’d best tie up.  The very best to you and yours!”  Milo made a grand gesture, then bowed the crew of the other vessel. 

   “And the same to you, captain!” the woman replied.  “Batten down the hatches!”  As anchors were hoisted, Luna made faces at the children and made them laugh.  The other boat sailed off, and she waved, and they waved back, and soon they were gone. 

   Just then, they heard the first faint rumblings of thunder, far off to the west. 

   (“Sure enough.”) thought Milo.  (“It looks pretty dark on the horizon, up ahead.”) 

   A stiff breeze suddenly picked up.  Luna lifted her head.  (“Yeah.  You can smell it in the wind.  And the air just became cooler, and lighter.  I’d say ten minutes, or less.”)   

   (“Well, shall we find a piece of land and tie up, or do you want to try and ride it through?”) 

   (“A skilled helmsman can sometimes find ways to take advantage of a storm.  Even make good time with it.  Provided he can keep his mast out of the water.”) 

   (“That’s what I’ve heard.”) 

   A group of sullen, turbulent thunderheads rumbled overhead, turning the sea and the sky into an ominous, deep green.  A canopy of lighter, wispy clouds raced across the darkening sky, and the wind instantly became a gale force, whipping the crests of the waves into a fine fury and driving a stinging spray of surf and drizzle.  Suddenly, from out of the darkness ahead, a sheer, towering wall of falling rain came roaring at them.  Seconds later, they were engulfed in the deafening torrent.  The boat pitched heavily to one side, as a powerful gust of wind strained against the sails, and the light little skiff was sent speedily skipping across the churning ocean swells.  Milo struggled to control the upright position of the mast as the boat plowed through the waves, battered without mercy.  He shouted something at Luna, but she couldn’t hear him over the deluge.  Then he remembered his telepathic link to the girl, and with a thought, his words suddenly wafted into her mind. 

   (“Be a dear, and lean against the foresail boom.  Hard to port.”)
 


   Late that afternoon, the Archian mariners finally came out upon calm waters, wet and weary from battling the elements.  Milo surveyed the green strip of landscape off the starboard side of the boat.  (“That’s somewhat of a surprise.  We haven’t been driven out to sea nearly as far as I would have imagined.  It’s good news, of course.  Just odd.”)

   They sailed through the night, as the Derelict, in its full, mid summer phase, slowly filled the sky once more, creating that peculiar, nocturnal world of strange half light. 

   It had been Milo’s shift at the helm again, while Luna slept, curled up with the Aquatoo.  Sometime in the early hours of the following morning, the girl abruptly awoke as Milo prodded her repeatedly.

   “What?” she said, annoyed.  “What is it?” 

   (“I wanted you to see something.”) Milo said, telepathically.  He pointed at the hold, where they kept an assortment of boating and fishing gear.  Sitting prominently on the deckside edge of the hold was a number of items Milo had arranged there, for some reason.  (“Watch the tackle box.”)  Luna rubbed her eyes and focused on the box.  Momentarily, the object slowly lifted off the deck and rose into the air.  There it hovered, nearly motionless.  Wide eyed with wonder, Luna clasped her hands together.  (“Are you doing that?”) she asked. 

   (“Yep.”) he replied, without looking away.  (“Now watch this.”)  The tackle box then began to spin around in a fixed position, end over end, slowly at first, then spinning faster and faster.  Luna laughed, vocally.  “What new magic is THIS?” 

   (“The Saurian word is ‘Telekinesis’.  Call it mind over matter.  I got to thinking, if we’ve acquired ONE extra-sensory ability, perhaps we’ve picked up a few others we don’t even know about.  So I started focusing on this tackle box.  It has weight.  I can feel that weight in my mind, right now.  It’s quite heavy, but my mind is much, much heavier.  This puts the weight of the box into perspective, and I realize that I can influence it by first sharing an equal part of MY weight with the box, and then ADDING to it the much greater weight of my mind.”)  Milo slowed the spinning box to a standstill, then slowly lowered it back down upon the deck.  (“And thus, the box obeys my will, as surely as my arms and my legs move when I wish.  I’ve been experimenting with this, and it seems I can only interact with smaller objects.  The boat, for example, has much more weight than I can influence.  I know.  I tried.”) 

   Luna was simply delighted.  (“This is really something, Milo!  Show me again!  Do it again!”)  The girl looked around for another object to offer as a candidate.  Then she laughed as she spied the Aquatoo.  She nudged him and pointed at the unsuspecting little creature.  Milo chuckled.  Shortly, the animal began rising into the air.  It woke from its sleep, and upon realizing it was rising off the ground, the Aquatoo began flailing its little limbs frantically in mid air.  The sight of this sent Luna into a state of hysterics.  Quickly, though, her compassion prevailed.  (“Oh, that’s enough, Milo.  Put him down, now!  Put him down!”)



   Meanwhile, within the colossal Derelict, a thousand levels beneath the floor of the deepest canyon, a familiar spherical bubble ship drifted, slowly making its way down a long, pitch black tunnel.  Richly ornate and engraved surfaces were momentarily revealed by the floodlights of the passing ship as it slowly navigated within the close confines of the angular passageway.  The Golden Ones examined their floating and shifting consoles.  

   “Never before!” exclaimed Taa.  “Never before has the mind of the ship encountered a quandary!  Even our advanced sensors, instruments born of a technology most high, are unable to arrive at a quantitative conclusion.  The readings are riddled with contradiction and paradox.”

   “Yes,” replied Faa.  “The mind of the ship cannot identify the substance of this structure.  Sometimes, the mind cannot even perceive the structure at all.  One moment a wall is there, according to the mind, and the next, it is not.  When asked to examine the structure at the sub-atomic level, the mind insists nothing is there.  ‘If nothing is there, what lies beyond?’ we ask.  The mind tells us that it does not know, because it cannot see through the substance!  Paradox!  As we know, this instument is able to detect through any known substance!  In order to be opaque to this sensor, the walls of this passageway would have to be made of solid nuclear material.  And that is a physical impossibility.” 

   The spherical ship approached a light at the end of the long shaft.  Soon the tunnel came out upon a gigantic, sprawling chamber, a vast and majestic hallway of tremendous dimensions, its opposite end laying far, far off in the distance.  High in the domed ceiling was a row of giant chasms running the length of the chamber, reaching up even higher, through hundreds of other chambers.  Upon the floor there appeared to be a miniature metropolis, countless tiny cities, a virtual continent, replicated there before them.  

   “The combined volume of a billion times a billion ordinary amphitheaters.” thought Taa in amazement.  “A vista… a world unto itself… and this is but one of countless, here in this place of madness and mystery.” 

   Faa thought, “And behold!  This chamber appears to be illuminated by sunlight from the shafts above.  But we are far too deep into the superstructure for sunlight to reach this place!” 

   “The impossible compounds.  And at the other end of this colossal corridor…”  Taa passed a hand over a console, and the ship instantly warp-jumped to the chamber’s far end.  “…We find another choice of several tunnel openings into which we must go, if we wish to move on.” 

   There was a moment of silence.  Then, Taa said to his mate, “Faa, beloved, this is a new and strange passion I have not felt in eons.  Oh, that we had discovered this place long ago.  A true enigma.  A genuine anomaly.  A wonderous mystery, after all these ages of life.” 

   “Then let us waste no more time.” replied Faa.  “How shall we determine which path to take next?  We have no way of knowing where any of these lead.  How shall we choose?” 

   “Then let us allow the mind of the ship to randomly select the passageway we will follow!” 

   Faa laughed.  “In a time and place such as this, that makes perfect sense!”