The Adventures of Nick and O-Zone: Protectors of the Universe

By Kevin J. Villeneuve

Nick, a twelve-year-old from planet Earth, is filled with a desire for adventure. In the three years he has known his alien robot friend, O-Zone, Nick has learned much about astronomy and planetary ecology and constantly dreams what it would be like to join O-Zone on interplanetary adventures. As a new Protector member of the universal defense team, the Terraguard, he finally gets his chance!

O-Zone invites Nick to visit space station Elmira with him. There, the two learn that the peaceful planet of Caldaris is in trouble. A great beast who never sleeps is destroying the planets natural resources and threatening the existence of the Caldarian civilization. Desperate for help, the prince of Caldaris asks Nick and O-Zone to travel aboard a powerful spaceship to his planet to investigate the threat and hopefully save the planet and its people from extinction. After enlisting help from a young adventurer and her exotic horse, Nick and O-Zone bravely face the threat head-onall while dealing with spaceship malfunctions, dodging asteroids, and battling evil aliens.

In this exciting adventure, a young Protector and his robot friend embark on a dangerous journey through space to fight an intergalactic battle and stop a beast of unimaginable power before it destroys the universe and all its inhabitants forever.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: May 1, 2014
• ISBN: 9781491729397

Kevin J. Villeneuve

Kevin J. Villeneuve is a philanthropist whose writing promotes imagination and creativity as the most important influences to the success of current and future generations. He currently resides in Canada.

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Copyright © 2014 Kevin J. Villeneuve.

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This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

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ISBN: 978-1-4917-2937-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4917-2938-0 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4917-2939-7 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2014905634

iUniverse rev. date: 04/03/2014

CONTENTS

Prologue

Chapter 1: A Dream Come True

Chapter 2: Welcome To Elmira!

Chapter 3: The Adventure Begins

Chapter 4: The Amber City

Chapter 5: Goliath

Chapter 6: The Architect

Chapter 7: An Unexpected Turn

Chapter 8: Bringing Down Goliath

Chapter 9: Caldaris Reunited

Chapter 10: Home At Last

Epilogue

PROLOGUE

The Architect stood on the bridge of the cargo ship Draconis IV. The planet Caldaris was in plain view in front of the solar system’s two stars. The ship had been orbiting the planet for several months; everything was going according to plan. The Architect smiled beneath his solid black mask, the glow of his red eyes reflected by the massive window he gazed through. His master would be very pleased with the progress he had made.

A small, round creature approached him. It saluted him and spoke quickly. Ancient one, Terraguard ships are approaching the planet. What are your orders?

The Architect thought for a moment and then commanded, Send out our interceptors to distract them. Track any ship that enters the atmosphere.

Yes, sir! the creature responded as it left to carry out the orders.

The Architect walked to the other side of the bridge and entered a dark room, closing the door behind him. He placed his hand on a small panel that glowed blue at his touch. An image of a dark figure appeared in front of him. Architect, what is the situation on Caldaris? The person spoke in a very deep tone that could have been mistaken for a growl.

Greetings, great Overmind, answered the Architect, bowing his head slightly. He continued, The situation is favorable to our cause. The Guardians have arrived, as expected.

Excellent. Has our new technology proved useful? asked the Overmind.

It has been a great aid. Thank you for your careful planning, Master.

You have done well, Architect, said the Overmind, nodding slowly. I await your return. Don’t let the Alphanauts escape.

The image disappeared, and the room was dark again. The Architect returned to the bridge and observed the green-and-blue planet. He signaled one of the little creatures over to him. Ready my ship for a trip to the surface. The Overmind will have no mistakes this time.

CHAPTER 1

A DREAM COME TRUE

Whoa! Easy there, champ, said Nick, brushing dirt off of his arms and kicking the soccer ball up into his hands.

What do you mean, ‘champ’? O-Zone asked in his robotic voice. His English was particularly good for someone who was not from Earth, but he sometimes had trouble understanding words that were not in the dictionary.

It’s short for ‘champion.’ In other words, you win all the games and don’t give us a chance.

O-Zone looked over at the scoreboard and proudly raised his mechanical hands into the air. Twelve to one. I win, Nick. The only reason your team got a point is because my hand got stuck in the net. He transformed his robotic hand into a vacuum hose and sucked the dirt out of his joints before sitting with Nick and his friends for a rest. Nick laughed as O-Zone wiped imaginary sweat off his metal forehead. He enjoyed watching his friend imitate every aspect of human behavior.

Come on, O-Zone. Let’s see if you can get the soccer ball into the net from across the field. The other kids gathered around to watch the feat. O-Zone retracted his leg a few feet and hit the ball with full force. The sphere launched into the air and curved down the field, landing in the open net. Nick and his classmates cheered and patted O-Zone on the back. The robot never got tired of being the center of attention. A few minutes later, the teacher told the young people it was time to go back to class. See you after class, buddy, whispered Nick, picking up his lunch box and running to catch up with the others.

Nick yawned and stared out of the classroom window to watch the clouds move across the bright-blue sky. The teachers always told him to stop daydreaming, but Nick got a great sense of freedom by imagining places outside of his reality on Earth. He felt that all the grand adventures he thought about were actually happening somewhere in the vast universe, and he hoped that one day he might be able to physically go there. Nick often wondered if O-Zone was imaginary, but if that were true, it wouldn’t