Spaceship in the Woods

By Mary Ellen Wall

Since Tenembras' citizens won their right to govern themselves, the desire to convert Tembo into an Earthlike planet has never been stronger. Alas, the frozen plants and animals originally sent to Tembo was sabotaged. Well, Elise has a spaceship, so off to Earth she goes. They don't give the welcome she hopes for. Does that detail stop her from

• Language: English
• Publisher: Flint Springs Publishing
• Release date: Jan 17, 2021
• ISBN: 9781945937170

Mary Ellen Wall

Roaming from Egypt to the Philippines to Holland to the Hebrides to Tasmania to a tiny Indian Ocean atoll and to points between opened my eyes to others. Being a US Navy Machinist working on nuclear submarines widened my technical knowhow. A few degrees grew my understanding of form and substance. Building my log cabin in the Kentucky woods gave me a refuge from the world's turmoil. Brewing my own ale, bitter, porter, stout, wine, cider, kyser and mead (and drinking it) made me ready to spin some stories.

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Title Page

SPACESHIP IN THE WOODS

AN ELISE T'HOOT GALACTIC ADVENTURE BOOK SEVEN

MARY ELLEN WALL

Flint Springs Publishing

Horse Branch, Kentucky

Copyright © 2019 by Mary Ellen Wall.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed Attention: Permissions Coordinator, at the address below.

Mary Ellen Wall/Flint Springs Publishing

www.maryellenwalll.com

Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.

Book Layout ©2017 BookDesignTemplates.com

Library of Congress Control Number 2019912018

Ordering Information:

Quantity sales. Special discounts are available on quantity purchases by corporations, associations, and others. For details, contact the Special Sales Department at the address above.

Spaceship In The Woods/ Mary Ellen Wall. -- 1st ed.

ISBN 978-1-9459371-1-8

To Ricky, my elusive star man; always with inspiration, encouragement and flowers, never where I would like him to be.

Now there is one outstandingly important fact regarding Spaceship Earth, and that is no instruction book came with it.

― R. Buckminster Fuller, 1895-1983

ONE

BUGS

Who are you? Little Aroun hadn't said a word to anyone since returning from the crater his home had been, but the big man with the huge ears and very red smiling face made him take extraordinary notice.

Babar. Does Elise t'Hoot live here?

The boy nodded.

Can you run tell her I'm here? I got news she'd like to hear.

The boy shook his head.

How come?

I don't talk. They have been trying to make me talk, but I don't want to ever talk again.

That's a tough gig. How about you go in and drag her out by the arm?

Around shook his head.

You don't touch people either? You see I got good news for her, but the security guard at the door says he'll shoot me if I show my ugly face again. Is it really that ugly?

Aroun crooked his head and pursed his lips. If you were dark like me, you wouldn't burn so bad. Your skin's peeling 'cuz of too much sun.

My hat blew away. Let's go back to the front door; you can be my personal guard, seeing how tough you are. Okay?

Aroun chewed his lip in thought. Perhaps he could turn into a guard? A soldier? Deciding to try it out, he walked away from the multiplication tables he'd scratched in the hard dirt and followed Leon to the front entry.

The tall, angular man looked into Leon's eyes and drew his pulse rifle. Leon kept walking. Aroun quickstepped in front of Leon, but the guard didn't seem to notice him. The guard aimed the rifle. Aroun went around him and reached on tiptoe to key the house page, nodding at Leon.

Leon stopped and called out, Hey, Boss-Lady. If you're in there, this is Babar with good news, except the guard is about to shoot me.

The last part, after 'Babar', didn't broadcast because the guard took Aroun by the arm and jerked him away from the panel, chopping the page. By that time, Leon had the instant to grab the man, jam him against the panel station and clamp his neck with a thick arm.

Aroun watched avidly, seeing how Babar disarmed the guard and put him to sleep without really hurting him. He could tell the guard wasn't hurt because Babar told the guard to sleep well. He sat the guard in his chair carefully so he wouldn't fall out and smiled back at Aroun. They turned to see Elise in the doorway.

Okay boys, what have you done to poor old Horse? Come on in before he wakes up and shoots you for spite, Leon. It's a great thing you found Aroun out there to protect you.

They went into the kitchen where Mrs. Stinson was attempting to feed Anama, with Anama more determined to have a go at abstract art. Aroun did not like abstract art because it didn't make sense, so he took the spoon from Mrs. Stinson who wasn't interested in anyone but Babar now anyway. He took the cup of mushy food and was about to cajole his sister into eating when he heard the word 'bugs'.

Oh how he loved bugs! He missed the crawlies in the broad-leaved plantains and the sprites fluttering over the jasmine and had a picture book to identify them by name, but all that happened when he was a real kid, before he became an exile. Mama had told him there were no bugs here, only dust and tears. He gave the cup to Anama to use as finger-paints and listened to Babar and Elise.

Leon, I've been meaning to check on you, but it's been wacko around here with Topside demands, District work to catch up on and the extended family we have now. You have good news, I hope Did you find any bugs alive at all?

All of 'em have live bugs and the second one is the best; the sand blown on top must have protected them. I want to plant some cantaloupes.

She slapped his shoulder and handed him some juice. Pal, you have brightened my day! A Crenna is gonna be here in two shakes so I can put in a long day upstairs, but I promise you some cantaloupes real soon. Why not make yourself at home here and get some cream for that face? I hear my ride now, but I'll be back tonight so you can tell me all about it. She snatched her satchel and ran toward the door and on outside.

Aroun decided to stick close to Babar to find out more about the bugs.

TWO

ALWAYS THINKING

Hey, gorgeous, want a thrill?

The voice behind her made her grin ear to ear. Ricky! When she finally pulled away from his tight embrace, she pulled him out of the way of the fresh supplies trundling toward the Rope for Topside. I’m about to board the train, but here you are!

Indeed, and I shall chauffeur you home.

How'd you know when I'd be down? You look tuckered out your own self.

A birdie told me. Come on, let's lose the business and be just us, eh?

Fine by me. They walked arm in arm out into the cooling darkness, only Sasha, gibbous and aglow among the brilliant, sparkling stars. That's not our car. She goggled at the sporty two-door with big tires and enough chrome to make Wing drool, noting each detail as she studied it all around. A glass top that had to have variable polarization!

You reminded me we have plenty of money, so I got this for us. I'll still use the dumpy car for work, but this is for us to explore in. He opened her door and she climbed up and inside, the seat slung low in the chassis and well cushioned.

On the road, he asked, Have you eaten? We could stop on the way and…

No, no, I promise I ate. Have you?

Yes, I had dinner with De la Croix and Torbjorn in the cafeteria. I think we're back to the schedule where we left off before the tumult.

That's great, sweetie. My pal Torbjorn, the same guy who came up to the train I had loaded with all the ores on the first expedition, the one whose impeccable communication skills made you think I'd brought back plain rocks.

That's him.

I pray to never see you so angry again.

Nor you so frightened.

I remember on the way to Tembo listening to the shuttle pod atmospheric vents clicking, wondering if I'd diddled 'em all right, wondering what it would feel like just before I exploded from depressurization. That was nothing compared to the terror of seeing you again; more academic, you know?

I'd rather not recall all that suffering. My life began again when you said you'd marry me.

After a couple minutes of dragging silence, she said, I asked TaaTaa how he kept the air good on the long trip out. He said he pulled CO2 out and dissociated water for the oxygen. Well, I says, why not do the same for Tembo? The CO2 is too high for sustained living and he could be a real hero. Says he, 'I have not strength sufficient.' Now later, we liberated nitrogen and that was grand, but we still have excess CO2 and it kills. She sat back into her seat and went quiet. I remember Mort asking me about it and I gave him some glib answer like it was too diffuse, or maybe it was dear Kent.

Thinking about your alien friends again? Okay, did you ask Eenos if he was strong enough? If it was too diffuse?

No. She shifted in the seat to face him. What if they pulled CO2 from high orbit, from beyond where it would fall back? Wait, what about when we get trees and bushes and grass all over the place; they'll pull a lot out themselves. Phooey, we have to establish the life we want and then balance the atmosphere, not before.

Ricky ventured, Unless they could pull it into pressurized storage that we could release again as needed. Deep underground?

Oooh. I'll bounce that off the Atmo committee tomorrow. Crap, I can't! Eenos is still classified! She flopped back into the seat.

After a couple more hours, he turned off the road into their driveway and parked in the garage. We're home, darling.

What about if we build a giant water tower and we get the Amigos to stand on top of it and draw the water up periodically? People could have regular water taps in their houses that were always ready; no more poor people packing water from the community taps. We don't have water towers because we have always lacked the materials and infrastructure to set up the wells and the pumps and whatnot. She grabbed his arm. If we had several, a quake that knocked out the water plant or any one tower wouldn't kill us! Multiple supplies that didn't depend on pumps for pressure! Just because we never have done something doesn't mean we never can!

Darling, can we go inside? There are probably plans from the pioneers who thought this place would be a real colony, before it became a prison. You can research all this later, meaning not tonight. Let's get some cozy clothes on and I'll pull out the old guitar and serenade you, how about that? Remember the first song of mine I played for you on that fabulously starry evening on our first faraway world?

"When I first saw the trees move? I'm sorry, I have trouble winding down and it's your fault; you make me eat regularly and that with coffee, I got een geprikkeld hersenen conjuring up all manner of madness. Music would be wonderful and I would love to hear that beautiful song again, this time knowing exactly what it's like to hold you tight."

Moving closer, she stood hardly touching him with her body, the frisson of their intimate proximity enough to make them both breathe more deeply as if taking in all possible pheromones. Standing with their hands at their sides, simply being so near made her imagine his aura and hers merging, a between zone, creating a more beautiful and precious color, a more vital energy than either of them alone could hope for.

You shall make me lose my resolve and restraint, he whispered at her.

She stepped back a half pace and grinned without remorse. I'll bring the ales.

As they pulled the cushy jumpsuits on, household weight in matching royal blue, she thought to herself, 'If the Kreeepay are more advanced, maybe we could go back to the old sod and take care their atmosphere, if they can really do it. After all this time, after she's done given up on me, I could finally help Auntie. '

THREE

GARDENERS

General Hotchkiss thought Captain Goodwin looked like a kid sent to the Principal's Office for bullying, pouting about the revelations surreptitiously provided via direct com. And about the way his retaliation was frozen in place.

The doorway to the left of the screen slid open, but Hotchkiss quickly identified the intruder as Ned Ambrose, non-threat. Brandeis halted the vid at a scene from the first responders to Montserrat, the town decimated by an overnight CO2 cloud.

I watched from the back and thought you could all use some coffee. Ambrose raised the tray in evidence and proceeded to set it on the table. He poured and passed cups around, taking one with sugar to his Captain and sitting next to him. I thought I might stay.

Hotchkiss nodded thanks. Yes, Ned, and it's good to see you. Thanks for the coffee. Ned came from a San Francisco family, generations of doctors that typically were among the first wave at disasters; a California perspective would also be interesting considering the state's failed bid for semi-autonomy.

Marj, please continue. Hotchkiss did not smile nor betray any emotion. Facts. Facts would speak for themselves.

He narrated, pleased to be able to tailor the presentation to the mood and the background noises.

Everything changed the day the Franklin came and delivered supplies and people. You see, Fajar and his crew brought us more than they knew. When the Van Damme crashed on Lyra 9976, they didn't only leave a legacy of trees; they left a group of intelligent aliens marooned with no way home. The dissident Passengers sent to report on the Lyra 9976 ecology found these aliens and, not wanting them to burn like the trees, reconfigured the pods to accommodate them. That's really what happened to your satellite Goody, they made room for aliens and trees and had to balance the weights.

Goodwin glared, but Ned Ambrose asked, These aliens are on Tenembras now? What were they doing on Lyra and what are they doing now?

Vilsath answered, They tended the trees for the dead Van Dammers and garden now, is that right?

Hotchkiss nodded. They are the gardeners, Sidan. They have the knack of drawing up minerals or metals or even water to the surface.

Brandeis advanced the program to the next section, the footage of Torbjorn explaining the difference between low grade ores and the refined metals the Amigos had brought, dipping a trowel into heaped containers.

Marjorie said, Ned, I wouldn't have allowed them here, but since they are here they've done wonders. They can pull minerals and metals such as these from the ground by standing in a circle with ordinary people. This enabled us to make critical repairs on the reactor plants and make improvements there and at the Breaker. They have pulled water up for us and have brought the proper mix up for planting trees at Seneca University. They're miners.

Edwin, Connie Haggerty's voice made him step back, What do they want in return?

Connie, they've pulled tons of minerals, made artesian wells, changed the magma viscosity of a killer stratovolcano to reduce stratospheric occlusion and been shot at for the effort. In the time they've worked with us, they have demanded not one thing in return. We gave them use of a desolate area and they made an underground home there with their preferred atmospheric mix. When attacked, they run. Their biological flora live where they live, but die in our air with our microbes; we overpower them.

Sir, Vilsath said with a nod, How do benign gardeners and miners create starships and learn how to commandeer our AI? You would have mentioned if they made machines and taught you technological secrets, would you not?

Hotchkiss nodded again and smiled slightly, his attempt to support open-mindedness. Sidan, these beings we dubbed Amigos are not the technological savants that operate the starship that saved us, but they are trusted friends of them. It was through our friendship with the Amigos that the Kreeepay decided to intervene in our disagreement. In line with the Amigo's great aversion to violence, the Kreeepay Eenos gladly stopped you here with no harm to any of you. The tech he possesses is coordinated by Yarra, an intelligence most easily thought of as an advanced AI though there is no indication he is artificial. He warmed his coffee from the pot and blew on it. Let's see some more of the vid and perhaps it will answer some of your questions.

FOUR

FIELD TRIP

You guys want to go on a field trip? Pass me a dishrag, I sloshed my coffee. Ricky tossed one from his vantage point nearer the counter. Elise took a swipe at the crowded breakfast table's edge to get an errant drip and tossed it back.

You don't have Topside duty today? Ricky consulted his watch and seemed pleased with his calendar for the day.

She made musical motions with her fingers. Nay, they must have all they need to choreograph the anticipated parade. And no, before you ask, the General isn't back from his peace parley yet so we don't know if we even get to go.

Moe watched Aroun mop Anama's drippy face as he poured more juice, peering over to them. I could watch these two if you and Ricky would like time to yourselves.

Aroun looked suspiciously at