'The old, old Elf smiles.
'I don't mean, do YOU bake, but only do you bake? No, that doesn't sound right, does it? Can you bake? Can you bake bread and rolls? There, that's better.'
'Huh,' I say.
'Huh,' you say.
'The Princess looks puzzled. 'What do you mean? Can I bake bread and rolls? Why do you ask?'
'Everything changes. Instead of being ready to fight for our lives, we're talking about baking bread and rolls. I mean: baking stuff! Now really! How about that, all you boys and girls sitting here round and about? How about that, all you Moms and Dads and Grandparents sitting alongside your children?
'Well, we are really astonished, and although we're relieved, we're still very suspicious. We keep our clubs ready.
'The Princess looks at me. I look at her. She looks at you. You look at her. You and I look at each other.
'The Princess's face breaks into a gentle smile as she says to us, 'I think these Elves will not hurt us. I'll speak with this little old man and try get his help.'
'We lower our clubs, but hold on to them, just in case we do need to defend ourselves.
''Yes, I can bake bread and rolls,' the Princess says, turning back to the little old man.
'Whispering sounds chase each other among the Elves crowding close.
'She says she can bake bread.'
'Do you think she really can?'
'Well, she says she can.'
'…and rolls?'
'Yes, and rolls.'
'She can, really?'
'From someone in back, 'I'm willing to believe her. I'll say, yes, she can.'
'The Elves chant, 'She can. She can. Oh, yes, oh, yes, she can. The Princess can bake bread and rolls. Oh, joy, oh joy! The lovely Princess can bake bread and rolls. Beautiful bread and rolls. We are saved.'
'They dance. Round and round they go. Holding up colored cloths they form first a line, and then a circle, then many smaller circles, and circles inside of circles. They dance and they dance and they laugh and they sing.
'The ancient Elf leans heavily on his cane. He looks very worn and tired.
'Please,' he says. 'Our baker is very, very old, just as I am, and now he is also very sick. He is too weak to bake any longer or to tell us how to do the baking ourselves. So we have neither bread nor rolls. Please bake some bread and rolls. Then, lovely Princess, teach us how to bake. In that way you will save us from hunger.'
'The ancient Elf points to the big black oven.
'We have a good oven, but we don't know how to prepare it for baking. Show us how to heat the oven for baking. When we are no longer hungry, we will help you. We will have the strength to guide you to the cove, and to help you to get to your gallant ship. Then you will depart across the stormy seas to the King and Queen, who are your father and mother who love you and miss you very much.' *** The Little Old Man stops talking. He pulls his big red checkered handkerchief out of his pocket and wipes away a tear.
'Well, boys and girls and mothers and fathers,' he says, 'you can imagine what happens after that. The Princess shows the Elves how to prepare the oven, and she has them bring flour and water and yeast and salt. She shows them how to mix and knead the dough.
'After the dough has risen, the Princess shows the Elves how to roll it out and shape it into loaves and rolls. Everyone is busy. The Elves place the loaves and rolls on baking trays and pans. They lift the trays and pans over their heads and form a line from where they made the dough to the oven's door.
'The Princess stands beside the oven as the Elves follow her instructions and slide the trays and pans inside. The oven is enormous, and there is room for all the trays and pans.
'We sit in a half-circle in front of the oven, waiting. Soon, the cavern fills with the aroma of baking bread. Everyone, the Princess, all the Elves, and you and I, breathe in the warm soft fragrance that always comes from well-prepared bread and rolls baking in an oven.
'When the Princess thinks enough time has passed, she says, 'It is time to take the trays and pans from the oven.'
'The Princess opens the oven door. A gasp and a shout rise from the Elves standing on their toes and stretching to see. Before them are dozens of loaves of bread and hundreds of rolls, all baked to a glorious golden brown. It is a beautiful sight.
'Using long-handled scoops, the Elves draw the bread and rolls from the oven and set them aside to cool. While the bread and rolls are cooling, the Princess tells the Elves again how the dough should be prepared, and how the oven made ready for baking.
'When the Princess is satisfied that her instructions are understood, she says,
'Now, as all good people do, let us eat bread together.'
'We all stand silently, looking at the bread. The ancient Elf rises from where he sits and, leaning on his cane, walks slowly to where the bread is cooling. He places his hand on a loaf and looks at it for a long time, speaking very softly.
'He pinches off a piece of bread from the loaf and from that piece pinches off another. Leaning on his cane, he walks slowly to where the Princess stands, watching him, and gives to her the pinch of bread.
'We were in need,' he says, 'and you helped us. By helping those in need you have shown us that you, too, deserve to be helped.'
'You and I nod in understanding. The meaning behind the words ofOmar the Oak and Cyril the Spider are now clear.
'The ancient Elf points to a tunnel opening in the cavern's wall. 'From here the tunnel has many branches, and many have turns that lead deeper and deeper into the enchanted, tangled forest. By yourselves, you would have lost your way. We will guide you through the tunnel to the cove where your ship waits.'
'The Princess and the ancient Elf silently eat the bread they hold in their hands.
'The other Elves crowd around and thank us for showing them how to bake bread and rolls. They wish us well on our journey home.
'We wave good-bye, and with ten stalwart Elves carrying lighted torches to lead the way, we walk along the tunnel. After many turns into branch tunnels and an hour of climbing ladders and stairways we are out again into daylight. We see the cove. A lively offshore breeze is blowing.
'The Elves drag a boat from among nearby reeds. We take seats in the boat and our escorts row us out to our ship. We climb aboard, and wave farewell.
'I turn away and shout to my crew, 'Hoist the sails.'
'The sails rise, catch the offshore breeze and fill out. Our gallant ship turns gently and moves gracefully out of the cove. We are on our way home.' *** The Little Old Man slowly stands. He is stooped, and leans on his cane with both hands. He looks tired and a little sad.
'That is the end of the story,' he says. 'I recall that the voyage across the sea was stormy, but we did reach the other shore safely. The Princess was happy to be back with her mother and father, whom she loved and who loved her and they had indeed missed each other very much.
'For many years afterward the Princess enjoyed baking bread and rolls for her father and mother and for friends who came to visit. In time, she married, and baked for her family. Every day, before dinner, she and her children carried baskets of bread and rolls and other foods from the castle and gave them to her people. The people all loved the Princess as much as she loved them.' *** The Little Old Man slowly straightens and waves his cane at us. We all stand.
'Good-bye, good-bye,' he says. 'The sun is low in the sky. It is time for you to return to your campsites. I will see you all again another time, and we'll all go on another voyage across stormy seas to strange lands and strange people, and even stranger Things. Good-bye, good-bye. I wish you well.'
The Little Old Man turns and, leaning heavily on his cane, goes into his tiny hut and closes the door. The story of the Princess's escape from a land of enchantment has ended. *** We hike back to our campsite. It is late evening when we arrive. We have a quick supper and slip into our sleeping bags.
'This was really a good vacation,' I say to Suzanne. 'Tomorrow morning we'll sail back to our home at Three Palms. I'm glad we're going home, because next week we start school.
Suzanne is sound asleep. *** And so these stories of Suzanne and Roger at Three Palms are finished. We stand and stretch. A gull swoops in from the sea, lands, and pecks about among strands of seaweed that had washed on to the shore. It is late afternoon.
Leaving the beach we head for our homes. At the top of a low rise we stop to look back. There, against the background of blue ocean and darkening sky the fronds of our three palms wave gently in a soft and gentle breeze.
Grandparents, and older adults generally, are excellent sources for stories and activities that fascinate children. Plotting, writing and then rehashing such stories can be as much fun for grandma and grandpa, as for the grandkids who hear or read them. In years to come, the young grandchildren of today will read to their own grandchildren the stories that their grandparents wrote for them. The process enhances a family's sense of continuity and cohesion, especially in circumstances where the family is dispersed.
Reviewing how a story came to be may refresh memories of childhood to the generation in the middle as well to the elders and, in time, to the young as they mature. Here is a model with which to experiment. Except for some moderate editing for continuity, the dialogue immediately following is pretty much as it happened.
(Grandma said) 'Mike, answer the phone. I'm busy.'
(Grandpa grumbled) 'It's probably for you.'
'Well, then, take the message.'
(Mumble, mumble) 'Hello.'
'Hi, Grandpa!'
'Yo, ho, ho! Looka what I got, and it isn't even my birthday!My too-faraway grandchild! How goes…?'
'I want another story, Grandpa.'
'Huh? What's this 'another' story bit all of a sudden?'
'A space story, Grandpa, write me a space story.'
'Space? What do I know about space? Where in space?'
'Far out.'
'How far? Space is humungous.'
'Tell me about it. I watch TV cartoons too.'
'Well then, as one expert to another, this calls for a telephone story conference.'
The next ten minutes consisted of an in-depth give-and-take during which grandchild enlightened me about our Sun and its family of planets. Together, we counted off and named the planets from Mercury on out, guessed at the number of moons orbiting each, and which of the outer planets had rings '…that look like flattened hula hoops.' It wasn't long before I was frantically leafing through the encyclopedia I hauled out to the dining room table as we talked. After all, to this (then) six- year old, I was 'grandpa', and grandpa, to a six-year old, knows, doesn't he? Finally, I succumbed to Grandchild's demands.
'OK. I'll write a story, but first I got questions. Holler Mom to the extension phone. Tell her to bring notepaper and a pencil.'
'Hi, Dad, what's happenin'.'
'Don't ask me, ask my grandchild; she gave me the job. But I wasn't born yesterday, ol' gramps is switching this around to a family project, so are you ready, I hope. OK? Write this down and call me back with the answers. I need a boy character and a girl character. Give them names. Next, where do they live? Just 'in space' ain't enough. Where in space? On the moon? On Mars along with that double-jointed six- wheeler we sent up a few years ago there to sniff around in potholes and climb over rocks? Where?
'Maybe the characters live on one of the Asteroids? How about one of Jupiter's dozen or so moons? How about putting them on a pebble or a grain of sand that whirls along somewhere in an outer ring of Saturn? Or you folks have a family story conference and make up your own answers. OK?'
An anguished moan 'Oh, no!' from the other end of the line. Grandchild phoned back later.
'The girl's name is Stobey and she is a space worm, and the boy isSlutter and he's a slime.'
'Oh, my! Stobey the Space Worm and Slutter the Slime. That's a fine pair of characters you're giving me to work with. What else did you come up with?'
'Mom says for you to use your own imagination and not to bother her.'
'Hmmm, I'm being abandoned in deep space. OK, how about Stobey and Slutter in a story about a space bagel?'
'C'mon, you're kiddin'; but it's your problem, Gramps! Carry on!'
And that led to the story about':
A Bagel? In Space?
Stobey the Space Worm is a girl, and she and her friend Slutter theSlime, a boy, live on farms next to each other. The farms are on PlanetMars.
One morning, after breakfast, Stobey runs to Slutter's house and they race each other to their spaceships. Stobey's spaceship is squishy and is named Cream Cheese; Slutter's spaceship is as slimy as he and has the well-deserved name Lox.
Spaceship Lox is named after a kind of smoked fish that was taken along by the first expedition of colonists to Planet Mars from Planet Earth. It's a real slippery fish, even after it's smoked.
Stobey climbs aboard Cream Cheese and Slutter slides into Lox. They take off and head for a landing strip on the slope of a mountain on Phobos, one of Planet Mars' moons.
They land their spaceships on Phobos and explore the mountaintop. They come to a wide, deep hole near the center of the peak. Next to the wide, deep hole they see a sign. On the sign is printed 'The name of this mountain is 'Bagel.'
'Just imagine,' Stobey laughs. 'We flew to the moon on Cream Cheese and Lox, and where did we land? On a bagel!'
It begins to rain. The rainwater on Phobos is white. The reason the milkis white is that on the moons of Mars it always rains milk-real milk.There is a legend in the Planet Mars community that the milk-rain onPhobos really comes from the Cow That Jumped Over the Moon.
Stobey and Slutter take drinking cups from their lunch boxes and hold them up. The cups fill with milk.
'Hm,' says Slutter. 'Here we are, with Cream Cheese and Lox on Bagel, having cups of milk.'
Stobey and Slutter look at each other and giggle. The giggles turn to laughs. My, how they laugh. They explore Bagel Mountain for a while, then walk back to their spaceships. They say good-bye to each other, climb aboard, and switch on the ship's motors. The motors roar and the ships are ready to take off.
Slimy Lox gets off fine but goopy soft Cream Cheese sticks to the Bagel and is in trouble. Stobey presses real hard on the engine pedal. After a real hard try Cream Cheese smears along the surface, finally gets unstuck and squirts into space.
'Why was it so hard for Cream Cheese to get off the Bagel?' Stobey wonders.
She doesn't know, of course, that bagels all across our solar system have always had a mysterious and powerful attraction for cream cheese. For instance, on Planet Earth the single most important question throughout history has been, 'Of what possible use can a bagel be, without cream cheese?'
The two spaceships head for home.
(The same story can be written using hamburger and catsup on a bun with soda pop or any popular, traditional or restaurant combination. Try it with your grandchild's favorite snack.)
That started a series, the first of which was:
Stobey and Slutter Fly to Super-Rock Playground
Stobey's and Slutter's families have moved to the Outer Region of the Solar System and built homes on Jupiter's moon Callisto. Earthlings were overrunning Mars.
One morning Stobey calls Slutter on her space visi-phone.
'Slutter,' says Stobey, 'let's get together.'
'Right,' Slutter answers. 'Where's a good place to meet?'
'If we leave now in our new spaceships, Coconut and Banana,' saysStobey, 'we'll reach the space lanes' junction near the gate to Super-RockPlayground on Moon Ganymede. Will you meet me there?'
'Yes,' Slutter says. 'I'll leave now in Banana and meet you where the space lanes join. I'll be there in an hour, Stobey. See you.'
They switch off, dash for their spaceships and launch. Coconut and Banana are fast, but the distance each must fly is so great that it will take at least an hour to reach the junction.
Super-Rock is the children's playground in the outer region of our solar system, which includes all the planets and space colonies beyond the Asteroids. The playground has roller coasters, a merry-go-round, tunnels to explore, music bands, and many rides for children. It's really cool. Since it's such a special and favorite park, Super-Rock gets lots of visitors.
As Stobey and Slutter approach Super-Rock Playground, the space lanes leading into it become crowded with other spaceships and space buggies. There are big bus line spaceships, each loaded with hundreds of passengers, private spaceships with families, and lots of single-seat space buggies like Coconut and Banana. There are also hot rod space buggies that switch at high speed from one lane to another, driven by boys and girls who sport fancy haircuts, twisty earrings, and leather jackets.
Stobey and Slutter handle their single-seaters carefully to keep from having an accident. The junction to which they are headed is complicated. Hundreds of spacers are in coming in from the right and underneath to join up with hundreds of others from the left and overhead. Everyone is careful. That is, almost everyone. Stobey switches on her space radio.
'Stobey calling Slutter,' she says into her microphone. 'Come in, Slutter.'
Slutter is waiting for the call.
'Slutter here,' he replies. 'Where are you, Stobey?'
'I'm in the holding pattern at the junction,' Stobey says, 'and I'm flashing my green and yellow lights. Can you spot me?'
'Not yet. I've got my greens and yellows on, too,' Slutter answers. 'Let's watch for each other.'
A moment later, Stobey says, 'I see you in my finder; you're still some distance behind me. I'll cut out and line up ahead of you. When you catch up we'll head for the parking block. Let's park next to each other. OK?'
'That's fine. Let's do that.'
Without warning, Stobey feels a slam on the rear of her space-buggy. She looks in her rear-view mirror. It's a hot rodder and he's bumping the nose of his buggy against the back of hers.
'Slutter,' Stobey shouts. 'I'm having a problem with a hot rodder. He's bumping my tail. If he doesn't stop he'll damage my buggy.'
'I'm speeding up and closing,' Slutter replies. 'I'll check him out.'
Slutter rams power into Banana's motor and, a moment later, seesCoconut up ahead. The hot rodder's ship is pushing and bumpingCoconut.
Slutter maneuvers Banana behind the hot rodder. Lowering Banana's nose, he slips it under the rear bumper of the hot rodder. He quickly raises Banana's nose and flips the hot rodder away.
Slutter moves Banana up alongside Coconut. The hot rodder, seeing the Coconut has a Banana for a buddy, veers off. Together, they're too much for him.
'Thank you, Slutter,' says Stobey. 'If you hadn't stopped that hot rodder he might have cracked my Coconut. You sure saved me.'
'I'm glad I was here to help,' Slutter replies. 'If it was the other way round I'm sure you would have done the same for me. Come to think of it, Stobey, if that hot rodder had bumped against my buggy, and you weren't here to help me, he might've peeled my Banana.'
Stobey and Slutter think that's funny. They laugh and they laugh as, flying along side by side, they move along the space lanes into the Super-Rock parking block.
They find parking spaces next to each other. When they step out from their space buggies they come together with smiles and a hug. Hand in hand, they head for the gate that leads into Super-Rock, the most spectacular children's park and playground in the entire outer region of the solar system.
Swinging from a Star
As Stobey and Slutter enter Super-Rock Playground they are greeted by a Hooten-Nanny. The Hooten-Nannies are a family of jugglers, trapeze artists and clowns who enjoy making people laugh. One job that they really enjoy is to meet visitors at the Super-Rock gate and show them the sights and rides. Stobey and Slutter are lucky; a Hooten-Nanny wants to show them around the park.
Hi,' says the Hooten-Nanny as he twirls about, flips a double somersault, a triple spin and a rollover. 'I'm Chug-a-lug the Hooten-Nanny from over Europa way. Just call me Chug. I'm one of the fellows who work here, and I like to show visitors around our park. May I join you?'
Stobey and Slutter look at Chug. They never met a real Hooten-Nanny, but are not surprised at the way he looks. They've seen pictures of Hooten-Nannies in storybooks, television, and on several Websites of the Solar Wide Web (http://sww if you're interested).
Chug looks like a single length of very thin spaghetti, but stiff, like before it's boiled. Chug's head is long and thin too, and his arms and legs also look like strands of spaghetti. The clown's suit he wears glows with all of the universe's colors; it's made entirely of rainbow mist.
'We certainly would like you to join us,' Stobey and Slutter say together.
'What are you going to show us?' Stobey asks.
'And what are we going to do?' Slutter adds.
Chug bends forward so that his head is close to Stobey's.
'You'll see what I'll show you when you see it,' he whispers with a big grin and a wink. Turning to Slutter he says with the same grin and wink, 'You will know what we'll do when it happens.' Then, to both, 'Ar-r-re you ready?'
'Yes, we ar-r-re ready,' shout Stobey and Slutter together, jumping up and down with excitement.
'Then we're off.' Chug yells a shrill 'whoop' as he reaches down with his long arms and wraps one around Stobey and the other around Slutter. Lifting and hugging them close to his thin chest he springs upward with a mighty leap. Holding on to each other, they soar over the gate and above the road leading into the park. Looking down, Stobey and Slutter see the faces of many people staring up at them.
They hear shouts, 'What are they? Are they birds? Are they spaceships?'
And they hear, 'I know. I know. It's Chug-a-lug, the Hooten-Nanny, and he's flying his friends to see the sights and to take the special rides. Aren't they the lucky ones?'
They approach a mountain peak. With a flip and a flop they land on a tiny platform at the tip of a tall pole. They see the ground far below. Beside them, tied to a railing on the platform is a trapeze bar.
'For goodness sake,' exclaims Stobey, 'What's a trapeze bar doing here at the very top of a mountain?'
'This is my own special trapeze,' Chug replies. 'I use it to travel from one place to another. Very often, when I'm feeling real good, I do somersaults as I go along. Shall we swing?'
'Now just a moment,' Slutter says, looking around and then far up into space above Ganymede. 'A trapeze bar swings through space, that I understand. But the lines that hold the bar need to be fastened to something at its other end. I don't see where the trapeze lines end. What are they fastened to up there in space, Chug?'
Chug grins and points up. Stobey and Slutter look again. The trapeze lines stretch up and up and disappear from sight. Far, far away, beyond where the lines seem to join and disappear they see a flickering light.
'My special trapeze,' Chug says softly, 'is hitched to a star.' Raising his voice, he shouts, 'Are you ready?'
'We ar-r-e ready!'
Chug unties the trapeze from the platform. He grasps the trapeze bar in the middle; Stobey takes a firm grip of the bar on his right and Slutter does the same on his left.
'Don't let go,' Chug shouts and with a powerful shove they swing out and away from the mountaintop. The trapeze gathers speed. Down below, the ground rushes past, much too fast to see the people that they know are watching them.
'Now! See me hang by my feet', Chug calls out.
He flips through a somersault and catches the trapeze bar with his long spaghetti-thin toes. Stobey decides to try. She takes a deep breath, twists, and in an instant she is somersaulting. Completing the twist, her feet reach for the trapeze bar.
The bar isn't there!
Stobey's heart almost stops. She feels herself falling. Out of nowhere, a hand grasps one of her ankles and she feels herself drawn in. Her hands find the bar. Chug holds her until her grip on the bar is firm and she is safe again.
'Hmmm,' Chug smiles, 'maybe we're better off staying together.'
Stobey gulps and nods. She glances at Slutter who nods in return.
'I think I'll put off doing a somersault or holding on with my toes,'Slutter says, 'at least until I practice.'
'I guess you're right,' Stobey says, 'I think I'll wait a while before I try that again.'
The trapeze reaches the end of its swing. Up ahead is another mountain top with a tiny platform at the peak. The platform is attached to a pole like the one they left. As their feet touch the platform they each grasp the railing.
They are on firm footing again. Chug ties the trapeze bar to the rail.
'Did you enjoy the ride?' Chug asks Stobey.
'Sure did.'
'The same goes for me,' adds Slutter.
'How will you describe this ride to your parents and to your friends?'Chug asks.
Stobey and Slutter whisper to each other, then, together, they gaze up and point to where the trapeze lines disappear into the far, far distance of space.
'We'll tell them all,' Stobey grins up at her tall friend, 'at Super-Rock Park we met Chug-a-lug, the Hooten-Nanny, and the three of us had a wonderful time swinging from a star.'
'I can't think of anything nicer to say,' Chug smiles. 'Let's do some more exploring and see what we can find.'
Chug-a-Lug the Hooten-Nanny reaches down, wraps one arm around Stobey and the other around Slutter, and draws them close. He leaps up and away and, laughing together, the three friends are off to another adventure.
Visitors from Planet Earth
With the trapeze adventure behind them, our three friends are on the path that leads to the Super-Rock Midway.
'The Midway,' says Chug, 'is the fanciest and flashiest Midway betweenPlanet Mars and Planet Pluto far out on the Solar rim.'
You're right,' says Stobey. 'This Midway really is the last word in midways and I'm looking forward to seeing it. How about you, Slutter?'
'Yep,' Slutter says, 'me too.'
Up ahead, they see the gate leading into the Midway. It's on the other side of the space-block where the bus line space ships are moored to the tops of tall towers. Spaceships smaller than busses land on the surface, so they're lined up in parking lots.
'Let's cut across the parking block,' says Chug, 'it'll shorten the walk to the gate.'
'Fine,' says Stobey.
They head across, cutting in and out among the rows of parked space ships and space buggies.
Half way across they suddenly they feel a deep, thrumming vibration from space. Looking up, they see a gigantic, pancake-shaped, interplanetary space liner moving in above the parking block. Interplanetary space liners are not like the little single-seaters, family wagons, or even the big bus line and ferry space ships that carry folks like Stobey and Slutter from their homes to Super-Rock. Space liners are much larger than the biggest ocean liners that sailed the seas of Planet Earth long ago, and you've seen in history books how enormous they were.
Stobey, Slutter and Chug watch as the huge space liner slows and stops in space just above the Super-Rock Playground. Colored lights flash and glow brightly all across its underside, along its rim, and through thousands of portholes.
'What's that space liner doing here?' Stobey asks, turning to stare atChug.
'Gosh, I don't know,' Chug replies. 'I don't recall ever seeing a big spacer like that coming to Super-Rock. They always go to the big space ports in orbit around moons Io and Europa. I wonder what's going on.'
They watch the space liner, and after a short while see one of the huge panels along its side move aside. An orange-and-green-striped space boat drifts out and holds in place. The space boat is as big as a bus and is known as a 'flitter.' Flitters are used to ferry people and cargo back and forth between big spaceships, or among planets, satellites and other places where the big interplanetary ships can't land. As Stobey, Slutter and Chug watch, the tail of the flitter glows yellow and the space boat turns down toward the surface.
'Look, look,' Slutter yells. 'The flitter is heading this way.'
The flitter hovers just above the Super-Rock parking block. Stobey waves her arms.
'Over here, over here,' she yells. 'Here's a parking slot. Right over here.'
Slutter rushes to the empty parking slot and waves up at the flitter. The pilot must have seen him. He guides the flitter to the slot and lands gently.
Stobey and Chug rush up beside Slutter. Together, they watch the flitter's door.
'I wonder who'll be coming out,' Slutter says.
'…or what'll be coming out,' Stobey mumbles. 'There are many strange beings living in our Solar System.'
'Yes,' adds Chug, 'real strange.' His long, thin spaghetti-like head bobs up and down. His long, thin spaghetti-like body sways. 'Yes,' he repeats with a nod.
Stobey and Slutter look at Chug and then at each other. They smile. They know Chug looks different than they do. They also know that all people and things look a little different from each other, and looking and being different is natural and just fine. They turn back to stare at the flitter's portal.
The portal slips aside. It's dark inside.
A ladder slowly lowers from the portal and unfolds as it approaches the surface. They hear a clicking sound and the ladder locks into place. Stobey, Slutter and Chug are quivering with excitement. A space-suited figure moves into the doorway. It stands there, not moving.
Our three friends look at the space-suited figure, and they see a face through the clear plastic space helmet. The face's eyes are looking at them. Stobey, Slutter and Chug do not need space suits since they're where they live all the time. They're used to getting around just the way they are, but people who come off space liners, they know, aren't able to get around without their own kind of air and pressure. One of the jobs of a space suit is to hold the right kind and mix of air and pressure for the wearers. The space suits do look strange, though.
'Whatever it is, it's just standing there,' Stobey says.
'Sure is,' adds Slutter. 'I wonder whatever is in that space suit looks like.'
'Me, too, Chug mumbles.
The space-suited figure starts down the ladder. As it leaves the doorway another space-suited figure appears. That one, too, looks around and starts down the ladder.
Stobey, Slutter and Chug run to the bottom of the ladder.
'Hi,' Stobey says.
A voice comes out of a speaker panel on the strange figure's helmet. 'Hello,' it says, followed a moment later by a 'Hello' from the other space suit.
'Where are you from? 'Stobey asks.
'Third planet from the Sun.'
'Planet Earth?'
'That's right,' from the other space suit.
'Well, then, call it that, 'Stobey says. 'Who are you? Do people onPlanet Earth have names?'
'Of course we have names. Every one on Planet Earth has a name. How could we tell each other apart, or write each other letters, or call each other on the telephone if we didn't each have our own name.'
'We also have names,' Stobey says. 'My name is Stobey and,' she points to Slutter, 'this is my friend, Slutter.'
Stobey points straight up at Chug's head towering above her and adds,'This is our guide around Super-Rock Playground and he's our friend.His name is Chug-a-lug, and he's a Hooten-Nanny.'
'We're very happy to meet you,' says the voice from the first space suit.
'Now tell us your names,' Stobey says.
'Our names,' says the same voice, 'are Suzanne and Roger. I'm Suzanne.'
'Suzanne and Roger. What strange and interesting names.' Stobey repeats the names a few times, and so do Slutter and Chug. 'Suzanne and Roger. Suzanne and Roger. Hm..m..m, strange sounding names, really strange.'
'They're not strange where we come from,' says Roger.
'I suppose not,' says Stobey. 'Tell us, Suzanne and Roger, why has an interplanetary space liner come to Super-Rock Playground. Aren't the regular ports for space liners in orbits above Io and Europa?'
'Well, yes,' Suzanne says. 'We're on our way to Europa to visit our uncle who's in charge of a space colony. The colonists are also people from Planet Earth.'
'The Captain of our space liner told us the port at the Europan colony is temporarily filled with other space liners,' Roger adds, 'so he brought our liner here for a couple of hours to wait until a mooring slot for us opens up there.'
'Right,' Suzanne adds. 'When we got here and saw this beautiful playground we asked the Captain if we could visit it for a while. As you see, he agreed, and here we are.'
'We're certainly glad you came,' Stobey says. 'We're heading for theMidway. Would you like to join us?'
'Oh, yes,' says Roger, 'we sure would.'
'Yes, we would like to join you,' says Suzanne, 'and we thank you for the invitation. But we must be back aboard the space liner in two hours. Will you be sure that we don't miss getting back here in the parking block in time to lift off?'
Chug steps forward. He draws himself up to his full height, raises one spaghetti-thin arm to point upward, and speaks with a deep voice.
'It shall be my honor and my pleasure,' he says, 'to show you all the wonders of the Great Super-Rock Midway, and then to bring you back here in time to return to your space liner. I, Chug-a-lug the Hooten- Nanny, will be your guide.'
He proudly points at the brilliant, many-colored lights of the Super-RockMidway.
'We're off to the Midway with a fanfare, and in our finery and frippery,' his voice booms like a drum, 'to see a galaxy of games which give everyone gales of galloping giggles. If you wish, you can gulp gallons of grape juice, and gaze and even gawk at glittering gold goblets and gargantuan gemstones. You can also buy gewgaws, gimmicks, gizmos, and glamorous gifts to give to your friends.'
Chug starts across the parking block, taking long steps.
'Hold on, there, Chug,' Stobey calls after him. 'Slow down. Your long legs take such big steps we can't keep up with you.'
Chug turns and looks back. He waits until Stobey, Slutter, Suzanne and Roger catch up. They form a line across, Chug in the middle, Stobey and Suzanne on one side and Slutter and Roger on the other. The two children on each side of Chug link arms. Chug's arms are so long that they reach down to where his hands can be held by whoever is next to him. With Chug's booming voice describing what they will see, they head for the gate into the Midway of Super-Rock Playground.
Overhead, the great space liner from Planet Earth waits silently.
Sir Lumpalot and Kick-Pow
Our friends, Stobey and Slutter, Suzanne and Roger and, of course, Chug-a-lug, the Hooten-Nanny are all walking side-by-side across the spaceship parking block. They are close to the entrance to the Midway. The gate is just ahead. Lights are flashing. Children and grown-ups, of many sizes and shapes, are moving in all directions.
'Halt! Halt, I say. Stay right where you are!'
The order bursts up at them from right under their feet. Stobey jumps aside. Slutter leaps straight up. Suzanne and Roger stand still, shocked. Chug doesn't move, and says nothing. He looks down and points.
A hole forms in the ground where they were standing a moment before. At first they don't see the hole because it's as small as a pinhead. It spreads quickly until it's as big as the hole in the center of a doughnut. That's when they see it. The hole grows to the size of a basketball. It stops expanding for a couple of seconds as if to catch its breath; then with a shiver and a shake it's as big as a bulldozer tire. That's when it stops.
A clatter and a rumble wells up like hooves pounding hard-packed earth. The clatter grows louder and closer. The ground shakes. By this time Stobey and Slutter are holding on to each other. Suzanne and Roger stand close by, confused by what's happening. They feel themselves to be strangers, and don't know what to expect. And Chug? Well, he just stands there.
A cloud of dust suddenly puffs up out from the hole. It forms into a cloud and drifts away. Another cloud of dust rises in which floats a long smooth shaft. The shaft is smooth and rises up out of the hole. The other end is attached to a head. The head is that of a small white animal that looks like a horse.
Another cloud of dust. The animal leaps up out from the hole. It's a unicorn, and on its back is a saddle, and in the saddle is a knight in pure white armor, and in the knight's grip is a lance pointing straight at where our friends are standing.
The front of the knight's helmet is open. In the middle of his face is a pudgy nose, above the nose are fierce eyes, and under the nose a long, bristly, handlebar mustache that ends with three twirling loops on each side.
'Who are you?' he roars. 'What do you want here?'
Stobey steps forward until she is right under the unicorn's head.Looking up, she shakes her finger at the knight.
'Before we go any further,' she says, 'you point that lance somewhere else.'
The knight in white armor stares at Stobey for a five seconds.'Umm.. ah…,' he says as he lowers the lance until it points at the ground.'OK. Is that better?'
'Yes, that's better,' Stobey says. 'Now, I'm Stobey and…' pointing… 'this is my friend Slutter, and these are our new friends from Planet Earth, Suzanne and Roger.'
She points up at Chug. 'Do you know Chug-a-lug?'
'Um.. ah…,' the knight mumbles. 'I know Chug. We're old friends.'
'Ah, so,' Stobey said, 'and who are you?'
'Um ah me? Ah, yes. I'm Sir Lumpalot. This is my unicorn Kick-Pow.'
Kick-Pow nods and paws at the ground. He is pleased to be introduced.
'And where are you from, Sir Lumpalot?' asked Slutter.
Sir Lumpalot looks at Slutter and straightens in his saddle. 'I'm SirLumpalot, and I come from the Land of Lumps, of course,' he says.'Where else would I be from?'
'And what do you do in the Land of the Lumps?' Stobey asks.
The knight turns fierce eyes to glare at Stobey.
'I am a knight,' he says, 'and I have a very responsible job. I keep orderamong all the Bumps, Clumps, Stumps, Grumps, and especiallyChumps, that live in the Land of Lumps. That's why I'm named SirLumpalot.'
'What else do you do?' Stobey asks.
'Well, I also guard the Palace of the King,' Sir Lumpalot drew himself up proudly and harrumphed his mustache into another curl.
'And where would that be?' Slutter cut into the harrumphing.
'Where? Why, in the Royal Square, that's where.' Another harrumph.
'Tell them how you guard it,' Chug says.
'Well, twice a day I circle the Square.'
Stobey giggles, and so does Slutter. Suzanne and Roger are politely silent.
'I see. You circle the Square. Well, what do you do if you see someone who doesn't belong?' Stobey asks.
'Chase them around the nearest corner away from there, of course.'
'Isn't it strange for a grown knight and a unicorn to spend their time circling a Square?' Roger is polite with his question.
'That's my job,' says Sir Lumpalot.
'Well, if that's your job,' says Slutter, 'what are you doing here?'
'Oh, I got a message that all of you were heading this way,' Sir Lumpalot replies with a grin so wide it adds two more loops in his mustache and they curl up so tight that the tips disappear back into the helmet. 'Kick- Pow and I just thought we'd startle you, just for the fun of it. It worked, didn't it?'
Sir Lumpalot laughs and pats Kick-Pow's silky smooth neck. Kick-Pow snorts and paws the ground.
'Hmph. OK, Sir Lumpalot,' says Stobey, 'now that you're here, would you and Kick-Pow like to join us in our visit to the Midway?'
Sir Lumpalot gives a whoop. Kick-Pow bucks. A short one, so as not to jolt his rider.
'We sure would.'
'Then let's go!'
Through the gate they all troop.
The Midway is spread out before them. Bright and blinking lights, twisting and colored streamers, rainbow colored balls, all flashing, floating and bouncing hither and yon. Slutter dashes to a little stall and picks up three darts. One at a time, he aims them carefully at a red balloon on the far wall. He throws the darts. The third dart strikes and breaks the balloon. A robot pops up from behind the counter and hands Slutter a tiny toy space ship.
'What's this,' Slutter laughs. 'I don't need a toy spaceship. I have a real one, all my own.'
He puts the toy spaceship into his pocket for his baby brother, and joins his friends again. On they go.
They try different games of skill and take rides in models of pilot's seats on space racers. Time passes quickly.
As they turn a corner out of the gate from one ride, they hear a hollow booming sound followed immediately by a piercing screech. The sounds fill the air. Sir Lumpalot, who is in the lead, reins in Kick-Pow and halts. He raises his hand in warning. Everyone stops where they are. They stare ahead.
They see nothing but flashing lights, bouncing balls, and waving ribbons.
The booming gets louder.
'There, over there,' Sir Lumpalot shouts, pointing ahead.
'Where?' Chug-a-lug stares in the direction Sir Lumpalot is pointing.
'The strange sounds are coming from that house,' the knight replies.
They see a dark, gray, gloomy-looking house. It has many windows, all dark except for one, and that one shows green and blue lights flashing off and on. The heavy booming sound is coming from inside.
'What's in that house?' Stobey asks.
'I don't know,' says Chug. This time he isn't being sly. He really doesn't know.
'Do you, Sir Lumpalot?'
'No, I don't.' Sir Lumpalot's voice lowers to a whisper, a loud whisper so that they can all hear him. 'Neither does anyone else. It's the Strangers House.'
'Let's explore it,' says Stobey.
'Yes, let's do that now,' Slutter adds.
'Oh, no, not that house.' Chug waves his long arms about.
'Yes,' says Stobey, 'that house.'
'And what's more,' says Slutter, 'right now.'
'Stobey,' Suzanne says, 'You know we do have to be back at our space liner soon. Do you think we should explore the Stranger's House, too. Will there be time?'
'We can't disappoint our uncle on Europa,' says Roger. 'We mustn't delay departure of the space liner.'
'Slutter and I must also leave for our homes soon,' says Stobey. 'Let's do a fast exploration and then head back to the spaceship parking block.'
Stobey points to Sir Lumpalot, then to Chug-a-lug.
'We'll form a line,' she says. 'Sir Lumpalot, you lead the way. I'll follow. Suzanne and Roger, you walk behind me, and Slutter, you watch over our friends from Planet Earth. Chug, you bring up the rear. We must all stay together.'
A shadow crosses one of the windows. A creaking sound comes from the house, like that of rusty hinges, followed by still another boom and a screech. A thin wisp of smoke goes down, I mean 'down' the chimney. The exploration of the Stranger's House is starting out mysteriously indeed.
Into the Stranger's House
As our friends approach the house, they hear more creaking noises from inside. The weird screech is heard again. The wisp of smoke that went down the chimney shoots up out again with a whoosh. The smoke twists into a spiral above the house, straightens, darts away and disappears over a low hill.
'What's going on,' Stobey demands, looking at Chug-a-lug.
'I don't know, Stobey,' Chug replies.
'Well,' Slutter says, 'we're here and we may as well check this place out. I think we should go ahead.' He turns to Suzanne and Roger. 'What do you think?' he asks.
Suzanne shrugs. Roger nods.
'OK with us,' Suzanne says, 'we're game. Let's go, as long as we get back to our spaceship in time.'
Stobey opens the door leading into the house, pokes her head in and looks about. She sees a large room with lots of heavy furniture scattered about. The furniture is covered with white sheets, and the floor and corners of the room are filled with space dust.
Chug leans in over Stobey and his head swivels in all directions, examining the dusty room.
'Kind of weird looking, isn't it?' he says.
The words are hardly out of his mouth when the spine-chilling screech cuts across the room.
Chug jumps with alarm. 'What's that,' he shrieks. He leaps so high his head strikes the top of the doorway and he let out another howl. Rubbing the top of his spaghetti-thin head he scowls and glowers at the top of the doorway.
'What's happening? What's happening?' Sir Lumpalot yells from behind. Slutter, Suzanne and Roger crowd forward to see better.
'I can't tell yet,' Stobey calls back over her shoulder, pointing. 'The sound came from that corner. Let's see what's there.'
Stobey steps carefully over the sill, and is followed close behind by Chug and the others. They tighten into a knot and, peering in all directions, tiptoe toward the middle of the huge, shadowy dust-laden room.
Without warning, another screech. Our friends grab each other. They look around, then quickly up and down. They can't see anything that might be causing the strange noise.
Slutter points. There, in the floor, near one of the walls, is a trap door.
'There's a cellar under this house,' he says, 'and that's where the booming and the screeching must be coming from. Do you think we should go down?'
Stobey thinks for a moment. 'Well,' she answers, 'it's the only way to find out who, or what, is making that noise. Also, what about the shadows that crossed the window, and what about that crazy smoke that went down and back up out of the chimney, and then twisted and curled and raced away? I'd like to find out what's going on.'
Slutter walks to the trap door and lifts it. A staircase stretches down into darkness. Stobey stands beside Slutter and looks; nothing but darkness.
'Let's go,' Stobey starts down the narrow stairway.
Slutter is close behind her, followed by Chug, Suzanne and Roger, and at the end Sir Lumpalot on Kick-Pow. Being a unicorn, Kick-Pow has no trouble at all going up and down stairways. He does have to be careful, though, so that his horn doesn't scrape the walls or bump into the overhead.
The stairway takes one turn and then another. The turns explain why Stobey and Slutter couldn't see much from the top. At the bottom is a small square space lighted by a tiny lamp. Leading off from the space is an opening to a narrow passageway.
Stobey doesn't wait. She enters the narrow passageway, followed by the others. They advance only a short distance and, again, the weird screech bursts out, this time from up ahead and much louder. A booming, rasping noise follows the screech. It sounds like heavy chains being dragged across rocks.
'Be careful,' Slutter warns from behind Stobey.
'Yes,' Chug says, 'let's all be careful.'
'Light up ahead,' Stobey announces.
The light is far off, but as they get close it brightens. The passageway by now is well lit. Up ahead the passageway bends.
They turn the bend. They're in a large cavern. The floor is covered with dust and stones, and in the center is what appears to be an enormous black boulder.
Suddenly, from above, erupts the same screech they heard before, wild and shrill. Our friends leap back away as their eyes dart up.
There, standing on top of the rock, looking down at them is an eye, round and staring. Around the eye are spikes, long and sharp, and directly above the eye is a mouth, wide and open, and from out of the mouth, bursts another screech. And another screech. The screeches become words that hiss and whistle and puff and roar.
'Who are you? What are you doing here? What do you want?' The screeching fills the room with echoes that bounce from one wall to another and back again.
Stobey, leaning her head back to look at the enormous eye. She places her hands on her hips and says, 'Now, look here, whatever and whoever you are, you just quit that screeching, hissing, whistling, puffing and roaring and talk to us properly and politely, and we'll do the same. We're visitors here, and I'll introduce myself and my friends. Then you tell us who you are and we'll have a nice chat. OK?'
'Well, OK.' The eye blinks a couple of times and speaks in a gentle hiss; the whistle, puff and roar are gone.
Stobey introduces herself and her friends. 'Now it's your turn,' she says.
'My name is Bingbang Babbaloo,' the eye says, 'and I am the guardian of this Great Rock.'
'We saw strange-looking smoke go down and then come back up the chimney,' says Slutter. 'What was that all about?'
'Oh, that's my robo-assistant, Bizz Bazz. He goes on errands for me and uses the chimney as his way in and out of the house. I sent him for a couple of hamburgers a little while ago. I hope he doesn't forget the French Fries and the catsup. I love French Fries and catsup, don't you?'
'Oh, I love French Fries and catsup, too.' Chug grins.
'Me, too,' from Sir Lumpalot. Kick-Pow paws the ground and tosses his head in agreement. It's close to his mealtime.
'Let's get back to my questions, Bingbang Babbaloo,' says Stobey.'What is this Great Rock and why do you guard it?
'What is this Great Rock?' Bingbang voice is almost back to a screech.'Why do I guard it? The Great Rock holds the treasure.'
'What treasure? I don't see treasure.'
'Of course you don't, the treasure is inside. Would you like to see it?
'Yes, I would,' says Stobey and everyone with her nods.
Bingbang blinks three times. The huge rock shakes violently and the cavern fills with the sound of heavy dragging chains. A crack appears in the rock. The crack widens, lengthens, and curves along the top and forms into a door. The door opens and they look into a lighted vault.
On the floor, in the center of the vault is an enormous chest, and filling the chest and hanging over its edges are hundreds of loops of bracelets and pearls. Alongside the chest and scattered about are casks and buckets of brilliant diamonds, rubies and emeralds. Along the walls are rows of gold and silver bars and mounds of gold nuggets, and still more boxes overflowing with precious gems.
'My goodness, Bingbang Babbaloo,' exclaims Stobey, 'Where did you get all of this treasure?'
'Would you really like to know?' Bingbang blinks.
Everyone nods again.
'Good. Sit, and I will tell you of my adventure on a strange planet that circles a distant star.'
Bingbang Babbaloo Battles Burpers
Why does Bingbang Babbaloo guard the treasure in the Great Rock under the Stranger's House in Super Rock Playground? Where did the treasure come from? Why are the treasure and Bingbang Babbaloo in this old house in the Super-Rock Playground? Everyone wants to know.
Stobey and Slutter, Chug-a-lug and Sir Lumpalot, Suzanne and Roger, and of course, Kick-Pow, the Unicorn, gather before Bingbang, whose strange body rests on top of the Great Rock in which the treasure is stored. Bingbang's single, spike-rimmed eye blinks slowly down at them as he speaks in a soft hiss.
'I have traveled to this place from a distant star,' he begins, 'and my journey has been full of adventures and dangers. Many times I had no food and I was often so tired I could barely see. But I had a job to do.'
'Where were you going?' asks Stobey.
'Yes,' adds Slutter, 'and what was your job?'
Bingbang's single eye glares at Stobey and Slutter. 'Now, listen here, you two.' His voice rises to an exasperated screech, changes to a wheeze, and winds up as a whistle. 'If you want to hear this story you'll just have to be quiet and just listen, instead of interrupting. Mind your manners and your questions will be answered. OK?'
'Well, OK,' says Stobey.
'Hmph,' says Slutter.
Bingbang's voice returns to a low hiss, but its sound fills the cavern.
'My voyage begins long ago and far away on Planet Boomboom, whichis my home. In the green sky above Planet Boomboom is our Sun,Blooper. That's how we assign names where I come from. So, you see,I am Bingbang Babbaloo from Boomboom near Blooper. Got it?'
No one answers. They're curious to hear more.
'Ah, yes, well, to get on with it,' Bingbang continues, 'one breezy afternoon on Boomboom I am browsing among the books in my basement. A messenger arrives with a letter from Boogie-woogie Boomer, King of Boomboom.
'Bingbang Babbaloo,' the letter says, 'I, King Boogie-woogie Boomer of Boomboom, command you to leave immediately for Planet Boppo which is near the Sun Bippo. Boppo is the home of the evil Burpers who stole my treasure of gold, diamonds and jewels. When you get to Boppo, I command you to recover my treasures from the Burpers, and return it to me here on Boomboom.'
'That, Stobey and Slutter, should answer some of your questions. I was going from the Sun Blooper to the Sun Bippo, from the Planet Boomboom to the Planet Boppo. I, Bingbang Babbaloo was to do battle with the bad Burpers for a batch of King Boogie-woogie Boomer's baubles. Now, do you get it?' They all nod slowly, and mumble ,'Hmm ahh. Yep. Got it, I think. Hmm.'
'I run to my spaceship, Boomerang, and blast off for Boppo. It's a bumpy voyage. On the way I pass suns and planets, many with strange names on my maps, instead of the sensible ones we have where I come from.
'After many months I see Bippo up ahead. Bippo is a funny looking sun with purple stripes and round green spots. I search the area and there, off to one side, is the planet Boppo. It's also funny looking: green stripes and purple spots, just the opposite colors of its sun.
'So here I am at last, ready to land my Boomerang among a lot ofBoppoian Burpers near Bippo to do battle for a batch of baubles for myBoomboomaranian King Boogie-woogie Boomer.'
'Now just a minute, Bingbang Babbaloo.' Stobey jumps up from where she's sitting and shakes her finger at the Eye. 'Now just a minute,' she repeats. 'I want to hear your story, and I'm sure my friends also want to hear it, but I would appreciate it very much if you told the story without using so many words that begin with B. It's confusing.'
'Well,' says Bingbang, 'all right, but that's the way we talk at home. Anyhow, back to my story. I scout the planet of the Burpers from far above, and see a castle on a hill. I land my ship in a forest clearing nearby and sneak around and over rocks and along gullies toward the castle that I saw from the sky. Finally, up close, I see that the drawbridge is down. A truck without a driver is the side of the road, that's careless of them, I must say. I climb into the truck, switch on the motor, and drive across the drawbridge.'
Bingbang's huge round eye blinks slowly.
He continues, 'I stop the truck in an alley and wait until night. In the darkness I drive the truck out of the alley and into another and then still another and another, searching for the place where the treasure is hidden. Soon it will be daylight, but no luck. I know that in the morning light I'll be seen and captured. I have very little time.
'I turn a corner and up ahead I see the outline of a large blockhouse. I drive closer and see bars across its windows and doors.
'Aha, I think. This must be the place. I sneak to one of the doors and peek through the bars. Nothing. I slip around to the windows and peek through. Again, nothing. I circle around to another side of the blockhouse and to another, looking through the bars of doorways and windows. Finally, through one of the windows I see my King's stolen chest of diamonds, jewels, gold and silver.
'I look around carefully. No guards. The Burpers must think that the blockhouse is safe in their castle-fortress. They didn't stop to think that I, Bingbang Babbaloo, would come to rescue my King's treasure.
'I drive the truck close to the window behind which the stolen treasure is stored. Drawing my heavy blaster I rake the beam across the doorway. The door dissolves. I enter the blockhouse and load the treasure into the truck. With all the treasure on board, I slip behind the wheel, turn the motor on and race along one narrow, twisty alley after another and soon am at the drawbridge. I'm across the drawbridge and head for my space ship.
'Behind me I hear the noise of sirens and whistles. The alarm. The Burpers are after me. I slam my foot on to the speed pedal. The truck engine races, faster and faster. I must get to my space ship in time. The sirens and whistles are louder. They're close behind me; I mean, lots of them, one Burper after another.
'I drive the truck around tight turns in the road. The enemy is closing in. Luckily, I have an emergency escape plan. It's time to put my plan into action.
'Bingbang Babbaloo to Boomerang,' I call through my radio transmitter.'Come in, Boomerang, old buddy.'
'Boomerang is in my plan for escape. My space ship Boomerang is also a robot that can follow my orders even when I'm a great distance from it.
'Yes, master,' Boomerang's metallic voice sounds in my ear.
'Zero in on me,' I order, 'and hover just above this truck.'
'Will do.'
'A moment later Boomerang is directly above the truck.
'Lift this truck on the ship's crane,' I order, 'and draw it into the ship's hold.'
'Just as the Burpers are ready to cast a chain around my rear bumper, I feel the truck being lifted from the road. Seconds later, I and the truck and the King's treasure are safely inside my ship. I blast away from Boppo.
'The Boppoian Burpers blast away at Boomerang. My ship dodges one way and then the other. Bam! Bam! Boomerang is caught in a barrage. I barrel roll the ship into space to get away. The barrage follows, but I'm not beaten yet. I give Boomerang all the power it can take.
'The Burpers take after me in their space fighters, firing all their beamers.I keep dodging.
'I release a blockbuster bomb. The Boppoian Burpers see it and blast themselves in another direction to get away from the bomb. This gives me the time I need to escape.
'I do get away, but my ship is damaged. I will not be able to make the long flight home.
'After many weeks of limping along, and wandering a long distance from the flight paths shown on my maps, I find myself here at Super-Rock, only part of my way home. I have brought my ship with its treasure here to this cavern. Since my arrival it's been known as the Stranger's House.
'Now I am waiting.'
'Waiting? Waiting for what?' asks Stobey.
'I am waiting for rescue,' Bingbang hisses softly. 'I have sent a message to my king, telling him where I am. He is sending a ship for me. The loud booming and the other sounds you heard when you came near the Stranger's House were the messages between my rescuers and me. They should be here at any moment.'