Jack Strong and the Red Giant

by Heys Wolfenden

  “Are you alright?” shouted Vyleria, running over to him.

  “Yes, I think so,” he said, inspecting his arms and legs for cuts and bruises that weren’t there. “I didn't even feel it. The floor seems softer than before.”

  “Wasn’t that fun?” she gasped next. “It was just like racing in the Sand Pits of Mar or playing in the Thracken games in Melora city.”

  Jack didn’t know what these were, but he nodded all the same.

  Then Vyleria climbed back onto her hover seat, her bright, red eyes beaming and shot-off into the distance, closely followed by Jack.

  He lost count of how many times they went around the corridor. It was the most fun Jack had ever had.

  Eventually after what seemed like hours of intergalactic fun they went back to join the others, the corridor shrinking back to its original size behind them.

  Back in the room, Grunt was playing with one of the floating chairs, prodding it with one of his long, boney fingers, howling with delight whenever it moved. Ros however, was waiting for them, his arms still folded, his grey, lipless mouth curled up into a snarl.

  “Where have you been?” he shouted. “We have no time for silly games. We could be anywhere. We could be floating towards a black asteroid or an exploding supernova and not know about it. It’s important that we find the control room and work out what’s going on.”

  “Who made you captain?” asked Vyleria. “Sorry we just got carried away. It’s called FUN you know! What would you know about it anyway? How many planets have you been to?”

  “Seventeen,” said Ros confidently.

  “Only seventeen?” she laughed.

  Ros’ cheeks seemed to get darker for a moment. “Why, how many have you been to?” he asked.

  “I stopped counting at fifty,” she chuckled.

  His cheeks went darker again…

  “Fifty,” said Jack. “That’s impossible.”

  “No, it’s not,” said Vyleria. “My people have been all over the Black Crab and Red Dragon Nebulas. Why, how many have you been to?” she asked.

  “None.”

  “NONE?” she bellowed.

  “Yes, none,” he answered. “My planet hasn’t been to any other planets yet. We barely have any spaceships, and even if they were looking for anyone to go I doubt they would ask me.”

  “Oh, I was assuming we were all here because we’d been to other planets,” she said. “But now looking at you and Grunt I’m not so sure.”

  “Maybe you are an accident Jack,” said Ros.

  “Will you two quit it?” asked Vyleria. “We’re going to have to work together to get out of this mess. Bickering like a couple of children won’t help. Okay?”

  “Fine,” mumbled Jack and Ros at once.

  “You are right though,” said Vyleria, turning back towards Ros. “We do need to find the control room and find out where in the galaxy we are.”

  “And some food too,” added Jack, feeling his stomach rumble.

  “We should split up,” she said to Jack. “Take Grunt, and look for some food and whatever other supplies you can find. Ros and I will look for the control room.”

  “But, I want to go and find the control room with you.”

  “You’ve never been into space before Jack,” said Vyleria. “We have. We know what we are doing. Besides, you get on well with Grunt and can help him get around the ship.”

  “Oh and maybe you could give him a bath too,” said Ros, causing Jack to frown.

  “Okay,” Vyleria said to Ros, “I have an idea. Let’s go to the transportation room and see if we can get to the control room that way.”

  “But there’s no way I will be able to get Grunt to think of anywhere on the ship,” said Jack. “We can’t use the transportation room.”

  “Leave him then,” replied Ros. “He will be okay for a while.”

  “I’m not going to leave him,” said Jack. “He can't look after himself. You know that. Anything could happen to him.”

  “I don’t know Jack,” said Vyleria. “You will just have to work it out. Maybe there’s an exit we’ve not found on this level. Keep searching, you will be alright, I'm sure.”

  “Or maybe you can get Grunt to talk and think!” said Ros, chuckling to himself.

  With that they split up, Ros and Vyleria disappearing one by one into the transportation room.

  “Come on,” said a disappointed Jack to Grunt as they trudged down the corridor. “Let's try and find some food at least.”

  At the mention of the word 'food' Grunt whooped and howled and waved his arms around excitedly.

  Food must be an intergalactic language, Jack thought...

  Chapter 5: All Change

  There was nothing different about the room at first. It was like all the other rooms on the spaceship being white, large and rectangular. But as Jack was still dirty and a little bloodied from his fight with Gaz he found himself thinking about taking a shower. The next thing he knew, he heard what sounded like a hot, steaming shower right next to him.

  He turned around and instead of an empty room there was now a row of cubicles, each one three times as big as the ones they had at school. Each of the cubicles had one shower head, complete with golden nozzles and silver taps. They looked fit for a king. But though he could see huge silky plumes of steam, he couldn’t see any water. He could hear it crashing and swirling around the white, marble floor, but he couldn’t see it. It was completely invisible.

  It took a long time but eventually Jack managed to persuade Grunt to enter one of the cubicles. Judging from his smell he wondered whether this was the first time he’d even seen a shower. Then he took off his clothes and stepped into his cubicle as a wave of warmth flooded over him.

  Though it didn't look like water – it sure felt like it as it bounced and tumbled off his skin. It was the cleanest, freshest and warmest non-water ever. He didn’t even need any soap. It seemed to be already in the water. He was clean in a matter of seconds. Even so, he stood there for what felt like ages as the invisible jet rushed and roared around him, hot steam billowing throughout the cubicle.

  Then Jack felt a strange, brushing sensation over his teeth.

  Up and down it went, back and forth, in front and behind, up all the little nooks, crannies, gaps and cavities. There also seemed to be some invisible toothpaste/mouthwash solution (it even tasted minty!) swilling about his mouth. When it had finished, not only were his teeth cleaner but a persistent toothache in one of his front teeth had disappeared too, and they even felt straighter.

  Next he felt a pair of invisible scissors cutting away at his long, brown hair, little tufts of which were now falling to the floor. Jack watched as these were then sucked up by an invisible hoover one strand at a time. In seconds it was all over. Though he couldn't see what it looked like, it still felt like it was the best haircut he had ever had.

  Stepping out of the shower, Jack walked over to where he had thrown his dirty clothes, only to see that his clothes were now hanging in mid-air as if held by some unseen hand. Not only were they the cleanest they’d ever been but they even smelled nice too. Even the thin layer of dirt that had been caked on the bottom of his trainers had gone – sucked up by some invisible machine. He put them on one at a time, each piece of clothing ceasing to float as soon as he gave it a little tug.

  No sooner had he got dressed when a large floating mirror appeared from out of nowhere. It seemed to be able to sense his every movement, following him wherever he went.

  Jack stared at his reflection. Staring back at him was the whitest, cleanest face he’d ever seen. Not only had his pimples disappeared but his bust lip and all the other bruises had completely healed too. He even felt different, more confident somehow. What would the other kids at school say if they saw him now? Would they finally be his friends? Would he be popular, just like he'd always wanted to be?

  Jack watched as steam billowed out of Grunt's cubicle. He could hear a medley of grunts, gasps, growls and whistles.
>
  When he finally came out Jack couldn’t believe it. Instead of a sticky, sweaty ball of hair he was now a clean, young, pale-skinned boy dressed in a light blue spacesuit. Most of his hair and fur had gone, as had the bloodshot from his bright, orange eyes. He even looked like he’d grown an inch or two.

  Grunt smiled. Gone were the yellow, broken splinters and in their place was a set of sharp white teeth that would go well on a wolf or a lion.

  Where Grunt had got the spacesuit and boots from Jack had no idea. But he seemed to like them judging by the huge smile on his face and by the fact that he couldn’t stop running his hands over them. You’d think he’d never worn clothes before from the way he was acting.

  Jack wondered if the magic shower had fixed his speech too. “Can you understand me?” he asked.

  Grunt looked at him for a long time. Then finally he opened his mouth. His nose twitched, his tongue danced, his lips quivered. And then he…

  Grunted.

  He tried again.

  Another grunt.

  And again. It seemed like he would never be able to speak. What am I going to do with him? How are we going to communicate? Are we ever going to find a way off this floor?

  After eventually leaving the shower rooms (Grunt went back for two more showers!) they made their way back down the corridor. They had only walked several feet when suddenly the whole corridor disappeared before their eyes, replaced by the infinite, bottomless depths of space. For an instant Jack thought they were going to fall, that space was going to suck them up like strings of spaghetti. But nothing happened.

  It was only when he lost his balance and almost fell over that he realised the corridor was still there, it was just that he couldn’t see it. He looked at what surrounded him. He had never seen so many stars before. There had to be billions upon billions of them, glinting and glimmering, clustered in all kinds of swirls, shoals and spirals. Not all were white either. Some glowed red, some orange and others neon blue.

  That was when he saw it.

  Beneath his feet was a giant blue planet, surrounded by several rings as well as many moons of various colours and sizes. Some were grey, cratered and lifeless, whereas others were a swirl of green and turquoise. The gas giant’s surface was pockmarked with an array of storms, each one as big as a small moon.

  Then as if someone had flicked a switch, it all disappeared, leaving only an empty corridor and a screaming Grunt. Jack was busy telling him that everything was okay when they started to float.

  Jack and Grunt were helpless as they drifted up and down the corridor, bumping and banging into each other like a couple of dodgems at the fairground. They went on like this for a couple of minutes, flapping and flailing, until without warning the gravity returned to normal, causing them to plummet down to the floor.

  “What’s going on?” shouted Jack, Grunt howling in agreement.

  But before he could gather his breath he found himself lifted off his feet and stuck to the ceiling. He couldn’t move. He was paralysed. It was like his entire body was magnetic. He would’ve screamed but he couldn’t so much as twitch his vocal chords, let alone form words.

  Then as if someone had pressed a button the hold on them ceased and they went crashing down to the floor.

  Jack was getting to his feet when he saw a brown-skinned girl crouching a little further off down the corridor. He was about to say something when she suddenly disappeared in a crackle of electricity. Where had she gone to?

  “Hello, is anyone there?” he asked.

  Silence.

  “My name is Jack, this is Grunt,” he said.

  Again there was no reply.

  He tried again and again, but the girl never answered, nor did she return. Eventually he gave up, dragging a confused-looking Grunt back down the corridor.

  It was shortly after this that they smelled the food.

  Jack and Grunt instantly rushed down the corridor, led by their hungry noses. They followed the fragrant smell into a room on their left.

  The whole room had been transformed.

  Gone was the bleached white interior and in its place were walls of stone, with beams of wood hanging from the ceiling, complete with a flying chandelier, hovering candles, a roaring fireside, and a huge mahogany table complete with a hundred delicious, mouth-watering dishes. That and a huge, green boy shoveling handfuls of food into his wide, gaping mouth.

  Chapter 6: Padget

  The boy was plonked on one of the floating chairs, his head in a mound of food. His shaggy orange hair made him look like some kind of troll. Before him on a plate as large as Jack's dinner table back home were several heavily battered fish and some huge, chunky chips dripping with salt and vinegar. There was also a giant side plate of the greenest, mushiest peas ever, as well as a pan-sized jug of steaming hot gravy, onions and all. The boy's stumpy legs wiggled beneath him as his podgy, green fingers shoved handful after handful of chips into his mouth. Jack glanced down the table and noticed that three or four other dishes had been similarly destroyed by this big green eating machine.

  He thought he'd better say something. “Hey!” he said, slightly higher-pitched than he'd intended.

  The boy jumped, sending chips flying around the room.

  “What do you want?” he asked, looking frightened.

  Jack was almost as flustered as he was. “I don’t want anything,” he said. “We were coming down the corridor when we smelled the food. I'm Jack, this is Grunt.”

  The green boy eyed them both suspiciously for a few seconds, then he opened his mouth. “My name is Padget Pen'argon,” he said in a haughty, puffed-up voice. “My father is the Direktor of the Thane Konsortium, the biggest, richest and most powerful in all of Thral. What Konsortium does your dad own?

  “My dad doesn't own any Konsortium,” replied Jack, not entirely sure what a Konsortium was. “In fact he doesn't own anything. He just works in a chocolate factory.”

  “What, he’s just a worker,” said Padget. “You mean to say you're POOR?”

  “Well yes, I suppose so,” said Jack, his cheeks reddening. “But...”

  Jack was going to say how it didn't matter and that for him his dad had the best job in the world, but he didn't get the chance, Padget had already turned his attentions towards Grunt.

  “Hello,” he said as Grunt finished hoovering-up the remains of Padget’s chips. “I'm Padget. My Dad is...”

  All Grunt did of course was grunt, though even if he could speak Jack didn’t think it would have done much good. Given the state he was in when he arrived on the ship, he suspected that Grunt was even less well-off than he was, and besides Grunt had only one thing on his mind now and that was FOOD. As soon as Padget opened his mouth Grunt dived head first into the floating banquet, his hands scooping-up fistfuls of fish, chips and mushy peas into his gaping mouth.

  Jack saw his chance and approached Padget again. “How did you get on board?” he asked. “What do you remember?”

  “Get on board what?” Padget replied.

  “The spaceship of course.”

  “What spaceship? What are you talking about?”

  Jack wasn't sure if he was pulling his leg or not. “This one, obviously. You do realise you're on a spaceship don't you?”

  “Don't be ridiculous,” said Padget. “That's impossible. If I was on a spaceship you would think I would have noticed.”

  “It's not impossible, here I'll prove it.”

  Jack remembered how they had discovered the hoverseats. So he took a chance and placed his hand on one of the stone walls and thought of space. The wall instantly faded away to reveal a big blue planet ringed by an icy-white mane of moons.

  “Very clever,” said Padget. “Nice try, but I'm not having it.”

  “Well, how else do you all explain this?” asked Jack, pointing towards the big blue blob in the middle of the wall.

  “It’s probably a video game of some kind. I play loads of them back home. I'm sure you have some wires attached to it som
ewhere and a controller in your pocket.”

  “I've got nothing like that. Look, I'll prove it,” said Jack, turning out his pockets and tapping on the wall to show that there were no wires attached to that either.

  “That doesn’t prove anything. What are you trying to con out of me? Are you one of those Skav bandits from the Northern Frontier? I'm warning you my father is...”

  “Yes I know, very rich and powerful, I get it,” said Jack. “But all your money and all your fathers’ connections aren't going to do you any good out here. We're on a spaceship, like I've told you before. If you believe I'm as poor and as pathetic as you think, how could I afford such an elaborate and expensive hoax?”

  That stumped Padget for a moment.

  “Look, what's the last thing you remember?” Jack continued. “You must have at least seen something flying in the sky like I did. It might have looked to you like a plane, a silver cloud or perhaps some kind of light.”

  “No, I don't remember anything,” he said, as he stroked a few orange hairs on his lumpy chin. “The last thing I remember was going to bed. I'd been having fun with my buddy-bots all day, and after eating in the big banquet hall I retired to my sleeping chamber. When I awoke I was here in this room. When I wanted some breakfast all this food appeared. I just assumed that my father had bought me a new toy to play with, he's always treating me you know.”

  “So you didn't see a spaceship? You just went to bed and found yourself here?”

  “Yes.”

  “That’s interesting...”

  “What is?”

  “Well, when I first saw the spaceship it chased me and then pulled me on board. I wonder why your experience was different. Why do you think we're here?”

  “I don't know and I don't care,” said Padget. “I still don't know where here is, let alone if we are in space as you so amazingly claim.”

  “Well then, how do you explain this?” asked Jack, pointing at the big, blue planet, a hive of storm clouds swirling in its Northern hemisphere.