by Zac Harrison
Without thinking, John reached for one of the silver and red school outfits in his locker. “I’m sorry, but you cannot wear that,” Zepp’s voice said gently. “You can only take what you came with. Headmaster’s orders. If you carry any proof of your stay here to Earth, the Galactic Council will be furious.”
“I see,” said John sadly, reaching for his old rucksack. “So no last photo with Kaal and Emmie, either, then?”
The computer paused, then whispered, “I may be able to bend the rules so long as you promise never to show anyone.”
“Done,” said John. At least he would have something to remember his friends by.
“And there’s something in your bag from me,” the computer continued. “It’s Earth technology; no one will ever notice.”
John peered into the rucksack. Resting on top of neatly pressed clothes was the silver sheen of a plain compact disc.
“Just a few tunes,” said Zepp. “I hope you like it.”
“It’s awesome,” choked John. “I’ll think of you whenever I play it.”
“Come on,” said Kaal softly. “Emmie’s waiting.”
John ducked into the bathroom quickly, sticking his head under the tap. Brushing his teeth quickly, he looked into the mirror. His eyes widened. The night before his face had been a mass of blisters and raw skin. Now it was completely smooth, as if nothing had happened. He checked his chest where the cinder had burnt him. There was only healthy skin, slightly pink but otherwise unmarked. No proof, he thought to himself. Not even a scar.
Zepp provided a handsome breakfast. None of them had eaten since taking a few bites of their packed lunches the day before and they all ate hungrily, trying to fit in as much talk as they could through mouthfuls of food. John couldn’t help feeling faintly ill as he watched Kaal’s sharp teeth tearing at mouthfuls of his favourite food, which he still couldn’t help thinking of as skinned worms. At least I’ll never have to eat alien food again, he thought to himself.
The meal was over too quickly. John tried to keep up with Kaal and Emmie’s jokes, and forced himself to smile, but there was sadness beneath the chatter. Tears pricked his eyes when he found a photograph beneath his plate: John and Kaal and Emmie laughing together outside the dormitory. Emmie had just made another joke about his hair. John had no idea how Zepp had taken it, but he slipped it into his rucksack gratefully.
Swallowing a mouthful of tea, John swung his rucksack over his shoulder and said goodbye to Lishtig, Gobi, and a few other students who had rushed down to the canteen. Word had spread that he was leaving.
“Galva-coated Dumpod candies,” said Lishtig, pressing a bag into John’s hand.
“Thanks, but I’m not allowed to take anything. The Galactic Council—”
“Who cares what the Galactic Council thinks?” Lishtig winked.
John pocketed them.
* * *
“Good morning, John Riley. I am glad to see you are punctual this time.”
As he walked out of the TravelTube, John was surprised to see Ms Vartexia waiting by the shuttle, ThinScreen in hand and wearing her full Earth disguise.
“I will be delivering you to... where is it?” She checked her screen. “Oh, yes. Wortham Court School. In Derbyshire. How could I forget. It’s all been worked out. You have made a full recovery from the measles, and as your aunt – that’s me – happened to be travelling close to the school, she is dropping you off. After that, I will pick up Prince Clo-Ra-Ta.”
“I see,” said John, wondering what the people at Wortham Court would make of his bizarre aunt. “Well, at least they won’t be throwing me out of an airlock when I arrive.”
“Humour,” said Ms Vartexia, nodding as if a great secret had been revealed to her. “I have been studying it. Very... what’s the word?... Oh, yes, funny. Ha-ha. Please board the shuttle.”
“Just one second.” John turned to Emmie and Kaal. “I guess this is goodbye, then.”
“Wide skies, John Riley,” said Kaal, laying a hand on John’s shoulder. “If you are ever near Derril, come flying with me. No volcanoes.”
“I will,” John replied, knowing he would almost certainly never leave Earth again. “I’d say come visit me, but you’d have to get a really, really good disguise.”
“Goodbye, John. I’ll miss you,” said Emmie, throwing her good arm around him and burying her face in his neck.
He felt tears on his shoulder. “I’ll miss you, too, Emmie,” he said, feeling tears welling up in his own eyes. “Keep an eye on Kaal. Make sure he doesn’t get into too much trouble with Talliver.”
“Our launch window will soon be closing,” said Ms Vartexia sternly. “Please board the shuttle.”
John raised a hand to his friends in salute. Then he turned away.
“Take-off in eighteen seconds,” said Ms Vartexia, as she climbed up after him. “A longer trip this time. About three hours. The ship’s computer tells me to say that you had better eat the Galva-coated Dumpod candies you have in your pocket before we arrive.”
John pushed his rucksack into an overhead locker and sank into a seat. Looking down, he clipped his harness on and lifted his head just in time to see a flashing ball of energy zip through the door.
“Good morning,” said Lorem, as the ball twinkled into the shape of an old man.
“Good morning, headmaster,” said Ms Vartexia briskly. “We were just leaving. Perfectly on time.”
“I am sorry to delay you, but if I could just have a word with your passenger, I will keep it as quick as possible,” Lorem replied, skin still twinkling. “And if you wouldn’t mind waiting outside...”
“Of course,” the Elvian replied politely but with a note in her voice that seemed to say, “If we’re late, it won’t be my fault.” Laying her ThinScreen on an empty seat, she stepped down from the shuttle. The door closed behind her.
Lorem sat down opposite John and looked into his eyes. Once again, John had the unsettling feeling that the headmaster knew everything. “I wanted to thank you again for your bravery on Zirion Beta,” Lorem said quietly.
“Did you know that was going to happen?” John blurted. “Was that the adventure you saw?”
Lorem smiled. “As I told you,” he said slowly, “the future is not always clear.” As John began another question, Lorem held up one finger. “But I knew that you would play an important part in saving the lives of your classmates, and that would lead us to another important moment.”
“What moment?” asked John, frowning.
“This moment,” Lorem answered gravely. Seeing John’s look of confusion, he smiled and continued. “Hyperspace High students are very carefully selected, John Riley. Very carefully selected. Some of them are the brightest scientific minds their worlds have to offer, some talented in music or art. Others have different qualities.”
“I know. It’s a great honour to be invited to join the school.” John frowned again, wondering why Lorem was telling him this.
“If I were a mind reader, I would say that, once again, you are wondering why I am telling you this.”
“Umm... yes.” John mumbled.
“Hyperspace High looks for many things in its students,” Lorem explained. “And one of those things is courage. You showed exceptional bravery on Zirion Beta, John Riley.”
“Thank you, sir,” said John. “I’ll always that remember you said that.”
“You don’t understand me,” said Lorem, his eyes bright. “I am offering you a place at Hyperspace High. A permanent place. That is, if you want it.”
John’s mouth fell open. “You mean stay? Not go back to Earth?” he gasped.
“Not now, no. You would, of course, go back at the end of term, but return here after the holidays. If you choose to stay, it will mean some bother with the Galactic Council and we will have to keep your parents in the dark, but...”
“Yes!” John’s shout cut the headmaster off mid-sentence. “Yes, yes, yes. I would love it!” A grin spread across his face. A grin so wide, it was already making his face ache.
“Even without looking into the future, I thought you might say that,” Lorem said, with a fresh smile of his own. “Your clothes are still in your room. I’m sure you’ll want to carry on sharing with Kaal, of course. Clo-Ra-Ta will have to take a dormitory to himself, but Martians enjoy their privacy.”
John was already unfastening his harness. “So, I can get off this shuttle, then?” he gabbled.
“There’s one other thing,” said Lorem quietly, leaning over to pick up Ms Vartexia’s ThinScreen. “A few minutes ago, your parents called Wortham Court. That’s why I was a little late getting here.”
Panic crossed John’s face. Had his mum and dad discovered he wasn’t in Derbyshire after all?
“Don’t worry, Zepp intercepted the call. I spoke to your mother myself. A highly intelligent human, if I may say so. I wish I’d had her as a student... But I’m losing the point. She and your father are extremely worried about you. They believe you are unhappy at your new school and phoned to say they will be arriving later today to take you home.”
John groaned, holding his head in his hands as he remembered the last conversation he had had with his mum and dad.
“I told them you were in a class and would call back. Before you make your final decision, I would like you to speak with them,” said Lorem, tapping the ThinScreen. “Zepp, would you be so kind as to connect us?”
“Certainly, headmaster,” said Zepp’s voice. “Patched into the internet and ready.”
The ThinScreen showed the Skype homepage. John clicked the “call” button.
John’s parents must have been sitting by the computer waiting for the call. His mum answered immediately; his dad standing behind, jangling car keys.
“John,” she said, before he could get a word in. “Your dad and I have been talking. We’re not going to ask you to stay at boarding school if you’re unhappy. We’ll be there to pick you up in a few hours—”
“Mum, stop!” John interrupted, his face-aching grin stretching further than ever. “I love it here at... errr... Wortham Court.”
His mother blinked, looking non-plussed. “Oh. But you seemed so gloomy.”
“It took a bit of getting used to, but I’m having the best time now,” John replied quickly. “I’m sorry I worried you, but I really want to stay.”
“Are you sure?” asked his dad. He leant over John’s mum’s shoulder, a frown creasing his forehead.
“Positive, Dad,” John laughed. “I’ve got some great friends, and we had an awesome field trip. It’s the best school ever.”
His dad’s face, too, broke into a grin. “You’re just saying that because you know I’ll thrash you at Doom Hammer as soon as you get back.”
“Ha!” John laughed. “Wait until the holidays. I’ll make you eat those words.”
“Well, if you’re sure,” his mum cut in with a smile of her own. “I’ll phone the headmaster and tell him we won’t be coming after all.”
“Thanks, Mum. Thanks, Dad. I’ll call you in a few days. Gotta go now, some friends are waiting for me.”
“Thank you, sir,” John said breathlessly as the call ended. “This is the greatest...”
“Headmaster. There is a call coming through from Earth,” Zepp interrupted.
“Put it through, Zepp,” replied Lorem, motioning to John that he could leave.
As he ran for the shuttle door, John heard Lorem saying, “Ah, Mrs Riley... Yes. Wonderful. I’m so pleased John will be staying. He’s an excellent student with so much potential...”
There was no time to listen. Kaal and Emmie were standing by the TravelTube. The door was just hissing open. Sprinting across the deck, John shouted their names. Together, they spun round, looking bewildered as he charged up to them.
“Did you forget something?” Kaal asked. “Ms Vartexia is going to—”
“No. I’m not leaving. I’m staying.”
“What are you talking about, John?” Emmie said. “You can’t stay. Lorem will... You have to get back on the shuttle.”
“Lorem asked me to stay,” John babbled happily. “I’m a permanent student at Hyperspace High.”
“No way!” gasped Kaal, his red eyes lighting up with joy. “How on Derril did you manage that?”
“I don’t know,” John grinned at him. “Something about bravery. Who cares? All that matters is I don’t have to go.”
He felt an arm slip around his waist and looked down again into Emmie’s beaming face. “That... is... soooo... cool,” she said, eyes brimming with tears again. This time they were tears of happiness. Kaal’s face, meanwhile, stretched into a grin that matched John’s. He threw an arm around his friend’s shoulder. “Brilliant,” he said hoarsely. “Just brilliant. Let’s go to Ska’s and celebrate.”
A chiming noise sounded across the deck.
John, Kaal, and Emmie looked at each other in horror. “Lessons?” said Emmie. “We still have lessons?”
“This is a school, Ms Tarz,” said Lorem, stepping down from the shuttle and strolling towards them. “And if my memory of the timetable is correct, you should now be on deck thirteen for an astrophysics class.”
As the headmaster flashed into a ball of light, the three of them bundled into the TravelTube.
“Deck thirteen,” John shouted. “Fast!”
“I can’t wait to see Mordant’s face!” Kaal shouted. “It’s going to be awesome.”
Eyes sparkling with excitement, John grinned at his friends as Hyperspace High swept through the universe, carrying them towards distant stars and new adventures.
Read on...
...for a sneak peek of the next Hyperspace High adventure.
Frozen Enemies
John Riley was surrounded by aliens. Out of the darkness they came, in their hundreds and thousands: tall grey creatures with large black eyes; little green men; beings with tentacles and antennae, as well as other, even stranger, creatures. Crowding in on him, they babbled in strange languages that John couldn’t understand. Shaking his head, he tried to back away, but the crowd of aliens followed him, pressing closer and closer. One of them reached out with long blue fingers and gripped his shoulder.
“John Riley. John Riley! Are you all right? Do you need to go to the medical centre?”
John’s eyes snapped open. He lifted his head and looked around the room. “W-what... huh?” he stuttered. Around him, the aliens had turned in their seats to stare.
It’s a dream. I’m dreaming.
His shoulder was shaken again. “John Riley?” said the voice.
John looked up and yelped as he found himself looking into violet eyes with black slits in the centre.
Stop freaking out. Calm down. This is not a dream. It’s a classroom. You’re in a classroom at Hyperspace High. John blinked for a second. And you just conked out at your desk, he was told by a part of his brain that had woken up a little more quickly.
Reality came flooding back. The alien glaring down at him was the Hyperspace History teacher,
Ms Vartexia. The other aliens were all pupils. And John was a first-year at Hyperspace High, the most amazing school in the universe. It had been founded thousands of years ago by the reclusive scholars of Kerallin.
“Uh, Ms Vartexia,” John stammered. “I-I m-must have...”
“...Fallen asleep,” the blue-skinned, bald Elvian finished for him. Taking her hand from his shoulder, she crossed her long, thin arms. Frown lines appeared on her domed forehead.
“Umm. I guess I... That is... well... errr...” John stuttered. Nice one, Riley, he told himself silently. Way to get chucked out. Attending school on a vast, technologically advanced spaceship hundreds of light years from home still felt odd most of t
he time, but he was starting to feel like he belonged here. However odd life on Hyperspace High was, he definitely didn’t want to get sent back to a boring Earth school.
The lines on Ms Vartexia’s forehead faded. She looked down a little more kindly. John’s shoulders sagged with relief. As he had found out the day he had first arrived at Hyperspace High, the Elvian teacher was strict – and had no sense of humour whatsoever – but she was prone to making mistakes, which meant she was quite forgiving when others messed up. Lucky it wasn’t Doctor Graal’s class, John caught himself thinking.
“I shall have to give you some extra work,” Ms Vartexia replied briskly. “You are still struggling with Hyperspace History, so you cannot afford to sleep through lessons.”
John nodded. The punishment could have been a lot worse.
“I also suggest you make sure that you are getting enough sleep,” the teacher continued. “I understand Earthlings are a primitive species and require plenty of rest.”
Inwardly, John groaned at the word “primitive”. In the month he had been at Hyperspace High, he had heard that human beings were a backward species about a thousand times. But she’s right: I’m not getting enough sleep, he told himself. The previous night John and his roommate, Kaal, had been exploring the functions of the entertainment ThinScreen in their dormitory after lights out and had discovered a game called Asteroid Avenger. They had both become totally engrossed in reaching the final level. A native of the planet Derril, Kaal only needed a few hours’ rest each night. By the time John had looked at the clock it was 2.30 a.m. in the morning. Stupid, Riley. That was really stupid, he scolded himself.
“I know that much of what we are learning is new to you,” Ms Vartexia continued, “and I know you are doing well in other subjects. However, I need to see an improvement in your history work. Perhaps another student could help you with your studies?”
John nodded up at the teacher. Once again, Ms Vartexia was right. He had known nothing about space or alien civilizations throughout the galaxy before one of her mishaps brought him to this school. Since becoming a Hyperspace High student, he had struggled with every subject except maths – but history was easily his worst subject. There was so much to learn. The history of the galaxy stretched back millions of years. Even just studying the most important events meant cramming more knowledge into his brain than he thought it was capable of holding.
