Louis in the Land of Tetra

by Frank J. Ling

  Mr. Bixbee determined in his heart to do whatever he could to help them. Although he was never successful in returning to Earth, at least he could help someone else achieve the goal.

  Shining Star felt a real fondness for his new friends. In the short time he was acquainted with them, he was impressed with their dedication and loyalty to each other. These traits were truly admirable and noble. He, too, would protect his friends to the best of his abilities.

  The Xombos bowed to Louis and left. As the large group marched off, Bonxu shouted, “I will keep my word to you, Louis!”

  It was quite a day. Everyone was quite exhausted.

  “Let us go to my house and rest there till morning. I will make you some tasty Xorphies. They are extremely nutritious. I imagine you must be famished,” said Mr. Bixbee.

  “Great! I could eat a horse. But what is a Xorphie?” asked Gus.

  “Xorphies are delicious cookies with the unusual ability to change color. The cookie’s color is based upon the mood you are in. If you are happy, they turn a bright green. If you are sad, they turn deep blue.”

  “What if you’re scared? What color do they change then?” Crystal asked.

  “They turn a deep red. Why do you ask?”

  “I have a feeling that all the cookies will be dark red,” she said half jokingly.

  They headed for Mr. Bixbee’s house, tired and uncertain of what the next day would hold.

  In their fatigued state, they failed to notice hundreds of pairs of eyes watching them from the shadows, following them silently and waiting for the most opportune moment to attack.

  CHAPTER 10

  THE DESPERATE DECISION

  They woke up late the next day, refreshed and ready to go. Last night’s cookie snack turned out almost exactly as Crystal predicted. Everyone’s cookie was a dark red with the exception of two — Louis’s and Shining Star’s. Their cookies turned a bright purple. Gus asked what this color meant and Mr. Bixbee said it was the color of bravery and hope.

  “There must be some sort of mistake. I don’t feel brave at all,” Louis said.

  “Bravery is not felt by the one who is brave. It is seen by others,” said Shining Star.

  #

  They packed food and drink for the trip and stored the items in various bags and pouches to keep everything fresh. These were all placed in a large burlap sack, which was placed on Shining Star’s back.

  “Are you able to carry all of this?” Mr. Bixbee asked with concern.

  “Yes, I am quite well now. Carrying one sack is much easier than carrying four heavy individuals!” he laughed.

  “Gee, I didn’t think I was that heavy!” Crystal joked.

  “Maybe you shouldn’t have eaten so many Xorphies last night. If we have to ride on Shining Star again, you might injure his back,” Louis teased.

  Crystal reached over and socked Louis in the arm in response to his comment.

  “Ow!” she yelled as his sweater shielded him from the blow.

  “You’re lucky you have that sweater on because I would have beaten you up for sure,” she growled playfully.

  “The Xombos were pretty scary, but not as scary as Crystal!” Gus said in mock terror.

  Everyone was laughing so hard, they thought their sides would burst. After a few minutes, they were able to stop, but with great difficulty.

  “Okay, we have to get ready or we’ll be laughing the rest of the day. Is there anything else that we need before we leave?” asked Louis.

  “Shouldn’t we bring some weapons or something to protect us? I know Louis has his sweater and everything, but what happens if it stops working?” asked Gus.

  “Gus, you bring up an issue that I have long been pondering about. It is a good observation, especially after our close encounter with the Xombo tribe. But in response to your question, it is not our custom to bare weapons here, but what I can do is to summon my flock of Bonky birds,” said Mr. Bixbee.

  “I remember them. We rescued one when we first arrived in Tetra. They’re the birds with the beautiful glowing wings. But what can they do to help us? They seem so small and helpless,” said Crystal.

  “You are correct when you say they are helpless. However, they do have an ability, which is unique. When Bonky birds are threatened or in danger, their wings emit a brilliant, intense light. This light temporarily blinds any attackers, thus allowing the birds to escape.

  “For our journey, the Bonky birds will follow me from high above. If we are in any distress, I can call on them to flash their wings by blowing on this whistle. The chirping noise resembles the danger call they make when they are in peril.”

  “But if they have poor eyesight, how will they be able to follow us?” Gus asked.

  “I have taken care of this flock for many years. They consider me their friend and are familiar with the sound of my voice. My voice will lead them.”

  “Well, it sounds like we’re ready to go. Let’s get started,” Gus said.

  They traveled along a long, winding road which led into the Deep Forest. When they were quite a distance away from the house, Mr. Bixbee turned to gaze upon it one last time and sighed.

  “What’s the matter?” Louis asked.

  “Something troubles me. Perhaps it is the premonition I may never see my home again. I want to remember it the way it is,” he said thoughtfully. “I will miss this house and the many memories it holds.”

  “Don’t feel that way, Mr. Bixbee. We’ll all make it back. I know we will,” encouraged Crystal.

  “I hope you are correct,” Mr. Bixbee said very slowly. “I really do.”

  #

  The path through the Deep Forest was very rocky and narrow. They walked single file with Mr. Bixbee leading the way and Shining Star bringing up the rear. The Bonky birds followed from above, chattering and singing happily. The joyful sounds cheered the group as they made their way through the dense foliage.

  “We must always stay together and not be separated because the Deep Forest holds many dangers to those who wander through it. We must be very careful,” Mr. Bixbee warned.

  They all nodded in agreement and continued on their quest.

  After several hours of walking, the journey seemed unusually uneventful. Louis wondered if the area was really as dangerous as Mr. Bixbee indicated.

  The forest was dark and strangely beautiful, lighted by many thousands of glowing luminescent flowers. The tulips were the most striking of all, shining in different hues of every color imaginable. It was a wonderful sight. Crystal was so enamored by the flowers, she stepped up to some bright pink ones.

  “Hey, look at these. Aren’t they the cutest things that you’ve ever seen?” She reached down to pluck one from the side of the road. She stopped short and was surprised to hear a small voice coming from the tulip.

  “Please, don’t hurt me. Please, I’m only a baby and will miss my family if you take me away,” the flower squeaked in a high voice.

  Crystal jumped back in surprise. “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to this place. Things are so different here!” she exclaimed.

  “All living things on Tetra speak,” said Mr. Bixbee. “There is one common language and speech. The insects, the fish, the moving creatures on the ground, and the birds of the air all speak with and to each other.”

  Crystal knelt down carefully and said to the tulip, “I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I won’t take you away from your family. I’m a visitor here and, from where I come from, flowers never talk!”

  The patch of flowers laughed and started to blink on and off.

  “What are they doing, Mr. Bixbee?”

  “The tulips are expressing their gratitude to you.”

  “You’re very welcome,” she said. “Maybe if I pass this way again, I’ll come and say hello to you.”

  The tulip patch shimmered in many different colors and Crystal waved goodbye to them.

  The road started to widen a bit. As they continued, small animals would occasionall
y dart out from the cover of darkness and scurry away. They ran so quickly, it was difficult to see what they looked like.

  “As you can see, the inhabitants of this forest are not used to seeing outsiders in their natural habitat,” Mr. Bixbee explained.

  “What did he say? What’s a ‘habit-tack’?” asked Gus.

  “All he said was the animals are afraid of us,” Louis explained.

  “Then why didn’t he just say that?”

  They laughed at what Gus said.

  “What? Did I just say something funny?”

  “No, I guess Mr. Bixbee likes to use big words not everyone understands. That’s all,” Crystal said.

  The long trek was wearing them down. They were hungry and tired. They decided to rest a bit before continuing.

  “Okay, Shining Star. Time to get that heavy pack off of you,” Louis said.

  He untied the straps that held the pack in place and lifted it off the Zeeboo. They opened several small sacks and munched on bread, fruit, and small food items that were foreign-looking to them. Louis thought it was better not to ask what the strange food was.

  Hidden behind dense shrubbery, glowing eyes were spying Louis and his friends.

  “You know, I’m not sure if any of you have noticed, but I’ve had this strange feeling that we are not alone,” Louis said to the others.

  “Ha. Of course, we’re not alone. We’re here together, aren’t we?” Crystal said with amusement.

  “No, I don’t mean it that way. I mean it feels as though we’re being watched. I’ve had this feeling since we left Mr. Bixbee’s house. I wasn’t that sure about it until now.”

  “It must be your imagination, Louis. There’s nothing here but us and the little creatures we see,” she said.

  “No, I’m certain of it. I can’t prove it, but the feeling is very strong.”

  “I believe Louis is correct. I have also had that same impression since our departure. I did not want to alarm anyone prematurely so I kept these observations to myself,” said Mr. Bixbee.

  “What did he say?” Gus asked again.

  “He said he agrees with Louis,” replied Crystal.

  “I wish that guy would just say what he means,” mumbled Gus.

  “But I do,” retorted Mr. Bixbee.

  The others smiled at both of them, but their amusement was interrupted by an explosion that rumbled and shook the ground beneath them.

  “What was that!” shouted Gus.

  “Look! Over there!” pointed Louis.

  “Oh, no!” cried Crystal.

  “Let’s run!” shouted Shining Star.

  “It’s too late. We cannot,” said Mr. Bixbee.

  Off in the horizon, in a cloud of dust and thundering noise, was a herd of gigantic turtles. Each one was the size of a small car, but there was something else strange about them besides their enormous size; it wasn’t apparent at first, but Louis noticed.

  “Hey, look at how quick they’re moving! They must be as fast as thoroughbred horses,” he said in amazement.

  “They are the fastest creatures on Tetra,” explained Mr. Bixbee. “The explosion you heard was caused by them going faster than sound itself.”

  Louis remembered what his teacher said about that. Jet planes which flew faster than the speed of sound caused a sudden loud explosion in the air.

  “I think it’s called a ‘sonic boom’. But that is impossible. Turtles don’t go that fast. For that matter, no animal can go that fast!” Louis insisted.

  “On Earth, this is true. But you forget we are no longer on Earth,” countered Mr. Bixbee.

  “Oh, I forgot,” said Louis sheepishly.

  “Those creatures are called Xeros. We obviously cannot outrun them. They attack by stampeding their victims into the ground. I was hoping that the odds against them finding us would be in our favor. But this point is now moot. They have found us.”

  “Why would they attack us? We didn’t do anything to them,” said Gus.

  “Xeros are very protective of their territory and will attack anyone or anything that infringes upon their domain. They are very reckless in this respect. They have very strong instincts in regards to defending their immediate locale. In many instances, they merely attack individuals for the sport of it all. In short, they are bullies.”

  “I can sort of relate to that. That’s the way I act too.” Gus looked at the ground, ashamed of himself. The others looked at Gus with sympathy.

  “That’s okay, Gus. That was how you were before. This is now. You’ve changed a lot,” comforted Crystal.

  “Thanks. I’m sorry about what I did to you guys.”

  Crystal changed the subject and vented at Mr. Bixbee. “Why didn’t we take a path that avoided the Xeros in the first place? We could have gone around them. Wouldn’t that have been much safer?” she said.

  “As I said before, I was taking a calculated risk that we would not cross their path. Xeros are constantly on the move. They are nomadic by nature and do not stay in any location for very long. I determined it would be highly unlikely that we would encounter them. Besides, the Deep Forest is the area where the village of the Wise Ones is located.

  “We really had no other choice but to come through here. You indicated to me that you wanted to go back home. I have done my best to fulfill your request. We are here and, regretfully, so are the Xeros. It is pointless to argue this matter now. If you feel you can do a better job of leading us to the village of the Wise Ones, please proceed!” scolded Mr. Bixbee in exasperation.

  Crystal considered Mr. Bixbee’s comments and realized he was doing the best he could for everyone. She felt thoroughly admonished.

  “I’m sorry. I’m sorry I blamed you. . .”

  Gus broke in and said, “So, what are we going to do now? The Xeros are getting closer. They’ll be here any minute at the rate they’re moving.”

  “There is no defense against the Xeros,” stated Mr. Bixbee.

  “What about your Bonky birds? Couldn’t they flash their wings and blind the Xeros? That might give us time to escape,” Louis said.

  “It would have no effect on them. The Xeros are sightless. They run and navigate by smell and sound.”

  “Great. Another fine mess we’ve gotten ourselves into. Why can’t anything be easy for us around here?” Crystal said discouraged.

  Louis felt her frustration. It was one crisis after another. How long could they last? Would things ever work out for them?

  “I’m fresh out of ideas. I don’t know what we can do. We can’t outrun them and my sweater can only protect one person — me. The rest of you will be crushed.”

  “Gee, that’s a happy thought,” Crystal said grimly.

  A feeling of dread and defeat washed over them.

  The rampaging Xeros were very close now. Their thundering feet pounding the ground like jackhammers hitting concrete. Louis felt the earth beneath him shake more violently with each passing second.

  “Well, at least you’ll be okay, Louis. I’m glad that you’ll be safe. I wish we could have escaped out of Tetra together.” Crystal squeezed Louis’s hand as if to say goodbye for the last time.

  Louis felt tears well up in his eyes, “This can’t be the end. It can’t be! We’ve tried so hard to get back home. There’s got to be an answer. There’s got to be!”

  Louis strained to think of a solution. The others offered suggestions, but none were helpful.

  “If only my sweater could protect all of you, we’d be safe,” Louis said out loud to himself. “But it only can protect me. . .”

  Louis’s voice drifted off as he went deeper into thought.

  “Here they come! This is it!” Gus yelled.

  “My sweater can only protect me. . .” Louis repeated until the solution unexpectedly popped into his mind. He screamed over the loud reverberations of the impending arrival of Xeros and said, “Wait. Maybe, just maybe! Everyone do exactly as I say! Do it quick. We only have a few seconds left!”

  “Everyone
, stand behind me and make a single file. You have to be directly behind me no matter which way I turn. Always stand single file behind me. Got it? Do it now!”

  They all jumped behind Louis. They stood obediently in single file. They didn’t understand, but they obeyed, hoping against hope that Louis knew what he was doing.

  The Xeros came at him from the left. He turned to face them head on. Everyone shuffled their position directly behind Louis. They were straight in a column like soldiers standing at attention.

  “I sure hope you know what you’re doing, Louis!” Crystal shouted into his ear.

  “We’ll find out in just a second!” he shouted back.

  The Xeros crashed into Louis with the force of a hundred armored tanks. Dust so thick rose from the ground, no one could see. The air was saturated with the sounds of colliding bodies and beating hooves.

  When the dust cleared, they saw many unconscious Xeros scattered all around them.

  “What happened?” Crystal said in amazement.

  Before Louis could answer, another Xero mob turned to launch another assault.

  “Everybody behind me, just like before!” he yelled over the roar of the approaching Xeros.

  They all crowded in a single file as before. The next wave of Xeros looked even more determined to trample Louis than the first group. They were relentless in their attack but failed just as first group had. They dropped to the ground in defeat. Other waves of Xeros charged, but Louis’s sweater deflected every blow with ease.

  Finally, there was only one Xero left standing. This particular one was the biggest in the herd and looked much stronger than all of the others put together. His shell was a glossy black color. His feet had gigantic claws, which provided the traction in order to run faster than sound itself. The Xero’s head was much different than the others — where his eyes should have been were bright yellow marks resembling lightning bolts.

  “I must not be defeated,” the Xero said tiredly after several runs against Louis. “I cannot give up,” he snorted.

  With one huge effort, he charged into Louis one last time. There was a loud crashing sound. The Xero was repelled and fell down with a cry of anguish.

  Louis and his friends gazed in astonishment at the hundreds of Xeros lying all around them. Some were groaning while others struggled to get up to try again. The scene looked like a battle field.