The Spaceship Took Us to Octavia Read online

  After a few other performances which were no less impressive than previous ones, Mime Bailey’s group came on stage. They were mainly interacting with audience members. Arthur entertained the public in a way that everyone was nearly in tears with laughter from his tricks and jokes.

  Several other acts played out on stage when it was finally time for the high-wire performers to go on. River exited onto the stage with butterflies fluttering in his stomach. The act began with jumps. Bouncing off of the trampolines, performers flew perfectly in sync with one another and switched places on their way back. River’s new acquaintance, Nick from Group Fifteen, successfully completed his dangerous act on a hanging hoop. The marquee echoed with applause to support the young performer.

  At last, when it was River’s turn to walk across the tightrope, all lights dimmed save for a lone spotlight pointed directly at River to illuminate his dangerous path almost right under the dome. He summoned his courage and began to walk across the rope. River thought that everyone must be able to hear his heart beating from the way it was thumping so loudly in his chest. He placed one leg after the other on his narrow path, making his way to the center. Everything was going well until various extraneous thoughts began to whiz through River’s head. He couldn’t get rid of them. First, he thought about Ortigon, then about their last trip to the border. His left foot slipped aside slightly. River tried to regain his balance, but as he took one more step, River’s body bent sharply to the side, his feet slipped off the rope, and he lunged into a free fall as the audience gasped loudly. He collapsed onto a safety mattress. Aides put River down on a stretcher and rushed him offstage.

  Fortunately, River didn’t break anything, and the fall cost him only a few bruises. Within minutes, Carol, Vic, and Arthur surged into the dressing room with horrified expressions.

  “I’m fine,” River hurried to reassure his friends, “it’s just a few bruises.”

  “Are you sure?” Carol said anxiously.

  “How are you feeling?” Arthur asked.

  “Everything’s normal.”

  Applause echoed from the stage.

  “It sounds like the show just ended,” Vic said.

  The doors burst open, and Dennis flew into the dressing room.

  “How is he? Nothing serious, I hope?”

  “He’ll be fine tomorrow,” said the grey-haired doctor, who was also in a dressing room.

  “Dennis, I’m sorry. It all happened so unexpectedly,” started River.

  “Don’t worry at all,” Dennis interrupted. “The main thing is that you’re fine.”

  Nevertheless, the boy felt downtrodden.

  “I still need to apply a few compresses. For now, I will ask everyone to leave as he needs some rest,” the doctor informed.

  “I guess we’re leaving, River,” Arthur said. “We’ll wait for you at the camp.”

  “Okay, thanks, guys.”

  The doctor continued to fuss over River for some more time. When he finished, it was nearly midnight. He suggested the boy teleport back to his tent, but River decided to take a walk. River only started his journey to the tent when he felt a sharp pain in the knee. He was reprimanding himself for refusing the doctor’s suggestion to teleport, when he noticed a dim light in the forest, not far from where he was standing. It was heading in River’s direction, and the boy froze in place. The bright blur drew closer. River squinted and saw a silhouette resembling a horse.

  “A unicorn,” he said aloud.

  The unicorn walked forward until it stood right in front of him. River stretched out his palm and stroked the creature. The unicorn shook its head slightly as if trying to convey a message to River.

  “Are you trying to say something?”

  The animal dropped onto forelegs as if suggesting River to climb onto its back.

  “Do you want me to sit on your back?”

  The unicorn nodded its head as a sign of confirmation. River lifted himself onto the animal. The unicorn carefully straightened its legs and walked forward along the path leading to the camp. It stepped silently as if its hooves didn’t touch the ground. When they arrived at the campsite, the unicorn stopped directly in front of River’s tent. The animal again leaned down on its forelegs, allowing the boy to get down.

  “Thank you. Don’t know how I would manage to get to the tent by myself.”

  In response, unicorn bowed its head for a moment, turned around and galloped in the opposite direction. Soon it was entirely hidden by the dark forest undergrowth. River stood for another moment and stared at the place where just a second ago a bright blur gleamed. Entering the tent, River fumbled for his bed and collapsed effortlessly into it.

  Chapter thirteen

  Lunar Rocks

  Carol slept poorly that night, periodically shifting from side to side until she heard a strange noise. It sounded like someone was throwing pebbles against the tent. Carol peeked at her sleeping tentmate, but the girl continued to sleep.

  The odd sound persisted. Carol rose from her bed. She was interested to see what was causing the noise. But it was the middle of the night, and everyone else was asleep; Carol couldn’t understand why someone would need to make such a ruckus at this time. She put on her clothes and walked to the entrance. Pulling the fabric door back a little, Carol couldn’t see anyone at first. She began to feel uneasy. She pushed the fabric aside and stepped out of the tent. There was no one around.

  “Carol,” someone whispered.

  Carol turned sharply toward the voice, a tingle running down her spine. A dark figure stepped out from behind a tree.

  “It’s me, Arthur.”

  “What are you doing here!? You scared me!”

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”

  Arthur pulled two bicycles out from the bushes and gestured toward them with a wide smile.

  “I thought that since we may only have a few days left in Octavia, we might as well make the most of it while we can.”

  “Arthur, what did you scheme up?”

  “If you remember, I was telling you about my rock collection when we were dancing. You know, we were dancing, at the Ketlings, they were playing music, and then elves...”

  “Yes, yes, I remember, Arthur. You and I were dancing. I’m not so senile yet to forget what happened to me a week ago.”

  “So, when we were dancing, you told me that there are color-changing rocks on the Moon. I thought it would be great to fly there and find them.”

  Carol’s eyes widened.

  “And I found a way to take us there!”

  She glanced skeptically at the bikes. “You’re trying to tell me...”

  “Exactly! That’s how we’re going to get there!”

  “But... how exactly do you intend to do this?”

  “Using davriada we will open the portal and will ride straight to the Moon,” Arthur said with a wave in the direction of glowing white orb, as if the fact that it was situated thousands of kilometers away from the Earth was of little importance. “It should be the same way as we did when we flew on bikes with Patricia.”

  “Where did you get the bikes?”

  “From Mime Bailey. He agreed to lend them to me for a while.”

  “He probably didn’t suspect that you were planning to fly to the Moon on them.”

  “Does it matter?”

  “It matters a lot! It could be dangerous!”

  “I don’t think so. Anyone who isn’t lazy rides from here to the edge of the universe. We’re just going to the Moon, and it is the closest destination from the Earth. It shouldn’t take very long. You do want to go there, don’t you?”

  Carol struggled to answer. “Arthur, I would gladly go with you. But what if it’s against the rules?”

  “And what rules would we be breaking exactly? I don’t see any harm in it. When we were at the intergalactic station, which is way far from the Moon, we felt fine. The issue with Vic’s body began only when we flew much farther. So there is no need to worry about our energy. Alr
ight, just think how cool it would be when we return home, to look up at the Moon every night knowing we were there.”

  Carol let forth an almost inaudible groan. She didn’t know what to do: consent to such a risky adventure or return to the tent and continue suffering from insomnia.

  “Come on already. Let’s go!” Arthur pushed the bike toward her.

  The girl shifted her gaze from the bicycle to Arthur, when unexpectedly grabbed onto the bike handle with a decisive gesture. Arthur’s face broke into a smile and, as if fearing that Carol might change her mind at any second, quickly climbed onto his bicycle.

  “We’re off!” he declared.

  Carol perched herself on the bike seat and began to rotate the pedals. The children turned off the road into a field to avoid any accidental meetings.

  “We’ll lift off the ground on my command,” Arthur instructed, riding behind Carol. “So, on the count of three lift your handlebar, remember?”

  “Yes.”

  “Now we have to gather even more speed and one, two, three! To the Moon, davriada! Lift the handle!”

  The bikes rose off the ground almost simultaneously.

  “Now, we’ve got to gain height!”

  Two dark silhouettes rapidly ascended in the night sky. With every second, they distanced farther from the ground. The Earth gradually transformed from a flat surface into a spherical form. And the Moon ahead grew bigger and bigger. The kids could easily see the Moon’s surface in detail.

  “Just a little farther!” Arthur said. “We’re almost there.”

  Finally, a cloud of dust rose as the wheels of their bicycles touched the ground. Arthur tossed his bike aside and raised his arms upwards, shouting gleefully, “Hurray! Welcome to the Moon!”

  “Yay!” Carol seemed was no less excited than Arthur.

  Arthur took a few steps, which looked like long jumps.

  “Does your body feel so light, too?” he asked.

  “Yeah, I feel like I’m several times lighter.”

  Carol and Arthur calmed down slightly, remembering their main goal. However, finding a lunar rock that changed color based on one’s mood proved to be more difficult than expected. Carol said that the rocks would resemble grayish crystals, but this information didn’t aid their search much. The Moon’s surface was almost a uniform color, so the children were forced to sort through every rock they came across.

  “Carol, did you say that your science teacher told your class about these rocks?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I wonder where he found out about them—”Arthur paused, carefully scrutinizing one of the rocks in his hand. “I think I found something. Look, its turning red!”

  Carol ran over to see, “It looks like you found the right rock! Try getting mad!”

  “Err...”

  “Think of something that makes you angry.”

  “Okay,” Arthur closed his eyes. Wrinkles appeared over his sullen brow. The rock in his hand turned from red to violet.

  “No way!”

  Then, for no apparent reason, Carol tickled Arthur.

  “Stop, hahaha ― Carol, I’m really ticklish ― hahaha!”

  “Show the rock again,” Carol demanded, abruptly stopping her torture.

  “You could have warned me,” Arthur seemed slightly baffled.

  The rock became golden orange. Arthur handed his finding to Carol when it turned in the light green shade in her palm.

  “Let’s find one more,” Carol suggested. “That way, you can add to your collection, and maybe I can show it to my science teacher and class.”

  “Don’t you think that he might suspect that you been to the Moon?”

  Arthur tried to maintain a serious expression, but couldn’t resist breaking into laughter before long.

  “Dear Carol,” Arthur tried to imitate Carol’s teacher, “how did you come across this rock?”

  “Mr. Johnson,” Carol played along, “ I flew to the Moon last weekend.”

  Arthur walked over to a crater. He climbed to the very top of its rim.

  “And what was the Moon like?” Arthur continued the roleplay.

  Carol clambered after Arthur and caught hold of his hand. “It was enormous and... beautiful.”

  They began to laugh again. The blue disk of the Earth glowed against the dark sky facing them. Carol and Arthur stood side by side for a while, admiring the spectacular view.

  “Unfortunately, we don’t have much time left,” Arthur said, bringing himself and Carol back to reality. “It’d be best to return before sunrise, which will probably take place in a couple of hours, if not sooner.”

  They set off again in search of a new rock. Carol suggested riding the bicycles a little bit farther. And pretty soon, she let out a victorious whoop.

  “I found it! It’s a bit smaller than yours, but it is not important.” The rock in her hand was shimmering with light turquoise lines. “It’s so beautiful!”

  “Yeah! Carol, we really should go home now.”

  “Do you have a pocket? I don’t know where to put my rock.”

  “Sure, even two of them.”

  “Great, thank you!”

  Arthur and Carol returned to their bicycles and climbing back onto them began pedaling along the Moon’s surface. They increased their speed and rose off the ground.

  When they approached Earth, Arthur shouted, “It should be early morning in Octavia, so we don’t need to worry. Although, I did think we’d make it back before this time…”

  Carol said nothing. An inexplicable foreboding took over, and anxiety rose in her chest. When the familiar landscape appeared beneath them, they prepared for landing. They let the wheels of their bikes sink onto the ground, almost in exactly the same place where they began their adventure. The pair rode along the path, and when they entered the campground, they saw people were gathering up their things, and spaceships departed one after another. Arthur and Carol couldn’t understand what the scene meant until they saw Florence, Mr. Ketling, and Mrs. Lilley standing before them and staring directly at the two.

  “It seems we’ve been caught,” Arthur said through his teeth.

  Chapter fourteen

  The Plan

  Florence asked Arthur and Carol to leave their bikes and follow her. They entered the main house and went into one of the rooms.

  Florence began with a stern voice, “Did you decide to fly by yourself, or someone allowed you or instructed you to fly into the open space without supervision?”

  “It’s my fault,” Arthur said hurriedly. “I came up with the idea and persuaded Carol to fly with me.”

  Florence shifted her gaze from one culprit to the next, “I have to say, because of this flight, we have a colossal problem now.” She sighed deeply as if trying to master her emotions. “Your flight was detected by Earth’s satellites and reported to Ortigon. Now they found Octavia’s exact location, and Ortigon is preparing an attack.”

  Arthur couldn’t believe his ears. He felt like he was in a dream, or rather, a nightmare. This was quite possibly the worst thing that could have happened. Out of the corner of his eye, Arthur caught sight of Carol, who seemed was close to tears. That was the last thing Arthur wanted. He also found it was difficult to meet Mr. Ketling’s gaze.

  “I am obligated to tell you that this was a very ill-thought-out act on your end,” Florence said coldly.

  “According to our most recent reports, the attack will take place in a day. We’ll have a little time to prepare,” Mr. Ketling said.

  The doors flew open abruptly, and a tall, sturdy-built man strode into the room. It was Florence’s husband. He carefully scrutinized Arthur and Carol.

  “We need to know all of the details of your trip,” the man commanded Arthur and Carol in a low voice.

  Arthur spoke for the most part. Carol remained silent almost the entire time, only adding to Arthur’s story when necessary.

  “It is impossible to send anyone home at the moment,” Florence said after. “Orti
gon found all clones, so your return would be extremely dangerous. The only one who can leave Octavia right now are guests from other civilizations. Unfortunately, they can’t help us confront Ortigon, as their power effective only in their dimensions.

  In a day, all our elders and other who can defend our land will meet Ortigon. All children will stay in the camp or their homes, as this time, it is too risky for them to participate.”

  With that, Arthur and Carol were asked to return to their tents and wait for further instruction. When they got outside, the eyes of all those they encountered followed them. Everyone knew about the offense, the news spread instantly. When they almost reached the camp, Arthur and Carol ran across a family with a small child who pointed at the pair and asked his parents loudly, “Are those the boy and girl?”

  “Jordan, it’s not polite to point,” the mother told her son.

  Arthur glanced at Carol anxiously. Carol couldn’t hold back any longer, and with hands covering her face, darted into her tent. Arthur wanted to run after her, but instead, he just went to his tent where he found River and Vic.

  “Do you know what you’ve done?” River took on his role as an older brother, rebuking Arthur. “This might be the end for all of us. How could you concoct a plan like that? Octavia was already under threat, and you personally are pouring fuel on the fire!”

  Vic sat on his bed and turned a Rubik’s cube in his hand. He seemed fully immersed in thought and didn’t participate in the brothers’ argument.

  “River, cut it out. It’s too late now, anyway. I know I’m to blame–”