U4: The Space Wanderers

Chapter 7: Onwards Party of Four

The Space Wanderers board the Ultimatum and start leaving Planet Great, heading towards Planet Shri next. While on their way, Sighlan puts the ship on auto-pilot and the four of them start conversating with each other. "Alighty Xanny, this would usually be the part where I gave you a uniform, but we unfortunately don't have any at the moment. So Dirken's gonna write our team emblem on your shirt, isn't that right?" "I'm on it!" Dirken then grabs an orange pen and scribbles an upside-down triangle on Xanny's shirt. "There ya go little guy, NOW you're one of us!"

Xanny cracked a smile and chuckled. "Heh, thanks. Anyways, nice ship ya got. Never been in one of these things before. Looks a lot roomier in here!" Dirken then started patting the wall of the Ultimatum. "Yeah, state-of-the-art tech here. Si and I built this thing back when we were y'all's age. You can't even tell that this beauty was made from scrap metal and junk." Xanny was amazed by the details. "Wow, that kinda reminds me of a ship from a story that my mom used to tell me when I was younger." Goddard's ears perked up. "What story was that?"

"Hmm, if you insist!" Goddard, Sighlan and Dirken then sat in front of Xanny to hear his mother's story. "According to her, there was a legend centuries ago, about a ship built by our distant ancestors. It was a mighty ship just like yours, but this one was the size of an entire city. The reason it was built was because Planet Grate was going through very harsh environmental troubles at the time. Many people couldn't even breath the air, so they had built the massive ship so that a good chunk of the population could leave the dangerous conditions. Only the strong stayed behind, so that they could try to fix the planet to make it hospitable for everyone else again."

"Woah, where did everyone else go?" said Goddard. "If I remember correctly, my mom said that when the ship did eventually come back, the people on board told stories about a wonderous paradise they called 'Terafor', a planet full of lush green lands, large bodies of blue water, and kingdoms full of interesting folks. I'm not sure if that place is real because no one I knew knew where that planet resided, but since you guys tend to travel through space all the time, I was wondering maybe after we're done delivering stuff, we could try to find Terafor?" 

Sighlan was perplexed by Xanny's statement. Though, after thinking it through, she nodded. "Yeah, that seems like a fun idea. I guess it wouldn't hurt to go off the beaten path and search for a virtually unknown planet. Let's just finish our duties first though, alright?" Xanny then nodded back. As everyone went back to what they were doing, Goddard walked up to Xanny to ask him about something. "Hey, uh, I was wondering... what were those bright waves that were coming out of you earlier?"

Xanny was confused for a second, but then remembered. "Oh! You mean these?" He said, putting his hand up, which was pulsating with pink ripples. Goddard shook his head excitedly. "Heh, this is known as the 'Doppler'. My parents taught me how to do this when I was just a toddler. Doppler energy is created when you utilize sounds and vibrations as a way to fight and defend yourself. It's a special technique passed down by many generations, though I believe I'm the only one who still uses it. Speaking of energy, what was that green energy you were using?"

"The green en-Oh! Uh, yeah, I'm not entirely sure what it is. The thing is, I don't really know much about anything." Xanny was confused at what Goddard said. "Huh, what do you mean by that? Do you not know who taught you that technique?" Goddard shook his head distraughtly. "That's the thing, I don't even remember anything before today. Dirken and Sighlan actually found me unconscious, floating in space. Though sometimes, I do get vague memories. I do believe I did have some sort of mentor, but I don't remember what they exactly looked like. At the very least, I do know he didn't look like he was related to me, though."

Xanny put a hand on Goddard's shoulder. "Damn, that's tough. So, you don't even know who your parents are?" Goddard shook his head solemnly. "Hmm... well poof-ball, I guess that makes both of us orphans. No matter though, we'll have each other's backs, that way neither of us will be taken down so easily. With our crazy techniques, nobody's gonna stop us. Not even those stupid, slimy Elastians." Goddard smiled at what Xanny said. "Yeah, no one will stop us."

After a few hours of travelling, the Ultimatum started nearing Planet Shri. "Alright guys, we're starting to enter Planet Shri's atmosphere. You might want to hold on to something, this planet has quite the turbulance!" Sighlan then gave everyone suction cups. Xanny and Goddard were confused. "Wait, what are these for?" Dirken stuck his cups to the ceiling. "Don't worry about where to stick 'em, just stick 'em quickly. This place has a pretty thick air that always messes with the ship." The two kids then stuck their cups to the wall. Suddenly, the ship started shaking eratically, almost feeling like they were being pelted by rocks.

"Hhooww lloonng ddooeess tthhiiss uussuuaallyy llaasstt??" said a jolted Goddard. "I'd say about... 10 minutes." explained Sighlan, as she was gripping the control panel. After what seemed like an eternity, the ship finally stopped shaking. Everyone was still shivering from the experience. "Man, I'm never gonna get used to that..." said Dirken. Sighlan brushed herself off and took out a small package. "Alright, everyone take a tablet. These will temporarily expand our lungs so that we can breath the air. If we don't take these, we're just going to suffocate, and we don't need any of that right now. Now, is everyone ready?" Dirken, Goddard and Xanny nodded. "Alrighty, let's head out!"