Frantic Thoughts With Fanatic

Alien Infiltration*

"Resok." I curse, swiveling the joystick hard to the right. I think I might have broken it. Smash, smash, left, up, right, space bar, high score! "Ha, ha! I have become victorious! Eat my tail, Gorgon!" I bounce up and do a little happy dance only to spin around and see the panel flash 'You Died, Game Over'. "NOOOO!!!" I fall to my knees and cover my face as is common practice on this planet when something is lost.

"Dude, chill out, we can just play another game." Cody says from beside me, also holding a control set.

I shake my head, "I am dead, a loser, go on without me, for I have died-ed." He raises an eyebrow at me, I have not figured out what this means yet or how to do it. "You must avenge me, Cody of the Andersons."

"O-kay? How about we play again and you can avenge yourself?" He suggests.

"What blasphemy is this? You would not avenge a fallen comrade? What kind of sick Terrien are you?"

"Dude," he laughs, "I'm not a terrier. I have a terrier, but I'm not a dog."

Now, I'm just confused. "You are not a terrier? What space galaxy are you from? You are obviously Terrien."

"Come on, Space Freak, I'll show you my terrier." Cody says, forcing me out of his sleep pod and into the food place called Kitten. "Meet my dog, Buster." A somewhat wet and soapy four-legged creature with a stick coming up from his butt ran into the Kitten at full speed. I screech and hop on the table.

"You have a drowned rat in your house!"

"Says the alien with a tail." Cody gives me a deadpanned look. The human known as Cody of the Andersons is the only creature on this planet—besides the rat who is giving me a strange look—who knows who I am and only because I tried to eat this little rat he calls a Buster after crash landing in his backyard. But I have met dogs before, they are furry with long sticks and make strange and slightly suspicious meowing and purring sounds.

I stick my purple tongue out at him. "It's a fair observation!" I protest, "this rat is half drowned and wet as Strenicarian." I point out.

"Dude, I don't understand your references to other planets and species not of this galaxy." Cody says as he scoops up the rat terrier and dumps it in my lap! I glare at him then down at the creature.

"Down, Bessie!" I command the little rat, "or I'll eat you alive!" Buster squeaks, immediately jumps down and runs in the opposite direction.

Cody of the Andersons sighs, "great, now you've scared my dog away."

"That isn't a dog, that's a rat. I've met dogs before and that's not a dog." I insist. Cody shakes his head in disbelief. "I'll prove it to you," I pause and meddle with my gear, "this is a dog." I press a button and an orange four-legged creature drops from the sky, landing on its paws.

He sighs again, "that's a cat."

"No, I've met cats too, this is a dog." I watch as he shakes his head.

"Alright, what's a cat then?" He asks, I think I see amusement in his smile but I'm not familiar with human emotions just yet so I wouldn't know. I press another button and a small grey creature with a long pink tail also drops from the sky. "Look Space Dude, this is a rat."

"No, I'm quite certain that's a cat."

"Vegarius, that's a rat." Cody of the Andersons glares at me.

"That thing you call a pet is a rat. This is a cat and that is a dog."

He throws his hands up in exasperation and huffs, "fine, I give in . . . If. If you can answer this question. If you get it wrong, you have to admit that I am right and you have to come to school with me." He knows that Zireins can never resist a deal.