(Part 3)
That first night was a long one. The nights and days on this world were longer than on Earth.
Though smaller in diameter than old Terra, planet 'Alice' turned on her axis a bit slower. So, a night
was roughly about 14.5 hours long. Lora had nicknamed the world 'Alice', after the one book she had
loved as a child: 'Alice in Wonderland'. Was she now regretting that choice of a name? Oh, a bit...
#
The next morning...
Captain Nya asked Lora for the report... of what, if anything, showed up on the detectors.
Lora: "I'm still collating and scanning all the input from the eight detectors. Let you know
when I find anything of interest... So far, no major 'blips'. No alarms sounded either, 'Cap'."
Nya at first had objected to the nickname... But warmed up to it soon enough. One of her
great-great grandfathers had owned a collection of classic comics. Captain America was
a favorite of his... And she had inherited the now priceless collection as a teenager.
#
Three days and nights later...
Sheila: "Captain... I felt the creature... Its presence, last night. It 'talked' or thought to me."
Lora interjected again (bad habit, but tolerated): "Oh, did it say 'Wanna play chess?' or
'Any of Lora's berry pie left?' Maybe it's looking for food?" Now Lora was believing in 'It'.
Nya, looking cross at Lora: "Sheila, you sure? Lora tells me 'No Go' on all the detectors.
No evidence of any sizable creatures, bigger than the small lizards or insect life..."
Sheila: "I said it 'talked' to me... I did not see it. It knows of the detectors, and
will not cross their field of energy. It is a very sensitive creature, captain..."
Nya, looking more curios now: "Well... What did this creature... Say?"
Sheila, looking a bit awestruck: "I wrote it all down... as much as I could."
(End of Part 3 - To Be Continued...)
