CHAPTER 5

THIS PLACE

JUNE 2, 2048

84 All 128 personnel were in the cockpit. It separated from the main body as a rather quick land vehicle. There was chatter in one of the control rooms of P10F; later, the main body could be seen heading back to the skies. Yes, this team was in charge of keeping the main body in orbit for the rest of their expedition.

85 The place itself was a little too familiar for Captain Turner. It somehow called into his inner soul - his entire being. A voice seemed to echo from within, telling him that he's been here before. He couldn't figure it out. The atmosphere was pink as far as the eye can see, and here P10F laid silent on the green grass. Turner thought. Pink and green. This place was calling to him with its entire being. This place… it was very much alive.

86 "Check for life. Let's go around."

87 The crew needed no further orders. Together, the team of 128 steered the P10F vehicle through a plain, past what looks like a forest, into what looks like a cluster of habitats.

88 "Turner to Control. We just found some habitats. I think there are intelligent life forms down here."

89 Everyone gaped at the thought. Captain steered the P10F into the roads of the town. It was deserted and barren. They could not see any life forms, but they felt that there were life forms all over this place. No - as if those life forms were living. This was impossible. Turner sighed, trying to remember the place. He definitely has been here before; he just doesn't know when or why he was here. Perhaps this has got to do with the memory gap he had - he couldn't remember his childhood.

90 Most of the crew stared in awe while some jotted down observations on their mini-computers. Some more operated cameras around the P10F, snapping pictures wherever the P10F went. Each imaging unit had a thermal ability.

91 The imaging team representative went up to Turner. "Sir, we've detected life forms through thermal imaging. It seems that the colours of light that they reflect are outside our eyes' visibility spectrum."

92 "Aural team, observations?"

93 The aural team officer spoke up. "We're picking up frequencies in the 320kHz range. We can't hear those frequencies, sir - they're ultrasonic.

94 "So that's why we can't see nor hear them!" gasped Captain Turner. "Their natural frequencies - aural or visual - are higher than ours!" Only now did they notice a soft hum that seemed to emanate from the planet's core itself - it had a magnetic field after all.

95 "Heck, even the planet itself has a higher frequency radiating from it! Listen! We're picking up 750Hz tones - a hundred times as high as our Earth's 7.5 Hz!

96 All this meant only one thing to Turner - that this place was definitely stranger than he thought. He made a decision.

97 "I need a team of 10 to go down and explore this place on foot," ordered Turner. 3 cockpit officers and 7 others joined him. "Reports suggest that the composition of the atmosphere here is similar to that on Earth's, so we shouldn't have a problem," said a crew member.

98 Turner beckoned his team out the airlock. "Let's go - we need to communicate with these life forms." At "life forms" he felt a pang of regret; it seemed that these "life forms" deserved more dignity than just being called "life forms". Suddenly, memories came to him. He knew this place alright. This place… wasn't a product or figment of his imagination. Neither were the pink sky, the green grass, the purple houses, the rosy scent of the air…

99 He went ahead and led his team around the village of purple houses. This was definitely familiar. He could swear he knew his way around here. He thought hard, trying to access what was left of his memories as a ten-year-old.

100 "Sir, we detected audio signals at around 1-4kHz…"

101 "And what is that supposed to mean?"

102 "You're supposed to hear those frequencies, sir. We can't…" Turner scrutinised the ten and found them scratching their heads, wrinkles on their faces in confusion and deep thought.

103 But Turner could hear speaking. Yes - speaking was around 1-4 kHz alright, and he could hear it loud and clear.

104 "I hear them… hold up, they're trying to communicate with us." realised Turner.

105 Turner listened closely. He realized they were speaking in the Earth tongue! They were speaking English!

106 "Turner to P10F. Turner to P10F. On your guard. THESE LIFE FORMS SPEAK ENGLISH."

107 "P10F to Turner. WHAT?! THIS CAN BE ONLY THE WORK OF—-"

108 Another voice aboard the oversized cockpit interrupted the transmission.

109 "Keep your mouth shut, will ya? Those things you're talking about don't exist! Aliens do, and TURNER's got his ears on probably a few."

110 Meanwhile, Captain gasped as he witnessed the life forms materialised before him. He gasped in utter shock. "P10F to Turner. You okay?" "Turner to P10F. Yes. My memory gap… it's filling with memories. This is —"

111 The transmission cut off. The second officer saw Turner in tears.

112" —wonderful!" Turner exclaimed. At this point in time his companions noted that they could hear the life forms talk - with Turner.

113 "Officer Keith Maxwell to P10F… they know Turner's name! THEY KNOW TURNER'S NAME!"

114 "P10F to Maxwell. Stand down and keep distance."

115 Turner, well, turned his head to his comrades. "Don't worry, they're old friends… from my childhood."

116 "P10F to Turner. AHA! THEY EXIST! I KNEW I— 'Will you please? Can we have a little silence? They don't exist!' But THEY KNOW TURNER'S NAME!" The transmission cut off once more.

117 Captain Turner's second officer merely approached him and observed the tears dripping from his eyes, drying out… and the wide grin on his face as he hugged those life forms.

118 "Officer Keith Maxwell to P10F… Life forms are short humanoids, 'round 2 feet in height. They levitate and have wings…"

119 "P10F to Keith Maxwell! THAT'S ALL I NEED TO KNOW! THOSE LIFE FORMS ARE INDEED—-" "Don't you DARE SAY THE F-WORD!"

120 Maxwell cut off the transmission.

121 Suddenly, another radio crackle. From Turner. "Turner to P10F… I know who these whom you call 'life-forms' are. They're intelligent life forms… One green and the other pink. Hair colour matches eyes. Hit-or-miss, 2'2 in height. However I cannot reveal to you their identity. They ask their identity be kept secret. However, you may come to them and see them. We'll beam you our coordinates. Right now… they have a message for us. They wanted to talk to us…"

122 The green-haired one spoke in a high-pitched voice. "Ooooh, he called me intelligent? My brain is no larger than the size of a raisin!"

123 Meanwhile on P10F, a few taps could be heard on monitors. "Begin broadcast," said one of Turner's officers aboard the cockpit.

124 The pink one then spoke calmly in a similarly high-pitched voice. "Humans of Earth… we know you come in peace. We know you don't want to hurt us. We know you humans. We've been watching over your children, watching them grow into the accomplished adults you are right now. We ask you to take care of them… to hold them close, to nurture them, to listen to their every word… because those words are precious. We have been companions of your children, though many will not believe. We've decided as a race to expose ourselves to you, and we've been waiting for this mission. To make you realise that you are not alone. When you need allies - we are here. We are gifted in acts you do not believe in - or hold as abstract. Don't judge us for our childlike appearance and features; we live longer than you ever will. We just want to be your allies. We've been allies with the children for a long time now. They are very precious creatures, these little ones… Please accept our invitation - to unify us with you humans… to consider us as friends."

125 She dropped the transmission and spoke. "Timmy… you've grown. And we're so happy for you." She wrapped her arms around his waist and tears flowed from her eyes as Captain Timothy Turner returned the hug.

126 Turner also hugged the green one with the same intensity. He spoke two names. And a few words, starting with… what? "I wish"? Second Officer Maxwell thought.

127 After a series of tearful goodbyes, Captain Turner motioned to his comrades. "Let's return. We have to get out of here." In a single file, they returned to the cockpit of P10F as it shot up its vertical thrusters and headed for the skies.

128 The pink and green life-forms waved goodbye as the green one shouted, "THUNDERBIRDS ARE GO!" The pink one replied, "Sweetie, that's not Thunderbird 2!" before they vanished in a cloud of pink smoke.