23rd October 2013 Wednesday
Day 296
My plan for this month is a little…jumpy, shall we say, but I can't wait for Halloween. I've been concocting a scary chapter for the 31st. I tell you, researching for that has not been fun.
Disclaimer: Believe anything you want, or not.
"Ok everyone, sighting records from Galacta have shown a dramatic decrease in the Colonial Back Grazer species, so I recommend trying to find and conserve a few back here," instructed the leader, smiling broadly as he pointed towards the creatures on the screen. He turned around to spy his team; minus his wife and newborn daughter, but the two younger boys stood at attention in the front row.
"I suppose you guys want to tag along?" he questioned, bringing his hands on to his knees to address the children. Their heads moved up and down like giant bobble-heads; grins spread from ear to ear. Dex glanced up to Max's parents standing behind. "Only if it's ok with your folks."
"Sure, we can keep an eye on him," Jenny looked across to Zap, who was smiling like crazy. She mumbled under her breath. "…among other things."
"Very well, it seems like the whole team and then some will be joining us on this mission," he handed the same preparation instructions that he would usually hand to Tung to the bouncing children in front of him.
Dex turned to his wife, who was standing behind him and holding Sammy in her grip. He advanced to her quickly, pining over the tiny bundle along with Jane. "We'll be back soon, sweethearts."
The mother chuckled while Dex turned back to his crew, but frowned at the sight of a moody Winston. His eyes quickly drew to the paper in Max's hand. "Follow this list and you'll be helping us begin our task."
Grass was lush and abundant on the planet, with trees reaching as high as the clouds and water as clear as crystals.
"Ok, we'll split off in to family teams; Bream and Tung, you guys can head to the Northern region, and the Monogan family, stick to the south. I'll take Winston east and remember, this species requires water to reproduce so stick by any body of water you can find."
The crew nodded in agreement before disbanding. Dex looked down near his feet, expecting to see his son, but only saw grass. Winston was already moving in their direction; head down and fists clenched. Worry crossed the entomologists' face.
"Junior, is everything ok?"
"I'm fine," his voice sounded strong and angry, causing Dex to worry further. His thoughts remembered back to the habitat, noticing his son's change after he had spoken to Jane.
"Do you wish mom could be on this mission too?" he asked sceptically, taking a guess at what was bothering his son.
Winston ceased abruptly, avoiding eye contact with Dex. "Yes. I want mommy to be here; not at home taking care of a silly baby. She should be with me."
Dex scoffed a little in disbelief. "I thought you'd enjoy having a little sister."
"Well, nobody asked my opinion," he retorted, voice breaking with volume. The leader pouted his lips in thought, kneeling down to the grumpy child. Junior's arms were crossed firmly across his chest and his head was craned down as far as it could go.
"I guess you're right," his little head snapped up at his father's words.
"I- what?"
"Well, you're a valued and equal member of the Hamilton family; I should have asked you and it was wrong of me not to," he explained in a fatherly manner, yet still made it seem like he was addressing an adult. Junior rubbed his arm bashfully, unsure at what to say.
"Do you think, maybe, it would be pretty cool to teach Sammy all the awesome entomology stuff that you know?" his quick red eyes caught the small smirk breaking out on the toddler's face. He took this opportunity to continue. "She's going to need someone to show her around the habitat, and when she's older, someone to help her on missions."
"I-I get to show her around the habitat?" he asked, pointing at himself in surprise. Dex shrugged with a smile.
"Well, I'm not recruiting just any entomologist to do it," his finger tapped Winston's nose. "I need the knowledge of a Hamilton man."
The child nodded bashfully again, but shrugged to make it seem like he didn't care. "Ok, I suppose I can do that."
"Do you think you can help me locate some Back Grazer eggs?" Dex questioned with a smile. Junior pulled a device out from his back and activated it, holding it close to the ground.
"You said they stay near water," he began to race forward, excitement filling his laughter. "So we need to find an area of moist soil and damp grass…"
The leader straightened himself up, smiling as he watched his son race forward.
'Such a little scientist.'
R&R! I have absolutely no idea where this plot is going to go, but hopefully something will come up.