Elmo’s Sojourn

by Walt Trizna

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
appear in this issue.

Chapter 3: Elmo Meets Cal

“Yes, my wife has breasts,” Valmid communicated. Elmo had momentarily forgotten that his mind was an open book. The thoughts he had as he gazed at the female walking towards his new youthful body were not meant for a husband to know. As Valmid’s wife approached, Elmo could not help but be aroused by the voluptuous figure, barely concealed under a tight red jumpsuit. Eight feet tall with a gray-skinned hairless head or not, the body beneath the jumpsuit could easily be featured in any planet’s version of Playboy.

By now Valmid knew Elmo’s name, so he communicated, “Elmo, this is my wife Cal. Cal, this is Elmo.” As Cal stood next to Valmid, Elmo realized he had underestimated her height. She was well over eight feet tall.

Sensing Elmo’s mind about to go into overdrive again, and not wanting to experience discomfort once more, Valmid began a lengthy discussion designed to answer some of Elmo’s questions.

“I know of your planet, Elmo,” he said, “ I’ve been there twice. I know that your society, although primitive, is rapidly progressing. Your species produce rare individuals that jump ahead of the pack when it comes to science. You are one of those individuals. I know the theory you developed about other planets — how they might harbor life if their stars and suns had the same traits as yours. We are the third planet from our sun, just as your planet is. There are basic similarities between us.

“Yet there are many differences, although they are mostly cosmetic. While our appearances vary strikingly, if you were to compare scans of our internal organs, your best medical personnel could not tell them apart. Another difference in our appearance, other than the obvious dissimilarities of skin color and hair, is that our females tend to be taller than the males.

“We have mastered the art of thought transference to enable us to communicate with beings from other planets. We do not, however, use such communication with each other. We are able to shield our thoughts so that they are hidden from our own species. If you are to stay here for any length of time, we will also teach you this ability.”

Elmo reflected on Valmid’s offer, but had no idea how long his stay would be.

Elmo’s mind revealed his confusion. As Valmid finished speaking, Cal desired to address Elmo. “Elmo,” she communicated, “you must wonder how we knew of your arrival. It was the dingo plants you tread upon that alerted us. Your planet uses burglar alarms to protect their properties and loved ones. We use the dingo plants. We plant them around our house, and when disturbed, they cry out. They also produce flowers every morning that emit a rich, soothing scent.

“With these plants around our house for protection, we feel totally safe. If you had arrived after dark, we still would have been aware of your presence even if you had not tread upon the plants directly. For as night comes, the plants produce filaments, crossing the walkways and climbing up the walls and covering the roof of the house. If you come in contact with these filaments, the plants emit the cries you already heard, alerting the residents within. Through genetic engineering, we have produced a strain of dingo plants with the longest filaments, long enough to protect the roofs of our tallest structures, the most vulnerable part of our buildings.”

As Cal completed this last statement, Valmid gave her a stare that said, “Enough, more than enough,” and Cal’s mind abruptly ceased communication, leaving Elmo puzzling at the information he just heard.

“Why would you use such a seemingly primitive method of protecting your homes when you have such an advanced technology?” thought Elmo.

The sky had darkened further, with only a thin rim of emerald green on the horizon. Both Valmid and Cal looked to the sky as Valmid suggested, “Let us go to our home and let the dingo plants do their nighttime work.”

They walked the path to the house, and Elmo observed the plant’s filaments crossing the path behind them. His companions seemed relieved to enter the threshold of their home.

Elmo entered the house, and was amazed how everything looked the same, yet different from the houses on Earth. The chairs, of course, were too large for Elmo’s five foot ten inch frame. While Valmid and Cal reclined, Elmo felt like a small child climbing up onto an adult chair. He finally sat himself down with his feet dangling. The walls of the house, made of a composite that Elmo could not identify, glowed a soft bluish white light. Elmo’s attention was drawn to frames mounted on the walls as images within the frames continued to change from paintings to photos of aliens.

Valmid observed Elmo’s interest and told him, “You seem to be taken with our pictures. The frames contain very thin video screens and a wireless connection to our computer; practically the whole house is a computer. Stored pictures are beamed to the screen. We simply choose a series of pictures and the cycle time, then enjoy the display.”

Despite the modern technology of the house, Elmo noticed that the floors and stairs leading to the second floor were constructed of highly polished wood. The stairs, of course, he would need to take one at a time. Zytex squatted near Elmo’s chair as Elmo studied the first floor of the dwelling more closely. The kitchen was adjacent to the living room, with cupboards and a futuristic device resembling a stove.

It was night as Elmo sat with his new friends. With sunset the light emitted from the walls intensified, maintaining a steady level of illumination. All was quiet as the trio communicated; the only sound was the occasional scream of the dingo plants.

To be continued...

Proceed to Challenge 227...