By
Moonchampion
The intense heat and the sandy dunes of the planet Mutoone proved to be quite an obstacle for Lance and Roberto. The teens used all of their energy to pull themselves across the massive desert. After hours of trekking under the hot sun, the boys reached a point where they began to see things differently.
"I can’t believe I’ve been following you for this long!" said Roberto. "Where are you going?"
"I’m on a mission," said Lance. "Now, come on. I think we should go this way."
"Wait a minute. A mission?" said Roberto. "What kind of mission are you on? We’re walking around in the middle of a desert… it’s over a hundred degrees out here… and you’re telling me you’re on a mission? Do you really know where you’re going?"
Lance sighed. "I said that I think we should go this way," said Lance pointing to his left.
"You think? You think?!" said Roberto. Lance nodded. "I don’t believe this." Roberto threw his hands in the air. "I’m going this way." Roberto pointed in the opposite direction. Lance threw up his hands and started to walk in the direction he had pointed, leaving Roberto behind. Roberto watched as Lance continued on his way. "Go ahead! And you’d better take off this fishbowl before you drown in your own sweat!" cried Roberto. The young tee then turned and headed in the direction he had pointed at.
"Irene! Irene!" called a gruff voice as the large man stumbled down the stairs. In the kitchen, washing dishes was a tall thin woman with dark hair. Dark glasses covered her eyes as she used her hands to find the stack of dishes and washed them under the running faucet. "Irene, where is he?"
The woman turned around to face the voice with a smile. "Cain, he’s only a boy. You can’t expect him to work all day. He deserves to have a little fun."
Cain sighed. "There’s work to be done around here, Irene, and the boy needs to learn to take some responsibility around here."
"Cain," began Irene, "it’s just a few hours." Cain groaned as he turned and headed out the door. He wouldn’t argue with his wife, Irene. In fact, in all the years he had known here, he had never been able to do it. There was just something about here that made it impossible.
Roberto continued to cross the dunes. Eventually, he found himself on the verge of collapse. Then, he heard a low hum in the distance. He turned around to see a large land transport hovering over the dunes. As the transport got closer, it began to slow until coming to a complete stop a few meters from Roberto.
The door slowly opened, and slowly a shadowed figure emerged. When he stepped into the light, Roberto was able to see that he had dark skin, black hair, and a pair of goggles over his eyes. He walked closer to Roberto, smiled and began examining his outfit. He placed his hands on Roberto’s arm and marveled over the design of his uniform.
Growing annoyed at simply being a spectacle Roberto pulled his arm away from the young man. "Excuse me sir," said Roberto, "but may I ask what the purpose is for this… this examination."
The young man chuckled at Roberto’s statement. "I’m sorry," he apologized. "I just seem to get carried away when it comes to seeing just about anything that I haven’t seen before." The young man reached to his side and pulled out a canteen. He offered to Roberto, who quickly took it and began drinking the water after offering a nod of thanks. As small stream of water trickled down the side of his face the young man cleared his throat.
"My name is Forge, by the way," he introduced himself. "You know, this is not exactly the kind of place where you can take a midday stroll. If the sun doesn’t get you… there are bandits in these parts that will." Roberto took the can of water down from his mouth and wiped the remaining trickles of water away. "Come on, I’ll give you a lift."
Roberto nodded and followed Forge back to his land transport. As they reached the opening, Roberto saw another figure he had recognized. "I don’t believe it! Lance!"
Lance looked up and scoffed with a bit of annoyance. "Oh, it’s you."
Forge stepped up behind Roberto, still with a smile on his face. "So, you two no each other?" asked Forge.
"Unfortunately," said Lance.
"Well, that’s neat," said Forge. "Why don’t you guys make yourselves comfortable? I’ve got a few deliveries to make. Perhaps I can drop you somewhere along the way that is at least close to where you’re heading." Lance and Roberto settled themselves in their seats as Forge started up the transport and started on his way.
Irene was still in the kitchen. She had finished washing dishes, and was now starting on dinner. As she began to set the table, she suddenly had an image flash within her mind. She could see flames engulfing her house. The image was immediately replaced with the image of a cloaked figure with a helmet. However, he wasn’t alone, someone else was there. Someone younger… whom he was fighting… it was…. "Pietro!" cried Irene.
The dish in her hand slipped from her grasp and began to fall to the floor. There was a gust of wind within the kitchen as the plate came to a halt only a few inches from the floor. A young boy, with white hair, had managed to catch the plate before it shattered on the floor. He looked up at the blind woman and took her hand.
"Aunt Irene, are you okay?" he asked.
"Yes. Yes, I’m fine," she said as Pietro helped her to the table where she took a seat. Pietro looked at her. She could sense the boy’s concern and began to smile. "I’m fine, really, Pietro. Why don’t you go and help you’re Uncle Cain. The Tinkerer will be arriving soon with the supplies for this week."
Pietro looked at his aunt for a few seconds. "Are you sure you’re okay?" he asked once again.
"I’m fine. Now, go," she said. "You know how restless your uncle can be sometimes." Pietro nodded, stood up and headed outside. Irene then turned and grasped the table. She had seen a glimpse of what was to come… of the future. And it did not look bright.
"Uncle Cain! The Tinkerer’s here!" called Pietro as the large land transport came to a stop. The door open and Forge stepped out with a smile on his face. "Hello, Forge. What have you got for us this time?"
Forge walked to the back of his transport. It opened, and inside was tons of variety of farming equipment. "I’ve got some droid units. Their memories have been erased, and I’ve got all the programs your uncle will need. All he has to do is download the program… instant workers."
Uncle Cain had stepped into view with a grim expression on his face. "I told you once before… no droids," said Cain. He looked at Pietro. "Look at you boy… hardly any muscle. That’s the problem with you kids today… you’re scared of hard work. Want droids to solve all of your problems."
Forge smiled and walked back around to the front of his transport. "Well, I do have something you may be more receptive to," said Forge. "Hey guys! Come on out!" After a few seconds, two young men appeared out of the transport. "These guys here are looking for work. They claim to be new to the planet. Think you got a job for them?"
Cain eyed the pair suspiciously for a moment. "Come on, Uncle Cain," pleaded Pietro. "Harvest will be coming up in a few weeks. We could really use the help." Cain growled before finally agreeing. "Excellent. Come with me you two, I’ll show you your quarters." Lance and Roberto exchanged looks with each other before following young Pietro back to their quarters.
Pietro led Lance and Roberto into a small cabin outside the main house. "Here you go," said Pietro. "I hope you’ll find everything okay."
"I’m sure it will be fine Master Pietro," said Lance. "Forgive me, where are my manners. My name is Roberto DaCosta, Diplomatic Relations. And this is Lance Alvers, Rictor-Level 2 Assistant." Roberto took Pietro’s hand and shook it.
"Well, it’s nice to meet you," said Pietro as he shook hands with Roberto. He then turned towards Lance with his hand extended.
"Up yours, Bleach boy," said Lance as he pushed Pietro’s hand away.
"Lance! There’s no need to be rude!" shouted Roberto. Lance merely waved his hand in annoyance. He took off his glass helmet and placed it on a table as he sat in a chair. Once he sat it down, something on the helmet activated, and a holographic image began to be projected from it. It was the image of a young girl with a white dress.
"You must help us Weather Goddess. You’re our only hope. You must help us Weather Goddess. You’re our only hope," said the hologram.
"Who is she?" asked Pietro.
"She’s none of your business," said Lance. He quickly grabbed his helmet and shut off the projector.
"Lance!" cried Roberto. "Master Pietro has taken us into his home. You could show a little more courtesy."
Lance frowned and looked towards Pietro. "I’m on a mission. I have to play the rest of this recording for the Weather Goddess."
Pietro arched his eyebrow. "The Weather Goddess. I’ve never heard of her. However, there is a lady that lives a few miles from here. A lot of people believe her to be some sort of shaman. They even say that she can control the weather. In fact, since she arrived here years ago, there hasn’t been a bad crop season. Perhaps she can help you find the Weather Goddess you’re looking for."
"Where is she?" asked Lance.
"I’ll take you there," said Pietro. Here name is Ororo Munroe."
Lance turned to face Roberto who simply returned the gaze with an ‘I told you so’ gaze. Lance scoffed and turned to face Pietro. "Lead the way," he said reluctantly.
TO BE CONTINUED…