Orville Mouse and the Puzzle of the Capricious Shadows (Orville Wellington Mouse Book 3)

by Tom Hoffman

  Orville gaped as a huge armada of massive interstellar ships appeared in dark space, blinking out of nothingness. The melodious voice continued, describing the impossibly complex task of building a planet capable of interstellar flight. Massive engines deep inside the planet would warp the space around it, creating an artificial gravitational field identical to that of Thaumatar. The planet contained living space for three million inhabitants, including a wide variety of natural environments filled with a vast array of carefully selected Thaumatarian flora and fauna.

  The three adventurers watched as stupendously massive Morsennium beams were offloaded from an endless stream of gleaming interstellar ships, then joined together like so many puzzle pieces to form the planet’s spherical framework. Time sped up as they watched, the construction moving faster and faster, ships blinking in and out of view, the planet growing in layer after layer of depth and complexity.

  Orville lost track of time, mesmerized by the process of Tectar’s creation. A voice seemed to come out of nowhere. It was Sophia.

  “How long have we been watching? It seems like a really long time but it might only be a few minutes.”

  Orville had no answer. “I have no idea, but this is amazing. I can’t believe I’m floating in space watching the Thaumatarians build a planet. I wish I had snacks, though.”

  “The silver ships are gone. I think they’re finished. It’s beautiful! The outer surface is reflecting the stars.”

  “How come Tectar looks smooth on the outside, but we have mountain ranges and rivers and trees on the surface?”

  “That’s a good question. We can ask Copo.”

  “Something’s happening! Look at the right side of Tectar.”

  “The stars are rippling, getting squished together. I think the Mark XVII Thrusters are warping space in front of the planet.”

  There was a sudden blinding flash of light and the planet vanished.

  “Whoa! Did you see that?”

  Before Sophia could answer she was back in her comfy chair sitting next to Orville and Proto. The lights above them blinked on and the door whirred open.

  “My legs are wobbly.” Orville saw Copo peering through the doorway, a cheery look on his face.

  “Careful now, watch your step! I do hope you enjoyed the show? It was a very popular tourist destination when I first arrived at the Museum, visitors coming from every corner of the universe.”

  Despite his cheerful demeanor, Sophia sensed a sadness in Copo. “Where did everyone go, all the Thaumatarians who made the journey here?”

  Copo shook his head. “I’m afraid I have no ready answer to your question. They were all here, then there was an event of some kind. I’m not certain what occurred, it was a rather confusing time, and I’m afraid I lost awareness for many years. When I regained consciousness, everyone was gone. I remember stepping into the Greater Tectarian Aquarium and seeing huge vines dangling down from above, vines I had never seen before. It was quite disturbing.”

  “Are you talking about the tree roots hanging down into the big lake?”

  “No, not tree roots, vines. The vines were hanging down from the outer hull of the ship, only a few feet above them. There are no trees on the surface, the entire outer shell of Tectar is constructed of gleaming smooth Morsennium.”

  Sophia looked over to Orville, then back to Copo. “When is the last time you were on the surface of Tectar?”

  “I have never actually been to the surface, but I have viewed a great variety of holo images and have studied the planet’s construction process in exquisite detail. No living being could survive up there, I’m afraid. There is no atmosphere, nothing to block the deadly cosmic rays. Such radiation would quickly bring an end to any creature attempting to survive on the ship’s surface.”

  Sophia said gently, “Copo, things have changed a lot on the surface, although I don’t really understand how it happened. There are mountains and rivers and sky, many creatures living up there, including villages filled with green short-eared rabbits.”

  Copo did not seem to hear Sophia’s words. “The drawing! I almost forgot the prize drawing!” He strode over to the stand with the glass vase on it. “Who would like to pick the winning ticket? It’s quite an honor.”

  Orville looked at the vase. There were three ticket stubs in it. It seemed obvious one of them was going to win, so why bother with the drawing?

  Sophia volunteered. “I’ll do it, I can’t wait to see who the lucky winner is!” She smiled brightly at Copo as she reached into the vase, pulling out a single ticket stub. “The winning ticket is number 1232008!”

  Orville looked at his ticket stub. “I won! I can’t believe I won! I never win anything!”

  Copo gave a cheery laugh. “Excellent! I’m so pleased. Just wait until you see the prize!” Orville rubbed his paws together. Maybe it would be something really valuable.

  Copo stepped behind the colorful display panels, rummaging around in a drawer. He returned with a curious object in his paw, graciously presenting it to Orville. “Congratulations, and may you treasure this gift forever, a cherished memento of your visit to the History of Tectar Temporal Displacement Museum.”

  Orville studied the object he was now holding, a gleaming eight inch long gold cylinder. Protruding from the top half of the cylinder were several dozen small black cubes, each of them embedded with a tiny blinking colored light. Orville sensed the object contained enormous power.

  “It’s very nice, um… but what exactly is it?”

  Copo gave an understanding smile. “You are from Earth, of course, so there is no way you could know. You are holding in your paws a perfect working replica of the key used to start the first Mark XVII Micronizing Distortion Thruster, one of the six interstellar engines which brought Tectar to this very location.”

  Orville did his best to sound excited. “That’s amazing, a perfect replica of the key used to start the… um… big engine thing. Copo, thank you so much for the complementary tickets. It was an amazing show, and I have to tell you, this is the best museum I’ve ever visited.”

  Sophia grinned. This was why she loved Orville.

  Copo couldn’t stop smiling. “Oh my, thank you so much for your patronage. You will come back again if you have time? There are quite a number of other exhibits I’m certain you would find most interesting.”

  “We’d love to, but our plans are a little hazy just now. We’re trying to reach the surface of Tectar. Say, would you like to come with us? It might be fun for you to see what’s up there. You said you’ve never been to the surface.”

  “Quite true, quite true. I do thank you for your kind offer, but I’m afraid with me gone, there would be no one to watch over the museum. I would hate for visitors to arrive, only to find the Museum doors closed.”

  “I understand. This is your home, it’s where you belong.”

  “You said there are trees on the surface?”

  Sophia nodded. Copo had heard her after all. “Yes, they’re quite lovely, and they walk around during the night.”

  A faraway look appeared in Copo’s eyes. “The Great Walkers from the jungles of Athne in southern Thaumatar. A lovely area, stunning natural beauty. Perhaps one day I shall take a quick peek out the door.”

  Proto was remembering the centuries he had spent hidden inside the Cube, too afraid to venture out. It had taken Sophia and Orville’s friendship and encouragement to help him find the strength to leave the Cube, to move to Muridaan Falls. “It’s really quite lovely up there. Nothing to worry about at all. You could pop out for a moment, then come right back in if you wanted to. Each day you could spend a little more time on the surface until you became accustomed to it. You’d be perfectly safe.”

  Copo studied Proto’s face. “You are quite perceptive for a Rabbiton, quite perceptive indeed. Perhaps I shall venture forth upon the surface in the near future. I suppose I could put a sign on the museum door indicating the precise time of my return.”

  Sophia nodded. �
�That’s a wonderful idea. I think you’d like it, it might even remind you of your days on Thaumatar.”

  “That would be lovely. I will confess there are moments when I become quite wistful, yearning for those long ago days when I roamed the jungles of Athne.”

  “You roamed the jungles? What were you doing there?”

  Copo smiled. “I was the sole passenger aboard an autonomous transport ship which malfunctioned, crashing deep in the jungles of Athne. I was forced to fend for myself for over a year, until the day I was rescued by a gang of ruthless bandits. That was the real beginning of my grand adventure.”

  “You lived with ruthless bandits?”

  “Indeed I did. The bandits made every attempt to recruit me, hoping I would join them in their rather unscrupulous activities, but of course my programming did not allow me to participate in such unsavory behavior. Instead, I became their cook, preparing three meals a day for over twenty bandits. It was a lovely time. After dinner they would bring out their bolaphones and play such lively tunes. I felt quite alive back then.”

  “How did you get home?”

  “Another interesting story. I was picking wild scramberries for a birthday pie when a beam of violet light flashed down from above, transporting me to a recovery ship. The pilot had been scanning the jungle for a lost Flybot and found me instead. I never got to say goodbye to my friends.”

  “That’s very sad. You grew to be friends with the bandits?”

  “Quite good friends. They treated me as one of their own, even though I never took part in any unlawful activities. They never hurt anyone, but they did take a great many things which did not belong to them.”

  “Well, it’s good they didn’t hurt anyone. You know, if you went up to the surface and asked around you might find a jungle just like the one in Athne. Who knows, there might even be some ruthless bandits living there.”

  Copo laughed. “It would be fun to sit around a roaring campfire once again, tapping my toes to a lively bolaphone tune. Such fond memories I have of those days.”

  “Copo, can you tell us how to get to the surface? We don’t really know our way around Tectar.”

  “I would be more than happy to help you. Follow me and I’ll set you off in the right direction.” Copo led them out of the Museum and into the long hallway.

  “To reach the nearest escape hatch, head down the hall and take your first left turn. You’ll pass through five sets of doors, then you turn right, up the stairs, turn left again, straight for one hundred feet, turn right, tap the violet button, exit, veer to the left, through the transport doors, push the third violet tab, exit again, turn right, turn left and there you are. Press the violet tab to exit through the airlock.”

  Orville stared blankly at Copo. “We go down the hall, then which way?”

  Sophia grinned. “Follow me, Captain Orville.”

  Chapter 25

  Up, Up, and Away

  The three adventurers emerged from the airlock into a bitter cold blast of blinding white snow.

  “It’s a blizzard! I can’t see anything!” Orville tried to shield his eyes from the furious stinging flakes, Sophia blinking up a sphere of defense around them to block the ferocious winds and pelting snow.

  “That’s better, but I still can’t see anything. Proto, do you know where we are?”

  Proto studied their surroundings, his eyes glowing with a vibrant green light. “My sensors indicate we are in a broad valley surrounded by snow covered peaks, somewhere deep within the Obex Range.”

  “I don’t understand how there can be mountains on Tectar. When they built it, it was a giant shiny Morsennium ball.”

  “Several possible explanations come to mind. The Thaumatarians may have purposefully directed asteroids and comets to strike the surface of Tectar, completely covering the outer shell and in the process creating mountain ranges. Another possibility is that Tectar passed through a dense asteroid field the Thaumatarians were unaware of. Thousands of asteroids and comets could have crashed into the planet over the millennia. Comets are composed primarily of ice, which would have melted on impact, forming the lakes and rivers on the planet. Such collisions could have been catastrophic events, possibly affecting the internal structure of the planet. Copo mentioned there was a long period of time when he was not conscious. Perhaps he was damaged during one of these events.”

  Sophia squinted, peering into the swirling blizzard. “However the mountains got here, we have to get past them. We’ll have a better idea what we’re up against once we reach the far end of the valley. If this blizzard is any indication of the weather we’ll be facing, it’s going to be a very dangerous climb.”

  “I’m not that crazy about mountain climbing, especially the part where you fall into a thousand foot deep crevasse.”

  Sophia laughed. “Proto will rescue us if anything happens.”

  Orville shaped heavy winter gear for himself and Sophia; snowshoes, thick woolen coats, gloves, snow pants, insulated boots and goggles.

  Sophia pulled her hood tight, adjusted her goggles, and flicked off the sphere of defense. “Much better. Let’s go.”

  The adventurers headed east across the broad valley, Orville on the alert for snow bears or any other dreadful beasts which might attempt to turn him into an afternoon snack.

  After two arduous days of battling the frigid icy terrain, raging blizzards and pelting snow, the party of adventurers reached the western foothills of the Obex Range.

  “Let’s camp here for the night. I’ll shape a fire and we can have dinner.”

  Orville shaped a sturdy tent while Sophia shaped a blazing campfire. Proto soon had a pot of tasty vegetable soup simmering over the fire, the delectable aroma permeating the chilly mountain air.

  “Mmmm… that smells good, Proto, I was thinking of shaping some tasty little cakes for–” Orville stopped in mid sentence, his eyes on the roaring fire, watching the bright orange embers float up toward the dark gray sky. He was remembering the day his papa took him to the Muridaan Falls Summer Sun Festival. He was five years old, only a mouseling, but the memory of that day was etched forever in his mind.

  “What’s that big round thing, Papa?”

  “It’s called a hot air balloon. See the fire above the big basket? That fills the balloon with hot air, and hot air rises. What do you think will happen when the air inside the balloon gets hot enough?”

  “The balloon will catch on fire?”

  “Something else. What does hot air do?”

  “It rises. The balloon will rise because it’s filled with hot air? It flies? The mouse in the basket is going to fly??”

  “Orville, are you still with us?”

  “Oh, sorry, I was just remembering something. I think I know how we can cross over the mountains. We can shape a hot air balloon and fly over.”

  A dozen possible outcomes of Orville’s daring plan ran through Sophia’s mind, most of them involving fire and crashing into rocks. “I don’t know, it could work, but it sounds risky, there’s a lot of variables. Did you see the wind up there? It looks dreadful, the snow is whipping across the peaks. We’d be at the mercy of the wind. The balloon goes wherever the wind takes it, it’s not like being in a Dragonfly or a blinker ship.”

  “I guess we could shape a small hot air balloon and test it to see what happens.”

  “Now you’re thinking like a scientist.”

  An hour later Orville was holding up a six foot wide paper balloon while Sophia steadied the alcohol burner hanging beneath it. “This should work, the opening is wide enough to fill the balloon with hot air without setting the paper on fire.”

  Proto nodded. “If this test proves successful we can build a large scale version, perhaps with a duplonium powered heat exchanger, much safer than using an open flame.”

  Orville grinned. “The balloon is filling up and getting lighter! It’s tugging, trying to rise. This was a good idea.”

  “It might work.”

  “Okay, here goes!”
Orville released his grip on the balloon.

  “It’s going up!”

  Sophia held off final judgement. “What matters is how the wind affects it.”

  Orville watched nervously as the balloon rose higher and higher. “It’s a hundred feet up and looking stable!”

  “Don’t forget the mountains are seven thousand feet tall and the wind up there looks brutal.”

  Three minutes later the balloon was at five hundred feet and still rising. Orville could see the small blue flame beneath the balloon. When it reached six hundred feet a ferocious blast of wind grabbed the balloon, ripping it across the sky. Orville watched in dismay as his creation burst into flames, disappearing seconds later into a bank of churning gray clouds. “Oh, no!”

  “It’s okay, we’ll find another way over the mountains.”

  “It was a dumb idea.”

  “If the weather was better it would have worked perfectly.”

  “I guess testing it first was a pretty good idea.”

  “A scientist learns from every experiment, especially if the results are unexpected. This experiment gave us the data we needed. We know we can’t safely fly a hot air balloon over the mountains, so we’ll find another way.”

  Chapter 26

  Just a Thought

  Orville rose early the next morning, grumbling to himself about his less than successful hot air balloon venture. “Dumb blustery wind.” He gave a long sigh, imagining the three of them drifting triumphantly over the mountain peaks in a great colorful hot air balloon, beneath a clear blue sky. He could almost hear Sophia’s voice. “This was the best idea ever, Orville!”