by Paul Vayro
Chapter Thirty Three
Chris the Curious careered towards the top of Noel Hill in his latest invention: a four wheeled, pedal driven transportation machine complete with protective chassis of sleek design, and heated seats. He'd been toying with calling it a 'car', that or the 'quicker than walking'. The secret to how his 'car' careered at such a pace sat beneath what he affectionately termed the bonnet. An ingenious gear system increased the power he inputted a thousand fold, also storing energy for use when pedalling became tiresome.
Breaching the lip of the hill Chris pulled an impressive skid, drifting towards the centre. As momentum and speed dwindled to practically nil, a distinct sense of impact rippled through the machine. There was nothing in sight to explain such an occurrence, causing Chris to open his vertically sliding door and step out to investigate.
Chris could definitely feel something, two something's to be precise. Every sense except sight confirmed an object in the way. Sitting down he pondered such a contradiction. Deciding eventually that some form of trickery must be at work. 'Something is stopping me seeing whatever is in front of me'. He thought.
Pacing the hill in contemplation, Chris spotted movement in the distance. Taking out his 'move things in the distance closer lenses', or 'binoculars', Chris peered into the valley that stretched beyond. He spotted nine people, three of whom appeared to be moving in perfect synchronicity. When a mission follows an unexpected tangent the previous protocols are rescinded. The more heroes involved the more potent their power becomes, hence Bobby and The Magwanvu's attendance became essential. Any issues relating to their curious appearance would be dealt with by heroic improvisation. The observed group were all stood around one of the giant holes that punctuated the ground. The holes that were created by the white sphere that fell from the clouds on regular occasions.
Chris had watched the sphere fall many times and followed the beings that would appear from within, although he took great care never to let them see him. Something about the small, metallic one's very presence generated shivers that weren't worth pursuing. Only recently had he been joined by two very large others. Chris struggled to even think about the visitors, instead returning to the excitement of new people. Jumping in his car he set off towards them. 'At last' he thought, 'something to be genuinely curious about'.