The Gas Giant (4 page)

Back on Earth, Jett typed the formula into the Universe-wide Web. ‘Carbon dioxide,’ he said a moment later. ‘Does that help?’

The sick feeling in Kip’s tummy suddenly grew worse. He shook his head and frowned. ‘Carbon dioxide is one of Earth’s most common gases,’ he answered. ‘It’s what makes Supernova bubbly. WorldCorp’s scientists would have tried CO
₂
already — they’ve been trying to build a floating city for ages.’

‘Perhaps the symbol’s in an alien language,’ Finbar suggested.

It was a good idea, but no help. The Vapod aliens didn’t know who the researchers were, let alone which language they spoke. There were billions of languages in the Universe, many unknown to humans.

Kip groaned. The mission was becoming maddening. Plus, his stomach was seriously bloated. He felt like he’d just eaten a gigantic meal. But the last time he’d eaten was hours ago, back at Jett’s party.

From out of nowhere, Kip heard a loud whirring noise. He looked up. Through the igloo’s transparent top, Kip saw a huge cloud of tiny insects.

‘They’re not insects,’ Finbar said, looking hard.

‘They’re nanobots,’ the first Vapod alien said. ‘They’ve been here since the researchers’ time.’ He explained that the nanobots were tiny robots that had been created for maintenance work. They were very simple robots that couldn’t talk.

‘Can you go outside so I can get a closer look?’ begged Jett from the walkie-talkie. ‘I’d
love
to get a sketch of an alien robot!’

Kip grinned. ‘OK,’ he said. ‘But quickly! I’ve got a mission to complete.’

Kip took the walkie-talkie outside. Finbar and the two Vapod aliens followed.

As soon as they got close enough to the nanobots, Kip could see Jett’s hologram sketching them and taking notes. He was a complete geek when it came to robotics.

Kip couldn’t take his eyes off the bots either. They were buzzing furiously. Kip’s Space Scout senses told him something wasn’t right.

‘Is that how they normally act?’ Kip asked the first alien.

The alien shook his head. ‘They only do that when something’s bothering them.’

A tense silence fell. Kip wondered if the Vapod aliens were thinking the same thing he was. The descriptions of giant creatures in the researchers’ notes. Maybe those creatures had returned…

Suddenly, Kip, Finbar and the two aliens lurched sideways. Jett’s hologram disappeared. The platform they were on had been hit by a violent wind!

‘Engage suckers!’ Kip commanded. Quick-release suction caps popped out of his spaceboots’ soles. The suckers would stop him blowing away.

‘What was THAT?’ Finbar yelled. He’d also managed to engage his own Plan-it Suckers just in time. The Vapod aliens were flapping wildly against the wind.

Then they were all flung back the other way. The wind seemed to have suddenly changed direction.

‘Even a freak wind couldn’t change direction
that
fast,’ Finbar said anxiously.

‘I’m afraid it’s one of those creatures,’ Kip answered. ‘A giant creature flying past could easily create that much wind.’

Another huge gust of wind blew them all sideways.

Kip scanned the sky anxiously. But apart from the wind, there was no sign of hostile creatures.

‘We’ve got to get up there and check it out,’ Kip said.

Finbar nodded. ‘But how?’

Kip and Finbar only had one CondorCraft between them. There was no way it could support them both in such terrible conditions.

There was another furious gust of wind. Then…

Finbar’s Plan-It Suckers had come unstuck! He was a lot heavier than Kip. His Plan-It Suckers just weren’t strong enough to stand up to the fierce winds.

The wind seized Finbar and hurled him towards the edge of the platform.

‘A-WOOOOOOO!’ howled Finbar.

He grabbed onto an antenna as he blew past it. The antenna bent under his weight.

Kip knew it was too dangerous to run over and help Finbar. If he moved too quickly the wind might pick him up as well, and then they’d both be blown off the platform!

Kip watched as Finbar’s hand slid to the end of the antenna. He would only be able to hold on for a few more moments.

I’ve got to do something!
Kip told himself.
But what?

Kip looked around desperately. The Vapod aliens were facing the other direction, flying into the wind. By the time Kip got their attention, Finbar would probably be flung off the platform and plunging towards the planet’s core.

Then it hit him. Kip wriggled his backpack and tore it open. Heart thumping in his throat, he grabbed a cylindrical container. His SurvivalRod was folded up inside.

These ultra-light, ultra-tough fishing rods were highly useful for long missions. The rods could be used to fish for edible alien sea creatures. Instead of a physical fishing line, they had a laser line capable of reeling in giant loads. The laser used magnetic energy to hold onto whatever it caught.

Working so quickly his fingers fumbled, Kip unfolded the rod.
He aimed it carefully. Finbar was still holding on to the antenna, but Kip could see his paws slipping more and more.

Kip would only get one shot at this.

Squinting and holding his breath, Kip fired the trigger on the handle release.

The line sped towards Finbar. Just at that moment, Finbar’s paws slipped off the end of the antenna. He hurtled across the platform at top speed, and then disappeared over the edge head-first.

‘No!’ shouted Kip.

But a second later, the display on the SurvivalRod flashed that the line had caught something. The rod began automatically reeling in its catch.

Was it…? Yes! Finbar’s foot appeared from over the edge of the platform, followed by the rest of his body.

Relief washed over Kip. But the wind was still wild. Kip’s shoulders ached with the strain of holding onto the rod.

Can’t…go on…much longer
, Kip thought. His whole body was in agony. His stomach was about to pop.

Suddenly the wind changed direction again, yanking Finbar towards Kip.

He landed heavily on the platform. The wind died as suddenly as it had begun. Finbar seemed shaken but OK.

‘Any sign of the creature?’ Finbar asked after he’d caught his breath.

Kip shook his head. By now, the skies were filling with Vapod aliens flapping up to the cloud layer. The entire population was panicking about the attack.

The aliens on Kip and Finbar’s platform flapped over to them. Each of them was now holding a strange-looking contraption.

The devices reminded Kip of waterskis. He’d once seen a picture of waterskis in a digital history book. Of course, Earth’s water was now too precious to be used for something useless like skiing.

The skis had a tow-rope with a handle to grab onto. Kip saw wings on the sides of the skis that looked like they belonged on a plane.

‘The researchers left these AirSkis behind,’ the first alien said.

‘If you hang onto the handles, we’ll tow you to the cloud layer. We’re going up to investigate,’ said the second alien.

Finbar’s whiskers were quivering like crazy again. Kip guessed he wasn’t keen to get airborne again so soon after his mishap.

‘Come on, Fin,’ Kip pleaded into his helmet’s intercom.

But Finbar had a terrified look on his face. He really didn’t want to go.

Kip didn’t want to go without Finbar. But if Vapod was under attack, Kip’s chances of completing his mission were tiny.

Would Kip have to choose between staying with his 2iC and leaving him behind to save Earth?