"Jahv, say something to him." suggested Davy. "In your own language."
Jahv grinned, looked at Keith, and let loose a string of noise that sounded a whole lot like what was coming through the speaker.
Keith's eyebrows shot up. "Okay, can I get a translation on that?"
"Actually, it was a very complicated joke." explained Jahv. "There's only five races in the galaxy that even get it when it's told, and if you don't know the difference between a three-humped groslark and a five-toed shreekel, it makes no sense at all."
Keith rolled his eyes. "Forget I said anything. You ever get found out, I think we'll just try to get you turned over to George Lucas. So you understand that static that's coming out of the speakers?"
"More or less. Reception's pretty bad. It's standard broadcasts. It seems to be crossing a weather report from my home province with a comedy program that's currently the top show on my planet." said Jahv. "One minute I'm getting wind advisories for hovercars above City Level 5, the next I'm hearing the punchline to the one about the niffle-herder and the krax-farmer."
Keith groaned.
Davy interjected, "These broadcasts must be pretty old to have come this far across space."
Admittedly, even Jahv wasn't entirely sure how far he'd traveled, but his homeworld was certainly not in this solar system, which automatically put it light years away. Jahv shook his head. "A lot of stuff gets broadcast through hyperspace, for our colony worlds. Same-day broadcast. Unless I lost some time coming to this world, which I don't think I did, this is for today's date." He listened some more to the static. "Yes, there it is. 25th day of Orbital Rotation Period 27552. That's today."
There was a sudden squeal of static, louder than the others.
"Jeez! What was that?!" exclaimed Keith. "If they picked that up at Arecibo —!"
"I doubt they did." said Jahv. "I've been fine-tuning more precisely than they can. But that was a personal message blip. Who in the world — " Jahv replayed the squeal at a slower speed. It still sounded like static to Davy and Keith, but Jahv actually turned a paler shade of green when he heard it.
"You okay?" asked Davy.
"I don't believe it. That was directed at me!" said Jahv in little more than a whisper.
"Oh, great." said Keith. "Probably an invasion force thinking you got kidnapped or something. Game over, fans. I'll be under the bed until the end of the world."
Davy gave Keith an odd look, but Jahv seemed oblivious to it. "No, nothing like that. It's — it's my little brother!"
"Your what?!" Davy and exclaimed simultaneously. Davy added, "You never mentioned him."
"He wouldn't come with me when I ran away." said Jahv. "Now he wants to come here. Not that he knows where I am. He's asking me to send coordinates. Says he's ready to leave home. He says mom and dad were really angry when I left, and they've been taking it out on him."
"Can you get him here?" asked Keith, suddenly sympathetic.
"I think so." said Jahv, fingers flying over the keyboard. First he called up a map of Earth, centering on the region where they were now. He mapped it out in grids so tight that Davy estimated they couldn't've been more than a quarter-mile wide. Long series of numbers ran past on the screen. The image of the Earth pulled back, and then so did the entire solar system.
"I'm tracing the broadcast. This may take a while." explained Jahv.
"Jahv, as advanced as you people are — this sort of thing — what your parents are doing to your little brother — still happens?" asked Davy.
Jahv sighed. "We're a peaceful people, but we're also very disciplined. You just don't go breaking up families. That's why I can never return home, even if I wanted to. Technically, what I did was a pretty serious crime. But I just — couldn't — stay. I was afraid that — " Jahv let loose a short burst of static that was obviously his brother's name " — might suffer as a result. That's why I tried to get him to come with me, but he wouldn't — then."
"You want to turn that name into something the rest of us can pronounce?" asked Keith.
Jahv pondered the question. Technically, the «name» he used with his friends was just the first syllable of his full name, which in reality traced over five generations of ancestry. What could his brother be called using the same principle? "Keyro."
"Are your parents ever likely to come looking for you?" asked Davy.
Jahv shook his head. "The penalty for what I did, and what Keyro intends, is permanent banishment from the family. If my parents tried to find us, they'd be banished. They won't risk that. Their work is too important to them."
The computer beeped. Actually, it sounded more like it farted, but the point was that the results Jahv had been waiting for were ready. "Coordinates received." said Jahv, quickly working the computer. "Altering satellite dish to send, compensating for hyperspace transmission, and.
"Hold it." said Davy. "Are you sending him the exact same coordinates you used?"
"I was planning to. Why?" asked Jahv.
"You came in over water, remember?" said Davy. "Knocked you out and Niklas and I had to fish you out. You want to put your little brother through that?"
Jahv cringed. "You're right. He swims well, but the transmatrix can be disorienting, especially over such a distance. I'll adjust the coordinates a bit." Jahv typed a new series of numbers into the computer. "And — broadcasting."
"How soon before we get a response?" asked Keith.
"How long does it take you to talk on the telephone?" replied Jahv. "Should be almost instantaneous."
Another squeal of static came through the computer. Jahv processed it. "He's received the coordinates, and says he'll be here in about a deci-cycle. That's about one of your hours."
"Where's he going to be landing, or materializing, or whatever?" asked Keith.
"About a quarter-mile northwest of the pond. The other side from us." explained Jahv.
Davy's eyes went wide with alarm. "Oh, NO! Not over there! Are you serious?"
"Is there a problem?" asked Jahv.
"Yeah, what are you talking about?" asked Keith.
"I'd better show you." said Davy.
"If this is the receiving point for Keyro, I'd better put on my spacesuit." said Jahv.
"Why?" asked Davy. "It's just as isolated as this area."
"Yes, but Keyro will be arriving wearing a spacesuit. It would be rude." explained Jahv.
Davy decided to put his coveralls back on while Jahv stepped into his spacesuit. Keith was wearing everything he'd arrived in, which admittedly wasn't much, but was sufficient.
The three boys trekked through the woods, away from the pond, northwest, until they came upon the region Davy was so concerned about. Surrounded by trees was a huge expanse of mud. It wasn't exactly a swamp, or some stagnant pool. It was just plain brown mud, a huge spread of it about forty feet across, Keith guessed. Maybe a bit more.
"This is what you were so concerned about?" said Keith, picking up a fist-sized rock and tossing it out. The mud was obviously rather thick, but not so much that there wasn't a satisfying SPLAT when the rock hit and sank.
"You don't understand, because you don't live around here." said Davy. "This area is supposed to be haunted. A couple of kids fell into this years ago and were never heard from again. It's full of sinkholes. Sucked them right down."
"You've been hanging around too many summer camp story sessions or something." said Keith. "Sinkholes? Either that, or that's a story some parents came up with to keep their kids from getting muddy. I can't believe you'd be afraid of this."
Jahv had brought his backpack with him, and had pulled out some sort of device that whistled when he waved it in the direction of the mud pool. "Analysis indicates no sign of sinkholes. And no — missing children, either, or the remains thereof. Depth is a fairly consistent 14 inches. Shallow point at the edge about six inches. Deepest point about 22 inches."
"Not quite waist deep at the worst, then." said Keith.
"Thickness might result in us getting stuck, but it wouldn't be impossible to extract ourselves given the equipment I have in the backpack." said Jahv.
Davy chewed his lower lip. He trusted Jahv, but the stories had been told for years. There was one question that had always bugged him. "Any idea what could cause this place?"
"Soil seems to be unusually unstable. Apparently this was once part of the same pond where we go swimming." said Jahv. "It broke off from it, but somehow still receives water from it, just enough to maintain it as mud, mixed with the soil. It's weird, but not dangerous."
"And your little brother Keyro is going to land right in it." said Keith, trying not to laugh. "Welcome to Earth. SPLAT!"
"In fact, he'll probably be arriving quite soon." said Jahv.
"I've been meaning to ask you something ever since we met." said Davy. "Just how much stuff do you have in that backpack, and how did you get it all in there?"
"The inside is exponentially larger than the outside." replied Jahv. "Just like my home."
"But how's that possible?" asked Davy.
"Heads up, guys!" said Keith. "I think you're going to have to get your explanation later! Something's happening!"
A high-pitched wail started to come seemingly out of nowhere. Davy had been through this once before and was already holding his ears. Jahv had reached up to cover his antennae. The wail grew so loud that, even Davy, who was ready for it, found it painful. Keith was on his knees holding his ears. Then a light started to appear, right in mid air, about twelve feet above the mud.
Jahv was instantly concerned. "He's too high! He's too high up!"
"Pray for a soft landing!" yelled Davy, almost unable to hear his own voice.
Then, as when Jahv had first appeared, there was a crack of thunder, and the light seemed to explode. What felt like a gust of wind knocked the three boys backwards. The light was gone, the wail had stopped — and something made a very loud, deep SPLAT in the mud.
Keith was shaking his head. "Brother, you guys sure know how to make an entrance. Every dog for two miles must be deaf by now."
"No time for that!" said Jahv, sounding panicked. "Keyro is out there, and he's stuck!"
Indeed, something was flapping around in the mud, clearly unable to extricate itself.
"I warned you about this place!" said Davy rather sharply.
"Give it a rest, Davy." replied Keith. "Anything'd get stuck in deep mud coming in from a height like that. Let's get out there and get him. This could be fun."
"Fun?!" exclaimed Davy.
Keith turned back with a slight grin. "Have I mentioned that my 'dad' is also a neat freak? He once whupped me for getting grass stains on my pants. This is the opportunity of a lifetime!" Keith took three steps into the mud and it was already halfway up to his knees. The grin on his face turned downright silly. "Cool." he remarked.
"Need I remind you that we're on a rescue mission here?" said Jahv, who was already marching out even further towards his mud-covered brother, having taken just enough time to remove his large boots.
"Not that you don't have a point." Davy gave up and followed. He had to admit, the mud felt very weird, squishing between his toes and climbing up his legs, even under the coveralls, as he headed out into the deeper area where Keyro had landed. But it felt kind of fun, too. And the ground at the bottom felt stable enough.
"Whoops!" exclaimed Keith, who apparently hit a slippery spot and went flying backwards. Davy caught up to him and pulled him out. About all of Keith that wasn't plastered with mud at this point was his face and part of his chest.
"Thanks." said Keith. "Boy, my old man would be so pissed off if he saw me looking like this."
"That's why you're enjoying it, aren't you?" remarked Davy.
"Oh, come on, tell me this isn't fun." said Keith.
"Okay, it is, but we've still got an alien to rescue." replied Davy, managing to grin nonetheless.
As it turned out, it was Jahv who reached the mud-covered being first. He gently lifted Keyro to his feet and spoke to him in those strange bursts of static that were their language. Keyro seemed to be about the same height, and Davy and Keith assumed as such that he was probably about the same age, as their younger friend Martin. That was about all they could determine about the boy, too. He was trying to wipe his eyes clear of the mud, but given that his hands were just as plastered, that wasn't proving to be very successful.
It was at that moment that Martin rode up on his bicycle. He was wearing his swim shorts, and had tied his shirt to the handlebars.
"Hey, you guys! What happened to you!?" he called.
"Alien retrieval." said Davy.
Martin did a quick headcount and noticed the second pair of antennae. "Is that what all that noise was about? I was at the pond and I saw this bright light and crack of thunder."
"Yeah, we've got another one." said Keith.
"We also have a problem." said Jahv. "He says he's rather thoroughly stuck, and I don't think we can get enough leverage in here to boost him out."
"Must've been the landing." said Keith.
"He says his boots are full of mud and the fasteners are jammed." explained Jahv.
"Would another person help?" asked Davy. "we could get Martin out here."
"Hey, Martin!" called Keith. "Get out here! We need help!"
Martin shook his head. "I'm not coming out there! My mom and dad would have a fit if I got that muddy!"
"For pete's sake, you can clean up in the pond! Our newest arrival is stuck in his own boots!" yelled Keith. "We gotta drag him out."
"Wait." said Jahv. "Martin, do you see my backpack?"
Martin looked around. "Yes, here it is!"
"Look inside." said Jahv. "You may have to rummage around a bit. There should be a long length of red-colored cord in there with a weight on the end. Find it."
Martin opened the backpack. "How much stuff you got in here? I don't have this much stuff in my entire closet!" He shifted dozens of items around, and finally saw the red-colored rope. He pulled it out. "Is this it?"
"Yes!" called Jahv. "Unwrap the rope, and throw the weighted end out this way."
"There's no way he can get it out this far." whispered Keith. "He's not strong enough."
"He won't have to be. The weight is aerodynamically designed." replied Jahv, just as the weight splattered into the mud right in front of them.
"Did you see that throw?" yelped Martin. "Wow!" The boy had a huge grin.
"Very impressive." said Jahv. "Now tie the other end off around a tree. As strong a knot as you can make."
"How dependent are we on his knot-tying abilities?" asked Keith.
"Not very." replied Jahv. "The cord is self-adhesive. Doesn't stick to anything else, but put a knot in it, and that knot will stay put until you use the molecular reverser attached to the weighted end on it."
Martin had found a good strong tree and had wrapped the rope around it and tied a large, strange knot in the rope. "Okay!"
"We're going to have to guide Keyro in." said Jahv. "He's not strong enough to overcome the pull of the mud on his boots."
With Davy and Keith bracing Keyro on either side, and Jahv pulling from the front and keeping a hand on the rope, while Martin held the rope from shore, which essentially he didn't need to do, but none of the others wanted to make him feel useless, the newest alien arrival was slowly dragged to shore. Finally, four mud-covered youngsters slogged out of the thick morass of mud.
"That was great!" laughed Keith. "We're gonna have to do that sometime when we're not rescuing somebody."
"It was fun, wasn't it?" said Davy.
"But — " said Keith, speaking seriously but with a wicked grin on his face, "we owe our rescue to Martin! Let's all give him a big hug!"