ACROSS THE VOID

 

From a highly sophisticated civilization

Far in advance of our own

They crossed the great void of space

To make patterns in the fields we’ve sown

If that is their idea of fun

They must be the dullest aliens ever known

ALL-TIME CLASSIC MOVIE FAVOURITES – PHENOMENON (1996)

 

“Phenomenon” is a fantasy romantic drama, screenplay by Gerald Di Pego and Directed by Phil Jon Turteltaub.

The film is set in a small California town and tells the story of George Malley (John Travolta), the owner of the local auto repair shop.

George heads for home, after celebrating his birthday at the local bar with friends but pauses to watch a strange light in the sky, and collapses for a few seconds in the middle of the deserted street.

It becomes apparent in the days and weeks that follow that something is amiss as George finds his IQ and consciousness expanding dramatically, and he reveals to his closest friends Doc (Robert Duvall) and Nate Pope (Forest Whitaker) that he had developed telekinetic abilities, and while he’s with the girl he loves, Lace Pennamin (Kyra Sedgwick), his new-found abilities allow him to correctly predict an earthquake.

However, despite his attempts to explain what has happened to him, with just a very few exceptions, most of the local townspeople treat George as a freak.

His state of isolation becomes even more pronounced when outside authorities become interested in what's happened to him in particular the FBI, but worst of all Dr. Wellin (Richard Kiley) who wants to dissect his brain, but George has other ideas on how his life will end.

ON THE WAY TO MAYBURY HILL

 

As a young man H.G. Wells had spent an unhappy time living with an aunt in Horsell which was then close to Woking and is now part of the overall sprawl.

So, when he wrote his great science fiction novel, The War of the Worlds, he had the Martians land on Horsell common, in sight of where Wells had once lived.

This enabled him to have that area of Woking become the first to fall victim to the terrifying invaders weaponry.

In the novel the hero of the tale, having witnessed the first meteor fall to earth, was pursued by the merciless tripods from the common and along Maybury hill.

Were the invaders to land today they would have to negotiate a huge six-way roundabout, dissect a one-way system, a no left turn, a no right turn, two traffic light junctions, three pelican crossings and two quite appallingly designed mini roundabouts.

I think faced with the product of 21st century traffic management and in particular Woking Borough Councils ill-judged town planning, that the Martians would have given up and returned home long before they were exposed to the pathogenic bacteria that eventually saw them off.

The world saved by the ineptitude of local government, what Irony.   

ARE YOU WEARING A SPACESUIT?

 

Are you wearing a spacesuit?

Good that makes two of us

Because I'm an astronaut and

My mission is to explore Uranus

KEEPING ABREAST

If a fraction of the effort that went into

Research of women’s breasts and their bras

Had instead gone into exploration

Of space, the galaxy and the stars

We would today be operating

Burger joints on the moon and mars 

MUSIC IN SPACE

 

Round the world they go

In nineteen sixty-five

Orbiting the earth

So high up in the sky

 

Dashing round the world

Above the earth they race

Jingle Bells the song, was

The first one played in space

 

O Jingle bells, jingle bells

Jingle all the way.

Oh! What fun it is to ride

In a spaceship far away hey

 

Sung to the tune of Jingle Bells

The Tornado Sojourns (3) – Chapter 05 – Unwelcome Attention

On Thursday night there were two additions to the staff behind the bar assisting Wisma, one was the redheaded Captain of the Tornado, Merionwen Strong, who was a forthright, volatile and feisty personality who liked a scrap, and the second was the Shape Shifting navigator Malena Endia, who had abandoned her favoured form, tall, slim, brunette hair, olive skin and hazel eyes, to take the appearance of Zydia.

Also, in the bar that night seated in the bar were the Skeet Brothers playing cards and in one corner were the two Gouveian’s, the mountainous Parse Sacrod and the Diminutive Asti Alegionaris, while out the back, out of sight of the customers were the Vann Telepath, Shiyne and Bagg who were seated in the kitchen.

 

Just before closing time, two men walked in to the Visitor’s Rest and made their way to the bar, they were both in their early thirties, well-groomed and reasonably well dressed.

“You’re cutting it a bit fine” Merionwen said, “what can I get you?”

“I’ll serve these gentlemen” Wisma interrupted and gave a discrete nod to Merri

“Ok” she said “I’ll go and collect the glasses”

Malena/Zydia was stood in the doorway and retreated unnoticed to the kitchen.

Merri knew that once in the kitchen Malena would alert the others so she opened the hatch and started picking up empties from the tables and as she passed the Skeets she said

“Two men at the bar”

“I’m going to call it a night” Lyris said and drained his glass

“Me too” concurred Zerrad and they put their jackets on and walked towards the door

“Good night” Lyris called

“Thank you, good night” Wisma replied

Once outside they crossed the street and hid in the shadows where they had a good view of the Bar.

A few minutes later Asti and Parse also made their exit but unlike the skeets they secreted themselves in the toilets.

The last few customers said their goodnights and the taller of the two men took out a communicator.

“All clear” he said and put it away.

 

From their position in the shadows the Skeets saw two men get out of a parked vehicle just outside the bar and quickly go in and the Skeets left their hiding place and quickly crossed the road to follow them.

 

With her ear pressed against the door Asti heard the main door open and close.

“What’s happening?” Parse whispered

“Another two have arrived” she replied

 

Shiyne and Bagg were still in the back room listening intently to what was happening.

“I hope you’ve come to your senses?” the tall man said as the door opened and two big rough looking thugs entered the bar carrying heavy clubs.

“Otherwise I’ll set them loose again”

 

Asti slowly opened the door and when she saw it was all clear she and Parse left the toilet.

Once in the vestibule Asti quietly slid back the bolts on the door and let in the Skeets.

Once the four of them were ready Parse spoke into his communicator

“In position”

 

“I told you last time, I don’t need protection” Wisma said calmly

“I’m very disappointed in you Mrs Berita, very disappointed indeed” the taller man said

This was Bagg’s queue and he stepped through the door to the bar and said

“She has made it perfectly clear that she doesn’t need your protection”

“Keep out of this old man” said the shorter man. “It’s not God’s protection that she needs”

“She already has all the protection she needs” Bagg continued

“Right you two” the tall one said to the two thugs “smash the place up and then smash up the God botherer”

 

Shiyne closed her eyes and sent her telepathic message “go now” and all hell broke loose as the four crewmates charged through the door and took the two roughs completely by surprise flattening one before he knew what was happening and Asti quickly got him restrained.

The second one back peddled and managed to swing his bat in Lyris Skeet’s direction but got no real force into it and he easily avoided it, ducking under the swing and hitting his assailant hard in the midriff, knocking him to the floor but even on the floor it took him and Zerrad to subdue him.

 

Meanwhile the shorter man at the bar decided he wanted a piece of Bagg and scrambled up over the bar.

Bagg adjusted his feet and was about to knock him back the way he came with his staff when Wisma hit him first with a Brandy Bottle and he slid backwards onto the floor where Parse found him and tied him up.

The taller man decided that discretion was the better part of valour and seeing his way to the front door barred decided to make a run for the back and he reached the end of the bar just as Malena and Shiyne emerged from the back room.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Malena said

“I’ve got this” Merri shouted and confronted the taller man who threw a punch which she deftly avoided and struck him across the side of his knee with her boot and he let out a scream of agony and collapsed to the floor.

“Nice work Captain” Asti said

Bagg gave the bar a cursory glance and noted they had dealt with all four men with minimal damage and no injuries to the good guys, so he said

“Ok Shiyne”

She nodded her bald cerise head and closed her eyes as she spoke to Terrel Vorton who was nearby in the Stroller, he was a Sciberran Healer and was held in reserve in case anything went wrong.

 

Terrel pulled up outside the bar and the crew loaded the four criminals aboard where Shiyne set about wiping their memories of that week’s events, then they drove them to a quiet alleyway, untied their restraints and dumped the bodies.

The next step was to flag down a Prefect on patrol in Gipki and as soon as they had his attention, Shiyne, the Vann telepath, invaded the his mind and when she had control of him she had him climb aboard, then they spent another twenty minutes seeking out another one and she repeated the process.

With two prefects aboard they returned to the alleyway, and once they were disembarked Shiyne quietly said to the first one.

“You caught these four men breaking into the grain store you should shackle them and arrest them”

Without showing any emotion he turned and walked along the alleyway and restrained the first man, while Shiyne repeated the script to the second prefect, who them followed the first and began restraining the men.

 

After all the excitement of the battle with the gang of thugs had died down Bagg and Wisma decided it was time for another picnic, so they returned to the scene of their first date, “Lake Tranquil”.

It seemed very fitting as it was their beginning and they had plans to make for their future.

In particular whether he should give up his nomadic existence to spend more time with her, especially in light of recent events, or should she give up the bar altogether to travel with him, in the end they settled on the third option, which was to do a little of both, he would spend extended periods in Gipki.

She in turn would train Zydia up to run the Bar on her own while she travelled with him on the Tornado.

So, they sat in the late summer sunshine on the plaid picnic blanket up on a grassy bank, overlooking the lake, and chinked their champagne glasses together.

“Is that a plan then?” Bagg asked

“Yes that’s a plan,” she replied