Jack Strong and the Red Giant Read online

He could feel its hot breath on the back of his neck and what felt like sharp claws digging between his shoulder blades, ripping and tearing at his skin.

  He flapped and flailed, grasping nothing but air. Eventually, he managed to grab what felt like tough dry leather and wrenched-off whatever was holding him down.

  Jack gasped.

  Facing him was a pair of big, black eyes surrounded by a pale, grey head, and a mouthful of sharp, white teeth.

  He barely had time to breathe when the creature attacked him again, its dagger-like claws jabbing at his eyes as its small nose sucked in his scent. Within moments it was on top of him again, its gleaming fangs locked in an angry grimace as it tried to strangle him.

  Then he heard laughter.

  He turned around instantly. They both did.

  The first thing he noticed was how red the girl was. She had bright red hair and eyes, crimson lips and she was even dressed in red, wearing a tight-fitting red suit that stretched all the way from her neck to her feet. Her skin was light pink. Like a rose, he thought.

  “Is that how you practice first contact on your planets?” she chuckled.

  Jack laid there quietly not knowing what to say as the thing on top of him glared at her with its tar-like eyes.

  Then it opened its mouth, snarling back at her, “No, of course not. I was just protecting myself. I thought that he was going to attack me.”

  “No, I wasn’t,” said Jack, not quite believing what he was hearing, heart hammering away like a pneumatic drill. “He attacked me, I did nothing to him, I swear.”

  “I don't care, you can believe what you like,” the grey boy said, as he thrust him once more to the floor.

  Then he got to his feet and walked towards the red girl. “Where did you learn my language?” he demanded, the dark green veins in his skin almost popping out of his forehead.

  “What do you mean? I was going to ask you the same thing. Where did you learn Rennish?”

  “Very amusing,” he said, “stop messing around and tell me where you learnt Asvari. Your accent is perfect.”

  “Look,” she continued, “if you want to believe that I’m speaking Asvari or Astar or whatever you want to call it then fine, but you might want to ask your friend over there how he can understand the both of us too!”

  “He’s NOT my friend!” he spat, glaring at Jack who was still in a heap on the floor. “I ... What language are you speaking?”

  “What do you mean?” asked Jack, a little flustered.

  “L-A-N-G-U-A-G-E!” he spelled out sarcastically. “What language are you speaking?”

  “English, of course!” said Jack, getting to his feet.

  “See, I told you!” said the red girl, her cheeks glowing purple.

  “But how? It doesn’t make sense,” he said.

  “That’s what I’m trying to tell you. We aren’t speaking each other’s' languages, but we are hearing them! Somehow in this spaceship we are able to understand what other people say.”

  “But that’s impossible,” said Jack. “How?”

  “I don’t know how,” said the red girl. “All I know is that it is happening. Perhaps there’s something on board the spaceship that makes it possible. Maybe it’s the spaceship itself, or maybe our brains have been re-programmed in some way.”

  “Don't worry,” she said, seeing Jack nervously prod his head. “I'm sure it's fine. By the look of it this spaceship is very advanced, so I'm sure it can handle a teeny-weeny bit of brain surgery. By the way what happened to your t-shirt? It looks like he's hurt you.”

  “I didn't do anything to him!” shouted the mouthful of teeth, his silver-grey spacesuit shimmering as his arms danced about in protest.

  “It wasn't him,” said Jack, looking down at his blood-soaked t-shirt. “It was… err… I fell.”

  “You fell?” asked the red girl.

  “Yeah, I was playing football and I tripped over and I hurt my lip.”

  “And your cheeks and your nose and your forehead too?” she asked.

  “Yeah, I guess so,” said Jack, fidgeting slightly.

  “See, I told you!” barked the mouthful of teeth. “What do you take me for – some kind of monster?”

  “No, of course not what do you take me for some kind of narrow-minded speciesist?”

  “How did you both get here?” asked Jack, trying to change the subject. “Have you found a way out?”

  “No, but I have been exploring some of the other levels,” said the red girl. “There’s some amazing stuff down there, you should check it out. I got around by using one of the transportation rooms. I found it by accident actually.”

  “What do you mean the transportation rooms?” asked Jack.

  “You know the transportation rooms!”

  Jack looked at her blankly.

  “Oh, you mean you haven't found them yet? What have you two been doing?”

  “Well, err…”

  “Come on then, I’ll show you,” she said, setting off down the corridor.

  They followed her past several large pearl-like rooms, their curved windows etched into all kinds of patterns, before they stopped outside a room not much bigger than a wardrobe. It didn’t look like anything special - just small, white and empty.

  “What do you do?” asked Jack, staring at it as a monkey might do a computer. “How does it work?”

  “Here, I’ll show you,” she said with a wide grin on her face.

  Then she stepped inside, closed her eyes and vanished.

  Jack was searching the room for her when he heard a familiar voice behind him.

  “Hi there!” she said, tapping him on the shoulder.

  He jumped about a foot in the air.

  “Where did you come from?” he asked, gasping for breath.

  “I simply thought of the next room along this corridor and it sent me there. You should try it; I've been having so much fun!”

  Jack stepped inside the room. He tried to concentrate. His head was a whirl of thoughts and feelings. He thought of the room next door, then the long, snake-like corridor, Gaz Finch, the football pitch, arguing with his parents, how to get out, and then and then…

  He re-appeared next to the ceiling, his awe-struck reflection glaring back at him.

  He fell down immediately, bouncing lightly off the soft, metal floor.

  He got up to the sound of laughter.

  “Stop laughing at me!” he shouted.

  “Sorry Jack,” said the red girl. “I can’t help it. I never thought you’d be so funny!”

  “I did,” snarled the mouthful of teeth, his green veins almost poking out of his cheeks.

  I’m not going to be laughed at here as well as school, thought Jack, and so picking himself up he went back into the transportation room, closed his eyes, thought of the room next door and vanished again.

  He opened his eyes on a large white room. “Yes, I’ve done it!” he shouted, but when he went out into the corridor he realised that instead of re-appearing next door he had in fact ended-up in an identical room more than a hundred feet away.

  He trudged back to yet more howls of laughter. It was like school all over again…

  It took Jack several more attempts to work it out. Each time he got closer and closer, though once he ended-up in a room so far away it took him almost thirty minutes to trudge back.

  Eventually he got it right, though they still sniggered at him.

  “Where should we go to?” the grey boy asked the red girl, ignoring Jack completely. “Where haven’t you been to on the ship?”

  “I came on board several floors down so I’ve been making my way up ever since, trying to see if anyone else was here,” she said. “I’m not even sure how many levels there are, let alone how many remain up or down. We could always keep going up I suppose. Maybe we will find others too. By the way my name is Vyleria. Vyleria Romen.”

  “I’m Jack… Jack Strong.”

  “Number six hundred and thirty four, Alpha wing, Andromeda sphere,�
� said the grey boy.

  “That sounds more like a room in a space hotel than a name,” Vyleria chuckled. “What can we call you for short?”

  “You can call me six hundred and thirty four, Alpha wing, Andromeda sphere,” he replied, glaring at them with his big, black eyes. “That's my name.”

  “Yes, you're right,” said Vyleria. “I didn't mean to laugh at you. I just thought that if for example, we are fleeing from an exploding supernova (Jack didn't like the sound of this) or are caught up in a solar hurricane (or this) for the sake of simplicity calling out Number Six Hundred and Thirty Four, Alpha Wing, Andromeda Sphere, might be a bit too long and complicated and perhaps even a tad dangerous. Do you have a nickname (Jack thought of a few at this point); something that we can call you for short?”

  For a moment Jack didn't think it was going to work, but then after a few seconds the grey boy stopped glaring at them. “Call me Ros,” he said.

  “Ros?” asked Vyleria.

  “Yes Ros,” he punched back. “There do you like it? Can we move on now?”

  “Okay, Ros it is then,” said Vyleria, smiling. “Let’s go up to the next level and see what we can find. Try to concentrate Jack; you don’t want to end up in outer space!”

  With that they stepped into the transportation room, vanishing one by one. Vyleria first, then Ros, and then finally a worried-looking Jack.

  Chapter 4: Grunt

  They found it sleeping in the corner, covered in a bundle of old ragged furs, its face covered by a stinking mat of brown hair. Its snores resounded like thunder, its hair ruffled by unseen lips.

  Jack, Vyleria and Ros approached silently, not knowing what to make of this strange, hairy creature. It smelled worse the closer they got. There were also some icicles tangled-up in its thicket of hair and fur, forming mini-puddles on the floor as they melted.

  They stood over it for a couple of minutes not knowing what to do. Vyleria looked at Jack. Jack looked at Vyleria, and Ros just scowled at them both. Finally, Vyleria stretched out her arm and poked her fingers through the mess of hair and fur. From behind her Jack could just make out the bridge of a large nose, two huge eyelids, and…

  Suddenly, its two large eyelids flicked open to reveal a huge pair of orange, bloodshot eyes.

  They were just about to dart towards the door when it let out a loud, agonising cry, before it scrambled into the corner, dropping most of its furs onto the floor.

  There it tried to hide, curling up into a ball.

  “We should say something,” said Jack, looking nervously at Vyleria and Ros.

  “Are you serious? It might rip our arms off,” said Ros.

  “Vyleria?”

  “I have to agree with Ros. It could be dangerous. We can't risk it.”

  Jack didn't know why, but for some reason he didn't feel threatened or scared; all he felt was pity. “It’s okay,” he whispered, walking gingerly towards the hairy creature. “We’re not here to hurt you. We’re lost on this spaceship too.”

  The creature grunted loudly.

  Jack jumped, but he still carried on regardless. “When I came aboard I was scared too. Let us help. Don't be frightened.”

  It grunted again. Louder this time.

  Jack was now directly over it. Despite its loud, booming voice it was quite small and very thin too.

  He reached out and touched what he took to be the creature's shoulder, only for it to jump and howl again like a wounded and terrified animal.

  “It’s okay, it’s okay,” Jack whispered, undeterred.

  For a few moments nothing happened. Jack was just about to give up and slink back to Vyleria and Ros when it suddenly sat up, stretched out its long, thin arms and parted its thick, shaggy mane.

  Hair.

  That was all he saw. It was covered in it.

  It was growing everywhere. A thick, dark brown beard covered most of its face and all of its neck. It grew on its large forehead, out of its long nose, and out of its small, shrub-like ears. There were even a number of hairs sprouting from its thick, red lips.

  Then it opened its mouth. Huge broken shards of teeth grinned back at him. Its breath smelled like a bag of rotten fish.

  Then it made another grunting sound.

  And again.

  “Grunt! Grunt! Grunt! Grunt! Grunt!”

  It seemed to be trying to speak, but no words came out, only more grunts and the odd, hoarse croaking sound.

  Jack tried and tried and tried. But it was impossible to communicate. All it could do was grunt, cackle and occasionally roar. Either it couldn’t speak or else whatever was helping him, Vyleria and Ros understand each other was not working here. But he had at least calmed it down. Slowly but surely it lost its fear of Jack, Vyleria and Ros. Soon it was going up to each of them in turn and poking them with its thin, bony fingers. Jack thought that this was very funny and would prod and jab the creature back, leading to whoops and cries of joy. Vyleria on the other hand was more nervous, bearing its prods and pushes with a strained smile. Ros however, wouldn’t go near it, shoving it away and stomping off to the other side of the room whenever it came close.

  “Can you get this big ball of hair off me?” he shouted.

  “He doesn’t mean you any harm,” said Jack. “He’s just trying to communicate and find out who and what you are.”

  “I don’t care,” said Ros, his eyes narrowing into slits. “I’ve seen animals like him rip other people to shreds.”

  “He’s not an animal. He’s a person,” said Jack.

  “How do you know? Do you speak 'grunt'?” Ros scoffed.

  “Don’t ask me how I know it, I just do. Just because we don’t understand him doesn’t mean he’s an animal.”

  “Well whatever you say, but you can tell 'Grunt' here to keep away from me.”

  “Don’t call him that. That’s not fair,” protested Jack.

  “Why not? All he does is grunt. Grunt the grunter. That's what I say. It has a nice ring to it if you ask me. Besides, he likes it.”

  “No, he doesn't,” said Jack.

  “Yes, he does. Look, I'll show you.”

  “Here Grunt,” said Ros, like he was some kind of dog. “Come here boy.”

  As soon as Ros said ‘Grunt’ the hairy boy nodded his head and smiled, revealing his mouthful of shattered teeth.

  “That’s not fair,” said Jack. “He doesn’t understand.”

  “Will you two stop arguing?” said Vyleria. “You haven’t stopped since you came on board. Look Jack, we can call him Grunt for now, and if he wants to change it later then he can do.”

  Jack was about to protest when he heard Grunt screaming again. They all turned round at once.

  Grunt was now sat on some kind of small, white platform about six feet off the floor, his short, hairy legs kicking wildly beneath him. He looked like a demented bird as he twisted and circled about the room.

  “How did he do that?” gasped Vyleria. “Where did that come from?”

  Jack had no idea, and even Ros for once was lost for words.

  But no sooner was he in the air when he was down again, jumping straight into Jack’s arms, knocking him over and pressing his flailing body against the floor.

  He stank.

  Jack struggled to get free, but Grunt just kept hugging him and screaming for joy.

  Just as Jack was getting to his feet, he heard another scream. This time it was Vyleria. He turned around to see her floating in mid-air on one of the white seat-like platforms.

  “How did you do that?” asked Ros.

  “I don’t know,” said Vyleria. “I just thought about sitting down and then I felt the seat appear beneath me. You try.”

  As soon as Jack thought about sitting down, a seat magically flew up from the floor. Jack sat on it at once, his legs gingerly touching the ground. To his surprise the seat felt as soft, comfortable and as strong as any chair back home.

  “We have no time for this,” said Ros, folding his arms up in disgust. “We have to
get control of the ship.”

  But Jack wasn’t listening to him. He was too busy testing out his new hover chair, twisting it this way and that.

  Then he started to fly, rising slowly towards the ceiling before dipping back down again.

  He did it again. Faster this time.

  He went left, right, forwards and backwards. He even did a loop-the-loop and flew around the room upside down. Then Vyleria joined him as they whizzed about like two firecrackers, each one trying to catch the other.

  “I told you we haven’t the time,” Ros shouted, his arms entwined like a pair of pythons.

  But Jack wasn’t listening. He hadn’t had this much fun in ages. He’d always wanted to go to a theme park and go on all the roller coasters and rides but his parents could never afford it. Now he had his very own roller coaster and he wasn’t going to get off it that quickly.

  Then the roller coaster ride turned into a grand prix race, as Jack and Vyleria flew out of the door and into the corridor. Jack could still hear Ros shouting at him to stop as he screamed down the corridor like a race car. But he didn’t care. He felt free and that was all that mattered to him now.

  No sooner had they begun to race down the narrow corridor when it magically doubled in size before their eyes. How all this was possible, Jack had no idea. But he didn't care – all he wanted to do now was fly around and enjoy himself for a change.

  He went faster and faster. Sometimes flying upside down, other times skimming the walls and ceilings, his blurred reflection waving back at him. He went round and round, racing Vyleria, never once falling off. It seemed that the quicker he thought about going, the quicker he flew.

  Then Vyleria stood up on her hover seat like it was some kind of surf board and flew standing up, her long, red hair streaming behind her like a mane of fire. She carried on like this for a whole circuit of the corridor, kissing the walls and ceiling with her hover seat. Then she flew upside down, as she did a procession of jumps, spirals, twists and somersaults.

  Jack decided to try and copy her.

  He stood up on his hover seat as the corridor whooshed by beneath him.

  That was when he saw the wall bulging out at him.

  He tried to re-adjust himself, but it was too late. Before he knew what was happening he was spinning through the air and bouncing off the floor.