Bringer of Life

BEGINNING TRANSMISSION . . .

LOCATION: UPPER ATMOSPHERE
SEASON: TRANSITIONING BETWEEN WATER AND LIFE

I have been following the flock of Cloud Hoppers for around a week. While they were weary at first, it didn’t take long before they welcomed my ship into the group. They are fascinating Lunamals. Every night, they would fly high into the upper atmosphere and sleep in the thin helium rich sky. They did this to replenish the helium they store in their large see through membrane that made up their body. This sac allows them to sail on the air currents and float through the clouds.

As the blue dwarf stars brought about another day, they would descend towards the planet’s surface and feed on any vegetation they can find. They feed almost exclusively on pillow moss because that was the only plant they could find on the surface of the ocean that now covered the entire planet. The water, however, cannot remain forever.

Last night, I witnessed a peculiar event as my ship floated amongst the Cloud Hoppers. The Water Moon has been moving steadily away from the planet for a few weeks now. It is unusual for a moon to even be in this close to a planet, but while it was here it brought great change to the planet’s surface. The water moon brought flooding and storms, but now that it is leaving, the storms have stopped and the ocean is calm.

What is even more unusual is another moon seems to be slowly heading for the planet. This new moon is a swirling mass of green with small specs of color mixed in. As I stared at its mesmerizing surface it seemed to move and pulse like a living, breathing mass. You could almost feel the life flowing off its surface. As I watched, the two moons skirted pass each other, the water moon leaving the atmosphere and this green moon shifting its way in.

As it pierced the atmosphere’s surface, the Cloud Hoppers around me began to stir. Wild colors rippled across their skin, and they began to dance in the pail light reflecting off the moon.

Vegetation

I would have never believed it unless I had witnessed it, but by the next morning new life was blossoming everywhere. The water was quickly receding into the planet and vegetation sprang up on every dry surface. From fan shaped fauna to creeping vines, color seemed to explode out of the rich red soil.

The most unusual plants were those who didn’t wait for the water to withdraw. Large green spikes rose out of the ocean and opened to reveal a canopy of fruit hanging from its underside. I could fly my whole ship underneath these great umbrellas. The fruit, I found, was a deliciously sweet.

As we flew, the Cloud Hoppers continued to display a wide range of colors. No longer did they hide themselves from the world. They sparkled like they were covered in a million brilliant rainbows. They ate and played under the watchful eye of the Life Moon.

END TRANSMISSION

Cloud Hoppers

BEGINNING TRANSMISSION . . .                                         LOCATION: OPEN WATER
SEASON: WATER MOON

As the moon inched its way into the upper atmosphere, the chaotic weather settled into a cool breeze. The clouds began to part along the horizon and a calmness descended on the ocean. It was a beautiful day.

I spent most of the morning watching the unusual clouds go by. They danced along the breeze and shimmered like they were covered in rainbows. As the clouds moved along the horizon, a few of them banked and no longer followed the wind. I reached into my bag and grabbed my binoculars. These clouds were acting unusual, and I had to take a closer look. To my surprise the objects weren’t clouds but large Lunamals.

Cloud Hopper

There were around 20 Lunamals total. Each one could easily hold four of me on its transparent back. Their bodies resembled large balloons. On either side of their large heads two air sacs pumped as they breathed. These air sacs closely resembled the air sacs on the Sea Scamper. They had six sail like flippers. The front two were attached on either side of their body and were the largest of the six. They used these to catch the wind as they glided across the sky. The other four were positioned at the back of its body and flapped effortlessly, directing the Lunamal where to go. Their large bodies must have held a buoyant gas that allowed them to float. Their flippers were not used to keep the aloft, but direct their movement on the wind. I have decided to call them Cloud Hoppers due to their close resemblance to the clouds they call home.

As they descended towards the sea their colors wavered and changed, soon they blended in to match the colors of the ocean. I could not imagine what this Cloud Hopper herd could fear being as large as they are, but the camouflage must have some purpose.

As they descended, I quickly ruled out hunting as their need to hide. They headed straight for the pillow moss and began munching on its fuzzy surface. They were vegetarians and actually were helping the Sea Scamper hatchlings to escape their thick woven nests.

It didn’t take long for them to completely devour the Pillow Moss. The herd soon moved on letting the breeze carry them off like the clouds in search of more vegetation to eat.

END TRANSMISSION

Searching for the Weavers…

BEGINNING TRANSMISSION . . .                                             LOCATION: OPEN WATER
SEASON: WATER MOON

After a few days of searching, I still have not found what made the pillow moss come together. Since my arrival on the island, the moss had stopped growing and it seemed whatever had made the pillow moss was no longer around. I decided to take matters into my own hands to discover the pillow moss’ secret. After some careful experiments, I discovered that the pillows were indeed hollow and when you pressed your ear to them, you could hear something chirping and moving inside. Some pillows were quiet but many contained multiple peeping sounds.

Moving to one of the square pillows on the edge of the island, I carefully cut it along its seam. The peeping grew louder as I cut though the side and peered into the hollowed sack. Piled in the far corner, eight little pairs of dark eyes stared at me in wonder.

Sea Scampers

These young Lunamals were only an inch long; from their small round noses to the base of their tail. Their tails were twice as long as their bodies and were shaped like spiky paddles. They had four legs with three long toes on their back feet and four toes on the front, one of which moved like my own thumb. Each foot was webbed, and they looked as if they were born for the water. They were obviously young and had recently hatched. What was left of their gooey eggs remained scattered everywhere.

As I admired these little Lunamals, they remained frozen where they were. Not moving except for two air sacs on either side of their round heads, which pumped rhythmically as they breathed. I watched and waited as they finally gained the courage to see what lay outside their warm nursery.

Every time they moved their little bodies, they would dash forward before freezing where they stood. Scampering across the roughly woven pillow moss. I decided to call them Sea Scampers.

Before I knew it all eight Sea Scampers were clinging to the edge of the pillow’s opening, staring out into the outside world for the first time. Their large eyes darted back and forth as if trying to absorb every image they could. Satisfied that they had seen all they could, one by one the Sea Scampers plunged into the sea. It didn’t take them long to get a feel for their new world and soon they were swimming and leaping out of the water around me.

As the twin stars began to fade they quickly followed the horizon line, darting and playing through the waves towards the open sea.

END TRANSMISSION

Green Pillows and a New Lunamal!

BEGINNING TRANSMISSION . . .                                             LOCATION: OPEN WATER
SEASON: WATER MOON

The strange object I spotted a week ago along the horizon appears to be growing more and more each day, but staying in the same place as when I first spotted it. This strange green object first appeared off the coastline where my ship was docked. From this distance it simply looked like a green blob. I knew I would have to investigate if I wanted to satisfy my curiosity.

Packing some supplies and putting on my wet suit, I set off to explore the mysterious object. As I swam closer, I noticed that it was some sort of plant. It was a floating island that seemed to be made of what looked like, blue and green pillows.

Igglam

As I reached the floating object, I climbed aboard only to realize with each step I took, the pillow deflated. There were around 40 connecting green and blue pillows in all, making it look like a giant quilt. Each pillow, weaved in a green and blue substance, contained air which allowed it to float on the surface. They were roughly the same size, about 3-feet across.

A moss like plant covered the surface of the pillow island. I quickly realized it was the same plant as the one I saw a few weeks ago when I first spotted the Occshells. As I recall, the stringy moss grew in long strips creating a forest of squishy moss underwater. I grabbed my scuba mask and dunked my head over the edge of the island into the water. Just as I suspected, the pillows were attached to the long stringy moss. It stretched down to the bottom of the ocean floor and kept the island anchored in place, acting like the roots of a plant. Once it reached the surface of the water something must have taken it and spun it into these mossy pillows.

I returned my attention to the surface and began moving around on the squishy Pillow Moss. I had to carefully watch my footing as I walked. It was difficult to move when the surface sank when you stepped on it. Despite watching where I was going, I almost stepped on a huge Lunamal. It glanced up at me as it munched on some of the moss budding on the surface. If it wasn’t for its large size I would have missed it. This Lunamal, which I later named an Igglam, had covered its rough exoskeleton with moss, camouflaging its body.

My father had spotted a similar creature on Earth, he called it a crab. Unlike the drawings in his field guide this Igglam had a tear drop shaped head and large eyes. Its pointed oval body was around 2 feet long with eight legs. The front two arms were large claws that it was using to cut the moss off the pillow surface. The other four, two on either side are long and thin and supported all of its weight. The tips of these legs are as sharp as needles and hooked into the mossy surface. Its back pair of legs were the most unusual, they were flat like wiper blades and had small flexible claws at the end. These legs were being used to move smaller pieces of moss onto their shell. The surface of the Igglam’s purple-gray body was rough and porous. This was very beneficial because the Igglam simply had to press the wet moss into its skin to keep it in place.

While the Igglam seemed a little surprised, he was angry at me for stepping on his lunch. Dropping his little moss ball he was eating, the Igglam lifted both of his huge claws into the air and began snapping them together rapidly. The clopping sound was loud and was definitely meant as a warning. I quickly backed away to the other side of the pillow moss island.

There were three other Igglams feasting on the moss and each controlled a four to five pillow area and carefully monitored its borders for unwanted intruders. It was funny watching them clop loudly at each other when another Igglam got to close.

Returning to the edges of the pillow moss island, I realized I still hadn’t solved the mystery of how it was created in the first place. Was it the Igglam or another Lunamal?

END TRANSMISSION

This is Where I Live Now…

BEGINNING TRANSMISSION . . .                               LOCATION: COASTAL REGION
SEASON: WATER MOON

This planet, for all its dangers, is beautiful. The milky purple water sways slowly at the base of the cliff that has sheltered the ship during the passing storm. The waves move in a slow rhythm as they reflect the soft light from the binary stars that sit at the heart of the Lunexia System. Despite how common these binary star systems may be they are always my favorites in the galaxy.

The two stars spin around a central point of mass with the larger and denser of the two rotating closer to the center of the star system. They dance around each other and create the orbit for the planets in the system.

Water Moon Season – Panorama

When viewed from a far they look like two young lovers dancing completely oblivious to the others dancing around them. These two stars are young and known as blue dwarfs. They will give this system light and energy for a long time.

As the two stars set on another day, I have a chance to reflect on the past few weeks. It has been seven weeks since the water moon first entered the atmosphere and the water continues to rise. The rain over this section of the planet ended last week, but it continues to fall in the distance. The clouds seem to swirl and gather under the moon. It attracts the clouds to it like water to a damp sponge. I don’t know how much more water this planet can hold before every speck of land disappears under the crashing waves.

I was lucky to find this mountain range just as the rain started falling. I parked my scout ship near its peak and see that  the water is coming in at only 20-feet below me. The longer I research this planet, the more amazed I am that these Lunamals can survive. There ability to adapt to the constant changes is beautiful and mystifying.

As I gazed out towards the horizon, I noticed something floating in the waves. I cannot see what it could be, but it is large, and moves with the waves as if they were dancing together in the fading light of the dancing stars. I will have to investigate this to see what is out there.

END TRANSMISSION