8 The Fuffles Speak

Chapter Eight The Fuffles Speak The explorers explained to Voltronix why they couldn't go home. Elias told him that it was right there in the explorer handbook. Never leave a planet worse off than it was before you found it. "IT'S NOT WORSE!" said Voltronix. He began to walk back to the pod. "WHO DOESN'T LIKE VOLCANOES? ANYWAY, JOB WELL DONE, ME. LET'S GO HOME." "Voltronix, stay," said Elias. Voltronix stopped and turned around. "Good robot." The bubbles floating in the air started to zip around Paige's head. She laughed. "No, we're not going to leave you like this," she told the Fuffles. "We'll fix it. My brother won't let anything happen to you, right, Finn?" Finn was busy trying to figure out how he was going to explain to his mother that they'd turned

this easy, boring planet into a war zone. And how he was going to explain that his little sister had come with them into the war zone. And what a Fuffle was. That actually seemed to be the easiest problem to solve. "Right, I guess," said Finn. "First things first. Fuffles. What are you?" New bubbles popped into view around Finn's head. They began spinning in circles, like a mini tornado had touched down around Finn's helmet. The air around his head began buzzing, and then the buzzing grew faster and faster.

Soon, in the high-pitched drone of the bubble tornado, he could hear words. It was like a silly joke Vale liked to play on the Marlowe. He'd stand behind one of the station's large fans and speak through it. His voice would come through all chopped up and funny-sounding. The Fuffles sounded like this: "zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzWEzzzzzzzzAREzzzz zzAzzzzzzzzPEACEFULzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

CIVILIZATIONzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz FORzzzzzzzzzYEARSzzzzzzz WEzzzzzzzz WEREzzzTHREATENED zzzBYzzzzzzzzzzz THEzzzzzROCKzzzzzzzzzzzGIANTSzzzz zzzzzzzzzzzWHOzzzzzzzzzzzzCRAWLED zzzzzzzzzOUTzzzzzzzzzzzzzOFzzzzzzzzz THEzzzzzzGROUNDzzzzzzzzzANDzzzzz zzzzzzNEARLYzzzzzDESTROYEDzzzzzzz THE PLANET." "That's terrible," said Finn. He held up his hand to the rest of the troop, who wondered what the Fuffles were saying. "We had a situation like that on our last planet, where two different species couldn't get along." "THATzzzzzzzzISzzzzzzNOTzzzzzzzzz OURzzzzzzPROBLEM." The Fuffles explained to Finn that the rock giants were not evil. They didn't mean to do the Fuffles harm. But they were so big, they couldn't help but pop the Fuffles' bubbles when they walked or swung their arms. Often, just their bellowing voices would be too much for the fragile bubbles. "And what happens when one of your bubbles bursts?" said Finn. "Can you make a new one?"

"WEzzzzzzAREzzzzzzzTHEzzzzzzzzzz BUBBLES," said the aliens spinning around Finn's head. "THEzzzzzzzBUBBLESzzzzzzzz AREzzzzzzUSzzzzzCANzzzzzYOUzzzzzzz MAKEzzzzzzzzAzzzzzzzzNEWzzzzzzzzzz ONEzzzzzzzzOFzzzzzzzzzYOUzzzzzzzzzz IFzzzzzzYOUzzzzzzAREzzzzzz POPPED?" "I don't think so," said Finn. "And I don't want to find out." He explained to his friends what the aliens had told him. "THAT'S WEIRD," said Voltronix. "I UNDERSTAND IT PERFECTLY, BUT WHY DON'T YOU EXPLAIN IT A LITTLE BETTER TO EVERYONE ELSE." "So those giant rock guys coming out of that volcano and walking toward us, they're not evil?" said Vale. "Because they look pretty evil."

"I think they're not smart enough to be evil," said Finn. "But that doesn't mean they can't do a lot of damage. They move by instinct. They don't think. They just do what their bodies tell them to do. Think of them as big rock bugs." "That doesn't make me feel better," said Vale. "Look out!" One of the giants threw a boulder at the troop. They all scattered before it landed like a meteor a few yards away. "Well, at least their aim isn't very good," said Vale.