21 MIND-BLOWING DISCOVERY

21 MIND-BLOWING DISCOVERY Lunar day 190 Morning "How long have you known I'm an alien?" Zan asked. "Not very long," I admitted. "In fact, I wasn't completely sure until right now." Zan smiled, and her big, blue eyes sparkled. It now occurred to me why I'd never seen any eyes like hers before. They weren't human. "My planet isn't that far in galactic terms," she

told me. "It's only about ten light years away. You humans call it SG 61109b. We call it something that can't be pronounced in your language. So Dr. Holtz and I just called it Bosco." "Bosco?" I repeated. Zan shrugged. "Dr. Holtz said it was better than SG 61109b." "Good point." Above us the greenhouse roof had a large skylight in it. It had been one of the most expensive parts of MBA to transport and install, but it was necessary for the plants to have sunlight. I looked up and saw the earth above us, along with several thousand stars. "Where's Bosco?" I asked. Zan pointed northward. "That way. In the constellation Draco." I looked back at her. There were a thousand questions in my head, all vying to be asked at once. Finally I went with, "I'm the only one who can see you, right?" Zan's eyes sparkled again. "You figured that out?" "The only time you've ever spoken to me is when we were alone," I explained. "I've seen you near other people, but I just realized I've never seen you speak to any of them. Or interact with them. The

only person you've done any of that with is me. And the other day, when Kira overheard us talking in my room, she could only hear me... not you." "Dr. Holtz was right about you," Zan said. "You're a smart kid." "He was talking to you that night in the bathroom, wasn't he? But the cameras couldn't see you, so it looked like he was talking to himself." "Yes. I probably shouldn't have approached him there, but it seemed private at the time. I didn't realize you were there." "I asked you before if you were talking to him then. And you lied to me." "Technically, I didn't," Zan told me. "You asked if I was on the phone with him that night, and I said that I wasn't." I frowned, realizing she was right. "Well, you misled me. About that and a whole lot of other things." "I didn't think you were ready for the truth." "I wasn't the only one who overheard Dr. Holtz speaking to you. My mom did too. And some other people here. But they all thought Dr. Holtz was talking to himself, going crazy." Zan nodded. "Dr. Holtz knew that had happened.

It was one of the reasons he wanted to reveal my existence. He didn't think we could keep this all a secret much longer." Outside the greenhouse, across the hall, I could hear Garth Grisan being locked inside the medical bay. He was yelling the whole time, telling Dr. Janke and Chang they were fools for not seeing things his way. "When the aliens attack and we're not prepared for it, you won't be so pleased with yourselves!" he warned. Then the door slammed, silencing him. "What a nut job," Chang sighed. I stared at Zan. She didn't seem remotely evil. In fact I got a feeling from her that I couldn't explain, a sense that she was nothing but goodness, warmth, and light. And yet, somewhere in the back of my mind, I found myself wondering if this could all be a trick, as Mr. Grisan had warned. "So how do you do it?" I asked. "How do you make yourself invisible to everyone but one person?" "Because I'm not really here," Zan said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Only it wasn't obvious to me at all. "What do you mean?"

"Your friend Roddy was right the other day about how difficult space travel is. Our civilization is far more advanced than yours, and even we haven't figured out how to go from planet to planet in less than a generation. However, contrary to what your scientists tell you, there is one thing that can go faster than the speed of light. Much faster, in fact: thoughts." I'd been kind of proud of myself for figuring out who'd killed Dr. Holtz, and what Zan's secret was. But this revelation caught me completely by surprise. "So... you just think yourself here?" "In a sense. It's not quite as simple as that. In fact the process is quite complicated. But yes, that's the general idea." "If you're only a thought, how can I see you? Or hear you?" "Because thoughts are extremely powerful—if you know how to use them right. Has there ever been a time when you knew what someone was thinking without saying anything?" "I guess." "It's kind of like that. I'm communicating directly with your brain. And since your brain controls what you see and hear, I can let you see and hear me. Or

at least I can let you see and hear a representation of myself that isn't alarming to you." "You mean you don't look like a human?" Zan smiled again. "Not at all. I've merely tried to model the image I project to be as human as possible. Do you like it?" I stared at her amazing blue eyes. "Yes. Though I don't think you got the eyes quite right. You made them too good, somehow." "I couldn't help it. Dr. Holtz told me something once: that you humans consider the eyes a window to the soul." The greenhouse was right across from the mess hall. I could hear Kira and her father in there. Dr. Howard was saying, "Promise me you'll never go out on the surface without permission—or do anything risky like that—ever again. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you." "Trust me, Dad," Kira said, "I've had enough excitement to last me a long time." I returned my attention to Zan. As amazing as her revelations were, I found them surprisingly calming as well. Many strange things from the last few days suddenly made sense. Like why Zan had never opened a door, or touched me—or touched