Teen Time

Saved By A Friend

The following story was written for the

FORUM

The Writer's Cramp  (13+) Write the best story or poem in 24 hours or less and win 10K GPs! #333655 by Sophy

Prompt: Write about a race that almost ends in tragedy.

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Saved By a Friend

I was giving the race all my old clunker could handle since the guy had called me a three-headed Ruzz, but his gray ship, the Conquistador, was still pulling ahead. I had no choice. I knew I shouldn't -- the black switch was only for emergencies, but my hand reached down, grabbed hold, and started to pull it back.

Elvis, my Ergian Zimwak companion, scolded loudly in chibbers and blippers. I never could understand that kind of talk, so I tuned it out, but he stretched out his long tentacle, the one attached to the side of his head, and wrapped it around my hand tighter than a wrench.

"Let go of me," I yelled, using my free hand to try and pry off his sticky suckers.

"Bishpucka. No ma teddahokah."

"Yeah, whatever. Just let go."

If anything, he clung harder. The Conquistador was a tail pipe ahead of me and rushing forward at a click that left me far behind in dead, floating stardust.

"Let go, or I push you out the garbage vent," I shouted, madder than a four-toed sniper.

That worked. The tentacle released, and Elvis retreated to a corner, sulking.

I pulled back on the black, and we shot forward. That old baby rammed through space like a hot knife parting ice cream. At thirteen seconds, the Conquistador's tail pipe was even with our bow. At twenty we'd matched him, neck to neck.

The black stick was heating up. I ignored it. "Give me more, baby," I said.

"Bosja, bosja, bosja," chattered Elvis with a most annoying, high-pitched cry.

"Shut up," I called over my shoulder, and I pulled the black lever all the way back.

"Sweet!" I yelled as we shot ahead. As we passed, I saw Cruger's eyes. They glared, and his face was red from losing. I laughed.

My ship shuddered and quaked, but its speed was steadily increasing. Thrill coursed through my veins. I drank it up and raced on.

Cruger was behind me and falling further back. I zipped about the moons of Pracknid, darted through the asteroid channels, and raced in toward Cooper Town. Then I eased off of the black stick. I pushed it forward, released my grip, and sat back, waiting for the speed to lessen. It didn't.

The old ship continued to escalate. The shudder had become an old man's hand, a planet quake, a vibrating exerhydrater. I held on.

"What's going on?" I said, turning to look at Elvis. He was clasping the walls of the ship, clinging to the rail as if someone were attempting to pull him off.

"Bekwah," he told me sadly.

I nodded. "I think you're right." Of course I had no idea what he was saying, but bekwah sure seemed to sum it up. We were heading in a beeline for Cooper's Town, and my old ship didn't have brakes.

I got out the Book of Wisdom that I hadn't cracked open since Grandpa gave it to me. It seemed like a good time to thumb through it.

"Be not over-zealous in inclination," I read. "Take opportunity to ponder."

"Shoot. Too late for that." I closed the book and stared at the approaching planet.

"Bekwah," Elvis commented again.

"Yup," I agreed sadly. "Come here."

Elvis scurried over into my arms and clung, his head pressed against my shoulder.

Beneath us, clouds drifted over landmasses. Oceans blued the stretches in between. I sighed and hugged Elvis. "Sorry about that," I told him. "I should have taken the opportunity to ponder."

There was nothing I could do, no final words to speak, no point in jotting down notes.

Then, from the corner of my eye, I saw the police with their blue and orange lights flashing in warning. "Can't do anything to me," I said out loud, almost cracking a smile.

Boy, was I wrong! The vibrating outer shell of my ship gave a lurch. My head shot forward, and my body followed. Elvis's tentacle was all that kept us both from hitting the ship's floor.

"Bizdsubf," Elvis explained, letting go to somersault and flip as if he'd gone berserk.

The police had my ship in freeze-zone. For the first time, I cheered for the fuzz. When we reached the ground and I exited, I saw that a stern-faced cop was writing out a ticket.

"Hey, I really want to thank you," I said. "You saved me, man."

"You were over the speed limit. The fine will be three million zephors."

"What! I don't have that kind of . . . Wait, it was an accident. I didn't mean to speed in your zone. I was out of control."

"Out of control?" The cop tore up the ticket and stashed it into his pocket. Then he immediately started writing another one. "Fourteen million zephors, please."

My legs could barely support me. "But I don't even have a job . . ." I whined.

The man tore up the ticket and began on another. "Unemployed. Twenty million zephors."

I was afraid to say anything then. I was reaching out to take the latest ticket just as Elvis came dashing through the door and jumped onto my back.

"Where'd you get him?" the policeman asked.

"This is my friend," I said, sighing because the cop was waving the ticket at me.

"Why is he with you?"

"We keep each other company."

"Ah, that is different then." The policeman tore up the ticket and stashed that one into his pocket, too. Then he wrote out another.

I took it and read:

Welcome to Cooper's Town. Emergency service on us.

"Close your mouth," the cop said, grinning. "The Ergian Zimwaks are originally from this planet. If one of them has accepted you as his friend, then you're okay with us. Stay here, and we'll find you a job and anything else you need."

I looked down at Elvis. "Thanks," I said to both him and the policeman.

"Bizdsubf," Elvis told me, patting my cheek.

I smiled at him and nodded my head in agreement.

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