Bedtime Stories with R.A. Spratt

The Dreadful Martian Encounter

March 18, 2020 R.A. Spratt Season 1 Episode 4
Bedtime Stories with R.A. Spratt
The Dreadful Martian Encounter
Show Notes Transcript

When Amy and James have to demonstrate a principle of physics for their school science fair, Amy decides to go big. While other kids make paper mache volcanos and drop eggs of the roof, Amy builds an intergalactic space ship so they can travel to another planet. 

I wrote this story a long time ago, back when I was doing Nanny Piggins. It was a challenge because I had a strict word limit, which is why it is a bit shorter.  I enjoyed the oppurtunity to write about something totally different. I'd never done science fiction before and I really wanted to do a 'Twilight Zone' style twist ending. I hope you like it.

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R.A. Spratt:   0:00
Welcome to Bedtime Stories with R.A. Spratt. Today's story is 'The Dreadful Martian Encounter'.  

R.A. Spratt:   0:15
Amy was fed up with everyone in her class. She would have liked to bop them all on the nose or release a wild animal on them while they visited the zoo or swing across the classroom on a flying fox, shooting rubber darts at their heads. But Amy was very short and rather dumpy and had to wear thick glasses because the eyesight wasn't very good. So she wasn't really suited to any of the more spectacular types of physical revenge. Which is why Amy was so glad when her teacher announced the school science competition. Every student had to do a project demonstrated a principle of physics. Now Amy might not be the best at running, jumping or bopping people on the nose, but she knew she could wipe the floor with everybody when it came to science. Florence and Joe are going to make a battery out of a potato, said James. He was Amy's best and only friend, so he was reporting what he'd overheard on the bus pass. Gov't Amy. A potato battery demonstrates chemistry, not physics. Eastern and Megan are going to drop a cricket ball from a tower to demonstrate terminal velocity, continued James. What derided Amy? They'd have to build a tower that was 40 metres tall. What are we going to do? Ask James something way better than that, said Amy, with a gleam in her eye. We're going to travel through space to another planet, but we're only in the fourth grade, protested James. I don't think they expect us to do anything like that. There's nothing to it, said Amy. The only reason regular astronauts strugglers because they go into space at incredible speeds on the friction of passing through the atmosphere makes their spaceships hot so that we're not going to do that. Ask James. No, we're going to do the opposite, said Amy. We're gonna have a low speed launch. What? Asked James, Just be here at nine o'clock tomorrow, said Amy. You'll see when James arrived the following morning, he could hear banging and soaring, coming from inside Amy's garage. You all right in there? He called. Just a minute, yelled Amy. There was a final flurry of banging and wrenching than the sound of the automatic carriage. Doors started to open, Save yourself called Amy. Slowly, the double door rose and James caught his first glimpse of her interplanetary spacecraft. It's just a wheelie bin with helium balloons tied to it, he exclaimed. The genius lies in the simplicity, said Amy as she wielded out into the sunlight. Coming, look inside! James climbed into the wheelie bin. There's not much to see, he said. Amy cut the guy ropes, and the been started to drift up. She swung herself in. What's happening? I asked James, We've launched, said Amy. No panic, James. You can still jump outside. Amy, we're only two metres off the ground. James started to climb out. Then you can make your own project, said Amy. Now the only thing that frightened James Mohr than interplanetary travel was having to do a school assignment all by himself. He's stayed in the bin. They kept drifting upwards all day. It started to get cold about the 300 metre mark, but Amy had the foresight to bring a hot water bottle, so they were okay. At about 5:30 p.m. They left the atmosphere, and Amy and James stared out the Perspex view in hole. They could see the blackness of space stretching out infinitely in front of them. I don't believe it, exclaimed James. This actually worked now to get to another planet, said Amy. You're not serious about that? Asked James. Of course I am. I've wrapped five kilometres of copper wire around this. Been turning the whole thing into a giant electro magnet in precisely 45 seconds, said Amy, checking her watch. The Wildcat three comet will be flying past, and its core is entirely made of iron. So we'll stick to it. Asked James. Like white cat hair on a black cardigan. Said Amy, Are you ready? No, sir. James Amy ignored him, and flick the electro magnet on the bin was yanked forward. Accelerate into a phenomenal speed. James agreed. Amy, we all die eventually. That's one of the first things we learned in science class. After several days of shooting through space faster than the speed of sound, James eventually stopped screaming, which allow them to play several 100 games of Boggle on a few 1000 games of monopoly before they finally arrived at their destination. That's where we're going to land set, Amy excitedly pointed to the planet below But how do we get down there? Asked James. I'll just turn the electro magnet often. Well, drops it, Amy. That sounds dangerous. Worry, James. Don't worry. A parachute will deploy at 1000 metres from the ground, said Amy. With that, she switched off the electro magnet. Suddenly, James and Amy were jammed to the roof of the wheelie bin as they hurtle towards the ground James. Then they slumped to the bottom of the bin. We've just had terminal velocity, said Amy happily as they continue to whistle through the air. Next, with allowed wolf, they were tugged upwards. Or at least it felt that way as the parachute deployed. Perfect, said Amy. Now we slowly float, smash the wheelie bin crashed. And it wasn't a quick crash, either. Was one of those long crashes that keep going is they crashed through one thing, then another. Finally, the wheelie bin came to a halt. You all right? Amy asked James. I'm going to take a look to see if this planet is hospitable, said Amy. She opened the lid and looked out, screamed. Amy screams. A 30 Children staring at her for Amy and James had crash landed into a school classroom. There, Wheelie bin was dangling from the ceiling on. The Children were screaming because they had never seen a Martian before. Oh, you demanded Mrs Darman. Fortunately, a bizarre coincidence of convergent evolution. Everyone on earth spoke perfect Martian. My name's Amy, This is James, and we've travelled here from the planet, Mars, stated. Amy, Amy and James climbed out of the wheelie bin at first, the class dead of them in, Or then the boldest boy cried out. Look, they're so short and kind of dumpy, called a rude girl. Look at her funny glasses, said Mrs Darman, who had completely forgotten her good manners. As Amy and James flew back to Mars later that day, James took pity on his friend and did not say I told you so. Amy was clearly crushed emotionally to discover the Children could be justice horrible on Earth, as they are on Mars. The end.  

R.A. Spratt:   6:19
Thank you for listening. To support this podcast just go to your local bookstore or favourite online seller and buy a book by me, R.A. Spratt. There are lots to choose from across The Nanny Piggins, Friday Barnes and Pesky Kids range. That's it from me. Until next time, goodbye