This one was inspired by a Peruvian folk tale that I heard retold on YouTube (ref). In preparation for the final draft, I delivered it as a Toastmasters speech at Firebirds Collective (16 Jun 2019) for The Folk Tale project in the Storytelling Manual of the legacy program, after which, I took on board the feedback and submitted it for publication in The LOTNAVerse in 2019, a zine of the League of the Non-Aligned science fiction group in London.
Zorra and Mr. Mole Reach for the Moon
In a home on Hill Road close to Cape Canaveral, lived a girl named Zorra. Like many girls in her day, Zorra loved science and space. Zorra loved to watch the ships rise on pillars of fire through the blue sky vanishing into the immense black darkness and mystery of space.
“One day I will be a part of it and I will make my mark on the world as a brilliant scientist and space explorer.,“ she said to her friend and neighbour, Mr. Mole. Zorra and Mr. Mole were sitting on the roof of her parent’s home watching the latest big rocket fly through the blue sky and vanish into the immense black darkness and mystery of space. Mr. Mole was a boy Zorra’s age who lived next door, in the basement, where he loved to tinker with the code behind the apps on our phones and make them dance at his command. Mr. Mole wan’t his real name, his real name was Mike, Mr. Mole was his hacker handle.
“Hey Zorra,” Mr. Mole said, “I know you want to make your mark on the world as a brilliant scientist and space explorer and I think there may be a way we could do this together in a big way. There’s a Z-Prize being offered for anyone who can launch a ship to the moon, take some pictures and send the images back to earth.”
Zorra leapt up, her eyes lit up with insight, imagination and that curious, shining sparkle that has the hue of hope. “Mr. Mole, what a brilliant idea! We could make a wonderful ship to do this, win the prize and make our mark on the world!!! I know just what to do!”
With the arc of smoke from the rocket in the backdrop of the sky behind her she continued with determination and verve, “We won’t need millions to build a huge rocket that burns its way through the sky, we’ll have a more gentle journey and lift our cargo through the blue sky and gently jump into the immense black darkness and mystery of space. In fact, the sun itself will carry our ship to the moon with our ship’s light sail! We will have the first space sailing ship and the first even to go to the moon!”
Zorra did a little dance on the roof, the big rocket’s smoke trail now dissipating int the sky behind her. “Surely we will make our mark on the world!”
Mr. Mole grinned. “We can use old phones and I will write apps to manage the navigation and the landing and surely we will make our mark on the world!”
They set off to the basement to build their wonderful machine to claim the Z-Prize.
Zorra’s application for Vela de Luna (Moon Sail in Spanish) to be a candidate was accepted and she and Mr. Mole had to make appearances on vlogs and live chats to share their project and progress. Zorra delighted in explaining the environmentally sound design that made use of compostable materials for the main craft – the balloon that would carry Vela de Luna through the sky, the pressure propellants in spray cans that would shunt Vela de Luna into the immense black darkness and mystery of space from the uppermost reaches of the sky and the light sail that would unfurl and carry her to the moon. Mr. Mole proudly explained the coding in the phones that were affixed to the craft to enable navigation, photography and communication through the interplay of several apps he had hacked together.
Finally, months later, they were ready to launch. The skies had been cleared and Vela de Luna sat tethered in the driveway with the huge repurposed weather balloon hovering over the home. The paparazzi and press pressed in to capture every detail of this moment in history.
Vela de Luna (Moon Sail) was a small ball covered with phones and cameras enclosing the encased light sail that would be deployed later and spray paint cans for local propellant to brake and navigate once Vela de Luna reached the surface of the moon. In the shadow of their parents, who stood by proudly and amazed, Zorra and Mr. Mole began a count down and with a shout, let launch the large balloon, which carried Vela de Luna up and up into the blue sky, through the clouds. Everything had gone off without a hitch and at the critical juncture between blue sky and the immense black darkness and mystery of space, the spray cans sputtered all at once on queue and shunted Vela briefly upwards as the tether to the balloon released.
Vela hung briefly between the blue and the black, hanging for a moment before . . .
. . . sputtering
. . . plunging
. . . downwards and
. . . downwards
. . . gripped by gravity Vela de Luna
. . . spiralled and
. . . spiralled
. . . drawn through the layers and layers of white clouds and blue sky to the deep, deep, dark of the ocean blue.
Zorra. Was. Devastated.
Her dream to make a mark on the world had been erased by a simple mis-calculation. The error was clear now but how to correct, the moment, the deadline had passed and what to do now?
Zorra turned to her trusted friend, seeking solace and solutions.
Mr. Mole was shaking, his gaze shifting to and fro seeking some way of escape, some way to make it not so, some way to make it all better, somewhere to go.
Mr. Mole was horrified, the calculations had been sound, the apps orchestrated. Vela should have been shunted into the immense black darkness and mystery of space, not spiralling down to the sea!!!
Mr. Mole, horrified, ran from the scene to the safety of his den in the basement and the shelter of the glow of his screens.
“Zorra! Zorra!” the paparazzi press cried out pressing in to sensationalise the story. Zorra, perplexed, look to her parents, to the paparazzi press pressing in and to the empty space where her dear friend Mr. Mole had been by her side. Zorra turned back to the paparazzi press, head held high and declared, simply . . .
“No Comment”
. . . and retreated to the sanctity of her home. Defeated.
Days later, there was a chime on her phone, it chimed incessantly. Reluctantly, still filled with the aching agony of despair that follows defeat, she answered. “Thank goodness, you’ve answered! Zorra, I have been trying to reach you and Mister Mole for days!!! I have good news for you, I know how you can succeed, I know how you can wind, I know how your ship can make the leap to the immense black darkness and mystery of space!”
Zorra blinked back dry tears, rubbed her eyes and stared at the phone blankly. “Who are you?”
“I am Ava and my specialty is rope technology!”
“Rope technology? What on Earth is rope technology?”
“Have you ever heard the crack of a whip? It makes that sound because the rope is going faster than the speed of sound. We can apply the whip principles to carry your ship clear of the clouds and shunt her from the upper reaches of the blue sky to the immense black darkness and mystery of space. Shunt her even onward, to the moon on your glorious light sail!!!”
Zorra leapt up, her eyes lit up with insight, imagination and that curious, shining sparkle that has the hue of hope. The hue of hope that had been sunk in the sea with the loss of Vela de Luna. “Ava, what a brilliant idea! We will make a new wonderful ship to do this, whip the ship into the immense black darkness and mystery of space! Dear Ava, you must come quickly, join Mr. Mole and I and we will begin a new venture and we will make our mark on the world!!!”
Finally, months later, they were ready to launch. The skies had been cleared and Soga de Luna (Moon Rope) sat tethered in the driveway with the huge repurposed weather balloon hovering over the home. The paparazzi and press were nowhere to be seen. This moment in history belonged solely to the triumphant trio.
Zorra, Mr. Mole and Ava began a count down and with a shout, let launch the large balloon, which carried Soga de Luna up and up into the blue sky, through the clouds. Everything had gone off without a hitch and at the critical juncture between blue sky and the immense black darkness and mystery of space, the whip snapped with a loud crack and faster than the speed of sound with Soga de Luna sailed out into the immense black darkness of space, where the brilliant light sail unfurled and carried the craft outwards on its long, long journey to the moon.
Months later, Soga Luna shifted in her course, Soga Luna drew in the light sail and set the gaze of her cameras to the surface of the moon, preparing the propellant spray cans to guide her descent.
Soga Luna sailed with a silent swish across space from left to right broadly brushing the surface of the moon.
Soga Luna sailed with a silent switch across space top right to bottom left broadly brushing the surface of the moon.
Soga Luna sailed with a silent swish across space from left to right broadly brushing the surface of the moon.
The triumphant trio, Zorra, Mr. Mole and Ava looked up at the sky as the full moon peeked through the clouds and shone down with a bright white Z – sharing with all of the Earth, the mark of Zorra.
(C) 2019 Samir Malak
22 Jun 2019
Imagine Anew 