Chapter 3
It was still in the early morning and still dark in Neilaville.
At the flight line on the Army base, the area looked quiet and peaceful.
Two big doors opened up from the hangar where parked inside were ten small, sleek silver four seater fighter spaceships.
Each of the spaceships had small side wings and was supported by three landing struts. One strut in the front and a strut under each wing.
The cockpit was under a bubble type of glass canopy that provided the pilot with an excellent three hundred and sixty-degree view.
The spaceships each had three small but powerful engines, with rectangle nozzles, that would zoom them through outer space. This could allow the spaceships to travel at warp drive and go faster than the speed of light. Plus each engine contained a fuel tank with special fuel that would get thirty billion miles per gallon.
They also had their markings of "Neila 1, Neila 2, Neila 3, and so on the rear section by the engines.
A hovercraft that resembled a Jeep flew up to the hangar with Meena at the controls and Boe, Burpy and Dopey who wore green flight suits in the backseat.
The Jeep stopped and hovered by the opened hangar door.
Boe, Burpy, and Dopey hopped out of the Jeep.
"Do you understand your orders?" Meena asked.
The three goofs all snapped to attention and saluted. "Yes sir!" they all yelled back in unison.
"Good, now I want you to take Neila three. It's fully loaded," Meena told them.
They stood there at attention and Meena got mad. "Just don't stand there; move it!" Meena barked out his order.
The three goofs jumped up and ran over to the sleek fighter spaceship inside the hangar.
They got inside Neila 3, closed the canopy then started it up with a whirl and a whine. Neila 3 lifted and the three landing struts retracted back inside the ship, and it hovered above the hangar floor.
Neila 3 slowly flew out of the hangar.
Neila 3 slowly flew down the flight line then the engines whined and whirled louder and light-colored purple flames emitted from the nozzles.
Neila 3 zoomed up into the night sky.
Meena watched from his hovering Jeep while Neila 3 zoomed away into outer space.
Meanwhile, the Palace was dark as King Tona and Albie were both sound asleep.
Luna wore his standard jeans, white tee shirt, and his black leather jacket while he snuck out of his room. He grabbed his Space Pad and shoved it in his jacket pocket.
He rushed over, grabbed his sky board, and ran out of his room.
Once Luna snuck out of one of the rear exits of the Palace.
He snuck around to the backyard then jumped on his sky board and was soon airborne.
He surfed away high into the sky.
Five minutes later, Luna sky surfed over Neilaville, which was dark as everybody was still sound asleep.
Three minutes later, Luna sky surfed over the Army base and was soon over the flight line.
Meena watched from his Jeep while Luna sky surfed down and landed by his vehicle. He stepped out of the Jeep and walked up to Luna just as he stepped off his sky board.
"Are you ready for this secret mission?" Meena asked Luna.
"I believe I am," Luna asked still a little unsure if he was doing the right thing and Meena sensed it.
"Luna, Luna. You know that if you don't perform this mission, you'll be King in a short while. If you perform this mission, you can delay it for two more years. Just think of the things you build and accomplish in two years," Meena reminded him and followed up with a warm smile.
Luna looked at the fighter ships inside the hangar and noticed one was missing. "You're missing one of the fighters," he said.
Meena looked at the hangar and pondered for a second. "Oh, Neila three is in the maintenance hanger for its monthly checkup," he fibbed.
"Oh," Luna replied, then looked at the other fighters.
"Take Neila one. I had her checked out, and she's in tip-top shape for your flight," Meena said then paused for a few seconds. "And make sure you configure the ship so you won't be detected," he added.
"I will," Luna said.
"Good, here are the instructions you'll need to complete your mission," Meena said then he removed a piece of paper from his shirt pocket and handed it to Luna.
Luna grabbed the paper, then picked up his sky board.
"I'll take your board and bring it back here when you return," Meena said.
Luna reached down, grabbed then handed over his sky board to Meena who tucked it under his right arm.
"You're doing our planet a great service. You'll be a hero," Meena said then saluted, Luna.
Luna saluted back and rushed over to the hangar.
Meena watched with a smirk while Luna got opened up the door of the right side of Neila 1 and stepped inside. The door closed.
Inside Neila 1, Luna sat down in his seat then closed the canopy. He reached across the console and pressed the "Engine Fire Sequence" button.
Luna grabbed the joystick on the right arm of his seat.
Meanwhile, up in outer space above Neila, the fighter Neila 3 zoomed up from the planet. The engines quieted while the light-colored purple flames turned into dark-colored purple and it zoomed off toward deep space at warp drive speed.
Back at the hangar on the planet, Neila 1 started up with a whirl and whine. It rose up, and the three landing struts retracted back inside the ship while it hovered above the hangar floor.
Neila 1 slowly flew past Meena were from inside, Luna waved at him from the canopy.
Meena snapped to attention and saluted Luna to give a false impression that he cared.
Neila 1 slowly flew down the flight line then the engines whined and whirled louder and light-colored purple flames emitted from the three engines.
It zoomed away into the dark sky.
Meena watched from while Neila 1 zoomed away to outer space.
Meena released Luna's sky board out from under his right arm. The board dropped then hovered four inches above the flight line. He removed a laser pistol and fired a red laser beam at the board. It vaporized in a matter of seconds.
Meena got back inside his hovering Jeep then slowly flew down the flight line with a satisfying smile.
Up in outer space inside Neila 1, Luna set the automatic pilot for planet earth.
He looked out the canopy and enjoyed the view of outer space.
Inside the Neila spaceships, the pilots and passengers did not float around as the human does in their spacecraft. The Neila spaceships were far more advanced, and they provided gravity inside their crafts.
Luna reached over on the console and pressed a "Nobody Can Track or Find You" button to ensure his mission would remain a secret.
He pressed the "Get There Quick" button, and the engines quieted, and it zoomed away at warp drive speed.
He pressed another button and a hologram map emitted from a small port on the console.
The hologram map showed a red dashed line from Neila, past a brown desert planet called "Deserta," and then the line went into a black hole. Then at the other end of the black hole, the red dashed line went past the planets Saturn, Mars, and the Moon and stopped at earth.
Luna looked at the hologram map and was satisfied that the automatic pilot had his ship on the correct path. So he pressed another button on the console where a hologram of a four shaggy-haired alien rock band, called "The Neatles" appeared. They played rock and roll type of alien music. The classic song "All You Need Is Peace" played.
Luna looked at his paper of instructions Meena gave him. He kicked his feet up on the console and started to study them.
A few minutes later, he set the instructions down and removed a weird-looking harmonica from his jacket pocket. He played along with The Neatles song.
Meanwhile, way ahead of Luna, Neila 3 flew past the Deserta planet.
Back inside Neila 1, Luna watched The Neatles while they performed another song called "Spaceship to Ride."
He glanced over the instructions again and hummed along with the song.
Neila 3 zoomed into the black hole.
Neila 1 zoomed past the planet Deserta.
Neila 3 zoomed out of the black hole and sped toward Saturn.
Neila 1 zoomed into the black hole.
Inside Neila 1, Luna watched from his canopy where psychedelic colors were visible while his fighter zoomed through the black hole.
Out in outer space, Neila 3 zoomed past the planet Saturn.
Neila 1 flew out of the black hole and zoomed toward Saturn.
Neila 3 zoomed past the planet Mars.
Neila 1 headed toward the rings of Saturn.
Back inside Neila 1, Luna pressed another button and a new alien band called "The Rolling Rocks" started their song, "Jumping Alien Flash."
He reached over and pressed the "Outer Space Position System (OSPS)" button. "You are eight hundred and eighty-six million miles from your destination," said the computerized female OSPS voice.
He looked out his canopy and saw the beautiful rings of Saturn while his fighter skimmed over the tops of them.
"Cool!" Luna said while he checked out all the colors.
Neila 3 zoomed past Mars and headed toward earth.
Neila 1 zoomed toward Mars.
Neila 3 zoomed towards the Moon.
Neila 1 zoomed past Mars.
Neila 3 slowed down and headed to the Moon.
Back on Neila inside Sona's bedroom, she just finished her morning shower and got dressed for the day. After she got into her jeans and tee-shirt, he grabbed her Space Pad off her dresser and turned it on.
"Good Morning Luna," she said while she held her Space Pad in her hand.
She waited for a hologram of Luna to appear. It did not as Luna had his Space Pad turned off for his secret mission. She looked disappointed.
Back in outer space, Neila 3 slowly descended to the surface of the Moon. It stopped twenty feet above the surface then the three landing struts extended out of the ship. It slowly settled down to the rocky surface.
Inside Neila 3, Boe, Burpy, and Dopey looked out the canopy and stared up into space.
Boe pressed a button on the console.
Back on Neila, Meena sat behind his desk in his office and waited anxiously. His Holophone from his desk turned on all by itself and a hologram of Boe, Burpy and Dopey inside Neila 3 with the Moon surface visible appeared.
"General, we're at the earth's Moon and waiting for sight of Luna's spaceship," Boe's hologram stated.
Back inside Neila 3, Boe, Burpy, and Dopey watched a hologram of Meena inside his office that emitted from the console Holophone.
"Good job and he's on his way. Keep me informed when you complete your mission," Meena's hologram stated then it disappeared.
The goofs looked proud of themselves that this could be the first time they have completed a mission.
They continued to stare out the canopy and then saw Neila 1 while it zoomed past the Moon and headed toward earth.
Inside Neila 1, Luna dozed off while the alien band "The Rolling Rocks" finished their third song called "Wild Spaceships."
"You are two hundred, thirty-eight thousand and eight hundred and fifty-seven miles from your destination," the computerized female voice said from the OSPS.
Her voice woke Luna up, and he looked out his canopy. He saw the beautiful planet earth up ahead. He got a little nervous, as he knew his mission would start soon.
From the surface of the Moon, the engines of Neila 3 whined and whirled louder. It slowly rose above the surface, kicking up moon dust. When it got twenty feet up, the landing struts retracted back inside the ship, and it zoomed up into space.
Neila 1 raced to earth at a slower speed.
It stopped and hovered in space with America visible down below.
Then one hundred thousand miles behind Luna, Neila 3 hovered in space to keep a safe, discreet distance.
Inside Neila 1, Luna pressed a "Spy On Them" button on the console. A monitor turned on the console and showed America's Delta rocket poised at the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center.
He watched the monitor while the Delta's engines fired and it lifted off the pad.
Luna smiled and pressed the "Activate Weapons" button and grabbed the weapons joystick on the left arm of his seat. He watched out his canopy, ready for the Delta rocket to ascend into view.
Kaboom! A bright red flash illuminated Luna's canopy, and his spaceship violently shook. Luna's frantically looked around, then quickly checked the console. The instruments all had nominal readings.
Neila 3 fired another red laser beam at Neila 1.
Kaboom! Smoke poured out of the console of Neila 1. A loud irritating squeal sound caused Luna to cover his ears. He quickly pressed six buttons on the console, and the squeal stopped.
Luna quickly pressed the Holophone button then a hologram of static TV snow emitted from the console.
"Father! Help! The earthlings are firing at me!" Luna screamed at the Holophone, scared to death. "Father?" Luna looked scared to death as the hologram still showed static snow.
Kaboom! Luna's spaceship violently shook with alarms and sirens blaring.
Neila 1 rolled uncontrollably, sending Luna out of his seat where he slammed into the console.
Luna fought to get back at the joystick, but another jolt of the laser beam caused him to again slam headfirst into the console. He passed out.
In outer space, Neila 1, with the left-wing missing and a burnt rear section with two engines destroyed, flew wildly down to earth toward America. It just missed the Delta rocket, by inches while it ascended into space.
The Delta rocket continued to ascend into space.
Two Delta boosters at the bottom fell off and tumbled down to earth.
The Delta's front fairings opened up and fell to earth.
The NASA space probe fired its rear engine and raced off in the direction of Neila 3.
Inside Neila 3, Boe, Burpy, and Dopey sat at the controls and watched while Neila 1 tumbled widely down to earth. They all got very excited.
Boe pressed a button on the console. Burpy clapped and burped.
"Send a report to General Meena, Dopey," Boe ordered Dopey who replied with a salute.
Back on Neila in Meena's office, he sat behind his desk and stared at his Holophone, anxious for an update.
His Holophone turned on, and a hologram of Boe, Burpy, and Dopey appeared of them inside Neila 3 in outer space with earth visible.
"Duh...Mission a success, duh, earth probe is on its way and, duh, Neila one was disabled and…duh…tumbling down to earth," Dopey's hologram said.
Meena got a substantially satisfied grin on his face. "Great job! Come back home," he said, then pressed a button on the Holophone, and the hologram disappeared.
He got up from his desk and performed a goofy victory dance around his office.
Inside Neila 3, Boe, Burpy and Dopey did a goofy victory dance around their spaceship.
They looked at the canopy and saw that the earth probe was coming straight at them. They freaked out and screamed an ear-piercing alien scream.
Burpy and Dopey dove at the joystick on the pilot's seat.
Boe looked sad, as he knew trouble was brewing.
In outer space, Neila 1 flew wildly to the Moon and missed NASA's space probe by inches.
Inside Neila 3, Boe, Burpy, and Dopey got tossed around while it rolled uncontrollably. They fought to get at the joystick.
In outer space, the NASA space probe flew off toward the Moon.
The other half of the Neila space probe, which previously hung around earth's orbit, zoomed up from behind then flew over the top of the NASA's space probe. A small door opened on the Neila probe and a rod with a suction cup at the end shot out. It attached to NASA's space probe.
The Neila probe flew the NASA space probe away toward the Moon.
Inside Neila 3, it still rolled uncontrollably. Boe, Burpy, and Dopey again fought to get to the joystick while being tossed around.
Boe was finally able to grab the joystick. He moved it around and pressed seven buttons on the console.
The spaceship quit rolling and got upright. Burpy and Dopey fell from the ceiling and slammed into the floor with a loud thud.
Boe pressed four more buttons on the console and the engines whined and whirled louder and jumped into warp drive speed.
Neila 3 zoomed toward the Moon.
Neila 1 tumbled down toward the State of Florida.