#255 Picnic on Earth

by Geary D. Buxton

A sensor beep warned of approaching men. “Time to go,” she sighed.

He went to the tree line. Two men labored up the trail.

“I’ll get the easel and painting,” she said. “The basket is by the gate.”

“I’ll be right there,” he said. “I’m going to have some fun first.”

“I wish you wouldn’t.” She scowled and turned to leave. “It’s not very nice.”

“Look! Look!”

On the side of a clear cut hill, about a hundred yards up, a large ape-like creature ambled slowly from the tree line towards the opposite side.

The hikers froze. Both knew what the other was thinking: Sasquatch!

The hairy beast stopped and whipped around to face them. It gave a gorilla roar that gave them cold chills, and then trotted for the trees.

The men scrambled for their cameras and got a couple shots before the creature disappeared into the trees.

In the shadows he chuckled, watching the men scrambling up the slope. He got the picnic basket and enter his gate. On the other side he watched the men run by, unaware of the extra dimension.

She had her painting on the easel already. He waved his hand for the ceil to close and shade it.

“Why do think it’s funny to annoy men with that Sasquatch gag?” she asked.

He smiled and shrugged. “It never gets old being the source of a myth.”

She pointed at the painting. “What do you think?”

“It’s...ah...blue? Have a title?”

“Picnic on Earth.”



After a mysterious flight to Mars to leave a briefcase, physicist Dr. Price Taylor returns to the secret UFR base on the moon. The first human landing on Mars nearly ended in disaster in the unprepared UFR. Furious, Price wants answers to why he was tricked into making the flight. Upon returning, though, Colonel Crowley shows Price a military version of the next generation UFR called Eos, built behind Price's back. The ship violates an interstellar agreement that Price has been on earth to monitor. Price goes crazy. Eos not only represents a failure of his earth mission, but also a failure to keep a promise to his deceased daughter never to let his science be used to build weapons. Price vows to destroy Eos and everyone who ruined his life building it.

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1 comment:

Flutterby said...

Fun take on this myth! (Wait, is it really real??) ;)