*THE GUARDIANS OF KLESIA*
The blinding flash of lights that could so easily be seen from Leon's viewport, dissipated quickly, leaving temporary marks on the eyes of all who'd witnessed their brilliance. After only a second's hesitation, Leon hastened over to Comet Central Station and landed. Before he'd even had a chance to announce his perfect landing, the passengers released the air locked door and shuffled out, nearly causing a stampede.
The group frantically dashed past several dazed Klesians groaning and staggering about. They only had one person on their minds at the moment. Izzian, Gala, Thil and Enot burst through the doors of Yangsley's lab, hurtling over the untidy mess, running directly for the Al203 room. The concerned friends hovered over the prone form of Able Mabel Jesset, urging her to awaken.
"Move it," said Yarn, who had followed at a respectable speed. She pushed her way through the group with Eliza on her heels. "Stop your poking and prodding and let old Yarn have a look."
Eliza handed Yarn a small vial. Yarn pulled out the stopper, and waved the brew under Mrs. Jesset's nose. Mrs. Jesset coughed, sputtered and eventually opened her eyes.
"Must have been a vial full of Yarn's tea," Izzian joked. The rest of the group eyed him with weariness. Izzian ignored the looks, content in knowing that Paksha would have laughed, had he been there.
"Did it work?" Mrs. Jesset looked around her in wonderment. "I don't think it worked. You see…I was typing in the formula, standing there, and then there was an explosion, and then I…I…"
"There, there, dearie," Yarn helped Mrs. Jesset sit up. "See, it did work! Mabel, take a look at yourself."
Mabel checked her arms, fingers and tentacles. She didn't see anything different, until Eliza sat down next to her and presented her own arm for comparison. "You see? We're the same size," Eliza said with a warm smile.
"Oh? Oh!" Mrs. Jesset exclaimed, happy to still be alive. "I confess being a more regular size will make life easier! But did it work? Are the Klesians back to normal size?"
Her circle of friends stepped back, allowing Mrs. Jesset a better view of the throngs of regular-sized Klesians surrounding her. "We did it," said Able Mabel Jesset. She fainted again.
After tending to Mrs. Jesset, the smallest Firithian in existence, Izzian and the gang were swept into a barrage of questions. Soon the questions turned to praise when the Klesians discovered Izzian and his friends were responsible for returning all of Klesia back to normal size.
The group was introduced to the President of the Council for Interplanetary Consortiums, Boojum Twoeyes. More handshaking and back slapping followed as every member of the CIC arrived.
All of the important Klesians wanted to personally and sincerely thank the heroes. Izzian was used to being treated less like a hero and more like a bother. It was entirely too surreal for the boy.
Izzian was thankful when his ortnots, Mirtheea and Ojolian Klowosky, were delivered to the lab. Mirtheea practically swooned when she saw her son being hugged by old Boojum Twoeyes. Ojolian Klowosky grunted at his wife's inappropriate swoons.
President Twoeyes briefed the group on what they should and should not say regarding their own involvement in the Al203 incident. They were to keep quiet about any accidental contribution to the malfunctioning telescopes. Izzian could finally breathe again, realizing he was not going to be blamed that day.
Izzian reached for his mother's hand, but before he could give her a proper hello, the group was quickly ushered away and dressed for an interview. They were to be broadcast live, right away, on the big-vid in the very center of downtown.
Recalling his last run-in with the big-vid, Izzian panicked. But things had changed. Now, he wasn't alone or being frantically chased and hunted down, either. He had been invited to speak.
They were to briefly explain the events that had brought them home. President Boojum Twoeyes introduced the group as The Guardians of Klesia. As they took the stage, thunderous applause erupted from the crowds.
Mrs. Able Mabel Jesset was too shy to deal with the hubbub. She didn't enjoy being the subject of anyone's praise, but the group explained her act of heroism regardless of her humble denials of being less than heroic. The crowd murmured in disbelief at first, never having seen such a little Firithian, but soon accepted Mrs. Jesset's unusual smallness. They had been small for a while too.
The newly appointed Guardians of Klesia spoke of Leon and the Fester Tails and the significant roles they played in saving Klesia. Half of the crowd gasped in wonder, believing that Fester Tails were only mythical creatures. The other half assumed that Leon and the Fester Tails were some kind of rock and roll band.
They mentioned the heroic efforts of Paksha and Laddie. Even though the two were still on earth; they'd also had a hand in the success of the mission and were dubbed The Guardians of Klesia right along with the rest.
Thilillian was allowed to extend her own apologies. She expressed an understanding that she had been terribly wrong to set off a firecracker at Comet Central. She apologized directly to the Junipean ambassador, Ela Alana for contributing to the demise of her beautiful head of hair.
Izzian even apologized to Dr. Yangsley for his behavior in the lab that day, so long ago. And Mr. Seebot, understanding that he may have earned some of the blame for shrinking the Klesians, remained silent and aloof.
Yarn introduced Eliza Allready as the new ambassador from earth. She announced that Eliza would be attending equidistant school on the main planet with Izzian. And even though there wouldn't be much cause for "ambassadorizing" with earth, since most humans didn't believe in aliens, Eliza promised to execute her duties fully and to always temper justice with mercy. Izzian rolled his eyes.
Enot and Gala publically announced their engagement, which came as a total surprise to Izzian, but the rest of the crew was not so surprised to hear about the impending nuptials. Izzian wondered what he'd missed. He had lived with the two for months and he knew Gala was in love, but he had no idea that Enot even had a heart.
Even so, Izzy looked forward to the upcoming marriage ceremony of the newest Klesian celebrity couple. Perhaps Paksha could fly out and attend the wedding celebration. He could laugh alongside Izzian when Boojum Twoeyes presented the newly married couple as Enot and Gala Oogabal-Lewga.
As the speeches and accolades came to a close, the Klesians busily prepared for the grandest feast ever in the history of Klesia and Klesia Moon Prime. Shilka Beast Casseroles were baked, apriguavo slushies were concocted and all through the streets, Izzian's name was spoken. Everyone agreed that it was unusual for Izzian Klowosky to be mentioned in conjunction with such a pleasant occurrence.
It was a happy day for all. Izzian's worries about getting blamed were pushed to the side, in favor of relishing in the glory of coming home a hero. His ortnots were finally allowed to hug their son and welcome him home.
Ojolian grabbed his boy and hugged him like a Firithian, saying, "I knew you were destined for something great." Ojolian then switched to the father figure Izzian had known his entire life and added, "On the other hand, Enot told me you stayed out all night, chasing some boys through the forest. We will discuss that and a few other things at a later time. See you at home, son."
Izzian's spirit deflated for a moment, nervous about the impending doom that lay ahead, but his mother quickly squashed his concerns.
Mirtheea chastised her husband. "Oh nonsense, Ojo! Izzian is home. He is safe and he saved us all to boot. Don't think a thing about it Izzian," Mirtheea said, slathering kisses onto her son's face and scalp. And for once, Izzian did not pull away as his mother wiped at the dirt on his face and plastered down his hair with her spit.
The evening was festive, as alien parties tended to be, but that particular evening all of Klesia worked to throw the most spectacular, special party ever thrown in the history of alien-kind. Tables and chairs were scattered over the town square and every alien scurried about, searching for fresh ingredients.
It was well understoo
d that if the Klesians had remained small for another few weeks, the planet would have been in shambles. Thankfully, the fields were full of produce and the animals had shrunk right along with the people, so they had been fed the entire time.
Apparently, The Guardians of Klesia had restored the planet and her people just in the nick of time. If they had waited any longer, Poo Season would've occurred. Without farmers to harvest crops before Poo Season, nothing substantial would've remained. Now at least they had a chance.
Mrs. Kleevox, Izzian's former teacher and her assistant Ms. Phlackjackle, organized the entertainment, claiming to best understand Izzian's taste and musical preferences. When The Guardians of Klesia arrived for the pre-dinner entertainment, Izzian was thrilled to see his favorite band, the Flaming Flitters, take the stage and perform his favorite songs.
True to their reputation, the band spontaneously ignited at the end of their performance, showering the crowds with glowing confetti made up of tiny diamonds, colored bird seed, and…pieces of Flitter creatures. The band had a high turnover rate, it seemed.
The Fester Tails were carefully placed high above the clumsiness of the rabble below, on the personal dais of President Boojum Twoeyes. President Twoeyes hosted the tribe as his Guests of Honor and was heard saying, "Signal, Muriel this is a special night, not only have your people saved Klesia, but I am honored to dine with you since Fester Tails rarely show themselves in public."
To which Muriel Minor replied, "No, we show ourselves in public, but we are so small, most people just walk right over us."
Either Mrs. Kleevox used her Preytell abilities, or she really did know Izzian better than most. His old teacher and her assistant had planned the perfect evening. After the Flaming Flitters performed, the big-vid played old television reruns from earth.
Izzian finally learned how that one kid became the prince of a town called Bel Air. It reminded him of Paksha, and he wished his friend could have come to the party. When their old theme song played, Eliza and Thil looked to Izzian. They shared a nostalgic smile. Without Paksha, it seemed as if they were one limb short of a full body.
Dinner was served. Heaping mounds of barbequed Shilka Beast were piled high, casseroles abounded and countless side platters appeared out of nowhere. Eliza was pleased to note the cooks had chosen her favorite earth dishes as well. She happily munched away on golden French fries and pizza, having starved half to death on Yarn's ship.
The Guardians of Klesia laughed and reminisced. They ate until their respective stomachs were full, and even though Paksha and Laddie were on earth, they were still toasted and praised.
"To us!" someone shouted. "To The Guardians of Klesia!" shouted another.
The toasts went round and round and Izzian tried to sneak a glass of apriguavo wine, but Eliza grabbed it from his hands, giving him her usual evil eye. He ended up pouring the wine onto Eliza's lap, and braced himself for a good head thumping. He reminded her that while he was striving to become a Compassionate Citizen of the Universe, he was still, after all, just a boy.
"All the more reason not to sneak wine," Eliza replied with a smug look, thumping him on the head with a finger full of mashed squataytos.
The rest of the evening went along in much the same manner, until The Guardians of Klesia were doing more sleeping than guarding. Izzian was thrilled to sleep in his own bed in his own odobo, while Yarn and Eliza were treated to a first class suite at the Four Tentacles Inn. They all felt a little sorry for Thilillian, who had to go home with her father, Dr. Yangsley.
***
CHAPTER 38