Hello, Nebulon!

  CONTENTS

  Chapter 1 Blast Off!

  Chapter 2 Buggy Pizza!

  Chapter 3 Landing . . . Landing . . . Landed!

  Chapter 4 What a House!

  Chapter 5 Wired!

  Chapter 6 Ready? Set? School!

  Chapter 7 Yippee Wah-Wah!

  Chapter 8 Zoom! Zoom!

  Chapter 9 Surprise!

  ‘Journey to Juno’ Excerpt

  About Ray O’Ryan and Colin Jack

  Chapter 1

  Blast Off!

  “Ooh! Look, Zack,” called Shelly Nelson from the front seat of the Nelson family’s space cruiser. She pointed out of the large, round windshield in front of her. “It’s Venus! And there’s Mars!”

  Sitting in the backseat of the cruiser, eight-year-old Zack Nelson sighed. He knew his mom was just trying to cheer him up. But at the moment all he wanted to do was go home—to his real home, Earth. Not his new home on some planet called Nebulon.

  Zack punched a code into the keypad below his window. The glass in the window changed from dark to clear.

  Billions of stars glittered in the inky blackness beyond the window. This was the part of space travel Zack liked best. Sure, he could see tons of stars with his überzoom galactic telescope back on Earth. But being out among the stars and planets, seeing them close up, always made Zack happy.

  Except today, February 11, 2120. Moving day.

  Glancing out his window, Zack looked past Venus and Mars. He had visited both planets many times. His family had often taken weekend trips to the Low Gravity Amusement Park on Venus. And they had always gone to the beaches at the Red Planet Resort on Mars for spring break.

  But today all Zack could see was Earth. The tiny blue and white ball grew smaller and smaller in the window. The Nelsons’ space cruiser zoomed farther away from the only home Zack had ever known.

  Zack’s dad, Otto, was up front in the pilot’s seat, steering the cruiser. “How ya doing back there, Captain?” he called.

  Zack smiled. He was years away from getting his pilot’s license, but his dad always called him “Captain” whenever the family took a space trip.

  “I guess I’m okay,” mumbled Zack.

  “He’s just sad because. . . ,” began Charlotte.

  “. . . he’s going to miss Bert . . . ,” Cathy continued.

  “. . . and Luna,” they said together.

  Charlotte and Cathy Nelson were Zack’s eleven-year-old identical twin sisters. They often spoke as if they were one person. They sat side by side in the seats next to Zack, finishing each other’s sentences.

  Zack’s sisters had round faces with freckles. They both had flaming red hair like their father. Charlotte kept her hair in a ponytail. Cathy wore her hair in two braided pigtails. That was the only way most people could tell them apart.

  “You’ll still be able to talk to Bert, honey,” Zack’s mom said. Bert was Zack’s best friend on Earth. “Between video chats and z-mail, it’ll almost be like you never left.”

  “And Bert will take good care . . .”

  “. . . of Luna,” said Charlotte and Cathy.

  “You know that Bert . . .”

  “. . . loves dogs . . .”

  “. . . especially Luna,” they added.

  “The girls are right, Captain,” said Dad. “Luna will join us as soon as we get settled on Nebulon. Then the whole family will be together again.”

  Zack just shrugged and stared out the window, watching Earth grow tinier by the second.

  Chapter 2

  Buggy Pizza!

  “You’ll love it on Nebulon, Captain,” Dad said. “Wait’ll you see the gadgets they have there. They’re way ahead of Earth!”

  “That sounds pretty cool,” Zack said. Then he grew quiet. Dad’s got his great new job at Nebulonics, Zack thought. Mom wants to start her own business. And the twins always have each other. They don’t have to worry about making new friends.

  Zack leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes.

  “Okay, class, time for our Zerbanese language lesson,” said someone with a strange, high-pitched voice.

  Zack’s eyes popped open. He was in a classroom on Nebulon. All his classmates looked like monsters. And slimy creatures with dripping tentacles sat all around him. The teacher looked like a giant two-headed snake.

  Zack dashed from the classroom and ran across the street. He hurried toward a huge sign that flashed the words: THIS GALAXY’S BEST PIZZA.

  Zack loved pizza. “Ah, pizza,” he said. It was his favorite food. “At least they have something that I know on this wacky, crazy planet!”

  Zack rushed into the pizza place and ordered a whole pie. “I’ll have today’s special pizza, please.”

  Soon a steaming pizza floated down.

  “YAAA!” yelled Zack. The pizza was covered with slithering worms and crawling insects. It was topped with extra-moldy cheese.

  Zack ran as fast as he could from the pizza place. He pulled out his video-chat hyperphone. Then he quickly entered Bert’s z-mail address.

  “Gotta talk to Bert,” Zack mumbled to himself. “Maybe he can help me.”

  The screen on the hyperphone blinked. Then a message popped up: ERROR. . . CANNOT CONNECT TO EARTH.

  “No!” cried Zack as he shoved the hyperphone back into his pocket. “I’m trapped here! And I’ll never see or talk to my friends again!”

  Zack felt a hand on his shoulder. Then he heard a familiar voice.

  “Zack? Zack? Are you okay?”

  Zack’s eyes sprang open. He was looking up at his mom. They were still in the space cruiser, on their way to Nebulon.

  “Bad dream, honey?” asked Mom, smoothing back Zack’s thick blond hair.

  “I guess so,” Zack replied, rubbing his eyes.

  A green light below the cruiser’s front window began blinking. “Arrival on Nebulon in five minutes,” said the cruiser’s talking computer.

  “This is so exciting!” Mom said as she sat back down in her seat. “Don’t worry, Zack. This is going to be a great adventure!”

  “Arriving on Nebulon in one minute. Please prepare for landing,” said the cruiser’s robotic voice.

  “This is it, gang!” announced Dad. He was hardly able to contain his excitement.

  Zack checked his safety belt. Then he pressed his face to the window. His eyes opened wide as the planet below got closer and closer. Through thin pink clouds, Zack saw purple patches of land and large orange oceans. Nebulon looks nothing like Earth, he thought.

  Chapter 3

  Landing . . .

  Landing . . .

  Landed!

  The space cruiser drifted down. Soon a busy spaceport came into view.

  “What are those other cruisers, Dad?” Zack asked. He stared down at what looked like tiny flying spaceships. They zoomed around in the air.

  “Oh, those are Nebulon cars,” explained Dad. “On Nebulon, cars and trains glide through the air. No more bumps or potholes!”

  “Landing. . . landing. . . landing. . . ,” the computer repeated.

  A few seconds later the Nelson’s space cruiser touched down on Nebulon.

  When they stepped outside, an odd-looking man greeted them. “Welcome to Nebulon, Otto Nelson and Otto Nelson’s family,” he said.

  Zack stared at the man. He was slightly taller than Dad. His head was egg-shaped, and his arms were long and skinny. They dangled down to his knees.

  “Hi, Fred! Thanks for meeting us,” said Dad. “Everyone, this is Fred Stevens, my new boss at Nebulonics.”

  Fred lifted his hand with his palm facing out. Then he moved his hand in a small circle in front of his face.

  Zack looked at his sisters. “What is this guy doing?” he whispered.

  Dad made
the same movement with his hand. “That’s how Nebulites shake hands,” Dad explained. “Fred, this is my wife, Shelly.”

  Mom raised her hand and made a circle. “How do you do?” she said with a giggle.

  “How do I do what?” Fred asked, looking very puzzled.

  “That’s how Earthlings say ‘hello,’” Dad explained.

  “Well then, how do you do?” asked Fred.

  “And these are my daughters, Charlotte and Cathy,” Dad continued. “And my son, Zack.”

  “Nice to . . .”

  “. . . meet you . . .”

  “. . . Mr. Stevens,” the twins said.

  “Hi,” Zack added.

  “It is time to choose a car and go to your new home,” said Fred. The Nelsons followed him into the spaceport’s main terminal.

  They soon arrived at a big sign that simply read: CARS.

  “We are here, Otto Nelson,” said Fred. “I will leave you to choose a car. I will see you at the office tomorrow. Good-bye, Otto Nelson’s family.”

  Fred Stevens left the spaceport.

  Zack looked at the tall shelves under the CARS sign. Small boxes that came in hundreds of different colors floated in rows.

  “Uh, Dad, I don’t see any cars here,” said Zack. “All I see are some box things.”

  “Welcome to Nebulon, Zack,” Dad said. “Pick a color.”

  “Uh, okay . . . green, I guess,” said Zack.

  “Green it is,” Dad said. He reached up and pulled a green box from the shelf. “Watch this.”

  Dad pressed a button on the box. It instantly changed into the coolest car Zack had ever seen.

  “Hop in, everyone!” Dad said. “It’s all ours.”

  “Does this thing have a GPS, Dad?” Zack asked as he got into the car.

  “Better than GPS, buddy,” replied Dad. “Look.”

  Dad pressed a button on the dashboard. “One twenty-two Zoid View, Creston City,” he said. Then he leaned back and placed his hands behind his head.

  “Calculating,” said a voice from the dashboard.

  Without warning, the car sped out of the spaceport and into traffic.

  Chapter 4

  What a House!

  The Nelsons’ car flew through the air above Nebulon.

  “One twenty-two Zoid View directly below,” said the car. It slowed down as it approached a large house.

  The house was shiny white. The car glided softly into a big, rounded garage. It parked next to a smaller red car.

  “Destination reached,” announced the car. Then the engine shut off.

  “Well, Nelsons, we’re home!” Dad announced. “Who wants a tour?”

  “Me!” Charlotte shouted.

  “And me!” Cathy agreed.

  “Zack?” Dad asked.

  “Uh . . . sure, I guess,” Zack said, shrugging.

  “Oh, I think you’re really going to like this place, Zack,” Dad said. “First stop—the kitchen.”

  Dad walked over to a round door in the garage. He went into a tiny room.

  “That’s the kitchen?” asked Zack.

  “Nope. This is the elevator. Come on in, everyone.”

  The whole family stepped into the elevator. The door closed with a whoosh. The elevator took off—going sideways.

  “The elevator connects all the sections of the house,” explained Dad. “It travels through tubes. It goes up, down, forward, and backward.”

  The elevator glided to a stop, and the doors slid open.

  Mom stepped into the huge kitchen. “Wow!” she said.

  “Welcome home, Mr. Nelson,” said a voice that seemed to be coming from every corner of the room.

  “How ya doing, Ira?” Dad replied.

  “Ira?” Mom asked. “Who’s Ira?”

  “Where’s . . .”

  “. . . Ira?” asked the twins.

  “What’s Ira?” Zack asked.

  “I-R-A is short for ‘Indoor Robotic Assistant,’” Dad explained. “He’s a computer, but he’s so much more. Ira is part of the electrical, mechanical, computer, and communications systems of every room in the house.”

  “Hi, Ira,” said Zack, giggling a bit. I’m talking to the house, he thought.

  “Welcome home, Master Zack,” Ira replied.

  And the house is talking to me!

  “You don’t have to call me ‘Master Zack,’” said Zack. “Just ‘Zack’ is fine.”

  “Very well, Master Just Zack,” Ira said.

  The whole family chuckled.

  “And welcome to you, too, Mrs. Nelson. Miss Charlotte. Miss Cathy.”

  “Ooh, I like . . .”

  “. . . being called . . .”

  “. . . ’miss’!” said the twins.

  “So, who’s thirsty after the long journey?” Dad asked.

  “Can I have some orange juice?” asked Zack.

  “Just plain old orange juice?” Dad smiled, and his eyes opened wide. “How about a jazzy Nebulon juice?”

  “Sure, I guess,” Zack said.

  “Ira, can we please have a spudsy melonade?” said Dad.

  “Certainly, Mr. Nelson,” Ira said.

  A small panel in the wall slid open. Out popped a metal arm holding a glass of frosty, bubbling juice. “Here is your spudsy melonade, Master Just Zack,” said Ira.

  Zack looked at the glass with wide eyes. “Thanks, Ira,” he said. Then Zack took it and gulped down the cool drink. “Sweet! Spudsy melonade rules!” Maybe this place won’t be so bad after all, he thought.

  Chapter 5

  Wired!

  “Why don’t you kids check out your new bedrooms before dinner?” said Dad.

  Zack and the twins stepped into the elevator. The door closed behind them and the elevator took off.

  A moment later the elevator slowed to a stop. The door slid open. Zack stared into a large bedroom. It was covered in pink. Frilly curtains hung from the windows.

  Zack shuddered. “Ugh! This is your stop,” he said to his sisters.

  “Ooooh . . . ,” said Cathy and Charlotte, running into the room.

  The door zipped shut and the elevator sped off. A couple of seconds later it stopped, and the door opened again.

  “Now, this is my room,” said Zack, smiling. He stepped into the bedroom.

  The walls were green. So were the carpet and curtains. Most things in the room were green. Green was Zack’s favorite color.

  Zack spotted a huge desk. A computer touchpad was built into the desktop. The entire wall in front of it was a giant view screen.

  “That’s awfully big for a computer monitor,” Zack said. He touched the screen. Suddenly he was looking at a HELLO, ZACK message, then zillions of stars in space. “Wow! This is so cool!” he said. “I can see the whole galaxy!”

  Zack searched the stars and planets around Nebulon for a few minutes. Then he looked around the room.

  “Hey,” Zack said. “Where’s my bed?”

  “Are you ready for bed, Master Just Zack?” Ira asked.

  Zack jumped at the sound of his voice.

  “Are you in here, too, Ira?” Zack asked.

  “I am wired throughout the house,” Ira explained. “Here is your bed.”

  A panel in the ceiling opened and a bed came down from above. The bed had a pillow with a matching green pillowcase and blanket.

  “Cool!” Zack said. “Thanks, Ira. But it’s too early for bed.”

  “Very well,” Ira said. The bed went back into the ceiling.

  “You mean I don’t have to make my bed every morning?” asked Zack. “Sweet!”

  “Zack, honey,” called Mom through the commu-link. “Dinnertime.”

  Zack scooted into the elevator and rode to the dining room. He took a seat at a table that floated in midair. Charlotte and Cathy sat across from him. Mom and Dad sat on either side.

  “So, Mom, what’s for dinner?” Zack asked. “Are we going out?”

  “No need,” said Dad. A big, cheery smile spread across his face. He turne
d to the twins. “Girls, what would you like for dinner?”

  “Spaghetti!” they both shouted.

  “You got it! Zack?”

  “I want a pepperoni pizza,” Zack replied.

  “No problem,” said Dad. “Your mother and I will have grilled salmon with baked potatoes.”

  “Where are we going to get all that, Dad?” Zack asked.

  “Right here! Ira, two spaghetti dinners, one pepperoni pizza, and two plates of grilled salmon with baked potatoes.”

  “Right away, Mr. Nelson,” said Ira.

  “Ira cooks, too?” Zack wondered aloud.

  A panel in the ceiling slid open. Five plates of steaming hot food floated down and landed on the table.

  Zack pulled a slice of pizza from the pie. It had crispy star-shaped pepperoni slices that floated on top of the gooey cheese. As Zack took his first bite he suddenly realized just how hungry he was.

  “Wow!” said Zack. “This pizza is great. It tastes just like the pizza at Tip-Top Pizza back on Earth! You know, I think living on Nebulon might not be that bad after all.”

  “I’m so glad, honey,” Mom said.

  “After dinner we can make sure that you and your sisters are all ready for tomorrow.”

  “Tomorrow?” Zack asked through a mouthful of pizza.

  “Yes. We’ve registered you at Sprockets Academy,” Mom explained. “Tomorrow you start school on Nebulon.”

  School! Zack thought. He stopped chewing his pizza. Zack remembered his nightmare about school, and his monster classmates and two-headed snake teacher. I forgot all about school!