“I don't understand how something like this is possible,” said Zamrin. “Are you sure it's a message?” he asked again with skepticism in his voice.
“Positive. There's no other explanation.” Kade drew a piece of blank parchment and an ink pen from the ever-present bag slung over her back. “I'll be right back,” she said, lifting off the ground and flying directly upward. She paused at a formidable height, sketching the strange configuration of missing crops. When she was finished, she examined it with a careful artist's eye that had been one of her natural gifts from birth. She felt that it was a fairly accurate representation of the original, and preceded back to the ground, landing next to Zamrin, and being careful this time not to splash any mud.
Zamrin took the drawing from her and studied it carefully. There appeared to be five different characters in the message. All of them looked completely foreign to him and his friend both. “It's Tyrannian to me,” he said finally with a sigh.
Kade folded her wings down as an offer for Zamrin to climb onto her back. “We can get around faster if we fly,” she said. This would not be the first time her friend had ridden on her back, and she in no way found it degrading. The Kacheek was light, and as long as he never saddled and bridled her, she was perfectly fine with the arrangement and happy to help.
Zamrin was careful to wipe off his paws before mounting Kade's back. He knew how she was about dirt, and he wanted to be considerate. He sat down in front of her backpack and wrapped his paws around a clump of the mane around her neck to be sure he wouldn't fall off. When all was confirmed ready to go, she rose from the ground, stirring leaves and dust with the force of her flapping wings. They leveled off at about five hundred feet above the field, and Zamrin knew the hardest part of the flight was over. He relaxed his grip on her mane, and said, “Let's talk to Farmer Tylum a few fields down. He's a knowledgeable chap. Maybe he could tell us something.” Kade nodded in agreement and swooped down in that direction. The landing was quick, but smooth. It was what Zamrin had come to expect from having such a great flier as his friend.
The two marched up to the front door of his cabin and knocked gently. The red Wocky eyed them through the window with wild, suspicious eyes and then preceded to unbolt the seventeen various locks on the door. “Come in, come in. Make yourselves at home,” he said in a high-pitched voice. He was known throughout Meri Acres as being somewhat eccentric, but Zamrin and his friend had learned through first-hand experience that there was a lot more to him than that.
“Hi, Tylum.” The Eyrie waved and stepped in gingerly, wiping off her paws on the plain brown rug. “How are you?” she asked cheerily.
Zamrin brushed a paper off of his shoulder. “What is it?” he asked.
“The Space Station?” Kade interjected as Zamrin rubbed his throbbing shoulder.
“Yes, without question it is written in one of those newly-created dialects. Dear me, where in Neopia did you find it?” he asked incredulously.
Tylum had gotten out a drab, off-white piece of cloth and was copying the drawing onto it using an ink-tipped brush. “I hope you don't mind,” he said.
“No, no, go ahead,” the Kacheek replied.
“I'm not quite sure why really. I've just always thought it best to err on the side of caution.” He rolled up the cloth and stashed it in one of his piles. It was evident that he probably would have difficulty locating it again in the future, but he didn't seem to mind.
“Wonderful,” he said. “Now I have to get to work studying this, and I'll let you know what I come up with.” He was in such an excited hurry that he practically pushed them out the door.
In a few minutes, the two friends were airborne again. “Why would someone from the Space Station have anything to say to me?” Zamrin asked his friend the question that Tylum had not given him the opportunity to mention.
“They're all about hyping it up on the Space Station. They probably don't understand our simple way of life,” she suggested, landing neatly in front of Zamrin's little brown cottage.
“Not at all.” Kade took to the skies and waved. “Keep me posted!” she shouted as she flew off.
Zamrin yawned and turned to go back inside. He stopped. There was a faint glow coming from behind the house. He peeked around the corner to investigate, hardly believing his eyes as he saw a spaceship land in his backyard.