The Search for Planet Ursis

“This is bad Tiff,” Dr. Beverly Beary, a bipedal bear from the planet Ursis, told her longtime friend as she sprinted through the alien jungle. Slimy projectiles were whizzing by as she ran.

“We’ve had worse,” Dr. Tiffany James, earth genius, responded glancing back. The trees were thin, tall, and bright orange with obnoxious neon green leaves, like a clowns dream of a jungle.

“We have not had worse!” screamed Beverly. Behind the intrepid explorers a wave of bright yellow slug-like creatures the size of rottweilers swarmed toward them. They looked like slugs, but they were much faster than that earth pest and they were more deadly too. They spit spikes covered in acid and were very territorial, which is problematic when you’re trying to get a map that is within their den. Beverly turned, drew her blaster, and fired into the mob. The creatures shrieked and oozed for cover.

“It will be easy you said,” she kept firing to keep the Luugas from continuing their chase, “grab the map and run for the river, you said, no problem, you said,” she mocked in a sing-song voice.

“We did get the map, didn’t we? We’re going to find your home planet Bev, Planet Ursis! I told you,” Tiffany drew her blaster and started firing at the slugs.

“I want to find my home planet Tiff I do, but fat lot of good it does us Tiff, if we die here. I swear, if I die by slug, I will haunt you forever!” Beverly told her grabbing a grenade from her belt. “

Tiffany rolled her eyes, “They aren’t slugs, they are…”

“REALLY? Not the time Tiff!” She pulled the pin on the grenade and threw it into the group of enemies. “Get Down!”

Tiffany threw herself to the ground next to her friend, “We need to get to the river. They won’t cross. If we can make it we can get to the ship and get off this awful planet.”

They both stood and started running again, the projectiles bouncing off the trees around them, they made it to the bank of the river.

“Go!” Beverly cried, and all but pushed her friend into the river. Tiffany dove into the river and swam as fast as she could, while Beverly fired into the on-coming enemies. As soon as Tiffany was across, she began to fire at the slugs. Beverly holstered her gun and leapt straight across the river. She grabbed Tiffany and pulled her into a hollow created by some downed trees.

Beverly popped up to check on the Luugas and cursed, “I thought you said they wouldn’t cross,” she growled.

“They shouldn’t cross, information dictates large amounts of water are toxic they can’t…” She faltered as she watched the Luugas use their weight to bend the trees over the river, “that’s fascinating.”

“Fascinating!? Fascinating Tiff? Ill show you fascinating,” she pulled the Gianto-Gun and started exploding Luugas. BOOM. BOOM. Tiffany was firing as well.

Despite our heroes trying their best the Luuugas were soon surrounding them. They were firing bolts at them and screeching with increasing urgency.

"This is bad Bev, really bad."

"Yea, I said that already" she growled, "Why are they screaming like that? They weren't making all that noise before."

"Wait. Bev, you’re a genius! I'll use the translaticater." She grabbed some headphones. She gasped, "Oh my god."

"What are they saying?" Bev asked.

"They are saying..."

“TIFFANY,” someone hollered from the back porch. “TIFFANY DINNER!”

“COMING MOM,” bellowed Tiffany. “Oh man, sorry Bev. We’ll have to finish tomorrow.” Tiffany, a 6-year-old with red hair and freckles, gathered up her stuffed bear, ran out of the trees, and the two of them went to dinner.