Fire Fly Air Force-Chapter 15

Posted on 15/08/2010 by Grumpa Joe

Chapter 15

Morty arrived at the arbor vitae to find the fireflies waiting for him.

“Let’s talk,” he said. “Does anyone here know Luke?”

“Yes,” answered Jaime. “He is my commander. We fly together. Luke taught me aerobatics and gave me a squadron of fliers. We grew up together from the time we were glow worms.”

“I know him too,” answered Torch. “So do all of the others here.”

“This is his mother, Nancy,” Morty said. “I’m taking her to see Luke. Does anyone know where he is?”

“Yes,” answered a young firefly from the back of the crowd.

“Who are you?”

“I’m Flash.”

“Where is he?” asked Nancy.

“I can only vouch for where he was just before they captured us. I am one of his students. He sent me to study with Jaime and his squadron. Follow me.”

“Better yet, jump on my scooter and show us the way, we will all go together,” said Morty.

Flash sat on Skye’s nose while Nancy rode on Morty’s curl. Torch and the others rested on the dashboard. Morty drove Skye by watching signals from Flash. They were flying over the yard where the Phyros lived when Flash signaled to land in the next yard.

“Oh my,” exclaimed Nancy, “I hope there aren’t any Phyros here. They live very close by.”

“I grew up here,” said Flash. “We fight with the Phyros all of the time. They always come to our yard hoping to capture us.”

“Why would Luke live here?” said Nancy. “I taught him better than to flirt with danger? He knows how dangerous the Phyros are, ever since they killed his father.”

Morty landed at the edge of the yard near the cover of a pivot hedge. Immediately, Flash turned on his light to signal his friends. It was only a short time before a squad of three fireflies buzzed by blinking their lights.

“Follow them,” instructed Flash. Morty hovered with Skye then slowly inched forward after the trio.

“They are a new squad just out of school,” said Flash. “Watch how shaky they are when they make a turn. They haven’t learned to trust each other yet, but they will.”

“How do you know that?” asked Morty.

Flash explained that when he graduated from flight school a month ago, his squad was equally shaky.

“We spent hours every night practicing. When we gained confidence and trusted each other, our squad was good enough to compete in the games.”

“They surely did,” answered Jaime. “Flash and his team became the best.”

The trio flew into the dark space between two boughs of a Pfitzer tree. Morty hovered next to the tree as Jaime, Flash, Nancy, and all of the others from the scooter flew into the same dark space.

“I’ll wait here,” Morty said.

Inside the dark recesses of the tree were hundreds of fireflies. The tree was like a busy skyscraper. Beetles milled about on every bough. Some flew from one branch to the other. Some just walked up the trunk. Others rested on the foliage.

Nancy followed Jaime and Flash to the very top of the tree. They flew up, zigzagging to miss the branches sticking out of the trunk. Their taillights were dark.

Near the top branch, Luke and Bonnie enjoyed a feast of aphids and mosquitoes in a nectar sauce.

“Mom,” shouted Luke when he spotted Nancy. “What are you doing here?” Mother and son flashed their taillights in a dim glow as they hugged each other.

“I was worried about my son,” said Nancy. “I had to see you to know you were okay. I heard through Celia that you put on some fancy shows. Most of all, I heard that you are dating Celia’s daughter Bonnie.”

“That’s true Mom,” said Luke. “Mom, I want you to meet Bonnie. Bonnie, this is my mother Nancy.”

“I’m so happy to meet you Nancy,” said Bonnie. “My mother has talked about you often.”

“We’ve been friends for a long time,” said Nancy, “ever since you and Luke were glow-worms.”

“You girls talk while I check in with Jaime and Flash.”

Luke listened while Jaime told the story of his capture during their aerobatics routine. Torch told him about his rescue from the Phyros.

“Did you ever find Morty Angel?” asked Luke.

“Yes, I did, he is the one who brought us here.”

“He did?”

“He is waiting for us outside,” said Torch.

“Take me to him.” Torch led Luke out of the Pfitzer to meet Morty.

Morty liked Luke immediately. Luke had a way about him that endeared him to anyone he met. Perhaps it was his robust personality, or his youthful good looks, or his shining yellow tail light that made him so popular. Whatever it was, it did not matter. Morty liked him.

“Torch told me about your aerobatics skills.”

“They aren’t that good.”

“Why don’t we put on a show for Morty?” said Flash.

“Yes,” said Jaime, “we could regroup the squads and have a competition.”

“That would be great,” said Torch. “I never saw a complete competition before. I was too busy looking for Morty all summer.”

“Luke,” said Morty, “I would love to watch the air force put on their show, please?”

“Oh, all right.” replied Luke. He asked Torch to have Air Force meet at the Pfitzer yard the following night. Torch flew off immediately, his bright tail light blinking the signal that was the call to the air force. Luke told Jaime to find Lenny, and to tell him to get the squads ready to fly.

“Will you stay and dine with us Morty?” said Luke.

“Yes, I will.”

Bonnie and Nancy came out of the Pfitzer with a legion of ants. The ants brought the fireflies a feast.

After they finished eating, Morty spoke.

“Luke, I have a big favor to ask.”

“What is it?”

“I want your help to deliver a special message.”

To Be Continued . . .

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No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means, including those yet to be invented or discovered, without permission in writing from the publisher and author.

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Fire Fly Air Force-Chapter 13

Posted on 13/08/2010 by Grumpa Joe

Chapter 13

The news that Stretch found Morty did not reach Torch. He kept flashing his message repeatedly. Each night he flew to a new bush. He moved so often that he was lost. Torch could not get back to Stretch at all. He kept flashing his signals from different bushes. He had to find Morty Angel. Torch was tired but very determined. He wanted to go home, but could not.

The night after the rainstorm, Torch landed in a new yard. He began sending his signals when he saw something very special. He saw Jaime and his squadron practicing. “How beautiful they look,” he thought. “I’ve never seen such precise flying and signaling.” Torch knew his own gift of the extra bright light was special, but he wished he could fly like Jaime.

Torch saw some kids come out of the house. He watched as the kids began capturing fireflies. He watched a young girl catch the lead flier. She put him in a bottle. The kids came closer, and closer.

I better shut down and get out of here, he told himself.

Swoosh! A hand swept right under him just as he flew up with his light out. Torch kept flying higher and higher until a breeze caught him and carried him out of the yard.

Torch spread his wings, and soared with the wind. He turned on his light again, and began signaling as he flew. His goal was to find Morty, and he could not stop.

The yards looked smaller from high above. He could see where he just escaped. The kids were still running around capturing lightening bugs. He saw segments of the Fire fly Air Force streaking to the yard next door where the flashing lights of fireflies signaled danger and panic.

The signal lights coming from ahead seemed calm and familiar. Torch decided to drop into the safety of the friendly flashes. What Torch did not know is that a family of Phyro fire flies inhabited this yard. The Phyros are cannibals. They use friendly flashes to lure unsuspecting fireflies to come to them.

Torch dove to break out of the breeze. As he dropped, he let the current carry him toward the friendly flashes. His tail light blinked the message as he flew toward the Phyros. The hungry cannibals continued to blink friendly flashes to guide him to certain death.

To Be Continued . . .

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Fire Fly Air Force-Chapter 10

Posted on 10/08/2010 by Grumpa Joe

Chapter 10

          As Morty scooted to find Torch, and while Nancy waited, it began to rain. The rain grounded the air force. It poured down in buckets, and lightening replaced firefly taillights in the sky.

      The gardener could not use the “spray” to kill insects when it rained. The fresh moisture combined with the heat forced new leaves to grow on the damaged plants. Almost overnight, the garden started to look good again. The Gardener would not have to spray after all.

          The next day it stopped raining. After the sun came out, it became very hot and humid. Gardens love the sun, the moisture, and the heat. So did the Fire Fly Air Force. It was easier to fly and their taillights worked very well in the humidity.

          Jaime and his squad were leading the show on this night. The air force moved from the yard in which they lived. They moved to get away from the possibility of the spray. Luke did not get the news that the Gardener changed his plan to spray. Luke would not take a chance anyway. His mother would never forgive him if she found out that he was the reason for the spray. The Firefly Air Force moved to a new yard. They left everything behind. Bonnie followed Luke.

          The squadron took off at dusk, their taillights blinking brightly. The insects in this yard were not familiar with the air force, and not many watched as Jaimie and his squadron did their routine flawlessly. They were having lots of fun chasing each other, and practicing their formations, and tricks for the upcoming games. They were too busy to notice that a couple of kids came out of the house onto the patio.

          Jaime was flying a slow inverted loop with his taillight on full. He enjoyed the aerobatics. When he flew with the squad, he concentrated totally on the routine. He did not allow any distractions. He was in a zone this evening; the formations came easy to the team. Suddenly, everything went black.

     “I got one,” he heard someone say. He felt himself thrust forward faster than he could fly; Jaime blacked out.

          When Jaime finally awoke, dozens of fireflies were all around him. All of them were blinking their taillights and crying.

     “Let us out, let us go home, I need air,” he heard them scream.

He pulled himself together and took off. Wham! He hit something hard, and fell over backwards. Jaime lay there, on his back, stunned and confused. What Jaime did not know is that someone captured him, and placed him into a glass bottle prison.

To Be Continued . . .

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Fire Fly Air Force-Chapter 7

Posted on 07/08/2010 by Grumpa Joe

Chapter 7

          The Firefly Air Force grew larger every night. Luke split the training. It was too much for one firefly to handle. He gave Lennie and Jaime a squadron of fireflies to train. Each squadron practiced separately. At the end of the week, Luke called a meeting with Lennie and Jaime.

      “Are your squadrons ready for some games?”

      “What kind of games?”

       Luke explained that each squad would fly in front of the insect audience. By now, thousands of insects gathered in the lawn every night. They crawled all over the shrubs and trees to get a view of the Firefly Air Force practicing their aerobatics.

          Each squad leader taught his fliers the same maneuvers that Luke taught them. They flew straight up in spirals then they dived down toward the ground pulling up just before crashing. They flew in vee-formations, in straight lines, or stacked one on top of the other. All the time their lights blinking or holding steady.

          The three squads competed every week. Their show became better each time. The insect crowds were getting larger too. It was not very long before the insects ate most of the lush vegetation around the show. Soon word got out that the Gardener was upset. The many insects damaged his plants. A Japanese beetle spread the word to everyone that he heard the Gardener say the word “spray.”

          Panic ran through the insect world. A spray would kill thousands of families. Some bugs packed up and moved immediately. Others decided to ride out the storm. They were not going to leave their homes because of a “little spray.”

          Torch heard the rumors too. He began to panic. He had not found Morty Angel and the summer was ending, and now the threat of the spray hung over him. Soon, Torch and the fireflies would disappear until next summer. His new friend Stretch will tunnel deep into the earth to escape the cold, and he will not be able to deliver the message to Morty Angel.

          The vibrations kept coming to Stretch every day. First, it said, “Find Morty Angel,” then it changed to “find Morty Angel and give him the message.” Now it was “This is God, I have a message for Morty Angel.” When Stretch told Torch, he became excited. He became so excited

that his tail light blinked the brightest flash ever. It always blinked extra bright when he was nervous. The bright light caught Stretch off guard. It frightened him. He snapped back into his hole afraid to come out. Stretch did not appear again until the next night.

      “Is it safe to come out? Your light is too bright for me.”

     “Yes, please come out, is there anything new?”

     “Yes,” replied Stretch as he pulled his tail free from the hole, “The vibrations are very clear. I know what the message is.”

     “What is it?”

      “What was that,” asked Stretch? “It is thunder. A storm is coming. Let’s take cover while I explain what the message is.”

To Be Continued . . .

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Fire Fly Air Force-Chapter 2

Posted on 02/08/2010 by Grumpa Joe

Chapter 2.

Throughout the firefly world, the word spread that Luke was an expert flier. He also had a special talent. Luke could turn his light on quickly, and often. Most fireflies had a slow light, but Luke’s light blinked rapidly. He also had the energy to make his flashes repeat often.

Luke, Lenny, and Jaime became inseparable. Every evening they flew together doing spirals and dives. They used their taillights to signal each other while they did their aerobatics. Their favorite sport was hunting mosquitoes. The mosquitoes were very jittery fliers, and catching one was hard. Luke flew ahead of Jaime, and Lenny blinking his light to attract attention. When a mosquito came after Luke, Lennie or Jaime would pick it off in midair. The trio then landed to have a snack.

All of the fireflies on the ground watched as Luke led his friends in amazing aerobatics. They wished they could fly and blink the same way.

At the far corner of the yard, a night crawler inched his way out of the ground into the grass. It is a nightly ritual for him. His name is Stretch. Night crawlers are large earthworms that live in the ground. They move about tunneling through the soil by expanding their body to enlarge the hole. After the hole is larger, they stretch. They pull the rest of their bodies forward. As they move, they swallow the soil in front of them. The worm digests the organic matter in the soil while non-organic matter is cast from their long bodies. The skin on an earthworm has many tiny fingers that are sensitive, to heat, light, and touch. Since earthworms do not have eyes, they rely on their sensors to feel their way about.

On this night, Stretch came out of the ground

for two reasons. First, he wanted to eat grass, and second he was to deliver a message. Stretch received the message in his sensors through vibrations in the ground. He did not know where the vibrations came from. He knew the message was special, and he would have to deliver it. Stretch lay munching on grass when a firefly named Torch landed nearby. Torch got his name from his mother. She named him after his tail light, which glowed brighter than any other firefly’s. It was even brighter than Luke’s was. Torch was an average flier, but his light was a bright yellow. They could see his flashes from across the yard.

The worm sensed the glow coming from Torch’s tail, and slowly stretched his way toward him. Torch was snacking on a drop of nectar when Stretch wiggled up to him.

“Hi,” said Stretch, “Don’t be afraid, I eat grass not beetles.”

“What do you want?”

“I have to deliver a message, and I need your help.”

“How can I help?”

“A fire fly can fly and send signals, can’t he?”

“Yeah. So what?”

“Help me find Morty Angel.”

With that, Stretch snapped back into his hole. He was afraid Torch would come after him in anger. Stretch peeped back out of the hole.

“Whom do you expect me to find?”

“Morty Angel,” he said.

“Who is Morty Angel?”

“I don’t know.”

“Then how am I supposed to find him?” asked Torch.

Stretched inched his way out of the hole once Torch had calmed down.

“All I know is that I’m supposed to find Morty Angel. I have to give him a message from God. The vibrations I am getting are clear. You are the first one I found to ask for help.”

Stretch was tired after digging and eating dirt all day. All he wanted was to come out of the tunnel, breath rich fresh air, and to eat some freshly cut grass. The grass was like eating steak after sifting through all that dirt looking for organic matter to eat. Stretch and his friends worked day and night digging tunnels. The tunnels serve as channels for water to feed the roots of the grass, shrubs, and trees.

Torch, on the other hand, lived above ground hiding in shrubbery during the day. Eating nectar from the flowers was his favorite activity. He had to be careful not to let the Phyro family flashes fool him. The Phyros were not friendly like Torch’s family. They mimicked Torch’s flashes to lure him to them. If he fell for the trick, The Phyro fireflies would eat him. Phyros are cannibals, and the Lucerns are not. Torch is a Lucern.

Torch flashed his tail light. Stretch sensed the bright light, and snapped back into his hole. After Torch finally killed his light, Stretch began to wiggle out again.

“Wow,” he said, “that is a bright light.” “Why is your light so much brighter than all of the other fireflies?

“My parents had bright lights too; In fact, everyone in my family has bright lights.”

“Use your light to find Morty Angel., Signal to all of the fireflies to find Morty Angel.”

“What do we do if we find him?

“Send him to see me; I will give him the message directly. I’ll come out of the ground every night at dark, and stay here next to the lilac bush.”

“I’ll do my best,” answered Torch.

Torch flew to the top of the Lilac bush and began signaling. Soon, a small group of his cousins came and asked, “What is happening?” Torch explained and asked them to spread the word, “Find Morty Angel, and send him to Stretch the worm.”

The word spread all over the yard, and into the next, and the next. The fireflies spread the word throughout the insect world of the night. Within a few hours, the search for Morty Angel progressed across the town through all of the yards, “Find Morty Angel for Stretch.”

To Be Continued . . .

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