It was clear to Flash that he needed a plan for exploring this planet. He could easily spend a week or more within site of his ship. This was simply a random spot, and not even among the obvious geologic features that rose like huge coral reefs in the distance.
But first, lunch. He settled into the cockpit of the TNI2, and addressed the onboard computer, which was simply an extension of the network on the mother ship.
“I’d like a ham panini sandwich with goat cheese, please,” Flash stated into the handset.
“Certainly,” a voice responded. A few moments later, he opened a compartment and retrieved his lunch.
He felt strength returning as he ate, but before he finished, something happened.
It suddenly became dark, as though a storm cloud passed directly over him, and Flash looked up to see what meteorologic change was taking place.
It wasn’t a cloud.
Suspended there above his ship, like a Thanksgiving parade balloon, an enormous white whale hovered.
This was something Flash had never encountered or even heard of before, so he was at a bit of a loss as to what to do. Was there any danger?
He decided to face this head on, as was his typical response.
He stepped back out onto the now shaded but still bright ground, and walked out into the light to get a different view. This was the larger of the whales, and the other floated above it. Which part of a whale do you address?
He walked forward toward the mouth, and looked up to see the texture of ventral pleats bigger than hand hewn timbers, which narrowed and curved up toward the rostrum or bow of the giant.
He had to walk quite a ways forward of the animal in order to be able to see anything other than the underside of it, which hung in deep purple shadow, and twinkled all over with multi colored reflections from the gem encrusted plain below.
“Hello!” Flash called, unable to see a rider on its back. “Hello!” he hailed again.
The front tip of the whale lowered toward the ground and gradually the tail rose. As the whale became more and more vertical, the rider came into view, sliding down the dorsal ridge, and landed on his feet about midway between Flash and his ship.
Down came the calf, perpendicular to the other whale. It rolled its body and the other rider slid down its pectoral fin, landing on her feet as well.
He wore a white shirt and a black necktie, and she wore a pink dress. As they walked toward Flash, the whales drifted higher and higher into the atmosphere, and Flash watched them rise.
“Hello,” Flash said again, and as the whales vanished from view, the riders approached him.