Vietnam or Thailand ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
Updated: May 16, 2025
One of the Dusties hopped over into his lap and began gawking happily at the broad fields as the jeep jogged along. Pete stroked the creature's soft brown fur with his tar-caked fingers. "Maybe someday these little guys will show us where they go for the winter," he said. "They must have it down to a science." Somehow the idea was funny, and both men roared.
They seemed, somehow, to savor the atmosphere, moving about like solemn, fuzzy overseers as the work progressed through the summer. Pete Farnam thought that they had even tried to warn the people about the winter. But the colonists couldn't understand, of course. Not until later. The Dusties became a standing joke, and were tolerated with considerable amusement until the winter struck.
If the Dusties had anything down to a science, nobody knew what. Mario grinned and tweaked the creature's tail. "They sure do beat the winter, though," he said. "So do we. Only we have to do it the human way. These fellas grew up in the climate." Pete lapsed into silence as the village came into view.
The captain's car was first in line. He pulled up before the line with a screech of brakes, and stared at the sea of creatures before him. "Get out of there!" he shouted. The Dusties didn't move. The captain turned to his men. "Fire into them," he snapped. "Clear a path." There was a blaze of fire, and a half a dozen Dusties slid to the ground, convulsing.
It was an inexpert hand to say the least, but the Dusties seemed so proud of the little they were able to learn about mechanized farming that nobody had the heart to shoo them away. Pete watched the fuzzy brown creature get its paws thoroughly gummed up with tar before he pulled him loose and sent him back to the jeep with a whack on the backside.
The colonists made sure that the Dusties were granted the respect due them as rightful masters of Baron IV. And somehow the Dusties perceived this attitude, and were so grateful for the acceptance and friendship that there seemed nothing they wouldn't do for the colonists. There had been many discussions about them. "You'd think they'd resent our moving in on them," Jack Mario had said one day.
The colonists didn't stand a chance. Pete got his rifle and made his way up the rise of ground overlooking the right flank of the village. Squinting, he could spot the cloud of dust rising up near the glistening ship, moving toward the village. And then, for the first time, he realized that he hadn't seen any Dusties all day. It puzzled him.
All that remained now was tarring the fields, and then buckling down beneath the wind shields before the first winter storms struck. Pete was trying to get the nozzle of the tar sprayer cleaned out when Mario's jeep came roaring down the rutted road from the village in a cloud of dust. In the back seat a couple of Dusties were bouncing up and down like happy five-year-olds.
Even as he watched, the column grew thicker, like a heavy blanket being drawn across the road, a multitude of Dusties lining up. Pete's hair prickled on the back of his neck. They knew so little about the creatures, so very little. As he watched the brown carpet rolling out, he tried to think.
Pete said. "We have the run of their planet. They're quite harmless, really. And quite clean." The captain sniffed. "Nasty things. Might find a use for the furs, though. They look quite soft." "We don't kill Dusties," said Pete coolly. "They're friendly, and intelligent too, in a childish sort of way." He looked at the captain and Nathan, and decided not to put on the coffee pot.
Word Of The Day
Others Looking