The Targofians go to the Zoo!

A little over a year after Ripar and friends left to go back home they headed back to Earth. Things were looking up on Targof, the dirt and water samples Vocar took started them on revitalizing their planet. The seeds they got helped them plant beautiful new crops and the recipes they brought back made some mind-blowing food that their people loved. Ripar was missing his Earth friends. He was an orphan so he really didn't have family on Targof. He had good friends, but the closeness and warmth he found in his human friends was special.

Raj and Vocar felt it too, but they had their place on Targof. They’d visit with Ripar, but they were needed on their planet. Since Earth was found and it seems to be the planet, they needed to help them fix theirs Ripar really didn’t have much else to do. Sure, he’d go out on scout missions, but they weren’t as much fun anymore. Ripar asked if he could permanently live on Earth...if his friends wanted him to. The council has been thinking about sending Targofians for long-term placement on Earth to learn about the cultures and see if at some point maybe they could introduce themselves to the Humans and be allies, and friends. Ripar asked if he could be part of this mission, and after discussions, the council agreed it was beneficial to send some of their people on long-term missions and they gave the okay that Ripar could join.

Ripar was excited, and even better Vocar and Raj could join him for a short while for a little vacation as a thank you for a job well done. Ripar would take his own ship while Raj and Vocar would take a separate one so they could come back after a few weeks of leave. Vocar told Ripar She installed updated sensors on his ship, they’re 500 times more powerful, they had a much greater range as well. She also updated the camera on the ship, It now can see farther. She also put some weapons on the ship, just in case. The council was afraid if they found Earth then others will too and the Earth weapons were insignificant compared to what other species have, so all the ships the Targofians take to Earth will now have weapons and updated systems.

Ripar, Vocar, and Raj got what they needed together and headed off to Earth. With the ship's FTL drive it takes a little under a week to make the trip, the ships docked with each other so they could hang out together.

“We’re getting close, there’s Earth.” Ripar said with excitement

Vocar and Raj looked at the screen and saw the blue ball in the sky.

“Cloaking.” Raj said as the ships vanished.

My ship’s cloaked too. “Ripar told Vocar “Ripar to Jodi, Mike and John, are you there?”

“Yes, we are, how are you doing? When are you coming back?” Jodi said

Ripar the ships undocked with each other phased and landed by the ranch.

“Come outside!” Ripar said

The group ran out to see the cloaked ship's doors opened and the aliens walked out.

“What a surprise! We’re so glad to see you!” Jodi said giving Ripar a hug. Mike and John gave Vocar and Raj hugs and then they switched until everyone got a hug.

“I got some news.” Ripar said Our council decided to let some Targofians stay on Earth to learn about you and try and ease into relations.

“And you guys are part of it?” Mike asked

“Well, I am, but Raj and Vocar are just here on vacation for a few weeks.”

“I’m sorry all of you can’t stay, you’ll visit when you can I hope?” Jodi asked

“Sure, we will, you can’t keep us away from our favorite planet...next to Targof that is.

“Ripar, that’s great you get to stay. You can stay with us as long as you want.” John said patting Ripar on the back.

“I appreciate that. I’m going to have to find work. The good thing though is that I can fly anywhere around your planet to do that and come back here when work is done.” Ripar said with a wink

“This is true. So, what do you want to do while you’re here?” Jodi asked

“Well, I’d like to see the different species of animals you have on Earth.”

“We could take a trip to the San Diego Zoo and Sea World? There are a lot of different animals both land and sea you can see there.”

“That would be wonderful. Just let us know when you have time to go. Do you need help around the farm?” Raj asked

“Thing's are a little slow now since winter is coming. We should get snow soon. We have a few things to do, we can leave tomorrow?” Mike said

“Ok, that sounds great. Put us to work.” Ripar smiled

The next day they finished up the chores they had to do and got ready to leave. The gang entered one of the ships and they took off. The humans were so excited to go on another adventure with their alien friends. They watched as the land below zoomed past at lightning speed and in no time, they were in San Diego. Raj set the ship to lower them down in a safe area then to find a safe place to park.

“When we went to Hawaii you had to find a safe place to land, drip us off then the ship would go off and land.” Jodi curiously asked

“The new artificial intelligence in the ships now can do it all, drip us off, find a place to land and when we call the ship it’ll come and pick us up. Just a few new modifications were put on all ships. It was only military ships got these upgrades because the council didn’t think they were important to have on all ships, but now since some of our people are staying on Earth, the council thought we need them.” Raj explained

“Amazing!” Said John.

The friends decided to go to the Zoo first and they’d go to Sea World tomorrow. They bought tickets and entered the park. The aliens were amazed at all of the animals Earth had. They saw the big cats and monkeys, apes, elephants, giraffes, zebras, hippos and so much more. Ripar though was really interested in the birds, the Macaws in particular. The beautiful and colorful birds really caught his eye. He was sad to read they were endangered. He sat there and watched them for over an hour, only his hunger pulled him away.

The gang ate, talked, and laughed, but Ripar while still having fun had the Macaws on his mind. They went all around the zoo; they saw every animal they could before it closed. After they left, they got something to eat, then went to the beach, sat, and watched the waves. The humans started getting cold so they had the ship pick them up, they were tired and their feet hurt after the day they had.

“I don’t know if I’ll be able to walk that much again tomorrow.” Jodi said and the other humans agreed

“I have something that can help. Lay on these beds and when I’m done your pains will be gone.” Vocar said

“What is this? How come you didn’t show us this last time you were with us?” Mike asked

“Well, remember when we went to the desert and I put that shield layering over you? The machine had to scan your body to get the right mixture and with that scan, I was able to come up with some new things that can benefit humans. Muscle regeneration is one of them.” Vocar explained with a smile

The humans just seemed to stand there speechless. They laid on the med bay beds and a light ray washed over them. It seemed to tingle a bit, but in a good way. After a few minutes the ray shut off and they stood up.

“I feel great! No aches or pains, I feel 10 years younger. The ache I always felt in my leg after breaking it is gone too.” John said

“Yes, your leg is fixed. It didn’t heal properly, but now it is.” Vocar said

“Thank you!” John said

“And Jodi, you had a little heart murmur, it’s fixed. Mike your cholesterol was high, your arteries were clogged. They’re fixed. In time you would have needed an operation. The rest of you had some minor clogging, you’re all good now.”

“This is amazing. Thank you!” Jodi said hugging Vocar

The aliens just smiled and Vocar winked.

“I keep thinking about the Macaws. Ripar said, “There are less than 400 wild scarlets’ left in the world.”

“Did they not feel safe at the zoo?” John asked

“They are safe, but they’re not free. They said they were happy though, but I wonder if they’d be happier in the wild with their kind.”

“Ripar, there are many animals that are endangered around the world. It’s sad, some endangered because they’re hunted, some because of climate, some become of other reasons. A lot of those reasons are man-made ones, but unfortunately, we can’t save them all.” Jodi said putting her army around Ripar

“Well, maybe that will be my job, to try and save as many as I can. I have a ship that can do it, maybe I can find other Targofians who will help.”

“By doing this you leave us open to being found out. If animals start to disappear, what are humans going to think? The council will never allow it. We’ll try and think of something to help them. For now, we have to keep with the plan, let our people assimilate into human society first. What I can do now is send a small drone into their habitat, I’ll set it somewhere cloaked and the humans will never see it and you can watch over them. Ok?” Raj said

“Ok, You’re right.”

“Let’s get some rest. Tomorrow we go to Sea World.”

The next morning, they woke up feeling rested and refreshed. The group got ready then went to have breakfast before heading to Sea World.

With their bellies filled they walked around the park. They saw dolphin shows, whale shows, and all of the aquatic animal's Sea World had to offer. On their planet they don’t have any sea animals because they don’t have much water on their planet and the water, they do have is unusable without highly treating it. That will hopefully change soon. Even though a lot of the Earth is going through a drought, they still have what it takes to make more, there are still clouds and moisture in the air. On Targof the land is dry, the air is dry and what little water they have is drying up. There is no life, not even bacteria in the water. Hopefully soon this won’t be so, their scientists with the help of what they found on Earth think they’re close to a solution to jump start their planet again and to be able to create freshwater. If they can do this, they can hopefully help Earth too.

“Now you’re going to see one of my favorites, the Penguins.” Jodi said

The aliens saw them and knew why they were one of Jodi’s favorite sea creatures. They waddle when they walk, the cute little black and white bodies, they were adorable.

Are they birds? They don’t have feathers? They don’t seem to be able to fly?” Vocar asked

They are sea birds, but no they can't fly. They love the cold.

A couple of them ran and slid on their bellies, there were more swimming in the icy water and a bunch of them standing around, looking like they’re having a conversation. The aliens thought they were funny and cute. A human walked in their habitat with food and a bunch of them crowded around her. She gave them little fish to eat and smiled. Then she looked up at the group and waved at them, the group waved back. After feeding them, she left. They spent some time watching the penguins, after a while, John mentioned getting some churros and hot chocolate, and that’s what they did.

After taking a little break, eating and talking and laughing about the penguins Jodi said “Now let's go see my other favorite...the sea otters!”

The group made their way to the otter habitat. They were swimming around, playing with toys, the aliens loved them too.

“Look at those two floating on their backs and holding hands.” Jodi pointed out with an “AWWWW”

“Look at that one doing rolls in all directions.” John said pointing

The humans looked at their alien friends and then at each other and smiled. They were so happy which made the humans happy. They felt so close to their new friends like they were family.

They walked around the park more, saw as many animals as they could before the park closed. The humans were tired and asked if they could do their magic on them again.

Vocar laughed “Sure, we can go back to the ship and rest a bit before we eat. It’ll also allow me to finish the report I started yesterday and I’ll finish the one for today, tomorrow.”

“You’re on vacation and you’re still writing reports?” Mike asked

“Yes, they’re not difficult, just sending some pictures and reading we got while at the parks and reporting about the animals. It’s actually fun, it’ll show our people how diverse your planet is. Our teachers told us of a time when our planet was thriving. I hope it will once again.” Vocar commented

“It will, from what I see you’ve done with technology, I know you’ll figure out how to fix your planet. I’m just glad you found Earth to get you closer to doing so, and also we got to meet you.” Jodi's heart warningly said and the two men agreed.

After resting and using their tech to rejuvenate the humans they went to eat dinner at a nearby Mexican restaurant. The aliens love human food, it was so much better than what any other species had. The recipes they made on their planet were good but not as good as the authentic meals they had on Earth. The people on their planet didn’t know any difference, they just loved the new tastes they were experiencing. Even the Elders smiled and had fun while eating and drinking the new foods that were created. One day hopefully Targofians and Humans can be friends and learn from each other.

After eating the group went back to the ranch and the humans went to bed. Vocar worked on her reports while Ripar and Raj relaxed and watched human movies. This was a good weekend and they were happy!