h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Chapter 12

Over the next three weeks my life settled into a pattern. Mornings were spent at insanely difficult exercises that involved rowing, running, martial arts, and many other thins too gruesome to mention. I had never been a jock, and I certainly wasn't a morning person, but they told me I was improving fast even so.

Every afternoon I would accompany Andrea Doria and Amy to the wildlife preserve for a couple hours of tree worship, though I didn't dare call it that when the other two were around. Andrea had a rich contralto singing voice which she would use to help the tree relax. I could almost see its branches reaching toward her when she sang. At first I could not place the tune, but suddenly I realized that it bore a strong resemblance to "I talk to the trees."

"What's next, 'Secret Life of Plants: The Musical?'" I muttered to myself more than once.
I can't deny, however, that I was gradually beginning to feel something when I concentrated on the tree. Thoughts would come into my head that had never been there before. After a while, I noticed that the tree would reach toward me when I thought pleasant thoughts about it.

"The tree is starting to like you, Owen," Andrea told me one day.

"If this is a new species of tree, is there a scientific name for it?" I asked her

"Your uncle called it the Oracle Tree," she replied. "Once we reach the island and find out whether there are others of its species, we are hoping to call it Arborvilla, after the house-shaped cones that grow on the oracle Tree's branches."

I looked closely and saw that there were, indeed, tiny houses growing here and there.

Evenings were devoted to rest or social outings. We even flew to Maui and Oahu occasionally to see the sights, though these were mostly indoors because there was no long twilight of he sort I was used to back home. Once the sun went down, it became dark almost immediately.

I was also gradually getting to know the others in the group. The two flight attendants were named Starr Buckman and Tish Maelstrom, names which bore a suspicious resemblance to crew members in Melville's "Moby Dick." When I brought this up, they laughed and reminded me that I, too, was named after a Melville character, namely Captain Ahab.

"What nonsense!" I exclaimed at the suggestion, but they only laughed some more and told me that BAHAMA, my last name, was AMAHAB when it was spelled backwards.

"Relax, Owen," Starr said, "They aren't our real names. Your uncle just wanted to get us in the mood for exploring."

"That's all well and good," I admitted, "but almost everyone dies at the of 'Moby Dick,' or so I've heard. Why couldn't the explorers be named after people who didn't drown or get harpooned?"

They just shrugged, so I ambled over to the bar. Pippi Patel, the bartender, listened sympathetically while Richard Parker, her oversized orange tiger cat, rubbed against he legs.

I found three typos *after* I posted this. I usually catch them and correct them....

It's all that exercising, I tell you. Either that or the tree is playing tricks with your mind

[Amy P]

I wonder if it will be revealed later in the story how the tree cones became shaped like houses.

The houses turn out to be significant once the explorers get to the island....

I'm enjoying this

Martial arts training... Do elaborate.