Taterskin & The Eco Defenders: Book 2, Chapter 4
Book 2 ("Tell It to Future Generations"), Chapter 4
CHAPTER 4
“I was thinking that might be the decision — to bring the pups along — so I have been working in my shop, nights, on a second time & space vehicle,” Albert said. “We would not all be able to have our own seats, otherwise, as the Zenia Zephyr only seats eight comfortably, and there are fourteen of us ... so far.
“In order to cut to the chase (remember what happened last time), I came up with a name for the new vehicle. If you all approve, or at least don’t strongly object to it, it will bear the name Androcles.”
“‘And row, please’? What kind of name is that?” Terri the Pterodactyl asked. “And why do we need to row, anyway? Isn’t it going to whoosh through the air like the Zephyr?” Terri wondered how she would be able to row with the tiny fingers she had attached to the middle of her wings.
“He didn’t say, ‘And row, please,’ Terri, he said ‘Androcles’,” Rinky the Duck-billed Platypus explained.
“The Androcles is named for some Greek guy, I take it?” Rinky asked (she thought that her species was partly named after another ‘Greek guy,’ Plato).
“Well ... sort of,” Albert answered. “Androcles was the fella who relieved the suffering of a Lion by extracting a large and painful sliver that was stuck in the Lion’s paw.”
“Then what happened?” Marmalade asked.
“The Lion then left Androcles — without harming him, of course — but never forgot the help the man had given him. Later they met in a Roman arena, which Androcles had been forced to enter to fight a duel to the death against the Lion. The Lion had likewise been captured for the purpose of entertaining the degraded masses. Although it had been years since they had met, the Lion recognized the man and, rather than attacking him, approached him on the run and hugged him. Androcles, who had thought he was a ‘goner’ when he saw the wild beast rushing toward him, then gave the critter a closer look, and recognized him also.
“The audience was awed. For the sadistic among them, there was no joy in ‘Bloodville’ that day. Moved by the touching scene, the emperor pardoned them both, and they were allowed to leave the arena together, Androcles with his arm around the Lion’s mane.
“It could be that Rory is a direct descendant of that Lion. As for Androcles, he is a distant cousin of mine,” Albert said.
This was true, because every human is a cousin of every other human, albeit usually a distant one.
We were all enthralled with the story, and got the point of it: When animals and people help each other, a trusting relationship is forged between them, and peace ensues and persists. The Eco Defenders are a modern-day example of cross-species cooperation.
It probably doesn’t surprise you that we all found the name Androcles for the new time & space vehicle to be a fitting one, and gave it our wholehearted support. Being reminded of the great work that can be accomplished with mutual love and respect between the species, we were now ‘fired up’ about our upcoming trip. But Alexis had a question.
Taterskin & The Eco Defenders (in paperback, kindle, or hardcover) is available here.