Part 10

Exhausted from their search, AMPerkins and VIA headed back home vowing to start searching again in a few hours after they could get a little rest. AMPerkins called Heatherperk's mother and she hurried over to pick up Hannah and watch her until they could find her daughter and Rabadaba. She was heartbroken at the idea of losing her daughter so soon after her husband had passed away but she put on a brave face so she wouldn't scare Hannah and promised they would have great fun together. They thanked Liv for coming to watch Hannah and  Heatherperk's mother walked Liv back home to her mother, acrogodess's den while taking Hannah home with her. 

 VIA jumped out of his travel fish bowl and stayed the night in the pond next to the den so he would be ready to go back out on the search whenever AMPerkins needed him to.  AMPerkins shuffled into his den feeling like a failure at his inability to save his beloved wife. A tear ran down his furry cheek as he gazed at a photo hanging on the wall of Heatherperk when she was pregnant with their cub Hannah. She had been so proud to finally become a mama bear and that pride shone through in her smile. 

He laid down on their bed which seemed too empty without her next to him. He pulled her pillow over to him and hugged it close to his chest while breathing in deeply. The pillow smelled faintly of her shampoo and the scent was soothing to him. He drifted into a fitful sleep hoping he would find her the next day. 

...

Meanwhile Rabadaba and Heatherperk huddled together in the dark. Suddenly a flickering light from a fire shown through some bars next to them. The soft light illuminated around them enough for them to realize they were in some sort of makeshift cage made from branches and vines. Peering out through the bars, they noticed a group of strange looking green creatures dancing around a fire in the distance. "Who are they?" Rabadaba softly whispered, hoping the creatures couldn't hear him from that distance. 

As quietly as she could Heatherperk quickly explained "I've heard of these creatures. They are aliens from another planet called I.F. They stories I've heard have not been pleasant. They invade other planets and take over due to their large armies. Once they have taken over a planet, they turn it into a dark, hateful place where the inhabitants are overwhelmed with offensive, discriminatory material."

"Why would they have captured us," Rabadaba pondered. Heatherperk thought for a while, then formulated her theory. "We must have stumbled onto the area they were camping to prepare for their invasion. They probably worried that we would discover them and have a chance to warn the others and ruin the surprise attack. We have to find a way to get a message to the others so they can prepare!" 

For a while Rabadaba and Heatherperk quietly tested the cage attempting to find a weakness that would allow them to escape to warn their friends. Unfortunately the aliens proved to be excellent at building cages and they could find any way to get out. Heatherperk looked up in despair worried that it was a lost cause. That's when she noticed a small red light hovering up yo them. 

Nudging Rabadaba she pointed out the light as it neared them. In a faint whisper she told him "that must be 2br02b's drone. She must be using it to look for us. We can use the drone to get a message back to her if only we can figure out how. I don't think the camera on there has a microphone." Digging in his pockets, Rabadaba pulled out a pencil and some paper and handed them to Heatherperk. 

Smiling at him, she quickly scribbled a nite that read "Captured by aliens from I.F. Must be planning an attack. Be prepared. R & H". When the drone hovered close enough, she held the note up in from of the camera hoping 2br02b could read it well enough in the dim light. The drone hovered in place for a bit in front of the note until suddenly it moved up and down almost as if it was nodding. Heatherperk hugged Rabadaba and whispered "I think she got the message! We're saved!"

...

Meanwhile huddled over a small screen, 2br02b the squirel was controlling her drone searching the forest for her missing friends. Suddenly she saw them and almost jumped for joy until she noticed they were trapped in some sort of cage. She noticed Heatherperk holding a small note up to the camera and quickly read it. She maneuvered the drone to    Indicate that she had received their message. Then she set it to autopilot to fly home. Her friends were in trouble and she had a lot to do. 

Grabbing a scarf because it was  getting cold outside, she leaped through the hole she used as a door and scurried down the side of the tree. Her friends were in trouble and they needed her. The forest was gravely quiet as all the other animals slept but her. She hurried along the forest floor as fast as she could. She didn't have much time, but she needed to raise and army to save her friends and their beloved planet from the invasion.