Choose Your Own Adventure

Bobby gives me a toothy grin as we wait in silence for the countdown to begin. I know I have made the right choice of copilot, I think Bobby is going to be a fantastic help to me during the mission. The booming countdown fills the air and as I hear the words "Blast Off",the warmth and vibrations of this rocket ship propelling into the unknown rise up through my body like the rising sun. We are cruising now, the earth shrinking behind us in the watery sky, like a bath bomb fizzing to nothing. Mouth open, I watch the spectacular scenery slowly scroll across the window frame, like an ever changing work of art.

The rattling ship splutters and hurtles towards the Earth's atmosphere. I hope we survive this, nuts and bolts are being stripped from the shell of the ship and alarms are ringing in my ears. Sweat drips down my face as our speeding fireball re enters the atmosphere, I breathe a sigh of relief, until.....

The engine fails, time stands still and there is nothing but silence. My stomach lurches as the rocket rolls and spirals, totally out of control, like a tornado. Sizzling, and steaming we are submerged in the icy depths of this choppy, shark infested, sea. I feel sick. I can't tell if that is a result of the turbulent journey home or from knowing that my mission was a failure. Better luck next time, I guess.

I know that eating those sour, dusty strawberries will upset my stomach. I don't want Bobby to suffer either. Our alien friend is licking his lips as he looks at the berry packet so I give them to him and break the ice cream sandwich in half. Bobby claps excitedly as I hand over his share of the delicious crispy treat. Our teleportation home is like a waking dream, colours swirl and blur together, like a rainbow river flowing around us. Our landing on Earth is pillow soft, a million miles (well, 1.68 billion miles to be exact) from the crash landing on Uranus. We are met by rapturous applause, become instant celebrities and are immortalised with a giant bronze statue outside Space headquarters. The mission is a huge success and Bobby and I will be friends for life!

There is an eerie silence after Jeff has boarded the gleaming rocket and we both wait for the countdown. I count in my head along with the computer generated voice coming through the radio from the ground below. "5, 4, 3, 2..." teeth gritted and fists clenched I wait for the final number and the roaring whoosh of the boosters firing. But instead a wailing siren fills the air like a fire alarm only louder and at a higher pitch. I look frantically to the side and see Jeff, he is gnawing and tugging at the oxygen tubes! A sad and deflated voice cuts through the siren and says "Mission Aborted. Bad boy Jeff, Bad Boy!" My adventure is over before it really began. Jeff forgot his favourite chew toy, Mr Froggy and he always chews when he is nervous. Better luck next time.

I follow the yellow alien. He gave me a precious metal and we attached it to the rocket to fix it but, then we sank! Lower and lower, into the icy liquid centre of this frozen planet. The metal was too heavy when combined with the Earth metal of our ship. Mission failed. Better luck next time.

Anxious, I sit in this gigantic, pointed rocket waiting for Mission Control to start the final countdown to launch. I felt so excited as the cramped, metal lift ascended: that same feeling as riding my favourite rollercoaster before the big drop. The reassuring clunk of my seat harness made me feel both safe and terrified about what I was embarking on.

I am headed to Neptune, where no astronaut has ever attempted to visit before.  The more I think about it, the crazier it seems.  I am looking for signs of life on the frozen, swirling gases of the faraway planet.  Mission control have spent years preparing for this mission, calculating fuel, Oxygen and food supplies for a journey longer than any other.

I am startled from my thoughts by the familiar crackle of a communication from the control centre.

Your Co Pilot has been taken ill.&#160; We have 2 possible replacements.&#160; Who do you choose?

Turn back and attempt to reach Earth, crash landing in the ocean, before the fuel runs out. Bobby has calculated that at the rate we are burning through fuel that we will probably run out  before we reach the Earth's atmosphere.  We may spin out of control and be lost in space. Is it worth the risk?

Keep going forwards, turning will just use more fuel. Based on our current trajectory I think we will make it to the next closest planet. Bobby and I are prepared for what might be a crash landing. If I choose this option Bobby has no idea how we will get home again but, I think it might be worth trying to salvage some part of this mission. I have never given up before!

Bobby sets to work on trying to repair our ship so that we won't be stuck here, on this deserted icy planet. I set out alone, looking for something that might help us. Something to make this whole journey worthwhile. Each step I take, like wading through cotton candy. I feel like the world is in slow motion, each step taking longer to land than on Earth. From my crude calculations I estimate gravity is approximately 86% that of Earth. I am starting to feel like I am in quicksand, like a force is pulling me down. My thoughts are confirmed when Bobby transmits a warning to me.

Suddenly, distracted by red flashing from the main control console, I look down to realise my worst nightmare has come true. The fuel gauge is low. Too low. This mission can never succeed. Fear grips my body as I contemplate the terrible decision Bobby and I must make. After all of the years it has taken to get to this point, I fear that the last minute change in Copilot has resulted in a terrible miscalculation of the fuel needed. Bobby is preparing his tool kit in case he needs to complete any last minute repairs and I contact mission control to let them know about this terrifying situation.

Mission Control?&#160; Come in.&#160; We are low on fuel.

Sorry Astronauts, there is nothing we can do.&#160; It's up to you to decide what to do now.

Terrified, I tap buttons and flick switches, trying desperately to save us from a fatal impact. My mind races and I wonder: if I had chosen Jeff, would this still be happening? Nothing is going to stop this rattling rocket from plummeting to the ground. Smoke is billowing from the control panel and the warning lights are blinking frantically. A boom echoes all around as the rocket crumples like paper and a fire breaks out by the main door. We scramble to the escape hatch and as I step outside, my breath is stolen by the frozen air. I flick the switch on my full oxygen tanks and drink in my surroundings. The flawless, glassy lake on the horizon is perfectly frozen. I see crystal sculptures of ice and tiny iridescent shards like sparkling sherbet. Smoldering tarnished metal fizzes behind me. What do we do now?

As I take in what Bobby has told me, I see something move in the distance. I freeze, like the landscape around me and can barely believe my eyes. On the horizon I see three small figures:not animals, not people. Aliens? I take a tentative step closer. They all look different but appear to be communicating with one another. This is not a language I have ever heard before. I decide instantly that I am going to follow one of these creatures as they leave. Time is running out and this is my only chance of ever getting off of this planet and getting back to Earth. As they waddle away, like a movie on fast forward I must make my choice.

Click the picture of the alien you choose

Belp Boop Blet I can repair anything with my mind

Who do you choose?  Click on the photo of your Copilot!

Fellow pilot, I am Bobby, a fully trained Engineer, I have experience of fixing the Space Station and space walking.&#160; I have never been on a real mission before.&#160; Choose me.

I am cosmonaut Jeff, I have never been into space before but I am a good boy.&#160; I follow instructions, wag my tail and am great at fetch.&#160; Choose me!

We are saved! Just before Bobby and I teleport back to the safety of Mission Control he pulls from his pocket 2 pouches of astronaut food rations. One is a mixture of fruit and the other is an ice cream sandwich. I hate berries,so I know that Bobby and I both have our eye on the delicious ice cream option. I have a choice to make: Do I take the ice cream sandwich for myself or let Bobby have it?

Click on the food pouch you choose for yourself

Safely inside the alien's teleportation force field Bobby and I remove our helmets to eat our greatly deserved snack. Despite disliking the sharp tang of the dehydrated berries I devour them in seconds. Booby looks at me with a combination of awe and surprise, he snaps his ice cream sandwich in half and shares it with me. What a great copilot he is!

Sadly, all of that food gives me a terrible stomach ache. My journey home passes in a blur of feeling sick and needing the toilet. This is not the triumphant return I had been imagining. Maybe next time my mission will go to plan!

I chose to follow the purple alien, he reaches out and grabs me. I am worried that I have made a bad choice and that I might not make it out of here alive! I feel warm and see flashing lights. Suddenly I am by Bobby's side, at the wreckage of our ship. We have somehow teleported! We said "Can you teleport us to the space station?" The alien said something that I took to mean that he would help us. I have never been so relieved. Bobby put down his tools as this incredible alien circled around us.

Choose Your Own Adventure:  Mission to Neptune

I chose to follow the blue alien. I took him back to where our spaceship was in the hope he would help us prepare it. Time is running out we were definitely sinking. As if by magic the alien blinked and I'll ship better than ever before. We waved goodbye to the alien and hurriedly boarded the ship. Bobby turned to me and said "How are we going to get back to earth we still have no fuel?" Devastated, we sat in silence, we would never return to Earth. Mission failed better luck next time.

Thank you for reading our Choose Your Own Adventure Story!  We hope you enjoyed it.

To make this book we used: *Virtual Reality and Augmented reality to find out about the Solar System *Green Screen and Stop Motion animation for our alien space walk *A water rocket launch: testing for optimum pumping speed and amount of water for maximum height! *Voice recording for narration and speech bubbles *Art work inspired by Peter Thorpe for our cover designs *Chalk pastel Solar Systems and Galaxies for page illustrations *Taste testing real astronaut food to help our descriptions for the final choice *We read a CYOA book about Space at the end of every day *We added Hyperlinks

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