The Berthian Competition

“As a Pure Science Fiction writer a Prompt like this one is hard for me to do - because the exact word for watermelon isn’t the same on any other planet than this one. But as a writer I have the ability to use whatever words I want to use. If I want to write the word watermelon instead of the true word I can. Which I have done with this story. Every time you see the word watermelon you will know that I really mean berthian.” PureSciFi leaned back in his chair and read over what he just wrote. And what he wrote next.¹

“Almost every planet in the universe has a berthian on it. And most of them look like the watermelon we have here on Earth in size and color. But a lot appear to be like the berthians on Kivon. Berthians are about the same size as watermelons. Only they are squared instead of egg shaped. They are also a blue and light blue mixture in color. Berthians are very popular on Kivon. It’s the biggest business on that planet. There are six large island devoted just to the production of berthians. This is the story about one of those islands.”¹

The Berthian Competition

     Monaka picked up a watermelon. She carried it over to a nearby delivery container. After she dropped it into the breakaway top she could see it being shot through a clear tube toward a bigger container at the other end of the field. As she watched it she also saw about two thousand more watermelons that needed to be picked. She sighed. “Only three weeks before the ‘End of the Season’ celebration. I don’t think we are going to finish picking in time this year.”

<<<<<>>>>>

     After another hour of picking Monaka finished for the night. It had already started getting dark out. Once home, about a mile away, she went up to her Sleeping Room to clean up. Monaka looked out the window. And could see what’s left of the fifty thousand watermelons they produced each year. She also looked at herself in a full length Reflector before she headed down to the Eating Room.

     “What’s to eat? I’m so hungry I could eat a Meat Monster.” Monaka started put some meat on her plate. She also put some side fruits and vegetables on another smaller plate. As she was doing that she looked at her fifteen-year-old daughter, Ovia, at the other end of that table. “Is that all you are eating tonight?”

     “I love watermelon. If I could I would eat it twenty-five/ eight. Ovia never stopped eating as she said that.

     Monaka looked shocked. “I thought you already did.”

     Ovia finished one small plate of watermelon and went to another one. “I have won the watermelon eating contest the last five years. And I’m going to do it again this year.”

     “How are you going to do that if you eat us out of business?” Ovia’s father, Wondall, said that as he entered.

     “I have to live watermelon. There’s a lot of competition this year. Every region on the island is sending someone to challenge me. And some of them might just win. I have to practice, practice, practice.” Monaka and Wondall could barely hear Ovia with all the eating going on.

     Monaka changed the subject. “Did you get any help for the End of the Season picking?” Wondall and Monaka ignored Ovia. Which hadn’t had been easy with her chomping so loud.

     “No, I didn’t. I even tried the other five watermelon islands. And there’s no one who can help us finish our picking. If I didn’t know better, I would say it was being done on purpose.” Ignoring Ovia got harder and harder to do. Especially every time they looked at her.

     Monaka thought about that for a second. “Maybe they are. If we don’t get our watermelons picked by the End of the Season we can’t compete in the competition.”

     Ovia suddenly stopped eating. “What did you say? Did I just hear I can’t compete in this year’s competition?”

     “That’s what she said.” Wondall looked over at Monaka. Both had big smiles on their faces. But Ovia didn’t see them.

     “According to the rule only completed pickings can enter the competition this year. It’s a new rule.” Monaka and Wondall now had smirks on their faces.

     Ovia dropped literally everything, got up and raced out the door. “What are you waiting for? We have to pick the remaining watermelons. I have a competition to win.”

     After Ovia left Monaka looked at Wondall. “We shouldn’t have done that. There’s no rule like that in the competition.”

     Wondall kept smirking. “I know that, and you know that, but she doesn’t know it. And it did stop her from eating watermelon didn’t it.”

     Just then Ovia popped her head back into the room. “I know your old. But what’s taking you so long?”

     “We aren’t old. I’m thirty-six. And your father is thirty-eight.” Monaka pointed at Wondall when she talked about him.

     “It’s getting dark out. We can start in the morning. Besides, I’m not finished eating yet.” Wondall had already started eating again.

     “I can’t wait until tomorrow. It’s not too late. We have both moons to shone us on to victory.”

<<<<<>>>>>

     It took them almost the whole three weeks. But they got all the watermelons picked. Ovia was dead by the time they finished. There’s no way she could have competed in the competition. But she did. In fact, she did even better than she had ever done before. Only it wasn’t enough. She lost the competition that year. But something good came out of that lose though. It stopped her addition to watermelon. She never cared for watermelon after that.



¹Two more blog entries for a blog that PureSciFi aka SpaceFaction hasn’t created yet.