"Why do you have one eye instead of two?"
"One has always been sufficient, " the traveler replied matter of factly. It was a little white lie, far more palatable than the gruesome tale of how he'd lost the others so very permanently.
"Why do you have so many arms and legs?" The girl continued.
"They help me to go from place to place and collect things quickly. " He demonstrated his agility just then by scuttling over the surface of his spacecraft and back again in seconds.
"Wow! I wish I could do that…" the little girl's eyes lit up with admiration. "My mom says I'll look different when I get older, can I be like you?"
The traveler paused as he considered her question. Obviously it could be done. In seconds, right this instant with the tools he carried on the ship. But humans, present company excluded, seemed to frown upon such hybrids.
He was on the verge of launching into a highly technical explanation of the process and the possible implications for her future when she looked back at the house suddenly. The little girl put a finger to her lips and whispered, "Someone's coming, go, go GO!"
And indeed, the relative silence had been broken by voices raised in alarm and heavy footfalls from a distance getting closer with each breath.
"Farewell, human girl. I will be sure to return your father's cows unharmed this time."
With impressive speed, he reentered the craft and resumed his mission. Something like a smile played on his mandibles.
I just wrote this time. I didn't feel like trying to stay within a specific word limit. I don't think it's my best story but I'm hoping that it will come back to me if I keep trying.
As for the random word this story was based on…..
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…
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It was "farewell".
👋
👽
🐄🐄🐄
😊