"Okay, kiddos!" laughed Bert at the end of the bargain. "All of the Hydrogens in the balloon are yours!"
Bert and the twins were shaking hands to fix the deal. Conrad wanted to collect the little ones, they bought, with the hand device, but he wasn't successful. Sister Electra had to help him to organize the Hydrogens in the device's pockets. Bert watched thoughtfully as she explained to the little boy.
"Hey, K.O.! Let's celebrate the good purchase!" asked Bert the other old man. "I have some beer, and the kids could drink soda with syrup. What do you think?"
"Thank you for the offer, but unfortunately we need to depart as soon as we could. We have a long way ahead today."
"It is a pity. But it was a good deal with your grandchildren!" said Bert with sad tone, and shook hands with K.O..
"Thank you Bert, maybe next time, we could celebrate a bit!"
Bert was watching as K.O. walked back to his caravan with the kids and the young woman. As the caravan swallowed up the four people, the anchor was pulled up. The caravan was immediately lifted up to the air, and Bert's old and new acquaintances were heading to their next location. The kids were waving to him.
"They were really in a hurry." thought Bert and waved back. He walked toward the central office, wondering if his grandson would enjoy this world in the same way.
***
"Are you sure, that you don't want to go home tomorrow?" asked K.O., while they were flying to the Kingdom of Lithium. "Your parents will probably be home by then."
The children thought, though they had already decided in their hearts.
"I would like to spend the whole holiday here." Conrad stated, and Valerie nodded.
"It is more interesting here, than at home." said the girl.
The twin really didn't want to go home to their parents. They were partly angry with them, because their parents had sent them to an unknown grandfather, who didn't care about them. The unpleasant meeting of the other half of the family was still haunting them, so they simply wanted to enjoy the company of their friends more. Just a little bit more. Although their pride prevented them to tell it to K.O. and Sister Electra.
"You are very silent! Are you sleepy?" asked K.O., since the kids were staring somewhere, and their faces were gloomy.
"No!" protested Conrad.
"I just don't really want Sister Electra go home." sighed Valerie.
"Sorry, but I have to work." apologized the nun. "The downside to adulthood is that there are responsibilities as well. If they weren't, they'd love to travel through the island with you!"
"So you are a bit sad, aren't you?" smiled the man to the kids. "But I have an idea! Let's sing! Singing always blows away dark clouds!"
"What do you want to sing?" the young woman agreed with the idea, because she also wanted to cheer up the kids.
"Do you know the Song of the Little Ones?" He asked, but Sister Electra shook her head."No wonder! Valerie, Conrad and me wrote the lyrics. The melody is the London bridge is falling down's. Are we singing it to her, kids?"
Valerie and Conrad nodded, and smiled. They felt a bit of embarrassment of the simplicity of the song, but they wanted to know, whether their friend would like their creation.
"1,2,3, go!"
Hydrogens are popping out,
Popping out, popping out,
Hydrogens are popping out,
Quickly catch them!
Hydrogens are crying loud,
Crying loud, crying loud,
Hydrogens are crying loud,
Quickly pair them!
Chocolate bars are sprinkling out,
Sprinkling out, sprinkling out,
Chocolate bars are sprinkling out,
With some candy.
Hydrogens are three of a kind,
Three of a kind, three of a kind,
Hydrogens are three of a kind,
Quickly sort them!
Protium's the lightest one,
Lightest one, lightest one,
Protium's the lightest one,
They are average.
Deuteriums are heavier,
Heavier, heavier,
Deuteriums are heavier,
Pick them out!
Make a pair of both of them,
Both of them, both of them,
Make a pair of both of them,
They will racing.
Tritium's the heaviest,
Heaviest, heaviest,
Tritium's the heaviest,
It's super rare.
Tritiums are in the lamp,
In the lamp, in the lamp,
Tritiums are in the lamp,
They are glowing.
As the last sounds had died, Sister Electra started cheerfully clasping.
"Hey! It is very good! I have never heard such a good song about the Hydrogens!"
Valerie and Conrad were very happy to hear, that the nun liked their song.
"You put together the song and the little ones very skillfully!" She praised them.
"Well, K.O. had helped us with that part." murmured Valerie, and didn't want to see into Sister Electra's eyes. The song was so easy, that she was ashamed, that they couldn't make it alone.
"Don't worry! You had made your part too!" stated the old man.
"If this bothers you, write more verses for the song! This time alone!" encouraged them the nun.
The twins looked at each other. They were both hesitant to tell their friends, that the verses were ready.
"Well..." Conrad started, but fell silent.
Both of the adults were watching him interested, and waiting him to tell them, what he wanted to say. But there were nothing malicious in their gaze, just curiosity, so Conrad was broken in a minute.
"We have already written a lot of verses to the song!" He cried, and wanted to melt into the carpet of the seat.
"Which part of your adventures?" asked the nun.
"A part of the Noble Race, and about building battery, and the last verses are about the Franciums."
"Let's hear!" applaud the adults, till the kids became brave enough to sing.
Bring the special pairs to race,
Pairs to race, pairs to race,
Bring the special pairs to race,
To get energy.
Hope the light will fusing them,
Fusing them, fusing them,
Hope the light will fusing them,
Into Helium.
Heliums are Noble ones,
Noble ones, Noble ones,
Heliums are Noble ones,
They have two arms.
Hydrogens want to look like,
to look like, to look like,
Hydrogens want to look like,
Like the Nobles.
That's why they are holding hands,
Holding hands, holding hands,
That's why they are holding hands,
To each other.
It is called covalent bond,
Covalent bond, covalent bond,
It is called covalent bond,
Forming molecules.
Lithiums have three small hands,
Three small hands, three small hands,
Lithiums have three small hands,
One is surplus.
Surplus hands are juggling them,
Juggling them, juggling them,
Surplus hands are juggling them,
They look like Nobles.
It is called metallic bond,
Metallic bond, metallic bond,
It is called metallic bond,
Looks like jelly.
Lithiums are friendly ones,
Friendly ones, friendly ones,
Lithiums are friendly ones,
Let's meet Hydrogens.
Tear a hand of Lithium,
Lithium, Lithium,
Tear a hand of Lithium,
Make an ion.
Here it is a cation,
Cation, cation,
Here it is a cation,
With positive charge.
Lithium is shrinking down,
Shrinking down, shrinking down,
Lithium is shrinking down,
As an ion.
Give hand to a Hydrogen,
Hydrogen, Hydrogen,
Give hand to a Hydrogen,
Make an ion.
Here it is an anion,
Anion, anion,
Here it is an anion,
With negative charge.
Hydrogens are inflating,
Inflating, inflating,
Hydrogens are inflating,
As an ion.
Both ions are crying loud,
Crying loud, crying loud,
Both ions are crying loud,
Quickly pair them.
Repeat, make two more ions,
More ions, more ions,
Repeat, make two more ions,
Build a lattice!
It is called ionic bond,
ionic bond, ionic bond,
It is called ionic bond,
Making a salt.
Make battery from the salt,
From the salt, from the salt,
Make battery from the salt,
For your device.
Beware of the bigger ones,
Bigger ones, bigger ones,
Beware of the bigger ones,
Like Franciums.
Franciums are falling down,
Falling down, falling down,
Franciums are falling down,
Into Radiums.
Falling downs are dangerous,
Dangerous, dangerous,
Falling downs are dangerous,
Call aunt Ille!
As the kids finished the song, the adults were clasping again. Although K.O. noticed, that the last two verses of the song were a bit off, they should work more on them. Valerie and Conrad were not offended by the remark, they also felt, that there were some places in the song, that needed to be fixed.
Despite of the imperfection, the adults wanted to learn the whole song, so Valerie and Conrad were singing again, and once more. At the fourth time both Sister Electra and K.O. were singing together with them. The singing successfully distracted them from the fact that the landscape had changed under the flying balloon. They left behind the half-desert-like Kingdom of Hydrogen, and entered to the green Kingdom of Lithium. The soil were covered by green grass, small flowers, and houses, with a train station.
K.O. skillfully landed the car next to the station. They were arrived. All of them was in silence, and none of them wanted to part.
"When do you plan to leave to the Carbon Kingdom?" asked Sister Electra.
" I want to take a good sleep, since I was driving all night. We'll leave to the Carbon Kingdom in the early morning." replied the old man.
"What do you want to do in the afternoon?" She asked.
The other three shook their heads. They had no idea.
"I recommend you to visit the Salt Pan!"
"Salt Pan?" laughed the kids.
"Funny name! Is it a pan made of salt?" asked Valerie.
"No, nope!" smiled the nun. "It is an open-air mine with a lot of minerals. Mainly the minerals contain Lithium."
"Ah!" Valerie sighed disappointed. It didn't sound interesting at all.
"Why would we go there? We are not allowed to gather those minerals, are we?" mumbled Conrad.
"It is good, that you have mentioned." Sister Electra pulled out her hand device, and started to type. In the end she swiped her hand over the screen. " Here you are."
"What is it?" asked the two kids in unison, and stepped to K.O., to see, what they had got.
"It is a permission to buy a limited amount of mineral, containing Lithium." The nun said. "It my present to you!"
"Why would we want to buy Lithium?" asked Valerie.
"It is perfect to used them as a battery, but there aren't a single use beside it. Just using them in weapons." said Conrad disappointed.
The two adults looked at each other, and laughed a bit. The twins didn't show any sign to say thanks for the permission, so K.O. thanked the nun for her present.
"Go there and see yourself!" said the nun. "It is time, to say good bye!"
She hugged the twins, shook hands with K.O., and called out her quad. She jumped into the saddle and set off. Her friends were watching her shrinking shape, until they couldn't even see the dust, that the quad had made.
"Cheer up!" K.O. patted the twins' shoulders. "Let's go shopping, and after that I want to see that Salt Pan.
Valerie and Conrad cheerfully followed K.O. to the stores. They spent an hour to choose the right buttons to their friend, and returned to the balloon.
"Don't you want to store the Hydrogens in your hand device?" Conrad wondered. "I thought that's why you bought the store buttons!"
"I don't want to store the little ones in the hand device, because they are more useful in the balloon now. We want to go to the Kingdom of Carbon, don't we?" He winked at the kids. "It is faster to fly there, than travel on wheels."
"Why?" Valerie asked after some time of thinking. "The distance is the same, isn't it?"
"The distance is looking like the same, but the route is not the same. On the ground we have to follow the roads, which are not running directly to our destination. In the air, we are free to fly, on the route, we want. So flying shorten the time of the travel. Watch the map!"
Conrad called the map on their device.
"Look at the roads!"
"They are running in zigzag." The boy said after they had checked the roads.
"It looks like a hat. The ground roads are the hat's upper part. It is longer." Valerie nodded.
"The flying route is the hat flange." K.O. smiled."If we goes there on a straight line, the way is really shorter. So the little ones are staying in the balloon, while the fabric of the balloon bears them."
"What happens if it breaks up?" Valerie asked, but she had already knew the answer.
"We are trying to hunt them, before they becomes friends with the other elements." K.O. smiled, and the kids thrilled. "I also want to avoid this possibility, because the Hydrogens make friends vehemently. Sometimes they explodes. But don't worry!" The old man laughed on the kids' frightened faces. "This balloon holds surely! I promise!"
Although Valerie and Conrad believed their friend's words, they both glared at the balloon suspiciously.
"Do you want to come with me to the Salt Pan?" K.O. asked them to distracts their thoughts from the possibly explosion.
The twins were not too enthusiastic. The Salt Pan sounded a boring place, but in the end both of them decided to keep their friend a company. Neither of them wanted to left behind alone. The place was near to the station, and they went there on foot. The field was the usual grassy-flowery one, but looking closer, there were little ones among the green blades. Valerie and Conrad were competing to identify them with the hand device, because K.O. didn't allow them to catch the wild little ones.
"You don't need them, and why would you waste Sister Electra's permission to gather some random little ones? Save it later!"
"Do you really think, that we would find something interesting at the Salt Pan?" Conrad asked doubtfully.
"I don't really know, but look at over there!" K.O. pointed to a shining spot in the distance.
"Is that really sparkling?" Valerie asked, but didn't wait for the answer. She began to run toward the shiny place. The male part of the group were just standing there, astonished, and didn't follow her. "What are you waiting for?" She impatiently stopped, when she realized, that the boys didn't follow her, and cried to her brother and her friend.
"Girls!" Conrad growled.
"All of them likes sparkly things. "K.O. smiled.
But the old man was wrong. They all liked the shiny, regular shaped, colored, translucent crystals. As they followed the tour guide, the kids marveled on the different formation of Lithium-contained minerals. The little towers, with different colors, the rounded ones, and the special shapes looked like a city from minerals. All of the formation is reminded the kids for something, they knew in the real world. Valerie and Conrad, although they were hesitant at first, really liked the excursion.
"I want this one." Conrad stated, as he found a hexagonal shaped crystal, which looked like a layered butter cake, or a pack of translucent, hexagonal shaped cards. "I want to buy this crystal!"
"Don't touch!" Their guide cried to the boy. "Sorry, but you need a permission to buy them." The guide apologized.
"We have a permission!" Conrad cried impatiently.
The tour guide was surprised, but after watching the license, he got the crystal out of the others.
"Here you are. Bring to the counter." He handed over the big crystal carefully to the happy boy.
The little group went back to the counter together, and Conrad paid for the crystal.
"Lepidolite!" The cashier told to the boy. "It sure has a beautiful, unique crystal structure! Do you collect them?"
"No, I just wanted to buy it. It is very beautiful!" Conrad answered, and turn back his gaze to his crystal.
"Matter of state..." Valerie wailed.
"Do you want to buy something?" The cashier asked the girl. "You still have credits from the permission."
"Not enough to buy another crystal." Valerie refused the offer. She really wanted to buy one, but she couldn't choose. Moreover she couldn't forget K.O.'s comment. "Why would I buy a crystal? There was no meaning to buy one, if I wouldn't like that."
"You could choose from these ones." The clerk showed her a counter with jewelries, made of crystals.
Valerie's eyes where shining. There were a lot of types of jewelries: earrings, pendants, necklaces, bracelets.
"They are very expensive. "She said disappointed, as she was checking the price tags. After buying Conrad's crystal, not much credits remained. Not enough to buy any of those jewelries. Valerie was a bit angry of his brother.
"Those are from spodumene. Those are rare crystals, so they are really expensive. But there are ones from lepidolite. You have enough credits for a bracelet, or earrings." The cashier told her.
Valerie immediately spotted the proper bracelet, but the price would deplete their credits, and K.O. hadn't bought anything yet.
"K.O.! What do you want to buy?" Valerie swallowed hard, and turned to her old friend.
"I don't want to buy anything." He shook his head.
"Why?" The two kids asked in unison. They were very surprised. There were a lot of beautiful things in that store! How could anyone say that they don't want to buy anything?
"I don't need any of these goods. I am satisfied to watch the beautiful crystals. So buy, what you want with the credits." He smiled to Valerie.
Valerie became shy. She also felt a little ashamed of herself because K.O. gave her the remaining credits so easily. In the end she chose the bracelet, and a tiny heart, made from lepidolite. Their credits were depleted with those two jewelries. Valerie paid, and she put the bracelet to her wrist.
"Here you are!" She said and handed the tiny mineral heart to K.O..
"Don't you want to put that pendant on your bracelet?" K.O. asked with surprise.
"No." Valerie shook her head. "I would like you to put it on your hand device, to make it always remember to us!"
This time K.O. was unable to say something, so he just hugged Valerie and Conrad.