Welcome to another entry in Friday Flash Fiction! This was my entry in this week's Five Minute Fiction, over at Leah Petersen's blog (check it out, it's fantastic. http://www.leahpetersen.com/).
When I first saw this prompt, "Planets," I was immediately reminded of one of my favorite Issac Asimov stories, Buy Jupiter, in which a group of marketeers try to sell Jupiter as the largest neon sign in history. I jumped from that to planets as real estate, and from there to... well, read below, and enjoy!
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“And here we have a nice one,” the salesman said, pointing out the window of the spaceship. “Three large rings and four moons that present just the most breathtaking sunsets you can ever imagine. The sun is a bright yellow, much like your native system, and the atmosphere is compatible with you and your species.”
“Wow, that really is a fantastic view,” the man said, looking at the planet slowly rotating below them. “But, I dunno… it’s just a little… over the top. We just want something simple, but beautiful. You know, large oceans, large land masses for farming, islands for vacations, that sort of thing. Our people are just looking to settle down, start fresh. You have anything like that?”
“I think I do,” the blue salesman said, a smile crossing both his mouths. “Come with me.”
The man took his wife's hand, and they followed the salesman down a corridor and through another teleportation tube, where the salesman showed them another window. Below was a stunningly beautiful blue green ball of a world. It had a single, large moon, and a yellow sun shining over the horizon, highlighting the seas and oceans. It was breathtaking.
“I think you’ll find this has all the requirements you’re looking for,” the salesman said.
"Wow, it's fantastic," the man said. "What's it called?"
"It's called Earth," the salesman said, smiling again.
“Well, what do you think, Eve?” the man said, turning to his wife.
“Oh, Adam, It’s perfect,” she said. “We’ll take it!”
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