20) Wintry Campground, Alien Planet [conceptual story piece #8]

Awakening as if from a dream, Homer Norman and his family are astonished to realize that they, their cabin, their truck, and part of their family campground in upstate New York have been transported to an alien planet, impossibly and unimaginably far from home. They realize, too, that their campsite is now surrounded by a mysterious, transparent, glowing tube--except that no tube they've ever seen, or anything else, for that matter, would have a wall that seems to extend upward into infinity and appears to be filled with star, as this one is. And what's up with that soccer ball-sized orb that is hovering above them, glowing brightly blue. It must've brought them here for a reason--but why? They have no clue--and the orb isn't saying.

One thing's for sure, though: of all the birthdays Homer or anyone else in his family has ever had, nothing will ever compare with the totally weird experiences they're having on this one!