Larv is a truly fascinating and lovable alien character who accompanies the book's protagonist, Linda Pumpernickel, on her mission to prove the existence of universal detuning, a phenomenon that could lead to a cosmic climate catastrophe. In fact, he is the very creature who crashes into Linda's living room at the beginning of the story and reveals the truth about her Aunt Norma and the clandestine environmental organization, the PUE, to which he and Aunt Norma belong. Without Larv, there would be no story.
Larv belongs to a remarkable species called cochleans who inhabit the Molasses Planet. Adult cochleans are so named due to their resemblance to the cochlea, a spiral-shaped part of the inner ear that functions in translating vibrations into nerve impulses that the brain perceives as sound. The body of the adult cochlean functions in much the same way, but they can also use the energy of sound waves to create their own food in a process called phonosynthesis --much like how a plant can create its own food using solar energy in photosynthesis. Because of their dependence on sound energy for nutrition, cochleans have evolved extremely sensitive hearing. This allows them to detect minute pitch changes involved in universal detuning, making them invaluable members of the PUE.
The only problem is that adult cochleans are so sensitive to sounds that they are unable to leave the protective goo of their home planet. The thick goo has a similar consistency to molasses (hence the planet’s nickname) and absorbs much of the sound energy, making life tolerable for the cochleans who can only breach the surface for a few minutes at a time. Luckily, cochleans have a polymorphic life cycle in which the earlier larval stages are not so sensitive to sounds. In fact, the larvaluxi body plan is completely different from the adult form. Before pupation, larvaluxi resemble a foot-long dragonfly. They have big, adorable eyes and two pairs of wings that allow them to fly freely outside of the goo. As such, larvaluxi work as messengers and can travel away from the Molasses Planet, so long as they return before pupation.
The character Larv is, you guessed it, one such larvaluxi who has been sent to Earth in response to a signal that Linda inadvertently sent when she blew into the antique pitch pipe gifted to her by Aunt Norma. Unbeknownst to Linda, this pitch pipe is actually a scientific instrument used by the PUE to measure universal detuning. Larv recruits Linda to help him transport the pitch pipe back to his home planet where adult cochleans can interpret the signal.
However, the task is not as simple as the little alien initially thought. Traveling with this strange human is turning out to be more like babysitting, especially when she decides to wander off in search of tea on a very dangerous foreign planet. Furthermore, it turns out that Larv is not the only one after the pitch pipe. Groodle Schmoodler, CEO of the Intergalactic Trade and Travel Corporation, wants all evidence of universal detuning destroyed and he has promised a sizable sum to his henchmen for confiscating the instrument. And that’s not even the worst of it. Larv’s most shocking discovery is the sprouting of a hair-like growth on his abdomen, which can only mean one thing: pupation. With his metamorphosis underway, Larv must depend on Linda to get him back to the Molasses Planet before it’s too late.
Throughout the novel, Larv’s physical form is not the only part of him that changes. Like a teenager going through puberty, Larv’s mood is also affected by pupation hormones. At the beginning, he is a very level-headed, logical young alien who is focused on his duty to retrieve the pitch pipe and the greater goal of saving the universe. However, the combination of pupation, the stress of their mission, and Linda’s apparent ineptitude push Larv’s patience to its limits. He struggles to keep it together and to remain optimistic that their mission won’t end in a complete disaster.
Click here to read the excerpt about cochleans from Out of Tune.
Click here to read about the story's protagonist, Linda Pumpernickel.
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