Kir Bulychev’s "The Purple Ball," a summary Automatic translate

This 1983 science fiction novella tells the story of saving Earth from an ancient biological weapon. The plot seamlessly blends space fiction with time travel and folklore: futuristic technologies are closely intertwined with the magic of the Age of Legends. The author contrasts the brutality of the alien invaders with the courage of humans and mythical creatures.

In 1988, director Pavel Arsenov adapted this story into a successful children’s film starring Natasha Guseva. The work is part of the renowned "Alice’s Adventures" book series (along with "The Girl to Whom Nothing Will Happen," "One Hundred Years Ahead," "Alice’s Journey," and "The Fairytale Preserve"). Within the fairytale sub-series, this story is number 3, and in the overall bibliography of the series, it is often listed as number 12.

A planet without a sun

The events begin at the end of the 21st century. An archaeological expedition led by Gromozeka, a massive creature from the planet Chumarosa, is working on the IKO-1 object, unofficially known as the Vagabond. This planet is devoid of a star and floats freely in a cold vacuum. Along with Gromozeka, the biologist Professor Seleznev and his daughter, Alisa, are on the excavation. The Vagabond’s internal structure is unusual: its surface is turned inside out. A small artificial star is held precisely in the center of the empty sphere by a special layer of graviferrum metal. The local flora and fauna are aggressive, and the animals attack the researchers.

While scientists are exploring the cultural layer of the ruined fortress, Alice discovers a secret entrance to the underground communications system. After fending off a predator, the girl penetrates a vast network of corridors. There, she discovers locked doors, ancient skeletons in armor, and a cache of ancient weapons. Trying to find a way out, Alice fires a blaster at the ceiling, knocking out her own friend, Gromozeka, who was walking along the hill’s surface. This discovery helps the expedition move forward. The scientists discover an underground archive and decipher the terrifying story of the Tramp.

Biological threat

Around 30,000 years ago, a highly advanced civilization created this planet, fleeing the explosion of their sun. The peace-loving builders set out for the center of the galaxy. Millennia later, the ark approached another star system. The peaceful ambassadors sent there encountered the race of the despot Bezn. Bezn deceived the scouts and landed his troops on Rogue. During the occupation, almost all the engineers and teachers perished. The surviving specialists became the dictator’s disenfranchised slaves.

Having captured the planet, Bezn planned to conquer the known universe. Scouts left a time-delayed biological weapon on Earth. Chronicles refer to it as the "purple sphere." The charge is scheduled to detonate in 26,000 years, when the Tramp approaches Earth’s orbit again. Concealed within the ceramic sphere is a virus of absolute hostility. The biological agent compels living creatures to kill their own kind. On the Tramp, the strain was activated many centuries ago. The invaders slaughtered each other in endless carnage, and the beasts were poisoned by malice.

While exploring the ruins on a small river island, Alice falls through a crack in the stone slabs. She finds herself in a former prison laboratory. Behind iron bars lie the shackled skeletons of the slave scientists who developed the deadly strain. Alice finds three small spheres and brings them to her father. Professor Seleznev places one sample in a sealed chamber. A steel paw shatters the vessel. The feud virus infects the guinea pigs, and the animals fight to the death. The crew aborts the mission and returns home.

Return to Earth

The Chumarosa ship makes an emergency landing on Earth. The dispatcher and psychiatrist Professor Smith refuse to believe the story of an alien bomb. They consider the astronauts insane and try to cast a paralyzing net on them. Gromozeka is forced to resort to brute force. He draws blasters, scares off the robots, and ties up the recalcitrant officials. This gives Seleznev the time he needs to call the Academy of Sciences. Biologists must begin work on a vaccine. The coordinates of the implanted charge have been lost to the ages, so Alisa volunteers to retrieve the information from the past.

The girl and Gromozeka fly to Moscow. There, they find the Fairy Tale Preserve, headed by scientist Ivan Ivanovich. This unique scientific facility is home to real mythical creatures, housed under a glass dome. The director helps the friends use a time machine. The heroes travel back 26,000 years. In that wild era, primitive people shared the planet with dragons and magicians. Along with Alice, a grumpy white crow named Durynda travels into the past, taking a bundle of belongings with her.

The Age of Legends

Finding themselves in a cold forest, the travelers search for traces of aliens. A local gnome tells of a resourceful prehistoric boy named Gerasik. The teenager had previously tricked the Ogre by selling him an iron doll, causing the monster to lose its teeth. Now the Ogre and the evil Witch are hunting the boy. Alice and Gromozeka sail down the river in a wooden boat. They rescue Gerasik, who had taken refuge in an oak tree from bandits. During the fight, Gromozeka is captured: the Witch subdues the archaeologist. The children continue their search for aliens together.

A boy and a girl notice a ship from the Vagabond landing. The sleek craft resembles a giant metal egg. The capsule’s shape provokes a tragic error. A rokh bird mistakes the starship for its own chick and pecks at the hull. The crew kills the rare bird with an energy cannon. Once outside, the aliens use the slaves as living detectors, forcing them to eat Earth’s grass. Soldiers torture captured dwarves over fire. Gerasik rescues the captives by firing rocks at the aggressors from a homemade elastic catapult.

The wizard Ooh flies into the clearing on a flying carpet. The aliens shoot through his colorful fabric, but the old man survives. Using invisibility, Ooh eavesdrops on the enemy captain’s conversation. The aliens decide not to detonate the bomb immediately, as the primitive tribes will quickly repopulate. The invaders set a mechanical timer. As soon as the soldiers return on board, Alice snatches the invisibility cap from the old man. She slips inside the compartment. The spaceship gains altitude and flies east.

Operation in the Himalayas

The starship lands on a snow-covered Himalayan peak. The warriors use a drill to carve a deep hole in the frozen rock. The captain hides the purple sphere, after which the squad seals the cache with stones. Having completed the mission, they fly back into space. Alice is left alone at an altitude of several thousand meters. Risking freezing, she dismantles the stone pyramid. The girl removes the biological weapon with her bare hands. From hypothermia, she falls into the snow and loses consciousness.

She is rescued by Ivanushka the Fool, passing by in a self-propelled stove. He takes Alisa to a warm mountain cave, where he lives with Snegurochka and his two sons. Soon, the wizard Ooh, the freed Gromozeka, Gerasik, and the crow Durynda arrive. Ivanushka’s children find the ball and begin playing with it in the yard. Gromozeka takes the fragile object away. The projectile cannot be left on Earth — it is mortally dangerous. The wizard Ooh uses a unique magical technique. He swings his weapon and sends the container flying toward the Sun. On the star’s surface, the ancient virus burns up.