Turbulence: Book 7 in The Trapped in the Hollow Earth Novelette Series Read online

  “Yes. Didn’t he kill the blond boy with a shot of platlism?” asked a male voice.

  “Affirmative. Dr. Pather must be saving the girl for another experiment,” said the woman. “He must’ve forgotten to secure her properly.”

  Casey’s identity was safe, for now. She let out a tiny sigh of relief, until she realized she might actually be stuck in that space-age tomb. Her eyes fluttered wide open as she lurched up, her palms hitting the thick glass as three distorted figures turned their back on her and headed for the door. Quiet returned to the room; her own heart hammered like a drum in her ears. She had no idea how to get out of the claustrophobic death trap, but she felt around the glass for a latch or something. The sides felt as smooth and cold as marble. She pounded on the glass with her fists screaming, “Get me out of here!” Nothing stirred, no one came to her rescue, and she realized that maybe no one could hear her.

  The strange light coming from the capsule bathed her, and she felt a sudden flow of energy surround her. Casey’s hands thumped against the glass until they throbbed. The smell of gas hung in the air. Wisps of glowing green mist floated above her. She coughed between jagged breaths and covered her nose and mouth with her stretched uniform. A strange sensation crept over her body. Her palms, feet, and lips tingled; her eyelids felt heavy. She tried to move her arms and legs, but they felt like logs. The fog now engulfed her. Her vision blurred. “I have to fight this!” Her mind raced to find a way out, but she couldn’t think straight. Whatever happened, she knew one thing for sure: She couldn’t pass out.

  Chapter 3

  Locked in a glass capsule, Casey tried not to panic, but that seemed impossible with all those green fumes swirling all around her.

  She coughed and wiped her burning eyes when something fell out of her pocket, clattering next to her. “What the heck?” Frowning beneath the curtain of tears on her face, she picked up the silver container and popped open the lid as a shiver slid down her spine. Inside the silk-lined box was the microchip. No! Her stomach dropped. What if I pass out? She held the key to saving everyone on the planet, and nobody knew where she was.

  Casey shuddered as she closed the box and stuffed it back into her pocket. Earth was doomed. Billions of people would lose their lives—all because of her. Guilt overwhelmed her, and she pounded the glass until her fists burned and throbbed. The pain couldn’t even compare to what her heart felt at that very moment. She wondered why fate insisted on bestowing that wonderful honor on her, bringing her through all of this, only to fail.

  Calm yourself. The lodomodo’s voice echoed in her head, soothing and comforting.

  She smiled for a moment, happy to find she wasn’t alone and doomed after all. Then panic gripped hold of her again. She might not be alone, but she couldn’t think of any way a wolf-like creature could possibly help her open the coffin. “How can I?” she yelled, holding the collar of her uniform over her nose.

  Try to quiet your mind from all other thoughts. Relax your entire body.

  “You try to relax when…” She broke off, coughing. “…when you can’t breathe.” Her mind buzzed as a wave of tranquility washed over her.

  Let me help you.

  Casey nodded and closed her eyes again. Keeping quiet didn’t mean she was giving up, yet she couldn’t stop thinking she shouldn’t go down without a fight. Her mind eased slowly into that of the lodomodo, and she absorbed the calm with deep breaths, slowly starting to feel at peace.

  Find an anchor to settle your mind.

  Jack popped into her head. She pictured glitter falling on him like snow while he held a butterfly in his hands, a vision from Agartha. For a moment, he was having so much fun. She focused on his face and beautiful smile. The haze cleared a little, and her mind seemed to burn a little less.

  Think clearly. The answer lies before you. I can see it, and I know you can too.

  The lodomodo’s presence left her mind. She rolled her eyes inwardly. Why can’t it just tell me the answer and leave the riddles for another time? She pondered for a few moments. Scratching her way out wouldn’t work; there just wasn’t enough time. She should’ve asked the lodomodo to get help like Lassie, but suddenly it seemed like he had gone.

  Casey peered around her at the smooth walls when an idea struck her. Why not shoot my way out? She felt the stun gun in her other pocket, so she pulled it out, hoping the capsule wasn’t bulletproof. Hopefully, she wouldn’t get knocked out in the process either. General Ashtar told her the setting only worked on Grey alien DNA, but she had played with the buttons to try and save Jack from the lodomodo, so any programming had been overridden, likely not in her favor, the way fate was going.

  She pointed to the left and squeezed the trigger. A bright flash of red light absorbed into the glass, running the length of the capsule like bolts of lightning. She fired three more times. It didn’t seem to work, but she hoped maybe the beams would weaken the glass. She fussed with the tiny buttons, hoping to turn up the power. She fired and fired until her fingers ached and her ears throbbed from the noise.

  Hissing and crackling filled the air, like the sound of ice melting on a hot bed of coal. The capsule shook, and a dozen long cracks appeared over her. Covering her face with her sleeve, she kicked with all her might. By the third attempt, the glass gave in. She climbed out hastily, nearly falling over, as a wave of dizziness swept over her. Her legs buckled under her, numb and tingling with pins and needles, but the cold floor felt good to the touch, slowly returning her to her senses. She drew a deep breath and coughed. That was too close for comfort.

  She stood and walked over to touch the glass on a capsule. A woman was laid out with her arms crossed over her chest, her eyes closed as if she were dead. Soft white light surrounded her and shone on her face and body. She looked just like an angel with her ruby-red lips, porcelain skin, and high cheekbones. Her long, sun-kissed, blonde hair flowed in waves over her shoulders. Glistening white linen wrapped around her body. The clothing looked similar to togas of ancient Greece, only in pastel colors and pinned in various ways. The lustrous material shimmered in the dim light. Gold sandals covered her feet. There was no doubt that she was from Agartha.

  Unable to leave just yet, Casey glanced up at all the pods from ceiling to floor, peering at one face after another. They looked so tranquil, almost peacefully dead, and for a moment, she wasn’t sure if she was staring at corpses, until she saw their chests rising slightly and their nostrils flaring. She wasn’t sure how long they would live, but for the time being, they were breathing. She knew if she didn’t get going, they’d all meet again in the afterlife.

  Hesitating, she retrieved her steps when her gaze fell on one of the lower capsules to the left. There, she saw familiar face of a woman with long black hair, pale skin, and pink lips. The red summer dress hung like a sheath over the slightly tanned body. Casey jumped forward, knocking her knee in the process, but she didn’t feel the pain as she pressed her palms against the clear glass. Loud sobs caught in her throat, making her voice sound like a croak. “Mom!”

  Her mom’s face didn’t change; her eyes remained closed. Letting the sobs ripple through her, Casey paused in thought. It hadn’t been a helicopter spotlight on the horizon during the thunderstorm. It was the light from a UFO.

  She unlatched the lid as tears flowed down her cheeks. “I’m here, Mom.” Casey watched her chest rise and fall. She looked so peaceful and serene. Without another word, Casey lifted the top and kissed her mother’s soft forehead. “Please wake up,” she whispered, shaking her mom’s comatose body until she realized there was no point. Even though she didn’t want to leave, she had to get going so she could get help and come back. “I love you so much. I’m so sorry this happened to you.” Her throat felt choked as she shut the glass top softly. “I’ll get Thorn, Mom. He’ll know what to do.”

  A few more steps, and she reached the next capsule. Her body froze instantly as she saw who lay inside. “Dad!” She placed a hand on the glass. There was no mistaking tha
t it was him. Over a plaid shirt, he wore his famous khaki fishing vest with all the pockets. His trademark jet-black hair and bushy eyebrows stood out. She couldn’t help but notice the dark circles under his eyes and sunken cheeks.

  Unlatching the lid, she lifted the glass and touched her dad’s face with her fingertips, barely able to keep her crying to a quiet level. “I can’t believe this is happening.” Her voice broke in her throat. “Help’s coming. I promise I’ll be back as soon as I can.” He didn’t stir, but she hoped he could somehow hear her. She closed the lid as more huge, gasping sobs wracked her body.

  She wiped the tears with her sleeve as her gaze focused directly on her mom, then her dad. Her lips trembled; for a minute, she couldn’t breathe. The thought of her parents lying comatose in those pods seemed too much to bear. Stay strong, she told herself. After all, having an emotional breakdown right there on the alien mothership won’t help them one bit. She took a few long, deep breaths to calm herself.

  Casey slid on her black uniform, holster, helmet, and flung her backpack over her shoulder. It was time to deactivate the weapon and rescue her mom and dad out of those glass coffins. There was no way was she leaving without them. She’d die first.

  * * *

  Scurrying down the corridor, Casey turned her wrist and kept an eye on her tracking device. A map popped up and showed all the corridors with red grid lines. She touched the screen once, and it zoomed in on her position. She had to be getting closer, she was sure, even though the walls she passed looked exactly the same. Two red dots blinked, indicating that the others were only forty feet away. The third flashing dot moved ten halls to the right, in the opposite direction of the others. Casey stopped, frowning. Someone had gotten separated, but she wasn’t sure who it was.

  She briskly walked ahead, but a movement to her left caught her attention. Casey looked up at the two bodies hunched together behind a silver pillar. Their helmets obscured their faces as she inched closer. According to the tracking device, she was near the right dots. It was definitely her friends. She rushed over, dropping to the ground next to them, hoping she wasn’t making the mistake of her life and falling for a trap. A groan echoed, unnaturally loud in the dead silence. She let out a yelp, only then noticing the gun pressed against her chest.

  “Don’t move!” Thorn hissed. “I swear I’ll pull the trigger if you so much as breathe.”

  Ignoring his menacing tone, she flipped up her visor. “It’s me, Casey.” Thorn’s eyes shimmered as though filled with tears, but she was sure that couldn’t be. Maybe they thought I was caught, she reasoned.

  Thorn sighed and shoved his gun back in his holster. “You made it.” He hesitated for a second, as though he wanted to say something more but held back.

  “Casey,” Jack whispered, hugging her. He panted between breaths. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”

  She slumped into him with relief; his arms had never felt so good. “Why’re you breathing like that?” Casey put a hand on Jack’s arm, and he let out a moan. She gasped. “Were you hit?”

  He flipped up his visor. “Yeah, and knocked out for fifteen minutes.”

  She gripped his hands. “Oh, Jack! I’m so sorry.”

  “It’s okay. Would’ve been longer if the beam had hit me directly, but it only grazed my arm. Good news is, they have their guns set on stun. They want you and me alive. I’m sure they still think we’re dark-haired Agarthians.”

  “Good,” she retorted. “Let them keep thinking that. We don’t need them firing death rays at us. Are you sure you’re okay?”

  “I got myself a real good shock, but don’t worry. I’m fine.”

  “Thank God you weren’t seriously hurt.” She thrust her arms around him in a tight hug. The thought of anything happening to him made her queasy stomach tighten even more.

  Mike was missing, and she wondered if it was because of some crazy stunt he pulled or—worse—if he had been captured. She bit her lip, took a deep breath, and then asked the dreaded question, keeping her tone as level as she could. “Where’s Mike?”

  “Thorn says he took off in the smoke, looking for you,” said Jack.

  “He didn’t.” Casey closed her eyes for a moment, the blood draining from her face. Mike could be a jerk, even obnoxious at times, but the one thing she knew for sure was that he truly cared, even if he didn’t always go about things the right way. No one could ask for a better friend. “How could you let him go?” she whispered.

  Jack shrugged. “Uh, I was unconsciousness, or else I would’ve been right there with him. But you know Mike. He needs to do things his way. Nothing could have held him back, the stubborn idiot.”

  “If something happens…” She swallowed down the lump in her throat, unable to express her darkest fears.

  “Nothing will happen,” said Jack. “Mike may be reckless, but he isn’t stupid. C’mon. Let’s hurry up and do this thing so we can find him.”

  She nodded as Jack pointed straight ahead, all the way down the long hall. “See that room?”

  She squinted. “No.”

  “We didn’t want to get any closer, or else the guards would hear us talking.” He handed her a pair of high-tech binoculars, and his breathing relaxed. “Look again.”

  Everything was crisp, clear, and in 3D. Casey felt like she could reach out and touch the steel door itself. “Wow. I can make out everything, even the guards. There are two of them.”

  Jack reached for the binoculars. “That’s where the weapon’s being stored. We’ll chip it and then go get Mike.” His eyes widened in shock as he pointed to her torn uniform. “What happened? Are you okay?”

  For the first time, she felt the clouds over her head retreat the tiniest bit, lightening her burden. “I kicked some butt.”

  He touched her wet sleeve and winked. “Get caught in a rainstorm on the way back?”

  “Yep. Any way to get a rain check for this crappy vacation?” She handed Thorn the silver box. “Here’s something you might be missing.”

  Thorn grabbed it from her outstretched hand, turning it between his fingers. “I didn’t know it was gone. Where did you find it?”

  “It dropped to the floor during the fight.”

  “Quick thinking. Thanks,” said Thorn. “I don’t want to think about what might’ve happened if you didn’t see it.”

  Tears welled in Casey’s eyes as images of her parents lying comatose in those awful pods flashed through her mind. She blinked a few times, pushing the thoughts to the back of her mind. She wanted to save them, but she needed to save Earth first.

  “Don’t worry,” said Jack, hugging her again. “We’ll find Mike. I promise.”

  “This isn’t just about Mike.” She glanced up, and their eyes connected. “I saw my…my parents.”

  Jack’s gaze narrowed. “Here? How is that possible? Where?”

  “On this ship. They were abducted and brought here.” Her voice choked with emotion. She stopped for a second to gather her breath before she continued, “There was no search and rescue.”

  He gasped. “What? I don’t understand.”

  “They’re in that deep sleep the general and Thorn told us about.” Casey couldn’t get a nagging thought out of her head. Had the storm not come, they all might’ve been abducted and held hostage on that ship. Really, it was kind of ironic. They dodged the abduction, only to end up on the same mothership anyway. Maybe destiny was playing a prank on them. She felt laughter bubbling up inside her, even though she didn’t see what was so funny.

  “They’re here?” asked Jack, a wave of confusion washing over his face. “How’s that possible? We saw them pulled up by a helicopter.”

  “No. We saw some lights and assumed it was a helicopter.”

  Realization flickered in Jack’s eyes. “So it must’ve been a UFO. That’s why the compass got all scrambled up and we couldn’t get through on the radio. Where’re they keeping them?”

  She scrambled to her feet. “They were in one of the rooms with a whole bu
nch of other people trapped in glass pod things.”

  “You found the Deep Sleep Lab,” said Thorn. “One of the smaller ships must’ve picked them up on its way to Agartha. A few of the scout ships are fitted with deep sleep capsules. Maybe one veered off course to bring them back to the mothership and then rejoined the others. The more humans the rebels abduct, the more treasures Commander Tio bestows upon them. They hit the jackpot if they bring dark-haired Agarthians, because then they’ll be rich for the rest of their lives.”

  She stared at him, for a moment unable to comprehend how anyone could—reward or not—abduct people to hand them over for the sake of conducting cruel experiments, knowing full well the victims would suffer at Commander Tio’s hands. Sure, they blamed humans for their loss and misery, but this kind of revenge wasn’t ethical by any means. “There’s no way I’m leaving without my mom and dad,” she whispered.

  “Casey—” Thorn started.

  “No!” She stood in a defiant stance. If she didn’t get his promise that he’d rescue her parents once they were done chipping the weapon, she had to try and help them herself.

  “We’ll do our best to rescue them,” said Thorn softly. “I give you my word, but I need you to focus on the task at hand. Do you think you can do that?”

  She peered at him, hesitant to believe him just yet. “You promise?”

  He nodded. “The very second the weapon’s disarmed. I would never break my word.”

  Casey wiped her eyes with her sleeve and then cleared her throat. “I’ll trust and hope you don’t backstab me.” Earth counted on her just like her parents, but it was difficult to focus on anything else. “I have to do this. Commander Tio won’t win.” She took a deep breath. “Can’t we stun them and shoot the lock?”

  Thorn shook his head as he whispered, “No. The room’s surrounded by an invisible force-field. All we need is the code to turn it off and unlock the door.”

  “You mean we need a guard to tell us the code?” asked Jack, shock filling his voice. “Just how’re you going to accomplish that?”