Somewhere beneath the ice Caves. Northern Maine Wilderness, July 6th.
“This isn’t Ralph’s barn,” Charlee said, as they walked. She was gazing around in awe. “What is this place?”
“Your guess is as good as mine,” Eli said. “By the way, my name is Eli.”
“I’m Charlee,” the teenage girl said. “Nice to meet you.”
“You don’t look like a Charlee.”
“That’s what everyone says. But you can trust me, I’m Charlee, with two -e’s instead of an -ie.”
“What’s this about Ralph’s barn?” Eli asked. “Who’s Ralph?”
As they made their way across the smooth marble floor of the massive cavern they exchanged stories. Parts were hastily drawn and a lot of it was fragmented and disjointed, but everyone got a general idea of where the others had come from and what had brought them to this place in time.
Jason looked at his watch and frowned. “What’s the matter?” Danielle asked.
“What day did we parachute out of that plane and end up at Ralph Little’s house?”
“July 5th. Why?”
“My watch says it’s July 6th. It was night when we came up through that trap door but it wasn’t after midnight. Anyone know what day this is?”
Eli looked at his watch. “July 6th 1:15 pm.”
“By my estimation it took us more than sixteen hours to move up through that trap door and into this chamber. Something that shouldn’t have taken us more than a few minutes.”
“Time’s funny down here,” Doug said, and they all left it at that.
A short time later Jason said, “So you’re going to retrieve an object of some sort?”
“Right,” answered Doug.”
Jason pulled the artifact from around his neck and said, “Does it look anything like this?”
Everyone stopped. Doug and Jennings came in for a closer inspection. “Interesting,” Doug said. “May I ask where you got that?”
“From my grandfather. Danielle’s got one too and so does Johnny. They’re part of the reason we’re here. For some reason none of us understand, your daughter needs them.”
Doug frowned. He remembered only too well the story Nadia and Dr. Randal had told them the night before of three alien artifacts. “I don’t understand either,” Doug said, “but you’re right, she does need them. She also needs the object we’re going after, but it’s different than those three.”
“Different in what way?” Danielle asked.
“You wouldn’t believe it if I told you. I’ll explain everything when we get back topside. Right now we have to hurry. Time’s wasting.”
Danielle was gazing skyward. “Where are we?” she asked.
“We’re in a cavern beneath the earth,” Jennings replied.
“I’ve never seen a cavern that looked like this.”
“How many caverns have you been in?” Eli asked.
“Quite a few actually. When I was a child, my grandfather—the man who raised me—took me to Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico, and we did an underground boat trip in some caverns in upstate New York one time, but I’ve never seen anything like this.”
“Nor has anyone else,” Jennings said. “My father discovered it a long time ago.”
“Do others come down here?”
“Not to my knowledge. I don’t believe anyone knows about it. And if they do, they don’t talk about it. Otherwise the whole world would know by now.”
“Where’s the light coming from?” Slim asked.
“Well, that’s debatable,” Jennings replied. “We think we know but it’s complicated.”
“Does it stay on all the time?”
“As far as I know.”
“Amazing,” Danielle interjected. “Is that even possible?”
“Certain kinds of naturally formed phosphorous can produce light without heat or an electrical source,” Eli said.
“But that’s not what’s producing this light, is it?” Jason said.
Eli shook his head. “When we get back topside maybe we can have a serious discussion about it.”
They finally reached the opposite wall. Like the floor, the wall was perfectly flat and unblemished, and rose vertically to a place so high up it was impossible to tell where it met the ceiling.
“Amazing,” Danielle said again, looking skyward. Maybe it was just an illusion but there didn’t seem to be a ceiling at all. Instead, it looked like a sky filled with roiling blue clouds. “I’ve never seen—hell, I’ve never even imagined anything like this before.” She knew instinctively that this place spoke loudly of intelligent design. It was just too perfect to be natural. She shuddered at the thought because down deep she understood that it would take an intelligence far greater than what humans possessed to build such a structure.
They turned left at the wall and followed Doug until they came to a series of large indentations, all uniformly spaced, like dimples in the otherwise smooth surface of the wall. Doug stopped. “Eli, you come with me. Everyone else stay here. We’ll be back in a few minutes.”
Eli and Doug disappeared inside one of the dimples. Danielle could not help herself so she went over and peered in. Jason joined her. At the far end they saw a small dark tunnel, perfectly round, like a drill hole. It was barely tall enough for an average person to stand up in. Together they walked on down the row of indentations peering into each of them. They discovered that they all contained an identical tunnel, or hole or whatever at the end. And there were more above them, all evenly spaced and uniform in size, like a giant honeycomb.
“What in the world is this place?” Danielle breathed.
“I don’t know,” Jason replied as he gave her hand a small squeeze. “Maybe it’s not of this world.” He held onto her hand as they moved back toward the group.
“Do you know where those tunnels lead?” Jason asked Jennings.
“Not really. Doug and I have explored a few of them and they just seem to go on forever. We decided it was too dangerous to continue.”
“So where are Doug and Eli going?”
“To get the object we spoke about. Doug hid it and he’s the only one who knows its whereabouts.”
“So why is Eli going?”
“It’s complicated. I don’t even know the answer to that.”
Before long Doug and Eli were back. “Where’s the object?” Jennings said.
“Eli has it.”
A shimmering bolt of energy materialized near the opening where moments before Doug and Eli had emerged. Before anyone could react the bolt sped like quicksilver toward the group. Just before reaching them, it vanished.
“Holy crap, what the hell was that?” Jennings said. It happened so fast he hadn’t had time to pull his weapon. Now he did, spinning in order to get a bead on it in case it came back.
Following Jennings’s lead, Jason also lifted his weapon to the ready position. But there was nothing there.
“It looked like a man,” Charlee said. “A very big man wearing a shiny, black cloak.”
“Put your weapons down, guys,” Doug said.
“What? Why?” Jennings asked
“It doesn’t mean us any harm.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because I know what it is.”
“Christ, Doug, are you kidding me?” Jennings said. “You told me that thing was gone.”
“That’s what I thought. That’s what it told me.”
“How long have you known?”
“You don’t think I found that interface on my own, do you?”
“You’ve known this whole time?”
“Some things are best left unshared,” Doug replied.
“Why is it here?”
“I think it’s some sort of insurance policy. Whatever Ariel’s supposed to do can’t fail. She needs the kind of help and protection we might not be able to give her.”
“You think that creature’s going to help her?”
“Yeah, I’m pretty sure. If we fail everyone’s s
crewed. And I don’t think it’s just about the stuff happening here on Earth.”
“I don’t get what you’re saying.”
“We’re just a small piece of a much larger puzzle.”
“Jesus, Doug.”
“What are you guys talking about?” Charlee said.
“There’s no time to explain now. We have to get these objects back to Ariel.”
“Did anyone get a clear look at that thing?” Slim said.
“I told you, I did,” Charlee said. “It looked like a very tall man dressed in black, shiny armor.”
“That’s what I saw too,” Jason said.
“I just saw a flash,” Danielle said.
“It didn’t look like anything from this world,” Slim said.
“That’s because it isn’t from this world,” Doug said heading back across the cavern floor. “Let’s go. We don’t have much time.”
CHAPTER 28
Somewhere beneath the ice Caves. Northern Maine Wilderness. July 6th.
More than an hour later they reached the foot of the spiral staircase. Charlee said, “We’re not really going to climb up there are we?”
“That’s how we got here,” Eli said.
Danielle groaned. “I’m not good with heights. And there’s no railing.”
“You have a better idea?” Jennings asked her.
She shook her head.
“You sure?”
Danielle stared at Jennings in confusion. “What? Yes, of course I’m sure. How would I have a better idea?”
“Ariel knew you people were coming. She told us we would be receiving visitors and that they would show us a better way to get to the surface.”
“How on earth would we know a better way…?” And as she spoke, the answer came to her. She looked over at Jason.
Jason nodded in understanding. “Worth a try,” he said.
“What?” Eli asked.
Jason gave a brief account of how his and Danielle’s objects together had healed Charlee.
“How did you know to do that?” Doug asked Jason.
“Ariel told me.”
“But she’s not talking to you now, is she?”
“No. After that she said she couldn’t help me anymore, that I was on my own.”
“What makes you think it’ll work?”
“I don’t know that it will work. But I think it’s worth a try. We’ve never tried using all three of the objects at once. Two did something miraculous. I can only imagine what three of them might do. Maybe it’ll open up some sort of portal.” He looked expectantly at Johnny.
“Hey, I’m game for anything.” Johnny craned his neck, looking skyward to where the staircase spiraled up, up and away, disappearing into what looked like scudding blue clouds. “If it works it’d be better than climbing all the way up there.”
“A portal?” Jennings blurted, color rising in his rugged, weather-beaten cheeks. “How the hell do you think that would work? What if it sets off some sort of nuclear reaction or something?”
Eli sighed in exasperation. “You are such a buzz kill, Rick.”
“Just being his practical old self,” Doug said ironically.
“I’m being practical because I don’t believe in hocus pocus,” Jennings raved. “How the hell are we supposed to do it? We don’t have any instructions or anything. Do we just stand here? Or do we have to be in some special formation or something. I don’t get it.”
“Nobody gets it, Rick,” Doug said. “Now we can stand here and debate this for the rest of the day or we can give it a try. What do you say?”
Jennings did not respond.
“When the Blue Light healed Charlee it knew what to do on its own,” Jason said. “These objects have their own intelligence, and somehow they’re linked to the Blue Light, and maybe—I don’t know—maybe they’re even linked to Ariel in some way. All we had to do was bring the two of them within close proximity and it happened. I think we should just have faith that it will do what it’s supposed to do.”
“Faith?” Jennings said. “That’s a strong word.”
“I think it’s worth a try,” Doug said. “We need to move and we need to move now.”
Just then the com unit vibrated in Doug’s pocket. He pulled it out and read the text, his face darkening. He typed some words and hit send.
“What’s going on?” Jennings asked.
“They’re under attack. Annie has taken Ariel to one of the rear chambers for protection. The rest of them are preparing for a fight. Nadia’s men are holding them off but the enemy is determined to get through. They’re killing the animals trying to make a path.”
“Bastards!” Eli said.
“So far it’s not working. As soon as they mow a path the animals are moving right back in and closing it off. Bears and wolves, even large birds like eagles and hawks are joining in the fight and attacking the aggressors. Nadia says it’s the most amazing thing she’s ever seen. I told her we have the artifact and some new friends, to stand by, we’re moving as fast as we can.”
Jason had taken the object from around his neck and was holding it in his hand. “Okay,” he said, “let me see the other two.” Danielle and Johnny produced theirs and held them out to Jason. “I’m not sure what we’re supposed to do here. My guess would be for the three of us to get into a tight circle while the rest of you form a circle around us.”
Johnny looked worried.
“I don’t think this is going to hurt,” Jason said reassuringly. “Remember, whatever power these things contain healed Charlee. If they wanted to hurt us, we would know that by now.”
“You’re sure about that? Jennings said.
“Pretty sure. I’ve had mine since I was twelve years old and I believe it saved my life in Iraq. I think these things possess some sort of intelligence. I’m not sure they’re capable of harm. Okay, everyone ready?”
Once all eight had gathered in a close group, Jason said, “Let’s bring the objects together now.” He could see that Danielle’s hands were shaking. It’s okay,” he said. “It’ll be over in a minute.”
Nothing happened until the three objects were approximately six inches apart. Then a small blue vortex erupted between them, so suddenly that Charlee gave a little squawk and tried to jump back. Doug grabbed her and brought her back into the circle. At first the vortex was no more than ten inches tall and a few inches in diameter, but it grew so dramatically and with such swiftness that in a matter of seconds it had consumed everyone in the circle. The next few moments were confusing for everyone, for the wall and stairs before them vanished, along with the giant cavern they’d been standing in. Everything seemed to be bathed in a deep blue light. Later they would all say the same thing: they felt a slight tingling sensation all over, but nothing else. It was as if time stood still. In the next instant they were somewhere else. When Doug realized where, he was totally blown away. They were in an antechamber behind the living quarters and he was staring at an astonished Annie and a smiling Ariel. Ariel ran and jumped up into his arms, hugging him fiercely.
“I heard you coming,” Ariel said.
Annie gave Doug a questioning looked and shrugged her shoulders.
“You did? How? I didn’t hear a thing.”
“Right here,” Ariel said putting her hand over her heart. “I’m so glad you brought our friends with you, Papa. I knew they would come.”
“Yes you did, little one. You always know these things.”
Ariel began to cry.
“Hey, what’s wrong?”
“They’re hurting my friends.”
“Who’s hurting your friends?”
“Outside. They’re killing the animals.”
“Can you make them stop?”
“No.”
“Can you make the animals go away?”
“They don’t want to go away. They came to help me.” Doug and Annie exchanged a troubled glance as Ariel continued to sob against Doug’s shoulder.
Annie sized up the new arr
ivals as she went to where Doug stood holding a sobbing Ariel. She hugged him and kissed him on the mouth. “I don’t know what just happened, but I sure am glad you’re back,” she said. “Things aren’t good here. I don’t know what we’re going to do.”
Doug introduced the group as they made their way toward the front of the caves. In the distance an explosion erupted, rocking the ground they stood on.
“I need to take care of some things,” he told Ariel, handing her back to Annie. “Are you okay?”
“Uh huh.”
“I’ll be with you shortly.”
“I know, Papa. It’s okay. I’m just glad you’re here. But I’ll need to talk to our new guests soon.”
“You bet, love. First I have to make sure we’re safe.”
“Okay, Papa.”
Doug saw that the door to the control room was open where Nadia and Dr. Randal were monitoring the activities outside. Nadia was on the phone communicating with her security team. She signed off when Doug came in. “We have guests,” Doug told her.
“I saw. Did they bring anything to the party?”
Doug did not immediately answer her. He wasn’t sure why he was reluctant to mention the objects to Nadia. Didn’t matter. He was reasonably sure she knew they had arrived.
“Let me guess,” she said. “One of them is Albert Singer’s grandson, and one is Joseph Peterson’s granddaughter.”
“Yup, just like you said. Funny how you’re always one step ahead of the game.”
“I have good resources.”
“I’ll bet you do.”
Ignoring Doug’s barb Nadia said, “What about the third object?”
“You were wrong about Johnny Cobain. He’s alive and well and resting out in the main room.”
“That’s a surprise,” Nadia said.
“Is it?”
Nadia leveled her gaze at Doug. “You still don’t trust me, do you?”
“Do you blame me?”
“How many times do I have to tell you I’m sorry, Doug.”
“Until I believe you.” Doug turned away from Nadia and focused his attention on the monitors, amazed at what he was seeing outside. “Fill me in on what’s happening.”
Song of Ariel: A Blue Light Thriller (Book 2) (Blue Light Series) Page 28
