When Lightning Strikes (Alien Academy Book 1)

by Pixie James

  Huey stirs on my lap as a bulky redhead comes in with what looks like a small oxygen cannister. Dr. Jensen hooks up a long piece of clear plastic tubing attached to a mask and pats me on the arm. “Okay, so just like we talked about earlier. I’ll turn on the gas, you’ll count backwards from twenty. This particular medication isn’t going to fully sedate you, just make you a little sleepy and lower your inhibitions. It stimulates a part of the human brain we know is attached to memory—”

  “But I’m not human. This might not even work.”

  “Yes, that is true. But according to the scans we obtained this week, the anatomy of your brain is similar enough. It should be fine. Plus, Dr. Johnston here is world renowned for his work on Xypen hypnosis.”

  Uneasiness creeps in, and the minute amount of confidence I had in them before evaporates. “That name sounds totally made up. You cleared this with Te’Lara and Headmaster Ha’Jahn, right?”

  “It’s perfectly safe. He’s only going to ask you a few questions and that’s it. Now, before the medicine takes effect, will you ask your friend there to abdicate your lap?”

  Huey’s unamused voice bounces around my head, “First one who touches me loses a finger.”

  After discussing it at length with Headmaster Ha’Jahn, he suggested I not let them know that I can communicate with Huey. So, I don’t even bother responding to him.

  “Eh. That’s not going to happen. You’ll just have to do it with him here, and if you can’t… well, maybe we should call Te’Lara and make sure it’s okay.”

  Huey doesn’t bother lifting his head, but his big red eyes meet mine. “Just say the word and I will subdue them. You will not be forced into anything against your will in my presence.”

  Yeah, yeah. I know. You’re amazing, all mighty….

  My friend cocks a brow almost as if he heard me, and then lets his eyes close. The chair I’m in reclines back, the electric buzz of its controls loud in my ears. I shift, trying to get comfortable and glance at the clock. It’s 2:00 PM. Okay, I can do this.

  It’s sweet at first, the taste of the gas, then bitter at the back of my throat. Coating the inside of my nose like oil, the mist sits heavy in my lungs and my eyes flutter closed.

  “Cherise, you may begin counting now,” the new doctor says, and I wonder why it is all these people think it proper to just call me by my first name. I’ve always been taught to use last names no matter the age. I guess these suits didn’t get the southern hospitality memo.

  “Twenty. Nineteen. Eighteen…” The longer I count the heavier my mind feels until it’s like I’m trying to swim in peanut butter.

  “Good, Cherise. Good. Now, let’s begin.”

  Everything is black. My limbs feel heavy. My lungs burn but it takes so much effort to breathe. Wait, am I asleep?

  Te’Lara’s anger-laced voice echoes somewhere far off in the distance. “You ignorant fools, what have you done?”

  There’s some kind of commotion. Things beeping. Dr. Jensen’s trembling voice. “I…we don’t know what’s happening. She began to speak of a red sky and now…”

  A chair scrapes across the floor. “How far back did you push her?”

  “We just began the descent into early childhood, I don’t understand—”

  “Of course you do not understand. This has never been done on a Xebulin before, and you thought it responsible and morally sound to experiment on a seventeen-year-old child. You did not have permission to do this.”

  “We’re the government. We can do anything we deem necessary.”

  “Not here. Not if you want to keep all your limbs. Huey, can you find her?” Te’Lara asks, and I can feel my friend beside me, pulling at our connection through my wrist. He’s there—his anger and fear registering somewhere deep. I could follow him if I wanted but…

  Another wave of exhaustion threatens to pull me under, and I force myself to take another breath. The smell of Vinesian chocolate hangs in the air as Te’Lara leans over me, and the bed shakes as she fumbles with the things around me.

  “Wake up.” An unfamiliar female voice echoes in my head. Its soft melody is soothing, almost like she’s singing. I’m not sure what’s happening but a big part of me really doesn’t care. I just want to sleep.

  Huey’s attempts at pulling my consciousness toward him strengthen and it’s almost if my brain’s being sucked through a straw. It’s annoying. I’ll wake up when I’m good and ready. Why is everyone making such a big deal? I can get up when I want.

  The monitor above me beeps louder, and a soft, warm hand presses against my forehead. “Come on, child, quit being so stubborn. Come back before you get lost.”

  Lost? What’s Te’Lara talking about? I just want some peace and quiet. She huffs, and mumbles under her breath, “How are you resisting an In’tracian pull?”

  A what? The warmth on my forehead increases—as does the pressure—and my neck protests at how hard she’s pressing me against the pillow. Huey groans and his regala tighten around my wrist.

  Is what she’s doing to me is affecting him too?

  “This is fascinating. Sara, are you getting this? Her palm is glowing,” Dr. Jensen says. “If this doesn’t work, I have the reversal agent. We can try again.”

  “You mean like you have twice before? You and your people are finished touching her. Do you understand me? Take another step and even I will not be able to protect you from the Dan-A-Tish.”

  Dr. Jensen’s voice goes up an octave. “I’m not keen on being threatened, Miss. You keep that beast away from me, or I’ll have our officers respond with deadly force.”

  “You would be in pieces even before you thought to try.”

  Te’Lara and the doctor continue to argue, and just as I find myself wanting to retreat further away, I hear the voice from before, except this time, she’s irritated. “Come back, child. I have not waited on a true purpose worthy of awakening for all these eons only to have you sleep your way to your own demise. You will rise, or I will force you.”

  The alarm over my bed starts to scream and all of a sudden, the feeling of Huey and Te’Lara’s attempts fade away.

  The strange voice huffs in annoyance. “Do not say I did not warn you. Give your people my apologies, this will hurt,” I hear just before my world explodes with silver light. Jerking my eyes open as an electric shock reminiscent of a lightning strike jolts through me, forcing me to sit up, I see Huey, Te’Lara, and everyone else in the room thrown back into the wall.

  The room is vibrating, or I’m shaking so hard it looks that way, and for a few sweet seconds, it’s silent. No beeping, no one arguing, no low-level buzz from the camera feeds. Then I realize why.

  The scent of smoke and burnt wiring engulfs the room. Huey’s the first to get up, jumping on my bed and rubbing his slimy nose all over me. “Beloved Xebulin…you exploded the room. Are you well? You smell weird. I do not like it. Are you hurt? Should I kill them?”

  A rough laugh escapes as I run a hand down his regala. “Ha, I’m fine. Calm down.”

  Dr. Jensen groans, and Te’Lara stands, brushing off her ivory dress. She lumbers forward, abandoning her normal poise, and cups my face. “Are you all right?”

  “Yeah, kind of a rude awakening, don’t you think?”

  Her brows furrow and she glances over her shoulder at the now recovering humans. “We will discuss it later. Do not give them any more information. And stop talking to Huey. Quick, lie back. Act like you are passed out.”

  I do as she says but crack an eye open and watch her as she manually activates the fire alarms.

  As water sprays the room, drenching it, Dr. Jensen straightens his glasses and slaps a hand over his mouth. “Oh, no. The cameras…all of our equipment…they’re ruined!” He turns to glare at Te’Lara. “We’ll be lucky if we can restore any of the data we’ve gathered. This is outrageous.”

  “Out.”

  “We will not be told what to do. We do not answer to you, Xebulin,” Dr. Johnston, my failed hypnotist
chimes in.

  Her colors start to shift. “You will. Make no mistake, what you did here today blatantly violates our treaty. Your superiors will hear about this, as will theirs. If I have to repeat myself, you will be physically removed. Understood?” She walks over to the door, stepping over Dr. Jensen’s assistant Sara who’s still sitting there in a daze, and opens it, allowing the twenty or so Raska waiting outside to file in.

  I whisper to Huey, who’s still nudging my face, sniffing me, “Is all this really necessary?”

  “Those Raska respond to any and all school emergencies and are tasked with escorting the students out.”

  “And the battle armor? They always wear that during a fire alarm, too?”

  “You are mine to protect, beloved Xebulin. I will not have you threatened.”

  Huey jumps down to lead the group of Raska forcing the humans out while Te’Lara shoves the last stack of notes against Dr. Jensen’s chest. His ruddy cheeks jiggle as he vibrates in anger. “This is unacceptable! You’ll be hearing from the department of—"

  The door slams in his face, cutting off his warning, and Te’Lara sags against it. “Tell me everything and leave nothing out.”

  Either I’m still in shock or the headmaster keeps his office at sub-zero temps because the longer I wait here for Te’Lara to come back with him, the more I worry about losing a finger or a toe. Grabbing the giant-sized sweater off the back of his chair, consequences or social faux pas be danged, I wrap it around me. I’m not about to freeze to death waiting to be officially released.

  The softness of what has to be cashmere is heaven against my skin and it’s not until I’ve completely cocooned myself inside that I realize how tired I am. Huey’s still posted up at the door like he’s waiting for a group of soldiers to burst in at any moment, and since I don’t have anything else do, I let myself drift.

  The years of information I’m responsible for learning in the next few weeks doesn’t care that I’m exhausted and nearly died. I’ve still got to stay up until the butt crack of dawn trying to absorb it all. Or figure out how to siphon more effectively. Either way, I won’t be going to bed early any time soon.

  The sounds of footsteps pull me from my cat nap sooner than I like, and I hold onto my last few minutes of sleep.

  It must be Te’Lara who enters his office first because she shushes Ha’Jahn and both their steps slow. “If you keep stomping like a human, you will wake her.”

  “She has slept quite enough in my opinion, all things considering.”

  “Are you really going to attempt to be comical at a time like this? She wasn’t asleep in that room, they over-sedated her like idiots.”

  Ha’Jahn grunts. “It is the only option that does not involve obscenities. The events of the morning have tried my patience.”

  “I agree with you wholeheartedly.”

  One of them pulls the edges of my blanket tighter around my shoulders, and Huey’s claws scratch across the floor. “Oh, Huey, sit down and quit being so touchy. You know I will not harm her.”

  My lip quivers and I fight off a smile. There’s something about the way she talks to him like he’s an old grouch that makes me laugh. For a second, I think they’ve uncovered my ruse but, they keep talking.

  The Headmaster’s chair squeaks as he sinks into it. “We have very little time before she wakes and I must return to calibrating the obstacle course for the games. What is it that you wanted to discuss?”

  Te’Lara passes behind me, running her fingers over my cheek before leaning on the edge of Headmaster Ha’Jahn’s desk. “I wanted you to hear it from her, but…maybe it’s better this way.” She sighs and wood groans like she’s fidgeting in place. “She mentioned something to me, after the incident with her failed hypnosis.”

  After a few seconds of silence, the Headmaster’s chair squeaks again. “Lara, whatever it is, you can tell me without worry of ire. You and I have been friends since we were fledglings.”

  “I know.”

  “Well, then what has you guarding your words? You know Ty’Don has been hounding me all day for details on the girl and the other Assembly members are pushing me to keep her from the games. I am still trying to search the by-laws to find a way to guarantee her a spot if she wants to play.”

  Wait, they don’t want me to play in the games? Why do they even care?

  “She mentioned hearing a voice while she was unconscious. She described it as a female singing her words.”

  A strangled sound escapes his lips. “Impossible.”

  The urge to open my eyes and look at the expression on his face is almost unbearable but I know if I do, they won’t keep talking and I’ll never figure out why Te’Lara wanted me to tell him.

  “Ashiza has not spoken to me in more than two years. Why would she visit the girl if she has not even seen fit to enter my dreams?”

  “I know her absence has been…difficult for you. I do not know. I was not even sure Cherise had physically come into contact with her. Maybe, there is another explanation?”

  “With an explosion like that? The human delegate who contacted me after the incident described it as a pulse of pressure that threw everyone off their feet and destroyed the room. You think she could do that on her own?”

  “Unlikely, but the possibility is there. We still have no way of understanding the gifts she has manifested so far. The call of the Dan-A-Tish, her emotional siphoning skills, even her hair’s refusal to grow beyond its current length is unusual. Not to mention the strength and presentation of her home light. There is just no way to know.”

  “Have you considered she might be part—”

  “Do not speak another word. How dare you even think of it. I trust you have not voiced these thoughts to the Assembly?”

  A what? Finish your dang sentence. Come on, please. For once tell me something.

  I clench my fists under the blanket, trying to conceal their tremble.

  “Beloved Xebulin, stop moving or you will reveal yourself,” Huey warns silently.

  “Says the giant alien who flops his tail constantly and vibrates in his sleep.”

  “A regal being such as myself does not flop. I sway. And it is only to fan away the flies that have begun to congregate around you since you started neglecting your hygiene.”

  “Oh, please. I didn’t brush my teeth for one day—” I stiffen then quickly remember I’m supposed to be pretending to be asleep. “Wait, you can hear me, now? Since when?”

  “Approximately thirty Earth seconds ago. I thought that was obvious by my response to your thought pattern.”

  “Oh, my gosh. Stop talking so I can listen.”

  “—course, not. Do you really think I would be that careless? Even if she is, I would shame myself by lying in their presence before revealing it,” Ha’Jahn says with a huff.

  Te’Lara lets out a heavy breath. “As would I. I am pleased we can agree on something for once.”

  A warm laugh echoes through the room. “We agree on the things that count.” His chair creaks again like he’s getting up. “I appreciate you coming to me with this. Please, do not mention it to anyone else. Knowing that Ashiza’s active again…it is nice to know she is well enough as she is and that her silence was her choice. For now, I must get back to the other organizers. Cherise is free to go. We will deal with the humans later.”

  His steps get closer then start to trail off. The scent of Vinesian chocolate once again tickles my nose, letting me know Te’Lara’s near. “Does it make it easier?” she asks, a hint of sorrow in her voice. “To know that Ashiza chose silence of her own free will?”

  “No. I did not believe it possible, but I think it might be worse.”

  Chapter Twenty

  The sound of birds chirping and the wind in the trees gives me new life, instantly lifting my mood. I swear I died a little being shoved indoors for so long, and the ultra-confusing conversation I overhead while waiting to be released didn’t exactly make it any better.

  At least, I
figured out a few things. Yes, I am as weird as I thought I was and no, they don’t know why. The voice in my head might be another alien who my headmaster seems to be somewhat involved with and Huey and I can now communicate telepathically. Now if only I could find the answers to the other million questions I have, I’d be set.

  Huey and I jetted out of Ha’Jahn’s office as quick as our legs could take us when Te’Lara gave me the okay to leave a few minutes ago.

  The slats of the sun-soaked bench facing the quad are wonderfully warm against my stiff muscles. Huey stretches out by my feet in the grass, rolling his massive body and baking, belly up, in the golden rays. With nothing but blue stretched out above me, I sink back and close my eyes.

  There’s always somewhere I need to be, and in this moment, no matter what my schedule says, it’s right here.

  “Playing hooky already? Haven’t you just been allowed back in school?”

  Huey groans and rolls over at the sound of Rev’s voice. “Make him go away. I do not wish to be disturbed.”

  “Shh,” I warn under my breath. My cheeks heat as Rev sits down beside me, and all I can do is pray he attributes it to the weather. I haven’t seen him since that disaster at the dance and I have no idea what to say. “Aren’t you supposed to be in class, too?”

  “Perhaps.” He grins, the sun reflecting off his Ray-Bans, and throws his arm across the bench behind me. Huey cocks a brow at what I’m most certain is Rev’s attempt at being smooth.

  Pulling up a knee and resting my chin on it, I return his smile. “So, what have I missed? Anything good?”

  “You know, I can’t recall. It was hard paying attention, seeing as you all but disappeared after you rejected me. I could hardly drag myself out of bed.”

  “Oh, my crap. I’m so sorry,” I say, ducking behind my knee to hide my face.

  He laughs and leans forward to level his eyes with mine. “It’s fine. If you think that’s all it takes to get rid of me, you’re sorely mistaken. I guess I should apologize, too. I don’t normally react like that, I guess with it being so public and all…”