by Lynn Donovan
Where was Holly Teak anyway? Abbie glanced around one more time. Had she missed the woman? Surely she would be called in to help determine what went wrong and what the consequential effects were.
“Well, I- uh, only that the lab wall was damaged in the explosion. I can only assume the photon entanglement cascaded into the quartz crystals of the mountain. ” She closed her mouth, and then opened it again.
She wanted to say, But I look forward to investigating that very thing. But Stettler jerked a nod and began speaking again. “I want you in there, extending your theory, testing. But not alone! No one goes in Lab One or near that wall alone. Partner up.”
Abbie glanced at Joseph. Partner up, check.
“We need to know what the hell is happening with that fog, and for that matter, why we are getting fog in a dry mountain air.”
Abbie opened her mouth to reply, but Stettler turned to Joseph. “Dr. Assad!”
She snapped her mouth closed with frustration. She couldn’t wait to get started running tests. But where was Holly? Comparing current readings of the quartz wall around Lab One to Abbie’s previous findings might yield information that could explain the dimensional opening. Holly was a key person for discussing that data. She knew the most about that man-made crystal in the center of the toroid and… Abbie considered Joseph.
He stiffened and responded to Stettler. The director went on. Specific orders were given— Investigate the side effects of that crystal. Why ask Joseph to do that? Why not Holly? She grew the darn thing. He knew her equations and anticipated results, but Abbie preferred to have this discussion with the one whose brain thought it up in the first place.
In fact, why were all these other people here? The only people needed for this team would be herself, Holly, Joseph and Axel. How could anybody else have any idea what went wrong or what to do about it?
Stettler moved his attention to the head of security, Sebastian Stone. At least his scrutiny was off of Abbie.
Yes, there was a lot to be learned from yesterday’s event. One of which would be to recognize that there were creatures who had infiltrated our world. The large cumbersome thing had not been found, as far as she knew. She only knew about the faeries, but she was not naïve, if these two species made it through, there had to be more. Second, these fantastical creatures were living, breathing entities who actually had escaped a tyrannically oppressive leader. Her faeries were seeking political asylum here in this world, what else came through or why she had no clue, but could only assume they would be seeking the same new life. Could Stettler really handle such information? Without being the oppressive jerk that he was naturally and locking them up for further study.
Abbie waited for Stettler to pause, or ask if there was anything else. She wanted to give her opinion about diplomacy, potential alien life forms, a new species discovery. Maybe more…
But Stettler mentioned the tech who disappeared in the explosion. Zeke Callahan.
Poor Zeke!
Stettler tasked everyone in the room to figure out what happened to him. His fiancé deserved an answer.
Fiancé? That’s right. Joseph had mentioned Zeke had asked Amelia to marry him just the night before the accident. Well, yes, she sure did deserve an answer. We all did. Sadness deflated Abbie’s ire. Maybe when she could get in to Lab One and examine that wall, she could find something that would indicate where Zeke went. It only stood to reason that if these other-worldly beings came here, perhaps Zeke went there. Could it be that simple? She imagined walking up to the quartz wall and sticking her hand through, into their world. Like in Stargate. Would it feel cold and fluidy?
Man! Abbie itched to get to work examining that wall!
A niggling, unwanted thought whispered at the back of her mind. Zeke could have imploded with the crystal. She winced, shrugging the offensive thought aside. Surely there would have been pink mist, something of his DNA, if that were the case. Abbie crossed her fingers at her side and sincerely hoping that was not the case. At least if Zeke got sucked into that other world, there was the possibility that he could be found and brought back.
“Lieutenant Stone, Dorothy; stick around.” Stettler’s bark brought Abbie’s mind back to the meeting. “Everyone else, dismissed.”
Dismissed.
Abbie stood. Numb from what she’d heard Stettler say. Bothered by her own indecisive thoughts. Forgotten was her two-cents worth that she had wanted to interject. She followed the team out into the hall. Could she and Joseph go straight to the Lab and get started? She leaned close to Joseph’s ear. “Where’s Dr. Teak?”
“I have no idea.” Joseph looked around for good measure. “You suppose Stettler is blaming her for the accident?”
Abbie shrugged. “Why? It only makes sense to me that she’d be part of this team. She knows more about that entanglement machine than any of us… well, except you, of course… and Axel, since he built it.”
“No, you’re right. It’s all her… brain baby. What did you call it?”
Abbie giggled. “Brain child.”
“Right. Brain child. I just verified her equations. She came up with the formulas.”
“Yeah. So why isn’t she here?”
Axel Ashton joined them walking away from Stettler’s office. “Because Stettler deems her unreliable, whatever that means. He’s restricted her from the physics building, her office, and the labs. He even took her computer and cell phone. Can you believe that?”
“He just confiscated it from her? Why?”
Axel shrugged. “Well, he let her voluntarily turn them over to his security guys. But what choice did she have? If she refused, it makes her look guilty of … something. I don’t know.”
“So… “ Abbie considered Axel’s comment. “If Stettler doesn’t want anyone to talk to her, and doesn’t consider her objective or reliable—” Abbie shook her head. “I just don’t get it. What does any of that mean?”
“I don’t know.” Axel jammed his hands in his pockets and continued to walk with them.
“Hmm.” Abbie touched his arm drawing him back. “As you just heard, I’ve actually been ordered to work in there, to find out what the heck happened.”
Axel nodded.
“Look.” Abbie continued. “I’ll do everything I can to figure out my end of this dilemma. But I can’t see us actually resolving much without Holly’s input.” She looked over her shoulder. They stepped outside the building and walked down the crushed granite walk through the indigenous garden. Abbie checked all around them. “Maybe when we need to know something that only Holly would know, you could get our question to her and…”
Axel brightened. “Yeah. Maybe we can work with her that way.”
“Right.” Abbie smiled.
Axel looked worried and relieved at the same time. “Well, thank you Abbie. I know you and Holly haven’t always seen eye to eye. But none of this is her fault.” He ran his hand through his hair. “I really appreciate you… helping figure this out.”
Abbie pursed her lips. Remorse swept through her heart. She had never really given Holly a chance. She was a genius, just like Joseph. Maybe more than Joseph. Obviously, Axel had strong feeling for her, and those feelings weren’t wrapped up in her brilliance for chemical physics. That, Abbie could relate to!
“I’m happy to help. Especially if Stettler is shutting her out. That really doesn’t make any sense to me.”
Axel shrugged. “Me neither.”
“Yeah. I just need to run by my temporary apartment for one thing.” Abbie smiled sympathetically at Axel and glanced at Joseph. Joseph nodded, he understood what she was about to do, and pulled away from Axel to walk with her. Axel dropped his eyes to the ground and solemnly walked toward the QEPL. “So, I’ll see you at Lab One?”
Abbie and Joseph nodded.
“Yep. Axel’s in love with Dr. Teak.”
“What makes you say that?” Joseph side-stepped from her to level his eyes with hers.
“Are you kidding? It’s as obvious a
s…” Abbie looked around. “As fifteen obvious things.” She waggled her eyebrows.
Joseph frowned. “Let’s not talk about that out here.”
Abbie continued her thought. “All the more reason to get this figured out and, hopefully, resolved. For everybody.” Abbie touched her hair. Sensing the faeries absence. Did the faeries have anything to do with all these new relationships popping up all of a sudden?
A residual jealous sensation pierced Abbie’s heart. She and Joseph were getting to be pretty close. How long had Holly and Axel been seeing each other? They worked nearly twenty-four-seven. Maybe they’d kindled their relationship while working together. That was something Abbie and Joseph didn’t have. Until now. Now, they were partnered up, ordered to work together. What a delightful outcome to a tragic event. Abbie’s shoulders rounded. She bit her bottom lip. How selfish.
“Well, okay.” Abbie shook off the compunction. “Lets go get the faeries and examine a quartz wall.” Abbie stepped more lively.
Joseph took her elbow, stopping her. “You think that’s wise?”
“Something tells me these faeries are vital to our investigation. Besides, what could it hurt?”
Joseph frowned. “Exactly my point.”
Chapter Twelve
Abbie stood in the fog with Joseph in Lab One. It was like being in a steam room. The mist gave the impression of heat, but the wall was cool to the touch. The fragrant floral aroma of a tropical jungle wafted through the fissure. Abbie made a mental note to bring a fan next time. Surely they could move this mist out to the woods where it would dissipate in the dry mountain air.
The faeries had refused to go with her to the wall. They insisted they should remain in their tiny house inside her temporary apartment. Why they were so terrified of the wall was unclear, but she didn’t have the heart to force them to come, even if they could be valuable in explaining how they came through. She had drawn the curtains and locked the door.
Worry lingered in her heart that someone might come in the apartment and they would be found. She had warned them to stay hidden if anyone other than Joseph, Karole, or herself walked into the apartment. The term, “stranger-danger” meant so much more for them, considering if anybody among the VEIL facility guards or scientists found any form of alien beings in her apartment. They’d become lab rats in a split second.
The large creature that emerged from the fog yesterday still hadn’t been found, nor had any trace of it been seen. That was so odd. She patted the wall. It was solid as a … well, as a rock. Unless its chemical compound had changed immediately after the accident, she couldn’t see how the creature would have returned otherwise. But anything was possible.
Abbie chipped pieces away from the scintillating quartz wall. “You know.” She spoke softly to Joseph. “If only the faeries weren’t so afraid, I’d have brought them here to help determine what was going on with these flickering lights.”
Joseph frowned. “Abbie. It’s not like you can carry them across the compound. They are not chihuahuas.”
“I know, you’re right, but what do they think will happen? Mother Righteous will reach through and grab them?” Abbie chuckled. “Perhaps she would? They know this ruling gorgon, we don’t.”
“I’m sure they are right to be so cautious.” Joseph marked a container before lifting it to where she chiseled pieces of quartz. “You should be more cautious, too.”
“Well, I’d love to get their input on the content of the samples. Does it exist on their side too? Maybe we could bring some samples back to the apartment tonight.” A queasy sensation lingered, distracting her from her fact gathering. She leaned back to examine the wall. An oval darkness filled the pink opacity, making it almost purple.
She paused to consider the variation in the rock.
“Hmm.” A theory formed in her head. Would the component that caused the quartz to flicker with colored lights remain once the rock was removed from the wall? That was something she’d prove, or disprove, in just a moment when she loosened some of the quartz where the scintillation effect lingered.
Any changes from before the accident would be catalogued along with any changes from this sampling today. This color variance couldn’t be compared to anything since the building was constructed but she did have samples from when the mountain was excavated before construction.
Her gaze remained on the rock she was about to chip away from the fissure, while she spoke to Joseph. “Please note these samples have lost that… twinkling lights affect as soon as I separated them from the larger mass.”
Joseph jerked a nod as she placed the chunk into a container he held out for her.
Her eyelashes brushed against the safety glasses as she blinked. Condensation obscured her view of his ruggedly handsome face.
Joseph marked the container on a white painted area, like a label, with a special pen, designating where the samplings were taken and wrote corresponding information on a chart attached to a clipboard.
A loud metal-on-concrete noise startled Abbie. She gasped and jumped, nearly dropping her chisel. She had forgotten Axel and Rick Sharp were working in the lab also. Had they heard anything Abbie and Joseph had said about the faeries?
Orange plastic strings draped behind their necks which told her they did not. They were wearing earplugs.
Stettler had assigned Axel and Rick to build a containment cage. They were organizing assorted metal pieces and mesh wiring that had been delivered this morning. At least it proved that Stettler acknowledged the big creature had come through the wall. Anybody else on-site who spoke of the incident swore it was just a bear. That thing was way bigger than just a bear. The phrase had become so prevalent she heard that The Oasis had a dark stout beer with whipped cream on top labeled “Just-a-Beer.”
A hand-drawn sketch of the cage lay on a desk under the observation area. Axel and Rick worked far away from Abbie and Joseph assembling the basic framework. Soon, Abbie would have to be finished collecting her samples because the cage would be placed up against the twinkly lit wall. The assumption being this was where additional creatures would come through.
Joseph lifted another beaker from a rolling cart they had brought from her office and set near the study sight. He held the glass jar under Abbie’s chisel.
They wiped their safety goggles against their lab coat sleeves and kept working. The dancing lights were so distracting they both paused to take in the spectacle. Distorted shapes beyond the quartz were visible too. Abbie looked closer at the strange muted image. Joseph leaned toward the distortions. “What is that?”
“I have no idea.” Abbie smiled resolutely at him. “From the smell, I’d say foliage. It wasn’t there before this building was built, I can assure you. Before this facility was built, it was my assignment to study this entire mountain. I have documentation that it was solid quartz. That was the reason the facility was built into this elevation. Now, and only in this specific area of the wall, it looks like an opaque window to a garden… or something. What I find really strange, it this darkened rock. It’s almost like—”
She moved to the slit where the quartz seemed to be separating along a cleavage. For good measure, Abbie changed her safety glasses for a special UV set and lifted a special light. “No traces of blood.”
Joseph nodded. “So, no sign Zeke was sucked through.”
“Right.” She switched back to the clear googles and scraped chunks of purpling quartz into a separate glass container. Now that it was separate from the wall, it appeared to be the lighter pink. “What I was saying, is I don’t understand this purpling effect.”
He marked the jar and lifted another.
“One of the things I’ll be checking for is fibers when we get back to my lab.” Abbie concentrated on the fissure rocks. The gap was just wide enough to get a glimpse of the world invoked by this entanglement.
Joseph pursed his lips. So far there had been nothing to indicate what had happened to the tech. Fibers or blood would indicate Zeke’s bod
y had been sucked through this sliver of a crack in the quartz, which would also indicate he was dead.
Abbie paused in her chipping, staring through the slight crack. She could make out lush green foliage, ferns perhaps, white, yellow, and red blooming shoots, bugs or maybe birds singing to one another. It was a tropical paradise—
A large, orange, snake-like eye popped in front of the opening.
“Ahhh!” Abbie fell back from the wall, panting. Her heart pounded in her chest. Joseph started, dropping the glass container. It shattered. The figure vanished.
“What was that?” Abbie spoke louder than she had intended. She angled her head to look again, but the figure was beyond her visual range. Nausea roiled in her gut. She swallowed against it. Whatever or whoever that was, it seemed to be gone now. Perhaps she’d scared it as much as it scared her.
She turned to Joseph with wide eyes, concentrating on steadying her breathing.
“Are you alright?” Joseph stepped closer to her. “Maybe we should take a break.”
Abbie shook her head. “No, I’m alright. It just surprised me. As beautiful as it appears to be over there, I’m pretty sure it’s an illusion.” Abbie touched her collar bone, calming her breathing and her heart. “It’s gone now. Let’s keep working.”
Joseph nodded, but he didn’t look as though he agreed.
Abbie turned to retrieve a drill and two sets of ear-protection headphones. Joseph took one set while she placed the other over her ears.
Abbie’s attention moved to the broken toroid. Tattooed burn marks darkened the floor. Ram-set bolts lay bent and severed where the power coupling had been. Who removed it? Where had it been taken? Was someone examining it for evidence of what might have caused the accident? Axel had built the thing, why hadn’t he been assigned to examine it? Stettler’s orders made less and less sense.
She drew in a deep breath, bringing her gaze back to Ashton and Sharp. “This is going to be loud!”
