by Angie Arland
Velocity Rising
Velocity Resonance Series Book One
Angie Arland
Contents
Acknowledgments
Author Notes
Quote
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
About the Author
Also By Angie Arland
Angie Arland
Velocity Rising
Velocity Resonance Series – Book One
© 2018, Angie Arland
This work is copyright. Apart from any use permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by an information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from Angie Arland.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, locales or actual events is purely coincidental.
All rights reserved.
www.AngieArland.com
Acknowledgments
To my readers, this book is for you…it’s truly a privilege to share my stories with you.
To my amazing children, thank you for your support, encouragement and hugs. I love you to the Quad and back.
To Jane Hinchey, thank you for giving me direction when I was lost and for holding my hand every step of the way.
To Gavin, thank you for keeping me alive long enough to finish this book. Let’s hope there are many more to come.
To my editor, JM Martin, thank you for your encouragement and for helping me to become a better writer.
Author Notes
Ems are equivalent to earth minutes.
Cycles are equivalent to earth years.
V-Rep refers to Virtual Repository; a virtual representation of earth which includes a variety of programs and games.
The V-Rep is also used to train UEF Cadets within a safe environment.
“To know your Enemy, you must become your Enemy.”
― Sun Tzu
One
“That was the worst damn alien invasion movie ever!” Tayla shivered and wished like hell she could un-see what she just saw. Graphic scenes filled with alien blood and guts haunted her every thought. Nothing could ever convince her to watch another sci-fi film, next time she’d be more careful and read the reviews first. There was no way she’d get any sleep tonight.
“At least it was authentic!” Claire said over the thunder rumbling overhead. Huge raindrops pelted the ground and wind gusts buffeted the small car as they navigated home.
Tayla grasped the full-moon pendant around her neck for comfort as lightning flashed across the sky, illuminating the steep hillside as they wound their way through the narrow pass. “We should have taken the longer route. I hate cutting through the backroads, especially at night.”
“Too late now!” Claire reached over and patted her shoulder. “Honestly, I’m sorry about the movie, sis. Maybe it wasn’t the best birthday gift. I thought you’d enjoy it, you know, space, aliens, all that crap.” Claire laughed, her knuckles white as she gripped the steering wheel.
“I do love the moon pendant you gave me.” Tayla was thankful the car was dark, and her sister couldn’t see her look of sheer terror. Grinding her jaw, she kept her eyes glued ahead, even though she wasn’t the one driving. “Can we pull over until the storm passes?”
“Once we clear Tenamere Pass. Like I said, I’ll get us home safe and sound.” Despite her reassurance, Claire shifted gears and planted her foot hard on the gas.
A tree branch tumbled across the road. Claire swerved the car and missed it by an inch. Tayla’s heart pounded. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust her sister’s driving, but Claire only knew one speed.
The pile of books on the backseat slid onto the floor. “Careful! My books are taking a beating.”
Claire didn’t respond. She mustn’t have heard her over the storm. Tayla twisted in her seat and tried to reach the books. A Basic Guide to Astrophysics lay open on the floor, the other textbooks heaped on top.
Claire swerved again, and Tayla swore, giving up on rescuing her books. Twisting back into her seat, she wondered how she’d explain the book’s damage to her boss on Monday.
An uneasiness tightened in the pit of her stomach, and not from the bucket of buttered popcorn she’d had at the drive-in. After a few more seconds of being thrown side to side, Tayla’s nerves couldn’t take the stress any longer. “For God’s sake, slow down, would you?”
Claire laughed. “I drive this road every day to work. Ye of little faith.”
As they rounded the next bend, their headlights revealed a mass of smoking debris caused by what looked like the remnants of a landslide. Mangled shapes were strewn across the road, and a figure appeared in the headlights, arms outstretched.
Tayla yelled, “Look out!”
Claire veered left. Too late. The figure flew up the hood, hit the windshield, and rolled across the roof of the vehicle. The wipers smeared liquid across the cracked glass.
Time slowed as Tayla peered back through the rear windshield, trying to glimpse what they’d hit but it was lost in the darkness. She faced front just as their car slammed into the guardrail. The force threw Tayla forward, the seatbelt cut into her shoulder before she was thrown back into her seat. Stars erupted before her vision and she heard her sister’s scream as they flipped over the rail and plummeted down the steep decline, nothing but the cold waters of the Tamar River below them.
Claire’s scream cut off as her face bashed into the steering wheel then slammed back into the headrest.
Metal crunched. Glass shattered. Wind blustered through the open windshield. The seatbelt squeezed across Tayla’s chest, forcing the air from her lungs. The interior light flickered on and off like a nightclub strobe.
Tayla dug her nails into the dashboard as the car smashed its way down the rocky descent. She yelped as a branch punctured the side window, gouging her shoulder.
The radio burst to life with a cheerful ballad just as the car struck the black waters of the river.
Tugging at her seatbelt, Tayla reached for the buckle but was met with a tangled mass of metal. She was stuck fast as the vehicle pitched, the engine end sinking beneath the water.
Next to her, Claire slumped over the steering wheel, her long hair obscuring her face.
“Claire!” Tayla reached out to her as icy water poured through the open windows. “No!” was all she managed to get out before their car slipped into the depths.
Right as the last pocket of air filled with water, Tayla gulped in a deep br
eath. Then, darkness and cold. She discerned their vehicle touch down on the river bed with a gentle thud.
Tayla fought the instinct to breathe. The pressure in her lungs became unbearable. In the blackness, her hair floated around her face as she struggled with her seatbelt. Then, she sucked in a lungful of salty water…and another. Tayla’s body convulsed as her last embers of life were doused.
A halo of light erupted before her. She felt compelled to meet it, understanding this must be the tunnel her grandmother had spoken of when she had her first heart attack. Tayla allowed the light to draw her in, welcomed it with serene relief and wondered if her grandma would be on the other side to tell her everything would be alright.
Time no longer existed as Tayla zoomed along the tunnel. Instead of meeting her grandmother, the light turned dark, and then cold and wet.
Fingers of lightning crawled across the night sky overhead and rain stung her wounded body as she lay sprawled on the rough asphalt. The cold night air sent a shiver down her spine.
What the hell happened?
Am I dead?
Tayla turned to her side and heaved saltwater from her lungs. After a few minutes, she threw herself onto her back, gulping the cool air, one gurgling breath after another.
Nothing made sense. Someone must have rescued them, pulled them from the river. But how and, more importantly, who?
Pain wracked her body. Trembling with cold and shock, she tried to lift her head but was too weak. Grief welled up like a fountain and she lay, sobbing. It was all her fault; when Claire had asked her what she wanted for her birthday, she should have said an astronomy magazine and not a dumb movie. She would never watch another sci-fi film. Ever.
Before she knew what was happening, a tall silhouette came into focus, the coiling darkness of the storm behind it. She blinked rain and tears from her eyes, not quite believing what she saw—she had to be hallucinating, because aliens did not exist.
How much of the gasoline vapor did I inhale?
The creature towered over her, its elongated head out of proportion with its bony body. Rain coursed down the alien’s scarred face and lightening illuminated its harsh features. It cocked its head to the side as though assessing whether she was friend or foe.
Fear gripped Tayla’s throat, suppressing her need to scream. The creature’s hostile gaze, with eyes the color of coal, bore into her own. It pulled a pistol-sized weapon from a holster on its thigh and aimed it at her chest. It pulled the trigger, but nothing happened. The creature snarled, baring small flat teeth and thumped the weapon against its palm. It took aim again.
Tayla squeezed her eyes shut and turned her head to the side, waiting to die all over again.
She waited.
Nothing happened.
Pealing screams erupted nearby. When Tayla opened her eyes, the creature was gone.
That’s when the realization hit her.
Aliens. Were. Real.
Rain lashed her broken body like a thousand sharp needles as she lay frozen in terror, and the stones in the asphalt surface pressed into her spine, jolting her back to reality.
Tayla swallowed. Her throat was bone-dry, as though she’d eaten a handful of salty seaweed and ash. In the shadows beyond her sight, she heard metal scraping and a strange garbled language between, what sounded like, a group of people. She couldn’t understand a word, but whoever they were, they were upset.
What in the hell should I do?
If the alien returned, she had no way of protecting herself. She figured it would be more than a couple of miles to the nearest farmhouse to call for an ambulance. Perhaps another car would come along and alert the authorities; it was their only hope. Once she found Claire, they could hide somewhere until help arrived.
But she had to move before the alien returned, this time with a working weapon. Gritting her teeth, she pushed up onto her elbows for a better view. The muscles in her neck protested, and a groan escaped her lips.
From that vantage, she saw the tall creatures staggering around, some clutching wounds, while others lay motionless among the smoldering debris. Chunks of the cliff face had fallen onto the road and the scene played out like a retro science fiction movie complete with props and aliens. Except these aliens were real. Damn real.
Smoke hung in the air, and flames erupted from the wreckage of whatever-the-hell-it-was in the road. It looked like a spaceship or some kind of military aircraft. Light from the flames glowed across its smooth contours, and a row of indentations flickered blood-red along its side. A large pile of flaming debris backlit the figures and light spilled over the wet alien bodies littering the road. Tayla shook her head and tried to orient herself. If they were going to make it out of this, she’d need to find Claire; otherwise, she would lose her mind—if she hadn’t already.
She twisted with a small whimper yet maneuvered onto her stomach and commando-crawled across the wet road, dragging herself amongst charred alien remains, smoking debris, and mud. Her stomach churned as she gagged and coughed at the scent of burnt flesh. Was it possible to hallucinate smell?
Two aliens moved toward a small clearing on the other side of the road—there was a gracefulness to their slender forms and the way they swung their arms in time with their long strides. They stopped short of something on the ground. Whatever caught their attention gave Tayla more time to find Claire. She began to crawl away as a flash of lightning illuminated the object of interest—her sister’s tattered jeans and purple t-shirt caught her attention.
Claire!
Tayla held her hand over her mouth to suppress a scream and changed direction, dragging herself toward the scene. She must stop the aliens before they killed Claire, just like the one had tried to kill her. Ignoring the pain in her spine and shoulder, Tayla gained ground, yet it was taking forever, exhaustion getting the better of her. She dropped to her stomach and lay her head on the muddy road. Just need a little more strength...
Her shoulder oozed blood, and something warm and sticky soaked her jeans. She needed a hospital, a scotch or three, and a warm bath, but that wasn’t going to happen—at least not anytime soon. Raising her head, she forced herself to continue, using her arms to move inch by inch. But it was too late. The aliens were all over Claire’s motionless body and now blocked Tayla’s view.
“Get away from her!” Tayla’s anger rose with a burst of adrenaline. No one messed with her sister and she no longer cared if they saw her or what they would do.
However, the aliens didn’t even glance her way. Maybe they didn’t understand what she was saying, or they couldn’t hear her over the storm. Of course, in her condition, she posed no threat. She got within reach of Claire’s feet and reached out to rouse her.
One of the aliens turned toward her.
Oh shit!
Its build was different from the other one, its skin a lighter shade with long blue striations lining the sides of its face. Without warning, it grasped her upper arms and turned her onto her back as though she were as light as a feather.
The alien had a prominent elongated skull with taut skin across its skeletal arms. Its jaw converged to a small downturned mouth, which was now slightly open, revealing a row of tiny flat teeth.
It placed a hand on her forehead and the other on her chest. Closing her eyes for what was to come, she expected a quick death. Maybe it would suck the life out of her like the aliens did in the sci-fi movie; instead, a peaceful serenity overwhelmed her, and the pain disappeared. A feeling of eternal bliss enveloped her senses. Her energy returned, and a new warmth flooded her body, making her realize how cold she was and how much pain she had been in. The alien wasn’t hurting her—it was healing her!
One alien tries to kill me...the other heals my wounds?
For a moment, the rain stopped. An eerie silence settled over them. Not wanting the warmth to end, she opened her eyes. A flash of blue light zipped overhead and hit the alien in the chest. It shrieked and pitched backward, landing on the wet road.
The
alien attending to Claire turned and unleashed a high-pitched, ear-shattering screech. It momentarily looked at its companion on the ground, then pulled a weapon from a holster on its thigh and fired at an unseen enemy. The enemy returned fire, hitting its mark. The alien clutched its stomach and collapsed.
Bursts of gunfire erupted from the darkness, followed by howling screams that echoed off the cliff wall. Three aliens emerged from the rubble and fired their weapons into the darkness, but, one by one, they went down.
Maybe the police? Tayla thought.
The alien that had healed her moved. It pushed itself onto its knees and crawled to Tayla’s side. Ignoring the weapons fire erupting around them, it knelt. Her fear reflected in the creature’s eyes as streaks of blue liquid oozed from the gaping wound in its chest. Its thin body heaved, its hairless head lolled. The creature looked at its companion sprawled on the road, unmoving, then at Claire, and finally at Tayla. It raised a slender, three-fingered hand and touched her forehead with its fingertips. A white-hot burst of light filled her mind, and a series of glowing symbols permeated Tayla’s consciousness, each one bearing multi-dimensional layers of data.
