Read Online Lost Planet 01 - The Lost Planet by Rachel Searles - Free Book Online

me!”
    â€œJust leave her!”
    â€œWhat? No!” Chase yelled over the loud shooting from outside. “We can’t!”
    â€œShe’ll be fine!” Parker tore his attention from the piloting console and looked back through the door, his eyes blazing. “She’ll find me again. She always finds me. Get in!”
    â€œNo!” Chase ran around to Mina’s shoulders and hoisted her up. The door rattled behind him as the blasts continued. With a roar, he pulled her around and heaved her up into the cruiser.
    â€œUnable to access CFC network,” said the neutral voice of the cruiser.
    â€œWhy isn’t this working? I can’t access the pathways!” Parker pounded his fists against the console.
    Chase climbed over Mina and into his seat. “They’re almost in!”
    â€œClose the door, open the gate,” Parker mumbled to himself, his trembling fingers carrying out the commands manually. As the gate rolled back to reveal the horizon of Mircona, a steering yoke and throttle levers emerged from a panel on the dashboard.
    A final explosion and a loud clatter told them that the men had finally blown off the door of the docking compartment. Seconds later another blast shook the entire cruiser.
    â€œGo! Go! Go!” screamed Chase.
    Parker seized the controls and yanked hard. The cruiser shot out of the gate, ricocheting off the edge of the portal with a crash. They hurtled over the enclosed city, but there was much more air traffic than there had been when they arrived. Dozens of other vehicles careened wildly through the sky, following no particular path or trajectory.
    â€œI think they’re all offline!” said Parker. He jerked their Starjumper out of the way of the oncoming vehicles. “Is the entire CFC system down? I’ve never seen anything like…”
    They both gasped as another cruiser shot up from below, narrowly missing their vehicle. A shock wave traveled through the thin atmosphere and sent them rocking backward. The pilot of the other cruiser reacted with a sharp turn and clipped the tail of a second vehicle whizzing by, sending it into a spin.
    â€œGet us away from here!” said Chase, clutching onto the console.
    With a white-knuckled grip on the controls, Parker yanked them upward and jerked the vehicle around. They sped toward the outer limits of the enclosed city, where congestion was thinner. Finally they passed the last buildings and cruised for a minute over the rocky brown surface of the moon. Only a few other vehicles traveled within view.
    â€œCan we please contact Dr. Silvestri now?” asked Chase.
    â€œYes.” Keeping one hand on the yoke, Parker scrolled through a number of screens on the console, tapping in information. A silvery panel at the top of the console lit up, and after a minute, Dr. Silvestri’s face appeared.
    â€œParker, where have you been?” he barked. He looked exhausted and sweaty, and sounded out of breath. His glasses were missing. “Where’s Chase?”
    â€œHe’s right here,” said Parker. Chase tried to lean in toward the doctor’s face.
    â€œI’m sorry, I can’t find my glasses right now,” mumbled Dr. Silvestri. “Listen, Chase—something’s happened. I think I made a mistake. I contacted a former colleague about that DNA sample I’d taken from you, and within five minutes my entire system was locked. Fleet transport vehicles are pulling up outside the lab right now. I’m sorry, Chase, I had to destroy your microchip.”
    There was a loud crash in the background, and Dr. Silvestri jumped. “I have to go. Parker, can you find Mina?”
    â€œShe’s here with us, but—” said Parker.
    â€œHave her get in contact with Asa—he’ll know what to do next.” He glanced over his shoulder as more crashes rang out. “I have to go.”
    Parker waved his hand at the screen. “Wait, Doc,