Read Online Surviving the Improbable Quest by Anderson Atlas - Free Book Online
Authors: Anderson Atlas
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the trees and stops at the door underneath the floating ship. It’s got black marks and grit staining the fabric, and the metal struts are rusty, but thick. There’s no discernible handle or lever on the door.
Now what? How can he get Asantia to help him without her stabbing him in the back and selling him to Mr. Killian? Or Testing him? It’s impossible. At any second she could overpower Allan and take him wherever she wanted him to go. He can’t fly her ship. He can’t even figure out how to open the door. He pounds on the metal hatch in frustration.
Just as he is about to go back down to get her, there’s movement on the horizon. Glowing balloons float toward him. Their internal lights flicker like fluorescent lights. As they get closer, Allan can see faces, strange and sad faces. Their eyes look toward the horizon, and some of their mouths are wide like they’re feeding off the air itself. Below their balloon-shaped bodies are tentacles that sway in the wind.
“Come back down. I’ll get you!” Asantia yells from below.
A bluish creature floats by Allan. He can see through its translucent skin. The next one bumps into the side of the airship. “Oh my,” it says in a deep, slow voice.
Maybe they are friendly. The balloon-like creature floats under the ship.
“C. . .can you help me?” Allan asks.
The balloon-like creature looks at Allan. “Of course I can. Grab hold of my tail.”
This is better than helping that crass Asantia girl. Allan reaches out and grabs one of the tentacles below the balloon creature. It’s soft, but strong. The end of the creature’s tentacle wraps around his hand then tightens like a boa constrictor.
Allan looks down at Asantia. Just before he lets go of the handles, he presses the down button, and the handles zip down the cable toward their owner. Meanwhile, the balloon creature bobs with Allan’s weight, but continues. There are hundreds of them in the sky, no, thousands. Some glow green, some blue.
“Okay, you can lower me down now. Somewhere safe.” Allan points toward the river. “Can you go that way? My camp is way over there.” He squints, but the ground gets farther and farther away. “I think camp is that way.” Allan doesn’t know any more. The floating creature looks down at Allan. Its sad eyes quiver, but it tries to smile. “I can only go one way.”
It’s game over for Allan. His vision blurs as tears flood his eyes. He watches his tears drip into the wind succumbing to the lure of gravity. The same gravity he feels pulling on his legs, fighting him, is not strong enough to break the grip of the tentacle.
They soar above the clouds, bathed in the purples and reds of the sunset, though there is no sun, just a swath of remaining daylight. Come to think of it, Allan can’t remember the last time he’d seen the sun. It was when he was with Rubic.
Sun or no sun, wherever the balloon creature takes him, there’s still a possibility there’ll be a phone or a park ranger or a policeman, unless the creature has other plans. “Where are we going?”
The balloon-like creature doesn’t answer. The surrounding swarm flies at the same speed and in the same direction, to somewhere just over the horizon.
“I’m thirsty,” Allan whispers. He also has to pee, but he’s holding it as best he can. If worse comes to worse, he’ll just let it go. Maybe the pee will rain on someone that deserves it. That thought makes Allan chuckle.
Chapter 9
The Greatest Wall There Is
The balloon-like creature flies for hours, and eventually the night comes. The dark of deep space turns the clouds below to mere shadowy shapes, and the stars seem to flicker on. The balloon creatures appear brighter now that the daylight has completely left. They leave colored trails behind them like flags waving in the sky. Allan has never seen such beautiful color trails. Like snakes made of plasma, they trail behind then eventually fade.
Now what? How can he get Asantia to help him without her stabbing him in the back and selling him to Mr. Killian? Or Testing him? It’s impossible. At any second she could overpower Allan and take him wherever she wanted him to go. He can’t fly her ship. He can’t even figure out how to open the door. He pounds on the metal hatch in frustration.
Just as he is about to go back down to get her, there’s movement on the horizon. Glowing balloons float toward him. Their internal lights flicker like fluorescent lights. As they get closer, Allan can see faces, strange and sad faces. Their eyes look toward the horizon, and some of their mouths are wide like they’re feeding off the air itself. Below their balloon-shaped bodies are tentacles that sway in the wind.
“Come back down. I’ll get you!” Asantia yells from below.
A bluish creature floats by Allan. He can see through its translucent skin. The next one bumps into the side of the airship. “Oh my,” it says in a deep, slow voice.
Maybe they are friendly. The balloon-like creature floats under the ship.
“C. . .can you help me?” Allan asks.
The balloon-like creature looks at Allan. “Of course I can. Grab hold of my tail.”
This is better than helping that crass Asantia girl. Allan reaches out and grabs one of the tentacles below the balloon creature. It’s soft, but strong. The end of the creature’s tentacle wraps around his hand then tightens like a boa constrictor.
Allan looks down at Asantia. Just before he lets go of the handles, he presses the down button, and the handles zip down the cable toward their owner. Meanwhile, the balloon creature bobs with Allan’s weight, but continues. There are hundreds of them in the sky, no, thousands. Some glow green, some blue.
“Okay, you can lower me down now. Somewhere safe.” Allan points toward the river. “Can you go that way? My camp is way over there.” He squints, but the ground gets farther and farther away. “I think camp is that way.” Allan doesn’t know any more. The floating creature looks down at Allan. Its sad eyes quiver, but it tries to smile. “I can only go one way.”
It’s game over for Allan. His vision blurs as tears flood his eyes. He watches his tears drip into the wind succumbing to the lure of gravity. The same gravity he feels pulling on his legs, fighting him, is not strong enough to break the grip of the tentacle.
They soar above the clouds, bathed in the purples and reds of the sunset, though there is no sun, just a swath of remaining daylight. Come to think of it, Allan can’t remember the last time he’d seen the sun. It was when he was with Rubic.
Sun or no sun, wherever the balloon creature takes him, there’s still a possibility there’ll be a phone or a park ranger or a policeman, unless the creature has other plans. “Where are we going?”
The balloon-like creature doesn’t answer. The surrounding swarm flies at the same speed and in the same direction, to somewhere just over the horizon.
“I’m thirsty,” Allan whispers. He also has to pee, but he’s holding it as best he can. If worse comes to worse, he’ll just let it go. Maybe the pee will rain on someone that deserves it. That thought makes Allan chuckle.
Chapter 9
The Greatest Wall There Is
The balloon-like creature flies for hours, and eventually the night comes. The dark of deep space turns the clouds below to mere shadowy shapes, and the stars seem to flicker on. The balloon creatures appear brighter now that the daylight has completely left. They leave colored trails behind them like flags waving in the sky. Allan has never seen such beautiful color trails. Like snakes made of plasma, they trail behind then eventually fade.
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