Earthshatter by Albert Nothlit

Author:Albert Nothlit [Nothlit, Albert]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: science fiction
ISBN: 978-1-63476-825-2
Publisher: DSP Publications
Published: 2016-03-08T00:00:00+00:00

II

WE ENTERED the house. Dex got very close to me as we crossed the big double doors, and we all gathered in the main landing. I looked at him—he seemed suddenly smaller. He also looked scared. When he gripped my hand, he was trembling.

“I don’t like it here,” he whispered.

“Don’t worry, Dex. Nothing’s going to hurt us.”

Omar was already walking up the stairs in a hurry. “Is there a bathroom up here?”

“Third door to the left!”

“Thanks!”

“I don’t like it here,” Dex repeated. He really was trembling.

“Come on, Rain,” Marie said. “Let’s get ourselves a drink from the kitchen. Kenichi, Nikos? Want to come along?”

“What?” Kenichi said. Then, “Oh! Sure, sure.”

“We’ll be right over,” I said.

I led Dex to a big white leather sofa in the living room. Plush carpets and ornate wrought-iron chandeliers decorated the space. There was very little dust, though: the automated cleaning system was still doing its job.

“You okay, dude?” I asked. We sat down, and the leather squeaked.

Dex kept looking around the room like he was expecting somebody to come yell at him at any moment.

“Sorry. I know there’s nothing dangerous or anything… but I don’t like it here.”

“A while ago you were excited to return, remember?”

He managed a weak smile. “Yes. You’re right. Sorry.”

“That’s okay. You sure you’re all right?”

“Yes. Thanks, brother.” Dex couldn’t suppress a last anxious look around the room.

I stood up, unconvinced but certain he wasn’t going to say any more in the near future.

“All right, then,” I said. “Let’s go get something to eat.”

The lower level of the house was a single gigantic space where each room connected to the next one seamlessly. From the living room and across the entry hall lay the kitchen, a room of silver steel, matte black marble floor, and warm yellow lightbulbs dangling from the tall ceiling. The whole south wall was pure glass. It showed an impressive view of the lake beyond.

“Alain, Dex,” Rain said, standing up from the spacious glass dining table. “I’ll get you some water.”

“Thanks,” I said. I sank into a chair next to Kenichi. The sound of water pouring into a glass was the sweetest thing I’d ever heard.

Rain came back with two big glasses filled with clear water. “Here you go.”

“Here, Dex, drink up. Thanks, Rain. And sorry—we should be doing the host stuff.”

She smiled. “That’s okay. I know you’re tired.”

I gulped down my glass as fast as I could. Man, I had been thirsty!

“Whoa,” Kenichi said, “look at him chug it down.”

“You did the same thing, but you were messier,” Marie said, from across the table where she sat.

“Oh no I wasn’t.”

“Oh yes you were.”

I wiped my mouth with my sleeve. “Ahhhh. That was refreshing.”

I stood up to get more water. “Anybody else want some more?”

Dex held up his empty glass. “Please.”

“Sure, Dex.”

I walked over to the sink and poured some more water, straight from the tap. From somewhere down below came the rumble of the synthesizer working double duty.

“The synthesizer here is very efficient,” Nikos observed. He was standing with his back to us, looking out the big windows.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.