Our Crystal World by Gracie Hall

Author:Gracie Hall
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: BookBaby
Published: 2023-09-20T17:48:36+00:00

Chapter Eleven

The next morning dawned bright and clear. Shallah and Zoey walked down to the nearby stream where each girl washed her face and hands and took a long drink of water. “We may as well stay here,” Shallah decided. “The caves provide a perfect shelter.”

Suddenly a loud clang echoed from the rear of the largest cave. The girls stared at each other. “What was that?” Zoey asked. “I thought you said this valley was deserted.”

“It is,” Shallah said. “Or, I thought it was.”

“Let’s take a look inside,” Zoey said. After a few moments, she shone her ion flashlight on the floor and walls of the cave.

“Over there!” Shallah said. “Come on.”

They scrambled through a small dark opening at the far corner of the cave, then crawled through a long tunnel on their hands and knees. At last, they rounded a sharp bend in the wall. The girls stood up and gazed wide-eyed at a huge, brightly lit cavern. Crates and tables lined the walls. A sleek spacecraft with its running lights blinking sat on the short runway. Etched into the side of the ship was a glittering symbol—three lightning bolts!

Zoey gasped. “Get back,” she said.

They shuffled backward a few steps, until they were hidden from view, but could still see the ship. “What is it?” whispered Shallah. “It looks like your escape pod, only a lot bigger.”

“It’s an armed spacecraft,” Zoey said in a tight voice. “It belongs to the band of pirates who attacked our much larger spaceship as I was on my way to visit my uncle. They stop at nothing to get what they want.”

“But what do they want?”

“Anything of value,” Zoey said. “Money, weapons, exotic animals, gems, even slaves. Our Alliance has tried to wipe out slavery in our galaxy, but it keeps showing up like an ugly bruise.”

Shallah stared uneasily at the spaceship. Just a few days ago she had been living in a quiet valley tending her mother’s goats. Now she was mixed up with pirates and spaceships. Aloud she said, “I wonder how they ever got this ship inside the cavern?” There seemed to be no opening.

Just then, a deep rumble filled the air and one wall of the cavern rose. With an earthshaking roar, the ship raced forward and shot up into the sky. The wall/door rumbled shut. Now the cavern was quiet.

“Think it’s empty now?” Shallah asked, her heart pounding.

“Yes,” Zoey said. “I believe they all left. Let’s take a look around while we have the chance.”

A computer console caught Shallah’s eye. “What’s this?” she asked, running her hand over the shiny gray surface.

“That’s a computer,” Zoey said. “It can handle a great deal of information. Since the software looks familiar, I should be able to break into the operating system. Maybe I can learn something about their plans and send out a distress signal, too.”

As Zoey set to work, Shallah wandered around the cavern. She ran her hand along the smooth wall. I wonder how we could have overlooked this place for so long, she thought.

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