Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 85794 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 429(@200wpm)___ 343(@250wpm)___ 286(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85794 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 429(@200wpm)___ 343(@250wpm)___ 286(@300wpm)
“Er…could I stop by my suite and change and try to get some of this out of my hair first?” Phoebe asked hopefully. “I could meet you at the café or wherever you want to go afterwards.”
But Sirex shook his head.
“If you really had stepped on a landmine or a destroyer, you would be living with the consequences for the rest of your life—if you lived at all, that is. “You can live with the Unglix pollen until the end of the day.”
“But my uniform shirt! It’s torn and I don’t look professional at all!” Phoebe protested, nodding down at her exposed cleavage.
Her mentor’s burning red eyes dipped down and lingered for a moment on her breasts, then he looked away.
“Very well—this time only I’ll allow you to change,” he told her. “But you’ll have to make it quick and meet me back at the Twin Moons café at noon exactly.”
“I can do that,” Phoebe promised. “If we hurry!” She was already heading towards the elevator as she spoke, looking back over her shoulder at him.
“Good. Then let’s go—the next tram will be at the station soon.”
3
PHOEBE
The next day it was more of the same. Only this time instead of the Unglix fields, Sirex took her to the training tunnel.
It really did look like a tunnel with a wide, dark mouth that led into darkness. It was located at the back of the parklands which surrounded the Sacred Grove in the center of the ship. The entrance was surrounded by tall trees with green and purple leaves and purple bark.
“How long is it? And are we allowed to use a flashlight?” Phoebe asked, looking into the darkness uncertainly. She wasn’t afraid of the dark, but she didn’t love the idea of fumbling and bumbling around in a black tunnel either.
“It’s longer than you think and no, the use of light isn’t permitted,” Sirex told her firmly. “You can only use this.”
He produced a small earpiece that fit over her ear and then pulled another one out of his pocket and put it on himself.
“What are these for?” Phoebe asked, adjusting the piece so it fit snugly in her ear.
“Guidance,” Sirex informed her. “I’m going to be out here telling you exactly where to go and how to get through the tunnel. If you listen to my commands, you’ll get through with no problems or complications.”
“But how do you know where I should go if you’re out here?” Phoebe demanded.
“There’s both a microphone and a small night-vision camera on your earpiece.” He drew a silver coin shaped object out of his pocket and flicked a switch on its side. Then he waved a hand in front of her earpiece and a hologram of his hand appeared, hovering just over the coin. “Do you see?”
“So…you can see where I’m going but I can’t?” Phoebe asked.
Her Mentor nodded.
“Exactly. And the walls and floors of the tunnel are coated in nan’door—it’s a sticky paste that leaves a greenish stain on the skin. The idea is to get through the tunnel without touching anything, using only the sound of my voice to guide you.” He reached up and flipped a switch on his own earpiece, which apparently had a microphone on it as well because when he said, “Do you hear me?” his voice came through right into her ear.
“I hear you.” Phoebe nodded and took a deep breath. “Okay, should we do this?” she asked, squaring her shoulders.
“If you feel ready.” He frowned. “I want to warn you that nothing in the training tunnel is as it seems. You may see things in the darkness that concern or distress you but don’t be afraid—I’ll be with you in a heartbeat if you need me.”
“But the goal is not to need you—or at least, only to need your voice,” Phoebe said and he nodded. “Okay then—I’m ready.”
This was going to be like walking through a haunted house, she thought. The kind where paid actors jumped out and scared you along the way. She didn’t love jump-scares, but she could deal with them. The main thing was to ignore everything but what her mentor was telling her.
“Enter the tunnel,” Sirex said, nodding. “And listen to the sound of my voice. I’ll guide you through.”
“I’ll be listening.” Taking another deep breath, Phoebe entered the training tunnel for the first time.
She expected to have the light from the entrance to lead her at least for a little way, but everything went pitch black the moment she stepped inside. Phoebe bit back a little gasp of surprise but then she heard Sirex’s deep, quiet voice in her ear.
“Walk straight ahead,” he instructed. “You’ll be tempted to put your hands out in front of you but don’t—if you brush the walls you’ll get a nan’door stain. Touch nothing. Trust me and I’ll guide you through.”