Free Aliens in the Sky by Christopher Pike Page B

here!”
    â€œWe have jumped to Level 79.”
    â€œI would rather be alive here than dead!” Cindy yelled.
    â€œHow do you know they’d let us live?” Sally demanded.
    â€œI say we stop it!” Cindy shouted. “And I have as much say as you! Ek, pull the plug!”
    â€œWhich plug am I supposed to pull?”
    â€œWait!” Sally cried.
    â€œWait for what?” Cindy screamed. “Death?”
    â€œDo it then!” Sally shouted bitterly, turning away. “Surrender. That’s all you’re good for.”
    Cindy bent over the control panel beside Ek. “Stop the reaction. Do it now.”
    Ek’s four-fingered hands flew over the control panel. Then he sat perfectly still, waiting for somereaction to the chain reaction. He raised his big head to look at Cindy. His whole body seemed to twitch.
    â€œIt is too late.”
    â€œWhat?” Cindy whispered.
    â€œWe have jumped to Level 81. Nothing can stop it from exploding.”
    Cindy felt the life go out of her. She glanced over at Sally.
    â€œWell, you got what you wanted,” Cindy said to her back. “We’re doomed.”
    Sally seemed to freeze for a second, then suddenly she whirled on Ek. “Can we fly the ship out of space dock?” she asked. “If we tell them we can’t stop it, and they let us go, do we have time to get the ship clear of the station?”
    Ek consulted his instruments.
    â€œYes. I can still maneuver the ship. If they let us go, we can move it out of the station before the explosion.”
    â€œTalk to them,” Sally said. “Send a strong thought, whatever. Hurry!” Sally stepped to Cindy and put a hand on her shoulder. “You get off the ship. I’ll ride out with Ek. I got him in this mess. If he has to die, I’ll die with him.”
    Cindy patted her hand. “Sally, you amaze me. You’re so brave.”
    Ek jumped up quickly.
    â€œThey have opened the outside station doors for us. I have programmed the ship to fly into deep space. None of us has to stay here. None of us has to die.”
    â€œActually,” Sally admitted with a faint smile, “I was hoping he was going to say that.”
    They released the six guards belowdecks, and the nine of them jumped outside onto the dock. They were hardly clear of the ship when it took off at high speed behind them. They caught a flash of it disappearing through the huge dark entrance, then it was gone. A minute went by while aliens and humans alike held their breaths. Sally and Cindy waited for a huge shock wave, but none came. All at once a wave of relief seemed to move through the gathering. Ek calmly informed them that the ship had exploded safely out of the way.
    â€œBut we didn’t feel anything?” Sally said. “Was it a huge explosion?”
    â€œYes. But the ship is fast. It took place far from here, and there is no shock wave in space. You would not feel anything unless we were being destroyed.”
    Sally nodded wearily. “Well, it’s done then. We’re caught.”
    The crowd parted so that the four humans could be together. Adam surrendered his gun. There seemed no point in keeping it after a nuclear bomb had failed to move the aliens to release them. The guys patted the girls on their backs.
    â€œThank you for coming for us,” Adam said.
    â€œThat was an awesome bluff,” Watch agreed. “I would have fallen for it.”
    Sally shook her head. “Not you. You’re too cool a player.”
    Watch glanced at Adam. “I’m not saying anything,” Adam said.
    There was nothing to say. Alien guards grabbed hold of their arms. The crude message was clear. They were going to be taken to the cages. Ekweel2 and Zhekeel91 tried to protest, but they were pulled aside by government authorities. Adam wondered what their punishment would be. He felt almost as bad for them as he did for himself and his friends. And they had