Alutia Rising, Anniversary Edition (Alutia Rising Series, Book 1) by Craig Gerttula
Authors: Craig Gerttula
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to save an
approaching platform, when he stopped midway. He must have been
subconsciously counting the number of gaps present, since he
realized that the number of rectangular pieces he had pulled from
his pocket were well short of what was required to allow every
platform to reach the end safely. He pulled the pocket inside out
as a horrible thought struck him.
Will I have to sacrifice some to save the
rest? He shivered, pushing away the abhorrent idea while
rubbing his hands together, trying to keep his blood flowing in the
now freezing air. Looking back to the table, he decided to talk
himself to a solution.
“There are 10 pathways that each contain a
platform. Each platform moves, at the same speed, towards the far
end of the table, following the random, zigzagging pathways
exactly,” explained Trent, his teeth chattering as he pointed to
the tracks, hoping something new would present itself, “...Each
track has......has what looks like......10 gaps between start and
finish, which would add up to 100 gaps in total to fill. I only
have,” he quickly counted the remaining rectangular pieces, “39
pieces left. This is enough to save four of the platforms.”
That was unacceptable, he knew, but so
far it was his only option.
Time continued to tick away and Trent's
stress level started to rise as the gnawing cold made thinking
difficult. He turned back to the grey sky,
shivering noticeably.
“Could you please give me some sort of hint?
Something that would help me save these people!” Trent cried,
trying not to let his frustration, and the gnawing cold, get the
better of him.
As expected, there was no response.
The platform, on what he counted as pathway
seven, slowly approached the next gap. It would be only a matter of
minutes before it arrived. Trent, seeing no other options, made a
decision, a horrible decision that no one should ever have to make.
He placed a piece in the gap before the approaching platform on
pathway seven.
“Successful integration with path unit seven.
Please continue operation,” the monotone voice sounded. Trent, now
with a small smile born of melancholy, absently wondered if anyone
would ever know of his sacrifice. He was sure the people on the
other platforms wouldn't realize he saved their lives. But he was
ok with that; he wasn't doing this to be considered a hero. He was
doing it to save the most lives.
He moved around the table to give himself
easier access to the four tracks he planned on saving, trying to
ignore the platforms he had left for dead...including his own. He
would start with track seven and lay the pieces all the way to the
end.
Trying to contain his shiver, from both the
cold and possibly fear, he placed the next piece.
“Integration failure, path piece on path unit
seven placed at unacceptable distance from transportation unit.
Remove immediately, penalty situation five shall be assessed until
proper removal is completed,” the monotone voice sounded,
accompanied by a very annoying siren. Trent attempted to remove the
piece, but was stopped short by an invisible wall of pressure
pressing down upon him. It took all his strength to keep from
collapsing across the table, barely being able to push himself
clear to fall to the floor.
Unrelenting pressure, feeling of a thousand
pounds of bricks pushing down over every centimeter of his body,
pinned him to the floor. He tried to stand, but was barely able to
rise a millimeter, the pressure just too strong. Breathing became
difficult, his breaths getting shorter and shorter, his lungs
compressing further every time he exhaled. In desperation, he
pushed his hand forward, and to his surprise, found that he could
easily slide across the smooth floor.
As he desperately pulled himself forward,
towards the platforms edge, he deduced what he'd done wrong. There must be a rule about how far ahead of a platform a piece
can be placed , he cursed his stupidity. That limited his
choices. He would have to save his own platform
approaching platform, when he stopped midway. He must have been
subconsciously counting the number of gaps present, since he
realized that the number of rectangular pieces he had pulled from
his pocket were well short of what was required to allow every
platform to reach the end safely. He pulled the pocket inside out
as a horrible thought struck him.
Will I have to sacrifice some to save the
rest? He shivered, pushing away the abhorrent idea while
rubbing his hands together, trying to keep his blood flowing in the
now freezing air. Looking back to the table, he decided to talk
himself to a solution.
“There are 10 pathways that each contain a
platform. Each platform moves, at the same speed, towards the far
end of the table, following the random, zigzagging pathways
exactly,” explained Trent, his teeth chattering as he pointed to
the tracks, hoping something new would present itself, “...Each
track has......has what looks like......10 gaps between start and
finish, which would add up to 100 gaps in total to fill. I only
have,” he quickly counted the remaining rectangular pieces, “39
pieces left. This is enough to save four of the platforms.”
That was unacceptable, he knew, but so
far it was his only option.
Time continued to tick away and Trent's
stress level started to rise as the gnawing cold made thinking
difficult. He turned back to the grey sky,
shivering noticeably.
“Could you please give me some sort of hint?
Something that would help me save these people!” Trent cried,
trying not to let his frustration, and the gnawing cold, get the
better of him.
As expected, there was no response.
The platform, on what he counted as pathway
seven, slowly approached the next gap. It would be only a matter of
minutes before it arrived. Trent, seeing no other options, made a
decision, a horrible decision that no one should ever have to make.
He placed a piece in the gap before the approaching platform on
pathway seven.
“Successful integration with path unit seven.
Please continue operation,” the monotone voice sounded. Trent, now
with a small smile born of melancholy, absently wondered if anyone
would ever know of his sacrifice. He was sure the people on the
other platforms wouldn't realize he saved their lives. But he was
ok with that; he wasn't doing this to be considered a hero. He was
doing it to save the most lives.
He moved around the table to give himself
easier access to the four tracks he planned on saving, trying to
ignore the platforms he had left for dead...including his own. He
would start with track seven and lay the pieces all the way to the
end.
Trying to contain his shiver, from both the
cold and possibly fear, he placed the next piece.
“Integration failure, path piece on path unit
seven placed at unacceptable distance from transportation unit.
Remove immediately, penalty situation five shall be assessed until
proper removal is completed,” the monotone voice sounded,
accompanied by a very annoying siren. Trent attempted to remove the
piece, but was stopped short by an invisible wall of pressure
pressing down upon him. It took all his strength to keep from
collapsing across the table, barely being able to push himself
clear to fall to the floor.
Unrelenting pressure, feeling of a thousand
pounds of bricks pushing down over every centimeter of his body,
pinned him to the floor. He tried to stand, but was barely able to
rise a millimeter, the pressure just too strong. Breathing became
difficult, his breaths getting shorter and shorter, his lungs
compressing further every time he exhaled. In desperation, he
pushed his hand forward, and to his surprise, found that he could
easily slide across the smooth floor.
As he desperately pulled himself forward,
towards the platforms edge, he deduced what he'd done wrong. There must be a rule about how far ahead of a platform a piece
can be placed , he cursed his stupidity. That limited his
choices. He would have to save his own platform
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