Alutia Rising, Anniversary Edition (Alutia Rising Series, Book 1) by Craig Gerttula Page B
Authors: Craig Gerttula
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a gap in pathway six, but saved the platform
with mere seconds to spare; trying to ignore the horrible screams
of terror rising from the women and children huddled on its
surface. Integration of pathway three and four were successful,
while he barely filled a gap on his own pathway in time, flinching
at the sight of the giant hand coming within a meter of striking
the platform.
The platforms continued to accelerate, barely
providing him 10 seconds to decide his next move. He brought
pathway eight into seven, filling a gap in pathway seven, then
quickly integrating pathway seven into six within a matter of
seconds. He filled gaps in pathway five and four, then connected
pathway four into five.
The platforms with the women and children
were moving much faster than his, shown by the fact that his
platform was only half-way to the end of the table, and the
recently integrated platforms were almost three-fourths. Again,
without thinking, Trent continued to place pieces in the gaps,
saving the near plunge of the platforms on track six, while placing
two more pieces on track five, one to save himself and the other,
the platforms far ahead.
Before he knew it, he was almost finished,
only four gaps remaining, two in front of him, one in front of the
goal and one to integrate pathway six into five. He was about to
shout for joy when he glanced down into his hand and found only
three pieces remaining.
The choice was clear, his decision having
already been made. But he still hesitated.
He would do what he planned to do from the
beginning, sacrificing himself to save the others. But now the
thought felt more permanent, since he believed, since he discovered
the solution, that he would be able to save everyone...including
himself.
It would be so simple to place the three
pieces on track five , wouldn’t it? His mind explained,
thereby saving himself and the four other platforms that now
traversed its surface.
He placed a piece at the end of track five,
guaranteeing the safety of at least four of the platforms, then
placed another piece in front of his own, delaying the inevitable.
As he placed the piece, he found himself sinking into his thoughts,
thinking about his horrible past and lost future, and became
careless.
When he pulled his hand away, he accidently
bumped his platforms, knocking himself to the floor, his head
smashing on its unforgiving surface.
“Program violation three. You shall now be
assessed penalty level three,” the monotone voice laid down its
judgment, barely audible to the now semi-conscious Trent.
The world spun before him, making it
impossible to stand, muddling his racing thoughts. Taking a deep
breath, he rolled himself into a sitting position and felt the side
of his head.
Red; the warm, sticky fluid that covered his
hand told him what he already knew, that he hit his head, and
hard.
He started crawling back towards the table,
dizziness and fatigue overwhelming him as he gripped the last piece
of the puzzle in his right hand with all his strength. His mind
screamed that he was running out of time and he had to place the
last piece, he had to save the final five platforms.
Reaching the table, he pulled himself to his
feet, completely out of breath and unable to catch it, like the
oxygen was being pumped from the room. His vision swam, and started
to blur as he looked at the track, trying desperately to locate the
gap for the last piece. Finding it, he lunged forward, ignoring the
alarms and the quaking caused by his body falling across the table.
He threw the piece in a desperate attempt to save the platforms,
save those innocents trapped within this most deadly of game. A
faded click was muffled by the rushing water in his ears and he
thought he heard the monotone voice say something about
success.
But that no longer mattered.
The last ounce of strength fled him and he
slid to the floor, landing on his side with his gaze facing his
approaching end. He watched, his vision fading, as the
with mere seconds to spare; trying to ignore the horrible screams
of terror rising from the women and children huddled on its
surface. Integration of pathway three and four were successful,
while he barely filled a gap on his own pathway in time, flinching
at the sight of the giant hand coming within a meter of striking
the platform.
The platforms continued to accelerate, barely
providing him 10 seconds to decide his next move. He brought
pathway eight into seven, filling a gap in pathway seven, then
quickly integrating pathway seven into six within a matter of
seconds. He filled gaps in pathway five and four, then connected
pathway four into five.
The platforms with the women and children
were moving much faster than his, shown by the fact that his
platform was only half-way to the end of the table, and the
recently integrated platforms were almost three-fourths. Again,
without thinking, Trent continued to place pieces in the gaps,
saving the near plunge of the platforms on track six, while placing
two more pieces on track five, one to save himself and the other,
the platforms far ahead.
Before he knew it, he was almost finished,
only four gaps remaining, two in front of him, one in front of the
goal and one to integrate pathway six into five. He was about to
shout for joy when he glanced down into his hand and found only
three pieces remaining.
The choice was clear, his decision having
already been made. But he still hesitated.
He would do what he planned to do from the
beginning, sacrificing himself to save the others. But now the
thought felt more permanent, since he believed, since he discovered
the solution, that he would be able to save everyone...including
himself.
It would be so simple to place the three
pieces on track five , wouldn’t it? His mind explained,
thereby saving himself and the four other platforms that now
traversed its surface.
He placed a piece at the end of track five,
guaranteeing the safety of at least four of the platforms, then
placed another piece in front of his own, delaying the inevitable.
As he placed the piece, he found himself sinking into his thoughts,
thinking about his horrible past and lost future, and became
careless.
When he pulled his hand away, he accidently
bumped his platforms, knocking himself to the floor, his head
smashing on its unforgiving surface.
“Program violation three. You shall now be
assessed penalty level three,” the monotone voice laid down its
judgment, barely audible to the now semi-conscious Trent.
The world spun before him, making it
impossible to stand, muddling his racing thoughts. Taking a deep
breath, he rolled himself into a sitting position and felt the side
of his head.
Red; the warm, sticky fluid that covered his
hand told him what he already knew, that he hit his head, and
hard.
He started crawling back towards the table,
dizziness and fatigue overwhelming him as he gripped the last piece
of the puzzle in his right hand with all his strength. His mind
screamed that he was running out of time and he had to place the
last piece, he had to save the final five platforms.
Reaching the table, he pulled himself to his
feet, completely out of breath and unable to catch it, like the
oxygen was being pumped from the room. His vision swam, and started
to blur as he looked at the track, trying desperately to locate the
gap for the last piece. Finding it, he lunged forward, ignoring the
alarms and the quaking caused by his body falling across the table.
He threw the piece in a desperate attempt to save the platforms,
save those innocents trapped within this most deadly of game. A
faded click was muffled by the rushing water in his ears and he
thought he heard the monotone voice say something about
success.
But that no longer mattered.
The last ounce of strength fled him and he
slid to the floor, landing on his side with his gaze facing his
approaching end. He watched, his vision fading, as the
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