Crystal Horizon: A Short Prequel to Crystal Deception Read Free

enough, she pried open his jaw, slipped
the air tube into his mouth, and pinched his nose. Eyes closed, he drifted
without moving, edging her toward panic. C’mon, Sid. She moved behind
him, wrapped her arms around his chest, and tightened in a short, hard squeeze.
Repeating the motion, she appealed to the instructors with her eyes. Help
me.
    With her third squeeze, Sid convulsed. Bubbles burst from
his mouth, and then his chest rose. He inhaled, then inhaled again. His eyes
fluttered and she exhaled a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding.
    She studied his face as his eyes focused. Seeing her, he
formed a broad grin around the mouthpiece. Relief washed through her when she understood
he was out of danger.
    Resuscitated to the point where he could assist with his own
rescue, Sid wrapped his arms around his suit and let the instructors help him down
the tube and out of the maze. Cheryl followed.
    For the second time that day, her com activated when she emerged
into the open water. “You’re the first team to beat the maze since I arrived at
camp twenty years ago,” said Dooley. “Let’s see if you can continue your
success in the weeks ahead.”
    “Yes, sir,” she replied.
    Looking up, she watched Sid and the instructors disappear
into the glistening diamonds of the sunlit lake’s surface. She followed, trying
to decide if her partner was brilliant, crazy, or stupid.
    * * *
    Cheryl stopped in the doorway and scanned
the briefing room, her stomach gurgling as it rebelled against the breakfast
she’d gulped down just minutes earlier. About a dozen of the twenty or so chairs
were occupied, and not seeing anyone she wanted to sit with, she sat in a chair
at the end of a row. Over the next couple of minutes, stragglers scurried in to
fill a few more seats. She checked the time. Six hundred hours on the mark.
    Jasmine, a camp instructor whose tough persona stood in
contrast with her petite frame, strode through the door and marched to the
front of the room. Sid slipped in like a shadow behind Jasmine and plopped into
the chair next to Cheryl.
    “Good afternoon,” Cheryl said to him, keeping her eyes forward
and wondering if her unveiled sarcasm pierced his consciousness.
    Dressed in the all-black, formfitting athletic suit popular
with instructors, Jasmine began the briefing. “Today marks the first day of
week three.” She crossed her arms behind her and made a show of studying the
group. “You’ve been through a rotation of partners and a series of challenges.
Six of you are clustered at the top with outstanding scores. That will change
for at least four of you this morning.”
    Cheryl snuck a glance at Sid, who was slumped in his chair
with his eyes closed. He seemed to be scowling. Checking her com for the team
assignments, she learned they were partners for the day. They were also two of
the six with top scores.
    “Will you be awake by the time this starts?” she whispered
to him.
    His scowl turned to a smile, but his eyes remained closed.
    “Today’s task is simple, folks,” said Jasmine. “The theater
has been staged with the layout of a space freighter. You’re to start from the ship’s
command bridge and make your way to the engine room. The clock stops when you cross
the engine room threshold. Shortest time wins.”
    A hand went up in front of Cheryl. It was Qi—a middling
talent in this year’s class. “Do both team members have to cross the threshold,
or is it just the first one across?”
    Good question. Cheryl looked at Jasmine.
    “Clock stops when the first one crosses.” Jasmine paused,
adding drama to her next words. “Of course, three opposing teams will be spread
throughout the ship, and they’ll be hell-bent on stopping you from getting
there.”
    Looking down at her lecture panel, she said, “Check your com
for your offense and defense schedules.”
    Cheryl scanned the room and counted eighteen people, not
counting Jasmine, then looked at her com. “There are nine