Paphos

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

“There is no door honey, Dublin would have found it,” Austin said.

“I saw something, a faint line, just over there...” Carolina said, pointing and following her outstretched hand as if it were guiding her.  Austin watched her, wondering.  She was screaming a moment ago, and now she was so calm.  And there was something off about her… but what it was he couldn’t put his finger on.  He plopped a hand to his forehead.  Kids were so hard to understand sometimes.

Carolina looked about at the faces staring at her, realizing something was wrong.  “Sorry, I just thought I saw a spider,” she said sounding more like an eleven year old girl now. 

“And a door?  Aye, why not, maybe I’m too tall to see it,” Dublin laughed.  If the head engineer couldn’t find the door but an eleven year old could, he’d have to hear about it the rest of the trip.  Austin put a fatherly hand on her shoulder, unsure of what to say.

“Anyway, I thought I saw the door right over here,” Carolina said standing in front of an inconspicuous piece of the wall.  It looked as unremarkable as the rest, and after a moment or two everyone quietly dismissed her.  She stood there for almost a minute before Dmitry shrugged and walked off, he grabbed Helena to inspect her data readings.  Another minute later and Carolina turned, abruptly facing away from the wall.  A long, steady beam of blue light shot straight out from a projector that was suddenly sticking out of the ground.  Austin saw the beam of blue light, small and pinpoint, it spread like a thin sheet of paper and covered Carolina head to toe.

“Watch out!” he shouted.  Austin ran to her, reaching her just as the blue light slipped away. 

“It’s okay daddy, I wanted it to do that,” she said.

“Do what?” Austin asked.  As if to answer him the wall rumbled, Austin grabbed Carolina and pulled her away.  All eyes spun and watched as a part of the wall suddenly came alive, regressing in on itself on sliding open.  Dmitry’s icy gaze watched the wall and then fell on Carolina.  How did that little girl figure this out?  Something in Dmitry’s head just didn’t buy coincidence. 

“Uhmm…” Orlean said, watching Carolina.  “Did anyone else see that?”

Dmitry lowered his gaze, thoughtfully considering Carolina.  He was more surprised than anyone else, and intrigued.  Could she have simply stumbled upon it?  “Report,” he said to Orlean, interrupting the focus on Carolina. 

Orlean studied his prosthetic limb, the readout screen danced with charts and graphs.  “I’m getting strange readings, unusual energy patterns, unknown compounds,” Orlean said. 

“These energy readings are significant, there must be some kind of reactor inside,” Helena said.

Austin walked up to his little girl.  “Wow honey… we should put you in charge,” he said putting a hand on her shoulder.  Austin felt heat coming through her jacket.  “Carolina, are you feeling okay?” Austin asked as he felt her forehead.  “You’re burning up,” he said, feeling her checks next.  She shouldn’t be feverish with the kind of immune system cocktails they all had.  She shouldn’t even come close to getting sick.  Maybe it was time for a booster shot. 

“Yeah, I’m fine, just all this running around,” she said.  Carolina brushed Austin’s hand away and stepped towards the entrance that appeared. 

“Jus’ let us take this one, miss, better let us lead the way,” Dublin said, standing in front of her.  He shook his head, he really would be hearing about this the rest of the way home. 

“Dublin’s right, we have to be good for something around here,” Athen laughed. 

“There’s no radiation threat, oxygen is breathable, we can advance,” Orlean said.  Helena looked like she swallowed a fish.