Evelyn's p.o.v
I can't remember the last time I've ever pushed pedal to the metal so fast. I revved my throttle to give me a burst a speed and a chance to relax my legs a bit.
I've been cycling after them for 20 minutes straight now. They weren't in a rush so I managed to catch up with them and keep a safe distance between us so they wouldn't notice me. I even chose to let my hair down and replace my turquoise sleeveless jacket with my red sweatshirt. From a distance, they wouldn't notice that it's me unless they really looked.
As I continued following them, I'd occasionally glance at the GPS everytime I lost them. Soon we were out in the open. The road was surrounded by nothing but sandy terrain, shrubs and rock formations. What were they even doing here? Was Miko's Sci-Fi Club literally in the middle of nowhere?
If it were in an abandoned house or something, sure, that'd make more sense than this. There was nothing for miles other than this road and the occasional sign.
Seeing all this didn't make me comfortable, if anything I put me even more at unease. My theory of Miko mixing in with the wrong crowd was growing as the seconds passed.
When I looked at the GPS, my eyes widened as I realized they were going off road! I looked ahead and squinted and sure enough I saw a dark green blur go off the road. I hit the brakes and contemplated my next move.
I could've continued to follow them on my bike but.....the terrain wasn't exactly smooth and easy. Sure, my bike could handle it, after all the tires used for it were meant for rough terrains but I wasn't used to it. The roughest I've ever rode on are roads.
Then again, if horse $h!t hits the fan then I might need a quick getaway. So I came up with a solution. I quickly folded my bike and hid it in patches of shrubs and hedges. They hid Bolt perfectly when I laid him down. I decided to forgo tightening the restraints on my bike so it'll be easier for me to unfold it and skedaddle. I unstrapped my helmet and put it beside my bike. I decided to keep the pads on.
Hey, you can never be too careful.
I also took my sweatshirt off cuz blimey its hot!
And so after changing back into my signature turquoise sleeveless jacket and hitching my bag up, I looked at the GPS and followed the dot.
I realized that it was zig-zagging a lot. Then it struck me. I looked around and more or less recognized the terrain more now. It was similar to the place Miko and I went for dune-bashing.
Perhaps they were telling the truth after all and that was all there is to it?
A tiny part of me was disappointed, I was kinda hoping for an adventure. Then again I also felt relief that Miko wasn't in trouble. However that went out the window when I saw that they were suddenly back on the road.
I ran after it but stuck to the side of the road. Partly to prevent myself from going splat from a vehicle and also to use the undergrowth as cover.
I hid behind a hedge and checked the screen. Surely enough, I saw the dark green SUV heading my way as I peeked my head over it. I ducked back and looked back up...and my eyes widened as I realized that they were driving right smack straight into a dead end!
Are they nuts?! Have they gone bloody mad?! Daredevil stunts like dune-bashing are one thing but there's a thin line between daringness and downright suicidal!
I was about to jump out and find some way to stop them but didn't have to. My eyes widened even more as I saw the rock wall open up to reveal some sort of secret entrance. It was like something straight out of those Sci-Fi movies! I pinched myself and......nope, I wasn't living in a Spy novel.
I shook my head and ran full speed towards the door as it began to close. I pushed my sore leg muscles to the limit and noticed only a thin gap remained. Thinking fast, I dropped down into a cartwheel and just as I got up, I heard a slam as the doors closed.
I gulped as I imagined myself going squash in between those heavy doors like a sandwich. I turned around and noticed that I was standing in front of some tunnel.
There were lights on the roof like those proper tunnels you drive through on highways. Wait, what was something like this doing here to begin with?
I looked around and could tell that it's been here for a while....I have a feeling someone has also been looking after it for a while as well. The walls looked like they were cleaned and there were tire marks on the road.
I didn't know where it leads to and didn't want to suddenly just appear out of nowhere, that'd be awkward. I could imagine myself just suddenly strolling into a room and interrupting someone's poker game.....yeah...not goanna happen.
I looked around and noticed an air vent on the top. It was at least four meters up. Sure, I could jump high but not that high. I looked around for something I could use but there was nothing.
Still, I didn't come this far just to give up.
I rummaged through my bag in hopes of finding something but....other than the taser I've got nothing. Then I felt like smacking myself. What was I supposed to do, bring a grappling hook? What was I? Some kinda super spy?
Then my torchlight fell out I grabbed it but just as I was about to stuff it back into the bag, I noticed that it was a torchlight Ed gave me for one of my school's field trips once. I was going for a field trip to a cave and Ed had given me this.
If there's anything I've come to know about Ed's gifts, it's that there's also more to it than meets the eye. I began to fiddle around with it in hopes that I'll find some sort of..... 'attachment' that'll help me and just as I was about to give up, I found a small button.
I pressed it and at the bottom of the torchlight, a mini grappling hook came out. It was sharp and definitely still in shape.
I grinned and aimed it upwards toward the shaft. I pulled the trigger......and it fell short of at least 10 feet. I glared at the grappling hook in disappointment. Then I hooked it back and decided to try again, this time at a different angle.
I took a few steps back and shot at it in a more diagonal arc, this time it hit the vent and I yanked on it as hard as I could. It came off and it landed on the pile of clothes I put there earlier to muffle any sound.
After keeping my stuff back, I wriggled into the vents. It was a tight fit but I could just manage to move. I tied my bag to my leg so it'd drag behind me as I crawled.
The vents were a bit dusty and I would occasionally sneeze a bit. I was definitely going to need another shower. Soon I heard voices and stopped. I crawled and saw a grill up ahead. I peeked through the grill and put a hand over my mouth just in time to stifle the gasp that escaped my mouth.
I blinked once.....twice....thrice.....I rubbed my eyes and wondered if I was becoming delusional but there was no denying it.
Right there below me was what I can only describe as giant robots! They were at least 20-30 feet tall and bloody heck, what the hell?! What in the name of Elizabeth's ghost is going on?!
I couldn't get a clear look at them but I heard...voices. I forced myself to calm down and listen. I recognized Miko's voice and....Raf and Jack's too. Looks like they're in cahoots with whatever's going on. I also heard a deep voice that sounded familiar....was that Bulk?
I strained my eyes but the sight the grill offered me was pretty limited but it was definitely Bulk except he sounded more....loud?
There was also a grumpy voice that sounded old.....another voice that sounded young, another teenager perhaps? I picked up a more feminine tone and a deep baritone voice. It seemed to come from the robot with......what's the colors? Oh, red and blue. There was something about the voice that told me he wasn't a pushover. There was also a bunch of beeps and various tones. Whether it was from one of the giant robots or another machine, I didn't know and wasn't sure if I wanted to.
I moved ahead and saw another vent, I looked through it and saw Miko just sitting there on a couch chilling out and playing video games with one of the giant robots! What in the ever loving f@Ck?! Ahem, pardon my language again.
But seriously, how could Miko be so relaxed. She was chatting with the robot as though it were a close friend of hers. Wait a sec....unless......
For a while I just laid there on my belly and thought about it. About everything, the texts, the excuses and absents, the vague details, how she got to know Bulk, her so called 'Sci-Fi Club'....
What if this is what it really is? What if the Sci-Fi Club was just a cover? I looked around and saw nothing. No special props, no wires, no camera, no green screen, nothing.
Whatever these robots are or where they come from, I am sure as hell that they're real. I pinched myself and felt the sting of it....nope I'm not dreaming either.
I decided to skedaddle before they notice me. I whipped my phone out and snapped a few pictures of everything, I even video recorded it for extra proof.
As I did, I noticed how the robots acted so.......normal. They all seemed to have some kind of personality. They didn't seem like a bunch of mindless metal husks.
The way they talked, the way they did everything just seemed...humane in a way. Then again I've only known them for like, a couple of minutes so who am I to talk?
After I got the evidence, I wriggled out of there and hightailed it. I then spent the next hour or so looking for a way out. I doubt there was just some big red button next to the garage door to open it. I was beginning to panic a bit as I wriggled around.
'Oh god, what if I get stuck or worse, what if I can't find a way out of here and get trapped?' I thought at one point and sadly, I didn't have an answer to my own question and getting trapped inside a secret base in the middle of nowhere with a bunch of giant robots who could squash me like a bug did not seem appealing, at all.
Luckily I didn't have to worry about it as I found a vent that led outside. I opened and climbed up the stairs. I opened the door and found myself on....the top of the rock formation.
I groaned. Great, now I have to climb down too. But then I noticed I was on a different rock formation that was some distance from the original. I frowned. Maybe I used some sorta secret escape route? Either that or the place was bigger than I thought.
Anyways I had to spend the next hour and a half climbing down the rock formation. Then it took another half an hour for me to grab my bike.
I tried to focus and keep my mind on the road to prevent myself from getting into a car accident but my mind kept replaying what I just saw.
I was so deep in thought I nearly rode past my house. I stopped myself and parked my bike in the garage. Then I entered the house.
"Hey, Ev- the he!l happened to you?" Ed asked dropping the TV remote before rushing over to me. As the adrenaline wore off, it was then I was aware of a scrape on my left bicep and above my shin and how my stockings had at least three rips in them. I was sweating from the humidness and the exhaustion and I was covered in a bit of dust.
"An accident, rode Bolt a bit too fast I guess." I said with a sheepish chuckle, successfully hiding the real inner turmoil I had. "Where's Aunt Selina?" I asked trying to change the subject.
"She's put on patrol. She's staying over at a friend's house for the night." Ed said without looking away. He took my arm up and saw the scrape as he rolled up my sleeve. I also notice a small patch of blood on it.
"I'll get the first aid kit. Stay here." Ed said. At almost inhuman speed, he went to the kitchen and came back with the first aid kit in hand. He sat me down and began fussing over me.
"I can do that myself you now." I hissed in pain a bit as he applied disinfection. It stung when it came in contact with my wound.
"Uh huh." Ed mumbled not looking away from his task. Soon he was done and put a bandage on my bicep and above my shin. "God Eve, one of these days you're goanna give me a heart attack." Ed said as he put the items back into the first aid kit.
"Sorry, I'll be more careful next time." I apologized. He looked at me and sighed.
"I'd ban you from using Bolt again but you'd just ignore me anyways and it's just goanna cause us unnecessary trouble." He said. I smirked.
"You know me so well." I admitted. "Please don't tell our parents about this." I pleaded. Ed thought about it for a while and sighed again.
"Fine, you're off the hook this time." I pumped my fist. "But if you pull any other crazy stunts, I won't hesitate to push you under the bus, is that clear?" he asked me sternly.
"No more crazy stunts, got it." I said nodding my head rapidly. Ed seemed satisfied and went back to keep the first aid kit. Luckily he wasn't aware of my crossed fingers too. I was pretty sure that whatever I was going to do next in my investigation wasn't going to be danger-proof.
"Sorry, Ed." I mumbled softly before going upstairs to my room for a well deserved and definitely need shower.
I took a shower and rinsed all the sand, dust, sweat and grime off me and slumped down on my bed. I simply wore back my original clothes minus the sleeveless jacket and stockings.
I thought back to everything and replayed the scene again and again. On one hand, I was relieved that Miko wasn't mixing in with the wrong crowd but after finding out that she hangs out with a bunch of giant robots, I'm not sure if she's hanging out with the right one either.
But just......how? Why? Where? What? Who?
How did those robots get here and how were they created?
Why are they here in Jasper, Nevada of all places? Or Earth for that matter.
Where did they come from?
What's their goal? What do they want?
Who's involved in all this? Does the government know about their existence? Are those robots a 'who' rather than a 'what'?
I think I'll go with 'who' since 'what' seems a bit harsh. And so far that's the only question I've gotten a straight answer to.
Okay, I've simply laid down on my bed and stared at the various music stickers I've put up on the ceiling for an hour straight.
In that time, I've come up with a few possible conclusions:
A. Going mad. What I saw were a bunch of hallucinations and I am delusional. Yup, it was all my imagination. Perhaps it was simply the heat that caused a bunch of mirages? Yeah, I'll go with that.
B. There is more to this than I thought. Like, as big as the world more. Involving extraterrestrials more, there is a lot more things out there that we don't know about more.
C. It was all a crazy dream.
I wanted to believe that it was C. That all this was a dream that I'd wake up from, but did I really?
I mean, I just saw what was literally a physical manifestation of one of my Sci-Fi daydreams! It's not every day you get to see talking giant robots. A small part of me was even excited and happy like a giddy little girl after finding out that unicorns existed.
That means I'll have to go with B. Since it's the only sensible option left and no, I am not crazy.
Question is, what do I do now?
I took my phone out and went through the various evidence I have collected. Then I remembered Step 5 aka Phase 3.
Confront Miko and hear her side of the story.
But what if Miko lies to me? What if she's being blackmailed? Will the robots kill her if she squeaks? Will they take her to some crazy lab and experiment on her? Will they brainwash her? Will they brainwash both of us? Or will they just kill us?
I shuddered and hoped that it wasn't the last one.
The more I thought about it and let it sink in and the more I replayed all the evidence, the more I realized that all this time, all those times I've read novels and watched movies, imagining what out of this world stuff would be like was becoming real.
Like Miko, I've always daydreamed of all sorts of crazy adventures, of places and beings beyond the world, a world where the impossible was possible.
But like many have stated before, as similar as Miko and I are, we also have our differences. And one of those is that sometimes I know when to accept reality.
I keep an open mind about things, I have quite the imagination after all but even I know when to be a realist and accept realities limits.
Now I wasn't even sure what normal is, heck, I'm not even sure what's real anymore.
After a while, I came to a conclusion and my resolve strengthened. Screw the robots and consequences, I said I was getting to the bottom of this and I mean it.
I flipped open my cell and looked through the list Ed sent me those weeks ago about the abandoned places. I had kept them since I thought they might come in handy and I'm glad I did.
My finger paused over one of the locations. It was located near the outskirts of town. It was an old abandoned warehouse that got closed down after an accident. The building was old and unstable so people barely even bother it.
Perfect.
I sent Miko the location with a simple straightforward message.
'Come to this location at midnight, tonight. No excuses. Come alone; don't bother bringing Bulk or his dark green SUV or any of your other buds, you can't bring Jack or Raf either. This isn't a prank. You have to come. We need to talk.'
I checked the message for spelling errors and saw none. Then I sent the message.
I took a deep breath. There was no going back now.
Tonight, I move onto Phase 3.