Binary Cycle - (Part 1: Disruption) by WJ Davies Page A

thrown a jacket on, so Skyia wouldn’t know anything had happened. No need to frighten her with events out of her control.
    Cassidy framed in her mind all the things that she needed to speak to her daughter about. The poor darling had no idea of the dramatic life changes that were about to take place for her—had no idea her little world was about to be yanked from its roots and shaken about its axis. This was going to be the most telling few cycles of humanity’s existence on Taran thus far.
    She approached the door, knocked once for posterity, and pressed a small button which activated the internal audio system.
    “Hello?” Her voice sizzled through hidden wires and rang out clear against the titanium walls and polished stone floor inside.

• Resurrection •

Chapter 14
    Jonathas felt the ground stir beneath him as he crawled on hands and knees through the tight corridor. The vibrations began far below, deep within the planet itself. The rumbling turned to shaking and the shakes became violent shocks. The booming roar of the disruption was deafening in his ears. He thought about retreating back into the supply depot, escaping the narrow confines of the ventilation shaft, but he would have had to back up blindly as there was no room to turn around.
    Another incredible thump and his hands gave way beneath him. His face smacked against the metal floor and he felt warm drops of blood dripping from his chin.
    The shaking continued.
    Jonathas lay in the uncomfortable space, unable to move until, finally, the turbulence abated. 
    He pushed himself onto hands and knees and continued his slow crawl through the vent. He wiped blood from his face and nearly gagged when he saw the sticky red mess it made on his sleeve. Vomiting in these cramped quarters wouldn’t be fun. He summoned extra strength from deep within himself and crawled onward.
    After a claustrophobic eternity, he came to the end of the shaft. With relief, he saw that the vent cover had already been removed.
Someone had been through here.
    He emerged into a hallway, but saw that rocks had already fallen in enormous piles, blocking the way forward. He pushed himself to his feet, relishing the ability to move freely once again, and called out for Linsya.
    No answer.
    Jonathas scanned the pile of rocks blocking the hall, looking for any signs of people. 
    Of Linsya
. 
    The ceiling was low—cracked and crumbled after the last cave-in—and he picked across the rubble and large rock pieces. In the dim light, the floor was uneven and treacherous. 
    He had the strange sensation that he was being watched from the pitch black corners or from the murky stew behind him.
    A hot blast of air whipped past. The heat became overwhelming. Without functioning heat sinks in the lower levels, the temperature in the mining tunnels and thermal processing rooms was quickly rising to the natural intensity that existed in these volcanic regions. 
    He didn’t have any water, and his throat already felt parched and sore. He’d have to move quickly.
    Jonathas pawed through the debris, hoping to find a way through to the other side of the cave-in. Sweat poured off his skin as he lifted and tossed away the heavy ore. If he cleared enough space from the top of the pile, he might be able to slide through between the rock and ceiling, check if Lindsya was on the other side of the blockage. He shuddered, thinking about the possibility of her lying trapped somewhere, crushed beneath stones.
    For a fleeting moment it occurred to Jonathas that by moving from his original location near the door where he’d woken up, he’d made it impossible for Linsya to find him if she went back there looking. He cursed himself for not leaving some kind of message for her in case she came back, just as she had tied her hair ribbon to his wrist to let him know she was ok.
    Oh well, there was no use thinking about what he could have done differently; all he could do was to try his luck here and see where this