The Chronicles of Mike & Heather

By Gary T Brideau

Heather shrieked, in terror, when, she came close to the stairwell, then suddenly, vanished, as a long, black tentacle dragged her down, into the darkness. Mike frantically screamed, “Heather,” as he pulled out his hunting knife, and rushed down into the darkness, after her. Suddenly, something grabbed his waist, and lifted him off the ground. Upon hacking off a long dark limb, he turned, on his flashlight and hollered, “Heather,” all he heard was silence, he carefully made his way back up stairs thinking his wife was dead. At the top of the stairs, he was almost knocked over, as Heather grabbed him a hug, almost crushed his ribs.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Dec 30, 2013
• ISBN: 9781493156696

Gary T Brideau

I was born in a small house in Brooklyn, Nova Scotia, Canada in 1947 and moved to Bridgeport, Connecticut as a small boy. I met Lauren, the love of my life in1985 and were married years later and moved to Bristol, Connecticut. One night, I had a vivid dream that caught my attention, that spurred me to write it down, and sent it to my sister T. Jene Brideau, for an interpretation who also is a writer. She wrote and told me that the story was good. I took her encouragement and my imagination went to work. That’s when I discovered my God-given talent to write great space adventures stories. From then on, I have written over fifty stories of which only seven of them have been published with great reviews.

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Copyright © 2014 by Gary T. Brideau.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Rev. date: 07/28/2021

Xlibris

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CONTENTS

Story line

Chapter 1 Next Stop, Earth

Chapter 2 Trapped

Chapter 3 On the Run

Chapter 4 The Unexplained Foe

Chapter 5 Missing

Chapter 6 The Chase is on

Chapter 7 Hidden Terror

Chapter 8 Search and Rescue

Chapter 9 Staying Alive

Chapter 10 Missing

Chapter 11 Alive or Dead

Chapter 12 Three Toes

Chapter 13 Depression

Chapter 14 A Mouthful

Chapter 15 Ralph Eats Crow

Chapter 16 The Lost City

Chapter 17 Enter, The Guardian

Chapter 18 A Time to Hide

Chapter 19 A Turn for the Worse

Chapter 20 The Truth Shown

Chapter 21 Fractured Time

Chapter 22 A Time to Die

Chapter 23 Back to Reality

Chapter 24 The Final Truth

Chapter 25 Making Friends with Desperate

Chapter 26 A Touch of Reality

Chapter 27 Follow the Leader

Epilogue

NOT AGAIN

Story line

Chapter 28 Hide and Seek

Chapter 29 Dilemma

Chapter 30 Pay Back

Chapter 31 Dog Meat

Chapter 32 The empty cave

Chapter 33 Shadows in the night

Chapter 34 The Gentle Giant, to the rescue

Epilogue

STORY LINE

Mike, unaware that he is about to be stranded on some backwater planet in the middle of nowhere, and that his mundane life is about to change in more ways then one.

CHAPTER 1

Next Stop, Earth

Mike rolled out of bed, around ten o’clock, on a bright sunny, morning; staggered out to the kitchen, grabbed himself some juice and cold cereal, then thought as he went out on his back patio enjoy the rest of the day thought, nothing to do but lie around all day and recuperate from last night’s party. Then, a soft, female voice from his auto reminder on the kitchen counter said, Today is the day you pick up your new Star Car.

Mike exclaimed, Oh man! I forgot all about that. I only have fifteen minutes to get to dealership across town. Mike quickly jumped up, knocked over the TV table, sending his morning meal flying everywhere. Then he dashed down the hallway to his bedroom, grabbing a faded, yellow and blue vertical, striped, short-sleeved shirt, and an old pair of faded, blue cotton shorts that came to just above his knees. Then, he snatched his silver with a black face, five-thousand terabyte computer wristwatch, with verbal interface, off of his dresser.

He thought, as he hopped into his car, what can go wrong on a gorgeous day like, today? Then, he muttered when the car wouldn’t start, Dead, energy cells, Mike hollered in frustration, I don’t believe it! I just charged those stupid cells just yesterday, they can’t be dead! He pounded his fists on the steering wheel, and got out of the car, slamming the door. Then he bellowed as he leaned back against his car, If I’m not at that car lot in ten or fifteen minutes, I’ll lose the deal of a lifetime! He spun around, kicked the car door and shouted, Stupid car. Just then, the car sprang to life. Yes, shouted Mike, as he quickly jumped in the car and took off, for the dealership.

As he pulled up into the lot, and waved to the salesman, just as he was coming out of his office. A tall man with gray hair approached and said as he handed Mike a gospel track, Have you met Jesus?

Oh not another one of those nuts again, muttered Mike, Every where I go, someone is trying to get me to go to church with them. Mike smiled and said, No thanks." then started to walk away.

The man then inquired, How much do you want for your old car? Mike glared at the man but didn’t say a word, thinking. It’s a trick question! Who, in his right mind, would want my piece of junk?

The man then stated firmly, Okay, I see you know what you have, I’ll give you ten thousand for it.

Mike stared at the man as if he was nuts, but kept silent still being suspicious that the man was trying to trap him into going to church.

The man put his hands on his hips, gazed at Mike for a minute, then walked up to his car and examined its interior and said, They don’t make these babies anymore, and I’ve been looking for this model car for years, to restore it. I tell you what; I’ll give you thirty five thousand dollars for the car, no more.

Mike’s jaw dropped in shock, as he slowly nodded, yes, then thought, I don’t care if he is a Religious I love the color of his money."

Just as Mike was recovering from the shock that someone actually bought his old, pile of junky for a car. The dealer walked up to him and stated, I’m so sorry, for the mistake in the ad for the Grand Giveaway. Fortunately, the right car came in early this morning, and it’s just on the side lot.

The salesman put his arm on Mike’s shoulder, pointed the car and asked, Well, what do you think? She’s all yours, as soon as we sign the papers, transferring ownership over to you.

Great, replied Mike, I like red, it’s a little small, but I think I’ll get used to that.

The salesman smiled and replied, No not that one, it’s the metallic blue car, behind the red one.

Mike eyes almost popped out of his head, as he stared at the sleek, metallic blue vehicle. All that came out of his mouth was, Wow!

A few hours later, the salesmen explained to Mike, as they were walking to the car, This car came right off the assembly line, this morning; it’s the latest in design, the paint will not scratch, and it’s impossible to dent. However, that’s not the best feature. It’s a star drive vehicle. Some cars might be able to fly, and get you from point A to point B, around the city; however, this one will take you across the galaxy and back. Hop in, I will show you some of the features of the car.

The salesman put his hand on the fine, leather dashboard, and said, This car has a protective archive, meaning; if for some reason the car’s computer software is erased or damaged, it can be reinstalled in no time, by using the protective archive. The car also has a homing beacon that will bring you back home. It you choose, you can pilot the car to your destination, by following the directions. For those long trips, the car is equipped with a food generator. Mike looked at the salesman and asked, What’s a food generator?

The salesman replied, It’s a new term, meaning; all the food you need, is stored in the computer, you need just ask, and you shall receive.

Where’s the steering wheel, and the ignition key? questioned Mike.

It’s voice activated, and will respond to your voice, and the steering wheel, is a central control stick between the seats, with a comfortable arm rest. The salesman then handed Mike the manual and said that he could read about the other features like, the camouflage energy field, that will enable the car to hide if on an alien planet. Then explained, For instance if the car is around some rocks, the car will take on the appearance of a rock, and just as solid. The salesman then he asked for Mike’s computer watch, so he could download the necessary software for remote access.

Excited over his new car, the first thing Mike did was to show it off to his friends, who hung out at the local diner. As Mike drove into the parking lot, one of his friends hollered Hey, Mike! Where did you steal the car? Another friend shouted, He didn’t steal the car! It’s his rich uncle’s! Another friend shouted, Mike wouldn’t steal. He’s just sponging off of someone!"

Mike replied, For your information, I was the Grand Prize Winner in that car giveaway last week, and it’s all mine. Sorry guys, you won’t get the chance to drive it, with friends like you, who need enemies. See ya. As he drove away, Mike could hear their faint apologies, but it was too late, their arrows of sarcasm had sunk deep into Mike’s heart.

He drove up to his girlfriend’s home, all smiles. She grumbled as she gave his car a quick once-over, Give it up Mike, and stop trying to impress me. That’s isn’t yours, it can’t be, not on your salary.

Her cutting remarks sunk deep into Mike’s soul, causing irreversible damage.

Trying to smile through the pain, Mike replied, Yup! I guess can’t fool you! Oh! By the way, may I take another look at the engagement ring that I gave you? She walked up to the car and held out her left hand. When she did, Mike quickly slipped it off her finger and said, Thanks, I’ll see you again, some year, and drove off.

After flying around for a while, he found a beautiful park on the other side of the planet, where he settled down to read the instruction manual. Two and a half hours later, Mike slowly closed the manual, and then tossed it into the back seat. With a devilish grin on his face, he thought, it says that it’s impossible to hit a tall building or structure, no matter how fast I am flying. Okay, let’s test this puppy out and see if it’s true. Accessing the car’s computer, he asked, Where is the nearest city, with the tallest building? The computer answered, Fifty miles west, and the tallest building is two thousand feet high.

Mike set a course due west, at eight hundred miles per hour, one thousand feet off the ground. In minutes, he had zipped in and around the buildings faster than the speed of sound without even coming close to a building. Then, the thought hit him. You don’t fly faster than the speed of sound through a city like that, without causing trouble. He quickly landed the car, amongst some tall trees and engaged the camouflage energy field. Then he muttered, "Where’re my brains! No doubt, there are plenty of buildings with broken windows; I had better be more careful, on the next test, A few minutes later, three fighter planes flew overhead, carefully searching for something.

Later that night, Mike decided to play it safe, and set a course for outer space, and visit one of the planet’s two moons, to finish the testing of his new Star Car, Once in space, he changed his mind, and set a course for the outer arm of the galaxy, just to see how fast the car would go.

CHAPTER 2

Trapped

Mike had a blast, trying out all the car’s features, as he zipped through space, faster than the Speed Of Light. Putting the car on autopilot, Mike accessed the car’s dinner menu, and ordered himself a full course, turkey dinner. When, he was finished, he put on some soft music, and soon, fell asleep.

He suddenly awoke to an alarm sounding in his ears; the car was on a collision course with a red planet. Less than ten miles above the surface of a the planet. Mike grabbed the controls, and tried to pull out, as he plunged helplessly to the planet’s surface below. But, nothing happened, the car continued to plummet down, towards the planet’s surface. With seconds left, Mike hollered, Manual control, now.

The computer responded, Autopilot off, he pulled back, on the stick, just missing the ground by a few feet. Once back in space, Mike stopped the car, to regain his bearings, and to find out, what he had missed, in the manual. The autopilot was supposed to avoid all planetary systems, as far, as he understood.

A strange, blue planet caught Mike’s attention afar off; and he decided to investigate, thinking it was some advanced civilization. The closer he got to the beautiful blue marble, the more fascinated he, became. Hovering twenty miles above the planet’s surface, Mike gazed intently at the planet below. But, he decided to play it safe, and stay away. He typed in the command for the return trip home, but curiosity got the best of him, and he decided to make low sweep, close to the planet’s surface. This was a serious mistake.

As he flew low over some islands he heard several loud explosions coming from his aft section, that shook his car. Not wanting to have car trouble, thousands of light-years from help. He thought, I’d better find a place to land, and check things out, before returning to space. Just then, another explosion violently rocked the car, knocking out all power, and sending him spiraling down, into the ocean, fortunately, the car was watertight. But, for how long? The water pressure would soon crush, it like an eggshell.

He shouted, Back up, power, but, there was no response. Then, the idea hit him; push the homing beacon button, it’s also for backup power, in case of a power failure, on reserve power, Mike limped his damaged car to shore, to check the damage to his craft. But, he was surprised to find, that there, was not even a scratch. However, he wasn’t going anywhere, because, there was still no main power. Mike sat down, on the beach, with his head in his hands, and grumbled, Great, just great, here I am, on some backwater planet, with no way of getting off. I knew, I should have gone back home, when I thought of it. But no, I had to take just, one little peek.

Walking back to the car, he noticed the compartment to the power cells was opened, and upon further checking, he found that some wires, had come loose, short-circuiting the power grid. Once the wires were taken care of, Mike accessed the car’s system, and started a full analysis. The report read, power cells dangerously low, please reinstall software from the archives; the time of completion will be three and a half days. Mike gave the command, to start the software installation, and to recharge the power cell, and then, he said, "Activate camouflage, energy field. The car instantly took, on the appearances of the rocky coast. Mike paused for a moment, studying the rocks’ formations, so he would remember where he had parked.

Suddenly, all he saw were stars, just before he blacked out. When he came to, his hands and feet were bound, and a lady, about five feet, five inches, in her mid thirties, with very curly red hair, and freckles, was pointing a weapon at him.

Mike asked, Could you please, point that thing, somewhere else? Just, in case it accidentally goes off.

The lady shouted, This is a spear gun, and no, I will not lower it. Why have you come here? So, you can plan an invasion, come on, Martian, I know who you are; talk, or I’ll find out just, how green, your blood is!

Mike calmly replied, One, I don’t have green blood. Two, I’m surely not, a Martian. Besides, what makes you think, I’m some, being from outer space, in the first place?

The red haired woman replied, I own a beach house, about two miles down the beach. I heard about, how the jets downed a UFO, and a short time later, I spotted something, coming ashore, and here you are.

Mike held out his hands, and asked, Do you have a knife? Here, cut me, and you’ll see, I have red blood, just, like you. With tears in her eyes, the red haired lady lowered her spear gun, and said, My name is Heather, and I’m sorry, I hit, you and tied you up. All my life I’ve dreamed of catching an alien from outer space. You were my last hope; after this summer is over; I’m quitting, and going to take up pottery; anything, but, searching for space aliens."

Mike accompanied Heather back to her place, and spent the rest of the night on the beach, listening to her stories, about the strange things that she had encountered. As the night sky began to slip away, and dawn approached, Mike was finishing his coffee, when, Heather noticed something unusual about him and whispered softy, You are from outer space! I can see it. Your skin is different, somehow. Only these few minutes, just, before dawn, can I see the difference.

Mike took a deep breath, and said softly, "You’re right, I’m from outer space, but not from Mars. Look at my hands, I have no fingerprints. They did shoot me down, but I only wanted to see what a beautiful world, you have. My ship is repairing itself, and I hope to return to my home planet, in about three days.

Mike stood up, and asked Heather to watch closely because, he was only going to do it once for her. He helped her up, and said, Stand completely still. Mike jumped clear over Heather’s head, and landed three feet in back of her. The only thing, she could say was, How?

Mike explained, that the gravity was much stronger, on his world, than here, on Earth, that’s how he was able to jump so, high. He had no special powers; he only