The Cold Core

Part 6

26

"Sorry to wake you," I apologised to a groggy looking Matt and Izzy. "But we need to talk."

"What about?" yawned Matt.

"About what we tell our parents. And the authorities."

"Why would the authorities want to talk to us?" asked Izzy.

"Because we were there, in the earthquake. We disappeared for seven hours. And we returned. Looking fresh as the minute we left. The authorities will definitely want some answers."

"Plus, we did pop out of Mt Fuji, causing it to erupt for the first time in millennia. Someone must have got that on camera," Ruby mentioned.

"That too," I said. "So, what do we tell them?"

"Nothing," Izzy suggested. "They wouldn't believe us anyway."

"Something about how the Agarthans knew so much about us tells me otherwise," mused Ruby.

"What do you mean?" Matt asked.

"Well, they know way too much about us. Humans, I mean," she started. "So they must have had some contact with the surface world. And the government has been hiding so many things over the past few years. The secrets just keep getting bigger."

"So you're saying that they knew about the Hollow Earth?" I asked.

"Probably, yeah. I mean how else would you explain it?" Ruby looked genuinely worried now.

"OK, so what's our story?" Matt asked.

"We were trapped under some rubble and were unconscious for a few hours," I suggested.

"And when we woke up, we found the Red Rocket was still intact," Ruby continued.

"So we boarded it, cleared the rubble, and made our escape, passing over the top of Mt Fuji to gain altitude right as it exploded," Izzy added.

"And managed to find our ways here with Ruby's flight experience," Matt finished.

I grinned. I could hear a few cars squealing around Graham Park Way now, so I knew our parents were coming. "I think we have our story."

***

"Oh my god, I was so worried about you!" Mom cried. It had been about five minutes and I was still stuck in her bear hug. "It's been hours without a word! What happened to you? Where were you? How are you still alive?"

"I can answer all those and more if I can breathe," I wheezed.

"Oh, sorry, again." She let me out of the embrace and grabbed my cheeks.

It had been a few minutes since everyone's parents had arrived, pretty much at the same time, at the RAF Museum. Matt's parents hitched a ride with Izzy's parents in a blue SUV, while Ruby's mom and dad both arrived in their black Mercedes. Seeing them both embrace Ruby so tightly made me happy, not because both of her parents were here, but because they were giving Ruby a hard time. My mom had managed to 'borrow' her boss's car (she used the air quotes, not me) which explained how she managed to zoom up here in a brand new electric Tesla.

"I'm fine mum. We're fine," I replied happily, hugging her again. "We kind of got stuck in the rubble for a while. A long while actually."

"How long a while?" Mom demanded.

"A few hours, I think," I replied, backing away a little. She was starting to look a little mad.

"And you managed to get out? How?"