“What operation?” Trent asked.
Ruth-Ann said, “The operation to take over our planet. If this plan that someone has alerted us to continues to proceed, we need someone to infiltrate this alien gang and thwart the plan by any means necessary.”
“Sounds pretty crazy, but that’s just up our alley.” The tray of ordered drinks flew back into the room and Whitney claimed her tea as the silver tray stopped in front of her.
Roland said, “We know that you are going to be extremely busy with the baby and the agency you will be starting up, but you might want to brush up on your space knowledge. But not what is known right now by the humans, which is very little. We’re going to give you a few sources to gain a little knowledge.”
Richard said, “Too bad you don’t want to help us out. Going into space sounds pretty cool. It’s a shame we can’t do it because we would be easily identified as ghosts. Despite all the crazy forms of life you could see, we are looked at as outcasts.”
“Maybe I was a little hasty with my words earlier. I mean, we are friends and you have helped me a lot in the past. What do you think honey?”
Trent said, “A chance to help our friends who hosted our wedding and go into space. Sounds like a pretty epic opportunity.”
Roland said, “You two have big hearts that have too much worry right now. We know you are struggling financially now and nothing is worse than stress during a pregnancy. You’ve just committed to help us and we are in a unique position to be able to really help you with this problem.”
Raquel interrupted, “Let me tell them. So there is an amazing amount of gold and money in general buried just under the surface of the earth. The problem is that the planet is so big that no one knows exactly where to dig. We do.”
Trent asked, “Wait, so you are going to help us find buried treasure?”
Richard answered, “Unless you don’t want us to?”
Whitney took a sip of her tea. “No, I think that sounds like a fair arrangement. We save this planet and you save us financially.”
Trent leaned over and kissed her. He whispered, “See, I told you not to worry about money.”
She playfully slapped him on the shoulder and said, “I was the one who told you not to worry about money.”
Roland added, “The true generosity of your soul was exposed when you agreed to take in Mary and Robbie. Sometimes good people are rewarded, not often enough though. For right now, enjoy the pregnancy as much as you can and do what you need to make your agency great without worry of cost. It is our honor to be able to help you two with your dream.”
Richard said, “Just make sure you don’t default on the loan. You are going to have to return and possibly go into space for an unknown period of time. It can pop up at any time and you are required to drop everything and carry out this mission. It will be hard to leave a young baby, but you will be abruptly called on.”
Trent and Whitney looked at each other. She hadn’t really thought about the fact that she would have to abandon her son or daughter that soon after the birth. The fact that they didn’t know how long the mission would take made Whitney uneasy.
Trent said, “This is a lot easier for me to say yes, but it is ultimately up to you. I wouldn’t even be here if it wasn’t for you.” He looked at Richard. “Right, I wouldn’t have been here?”
Richard answered, “Probably not, but that isn’t a slight either. There’s the phrase one in a million, but our girl here is more like one in a trillion or whatever comes after that.”
Ruth-Ann said, “It’s a quadrillion.”
Richard looked at her and said, “I was just making a point. No need to be a know-it-all.”
Raquel said, “Children, we are losing track here. Let’s give our favorite earthly couple.” She looked at Trent and Whitney. “Shhh, don’t tell anyone. Let’s give them a nice little send off so they can enjoy a calm period before the storm, although with a baby that will be hard to do. Congratulations once again and I’m glad we can still be friends.”
Everyone stood up and Raquel floated over and gave Trent and Whitney a hug. Whitney still couldn’t get over the fact that the ghosts’ bodies had substance to them. They said goodbye and got back on the hover board as Whitney’s mind raced about the next adventure. Richard handed her an electronic reader with information about space as they approached the slide that would take Trent and Whitney back home to earth.
Thank you so much for your time. I’ve included the first two chapters of Cosmic Diamonds, Book 4 in the Whitney Powers Paranormal Adventures.
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Preview: of Cosmic Diamonds, Book 4 in the Whitney Powers Paranormal Adventures.
Roxelle Idris-U472Z
“I’m one badass bitch. I’m one badass bitch.” Roxelle repeated her mantra as she waited inside the pressurized cabin of the Foribus Oraculi.
She stared at the mesmerizing blue pulsar named Densive 11 through the viewport on the right side of the cabin. She stared at the brilliant blue rotating oval with beams of argent-tinted light bursting from both poles and extending thousands of kilometers in either direction. The rapidly rotating neutron star was set to the black backdrop sprinkled with different sized dabs of bright white light.
She pulled up her GravSuit and mentally prepared for the dangerous work ahead. The purple-fleshed female being tucked her long black braids into the neckline.
“Arrib. Check me out,” Roxelle said, pointing to the back of her neck with her thumb.
She could smell his minty breath as he approached. He pushed a few stragglers into her suit and patted her on the right shoulder.
Roxelle Idris-U472Z walked to the other side of the cabin and only fourteen meters away sat the gleaming carbon planet named Dia 447. The pull from the pulsar caused the carbon to be compacted so tightly, most beings referred to it as a diamond. The sight still awed her even after seeing it thousands of times.
Roxelle’s sponsors were assumed to have the only WARPDRIVE in the universe, so the company she worked for, TJ9974 Interstellar Mining Corporation, was the only company that could access the endless reserves of the precious gem.
Some inhabited terraformed planets had mines of diamond reserves, but nothing compared to an entire Earth 43-sized planet. Her company had a stranglehold on the interstellar market.
The scientists who worked for her company knew that the gravitational pull of the pulsar was going to tug in and obliterate the diamond planet. Even the gravity of the diamond planet was dangerously increasing by the day because it was getting closer to the pulsar. However, her greedy sponsors weren’t going to quit mining until the shimmering sphere disappeared.
Another peek out the viewport made her cringe. Her co-worker, Diandre, was the first to test the ever-changing conditions today. Her suit wasn’t calibrated correctly and buckled under the increased pressure. She was crushed by the increased gravity and Roxelle couldn’t do anything but shake her head in disgust. The limp suit lay on the surface of the glimmering planet.
A monotone voice came over the intercom. “We need to recover that suit. Lord Ingram said we can’t lose any more equipment. And hurry in case the manual pressure valves have been moved.”
A long pole with a soft hook on the end extended from the bottom of the spaceship and moved slowly toward the white suit. The yellow hook got under the suit and lifted the dangling polymer uniform and helmet. A side compartment of the ship opened and the hook dropped the suit into the opening. The black door slid shut and the rod and hook retracted into the bottom of the ship.
Roxelle put on her green helmet with her lucky number 7 in gold above both ears. The tinted visor helped with the
glare of the diamond surface.
“Arrib. Can you connect my helmet to the suit?”
The stout green male being nodded and motioned for her to lean down. The tall woman lowered her shoulders to help the short man out. Roxelle hated this part because she knew they were only required to connect the helmet so the sponsors wouldn’t lose the suit if someone got smashed like a pancake.
Roxelle neared the departing door as two porters dragged the recovered suit into the cabin by the legs. The two men lost their respective grips and nearly fell to the ground. The sloshing of blood and the sounds of bone scraping bone that came from inside the uniform sent a chill up her back.
Another being went out on Dia 447 and her uniform held up. Roxelle breathed a sigh of relief as a technician came over to adjust the pressure levels of her suit.
Now we are going to need two more people for the secret heist. I don’t know where we can find two beings on such short notice that we can trust. If we lose one more person it might be time to call off the big robbery. I love that we can afford to lose a being, but not a stupid suit. Assholes.
Roxelle took a deep breath as the door automatically opened. Nervous energy shot through her thick body. She leaned out and grabbed the guidance rod. Beads of sweat formed on her forehead. She tried to calm down, knowing any moisture could fog up her visor.
She floated, suspended in space, and placed gloved hand over gloved hand along the black guidance rod as she worked her way down to the surface of Dia 447. Her boot soles hit the surface and her knees buckled a bit. The waist high electric power drill was lowered down from the craft followed by her partner Senti.
Roxelle was considered one of the best miners because she had a rare combination of strength and delicacy. She was shocked that her company hadn’t developed or bought droids to do the mining and eliminate the need for beings. They would be considered illegal by the Interstellar Council, but she knew her sponsors’ greed would outmatch the possible ramifications.
She turned on the power to her A447 Drill crafted especially for mining diamonds. The flat edge of the drill head had a slight curve that helped Roxelle shape the diamond with more accuracy. All stones still went through the refinery, but a perfect mining of the gem saved a lot of time and money.
Roxelle held the vibrating drill steady as small fragments chipped away and sparkled past her helmet. Her partner, Senti, held the enormous vacuum head over the area she had been chiseling. They worked as a team for the next three hours until they were called back to the spacecraft.
They waited in the cabin as the last group took their shift. Senti threw up in his hand as some of the nasty remains of Diandre were being dumped out of the helmet. This further reinforced the plan Roxelle had been crafting. She knew the sponsors didn’t care about her or her life or safety.
The last team finished up and Captain Steevens set a course to get back to Centimore. Roxelle took a nap during the ever-dangerous intergalactic commute on the long space shuttle with four boosters. Arrib woke her up when they arrived at Centimore and broke through the atmosphere. The shuttle landed softly on the continent of Panmay.
The four sponsors of the entire company lived and stored the diamonds here. Roxelle carried out her other duty as a miner and transported the diamonds into the warehouse. As she went to exit the ship, an intercom next to the door asked, “Planet of origin please?”
Roxelle said, “Alperia.”
A slot under the intercom slid open and Roxelle grabbed the small white pill inside. She chewed it up and swallowed it before hitting the green button above the intercom. A door opened and she jumped out. The pill made it so she could breathe on this planet. Senti got out after her. Roxelle pulled the leathery flesh above her wrist away and used her forearmScreen to call for a hoverHauler from inside the warehouse.
A small platform, the size of a twin bed mattress with raised edges, floated out and came to a rest next to Roxelle’s ankles. She and Senti grabbed the biggest diamond first, which had to be about five times the size of her head. Her ligaments and tendons tightened and tensed as the pair picked it up. Her muscles shook as they tried to set the precious stone down gently without damaging it.
They unloaded the rest of the stash and Roxelle stared through the garage-sized door as the hoverHauler floated back inside. The door closed slowly and she walked down the street to the AirPort. The DMC83 Jet took sixteen people to their home continent named Marigold.
Aside from the sponsors on this planet, Roxelle was one of the wealthiest workers, especially in Marigold. Most people with as much money as she lived on another continent called Ashmore, which was safer because it contained fewer dangerous people.
Roxelle liked danger and being a rich person on Marigold had tremendous perks that appealed greatly to her. The aircraft landed and she got on the HyperLoop to get to her favorite bar. The Loop raced along the raised track for three hundred kilometers before coming to her stop.
She got off and walked into the concrete jungle known as Ridmore. Ridmore was the biggest city on this continent and the only one worth a good damn if you asked Roxelle. She walked two blocks up and two blocks over to get to her favorite watering hole. She ducked down to get through the low entrance door of the Buzzed Being.
The theme of silver immediately caught her eye from the tables to the bar to the ceiling fans that didn’t work. A soft beat of rhythmic digital music hummed in the background because it was still early. She could smell the hot sauce in the air and couldn’t believe that beings still bothered with eating.
The reminder precipitated her to reach into the inside pocket of her black leather dovetailed vest and grab a green pill. She popped the equivalent of a well-balanced meal into her mouth and lightly bit her tongue to release some saliva so she could swallow the pill. She pushed the mushy pill to the back of her tongue, leaned back and took a deep gulp.
The pill had a minty aftertaste she needed to chase away, so she went to the long bar. A gold-tinted droid stationed on top of the bar zipped over to her.
The round garbage can shaped droid stopped in front of Roxelle. A computer generated voice asked, “May I take your order please?”
Roxelle said, “Give me two shots of Green Goddess and a double Hegrins and soda water.”
Red lights started flashing on the droid and it said, “That will be 8.88 trolodites please.”
“Scan it,” Roxelle said and held her wrist up to the front of the droid.
A red glow scanned her wrist and the purchase was approved. Within thirty seconds, a server with pale yellow skin brought out her drinks on a circular black tray and set them on the bar one by one.
Roxelle grabbed the plastic shot glasses with both hands. She banged down the one in her left hand first and followed immediately with the other. The Green Goddess left a harsh, spicy fennel aftertaste that Roxelle chased with the Hegrins and Soda.
Roxelle started to work up a buzz as she stood at the bar and looked around. Harrins, her girlie werelion friend, and the half-droid Mimick were by the pool tables, waiting to hustle someone, no doubt.
Boggle Ritby slammed a red shot at the bar and her blue face turned almost black as she choked on the liquor. She pounded her fist on the bar and bobbed her flushed face up and down to the rhythm of the soft music playing.
Oswell Hawkins came into the bar, ducking his bald, reddish brown head to get under the entrance and the lanky, totally hairless male went to the buffet. He grabbed a chicken drumstick and shoved it in his mouth. He pulled out a meatless bone and threw it back on the buffet.
Roxelle tried not to make eye contact with any of them as she panned the room again.
Roxelle turned around and took another swig from her double. She almost choked as a small, but firm, hand smacked her right butt cheek and a sharp set of fingernails dug in. She tensed her frame and peeked back at a weretiger who started purring seductively in her ear.
“You trying to get lucky or what?” he asked and moved his crotch closer to her.
<
br /> His warm breath stinking of raw meat tickled the back of her neck. She could feel his increasing manhood on her ass and in one quick move, she reached back and grabbed his semi-hard penis and testicles. She thought about how much she loved her giant hands as the weretiger whimpered in agony.
Roxelle said, “I think I’ll go with ‘or what.’ I would say don’t ever approach me again, but this will serve as a better reminder if you ever even think about it again.”
She twisted her huge, powerful hand and yanked as hard as she could. She smiled as injured animal yelps came from the weretiger until she finally let go. The man slithered away, having injured his manhood in two ways.
She pressed the button to fetch the bartender and saw that the red light was already on in front of several other people seated at the bar. The number 12 appeared on the bar in front of her, which meant 11 people still needed to be served. She held up a half-empty double and tried to estimate if it would last until the bartender got to her
The red male next to her was up next as the bartender droid settled in front of him. The man placed his order and Roxelle leaned over.
She said, “If you let me add my drink on, I’m buying.”
“Yeah,” the man replied.
Roxelle ordered and went to scan her tracker when someone shouted, “What the shit? You can’t just jump in and grab a drink, bitch.”
Roxelle peered down the bar at the pale orange man with balding brown hair and a patchy beard. She shouted, “Shut your ugly face and sit down before you get your ass whooped by a woman. Then you’ll see who the bitch is.”
She knew it must be his first night in the bar if he was picking a fight with her.
The rotund man said, “I don’t usually hit women, but you keep talking like that, I’ll have to shut your mouth for you. Now apologize and we can all have a nice time.”
People around the bar started to shift around as the music and murmur of conversation wasn’t loud enough to drown out the argument at the bar.
The Whitney Powers Paranormal Adventure 3 Book Bundle Page 37