Once back home, they hung around Ty’s mom and dad’s house for several days before Ty told Markus, “There’s a place I would like to go in the Northwest part of the United States. I once read about a hole in the ground that is supposed to have mystical powers. It’s said to be about fifteen miles deep and there have been multiple U.F.O. sightings, dead animals being brought back to life, and other paranormal activity going on there. Would you like to go and check it out?” Markus, not wanting to miss out on another adventure, replied, “What are we waiting for? Let’s go!”
Ty and Markus left the house and headed for “The Hole.” They weren’t sure what its exact location was but Ty had read it was in the Northwest part of the state of Washington. After searching for some time they finally found what they believed was it. To them, it didn’t look like any big deal, just a big hole in the ground. It didn’t even look that big and it certainly didn’t look like a place with a lot of activity going on.
Once they were there, they sat outside the hole, waiting to see if anything strange or different was taking place. With nothing happening, Ty finally said, “You know the only way we’re going to find out about this place is if we go down there and see for ourselves.” Markus replied, “I’m game if you are,” and down the hole they went. It appeared to be about nine feet in diameter and it seemed like it went down forever as they made their way down the shaft. It went on for about fifteen miles. When they finally reached the bottom of the hole they realized they could hear soft voices and low beautiful music playing in the distance.
When they got to the bottom they crossed into a tunnel. They walked a few feet into the tunnel and then stopped dead in their tracks. As they looked out across what looked like a huge long domed valley they saw what could only be described as some type of buildings. They then realized it was an underground city! Ty told Markus the city resembled one of the old ancient cities of Egypt he’d seen on National Geographic’s. The entire valley was lit up with lights as bright as a football field. All the buildings were white and made out of stone, dirt and mortar, and they all had flat roofs. In the distance and in what looked like the middle of the city, was a cathedral type building. It was a lot higher than the rest of the buildings. The entire valley reminded Ty of the underground alien base they had been to in the mountains off the coast of California with Zitrik. The only thing difference was that this one was a lot larger. The ceiling was several hundred feet above the buildings and looked like smooth cut rock and it too resembled the roof at the base in Catalina.
As Ty and Markus slowly approached the city they started seeing people walking around from place to place, just talking with each other as they walked. The people were scattered throughout the city and they all looked like they were busy going somewhere or doing something. The closer they got to the people, they could see they very much resembled humans, but they were a little smaller and their skin color was the same as the ash that comes out of the fireplace once the wood burns down. Another obvious difference was their arms. They were longer and their fingers and thumbs were also longer than humans. They didn’t have any hair on their heads or bodies and their ears were smaller and closer to their heads. Everything else looked similar to humans. Markus looked over at Ty and said, “More aliens or what?” Ty tried to get closer so he could get a better look. As the pair crept close they could these Aliens weren’t speaking English and neither Ty nor Markus could understand them.
They made their way deeper into the city and occasionally one of the beings would drive up in a small two seat vehicle and say something to them but realized the two guys couldn’t understand them, so they just dove away. The vehicle didn’t make any sound and it seemed to be just levitating about six inches off the ground. Near the middle of the city, there was a small stream that ran through it and the water was crystal clear. Markus and Ty were in awe as they made their way through the center of town. The further they went, the more Ty felt as if he’d stepped back in time a few thousand years. The city had small compartments with individual doors to each compartment, just like the Egyptian ruins he’d seen on television. As they moved along, the people were coming and going from the compartments.
They were almost at the huge cathedral building when one of the people came running up to them and said, “Hey, dudes! “What are you doing down here, are you lost? He was a young man and he spoke perfect English. At first Ty and Markus were a little shocked. The people down here could see them so clearly, when humans couldn’t. Ty cautiously said, “We’ve been exploring different places all over earth and thought we’d check this place out too. We’ve heard strange things take place at the hole opening.” The young man said, “Wow, that’s wild. I’ve heard that too. By the way, my name is Korbin. What are your names?” Ty and Markus introduced themselves and Ty asked him, “What kind of place is this?” Korbin replied, come on, walk with me and I’ll tell you all about it. He seemed friendly, not a threat to them, so they agreed to go with him. As they followed him, he approached the cathedral building and went inside. They were a little hesitant at first, but went inside behind him after he said, “Come on it’s safe. Nothing will harm you in here.” As they went in and looked around, they could see there was a meeting going. The man leading the meeting was standing in front speaking in the foreign language. The entire cathedral held about ten thousand people and it appeared to be about half full. It reminded Ty of a large Catholic church somewhere in Europe. Korbin took a place in the back and motioned for them to come and sit next to him.
As the speaker spoke, Korbin relayed to Ty and Markus that this was a speech they’d all heard many times. It was about controlling their birth rate. They were running out of space to build more homes. Ty asked Korbin, “How is it that you can speak and understand the English language and most of the people here don’t?” He told them that some of his people had ventured outside of the city years ago and had been able to acquire information and books. They were also able to meet a few earthlings that helped teach them the English language. He said, "It isn’t a hard language to learn." A lot of our younger people can now speak and understand several languages you have on earth.”
Markus asked him how long his people had been living there and where were they from. Korbin was intrigued by the question. He told them his people used to live underground on the planet that humans call Mars, until it became uninhabitable. He told them, the planet dried up, and they eventually lost all the water supply. “When they lost the water, they also lost the ability to raise and manufacture their own food. Because of that reason, our ancestors had to leave the planet and find a place like Earth where we could exist. They were used to living underground, so during their search for a new place to live, they found this place and made it our home. There used to be millions of our ancestors on “Mars” before it had to be abandoned. Now there are less than one hundred thousand of our people left.” Markus said, “Wow! “What happened to them all?” “Many of them starved to death on “Mars” before the supreme leader made the conscious decision for everyone to leave. There were millions of others that wouldn’t leave the planet and made the painful decision to die there. We have been on this planet for a few thousand years. I guess you could call our ancestors “explorers” or “colonizers.” Ty replied, “You’ve been here that long and the humans don’t know about you?” Korbin replied, “The governments of Earth know about us, but they leave us alone. They don’t tell the rest of the world about us in fear it would create some kind of mass panic with the earthly beings.”
Ty wanted to know more about how they lived and how they survived underground so long. He said, “I haven’t seen any kitchens, where you make food or any bathrooms to get rid of your waste.” Korbin laughed and replied, “We don’t have to worry about that anymore. Centuries ago, after our ancestors moved here, our chemists found a way to produce a pill from different types of algae we grow and they contain all the nutrients our body needs to ma
intain itself for several days at a time. Once we take it, all the nutrients of the pill is completely absorbed into our body and there is no waste so no need to relieve ourselves.” “What about water? Don’t you need water to survive?” He said, “We absorb water by putting our hands in the water and rubbing the palms of our hands together a few times. The water goes directly into our body from through the pores in our palms. We only take in what our body needs so there is also no waste!!” Ty replied, “That is fascinating, somebody needs to show the humans on Earth how they can do that!”
Markus wanted to know what they did for entertainment and fun in the city. Korbin told them they had a form of music, but some of the young people have and use a hand held device that when they point it at someone they can read that person’s wishes and thoughts. He laughed and said, “There aren’t too many secrets down here. If you like someone or someone likes you it doesn’t take very long to find out about it. Some of the older adults want the device taken away so young people can’t use it.” “What do the older people do?” Markus asked.” “They are consumed with a lot of meditation and prayer. Our God is the same God as the one you pray too every day. He rules everything in the Universe. Our people are very religious and for those reasons spend a lot of time thanking God for all that we have. We’re a very peaceful and loving race. Even though we have weapons that are very destructive, we’ve never used them on Earth.”
The speaker was almost through so Korbin said, “Come on, I’ll show you the rest of our beautiful city. They visited some of Korbin’s family members and while they were there Markus asked him what they all did in the City. Korbin told them that every single adult male and female has a specific job or work duty that he or she had to perform each day. Some tend to the harvesting of the algae, some work in the labs, others work in the plants making the mineral pills, some clean the streets, and others maintain the lighting system. He said, “It’s very similar to any other community or city up there on Earth.”
Ty wanted to know how they got there lighting system, it had to be one that Earthlings haven’t heard of before because the lighting was different than anything he’d ever seen. It was like the light that shines down from a heat lamp. Korbin told them his ancestors found a way to pull the rays of the sun, magnify them and use them as a heating and lighting source. They had a system that stored the rays and they were able to keep the lights on twenty four hours a day and keep the entire city warmed to a perfect seventy five degrees. Ty asked Korbin if his people had any fears they had to deal with each day, like we did in other cities on Earth. Korbin told them their biggest fear was that more of the humans would eventually find out about them and destroy them. They were afraid humans would cut off their air supply or drop poisonous gas into the air chambers that would kill all of them at once. He said, “We currently have several holes in the earth where we get our air and all they would have to do is drop the poisonous gas down any one of them.” Ty replied, “Let’s hope they never do something that horrific or stupid.” Korbin said, “Amen Brother!” Korbin told them they also didn’t have any crime. If someone wanted something all they had to do is ask for it and it would be given to them.
While at his house, Korbin asked his dad if he could borrow the vehicle to drive Ty and Markus around and show them everything in the city. His dad waved in the air and said in his language that it was ok, take it. The vehicle wasn’t anything fancy, but it had two seats and the top was open like a convertible, sports car and it didn’t go very fast. All the vehicles went about the same speed. One thing that fascinated Markus and Ty was that the vehicle seemed to have an anti-magnetic device that kept it away from other vehicles every time they got close to one another. The cars would just veer away from each other even if they were headed right at each other! This was another thing Ty thought would be great to have up on Earth, it would’ve saved his life!
Korbin took them to as many places as he could get to in the time he had allotted on the vehicle. The vehicle ran on an energy pack and it was getting low. One place that really fascinated Ty and Markus was at the beginning of a large tunnel that was about fifty feet in diameter and held several spaceships just sitting there, as if in position to take off. They were similar, but still a little different than the ones they rode on with Zitrik. Ty asked Korbin, “Do your people leave the city and visit other places?” Korbin replied, “Yes. We have special occasions when we take the spaceships out. We have a hidden door that opens up on the “steep side” of Mount Shasta near Redding, California. When it’s dark, the experienced pilots sometimes take a few of us out so we can see how the earthlings live.” “What kind of special occasion?” Ty asked. Korbin laughed and said, “We really like your holiday, “Halloween.” We can go anyplace we want and have the spaceships drop us off for a few hours before they pick us up. We don’t have to worry about looking different during that time; we fit right in with all the people dressed in costumes. Another place that a few of the adults that can speak English like to go, is what you call “Mardi Gras in New Orleans, Louisiana.” Most people dress up in costumes during the entire week and it’s easy to fit in with them during that time. Another special place we like to go is Rio in Brazil. We just have to be extra careful we don’t get in any trouble with the local law enforcement. There are several other places on Earth that have costume events where the adults go.”
Korbin had Ty and Markus stay with his family while they were in the city. They were a very open and friendly people and just happy to have company. Ty and Markus were learning a lot about the people during their time with them, especially how they lived. Korbin also asked Ty and Markus a lot of questions like where they came from and he also learned a lot from them. They told him what had happened to them and how they each had become spirits. They also told him about their plans to make contact with loved ones and then move on into the light and be with God in Heaven. Korbin told them that all of his people believed in heaven and hell just like the humans. Ty asked him if they ever had any visits from the demons and Korbin told him that they have had a few over time, but they wouldn’t let them stay. He said, “The demon spirits were just too angry and disturbed. They didn’t get along with any of our people. All they did was cause trouble down here, so we forced them to leave. They couldn’t understand why none of our people would give up our beliefs and follow them.”
They had been with Korbin’s family for several days when Korbin asked them if they would like to go to the Mardi Gras with him. He told them the festival was starting soon and three pilots were taking some of the young men and women there as a reward for the hard work they had done during the year. One of the pilots said he would take them along if they wanted to go. Ty and Markus jumped at the chance; neither of them had ever been to Mardi Gras before and thought it would be fun to see.
The following week, they waited until around midnight and were told it was time to go. Once on the spaceship, they headed down the long tunnel to Mount Shasta. The tunnel lit up as soon as the space ships entered. Their pilot said, “We’ll be out of here in just a little while, please be patient.” They arrived at the exit point on the side of the mountain and a door quickly opened up. They and the two other crafts shot out of the opening in the mountain off into the atmosphere at lightning speed.
As they got close to New Orleans, the pilot told Korbin he would drop them off at their regular spot on the edge of the swamp, outside of town. He told them “You have twenty four hours. I’m picking you up at exactly midnight tomorrow night. Don’t be late or you’ll get left behind.” Korbin told them he didn’t want that to happen. It had happened to one of his friends and they never saw him or heard from him again. They tried everything they could to find him but couldn’t. They believed he absorbed some of the alcohol, got drunk and wandered into the swamp and was eaten by the alligators.
As the craft landed Korbin and the other young men and women were very excited as they quickl
y exited the ship. Ty and Markus were right behind them and also very excited. The pilot took off and in an instant he was out of sight. Korbin told the other two men and two women to have fun and that he would see them the following evening. They split up and each went their own direction. Korbin had done this before so he had an idea of what he wanted to do. He headed to town and found his way to Bourbon Street in the French Quarter. That was where all the action was taking place at that time of night. He didn’t go inside the bars but stayed outside and listened to the Cajun music and other music as he went from bar to bar. Ty and Markus were just hanging out with Korbin and taking everything in and having a good time.
They stayed up all night and early the following morning Korbin went from float to float that were lined up to be in the upcoming parade and told the owners that he would be glad to throw beads to the people on the street if they’d let him ride with them. After talking to several of them he was finally able to find a guy that said, “Sure, why not. How can I turn you down with that costume? You did a good job on that one, it looks real!” Korbin said, “Alright, thank you man!” as they boarded the float. He told Ty and Markus. “This is the best fun ever. All you have to do is let the girls see you have beads. They’ll raise their tops and show you their boobs, just so you will throw them the beads. It’s nuts!” He wasn’t really interested in the girls; he just thought it was the funniest thing that anyone could ever imagine doing. The float spent almost half the day getting ready and then the other half slowly moving along the parade route with people packed on both sides. People were drinking alcohol and some of them were pretty crazy. Some of the girls were showing their boobs without even getting beads. Markus was laughing and giving Korbin knuckles when a girl flashed Korbin. They spent almost all day on the float, having fun, just laughing until their stomach’s hurt, enjoying the day and all the excitement.
After they got off the float they went back to Bourbon Street and spent the rest of their evening just watching everybody and listening to music. There were all kinds of people in costumes with all kinds of shapes and sizes. One woman, that especially caught their eye, was riding bareback on a white horse and trying to look like “Lady Godiva.” All she had on was a small skimpy G string and two small covers over her nipples. The entire place was in a party mode. People were getting drunk and some were getting arrested on just about every corner for fighting, public intoxication or for doing something stupid.
When it got close to midnight Korbin said, “Okay guys, we have to go, it’s time to catch our ride.” Just like clockwork, the three spaceships landed at the same location where they had dropped everyone off. All the young men and women were present and accounted for. All except for one male. He was a good friend of Korbin’s, named of Silas. As everyone readied to board the ships they began to ask about Silas. No one seemed to know where he was or what happened to him. One of the other passengers said he was with them for most of the time, but he got separated from them and they never saw him after that. The pilots were becoming a little agitated that he hadn’t made it back in time, like everyone else. They told everyone to get on board, that they were going to leave him and try to come back for him another time. Korbin pleaded with the pilots to wait just a little longer. They waited an extra ten minutes, but were starting to feel worried about the safety of themselves and their passengers. Korbin told them to go on without him, that he would stay behind and see if he could find him. After some reluctance from the pilots they agreed and the pilot that had brought Korbin told him he would give him three days to locate Silas and bring him back to the ship landing site. He told Korbin to make sure he was there at exactly midnight of the third day. Ty told Korbin, “Markus and I will stay with you and help you hunt for him.” Korbin was more than happy to have the extra help in finding him as he told Ty, “You don’t have to do this, but I could use the extra help.” Ty replied, “Then it’s settled, we’re staying with you.” The pilot said to Korbin as the rest of the passengers quickly boarded, “Don’t forget, midnight on the third day.” Korbin said, “We’ll be here waiting.” Within twenty seconds of boarding the ships, they were gone.
Korbin didn’t have a clue where to begin looking for Silas, but figured a good place to start would be Bourbon Street. That’s where everyone said they last saw him. Ty, Markus and Korbin spent the entire night going from bar to bar and from alley to alley, looking for him. They didn’t have any luck, everywhere they searched turned out to be a dead end. Now the entire experience for Korbin was becoming one of desperation and not the fun trip he’d hope for. It was still ever present on his mind that they’d already lost one comrade and never found him. He was hoping and praying that wouldn’t be the case with Silas. They continued their search throughout the day and the once fun crowd Korbin so enjoyed had become hectic and hard to maneuver through and around. Markus told Korbin, “This is like looking for a needle in a haystack.” Of course, he didn’t want to hear that, even if he was probably thinking it. During their search, they came across people that had drunk too much alcohol, passed out and were lying in the alley. They had to check each one to make sure it wasn’t Silas. At the end of the second day of looking, Ty said, “I have an idea. Why don’t we go to the local police station and see if he might be there. Maybe he got thrown in jail for something. When they got to the police station Korbin went to the front desk police clerk and asked him if they had a person that was dressed and looked like him that was locked up. The clerk was a little overwhelmed with all the arrests that had been made and was short with Korbin as he said, “How in the hell am I supposed to know if there’s someone like you in there?” Korbin asked him if he would mind if he could take a look. After a little grumbling, he motioned for another policeman to come over and show Korbin the holding cells so he could check on his friend.
As they walked through the jail it was noisy and people were yelling to the guards that they wanted out, while others were throwing up in the corners from too much liquor. The place smelled real bad. Korbin had never seen this part of Mardi Gras and it was a little overwhelming. Sure enough, as they made their way through the jail, they spotted Silas. He looked a little weak and pale, but when he saw Korbin he quickly jumped up and made his way close to the bars so they could talk. Korbin asked him what happened and he hung his head and said that he had drunk some alcohol and he was dancing on a table in one of the bars and that’s the last thing he remembered. He said that he woke up the next morning in jail, not knowing how or why he was there. He said the guards told him he had to stay in jail for a mandatory forty eight hour period because he didn’t have any identification on him. He said that he believed his time was just about up. Korbin told him that they would wait for him outside the jail for his release. He whispered to Silas, “We have to meet the ship at midnight tomorrow or we’ll miss our ride. They’re coming back for us.” Silas knew he was in big trouble, but told Korbin he would meet them when he got out. Once outside, Korbin told Ty and Markus, “We’ll have to keep an eye on him because once our people get a taste of alcohol they can’t resist it.”
It was about three in the morning when they finally released Silas and he came walking out like a dog with its tail between its legs. Korbin looked at him in an angry face and said, “We have some time to kill, but I’m not letting you out of my sight for the next twenty one hours. No more alcohol for you.” Silas sheepishly smiled and agreed. Korbin, said, “I’m not kidding. If you do, then you’ll get left behind, for good!”
For the rest to the day they just hung around each other and watched the parade and mingled with the crowd. Korbin made sure Silas wasn’t given any alcohol or that he wasn’t separated from them. The entire day seemed like a big let-down for them as they just killed time waiting for their ship.
Just before midnight they made their way back to the ship landing spot and waited. They didn’t have to wait long because the pilot was right on time. As they
boarded the pilot said, “I see that you found him, good job.” Korbin just looked at him, shrugged his shoulders and replied, “Yeah, lucky me.” He knew Silas would probably never be allowed to leave the City again. On the way back Markus tried to lighten Corbin’s spirits as he kept talking about how much fun they had. After a while Korbin starting agreeing with Markus and was once again the happy guy he’d been.
When Ty thought about the whole experience and he understood why Korbin enjoyed his get-away so much because he knew that if he had been stuck underground over fifteen miles down he would probably be just excited as Korbin to get out of there, even it was for a little while. He also knew that Markus, being a teenager, loved the girls that were flashing for little more than a string of beads. Ty thought it was a little strange that Korbin’s people were so religious and yet they were okay with their young men and women going to these different locations on Earth where all the people did was drink alcohol and party. Then again, he thought, “Where else could they go on Earth and fit in like they were human?
On the way back to Korbin’s city he told Ty and Markus that if they wanted to stay for a while they could go with him to Rio or one of the other party places when it was time. Ty and Markus thanked him for the offer and for taking them along. During the ride back they told Korbin they thought they would head back home once they got to Korbin’s city. Once there they thanked him for teaching them so much about his people and they also thanked him for letting them stay with his family during their time underground. Before they left, Ty told Korbin, “Since your body turns into a spirit once you pass on just like ours, maybe we’ll see you again someday?” Korbin replied, “I hope so, my friends.” They said their goodbyes and soon Ty and Markus were back at Ty’s mom and dad’s house.
Once they were comfortable back home, they were relaxing and talking about what a good guy Korbin was and how much they enjoyed the visit with him. Ty loved the underground city and the alien people. It was something he never would’ve believed existed until he saw it with his own two eyes.
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Chapter 19 – Holly Returns