Captured (The Prometheus Project Book 2)
Read Captured (The Prometheus Project Book 2) Online
Authors: Douglas E Richards
Additional Praise for
T
HE
P
ROMETHEUS
P
ROJECT:
C
APTURED
“Fast paced and full of action.”
—
ForeWord Magazine
“I was captivated by
Captured
. I found the second book in this great series as entertaining and action filled as the first book.”
—TCM Reviews
“An intense storyline that will have you churning through the book without putting it down.”
—The Super Mom
“I would give this book three thumbs up, but I only have two thumbs.”
—7th grade student, MSTA Newsletter
“A sequel that matches the pace and excitement of the original. In
Captured
, the author has added a second gem to the reading treasure chest.”
—The Reading Tub
“A delightful tale of kids working together, much as you would find in the
Lemony Snicket
books. Readers will look forward to more.”
—Curled Up With a Good Kids Book
“Will keep you on the edge of your seat while begging you to read on … full of fast paced action (that) keeps the reader wanting more. I eagerly await the third book.”
—Steve Fielman, Director-at-large,
Intermediate Science, New York State
“Holds even an adult readers attention to the very end. I look forward to his next offering in the series.”
—AAAS
“With
Captured
, the author continues to tell a story that leaves the reader reaching for chapter after chapter with plenty of suspense and cliff hangers. This is a fun and adventurous story.”
—California Science Teachers Association
Praise for
T
HE
P
ROMETHEUS
P
ROJECT
: T
RAPPED
“A thriller that you won’t put down until you’ve reached the last page.”
—Kids’ Picks,
Odyssey Magazine
“Trapped
is a complete thrill ride.”
—TCM Reviews
“This adventure will keep kids turning the pages … perfect for middle grades.”
—
Teaching Pre K-8 Magazine
“Highly recommended for both boys and girls. Wonderful and unique.”
—Discovery Journey
“My class loved it. They were totally engaged. It’s a hard book to put down.”
—Jeff Montag, 5th Grade Teacher
As Quoted in the
San Diego Union-Tribune
“Cinematic. Readers will surely be reminded of Eleanor Cameron’s
Mushroom Planet
series, as well as Heinlein’s
Have Space Suit—Will Travel
, and even Clarke’s
2001
. Vividly speculative. Able to capture the imagination of any teen.”
—
Asimov’s Science Fiction
magazine
“Keeps you turning the pages. It had me hooked by page two of the first book.”
—The Children’s Book Review
“Captures that pulse-pounding excitement you remember from your
Have Spaceship Will Travel
and
Postmarked the Stars
days. Crisp, clean, and delivers what it promises.”
—SFReader.com
“Brings to mind the classic young reader’s novel A
Wrinkle in Time
. An adventure story for young and old alike.”
—Associated Content
“Fun and suspenseful. Highly recommended.”
—
Kirkus Discoveries
“An entertaining novel … that reads in a flash.”
—Bookloons Reviews
“The gripping storyline will make young readers read this story in one sitting and want a sequel. I strongly recommend this book.”
—The Midwest Book Review
“I did not want to stop reading.”
—8th Grade Student
Published in the Newsletter of the ISTA
“If you have a middle schooler that is into science or sci-fi, buy this book. If you have a reluctant reader who has an interest in science or adventure stories, buy this book.”
—Amateur de Livre Book Reviews
“I read this book with my class for the first time this year and my class loved it.”
—President, Idaho Science Teachers Association
“Brilliant. Perfect for a class reader for 9-13s, and a ‘must’ for any school library. These books are, I hope, the first of a long series!”
—
Primary Science
(UK Journal)
“Nonstop action adventure … You really can’t put the book down for very long. A thrilling read.”
—California Science Teachers Association
“Would make a great read-aloud and would foster much talk among families.”
—
The Old Schoolhouse Magazine
“A suspenseful thriller that you will not want to put down…. vividly written.”
—
The Science Reflector
The Prometheus Project
Book 2
Captured
The Prometheus Project
Book 2
Captured
Douglas E. Richards
This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and
dialogues are products of the author’s imagination and are
not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events
or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2007 by Douglas E. Richards
Paragon Press Edition copyright © 2010
Second Edition published by Paragon Press, 2010
[email protected]
All rights reserved. With the exception of excerpts for
review purposes, 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.
ISBN: 978-0-9826184-2-4
Library of Congress Control Number: 2009944189
Printed in the United States of America
First Paragon Edition
Contents
Chapter 16 The Force-Field Nullifier
Chapter 20 A Startling Assertion
Chapter 21 A Convincing Argument
Chapter 22 Connecting the Dots
Chapter 23 A Nightmarish Future
Chapter 26 An Important Visitor
The Prometheus Project
Book 2
Captured
P
ROLOGUE
Trapped
R
yan and Regan Resnick were sure their lives had been ruined forever. Without any warning their parents, both leading scientists, had announced they would be moving from San Diego to a house in the middle of the Pennsylvania woods. They were forced to leave their friends to move to a town so small that most of its roads weren’t even paved. How could this happen to them? They were sure they would soon die of boredom.
They would soon be in danger of dying, all right—but definitely not from boredom. In fact, they didn’t know it at the time, but they were just days away from the greatest adventure of their lives.
It had all begun when they were looking for something stored in a box in their attic just after the move. This is when they overheard their parents’ strange and
suspicious conversation about a place, and a project, called Prometheus. When they investigated further, their lives had changed forever.
Soon they were hopping razor-wire fences, solving security passwords and tricking guards to discover a vast underground city, built by a super-advanced alien race for unknown purposes. They learned that their parents were members of the Prometheus Project, an ultra-top-secret team of top scientists and elite security guards assembled by the president to explore the fantastic, abandoned city.
The city was surrounded by a thin force-field, an energy barrier that was impossible to penetrate—or even to scratch. Only the genius of their father, Ben Resnick, enabled the team to finally break through the barrier and into the amazing city. And what they found inside was truly astonishing. The level of technology the alien builders had used was not only far beyond human ability, but beyond human understanding.
While the force-field deep underground that surrounded the city was shaped like a hollow hockey-puck—about one mile around and thirty feet high—the city was many, many times larger than this, and its ceiling was so high it couldn’t be seen with the naked eye. How could anything be far larger on the inside than it was on the outside? How could something buried in a confined space underground have a seemingly endless blue sky? The city could well have been located outdoors, judging
by appearances, if not for the eerie fact that the sun could never be found within its bright, cloudless sky. The existence of such a city was completely impossible, of course, but it was clear that the aliens hadn’t let that stop them from building it.
The astonishing size of the buried city was just one of its mysteries. Inside the alien city the team immediately found many more. Fantastic structures of every kind. Buildings that could morph from one form to another. A walkway made of spongy material that would trampoline users forward, and always in such a way that they maintained perfect balance. A staircase made from almost invisible threads that were far stronger than steel. And all this had been discovered in a single day! The treasure trove of advanced technology that awaited the human explorers was truly endless.
But the team knew they had to be careful. Very careful. They had chosen the name Prometheus so they would always be reminded of this. Prometheus was a Titan of Greek mythology who had stolen fire from the Gods and given it to humankind as a gift. Like fire, the city’s technology had the power to change human civilization forever, but also like fire, it could be unbelievably dangerous.
After discovering the city and learning of the Prometheus Project, Ryan and Regan had pleaded with the team’s leader, Dr. Harry Harris, to let them become part of the team. While he had been very impressed with the
talent they had shown by overcoming extensive security measures to discover and enter the alien city, he had refused. They were just kids, after all.
They were about to be escorted out of the city, forever, when a heavy generator had fallen and severely injured their mom. The kids ran for help. When they returned, just a minute later, the entire team had disappeared! They had vanished, without any evidence that they had even existed. Worse still, Ryan and Regan soon learned the entrance to the city was gone as well. They were trapped! Trapped and alone inside a dangerous, alien city.