Hybrid:
Adapt or Die
by
Rebecca Henry
Genre:
SciFi Horror, Romance
Agent
Van of the CIA is sent to an Australian underground military
surveillance base called Pine Gap. Agent Van finds himself thrown in
a conspiracy cover up of an ancient alien race known as species X. He
falls in love with Annika, a mysterious and uncommon woman who
displays unusual abilities, leading Van to question her own origin.
Mystery and horror explode around Agent Van during a cave diving
exhibition to search for a lost colleague referred to as Agent One.
The only clue for Agent Van and his team is a cryptic message carved
on a wall inside the bleak cave that reads “Agent One is gone. No
more Agent One.” Terror arrives as the agents are trapped inside
the ominous cave. Agent Van soon learns that there is more to Pine
Gap than Species X.
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I
was the fourth in our group to go through the tunnel, and my insides twisted
with fright. The Tomb lived up to its name. We army-crawled on our bellies
through the hollow passage for what felt like forever, but was actually about
ninety meters. There was hardly enough room to move; the space was so tight
that there was only about three or four inches of extra space between by body
and the sides of the Tomb I slithered through like a snake. I couldn’t imagine
how the General was managing it. Sweat beaded on my forehead despite the cold.
I stopped to gather my wits, preparing myself for the challenge ahead.
Annika’s
soft voice carried from behind me. “Take shallow breaths. And move slowly, the
rocks are sharp,” she instructed, her voice soothing. “Don't panic. You can
make it out. Just keep calm and keep going.”
I
tried to duck my head to see her, but the space was too tight. I knew she was
right; logically, I wanted to believe her words, but fear was tightening its
grip.
“Maybe
you should go first?” I squeezed through the tightness of my throat. “I don't
like leaving you back there alone.”
I
could hear the smile in her voice. “Don’t think I’d fit,” she said with a low
chuckle. The thought of the smile I knew she wore in this dark hell was enough
to get me through this tomb.
“Don’t
worry about me, Van,” she continued, “Caves are a second home for me. Don't
worry, I'll meet you on the other side.”
It
was quiet inside the Tomb, no wind, no noise, only the sound of my breathing,
the shuffle of my teammates ahead lost in the echoing dark. My head felt heavy,
my neck stiff from being cranked to the side. There was no space to relax, and
sharp rocks lay all around me. I kept my eyes trained on the wall to my right,
its surface mere inches from my face. Looking ahead made me dizzy; I could see
nothing but a void of darkness. I moved my left elbow forward two inches, then
my right, dragging my legs behind me. Rocks scraped and stung as I forced
myself deeper inside the Tomb.
It
was dead quiet; no other sounds accompanied me on my crawl, and it was easy to
imagine I was alone—trapped. I fought the sensation and pushed down the fear. Is this tunnel getting smaller? I was
breathing heavy from the effort it took to move. No breeze, no noise, no light,
no other signs of life. Only the dark and my panting breath. Fear began to get
the better of me, its icy finger trickling down my neck and back. What if I
made a wrong move inside this death trap and unleashed a hell of rocks, and an
entire mountain came down to crush me?
I
shook my head to dislodge the horror from my thoughts. I focused on Annika’s
words: Just keep breathing and I'll make it out. I concentrated on my crawling,
counting each slithering movement. One, two, three. Keep crawling, keep moving. Four, five six. It’s only nine meters, not a massive stretch. Seven, eight, nine,
ten. Wait—what was that noise?
A
strange sound interrupted my counting. I paused to listen, but only heard my
breath. I tilted my head searching for its source. Sliding rocks? That wasn’t
right. The sound was too steady. I wanted to call back to Annika to see if she
heard it, too, but I didn’t want to scare her. Maybe it was some rookie hazing,
but the General didn’t seem like the type to tolerate that stuff. You are panicking, Van. Chalking up the
sound to my imagination, I continued to move. Eleven, twelve, thirteen,
fourteen. I stopped. There it was again.
It wasn't my imagination.
A
sharp wind blasted my face, making me blink. How was that possible? The sound grew louder, and my heart raced as
adrenaline flooded my system. I needed to get the hell out of there. I no
longer cared about the dangerous rocks I was crawling through. I moved my arms
faster and willed my body to get out of that death trap. The sound grew louder
with each movement I made. Scrape… scrape. The sound was all around me. What is that? It sounded as if someone
was in front of me scraping two stones together, but that was impossible.
The
strange wind blasted me again, a sharp wind as if it was mixed with ice. My
frozen eyes stung, and I fought to keep them open. I drew my elbows close to my
body to fumble with my headlamp, trying to aim it up ahead, but I couldn’t get
it to work. The space was too tight, and I couldn’t reach to click it on.
Scrape... scrape… scrape… scrape… scrape. The sound was everywhere; it rang in
my head, setting my teeth on edge.
Behind
me, Annika’s headlamp clicked on. “Van I'm right behind you. You’ve got to keep
moving.” No longer calm and musical, Annika’s voice thrummed with urgency, and
I knew we weren’t alone. Something else was in the Tomb with us—something
threatening. I could feel its menacing presence as dread crept over me.
“We've
gotta get out of this tomb, Van! Go! Go as fast as you can!” Annika’s order
kicked my ass into full gear, and I crawled as fast as the small space would
allow, sharp rocks slicing my torso and forearms as I continued through the
Tomb. I didn’t give a thought to my own safety— it was Annika. She was behind
me, and if I didn’t get out of here, she’d be trapped behind me, like wine
under a cork. Whatever was in the Tomb with us would get her soon. I had to get
out—fast. Annika needed to reach safety. We were getting close; I could hear
our teammates ahead of us, screaming for us to move, get out now! Behind me, Annika’s headlamp went out, and total
blackness filled the space. I couldn’t see my hand one inch in front of my
face.
That’s
when I felt it. I heard a hissing in my ear as a putrid stench invaded my
nostrils. I froze, petrified in sheer terror. I could no longer hear Annika
behind me. I lost sight of the opening, where I was, what was happening. I
couldn’t breathe, the small space closed in on me, suffocating me. A slithering
tongue touched my neck, tasting my skin. Like a deer frozen before advancing
headlights, I couldn’t move as I felt whatever it was taste my perspiration.
When its tongue danced across the pools of salt on my face, I sprang into
frantic action. I pounded on my headlamp, begging it to turn on while I reached
for the creature in the pitch blackness. I swung my fist but it found only
rock. I craned around to try to see behind me, only to feel the creature lick
the other side of my neck, hissing and clicking mirthfully. I jolted my head it
its direction, ready to pound my fist in its skull. Nothing was there.
From
the opening ahead, Agent Austin lit a flare and shined it inside the Tomb. It
was lit only a moment before it was snuffed out, but it was long enough for me
to catch a glimpse of the creature. It happened in a flash, and I sensed it
more than I saw it. It was behind my team members in the open space, a creature
hunched on all fours. Not quite humanoid, but not animal either. Its ears were
pointed up, as if it were listening to us. I couldn't make out all its
features, but it appeared to be hairless with shining, white skin. The creature
dragged one of its claw-like hands against the rock wall—the noise I heard
inside the tomb. It stared at me with white, bulging eyes. It drew back its
hideous pale lips to drag a forked tongue over sharp dagger-like teeth.
The light blinked out, and we were
again plunged into darkness.
Agent Van is assigned a new job in Australia at an underground
military surveillance base called Pine Gap. At Pine Gap Van meets a young woman
Annika whom he has an instant attraction to. It just happens to be his lucky
day as Annika is one of his new partners.
Van and Annika’s first assignment together is to go in a
cave to look for Agent One who has not returned. There is more in the cave than
Van was ever expecting. In the cave they have to fight alien creatures as they
are making their way through the cave looking for the agent.
These aliens have been around for a long time longer than
most humans even know. Yeah well most humans don’t even know they exist in the
first place. Ever since the invasion humans have been slaves to the aliens
helping them to survive.
Hybrid reminds me a lot of the alien invasion movies and
Journey to the Center of the Earth and Land of the Lost as Van and Annika’s
world is filled with fighting aliens, alien creatures that are animal like as
well as prehistoric/alien creatures. I could picture all of this in my head as
I was reading Hybrid. I could just see Van, Annika and their team as they were
running around fighting the aliens and trying to save the world and just trying
to stay alive.
The descriptions were written so well that I could vividly
see it in my mind’s eye as if I was right there with them as one of the
characters myself. Hybrid is one of those books you would like to see on the
big screen. I just loved Van and Annika’s sci-fi world with the aliens and
monster animal like creatures.
If you like aliens, science fiction, prehistoric animals,
alien invasions then this is one book you are going to love…Hybrid.
Best
Selling Amazon Author of Hybrid: Adapt or Die. Her debut novel was
The Lady Raven: A Dark Cinderella Tale, which was published in 2017.
The Lady Raven, is for those who have an infinity for fairy tales
retold with a link to witches, magic and the macabre. Rebecca's
second novel, Louisiana Latte, a chick lit comedy was released
February 28th 2019. Louisiana Latte, is a feel good comedy that
focuses on the bonds of sisters, and how audacious life can be when
you have a diva for one! Rebecca's third novel Hybrid: Adapt or Die,
is a sci-fi, horror, romance novel. It takes the reader on a wild
ride of government conspiracy theories, ancient aliens but also
touches your heart with a tender love story. Hybrid was released
August 1st 2019. Her fourth novel Conjure Lake, a ya, dark fantasy,
horror novel will be released in 2020. The entire first chapter is
included at the end of Hybrid first edition copies. You can find all
of Rebecca's books on Amazon
Rebecca
Henry is a world traveler living abroad in England. Besides being an
author, Rebecca is also a podcast talk host on
the show The Latte Talk. The podcast was inspired by her latest
novel, Louisiana Latte and her diva sister Deb. She is a serious
vegan, gardener, crafter, wife and mom who practices yoga. She loves
to laugh, her drug of choice and loves all things witchy with a hint
of the macabre. Her favorite holiday is Halloween and her favorite
movie of all time is Practical Magic.
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