"Urim, what happened to her? I heard Caeli call," Vin greeted the angel who had helped protect Caeli during their ordeal six months ago.
"Brother Eyvindr, she needs your strength. The plane has crashed, and her gift is already drawing attention. Under the unusual circumstances, and in her current condition, her gift could be very dangerous for her. She has nobody to teach her as you did. Her aunt is also in need. The publicity of her work with one of the bloodlines has gained the attention of some unsavory people. She is one of the reasons their plane was targeted. She, too, is in danger. Take your friend; help them," Urim explained as he indicated Ben waiting off in the distance. The light was already beginning to dissipate as he spoke the last words. Vin understood how difficult it was for angels to cross the barrier, but he needed more information.
"Urim wait, please. Where can we find the plane? What gift? What condition? How can we help?" Vin asked urgently.
"I refer to Caeli's gift. It is very strong, but untamed, as yours once was. Her affinity, as you might guess, is for water. You will know how to help when it is time. You must leave now if you are to reach them in time. Beyond that, I cannot say."
Urim's image completely dissipated. Vin knew that Urim did everything he could, though he wondered if Urim actually spoke to Caeli to give her the same forewarning. Setting that question aside, Vin instinctively wanted to reach her as soon as possible. He turned and ran up the dock, drawing Ben after him as they sprinted for the house without saying a word.
Once inside, Vin explained to Ben what Urim told him and made arrangements for their immediate departure. Since Vin's duffle bag was still packed from their arrival earlier that day, he grabbed his laptop and used the Internet to book their flight while Ben hurriedly packed a travel bag for himself. Not more than fifteen minutes later, they were in Ben's jeep and on their way back to the same airport they visited earlier that morning. It was late-afternoon by the time they reached town, and traffic was starting to pick up with folks out for Sunday evening dinners and church services. Thankfully, with Ben behind the wheel and taking advantage of his traffic knowledge from years patrolling as a cop, he made use of a lot of the less traveled back roads and avoided most of the busier streets.
Ben sounded the police siren and flashed the lights, something he had never before done for personal reasons. This allowed them to travel much faster than normal. Even so, it still took them a record breaking hour and forty five minutes to drive from the mountain retreat into the city to reach the airport on the opposite end of town. Vin tried to remind Ben that it would be fruitless to arrive early since their flight would not leave until eight o'clock that evening; no earlier flights being available. Ben insisted that he might be able to do something about that. Vin, being as worried about Caeli as Ben was about Salma, had no inclination to debate the matter with him.
When they arrived, Ben once again took advantage of his law enforcement status allowing him to park in a secluded area, enter the secluded terminal, and check in through a private security checkpoint. It was all accomplished in a matter of minutes, and Ben anxiously looked around.
"What are you looking for?" Vin asked.
"If there is a storm brewing, there might be a National Guard or Coast Guard unit heading out for relief efforts. If we haven't missed them, we can probably catch a ride. Keep an eye out and see if you can locate them while I go make a few inquiries. I'll be right back."
Ben dropped his bag at Vin's feet, hung his badge from his shirt pocket, and headed down a restricted hallway. As Ben disappeared around a corner, Vin thought this must be one of the reasons why Urim told him to bring Ben along, not that he ever considered leaving him behind. But, it was certainly handy traveling with someone who could pull a few strings.
About ten minutes later, Ben reappeared and motioned for Vin to join him. Vin grabbed their bags and trotted down the hall. As he neared, Ben reached out to take his bag and explain the situation as they headed down a second corridor.
"I was able to get us a ride with the National Guard unit leaving in fifteen minutes. If you want to cancel those tickets you purchased earlier, you can do so from the kiosk there," Ben said, gesturing toward a white pedestal in front of them. They stopped and Vin quickly cancelled their tickets.
"Ok. That's done. Now what?"
"Right outside the end of this hall is our ride. It is not exactly a luxury jet, but being a new model and the fastest of its type, it will take us nonstop to Hawaii. These guys were already scheduled to help with the storm evacuation and clean up. They are trying to get there before the storm hits the island and before air traffic is grounded. This works out very nicely for us. We will get there several hours faster, but it may not be quick enough. Even at this plane's top speed, it will still take at least four hours, and it is already five o'clock. I hope help reaches them sooner or that they can hold on until we get there."
The concern etched on Ben's face prompted Vin, for the first time, to consider Ben's age, nearly twenty years his senior.
"Try not to worry, Ben, though you will likely have no more success than me. Urim knows the situation, so at least the girls may not be alone. We have a chance to help them. Still, I suspect it also means something much larger is brewing."
Though the statement was ominous, the look on Vin's face revealed much more than his words implied.
"You are talking about something similar to what happened to the two of you a few months ago, right?" Ben knew before Vin answered.
Ben befriended Vin and Caeli after a storm nearly ended Vin's life. Fortunately, Vin's comatose body had been kept alive by the madman who wanted to use Vin for nefarious purposes. Thankfully, the lunatic's plans were thwarted, and Vin was miraculously revived. It was still as fresh in Ben's mind as if it all happened yesterday. After all, it was during this time that he also hooked up with his new wife. The close ties between Caeli and Salma allowed him to get reacquainted with the younger couple and also made them very dear to him. Ben would do whatever he could to help them. He would give his life to save Salma.
"Yes, that's what I think, though I don't have any idea what sort of trouble it could be," Vin answered, only partially paying attention, his mind already pondering the significance of what Urim said about Caeli's gift with water. Given Caeli's background, the connection to water made perfect sense.
They reached the end of the hall and walked out into the misleading calm of a Sunday evening. The sun hung lazily near the horizon. A new, streamlined military airplane with a wide cargo door on the side was being loaded with men and supplies. They were each given a backpack and instructions as they were ushered to seats lining the walls of the plane. The plane took off a few minutes later. An anxious ninety minutes after that, they were nearing the first milestone in the trip.
Here, the plane began to shake vigorously. A strong head wind, caused by the fierce storm off shore, began to slow their progress. The other men on the plane did not seem overly concerned; but to both Ben and Vin, each minute ticked by like an hour; time their wives could ill afford to lose.
Vin knew they were flying low enough that the cabin was not pressurized because he enjoyed the cool relief provided by a breeze whisking its way from the front of the plane and brushing his cheek as it continued by. Vin readjusted his position in his seat and leaned his head back, closing his eyes. He had not used his gift significantly in months; he was not even sure it would work on a large scale storm, but he intended to try. If Vin could divert the head wind to regain their speed, it would be helpful. He was going to make the effort and hope for the best. From the tale Javeed once shared with him, Vin was optimistic that it would work.
"Ben, keep an eye out for me. I am going to try to clear the air, so to speak," Vin whispered, glancing at him through partially closed eyes.
Ben nodded, having seen firsthand Vin's unique, almost telekinetic, ability to manipulate the wind.
Vin closed his eyes fully and concentrated on the breeze wafting from the front of the
plane. He followed it backward toward its source, out to the plane's exterior, where strong gusts were pushing against the plane's forward momentum. Vin took a few moments to assess his skills, finding that reviving the talent was not difficult at all. The wind, however, almost seemed to have a mind of its own. It was as if there was someone on the other end pushing the wind in his direction. Vin, unfamiliar with that sensation, had to quickly adjust his tactic and, after a small struggle, managed to change the flow of the air around the plane.
Finding relatively easy success with his first attempt, Vin decided to take the next step to see if he could push the plane any faster by increasing the tail winds. He caught one of the air currents outside and turned toward the rear of the plane. He tugged on several of the streams of air until at least a dozen of them were flowing toward the back of the airplane, and a few along the sides to help stabilize the flight. That would be more than enough to gain some speed, but not enough to cause the pilot any difficulty in keeping the craft airborne. With any luck, they would shave perhaps thirty minutes off the estimated flight time, which could make a life or death difference in the rescue operation.
Vin slowly opened his eyes and looked over at the smirk on Ben's face.
"Looks like you've done it, Lad. I could feel the difference as soon as you worked your magic up front. The ride became much smoother. When you added the wind in the hindquarters, everyone seemed to take notice of the sudden surge of speed. Of course, they have no idea they were admiring your handiwork, but they were excited to have a positive omen. They believe it bodes well for their mission. I'm of a mind to agree with them," Ben remarked quietly.
"You sound like Caeli. She always finds the good in a situation. She could be stranded on the moon with no hope of returning home and still be happy that she had the opportunity to travel in space. Me, I would be hurling moon rocks at the earth and cursing the idiot who forgot to pack enough fuel for the return flight; well, at least until Caeli calmed me down."
Ben couldn't help laughing at the images Vin's words brought to mind. They talked of inconsequential things for a while. The two shared a few words with some of the other men as the flight continued to speed along. One man in particular, barely in his mid-twenties, had been a patient of Salma's a few weeks before. He had sprained his ankle in an embarrassing skateboarding stunt, but Salma fixed him up and even managed to salvage a little bit of his dignity in the process. As fate would have it, he also caught a glimpse of Caeli that day, though he did not meet her directly. He saw his now favorite doctor walking out of the hospital with her when Caeli picked Salma up for lunch. In smaller towns like theirs, it was not uncommon to know everyone directly or, at least, to know of them.
The young man's name was Jeremy Franks, a recent law school graduate working in the public defender's office. He joined the National Guard three years earlier, wanting to give something back to the community. Both Ben and Vin quickly made a new friend of the nice young man.
Thirty minutes later, one of the guardsmen announced that they were getting ready to refuel. Vin concentrated briefly on the winds and sent them clear of the plane so that they would not hamper the procedures, and then restored them as soon as the plane was clear.
The clock displayed eight thirty when they finally landed on the military base near Hilo. Reports were already coming in of the downed aircraft, along with updates on its location and status; but they had not yet been able to launch a rescue attempt due to the weather.
Once they were on the ground, Vin could see across the distance, through the falling raindrops, that a huge storm offshore was, indeed, darkening the horizon and causing turmoil in the water. As he looked up into the clouds, he did not like the circular motion he saw there either. He hoped they would find a way to reach the crash site before he was forced to attempt to deal with winds on that large of a scale. Vin noted that, in his recent endeavor, using his gift fatigued him slightly. It must be the restrictions of his physical body that were taking their toll on his ability, something he never noticed while on the other side of the barrier. He would have to keep that in mind when using his gift going forward, so he didn't overexert himself. Vin knew he would be no good to anyone if he passed out.
A nudge from Ben brought Vin’s attention back to the present. The guardsmen assigned to the rescue mission began boarding a shuttle that would carry them the short distance to the docks and a waiting Coast Guard ship. As they rode, Vin told Ben about Caeli's voicemail message that he had just played.
A short time later, the bus pulled up beside a huge ship, easily larger than any cruise ship Vin had ever seen. Painted primarily gray with the traditional, distinguishing, bright red-orange trim, it would be difficult to miss this ship, even in a storm. There was a helicopter secured at one end of the deck, and several smaller boats attached to the opposite side. Jeremy described it as one of the best equipped ships in the fleet; designed and prepared for almost anything. Vin certainly hoped so.
They boarded and stood waiting for the ship to launch, but it did not. A bank of dense, gray fog rolled in as the ship prepared to depart. It completely surrounded the harbor, drastically reducing visibility. Nothing could be seen more than a few feet in any direction. Ben left Vin standing on deck to check with the ship's captain. The fog may be disconcerting to the eyes, but it should not deter the electronic devices. They should still be able to launch.
Ben returned a few minutes later reporting that, for unknown reasons, the radar could not penetrate the fog. The captain could not launch until the fog cleared and was hopeful that it would dissipate as quickly as it arrived. Ben was doubtful. He suspected that if someone really had used the weather to bring the plane down, then using the weather to prevent rescue attempts also seemed feasible. Even though they knew the exact location of the plane, they may not be able to reach the endangered craft and their wives. It was all too convenient, and his instincts, honed over more than fifteen years as a cop, were telling Ben that something else was at work. Whatever it was, it lurked out there with Salma and Caeli. Ben walked up to Vin and leaned against the rail next to him.
"I know that what you did on the plane took a bit out of you. However, if you have the stamina to work a little more of your magic, now would be a good time. Otherwise, we might be sitting here for hours. The captain's instruments, mysteriously, cannot penetrate this fog, so he can't launch the ship."
Vin did not reply. He remained where he stood, leaning with his arms on the rails. He held his hands clasped in front of him and closed his eyes once more. Vin could not connect with the clouds of fog, but he could feel the wind. He focused on pushing the fog off into the distance, leaving a clear path between the dock and the location of the downed plane. Vin attempted to open the entire distance because he did not want to be forced to try this again out in the middle of the ocean. After a while, the swaying of the ship brought his awareness back to his body, and Vin slowly opened his eyes. Ben reached out quickly to catch him as his knees unexpectedly buckled. Vin was the one doing the swaying, not the ship.
"Thanks. I'm ok," Vin said, holding on to the rail and lowering himself onto a large piece of steel rigging nearby. He sat with his head between his knees for a few minutes before continuing.
"I must have tried to clear more than I realized. I wanted to open a clear path from here to the plane so I wouldn't have to repeat the performance. There must have been a lot to clear. It takes a bit more out of me than it did before, and I am getting a lot of unusual resistance. I don't remember feeling that before either; but I'll be fine in a few minutes."
Ben watched Vin carefully to make sure his movements confirmed his words.
The ship lurched beneath their feet as it began to pull away from the dock and ease out into the harbor. Vin succeeded, and the ship was underway. Vin looked up to see Ben grinning down at him.
"Let's go find a place to rest. It is going to be a while before we get there, and there is nothing else we can do to help. We would only be in the way. I th
ink it would be best if we were both well rested when we arrive."
"That sounds like a good idea to me," Vin agreed. He stood up and followed Ben to a hatch that led to the decks below.
They climbed down several ladders before reaching the level where the crews' bunks were located. In the bunkhouse, rows and rows of three tiered bunk beds were spaced tightly down each side of the room. Each bed was just spacious enough for an average-sized man to lay flat with his pack at his feet. At this point, Vin realized that his exhaustion made him indifferent to the cold iron railings and the uncomfortable metal slab beneath the thin mattress. All he wanted to do was lie down and sleep. Vin hopped into the top bunk immediately on the left, and Ben took the top bunk on the next stack. They were both asleep within minutes.
CHAPTER 8
Caeli came to slowly, giving her eyes a minute to adjust to the darkness surrounding her. She knew immediately that the plane had crashed and the sea now cradled it roughly. Water on the floor where she sat only confirmed it. Her clothes were soaked. The impact ripped a crack in the plane's hull directly over her head. Each time a large wave rolled by, it would rain down on her. If this went unchecked, she would not have to wonder whether or not they were sinking, but rather how quickly it would happen.
"You can fix it."
"What?" Caeli thought she heard a lady's voice. Looking around, she did not see anyone nearby. She and Salma were the only two females on the plane.
"You can save the others. I can show you how."
"Who are you? Where are you?" Caeli was still a bit dazed and not yet fully reconnected with her senses. She could not tell if the presence pressing against her consciousness was real or a figment of her imagination.
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