by Joni Parker
Chapter 2
RESCUE OPERATIONS
At the harbor in Agana on Seaward Isle, Crestan docked the Kite and unloaded his passengers. As he and his crew prepared to return to sea, several of the mortal sailors volunteered to help with rescue operations and stayed with the ship.
At that moment, Lyle, the Commandant of the military forces on Seaward Isle, came up to investigate. He saluted in Elf fashion. “Lord Odin and Alex, welcome back.”
Lord Odin returned the salute. “Thank you, Commandant, but we came to welcome you back to Eledon. The island has returned to the grid. No more entry points required. We wanted to find out how you fared.”
“We managed. The weather was bad for several weeks and we had some flooding, but then it stopped. The fog rolled in and stayed. We couldn’t see a thing and had no idea what was going on. I understand Nyla also survived. Fortunately, we had an extra stockpile of food on hand. Of course, we’re low on everything now.” He looked up and squinted as the sun peeked through the clouds. “Apparently, you’ve brought the sun with you.”
“I said a spell to dissipate the fog and it seems to be working. Now I must inform you of a new problem. Another shipwreck. This one is quite major and involves five large ships. May I introduce Captain Jonas, the Commanding Officer of HMS Camelot?”
“How do you do, Captain? My name is Lyle. I’m the Commandant of the military forces here. We’ll do everything we can to help you. We got here the same way you did.” He stared at the wreckage off shore, now clearly visible against a backdrop of blue sky. “I only have a few ships, but they’ll be ready shortly.” He turned to watch his men scrambling on the ships.
“Thank you. Lord Odin’s already explained that he could have an entry point made for us to return to Earth. I ask that it be done expeditiously.”
“I’m not in charge of that. Lord Odin will have to ask his Mentors as he did once before. Unfortunately, it took several months.”
“If you left before, why are you still here?”
“We were sent to the time of King Arthur. Have you heard of him?”
“Yes, no wonder you came back.”
“How can we assist you?”
“My ship sustained some damage when we landed. I don’t know about the other ships as yet. I want to send out crews to assess damage and salvage supplies.”
“Yes, of course. How many injuries do you have?”
“I need to check with the other commanding officers. The injuries to my crew are minor. Mostly wet clothes.” He glanced down at his, still dripping.
“I’ll get you some dry ones. We only have a small clinic, but Alex can show you the healing house.” The Commandant led him to his office, a house turned into regimental headquarters. He ordered his staff to gather all the dry clothes they could find and took Captain Jonas upstairs to give him an extra set of his. When he was dressed, the Captain went downstairs and found Alex busy talking to the other staff members.
“Better?” Alex smiled at the Captain.
“Much. Where’s this healing house?”
“Down the street.” She led the way out the door.
“Does it have an operating theater?” Captain Jonas asked.
Alex shrugged and led him to the far end of the harbor where the healing house had been set up in an old warehouse. The door was unlocked and she slid it open. The man paused and looked in, scratching his head.
“Perhaps you misunderstood. We need a hospital with an operating theater, not a warehouse.” He followed her inside.
“This is our healing house. I don’t know what an operating theater is.”
“It’s a room for surgery. We may have some serious injuries.”
Alex pointed to the back room, which had been her bedroom at one time. “I guess you can use this room for that. We can move the bed out.”
“What do you do here? Let people die?” Captain Jonas sneered.
“The Regiment has a small clinic, but the people here are very healthy.”
“This place is filthy. My crew will have to clean it up.” He rubbed dust off his hands.
“I’ll find some towels and blankets.” Alex went in search of the crate where she’d stored extra supplies while he went to get more help.
A short while later, Captain Jonas returned, accompanied by a middle-aged woman and a group of young sailors, male and female. The woman wore a mottled blue camouflage uniform and her blond hair was tucked under a dark blue cap with a brim and the name USS Lonestar emblazoned in gold.
“Alex, this is Captain Williams. She’ll take over…this place.” He grimaced as he looked around. “Captain Williams, I’ll check in later.” He nodded to her and marched out.
“Nice to meet you, Miss.” Captain Williams held out her hand.
Alex shook her hand and noticed the eagle pins on her collar. She was the same rank as Captain Jonas, equivalent to a Colonel, the rank of her foster father, Colonel Penser. “My name’s Alex. They allow women to be in charge of ships?”
The Captain’s smile grew. “Yep, sure do. Half my crew is female.” She winked. “The Captain disapproves.”
“I get the same reaction. Are you an American?” Alex’s smile broadened.
“Yes, ma’am, from Houston, Texas. Where’re you from?”
“I was born here, but my foster father’s from Texas. He’s a colonel and in charge of the Nyla Army Garrison. I thought I recognized your accent.”
“How long has he been here?”
“A long time. He said he was in a place called ‘Nam before.”
“You mean Vietnam?” The Captain rubbed her chin. “That was about sixty years ago.”
“Oh, he hasn’t been here that long.”
The woman paused, uncertain how to react and pressed her lips together. She turned to monitor the cleaning crew. “When was the last time this hospital was used?”
“We call it a healing house. I was here about three or four years ago. I guess no one’s needed it since.”
“What kind of equipment do you have? An X-ray machine?” She took notice of the bare walls. “What about electrical outlets? Running water?”
Alex shook her head. “We don’t have outlets for anything, but you can get water from the pump outside. We don’t have any kind of X equipment.”
“Uh, where exactly are we?”
“Seaward Isle. It’s part of Eledon, the Elf world. We haven’t had a shipwreck here in years and we just fixed the Elf grid to keep this from happening.”
The Captain raised her eyebrows. “I don’t understand.” She turned her attention to the men and women in the room. Under her watchful eye, the room was swept and cots were set up.
A few minutes later, the injured arrived.
Chapter 3
HEALING HOUSE
Alex assisted where she could and gathered more blankets and dry clothes from other warehouses. When she wasn’t doing that, she was handing out cups of water. After handing a cup to a man with a splint on his leg, she noticed that it was badly broken. His face was pale and he was sweating heavily. She lifted his head to help him drink.
“Are you in a lot of pain?” Alex asked.
“Got any good drugs?”
“Hold on, sailor.” Captain Williams came over. “We’ll be ready in a few minutes as soon as we get a generator running. Just hang in there.”
“I can fix it,” Alex said.
“He needs an operation to pin his bones back together.”
“I mean like this.” Alex held her right hand over his leg. She closed her eyes and said, “Heal.” A blue light shone from her hand onto his injury.
The man screamed as his bones mended and the open wound closed over with barely a scar.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you, but I think your leg’s all right now,” Alex said.
“It didn’t really hurt; I was just surprised.” He rubbed his leg. “Damn! It’s fixed.”
The Captain tipped her cap back on her head. “How in the hell…?” S
he waved at another woman in the same blue uniform. “You’re a corpsman. Check him out, Chief.”
The Chief corpsman examined his leg. “He’s good to go, Captain.” She glanced at Alex and back at the Captain with wide eyes.
Alex grinned. “Do you want me to do someone else? Maybe that young woman over there?” The woman had her arm in a sling.
“No.” The Captain covered her mouth. “Wait…yes, do her.” She touched the Chief on the arm and wrinkled her forehead as Alex checked the woman’s arm.
“It looks like the break is here. Ready?” Alex asked.
“Do it.”
Alex held her hand over the injury. “Heal,” she said—the soft blue light glowed.
The young woman gritted her teeth but didn’t scream out. She moved her arm out of the sling. “Wow! Thanks! I owe you one.”
Captain Williams patted her on the shoulder. “Keep going, Alex. We need all the help we can get.”
At that moment, Captain Jonas stormed in. “What’s going on in here? Stop this immediately!” Angrily, he grabbed Alex’s hand and glared at her. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“Helping.”
“Where did that blue light come from?” He grabbed her right hand and rubbed it, searching for the source of the blue light.
Alex pulled her hand away. “Ow! Captain Williams said it was all right.”
Williams stepped forward, nodding. “Captain Jonas, it’ll take us another hour to get the M.O.T. running and by then, she can have most of them fixed and out the door.”
“I don’t believe in this hocus-pocus nonsense.”
“I know what I saw. Her arm was broken and now it’s not. Same with his leg.” She pointed at the two sailors, standing by.
Captain Jonas gritted his teeth. “As you were.” He marched away.
Captain Williams grinned and winked at Alex. “You go, girl.”
The others in the room cheered. Slowly, Alex worked her way around the room, mending broken bones and other minor injuries. A few minutes later, her grandfather arrived with Captain Jonas.
“What are you doing, Alex?” her grandfather asked.
“I’m fixing the minor injuries, but the more serious ones are going to be taken care of by the doctors here.” She led the way to the back room. “They’ve set up a mobile operating theater—they call it an M.O.T. It’s fascinating.”
“Really?” Lord Odin was a healer and watched with interest through a plastic window in a tent sent up in the former bedroom. A group of doctors and nurses worked on a patient lying on a table. Clear bags of fluid hung on steel poles with tubes reaching down to the patient’s arm. Lights were strung overhead to provide light and were attached to wires, leading out the window to a generator. A machine beeped while the men and women worked together, handing tools back and forth and cleaning blood from the patient’s body with barely a word spoken.
Captain Jonas tapped Lord Odin on the shoulder. “May I introduce you to Captain Williams? She’s the second highest ranking officer here. I put her in charge of this facility.”
Lord Odin shook her hand. “An honor to meet you. May I ask what this unit is called?”
“A mobile operating theater or M.O.T. We can set it up anywhere.”
“Remarkable.”
“I’ll tell you what’s remarkable, sir,” Captain Williams said. “This young lady here. I’ve been watching her fix broken bones and heal cuts with some kind of light from her hand.”
“Yes, my granddaughter.” Lord Odin stood taller, his chest inflated. “Are you finished, Alex?”
“Yes, for now.”
“This is all very interesting. I’d like to learn more when there’s time.” Lord Odin stepped to the door. “Perhaps we should step outside, so we don’t disturb anyone. Alex, come along.” Once outside, he stopped. “Captain Jonas, your crew’s doing a marvelous job. I only wish I could explain what happened here.”
“We must report our situation to our superiors. Do you have a phone we could use?”
“No, nothing like that. Have you tried using a computer? Several years ago, some mortals were able to communicate with their friends in the mortal world using email.”
“We tried. Nothing works, not even our satellite communications.”
“How unfortunate. Without it, there’s no other way, I’m afraid. But I have informed my colleagues at the Council of your situation and they’ve informed the Mentors.”
“I thought you said you didn’t have a phone.”
“Elfspeak.” Lord Odin pointed to his head.
“Don’t tell me…mental telepathy? And what did they say?” The Captain tapped his foot.
“They’re working on it. I’m sorry for this situation, but I’m glad the island and the people here are safe. If it wasn’t for Alex, the island may have detached from Eledon and--”
“She did this?” He turned to Alex. “You did this?”
Alex nodded. “Yes, I found the crystals that were missing from the Elf grid so I put them back and restored--”
“You’re the one responsible for this debacle! You should be reported to the authorities and arrested immediately.” He shook his finger at her. “In addition, you’ve caused the destruction of five of the most technically advanced warships in the world, worth billions of pounds. You’ll stand trial for this!” His hand turned into a clenched fist and his face turned beet red.
Alex bit her lip and pointed to Lord Odin. “The authorities already know. My grandfather’s on the Council of Elders.”
“I demand her arrest, sir.”
“Captain, she hasn’t broken any law. In fact, she remedied a situation that has been a problem for us for over a thousand years.”
The Captain’s fists remained clenched, but he restrained himself.
“If she didn’t fix it, the island could have fallen into the Earth,” Lord Odin continued.
“How do you propose getting our ships back there?”
Lord Odin shook his head. “I’ll ask the Mentors for assistance, but they may be damaged beyond repair.”
“They can be sent to the repair facilities in Portsmouth.”
“I don’t think that’ll be possible, but I’ll ask.”
***
On Earth, over the Atlantic Ocean, four helos from the aircraft carrier swept the sea, looking for survivors or debris and found nothing. Jets flew overhead for another look from the air and a second submarine surfaced in the area where the ships were last reported. No success. Other ships were diverted for search-and-rescue operations, to no avail.
Admiral Teller had no choice but to inform NATO headquarters. His mouth went dry and his chest burned; he took two antacid pills, but they didn’t help. The ship connected to headquarters via satellite phone and the Admiral picked up the receiver. At first, his voice faltered, but he cleared his throat and reported the loss. Once he hung up, tears rolled down his cheeks and he pressed his lips together to keep from sobbing. He’d never lost a ship before.
The British Royal Navy had been honored to lead this exercise, but with over seven hundred sailors and five ships missing, the Admiral prepared himself for the inevitable. He’d be relieved of command and forced to retire. There might even be a court-martial. His return to London would mark the end of his career, especially when he would debrief Admiral Sir Neville Chestermann, First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff. Teller hung his head.
An hour later, Captain Delacruz knocked on the Admiral’s cabin door. “Admiral, I hate to bother you at this time, but the press corps on the ship is asking questions. We need to tell them something.”
The Admiral sighed. “You’re right, Captain. Set up a press conference in the briefing room. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”
“Yes, Admiral.” The Captain left.
The Admiral rubbed his temples. He’d forgotten about the pool of journalists they’d taken on board to cover the exercise. Fortunately, none of them had been deployed to the five ships now missing. He took a deep bre
ath. “Honesty is the best policy.” He wiped his face of sweat with a towel and went to the briefing room.
Chapter 4
LITTLE RED SHIP
Early the next morning in Eledon, horns blew at the harbor in Agana, drawing Alex’s attention as she stood on the docks with her grandfather and the two officers, Captain Jonas and Williams. A small red ship pulled up. Ropes magically flew off the deck, tying the ship to stanchions. Fireworks exploded from the ship’s bow and stern.
“Grandfather, it’s Ecstasy.” Alex snapped her fingers. “Hey, he came from the mortal world—maybe he can take you back.”
Captain Jonas stared at her in disbelief. “In that little red ship? Impossible!”
“It’s true.”
“That ship’s made of wood. It’d burn up in the Earth’s atmosphere.”
Alex shrugged. “He’s a wizard.”
Captain Jonas slapped his forehead. “This is insanity! Don’t you agree, Captain Williams?”
“I don’t know, Captain. If she says there’s a way, I’d believe it.”
Lord Odin touched his chin. “Yes, well, this is a possibility. We could even use the shrinking potion to take more of your people home each time, but it’ll still take several trips.”
“Shrinking potion? What is this—voodoo medicine? I won’t subject my men to anything like that.” Captain Jonas clenched jaw.
“Do you have a better idea?” Alex asked.
“You call this an idea?” He glared at her.
Alex was about to explode when her grandfather turned her away from him. “Captain, I truly apologize for what happened to you, but this was beyond anyone’s control. We’ll help you as much as we can. Please understand.” He held Alex in his arms to calm her down.
Alex pulled away gently. “I’ll talk to Ecstasy.” She ran down the harbor.
Captain Jonas turned to Williams. “I’ll find out what she’s up to.”
“Yes, Captain.” Williams returned to the healing house as Captain Jonas and Lord Odin followed Alex to the docks.
Ecstasy stepped out on deck in a dapper, double-breasted jacket in navy blue with a white captain’s hat. A small group had gathered at the dock to see what was going on.
