Home » The Archives » Chapter 9 » Regrouping and Recouperation
| Re: Regrouping and Recouperation [message #209 is a reply to message #208] |
Mon, 23 July 2012 14:55   |
artisticrainey
Messages: 1228
Registered: July 2012
Location: Northern Ireland
Karma:
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Field Commander
Switzerland |
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Friday, August 10; 2:25 PM; Denver International Airport (8:25 AM Saturday on Tracy Island)
Lena settled back in her seat on the aisle and fastened her seat belt. I should feel guilty about flying first class, but if de boss insists, who am I to argue? She smiled to herself and pulled the airline catalogue from the seat pocket in front of her, while the rest of the passengers boarded.
When she heard the cabin door close, she looked around. There were some empty seats and one of the attendants, noticing the look of surprise on her face, said, "It isn't a holiday weekend, and those who are on vacation now are either at their destinations or not coming back until Monday. We're about two-thirds full today. So you can spread out, if you like."
"Tank you, but I tink I'm just fine like dis."
The attendant moved on to make sure everyone's seat belt was fastened, as the plane began to move away from the terminal. The usual instructions were announced, and the plane taxied to the end of the runway.
*****
In the cockpit, the crew was doing their last minute checks. They were next to take off, and received permission from the tower. Everyone heard the engines powering up, and soon the jet was speeding down the runway, into the afternoon sun. Takeoff was smooth, then the pilot received instructions to bank right and was given a heading.
"Tower, will you please repeat? There's a storm along that heading."
"Yes, but it is moving north rapidly, and will be all but gone by the time you reach there."
The pilot and co-pilot looked at each other, then the pilot looked back at the navigator, who shrugged. "Roger, tower. I'm turning now."
The course change was made, and it looked like it would be a smooth trip all the way to Maryland. But the co-pilot looked out the side window a few minutes later and said, "Oh, my God, Paul! Look!
The pilot glanced to his right and saw the storm. It was indeed moving rapidly north, but had been much farther south than the controller indicated, and would soon envelop them. He called the tower.
"The storm's heading right for us, and it's a bad one. I need instructions."
"Figure it out for yourself, Captain Conner. That's what you get for trying to take my sister away from me."
Everyone in the cockpit was stunned. "Don? You gave me this heading because I'm dating Chris? Do you realize how many people you've put in jeopardy?"
"I don't care about that. Get yourself out of it, if you can."
Communications went dead, and the pilot and co-pilot worked together to get away from the storm. They tried to climb above it and turn back, but it was on them before they got very far. The thunder and lightning shook the plane, and the captain made an announcement to the cabin to put away any loose articles and make sure their seatbelts were fastened, while the co-pilot sent out a mayday.
*****
Lena looked out the window to see roiling dark gray clouds. A bright flash of lightning startled her, and the plane shook again. She followed instructions, but made sure her palm pilot and cell phone were in her jacket pocket, the one which buttoned.
Suddenly, there was a bright flash of lightning, and the plane shook violently. It sheared off to the left and began descending rapidly. There were screams, and one of the attendants got on the intercom. He reminded the passengers of the emergency procedures and asked them to follow them. The other attendants immediately went to their areas to help anyone who needed it, and make sure the rest were following orders.
Lena looked at her watch, then braced herself as instructed. She heard a roar, screams, then after what seemed like hours, crunches, bangs and the sound of metal tearing. Then the passengers were jostled violently as the jet broke in two, and the screams grew louder. Something hit Lena in the head and she was knocked out.
When she regained consciousness, she was still in her seat, but not in the jet any longer. The whole seat assembly had been torn from its mooring. Her left shoulder was causing her a great deal of pain, as was her head. She was soaking wet, but it was no longer raining. Slowly she opened her eyes. It was still cloudy and somewhat windy, too. She carefully looked around, but saw only the broken fuselage and people scattered, some sitting with their heads in their hands, crying. Other people were moaning and calling for help. A few were on their feet, but wandering around aimlessly, not paying attention to anyone else.
She tried to raise her left arm to look at her watch, but the pain increased and she gave up. Instead she reached over with her right, and gingerly got the watch off her wrist. She held it up to so she could see it. Only fifteen minutes had passed since she had last looked at it, in the plane. It seemed like it took much longer for de plane to go down, she thought, amazed.
Her headache caused her to close her eyes again. She felt the rain start again, falling on her. She shivered slightly, then began to pray for help. Finally, realizing no one had shown up, she opened her eyes again and looked at her watch. Two hours had passed since she last checked the time.
I wonder why no one has come. We can't be dat far from de airport. She came to a decision and unbuckled her seat belt -- marveling that it was still there - then slowly unbuttoned her pocket and reached into it. No one was near her, or even looking at her, so she pulled out her palm pilot, raised it so she could see the screen, and activated the emergency signal.
Almost immediately, John's face appeared. He looked at her, puzzled, and said, "Ma'am? Who. . .?"
Lena interrupted, quietly saying, "I am Agent 62. And you are, I believe J-, er, Quasar, right?"
"That's correct. How did you know?" He brought up her file as they talked.
"Br- Einstein sent me your code names when he advised me of mine. And you're de only one of de originals I've never met." She looked around again to see if anyone was near, then closed her eyes as her headache intensified.
"What's wrong? You look terrible; and you're all wet!"
"De jet I was flying home from Denver in crashed shortly after take off, a little over two hours ago. No one has shown up to help us. Can you get word to de right people, so dey can come to de rescue?"
"I was contacted earlier by the airport tower. They saw the jet go down, and got a mayday from the co-pilot, but the storm was preventing them from getting a fix on it. And they couldn't get any readings from the emergency transmitter. They called here for help in locating the jet. I didn't know you were on it. Are you okay?"
"I've been better, but I'll live. But please tell dem to hurry. Dere are a lot of people who need medical attention, from the moans and groans dat I'm hearing."
"Including you, I take it."
She smiled wanly. "Yes, including me. Also, many of us are wet, and it's getting colder here. All I would need is to get pneumonia, too."
He smiled back at her, then muted his end of the transmission and turned away. A minute later, he returned and turned the volume back on. "They've been informed of your location. Contacting me was the best thing you could have done; the jet's emergency transmitter isn't coming through at all. They'd better check it out. So you hang in there; help is on the way."
"I'm glad to hear it. By de way, how is your -- how is de medical team doing? I heard dey were injured."
John looked at her, mildly astonished. There she is, obviously in pain, and still concerned about the team and the family. He replied, "Two of them went back to base the next day, and the third is on the mend. But you should be thinking about yourself now. A rescue team or two is on the way to your location and will take care of you."
She winked at him. "F-A-B."
He chuckled as she terminated communications, then immediately sobered as he considered whether or not to inform base. He decided to wait. They have enough on their plate to think about and handle. I'll give them a little time, then let them know, when I make my end-of-the-day report. Another thought occurred to him. I wish I could notify her family, but how could I tell them without revealing how I know? I'm sure they don't know about her involvement with IR, so I can't say she called me; she'd have called them first. He sighed in frustration, then continued to monitor communications from the planet.
Post by Hobbeth On 1/7/2007
  
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