“Dad's gremlin is here!”
Looking around she said, “Never you mind. We have to leave now.”
An hour down the mountain, almost back to the campground, they could see the smoke back up the trail and hear horns and people yelling.
Dragging Billy along Sally exclaimed, “Tom will we have time to get everything packed?”
“Don't worry about it, the camping gear can be replace.”
Loki appeared by Tom and stated. “That's not the problem Tom, the road out is burning. Grab some water and jackets. I'll lead you out.”
“Sally, run ahead and refill our canteens and grab jackets and gloves for us. We'll have to hike out.”
“What are you saying Tom. The car is fine.”
“Sally, Loki just told me the road out goes through the fire. We'll have to hike out to safety. Grab some food to, and if Joe and Sally are around tell them to do the same. They can join us.”
Three days later the group stumbled on a dirt road and sat down to rest. They heard the jeep before it came around the bend. The old woman driving slammed on the brakes and jumped out. “Where did you come from?”
Tom wearily stated, “The campground on the other side of the mountain.” pointing at the burning ridge behind him.
Everyone piled into the jeep and she started down the mountain again. “I just had to check my cabin again. This fire is bad. I had to slip past the firefighters just to make this trip. I'm glad I did.
“The radio said that everyone at the campground died after the fire cut them off. How did you have time to hike out? I know there is no direct trail from here to there.”
Billy piped up, “Dad's gremlin led us out.”
The old woman said as she ruffled his hair, “Sounds like your Dad has a guardian angel.”
“Mom says he's a fairy.”
“Fairy, gremlin, or guardian angel; he did his job, and now you're safe.”
* * *
Two days later at home another news reporter knocked on their front door wanting an interview. Thirty minutes later she stated, that's quite a story, of course I'll have to edit out the fairy part.
That evening watching the news, they were amazed when their story came on. After the brief introduction where Tom and Sally explained hiking over the ridge to the dirt road where they were rescued, the commentator came back on and announced, and their son tells a more detailed story. Billy was jumping up and down as he watched himself on the screen telling how his Dad's fairy told them where to climb and walk to escape.
“Oh boy, now I'll get pestered every time we go out. I got enough harassment after the accident when I let slip that a fairy told me about Jim's injury after the accident. I just hope Brenda didn't watch this evenings news.”
Sally turned to Billy and stated, “Billy, your Dad's fairy is supposed to be a family secret. Don't tell everyone about him.”
“Mom, everybody knows about fairies, I have two books about them.”
“Yes, but most people think fairies are make believe. Your Dad's is, well more real.”
Loki popped into the living room and yelled, “Tom, watch out, here comes Brenda again.” Just then the back door slammed open. “Where his he.” as she stormed into the room and aimed a slap at Tom.
“Brenda, quit hitting my husband! Go beat on yours.”
“I just can't quit remembering how Tom almost killed my Joseph. When I remember, I just have to hit him again and again. Now what's this about a fairy? Joe and I only followed you from the campground, only because you're my sister. We both saw that Tom was acting weird. I remember Joe said the first evening that he trusted Tom. Now I hear that a fairy led us out, what kinda bull is that?”
Tom growled, “Brenda sit down and listen to a family secret.”
“Sit down sister!” screamed Sally.
“Shortly after we were pulled from the wreck a kid with what looked like shriveled up wings appeared beside me and told me that Jim was bleeding from his back and I should tell the medics that were treating us. He popped in and out while I was in the hospital. When Joe invited me to the party where I met you and Sally he warned me about you, just before you slapped me the first time. Then he disappeared until we were on the mountain. He warned me about the fire. When we got to the campground he told me that the fire had cutoff the road out, and told me he'd lead my family to safety. You know the rest of the story.”
With a look of disbelief Brenda croaked, “You mean you didn't know where we were going.”
“No, that was my first trip to that campground.”
“You trusted our lives to a fairy with the name Loki.”
“Yes, and I'd do it again. Loki was punished for is tricks and has to earn back his powers.”
Brenda whimpered, “He's a trickster like the Norse Loki? How could you trust our lives to ah, ah, ...”
With firmness Tom stated, “He has saved lives. He has never steered me wrong, and never pulled a trick on me, or mine.”
“I don't believe it. Tom, you're nuts.”
“I'm nuts, but still alive. I feel sorry for those other families from the campground.”
* * *
Over the years Bill forgot about his Dad's fairy. He grew up and joined the Air Force. One morning he was preparing for a flight and he heard, “Throw that parachute on the floor, it's broke.”
Turning he saw a greenish kid with shriveled wings, standing on the parachute table, with his hands on his hips.
“Who are you?”
“I'm Loki.”
“Oh shit! You're Dad's fairy.”
“Yes, and now I'm yours.”
Lieutenant, get your gear and up on the flight deck.
“Yes Sir.”
Throwing the chute in the reject pile, Bill grabbed another. His flight took off second, and not ten minutes later, the first flight reported incoming bogies. Over his radio he heard, drop tanks and engage burners.
Hitting his external fuel tank release, he realized that it didn't sound right. “Flight leader, need visual on my external tank.”
His flight leader dropped back and down and replied, “Only the front is released. Hit it again.”
“Wilco.”
Resetting and hitting the tank release again, a shudder ran through his jet.
“Eject, Eject. Bill your tank is leaking.”
Tucking in Bill pulled the ejector handle. The canopy blew and then he felt the seat slam him in the butt. Floating beside him he saw his Dad's fairy floating in the air. “Get out of the seat. It's broken too.”
One quick jerk on the release and Bill tumbled out of the seat and watched as the ejector rocket burned through the back of the seat. At a thousand feet he pulled the parachute ring and breathed a sigh of relief as the chute canopy popped open.
Just before hitting the water he saw the fairy again, and he said, “There are biting fish down there, be careful.”
Looking down as he assumed a water landing position, then saw fins circling a parachute in the water. Under water he hit his chute release. Moving the cover and pressing the button he could feel his flotation collar inflate. He popped up beside his chute and started to paddle away when he heard, “Lie still so they don't hear you.” Bill watched as the fairy pulled the parachute canopy away from him. A large shark jumped out of the water and chomped down on the fairy's leg. The fairy just slapped the shark, and he let go. He faintly heard, “Tell your buddies that this one is mine, you can't have him.”
A half hour later he heard the rescue chopper and popped smoke. Usually a rescue swimmer dropped to hook the pilot up, but this time they just dropped him a cable and told him to hook up quickly because sharks were headed his way. Grabbing the weight ball he hooked the D-ring to his suit harness and crossed his arms overhead.
Back aboard ship the packer Chief started raising hell about him dumping a perfectly good chute in the reject pile. When Bill told him a voice told him the parachute was broken, the Chief claimed
his men made sure no parachute was bad before putting it on the ready table.
Bill shut him down by simply stating, “You jump with it as it is, and I'll attend your funeral.”
Word got around and some pilots avoided him because he heard voices.
* * *
Bill got out at the end of his enlistment, met a young lady and got married. When his three children grew up he told them the family secret and reminded them that they should never want to live in interesting times. His oldest boy became a plummer, the second became a software developer, and his daughter joined the Air Force, then qualified for the astronaut program.
* * *
Chapter 3 Flying
Joseph, Alice and Bills second son was driving back from a meeting. As he entered the foothills near his house, he suddenly realized someone was in the car with him. Looking to his right he saw a greenish kid with shriveled wings and immediately slammed on the brakes. The kid yelled not yet, go around the curve first. Around the curve he saw the pull-off that had a path cut into the hillside up to the overlook, and stopped. Turning he said, “Are you the fairy that haunted Dad?”
“Yes, I'm Loki. I was first assigned to you grandfather and then your dad.”
Suddenly the car started shaking and Joe watched the hill slide down and take out the road all the way to the next curve. Getting out of the car he started to walk back and saw the road behind him was gone too.
Loki said, “You should call for help. The woman in the car behind you is buried, but still alive.”
Joe reached for his cellphone as Loki disappeared. He climbed to the top of the lookout and made the call and told them that there was a woman in a car buried near his location. When she was rescued, he recognized her. She was one of the secretaries in his division.
When he got home the next day he called his parents and told them about his vision. His dad just laughed and asked, “Is the girl OK? Loki wouldn't have mentioned her unless she figures in your future somehow.”
His brother and sister just laughed when he called and told them.
* * *
Martha was teased as a child about her name. After she joined the Air Force, only a few of the new pilots she met were dumb enough to comment. She wrangled an assignment shuttling aircraft in and out of the middle east. One shuttle route was through Syria then south along the Jordan Iraq border down to Riyadh. Just before entering Saudi Arabia she heard, “Turn left fast and go down almost to the ground.”
She was so surprised that she dove to the left and leveled out at five hundred feet. Banking right she looked up and saw the contrail of a missile about where she would have been. Looking in the heads-up display she could see a green reflection behind her. Kicking in the afterburner she broke the sound barrier a few seconds later. Realizing she didn't have enough fuel to make it to her destination she radioed the nearest friendly airbase and requested permission to divert. The tower at Prince Hasan AFB was polite and arranged for her to refuel on the taxiway. The rest of the flight to Riyadh was uneventful.
Upon returning to the carrier in the Mediterranean her flight leader chewed her out for diverting from the flight plan. When debriefed she mentioned the voice telling her to dive and then seeing the missile contrail. Laughing he told her, “Your guardian angel just knocked you off flight status.” The next day another shuttle pilot reported a missile launch just before his aircraft went silent.
Martha was almost a year into astronaut training before she heard someone whisper into her ear, “Don't fly number three until they fix bad gas line.” Glancing up she saw a green kid with wings.
“Loki, is that you?”
“You know me?”
“Yes, my dad told us about you.”
“Yes, I still being punished. I want to go home.” Then he disappeared.
Her training flight leader assigned her the third plane. With trepidation she followed everyone out to the flight line. How could Loki know the third plane had a bad fuel line and where was it. Even in training to be a payload specialist, she had to complete a certain number of flight hours. Taking her walk around, she sniffed and felt the skin of the T-38. She felt one cold spot just behind the wings.
Straightening up she called over her flight leader and told him she was red flagging the aircraft. She was fifteenth out of the twenty still in the program, and he didn't like her. After berating her in front of the other pilots he finally called a mechanic over. “Open that inspection hatch. Monkey here wants to red flag this aircraft. Check it out so I can get her out of here.”
As the mechanic removed the first screw a drop of fluid hit the dry runway. Sticking his finger against the screw hole, the mechanic pulled it back and sniffed. “Flight leader, move your people out of here. This is fuel.”
“Flight leader, I want a full written report with documentation and pictures of this aircraft when maintenance finds that fuel leak. Flights are canceled for today,” said the colonel. “oh and by the way, write yourself up for disrespect to a fellow pilot.” Turning he walked away.
The next time she saw Loki was on the ISS when she was preparing to go outside to secure equipment returning to Earth. He tapped her helmet and said, “Fire maker in box on your back have loose string. Go boom when you go outside.”
She removed her helmet and announced to the two man EVA crew, “I've got an equipment problem, tell Houston there will be a two hour delay.”
“How can you have a malfunction, I can see all your LED's are green from here.”
“Just inform the station chief, I've got to check the heater in this backpack.” Sure enough the other crew member watched as she traced each wire in the heating circuit and said, “Shit boss, how did you know.” as the frayed wire broke.
Without thinking she answered, “I've got a guardian fairy.”
“What!”
“Don't you ever repeat that James. You know how those shrinks in Houston are.”
“Cross my heart boss lady. I'm going to stick to you like glue, just for the luck.”
Two years later she married James and dropped off active status. She and James had two boys, Albert named after his grandfather and Thomas after hers. When her boys graduated high school, she and James told them again about their trip up to the ISS, only this time she told them about Loki. They both laughed.
With a smile she arranged for them to spend their last summer before college at their grandfathers. “Tomorrow evening after dinner, ask you grandfather if he knows anyone named Loki.”
At the same time they both said, “But mom, you know he's senile.”
“Just ask him, he told me when I was younger than you.”
* * *
Chapter 4 Flying Higher
Eighteen months and twenty-two days of boredom, maintenance, and forced exercise made everyone tired. After six orbits the descent was planned out in the most excruciating painful detail.
Even though they weren't the first, there were more checklist and rules that a bag of M&M's.
Four supply ships, sent ahead from Earth, had already landed. Theirs, however had been assembled in space at the second ISS in high orbit.
Thomas was putting on his suit when out of the corner of his eye he saw what looked like a green kid with shriveled wings. Turning to the kid he heard, “If you go down on ships, you burn up and die.”
Oh hell, now I'm seeing my grandfathers fairy. “What do you mean Loki? How will I die?”
“Fire plate bad on small ship.”
Thomas to Captain, Thomas to Captain.
What do you want Thomas.
I've got a bad feeling about the landing ship, Sir.
What do you mean, that ship's been checked seven ways from hell.
I don't care Captain, my gut tells me something is wrong with it. I want another complete check on the landing system.
I'll be right down.
~ ~ ~
“Thomas, you're a good engineer, but this is ridiculous.”
<
br /> “That shuttle won't make a safe landing.”
“Thomas, you can't just use a gut feeling to abort a billion dollar mission.”
“I'm red flagging in now, because I won't get on that shuttle just to die on the way down.”
“OK Thomas, what wrong with it?”
“I don't know right now. - Captain, you knew my parents were astronauts. Well my mother and father both told us about her first mission to the old ISS. What they didn't tell us was why she checked her heater pack, and pissed off NASA by delaying a return shuttle for almost a day.”
“Do tell, that story is one of the legends that became part of the safety briefings.”
“When Al and I graduated from high school they told us the story again and added one fact. Then they sent us off to her fathers for the summer.”
“Great, kid stories.”
“No Captain, my grandfather told us a similar stories and some about his father.”
“Really.”
“Yes Sir, it's nuts, but it runs in the family. My family has a guardian fairy.”
“Oh shit Thomas. You just made yourself unfit for flight status, much less mission capable. Now what am I going to do for an engineer?”
“Sir, let me check the shuttle from stem to stern until he doesn't warn me anymore.”
“And how long will that take. You know the supply window we're working with, not to mention the return orbit deadline.
“XO, meet me at the shuttle bay.”
On the way Captain.
~ ~ ~
“XO, assemble everyone that knows anything about the shuttle hull for an EVA to check for damage. Thomas here has a bad feeling.”
“Yes Sir.”
Floating over to the intercom panel the XO pressed the button. “Engineering crew, assemble in the mess in ten minutes.”
~ ~ ~
Hooking his foot in a wall strap the XO announced to the three engineers. “You guys know the safety rules and briefings, right”
“Yes Sir.”
“Now we have a problem. Thomas just red flagged the shuttle. All the Captain would tell me was that Thomas had a bad feeling about the descent.
“Chief, start with the mating collar and work down the hull to the retro rockets. Thomas will not be joining you. The Captain put him on a special detail.”
“XO, you aren't telling us everything. Thomas may be a ass, but he knows his job. He's found more than one problem and had a fix. What's the real story?”