Chapter 11
Lina could not stop trembling or crying knowing her people were gone. Floyd held her and then started singing:
"Oh give me a home where the buffalo roam, Where the deer and the antelope play, Where seldom is heard a discouraging word, And the skies are not cloudy all day.
“Home, home on the range, Where the deer and the antelope play, Where seldom is heard a discouraging word, And the skies are not cloudy all day."
He was not musical in any way, but the repetitive verse had always helped his kids when they had their night terrors. His wife had asked him to sing it to her as she was dying. It was all he knew how to do, so that is what he did. Lina gradually quit trembling and the tears slowed as she listened to the simple song that seemed to arise from deep within Floyd's chest. When she fell asleep Floyd carried her to their berth and covered her up.
Moving forward to the cockpit he asked or rather commanded, "Status report, Mr. Watson."
"We have sustained further hull damage with extension of the crack in the fuselage; otherwise, the ship has not suffered significant damage. It would appear that we have moved slightly downhill and are no longer level."
Floyd asked, "And the dome and well house?
Mr. Watson panned the structures with his cameras which revealed them to be still standing but many stones were partially dislodged. He said, "The Fixer built well. I had predicted a 78.58% chance that the buildings would not survive when the quake exceeded my sensors’ ability to measure it. The dome is probably the most quake resistant design but…"
Before he could go on Floyd interrupted him asking, "What is Tesla up to?"
The computer monitor displayed an image from the helmet Tesla was wearing and the screen displayed his position. Mr. Watson remarked, "The Fixer flew directly to the transport container you were locked in and has been circling high above. I cannot determine a reason for his actions."
Floyd was studying the image and said with much excitement, "Those are airplanes!"
Mr. Watson calmly informed him that what he was seeing was an artifact because there was no movement of the specs. Floyd's retort was, "Once you have been shot at by enemy planes you recognize airplanes at a distance, and those are airplanes!"
"It is highly unlikely, but I will compute their trajectories to prove that it is just an artifact." After a few minutes Mr. Watson spoke in what almost seemed an apologetic manner saying, "It would appear that your assumption may be correct. The objects are definitely moving, but at a speed much slower than aircraft speeds."
"Could they be using gliders?"
"If the Fixer would sit still and quit bouncing I could stabilize the picture and determine precisely their speed and trajectory. Your assumption may be correct."
Tesla must have spotted the planes because he stopped circling and headed directly to them. All Floyd could do was watch the images being relayed by the camera in the helmet. As the planes closed the distance Floyd had Mr. Watson enlarge the image of the nearest plane. The resolution was poor, but it looked like a paper airplane which made no sense at all. They just had to wait and watch the wildly oscillating view as Tesla kept bouncing and twisting his head to look first one way then another. Floyd figured that had to be several dozens of the gliders at various altitudes, all headed towards Tesla. When they finally got a good image Floyd started to laugh. Perched on the giant paper airplane were two Fixers riding it like you would a horse. All of the planes were variations of the airplane Floyd had made for Tesla while they were confined in the isolation chamber.
Tesla was circling again waiting for the gliders and then headed back towards the transport device guiding the gliders. Mr. Watson said, "It would appear that Tesla is flying near the stall speed of the aircraft and I wish he would be more careful."
"Can we talk to him?"
Mr. Watson replied, "I assume the audio connection is functioning normally but since the Fixers do not speak he can only listen."
Floyd became the LSO trying to direct Tesla and the gaggle of gliders that were following him. He told Tesla to turn to the left and Tesla responded he then said, "Tesla, you need to increase your speed and avoid sharp turns. The turbulence from the earthquake could cause you to stall and crash."
Mr. Watson reported improved speed as Tesla continued to fly in a circle, waiting on the gliders, trying to do as Floyd asked. Some of the gliders were falling behind and sinking much too fast. Floyd told Tesla, "You have to go to the back of the group and guide the gliders that are falling behind. They will not be able to make the smooth plain where the transporter is, you must find them a flat space to land."
Tesla did as Floyd commanded and using the camera scanned the ground below. It was far too rocky for a safe landing except for what appeared to be an old stream bed. Floyd said, "Have them land in the clearing. It is their only chance."
Tesla circled around above the gliders and then flew down to the clearing. The gliders which were struggling turned to follow him. The first glider hit pretty hard but seemed to stay intact and skidded to a stop. The next let the nose of the plane drop and ended up cart-wheeling throwing its passengers off. Several of the straggling gliders were unable to make even the old stream bed and crashed amongst the rocks.
The remaining gliders were now all in gliding range of the flat plain where the transport device was but most landed far short. Only one glider which seemed to be under good control continued to the transport device. This glider held a single Fixer and a box that was strapped behind him. Not only did the giant paper airplane make it all of the way, it did a roll before landing right in front of the transport device. Tesla landed right behind it and hopped out of the airplane leaving the helmet aboard the airplane. The last image they received was of the old Fixer who acted as the eyes for the Ancient One climbing down from the paper airplane.
Lina had awakened and was looking over Floyd's shoulder. He turned and said, "Some have made it out."
Lina, with great sadness in her voice, replied, "None of The People would have left."
Floyd had Mr. Watson go back to the images of the planes that had fallen behind and zoomed in on one of the slowest planes. The image quality was not very good but he had no doubt but that one of the riders was not a Fixer. He pointed to the image saying, "At least one of The People escaped."
Lina asked, "Did that plane land safely?
Floyd had Mr. Watson try and track the plane but with Tesla's bouncing and constant turning it just was not possible to track the airplane. Mr. Watson apologized to Lina saying, "I will continue to try and sort the data but doubt that we will be able to determine the plane’s fate until Tesla takes more images."
Lina said, "I will see if there is enough green goo for a pancake."
This produced a "Holy Shit!" from Floyd who asked Mr. Watson, "How are we going to feed these people and provide them shelter?"
Mr. Watson replied, "My calculations indicate that the barley and beans that have been planted are not sufficient for maintaining your nutritional status assuming Lina gives birth to 6 offspring. The deficit was to be made up with the substance you refer to as the green goo. I see no means of supporting additional carbon based units on the resources at your disposal."
"How much more green goo can we process before the ice forms again?"
Mr. Watson replied, "Our production capability only slightly exceeds the manual harvest and will be easily maximized if the pump system Tesla is working on is functional. Expanding processing capabilities will require new equipment but the Fixers are good engineers and may be able to build the required equipment."
Floyd subconsciously reached down and tightened his belt a notch saying, "Guess we should worry about finishing the rescue before I worry about starving."
Floyd joined Lina for some food and watched to make sure she ate her share. After they were done eating he said, "I had better go and harvest some more green goo."
Lina said, "You cannot go. Mr. Watson has res
tricted you, and Tesla may need your help."
"But I can't just sit here."
"You can explain your song to me. I had never heard you sing before and do not know what the song means."
Floyd looked off into the distance and was silent for a moment before saying, "It is an old song from my childhood that talks of the days when the West was open country and people were filled with hope. I only remember the first verse."
Lina's tail was still as she thought before saying, "Is that time so different from now?"
Floyd reached over and squeezed her hand saying, "Maybe not."
Their conversation was interrupted by Mr. Watson saying, "The video is active again." Floyd and Lina moved forward and the screen showed the airplane flying at low altitude over the plain with gliders scattered around. Soon they were seeing the old river bed with more gliders only some of which were upright. Tesla circled overhead and some of the planes were cleared making space for him to land. This time when Tesla climbed out of the plane he left the helmet on. Many of the Fixers were obviously injured, but Tesla continued walking to the end of the clearing. Several Fixers could be seen climbing down the rocky slope carrying something. Only when they got close did Lina point out that they were carrying one of The People. It was a female who was not conscious and was bleeding profusely from a head injury.
Floyd yelled at Tesla to hold pressure over the scalp to stop the bleeding. You could tell Tesla was listening because the world moved up and down as Tesla nodded his head. With one of the Fixers holding pressure the bleeding slowed but did not stop. Floyd asked, "Do you have enough of a charge to make it back to the ship?"
The world twisted side to side as Tesla shook his head in the negative. Floyd asked, "Can you recharge at the transport device?" Now the world was swinging up and down as Tesla nodded in the affirmative. Floyd said, "Have the Fixers move to the transport device as a staging point. You will have to fly the wounded back to the ship." The world, as seen on the monitor, was now swinging up and down as Tesla nodded in agreement. Lina became motion sick from all of the video movement and had to quit watching.
The image was bouncing wildly as Tesla ran back to the plane and started clearing the make shift runway of Fixers and gliders. Soon they could see the Fixers loading the unconscious female into the back of the plane. The takeoff was bumpy with the tires bouncing off of the rocks, just missing several of the Fixers who were trying to see what was happening. It seemed to take forever for the plane to claw its way into the air and the rocks loomed large before Tesla gently turned away and headed towards the transport device. The screen went blank again as Tesla removed the helmet.
Lina asked, "Is she going to be okay?"
Floyd shrugged his shoulders and said, "She has lost a lot of blood." Speaking to Mr. Watson he asked, "Would the blood substitute stuff, in our medical supplies, work if we gave it to one of The People?"
Mr. Watson replied, "The protein antigens are very different between humans and The People but I would expect the substitute would be acceptable."
Lina asked, "Can I give her some of my blood?"
Mr. Watson was a bit slow to answer saying, "I do not know for sure. It seems from the little medical literature of The People I was exposed to that your immune systems do not tolerate foreign proteins." He added, "For the sake of the babies you carry, the amount of blood you could donate would be minimal."
Now all they could do was wait. The aftershocks seemed pretty mild compared to the big quake, but were still strong enough that they bounced the ship. When the video feed became active again it was almost impossible to stabilize the image because of the wild swings in the camera. Mr. Watson said, "We must find a better way of stabilizing the helmet on the Fixer if we want better images." He added, "It would also help if we could stabilize the Fixer and keep him from bouncing so much."
Lina and Floyd did their best to get ready by preparing their berth as a makeshift hospital. Floyd was trying to read the directions on using the skin stapler and how to start an IV but had trouble concentrating. When Mr. Watson announced the plane was approaching, Floyd left the ship and unloaded the remaining stones that were on the drone they used for a wheelbarrow. He drove the unit down the hill. As soon as Tesla stopped the plane, Floyd ran up to help unload the injured. Tesla had crammed an unconscious Fixer and the female into the back of the plane which was now stained red with blood. Floyd reached in and lifted first the Fixer and then the female out of the plane and loaded them on the drone. Tesla rode up to the ship with them but as soon as Floyd had carried the injured into the ship he took the drone to recharge the airplane.
Floyd laid the female down first and told Lina, "Use the sterile saline to clean her wounds. I need to get the injured Fixer." Lina did her best but she would no sooner wipe the dried blood off when the blood would start spurting again. She stopped trying to clean the wound and just held pressure.
Floyd laid the unconscious Fixer at the foot of the berth, thinking that at least they were small enough to both fit. It had been a long time since his Battlefield First Aid course but all he could do was try. First rule was to make sure that the injured was breathing. They both seemed to be, so he moved onto the second rule which was to control excess bleeding. She definitely had excess bleeding. Floyd picked up the skin stapler and just started stapling her large scalp wound closed. The directions had said to shave the hair first but that seemed like a waste of time and blood. She groaned from the pain of the staples and Lina protested that he needed to use an anesthetic. He just kept stapling until the bleeding seemed to stop. Only then did he say, "The pain will not kill her but the blood loss most certainly will. At least she is responding which is a good sign."
Floyd had not felt for any broken bones and had not really explored the wounds. He now took time to look more carefully and saw that her nose was pushed way to the right side. He opened her eyes and the pupils seemed to react the same on each side. Her left arm was hanging at an angle and was obviously broken. He handed Lina the scissors and said, "Best if we just cut her clothes off." He then concentrated on the Fixer who was breathing but did not respond when he pinched him, except to slightly withdraw the arm that he had pinched. His hair was a tangled mat of blood and dirt and as Floyd began cleaning it the bleeding started again. He could feel the sharp edge of the bone and knew that the Fixer had suffered a skull fracture but when he asked Mr. Watson for advice all he got was a long dissertation on the surgical management of skull fractures with the use of titanium plates. Floyd used the last of the staples to close the head wound over the bone fragments. This stopped the external bleeding but he had no way of determining if the brain itself was bleeding. It seemed like one of the Fixer's pupils was bigger than the other. Floyd figured this was a bad sign but did not know what else to do.
Mr. Watson spoke up saying, "I have located a field first aid guide in my reference library. It says that after the bleeding is controlled you should stabilize any obvious fractures."
Floyd did his best pulling and twisting the arm until it looked fairly normal. The bone made a grinding sound and the female screamed in pain. Floyd had broken out in a heavy sweat and just held the arm in position while he regained his composure. He glanced at Lina who was even more pale than normal and asked her to hand him the splint. While wrapping the splint onto her arm with the elastic bandage he asked Mr. Watson, "Should I try and fix her nose?"
"It would seem logical." Mr. Watson began reading the surgical technique for repair of a displaced nasal fracture. Floyd just ignored him and did as his football coach had done to him many years ago during a game. He just grabbed the nose and twisted it back into position. This brought on yet another scream and more bleeding from the nostrils. This was too much for Lina and she had to sit down.
Floyd looked at her and said, "I think we could both use a beer about now. Maybe best if we keep going, and see if we can start that IV." Floyd wrapped the rubber
strap around the female's good arm and began looking for a vein. He had a lot of experience with IV's but only as the patient. He had never started one himself. There wasn't anything that looked like a vein. He looked at Lina's arms and could see veins but nothing was visible on the female's arm. Mr. Watson suggested, "The text says that warm packs sometimes make the veins visible otherwise you will need to perform a cut down and find the vein surgically."
Lina went to make a warm pack by heating a wet towel in the microwave. Floyd asked, "Could I just put the IV into one of the vessels bleeding in the scalp?"
Mr. Watson replied, "As a last resort that is a feasible plan but the risk of infection seems great with good possibility of septicemia and death."
"Oh great! How am I going to do this cut down, I never even liked to clean fish and now you want me to cut on a person?"
Mr. Watson replied, "It would be preferable that the medical Fixer would be here to do the task but fear you must do what must be done."
Lina returned with the warm towel and Floyd wrapped it around the female's arm. After a few minutes he checked and still could not feel a vein. Mr. Watson said, "If you would use the portable camera I might be able to visualize the vein in infrared." Floyd did as Mr. Watson had requested and the visual image changed to a green image showing the increased warmth where the towel had been. An even warmer line was visible and when Floyd gently felt the area it felt different than the other areas. His football coach’s mantra came back to him, "If you can visualize it you can do it."
He decided to visualize himself as the patient and from that perspective could imagine the dialysis nurse feeling the vein and advancing the catheter into the vein. He took a deep breath and reached for the IV needle. Keeping one finger on the spongy feeling spot he advanced the needle through the skin and kept glancing at the hub to see if any blood was showing. He should have cheered when he saw the blood filling the hub but instead concentrated on advancing the soft sheath into the vein and retracting the sharp needle. He plugged in the IV line just like he knew what he was doing and then taped everything down. After hooking up the IV bag and starting the saline drip Floyd followed Mr. Watson's instructions for infusing the artificial blood replacement.
Floyd had Lina cover the injured and went forward. Mr. Watson was congratulating him on the success of starting the IV. Floyd asked, "How long before it’s dark?"
Mr. Watson started to discuss the difference between the setting of the sun, twilight and true darkness. Floyd let him go on just momentarily before demanding, "How long before it’s too dark for Tesla to land?"
"Visual impairment will become significant in 38.34 minutes."
"Any way we can light up the landing area?"
Mr. Watson replied, "I doubt there is time to establish a functional set of runway lights. I can turn on the exterior lights and there is the emergency lantern that should be fully charged. You do not expect the Fixer to return tonight do you?"
"I bet there are a lot more injured and he sure as hell will try and get them to the ship! Where is that lantern? Maybe I can figure a way to create a directional beam to guide him." Floyd retrieved the lantern and by using a couple of sheets of paper rolled into a tube, he fashioned a directional light of sorts. When Mr. Watson announced that the video was again active Floyd glanced at the clock. It would be dark long before Tesla could arrive. He asked, "What is the moon like tonight?"
"The moon will not rise for 4.56 hours from now."
"Can you create a moving map of his route with elevation info?’
Mr. Watson said, "I can create the feature but cannot certify the accuracy to more than 500 feet because of our limited data."
"That'll have to be good enough. I'm going to have to talk Tesla to the ship and landing. Display the map and his position."
When Mr. Watson said he had contact, Floyd said, "Tesla, it’s going to be dark soon and you are going to have to listen to me." The world was bobbing up and down as the Fixer nodded in agreement. "I want you to turn a little to the right. Good, now level your wings." Floyd let the Fixer relax just for a moment before saying, "Now I want you to practice by closing your eyes and holding the stick very gently." Again the bobbing but now the airplane started to veer to the right and Floyd said, "Gently apply a little back pressure on the stick and turn a bit to the left…not that much. Good, are your eyes still closed?" The answer was more bobbing and Floyd said, "Now I want you to pull back the power like you were going to land."
Mr. Watson's display showed a gradual descent and Tesla was keeping the plane pretty level. "OK, now back to cruise power. You need a little more right rudder." Tesla seemed to be doing OK, so Floyd told him to open his eyes and fly as long as he could and as darkness descended he would take over. Floyd looked at the clock; they had about 20 minutes before Tesla would really need his help. He asked Mr. Watson if he could talk to Tesla from the landing area.
Mr. Watson said, "If you hadn't kept picking at your electrodes I would have been able to relay your messages but we have no way of doing a relay now. You will need to be in the ship."
"Ok. I will go position the lantern and you turn on every outside light you can. And keep an eye on Tesla."
"That will mean we have to reduce our energy consumption because your navigation is requiring almost full CPU usage."
Floyd checked on Lina who gave him a small wave of the tip of her tail as he set out to set up the lantern with a projected glide path of 15 degrees. By the time he had stabilized his light and got back to the ship it seemed like it was already pretty dark. Mr. Watson said that Tesla was still 30 minutes out but was having some trouble keeping the airplane steady. Floyd looked at the screen and could see that the gyrations were setting in. Once visual reference is lost almost all pilots will lose their orientation in just a few minutes with wild gyrations eventually destroying their ability to fly.
Floyd took a deep breath and took on the persona of an LSO. He told Tesla, "Relax your grip on the stick and use a little less rudder. Now turn a little to the right. That’s good, now bring the stick back to the middle but do not pull back. Your speed is good but you are climbing slightly so a bit less pressure on the stick." Soon the teamwork was paying off and the gyrations ceased. Floyd asked Mr. Watson to turn on the lights and told Tesla, "Look straight ahead and you will see some lights." At first there was no response and then the bobbing began. "Head towards the lights but do not descend."
Tesla was able to stabilize his course now that he had a reference point but kept losing altitude. Floyd kept after him to keep the nose up. Tesla did as he was told but the plane just kept slowing. Floyd asked Mr. Watson, "Is he running out of juice?"
Mr. Watson replied, "I have no method of determining the residual power but his trajectory would indicate this to be the case."
"Will he make it?"
"If he lands in your normal area he has an 87.84% chance of having insufficient energy reserves. It would be preferable if he landed to the north of our hill."
"Shit, I have the glide slope light pointed the wrong way! Can you guide Tesla while I move the light?"
"Is it necessary?
"Even experienced pilots cannot land in the darkness without instruments or lights…yes, he needs the light. When he sees the beam he is to fly into the light and cut power when he is about 50 feet above ground. Make sure he keeps the nose up."
Floyd rushed out of the ship and ran down the hill to grab his light. Then back up the hill and down the north side with a few good tumbles on the way. He was breathing way too hard and was a bit dizzy but set the lantern pointed towards the north at the 15 degrees of elevation.
He did not see or hear the airplane until he saw a reflection just before the airplane landed, or rather, semi crashed. Floyd grabbed the lantern and headed to the airplane. It was sitting on its nose with the tail in the air but at least it was still upright. He pulled the tail down to the ground and helped Tesla out of
the cockpit. Tesla was shaken up but did not seem injured.
In the back were three more Fixers piled in like baggage. None seemed conscious and all had blood splattered everywhere. Floyd picked up the closest Fixer and had Tesla carry the light. When they got to the ship he made Tesla stay inside until Lina could have a look at him. He went back into the darkness and decided to try and carry both of the Fixers and the light. This did not work so well. Halfway up the hill he was out of breath and had to lay one of the Fixers on the ground. This time he just put the Fixer in the airlock and figured Lina and Tesla could manage from there. When Floyd entered the ship with the last of the injured he could not find any place to sit but the control seat in the cockpit. Lina brought him a large drink of water. He said, "Thanks. I would rather have a beer but this will have to do."
Floyd inspected the mayhem filling his ship and asked Tesla, "Isn't there a Fixer doctor?" Tesla nodded his head and pointed to the unconscious Fixer on Floyd's berth. "That’s just great. We have a doctor but he has a fractured skull and is unconscious. Well, let's get to work."
Tesla seemed to have recovered fairly well and helped with the sewing. Floyd had used up all the skin staples in his emergency kit and now it was needle and thread. Lina would clean the wounds and he and Tesla would do their best to sew them shut. Mostly they were head wounds from being thrown from their simple airplanes with broken arms and legs to make it interesting. When they had done all they could Lina said, "You must get some rest."
Floyd responded, "I think you are right but you need some rest too. Mr. Watson, you have the watch." The only problem was that the ship was filled with the injured and the only space left was the small cockpit. Floyd sat in the control seat and Lina snuggled next to him mostly sitting on his lap. They were both exhausted and sleep came quickly. Floyd awoke a few times to shift the weight of his wife, and to reposition her tail which kept brushing up against his face when she dreamed.
Floyd awoke in the morning with the need to satisfy nature's call but could not get up without waking Lina. She at first curled up on the seat by herself and then began to think of the injured and was awake. She checked quickly and could only tell that all of the injured were still breathing, but Tesla was nowhere to be found. She made them each a small pancake out of the green goo and heated some coffee for Floyd. They ate standing up because there was nowhere to sit. They shared the breaking of the fast and as Floyd sipped his coffee they discussed what needed to be done. Lina would stay in the ship and do her best to care for the injured. Mr. Watson was tasked to come up with plans for expanding the fermentation of the green goo. Floyd would collect another bucket of green goo after figuring out what Tesla was up to. Mr. Watson had many questions on the design specifications but Floyd could only say, "As big as you can make it using simple materials and with the energy we have." He asked Mr. Watson, "Any idea where Tesla is?"
"The Fixer headed towards the airplane in the drone but he is out of sight of my cameras."
Floyd started to head out carrying the bucket and seine. He stopped to look at the awareness in the tub and said, "I would return you to the lake or bring you some of the green goo." He stared at the tentacle which seemed to unwind as Floyd spoke to it and heard in his head that the awareness wished to stay and observe. Before heading out the airlock, Floyd gave Lina a hug and patted her pregnant belly ball, which now seemed to overwhelm all of her other features. He worked his way down the hill and found Tesla working on the airplane. He had used the last of his duct tape to repair the damaged wings and was busy with his little hammer straightening the prop.
Floyd inspected the repairs which looked marginal but when he flexed the wings they seemed secure. The prop was another matter, for no matter how skilled the Fixer was with his hammer, the metal had suffered and Floyd doubted it could take much more strain. He asked Tesla, "Do you have to fly it again?"
Tesla looked up from his work and his eyes told the story. He had to help those who had escaped. Floyd understood but set some limits saying, "Full power only for takeoff, and then no more than half power. You can only carry one other with yourself in the airplane." He was going to go on about the danger of the prop breaking in flight and how much risk Tesla was taking but the look he had seen told him it did not matter. The Fixer needed to help. He wished Tesla good luck and headed to the lake. The wind from the mountain collapse had pushed much of the surface slime to their end of the lake and it took less than an hour for Floyd to fill his bucket. He was tempted to wade deeper just to see if the hectopus was still interested in him but knew that he had to get the food back to the ship.
Floyd found Lina sitting on their berth talking to the female. Lina said, "Her name is Maurine. She is the geologist you saw in the debate." Floyd simply nodded in their direction and filled the fermenting container with the green goo he had collected keeping a small cup for the awareness. He dumped it into the container and said, "You’ll have to wait for your fresh water until things settle down." He then stood by the berth and let Lina formally introduce Maurine.
Maurine said, "I awoke and found myself in this ship and then I knew that the rumors of a giant from space were true." Floyd had to smile at the image of himself as a giant and he said, "I was sent as an emissary from my world to help, but The People rejected me." He asked, "Why would The People not listen to you?"
Her voice broke as she replied, "The scientific consensus said that the core was stable and my gravitational readings were being misinterpreted because my results did not agree with standard theory. The chair of the geology department even barred me from presenting my work." She was quiet for some time and Floyd thought she had fallen back asleep when she whispered, "I tried and tried, but they would not listen to me. When the ground started to shake, some Fixers grabbed me and carried me to the top of the mountain. They put me on this thing with wings and others picked it up and pushed us off the cliff. I screamed but I was too scared to do anything but hang on. We were headed towards the ground and then the rocks hit us. I woke up here."
Mr. Watson interrupted them saying, "Tesla is returning and seems to have company."
"What do you mean he has company?"
There are two other airplanes following close behind him. Floyd thought for a moment and asked, "Is he towing the gliders?"
"My long range sensors cannot pick up that much detail but it would be a logical conclusion."
Floyd tried to figure out how they would have launched the simple gliders and remembered what Maurine had said about her rescue. He told Mr. Watson, "I bet they hooked up the gliders and the Fixers ran along holding them up until they were airborne. Does he have enough reserve to land behind the hill?"
"Tesla is not wearing the helmet and I can receive no information about the plane's status. Based on his previous trips I would expect his energy is running low but cannot be sure."
Floyd grabbed the lantern and headed out the airlock and down the hill. He began flashing the lantern off and on hoping Tesla would spot the light and head directly to the ship. It seemed a long time before he finally spotted the airplane and it was moving awfully slow with two gliders strung out behind it. He wanted to shout out, "Keep your speed up and don't let the nose get too high" but knew it would be of no help. As the plane got closer he could see it was just wallowing through the air right on the verge of a stall. Now he could not help himself and was yelling for all he was worth, "Keep the speed up; do not let the plane stall!"
As Tesla began to pitch down for landing his speed may have increased the tiniest amount but still far too close to a stall for Floyd's comfort. It was a bouncy landing and the gliders both over flew the plane which caused the tail to spin around, but thankfully Tesla had already cut the power. The gliders did a low altitude crash as the tow rope jerked them back 180 degrees. The sudden stop threw the passengers to the ground but the velocities were fairly mild and probably did not add to their injuries. Some of the inj
ured could walk and followed Tesla to the unfinished dome. Floyd carried the others one at a time laying them on the ground inside the dome. Lina came out to help organize things and together they started giving first aid.
Tesla left immediately with the drone to recharge the airplane. As he was leaving Floyd yelled, "Wear the damn helmet!"
Tesla turned and waved as he proceeded back to the airplane leaving Floyd and Lina the task of tending the wounded. They did their best to clean the wounds and suture them closed but Lina was having a hard time bending over. Floyd started picking the Fixers up and putting them on the rock center support steps. The rock was hard but now Lina could work without bending over. Tesla made his return a bit before dark with two more gliders in tow. His landing was a little smoother and he turned the airplane to the side as soon as it slowed which softened the braking of the gliders. Most of the passengers were still thrown free but it was a little gentler.
Now Floyd and Lina were using the lantern to repair what they could but much would need to be left undone until morning light. Tesla finally stopped long enough to have something to eat and then collapsed on his sleeping mat wedged between two injured Fixers. Floyd and Lina soon followed and curled up in the control seat.