Chapter 11: A Crazy Plan and an Almost Fatal Mistake
Jack ran for his tool box and set to work. He plopped down in front of the Rift Manipulator and opened the control panel, revealing a jumbled collection of colored wires.
"Am I the only one who thinks that this is a terrible idea? Do you not remember the last time we messed with that thing? It's dangerous and we should just leave it alone!" Gwen shot at Jack, who ignored her. "JACK!" Gwen hollered. "Don't worry I know what I'm doing," he called over his shoulder. He cocked his head, getting a different angle of the mess of wires; the convoluted mess of colors made his head swim. He reached out to gingerly touch several wires, then pulled his hand back, not knowing which wires to pull out; he repeated this action two more times.
"Need a hand?" Odessa asked, taking a seat next to him. Jack straightened his shoulders. "No, I got this," he grunted, reaching for several wires. "Okay…" Odessa sang. She watched him move wires from hand to hand, muttering noisily to himself; she laughed out loud; he shot her a glare. He sat staring at the tangled jumble of wires in his hands for several more minutes. "Fine, you try…" he threw up his hands and moved over.
Odessa rubbed her hands together and took a closer look. Rhys stood and handed his sleeping daughter to his wife. "Need anything?" he asked, kneeling next to the open tool box. Odessa smiled and crinkled her nose. "No, thanks," she replied, "I got this." She held up what looked like a large pen. "What's that?" he asked. "Sonic screwdriver," she replied with a smile, watching Jack. Jack's mouth fell open, a quizzical look on his face. "Where were you keeping that?" Odessa laughed musically. "Wouldn't you like to know…"
She turned her attention back to the control panel. She moved wires, banging on the controls and hummed absently to herself.
Jack huffed loudly. She glanced sideways at him and smiled. "Would you like to have a go?" Odessa asked, offering him the sonic.
His eyes lit up with excitement and glee. "Would I?!" he took it from her hand, cradling it gently in his hands, a large smile on his face. He giggled like a happy child, playing with a brand new toy.
Odessa rolled her eyes and pushed Jack out of the way. "Rhys, could you help me over here?" Rhys' eyes grew wide and he hopped happily over. "What do you need?" he asked, wanting to help. Gwen rolled her eyes, still fuming, and shifted her grip on the child in her arms.
"Alright, I need you to grab the green wire and the blue wire," she instructed, pointing to the exact wires she needed. "Alrighty," Rhys reached in the control panel. "But be extra sure not to…" she started; her face fell. "Be sure not to what?" he asked, looking back at Odessa. "Cross the two wires," she winced, seeing the two wires entangled in Rhys' right hand.
"Uh-oh!" Rhys giggled nervously. "What's going on?" Gwen spat through gridded teeth, clutching the still sleeping baby tightly. Odessa took in a deep breath. "Okay, nobody panic. It's – uh – not that bad…" she lied nervously, running a hand through her tussled and wind-blown blonde hair. "Odessa?" Jack grabbed her and pulled her close. "How bad is this, exactly?" "On a scale of one to total obliteration?" she whispered so only Jack could hear.
She clapped her hands together and plastered on a big fake smile. "No worries. I can so fix this," she nodded, "I think," she winced, kneeling down next to Rhys. "You THINK?!" Gwen boomed, jarring her daughter.
Odessa ignored Gwen's outburst. "Jack, I'm going to need some clamps and a pair of pliers," Odessa called over her shoulder. Not saying a word, Jack hurried out of the room. Gwen squeezed her daughter tightly in her arms, biting her fingernails in agitation. "Okay, Rhys, I'm going to need you to sit very still; can you do that for me?" Odessa cooed softly at Rhys. Rhys shook his head very slowly, sweat beginning to drip down his face.
"Odessa?" Gwen stated, clearly nervous behind the two on the floor. Odessa smiled at Rhys, placing a hand gently on his shoulder; she then stood, walking over to Gwen. "Take a breath and try not to worry, Gwen. It's not as bad as you're probably thinking."
Gwen swallowed hard and nodded, trying to remain calm; mostly for Rhys' sake. "Right. It's just…" she started. Odessa smiled again. "I promise nothing's going to happen to Rhys. I won't let it."
"Got them!" Jack barreled down the stairs, waving the clamps and pliers high in the air. "Good," Odessa turned her attention back to Rhys. She grabbed the equipment from Jack and sat back down on the floor. Gwen paced nervously.
Odessa laid the pliers on the floor, holding the clamps, staring intently at the jumble of wires in Rhys' large hands. "I wish I had my Zeus plugs. They'd fix everything…" she squinted, crinkling her nose. She muttered incoherently to herself. There was a deafening silence for several heartbeats. "You ready?" Odessa broke the silence, turning to Rhys questioningly. He drew in a ragged breath and nodded once, his jaw clenched. She nodded back. Rhys squeezed his eyes shut tightly, bracing himself for what came next.
In a few quick movements she had the clamps attached and had cut the wires. "Done!" Odessa beamed. Gwen let out the breath she had been holding. Rhys slowly opened his eyes.
"See, now that wasn't so bad, was it?" Jack clapped a hand on Rhys' shoulder. Odessa half-smiled and shook her head. Rhys let out the breath he had been holding, wiping beads of sweat from his forehead. He scooted back, unable to stand quite yet and slowly opened his clenched hand letting the cut pieces he held fall soundlessly on the concrete floor.
Odessa picked the pliers up again, stripping the exposed wires up to the clamps, and wound them together, careful not to let opposing colors touch.
"Still want to help me?" she turned to Rhys, smiling warmly. He shook his head vehemently scooting away. "I will," Jack sidled up next to her, "if you still need a hand?"
She turned to face him and smirked. "I'd never say no to a hand from Captain Jack."
Gwen rolled her eyes and scoffed. Rhys, who had just found feeling back to his legs, stood shakily and grabbed his wife and daughter, pulling them to him tightly. Gwen squeezed her husband back just as hard. "You scared me," she whispered, nuzzling his neck. "I scared me, too," he responded squeezing his family tighter; his daughter squirmed under the pressure of the tight embrace.
"Sonic here, here, and…here," Odessa instructed her assistant. Jack happily obeyed; excited beyond belief to be using a sonic screwdriver. "Okay, so I think…" Odessa checked the wires and circuits one last time. "Yes, that will do it!" she smiled, closing the metal hatch and standing gracefully. "See, now that wasn't so hard, was it?"
Gwen glared at her, her eyes narrowing. Rhys shook his head; he couldn't help but smile a little. Odessa shrugged her shoulders sheepishly. "What?"
