The Rescuers
Chapter 60
LX
Eight hours had passed since Max and the others had begun to wake up from their stupor after partaking of Jim's unusual Thanksgiving Day Nan-Torel split-tail turkey dinner. The "turkey," which was entirely harmless to full-Antarians and to anyone else born on Antar, had rendered the "earthlings," including Kyle, Alex, Max, Isabel, Michael, Amy, and Tess, along with Jim and Kathleen and Dan and Diane, effectively unable to think of anything but love… then sleep. Kyle's wife, Jeliya, and Tess' husband, Rayylar, who were full Antarians and therefore unaffected by the turkey, had decided to just go with the flow and enjoy their mates' affectionate "condition" while it lasted. In fact, Jeliya and Rayylar had gladly accepted leftovers to take home with them when Kathleen had offered them some.
Perhaps the most surprising thing, though, was that, unlike with drugs or alcohol, once the effects of the turkey had worn off, everyone had awakened clear-minded and feeling refreshed rather than with the expected hangover or headache. Max had been the first to awaken. He had panicked when he realized what had happened, thinking that a considerable amount of time had been lost while they were sleeping off their unusual dinner. He was relieved to learn that only a few hours had passed and they were still on schedule. After a bit of laughing and joking about what had happened, the guests had all freshened up and prepared to return to their own homes. Those going with Max and Michael to earth had said their good-byes to the others and had quickly gathered up their belongings…
Max had turned to Jim again… "Jim, you really should come with us to earth. I don't know why, but I have a feeling you might be needed."
Jim had smiled and shook his head. "You don't need me, Max. You just think you do. I'm sure there's nothing on earth that you and Michael can't handle together. Besides, you're going to an entirely different dimension. You know how freaky it was to me just to leave earth and come here!"
"Yeah, but you'd be going back to earth," Michael replied. "You know earth already. It's not an alien planet to you."
"It's a different dimension… that's alien enough."
"Suit yourself," Max said.
Now Jim was sitting in his favorite chair reading the Antar News, and his guests were gone. He was alone with Kathleen and Danyy, his younger son, who was playing with his pawgor friends out in the yard. Jim looked up and started to say something, but then he looked back at his newspaper.
"What were you going to say, Jim?"
"Aw, it was nothing, Kath."
"Must have been something. You seem to have something on your mind."
Jim folded his newspaper up and laid it beside the chair.
"Do you think I should have gone with them, Kath… to earth… in that Dimension Y or whatever Varec named it?"
"That would have to be your decision," Kathleen said. "We'd miss you here… but if you felt like they needed you…"
"Well, see, that's just it, Kath. I don't know what I'm feeling. It's gnawing at me. I don't know why they'd need me. Max and Michael are quite able to take care of themselves… They don't need me to follow them around and change their diapers. But… something in the back of my mind keeps gnawing at me. Maybe it's some kind of premonition, I don't know."
"Premonitions can be pretty powerful, Jim. I know. Usually, there's a reason for them. Maybe it's because we know something in our minds that we don't want to admit, I don't know, or maybe it's a psychic thing or something." She smiled. "Maybe your turkey made you psychic, Jim."
"That turkey made me a fool," Jim said with an embarrassed laugh.
"Don't be so hard on yourself, Jim. It was a hit. Next year I'll bet they'll all be begging you to have it again."
"And listen to me sing love songs to you again?"
Kathleen laughed. "You have a great voice, Jim. I loved it! So did they."
"They were drunker than I thought," Jim said with a grin. "But they did, didn't they?"
Kathleen nodded.
"Well… we'll see about next year next year. What do I do about this premonition?"
**********
Max looked over the list of supplies and the list of maintenance items that had been done and checked off each item with Varec, as the chief foreman announced that it had been done and checked out. It appeared that everything was in good shape and the new granolith was ready to fly again. Max breathed a deep sigh.
"I don't know why, Michael… but I love this ship! With the spheres, we can go almost anywhere instantly nowadays… without much danger. I thought we might never have a chance to use the new granolith again. To tell you the truth, I'm kind of looking forward to this."
Michael smiled. "I know. We have had a lot of good times on this baby, haven't we?"
Max grinned, and Michael looked back at the ship, his own eyes reflecting more than a bit of admiration for the mammoth vessel that had ferried them to Antar and back to earth several times.
"You'll have twelve days for you and Liz to enjoy the arboretum again," Michael added with a wry grin.
Max cast Michael a sideways glance and smiled slightly. "And I suppose you and Maria were studying the stars all the time up there in the observatory… with Zorel guarding the door…"
Michael shrugged. "Something like that."
Max smiled a knowing smile. "And that rumor about naked mermaids in the pool under the waterfall…"
"I wouldn't know anything about that, Max."
"Jim's Nan-Torel turkey wiped your memory out?"
"That was probably it."
"I thought so."
"But, hey, Max, with Alex and Iz onboard, you know, I practically have to book the observatory several days in advance for Maria and me to get a chance to use it."
"Well, you know how they are about the stars and all, Michael."
"Um hm. Believe me! I know what's going on up there. The stars aren't the only things being studied in there, Max. There's a lot of hands on science going on when Alex and Iz are in there together."
"You're a dirty old man, Michael."
"I resent that! I'm not old! Besides, I'm right."
"Okay, you're a right dirty old man… or young man… whatever."
"Ah ha! You admit it then!"
"That you're a dirty old man? Sure."
"No, that Alex and Iz… you know."
"And Maria's just tutoring you in astronomy when you guys are up there, right?"
"Could be."
"Or could NOT be," Max said with a grin. "Don't play the innocent, Michael. I know you. What do you want?"
"Well… a little more time in the observatory would be nice. Maybe you could help me convince Alex and Iz that there are other places on the ship just as… cozy."
Max smiled. "You'll just have to get there first, Michael. Besides, you and Maria have something to fall back on if the observatory's occupied… you're mermaids. Well… she's a mermaid. I guess you'd be the creature from the black lagoon."
Michael grabbed Max by the throat and pretended to strangle him. "Well, if that's what you want swimming around in the arboretum pool…" He grinned and turned to walk away.
Max stood for a moment, thinking about what Michael had said. Then he shook his head.
"No… No, I'm not getting into this. But that was a damn good argument, Michael!"
Max turned around to see Jim Valenti standing there.
"You still got room for one more, Max?"
Max nodded and gave Jim a friendly slap on the arm. Decided to join us, huh?"
"Yeah, I just keep having this feeling that you guys will need me."
"Well, I told you that, Jim."
"Yeah, I know. But you know I never listen to that kind of stuff, Max."
"So why'd you listen now?"
"I wasn't going to… Call it premonition or something."
"Okay. Call it what you want, Jim. I'm just glad to have you onboard. You coming alone?"
"Yeah, Kath is staying here with Danyy. What about your kids… and Liz?"
"Liz and Maria are coming; the children aren't. We don't know what we might come up against. The palace staff and Kyle and Jeliya are watching them all while we're away. Alex and Isabel are coming. Tess and Rayylar are coming, too…"
"So… you're totally okay with Tess being around now, Max?"
Max shrugged. "Why shouldn't I be? Those things happened a long time ago… in a timeline that doesn't exist anymore. It took me a long time to fully realize that, but I think I do now. I have to judge people for who they are in this life. Besides, Tess has been a big help on our other trips. She probably saved all our lives that time in the mountains. And her abilities can be very useful."
"I can't argue with that."
Varec waved at Max from the entrance to the ship. Max waved back.
"We're ready to take off, Jim. Let's go onboard. I think everyone else is onboard already."
Max took the ascension chamber up to the control deck, where he found Michael preparing for their departure. Max sat down in the pilot's seat and held his hand over a handprint on the control panel for a moment. It began to glow. Michael, in the co-pilot's seat, held his hand over another handprint, and it began to glow, too. Then he inserted a crystal into a pre-formed slot on the control panel, and the huge ship began to rise. The roof of the mammoth hangar-lab had already been rolled back to allow the ship to depart, which was no small operation. The ship measured 178,403 donish, about 15,800 feet –not quite three miles- across and was seven stories high, and the hangar had to be large enough to house it. It always took the better part of an hour just to roll the roof open to allow the ship to depart. The roof opened in concentric sections, like the lens of a camera, each section retracting perfectly into its own individual compartment in the rim.
Now, with the roof fully opened, the ship floated out, rising into the sky above. As it rose, it rotated eighty degrees and began to move forward, turning out over the Golden Sea. The silvery metallic saucer glinted in the sunlight as it made its way gracefully toward the heavens… first slowly… then with a sudden burst of speed that left a beautiful converging contrail of starlight disappearing into the cosmos.
Below the contrail several large birds circled and appeared to interact with some slipstream fighters, small jets that always gave an escort to the Antarian mother ship whenever it left Antarian soil. The birds, with thirty-foot wingspans, were actually slightly larger than the small jet planes that the pilot escorts flew, but the pilots were used to seeing these birds now. The seven pilots all fell into formation, each pilot gave one final salute toward the mother ship, which by now had disappeared into space, then they pulled back on their yokes, sending their jets streaking upward, each one splitting off and falling over like the fire falling from a sparkler. Then they streaked off toward their home base.
The birds, which were once believed to be a myth in Antar, before Max befriended one, circled one final time, offering their own special good-bye to the ship… and to Max in particular. Onboard the ship, far out in space, Max smiled. He and the jah-ee communicated telepathically…
"Thank you, my friends. I will return. I promise."
tbc
Coming: The ship attempts to break through the dimensional barriers, leading to some unexpectedly frightening moments. Onboard the new granolith, the "rescuers" wonder if they will ever get the chance to give that help… or if they'll ever see Antar again.