Henry took a moment to think about his options. Then he sighed.
This was definitely a chance to get out of here. There's no way he could say no at this point. But he'll have to be careful, just in case... after all, it's still a possibility that Tobias could be lying to him.
"Fine ..." he mumbled.
The young man titled his head in confusion. "Pardon?"
"F-fine," Henry repeated. "C-can you get me out n-now?"
With a nod, Tobias walked over to what seemed to be a control panel. He started to type on its keys, and the screen flashed.
The lasers on Henry's cell flickered, then shut off completely. The shackles on Henry's hands snapped open and crashed to the floor. He rubbed his wrists. Now that his hands were free, he didn't have to talk anymore. He made gestures to Tobias, signing, "What now?"
Tobias grabbed Henry's arm and pulled him to his feet. "Now, Mr. Stickmin, we get back that gizmo of yours."
The sky was a deep, dark bluish-black as the moon rose over the ocean. The helicopter had been airborne for hours now, and Ellie was starting to get tired.
She yawned, stretching out her arms. She looked over at Charles, who was staring blankly through the cockpit window. "Charles, its already dark. Maybe we should rest and continue tomorrow."
"No." Charles gripped tighter on to the steering wheel. "I will not sleep until we find Henry."
Ellie sighed, unbuckling her seat harness and lifted herself up. "At least have a break from flying," she suggested. "You've been at it for hours."
When Charles didn't answer, Ellie sighed again.
"We'll, I'm definitely gonna hit the sack. Put the chopper on auto once you're ready to do the same." With that, she disappeared to the back of the helicopter.
About two hours had passed, and Charles' eyes were starting to dry out. And the sound of Ellie's snoring only made him even more tired.
Maybe Ellie is right... He thought.MaybeIshould take a nap or something.
Charles flipped a switch on the dash, switching it to Auto Pilot. He didn't leave where he sat, however. Instead, he continued to stare out the helicopter's windows, taking in the view.
He took notice of how the sky faded from a deep dark blue, and how the shimmering stars littered it like glitter on black paper. He glanced up at the moon, which wasn't quite full, but was very close. The moon reflected off of the surface of the ocean, the light dancing with the waves.
Please be okay, Henry. Please be okay ...
His eyelids started to close.
He jolted up in surprise when he felt his headset start to vibrate. He fumbled with the headphones and hit a button. "Hello?" He asked into his microphone, quiet enough to not wake Ellie.
"Charlie!" A gruff voice was heard in his ears. "I got a report from Quentin that you took one ofthehelicopters without permission! What were you thinking!?"
Oh, jeez ...I'min trouble now ...
"I-I'm sorry, General ... it was kinda an emergen-"
Galeforce interrupted him. "Emergency or not, you still went against protocol! Turn around and headbacktobaseright now!" Charles heard him groan on the other end of the line. "I swear, Henry andEllieare bad influences on you ..."
Charles opened his mouth, wanting really badly to say "Henry is in trouble! I was only trying to help!"
But instead, he stayed silent.
"Charlie?" The general called to him. "Charlie, answer me. Charles Calvin! respond!"
Charles felt a lump in his throat and gulped it down.
I'm sorry, dad ...
The young pilot flicked up his microphone, ending the call permanently.