Chapter 23 – Sleuth or Dare
"I guess this is it," said Mrs. Sorenson, looking back at her children.
"Good luck, you guys," said Bracken, giving Kendra a firm hug.
Kendra hugged him back. "I'm scared. I don't really want to have to do this."
"If nobody stands up to Matthew and Hespera soon, they may become unstoppable. Please go. For all of us."
"We're going to be extra careful," said Warren. "No playing around. We're going directly after them and taking names."
"First, we'll both go out and pick up any supplies we may need," said Grandpa. "Our group will travel to a shopping centre near Fablehaven, so that we can later travel there without need of the Translocator. The other group will travel to the Knights of the Dawn's private armory to equip themselves with any gear that they should need."
"Anytime you folks are ready," said Grandma.
Kendra and Seth watched as Grandpa twisted the Translocator in his hands. Grandma, Warren, Dale, Mr. and Mrs. Sorenson, Bracken, Trask, Lance and David all huddled around him and stuck a hand out towards the Translocator. Soon there was a flash of light, and the entire group vanished before their eyes.
Several seconds later, Warren reappeared via the Translocator, but had come back alone. "Well, looks like we'll be on our own, now."
"So, where is this armory?" asked Clover.
"It's probably in some far-off, remote location that's hard to reach," said Seth.
"Nope," replied Warren. "It's in New Jersey."
"What's New Jersey?" asked Raxtus, who was now his full size again, along with Geminus. "Something humans wear?"
"It can be. But it's also a place that the Knights of the Dawn keep a secret. "Since I've been there before, we can can just travel there right now using the Translocator."
Warren twisted the Translocator, gesturing for everyone else to circle around him and touch it.
"Let's do this," said Kendra, placing her fingers upon one end of the Translocator.
Seth, Bright, Clover, Raxtus and Geminus all touched the Translocator in unison, and were soon pulled in through the artifact's power along with Warren.
The group then reemerged in a small storage room, possibly a basement of sorts, lined with several rows of small shelves.
"It's pitch black down here!" exclaimed Seth, indicating to Kendra that there was no source of light for him to see with.
"You can't see in the dark?" asked Raxtus. "Even as a dragon?"
"Well, I can't see a thing either," noted Warren. "But you don't hear me panicking."
"Here you go," said Bright, as she conjured up a glowing sphere of light. It's luminescence was strong enough to allow Seth and Warren to see what was in the room.
"I think the light switch is over there," said Warren, making his way over to a doorway and flicking on a switch. In an instant, the entire room had been lit up.
Seth and Kendra took the time to glance at the shelves. Some were lined with cardboard boxes, while others contained thick books. Interestingly enough, the place appeared to be well-kept; there did not appear to be any dust or cobwebs.
"Here we go," said Warren, hoisting a bazooka over his head. "I found the weapons."
"What is that thing?" asked Clover.
"It's a bazooka. It's for shooting people."
"Don't you humans already have those things called guns for that? And aren't those usually smaller?"
"Yeah, well I like to grab the bull by the horns..."
Clover shrugged. "All right, Warren. I'll store it for you."
Clover then placed her hand on the bazooka and focused. The weapon then disappeared.
"I feel faint," said Clover, as Warren presented a machine gun to the Fairy Angel.
"That better not be another weapon," said Bright.
"Look, we need to be prepared," stated Warren, as he handed the machine gun over to Clover. Despite her best efforts, Clover was unable to do anything with the machine gun.
"It won't work!" exclaimed Clover. "I just don't have the power in me to do it."
Bright crossed her arms and sighed. "I was afraid of this."
"What's going on?" asked Seth.
"These are weapons. And dealing with weapons like guns goes against our code of honor. In short, the more weapons we possess, the weaker our magic becomes."
"Will Clover be okay?" asked Geminus.
"I'm all right," stated Clover. "I just don't think I could store anything else."
"I bet that if Clover got rid of that bazooka, she'd be better," said Bright.
"Well, it'd help to have one weapon," said Warren. "I guess I was getting carried away."
"Well, I can still manage with just the bazooka," said Clover.
"Good," said Bright. "But no more weapons."
"Well, how about a drink?" said Seth. "I know of one called a Molotov cocktail..."
"Seth, don't try to sound clever," said Kendra, interrupting her brother. "Unless you actually intended to drink one of those."
"No more weapons," said Warren assuredly. "We'll store the rest of our stuff inside of bags or let Bright hold onto it."
Kendra and Seth watched as Warren grabbed several empty backpacks off of the shelves and proceeded to fill them with gear including rope, sleeping bags, flashlights and tools.
"Why so much stuff?" asked Kendra. "I thought we were just going to track them down and defeat them."
"That may not be as easy as it sounds," said Warren. "We really need to be ready for anything, especially if this whole thing doesn't go as planned."
Before long, three backpacks had been stocked full of supplies and other gear. Bright had also been given several things to hold onto as well, including Vasilis.
"Looks like we're ready to go," said Warren.
"Wait a minute," said Seth. "How come we can just come in here, raid whatever we want, and vamoose?"
"I have clearance to be in here anyway," said Warren. "Besides, checking in to come here takes forever,"
Warren then pulled out the Translocator and used it. The whole group was hurled through space, only to arrive in an alleyway between two buildings somewhere.
"Where... are we?" asked Geminus, coming to her senses.
"Outside of a supermarket," said Warren. "Just gonna pick up a few things before we're off for real."
The others waited in the alleyway as Warren went around the corner and into the store. Several minutes later, he returned holding two bags of groceries.
"We should be good now," said Warren, handing the bags to Bright, who transported them away for safe keeping. "Now, let's head off to Europe once and for all."
As Warren wound up the Translocator and held it out for everyone to grab, Kendra couldn't help but overcome the sinking feeling that was growing in her stomach. Every action they did was taking them one step closer to coming face to face with Matthew and Hespera.
Soon the group traveled through the use of the Translocator again, and suddenly found themselves standing inside a public bathroom.
"What is this place?" asked Raxtus, gazing around in confusion.
"Not so loud," said Warren under his breath. "Others might be here."
Kendra looked around and could see urinals lined up against a wall, then heard a toilet flush. "Uh, why exactly are we in a men's bathroom?"
"Because I'd get a lot of strange looks if I used the women's room," replied Warren. "Those who can hide themselves, please do."
Bright and Clover shrunk down to their smaller sizes, while Geminus also transformed down into her smaller, fairy form. Raxtus, however, just rendered himself invisible.
A stall opened up, and a man in business attire stepped out. He glanced at Seth, Kendra and Warren. "What's going on here?" asked the man in a British accent. "And what is a girl doing in here? And is that an animal?"
The man pointed at Seth.
"There was a huge line for the ladies' room," quipped Warren. "Please forgive her."
"I see," said the man suspiciously, as he walked over to the sink to wash his hands. "I could have sworn I heard a lot of noise, but not the door. Then I step out and see just you three."
"Uh, sorry if we startled you," said Kendra.
"Well, do your business and be on your way. Most men don't take kindly to having women around when they go to the loo."
The man dried his hands off and proceeded to walk towards the door, only to trip over on Raxtus' invisbile tail and fall to his face.
"WHAT WAS THAT?" screamed the man. "I know I hit something!"
"Uh oh," said Raxtus softly.
"Watch your step," said Warren, signalling for the others to follow him out of the bathroom. Once he got to the doorway, Raxtus shrank down to his fairy form and joined the others.
"Sorry," said Warren. "But I don't know what caused you to fall."
The group then spurted out of the bathroom and were soon standing in the hallway of an airport terminal.
"All right," said Seth. "Where are we?"
"London Heathrow Airport," said Warren. "I've been here before, and I have a feeling that this is where Matthew and Hespera are headed."
"I remember this place!" said Kendra. "This is where we stopped over on our way back from Pileus Palace."
"I figured there was a good chance that they might be coming here, and since this is a place I've already visited, I figured it was worth a shot."
"How can we be sure that they will in fact come here?" asked Seth, as the group walked over to some vacant chairs and sat down.
"Just a hunch. This is a major airport and lots of people come here to transfer between flights."
"But how will that help us find them? We still don't know for sure if they are even headed this way."
"That's where the Oculus will come into play," said Warren. "Kendra will need to keep an eye on them. But let's get out of this busy hallway first. We already caused enough ruckus with that one guy in the washroom."
"Um, I don't know how others see me as I am now, but a dragon can't just run around in public like this!" exclaimed Seth. "The guy in the bathroom was bad enough, but now everyone's gonna stare at me."
"We can use our magic to give you the illusion of your human form," said Bright. "But people who are either powerful or know the truth will see through it."
"Use it," said Seth. The fairies responded by using their power, but it was impossible for them to tell if anything had changed.
Warren led Kendra and Seth through the terminal, where they arrived at a very fancy-looking restaurant. The tables were made of glass, and all the booths contained plump, black leather seats. When they entered, the head waiter took a good, strong look at the trio, eyeing their appearance rather sternly. He was probably expecting customers who wore more formal clothing.
"Table for three?" he asked.
Warren agreed. A waitress then directed them to a table where they were seated and presented a menu to each of them.
"Can I get you three anything to drink?" she asked.
"Just some water for now, please," said Warren, as the waitress walked off.
"Warren, why'd you bring us to a place like this?" asked Seth. "Everything seems so posh and exquisite. I'd have settled for a burger and fries."
"I needed a place for us to go where there wouldn't be too much action. And given that it's past lunch hour in this time zone, I'd figure that an expensive restaurant wouldn't attract too many clients, and that we could sit here in peace."
Seth skimmed through the menu. "Hey, they serve pheasant under glass here! Too bad we already ate not too long ago!"
"Forget about food," said Warren. "We're here to get away from the crowd and let Kendra keep a close watch on Matthew and Hespera."
"I didn't check on them too long ago," said Kendra. "And they're probably still a few hours away from Europe right now."
"Just do a quick check on them right now. See if you can deduce where the plane is headed."
Kendra removed the Oculus from her bag and placed it down on the table. She then placed her hands down upon it.
"Hold it," said Warren. "We're trying to keep a low profile. Hold the Oculus in your lap."
"What if someone sees me?"
"We're still here, you know," said Bright, whose voice was coming from below. Kendra, Seth and Warren all glanced under the table and saw all four of their small fairy friends loitering around.
"If someone tries anything funny, we'll protect you," said Raxtus.
"But still, hold the Oculus in your lap," said Warren. "Either way, the less attention you draw, the better."
Kendra nodded and responded by moving the Oculus onto her lap. She then closed her eyes and envisioned the plane that Matthew and Hespera were riding. Sure enough, the two of them were still on board. When she retracted her view away from the interior of the plane, Kendra could tell that they were still en route to Europe. Backing away from Earth a fair bit, Kendra could see that the plane was over the Atlantic Ocean, and was more than halfway across between the shores of Canada and Ireland. Kendra could also see that the plane was nearing the longitude of Iceland, which was more to the north.
Kendra then released her grasp on the Oculus and opened her eyes.
"You okay?" asked Seth.
"Yeah."
Warren pulled out a map of the Atlantic Ocean and presented Kendra with a pen. "Can you try to pinpoint where exactly the plane was?"
Kendra accepted the pen and drew an X where she recalled the plane had been. According to the map, the plane was at roughly 51 degrees north latitude, 24 degrees west.
"I'd say they're due to arrive here in about two hours or so," said Warren. "That is, of course, if they're even coming this way."
Soon a waitress arrived and placed a plate of thick, oily onion rings down on the table.
"I ordered something while you were busy," said Seth, picking up one of the onion rings. "Hey, they didn't give me any ketchup!"
At that moment, a bottle of ketchup magically materialized on the table.
"Cool!" exclaimed Seth.
"You're welcome..." said Bright impatiently.
"I'd rather you four would conserve your power," said Warren, trying not to speak too loudly.
Kendra placed the Oculus down on the table and looked around warily, then let out a sigh of relief. "Well, now what do we do?"
Warren grabbed the ketchup bottle and poured a dob of it onto his plate. "I think our best option is to just wait out their arrival, keeping an eye on them periodically."
"If only there was a way to tell which plane they were on," said Seth. "I mean, we can't get the Oculus to pick up sound, so it's not like Kendra can listen in on the passengers, the pilots or their radio. And as far as we're concerned, without any way to tell, a plane is just a plane."
The three humans rested their hands down on the table in silence. There wasn't much they could do but wait.
"Seth, that's it!" said Warren suddenly. "Airplanes have registration numbers printed right on them, for identification purpose. They're like the equivalent of license plates!"
Kendra's face lit up. "So you're saying, that if I use the Oculus again and inspect the plane more thoroughly, I should be able to find a number I can use?"
Warren grinned. "Right. And if we know the number, we can ask a clerk if they can do a cross-reference to find out where that plane is going! Kendra, I ask that you use the Oculus again, just to see if you can spot that number. It's probably underneath a wing or on the fuselage near the tail"
"Okay," said Kendra, picking up the Occulus and closing her eyes. As she wasn't too familiar with the plane itself, she had to picture Matthew and Hespera, sitting on their seats on-board the plane. It didn't take long as their image shifted from Kendra's imagination to being a solid sight in her mind.
Kendra focused away from the interior of the plane, and was now looking at the plane from a distance, as it continuously soared through the sky. Warren had said something about the number either being underneath the wing or on the fuselage.
Kendra allowed her view to shift underneath the right wing of the plane, but saw nothing. She then shifted to the left wing, but it too was blank. Next, Kendra shifted her view to the fuselage, and sure enough, there was a number printed on it, large enough to be seen from a distance. Or rather a code, since the number contained a few letters. Staring at the number for a few seconds, Kendra concentrated on remembering it in her head.
Kendra then let go of the Oculus, returning her view to the inside of the restaurant. "I got it! Anyone got paper? Quick!"
Warren slid a notepad and a pen across the table to Kendra. "Don't worry, we're ready."
Kendra grabbed the pen and jotted down the number. "That's it, I'm positive."
"Great!" exclaimed Warren. "I'll go to the front desk right now and see if they can identify this plane. I want you two to please stay here until I return. This airport is a huge place and I don't want to lose track of you. Clover, I'd like you to come with me in case I need your assistance."
Clover flew out from underneath the table and landed upon Warren's shoulder. She then vanished from sight.
"I'll try not to be gone too long. Hopefully nothing drastic will happen then."
Warren got up from the table and darted out of the restaurant.
"Now what do we get to do?" asked Seth. "Eating onion rings can keep me happy for only so long."
Before long, the head waiter stepped up to the table, a perturbed look was gleaming in his eyes.
"Excuse me, but would you mind telling me where that man you were with ran off to?"
"Oh..." said Kendra, "he, he just went off to find somebody."
"Well, it's against our policy for customers to leave without paying."
Seth sighed. "What if we pay you? I mean, all I ordered were these onion rings."
"If that's all you're having, your bill comes to six pounds plus tax and gratuity. How would you like to pay?"
"Pounds?" asked Seth, feeling his wallet. "I don't even have much American money on me."
"Me neither," said Kendra, who received a dirty look from the head waiter.
"This whole thing seems suspicious," said the waiter. "That man abandoning you without money. I'm afraid I'm going to have to call airport security."
"No!" said Kendra. "That won't be necessary. He'll be back to pay soon."
"I'm not blaming you children, you're only minors," said the head waiter, removing a phone from his pocket. "But I'm afraid that security will have to seize that man."
At that moment, a rainbow of sparkles shot out from underneath the table and wrapped around the head waiter, before vanishing in a vibrant flash. The waiter then lowered the phone from his face, and appeared to be in a stupor of sorts.
"Sir, are you okay?" asked Kendra.
"I am fine," replied the waiter in a rather monotonous voice.
"Great," said Seth wearily. "Would you just leave us alone?"
"Sure," said the waiter. "I will leave you alone."
The waiter then walked off, as if he no longer had any concern over what Seth and Kendra were up to.