Location: The Brisby Farm.

Sol 9

"I told you he should have stayed in bed and not go outside!" snapped Mr Ages furiously at Elizabeth. They had awoken that morning to find Timothy burning up again, his pneumonia having returned with a vengeance overnight, as a result of his little stroll through the woods yesterday. When they hadn't show up at the workshop on schedule, Ages had come storming over to the Brisby home, only to find them in a state of emergency, tending to the ailing young mouse, "What were you thinking, woman?!"

Josh had resorted to using his last ampoule of penicillin to bring the boy's fever down again, but it wasn't enough. Although Timmy was comfortable for the moment, from his astronaut medical training, Josh knew that a recurring disease of this kind attacked the host much more viciously on a second attack. The boy's delicate health was hanging by a thread – and once it started declining again, he'd be done for. This required more advanced medical treatment and fast.

"He needs antibiotics," he said, "Our only hope is to get him to the NIMH-One as soon as possible. We have all the necessary facilities onboard ship to treat this thing." Indeed, the NIMH-One, designed to sustain her crew for years out in deep space, where any aid from Earth was impossible, was equipped with a state-of-the-art medical centre, run by the world's leading medical genius. Josh had no doubt his old friend Dr Boniface would be able to treat the youngest Brisby son proper, whether mouse or human.

Hell, Fitzgibbons will probably order good old Gordon to make sure Timmy makes a full recovery, so that he can then use it as a gesture of good will for his diplomacies with Justin's superiors, he thought. Unfortunately, it was easier said than done.

"But that means we'll have to take him with us to Thorn Valley," said Justin with a frown, "How can he travel in this condition?"

"That would be nothing short of suicide, young man," agreed Ages, backing Justin up, "He's lucky to still be alive as it is; another exposure to the chilly air, even a brief one, will kill him for sure! What, do you want him to die...?"

"Die!" cried Elizabeth, clapping her hands over her mouth in horror at the word, "Oh, no…!" She turned to look at her ailing child, who was luckily sleeping soundly and thus hadn't heard any of this, holding back tears of worry. She had only wanted to brighten up Timmy's mood by allowing him a little freedom from his confinement, under the illusion that Josh's 'miraculous' remedies had cured him, and instead had almost sent him to his grave, "What have I done?"

"There's no point wasting time arguing about this," said Josh, somehow managing to retain his calm and think, despite the situation, "If anyone's to blame here, it's me for letting him come joy-riding in the first place. What matters now is that we have a crisis on our hands and precious little time to solve it."

"You sound awfully calm for someone who has a dying boy on his hands…!" commented Brutus, almost accusingly, to Josh, who ignored him and turned to Ages.

"How's the undercarriage getting on?"

"Practically finished," replied the old inventor, "The kingpost is also ready to be mounted, but the dressing of the framework could take another day or two…Why?"

"Because we're at a race against time," explained Josh, "Timmy's survival depends on whether we can finish the glider in time and haul arse to Thorn Valley, to bring back some help…"

"Then you're suggesting that we bring your friends here instead?" asked Justin doubtfully; although obviously far less risky than taking the sick Timmy up on the glider with them, it would still mean a lengthy delay, which they probably couldn't afford. Within three days, Josh figured, Timmy would be delirious, and within another day or two, it would all be over. Meanwhile, there was no more penicillin and Ages' quinine was only a temporary solution.

"It's our only chance, Justin," he said, "We shall have to double our efforts, even if it means working through the night. If we can get the glider done within 24 hours, we can hit the sky with the first favourable wind…"

"Work at night out in the open?" retorted Brutus incredulously, "That would make us sitting targets for owls and other predators…!"

"The more time we waste talking about this, the worst it is for Timmy!" Josh cut him off, tired of Brutus's constant nagging, "We have to get back to work right away. Come on, let's move!" Leaving Timmy under the care of his siblings and Auntie Shrew, the group hurried back to Ages' lab and, with renewed energy, resumed work on the glider.

They worked restlessly through the day. The king-post was mounted and the framework for the inner fuselage built around it. By late evening, the glider's infrastructure had finally taken shape; reinforced with strong parachute cord attached to the king post, the contraption was finally beginning to look like a real aircraft.

It was way past nightfall by the time they dragged the semi-completed structure, now sliding on its own wheels, up the footpath, all the way to the top of the Lee of the Stone, and mooring it securely on the edge of the cliff. The peak of the Lee of the Stone had a slight vertical incline, which would allow them to easily slide the glider over the edge for a freefall when they were ready for takeoff.

Elisabeth had returned to her home to check on the children, returning a short while later with some hot food she had prepared for them, and with the good news that Timmy was awake and doing fine…so far. After dinner, work resumed by torchlight, despite the group's growing weariness and fatigue, constantly reminding themselves that they were on a serious time crunch here, with Timmy's life hanging in the balance.

While Josh and Ages assembled the pilot's control linkages using pulleys and leftover parachute cord, Elizabeth and Justin busied themselves by sewing the neatly cut strips of nylon onto the wooden framework, forming the 'skin' of the fuselage and wings. Brutus worked alone as usual, cutting up a length of strong rope, which would be used to fashion the harnesses they'd need to strap themselves onto the wings for the flight. With a roaring campfire providing light and warmth, as well as keeping any predators at bay, the group worked in silence under the light of the nebulous Nimh-Alpha.

"This is the last one Justin," said Elizabeth, fighting exhaustion and eager to get back home to her children, picking up the last strip of nylon and threading a needle. Meanwhile, Justin, making sure they were out of earshot, and desperate for some distraction from his own growing drowsiness, was trying to make conversation.

"You're in love with him, aren't you?" he asked, catching Elizabeth, who was watching Josh out of the corner of her eye, by surprise. Nursing her finger where she had accidentally pricked herself with the needle, she turned to Justin, blushing with embarrassment.

"Justin, I…" she stammered, pretending she hadn't heard, feeling rather uneasy at discussing this particular subject, "I'm sorry, what did you say?" Justin raised an eyebrow.

"Come on, Biff, I've seen how you keep looking at him," he said with a mischievous grin, "Your eyes practically glow with bliss in his presence…"

"Justin, please," said Elizabeth, feeling herself blushing redder than a tomato; whether Justin was just teasing her or was being serious, she didn't know, but whatever it was he was still pushing her to admitting her true feelings for Josh - something she felt anything but ready to let out just yet. Was she really in love with a human? Or was it just a crush, a childish fantasy, possibly a result of the gaping hole in her heart, which had continuously pained her ever since Jonathan's passing?

"I…I'm not in love with him!" she stammered, in spite of herself, "Besides, does it really matter? Pretty soon, he'll be on his way home and I'll never see him again…" She had to use her every last ounce of willpower to hold back a sob, her heart feeling as if about to break at the very thought of it.

Although, deep down, she knew it wasn't right to be fantasizing of having a relationship with Josh, who wasn't even a fellow mouse to begin with, she just couldn't help but feel a strong bond with this human from the stars deep within her soul. Justin, who seemed to realise that, tried a different approach. After thinking about it for hours last night, he realised the only way to let it off his chest was to come clean about his feelings to Elizabeth and let her choose between him or Josh.

"Biff, I've always had feelings for you too, you know; you have no idea how many times I wanted to ask you to marry me after Jonathan disappeared, but my respect for his memory wouldn't let me." He felt an enormous weight lift off his chest at those words. He watched as an expression of utmost shock appeared on Elizabeth's face. He felt his insides curl up; had he somehow offended her?

"Justin, I…I don't know what to say!" said Elizabeth finally. Although she'd always suspected Justin had a soft spot for her, she had never expected him to confess to such a secret! After all, Rat/Mice relationships were so biased and frowned upon, she knew Justin would be risking his reputation, perhaps his position too, if it came out – and as for her admitting being in love with Josh, a human of Nimh, well, that would be nothing short of blasphemy! She felt as if she were trapped in a triangle of forbidden love; she occupied one corner, while Justin and Josh occupied the other two. As far as she could tell, her heart beat for Josh. But how could see explain it to Justin without hurting his feelings?

"If you really do love him, then you shouldn't wait until it's too late," Justin continued, as if reading her mind, "I do love you dearly, yes, and I'd hoped you could become my wife someday – even if it meant giving up my career as Captain of the Guards. But what I really want for you, Biff, is for you to be happy. And if Josh doesn't secretly feel the same way you do for him, then I've got marbles for eyes… It's up to you to let him open his heart to you, Biff, before you both lose your chance."

Elizabeth was stunned; although she knew Justin to be modest and kind, a gentleman at heart, this was a situation where any male Rat or Mouse for that matter would find it extremely difficult not to hold a grudge.

Justin had only just admitted being in love with her and would understandably want Josh out of the picture, to eliminate the competition; but instead, there he was, urging her to make up her mind whether she truly loved the human and let it out before she lost him forever. Justin was literally resigning himself to the fact that he'd be losing her for good, after having just confessed his love for her, to spare her the guilt of choosing between him and Josh. Elizabeth felt deeply touched.

"Oh, Justin, thank you. Thank you so much for understanding," she said, grabbing him into a hug and kissing him on the cheek. The soldier Rat hugged her back, boring into the warmth of her smaller body.

"You're welcome, Biff."

Nearby, Josh was watching them out of the corner of his eye, feeling rather depressed by what he saw – or rather what he thought he saw. Too far away to overhear what was being said between them, he thought they were professing their love for each other behind his back. His assumption that Elizabeth and Justin might actually have a thing for each other had just been confirmed, and while it saddened him, at the same time, Josh couldn't help but feel maybe it was for the best.

Over the past couple of days, he'd come to the conclusion that Elizabeth wasn't meant for him; he would soon be on his way home, probably never to see this strange planet again, but at least it gave him some comfort knowing that she would be happy after he left. He would always feel for her in his heart; but a relationship between them would only be short-lived, not to mention inappropriate, and would only make it harder for them to part ways without too many tears.

No, it's better like this for the both of us, he thought, returning to his work, pretending he hadn't seen, unaware that Elizabeth was watching him again, her shyness preventing her from running up to him right there and then and professing her love for him in front of everyone…

Unbeknownst to any of them however, the group were being watched by a trio of unfriendly spectators, hiding in the shadows on the edge of the footpath. Jenner, Sullivan and another thickset, mean-looking Rat called Castor, a shadowy ally of Jenner's, were watching the group at work, listening to every word that was being said between them. Attracted by their campfire, which could be seen for miles around, they had come to investigate, only to find the human's secret hiding place at long last.

"It's him, Jenner!" whispered Sullivan to his master, "It's that human! We've found him! And look, it's Justin and Brutus, and Jonathan Brisby's widow. What are they doing with that…that creature? Those traitors have been concealing him all along! We've got to tell the Council now!" He turned to hurry back to their chariots, but his master stopped him.

"Stay right where you are, you fool!" hissed Jenner venomously, "Remember what I said about keeping this a secret?"

"But Jenner, you heard them!" protested Sullivan, "That human means to infiltrate Thorn Valley! You want this...this abomination desecrating the holy Temple of the Great Owl? That would be sacrilege…!"

"Superstitious fool!" sneered Jenner, obviously not the defender of the Rats' most sacred land he passed for, "There's nothing at Thorn Valley but ancient ruins! Only poor Jonathan Brisby ever discovered the true secret of that place, and didn't live long enough to tell the tale… We'll let them reach Thorn Valley – right into our waiting hands!" He turned and whispered something to Castor, so Sullivan couldn't hear.

Nicolas Castor, unlike his associates, wasn't of the Rosebush City Council; a ruthless and bloodthirsty Rat, banished years ago by Nicodemus for various crimes, he was the self-proclaimed leader of the Exiles and Jenner's secret liaison with the bandit clans of the Dark Mountains.

Cruel, sadistic and brutal in every way, Castor was infamous for raids on villages, tortures, murders, kidnapping of women and children for slave trafficking, and with more innocent blood on his hands than any other outlaw alive. In spite of the hefty reward on his head, nobody had ever been able to bring him to justice – and often, mysteriously, died in the attempt -, making him and his clan the greatest enemy of Rosebush City, other than Nimh itself. The evil Rat smiled nastily at his master's instructions.

"Yes, my Lord, we'll see to it."

"See to what?" asked Sullivan suspiciously; unlike his master's secret Exile followers, whom Jenner often enlisted to do his dirty work, Sullivan was always kept out of the loop in such plans because of his 'weak, tender heart', only to learn of their hideous outcomes after they had been carried out. His master, annoyed by his tone of voice, and, as if smelling treason in Sullivan, rounded on him.

"You know what will happen if you dare breathe a word about anything you saw or heard here tonight to anybody," he threateningly reminded his squeamish aid-de-camp, crossing a finger across his throat. Beside him, Castor sinisterly caressed the razor-sharp blade of his sword, a bloodthirsty look in his eyes. Getting the message, Sullivan slowly nodded. If he wanted to live, he'd be quiet as the grave.

"Excellent," said Jenner, giving Sullivan a nasty grin. He turned back to Castor, "Remember, I want you to keep watching their every move, but take no action unless instructed otherwise. The moment they get to Thorn Valley, they're all yours… But make sure you bring in the human alive. Understood?" Castor nodded.

Without another word, the three associates turned and left to set their plans in motion, taking great care not to be seen or heard by any of Josh's group, still slaving away. Sullivan almost ruined everything when he accidentally kicked a pebble down the footpath, the noise carrying all the way up the hill, where Brutus was standing watch by the fire.

Alerted by the sound, the veteran Rat instantly rose to his feet, his eyes scanning the surroundings for danger, but seeing nothing in the dark. Dismissing it as his imagination, he settled back down, hoping those idiots would finish that ridiculous contraption soon, so he could get to bed. Down below, completely concealed by the darkness of the forest, Jenner and Castor gave Sullivan murderous looks for nearly giving them away, before hurrying away into the night…

The following morning, Josh's group, including the children (except for the bedridden Timmy), stood marvelling the now finished glider. Josh was admiring his new aircraft with a great sense of pride. He was already looking forward to soaring skywards again! Although obviously it didn't hold a candle to his technologically-advanced space pod, the fact that he had built this thing out of virtually nothing with his bare hands, made him feel tall as a mountain – and deeply grateful to his friends who had helped him build it.

As a final touch, using his kit's dye marker, Josh gave his masterpiece a name, which he painted in slated capital letters across the upper wing panel: JEREMY. Named after a fellow RAF pilot he had known back on Earth, the Jeremy was finally ready for its first big test flight. Inspecting every wing surface for faults and feeling every safety line for slackness one more time, Josh turned to his companions with the announcement.

"She's ready!"

There was no round of applause. His friends just continued to stare at the rickety-looking glider, uncertain of what to make of this strange contraption. This was what humans used to take to the skies like birds?

"You really think it will fly?" asked Brutus doubtfully, staring at the glider with apprehension. Beside him, Justin and Elizabeth stood in silence, dwelling on their own fears of Josh's masterpiece sending them all plummeting to a nasty death once it left the ground. The children, on the other hand, were utterly fascinated, as they curiously climbed all over the wings and passenger cradle. Even Ages, surprisingly enough, seemed to have full confidence in Josh's design, his previous mishap long forgotten.

Wasting no time, he raised a little flag on a pole, improvising a crude anemometer to take a wind heading. His face formed into a smile.

"We're in luck. There's a favourable north wind kicking up, which should take us all the way to Thorn Valley. We could leave right now if we wanted to."

Beside him, Josh, who had been trying to explain how the glider worked to Martin and Teresa, felt his hopes soar; if the winds were favourable, then their window for Thorn Valley was open. And they had to get moving soon, before they missed it. No time for the test flight he had planned for this morning; this north wind wouldn't last long and it could be days, even weeks, before they had another one. Timmy couldn't hold out that long. It was now or never.

"In that case, we're leaving now," he announced, turning back to the children, "I guess the time has come to say goodbye." As he had feared, they were terribly saddened at the announcement of his departure.

"Do you really have to go, Josh?" asked Cynthia tearfully, "Why can't you stay with us?" Josh gently picked her up into his arms, to give her a farewell cuddle.

"I'm sorry, sweetie; but I have to get back to my home, where I belong," he said, playfully tickling her on the nose to cheer her up. Cynthia forced a smile.

"Will you ever come back?" asked Teresa, also holding back tears, despite her usually mature attitude. Josh put Cynthia down and picked her older sister up to hug her goodbye.

"Maybe someday I might drop out of the sky again when you're least expecting. By the way, I have something for you." Taking off his dog tags, he placed them around Teresa's neck. Although this might mean a sound scolding from Fitzgibbons for giving away NIMH property, in addition to the disciplinary action he was bound to receive for crashing his pod, he wanted to leave something behind for the children to remember him – he had also kept a number of photographs he had taken, stored on his HHC drive. The girl studied the tags resting on the palm of her hand, admiring the engraved NIMH-One's owl logo on one and the Union Jack with Josh's name and rank alongside on the other.

"Thank you, Josh," she said sweetly, reaching up to kiss the man on the cheek who smiled, "You're welcome. Just make sure you share them with your siblings."

Martin approached Josh, looking really uncomfortable, staring at the ground; clearly the boy wasn't one for goodbyes. Josh smiled, "Come on, Tiger, don't look so gloomy," he said, grabbing him into a bear hug and ruffling his hair. Martin squealed with embarrassment, obvious to the adults laughing at him.

"Josh, let go!"

Satisfied to see he had gotten his smile back, Josh finally put the boy down, giving him a high-five – a trick he had taught the Brisby children, amongst other human mannerisms -, which Martin returned in kind. But he wasn't ready to say goodbye just yet.

"Why can't I come too?" he demanded, "I'm big enough, I can fight anyone…!"

"I know," said Josh, "That's why I need you to stay here, to help protect your Auntie Shrew and your brother…"

"Yes," said Elizabeth, "Make sure he doesn't move from his bed until I get back…"

"Don't worry, Mum," Martin said in mock-seriousness, "If I have to, I'll tie him to his bed…!" Elizabeth narrowed her eyes; although she didn't really mind her children's wild games, up to a certain limit of course, there were times when they, particularly Martin, would go way over their heads.

"No, Martin," she said sternly, "You will not be tying up your sick brother, or you're grounded! Timmy needs rest! I'll be very upset if Auntie Shrew tells me you didn't all stay on your best behaviour. You hear?"

"Yes, Mother."

After Elizabeth had kissed them goodbye, warning them to behave themselves and to look after Timmy while she was gone, the children left to return home, to wait for their mother to come back from her errand with more medicine for Timothy, which Josh had promised his crew would provide. Josh turned to his friends.

"Well, the time has come, ladies and gentlemen," he said, "Now, before we get started, I should make it absolutely clear that this trip is entirely voluntary. Although we have taken every precaution to make the glider safe, there is no guarantee that she'll make it to Thorn Valley. Anyone who doesn't want to come along for this ride, this is the moment to say it." His friends, however, all shook their heads.

"We're soldiers and we have our duty," said Justin, stepping forward. "And we're placing our faith in you not getting us killed, much against my better judgement," added Brutus gruffly.

"This is a lifetime's opportunity, which I can't possibly pass on," added Ages, also stepping forward. That left only Elizabeth, who was beginning to have second thoughts about going along, her fear of heights kicking in again. For a moment Josh expected her to turn down her seat, but then she stepped forward too.

"This might be my only chance of ever finding out what happened to my husband," she said, "I owe him that much." Josh couldn't suppress a smile; saying goodbye to the children had been hard enough, but perhaps he could prolong the moment when he'd have to say goodbye to Elizabeth for a few more hours – as long as it took them to reach Thorn Valley.

"We're all in this together then," he said, assuming leadership of the group; if he was going to be the pilot on this flight, their safety would be his sole responsibility and his authority would have to be recognised by everybody from the start, "Now then, first I'm going to review the safety procedures we discussed one more time, so I want everyone's full attention…"

Author's note: Sorry for the month-long wait, but I have my army service. I should be able to write one more chapter before New Year's Eve, during my next long leave. Enjoy and please review!