Date: 04 May 1993 15:51:30 -0400 (EDT) From: Brian Willard Subject: Storm Brewing, Part VII Message-Id: <01GXS5H8BW0Y99EBTW@UNCA.EDU> Organization: University of North Carolina at Asheville Storm Brewing Part VII by Brian Willard Sam woke to the sound of a telephone ring at 5 in the morning. At first he couldn't remember where he was, but it come back to him when he noticed that he was in a hotel room. He could hear voices coming from the next room, where Al and Marci were staying. He got up slowly and walked over to the mirror, once again noticing how young he was, and he began to worry about the flight. If St. John didn't find out what went wrong, then how would he possibly be able to change anything, and then Al would still die. "Come on St. John, where are you?" Sam asked impatientlty. He took a shower and got ready for the flight, all the time trying to think of a way he could call off the flight, but nothing was coming to mind. After he was dressed he went over to Al and Marci's room and found that they were almost ready to go. Al was still messing around with his hair (though he really didn't have much) and Marci was tryingh to pick out a pair of shoes. After a couple minutes Al came out of the bathroom looking no different than when he had gone in. "Marci, just wear your sneakers," he said, noticing her rummaging through the suitcase. "Oh, all right. I suppose nobody's gonna care what shoes I wear." "Are you ready to go, Darren?" asked Al. "Yeah," Sam replied blankly, "I guess so." They went back over to the base and went to a small briefing, telling them where they were to go and when to take measurements. The hurricane was still only a tropical storm at the time, but it was getting closer and stronger. They were escorted to the hanger, where they found the small plane ready to go. Sam and Al took seats in the cockpit, and Marci stayed in a small passenger room toward the back. "Hold on, Darren, here we go," Al said as he started the twin engines on the small plane. They left the runway smoothly and Sam watched in awe at not only his partner's flying capability but also his lack of stress and fear. Up ahead Sam could see a dark area over the water, which was the hurricane. As they neared the winds began to pick up and the storm seemed to grow in size exponentially. "Might want to go back and get the instruments ready," Al told Darren, "Also...tell Marci that if she wants to come up front she can." Sam nodded and got up from the seat, slowly so as not to loose his footing, for the plane was vibrating mildly. Where was St. John? Why do holograms never appear when you need them most? he asked himself. He worked his way to the back of the plane, where he found Marci asleep. He went to the area where the measuring equipment was and told Al over the intercom that his wife was sleeping. Al muttered something along the lines of his knowing she'd do that. A familiar light flash appeared and yet another hologram appeared. This time it was a woman, whom Sam did not recognize. She was fairly tall and she had dark brown hair. "Where's St. John?" Sam asked this new hologram. "He's sick, so I told Alpha I'd check on you. She was hesitant at first, but finally gave in. You probably don't remember me...my name's Donna." But with all the swiss-cheesing that had occured with this leap, he could not remember her, though he though the name sounded vaguely familiar. Sam knelt down and turned on the equipment. Suddenly, the plane bucked and the door to the room Sam was in slammed shut. He went over to the door and found that it was locked. "It's locked!!" he exclaimed, "What's going on?" "I'll go check on the other side...stay put," Donna replied frantically. "Where am I going to go?" said Sam, "I'm _stuck_. Go make sure Al's okay." Donna disappeared from the small stockroom. Meanwhile in the cockpit, Al had run into some turbulance, and another vibration rocked the plane. Al pulled back hard on the wheel, and a third jolt sent his head slamming into it. He lost consciousness and the plane began to descend. Donna appeared just seconds later. Seeing the Admiral's state, she began to panic. She went back to the room Marci was in, and found Al's wife sound asleep. "I can't wake her up!" Donna screamed, "What do I do?" She hit the handlink hard and a door appeared. She ran into it and vanished. Give me a two minute breather.... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Brian Willard "Revenge is mine, thus sayeth the hologram!" UNC-Asheville Sam Beckett - "The Leap Back, Part I" --------------------------------------------------------------------------------