CHAPTER 9: FLIGHT TO HEADQUARTERS

The woman who had pulled her from the depths had not stopped at the surface. Hiro protested with a "Hey!" before she brought them in a wave to the three people on shore. Two men and one woman. They were all dressed in black uniform-like outfits. All of them had leather boots, loose pants with cargo pockets, a belt holding various-sized pouches and a black t-shirt. From there each one had personal touches in the form of various arms and armor.

The biggest man had broad shoulders with a long sword at one hip and a strange pistol strapped to the other leg. He had a bulletproof vest on, he looked young and had light tan skin. The woman on shore was holding a bundle of clothes under one arm and a rolled blanket under the other. She had a powerful build with some form of scaled armor bracers and breastplate with shoulder guards. A pair of greaves strapped over her shins making her cargo pants look a bit silly. She looked to be the oldest one there. She was at least in her forties, with bronze skin. The last guy was the only one without any extra clothing. He had a narrow form with a backpack as big as him strapped to his back. He stood out with a big red plus sign on his shirt and a pair of upright poles with webbing strung between them in his hands. He was perhaps in his late twenties and was the darkest of all of them.

The woman who had hold of Hiro deposited her on the shore in a show of strength that belied her small form. She said something in a language Hiro didn't understand. The man with the poles passed them off to the big sword-wielding man so he could squat down to examine Hiro who was looking between the four of them. She was happy she had kept the swimsuit on through her shock. It lit up the area like a blue glowstick. The man's brown eyes roved over her body analytically. He seemed to be searching for injuries But she couldn't be sure and she crossed her arms over her torso self-consciously. His brown hair was pulled back in a neat man bun.

"Um hello?" Hiro said looking first at the man examining her and then at the others in turn. The woman who had pulled her out was magically sluicing water off her back into the pond. The swordsman was staring at her warily. The woman with the scaled armor had a hint of a smile on her face but was watching her friend sluice water waiting to hand her the clothing she held. The man examining her looked over his shoulders at his companions and said something in a strange foreign language. She noticed a red gem behind his ear blinking rapidly.

He turned back and spoke to Hiro in the same language. "I didn't catch that she said apologetically," catching the flicker behind his ear as she spoke she realized something with a sinking sensation. She turned her head so he could see the broken gem behind her ear. She reached up and tapped it. "I broke him."

He reached out slowly and ran a finger over the cracked surface of the gem. He said something else eyes going distant and she realized he was not talking to her. When his eyes refocused onto hers he said slowly and thickly. "Hello. My name is Ghram. I am a healer. Are you hurt?"

She shook her head no and responded, "Hello Ghram, I am Hiro. I'm not hurt. The water healed me." she said pointing back at the pond. Nothing hurt anymore. The burning and tingling she had felt since her change had not come back when she surfaced. A few hours underwater and occasional drinks had done her body a world of good.

He paused a moment as his AI translated. He gave her a concerned look before looking back over his shoulder to the woman who had pulled her from the depths. He said something as she dressed in the clothes her companion held. She shrugged and said something to him. He turned his head back and said something again to the air. After the gem flicked some more he turned back to me. "We need to go to the base. I have instruments for exams and tests there." There was a pause after each sentence as his gem fed him the next line. "Can you walk?"

She raised an eyebrow and stood up quickly. The man who had been holding the stretcher allowed it to drop with a splash as he reached for his sword at her sudden movement. Hiro held her empty hands up warily palms out. The woman with scaled armor burst out laughing and clapped her now empty hand on his shoulder. He looked a bit sheepish and tossed a word out then paused and tried again. "Sorry." His voice was deep and rich. His hair was blue-black and cut to swoop over his forehead. He allowed the half-drawn sword to slide back into its sheath. Ghram stood with a small smile on his lips.

Hiro eyed him warily until the diver who retrieved her, now dressed like the others over the wet suit walked up to her. Her hair was pulled back in a braid the color of the deep blue ocean. Her skin was a medium brown. She made a pulling motion with her hand. Any water that still clung to Hiro pulled away to hang in the air. The young woman who looked no older than Hiro flicked her wrist and it splashed back into the pond. She reached out to the woman with the scaled armor. The armored woman held out the blanket. She took it and unfurled it with a snap. She draped it over Hiro's shoulders.

The blanket felt like it had just come out of the dryer. It radiated warmth. She took the edges and pulled it tighter around her. The thick dark fabric felt soft and draped down past her knees. She made sure it was closed so that even if she ran out of light or lost her concentration she would still be covered. A tension she had not known she had loosened a bit with the comforting warmth.

The woman now squarely in front of Hiro waited until she met her eyes. She then gave her a crooked smile. She tapped her chest with twwo fingers. "Moria" She pointed to the swordsman, "Bellator" Then hooked a thumb to the scaled woman, "Naita." Finally, she nodded to Ghram "Ghram." She put her hands gently on Hiro's shoulders. "Hiro." Hiro had kept her eyes on Moria the whole time. When she placed her hands on her shoulders the light making her swimsuit got brighter. The glow underneath the blanket from her swimsuit lit up like a lightning bug. Moria just raised an eyebrow at the increase of light. The half smile was still on her face. She let go and the light dimmed back to the glow stick level.

The power inside her resonated in Moria's presence. She hadn't noticed it when she had rescued her. Now she was on dry land it was embarrassingly apparent. Hiro broke eye contact, looking down at where the light had dimmed. Moria let out a quiet snort before putting her hand into Hiro's lowered field of vision and beckoned. She looked up as Moria turned and said something to the rest of them.

The big guy, Bellator, bent down and picked up the stretcher he had dropped. He handed the dripping thing over to Ghram with his head ducked. He said something in their language. It sounded like the same word he had said to her a moment ago. Probably an apology of some sort then. Ghram, with a little bit of dismay at his wet equipment, held it out to Moria. He looked at her pleadingly. Moria let out another amused snort of air and wicked the water off the stretcher with the same motion she had used on Hiro.

Moria glanced back at Hiro and tilted her head to the side in a "this way" motion and set off. The broad woman in scaled armor, Naita, followed after her with no hesitation. Ghram and Bellator waited for Hiro watching and waiting for her to move. Ghram looked at her with concern, Bellator with suspicion. She looked between the two men and decided she'd rather be between the two women. She started moving. She was used to walking through the cavern at this point. She easily caught up with the women and walked a few paces behind them. The men kept the rear. It didn't take long for Hiro to see their destination.

A flying craft of some sort sat under the largest opening in the ceiling. Six thin legs came down from it to hold the ship above the pedestals and orbs. It reminded Hiro of a dragonfly. A large front with a thin body. A hatch came down from the thin part to form a walkway up into the craft. The wings, propellers? Hiro was unsure, there were 4 of them folded back along the spine of the ship. She wished she had Button, she wanted to ask if they spun or if they flapped. She had so many questions and a one-sided language barrier. She would try and ask some once they were on board.

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The pedestal directly under the dragonfly aircraft was familiar to her. It once held the orb of Light. The destruction she had wrought by practicing her powers lay around them. Moria walked up the metallic ramp without stopping, but Naita stopped at the base of the ramp, looking around at the broken rocks. She turned to Hiro and gestured in a wide arc at the broken stalactites and stalagmites before pointing to Hiro as if to ask if she had done that.

Hiro's ears heated and a flush crept across her face. "Well, you see, when you get magical powers that are super cool and you are frustrated about being kidnapped and shoved into a cave you have to let out a little steam." She said in a rush. Naita just burst out laughing shaking her head at her. She said something to the men behind her. She walked up the ramp still chuckling.

Hiro stood perplexed for a moment. She had been sure the woman was going to be mad that she destroyed parts of the cavern. She seemed like she didn't care that much. She shrugged and followed her into the strange craft. She wanted to know what the inside looked like. More importantly, she wanted to know if there was anything to eat on board.

Inside the Dragonfly airship, everything was sleek plastics, and metal. Hiro concentrated for a second and could feel a few faint points from her magnetism. She let out a sigh of relief. It felt suppressed compared to before, but she could reach out to it with no pain. A small smile crossed her lips, some of her powers were working, and she was no longer trapped in a cavern with no food. Things were looking up. Now to get the measure of this headquarters and the people she was with. Bellator seemed jumpy, but the rest seemed alright.

Moria pointed her to a shallow disked seat with a high back. Some sort of webbing was attached to either side. It was a plastic-like substance attached to the inner wall. There were more seats on either side. Counting them, the craft could hold a dozen people in this area. Six seats on either side of the walkway. It reminded her of a smaller drop ship-type design. Something that could carry people to where they needed to be and get them on the ground quickly. The ramp led directly into the seating area. Behind the seats was a storage area with drawers and cabinets. After the storage area was a door to either side of the walkway. Finally, in the very front of the ship, Hiro could just make out a wide open area with a single high-backed chair in the middle. Naita was sitting in this seat a placing a smooth helm over her head.

Hiro sat down in the indicated seat making sure the blanket was pulled tight around her. The two men took seats opposite her and started strapping themselves in. Hiro looked at the webbing confused until Moria stepped toward her with the same half smile from before tugging at the corner of her mouth. She made a palm-out gesture to Hiro as if to say "May I?" and Hiro nodded. Moria started trying to fit the harness around the blanket but soon gave up a slightly annoyed look crossed her face. She motioned for Hiro to take it off but Hiro shook her head no.

Hiro whispered to her, "I don't have the best control over my powers and don't want to wind up naked in front of everyone." After a beat for her deep blue gem to translate Moria gave her an unreadable look. She walked to the drawers a few meters away and began to open and close them. After a few seconds of digging around inside a deep drawer, she pulled out a pair of cargo pants and a black shirt. It matched what the rest of them wore. She said something to her gemstone and it flashed back.

"Come on Hiro," She said in heavily accented English. Surprised that she said something in her language instead of gesturing, Hiro got up and joined her by the storage area. the ramp at the other end hummed to life and slowly closed as Moria handed her the clothes and pointed to one of the doors. Hiro awkwardly took the clothes with one hand while trying to maintain the blanket with the other. Moria sighed with exasperation and opened the door for her. Inside was a bathroom. It was definitely strange, but clearly, a place to do one's business. It was as cramped as a porta potty and had a sign she couldn't read over what she assumed was the toilet.

Hiro ducked inside the small door and Moria closed it for her. She had just enough room to stand and turn around. She set her clothes and blanket down on the lid of the toilet and took a look around. There was a small basin in the wall with buttons and a small hooked pipe. Hiro touched one experimentally and water gushed out for two seconds before stopping. She nodded to herself, that's a sink. She looked around for toilet paper but couldn't find any. A panel of buttons was next to the toilet where the toilet paper would be in a bathroom from her world. She would have to figure all of that out later, right now she just wanted clothes.

She dressed as quickly as she could in the awkward space. It felt weird to be wearing a swimsuit under clothes, but she didn't want to go commando either. She might have time on the flight back to try and adjust her light clothing into something else, but for now, she didn't worry about it. She had clothes on. Hiro looked at the dark clothes with the glowing blue swimsuit underneath. She remembered when she had stuck her phone in her pocket with the flashlight on. She could see the light through the fabric. It was like that to a lesser effect. It made the gaps in the cloth look like points of glitter. She just shook her head resigned to glow and gleam any time she used her light powers. She felt much more confident with clothing that was unable to disappear. She took a couple of breaths to center herself. When she was ready she gathered up the blanket under one arm and stepped back out into the narrow hallway.

Moria was waiting, leaning up against the wall and eating something that looked suspiciously like jerky. Hiro narrowed her focus on the food. Part of Moria's arm lit up red and another part lit up orange. Hiro blinked, she wasn't going to attack Moria for food. As soon as she had the thought the lights faded from view and Hiro couldn't call them up again. Moria didn't notice anything but Hiro's hungry look. She chuckled and passed her a shrink-wrapped package. Hiro looked at it hungrily. It had the same mystery jerky and a bar that looked like compressed fruit and nuts. A granola bar? It was one of the last things Hiro expected to see but she was happy she had it.

Moria beckoned her once again as Hiro tried to figure out how to open the package. She followed on autopilot as she examined the tough plastic. There didn't seem to be an opening tab or anything. Moria had her sit as she still tried to puzzle out the packaging. She placed the blanket to one side to take it on both hands. There were no perforations. or strings to pull. while she was distracted Moria had her strapped into her seat. The webbing completely covered her torso and hips. Only her arms and legs could move easily. After she was safely strapped in Moria gently took the package from her and summoned a blade of water in her hand. She neatly slid it into the package cutting it open and handed it back to her.

"Thanks," Hiro said a little bewildered. Moria did her little snort of amusement before taking her seat one away from Hiro and strapping herself in as well. The water blade hadn't even made the food wet. Not that Hiro would've noticed as she took out the bar and immediately took a bite.

Moria shouted something up to the cockpit and Naita said something back. All three of her rescuers shouted a single word back and the Dragonfly ship hummed to life. It didn't get very loud, but within fifty-six seconds there was a lurch as it took off. Hiro was already chewing on the granola bar. It was crunchy in some places and chewy in others. She didn't notice the flavor at first. But soon the salty and sweet flavors trumped the hunger. It was pretty good overall. "seven out of ten would eat again," Hiro said absently before taking a big bite out of the mystery jerky. She chewed this thoughtfully. She couldn't figure out what it was made of, but it had a great smoky flavor. Not spicy either. She had been worried, she wasn't a fan of any spice that could clear her sinuses with a single bite.

She didn't dwell long on the food that was both familiar and strange. Instead, she brushed off the crumbs from the bar and started examining her surroundings in a bit more detail. The two men were chatting about something and Moria was clutching an object in her hands eyes closed. Hiro took the opportunity to look around. There was an upper storage area above the ramp she had missed when she had come on board. It was filled with crates securely strapped down. There were also windows she had mistaken for lights. No, they were both a window ringed with lights. She saw a blue sky outside the windows, occasionally punctuated by a white cloud.

Her spirits rose as the aircraft did. "This would be the perfect time to try and feel the sky!" She thought to herself. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back. Something felt squishy behind her head. She opened her eyes again and cranked her head around to look at the seat back behind her. It had a cushion where her head naturally hit the wall. It was quite soft. She turned back around and leaned her head into its soft embrace intending to meditate and reach for the sky. She slowed down her breathing and started counting like before. Instead of falling into her pool of power, she fell into a dreamless sleep exhausted by the day.