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Professor Jacobs and Della walked with Erlick to the top of the platform.
The Helo-ship sat on the roof of the Illuminati headquarters. It was a long fighter ship with wings that changed from an upright position, with the jet’s engines pointing downwards for takeoff, and then turned to a vertical position when the ship flew forward.
Della said, "Interesting ship. We have something like this ship on the Hive."
Her eyes darted all over the plane.
"This is only a prototype,” said Erlick. “It will get us to our destination fast. We have several soldiers on board waiting for us."
Professor Jacobs didn't feel scared, but excited. Della's magic had worked. He usually felt sick when he saw a plane, yet he felt fine.
They moved to a small platform to the side and walked up the steps to the entrance of the ship. A wind rippled his clothes. He had a sense that his life had just gone out of control. He took a last look at the landing pad of the Illuminati headquarters, and ducked his head and entered the ship.
He saw several soldiers sitting on chairs. They all looked at Della, though she didn't notice the men and women staring at her. All the seats were attached to the walls. She sat at the furthest seat, closest to the pilot.
Daniel moved and sat next to her. His feeling of inadequacy was coming to the forefront of his mind. He was happy Della was with him. He couldn't have gone this far without her.
The door of the ship closed, and the humming sounds of the twin engines reverberated around the ship. Instantly, he felt scared.
Della grabbed his hand. "Don't worry," she said, "you will feel be fine."
And he did relax. The ship shook a little as it ascended. He was calm. His mind didn't think of falling. She let go of his hand. He wanted her to keep holding it, but he didn't grab hers. She was looking away toward the front.
Erlick moved closer to him, swaying with the rhythm of the ship's movement. "The pilot wants to know if you and Della want to sit in the cockpit."
The elf nodded.
Professor Jacobs said, "Yes, lead the way."
They stood and followed Erlick. The ship was moving faster and shook with the turbulence of the wind. For a brief second, Daniel thought he was going to yell in fright, but Della’s reassuring presence lulled and calmed him.
They reached a metal door. Erlick knocked, and it swung open. A bright light shot into his eyes, as a bright clear sky shone through the large glass windows.
A deep voice spoke up. "Professor Jacobs, please come inside the cockpit."
He saw several men sitting in leather seats in front of glowing Holographic screens. He had seen this technology before in the tech magazines he read, but to see this in front of him was exciting.
"Very nice. We have the same command module screens on our spaceships," said Della.
Then Professor Jacobs understood. "Erlick, are you in contact with the Elves?"
His old friend looked at him. "Yes, but only in limited visits. We speak through glimmer stones."
"You have glimmer stones?" Della asked.
"Yes. But we haven't talked to any Elves for decades."
Professor Jacobs looked at Della and Erlick. "Please tell me what you are talking about." He shook his head. He didn't like to be left out of things.
Della answered. "A glimmer stone is rare. They enable the users to speak across far distances. Do you remember, Professor, when the Alphas spoke to you about the time when they had spoken to a dwarf and an elf on top of a pyramid?"
Professor Jacobs remembered. The Alphas were given a choice to open the Bastions or keep the Earth the same. Lazarus told him that he spoke to a dwarf and an elf through some type of portal.
"I thought they spoke to these people through a magical portal."
"Yes, in a sense, a glimmer stone is a portal," Della said.
Jacobs looked at Erlick and the pilots. "Okay, so you have this glimmer stone. You should have told me you were communicating to the Elves or the magical races."
"It was not my decision to make," Erlick said. "You didn't even know about the Illuminati still being in existence. But it has been a while since we were in contact with the Hive."
"Yes," Jacobs murmured. His face was a little hot, and he turned to the large windows of the cockpit. The blue sky looked so surreal and beautiful. He wondered if he could fly with the Alpha Mages and feel the wind rushing against his face. He was mesmerized by the sight.
The pilot in the middle said, "Professor Jacobs, I’m very glad you came on my ship. We don't get distinguished guests like you on board very often."
"Thank you." The pilot looked familiar. "You were one of my students."
"Yes," the pilot said. "I was in your class on Earth in the twentieth-century. It was very good."
Professor Jacobs was surprised. "So, you are a magic user?"
"Yes, Fire Wizard, level 1. However, I don't have enough time to devote to my studies. I spend my time flying."
Professor Jacobs moved further into the cockpit, Della following close behind. Jacobs couldn't help himself from staring out through the large windows.
"You can sit at the chairs to the left of the room if you want to stay," the pilot offered.
Jacobs wasn’t sure what he wanted to do. He was rooted to the floor. Anxiety rose from him in waves.
Della said, "No, I think we just want to visit. It was nice meeting you."
The elf grabbed him and pulled him to his seat back in the main area of the ship. He was breathing heavy.
"Relax," she said, and touched his arm. He felt better, and was surprised that he’d reacted that way. When he helped fight the Vvong on top of the Atlantean pyramid, he didn't feel scared or nervous. And even afterward, when he climbed down, he was fine. Yet, he knew when he flew on ships, he always got scared.
