Flightsuit (14 page)

Then he readied his security team for a field operation.

Ethan was regaining control over the fingers of his paralyzed right hand.  It was furthest from the point of contact and he thought that might be why feeling returned to it first.  His fingers felt slow and stubborn to respond making him feel as if he'd somehow just forgotten how to move them.

It was slow progress.  With no sensation of feedback, he couldn't be sure he was pulling the right muscles to even move his arm.  He watched the tendons go taut, that was the only way he could tell he was doing anything.

He looked up at Leo.

Tears tracked down his face leaving clear traces through dust he wasn't able to wipe away.  Leo raised the new right sleeve trying to wipe his face made itchy by tears, but his fingers weren't long enough to move the glove's fingers.  He settled for wiping with the back of the glove, making a diagonal swipe on his face.  He felt helpless.

Suddenly both glove's fingers snapped open.  Leo watched them as horrified as if he was watching two twitching snakes in his lap.  The fingers extended fully before Leo's eyes, then snapped into fists.  This repeated twice
.  Then one-by-one each finger extended and retracted, more slowly this time – as if the suit were testing each one. 

When the last finger finished its "test", Leo heard a "click" and felt a sharp pain in his upper arm where the spike held him.  He moved the sleeve experimentally, not sure if the sound meant another spike had extended or that that first had retracted now that the suit had Leo under its complete control.

Raising the sleeve no longer produced the sharp pain, so Leo decided the spike must have retracted.  The relief was at least something positive, he thought. 

Then the entire left sleeve moved without Leo controlling it.  It slowly moved toward the chest plate, the fingers pulling into a fist as it did.  When the gloved fist touched the suit's chest, it stopped, held for a moment and began moving outward.  Leo tentatively resisted the movement to see if the suit could overpower him.  It moved smoothly against his efforts.  Leo was afraid to exert too much force against the sleeve for fear of the spike, but he decided the sleeve could probably overpower him anyway.

After a series of slow sweeps, the sleeve repeated the movements at speed.  It moved so fast, it was only visible at the end points of its movement, with just blur between them.  It was fascinating and terrifying to watch. 

Leo realized the suit could be dangerous to anyone that tried to remove it.  The blinding fast movements suggested the suit was capable of more than just defense.

Ethan continued trying to move his own arm as he watched the suit's whip-fast and precise movements.  It was alarming to watch the suit's incredible speed, knowing it wasn't under their control.  It was like sitting within a few feet of a lion, dangerous and completely unpredictable.  He could see Leo's wide-eyed shock over the suit's deep collar as the arms flashed in rapid movement. 

Then as suddenly as it started moving, it stopped.

Change of plans
, thought Ethan. 

"Leo, listen.  We're going to be ok.  I'm almost able to move my legs again.  The feeling is coming back."  He slowly lifted his right arm to show Leo.  His left arm and fingers still felt numb where they'd actually contacted the suit, but the numbness was fading now.  In a few minutes, he might be able to stand.

"As soon as I can move my legs, I am going to run for help.  You can wait here and you'll be fine.  It'll take me a half-hour or less to get within range of a cell phone tower and then we'll get a rescue copter in here to fly you out," he waited on a response.

Leo nodded, "Ok".

"I know you can't control your arms, so I'll get you a drink before I leave.  Even though it has control of your arms, it can't go anywhere so you can just wait here until I get back.  Don't try walking around.  We need to be able to find you, ok?"

"Ok, but please hurry…" Leo stopped. 

Both arms became active again.  They extended to the ground on either side and lifted him from the ground.  Fully extended, the arms lifted him high enough to leave a four inch gap between Leo and the ground, with his legs still in contact with the ground.

The elbows bent slowly, raising and lowering, assessing Leo's weight. 

"Oh oh," Leo said, as the elbows bent fully and held in place, like a coiled spring.  Leo felt something in the suit inflate, filling in the empty space between his body and the suit in the arms, shoulders and chest.  It felt like a tight, constricting sweater.

The sleeves exploded in motion, extending so fast Leo exhaled in a rush.  The suit's flashing leap carried Leo into the air, and twisting sideways over the log.  His legs dangled like an extended frog, the leap carrying him high enough to clear the log by two feet.

He bent his knees instinctively, intending to absorb the landing impact, but the sleeves diverted most of the impact into forward horizontal momentum.  Leo's feet drug on the dust only briefly before lifting back into the air with the suit accelerating quickly to minimize impact. 

It leaped again and Leo flinched away from a limb directly in their path.  The left arm flashed to the limb and Leo saw the fingers lock into place around it.  Their momentum converted to a downward arc that drove Leo's chin down into his chest as the suit swung up on the other side.  At the arc's apex, the sleeve powered a hard pres
s from the creaking limb and leapt out into the air toward another tree.  The suit carried Leo fifteen feet in the air.  Leo felt the sensation of a long fall before the right arm blasted out to catch a limb below him that he hadn't seen.

The right arm didn't release at the apex of its swing this time.  Instead, the left swung back and twisted the swing to change direction.  The right arm continued to hold while the left swung out and back to generate momentum, leveraging speed and the weight of Leo's own arm and dangling legs.  After eight swings out and back, the suit had achieved a swing that brought Leo eye level with the limb at each end of the swing and then it released, sailing Leo through the air to another tree. 

Leo could hear Ethan yelling behind him but couldn't understand what he was saying.  The rush of air in his ears was almost continuous now that the suit had established horizontal momentum.  It leaped from tree to tree, at one point circling completely around a large tree to gain altitude.  Leo was high up now and saw Ethan's house over the smaller tree tops.  He focused on the direction of travel, trying to pull his head down into the suit's collar and avoid having a branch poke his eyes.  There were several scratches at his face and one hard one as a branch drug across the top of his head. 

Leo swung directly into a mass of branches he knew were going to hurt.  Just before impact though both arms flashed out
, shattering the dry branches out of the way.  Sticks and pieces hit Leo's face. 

He realized it was providing at least some protection for him.  He hoped that was a good sign.

Flying through the air between two trees, Leo noticed something as the left sleeve pulled in close to his chest.  There was another orange marker on the map, and it was getting closer.

The suit allowed its swinging momentum to wind down.  The arc decreased until Leo was hanging by both arms, trying to see down past the suit's giant chest and enclosing collar.  He hung in place with legs dangling. 

Then the hands released and he dropped straight down.  Branches zipped and snatched past Leo's face.  One large limb scraped as it passed the suit's chest plate.

The arms finally locked onto a limb, flexing expertly to absorb the impact so successfully that despite the long drop, the impact wasn't much greater than Leo had experienced during the swing through the forest.  He had no way to gauge how far they'd come or how long they'd swung through the forest.  He looked around trying to get his bearings, but he'd completely lost any sense of direction during the forest swings.

He couldn't see the ground over the suit's chest, but he guessed from his view to the side that he was about ten feet off the ground.  The suit was finally still
.  Without the wind rushing past his ears, Leo heard crunching leaves and sticks off to his left. 

"Help!  Help me," he shouted, hoping whoever it was would hear him.  At least the steps were getting louder
.  They were coming closer.  He saw movement through the briars and bushes. 
Someone's walking this way
, he thought, breathing a sigh of relief.

He remembered the map and looked up at the sleeve just above his eye level as the suit hung from the limb.  He saw the orange marker close by now. 
We must be close to that
, he thought. 

Then he saw a pair of white legs step through briars and into view.  Just legs and boots.  Nothing else.  Leo closed his eyes with dread.

Leo watched as the legs crunched through undergrowth.  The legs moved with a fearsome intent all their own.  He couldn't take his eyes off them until they walked underneath and were blocked from his view.

For a moment, nothing happened.  Then the gloved fingers snapped open, releasing the limb above.  Leo gasped expecting to fall, but the suit didn't drop.  It floated in place, then began to slowly and smoothly descend. 

Leo knew he was being lowered into the legs.  He pulled his legs up to his chest to keep them from the leg openings.  The suit descended closer to the ground. 
The openings must be just below my legs
, he thought, taking a deep breath and drawing his legs up tighter under him.  Sweat dripped from his hairline, running down into his eyes before sliding down chin and neck, pooling in the pocket created by the collar's tight neck seal.

He breathed faster,
trying to keep his legs up, but he was exhausted.  Gradually his muscles gave in to gravity.  The suit waited as Leo's legs dropped slowly into position.  Leo knew he was beaten when the suit continued its slow descent.  He felt the leg openings touch his shoes.  A little whine escaped him, making him feel even more weak and defeated. 

With only the length of the sleeves to estimate, Leo expected his toes would be left dangling once the suit sealed, but the previous owner's legs were apparently about the same length as his own. His feet slid into the boot
s.  He wiggled them in.  He remembered the squatting creature Ethan had carved.  The short legs hadn't been evident in the sculpture because the legs were folded underneath.  He imagined the creature would look apish when standing. 
Monkey suit
, he thought, with a depleted smile.

Leo waited several minutes for something to happen.  The suit was still and quiet.  Leo noticed that the padding was cool against his skin and clothes.  There was even a very slight sensation of massaging waves that flowed through the insulation layer.  Even though the suit left no room for movement inside, it seemed to be doing something to make it feel less constricting.

Leo was used to the sticky-slimy feel of the East Tennessee humidity.  He'd always figured that if it were actually comfortable outside, the woods would be completely filled with hikers.  Not many people wanted to be crawling through the woods with little breeze, 90% humidity and hot summer temperatures.  Leo decided it would be great to have personal air-conditioning while out in the woods – if he could control it, of course. 

He was comfortable but his mouth was very dry, the exertion and lack of water dehydrat
ed him.

The right leg took a step. 

It was disorienting to put his foot down and not directly make contact with the ground.  He lost his own balance inside the suit and would have fallen had there been any room for him to move against the suit.  The padding in the legs inflated as soon as the suit sealed, leaving no freedom of movement.  

The left foot stepped out and over a small branch.  Leo tried to see what he'd just stepped over but couldn't see the around the collar.  The suit headed upslope.  To Leo, it felt as if he were riding rather than walking.

He watched the suit approach a growth of briars.  Without slowing, it stepped into the thick of it, raising an arm to deflect branches from Leo's face.  The sleeves did the same with a branch.  Leo began trusting the suit to keep sticks and branches from his eyes.

The jostling ride, coolness of the suit, the temporary release from danger and exhaustion overcame Leo and he rested his head against the side of the collar.  The muscles in his neck were sorely abused by the forest swings and he'd never felt so tired before.

Ethan stood.

His shirt was soaked through with sweat.  His legs shook and trembled.  When he bent his knees to pick up the pack and canteen, he had to push off the log to get back up.

He looked into the quiet woods in the direction he'd last seen Leo swinging like a giant white ape.  The creaking of limbs and brushing sound of branches swiping against the suit had long since faded into silence.  He considered for a moment. 
It won't do the kid any good for me to catch up to him if I can't help him
.  Ethan walked to the shed, picking up a stumbling momentum as control of his legs slowly returned.

Scanning the shed shelves through the open door, Ethan mentally checked off items that would either be no use or be too heavy to carry.  He settled on a small hand axe, a hammer and a hacksaw.  All the tools were rusty but still serviceable.  Ethan pulled on a drawer and it slid wood-on-wood open.  Inside the drawer were three shining silver boxes.  Ethan pulled the longest out and opened its small hinged lid.  Inside there were five new hacksaw blades.  Ethan shut the hinged lid and placed the silver box in his pack with the other tools.

Oscar slowly wagged his tail as Ethan stepped onto the porch, but didn't get up. 

Ethan opened the closet and reached in behind the stack of t-shirts.  The pistol he pulled out shone even in the dim light of the closet.  It was a silver nickel-plated Colt .45 with dark golden brown burled wood grips.  Ethan bought the gun long ago and hadn't fired it in more than a decade.  It shone, without even a smudged fingerprint. Ethan grabbed the shirt he'd worn yesterday from the closet floor and wrapped the gun in it before placing it in the backpack with the tools.

He slid the shirts to the side looking for shells.  Finding them, he slid the shirts back.  The shells were in a small silver box with a sliding lid. Ethan slid it back, revealing a dozen shells.  He closed the lid and put the box in the pack.  It jumbled when he walked, but he didn't foresee a need to be quiet.

He walked fast to the door, jumped past the steps and jogged into the woods.