A Birth day

Jack stood listening and raised an eye brow " strange indeed but he has to have a reason" he said looking to Kate and Michael as Michael finished talking. " Michaels right his birthdays as you said in September, why would he send a birthday gift now?" he added " Roberts very puzzling, guess that's how he keeps his enemies guessing" Jack chuckled a little and looked to Kate " I'm sure its not bad."

Aria stood up and took the sail wrapping it around Ruby she took down her coat and slipped it on " its dry thanks to the fire" she said " I can help too" she said " I don't like sitting around , just tell me what to do, besides I feel wrong not being able to change and fly around to check out where we are, its. Just wrong." Aria said walking over and helping Angus with the saplings.

"You could tie those saplings together as Marcus bends them," Angus said. "I'm just threading this rope through the sail grommets so that when he's ready, the canvas can be threaded onto the saplings to make a sturdy wind screen. Then, someone's going to have to hold that screen upright so he can stake it down into the ground. That might take both you and Ruby to hold the screen while he does that. As soon as I get the canvas ready, i'll try to start cutting some of those small saplings into stakes for the screen."

"Aria," Marcus said very quietly to her when she came over to help with the screen, "we're soon going to have to think about taking the risk to make a signal fire. Our odds of surviving this as it is is pretty good, but Angus's are not. We don't have fresh water, and the shock is going to make him dehydrated very quickly. He's losing fluids by the sweating that the shock causes. And, he's still bleeding. He'll bleed out eventually if he doesn't have care soon. That piece of glass has to be huge, and it's going to require a surgeon. The only way we're going to attract anyone to this little spot is by making a signal fire. If we do that, we could be betraying ourselves to the very people who attempted to kill us this morning. I don't see another way, though. I think I'll try to fashion us a few rock slings. Maybe you can whittle some more spears or help gather some rocks. Have you ever used a sling or a slingshot either one?"

Robert returned a moment later and opened the dining room door.

"Those of you that are brave enough, come with me," he said quietly. "I see the debris field. Be sure you're ready to see it. It isn't pretty."

Evan and Edward were the first out the door. They headed towards the bow to see the debris field. Michael and Kate were next, followed by Simone, Sam and Victor. Nobody, it seemed, was going to be left behind.

They looked out over the water and saw charred wood and twisted metal floating on the surface of the sea. Someone handed Edward a pair of binoculars, and he took a long moment, taking a better look.

"Robert, look here," Edward said, handing the binoculars to Robert. "We paint the name on the bow and on the stern both. Here's the part of the bow that had the ship's name. Look. Do you see what I see? Look at how the nameplate is broken. It was a blast that went inward, not outward. They were deliberately fired upon by someone or something else. This was not a captain's error or some issue with the ship. They were attacked. I'm sure of it."  Robert looked at the wreckage and handed the binoculars to Michael. Michael looked for a moment and then passed the binoculars on to someone else.

"He's absolutely right," Michael told the others. "Someone fired on the ship and deliberately took the ship out."

"And Angus knew they were in trouble. Maybe he had time to warn the others," Evan said. "In that case, they might still be alive."

Aria nodded to Angus as she pulled the young saplings over Ruby stood up and tied them off. Aria heard Marcus and nodded " agreed and yes I have" she said " basic training" she said and chuckled " I was five my dad wanted a boy so taught me how to hunt and use a sling shot , I'll see what I can fashion with what we have." she said then looked to Ruby who smiled and looked to MARCUS.

"I'll make the spears once we have this fashioned " she said as she finished tying off the saplings and spreading the sail sheet over it to stop the wind. Picking up the stone she had used she sat down as Aria snapped a dry sapling and handed it to her taking pieces of ripped sail she made some string and started to fashion a sling shot.

Jack heard Robert and nodded moving towards the door heading up to the deck he looked out and looked at the sea in front of him " hum" he said simply as Jessie walked up beside him " you see the scorch marks?" he asked Jessie who nodded as he scanned the area and horizon looking for any sign.

While Marcus was looking around, he saw some of the things Angus had gathered up. And in that, he saw that Angus had piled up quite a stack of kindling and also a lot of dried palm leaves.

"Aria--look," Marcus pointed. "Look there. We must have been out at least a couple of hours. Look how much he gathered up while he waited for us to wake up. He's got all the makings a nice signal fire. If you put it down on the sand, but far enough back not to be washed out at high tide, I think we should take the risk. Why don't you go start a nice big signal fire, and I'll have Ruby help me finish this frame and get the canvas on it? Ruby, see if Angus is done threading rope onto the canvas, please? We're going to need it."

"This part of the sea is particularly trecherous to sail in," Edward told Robert and the others. "It isn't a place we normally take our larger ships because this area is dotted with all sorts of sandbars and crap--the perfect place for any large ship to crash and run aground. Fortunatelly, we have sonar, so we wont have that problem. We have some inflatable dinghys, and I've ordered them to inflate a couple of the larger ones just in case we need them. If we have to get into shallow water, we can'nt take this ship into those spaces. I trust the lads know how to row a boat?"

"If they dont, they'll learn quick," Robert told them.

Aria looked where Marcus pointed and smiled nodding " sure I'm on it" she said moving to gather the items she found a dry spot on the beach that didn't seem to get any water and began building it , soon it was piled high and ready to light. Now all she had to do was light it. " Marcus should I light it now, or wait till dark?" she asked " personally I'd would do it now and keep adding damp leaves to give off smoke" she added as she saw Ruby helping Marcus with the rope and sails.

Ruby moved to Angus " you finished with the rope we're ready for the cover to go one" she said softly to him still trying to ignore the throbbing in her temple.

Jack and Jessie understood the thought processes and nodded " we'll be with you too" Jack said and looked to Jessie who nodded his agreement. " I know how to row a boat.\" Jack said and looked as Jessie looked at him surprised " hey I do have a past you know away from you guys and no not bad one." he added making Jessie chuckle as he then turned back to look out over the sea.

"Let's not wait. Light it now," Marcus said. "We'll have to keep gathering things to keep it going,, but we can do that."

"Yeah." Angus said. He handed her the pieces of the sails that he'd folded. He had tried to fold them into small enough pieces that one person could manage them all. Kate was looking out across the water, feeling nothing but fear and dread, wondering if they were still alive, wondering how they would find them even if they were. And then Kate saw a figure in a dark gray cloak appear way out on the bow, almost at the very front of it. Kate hurried and left the others in a hurry and went out on the bow. Evan saw her hurrying, and he didn't want her to slip and fall, so he raced after her. When he got to her, he wrapped one arm around her waist to steady her, but Kate didn't even notice.

"Where is he?" Kate seemed to be talking to someone, but Evan didn't see a damned thing. "Show me. Show me where he is, please!"

"She sees something," Robert said to Michael

"That or she's lost her marbles," Michael said dryly. Kate watched the figure, who slowly pointed off into the distance in a northwesterly direction.

"Northwest," Kate shouted. "310 degrees. Go that way."

"Are you sure, Kate?" Robert called back. Kate nodded emphatically. "I'd trust her, Edward," Robert said. "When she's sure, she's sure."

"We'll need the dingy's then," Edward said. "Get the dinghy's ready to launch."

"Who's going in the dinghys if we launch them?" Robert asked.

"Us!" Sam and Victor raised their hands.

"Me," Evan said.

"Me, probably," Michael sald.

Jack looked at Jessie and spoke " take Jessie, he's lighter than me, I'd probably capsize it." he said Jessie smiled to him and stood with Sam and Victor. " if you find them listened to Marcus or Angus" he told them " but always follow your instinct" he added.

Aria nodded and sat down with the same piece of wood she had lit the smaller fire and began rubbing it , soon she saw it start to glow and lightly blew on it adding dry grass until it started to burn taking it to the pile she placed it in some palm leaves and waited . She was rewarded with a flicker of flame then it took hold and she breathed out letting the dark almost black smoke rise into the air." its lit" she said to Marcus with a smile.

"Fire!" Kate shouted. "Fire. I see it! That way! 310 degrees Northwest!"

Edward looked quickly through the binoculars.

"By God, she's right. It's exactly where Kate said it was," Edward replied. "Maybe a mile away. Let's launch the dinghys. Someone take a medical bag, and make sure you take pistols. You're muggles now, remember? And take some two way radios. Launch now."

Sam and Victor ran as fast as their legs would carry them to the stern, and Michael picked up a medical bag and made his way to the back, along with Evan. There were two crew members at the stern handing out pistols and putting some rescue gear into four inflatable dinghys, along oars.

"You can get yourselves and perhaps up to two small people in here," the crew was saying. "We're launching four in case someone is injured. Stay in contact with us." They showed them how to operate the two way radios, and they launched a dinghy with Sam and Victor first. Evan took one next.

"Go ahead, Jessie," Michael said. "You go next, and I'll bring up the rear. Let's hope to God they're all alive."

Jessie looked where Kate was looking his heart pounding in hope they had found them. Heading to the dinghy's Jessie pulled back his coat to show he had brought his pistol with him already then headed as quickly over to it, slipping in he sat next to Sam as he watched Michael slip in with them " hold tight guys this could get bumpy" he said not just meaning the ride over but possibly a battle.

Jack stood on the deck with the binoculars and smiled " I see it, its dark, nice work wet leaves ." he added as he looked to Kate hoping she would know the closer they got if it was them or she was sensing something else. " how can, never mind seers work different to magic right?" Jack asked chuckling at his mistake.

"Well, either that or the dead don't play by the same rules," Robert shrugged. "I don't know. I just know that when she's this sure, she's right."

Angus was shivering. He was soaking wet with sweat, and he was cold, really cold. And he just plain felt sick. He leaned back against the rock, refusing to give in and actually lie down. He closed his eyes, feeling that if he could just sleep a little, he might feel better.

The boys had been rowing maybe three or four minutes, and Sam picked up his two way radio.

"I see land!" he said. "It's just a little bit but that's where the fire is coming from. We're maybe two minutes out."

"Steady, Boys. Keep it steady. Now listen to me carefully. Keep your pistols at the ready in case it isn't them or in case they have unfriendly company with them," Robert told them. "You know what you hope you're going into but you don't know for sure. You can clip the radios to your waistbands. Take them along."

"We found them--or a couple of them. I see Aria," Victor said. "And...I think its Marcus. I don't see Ruby or Angus yet."