MFUWSS May Challenge - Slippery When Wet
Title: Slippery When Wet
Genre: Gen-ish
Word count: 1658
Prompt: Slippery When Wet
My thanks to
akane42me for a fun challenge and to sparky955 for her beta help!
“We can’t stay much longer. It’s now or never.” The pilot struggled to keep the chopper stationary, but the updraft from the falls buffeted it, making it buck like a bronco.
“Grab on!” Napoleon leaned out as far as he could. From the look of panic in Illya’s eyes, he knew he wouldn’t get another chance.
“I’m trying!” He was only just audible over the roar of the falls.
Somehow, Napoleon managed to reach down a fraction of an inch more and connected with Illya’s outstretched fingers. Then a downdraft dropped him a few inches more and he had a firm grasp on his partner’s arm. A breathless minute later, Illya was a shivering huddled pile on the floor of the helicopter.
“I got him.” Napoleon grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around Illya and the chopper immediately shot up. Only then did he remember to breathe again. For a long time, neither man said a word. Debriefing would wait until they were back on solid ground and well away from this thunderous water.
Napoleon found a thermos of coffee and poured out a cup, actually managing to even get some coffee into the cup. His hands were still shaking. The only words in his mind were, Slippery when wet.
“These are really something else,” Illya admitted, shouting to be heard over the roar of the water.
“Niagara is even more impressive from the Canadian side, but I think we need to wait until they cool off a bit before we attempt to visit again.” Napoleon was secretly delighted. It took a lot for Illya to admit something from the natural world impressed him. When he learned that his partner had never seen Niagara Falls, Napoleon knew what he had to do
“It wasn’t our fault THRUSH nearly melted half of Montreal.”
“True, but we are the visible target, not them.” Napoleon started to walk down a flight of stairs and his heel hit some water. Abruptly his foot went out from under him and he would have faced a nasty tumble if Illya hadn’t caught him. “Thanks! That was fast thinking.”
“Well, I like to think that at least one of us pays attention to the signs. He pointed to a big sign warning that surfaces were slippery due to mist. “So do we go over the falls or behind or start from the bottom up?”
“Over?”
“Helicopter, Napoleon, not a barrel.” Illya paused and checked his brochure. “There are also trails behind the falls or we can ride Maid of the Mist to the base of them.” Illya looked around to get their bearings. “Or we could ask the nice THRUSH who has been tailing us for the last forty minutes what he’d like to do.”
“You noticed him, too?”
“I was afraid I was just being paranoid.” Illya sighed. “Why is it, no matter where we go, THRUSH is there?”
“Better dental plan, I think.” Napoleon led the way into the Cave of the Winds. It was nearly impossible to talk now. The falls thundered away just a few feet from them. Napoleon pointed to a sign advertising a tour, but Illya shook his head. The man had THRUSH on the brain.
Illya turned and roughly knocked against the man as they climbed out. There was a brief exchange of words that Napoleon couldn’t hear, but he knew the ploy. Illya would have the man’s wallet now.
As soon as they got to a less public spot, Illya put his back to the wall and opened the wallet. Behind the driver’s license was the man’s ID card. Illya held it up and Napoleon nodded. He took it and slipped it into his pocket.
“I’m going to call home,” he shouted and Illya nodded, still engrossed in the wallet’s contents. If Napoleon had but tarried a moment longer, he would have seen the approach of a very angry enemy.
Finding a quiet spot at this attraction was practically impossible. Napoleon finally locked himself in a stall in the men’s room.
“Open channel D, please.”
“Mr. Solo? What is that noise? Can you hear me?” Napoleon smiled at the sound of Shelia’s voice.
“Yes, Shelia, I’m at Niagara Falls and we bumped into an old friend. What records do we have on Cris Leland?”
There was silence for a moment and then Shelia came back on the line. “I’d steer clear of him, if I were you. He’s not someone you want to mess with by yourself.”
“I have Illya with me.”
“Even so… I will alert the local office. He’s a nasty piece of work.”
“Thanks, Shelia. I will let Illya know.” Napoleon capped the pen, took care of some business and left the bathroom. He looked around the immediate area for Illya, but the man had vanished.
That in itself didn’t bother Napoleon. Illya knew how to contact him if he really needed to. Napoleon walked back up the flight of stairs towards one of the main observation platforms. There was no sign of Illya there, either.
Suddenly, there was a scream and shouts of “There are two men in the water!” and Napoleon had a very bad feeling he knew right where Illya was.
He was used to thinking on his feet. That was what had made Napoleon the youngest agent ever to hold the top rank in Section Two. Instead of heading towards the water to gawk, he ran towards the helicopters.
“I need you!” he shouted, pulling out his ID. “That’s my partner in the water. We need to rescue him.”
The pilot shook his head. “Not in a million years, fella. It’s suicide to try.”
“I’ll do it.” The man who spoke looked old enough to maybe be in high school. “I used to fly stunt planes back home.” He pointed to the chopper. “Climb in.”
Napoleon barely had time to buckle his seatbelt and the chopper was lifting off, despite shouts from below. Napoleon ignored them and scanned the river below. That’s when he spotted Illya clinging to a rock at the lip of the falls.
“He’s there!” Napoleon pointed and the pilot nodded. He made a beeline for the spot, the currents and updraft shaking the chopper roughly.
“You are going to get one chance. Make it a good one.”
Napoleon nodded as Illya struggled to get a foothold on the boulder. The chopped dropped and Napoleon leaned out as far as his seatbelt would permit.
“Illya!” The man’s expression was one of terror and relief as he spotted Napoleon. “We can’t stay much longer. It’s now or never.” Napoleon heard the pilot shout.
“Grab on!”
“I’m trying.”
Just as they lifted off, the rock Illya had been on succumbed to the tremendous pressure and Illya’s movements and rode the water down to the graveyard of boulders at the base of the falls.
Napoleon replayed the scene again and again in his head. Illya had been abnormally quiet during their time with the local police and park officials. Several witnesses came forward and cleared Illya of any wrongdoing. The THRUSH had vanished in all the excitement.
The doctors cleared him, but recommended a day’s rest before travel. The fact that Illya didn’t protest told Napoleon just how shaken and sore his partner was.
Napoleon sat down on his bed and took off his watch. “Some day, huh?”
“He’s dead.”
At first Napoleon wasn’t sure he’d heard Illya. His hearing was still trying to recover from the noise of the water. “Who’s dead, Illya? Leland?”
Illya nodded. “He tried to toss me into the river, but I didn’t go in alone.” Illya shifted slightly to take the pressure off his bandaged arm. “He made the mistake of trying to get back to shore. I knew my only chance was to head for the island and try to grab onto something. Thank the stars you found me when you did. Another ten minutes… Talk about luck.”
“They’ll probably find what’s left of him downriver tomorrow.” A soft knock interrupted him. Napoleon rose and pulled on his bathrobe, dropping his weapon into the pocket.
“Yes?”
“It’s me, Chances, the pilot.”
Napoleon recognized the voice and opened the door. “Talk about luck, Illya. This is luck embodied. No one else would take the risk of rescue you.”
“From the bottom of my heart, thank you.” Illya said, sitting up with a wince. “Forgive me for not getting up.”
“Well, I just wanted to say good bye before leaving.”
“You’re going?”
“Yeah, the park didn’t agree with the way I handled some of their equipment today. It’s okay, though. I’ve been fired from better jobs.”
Napoleon reached into his suit pocket and handed him a card. “If you want the best job you’ll ever have, give them a call and tell them I recommended you.”
“UNCLE, huh?”
“That’s right. We can use pilots of your caliber.”
“Cool.” He stuck out a hand out. “Thanks for a great last day.” He walked away, still regarding the card.
Napoleon clapped him on the shoulder and shut the door behind him. “I think he’s just exactly what Peterson needs to wake him up a bit.”
Illya eased back into the bed and stared at the ceiling. He sighed and barely repressed a shudder. “That was far too close.”
“I agree. When Shelia said he was bad, I didn’t realize how bad.” Napoleon replaced his weapon onto the bedside table and tossed his robe onto a nearby chair. He shut off the light, but knew sleep wasn’t going to come easy for either of them.
“Napoleon?”
“Yes, Illya?”
“Would you… think less of me if I…”
“Not in the least.” Napoleon got out of his bed and into Illya’s. The Russian rolled to his side to give him more room, then relaxed back, a familiar pressure against Napoleon’s back. Perhaps he was slippery when wet, Napoleon thought, but he knew that he was never going to let go.
Genre: Gen-ish
Word count: 1658
Prompt: Slippery When Wet
My thanks to
akane42me for a fun challenge and to sparky955 for her beta help!“We can’t stay much longer. It’s now or never.” The pilot struggled to keep the chopper stationary, but the updraft from the falls buffeted it, making it buck like a bronco.
“Grab on!” Napoleon leaned out as far as he could. From the look of panic in Illya’s eyes, he knew he wouldn’t get another chance.
“I’m trying!” He was only just audible over the roar of the falls.
Somehow, Napoleon managed to reach down a fraction of an inch more and connected with Illya’s outstretched fingers. Then a downdraft dropped him a few inches more and he had a firm grasp on his partner’s arm. A breathless minute later, Illya was a shivering huddled pile on the floor of the helicopter.
“I got him.” Napoleon grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around Illya and the chopper immediately shot up. Only then did he remember to breathe again. For a long time, neither man said a word. Debriefing would wait until they were back on solid ground and well away from this thunderous water.
Napoleon found a thermos of coffee and poured out a cup, actually managing to even get some coffee into the cup. His hands were still shaking. The only words in his mind were, Slippery when wet.
“These are really something else,” Illya admitted, shouting to be heard over the roar of the water.
“Niagara is even more impressive from the Canadian side, but I think we need to wait until they cool off a bit before we attempt to visit again.” Napoleon was secretly delighted. It took a lot for Illya to admit something from the natural world impressed him. When he learned that his partner had never seen Niagara Falls, Napoleon knew what he had to do
“It wasn’t our fault THRUSH nearly melted half of Montreal.”
“True, but we are the visible target, not them.” Napoleon started to walk down a flight of stairs and his heel hit some water. Abruptly his foot went out from under him and he would have faced a nasty tumble if Illya hadn’t caught him. “Thanks! That was fast thinking.”
“Well, I like to think that at least one of us pays attention to the signs. He pointed to a big sign warning that surfaces were slippery due to mist. “So do we go over the falls or behind or start from the bottom up?”
“Over?”
“Helicopter, Napoleon, not a barrel.” Illya paused and checked his brochure. “There are also trails behind the falls or we can ride Maid of the Mist to the base of them.” Illya looked around to get their bearings. “Or we could ask the nice THRUSH who has been tailing us for the last forty minutes what he’d like to do.”
“You noticed him, too?”
“I was afraid I was just being paranoid.” Illya sighed. “Why is it, no matter where we go, THRUSH is there?”
“Better dental plan, I think.” Napoleon led the way into the Cave of the Winds. It was nearly impossible to talk now. The falls thundered away just a few feet from them. Napoleon pointed to a sign advertising a tour, but Illya shook his head. The man had THRUSH on the brain.
Illya turned and roughly knocked against the man as they climbed out. There was a brief exchange of words that Napoleon couldn’t hear, but he knew the ploy. Illya would have the man’s wallet now.
As soon as they got to a less public spot, Illya put his back to the wall and opened the wallet. Behind the driver’s license was the man’s ID card. Illya held it up and Napoleon nodded. He took it and slipped it into his pocket.
“I’m going to call home,” he shouted and Illya nodded, still engrossed in the wallet’s contents. If Napoleon had but tarried a moment longer, he would have seen the approach of a very angry enemy.
Finding a quiet spot at this attraction was practically impossible. Napoleon finally locked himself in a stall in the men’s room.
“Open channel D, please.”
“Mr. Solo? What is that noise? Can you hear me?” Napoleon smiled at the sound of Shelia’s voice.
“Yes, Shelia, I’m at Niagara Falls and we bumped into an old friend. What records do we have on Cris Leland?”
There was silence for a moment and then Shelia came back on the line. “I’d steer clear of him, if I were you. He’s not someone you want to mess with by yourself.”
“I have Illya with me.”
“Even so… I will alert the local office. He’s a nasty piece of work.”
“Thanks, Shelia. I will let Illya know.” Napoleon capped the pen, took care of some business and left the bathroom. He looked around the immediate area for Illya, but the man had vanished.
That in itself didn’t bother Napoleon. Illya knew how to contact him if he really needed to. Napoleon walked back up the flight of stairs towards one of the main observation platforms. There was no sign of Illya there, either.
Suddenly, there was a scream and shouts of “There are two men in the water!” and Napoleon had a very bad feeling he knew right where Illya was.
He was used to thinking on his feet. That was what had made Napoleon the youngest agent ever to hold the top rank in Section Two. Instead of heading towards the water to gawk, he ran towards the helicopters.
“I need you!” he shouted, pulling out his ID. “That’s my partner in the water. We need to rescue him.”
The pilot shook his head. “Not in a million years, fella. It’s suicide to try.”
“I’ll do it.” The man who spoke looked old enough to maybe be in high school. “I used to fly stunt planes back home.” He pointed to the chopper. “Climb in.”
Napoleon barely had time to buckle his seatbelt and the chopper was lifting off, despite shouts from below. Napoleon ignored them and scanned the river below. That’s when he spotted Illya clinging to a rock at the lip of the falls.
“He’s there!” Napoleon pointed and the pilot nodded. He made a beeline for the spot, the currents and updraft shaking the chopper roughly.
“You are going to get one chance. Make it a good one.”
Napoleon nodded as Illya struggled to get a foothold on the boulder. The chopped dropped and Napoleon leaned out as far as his seatbelt would permit.
“Illya!” The man’s expression was one of terror and relief as he spotted Napoleon. “We can’t stay much longer. It’s now or never.” Napoleon heard the pilot shout.
“Grab on!”
“I’m trying.”
Just as they lifted off, the rock Illya had been on succumbed to the tremendous pressure and Illya’s movements and rode the water down to the graveyard of boulders at the base of the falls.
Napoleon replayed the scene again and again in his head. Illya had been abnormally quiet during their time with the local police and park officials. Several witnesses came forward and cleared Illya of any wrongdoing. The THRUSH had vanished in all the excitement.
The doctors cleared him, but recommended a day’s rest before travel. The fact that Illya didn’t protest told Napoleon just how shaken and sore his partner was.
Napoleon sat down on his bed and took off his watch. “Some day, huh?”
“He’s dead.”
At first Napoleon wasn’t sure he’d heard Illya. His hearing was still trying to recover from the noise of the water. “Who’s dead, Illya? Leland?”
Illya nodded. “He tried to toss me into the river, but I didn’t go in alone.” Illya shifted slightly to take the pressure off his bandaged arm. “He made the mistake of trying to get back to shore. I knew my only chance was to head for the island and try to grab onto something. Thank the stars you found me when you did. Another ten minutes… Talk about luck.”
“They’ll probably find what’s left of him downriver tomorrow.” A soft knock interrupted him. Napoleon rose and pulled on his bathrobe, dropping his weapon into the pocket.
“Yes?”
“It’s me, Chances, the pilot.”
Napoleon recognized the voice and opened the door. “Talk about luck, Illya. This is luck embodied. No one else would take the risk of rescue you.”
“From the bottom of my heart, thank you.” Illya said, sitting up with a wince. “Forgive me for not getting up.”
“Well, I just wanted to say good bye before leaving.”
“You’re going?”
“Yeah, the park didn’t agree with the way I handled some of their equipment today. It’s okay, though. I’ve been fired from better jobs.”
Napoleon reached into his suit pocket and handed him a card. “If you want the best job you’ll ever have, give them a call and tell them I recommended you.”
“UNCLE, huh?”
“That’s right. We can use pilots of your caliber.”
“Cool.” He stuck out a hand out. “Thanks for a great last day.” He walked away, still regarding the card.
Napoleon clapped him on the shoulder and shut the door behind him. “I think he’s just exactly what Peterson needs to wake him up a bit.”
Illya eased back into the bed and stared at the ceiling. He sighed and barely repressed a shudder. “That was far too close.”
“I agree. When Shelia said he was bad, I didn’t realize how bad.” Napoleon replaced his weapon onto the bedside table and tossed his robe onto a nearby chair. He shut off the light, but knew sleep wasn’t going to come easy for either of them.
“Napoleon?”
“Yes, Illya?”
“Would you… think less of me if I…”
“Not in the least.” Napoleon got out of his bed and into Illya’s. The Russian rolled to his side to give him more room, then relaxed back, a familiar pressure against Napoleon’s back. Perhaps he was slippery when wet, Napoleon thought, but he knew that he was never going to let go.