The small Cessna was humming cheerfully in the quiet of the snow-covered landscape. There was light snow still falling, but that only made the scene more bright.
"After me, gentlemen." Felice declared as she climbed up and into the pilot seat. Once in it, she turned back and motioned the two passengers towards their seats. "Make yourselves comfortable."
When they both took a seat, she shut the door, and after a final check of all dials, she softly started the plane on the runway. During some technical chatter with the ATC, the plane cleanly left the ground and the journey's first leg started.
Felice then tapped her earphones a few times, and pointed up to the plane's sides, where the passenger's earphones were fastened to a holder. It seemed practical, as the engine's roar made it hard to talk inside.
Having little to say, and still recovering from a week long highly physical class, Jack took a pair of ibuprofen, sipped his water, and tried to get comfortable enough to doze off.
Once up in the air, Felice greeted her passangers. "Welcome to Flight CSN-23, and enjoy your journey. Your refreshment are what you brought with you in your bag, and ...", she glanced in the small mirror, checking that Jack was already almost asleep, "I'll be your chat partner, for lack of other. Have you been on many flights?"
Having propped his feet up a little with his A bag, Jack listened to the melodic engine firing sequence as it interplayed with the craft's structural conversation. It was a good sound to go to sleep to, and would help him relax as the medicine kicked in.
"Oh, sorry for that. I know about ill family members, my father and his parents had that all the time. Although, truth to tell, I'm not sure how much of it was actually health problems and how much was just worrying about everything. Not to suggest your uncle's the same, but I feel your concern. Even a visit can ..."
The voice of Felice was suddenly cut off, and static was all Daryl could hear. Then, gradually through the static, another voice could be heard. It sounded like it was coming from behind a glass panel, muffled but strong, with a strange rhythm. It was chanting something in a language Daryl could not understand. The pilot turned back towards him, and he could see she was talking and tapping the headphones strongly, but nothing came through the system.
Jack dozed off as the plane hummed sleepily. In his dream he was out in the wilderness, in the snow-covered plains of some continent. In his dream, he looked up to find north, but the stars were in unknown constellations, he couldn't recognize anything there. Then the sky felt like closing in, first like a blanket, then gradually strengthening into a strangling weight, while he heard a voice chanting something in a completely foreign language.
As he startled, the dream was suddenly gone, but the voice chanting remained He saw Felice looking backwards, and trying to 'repair' the headphones with a very annoyed face.
Making some assumptions in this color, feel free to correct me if I err.
Jack shook his head and smacked his lips to clear the dream. Much better than the dreams of finding Susan in bed with some college football player. Well, those were memories Jack beat himself up with, not dreams. Walking Mary down the aisle was a dream, but so far unrealized; she was too much her mother's daughter.
He realized the voice, or whatever it was, was still droning on. He looked at Felice, she was easy enough to look at, and then leaned his head against the frame of the plane. Nope, the voices weren't in time with the plane's mechanical vibrations. Not a plug or timing issue, engine was still in tune and the wind blew the plane in its own slow beat.
Same issues with the headset, so Jack put it back on the hook. Wide awake now, and in dire desire of coffee, Jack looked at his co-passenger, and then put a calming hand on Felice's shoulder When she looked at him, he mouthed "Are you okay?"
Daryl wonders if something as simple as the headphones are malfunctioning then what else could be busted on this heap of junk. He gives Felice a confused look, points to his own headphones, and hangs them back on the hook.
He watches the other passenger try and speak with the pilot, but says nothing.
