4 Down with DeLay!

Chapter 4 Down with DeLay! The Wright brothers hunted all over the hangar for the propeller. No luck. Yasmin and Min-Jun felt awful. "We need that propeller," said Orville. "Without it, we'll never get the Flyer off the ground!" said Wilbur. Yasmin and Min-Jun looked at each

other. There was often a moment in the Timekeepers' missions when they had to explain about DeLay without mentioning time travel. Telling people about that could change history, and that was NOT what the Timekeepers were here to do. "This is going to sound kind of strange," Min-Jun began. "Stranger than a propeller disappearing into thin air?" said Wilbur. Taking turns, Min-Jun and Yasmin

explained about DeLay. "He's a troublemaker," said Yasmin. "He messes around with people's lives," said Min-Jun. "And we think he's trying to stop you from flying!" Yasmin finished. "He's the one who stole your propeller. We're sure of it!" Orville and Wilbur both looked shocked. Orville sank on to a nearby bench with his head in his hands. "This is terrible," he muttered. "Just terrible." "Maybe it's not so bad," said Min-Jun hopefully. "Can't you just make another one?" "I wish it was that simple," said Wilbur. "Each propeller is hand-carved. We put so much work into matching the

propellers so that the power was evenly distributed. We've carved, and polished, and carved, and polished, and measured, and carved some more. Making sure that our two propellers matched was the hardest thing we've ever done."

"We aren't even sure we have the science right," said Orville sadly. "We're still testing. But we really hoped we'd nailed it this time. We'll never be able to replicate that propeller again." "And after the failure earlier today, this is the last straw," said Wilbur. He sank down on the bench beside his brother. "Our dream of flying is over. We might as well go back to Ohio and help Katherine sell our bicycles." Yasmin wanted to yell with frustration. DeLay had stopped the Wrights from conducting the most important experiment in the history of powered flight! Without the success of the Flyer, the world of aviation would never develop. There would be no air show in

Karachi. No flight simulator for Yasmin to explore her own dreams of flying. It was a disaster. They had to stop DeLay and find that propeller! "You search the rest of the hangar," Yasmin suggested to Orville and Wilbur. "We'll take a look on the beach." Yasmin and Min-Jun took the bicycles and pedaled back out into the bright December sunshine. The smell of the sea was rich and salty, and seagulls flew in white circles high in the sky. Tempo swooped around their heads in a worried kind of way.