Mike understood. He waited for Horton to adjust his control panel, then took a running leap from the end of the pier. He zoomed out over the water just a few feet above it, and easily circled the island. He turned around, and hovered for a moment, then heaved the object as hard as he could towards its destination. The throw turned Mike half way around as the ball zoomed out of sight.
Flying leisurely back to the beach Mike judged he would easily reach Dr. Horton before the time the object would land on the opposite shore. He was almost there when suddenly there was a terrible sound like an explosion, and Mike found himself in the water! He was gasping and flinging his arms around trying to become steady enough to swim.
When his eyes cleared from the wave that had engulfed him, he was horrified to see the beach was a mass of destruction! The most terrifying sight of all was that the pier was no longer there, and Dr. Horton had disappeared! The cabins and the rock cliff near them were rubble, some of the debris had been blown down covering the sand completely. Even the equipment was hard to distinguish in the mess. Mike swam as fast as his powers would let him.
"Dr. Horton! Dr. Horton! Where are you?" he cried, so frightened he barely noticed the water was chilling him to the bone. By the time he reached the area where he determined the man would be located, he found a mess of logs and rock built up in a pile out over the top of the water.
After frantic searching and throwing debris Mike finally heard a faint voice from under a pile of rubble. He rushed to check out the spot, upon removing a board discovered his friend's head sticking up from the mess. He was barely conscious, and a mass of scratches and bruises, but just kept repeating "I don't believe it! It's impossible!" over and over again. Mike was in tears. "The ball landed and exploded!" Horton mumbled. "He doesn't know his own strength! Even the island is under water!"
"Don't worry, I'll get you out, doc!" he gasped, digging out the rocks and grime as rapidly as possible. He was worried what he'd find underneath.....what condition his friend would be in, and didn't really know what he should do. There wasn't a hospital for miles, the nearest one being his own clinic, and not a telephone to call for medical aide. It would be very dangerous to move Dr. Horton when he finally uncovered the rest of him.
"I've got to get you some help right away!" Mike said aloud, trying to wipe his cheeks with a sleeve he found to be soaked also. "There's only one thing I can do...I can't leave you for a minute!"
After scooping up Dr. Horton in his arms as carefully as if he was picking up an infant, Mike flew to the jeep...it was totally inoperable. The hub caps had been blown off and the tires loose.