by Ricky Sides
Namid skipped her normal precautionary pre flight drill before going airborne. Only when the fighter was hovering at two hundred feet did she even bother buckling her safety harness. Then she took a moment to go through an abbreviated preflight drill. “Namid, you fly security for us while we get organized,” Pete instructed via the radio.
“Roger that, Pete. Where are the incoming hostiles?” she asked.
“Three blocks east and closing according to the man flying our drone,” Pete answered.
Namid flew toward the oncoming rush of men and hovered briefly above them. “Gentlemen, what are your intentions?” she asked using the external communications system. The men she had addressed opened fire on her fighter. Behind the men, Namid saw a laser flashing repeatedly. She sought her own targets and then she opened fire as well.
Caught between the two lasers the men quickly lost the heart for this battle and they retreated to their boats at the bay. “Let them get well out into the bay and then sink them,” Jim ordered.
“Aye, sir,” Namid said as she hovered behind them. “Drone, I am going to a flight level of four hundred feet, please try to stay behind me at your altitude so I can’t possibly hit you,” she requested. “Sorry, but I’m not yet accustomed to fighting with drones.”
“That’s no problem,” the drone operator assured her. “When we fight together we maintain different flight levels for the same reason.”
Moving out over the bay the fighter and the drone followed the speedboats until they were far from shore. Namid destroyed the first speedboat and the drone followed suit. The others tried to separate to increase their chances of surviving the battle but they performed that maneuver to no avail. Within moments, all of the speedboats had been destroyed.
She was returning to the Carwell facility when Namid spotted the fires in the distance. “Peacekeeper, I see three fires in the distance coming from western San Francisco,” Namid reported.
“Roger, Namid, please execute a flyby to determine if the fires are the result of attacks or just unfortunate accidents,” Jim ordered.
“On my way Peacekeeper,” Namid responded and she throttled up for a burst of speed that would have her circling the fire zone in just a couple of minutes.
Circling the area Namid saw men advancing into a residential area just north of what appeared to be a recreational vehicle park. Shaking her head in disbelief, Namid watched as a man threw a firebomb of some sort at the front of a house. “Peacekeeper, are you getting this feed?” Namid asked.
“Yes we are getting it now, Namid. Feel free to kill those men attacking homes but exercise extreme caution. There may be some innocents on the streets on the run from the Marauders. The two drones are on their way to assist and we are preparing to send in the strike teams. I’m inclined to say destroy any boats you see in that area. However, that would unfortunately almost certainly take out some property belonging to the good guys, so hold off on that until you can confirm that the boats belong to the pirates,” Jim said and then he added, “Good hunting.”
On the ground below, Namid saw a large puff of smoke and she shot her throttle full forward hanging on as the acceleration g-forces pulled at her body. “Peacekeeper, advise the drones that the enemy has rockets or rocket propelled grenades. They just fired one at me.”
“Namid, Pete wants to know if you can safely target the area with your minigun?” Jim asked.
“Yes for a short burst only and at relatively low speed,” Namid responded.
“You are to wait for the drones. They’ll be there soon. The drones will create a diversion by firing on the men once they locate them. While the drones have them distracted make your attack run,” Jim ordered.
“Aye, Captain, understood,” Namid said as she prepared to light up the target area for the drones. A few moments later, they came into visual range and she said, “Welcome to the party guys, lighting up the target area.” and then she sent a three shot burst at the trouble spot.
The drones separated and their smaller lasers fired at the target area. Namid brought the minigun online and put the crosshairs on the target zone as she began her attack run. People in the homes below gazed out their windows to see the fantastic sight of the two drones and the fighter firing their lasers at the men who were firebombing their neighborhood, and they cheered them on.
In the Peacekeeper, Jim and Pete stood watching the monitors of the drones. Pol and Bill were flying the drones now and both had their cameras trained on the target area. They saw three laser strikes from the drones lancing into the area and then they saw a multitude of small puffs erupting from the ground just in front of the target zone. That hail of bullets walked toward the men on the ground firing up at the drones and in four seconds, all of the men were down.
“Good shooting, Namid,” Pete said, and then he added, “Secure that weapon so you don’t accidentally use it the next time you need to fire.”
“Already done, sir, and thank you,” Namid said efficiently as she headed out seeking other targets.
“Strike teams deploying, Namid. They’ll be moving in from the west so be careful during the targeting,” Pol advised.
“Roger that, Pol. I count two main groups at this fire. My best guess is maybe twenty-five men remaining in this area, but there are two more fires a bit north of our location.”
“Namid, do a quick flyby of the other two hot zones while the drones keep the men below occupied,” Jim ordered.
“Will do, Captain. Breaking off and heading for the next hot zone,” she responded and swung her fighter to the north kicking in the throttle for five seconds and then bringing it back to a crawl. Namid discovered five men in the process of firebombing the city in this area, which was a commercial district. Reporting her findings, she received orders to terminate the Marauders. She opened fire, killing one immediately with her laser. The other four men darted into a small wooden storage building where they began to return fire at Namid’s fighter. Toggling weapons systems, she once more brought the minigun online and fired a short burst at the structure. Pausing after that attack, she waited to see if anyone inside the structure had survived. Five seconds into this pause there was a single rifle shot fired at her fighter. Namid involuntarily winced as the bullet ricocheted off her windshield directly in front of her face. She responded with another stroke of the firing button of her minigun.
She hovered in position and waited again to see if anyone had survived. The firebombs remaining on the men evidently ignited a fire inside the structure, which was soon a roaring inferno. “Target two terminated, Captain,” she reported.
“We know pilot,” Pete responded. “You’re sending us some excellent video. Patricia says that needs to be saved and delivered at some point to the flight training team for their use in possible future training. Good job, Namid. Proceed to the third hot spot.”
“Thank you, sir. On my way,” Namid said.
During the attack on the structure where the four men had sought refuge, Namid had descended to one hundred feet. Now she pulled back on the stick gently and ascended to her maximum altitude of four hundred feet. As she did so, she spun the fighter on its axis seeking the third hot spot. She was en route to that hot spot when she got a message on her radio telling her that strike force team one had pinned down some of the pirates in a concrete reinforced building. The drone had already used its bomb and the Peacekeeper had another five men pinned down in another location. She was redirected to the concrete building where she was to use one of her bombs to destroy the target.
Namid flew to the area and circled but she couldn’t locate the target. “Peacekeeper, I don’t know which building to target. They all look similar to me from my position and I see no fire coming from a building or toward one.”
“Hold on, Namid, I’ll have Lieutenant Wilcox light up the target for you,” Patricia responded.
“Thank you, Lieutenant,” she responded and waited for target clarification. She didn’t have long to wait because in a few second
s a line of rifles opened fire on a single structure. “I see the target now. Tell the boys I said thank you and hunker down. Bombs away in a few seconds,” Namid said and she flew over the building pausing a moment to make sure that their forces on the ground below had taken cover before she released a bomb. She felt a slight lurch in her fighter as the bomb released and then she shot the throttle forward for two seconds to speed away from the detonation area. Turning her fighter in a gentle curve, she saw the debris settling back to earth. The building had been devastated by the blast and as she passed over the bombsite, she saw through the massive hole in the roof that a portion the interior was an inferno. “Peacekeeper, please advise the team that there is a fire inside the building. Any potential survivors will make a break for the exits soon.”
“Roger Namid, I just sent them that message,” Pete said. “That was a good analysis on your part. And by the way, it was also good to request target clarification. Never fire on a target unless you are certain it is indeed the correct target, and never be afraid to seek clarification. Now get to target three please. The fires seem to be getting worse over there.”
“On my way, Peacekeeper, and thank you, Pete, I’ll remember the advice,” Namid said as she throttled up to go across town to the third hot zone. As she approached, she saw that there were numerous fires burning out of control.
She circled the area but at first, she saw nothing but a group of firemen trying to put out one of the fires. Hovering four hundred feet above the firefighters, she scanned the area and located a sniper positioned atop a nearby building. “Peacekeeper, I think I’ve got a sniper here but that isn’t verified. Is it possible local law enforcement has a police sniper in position to protect the firemen?” she asked.
“Possible, but unlikely,” responded Pete who then requested that she train her camera on the man and zoom in. When she had complied Pete instructed, “Note the items on the rooftop beside the man.”
Looking carefully at the items she said, “I think that bottle affair is an old fashioned Molotov cocktail, sir.”
“Very good, Lieutenant. Why would a police officer have such an item on a roof?” asked Pete.
“It could be that he found it or took it off one of the attackers though, couldn’t it, sir?” Namid queried.
“Kill the man now, Lieutenant,” Pete ordered.
Namid targeted the man and fired a short pulse of her laser drilling the man through the upper back. His feet drummed the surface of the roof for a moment and then he lay still. “I hope to hell that was the right call, sir,” Namid said feeling anything but certain that it had been.
“Yes I know that the Molotov cocktail alone wasn’t conclusive proof but now examine the man’s clothing. Note that he is in plain clothes and not a swat or police uniform. Now examine the items near him again. Note that overflowing sack of loot beside the body. No police officer would lug that stuff up onto a rooftop stakeout,” Pete said.
Namid was about to respond that she understood when a bullet glanced off the canopy to the right of her face. Jerking back on the stick she shot the fighter straight up and then tried to spot the shooter, but below she saw no sign of a sniper. On the street below, the windshield of the fire truck shattered as a sniper put a round near the head of the man standing at the front of the truck. Namid brought her fighter down in front of the fire truck interposing the body of her aircraft between the concealed sniper and the firefighters. She moved slowly up the street looking for any sign of the sniper. Another bullet ricocheted off her windshield and she said, “Damn it, I can’t find the sniper guys. He is taking pot shots at me and the firemen in the street.”
“Hang on, Namid, Pol’s drone is en route to assist you,” Patricia stated. “Try to draw his fire now,” said Patricia moments later. “Pol is in position to get a different angle view of the area.”
Another shot slammed into the canopy and immediately after she saw Pol’s laser flash three times in quick succession. “Pol says the guy was hiding in a roof vent but the heat trace showed up on his infrared camera. There was no way you could see him. The Captain says good job protecting the firefighters, and to resume the search. He thinks that a death squad is hiding here to kill firemen who respond to the fires,” Patricia said.
“Roger Peacekeeper, will do, and thank Pol for the assist. That sniper had me looking everywhere and I still couldn’t locate him. Tell Pol I want an infrared camera installed for such occasions if he’s willing,” Namid said and began her search again. She saw a small ball of fire hurtle from the top of a building toward the firefighters in the street below. When the fireball struck the street beside a firefighter operating the water controls on the truck the flammable liquid spread to within feet of the man. The other firefighters turned their attention to this threat to their own vehicle as Namid flew over to the building from which the fireball had originated. She saw no one as she circled the building but she did find a rooftop bulkhead and she suspected that the fire bomber was playing cat and mouse just inside the stairwell.
Namid moved her fighter into position to cover the exit twenty yards from the building and about fifty feet higher than the bulkhead exit. Three minutes into the wait, the door opened and a man emerged lighting another Molotov cocktail as he did so. Namid let him get several feet from the door before firing her laser. The powerful laser struck the bottle that the man was holding, instantly evaporating most of the contents, but what didn’t evaporate exploded covering the man in the burning flammable material. The man staggered around engulfed in flames. As he beat wildly at the flames in an attempt to put them out, he fell from the roof of the building. The man fell five stories to the street below. The firefighters glanced at him and one of the men spared a moment to douse the flames with his powerful hose but then they returned to fighting the fires.
Namid was hovering over the area looking for another target when she heard the report of a gunshot below her. Looking down incredulously Namid saw that the pirate was still alive and he’d shot one of the firemen. Two other firefighters charged the man and ended the fight with their axes. The wounded firefighter had been shot in the leg and other rescue workers on the scene ran forward to put him on a stretcher and got him out of the area. The little fire that the exploding firebomb had ignited on the roof was already down to no more than a few flickers of flame.
Namid circled the area several more times but no more shots were fired nor were additional firebombs thrown. She reported that as far as she could tell the area was now clear of the threat to the firefighters. She was told to return to their temporary base. Waving to the firefighters who saluted her briefly in return she flew back to rejoin the rest of the peacekeepers who had just landed.
Two crewmembers exited the Peacekeeper with a bag of tools and a large box of ammunition and headed toward Namid’s fighter. They were the two men who’d see to the rearming of the fighter. Once they’d reloaded the minigun they would also replace the bomb that she’d used during the mission. They kept the Peacekeeper’s escort fighter maintained in top readiness at all times. When it was on the ground at the factory, the diligent California peacekeepers, kept it guarded.
Chapter 26
Pol sighed as the final lock was placed on the door of the Carwell Industries factory. He’d grown accustomed to his office in the sprawling plant and he would miss the work. For a few months the world had seemed almost normal to him again as he’d worked diligently to oversee the fabrication of all of the parts needed to manufacture the drones and fighters. But there was simply nothing much left that they could do here without the raw materials he needed. He’d managed to salvage all of the available scrap from the manufacturing process and it would indeed be a challenge to find new and creative things that he might be able to do to utilize an alloy that was far too precious to scrap. The scrap, neatly sorted and catalogued, now rested in the cargo bay of the Peacekeeper where it would remain until they reached Base 1. Pol had his assistants who had copies of the scrap manifests creating possible
plans for which the invaluable material might be utilized.
Turning to the Peacekeeper sitting beside the facility, Pol entered the ship promising himself he would return to this facility someday if they ever found another source for the marvelous alloy that Patricia’s father had invented.
Beside the Peacekeeper sat the Phoenix. Namid’s fighter had inadvertently been named the Phoenix by Pol who’d remarked that with the fire in the background during the battle last night the fighter had reminded him of the legendary Phoenix as it rose into the night above the fires with the firelight sparkling off her hull. The council had liked the name and Patricia had worked up a graphic which some of the men had artistically painted onto the fuselage of the fighter with Namid’s permission. Namid rather liked the analogy of the Phoenix. It wasn’t that different from her story. Taken from the depths of slavery she had been exalted to the position of the top pilot in the peacekeepers in the space of months. In a way, her story was that of a rebirth just as much as that of the mythical bird rising from the ashes of its own fiery destruction. Jim, Pete, and Tim liked the analogy for other reasons. They saw it as symbolizing the rebirth of their nation from the ashes of the previous nation. Both analogies fit the name.
Namid climbed into the cockpit of her fighter and sealed the canopy. Working swiftly she went through her pre flight checklist and then lifted her fighter into the air where she would fly cover for the Peacekeeper on the long journey to Base 1. To fly with these people she had willingly severed her ties to her home state of Texas, which was something that she had never thought she would do for any reason. She had no regrets.
As Jim took his seat in the control room, he pondered Pol’s question for the fifth time. That man had a way of making a man think about things and consider possibilities that he’d not otherwise consider. Now Jim found himself really wondering just what ultimate foe could challenge them to the point that they needed the latest additions to the peacekeeper arsenal.