The Peacekeepers. Books 7 - 9 (The Peacekeepers Boxset Book 3)

by Ricky Sides

  The Arizona, her fighter escort, and the three remaining drones had flown a few miles ahead of the pirate armada, so that the captain could have a few worry free moments to contact Base 1.

  “So far, the armor is holding up well. I’ve surveyed the hull with one of the drones, and Rufus has looked as well. It’s dented here and there. Some of those hits felt like a cannonball hit us, but it’s holding up against the firepower of the enemy,” Jack stated.

  Taking a deep breath, he continued, “Admiral, I’d like to stick with this. I have a few plans I’d like to put into affect, but you may not like them.”

  “Such as?” Jim asked curiously.

  “Sir, I’d like to utilize the strike force on a night op,” Jack said nervously.

  “You want to use the strike force to attack an armada at sea?” Jim asked for clarification.

  “Yes, Admiral, that’s precisely what I want to do,” Captain Wilcox stated. He then outlined his plan. As he did so, he noted the expression on the face of his strike force leader who was present at the time. The man looked eager to carry out the plan.

  “That is without a doubt the craziest plan I’ve ever heard in my life,” Jim said, disappointing Jack. It didn’t help that he had heard Pete laughing in the background, but then Jim said, “Captain, you are a go for that plan, provided you can get enough men to volunteer for the mission.”

  “Thank you, sir, but I could have sworn you just said it was a crazy plan,” Jack responded.

  “It is a crazy plan. That’s why I think it has a high potential for success. I doubt the enemy would ever expect such an attack. But, Jack, this mission will be so dangerous that I’d ask for volunteers if I were you. There’s no shame in a man declining that mission.”

  “I couldn’t agree more, Admiral. I’d lead the men myself, but I know that wouldn’t be appropriate under these circumstances,” Jack said.

  “The hell you will, sir,” said Lieutenant Eddy Farns, the strike team leader. He took his job of protecting the captain seriously, therefore, he would immediately exercise his authority to veto the captain’s participation in any mission he felt unduly endangered him.

  “All right, Captain. Good luck to you. I’ll be heading north to join Bill. There are some problems cropping up, and we need to deal with those issues soon. Good luck to you all, but remember, this is not a suicide mission. I expect to see you all again soon. Just do your best to cut down the size of the fleet before they reach our waters. We know you can’t stop them, but you are buying us time.”

  “Good luck, sir,” Captain Wilcox said, and then he signed off.

  “Are your men assembled in the cargo bay?” asked the captain.

  “Yes, sir, they are,” Lieutenant Farns replied.

  “Helm, be sure to keep us well away from the fleet until I return. I want to go see the strike team. I’ll be below,” Jack said.

  “Will do, Captain,” Namid responded.

  The Captain set a brisk pace as he walked through the hallway of the upper deck of his ship. As he walked, he caught his eyes roving over everything, noting the closed doors and the condition of the deck. Smiling, he remembered the many times he had seen Captain Jim Wilison do the same. He had wondered then if the captain was looking for some small infractions of the rules. Now, he saw things from a different perspective and understood that the captain had been looking for anything that might potentially be a threat to the personnel under his responsibility.

  Soon, the two men reached the fireman’s pole. Jack grabbed the pole and slid down easily. Landing on the deck with scarcely a sound, he quickly stepped aside, making room for the lieutenant to join him.

  The moment the lieutenant hit the floor, he shouted, “Captain on deck!” The strike team scrambled to line up in formation. Standing shoulder to shoulder, they stood at rigid attention.

  “At ease, gentlemen,” said Captain Wilcox.

  The men visibly relaxed, but maintained their formation. The captain approached them and said, “Gentlemen, I need four volunteers for a very hazardous mission.”

  To their credit, every man in the unit raised his hand to volunteer. Captain Wilcox felt a moment of pride. He saw that same emotion reflected in the eyes of Lieutenant Farns. “After you hear the details of the mission, any man who wants to stand down is welcome to do so. There will be no shame in it. Be forewarned, this assignment is dangerous. The likelihood of everyone surviving this operation is not good,” the captain explained.

  Turning to Lieutenant Farns, Jack said, “Lieutenant, brief the men on the mission. I want the four best swimmers from among the volunteers.”

  “Understood, sir,” replied the lieutenant.

  Captain Wilcox then stepped aside to permit his strike force leader to brief the men. He stayed until the duty assignment had been settled, and then he noted the names of the men going on the mission. Thanking the men, the captain returned to the control room.

  After the captain left, the strike team began to make their preparations. Soon, Abe Garner, the engineer of the ship, joined them. Abe provided them with the hookup unit they would need for the mission. That unit consisted of a small metal box attached to a heavy piece of Huxley alloy with a hole drilled through it. The lieutenant inspected the unit. In particular, he studied the edges of the hole, which had been worked carefully so that there were no sharp edges. “Thanks, Abe. That will do just fine,” the lieutenant said.

  ***

  One hour before approaching London, the Peacekeeper made radio contact with the British. Robert Edwards, the Deputy Consul-General who had opted to return to Britain, explained to the British radio operator that the Peacekeeper was a friendly American aircraft that would be coming in for a landing. He further explained that the Americans were bringing a new technology to aid the United Kingdom, and requested a high-ranking member of the government meet them at the airport of their choice.

  Instead of an airport, they were directed to land at an open field ten miles south of the city. Tim had Jeff Brown, the escort pilot, man his fighter. He would fly escort the rest of the trip. He also had the two drones normally attached to the Peacekeeper deployed.

  Speaking quietly, so that the British Deputy Consul-General wouldn’t overhear him, Pol asked Tim, “Do you suspect treachery on the part of the British?”

  Tim looked troubled for just an instant, but the expression on his face was fleeting. He replied with a question of his own. “Do you remember the dream I had when we were going to take down the largest plantation slave farm in Texas?”

  “Yes, my friend, I do remember that incident,” Pol replied. Then he said, “Have you had a dream pertaining to this mission?”

  Tim nodded in the affirmative. Lowering his voice even more, he said, “I’m afraid so, Pol. In my dream, they were apologetic, but these are desperate times for the British. I dreamed that they diverted us to an open field ten miles south of the city.” Tim stopped and eyed Pol, who understood the significance of that portion of the dream, which had already been confirmed. “We were met by elements of the royal army. They invited us to come outside for talks, and then they seized the ship. As I said before, they were apologetic. But these are desperate times.”

  Nodding soberly, Pol said, “I take it we won’t be leaving the ship this trip.”

  “No, we won’t. But they can send in small parties for discussions,” Tim said.

  “May I make a suggestion?” Pol asked.

  “Always, Pol. You should know that by now,” Tim said.

  Smiling, Pol thanked the captain for his confidence, and then he said, “Don’t land the battleship module. Leave it hovering at max altitude. Detach the Peacekeeper, and then land her to let the refugees exit. Don’t risk the bay door. Use the small side door. Seal it the moment the last refugee has departed. We can open the door to admit small parties with drones covering. Negotiate with them in the battleship module, not on the ground where we are more vulnerable.”

  “Pol, get out of my mind. That’s almost w
ord for word the plan I developed. I’ll also have Jeff fly cover during landings, just in case they consider an airborne operation to try to take the battleship module while we’re on the ground. His peripheral vision would make that more difficult to pull off. The drones are great, but a man is still better in some regards,” Tim said.

  Tim paused. Cocking his head to one side in thought, he said, “You know, Pol, you’d make an excellent captain. Let me know when you get ready to hang up your engineering specialty.”

  “Sure, Tim, and you let me know when you’re ready to stop piloting peacekeeper aircraft,” Pol said with a sardonic grin.

  “That’ll be the day hell freezes over,” Tim said, and laughed.

  “I couldn’t have stated that better,” Pol responded with a grin.

  ***

  Far out in the Atlantic, the sun had set, plunging the pirate armada into an inky darkness. Here and there among the fleet, ships equipped with powerful deck lights switched them on so that the deck crews could see what they were doing. Those lights also helped to prevent collisions with other vessels.

  Bran Lynch knew the pirate ships were bunching in too close, and he was well aware of the reason. All day long, the American aircraft had worked the outer fringes of the fleet. By the time darkness descended upon the armada, the Americans had managed to sink forty ships.

  Forty vessels sounded like a huge victory for the Americans, but they were facing a fleet of five thousand ships. They were now five days from reaching American waters. Even if the Americans managed to take similar numbers of ships each day, there was no way that they could have a severe impact on the capabilities of the pirates. Though he was angered at his own personal losses, Bran was confident that they could eventually reach their goals.

  ***

  Captain Wilcox ordered the Arizona to be flown in a wide circle that would eventually bring them to a point at the rear of the fleet. The last four hours of the day, they had worked the outer fringes of the western, southern, and northern sections of the armada. They had avoided the east entirely, and thus the pirates were now concentrating their attention on the other directions.

  Now it was time to put his plan into action.

  “Namid, hold us steady just above the surface of the sea. The closer to the surface the better it will be for the strike team members deploying the raft,” the captain ordered.

  “I’ll do my best, but the sea is pretty choppy, Captain,” Namid responded.

  “Noted. I’ll go tell the guys to make the deployment as quickly as possible,” Jack stated.

  Turning to the drone operator, he asked, “Are you sure you understand the mission?”

  “Yes, Captain,” responded the man.

  “Good. I’ll be in the cargo bay for the next few minutes,” Jack said.

  Five minutes later, the captain observed as the five men loaded their gear into the outer cargo bay. “You men be careful with those explosives. Tim assures me that they are quite powerful, despite their diminutive size. He recommends two of the units per vessel, situated about a foot apart.”

  “Let’s just hope that none of the pirate ships use the detonation frequency onboard their ships,” one of the strike team members said.

  “That’s highly unlikely,” Abe responded.

  “You’re the engineer, so you should know,” replied the concerned team member.

  “Remember the plan. For this to work to full affect, you must remain unobserved. I want all those charges set, and then we’ll issue the statement I’ve worked up. It would work best if the explosions are widely scattered,” Captain Wilcox stipulated. “However, if it gets too hairy out there we’ll just select the easiest targets.”

  “I wish I could go with you men,” Jack said with a trace of wistfulness in his voice.

  “Leave it to us, sir,” replied Lieutenant Farns.

  Jack was reminded of the many times he had said those exact words to Jim. Now he had a better understanding of how Jim must have felt when he had heard that response.

  The captain and the engineer stepped back inside the main section of the cargo bay. They secured the door, using one of the Huxley alloy locks that caused the seams to fuse together. Jack stepped over to the monitor and watched with Abe as the five-man team deployed. There wasn’t much to see. Dutifully the team killed the lights before opening the door. Jack saw the door open a moment later. Then dark silhouettes moved between the open door and the camera. He vaguely saw the drone drop down to hover right in front of the men. One of them attached the locking mechanism with which the drone would be tied to the raft. The drone would provide the propulsion for the team. The men above on the ships would not hear its quiet operation. However, there was a possibility of it being spotted, so one of the men attached its camouflage cover that would prevent discovery. In moments, the team had departed. Captain Wilcox saw the small wake of the raft as they sped away. Once they were closer to the ships, they would reduce speed to decrease that wake.

  “Seal the outer door, Abe. I’m going to the control room. Join me there,” the captain ordered.

  ***

  The Peacekeeper settled to earth in the open field with a feather-soft landing. Tim ordered the strike team leader to escort the refugees to the control room. A few moments later, Sergeant David Thompson arrived with the excited British citizens, who eagerly left the ship the moment the door was opened.

  As the last refugee stepped outside the ship, Tim shut the door. He then sealed the entrance with the locking mechanism that caused the seams to fuse together. He hadn’t even made it to his chair when an insistent pounding began in the area where the door had been located moments before. The control room crew could hear muffled shouting, but no comprehensible words. “Activate the external pickups, Patricia,” Tim said.

  “I’m afraid I must insist that you open this door and come out at once,” said a male voice with a thick British accent.

  Activating the microphone that would permit him to utilize the external speaker, Tim responded, “We requested the presence of a high ranking government official. We see only military personnel. We will go back to the other ship for now. We’ll give you an hour to arrange a meeting. If you can’t, then we’ll leave in peace.” Pausing a moment, Tim then said, “I suggest you back away from our ship. I wouldn’t want you harmed when we apply thrust to go to altitude.”

  “This is most irregular. I insist that you open the…” Tim killed the external pickup.

  “Pilot, take us back to the battleship module. Make it an easy ascent, just in case the man is still beside the ship,” Tim instructed.

  An hour later, a black sedan pulled out into the field. A man emerged from the vehicle. He addressed the military personnel, who then pulled back away from the landing site. They set up a hundred yards away at the edge of the field. The man then turned to face the Peacekeeper, which was hovering at three hundred feet.

  Inside the Peacekeeper, Tim had been watching the developments as they played out. He had the ship lowered to an altitude of two hundred feet. Then, the Peacekeeper was separated from the battleship module. Once more, the Peacekeeper settled to the ground with a feather-soft landing.

  “Stand clear of the door people,” Tim warned. He then unsealed the entrance so that it once more became a functional door. Opening the door, Tim greeted the man he found waiting.

  ***

  The raft slipped through the sea quietly, but it was a rough ride. The strike force team was soaking wet, but they had placed half their charges. Things had gone well to that point. They had managed to come alongside the ships unobserved. The hardest part of the mission was avoiding the wake of the target vessels. Coming alongside them in such a manner that the team’s raft wasn’t struck by the ships as they wallowed in the growing seas was also difficult.

  Lieutenant Farns noted that the ocean spray was beginning to have a debilitating affect on the men. Setting the charges was delicate work under the best of circumstances. The ships were pitching and rolling in
the sea, often threatening to capsize the small raft. Fingers that had manipulated the explosives with ease at the outset, were now taking much longer to accomplish the task. Two men would prep the charges and hand them to two others. Those men attached the charges to the hull of the ship, as near the waterline as possible. That often caused their hands to be submerged in the 44 degree Fahrenheit water. That took a serious toll on their manual dexterity.

  The fifth man in the raft watched the deck railing of the ship with a silenced pistol in hand, just in case a crewman happened to discover them. The strike team rotated positions after each ship in an effort to keep their fingers nimble enough to handle the task at hand.

  Inside the control room of the Arizona, Captain Wilcox stood behind the drone operator and observed the strike team’s work through the night vision camera of the drone. He could easily see that the men were becoming less efficient, and he understood the reasons for that decrease in efficiency. He considered recalling the team, but he didn’t, because the mission was vitally important. He also knew that Lieutenant Farns would abort the operation at any point when he felt his men were no longer capable of performing the mission. Therefore, ordering a recall on the first major mission of his strike team would undermine the lieutenant by conveying the appearance that the captain didn’t have faith in his judgment.

  As a former strike team leader, the captain understood the importance of permitting the lieutenant to do his job without interference. However, he could affect the mission subtly by directing the drone to targets that would permit the men a few extra moments to recuperate, and that’s precisely what he did.

  For another two hours, the strike team placed their charges. They were fortunate that they were not discovered by anyone as they carried out their mission. When the last charge was set, Lieutenant Farns looked at the drone and said, “That was the last of the charges, sir. We’re ready for extraction.”