by Jack L Knapp
“Not to worry, lass. Let’s get you checked in, they’ll see you right in no time.”
Chapter Eight
She looks tired, Frenchy thought. Lina was awake, but not speaking. She held Chuck’s hand.
“How are you feeling, honey?” asked Frenchy.
Lina stirred. “Not too bad. They’re discharging me today, but dad, I can’t take my babies. The hospital wants to keep them a few more days to make sure they’re healthy. I tried to tell them that the premature births had nothing to do with the babies, just a bumpy ride in a hired car, but they aren’t listening.”
“I’m not listening either, daughter. Let the experts do their job. They know more about premature babies than you do.”
“That’s what I said, Frenchy,” said Chuck. “She didn’t want to listen to me. Maybe you’ll have better luck.”
“I did some research during the flight; doctors believe that babies born as little as two weeks before full term are more likely to suffer from allergies, other problems too. Let the medical people do what they’re supposed to, Lina. Time enough for you to be a full-time mother when the hospital says the babies can go home. Have you named them yet?” This was directed to Lina and Chuck.
“I thought of Charles and Charlotte, or maybe Charlene, but I decided I liked Robert and Roberta. So I made the choice,” said Lina.
“I didn’t get consulted, but I like Robert and Roberta too, now that I think of it. Bobby and Robbie, more than likely. The full names are more formal, but I don’t want to raise our kids in a formal atmosphere.”
“I agree. You’re going to apply for Australian citizenship, Lina? What about you, Chuck?”
“Maybe. I haven’t decided. To be honest, I may just explore something different. I was thinking of renouncing my American citizenship and becoming stateless. I expect more people will do that after we’ve got Moonbase up and running. I may be the first lunar citizen, or maybe the first Martian.”
“I can think of a few advantages,” agreed Frenchy. “But what about the children?”
“That’s the only thing holding me back. It’s possible they might have dual citizenship, Australian and American, but I haven’t looked into it yet. I’m in no hurry. Some things I like about America, some things I don’t, not the way things are now.”
Chuck’s face darkened. “Our factory is shut down, not because we did anything wrong but because politicians were bribed.” He paused. “I wish I could see things changing, but it’s the same old, same old. If NFI was still based in the US, we’d be under constant threat. We may not be done with them even now.”
Frenchy’s cell buzzed. He looked at the caller’s ID in annoyance. “I told them not to forward my calls!”
“Frenchy here. Why are you calling?” His tone was abrupt. He listened, then interrupted briefly. “Is he going to be okay?”
Another pause. Frenchy now looked worried. “Keep me advised. See if Martha can take over, at least temporarily.” Moments later Frenchy closed out the connection.
“Is something wrong?” asked Chuck.
“There’s been a hijacking. Will’s been taken to a hospital. He’s unconscious.”
Frenchy took a deep breath. “The hijackers tried to fly the ship on battery power and crashed it.”
“How could they do that? The boards are locked.”
“The phone call came from Will’s deputy,” said Frenchy. “He’s a pilot, so he’s familiar with the flight systems. He thinks the pumps never got switched on, so the fuel cells couldn’t have worked. The hijackers would have had battery power, because that switch isn’t locked; Wolfgang didn’t want to chance of pilots being locked out, so the latest version only locks out the switches for the pumps. The computers have their own separate batteries, small ones, but that’s enough for emergency control. The idea is that the crew would still be able to fly the bird while they work around a problem. Anyway, the hijackers got almost to Cherbourg before they crashed.”
“As to flying one of our ships, we never tried to hide the control system when we flew the DARPA missions. We also flew people in the airplane, and after the Bedstead crashed the only things we managed to remove from the wreck were the impellers. The Department of Transportation got the rest.” Frenchy shook his head. “I wish we’d thought ahead, but we didn’t. I’m sure there are reports out there if anyone thought to look.”
He continued, “Our people had no idea anything unusual was going on, so Flea landed and nobody was waiting to meet them. The crew locked the board and went in to scrounge a cup of coffee. Lucky for them; the hijackers might have killed or tortured one to force the other to fly the ship.”
“So why didn’t they grab the crew anyway?” asked Chuck.
“Maybe they weren’t ready. They had just dumped Will, they would have figured the cops were out looking, and I imagine they were pretty excited at the time.”
“Yeah,” said Chuck. “I never thought of that. So they might have figured they could fly one of our birds, especially if they got anything from Will.”
“That’s what Will’s deputy thinks, and I agree with him.”
“What happened to Will?”
“He was already there for a scheduled meeting with the manager in charge of shipping low-level waste. Will wanted the French to adopt a standardized container, but they insist their container is good enough, it’s our job to haul it. Anyway, a taxi dropped him off at the plant. He told his deputy he intended to pick up some stick time by catching a ride back with Flea. The deputy called the plant after he heard what happened, and they told him that half a dozen men approached the gate, knocked the guard cold, and grabbed Will. The plant’s people called the police, but no one thought to notify us. The police never got there; it’s a fairly rural area, they don’t have many officers available, so they did the best they could. The few officers they had were put out to block the access roads, hoping to bag the kidnappers. It’s a peninsula, so they were reasonably sure the roadblocks would work.” Frenchy glanced at Lina to see how she was taking the news. She didn’t appear to be upset, so he continued.
“That’s not what happened. Most likely scenario, the kidnappers tried to beat information out of Will. He might have realized they didn’t know about the lock and didn’t tell them. Maybe they hit him too hard. Anyway, they dumped him, maybe thinking he was dead, then headed back to the plant to intercept whichever ship showed up. Will’s deputy thinks that was their plan all along, grab the ship. They were watching the plant, Will showed up, so they snatched him. He was just a target of opportunity; they figured he would fly the ship or at least tell them what they needed to know. Most likely, one of the hijackers was a pilot, maybe all of them were.” Frenchy paused to think.
“Anyway, the hatch was open so the hijackers just walked on board. That’s when they found out that the board was locked. They had to know that the cops had been called, so they tried to fly the ship on battery and ended up crashing it. The hijackers may have died in the crash; our ships glide like bricks.”
“Where did this happen?”
“South of Cherbourg-Octeville. The police are at the scene now, guarding the crash site. If the French government insists on holding Flea, we’ve got serious problems. The crew is still at the reprocessing plant, but they can’t get to the crash site for two hours. Meantime, the French may decide to just look around, but they might also decide to grab the impellers.”
“How did you get here?”
“Cicada. She was in port for a maintenance check, Lina went into labor, so I grabbed her.”
“You stay with Lina, I’ll take Cicada. She’s at the airport, right?” Frenchy nodded. “I’ll need Farside to control the site, and I’ll use Cicada to recover the impellers.”
“Be careful, Chuck. I’d rather not piss off the French if I don’t have to. Where will you take the impellers?”
“Orbit first, probably the Moon after that. That’s the safest place I can think of. I’ll try not to make the French mad, but Fl
ea is ours. They won’t get the impellers if I get there in time.”
“How long?”
“Two, maybe three hours. Flight time is less than an hour from Australia to Finland, it’s a simple suborbital hop. I’ll pile on the gees, meaning Cicada will need refueling as soon as I arrive. I’ll pick up Farside and head for the crash site , so Cicada will have to catch up. I’ll call the base and have them prep Farside.”
“Be careful, son. Call me when you get to France.”
“I will. Take care of Lina, Frenchy. Baby, I love you, I’ll get back as soon as I can.”
Chuck reached for his cell phone as he hurried from the room.
“Jochen here.”
“This is Chuck. Load the wing pods on Farside, the alpha pods, and preflight her. I want to take off as soon as I get there.”
“Jesus, Chuck, both of the pods? That’s going to make the ship pretty heavy.”
“I know, but I might need both. Anyway, it’s better with both, otherwise I would have balance problems. I’ll be there as soon as I can, maybe an hour and a half. I’ve got traffic problems here and that’s slowing me down.”
“I’ll tell Pete, Chuck. You need a crew, right?”
“Right, Frodo for copilot if he’s available, two guys to service the pods. Load extra magazines in the cargo bay. Assemble a crew of mechanics too, they’ll fly on Cicada.”
“Don’t worry about Farside, she’ll be ready when you get here.”
“Chuck out.”
#
“Evgeny, Willi here. Is the Herr Minister available?”
“I shall see, Herr Kraenkel. Is it urgent?”
“It’s important, but probably not urgent. If Minister Zlotov is not available, have him call me the moment he’s free.”
“Let me check. Can you hold?”
“Yes, but not long. I have other calls to make.”
“Zlotov.” The deputy minister’s tone was sharp.
“Alexander, one of those items we discussed is...ah, potentially available. There has been a crash.”
“In Germany?”
“No, but in the EU. It is possible that we might gain possession if we move immediately.”
“Where is this...ah, device?”
“In France.”
“Unfortunate. Do you have influence there?”
“Some, but influence is the word. I cannot exercise control. The French can be difficult, and they do not respect my authority. I am loath to even try; I prefer that the French not know of our interest. I do have a man, however.”
“I understand. Is there anything I can do to help?”
“No, Herr Minister. I merely thought you would find this interesting.”
“I do.” Zlotov stopped for a moment. “Suppose the French were to gain possession of this item; it is their country, after all. It is possible we might exploit such a situation. I agree, we must move quickly. Gather as many men as you can, Herr Kraenkel. Make sure the man in charge can be depended on. Move as soon as there’s an opening.”
“Are we to use only our assets? What of our allies?”
“Think, Herr Kraenkel! Suppose we manage to acquire this machine ourselves? We are in a unique position at the moment; we are here, the others are not. Should we advise them of what has happened? Suppose they took the advantage?”
“I...see. Yes, I can find the men we need.”
“Do so. And do not attempt to keep the item for yourself; my people have a very long reach. You would do well to remember that.”
“I understand. But I called you, so you would do well not to forget. I also have assets, and their reach is as long as yours. It would take a word, no more than that, and your superiors would become very interested in your activities. They would...not approve.”
“We understand each other.” Zlotov broke the connection.
For the moment, Willi Kraenkel thought. But only for now. Sooner or later, you will make a mistake.
#
The hatch had stairs on the inside that unfolded as it opened; Pete was waiting when Chuck exited Cicada. He trotted toward the waiting Farside, now sporting a large pod under each wing.
“Status of Farside, Pete?”
“Ready, but be careful. The bird is going to be damned heavy.”
“Both the same?”
“Yes. Rockets would have been lighter, so I thought about swapping an alpha for a Beta Pod, but I decided we don’t need to rocket a friendly country.”
“I agree, the two Alpha Pods should be enough. Loaded?”
“Yes, and I added reloads in the cargo bay, aft. If you need more than one reload, total two magazines per pod, you’ve got more of a problem than we can deal with. You’re also at the thin edge of max gross weight. I couldn’t have given you additional reloads if I wanted to, but I added two AIM-9 Sidewinders, one on each wing. They’re not as heavy as the reload canisters, so you’re still under max gross weight. Barely. The Sidewinders are mounted outboard of the pods.”
“You think I’ll need those?”
“No. You can always bring them back, they’re expensive. But if you do need them, they’re there. For that matter, the pods have limited trainability. You might be able to use them air-to-air in an emergency.”
“Good job, Pete. Want to fly along?”
“Nope, I’m an engineer, not a warrior. You’ve got Frodo for copilot, plus a couple of men to handle the reloads. I scared up ten mechanics, they’re boarding Cicada already. They’ve got individual tool kits and a few power tools. You hold off the bad guys, they’ll recover the impellers. She’s being refueled, ten minutes more I think. She’ll be there almost as soon as you are.”
“Right, then. Wish me luck.”
Forty minutes later, Chuck approached the crash site. A dozen men stood near the wrecked ship. Six armored vehicles were parked off to the side.
“Frodo, you know anything about French tactical vehicles?”
“A little bit. Those look like older-model armored cars, probably the AMX-10Ps.” Frodo typed rapidly on his keyboard and information scrolled across the screen. “Couple of versions, wheeled or tracked, light armor, crew of two, eight infantry troops and a commander. The tracked version we’re looking at might be the earlier model, the description doesn’t say. One cannon, 20mm, variable rate of fire. Command vehicles have a heavy machine gun, but I don’t see it. Some carry the Eryx missile system, but that variant is relatively rare, according to this. Best guess, those are slicks, older model infantry carriers with only the 20mm cannon.”
“So where are the troops?”
“Good question. They might be in the troop compartment, but that doesn’t made sense. They may not have troops.”
Chuck thought it over. “Okay, here’s what we’ll do. You take charge of the mechanics as soon as Cicada’s down. I’ll drop you right beside Flea. Strip off the impellers, and if there’s time, pull the computers too, but first priority is the impellers. We’ll try to reclaim the hull, but I won’t lose any sleep if that doesn’t work out.”
“I hope the French are in a reasonable mood,” said Frodo.
“So do I. Cops I expected, but not armor or cannons. You mentioned the Eryx missile? What kind is it?”
“Wire-guided antitank bird, short range, obsolescent. Similar to the American TOW missile.”
“I feel a little better now. When you mentioned missile...well, I don’t want to dodge something like the Roland’s missiles. Farside’ doesn’t have a lot of maneuverability. I can’t turn with a fighter, and there’s no way I could evade a missile.”
“You keep them off our backs, Chuck, we’ll pull the impellers.”
“I’ll come to a low hover, you bail as soon as it’s safe. I’ll watch from overhead, but don’t panic if I have to move around. Keep the guys working.”
“What about the explosives? There are a couple of cartons in the cargo bay marked C4.”
“Pete didn’t mention that! You think you’ll need them?”
“I don’t k
now. How about this, if we need the explosives, I’ll radio you.”
“Let’s go with that. I’ll let you know if the tracks get antsy.”
“Good enough. Pop the hatch when you’re ready for me to un-ass the bird.”
“Will do. Good luck.”
Frodo unlocked his straps and headed toward the back. The two crewmen came forward, and one slipped into the copilot’s seat.
“You a rated copilot? Your name is Gulczynski, right?”
“Call me Gooney Bird, everybody does. They have trouble pronouncing my name. I’ve got some hours in the simulator, not yet rated, but I figure I’m better than nothing. Mister Jackson, people call him C. W., is just starting out. We’ve worked on the pods while we build up time in the simulators. We will handle the reloads if they’re needed. The extra magazines have wheels and there’s a machine that loads the rounds, but you’ll have to set down. We cannot access the pods from inside, we must go out to the wings.”
“Hopefully I won’t need you. Call out the altitude for me, okay? I’m watching those armored vehicles.”
“You fly, we’ll help. I’ll watch the altitude, C. W. will keep an eye on the armor for you.”
“Call out the altitude.”
“Five meters...descending through four meters...three meters....two meters now, slowing.”
“Copy, two meters to ground contact, slowing. I’ll try for half a meter. While I hover, you monitor the radar and watch for unfriendly flying objects.”
“How do I know if they are unfriendly?” Gooney Bird asked.
“If they’re flying, they’re not our friends.”
“I understand. Frodo just left the hatch. Flea is a wreck, the frame is bent, the starboard wing is crushed. Cicada is landing now. Main hatch is opening, ten people are heading to Flea. Frodo is there now. You’re at half a meter. The personnel hatch is still open, Chuck. Ready to button up?”
“No, leave the hatch open. Open the cargo hatch too. If they need access to the explosives, I’d rather be ready.”
Gooney pushed a button on the copilot’s station and waited.
“Hatch shows fully open.”