"What's up, Big D?" AJ asked, slipping into the chair next to his friend. Not unlike the UH-1 helicopters they'd flown in 'Nam, much of the front section of the shuttle appeared transparent, allowing for a through-hull view. Unlike the Huey, the shuttle's view was simulated, as there was no glass on any part of the vessel.
"Get your bearings." Darnell held the Korgul shuttle in place, hiding next to a water tower. "Tell me what you see."
"Shit," AJ said, his eyes searching for and finding familiar landmarks. A bright orange blaze filled the night sky with acrid smoke. His heart fell into his stomach as he recognized the fire was consuming his machine shop.
"What do you bet those aren't your average firemen?" Darnell said, pointing at the flashing lights of myriad fire trucks and police vehicles that surrounded his junkyard.
"I hope Diego's safe. Dammit, my house is on fire, too," AJ said.
"What do you want to do?" Darnell asked.
"There's nothing for us there," AJ said. "Back out of here nice and quiet. I'd hate to draw any attention. Head over to that park on Fortieth and Randolph. We've still a few hours before sunrise. There's a Mega Mart across the creek."
"Your house is burning and you want to go to Mega Mart?" Darnell asked.
"Priorities. We need food and water for a trip and maybe a mop or you know, some rags. I don't know. I'm making it up on the fly right now."
"I've got you, buddy." Darnell patted AJ's leg and slowly spun the ship away from the water tower.
AJ startled as cool hands drifted down his chest and he became aware of Jayne standing behind his chair. "I'm sorry about your house, AJ," she said softly. "I'm sure Diego is safe. He's smart. There's no way those half-blind jackasses snuck up on him."
AJ grasped Jayne's arm and held it close. It had been years since he'd experienced closeness with a woman, despite his bravado. While he knew something was building between him and Jayne, he hadn't realized just how much he yearned for that feeling. Closing his eyes, he thought of his dead wife, Pam and though he'd have a hard time admitting it to anyone, he asked for her permission to love again.
A tear rolled down his cheek.
"There must have been a lot of good memories in that house," Jayne said softly and then chuckled. "I know I've got some of my own."
AJ nodded, the constriction in his throat passing as he managed a dry chuckle. "Help me plan what we need for a longer trip," he said. "I'm a mess right now."
"Are we really headed for another planet?" Jayne asked.
A grin crept onto AJ’s face. “Stick with me, babe, and I’ll show you the stars.”
She slapped his chest. "You're so corny."
Twenty-Four
That's a Big Twinky
"Without Blastorium, we can't possibly think about mounting an attack on Area 51," AJ said, pushing the wide grocery cart across Mega Mart's parking lot. They'd stuck with the basics, purchasing cleaning supplies along with enough food and water for three weeks. Even so, they'd managed to fill two extra-large carts.
"I've checked county records. The ownership of this land has transferred often enough that it is unlikely there remains any Blastorium," Beverly said, sitting in the cart, her legs hanging out one of the holes designed for infant’s legs. "The same is true for the recreational area where we landed the Korgul shuttle."
"Tell us how the Korgul collect the Blastorium," Darnell said, taking interest in the conversation. "I know it's compact. Do they use larger machines than we've built?"
"Oh, yes, but perhaps not in the way you have implied," Beverly said as AJ unfurled a blue tarp onto the grass at the edge of the parking lot. "Most large equipment manufacturers around the world have been infiltrated by Korgul. I've been able to identify Blastorium and Fantastium collectors on most pieces of equipment I'm able to find schematics for, especially so with dirt-moving and farming equipment."
Darnell helped to move supplies onto AJ's tarp. "That would do it."
"That's just the low-hanging fruit. We just need to find untouched dirt. That shouldn't be too hard," AJ said, tying the corners of the tarp to the rocket belt. Lifting the loaded tarp from the ground, he grabbed an edge and pulled it along behind him as he slid down the embankment of the creek that separated Mega Mart from the park.
"Like where?" Jayne asked, following behind.
"Anywhere inaccessible with a big machine," he said. "We brought our surveyor. We'll start with a few places I used to go hiking."
"Would you identify these areas?" Beverly popped up a map of Arizona. She had eliminated population centers and farms, leaving significant chunks of the state open. AJ circled three wilderness areas.
Flashing blue lights caught the trio's attention as they approached the shuttle. A pair of police vehicles had pulled into a parking lot two hundred meters from their position, bumped over the curb, and were racing directly at them.
"Someone from the store must have called us in," Darnell said, breaking into a sprint emptyhanded.
"I'll get the hatch opened." Jayne grabbed a handful of the floating tarp and helped AJ race toward the shuttle.
As Darnell opened the hatch, Greybeard bounded out and turned to face the oncoming police cars, barking furiously, as if he alone could fend off their approach.
"This is gonna be close," AJ worried, picking up even more speed. "You dive in first and grab the belt. I'll shove it in from this side. Tell Darnell to get the engines fired up."
"I can hear you," Darnell said.
"Oh, right." AJ said, grinning madly. His legs moved with an ease he couldn't ever recall experiencing and he relished the thrill of the exertion.
The lead police car slid sideways, its door swinging open as a heavyset man jumped out and fumbled with the pistol at his side. "Freeze. Police."
"Go, Jayne!" AJ urged.
Fortunately, she needed no urging and leapt up the five feet that separated the shuttle deck from ground level, turning gracefully as she landed. By the time her attention was on the door, it was already filled with the bright blue fabric of the tarp.
"Step away from the vehicle or I'll shoot," a loud voice ordered over the vehicle's public address as a second officer skidded to a halt.
Jayne grabbed at the rocket belt and pulled with everything she had. Unfortunately, the makeshift sling was wider than the entry and a mop handle wedged perfectly in the door frame. "It's stuck," she yelled back.
"The officers are Korgul," Beverly said as Seamus's view through Greybeard's eyes showed a telltale gooey mass occupying a large section of the man's sinus passages. It was the first time they'd had a good look at a Korgul using the special detector's display, as none of the Mega Mart patrons had been infected.
AJ pushed at the bottom of the sling, squeezing the payload up onto the deck as fearsome growling erupted next to the police car. Gunshots rang out and a police officer yelped in pain. "Greybeard, get over here," AJ yelled, struggling with Jayne against the awkward load.
"The mop." Jayne pushed the rocket belt out the hatch and fumbled for the mop handle as supplies started to tumble out.
"Pull it back in," AJ said, not understanding what she was doing.
With mop in hand, Jayne turned and dragged the load through the opening, AJ pushing from below. What remained of the load emptied onto the ship’s deck.
"Greybeard!" Jayne called as AJ dove onto the deck.
Lifting only inches, the ship slipped to the side, scraping the nearest patrol car. More gunshots sounded, along with a yelp. A moment later, Greybeard leapt toward the shuttle only to fall short.
"Dammit." AJ dove out of the moving ship and rolled onto the ground. The screech of metal on metal warned of trouble as the first police vehicle was pushed onto the second by Darnell's maneuvering. Fortunately, the Korgul-infected officers understood they were outmatched and backed off, ineffectively shooting at the ship.
Greybeard barked with unbridled excitement as AJ scooped him up and ran for the erratically flying ship.
"I'm gonn
a stop in five. Run aft, AJ." Darnell's voice was as clear as if he stood right next to AJ. He ran toward the back of the ship as it slid backward and came to momentary rest.
After tossing Greybeard aboard, AJ jumped in, landing on his stomach. Jayne's strong hands grasped his belt as she hauled him the rest of the way and the Korgul shuttle shot into the air. "Well, hell, that's not exactly how I thought that was gonna go," he said, laughing manically. "Check Greybeard, he might have taken a hit."
"He didn't," Jayne said, rolling AJ onto his side, "but you've got a bleeder. Shit, can't you do anything without getting shot?"
"How bad, Doc?"
"Through and through," she said. "Beverly, any internal damage?"
Beverly showed up in a white doctor's coat, holding a clipboard. "Negative, Doctor," she answered, tapping a pencil against the board. "You are, however, leaking water. I believe you are kneeling on a jug."
Jayne looked down at the mess on the deck. She was indeed kneeling on a jug of water. She pushed to her feet.
"Everybody up back there?" Darnell called back.
"Yeah, we're good," AJ said. "I think we lost half our stash, though. We'll unpack and get an inventory. There's only an hour before sunrise. We need a place to put down."
"I'm gonna head east, just in case we're being tracked," Darnell said. "Once we’re a hundred miles from the city, I'll head to the first wilderness area you marked. That sound like a plan?"
"Copy that."
"I know you're all superheroes and everything," Jayne said. "But I'm going to need some real sleep pretty soon."
"Do we have enough solvent to clean off those bunks?" AJ asked.
"It appears the materials we require for mixing a larger volume are available," Beverly said, switching to her cleaning gear, which was a plain house dress and a polka-dot scarf that held her hair in place. "The container that lost much of its water volume would be a perfect mixing container."
Jayne searched the floor and locked in on the container as its outline flashed. "Tell me what to do, boss lady."
As Beverly instructed Jayne on the appropriate mixture, AJ picked their supplies up from the soiled floor. Each item that had contacted the deck would require cleaning, but the fact that Beverly's miracle solvent was available was welcome news.
"Okay, kids, hang on," Darnell called from the cockpit only a few minutes later. "We're going supersonic in five, four, three …"
AJ set his soiled rag into the bucket of cleanser Jayne and Beverly had concocted. A shiver rolled through the vessel's frame as Darnell's countdown expired and then it was steady sailing.
"I thought we didn't want to attract attention," AJ called back.
"We're a hundred miles from the closest radar installation and two hundred meters off the deck," Darnell said. "No way will they track us. We're flying like a bat outta hell. We'll be to Woodchute Wilderness area in twelve minutes."
"I thought you were going east first."
"East-northeast," Darnell said. "We're headed northwest now, though."
AJ squinted as he tried to calculate the speed involved to match Darnell's ETA. "How fast are we moving?"
"Just passed Mach 5," Darnell said, a grin evident in the tone of his voice.
"We missed a couple," Jayne said, picking a small white bone from the bunk she was wiping down. AJ held out the trash bag used to collect bones.
The two worked in companionable silence as they scrubbed the surfaces surrounding the sleeping bunks.
A vibration in the ship was the only indication that something had changed. "We're down," Darnell said. "I've got us buried in a draw under some old cedars. I hope the satellites don't pick us up. Dawn is already breaking a few miles east of here."
"Why don't you come back and lie down, Big D," AJ said. "We got the bunk area mostly clean, but let me get you wiped down before you mess up the beds."
"I'm starving," Darnell said, when he joined Jayne and AJ in the aft section. "Where's all that food?"
Jayne pointed at a panel in the portside bulkhead. "We're using that as a food locker. Just push on it and it'll spring open. Wash your hands off first, though. Everything in that locker is sanitized and you're a mess."
"Any progress on the head?" Darnell asked. "I kinda gotta … you know…"
AJ stepped across and pushed open the hatch. Cool dry air filtered into the cabin, bringing with it the smell of cedar trees. "I need to do a quick survey for Blastorium," he said. "Take the quad out with you."
"Can do." Darnell plucked a roll of TP from the locker and snagged the small quadcopter from a tote. AJ worked the quad's startup sequence and navigated the small machine further into the draw where Darnell had gone to find a log to sit on.
"Are you getting anything, BB?" AJ asked after a couple minutes of flight.
She appeared with coal dust on her cheeks, wearing a miner's helmet complete with cylindrical light. "It appears this area has been cleared," she said. "You should try higher on that hillside. It would be difficult for larger machinery to be placed that high."
AJ nodded, pursing his lips. He'd felt sure the remote area would have been left alone. "How'd they get back in here?"
"I imagine just like us," Darnell said, picking up AJ's cleaning rag and moving back to the cockpit. "If they've been at this for a couple of centuries, who’d’ve stopped them? They could have just come in with spacecraft."
AJ nodded, disappointed, and pushed the drone up a scree slope.
"That's better," Beverly said after several minutes. "It's not the motherlode, but they didn't get everything."
"Good," AJ said, yawning. "Give me a couple more minutes and then you can tell me where to bury the collector."
"That is not necessary," Beverly said. "I estimate you each need a minimum of six hours sleep, preferably eight. The collector will gather a significant volume of Blastorium in that time."
"How much?" AJ asked.
"Enough for forty minutes of continuous fire," Beverly said. "Give or take."
AJ brought the quadcopter back and put it away. "Okay, how deep do you need me to bury this thing?" he asked, grabbing both the Blastorium and Fantastium collectors.
"We only need to cover them." Beverly projected a vaporous contrail, showing AJ the easiest path up the hillside. Even as tired as he was, AJ easily made his way up the hill and buried the two devices, just as the first rays of the morning sun peeked over the eastern horizon.
Jayne handed AJ a sandwich as he climbed the extended ramp. "All good?"
He accepted the sandwich with a weary smile. "No problem. Where'd the ramp come from?"
"I've been reading the manual." She sat on a bunk and then laid down, stretching her limbs. "Oh, this feels amazing."
Light snoring drew AJ's attention to Darnell, who was fast asleep on the bunk directly behind Jayne. AJ jammed the sandwich into his mouth and jumped to take the bunk above Jayne's. Indeed, just stretching out felt fantastic, like he'd been on his feet for days. He focused on finishing his sandwich and then settled back.
"You okay down there, Doc?" he asked, realizing he hadn't heard anything from her for a few minutes. When he didn't receive an answer, he rolled to the side and peered over the edge of the bunk. Like Darnell, she was fast asleep. "Guess she is," he said to himself and laid back.
AJ's eyes fluttered opened as the smell of cooked bacon permeated his subconscious. Held inches from his nose a paper plate full of scrambled eggs, bacon and hash browns hovered in front of Darnell’s grinning face. "Up and at 'em, big fella."
AJ sat up and jumped down to the ship's deck. "Have you been up a while?"
"Been up an hour or so. I wanted to give the cockpit a good scrubbing. That solvent works wonders, so I had extra time and fired up the camp stove. Not sure when we'll be able to use it next."
"Smells amazing. When'd you learn to cook?"
"Survival skill in my house. Lisa can burn water. Damn, but I miss her."
"I'm sorry, buddy," AJ said, his eyes cutting over
to Jayne's sleeping form.
Darnell followed his eyes and smiled. "I don't recall her being quite the looker back in 'Nam. Of course, fatigues weren't exactly high fashion."
"She's outta my league," AJ said. "Always has been."
"You know I can hear you," Jayne muttered.
Darnell raised his eyebrows and exchanged a look with AJ. "Um, right. Sorry, Doc."
She rolled over and looked up at the two men. "Don't kid yourself. At seventy-six, I'm pleased to hear you've been checking out my assets. Even more so, I'll enjoy having that conversation with Lisa."
Darnell's face turned ashen. "Uh, I've got eggs if you'd like some."
Jayne sat up and stretched. "Eggs would be great."
"You're not really going to say anything to Lisa, are you?" he asked as he made his way out of the ship and down the ramp.
Jayne patted the bunk next to her, ignoring Darnell's question. "I imagine you've got a plan by now." AJ offered his plate, but she shook her head.
"I'd say we hit Area 51 sometime after dark," AJ said. "Night shift should be lighter than day."
"Do you have a layout of the compound? How do we even know where we're going?" Jayne asked.
He shook his head. "We don't. There's no public information about the buildings. Beverly dug up some old pictures from before security was tightened in the nineties. We don't even know if those buildings still exist. If there's more than fifteen or so military types, we're probably screwed, even with the electric shock ammo."
"Rocket belt will provide some advantage," Darnell said, joining the conversation as he handed a plate of breakfast to Jayne. "AJ's the best shot with a rifle, so he should play infantry. Between me and 2-F, we can probably handle flying the ship and manning the turret. Maybe put Jayne into the rocket belt to play fixer."
"Fixer?" Jayne asked.
"Once we get into the crap, our plans are going to be totally out the window," Darnell said. "The rocket belt is an element the Korgul might not be expecting. The unexpected can tip things in our favor."
Junkyard Pirate Page 25
