The Londum Omnibus Volume Two (The Londum Series Book 12)

by Tony Rattigan

  By now all of the six sheds were burning brightly as the fire had spread to the last one, interrupted by occasional explosions and even from this height he could see that there was no way they were going to extinguish those fires. They would have to let them just burn themselves out. Jim and Marla both stood at the gondola windows and watched the inferno.

  ‘We’ve done it,’ he said to Marla. ‘We destroyed the airships and we got away.’

  She hugged him excitedly. ‘You did it. You got us off the ground like you said you would.’

  ‘Well, taking off is one thing but landing is quite another.’

  ‘We’ll worry about that later. For now let’s just get out of here, eh?’

  ‘Agreed.’ He spun the wheel until the compass fixed to the wheel pointed to the west and they flew straight and level towards Ungary.

  ‘Where are we going?’ she asked him.

  ‘Look, dawn’s coming up,’ he pointed out the sun, breaching the horizon. ‘It will be daylight soon, then we can get the maps out and work out where we plan to take this beast. You two can tell me where to go and I can work out the bearings but for now it’s enough just to head west.’

  When it was fully light, Jim took the airship up another few hundred feet to give them a better view. He realised that he’d better give Domingo a break from shovelling coal so he asked Marla to hand him the speaking tube. He whistled into it and as Domingo answered, Jim heard the bridge door close behind him. His heart sank. ‘We’re in trouble,’ he said to Domingo.

  As far as Jim knew there were only three people on that airship, he was one, he could see the other and he was talking to the third ... but someone had just closed the door behind him.

  He let the tube drop and slowly turned around. Count Seretsky was standing there holding a gun on them. Marla caught Jim’s action and turned around herself. ‘Seretsky!’ she gasped.

  Seretsky ignored her and waved his gun at Jim. ‘You, you’re the Albion man from the embassy. So Albion are behind all this, eh?’ he said in halting Albion.

  ‘Don’t know what you mean, old boy. I stole this for myself. And a pretty penny I’ll get selling it to Deutschland, I can tell you.’

  ‘Throw down your weapons, all of them.’

  Jim and Marla put their weapons on the floor. Jim realised that Marla had his pistol and hunting knife, while Jim had Domingo’s gun, so now they were all unarmed. They were completely at Seretsky’s mercy. Jim hoped that Domingo had got the message and didn’t just come strolling onto the bridge.

  ‘How did you get on?’ Jim asked him, stalling for time.

  ‘I sneaked aboard when she was untying the ropes.’

  Jim realised it made sense that when there was alarm and confusion all around, Seretsky would keep his head and correctly identify where the real danger was located. Just as he had done at the embassy.

  ‘You will turn this airship around and take it back.’

  Jim ignored him.

  ‘You will turn this ship around or I will shoot her!’

  ‘Now steady on, there’s no need to be like that. I’m sure we can come to some arrangement. How about if we land in Ungary, you can drop us off and then take the airship back with you?’ Jim babbled on, playing for time to give Domingo a chance to make it to the bridge.

  Domingo slowly opened the door and stepped into the room. He had no gun but he was carrying the shovel across his chest, like a weapon. He was poised to strike at Seretsky when the floorboard beneath him creaked. Seretsky whirled round to face him and without hesitation fired his pistol. There was a mighty CLANG! as the bullet ricocheted off the heavy, iron shovel and then smashed a window. The force of the bullet though was enough to smash the shovel back into Domingo’s chest and knock him backwards, off his feet, winding him.

  While Domingo was gasping to get his breath, Marla seized her opportunity and kicked Seretsky behind his knee, forcing him to crumple to his knees.

  Jim reached behind him and spun the wheel wildly. The whole airship lurched to the right as Jim grabbed Seretsky from behind, putting one arm around his throat while he grabbed his gun arm with the other. Marla tried to grab a gun from the floor but Seretsky twisted round in Jim’s grasp and pointed his gun at her, forcing her away from the weapons.

  Jim and Seretsky struggled on the floor but as Marla spun the wheel again in the opposite direction, causing the airship to lurch to the left, Jim let go of Seretsky and grabbed hold of a support strut to stop him sliding across the gondola as his opponent did.

  As Seretsky raised himself up against the window, Marla and Jim dived for their weapons. Jim was only able to reach the knife, unfortunately. He raised himself to his knees and threw the knife overarm; it thudded into Seretsky, burying itself deep into his chest. This wasn’t enough to stop the Rooskian however and he strained to raise his gun arm. It had almost reached the point where it was aiming at Jim, when Marla’s gun fired. The bullet entered through Seretsky’s forehead and travelled straight through, blowing out the window behind him on the way out. The wind blew his hair around his head like a dark halo and with his wide, staring eyes and his blood covered face; he looked like some demon from hell. Then he slowly sank to his knees and keeled over.

  Jim got to his feet and grabbed the wheel; bringing the ship back on an even keel. ‘See to Domingo,’ he shouted to Marla and she ran to do so.

  Jim checked the position of the sun and brought the ship around so it was behind him. Then he turned to watch Marla as she tended to Domingo.

  ‘It’s okay,’ Domingo told her, as he tried to get his breath back. ‘Nothing broken. I’ll probably have a nasty bruise on my chest but apart from that I’ll be fine. And you Jim, that was some throw with that knife. Where did you learn to do that?’

  ‘Oh. Didn’t I tell you? I was a knife thrower in a circus, once.’

  ‘You’ve led a strange and interesting life, Mr. Darby. Indeed you have. You must tell me all about it sometime, over a drink.’

  ***

  When Domingo had fully recovered he walked over to where Seretsky’s body lay. ‘Do you want me to heave this sack of rubbish out of the window?’

  ‘No,’ replied Jim. ‘I have an idea, for now just drag him out of here would you, take him below somewhere and tie his body to a strut.’

  ‘You think he might run away?’

  ‘No, I think he might float away.’

  Domingo looked at Jim curiously but as he wasn’t any more forthcoming, he grabbed Seretsky by the collar and dragged him out of the room. When he returned Marla had opened the maps up and was studying them at the map table.

  ‘Our first concern is to get back to Ungary, so give me a heading for that,’ said Jim.

  They consulted the charts and told him what direction he should be heading. He was heading right to left on the map and he needed to be heading for the bottom left hand corner (as they put it). Jim laughed to himself at these non technical people trying to direct him so he settled on a heading of 225 degrees.

  Once they were on the new course, he spoke to them again. ‘Now then people, we need to make a decision. Consider this. What do you think would happen if we turn up in Budapescht in this? There would be pandemonium, the city would panic, the Rooskians would see it and go crazy at the Ungarian government and that would probably start the war we’ve been trying to avoid. There’s not enough coal for us to fly it back to Albion and we’d be spotted if we stop to fill up anywhere. Basically it just isn’t practical that we turn this over to anyone, anywhere.’

  ‘What are you saying?’ asked Domingo.

  ‘I’m saying that realistically there is nowhere to go. Once we’ve made it back to Ungary, this airship is what we in Albion call “A White Elephant”, no damned use and nobody wants it around. We have to kill this beast. We burn it or drown it ... or both.’

  ‘But it would be a terrible waste,’ said Marla.

  ‘Not really,’ replied Jim. ‘We still have the blueprints. Our respective governments can have
them. Even if they don’t build their own then at least they know what they will be facing if they’re ever used against them.’

  ‘I guess you’re right,’ said Domingo and Marla agreed.

  ‘Besides,’ said Jim, ‘I’ve had a great idea. The Rooskians only know about Marla, they never saw me or Domingo. If Count Seretsky, Marla and the airship disappear off the face of the earth, what do you think the Rooskians will conclude happened to them?’

  Marla twigged first as she was a spy and her mind worked that way. ‘They’ll think that he has defected to the west with the airship, taking me with him.’

  ‘Exactly,’ agreed Jim. ‘For years they’ll live in fear that we have stripped the airship and are building our own and he is giving away all their secrets. It’ll drive them crazy.’

  ‘I like it,’ said Domingo. ‘So what we are looking for is a lake, a large lake to sink this in.’ He and Marla consulted the map and then came back to him. ‘Half way between Budapescht and Tisza where we crossed the border, is Lake Tisza. It’s large and it’s deep. It would be ideal. Also it is near a town where I have contacts, so we could be on the road back to Budapescht within hours. That suit you?’

  ‘Sounds ideal. Marla would you take the wheel while I work out the heading with Domingo. All you have to do is hold her steady and keep the compass pointing at 225.’

  Marla nervously held the wheel while Jim and Domingo poured over the maps. Domingo identified roughly where they were by mountain ranges and Jim worked out the heading to Lake Tisza. ‘You only have to put us in the right area and we’ll spot it, it’s huge,’ Domingo told Jim.

  Jim settled on a heading of 230 degrees and then showed Domingo how to control the ship and keep it on a single heading. ‘It’s my turn to look after the engine room,’ he told him. ‘Give me a call on the speaking tube if there are any problems.’ And then he left them to go below.

  ***

  ‘Okay, what have we got,’ asked Jim, looking out the front window. It was a beautiful, sunny, spring day and you could see for miles (or kilometres, whatever you’re into).

  Domingo showed him the map; there was a lake that looked like an elongated champagne flute glass. Not the round ones but the long, thin, tall ones.

  ‘How long is it?’ asked Jim.

  ‘It’s twenty-seven kilometres long but more importantly it is at least half a kilometre deep. That is as far as anyone has been able to measure.’

  ‘Does anyone live around it?’

  ‘Isolated cottages, certainly no villages. The nearest village is two kilometres away.’

  ‘Sounds perfect. Okay listen up folks. I got you into this so I’m the only one that is going to take the risk. I’ll drop you off on the shore and then take it out into the middle, set fire to the airship and sink it.’

  ‘Sounds a bit risky,’ said Marla.

  Jim shrugged in a ‘yeah but what can you do about it?’ gesture. ‘Domingo, can you get me the backpacks and the saddle bag please? Marla, could you find me some rags?’

  They bustled off to carry out his requests. When they came back, Jim put Marla on the helm and he and Domingo sorted out the contents of the bags. They had eaten earlier and the village was only two kilometres from the lake, so they wouldn’t need any supplies. Jim saved the bottles of brandy that he and Domingo had been carrying though. He had a use for them. He tore up the rags that Marla had found and stuffed them into the bottles, then screwed the lids back on. He put the bottles into the saddle bag.

  They filled the two backpacks with everything they wanted to keep. All the documents they had stolen from the Rooskians (including the treaty) the binoculars, the spare jumpers, etc. Jim made sure that all his valuables, passport, wallet, etc. were in his jacket, and then he took it off and packed it into one of the backpacks. ‘No sense getting it wet,’ he told Domingo. Once he had done that he asked Domingo to take the backpacks downstairs and leave them by the gangplank, but to leave the saddle bag on the bridge.

  Marla warned him they were coming up on the lake. Jim took over the controls from her.

  ‘Okay, I’m going to slow right down and cruise up the lake,’ Jim told them. ‘Once I find a good place I’m going to drop you off. I can’t guarantee that I can hold her steady or take her right down so you might have to jump a few feet, okay? Then I’ll take her out into the middle and sink her.’

  As they were talking Jim was lining the airship up on the lake to run down the length of it. He put it into a shallow dive and then decreased the airspeed as much as could, so by the time they crossed the lake they were only about a hundred feet up and doing about ten miles per hour. ‘We’ll find the best spot to drop you off and then I’ll bring her about and come back to it.’

  Domingo and Marla pressed up against the windows to watch the shoreline passing by on either side of them. ‘Ooh look,’ said Marla. ‘A rowing boat.’

  ‘I could pick you up,’ said Domingo.

  ‘That’s a better idea than me having to swim to shore. What does it look like for landing?’

  ‘Not too bad, here take a look for yourself.’ Domingo took over the helm from him.

  ‘That’ll do. Right Domingo, it will take me a few minutes to bring her about and zero in on that spot. I want you to go back and open all the bulkhead doors between crew compartments and the gas bag sections. I want the fire to spread to the hydrogen when I light it.’

  Domingo headed off to do as he was bid.

  When he was gone, Marla came up to Jim and kissed him on the cheek, saying, ‘Thank you for rescuing me. It’s a shame I didn’t get to know you better but I think this risk your taking will not allow that. Be careful.’

  ‘I’ll be all right, I do this sort of thing all the time,’ he bluffed, so as not to upset her.

  ‘May the Gods be with you.’

  ‘Well, we’ll soon see if they are, won’t we?’

  Domingo came back just as Jim was bringing the airship into the shore. He had slowed it down to walking pace and low enough that the wheel on the bottom of the gondola kept hitting the ground. Jim shouted to him, ‘Take Marla and the backpacks with you off the ship, leave me the saddle bag. Wind the gangplank down and jump as soon as you can. I’ll hold position until I see you through the window. Once I pull away, get in the boat and start rowing out into the lake. I’ll be waiting for you, so please don’t be late.’

  Domingo came over to him and clapped him on the shoulder, as Jim was struggling with the controls too much to shake hands. ‘Don’t forget to get off the airship before she blows up, Albion man. I’m looking forward to hearing your life story.’

  Jim smiled at him. ‘Only if you buy the drinks.’

  ‘It’s a deal.’ Domingo grabbed the backpacks and headed off the bridge, followed by Marla.

  Jim could tell when the gangplank was down as he felt it dragging along the beach as he struggled to control the airship. After wrestling with the wheel for a couple of minutes he saw Marla and Domingo on the shoreline waving to him. Thankfully he increased the forward velocity enabling him to pull back on the lever that took him upwards. Suddenly the airship was released and he was flying free.

  He did another circuit of the width of the lake, occasionally feeling the drag as the gangplank splashed in the water. He hoped he could control the height of the airship not to go too low, if the gondola went underwater that would probably be him finished, unless he could get out of one of the broken windows and swim to the surface. To be honest he didn’t fancy his chances of that.

  He kept circling the lake as Domingo rowed out as far as he could, then he gently nudged the airship downwind several hundred yards. He pointed the nose down so it would eventually go into the water and tried to bring it to a dead stop but it kept drifting slowly further down the lake, maybe the wind had caught it, who knew, it would have to do.

  He picked up the saddle bag and slung it over his shoulder. Taking out the bottles of brandy he took a big swig from one of the bottles, as if this didn’t work out it wou
ld be the last drink he would ever have. He gently pulled out the rags that were soaking in the brandy so they dangled like a fuse. He put one of the bottles back in the saddle bag and then lit the fuse on the one he was still holding. Standing in the doorway of the bridge, he threw the bottle and watched it smash in a burst of flames as the spirit splashed everywhere.

  Jim ran down the stairs, past the gang plank and towards the rear of the airship until he found an open bulkhead leading into the gas bag compartments. He lit the other bottle and threw it hard through the bulkhead, deep into the hydrogen laden compartment.

  Once he was back at the gangplank, he ran down the stairs and dived into the water. The cold, springtime water nearly froze him but the knowledge of what was happening above him spurred him on. He held his breath underwater as long as he could and by the time he broke the surface the airship had drifted down the lake and it was no longer directly over him. But he was still well within the blast radius.

  He took his bearing on Domingo’s boat and dived under the water again, only coming up to fill his lungs again before submerging each time. Every time he came up he was aware that something was happening behind him but he didn’t waste any time looking back to see what it was. He just kept moving, underwater when possible.

  Finally he reached the boat. Exhausted and freezing, he clutched the side of the boat and turned to watch the spectacle. Resting on the surface of the lake, the latter half of the airship was burning, a bright yellow flame crept along the hull. Jim was puzzled, it was burning, but it wasn’t exploding.

  Domingo leaned over the side of the boat and asked him, ‘Are you all right?’

  Jim was about to answer when he saw out of the corner of his eye flame suddenly rushing towards the front of the airship and at the same time, the rear half of the airship expanding. There was no time to explain, it was going to blow. He grabbed Domingo by the lapel and pulled him into the lake, dragging him down into the deep, cold water as above them the surface of the water turned as bright as day.