Patriots Awakening

by R. M. Strauhs

  “Well, Greg still has that charter pilot’s job open. It’d keep me busy maybe half the time and keep me up to date on this here flyin’ shit.” He chuckled and added, “Of course, Roberta would be all for me quitting. And she probably thinks we’ll have sex every day if I retire.”

  “John, if I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times, you are so full of shit you smell bad right after taking a shower. Actually, this is probably a pretty good time to retire, anyway. You heard they’re talking about another strike? If they do strike you know it’s going to get really ugly.”

  “Well, hell, let’s just walk in and tell them we quit when we get to New York.”

  ~~~

  Josie Saxton burst into tears as she watched the President who had interrupted her favorite soap opera. A minute ago, she was swearing at him for screwing up her day, but when she heard what he had to say, Josie became frantic. Where in the heck is Howard? Let’s see. He was supposed to leave London about three hours ago. JFK. I have to get to JFK. Dammit, Josie, don’t go nuts. Think. What would Howard want you to do? Flight two, twenty-two. I’ll call and make sure it’s coming into JFK. After going through the whole list of options on the airlines answering computer she punched in the flight number, and a computer generated female voice reported, “Flight two, twenty-two departed London’s Heathrow airport on time and is expected to land at John F. Kennedy International Airport on time at two fifteen p.m. eastern daylight time, June 2nd. Thank you for calling Worldtrans Airways.”

  ~~~

  Marlene, a flight attendant, slung the cockpit door open and called out, "There’s some crazy guy back here yelling that we’re all going to die from an asteroid hit. He said he just picked up an announcement by the President on his cell phone news alert. I think we’re going to need your help Captain.”

  “Christ! I don’t need this now with no place to land. A goddamned nut case! That’s another good argument for retirement, John.”

  John unbuckled his safety belt and shoulder strap and wiggled out of his seat. "You’re right. Retirement sounds better by the minute. I'll go see if he can be calmed down."

  "Hold on a minute, John.” Howard said. He listened intently to something on his headset. He slid the headphones off.

  John and Marlene both stared at him, waiting for an explanation.

  “That guy might not be nuts after all. That was a message from the office. They said I should inform the passengers that we are being rerouted to Atlanta because of a problem at JFK. They also said I should not allow anyone aboard to use cell phones. What the hell do you make of that?”

  As he spoke, a man in uniform stepped to the cockpit door and rapped on it. “Could I have a minute to speak with the Captain, please? It’s very important.”

  Howard could only nod. What now? Was what the man in back said true?

  A Major’s insignia adorned the collar of the man’s uniform. “Sir, I'm Major Lee White. I don't know if you've heard the news alert about the asteroid headed directly for Earth, but please you need to listen to me for a couple minutes. And please believe me that I’m in a position to know the truth. Don't believe that announcement, even if it is from the President."

  "Well, Sir, why shouldn't I believe the President?" There was a gruff edge to Howard’s voice. Didn’t he have enough goddamned crap to worry about?

  Major White talked non-stop for five minutes, explaining what was really going on.

  Howard asked, “You mean to tell me that the President is selling his own country down the river?”

  “Not at all. He has been hoodwinked, too. Look, Captain, we would be in New York before I could tell you the entire story, but my reason for being in Europe was to warn the military commanders on our side that something was about to happen. This asteroid thing is it, but there really is no asteroid. If your families have cell phones so you can reach them, I’d suggest they get to JFK immediately, and when we land, high tail it away from the big cities. And do it damned fast. All hell is going to break out. If you can get your hands on some weapons, you better do it . . . even if you have to steal them. This isn't going to be over any time soon." With those words he simply turned and left the cabin.

  Howard let out a low whistle. "Do we have two nut cases aboard, or is this Major for real? They did tell us to divert to Atlanta without explanation . . . just that there was a problem at JFK."

  As John sat back in the co-pilot’s seat, he asked, “Well, old buddy, what the hell do you think is going on?”

  “I have no idea, but I’ll tell you this, we sure ain’t goin’ to Atlanta. Couldn’t if we wanted to. Those assholes in the office forgot they have us carrying short fuel to save weight. We just don’t have the margin to make it there. John get the map out for the east coast.”

  Once more as John rose from his seat, Howard said, “Shit! What now?” He began flipping switches and breakers on the panel. “Our radio direction and radar tracking is out.” He reached over and flipped the switch that activated the VFH radio direction finder. “Get that map and give me a frequency for an AM station in mid-state New York!” Then he tapped the green blob on the small communications screen. “New York Center, Two, Two, Two heavy from Heathrow.” After waiting about five seconds without a response, he again broadcast, “New York Center, Two, Two, Two Heavy out of Heathrow. Do you copy?” Howard shook his head and said, “Well, I guess we’re on our own. No radio and no navigation guides.”

  John pulled the map from the case and dropped back into the seat. “What are we looking for?”

  “You know where Greg’s field is, right? Find it on the map, put a red circle around it, and find the closest AM radio station.”

  “No way, Howard. You’re not thinking of putting this big bastard down at Greg’s, are you? Goddamned runway’s only forty-six hundred.”

  “Fifty-two hundred. It’s was a former military runway, right? Themilitary always lists runways six hundred short. Gives them a little extra margin for error.”

  “That’s still too damned short. Besides, we can’t pick up a radio station this far out.”

  As John spoke, Howard overrode the autopilot and slowly turned twenty degrees to the right. “If JFK is out, I’d bet Boston Logan is too. Figure out where we are right now and what heading to Greg’s field. Give me a distance and fuel reading. If we can, I want this big bitch to be on empty all around when we hit the runway. We’ll have to burn the brakes out stopping, but we’ll be away from the city if it’s as bad as the Major says.”

  John spread the map out on his lap and started marking where they should be, then drew a line to Greg’s field in mid-state New York.

  “I need to contact Josie.” A small screen on the left of the panel was a telephone dial pad. He punched the number for Josie’s phone and she picked up.

  Relieved to hear her voice, Howard stated calmly. “Listen closely. Go pick up John’s wife now. Do you remember how to get to Greg Summerfield’s charter service at the airport in Newburgh?” He paused. “Good. You and Roberta get the hell over there immediately. Do not pack a bag or anything. Just pick Roberta up and get to the Newburgh Airport as soon as you can. I’m going to call Greg and have him pick you up there. Honey, I’m not sure what’s going on. We have someone aboard who tells us the asteroid thing isn’t true. I have a tendency to believe him, but you have to get the hell away from the city. Look, I have a lot to do, baby. Greg will take you to his field upstate. I’ll meet you there.” He paused once more. “How am I getting there? Truth is I’m going to plop this big piece of shit down there. No, no. We’ll make it, hon. Please be very careful, and I’ll see you in a couple of hours. I love you, too.”

  ~~~

  Near chaos had broken out in the cabin when the man ran up and down the aisle screaming that an asteroid was going to destroy Earth, and a couple people had turned on their cells and heard the same news. No one believed them but thought they were idiots just trying to create mayhem for the fun of it. Two male attendants were trying to calm t
he man and make him sit down.

  Major White . . . who knew how to use a ‘command’ voice after years of practice on thousands of troops . . . walked calmly up to the man, grabbed him by the lapels and said, “Mister, you can have it one of two ways. You can sit down in your seat and behave, or I can put you in your seat so hard buddy, you’ll never get out of it again. Which is it going to be?”

  The man screamed almost manically, “You turn me loose, you dirty bastard! Put me down!”

  Major White calmly said, “Well, I gave you a choice,” and rendered the man unconscious with well-placed blows to the sides of the neck. As the man slumped downward across a lady in the next seat, she screamed, and Major White told the stewards in the same calm voice, “Find something to tie this man in his seat. He’ll be awake soon. If you have to gag him to shut him up when he awakens, do it.”

  The cabin became quiet; no one wanted to tangle with this large, burly soldier. He stood in the middle of the main cabin and had to shout for everyone to hear. “Folks, I want everyone to remain calm and quiet for a minute while I tell you what’s happening and what isn’t happening. You can take my word for it, because I’m going to tell you the truth about everything I know.” He glared at the heads peeping over the back of seats. “First of all, THERE IS NO ASTEROID!” He shouted it as loudly as he could. “That doesn’t mean we don’t have big time trouble. We do.”

  After spending a few minutes explaining to them about his job in the Army and how he was in Europe warning our commanders that a world takeover attempt was about to happen and how many people in our country had been preparing for this war on our own soil for years, he concluded, “Ladies and gentlemen, please believe me. I'm officially in a position to know the truth of things. If any of you don't believe me, that's your choice. But you cannot be fatalistic and think this is the end! You must arm yourselves the best you can. You must take care of your families, because there is a future for us. But we will have to fight a war to save it. There will likely be chemicals and viruses released. There will definitely be foreign troops on our soil, whose sole job it is to eradicate as many citizens as possible and lock up those who won’t buckle under and surrender. Our President was deceived by traitors in our own country, the same people who are a part of this conspiracy. There is nothing more I can say, except be careful and use the smarts the Good Lord gave each and every one of you."

  Murmurs filled the cabin as people quietly discussed what the Major had said. Major White sat down across the aisle from the man he'd knocked the hell out of only moments earlier.

  ~~~

  John was still figuring the low fuel situation, and there was little Howard could do in the cockpit. “John, keep an eye on things while I talk to the passengers.” He’d decided to go to the cabin and speak to the passengers face to face rather than on the intercom. They needed to see someone in authority.

  Marlene stood next to him, sipping a glass half-filled with whiskey. Evidently, it was all too much for her. As he lifted the mic from its hook just inside the galley, she asked quietly, “Want one?”

  He almost chuckled as he shook his head, but restrained himself. He couldn’t be seen smiling by his passengers. After all, his decision to land at Greg’s might kill all of them. “Ladies and Gentlemen, for those who don’t know me, I’m Captain Howard Saxton. I know you are all aware something strange and drastic is taking place. Please don’t panic. We will be landing in upstate New York, rather than JFK. We will proceed to an airport with a runway much shorter than normal, so we will be taking emergency landing measures. Miss Coldpacker, your head flight attendant, will fill you in on all the procedures. We will land safely, I assure you. But she will fill you in on emergency exits from the plane and such, just in case.” He laughed and said, “I could thank you for flying Worldtrans, but that would be kinda silly at this point, wouldn’t it?”

  The response was exactly what he had hoped for. The passengers laughed, easing the tension some. As he returned to the cockpit, he thought, So, okay, I let them know they’d be landing at a small airfield in the middle of nowhere, but what do they do once off the damned plane. I’m the Captain of the ship. I wonder if the Captain is still responsible for people once they abandon ship.

  ~~~

  In the rear of the plane sat a terrorist being taken to The States to stand trial for the bombing of a U.S. Embassy. An FBI agent sat on either side of him. Although someone such as this would normally be transported in a military aircraft, after the incident of the missile being fired at one such military transport with several terrorists aboard, this man was too important to chance losing. He had too much information the intelligence agencies might pry from him, so he was secretly placed aboard a regularly scheduled flight from London to New York.

  When Howard had returned up front to the cockpit, the prisoner immediately started laughing hysterically, and then screamed loud enough for most of the passengers to hear, “Look at the infidel sheep huddle in fear! What’s the matter? Are you afraid to die and meet your God? Death is the ultimate goal for me. I welcome death. I have given many Americans death, so they could answer to my God!”

  Both agents rose from their seats, and stood over him. One of the men yelled at him, “If it were possible, I’d really enjoy opening that door and throwing your skanky ass out! You keep your damned mouth shut, or I'm going to shut it for you!”

  The terrorist only laughed and spit out, “I hope you all die, you stupid infidel Americans!”

  The Major strode up to the group and hit the terrorist point blank in the middle of the forehead, knocking him out cold. When both men gave him the slightest of grins, he asked, “Did you mean it about throwing him out the door?”

  When the agents both nodded yes, he said, “Then pick up the prick and follow me.”

  He led them to the galley, midway in the fuselage, and opened a door that normally only the crew used. A stairway led down to the baggage and cargo hold. Once they dumped the man on the lower deck floor, Major White said, “You likely don’t know about this, but there’s an emergency dump here. Let me call the captain so he won’t worry when his panel shows an open door.” He punched the red button next to the door and said, “Captain, this is Major White.”

  “Yes, Major.”

  “Captain, I’m going to open the emergency dump, just so you know it’s me.”

  “What the hell for?”

  “Got a dead man here we need to get rid of.”

  “What? What are you talking about?”

  “Well, technically, he isn’t quite dead yet, but he will be when he hits the water. He’s a terrorist the two FBI agents were transporting for trial and is getting hard to control around the passengers.”

  “Whatever. I sure hope to hell you’re on the level, Major. I have enough to deal with at the moment.”

  Major White chuckled and punched the button off. They stuffed the guy behind a door in a small compartment, closed and sealed it with the heavy locking handle, and then Major White opened a small panel next to the door and pulled a handle down. They heard a slight swooshing, and then the hiss of the hydraulic piston closing the outside door. He looked at the two stunned agents and walked away.

  ~~~

  John read off the new heading numbers for Howard to punch into the navigation computer and was about to tell him where to tune the radio direction finder when the light on the cell phone lit up. It was Greg. “John, just listen. I'm picking up both your wives in Newburgh. Josie called me. She says you’re going to set down at my field upstate. I think you’re nuts, but we’ll be there shortly. I’ll be refueling for wherever in blue blazes we’re going to go. Shit is really turning bad, Howard. See you soon.”

  The light, indicating the caller was offline, blinked four times, and Howard wondered if he should call Greg back to tell him they would head for Colorado from his field. No, better if he stayed off the phone. He’d tell him once they were on the ground.

  Howard turned to John and asked, “You heard?”<
br />
  “Yeah. Greg said things were turning to shit. I'm beginning to think the Major is right.”

  When Howard laughed loudly, John asked, “what’s so funny?”

  “I was just thinking that I was seriously planning for this to be my last trip and to hell with the retirement loss. Guess I have little choice, now. But you gotta admit, for a last trip, this one is sure exciting.”

  “Last trip. Sounds strange, doesn’t it?”

  “Yeah, but I'm getting too old for this shit, anyway,” Howard said and laughed.

  ~~~

  “May I join you, Major?” Marlene stood in the aisle looking down at him.

  The Major's eyes roamed over her body, from her soft pretty red hair, brown eyes, and soft smiling lips, down to her large breasts, small waist, and cute hips.

  “You’re shameful, Major.” Marlene said with a slight chuckle.

  “What can I say? You’re easy on the eyes.’ I'd be proud if you sat next to me. I usually have to deal with crud like that SOB awhile ago. Don't get a lot of chance to have the company of a pretty lady much.” Major White was anything but movie star handsome, but he had a rugged lumberjack look about him and quite a becoming smile when speaking to a woman.

  Marlene lowered herself into the seat next to him without bothering to worry about her skirt riding up well above her knees. “Married, Major?” she asked.

  He smiled broadly and answered, “Nope, haven't had the time. Unless you consider I’ve been pretty well married to the Army for many years. How about yourself?”

  “I was engaged to be married last year until I found out my fiancé was having an affair with my best friend while I was away on flights. No, I’m totally unencumbered, Major. Afraid I’m all alone in this world. No family or beaus at all.”

  “No family?” he asked quietly.