The landing: Chapter 6
Yoli looked at Bowie, “Let’s see. The last time I saw you was when you ejected from the Harrier in Afghanistan. You don’t seem any worse for the wear. You doin alright?”
Bowie looked down as he remembered the incident, “Yeah, if you hadn’t been my wingman, I probably wouldn’t have made it. You strafed those guys so bad they couldn’t get close to me. You’re the best pilot I know. I owe you. When we’re finished here, I’m taking you to the San Antonio River and we are gonna have ourselves a time.”
Both guys did a big whoop and high fived. Yoli began showing Bowie the controls. There was a console forward in front of the canopy with three chairs. It was small compared to what you would think of a complicated ship. Yoli started pointing things out, “This is the easiest thing you’ll ever fly. There are thrusters everywhere and plenty of power. You just have to push these switches to go up, down, left, right, anything you want.”
Bowie pointed to the left, “What are those.”
“They’re sensors that give information about the atmosphere. When we touch down, we’ll be able to tell what the lay of the land is.”
He showed Bowie which sticks to pull and buttons to push. There were only a few. Yoli continued, “I mean there’s no reentry issue, the thrusters and a small amount of plasma drive control take off and reentry. I don’t even know why they need me on this mission.”
Bowie said, “That’s what they keep telling me. They’re not going to need me but somehow, they want us there in case of trouble. I think it’s because of the one mission that didn’t come back.”
Yoli got a concerned look on his face, “Yeah, I get that feeling too.”
“What’s the propulsion system?”
Yoli got a funny look on his face, “It’s not jets or rockets for main propulsion. The small thrusters for space maneuverability are rockets. For the big ship it's plasma drive. For the Baby it's still a small plasma drive mechanism. I asked Hepwater about it and he started reeling off some scientific stuff and I tell ya, I didn’t understand a word of it.” Bowie acknowledged.
As they became familiar with the ship Yoli said, “Have you met the mercs?”
Bowie said, “No, I guess I should. Are they around?”
“Yeah, come on I’ll introduce you. They’re good guys. I’ll tell ya, they’ve been in the shit. All the guys did heavy duty work in Afghanistan. They got our six.”
Yoli and Bowie went down to the lower deck where everyone was getting ready. They had a cell phone set up with speakers playing YouTube songs. Credence Clearwater Revival, the beginning of Sweet Hitch Hiker just started. The song was blaring through the lower deck. Bowie immediately figured these were the right guys. Yoli did the formalities, “Hey, Colonel Micheals this is Colonel Bowie.”
A tall white male turned and faced Bowie. He was a square jawed middled aged man in great shape with a short haircut and an attitude. He was exactly what you wanted if you got into trouble. He was tough and ready to get into it. He looked Bowie in the eyes for a few seconds, “Good to meet you, Colonel.”
Bowie stuck out his hand and there was a firm handshake. Bowie said, “I’m glad you’re here Colonel. I hope we won’t need your services, but it makes me feel a lot better knowing you’re with us.”
Micheals finally smiled, “Thanks, we got you covered.”
Bowie said, “What kind of weapons you got to counter a threat?”
Micheals walked Bowie a few feet to the weapons bay of the ship as the music played. The Marines in camo fatigues were standing there checking weapons. One Marine said, “Attention!”
The three men snapped to attention. One of the men turned the music off. It got quiet fast. Micheals said, “Colonel Bowie this is Sargent Jacobson, private Johnson, and private Karstares. We’re here to make sure everything goes smooth.”
Bowie acknowledged the group, “At ease guys. I appreciate your commitment to this mission. Hopefully we’ll get by without needing any of our expertise. If, however, we do need it we’ll be in survival mode. You’ll be necessary because this expedition must return. We need to tell what happens.”
Bowie asked Sargent Jacobson, “What weapons y’all have?”
The music came back on and changed to Three Dog Night, Shambala. Sargent Jacobson stepped forward. He was a tall trim black guy who seemed in perfect shape. He was Marine recon and could handle himself in any situation, “Colonel Micheals and Pvt. Johnson have MP5Ks which have 9MM rounds. They also carry an M203 grenade launcher’. I’ve got a Fostech Origin 12 gauge shotgun with a thirty round drum ammo. The shots are slugs, but every third round is buck shot. It can kill at a hundred yards. I also carry an mp5. Private Karstares has a gatling gun. It’s a handheld 5.56 millimeter gun that fires 100 rounds a second. It can decimate an area quickly. Nobody can touch us. We all have backup Glock G21 Gen5, which is a .45 caliber with laser sights. We’ve got five Polaris four wheelers for quick movement anywhere, including rough terrain. We can be in and out in minutes.”
Bowie stood there and observed for few seconds as he talked to Micheals. The men went about cleaning their equipment as the music now changed to the Who, Won’t Get Fooled Again. Bowie didn’t know much about special forces but had been around some of them a little. Enough to know they’re bat shit crazy. When the trouble starts you want them around. Bowie observed Sargent Jacobson finish cleaning his Fostch shotgun and started working on his MP5. As he began cleaning the gun he unhooked a full magazine and threw it hard at Johnson who was concentrating on cleaning his MP5. Without looking Johnson caught the magazine and immediately put it in his gun as they both smiled.
Private Johnson was good looking white guy with a mustache. He was in his late twenties, maybe six foot tall, about one hundred and ninety pounds. He was well built and in great shape. The whole time Bowie was talking with them he had a smile on his face.
Karstares was more serious but seemed very cool. He was a white guy about six foot two and like the other mercs in great shape. He was about two hundred and ten pounds. He was focused on the task at hand. He continued to load the backpack containing ammo for the gatling gun.
Bowie was completely satisfied these were the guys for the job. Bowie, Yoli, and Micheals went back to the cockpit. Yoli informed Bowie, “We’re getting ready to take off.”
He looked at Bowie, “Pancho, you ready?”
“Let’s go buddy. I’m ready.”
Davis appeared in the cockpit, “Colonel Bowie, I want you to meet the doctor for the trip.”
A short black man with a smile approached Bowie and extended his hand. He was middle aged, fortyish, with a bald head and clean shaven. He was starting to get a round tummy. Bowie reached out and shook it. He had a smile and said, “Hi, I’m Dr. Benjamin Jones. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
Bowie said, “Hi, I’m at a disadvantage Dr. Jones. I hadn’t learned anything about this expedition until two days ago. Forgive me doctor. They’ve kept me in the dark.”
“It’s fine. They did the same to me. It’s on a need to know basis. I guess now we need to know. Apparently, we’re ready to go so I wanted to meet you.”
Davis moved forward and Bowie asked, “I’m curious, this is a massive operation. How did you pull it off without any government agency finding out?”
Davis got a serious look on his face, “It wasn’t easy, and it took a lot of out of the box thinking. They tried to track my C-130 bringing supplies to the island. They can’t track my space flights to build the Janus five with all the sophisticated equipment though. After all the construction on this island and in space we’re finally ready to go. I’ve taken care of all this. Now it’s your turn to take care of everything. It’s all up to you.”
Davis turned, “It’s time. I’m staying here waiting and you’re heading to the Janus five. See ya in a few days.” At that Davis was gone. He walked off leaving Bowie with what felt like a burden. This has gone from being a lark to being the only hope for mankind. Bowie was feeling good though. He had his wingman with him, some of the smartest people on the planet and four mercs that would kill you as soon as look at you and the weapons to do it. What could go wrong.
Bowie checked to make sure everyone was on board. He thought this was going to be a simple three or four person excursion but has now turned into a twelve person mission. The old man Goldman didn’t make the trip, but Hepwater was in place. Bowie went to the ready room and saw Olinick, Miller, and Jana Powell. Dr. Jones was there and the fifteen year old kid Bowie hadn’t met yet. He walked over and introduced himself, “Hi, I'm Jim Bowie.”
The kid looked at him with a blank stare and said, “Hi, I’m Joe. Joe Kasik. I’ve heard a lot about you. I’m really glad to be working with you.”
Bowie asked, “What can you do with the drones.”
“Oh, I can do just about anything. The main purpose is surveillance, but they can swoop and overwhelm someone if they’re not ready for them. They can go about five or six miles out and pinpoint situations or targets. I can program them to do all kinds of things. Let me know what you need. I’ll get it done.”
“Thanks Joe. I’ll let you know.” Bowie turned to the group, “Okay everyone. Get in your chairs and strap in. We’re getting ready for takeoff. The pilot is the best you can get so don’t worry about a thing. Hopefully this will be a wild ride for us all.”
After everyone was strapped in Bowie walked back up to the cockpit, “Okay Yoli. Everything is secure. Let’s go.”
“Ready Pancho. Here we go.”
Bowie and Yoli were strapped in as he pushed a button, and the ship began to vibrate. After a few seconds they both observed from the cockpit Baby rising. It rose slowly at first but quickly sped up and was airborne heading for altitude. It was a fantastic sight. The Baby flew through the atmosphere leaving a slight contrail from the wing vortex heading to outer space. Bowie and Yoli watched as they entered outer space. Bowie looked at Yoli, “You ever take this thing in space before?”
“Yeah, one time. I took it to space. It was a quick ride. We went up and came right back down. As I said, I’m not sure what makes this thing work, but it’s great. I’ve never docked with Janus. The computer is supposed to do all of that. We’ll be okay.”
Bowie trusted Yoli and sat back to relax as the baby ship headed towards Janus. Davis was right. This is definitely a quick trip. Everything is Spartan. There is nothing for comfort. Weightlessness sets in and they approach Janus five. Bowie gazes with amazement. It’s candy apple red like the vessel they’re on. The ship is long and sleek. It’s missing the front end of the damn thing. This must be where the Baby comes in. It attaches to the front to make a whole ship. As Bowie watched the approach it all seemed surreal. Yoli said, “Okay, I’ve started the computer to dock. Thanks to Dr. Janice Miller it should go off without a hitch. She’s monitoring it.”
Both men sat back and watched as the ship positioned itself to dock. Thrusters backed it up and after several minutes the docking was perfect. Everything clicked into place and both men looked at each other. Yoli said, “We are good to go. Now it’s up to Hepwater to get us to where we’re going.”
Bowie looked at Yoli, “Wait a minute. They didn’t tell you where we’re going?”
“No. Not that I understood. They said something about a planet like earth in a faraway galaxy we could reach in seconds. They named it Two. That’s all I know.”
Bowie was flabbergasted, “It’s exactly like earth! They’re sending us to another earth. As a matter of fact, that's why they call it Two. As in earth Two. I can’t believe they didn’t fill you in.”
Yoli sat there staring straight ahead out into space, “They just told me we’re going a long way and don’t ask to many questions. It won’t take long, and they gave me a lot of money. I did tell them you’ll need more information to get on board. I know you. You have to know everything. So, where are we going?”
“I saw video from Janus four of a planet pretty much like earth. I thought it was earth at first. We’re going to that planet. We need to get ready. I think these scientist types don’t know what they’re getting into. We’ll see though I guess.”
The Baby ship was now docked with the mother ship and made a beautiful smooth, long, candy apple red, galaxy ship. Janus five is complete. Towards the back was a large circular ring where the plasma drive was and would take them to different galaxies in seconds. There were big, thick wings towards the back of the structure that curved forward. At the end of the wings were fins with thrusters to maneuver when the plasma drive stops in a certain spot. There were cylinders built into the body which led to the circular structure in back of the ship where the plasma drive was. Janus was now one sleek red machine. Everything was ready. Hepwater came over the intercom, “Everyone strap in. We go to plasma drive in two minutes.”
Because of the weightlessness everyone was still strapped in and ready to go. Bowie and Yoli sat there looking out the cockpit window. They had a perfect view of the universe. Suddenly there was quick violent vibration, and a bright yellow light completely enveloped the cockpit. Bowie and Yoli had to cover their eyes. There was a sound of thunder but no vibration. Bowie and Yoli looked up and saw multiple colors outside the ship for a second. They both went limp as the yellow light again consumed the space they were in. They had to cover their face again.
Everything stopped. They were now floating in space. The thrusters in the fins of the ship brought it to a complete halt. It takes a few seconds for them to recover from the experience. Bowie looked at Yoli, “You okay?”
“Yeah, I think so. That was crazy. I feel funny though.”
“Yeah, I feel funny too. It feels like something inside me is disturbed. I wonder if we’re supposed to feel this way. It’s like I’m not supposed to be here.”
Yoli looked over at Bowie, “Yeah, I feel the same way.”
They were still in weightless space as they unhooked, Bowie said, “I need to talk to Hepwater and make sure everything went as planned.”
Bowie floated down the stairs to the lower decks and into the main ship, “Hepwater! Everything okay?”
He was floating there with a big smile, “Yes, we made it. Janus five is here. Now we have to establish an orbit around the planet and send down the Baby.”
Bowie floated back up to the cockpit, “Can you establish an orbit around the planet?”
The view was amazing. The planet was blue with water and green with land. It was brown with desserts. It looked exactly like earth, with certain variations. Yoli said, “Oh yeah. We’ll be able to unhook the Baby in a few minutes. Let me get us in a stable orbit and we’ll be good to go.”
Jana floated up and got close to Bowie. She felt comfortable when he was near her. Only essential personnel were going down to the planet. Bowie was in charge, Yoli was the pilot, Joe manned the drones, the mercs were for protection, the Doc and Jana. She was the most important person. She was needed to observe and identify what was going on when they landed on Two. They had to get Jana down there and back so she could give her report to Davis. The object was to find out what was going on and return to the mother ship. Everything needed to happen fast.
Joe was in the control room with Bowie and Yoli. He operated the radio station. Joe turned to Bowie, “I’m picking up radio transmissions from the planet.”
Bowie stopped, “Hold on Yoli.” He turned to Joe, “What kind of transmissions?”
Joe listened a few seconds longer, “It’s old school transmissions. I found it on some strange frequency. They’re talking about the war.”
Bowie’s face became concerned, “What do you mean war. What the hell is going on?”
Joe again listened a few seconds, “The transmissions I’m getting now are from an area I guess we would think of as Houston. I don’t know how else to describe the situation. It’s around where Texas would be. It’s by the Gulf coast. I’m actually getting radio signals from all over the planet. There’s definitely life all over the place. The signals from what we think of as the United States they’re talking about a war. They’re talking about freeing the Kindar.”
Bowie asked, “Are they speaking English?”
“Yes, it sounds like I’m listening to one of our broadcasts. Everything sounds like us except a few words. I’m no expert but I think the radio wave lengths and the way they are talking about things it’s like 1950’s earth.”
Bowie looked at Yoli, “Lets head down there and see what’s going on.” Bowie turned to the kid, “Okay, when we land you can deploy your drones to check everything out, right?”
“Yes sir, I’ve got twenty drones programmed to exit this ship and go in every direction. We’ll know everything out there in a matter of minutes.”
Yoli had everyone strapped in as he separated from Janus. The baby went down like it was supposed to. As they entered the atmosphere Yoli asked, “Where to Pancho. What part of the world are we going to.”
Bowie pointed, “That’s about where Texas would be. Go there.”
Yoli headed down into the atmosphere and the Baby responded beautifully. They floated down towards what would be Houston on earth. Yoli was giving a play by play of them descending, “Okay, we’re entering the lower atmosphere. We’ll get to a certain point and start looking for a place to land.”
As Yoli finished, spots of light flew past the large cockpit window. Bowie and Yoli from experience knew immediately what it was. They were being shot at. Yoli pulled the Baby up and accelerated as they looked back at what was shooting at them. They were shocked. It appeared to be a World War ll airplane. It was different though. It had a massive engine in the front. It looked like most of the plane was engine. It had gull wings and was painted white with unrecognizable insignias. The pilot was in the back of the plane in a small canopy. It almost looked like some kind of steam punk plane, but it was turning to make another run at the ship. The pilot had to have soiled himself wondering what the hell was he was shooting at. By the time he got turned around for another run at the Baby it was climbing fast into the atmosphere. The pilot had definitely never seen anything like it before.
Yoli looked at Bowie, “He didn’t hit anything. I’ll try again. This time I’ll make sure there’s no aircraft in the area skipper.”
Bowie acknowledged, “Yeah, just find a field with no one around and let’s land. We’ll let the kid send out the drones and see what we’re dealing with.”
Yoli brought the craft back into the atmosphere. This time he was in fighter pilot mode. He was a great pilot and made the Baby dance through the clouds as it went lower and lower. The ship almost fluttered like a graceful bird. It was as if he was playing a musical instrument. He played it to perfection. No one could touch the Baby. He swooped down to a small field where he quickly put the Baby down in a perfect landing.
Joe was ready. As soon as the ship touched down, he pushed a button to release the drones. A portal on top of the ship opened and the drones spread out in every direction at a high rate of speed. Joe was monitoring them as they spread out.