36
Diversion
At dawn LB 1 was teeming with activity. Since 0600 a steady stream of planes had been flowing down the runway and taking off over the orange glow of the volcano. Jake was in one of the first fighters. Lorin was glad because that meant Jake would be part of the first wave of fighters sent to lure away Lortec’s air defense squadrons. Hopefully, they’d never engage the enemy and only come back to fight when the battle was well underway. She reasoned that when they finally made it back into battle much of Lortec’s air defenses would have been destroyed and their planes shot down. If this indeed happened, Jake would be less likely to perish in battle. She was sure General Zitor had done that on purpose in deference to her and the Councillor.
By 0900 reports on the battle started to come in. The diversion had worked and the first wave of bombers flew over Lortec without resistence. When the remaining fighters tried to get off the ground to intercept the intruders, Peter’s squad frustrated every attempt to get them airborne. The bombers hit with devastating effect, destroying almost forty percent of the enemy aircraft within the first kyloon. Eventually the battle evened out as the vertical lift fighters got in the battle and Peter’s squad was finally forced to retreat opening up the runway again. But it was too late for the TGA. They’d lost most of their aircraft and thousands of men who’d been caught still sleeping at dawn’s first light.
Although command was elated with their victory, they didn’t have time to relish it, as the sky above them had cleared. The freak weather pattern had materialized as feared and the satellites orbiting above had begun to train their lenses on the Beet Islands. It was only a matter of kyloons and the bombs and rockets would be descending upon them. The bombers, after finishing their work on Lortec, were refueled in the air and sent to southern Tributon where the mutants were in control. Some of the fighters joined them, but others were sent all the way to Rigimol to shore up security for the investiture of Chancellor Garcia.
By 1600 the island had been evacuated with the exception of the command staff that was set to leave in the Lukon PT 22. Lorin checked her roster with the passengers who were on board and decided everyone was accounted for. She nodded to the pilot, Evohn Cystrom, who was watching her from the cockpit and then closed the hatch. The plane immediately began taxiing down the runway. Soon they were in the air and circling back over the base. Two fighters were flying with them as escorts. General Zitor pulled a small control device out of his pocket. He looked out the window at LB 1 and shook his head. Then he pushed the red button on his controller and a series of explosions ripped across the island. Beneath them LB1 lay in ruins.
“What about the Nanomites?” Luci asked. “Did you evacuate them?”
“Yes. They were relocated immediately after they’d finished building the base. They’re already at work in Tributon.”
“Good. I’m glad you had the foresight to do that. Peter would be upset if anything happened to them.”
“You needn’t worry. There are many capable people in Loyalist Command,” Lorin said icily.
Luci was hurt by her sarcasm, but didn’t say anything. She didn’t understand the reason for Lorin’s occasional coolness toward her. Peter had mentioned that Lorin was disappointed in him but surely she couldn’t feel that way now after all that Peter had accomplished. She finally just attributed it to politics. Luci hadn’t thought much about politics in the past. The focus of her life had been her mate, her job, and her desire to be a mother. Now, suddenly everything had changed.
A wave of fear washed over her. She suddenly realized by consenting to mate with Peter, she had become a Loyalist and would be killed if she were ever caught by the TGA. Why had she let this happen? Her stomach twisted and she felt sick. Why hadn’t she said no when Lorin came to see her? She had been safe in Shisk. The civil war wouldn’t have effected her all that much. She could have had her baby and lived in peace, oblivious to the struggle around her. Now she’d been thrust into a world of uncertainty and fear. What kind of spell had this boy from Earth cast upon her?
She took a deep breath trying to regain her composure. Despite her fears, she knew, deep down, if Lorin came to her now and offered her safe passage back to Shisk, she’d refuse, no matter what sacrifices she’d have to make or inconveniences she’d be forced to endure to be with Peter. Their lives had become inextricably intertwined and neither of them would ever be happy without the other close at hand.
As Luci was thinking, she heard the pilot tell Lorin that they were flying between Muhl and Ock Mezan. She knew that had to be a dangerous part of the flight as both Muhl and Ock Mezan were under TGA’s control.
“Any sign of the enemy?” Lorin asked.
“No,” Evohn replied. “We’re traveling at 55,000 feet so it’s unlikely they’ll see us.”
“I hope you’re right, but they must suspect we’ll be flying this way.”
“I’ll let you know if I see anything.”
Lorin started to leave the cockpit when a light began flashing on the control panel and an alarm buzzer went off. Lorin stopped and looked at Evohn. “What’s that?”
“Oh, God have mercy! There’s a missile locked on to us. Twenty tiks to impact.”
“What! Can’t you do something?”
“I can’t, but maybe somebody else can.”
Evohn picked up his mic and said, “E1, we’ve got a Muscan coming at us. Can you intercept?”
“Will do, Com 1. Break hard right.”
Evohn thrust the control stick to the right and the plane made a hard turn. The escort fighter came at them and had it not been for the hard right turn, they would have collided. The escort was now flying directly at the Muscan missile. Two tiks later the missile hit the fighter and the fighter exploded into oblivion.
“Oh, Sandee!” Evohn said. “That was close.”
Lorin’s heart sank. “Oh, my God! The pilot sacrificed himself for us!”
“Yeah, well. That was his job—to protect us.”
General Zitor stepped up to the cockpit.
“General,” Lorin gasped. “Did you see that pilot. He sacrificed his life for us!”
“Yes. That was very courageous. I will see to it that he is honored for his heroism.”
Lorin, still stunned, moved aside so General Zitor could talk to the pilot. She shook her head and went back to her seat.
“Lt. Cystrom, isn’t it?” the general asked.
“Yes, sir.”
“Well, Lieutenant. That was a close call. What’s the maximum altitude this plane can fly?”
“It’s certified to 75,000 feet.”
“Then why are we flying at 55,000 feet?”
“I didn’t think it was necessary to go that high, sir.”
“Obviously, it is.”
“Yes, sir.”
The general backed out of the cockpit, turned, and returned to his seat. Luci folded her arms in a vain attempt to stop them from shaking. Lorin noticed her trembling and went to her.
“You all right?”
Luci swallowed hard. “No, not really. Do you know who was piloting that plane?”
“No. I haven’t looked it up yet.”
“He never hesitated.”
“I know,” Lorin said barely able to keep her composure.
Luci began to weep.
“What about your baby?” Lorin asked trying to change the subject. “Does the turbulence upset him?”
“A little. He’s been kicking a lot. I’m sure he senses the danger.”
“He’s probably more upset with the altitude change,” Lorin said. “Flying this high has to be a major shock to his system.”
“How much longer until we get to our destination?”
“A few kyloons,” Lorin replied. “Try to sleep. It will make time go faster.”
Luci nodded and Lorin went up to the cockpit.
“How are we doing?” she asked Lt. Cystrom.
“No sign of the enemy, but take a look to your left.”
Lorin looked out the left window and saw a large island shaped like a clenched fist.
“That’s Pogo. If we’re going to be attacked again before we get to Tributon it’s going to come from there.”
“Can you give it a wider berth?” Lorin asked.
“No, that will take us off course and we won’t have enough fuel to make it to Tributon. We’ve got to stay on course.”
Lorin sighed. “All right. Let me know if you see anything suspicious.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Lorin returned to her seat. She thought about Jake and wondered where he was at that moment. She felt fairly certain he was okay. After all, if he’d been shot down she would have heard about it by then. Logic, however, wasn’t always all that comforting. Jake could just as easily have crashed somewhere and be dead or seriously injured. She tried to clear her mind. She needed to be thinking about Threebeard and her meeting with the Mutant generals. She couldn’t afford to be distracted. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and tried to relax. Her fatigue suddenly hit her. She hadn’t slept the night before the battle and she was exhausted. Sleep now, she thought, it will be five kyloons before we get to Tributon. Sleep now, it may be the last chance you get for God knows how long.
Lorin wasn’t the only one who was exhausted and had succumbed to slumber. In fact, only Lt. Cystrom and Luci were awake when the PT22 started its descent over eastern Quori well short of Tributon. Lucinda looked out the window to see if their sole remaining fighter escort was still there, but she didn’t see it.