Home » The Archives » Chapter 7 » Trouble Under the Hood
| Re: Trouble Under the Hood [message #1942 is a reply to message #1941] |
Sat, 28 July 2012 20:33   |
Lillehafrue
Messages: 478
Registered: July 2012
Location: Northeastern USA
Karma:
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TB Pilot
Evil Genius |
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From: Tikatu Sent: 6/17/2006 3:49 PM
Wednesday, July 18, 2068, 11:10 a.m., the Danger Zone, (3:10 p.m. Tracy Island)
"Thunderbird Seven to Maverick." Nikki's voice rang in Scott's ear. "We're approaching your position."
"F-A-B, Seven. We'll be down to meet you in a moment."
"F-A-B."
He tapped his ear comm and said, "Quasar and Cousteau from Maverick. How is your recon going?"
"I'm just about finished," Gordon replied.
"Done and ready to make my recommendations," John said.
"Then meet me at Seven."
"F-A-B," they both replied.
Scott alighted near the Mobile Crane, turning off his jet pack just as Seven lowered its landing gear and cut off the hoverjets. John and Gordon joined him and the trio moved toward the medical unit as the cockpit door opened. Dom and Nikki climbed out, followed by Dianne, who hollered, "You stay put!" over her shoulder.
Scott grinned. "Virgil giving you trouble?"
"Not at the moment," she replied with a sigh. "But earlier, yes." At Scott's questioning look, she added, "His leg is badly bruised but not broken. Still, it's gonna hurt like hell for a good while, and he's grounded until further notice."
"I bet he took that well," Scott said, snorting a laugh. He stopped for a moment as his earpiece crackled to life.
"Maverick from Ursa; I'm checking in."
"Maverick here, Ursa; what's your status?"
"I'm getting near to the second wing. There are vines all tangled up down here, though. I'll have to find a way around them."
"F-A-B. Keep in touch. Maverick out." He turned toward the small group. "So, let's get cracking on some plans."
Gordon took off his helmet and swiped his arm across his brow, then passed his gloved hand through his sweaty hair. "I thought at first we might rig a sling around the fuselage, but that's a no-go. The trees are too crowded in around the plane to do that."
"I agree," John stated. He too removed his helmet, and shook his head vigorously, sending drops of warm sweat flying, much to the disgust of some of the others.
"Hey, stop that!" Nikki cried, holding her hands up as protection. "You're not a dog!"
"Oh, sorry about that!" John stopped and pushed his own hair out of his eyes. "I did make contact with the people inside. Several voices answered, but I couldn't tell how many."
"Good," Scott said. He turned to Dianne. "There are at least two fatalities. The pilot and copilot are definitely dead." Glancing at the others, he continued. "The nose portion is lower than the tail and the whole thing is tilted toward one side. There's no way to get the plane out of its current position intact."
"Then how will we get the passengers out?" Dom asked.
"We're going to have to stabilize the plane, then send you people in. We can use the Mobile Crane to transport people down to the ground level," Scott explained.
"How do you intend to stabilize it and get us inside?" Dianne asked.
"Well," Gordon ventured, "we can secure the tail of the plane to the trees behind and around it. That should keep it from falling further forward."
"Yes," Scott said. "Then we can lash the trees around the nose together with cable and keep it from moving downward. Between the two secure points, we should be able to get you medics in, and the people out safely."
"As long as the tail holds," Dianne reminded them.
"I think it will," Gordon said. "The fuselage is actually in fairly good shape. Battered and dented, but in one piece."
Scott glanced around at his team. "All right, here's the plan. Gordon, you and Dom go back to Two and pick up some cable. Load it into one of the hover bike trailers and come back on the bikes. They should be maneuverable enough to get here quickly." He grinned at Nikki. "How's your head for heights, Nikki?"
"Fine," she replied. "What do you want me to do?"
"Take Gordon's jet pack and go up to the plane with John. Try to find out how many people are alive up there, how many are injured, and a general sense of what the injuries are. That way we can be prepared for them down here."
"F-A-B," she replied, smiling.
"What do you want me to do?" Dianne asked, as Gordon took off his jet pack and helped Nikki to put it on. She took his helmet, too, as hers wasn't available to her.
"Ride herd on Virgil is one thing. You know he'll try and get up to help," Scott replied. "Prepare for the people in the plane, and keep an ear out for Callie. She's supposed to report in every five minutes since she's out there on her own. I'm going to take One up far enough to relay our status and plans to Five and base. I'll be back as soon as I can."
"And what if she doesn't report in? Then what?"
"Either send someone after her or go after her yourself," Scott replied. "And make sure you're armed."
"F-A-B," Dianne replied with a nod. "I'll do it." She paused. "We did make contact a little earlier with Five. It was garbled, but I think we managed to impress on them the fact that Virgil was injured and his current status."
"That's good news," Scott said. "At least they're not totally in the dark." He glanced around. Gordon and Dom had already started off toward the clearing where the Thunderbirds were parked. "Wait up!" he called. They stopped, and he nodded at John and Nikki. "Be careful up there."
"We will be," John said. He nudged Nikki, and they moved over toward the Mobile Crane. John gave Nikki a word of instruction, then they both rose slowly into the thick, humid air.
"I'll let Callie know to report to you," Scott said. Dianne nodded, and he went off to join Dom and Gordon. Dianne stood outside, watching the two who were wearing the jetpacks disappear into the upper canopy.
"Ursa from Maverick."
Callie stopped, getting her bearings. The gleam of the wing was off to her left. She sighed, and wished she'd thought of bringing a machete. She tapped her earpiece. "Go ahead, Maverick."
"I'm taking One up top to relay our situation to Five and base. While I'm gone, I want you to check in with Doc just as you have been with me." Scott ducked under a vine. "Check in with her now to let her know you've received my instructions. She's expecting your call."
"F-A-B, Maverick. Ursa out."
Scott sighed. He hated splitting his team up like this, but he could see no other way to deal with the many tasks they had before them. Stabilize the plane, first, then get the people out. After that, we can work on the mystery of the communications jamming, and what brought the plane down in the first place.
98% pure evil...and loving every minute of it.
 
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