Warbirds of Mars: Stories of the Fight! by

Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Science Fiction
Publisher: Quickdraw Books
Published: 2013-05-10T04:00:00+00:00

The P-61 Black Widow hummed over New York City. There was no blackout drill tonight.

“Hey, Jack,” Jack recognized the voice of Errol Gardner over the intercom. Despite the devastating losses, it took until 1948 for the desegregation of the military to become official. Errol Gardner was the first black radar operator Jack had flown with. So far, the only question Jack had about it was why it took so long for Philadelphia to sign the order.

“Yeah, Errol?”

“One of the boys was telling me you got this...ah...this spring under your seat. An ejaculator?”

Jack half-grinned. “Ejector.”

“Yeah, yeah, ejector. So what I hear is if we’re going down, you pull a cord and you fly out.”

“That’s the idea.”

“You ever tried it?”

“Nope.”

“You ever seen it in action?”

“Nope. Heard the Krauts got the idea first, but the P-61’s one of the first American planes to try it.”

“So you got one.”

“Right.”

“And Larsson?”

“Yeah, the gunner’s got one too. Be honest, Errol, I think he’s got the better chance. Most of the tests focus on the gunners because it’s the best place to experiment it.”

“So if we get shot, I’m staying here.”

“We’re not getting shot, Errol.”

“Nice to hear you say that, Jack. I figured it was because you and Larsson are...”

“Are what?”

“Well, you know, I’m the only one here who’s...”

“Who’s what, Errol?”

“A Red Sox fan.”

Jack made a sound between an exhale and a chuckle. “Stay focused, Errol.”

When he took his finger off the intercom, Errol’s voice was already speaking in a markedly different tone. “—headed our way, diamond formation six o’clock.”

“Larsson, look alive.” Jack steered the Black Widow toward the coordinates Errol fed him. He knew Errol would be adjusting the radar to focus in, while he heard Larson leaning forward in his chair. The night sky suddenly lit up with four distinct flashes ahead. Jack maneuvered out of the line of fire. The glowing green rays shot past the widow, as Larsson fired back. “Errol, two coming in.”

“I got ‘em” Errol replied, referring to the remote-controlled turret gun that could serve as an aft or forward weapon. Errol fired as the plane wove through the Martian forces. There was a satisfying burst of fire from ahead as Larsson emaciated a Talon. A few seconds later, a second explosion rocked the night sky, as Errol shot down another Talon. “Two down,” Errol said.

“Best of four,” Jack said, turning to make another pass at the Talons. The Black Widow swerved again as the Talons engaged in pursuit. Jack stared out at the black sky, when the lights appeared again.

More arrived now, six or seven, then twice that. Larsson swore and Jack violently pulled up. “Where’d they come from?” Larsson asked over the roar of the gunfire.

“No radar,” Errol said over the intercom. “They ain’t showing up here.”

“Narrioch, NARRIOCH,” Jack spoke into the radio, using the code name for Coney Island, the original Lenape Indian name, “this is Night Thunder, taking heavy fire and requesting immediate assistance.” Something shook the side of the plane. “Narrioch, do you copy?”

No response.

“They’re jamming the radio,” Jack said.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.