Diplomacy (Abner Fortis, ISMC Book 5) by P.A. Piatt

Author:P.A. Piatt [Piatt, P.A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Theogony Books
Published: 2022-03-28T16:00:00+00:00

* * * * *

Chapter Seventeen

Fortis’ pulse quickened as they approached Breakneck 601, gleaming in the Maltaani sun. She looked fast and lethal, and it surprised Fortis to see door guns mounted on both sides.

“Why the door guns, Skipper? Expecting trouble?”

“No. I ordered the door guns mounted for appearances, although we’ve got ammo secured aboard if we need it. I’m trying to condition the Maltaani to seeing armed hovercopters. This will be the first time we’ve flown in their airspace, and I want them to get used to seeing us armed and dangerous. If the situation changes, and we need the guns, it’ll look like business as usual.”

“Smart.”

Fortis climbed up into the copilot/gunner seat in front of Vogel. He plugged in his comms umbilical and cinched his seat harness as tight as he could. A ground crewman climbed up next to him and yanked it a centimeter tighter.

“Don’t want you to fall out, XO,” the crewman told Fortis as she slapped him on the helmet. She turned and gave a thumb’s up to Vogel, who was strapped into the pilot’s seat. “He’s good to go, Skipper.”

Vogel’s voice crackled in Fortis’ ear. “Are you ready, XO?”

Fortis nodded before he remembered to hold a thumb’s up over his head. “Affirmative, sir.”

“I’ve got override on your flight controls and weapons, so don’t worry about touching anything but that big yellow and black handle on your right side. If you pull on that, you’ll release the canopy, and then you’ll have to fly home with the wind in your hair and answer to Warrant Liu when we get back.”

“Don’t touch anything. Got it.”

“Degert, Corbilo, how about you? Are you ready back there?”

Sergeant Degert, the crew chief, answered for himself and Corporal Corbilo, the senso, who were both in the cabin behind Vogel. “We’re good to go back here, sir.”

The aircraft marshaller gave the visual signal to start engines, and a high-pitched whine filled the aircraft as the engines came up to power. Once the engines were started, the marshaller gave the signal to pull chocks, and after a brief pause, he gave the all-clear sign.

“Here we go.” Vogel’s voice was calm, but Fortis detected a hint of tension. The hovercopter jerked as it left the ground, and then an invisible hand pressed Fortis back into his seat as the craft accelerated and climbed steeply. Fortis watched the altimeter spin while they shot into the sky, and then they leveled off at fifteen hundred meters.

“Combat takeoff, XO,” Vogel said. “We practice them all the time. You never know when you’ll have to take off from a hot drop zone.”

“Pilot, senso, all systems are green,” an unfamiliar voice tickled Fortis’ ear.

“Roger. I’m going to test the flight controls, and then we’ll commence our run. XO, we’ll be making some dynamic maneuvers for the next couple minutes. After that, we’ll descend and follow our collection flight pattern. If there’s time, we’ll do some worm burning.”

Vogel piloted the hovercopter through a series of high-speed turns. Even though he was belted in tightly, Fortis braced himself against the turns.

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