The Captain Did It!

Graham Heights 

Rainier 

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Chapter 41
The Captain Did It!

Journal Entry - July 1st 2095

Jason Knorack

It’s been close to a week since Julia’s disappearance. She was acting strange at the reception for Mr. Monroe…

“It’s a beautiful night.” Jason said as he approached Julia from behind. He was relieved that Mr. Monroe finally made it to their little piece of heaven.  And was still impressed by all that he saw.

Once Jason was within a meter of Julia he could see the tension in her shoulders.  He knew her too well.  He placed his hand on he shoulder and could feel both tension and the tremor that went through her at his touch.  “What’s wrong?” He whispered

She shrugged her shoulders and did not offer much.  

“This is a great moment for our colony.”  He said, guessing that it had something to do with that.  She was very protective of this colony, its people and all that we have done.

Still she was distant.  Jason pursued, “Are you cold, do you need a wrap?”

“I’m fine Jason, I don’t need to be mothered.” Julia snapped.

“Okay.” Jason said in his annoyed voice.  “Just trying to help.”

“You of all people can’t help me know.” Julia snapped again.  “I need to get a wrap, please excuse me.”  

“With that she left and I never saw her again.” said lieutenant Jason Knorack as he stood at attention in front of the Commander’s desk  

“Are you sure that was all she said.”  Asked the commander.  

“Yeah, why?” Asked Jason.

“We are just trying to establish a state of mind prior to her disappearance.”  Said the Commander.

“She was upset or worried.”  said Jason

“About what?” asked the Commander.

“It’s Julia, she didn’t need much of a reason.”  Jason said and then added, “She always been a little tightly wound.” to himself, that’s probably why she has never found that one guy that could deal with it or diffuse it.  I know that I would not be able to put up with someone like that.”

“Lieutenant Knorack, I need you to track her down and find out if she went on this... retreat voluntarily or if she was kidnapped.”  The Commander said as he settled back into his chair.

“I don’t see her going..voluntarily.”  Lieutenant Jason Knorack said.

“Don’t let your judgement be clouded, all possibilities are on the table until we find proof to the contrary.”  Instructed the Commander.

Lieutenant Knorack left the commander's office conflicted.  Was he hunting Julia done to bring her back or to shot her.  He didn’t buy the idea of a gas pocket building up in the cabin and it just exploded.  And why would she leave on a spiritual retreat in the middle of the night.  No there were lies and misleading information.  It was his job to find out what happen and locate Julia and bring her home safely.  Two levels down and aft six compartments was Lieutenant Knoracks office.  He placed his hand on the door mechanism and it chimed.  His key was the bio scan of his hand.  It was coded so that only authorised personnel could access the room.  Once past the first door the lieutenant closed it and turned to open the second door.  Trying to keep information secure from AIs was like trying to keep water in a siv.  This air lock system one just one of many such ways to keep confidential information confidential.  As he opened the door the room was all but devoid of light.  A table in the center was back lit and the monitors that were spread around the perimeter of the room was all you had to work with.  Lieutenant Knorack walked up to the table in the center of the room.  It was large, a little over a meter squared.  On his left were four computer pads, Knorack liked to walk and read at the same time.  He picked up the first pad and started thumbing his way through the tabs.  

In intelligence you gather all the information that is available, you then sort it according to an area of interest and give it a scale of importance.  The computers and AIs were good at categorizing, however they had difficulty in bringing relevant information and putting them together to tell a story.  Not to say they couldn’t pick a needle out of a haystack of information, they just didn’t have the capacity to match it to another needle in a different haystack.  Thats where the lieutenant came in.  Case in point; Jordy reported his location as being forty three point six kilometers North of his reported position as recorded by SAT comm two satellite just two days later.  To an AI that would not be strange as they know that Jordy has the capacity to traverse that amount of distance in that time, but why?  Why would he try, what was the hurry and why did he have a mule? But the nail in the coffin was the transmission from “Jordy” just twelve hours earlier that was eighteen kilometers away from the satellite position.  To Knorack none of this added up, to his AI counterparts, it didn’t raise any suspicion.  

Then there was the explosion.  To date there has only been two explosions where sewer gas was the cause, both were outhouses and both were deliberate.  Not to mention that they were nowhere near as devastating as what happened at the cabin.  And then to put that part of the investigation in the closed file.  As in don’t investigate further.  Well that was...wrong.

The other part of this puzzle was Julia and this retreat thing.  He knew that she was having a personal crisis of sorts, since her rejection by One World, but a spiritual retreat.  It was just believable for most, but not for him.  She retreated to her cabin, talked with God and resolved things there.  If she was going into the woods, she would have told him.  Asked for a security detail, something.  This disappearing into the night was just not her M.O.  

Slowly Jason Knorack went through documents and when he found something he wanted to compare alongside of other documents he would swipe the pad and the document, picture of file would be placed on the table.  Then, like a giant jigsaw puzzle, put the pieces where they belong.  If it became too cluttered, he could bring up the HUD (Heads Up Display) which curved around him and then place all the puzzle piece there.  This way is was just a turn of the head and he could view them all, move them around and put the pieces together in whatever relationship he wished.  About three weeks in, he abandoned his table for the HUD and was lost in a sea of documents, pictures and data.  

The trail for Bartholomew Stone and his followers, Luke Cooper, Tomas Salazar, Freyja Smith and Lisa Walk went cold as these were the most benign characters ever to walk the planet.  They had no record of ever being in trouble with the local magistrate.  All of them were average in school and just above average in their apprenticeship.  All of their families were in complete shock when they were interviewed and insisted that they were abducted along with the Elder.  None of these individuals appeared to have the skills or inclination to commit a crime such as this.  They had to be pawns in a more complex game.  

The lieutenant was currently trying to draw a line between Jordy’s orders, his location two days before the disappearance and his location after.  Why this kept bugging him was the mystery.  Setting that aside, he was looking at a report from the Triplets.  They claimed to have run into hostiles near the south side of Mt. Rainier about eight kilometers from the cabin, yet no one else saw them or reported any damage caused by an unknown force.  It’s this lack of collaboration that kept the report on Jason’s wall.  The fact that they lost four mules in the exchange, but not a scratch on them, nor were there any bodies and why four mules?  What was the extra mule for?  Usually a Marine would only have one mule per person.  

That’s when it hit him.  Where did Jordy get his mule?  He did not requisition one.  Lieutenant Knorack went through the equipment requisition list.  It was here… this had to be the connection.  Going back almost two months Jason found the string.  Jordy had requisitioned a specific mule three times in a row.  Then on the day before Julia disappearance the Triplets requisitioned that specific mule alone with three others.   

Quickly, Jason brought up the transmissions with Jordy and SAT comm three.  The mule that Jordy was communicating through should have sent some type of signature.  A quick scan revealed only Jordy’s security information.  He would have to look deeper.  This was it, it was the link he was looking for.  Now the question is, will the Captain allow him to interrogate the triplets?  But even if he could, what leverage would have have with them?

It was two weeks before the Triplets reported to Lieutenant Knorack for questioning and as he suspected they regurgitated their report and nothing else.  When asked where they had been for the last two weeks, they just repeated “Classified.”

He was being stonewalled and he knew it, but what could a lowly lieutenant do?

Lieutenant Knorack was back in front of his HUD.  What could he do?  What were they trying to keep him from learning…”Oh crap!!”  The Captain did it.

Next Chapter

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If you like Graham Heights, please share the link with friends www.rogeratlarge.com.

As you know this blog contains two books of the Remnant Series. Graham Heights is book 3 of the series. Below is more.

Book 4: Obsidian Arrows

Book 1 is now available in paperback or kindle The Grey Abyss

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Thank-you
R. A. Legg

Learn about the individual heroes of Graham Heights. 

R.A. Legg © 2016. All Rights Reserved.

A Pair of Wings And A Prayer

Graham Heights 

Rainier

Wikimedia Commons

Chapter 40

A Pair of Wings and A Prayer

Journal Entry - July 15th 2095
Julia Scott

So, we made it to Spokane and found what use to be an airport, but the real fun came when we took off…

After a day of rummaging around we found a hanger with the perfect craft.  It was remarkable well preserved for something sitting for a hundred years.  It only had two ceased motors, two tires that refused to roll and control surfaces that did not move, but the upside was that it was still in one piece. We also found grease, tools and some spare parts, so Jordy was convinced that it would be our best chance and started disassembling everything.  

The humans set about to locate things that they needed, food, water, clothes and any medicines or medicinal plants that could be found.  We had depleted what we brought weeks ago and it was taking its toll on us.  There was plenty of protein as rabbits were everywhere, but we need other things.   Luke found a strange looking weed that grew in all the ditches, Jordy said it was something called asparagus and that it was a good plant with iron and minerals that we definitely needed.  

By day four Jordy was done with the engines, that is, he was done trying to get them freed up to turn let alone operate.  Jordy was pacing back in forth in front of the work bench he set up to support the massive engine and his banging and torquing on them.  However, time had done its work and these scraps of steel will be no more than hunks of matter resting on the ground.  Jordy still believed that the aircraft could be made airworthy, but without engines it would be useless.  

At dinner that night Jordy actually joined us.  He started the conversation with an apology for bring them out here and that he had failed them.  Then the discussion turned to alternative plans and possible going back.  Suddenly Jordy grabbed Luke’s arm and smelled it.  “That’s 902 oil.”  Jordy sniffed again. “Where did you find that?”

Luke was defensive as Jordy was not being too kind.  His eyes pleaded for help from the assault then managed to stammer out a response, “I..I’m not sure, but… we.  He indicated Lisa...were out back in the storage building south of the hanger.”  

Jordy release him and took off.  

“I hate it when he treats me that way.” said Luke.

“What the hell was that?”  Said Lisa as she went to help Luke.

After a second to adjust the group ran after Jordy.  He was definitely excited about something and hopefully it was good and not bad.  They’ve had enough with the bad.  

They followed after Jordy, but when they came out of the hanger he was already gone.  Julia walked around the hanger towards the rear and hear crashing noises from a large shed like structure.  She went to the door and looked in.  Jordy was standing in front of a bunch of crates.  There were piles of other crates to each side.  Tossed like they were of no consequence.  But the ones that were in front of him, well they were something.  Slowly Jordy picked one on the right and removed the lid with his bare hands.  Jordy was looking at the contents, not moving.

Julia entered carefully and cleared her throat so that Jordy would know that she was there.  She didn’t want anything flying at her.

“There crated Pratt & Whitney R1830 radial engines.” Jordy said with no emotion.

“What does that mean?” Asked Julia.

“It means I’ve wasted three days on those rusted hunks, when I could have put these on instead.” Jordy again said with little or no emotion.

“Then why do you sound depressed?” Julia asked.

“I’ve made a fundamental mistake of charging in without looking at the whole picture.” Jordy said.

“Okay, so..” Julia still did not get it.

“That’s so human.” Jordy responded.

Julia felt insulted, “Weren’t you lamenting about not being human just a few hours ago.”

“We need to find a way to get these into the hanger.” Jordy said without revisiting the last statement.  “We will have to get to work on cleaning up some fuel to fill the tanks.”

“And where will we find enough fuel to do that?”  Asked Julia

“The bottom of the large storage tanks have what is known as s sediment well.  None of the pick up tubes extend down that far.  With the size of those tanks” Jordy pointed South, “The well could hold as much as a two thousand liters or more.  All we need to do is distill it to remove the solids.” Jordy shrugged, “It will also kill all the batteria that’s been growing in it for the last few decades.”  Jordy said as he search the rest of the room for ways to lift the engines.

“So why beat yourself up over a few days.”  Julia asked.

Jordy turned and his red eyes glowed in the darkness of the shed, “If you think getting that pile of rust off the ground was difficult, it is child’s play as compared to getting a rocket off the ground, let alone one that can carry all of you up to the Mayflower.” He then returned to the task at hand.

Jordy had to charge for six hours the next day, and Buster just about broke under the load of trying to pull the engines from the shed to the hanger, but he managed and Jordy worked all night to fit them on the plane.  We woke up to him torquing the last mount and then connecting all the tubes and wires.  They weren’t a perfect fit with exception of some  controls that did not work, but they should run.  After buster charged up to full capacity he was connected to the first engine.  It turned and then Jordy shut it down.  Then the second engine, nothing.  After a quick look and a well placed blow with a hammer, the second engine turned.  Now all we had to do is distill enough fuel and finish scrubbing the fuel bladders that were in the wings.

When the engines were removed and some time during the second night, Jordy had removed the rubber off the tires and replaced them with metal ones.  He joked that they would only have to land once.  

Now we were working full out on distilling the fuel left in one of the large above ground tanks.  I still could not believe how desolate this place was.  We have been here for close to a week and a half and yet the only thing we have seen is a few birds.  From the looks of the place it was quite vibrant at one time, but like Yakama, it was almost bleached white by the intense sun.  To that end we stuck out against all the bleached items so to keep us from being catch out in the open when a satellite was passing over we made a Go-Nogo chart and it was strictly followed.  Every night Jordy would update the times to account for the changes being made by some unknown force.

Our solar dish cooking the fuel required constant supervision so, we had to spend more time in the sun.  Which caused two of the youngsters to get quite a sunburn.  They were doomed to be uncomfortable as we had little to ease their pain.  Three days later you could tell Jordy was getting impatient.  At the rate we were producing condensed fuel it would take a month to get the required amount.  

Jordy wanted to try some of the fuel in the engines to ensure that they would run.  This way if they didn’t they did not waste a month for nothing.  So he rigged a small bottle on each engine and connected Buster to the starter and hit the switch.  He almost drained Buster by the time he found the right mixture of fuel to air.  The huge engine coughed to life and then quit.  Which was a good thing as it filled the hangar with smoke and the noise of the backfires scared us all.  Unfortunately Buster was drained and the sun was going down, so the effort would have to wait another day.

Day two of engine testing did not go any better.  Jordy got one engine going, but the generator was bad and he had to shut it down to fix it.  If Jordy could keep one engine running he could power the second with the first, but so far that has not worked.  

While Jordy was distracted with the engines Bart managed to get a second collector up and running, but now we had to transfer fuel to the tanks because we were running out of barrels to store it in.  this took almost all of the power buster has stored and delayed the engines again.  

Day seven of having an aircraft, was overcast and Buster was still low on charge and no fuel was distilled.  Jordy paced the hanger like a caged animal and we tried to stay busy with collecting water.  Luke was in the control tower and noticed a plume of dust.  At first he thought it to be a dust devil, but it was moving and it was moving in our direction.  He gave the attention signal and we all joined him in the tower.  Jordy would have the best vision and he still could not see the source.  If it was a caravan and they were on foot, they would be here in a few days.  If they possessed some form of transport, they could be here by noon tomorrow.  

The next day was clear and the dust was still some distance to the West, but more North than it was the day before.  With a constant watch we worked on charging buster and Jordy, collecting food and making the place look like no one had been there.  By late afternoon the cloud had moved South, but no closer.  Jordy had Luke and Tommy work on the skin of the aircraft for make sure that nothing was going to fall off in flight.  Jordy concentrated on the control surfaces especially the flaps.  They did not want to deploy all the way and that would make landing very dangerous.  Jordy was explaining the problem to Bart when Freyja  signaled us that we needed to come to the tower.  We check the chart and venture out.  Once in the tower we could see why we were summonsed.  The cloud had shifted again and was now headed East, right for us.  It was still ten kilometer out, but it was slowly getting closer.  Jordy finally could see what was at the edge of the cloud.  It looked like goats.  Of all things a herd of goats was headed right for them.  

The tension eased a bit, but there had to be more, why would goats be headed their way and how did they get out here?  Water was one theory, but if they were being driven by humans.  That would not be good.  And if it was humans, where was their encampment or settlement.  Since we arrived, we have kept to ourselves and not ventured too far.  We were trying to keep a low profile so that if their were any humans around they would only discover us as we departed.  

Everyone in the tower was somewhat relieved that it was not some evil force coming to drag them back to Rainier or worse just kill them, but Jordy was not happy.  Julia asked why he was upset.

“They have no urgency, they will linger for days and we will just have to sit and wait them out.”  Jordy turned to leave.  “We have only scratched the surface of what we have to do, to get you into space and we are running out of time.”

Julia did not understand, but this was nothing more than an inconvenience, they were still safe from Mr. Monroe.  She tried to sooth Jordy.  “It will be fine.”

Jordy shot her a look with his red eye.  For an android he sure had some human characteristics that bled through the machine.

After three days the herd and whatever was driving it, moved on. Work resumed on the engines, collecting fuel and food.  Jordy managed to get one engine running quite smooth, but for some reason the second refused to work as the first.  It frequently coughed and sputtered and no matter what adjustments Jordy made, it just kept having problems.  Finally he isolated it to a single cylinder.  Jordy removed the valves and blocked the intake.  The engine had a slight vibration, but it was at least running smoother and would allow itself to accelerate.  

That night we started loading the aircraft with the things we had decided to take with us, food, water and some tools just in case.  Julia noticed that almost everyone in the group was at least thirty kilos lighter and their clothes were dirty and torn, but they were still in good spirits and looking forward to the trip South.  It was now July, but not sure what day.  We were ready to leave this hot and desolate place, but we still didn’t know where we were headed.  Some place where they keep rockets and apparently it’s on the Coast.  So why travel so far inland and then head back.  Julia decided it was time for Jordy to give up more details about the plan.

Jordy was at the collectors, we were about halfway to having enough fuel.  He was looking to increase their production, but the slug was just too thick and most of the easy stuff was gone.  They had almost eighteen hundred liters and the fuel tanks were holding.  Jordy tried the fuel lines and pump, both were holding, so it was only a matter of getting about twelve hundred liter more.  Jordy inspected a second tank that was farther down the line, It was all but empty, then he went down to the service station.  He rigged up a siphon tube and connected it to the pump that had used to transfer the fuel to the plane.  At first they got nada.  Then they managed to pull out about sixty liters.  It would be distilled like the others and place in the fuel tank.  At the end of three days he managed to pull almost eight hundred liters from tanks within ten kilometers of the hanger.  Along with the 250 liters that the stills had produced from the fuel tank, that made them only one hundred and fifty liters short of their goal.  Jordy extended our stay by a day when he decided to take the plane out for a taxi.  He wanted to make sure the wheels would hold.  Everything went well, but it consumed almost thirty liters of fuel.  This meant that they were going to need extra fuel as the wheels were very inefficient and the take off would cost them way too much of this precious fluid.  He also instructed that the taxiway be swept so that the plane feels as little shock as possible as it gathered speed for lift off.  

Now it’s like the third week of July and we are packed and ready for take off.  No doubt SAT Conn whatever, has seen the swept street and they are analyzing what it might mean.  So, we have to leave at sun up, just after the pass of the satellite.  We are committed to our departure and yet none of us even know what to expect.  The big “If” is when they will figure out what the swept road means and when they might send someone to check it out.  And if they do send someone, could they figure out that it was us.  I have no doubt that they might find something with DNA in it and then we are busted.  Here’s the rub, depending on how fast they come here, check for samples of DNA and determine that it was our party, would they have time to redirect a satellite to catch us as we fly almost twenty eight hundred kilometers.  It will only take nine hours and we only get one landing, so that’s nine hours with no place to hide.

Next Chapter

Please add a comment.

If you like Graham Heights, please share the link with friends www.rogeratlarge.com.

As you know this blog contains two books of the Remnant Series. Graham Heights is book 3 of the series. Below is more.

Book 4: Obsidian Arrows

Book 1 is now available in paperback or kindle The Grey Abyss

You can Leave a comment.  

Or follow us on Facebook.  

Or hit the subscribe button to get updates on new chapters or books.

Thank-you
R. A. Legg

Learn about the individual heroes of Graham Heights. 

R.A. Legg © 2016. All Rights Reserved.