The Feminist Queendom Charlie’s War 34
© Beverly Taff

List of Characters.

Charlie Sage Maths and electronics genius.
Shirley Sage Charlies elderly mother
Chloe Charlie’s one time early school friend.
Josephine Flint Surgeon and associate of Chloe’s.
Mrs Jane Anston Director of Anston Aerospace.
Ronnie Garage mechanic at top of lane
Pauline Garage owner, Ronnie’s sister.
Briony Pauline’s teenaged daughter.
Billy Pauline’s middle son.
Abigail (Abby) Pauline’s youngest daughter.
‘Poppy’ Charlie’s little micro-runabout.
‘Doris’ The armoured mobile home.
‘Lady’ Chloe’s Sports Car.
Dawn Charlie’s armoured spaceship.
Colonel Wilson Vindictive misanthropist doctor.
Margaret Thomas ‘Failed’ police security guard.

Chapter 34.

As they studied the plane Charlie observed.

“It’s not that badly broken up, there should be soldiers revealing themselves even if only to negotiate.”

“If they’re coherent, a well-trained troop, they will be considering their choices and chances.”

“They’ve got no choice but to surrender, surely. They’d be crazy not to.”

“They’re well-armed Charlie. Twenty-four troopers all armed with automatic weapons. This is going to take some negotiating.”
“Just give me a fifty-calibre rifle then we’ll see how their automatic weapons fare.”

Margaret despaired.

“Leave it to the professionals Charlie, besides, I doubt there’s a fifty-calibre rifle in the whole of Western Australia. That’s a heavy machine gun calibre.”

“There are sniper’s rifles with point five oh calibre. Surely your special forces use them.”

“That’s a bloody heavy gun to be lugging around single handed. Our girls prefer lighter weapons. They’ve got the sufficient power to kill.”

“Yeah, but nothing like the same punch. A few soft-tip point five oh rounds into that plane and there’ll be a few minds being changed.”

“Well, it’s immaterial anyway. Here come the cavalry and I don’t see anything resembling a point five oh. Now I’m ordering you to keep out of this. Go and sit in your spaceship.”

“Why. They’re my children in that plane.”

“Don’t make me use my gun Charlie. Hostage situations need specialist negotiators and combatants. Especially if those people in there are special forces.”

“If those kids are hurt, I won’t be responsible for what I do.”

Margaret drew her pistol as she warned him.

“Don’t make threats you can’t carry out. Get in that spaceship and you won’t get hurt.”

As he reluctantly stepped up the ‘Dawn’s’ loading ramp he studied the group moving cautiously towards the crumpled plane. For want of anything useful to do or say he shouted to them. “Give them hell girls!”

“Not until we know what we’re dealing with.” Their commanding lieutenant replied.

“You’re dealing with a bunch of terrorists and kidnappers who are holding
a kid and three babies’ hostage. Show no mercy!”

The commanding officer ignored him as she arranged her men so that they were invisible to people in the plane. Then, once she had them positioned, she bull-horned to the plane.

“If you surrender now, nobody will get hurt!”

On hearing the officer’s amplified challenge, Charlie wagged his head as he realised it would most probably come to killing. With fatal resignation, he went to make a cup of coffee in Dawn’s galley to steady his nerves. However, with the airtight door between the cabin and the cargo-bay not fully closed, Charlie could still hear the sound of the bull horn as it repeated its effort to persuade the plane occupants to surrender the babies.

Then, as the blaring horn began to irritate him, he slammed the door shut and finished his coffee, only to make another to keep him occupied.

Before starting to drink the second mug he went to his Antarctic clothing locker and from behind the quilted all-in-one overall he took out the only weapon he had acquired since building Dawn. A point five oh sniper’s rifle that he had acquired in case he ever needed to hunt meat.

He had stolen it from a gun shop in Arizona during a civil disturbance and looting was endemic. In the pandemonium, he had sneaked down by night, landed silently and simply stolen a ‘pick-up’ and grabbed the gun amongst the rioting looters. He still recalled the grin on a fellow looter’s face as he recommended that Charlie would be better off stealing a pistol.

After extracting the gun from his Antarctic Locker, he checked it over then slotted it into a secret recess down the side of the ship’s control panel. Next he placed a box of the heavy calibre bullets under the console. They were in a grease-proof cardboard carton and unlabelled so nobody would recognise them if they came into the Dawn’s cabin.

Having done enough to protect himself he settled down expecting to hear gunfire, but none came.

About two hours later, as he was pouring his umpteenth mug of coffee, there was a knock on the airtight door. Charlie checked the cargo camera and recognised Margaret accompanied by two Australian soldiers with his infant triplets in their arms. His heart gave a whoop as he cracked the door open a fraction to double check there was no trap.

Margaret’s grinning face pushed up to the narrow gap.

“These three are safe Charlie. Chloe’s on her way by light aircraft from Port Hedland hospital. She’ll be here in an hour.”

“Where’s Charlotte, my older girl?”

“I’m afraid that Colonel Wilson is using her as a bargaining chip.”

“How the hell!”

“The bulk of the Brits agreed to surrender, they could see it was a no-win situation. There was some sort of vote, and the majority came out with the babies.”

“So, who’s got Charlotte?”

“Colonel Wilson and a couple of die-hards.”

“So, they’re still in the plane?” Charlie hazarded.

“No. There was a bit of a fuck-up.”

“Oooh shit! Go on!”

“Apparently, one of the troopers escaped from the plane immediately after it came to rest. In all the dust as the plane swung into the red dust, she managed to get to a gulley and crawled on her belly to the motor pool right across the airfield.”

“Go on.” Charlie prompted as Margaret hesitated. “you’re telling me she crawled on her belly for what? A mile, - a mile and a half!”

“They are special forces Charlie. These girls are tough!”

“Go on, tell me the worst.”

“Well, she had an encrypted radio, and she was in touch with the gang in the plane. Wilson, asked for water and the negotiators agreed. So, when a gravi-truck with water bottles was prepared, this clever bitch hijacked the truck, disabled the driver, changed uniforms and drove out to the plane as arranged. When she got to the truck, she boldly started unloading the water bottles as the voluntary surrenderers came out. They gathered around the truck to slake their thirst then walked towards the captors with the three babies in their arms.

In the melee around the water truck, Wilson and the other diehard took the Charlotte in the gravi-truck and simply drove towards the base. Observers lost count of where all the kidnap gang were because they deliberately milled about to confuse the count while loading the water into the plane.

The plane was now empty, we had twenty-one captives plus the triplets, so we presumed the last two were still in the plane with Charlotte while the driver was the twenty fourth. Instead of returning to the vehicle pool, they drove the pickup to the gate, flashed the genuine driver’s id while Wilson and his crony hid under some carboard wrappings, and they escaped out of the base.”

Charlie let out a long sigh.

“Jeeze! These numpties are sloppy bastards.”

“There’s a lot of traffic on the base at the moment, not least being the buzz that your space-ship has caused. The security staff on the gate are being overwhelmed and already, there’s a posse of pressmen gathered.”

“What! Out here? It’s a bloody desert, where’ve they come from?”
“News travels fast Charlie and everybody and his dog has a light plane. Perth’s only six hundred miles away. Exmouth’s only forty klicks. By now the sky will be black with bloody planes between here, Perth and or Darwin.”

Charlie cursed inwardly as Margaret motioned to him to open the door.

“These girls are medics and they’ve checked the babies out. They’re fine, can we come in?”

“How long before Chloe arrives?”

“She’s just landed. Give it five minutes.”

ooo000ooo

Those minutes were some of the longest in Charlie’s life. He fretted anxiously and kept checking his children constantly until he heard Chloe’s voice coming up the ramp.

“Charlie! Are you okay?” Chloe cried.

“Definitely love, and the triplets are here,” he finished as he swung the airtight door open wide.”

“Where’s Charlotte?”

“That bitch Wilson has kidnapped her. They’ve stolen an RAAF pickup and taken off into the bush.”

“Which way?” Chloe asked as she checked each of her precious trio.

“I’ll check with the gate,” Margaret replied, “and I’m sorry about your shoulder.”

Chloe tugged at the sling and frowned.

“It could be worse, but no permanent damage, the doctors tell me. Who are these two?”

“They’re medics designated to look after the babies.”

“We’re under orders to make damned sure this time. No mistakes.”
Chloe nodded menacingly.

“Make bloody sure this time.” Then she turned to Margaret.” So, Miss Police sergeant. How do you intend to recover Charlotte?”

“It’s in the hands of the armed forces. We have to locate them first.”

Chloe stared ruefully at Charlie.

“We should have had them chipped to the mobile phone network.”

“That won’t work out here Miss,” Margaret explained. “There’s no mobile network out here; it’s all satellite phones.”

“So, what’s to be done?” Chloe fretted.

“We could go searching ourselves in Dawn. Leave the Clamshell doors open, and several pairs of eyes can scan a fair patch of bush.”

“Pity the Ute is Airforce grey. Too much like camouflage.”

“Don’t forget to strap yourselves to the cargo rings. Don’t want you falling out.”

The nursemaids smirked, they were special forces first and nursemaids second.

“Do you want us to fetch our guns?”

“Where are they?” Margaret asked.

“Locked in the gun-rack of the truck. We can unlock them if you want us to.”

“You’d better check with your C.O.” Margaret advised.

“She’s already ‘gone-a-huntin’.”

“Is there no-one else up the command chain?”

“Not locally, this was a rush job. Anyway, as the local lawman, aren’t you the boss? Arresting people and all that?”

Margaret sighed.

“I bloody suppose so. Charlie can you ask at the gate which way they went?”

“South. I’ve already asked.”

“Go and get your guns girls. No not trudging over there. Charlie, show these troopers what Dawn can do. Hold on to something girls.”

They instinctively grabbed at the cargo rings as Dawn rose a few metres and silently crossed the couple of hundred metres to the trooper’s gravi-truck.

“Jeeze! Stealth or what?” One of the troopers observed as they stopped right alongside the troopers truck. “Our kit makes a humming noise. Not much, but enough to reveal our presence within a few metres. This bloody thing is silent!”

“My science; my secret.” Charlie declared as the two nursemaids unlocked their guns.

“Bloody hell! Bring it on boy.”

The second trooper snorted with amusement.

“I never thought I’d ever hear you say that Sally!”

“I’d let him fuck me for one of these.”

“Oy! That’s my husband you’re talking about!” Chloe objected.

“Don’t worry Mummy. Sally’s a lesbian, your boy’s safe.”

“You’d better believe it girls,” Margaret cautioned them. “Now; shall we do the job we’re paid to do and find this little girl?”

After Margaret and the two troopers had strapped themselves to the cargo rings, Chloe retired to the cabin and closed the airtight door.”

“Hardly any need for that Darling.” Charlie observed.
“Just to keep the dust out, my kids have been through enough.”

“As you will. Can you keep tabs on the ‘look-down’ radar?”

“What? And feed the kids?”

“Oh! Sorry love. Are you comfortable?”

“I’ve been on the pump for the last few days. I’m glad to get a proper chance.”

“Well, I’ll bet it’s a real relief, I wonder how you can feed three babies. I mean, have you got enough milk and all that?”

“You worry about finding Charlotte and I’ll worry about these three.”

“Okay. I’ll watch the radar.”

So saying, Charlie sat sideways to attend to both consoles.

They spent an hour quartering the whole peninsular but had little success, so Charlie invited the girls into the cabin again to have a brainstorm. He relied Mainly on Margaret’s local knowledge but even that was sketchy. Her main area was Hammersley ranges and the mining towns thereabouts.

“D’ you think they might have just headed due south towards Perth and gone to ground in the city?” Sally offered. “I mean, there’s very few places she can hide out around here without being noticed. Apart from Exmouth, they’re all very small towns and an air-force antigrav would stick out like a sore thumb.”

“Yeah.” Margaret agreed. “But the outback is a vast place, and he can go anywhere with anti-grav. We’re going to have to think this one through, not just search blindly.”

Charlie sighed. He was thinking how successful his own hideaway at Coach had proven to be and he was hiding a several bloody craft out there. Every idea for hiding a vehicle or an anti-grav was plausible and with every hour, Wilson could be another hundred miles further out in an ever-expanding circle. The worst part with anti-grav was – ‘no tracks’!

ooo000ooo