Sample read from May Day (The Erelong Trilogy Book II)
CHAPTER 21
FIREFIGHT
“Fassbinder and the three Americans on his team stood beside the boxes and drums taken off the USS Texas. They watched as the two Japanese scientists were escorted across the deck of the submarine to the combat boat tied to the starboard side.
Detective Matsumoto and Captain Ishida walked either side of the prisoners, past the two members of the Japanese Delta Force standing tense on the deck. The two soldiers kept their eyes on the menacing line of commandos standing in readiness on the wharf.
“They don’t mess about, do they?” Taylor commented to his XO.
The men on the bridge watched the second combat boat loaded with seven more Delta Force as it skipped over the chop to join the first.
“Captain Ishida is taking no chances,” O’Hara muttered.
“I guess not,” Taylor replied, and he glanced at O’Hara. “Good thing Japan’s not at war with Australia, isn’t it?”
“Not yet, they aren’t,” O’Hara said quickly.
Taylor raised his eyebrows and reached for the switch to the megaphone. “Just in case—,”
He froze in surprised as he watched the “Australians make their move. Like two licks of flame running along the dock, the commandos had split into two groups to re-assemble beside the bow and stern of the submarine.
On the deck, the two Japanese dropped to one knee, pressing their rifles against their cheeks. A single gun pointed at either group of commandos.
A shout rose from the deck. Taylor and O’Hara stared in horror as Lieutenant Carter leaped from an open hatch, an M4 carbine in his hand. Two more armed SEALs emerged from the hatch close behind him.
“Oh, for pities sake!” O’Hara exclaimed.
“Those two men they are arresting work for the Australian government,” Carter shouted to the Australians on the wharf. “That means they are under your protection. Don’t let them be taken by the Japanese.”
“Captain Ishida and Detective Matsumoto froze, even as the two Delta Force soldiers moved the ends of their carbines to and fro across the commandos. Below them, the second inflatable had was bumping up against the side of the submarine.
“What’re we doing, Lieutenant?” Taylor bellowed down to Carter.
Carter did not bother to glance up at the officers in the sail. He was busy inching closer to the Japanese and their prisoners.
On the wharf, the commandos were looking confused.
“Hold your fire!” The Australian unit leader yelled to his troops.
“Shoot the Japs!” One of the SEALs turned to yell in frustration at the commandos on the wharf. “Shoot them!”
“Chief Petty Officer Seung!” Taylor hollered into the bridge microphone. “What “he hell’s happening down there?”
“Sir, we have—,”
But Seung’s reply was cut short by a burst of gunfire from below the deck.
“Take the SEALS out, Seung!” Taylor shouted through the mic.
He listened to the shouts and other sounds of chaos and glanced at O’Hara. “You better get down there.”
“On my way,” O’Hara said as he made for the ladder.
“No, wait!” Taylor called out and switched on the megaphone again.
“This is Captain Taylor of the USS Texas. Now hear this! Captain Ishida, commander of the JS Ikuchi and Detective Matsumoto from the Japan National Police Agency are transferring the two Japanese nationals to the JS Ikuchi. The Japanese party is to be allowed passage to their boat. I repeat. Do not attempt “to block the transfer of the Japanese nationals!”
There was a clang of metal against metal as a bullet struck the lip of the sail. Taylor sunk to his haunches as another round whistled overhead.
“Cap’n,” Chief Petty Officer called as he climbed white-faced onto the bridge with an M4 in his hand.
“Get your head down, man!” O’Hara snapped.
Seung dropped to a crouch as he came up beside Taylor.
“They’ve closed the tube hatch tight behind them. We can’t get in. One SEAL’s down—sir—we’ve lost Freckles and Woolington.”
“Give me your weapon!” Taylor rasped and snatched the short-barreled automatic from Seung’s hands.
He took a deep breath and jumped to his feet. In a second he had Carter’s head in his gun sights.
“Put your weapon down, Lieutenant Carter.”
Carter gazed up at the man on the sail. “I’m doing my job, sir.”
“The only thing you’ve accomplished so far is to kill two of my crew and one of your own men. I am ordering you to put that gun down!”
“Can’t do that, sir,” Carter replied, and he fired at the sail.
The hot metal whistled past Taylor’s head. Once more he ducked for cover.
“Frank, do you think he intended to miss me?” Taylor asked O’Hara.
“It might be wiser to consider yourself lucky, John,” O’Hara replied.
Ishida and Matsumoto threw the two scientists to the deck, then flattened themselves beside their prisoners. The transfer was going to have to wait. The two Delta Force snapped their weapons from the SEALs to the commandos on the wharf and back again. They had received no orders to fire and unfortunately for them, because of that fact, this would be their last mission.
Carter swiveled around and squeezed the trigger. He gave a grunt of satisfaction when he saw both dark blue uniforms crumple to the deck.
The SEALS ran to the edge of the submarine to engage the combat boat full of Delta Force, but the second inflatable was already roaring away from the side of the sub. The rubber boat spun on the water. The moment it straightened the guns of the Delta Force were ablaze, their bullets punching through the flesh and bone of the three soldiers standing on the deck. The firestorm was over.
The commandos on shore, obeying the unit leader’s repeated call not to fire could do nothing but watch the awful act play out.
“Sir?” Seung called.
The captain turned to see the man crouched over the XO, and he lowered his gun.
O’Hara lay on his back with his arms flung out. Seung pressed the palm of his hand over a hole in O’Hara’s bloodied jacket.
“Frank?” Taylor cried out as he set the M4 down on the deck and dropped beside Seung. His heart broke when he saw the amount of blood seeping from his friend.
O’Hara gazed up at Taylor. His mouth opened and closed for several seconds more, but there were words.
“Hey, Frank, we’ve got you. Hang in there.”
“I think he’s gone, sir,” Seong said.
Taylor moaned. He wondered why it was he had called his XO back. He couldn’t for the life of him remember why. He placed his hand under the man’s heavy head.
“I got him, James,” he said to Seung. “Go get yourself cleaned up.”
“Sir?”
“Go on.”
Taylor closed O’Hara’s surprised eyes and lifting up his old friend hugged him tight against his chest.”
Excerpt From: Gerard O'Neill. “May Day: The Erelong Trilogy Book II.” iBooks.
END OF SAMPLE
FIREFIGHT
“Fassbinder and the three Americans on his team stood beside the boxes and drums taken off the USS Texas. They watched as the two Japanese scientists were escorted across the deck of the submarine to the combat boat tied to the starboard side.
Detective Matsumoto and Captain Ishida walked either side of the prisoners, past the two members of the Japanese Delta Force standing tense on the deck. The two soldiers kept their eyes on the menacing line of commandos standing in readiness on the wharf.
“They don’t mess about, do they?” Taylor commented to his XO.
The men on the bridge watched the second combat boat loaded with seven more Delta Force as it skipped over the chop to join the first.
“Captain Ishida is taking no chances,” O’Hara muttered.
“I guess not,” Taylor replied, and he glanced at O’Hara. “Good thing Japan’s not at war with Australia, isn’t it?”
“Not yet, they aren’t,” O’Hara said quickly.
Taylor raised his eyebrows and reached for the switch to the megaphone. “Just in case—,”
He froze in surprised as he watched the “Australians make their move. Like two licks of flame running along the dock, the commandos had split into two groups to re-assemble beside the bow and stern of the submarine.
On the deck, the two Japanese dropped to one knee, pressing their rifles against their cheeks. A single gun pointed at either group of commandos.
A shout rose from the deck. Taylor and O’Hara stared in horror as Lieutenant Carter leaped from an open hatch, an M4 carbine in his hand. Two more armed SEALs emerged from the hatch close behind him.
“Oh, for pities sake!” O’Hara exclaimed.
“Those two men they are arresting work for the Australian government,” Carter shouted to the Australians on the wharf. “That means they are under your protection. Don’t let them be taken by the Japanese.”
“Captain Ishida and Detective Matsumoto froze, even as the two Delta Force soldiers moved the ends of their carbines to and fro across the commandos. Below them, the second inflatable had was bumping up against the side of the submarine.
“What’re we doing, Lieutenant?” Taylor bellowed down to Carter.
Carter did not bother to glance up at the officers in the sail. He was busy inching closer to the Japanese and their prisoners.
On the wharf, the commandos were looking confused.
“Hold your fire!” The Australian unit leader yelled to his troops.
“Shoot the Japs!” One of the SEALs turned to yell in frustration at the commandos on the wharf. “Shoot them!”
“Chief Petty Officer Seung!” Taylor hollered into the bridge microphone. “What “he hell’s happening down there?”
“Sir, we have—,”
But Seung’s reply was cut short by a burst of gunfire from below the deck.
“Take the SEALS out, Seung!” Taylor shouted through the mic.
He listened to the shouts and other sounds of chaos and glanced at O’Hara. “You better get down there.”
“On my way,” O’Hara said as he made for the ladder.
“No, wait!” Taylor called out and switched on the megaphone again.
“This is Captain Taylor of the USS Texas. Now hear this! Captain Ishida, commander of the JS Ikuchi and Detective Matsumoto from the Japan National Police Agency are transferring the two Japanese nationals to the JS Ikuchi. The Japanese party is to be allowed passage to their boat. I repeat. Do not attempt “to block the transfer of the Japanese nationals!”
There was a clang of metal against metal as a bullet struck the lip of the sail. Taylor sunk to his haunches as another round whistled overhead.
“Cap’n,” Chief Petty Officer called as he climbed white-faced onto the bridge with an M4 in his hand.
“Get your head down, man!” O’Hara snapped.
Seung dropped to a crouch as he came up beside Taylor.
“They’ve closed the tube hatch tight behind them. We can’t get in. One SEAL’s down—sir—we’ve lost Freckles and Woolington.”
“Give me your weapon!” Taylor rasped and snatched the short-barreled automatic from Seung’s hands.
He took a deep breath and jumped to his feet. In a second he had Carter’s head in his gun sights.
“Put your weapon down, Lieutenant Carter.”
Carter gazed up at the man on the sail. “I’m doing my job, sir.”
“The only thing you’ve accomplished so far is to kill two of my crew and one of your own men. I am ordering you to put that gun down!”
“Can’t do that, sir,” Carter replied, and he fired at the sail.
The hot metal whistled past Taylor’s head. Once more he ducked for cover.
“Frank, do you think he intended to miss me?” Taylor asked O’Hara.
“It might be wiser to consider yourself lucky, John,” O’Hara replied.
Ishida and Matsumoto threw the two scientists to the deck, then flattened themselves beside their prisoners. The transfer was going to have to wait. The two Delta Force snapped their weapons from the SEALs to the commandos on the wharf and back again. They had received no orders to fire and unfortunately for them, because of that fact, this would be their last mission.
Carter swiveled around and squeezed the trigger. He gave a grunt of satisfaction when he saw both dark blue uniforms crumple to the deck.
The SEALS ran to the edge of the submarine to engage the combat boat full of Delta Force, but the second inflatable was already roaring away from the side of the sub. The rubber boat spun on the water. The moment it straightened the guns of the Delta Force were ablaze, their bullets punching through the flesh and bone of the three soldiers standing on the deck. The firestorm was over.
The commandos on shore, obeying the unit leader’s repeated call not to fire could do nothing but watch the awful act play out.
“Sir?” Seung called.
The captain turned to see the man crouched over the XO, and he lowered his gun.
O’Hara lay on his back with his arms flung out. Seung pressed the palm of his hand over a hole in O’Hara’s bloodied jacket.
“Frank?” Taylor cried out as he set the M4 down on the deck and dropped beside Seung. His heart broke when he saw the amount of blood seeping from his friend.
O’Hara gazed up at Taylor. His mouth opened and closed for several seconds more, but there were words.
“Hey, Frank, we’ve got you. Hang in there.”
“I think he’s gone, sir,” Seong said.
Taylor moaned. He wondered why it was he had called his XO back. He couldn’t for the life of him remember why. He placed his hand under the man’s heavy head.
“I got him, James,” he said to Seung. “Go get yourself cleaned up.”
“Sir?”
“Go on.”
Taylor closed O’Hara’s surprised eyes and lifting up his old friend hugged him tight against his chest.”
Excerpt From: Gerard O'Neill. “May Day: The Erelong Trilogy Book II.” iBooks.
END OF SAMPLE
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