Operation: Flanks for nothing.
Disclaimer: Skymaster23 has no connection to any songs from the band Europe, or from Allen Reynolds.
Once the Joes get back from the wedding, Duke informs Hawk about a call from MacGuffin labs. "Prof. Mullaney...who is he again?"
"He's the chemist that Lady-Jaye and Shipwreck made a rescue attempt for back when Sharp was in command."
"Oh, i remember that. He's not still working on making the ocean explode or anything, is he?" Hawk asks him and sighs in relief when Duke shakes his head.
"No sir, he only wants us to aid him with a new type of engine for some black-budget aircraft at Nevada." He explains.
Hawk decides to send Mainframe; since Dial-Tone made a request for time-off for himself, Leatherneck, and Wet-Suit. Breaker is also too busy putting the particle beam gun's control system back together.
At Vandenburg AFB, Slipstream and Lift-Ticket's rocket is being watched by Footloose, Cover-Girl (who's hair is past her ears), and Snake-Eyes. "Retracting gantry...T minus 10 seconds."
"Ya hear that? It's the fi~nal countdown!" The first of the trio says, which turns out to be a bad idea.
"6...Alert, lift-off aborted. Bogey's sighted at 4 0'clock; ETA 40 seconds."
"Spoke too soon, Footloose; let's go make those fang freaks ready for the times to get painful." Cover-Girl says as they climb into some F/A-18's.
The other two Joes exit the rocket and see some Night Ravens heading for the base. "I was wondering what was taking so long for them to notice." Slipstream said as the gantry started to return.
"'Ere's a blast-off for ya." Buzzer says as he makes a pass in an attempt to get them with the jet-wash, but is forced to break off by Snake-Eyes.
It turns out to be for naught, however, as an invisible Zartan digs his way under the fence, and attaches bombs to the service structure. "And with this, Serpentor's soiree can go uninterrupted...until he says so, that is."
Chapter twenty-six.