p class="MsoNormal"Soon Buck had the Tulsa settled into a geosynchronous orbit above the planet. The ship did not have weapons, but it did have an array of technological systems including one that allowed him to watch the ground below./p
p class="MsoNormal""Why are we waiting?" asked Wilma./p
p class="MsoNormal""I want to see what type of patrols they are sending out and to see if I can find a better, closer drop zone for you" Buck replied./p
p class="MsoNormal""We need to get this done; we can't wait that long"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Relax I have a full tank of gas" he told her. "Okay here comes a patrol, we can wait and see if they send out another couple to time their passes"/p
p class="MsoNormal""The Afra people are a very orderly and precise society. I am fairly sure once we see the interval for the next patrol it will be repeated." Wilma told him. "What type of ship is the patrol ship?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Not sure what you mean, one that flies"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Is it winged or more disk shaped?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""It had wings, why?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""If it had wings it is probably not intergalactic"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Good to know. I think I see a better place to release the skid closer to the cave entrance... If I drop you above the trees, can you start your engine and make it to the spot you need to fire from?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Wilma was surprised at the suggestion. "Buck, you can't release me in midair, how are you going to maintain the Tulsa's controls with the cargo door open"/p
p class="MsoNormal"No problem I can do that. We used to do this type of thing all the time in the Air Force in my day when we dropped paratroopers."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe told her. "Can you fire the engine" he asked again./p
p class="MsoNormal""Well, yes that wouldn't be a problem as long as it's high enough from the surface" Wilma had confidence in Buck's abilities even if she didn't know what paratroopers were./p
p class="MsoNormal"A few minutes later Buck said. "Here comes the next patrol ship so it looks like every 15 minutes. Is that enough time for you to get to the cave, fire the missiles and make it to the rendezvous?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Wilma had been spending the time thinking about how she would say goodbye to Buck. She didn't answer him right away, so he said "Wilma?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Yes 15 minutes would probably be enough time."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe paused then said "listen Buck, I want you to know"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Buck interrupted. From the tone of her voice, he was sure she was trying to say goodbye and he wasn't having it. "Hold that thought until we get back to New Chicago.'span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal""But."/p
p class="MsoNormal""We will both be getting back" he said emphasizing each word. Okay here we go, cargo restraints off, rear cargo door open. Good luck Wilma see you soon," said Buck/p
p class="MsoNormal"He would never tell Wilma, but the big ship was hard to control once the rear door had opened but he fought it with all his strength. He brought the nose up so that the tail was down, and Wilma's ship slid out of the rear of the Tulsa. Once he knew the skid was out and away, he slammed the cargo door shut and released a load of chaff to cover her. He then pulled the Tulsa into an even steeper climb and was out of Afra's atmosphere. He had no intention of going for a rotation of the planet but stayed just above the area where the cave was located./p
p class="MsoNormal" /p
p class="MsoNormal"Wilma, as she cleared the cargo hold fired the skids engines as she was falling toward the surface of the planet below. Once she steadied the skid, she realized that Buck had dropped her much closer to the cave than the original plan had called for. Since she was up higher and closer, she would have sufficient fuel to maneuver for the missiles for a direct hit and make it to the rendezvous. She concentrated on the cave and sent the first missile coursing towards a small crack in the doors to the cave. A heartbeat later the second missile followed the first. Wilma pulled the skid up and away to the right as soon as the second missile was fired. The first shot was a direct hit and the second one came immediately after and exploded in the cave. The explosives hidden there went up in spectacular fashion. Unfortunately, Wilma didn't have enough time and the shock wave hit her small skid and it started to tumble. Before she could regain control, she was hit with tons of shrapnel and debris from the cave. A split second later the skid crashed to the ground./p
p class="MsoNormal""Why are we waiting?" asked Wilma./p
p class="MsoNormal""I want to see what type of patrols they are sending out and to see if I can find a better, closer drop zone for you" Buck replied./p
p class="MsoNormal""We need to get this done; we can't wait that long"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Relax I have a full tank of gas" he told her. "Okay here comes a patrol, we can wait and see if they send out another couple to time their passes"/p
p class="MsoNormal""The Afra people are a very orderly and precise society. I am fairly sure once we see the interval for the next patrol it will be repeated." Wilma told him. "What type of ship is the patrol ship?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Not sure what you mean, one that flies"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Is it winged or more disk shaped?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""It had wings, why?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""If it had wings it is probably not intergalactic"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Good to know. I think I see a better place to release the skid closer to the cave entrance... If I drop you above the trees, can you start your engine and make it to the spot you need to fire from?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Wilma was surprised at the suggestion. "Buck, you can't release me in midair, how are you going to maintain the Tulsa's controls with the cargo door open"/p
p class="MsoNormal"No problem I can do that. We used to do this type of thing all the time in the Air Force in my day when we dropped paratroopers."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe told her. "Can you fire the engine" he asked again./p
p class="MsoNormal""Well, yes that wouldn't be a problem as long as it's high enough from the surface" Wilma had confidence in Buck's abilities even if she didn't know what paratroopers were./p
p class="MsoNormal"A few minutes later Buck said. "Here comes the next patrol ship so it looks like every 15 minutes. Is that enough time for you to get to the cave, fire the missiles and make it to the rendezvous?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Wilma had been spending the time thinking about how she would say goodbye to Buck. She didn't answer him right away, so he said "Wilma?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Yes 15 minutes would probably be enough time."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe paused then said "listen Buck, I want you to know"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Buck interrupted. From the tone of her voice, he was sure she was trying to say goodbye and he wasn't having it. "Hold that thought until we get back to New Chicago.'span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal""But."/p
p class="MsoNormal""We will both be getting back" he said emphasizing each word. Okay here we go, cargo restraints off, rear cargo door open. Good luck Wilma see you soon," said Buck/p
p class="MsoNormal"He would never tell Wilma, but the big ship was hard to control once the rear door had opened but he fought it with all his strength. He brought the nose up so that the tail was down, and Wilma's ship slid out of the rear of the Tulsa. Once he knew the skid was out and away, he slammed the cargo door shut and released a load of chaff to cover her. He then pulled the Tulsa into an even steeper climb and was out of Afra's atmosphere. He had no intention of going for a rotation of the planet but stayed just above the area where the cave was located./p
p class="MsoNormal" /p
p class="MsoNormal"Wilma, as she cleared the cargo hold fired the skids engines as she was falling toward the surface of the planet below. Once she steadied the skid, she realized that Buck had dropped her much closer to the cave than the original plan had called for. Since she was up higher and closer, she would have sufficient fuel to maneuver for the missiles for a direct hit and make it to the rendezvous. She concentrated on the cave and sent the first missile coursing towards a small crack in the doors to the cave. A heartbeat later the second missile followed the first. Wilma pulled the skid up and away to the right as soon as the second missile was fired. The first shot was a direct hit and the second one came immediately after and exploded in the cave. The explosives hidden there went up in spectacular fashion. Unfortunately, Wilma didn't have enough time and the shock wave hit her small skid and it started to tumble. Before she could regain control, she was hit with tons of shrapnel and debris from the cave. A split second later the skid crashed to the ground./p