Chapter 18

Michael Coldsmith-Briggs the Third aka Archangel and Marella found themselves standing in the hanger after the shockwave pushed them through the wormhole and into the future.

Sinjin looked on and miffed, "Well…that kind of screwed the plan up."

Archangel gasped, "Did we just travel through a wormhole through time?" His eyes landed on Sinjin, the computers and the engine. His mouth dropped as his mind processed the information he was told prior.

Marella was also taken by the technology. "May I look at your work, Sam?" She looked to the inventor for permission.

"Why not?" she shrugged figuring the timeline was about to become compromised anyways.

Her eyes grew wide as she looked the contraption over. She admitted, "This is incredible…Miss Hawke." She was informed of Sam's real name before String activated the phone to bring them to Sinjin.

Sinjin informed her, "That's Dr. Samantha Hawke. She has her PhD." he bragged.

Marella corrected, "Dr. Hawke."

Michael stated, "You should have notified us of this earlier, String. We could help. She should be working the FIRM. Not be some sixteen year old kid in high school." He paused, "Why is she a sixteen year old kid in high school?"

Sam explained, "At first it was just Dom who knew the truth. We thought I could pass off as his kid and he could enroll me. We have our own mission. Being from the future we know the timeline and future events. I went back to help save both from a bomb that will kill Dom and injure Uncle String. Once I got back, Uncle String didn't buy the long lost kid story and figured it out day one. A few days passed and Cait figured it out. Michael Knight found out last night. We know all about KITT. I've decided to stay in the school to help one of the teachers. The man in the red suit. The guy flying around like Superman. It's all over the news in 1984 but we have no memory of it in 2022. Mr. Hinkley has a blog. It's a public diary and he claims it was him in the suit and aliens gave it to him, took it back, wiped everyone's memory but left his. In 2022 he's a crazy old hermit living in the desert chasing lights in the sky. He's broken mentally and well…I think that sucks and it really did happen and there is an alien element that seems to be screwing around with us. I have a warp drive engine. I will need KITT to control it. I want to find those damn aliens and ask them why they fucked over Mr. Hinkley. He didn't deserve that."

Archangel stated, "If there is an alien element that can alter memories on a mass scale we would need to know about it."

Marella suggested, "If it's even alien. There are a number of projects we cannot get access. Black budget projects that we are being denied any information on. I do wonder who is in charge of these…projects." she reached for a description.

Sam asked, "So you two don't know if the aliens are here or not?"

"We do not." he assured her. "The government is very good at compartmentalizing things. There are missions, projects, budgets that we cannot get any information on."

String made a demand, "The FIRM cannot know about this, Michael. If you and Marella want in…you have to do it on your own. No FIRM. No government oversight. This is a private matter."

Archangel removed his hat and ran his fingers through his hair. He admitted, "Of course I want in, String. Time travel. Warp drive. This beyond anything the FIRM has."

Marella agreed, "He's right! This is too important to let the FIRM in on it. This would be…black budget level…" she winced as she realized the black budget level technology would be beyond what they are even aware of.

Archangel figured, "We would need our own black budget. This project would be need to know only. Above top secret."

Sam stated, "That's great! We need a few bars of gold to make the mounts for the engine. This is the prototype. I have plans to make one to go into a vehicle."

He stated, "The best way to get a black budget is either with a private investors or…" he smirked, "You just play the lotto and hit a jackpot. You should be able to look up the winning numbers and then play them."

Dom crossed his arms and looked directly at String, "I told you!"

Marella gasped, "This could be used for good, it could be used to help people, undo a tragedy or…" she gulped, "Extreme evil." She then understood why the crew of Airwolf hid the technology from them. "We need to get the money back to the right time. Close the case, say it was a leak of prototype bills. Sweep it under the rug and get Sam some credentials so she can legally exist when she is in our time."

Caitlin figured, "You are going to help us and Sam."

Archangel agreed, "Of course! It has to be private. Just those who need to know. No oversight. We will be what is called a Self Organizing Collective or SOC. We will operate under a devolution model. No government funding or oversight. No committees. Only us."

Sam stated, "There are a whole bunch of conspiracy channels online. How about you go through all that stuff and tell us what is good info and what is crap."

Sinjin smirked, "Better get some popcorn for that one, Michael."

"Online?" he asked.

Short Time Later

Sinjin decided the best way to keep Archangel and Marella loyal to the mission was to show them String's grave. He corralled the pair into the cab of his truck and then took them for a drive around the city. He told the pair about the bomb and how it was planted in a chopper that Dom and String were to fly in a stunt. He spoke of how he was rescued and that Airwolf flew missions for the last year and about what became owner of the bird and how he managed to restore it and now it flies in air shows for an audience. He pulled up the grave sites and put the gear in park. He motioned, "They are buried right there. It's the Santini family plot."

Archangel read the headstone with Stringfellow Hawke carved in stone with date of birth and date of death. He wondered, "Am I alive?"

"You died last year." he told him.

"Least I made it to be an old man." he told himself more than anyone else.

Marella wondered, "Am I still alive?"

He nodded, "You are but you are retired. You don't have a social media account. You stay offline. Rather reclusive."

Archangel asked, "Did I have a social medial presence?"

"Amazingly you did!" he nodded. "I was surprised when I found you had a Facebook account. I thought for sure you would avoid social media. I went to your account last night and combed through it. You said you retired in 2001 after 9/11. You also said 9/11 was not what it seemed and we have been captured by an entity. You didn't go too much into details out of fear for your own life. So, you kept it kind of cryptic. I'll bring it up when we get back so you can read it. Maybe you can figured out some of what you wrote. You have code words and quizzes and little puzzles all over it."

"Perhaps, I left clues for myself?" he pondered.

"You're account makes Hinkley's look pretty tame." he assured him.

He figured, "I need to see it."

Sinjin put the truck in gear and they soon left the cemetery. Marella sat in the back and watched out the window as they went by stores, plazas and establishments. She found the retail landscape had changed considerably.

"I see a lot of empty store fronts." she noted.

"They call it the retail apocalypse. The end of retail. Lot of folks just order it online and have things shipped directly to them. There is still some retail but a lot of giants were taken down by Amazon and Wal-Mart. We have a few dead malls. Just sits there empty. Kids don't buy things like they did in the past. No kids hanging at malls anymore. Most go online, play online video games, socialize, use other social sites. They have cells phones with cameras and accounts where they can take a video, even a short message, upload it and share it with their friends. They are the remote access generation. Their whole world is their cell phone and social media accounts. Back in the old days you could ask someone to make a phone call. You don't do that no more. Asking to borrow a phone or see a cell phone is a cardinal sin. They tell you to go screw yourself. Our generation would make the call for you. Sam's generation…hell no. That's an invasion of their privacy."

Archangel stated, "I found that out when your daughter's phone played music, she took it out of her pocket, said it was 'spam' and when I asked to see the device she told me and I quote 'fuck no'."

Sinjin laughed, "She must have forgotten to put the phone on vibrate so it would not ring. You should see it in a grocery store. You go in to get a few things, you hear all these different phones ringing and no one can tell who's phone is ringing. You just get to the point where you ignore it. Half the time it can be your own phone and you don't realize it."

Marella asked, "So that behavior Sam displayed when the phone rang is normal here? Her cell phone was making that music and she didn't seem to even realize it was her phone."

Sinjin nodded, "Because you hear it all the time in public and many ring tones are the same. You can download what ring tones you want but many people use the same ring tone. So, you can be standing in line waiting to check out, hear a ring tone and assume it's not you when it is you." He shrugged, "Just part of life nowadays."

Archangel asked, "Where are we going?"

"The hanger I keep Airwolf in." he stated. "I thought you would like to see her."

"I would." he agreed.

Sinjin bragged, "Sam can fly Airwolf too. She can go rotors to jet engine without a computer to assist. Just like me and String can."

He cocked an eyebrow and gave a nod, "That's good to know. If others have this technology and we cannot assume they do not, we may need Airwolf…even in this time."

Marella asked, "Does Sam know how to defend herself? Has she had any military training?"

He replied, "I took her to the range and let shoot my pistol a few times. I had her use a rifle and a shotgun just so she knows how it works and I went over safety with her but she's a nerd. I enrolled her in a youth shooting club when she was younger. She did good but she's into space and asteroids and solar systems…geeky stuff."

Archangel stated, "She will need training. She will need to know how to defend herself. Especially if others have a similar technology."

"I'm busy keeping the 2022 end secure. String will have to do that kind of training. Caitlin was a cop. I'm sure she can help too." he figured. "She does know how to safely handle a weapon. And is a good shot. I didn't go into military stuff or how to disarm an opponent."

Archangel assured, "I'm sure String can teach her that."

Marella added, "He needs to teach her hand-to-hand combat and how to fight with melee weapons and a knife. She will need special forces level training. She's the inventor. If this leaks or another project like this is out there than Sam will becomes a target. Whether it be kidnapping her for what she knows to eliminating her because of her invention…she needs to be protected as much as the engine and the wormhole if not more."

Archangel had to agree, "Sam would be a target. She needs to be protected." He figured, "Keep her cover as a 16 year old kid. Keep her as Dom's daughter who works at the airfield after school. The best protection is being anonymous."

Sinjin never thought of his daughter being kidnapped or killed for what he knows. He gulped, "We will have to bring up safety measures."

Marella added, "And the phone! What is common in her time is not common in our time."

"Like with the money." Archangel agreed. He gave a sigh, "I really wish String told us what was going on sooner. We could have helped."

"We thought the less who knew the safer the project would be. We never thought someone else might have it already." he admitted. "I don't remember anything about a guy in a red suit flying around but Sam brought me some articles and sure enough, there it is." he added.

Archangel informed, "The man in the red suit is another mystery the FIRM was looking into. I also know the FBI has someone connected to the case. The same agent they sent in to look at the money, William Maxell. He maybe a person of interest for us."

"I'll run and deeper back ground check on him." Marella assured.

Archangel figured, "We will need a briefing room where we can put all this together."

"Use the hanger." Sinjin stated. "It's housing the warp drive engine and a wormhole anyways."

He countered, "The hangar in 2022. Not 1984." He glanced at Sinjin, "The briefings will have to be done in this time frame."

"That's what we have been doing." he told him.

Sinjin parked the truck and they climbed out. They walked into the newer hanger that housed helicopters and small planes for the community. They made their way to Airwolf that sat much like a museum piece.

Archangel ran his hand over the fuselage, "You are sight for sore eyes, ole girl." he spoke gently to the chopper. He looked to Sinjin, "Airwolf should be the vehicle that Sam's puts the new engine in."

He asked, "Did you and her have a secret meeting or something?"

Surprised he asked, "No! Why do you ask?"

"She's been after me to let her put that engine in Airwolf for a year." he told him.

He smiled brightly, "Your daughter is a genius after all." He found he and Sam having the same idea for her experimental engine rather amusing.

"Meaning?" he asked him.

He spoke candidly, "Great minds think alike."