| |
NEVADA DESERT:
The helicopter is parked on top of a hill with the engines at idle, about two-hundred-miles north of Area 51. Alex stands outside, staring through binoculars focused on the false crescent moon moving across the desert. “It’s coming down fast. Be ready.”
Sterns looks through an electronic range finder and presses the execute button. The craft drops rapidly for several seconds, then disappears when it falls below the reflection from the real moon rising over the horizon.
Alex lowers his binoculars, now useless without a target to focus on. “I’ve lost it!”
Sterns writes on a pad in his lap, then looks over at Alex. “If it came straight down, I’ve got an approximate range and direction.” He turns to the copilot. “Did anything show up on your radar?”
“Negative, sir.”
“Okay. Punch in two-six-four-degrees. Range, one-eight-seven-miles.”
The co-pilot types on his keypad, and a red dot appears on his view screen map. “Got it.”
Alex climbs inside with Sterns. “Let’s go.”
The jet engines whine to a high pitch scream, the rotors spin, and the helicopter leaps from the ground.
***
As they approached the underground facility, Lewis sees a flash of light reflecting off something on top of a hill. “It appears we may have been discovered. We cannot enter without them pinpointing our location.”
Menno releases a deep sigh of frustration. “I showed the world what it would be like to go back to the old ways, where living was simple and the air was clean. I think it’s time to shut them down. Permanently.”
***
Fifteen minutes later, they are hovering over the area indicated on the map. Using night-vision goggles, Alex and Sterns stare down at the desert below through the open doors on the left and right sides of the helicopter.
“Anything?” Sterns hollers to be heard over the noise of the helicopter engines.
“I don’t see any sign of the ship.”
They continue scanning the desert for another half hour, covering a one-hundred-mile radius from the original plot before the pilot informs them they are getting low on fuel.
“All right,” Sterns yells over his shoulder as he closes the door on his side. “Let’s go back and refuel. We’ll come back and search again in the daylight.”
Alex reluctantly closes his door and looks at Sterns. “This is not a reflection on your capabilities, Colonel, but that spacecraft could have come down several hundred miles away.”
“I know, but it’s out here somewhere. It can’t have just disappeared.”
Alex turns and stares out the window. I wouldn’t bet on it.