As Samuel and his group of attack planners were completing a three day session of tussling about over the best way to approach the challenges of their eastern targets, a group of six recruits flew into the training facility via a twin engine propeller aircraft to be greeted with a rather rough and abrupt landing. They followed the initial twelve recruited jumpers who had come in via bus two weeks earlier to begin work on various aspects of the training facility, and the added manpower was welcomed with open arms. Having arrived ten days after it was learned by number two that all three targets could indeed be attempted, the initial twelve had roughed out a partial airstrip and raised a portion of the tent village. Like those men, the newest group of recruits would be housed in tents and become fully immersed in the camping lifestyle. That would also apply for the twenty-four more that had yet to be secured as recruits, as the intent was to toughen each man up mentally while they also became more physically fit. This was planned with a belief that as the dusty confines of the temporary canvas village became increasingly crowded; there would be added motivation to complete construction of the more modern facilities.

As the plane bounced roughly while also slowing quickly on the short landing strip, one of the recruits said aloud, “I guess the first order of business will be to complete the runway.”

His recruiter, who had been a participant in the clandestine meeting with Samuel at the Conroe Waffle House, replied to the entire group, “Sorry about the rough landing, and you are absolutely correct. We have to lengthen the runway another several hundred feet, while simultaneously smoothing out what has already, and will be, carved out of the landscape. Unfortunately when we get a spring rainstorm coming through as was the case yesterday; it can wash away part of what has been built. Once we address the runway issues, we will construct a hangar facility to house the planes and corresponding equipment. That facility will also contain a few large rooms that will house several bunks for sleeping, and a small dining area. The final aspect of construction will be the easiest to complete, as we will clear and outline a landing zone for the jumps with painted rocks that can be easily recognizable from a few thousand feet above. Of course every aspect of what I have mentioned will become simpler for us as our numbers continue to grow.”

Another recruit asked, “What will we be using to accomplish all of that?”

“We have a dozer that was used to cut the path for the dirt road in from the highway. That bus over there literally came in the day after the final portion of that road was cut with the first twelve members of your teams, along with the tools and supplies they would need for setting up the tent village. Then the dozer was used to carve out what runway currently exists, and we will continue to have it roll back and forth to compact and smooth out the surface as we clear more brush. That’s where all of you come in. You will be assisting the others, as the shrubs and rocks in the area that will become the extended runway will mostly be removed by hand.”

After a nod of understanding, another recruit said eagerly, “All right, it sounds like we have a plan in place. Let’s stow our gear and get to work.”

A week later, on the day after Easter Sunday, another batch of six recruits arrived to a much smoother landing. As the plane came to a stop more than one hundred yards from the tent village, it was impossible for those within to ignore the flatbed truck carrying a load of trusses and stacks of lumber parked close by. With the runway nearing completion, materials had been sent in so that work could begin on the hanger facility. At least for the present moment the schedule had been maintained per the hopes of Mason and number two, so the intended cover of a skydiving school would soon be operational.