No Man's Land

Chapter One

"Mayday! Mayday!" the radio crackled to life with a foreboding sense of urgency. "This is Alpha Fox! I say again, this is Alpha Fox!"

The only person on the other end is a non-commissioned officer with a headset who was all but containing their boredom. "This is Valhalla. What's the problem, Alpha Fox?"

"Mission aborted! Tango not scratched from the ledger! I have taken fire! Avionics are shot and I'm down an intake! Request immediate referral to a pillow to lay this baby to sleep with! I don't know how much longer she can hold together!"

The operator didn't succeed in containing a slight yawn. The shift had been far too long, much like this war everyone at home had forgotten the reason behind. "What is your two-zero, Alpha Fox? We can send a pegasus for you."

"Standby!" A few moments of what sounded like static coming to crescendo and then settling into decrescendo a moment later. "Unknown, Valhalla! Last known was thirty-four north and about thirty-eight east! Took fire from anti-air! Given sun position, pretty sure I've been heading either due west or west-by-northwest ever since! Been trying to keep her level with the horizon but hasn't been easy! No readout on speed, no readout on direction or altitude! Flying by wire and thanking God Almighty that the fuel gauge still works!"

"Copy on the equipment situation, Alpha Fox." The NCO took a moment to punch in the coordinates and make a few mental calculations before sending another question through. "What bird are you riding, Alpha Fox?"

"Uniform, Sierra, Mike, Charlie Lightening, Valhalla."

"Copy on the bird, Alpha Fox. You're aware the effective operational range is twelve-hundred miles? I say again, one-two hundred miles?"

"Roger that, Valhalla. Wouldn't have climbed in without knowing that." A moment of random radio background noise occurred which indicated the pilot was moving around a bit. "Damn, visual scan is no dice! It's still too dark out! I know I'm over water, but can't tell if it's the Gulf, Red Sea, or Mediterranean!"

The NCO operator rolled their eyes, lamenting having to do rough course and position calculations based on almost nothing. "Time of the engagement, Alpha Fox?"

"Command set weapons free at zero four hundred fifteen Zulu. I am now nursing zero four hundred forty-five Zulu, over." More noises came through the connection as the pilot moved again. "Pretty sure I just breached Cyprus airspace, Valhalla. There's no island this size in the Gulf or Red Sea. I say again, conjecture is I am breaching Cyprus airspace without consent. Send our friends my apologies, would you?"

"Copy that, Alpha Fox. I need to call in Actual. Stand by for fifteen minutes."

"Can't guarantee I can follow that order in the current condition, Valhalla, but I read you."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The communications center was suddenly ablaze with activity. They were only a secondary communications hub, so the watch was just a skeleton crew this early in the morning. Now, they had a situation to unravel and were in full swing. The United States military had a reputation for readiness at a moment's notice and were showing it by being in full, tidy uniform after having only been awakened fifteen minutes ago. Amidst the chaos, the main door swung open and an aging man with gray hair on the sides of his balding head entered the room.

The subordinate holding the door open jerked himself into the position of attention and snapped a salute. "Commander on deck!" He yelled.

The commotion in the room immediately paused as everyone stopped and snapped to attention. The aging man with a subdued insignia of two stars on his digital camouflage lapel saluted the subordinate and continued into the room.