“No,” Jerry said after a moment. “You’re more familiar with Yazov and you’re not comfortable with landing yet. I’ll take Koo. His landing was better than mine.”
“But…” Vickie said, coloring up.
“Sergeant Toweeoo?” Edmund said.
“Yes, Duke Edmund?” Vickie replied, icily.
“You’re beginning to grasp what it means to be under military discipline, and why it’s sometimes necessary. We do not have all day to discuss this. Warrant Officer Riadou, accompanied by Sergeant Franken will go to the shore and fly out the two wyverns. You, in the meantime, will observe their landings and try to ascertain how to improve your performance. Is that clear?”
“Yes, sir,” Vickie said.
“Koo, you can fly Shep,” Jerry continued. “I’ll bring out Donal. If I have to I’ll put him in the drink. They don’t seem to suffer for it, except the lifting out part.”
“How are you getting back?” Edmund asked. “We need to get moving.”
“They can take the longboat,” the skipper said. “Or the cat. Both have sails. If we don’t make full sail they can catch up. But it will be late today.”
“No, I’ll take them,” Joanna said. “I want to find out if I can take off from that ramp you have set up. They don’t add much weight.”
That stopped everyone as the image of the dragon running out the lever stuck on the side of the ship struck them. Herzer dredged up the term “turning turtle” to what it might do to the ship.
“I’m… not sure that’s a good idea,” Commander Mbeki said.
“It… will be,” the skipper said. “We’ll turn so the wind is from the port quarter. That will give her more wind to work with and it will heel the ship to starboard. It’ll be interesting, but we’ll survive it.”
“And then there’s the catapult,” Evan said happily.
“What catapult?” Joanna growled.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
There was a wooden block on the top of the landing platform and a slot running down the middle.
“The steam generator can be used to pressurize air,” Evan said. “There’s a piston underneath. We’ll rig a sliding platform, since you’re so large. It will accelerate you off the platform and give you immediate airspeed.”
“I can run off the platform and get that,” Joanna temporized. “How much airspeed?”
“An estimated forty klicks,” Evan burbled. “More than enough for you to start flying immediately. No need for a run-up or dropping off a cliff!”
“Accelerate to forty clicks in, what? Twenty meters?” Joanna snarled. “Blow that!”
“Really, you just hold on, lean forward and spring up about halfway through.”
“Easy enough for you to say,” Jerry interjected. “I’m not sure how to explain it to the wyverns.”
“We were thinking maybe an automatic release harness or something,” Evan replied. “But the wyverns should be able to take off, with one rider, without it. Greater dragons will have problems.”
“Bloody right,” Joanna said. “One of them being to get them to use this thing.”
“I think it looks like fun,” Herzer said. “But I’m not the one using it.”
“Fun? I just crashed in the drink once, Herzer!”
“Think about it,” Herzer said. “You lean forward and spring off almost immediately. And you’re already going thirty, forty klicks. Sounds like fun to me. I’ll be surprised if people don’t start using it for kicks by the time the voyage is done.”
“I suppose you want me to go ‘yee-haw’ or something,” Joanna grumped.
“Well, only if you want to,” Herzer replied. “Daylight is wasting.”
“I need something to eat before I try this,” Joanna said. “I can tell most of my grumpiness is low blood sugar.”
“It’s time for lunch anyway,” Jerry replied.
Herzer was surprised to find that he was right; it was past noon. The day had passed in a blur since dawn.
Lunch was… interesting. So that Joanna wouldn’t feel left out, the skipper had a table set up on the flight deck and Edmund’s party joined her for lunch. There was still fresh meat and vegetables available but to give them an inkling of what the voyage would be like the skipper ordered “ship’s food” to be served alongside.
The ship food wasn’t nearly as bad as Herzer had expected. He’d read about early sailing vessels and the poor quality of the food, but the “ship biscuit” that were served, for example, were rather light and slightly sweet.
“This isn’t hardtack,” Herzer commented, nibbling one of the biscuits. “I’ve had hardtack.”
“No,” Skipper Chang said. “We know a bit more about food storage than the early ships. Those are what used to be called ‘captain’s biscuits.’ They’d go bad in a month or so if you stored them in bags, but they’re stored in vacuum-packed steel barrels. The dwarves are able to make them in quantity.”
“We need access to some of this tech,” Edmund said. “For field rations. Current field rations aren’t very good.”
“We’re working up some food service regulations,” Mbeki commented. “I’ll make sure you get copies.”
“Ships used to be hard pressed for water,” Herzer commented.
“Again, the dwarves came through for us,” the skipper replied with a smile. “The ship is supplied with two rather large water tanks, located in the bilges. Potable water is pumped in and out. They have to be cleaned from time to time, which is a chore and a half, but they carry more than enough water for the voyage and are easily refilled. We also chlorinate the water so that it doesn’t go bad. We pack dried corn, beans, wheat and rice in steel barrels as well, all of them vacuum packed. Then there’s canned beets, turnip greens, tomatoes, what have you. Dried fruit, also vacuum packed. Storing it all is, of course, difficult. But the worst part is meats. We’re working on oversized canning processes for those, but for the time being we’re stuck with salting.”
Herzer had tried the salt beef and wasn’t impressed.
“Better than monkey on a stick,” he said.
“And that is?” Commander Mbeki inquired.
“Field rations,” Edmund interjected. “A form of jerked and dried meat mixed with fruit. Together with parched corn it’s the standard field rations on the march.”
“You haven’t lived, Colonel, until you’ve lived for a month on fried monkey on a stick.” Herzer grinned.
“I’ll take your word for it,” the skipper replied. “Well, this has been a pleasant interlude, but I think we should get back to work. Commander Gramlich, have you concluded whether you’re willing to risk the catapult? This is not something where I’m prepared to give you an order.”
“I’ll do it,” Joanna said. She’d finished off half a cow’s carcass while the others had been having their more limited meal and now looked in a far better mood. “Like Herzer said, it might be a blast.”
“Very well,” the skipper said. “Chief Brooks!”
“Sir,” the NCO said, climbing up onto the landing platform.
“Have this knocked down and prepare the launching and recovery teams. Commander Gramlich is going to be giving the first demonstration of the launching catapult.”
The table was knocked down, the riding harnesses were attached to the dragon, the longboat with the recovery team onboard was launched and the catapult was prepared. This mostly consisted of ensuring there was pressure, drawing back the launching platform and cocking it.
“All hands, make sail,” Chang ordered, to be repeated by bellows all down the ship. “Helm, come to heading zero-one-three.”
“Zero-one-three, aye.”
“Prepare for launching.”
The ship came around until the wind was blowing directly onto the launching platform with the ship sailing towards it to maximize the effect. As the sails were unfurled and tightened the lively ship picked up speed until she seemed to be flying over the light waves, even given the gentleness of the breeze.