With two of its propeller blades blown completely off and the remaining five mangled beyond recognition, Tekuma had no effective propulsion and was losing speed rapidly. Her shaft was still spinning despite the fact that the explosions had bent it through a ten degree angle and that was much more critical than the loss of propulsion. The bent, unbalanced shaft ripped open the shaft tunnel and destroyed the seals that kept the water out. Throughout the stern quarter of the submarine, water started to pout into compartments, weighing down the stern of the boat and dragging her to the bottom. That left just one thing to do.
“Blow tanks! All hands, abandon ship!”
B-25J “Heavenly Body”, Mediterranean
“Here she comes!” Perdue’s voice was straining with excitement. The two P-3s had made their drops and there had been a nail-biting delay before the pair of oil-stained white towers of seawater announced the hits. Then, the sea seemed to have started boiling as the shock wave had reflected off the seabed and erupted upwards. Now, the sea had boiled again as the submarine blew her ballast tanks in a desperate attempt to get to the surface. The dark green shape arched upwards in the middle of the spray, the sunlight surrounding her with rainbows that gave an almost supernatural aura to the scene. Then the hatches fore and aft of the sail started to open and men started to heave themselves out. Already, yellow life rafts were expanding from their containers on the deck.
“And here we go boys and girls.” Tyson was already diving on the submarine, his four nose-mounted. 50 caliber machine guns spraying bullets into Tekuma’s crew as they tried to abandon the sinking submarine. Heavenly Body’s twin. 50s in her top turret was firing as well, only Trudy laFonteyn continued her burst as the B-25 swept across her target and continued to pour long bursts into the crew as it started to circle the wreck. She was joined by one of the waist gunners and between them they mowed down the submariners. That was what aircraft like the AC-130 did, they circled their target, mowing down the enemy. It was good, if unexpected, training for laFonteyn.
“A bit harsh that.” Perdue’s instincts as a mariner were overcoming his loathing for the crew of this submarine and what they had done. Beneath them, the submarine was obviously sinking, its stern was underwater and the bows were rising as flooding aft pulled her under. That made her crew fellow seamen in distress and the slaughter as the machine guns mowed them down was repugnant to him. He knew the rationale, submarines carried shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles and it only needed one man to bring down a fabulously expensive maritime patrol aircraft and its crew. It still just seemed wrong to him and he was glad when Heavenly Body ran out of ammunition for her top turret and waist guns.
By that time, Tekuma was clearly in her last moments. She was almost vertical in the water, her bows pointing skywards, her sail already vanishing beneath the waves. With a final flourish caused by the remaining air bubbling out of her hull, she slipped away, leaving nothing on the surface but oil, debris and the bodies of her crew.
“Hey, old timer, Quebec-Seven here. We’ll write you up as an equal share in the kill. Fair?” The radio message from the P-3C caused a cheer in the old B-25. After more than sixty years, Heavenly Body finally had a kill of her own to paint under her cockpit.
“Very fair kids. Now, we’ll take you home.”
Chapter Fifty Three
Lemuel’s Home, Eternal City, Heaven
He knew something was wrong the moment he stepped into his home. It wasn’t just that the small palace was silent, there was something else. A brooding air of tension and anger. In a way that Lemuel-Lan-Micheal couldn’t quite comprehend, it was as if the house itself was sullen and resentful. It didn’t help matters that he wasn’t feeling very well. It was strange, he always felt fine when he was with Maion, at the Montmartre Club or at the Temple but as soon as he was away from them for any length of time, his feeling of contentment and gentle bliss would go and be replaced by headaches, irritation and vague, formless anger. It was this pattern, more than any other factor, that had finally reconciled him to the now self-evident truth that the Temple of Ceaseless Compliance was, in fact, merely an over-zealous proponent of the True Path. As his new friends had pointed out, austerity and spirituality had its place once, but new times and new conditions demanded change. If they could better serve The One Above All by following a different way, was it not their duty to do so?
Something else was missing as Lemuel-Lan entered the vestibule of his house, Onniel was nowhere in sight and for that he was grateful. Her sneering, contemptuous voice was the last thing he needed to hear right now. What he really wanted was to stretch out in his pool, let his wing-feathers soak in the limpid waters and feel their warmth wash away his discomfort. That wasn’t too much to ask was it? Or to have his wing-feathers combed so they lay flat and comfortable. Maion wouldn’t even have to be asked, she would know that such small services would please him.
As it turned out, a warm relaxing bath was too much to ask. On his way to the pool, Lemuel-Lan had to pass one of the entrances to the servants quarters and from therein he heard the sounds of weeping. A few seconds attention identified the sound as one of his human slaves. Sadly, Lemuel-Lan put aside his desire for a bath and entered the quarters to find out what the problem was. That was normally something he would not do but this was not a normal situation. If there was trouble in the servants quarters, his loyal Ishim Zahuliel-Lan-Lemuel would deal with it, a minor affair without bothering him with the details, a more serious problem would result in a briefing after Zahuliel had dealt with it. Only the most major of difficulties would cause him to consult with Lemuel before taking action. But, this time, the matter was obviously not solved now was Zahuliel out here to consult with him. So, Lemuel broke one of his private rules and made his way into the servants quarters.
What he saw there combined with his headache, sickness and general malaise to cause him to completely lose his temper. One of the human maids, Judith, was stretched out on her bed, being tended by the other humans. She had been so badly beaten that her body was covered with rippling shades of blue and violet. The humans and Ishim scattered away from her as they saw Lemuel approach, cringing on the floor in terrified submission. That just added to his anger, he had never demanded submissive displays from his domestic staff and he had never done anything to warrant this show of outright fear.
“What happened here?” His words lashed around the quarters, bringing whimpers from Judith and the other humans.
“Most Honored Ophanim, The Lady Onniel demanded that the evening meal be served at an early time and that the remains be left out for you. Judith told her of your orders that the regular meals only be served in your presence.” Zahuliel drew a deep breath. “The Lady Onniel was most displeased. She spoke in great anger, telling Judith that her words were to be obeyed, not yours, and that the meal was to be served. Judith held fast to your orders Most Noble Ophanim and refused to be forced into disobeying you. The Lady Onniel beat her but still Judith held firmly to your command. The beating continued with The Lady Onniel losing all control of herself and only stopped when Judith was unconscious.”
“So she is reduced to this sad state by her loyalty to my commands?” Lemuel was well beyond anger now, he was filled with a cold fury that he had not known for millennia.
“That is so, Most Noble of Ophanim.” Zahuliel-Lan-Lemuel spoke gravely.
“Then she deserves to be honored. Zahuliel, go to the Temple of Ceaseless Compliance and ask the staff there for assistance. They have skilled healers who have access to hu…. to healing techniques of great value. Judith is to be given the best treatment available for the injuries she received in my service. As for the rest, I will deal with this now.”