“Identify,” the OD ordered.
The signalman snapped his arms up and crossed his flags above his head. Then, rapidly and precisely, he wigwagged out the letters L-O-W-B-L-O-W.
Three seconds later through his binoculars the OD began to read out the first of a series of irregular flashes of light that appeared close to the top of the periscope tube. When he had finished he turned and carefully avoiding dramatics called forward. Lieutenant Hanson relayed the message to the captain. “Sir, the OD reports confirmation, it’s Magsaysay.”
“Radar?” the captain asked.
“Negative, sir.”
“Keep your eyes on that tube.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Mr. Hanson, advise Magsaysay that the radar shows all clear.”
“Ay, sir.” The word was passed and the signalman spelled out the message. Presently the reply came back. “Magsaysay will surface, sir, and come alongside.”
The captain of the Dolly received that decision with gratitude, it would make things a little easier, although he had been prepared to go either way. He checked first that his ship was maintaining course and speed, reaffirmed the radar finding, and then allowed himself the luxury of watching aft for a few moments.
In the wake of the fishing vessel the tube of the periscope grew taller. Then there was a break in the pattern of the water and a black object could be seen slowly appearing. It grew higher until numbers appeared and it could be identified as the sail of a submarine. As the captain of the Dolly watched, the black object continued to emerge from beneath the water like a process sequence in a science fiction movie. Then the water broke well forward of the sail as the main hull began to appear; nearly four hundred and forty feet long, the Magsaysay contrasted almost violently with the unimaginative but sturdy Dolly.
As she began to close the distance between herself and the Dolly, the Magsaysay sliced through the water as though the minor swell did not exist. Presently men appeared on her bridge, men who in no way suggested that they had had no food for more than three days. They looked crisp and professional in the poopie suits which had been developed for comfort during long submerged cruises.
As the Dolly held her heading with all of the precision of which she was capable, the Magsaysay gradually overtook her on the starboard side until the bow of the submarine almost reached amidships of the fishing vessel. Because of the very low profile of the nuclear ship there was no venturi effect to draw the two of them together, but the maneuvering was delicate nonetheless. On the Dolly the crew was rapidly uncovering the hatches; the derrick operator readied his equipment.
On the curved, black, wet deck of the submarine a forward hatch came open. Three men came out rapidly and positioned themselves around the opening. One of them threw a light line expertly across the Dolly; it was retrieved and a telephone cable was pulled across the short distance that separated the two ships.
From the galley of the Dolly the cook appeared carrying a large kettle. He was followed by three other crewmen, all heavily burdened with containers of food. As soon as the telephone connection had been made, the captain of the Dolly spoke to his opposite number. “Congratulations, sir, we’re glad to see you. We didn’t know until we saw you that you’d made it. We have hot chow, and plenty of it, ready and waiting.”
“Outstanding, send it over. We only verified your position a short while ago.”
The captain of the Dolly spoke to his exec. “Start the stuff moving, Jimmy.”
“Ay, sir.” Lieutenant James Morton had been waiting for this moment from the first time that he had set foot onto his ship and he needed no urging. He called to Hanson on the deck; moments later the derrick went into action. There was no way to rig a high line between the two ships plus which the movement of the water kept them both rocking gently, but the derrick operator was up to the challenge. As soon as the prepared food had been set down on a waiting pallet he picked it up and swung it expertly across the narrow strip of water and onto the deck of the submarine. It was a tricky business, but he had a very long boom; the longest in fact that the outfitters of the Dolly had dared to install. In addition, it had a telescoping feature which gave it an additional, normally invisible twenty-four feet. The fishing vessel, despite its size and bulk, heeled over considerably as the transfer was made, but that had been calculated in advance too.
“Do you need some extra hands?” Magsaysay asked.
“Negative, we’re in good shape. Enjoy your chow.”
“We’ll start feeding right now; keep the stuff coming.”
The pallet lifted off the deck of the Dolly once more, this time carrying supplies which had been specially packaged to fit through the thirty-inch-in-diameter hatchway, which was the largest opening in the pressure hull of the submarine. As fast as the pallet was unloaded, more prepared loads were brought up onto the deck of the Dolly from the holds below. Had it been necessary, the whole operation could have been done while the Magsaysay was well under the surface, but it would have been more difficult and the hot meal which had been prepared would have had to have been put into waterproof containers. Overhead the steadily revolving radar antenna kept watch over the surrounding sea and the air. Very low-flying aircraft could have defeated it and surprised the operation, but that was a calculated risk which had been accepted as too unlikely to be a genuine hazard.
In two hours’ time the Dolly had been emptied of all of the carefully prepared materiel which had been brought on board her in a dozen different disguises. Food, medical equipment, critical spares — all were transferred and passed below by relays of men on Magsaysay. As the process was nearing its finish, the captain of the submarine used the phone link once more. “Is there anything we can do for you?” he asked.
“Negative, sir, we’re in good shape.”
“I have a problem; we have two political refugees on board. They came with us uninvited at the last moment.”
“I understand, sir.”
“Considering what we have ahead of us, I’d rather not have them on board. On the other hand, I don’t want to wish them onto you either; you don’t have the facilities.”
“We’ll take them, sir — no problem. Send them over. What is their attitude?”
“Satisfactory, I’d say, particularly now that their bellies are full. But if you’re found with them, it could be the end. That’s the problem.”
“I think we can handle that, sir. We have some well-concealed compartments if we need to use them.”
“If you’re willing, it would be a big help to us.”
“No sweat; we’re glad to do it.”
On its last trip the pallet brought back Kepinsky and the man called Clem. After that final greetings were exchanged and the two Navy ships wished each other well. The phone line was cast off and Magsaysay began to drift slowly away from her supply ship. As soon as there was enough water between them the submarine began slowly to add speed; the slight wave at her bow increased as she pulled ahead. Then the wave began to creep backward as the bow dipped downward. The men of the Dolly watched as the powerful warship gradually disappeared under the surface. When the sea once more showed no sign of her presence, the captain of the Dolly spoke a silent prayer. That done he turned to Lieutenant Morton. “Carry on, Jimmy.”