On the Road to a Plane (Both Parts of Two)

A Fight for Recognition
Story Twelve: Part One
On the Road to a Plane

I was out on the front yard attempting to determine if I wanted a porch or not. The house originally had a porch, but the dweebs that trashed the place had demolished it. I was grateful, as the destruction enabled me to buy the property at a good value, but I found myself wanting to improve my home. I had just finished washing and waxing my car, so was in the mood to consider what project I might take up next.

The van that pulled up I knew well. Generally, Mrs. Lorshein calls, but I considered her enough of a friend to be welcome at any time. It might have been that she was just in the neighborhood and checking on me, as the van pulled up to my sidewalk and did not come into the driveway.

The window came down as I got up and moved to the vehicle with Mrs. Lorshein speaking as I came close. “I don’t like your plan, Larry. I want you at a meeting tomorrow in uniform. The details have been emailed to you.”

I really did not know why the nurse did not know about me. She came into the service of Mrs. Lorshein right after the accident, and was actually a niece of the elder lady. Still, the nurse did not know, so I could not get direct with my reply. I thus just went with something general.

“Why the change of heart?”

“Your knees, Larry. What you are planning is not good on your knees.”

I actually could not argue with that, so asked another safe question. “Will Professor Nathan be there?”

“Yes. The man you are to meet is one of his Masonic Order friends. I heard that you did meet the man on one of your trips with Nathan to Oak Ridge.” I could tell from her gaze and the tone of her voice that she wanted to assure that I heard an earlier statement. “You are not to go with Nathan, but in your own way.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Is Cindy with you?”

The words did not sound as just a change of subject to me, but as an acceptance of my reply, so I spoke my response in a friendly fashion. “We spent time together earlier with the professor doing homework. After we did what we had to do, we helped him grade his papers. Cindy got an A on her test, so she was happy, and probably planning something for this weekend. Anyway, I came back, washed my car, and you caught me thinking about putting a porch on the house.”

“That is good, Larry. You need to tell her.”

I again sensed that Mrs. Lorshein knew something about Cindy that I did not. Simply being called by the name of my first girlfriend could not be the full reason for the elder lady’s support. The thoughts caused me to seek to advance some plans of my own. I however had a number of details to consider before I could do my own research on Cindy.

“Don’t rush me, Mrs. Lorshein.”

“I think she is right for you, Larry.”

I knew that, so tried to change the topic. “Your opinion counts. Mother and Father don’t exactly like her, cause she is German. Both of my sisters seem to get along well with her however. I enjoy having Cindy around, but my life is too complicated at the moment. Still, I am considering the lady in my plans. I won’t talk about that however, but let’s keep thinking about that trip this summer.”

I actually saw Mrs. Lorshein smile as she replied, “Of course. I am planning on it. Take care, Larry.”

After waving until the car turned on another road, I headed into the house to check on the email. Revealing my identity to another, anyone, bothered me. Honestly, I felt that the evidence about me was there for anyone to find. Sir Soldier had put certain pieces together, although the others working with him had not. Wondering who Mrs. Lorshein felt needed to have a certain fact blatantly revealed, I went to read the email she sent to me.

I had issues with what was proposed, although agreed with a lot as well. Calling up Professor Nathan or Mrs. Lorshein to bring up points I however felt would not accomplish anything. They would have just told me to hear things out. I thus focused on what would be necessary to rebuild the porch on my house, which was an issue that I felt could presently prove itself worthwhile.

At least my two elders had picked a day that I had an early schedule. My only problem was that Cindy and I usually spent time together doing homework. Not wanting to be rude, I did show up after class to explain that Professor Nathan and I would not be in the lab.

When she asked if we would be in Oak Ridge, I gave an evasive honest answer. “No. It actually has to deal with my plans to meet your parents.”

“Oh? Good! They want to meet you, Larry.”

Hearing the bubbly reply caused me to feel that I was doing the right thing. “Listen, I am trying to put you in my plans. You are just going to have to trust me however.”

“I do trust you, Larry. I know that you and Professor Nathan work with some dangerous stuff, and some experiments just cannot wait. When will you be back?”

“Have classes tomorrow, so I cannot be gone too long.”

That was enough for her. I kissed her feeling really glad to have found such a wonderful lady. My first girlfriend was not like this one. She was from a large family like mine. While my parents were dominating due to my older brother and sister making such horrible decisions, her father simply felt that girls needed to be kept from certain freedoms. I thus had to follow a lot of regulations in dating while in high school, but because I did as requested I gained a lot of respect as well. Those good graces were paying off in a number of ways, but I wondered if it would be enough to assure harmony in dealing with my lady from another country.

I went back to my house, changed into my superhero costume, then took off to the scheduled meeting. As usual, I traveled with one of my girls and one of my boys. I had reasons to bring one of each, although simply felt that if I was to reveal myself that I might as well do it as honestly as possible.

The mountains were lovely, although constrained the movement of people. No spider web of roads radiated out from Knoxville or Oak Ridge. There was basically one route between them. I thus flew high to avoid making a scene, but otherwise went in the same way as everyone else.

I noticed the Mercedes. With my girlfriend being from Germany, jokes about German engineering were becoming common in my circle of male friends. It was one of the larger vehicles made by the company at the end of the last millennium. I did not notice anything special about it, except it simply being unique on the road, although the Mercedes became my focus as I thought of Cindy.

The movement of the Bentley caught my eye for a number of reasons. Having the height that I did, I could see a length of highway beneath me. The Bentley was not going overly fast, but definitely keeping a pace slightly faster than most other cars. Coming near the large Mercedes, I thus watched as British engineering challenged that of the Germans.

Nothing about the maneuver around the Mercedes looked any different than the manner in which the driver of the Bentley had treated any other car. Both were keeping to the right with the English machine swerving into the left lane only long enough to get around those vehicles in its way. I had wondered if the driver of the Mercedes would react to the large car coming to overtake it, but he simply held his speed and allowed the same privilege to the other driver. I thus only saw the Bentley repeat the maneuver that it had performed many times previously.

Seeing the Mercedes suddenly lift into the air caused me to quickly maneuver to keep the vehicle in view. What I believe that I saw was a large balloon of some kind beneath the car. Only having one option, I commanded my wing to take me to the Bentley.

One must understand that I do not fall for the standard comic book superhero paradox of whether to help the victims of a crime or chase after the perpetrator of the crime. Most people will help those in need. Superheroes feeling that they must give aid are really showing a disbelief in the good parts of human nature. Letting the perpetrator flee allows them to make victims of others, so taking them out of action is the greater good. At least such is my belief, and I have found those I trust to also support that view.

The Bentley actually played it cool by slowing down. The act I considered both a good and a bad thing. It was bad because it stated that the driver was slightly intelligent. It was good in that it meant I had not been spotted. I looked for police, and saw none. Expecting a number of 911 calls to be made, so a lot of officials to soon be racing in this direction, I coolly thought of how I should react.

My flight ability is often put to the aid of police by helping them chase those attempting to flee a crime. They do have a helicopter, but it has its limitations. Only the foolish continue a chase after they have been identified. I have thus seen many vehicular flights stop as soon as they realize that I am above with a fix upon them.

I dropped down to put a flare with a magnetic base on the middle of the roof. That was something that would get the attention of law enforcement vehicles. It was a quick maneuver not really requiring me to land on top of the vehicle. There was thus no danger truly involved in it. All those inside should have noticed was a momentary thunk as the magnetic base set itself in place.

The sound must have been enough. Those fleeing a crime are usually looking for those that might be giving chase, so after committing their malicious deed those in the vehicle were probably alert for any response. The Minnow usually does not operate in the day, so they should have not prepared for me. I however got the impression they had planned for even my presence when a window came down and someone came out with what appeared to be a grenade launcher.

A Fight for Recognition
Story Twelve: Part Two
On the Road to a Plane

It was not a missile that was shot in my direction, but a net. I saw the strands rush toward me thinking that the bad guys had not researched me that well. I might call my vehicles wings, but they were not propulsion devices that required mechanical power. Also, the controls that enabled me to operate the machines were in my mouth. Completely stopping jaw movement would limit my ability, but my tongue could still manage some basic commands. Thus, being wrapped in a net would not really handicap me.

Fearing an explosion, I had called down Bumble. My machines had an outer shell of half-inch steel. They were intended to shield me from bullets. My uniform had further protection against projectiles, but Mr. Lorshein had been determined that I could hide behind something even when in the air. Not requiring aerodynamics to fly, the concussion of an explosion would not really disturb my wings except to send them a distance. Having Bumble only enveloped in a net did not really bother it at all.

With the strands of rope dangling from it, I had my larger wing fly in circles over the Bentley. That and the flare attracted the attention of police cars coming from Oak Ridge. I actually thought the scene funny when the shooter came back out the window, but as he was taking aim on the flying net his attention became distracted by the wail of sirens. Luckily, this was not interstate, so the road was not divided. It was four-lane, but the police coming from Oak Ridge did not have mountainous terrain between their direction of travel and ours. The one in the car thus suddenly had more targets to choose than just a circling object carrying strands of a net.

The Bentley suddenly increased speed. I watched while attempting to see what the one with the weapon was doing along with the police. What I had forgotten was what had started my involvement. Seeing the Bentley swerve in front of another vehicle, then having the front end of the passed car lift due to an expanding balloon reminded me of another danger that was present.

Honestly, the criminals should not have done that action. I could not imagine the police actually knowing the situation. They surely were only racing in response to a number of 911 calls about an accident along with a few others about my actions. Causing the second car to flip in front of the officers of the law let them know exactly what was going down, and set them to stopping the criminals.

My concern was no more with identifying the vehicle, but saving lives. The police had no choice but to give chase, and I quickly identified them as being potential targets for further balloons. The problem was that I was uncertain how to protect the lives of the policemen.

Logically, the device had to be in the trunk. They however could have been dropping the balloons from a hole in the floor of the riders’ compartment, but I could not believe that anyone would disturb the comfort of the Bentley. I however did not have lock picking skills, so could not open the trunk. I thus moved to the net covered form of Bumble in order to put into action a simpler plan to protect the trailing police cars from the device.

I had written code to enable my machines to fly above the ground. The uneven terrain made such a requirement. Setting Baracuda down to less than a foot over the ground was just a matter of working certain controls.

No sooner did the machine position itself than it contacted what appeared to be a gray bowling ball. The balloon had to have been tightly packed, but was still not of hard material. Baracuda, even though one of my small machines, was thus not hurt, although fell into a default routine of vertical lift when the ball suddenly expanded. Police cars swerved, but otherwise were not affected. That was what I wanted, so worked the controls to put Baracuda back into position to contact any further objects.

I had worked enough with the police to know that their concern was the criminals getting in local traffic where a number of regular citizens could be involved. I had Bumble drop with the net enough to provide problems with regular vision that allowed the driver not to recognize or avoid spike strips. The driver tried to keep the vehicle going on the rims, but a swerve put him flipping. The chase was over after that.

I did drop the net from Bumble, but quickly left the situation in the hands of the proper officials. My relationship with the police was simply that of a concerned citizen, and not someone attempting to perform his own sense of justice. I did what I could to help identify crimes and stop the criminals, but otherwise left the police to handle things as they were trained to do.

As Mrs. Lorshein had detailed in the message, there was a back door to the airplane hanger. I was not to make a grand entrance, but merely arrive in my Minnow identity. As I went through the door, I saw Professor Nathan and another man look at me from a table.

They had been listening to the police scanner, so knew about the situation that had occupied me. After coming out of uniform enough that I could release my mouthpiece, I asked both men if they were all right. Professor Nathan assured me that everything was good with them, but the other man displayed confusion at my question. I told him about a night a couple of years ago when I was occupied by a circumstance on my way to a meeting, only to have two of three of those waiting on me murdered.

The man replied, “Yes, Mrs. Lorshein said something about that when I asked her about her legs. I would like to get to know more about you, young man. It would help us develop a closer relationship.”

We spent time drinking a beer and just talking. The man was a Colonel Benjamin Edwards that had retired from the Navy. He had left the military thinking to fly crop dusting planes, but had grown bored operating the simple machines. In speaking with other Masonic Lodge brothers, he had found himself contacted by Professor Nathan. From there a few conversations had occurred before being offered the chance to make special aircraft for a superhero.

Feeling that we could work with each other, we set to work on designing the plane. It caught Colonel Bennie – if we were to be friends then I would not use his last name – by surprise to learn that I did not need regular airplane controls. He spoke of being out of his element when I demanded that the vehicle be able to work in outer space, but more than willing to learn something new. He watched me display the performance capabilities of my wings, and we spoke of what the plane would need as he understood that it would also have such an engine powering it.

“This is wild,” he said. “I was thinking about some mini-jet, but your technology is something completely different. What you are wanting to do with it is also something I was not expecting. How soon do you need this built?”

I replied, “Give me a cockpit real soon. I have my own test to perform, and I would like not to die while doing it. If you can keep me alive in a vacuum, we can talk about things further.”

“Can I bring in other people?”

“Are you going to pay them?” The colonel went silent, so I supplied some information. “My identity is not a great secret, but so far it is secret. I really do not need the notoriety. My time is busy enough. As for money, I am comfortable, but I am not rich. I do have access to money, but I suspect that you did not come for free, which will limit what funds I have.”

“Of course, but I am free, although I will expect to be reimbursed for purchases. As retired military, I do have connections. I can assemble a team of confidants.”

“Well, if my secret is spilled due to you, I will hold you accountable for helping me manage my time.”

“I like what you are doing, young man. After speaking with you and learning of your objectives, I am highly interested in what you are doing. I believe that I can get others who will also donate their time to seeing you advance your plans. All I will want is a promise to make it good.”

Professor Nathan now spoke. “Yes, there will be financial considerations once we go public. That does not mean once Larry’s secret identity is revealed, but once we have advanced the technology enough to make it available to other interests. You thus spill his identity, and the time that he has to spend dealing with the publicity will lengthen the time before certain plans get finalized.”

“I can work under those conditions.”

We had another beer while again simply discussing things. Colonel Bennie spent time playing with my mouthpiece rather interested in the controls. They were originally very simple, basically up-down and left-right, but had been enhanced as I built more machines and managed to program certain specific routines. We discussed the operation of the wings while flying Baracuda around the inside of the hanger.

Yes, I had drank alcohol, but we had also done more than sit around. I also only drank the two. Finally, my wings could fly home without needing my guidance. I thus put my uniform fully back on my body, then took to the air not worrying about any inebriation, but about something happening on the way home that would need a superhero.

The lights were on in my house. That was very improper. Not having any other option, I redirected my machines to the hill. The trees and the steep terrain were wonderful for hiding my presence, although I used the regular vertical drop that I used at my house to assure that no cameras would catch me landing. The lights were on in Professor Nathan’s lab, although I felt safe in that I expected him to return there. Sure enough, it was just him, and he offered to drive me home after I changed out of my uniform.

Coming into the door of my house, Cindy rushed to me speaking of a couple of girls in her dorm being bitches. Professor Nathan stayed just long enough to assure that nothing more than private feuds were the trouble, then wished us both a good night. As I tried to sort out the events of the day, Cindy spoke of things that were on her mind.

She caught me looking around, and assumed what I was thinking. “I have been cleaning the house.”

“That is good,” I replied. “I was just thinking that you might have changed something.”

“You don’t mind that I was here?”

That was not the comment that I expected. I had made my statement ready to spend some time listening to Cindy speak of her own ideas at decorating. I thus had a surprised tone as I replied to her comment.

“No. Why would I mind? I gave you a key.”

“But you work with Sherita. I thought that you might be protecting superhero stuff.”

I guess that was good logic, but I let Cindy know that she had not thought it through completely. “I have family, Cindy. Plus, there is a huge college campus nearby. Having someone drop in is not unusual. If I was hiding some superhero stuff, it would not be in the house.”

“Or in the basement.”

Actually, there were clues about my separate life in the basement. There was an access panel that opened to a shaft to the roof. The door from the basement also had a special mechanism on the hinges to allow for quick open and shut for my speedy vertical maneuvers entering and leaving. I however saw no reason to point them out.

“Or in the basement. If you want to learn my secrets, Cindy, you are just going to have to know me better.”

Her body moved as she came next to me and whispered, “I know quite a bit about you.”

I did not mind matching her actions as I replied, “Yes, so I am trying to learn about you. When I meet your parents, and learn some more about you, it will be time for you to learn more about me.”