Them-2 - Chapter 24

Chapter Twenty Four – Andrews Naval Air Facility, Washington, D.C.

Joey sat in the web seating of the C-130 transport plane. His thoughts were on his friends and charges at the U.S. Capitol. It was difficult to believe that most of them were gone. The concept was too much to take in at one time. Sitting to his left in the webbing was, Junie Watkins, and to his right sat, Kathay Watkins. The Congressman’s daughters had taken the news with difficulty. Without the aid of the Chaplain, Joey knew he would not have been able to carry the burden by himself.
Allison Watkins and her other two daughters, Anne and Debbie, were sitting across the aisle of the transport plane from him. Allison Watkins eyes were still red and swollen from crying as was nine year old Anne’s. Six year old Debbie looked sad but uncertain as to why she felt that way.
They had waited on the tarmac for several hours before loading into the C-130 Hercules. It was a military transport without the corresponding civilian luxuries. Passenger seating was two long strips of nylon webbing along both sides running down the body of the plane with harness like seat belts attached to the walls behind the webbing. Their luggage was piled in the center and covered by netting, which was strapped to the metal floor. They had each been issued a flight bag containing toiletry articles along with MRE’s, (combat rations) plastic bottles of water, a change of clothing, which may or may not fit, and other items hastily thrown together and labeled by sex and size. They were not told what their destination was, except that it was a secure military base somewhere to the west.
They had been flying for several hours when one of the Air Force flight crew walked back and signaled for Joey to follow him forward to the cockpit. As soon as he reached the cockpit, the copilot turned around with a big grin.
“Captain Prestano?”
Joey nodded. “Lieutenant Prestano.”
“We just got word from our Command that Congressman Watkins was rescued and is now in a safe area at the pentagon. Unfortunately, he was the only one they found alive. Ants are still in the city but it’s getting dark there and none have been spotted moving around.”
Joey nodded back to where the Congressman’s family sat. “Have they been told?”
“Thought you might do that for us,” the copilot smiled.
The only one found alive, Joey thought as he headed back to the rear of the plane. The faces of his friends and the many congressmen he knew flashed before his eyes. As soon as he returned to where the family was sitting, he sat down on the pile of luggage across Allison Watkins and motioned for Junie and Kathay to join them.
“The Air Force just told me that you husband was rescued from the capitol and is now safe at the pentagon,” Joey stated in a low tone of voice.
Allison looked carefully into Joey’s eyes. “Congressman James Watkins? You’re certain it was James they rescued?”
“That’s what the copilot just told me.”
“Daddy’s alive!’ Debbie blurted, clapping her hands together.
Allison looked at the faces of Helen Rutledge and Ruth Taylor, then back to Joey. Joey shook his head.
“No word on any other survivors?” Allison asked, fully aware of the answer without asking. “Perhaps they’ll find more just as they found James. It may take time that’s all.” She smiled at the other two women sitting near by.
Joey noticed a look of hidden anger on the other women’s faces although they tried not to show it. They were happy for Allison and her children, but they were also jealous that it was not their husbands that were rescued.
“We have to buckle back in.” Joey pointed at his seat across the pile of luggage. “Military rules require all passengers to stay buckled in while in flight.” He stated this aloud so that Kathay and Junie would take the hint. He wasn’t particularly concerned about military rules, but he did not feel like watching the accusing eyes of the other two women.
“You married?” asked Kathay, pointing at a ring on his finger.
Joey had forgotten he even wore the ring. “School ring,” he replied. “Got it when I graduated from the Police Academy.’
“You must be like really old to be a police lieutenant,” Kathay continued. “Got any sisters or brothers?”
“Thirty five. I just turned thirty-five and I have several sisters. One is named Kathy, like you without the a.” Joey did not know where she was going with the personal questions, he figured she simply wanted to have something to say to rid her mind of the recent trauma of the past several hours. She was a very attractive young woman, perhaps eighteen or nineteen, long straight brown hair, large light brown eyes, and a well-proportioned figure. He could tell from the expressions on her face that she was flirting with him. “You going to college?”
“Just graduated high school. Early graduation cause all my credits were fulfilled and we had to move to D.C. before spring. I plan on college in the fall.”
Planned, Joey thought, remembering their situation. He looked around the cargo hold of the C130. Most of the people sitting around, thinking their own thoughts, were not aware of just how serious their situation still was. If the military did not get control of the giant ants, things could get bad, real bad.
Suddenly, there was a loud noise as if something hit the plane and the plane dropped a dozen feet or more sending the people flying in their harnesses while loose bottles of water and coloring books and other items bounced around. The plane shifted to one side and Joey was holding on to his harness to keep from flying across the aisle. People were screaming and a loud noise from outside sounded as if someone had taken a giant hammer to the body of the plane.
The plane swung back even but the sound of rushing wind and struggling motors continued. “We hit a large object on our port side,” the pilot announced through the public address system. “We lost one port engine but the other is still functioning. Part of the wing has been damaged so we will be required to make an emergency landing to assess the damage. Don’t worry, these planes can fly on two engines and three are in good shape. Please make sure that you are buckled in to your safety harnesses.”
“What was that?” the copilot asked, still reeling from the sudden jolt. “I didn’t get a good look at it but it was big.”
The pilot turned his head and stared first at the copilot then the flight engineer. “It was the biggest damn ant I ever saw and it was being chased by another one the size of a horse. What’s our situation?”
The copilot checked his instruments and performed a visual on the outside wings. “Leaking hydraulics from the wheel well, port main engine gone, fuel leak on left wing, and a serious crack behind port side number two engine housing.”
“She won’t hang together. The stress on that wing may rip it off at any time. What’s our location?”
“About six miles east of a small town named Pikeville, Kentucky.”
“Closest airport?”
“Pike County Airport, Hatcher Field, about six miles northwest of town. Small field but easily long enough for us to land.”
“Plot me a course and we’ll set her down.”
The C-130 made a banking turn and lined up with the runway. They were surrounded by small mountains and cross winds were coming from several directions. As soon as the wheels screeched on the runway, the pilot started pumping the brakes. They came to a stop well short of the end of the runway and the pilot turned the plane and started a taxi run back to a cluster of buildings several hundred yards to the east.
They tried to contact the terminal by radio before landing but received no response. An air traffic controller from Cincinnati advised them that no contact had been made with Pike County Airport despite repeated calls. They were certain the airport was not manned on a daily basis as it was a small county facility without a control tower. As they neared the buildings a small sign on a tan corrugated building read, “Senator Kelsey E. Friend Terminal.” There were no small planes parked at the airport.
“I’ve been here before,” the pilot stated. “We shuttle military contract personnel in and out of this area. I have no idea what the military was doing here, but I never had any reason to ask either. This is a nice airport, well kept and maintained.”
“Doesn’t look like anyone’s home,” the Crew Chief stated. The place appeared quiet and deserted. Even the windsock hung limp. “Reminds me of that Steven King story, The Langoliers,” the Chief continued. “Real spooky.”
“Use the side door and go check the terminal,” the pilot ordered. “I’ll tell the passengers to remain seated until we know where we stand. From the looks of our port wing, I’d say we aren’t going anywhere in this old bird. The crack behind the lost engine is far to deep and the wing might buckle or sheer off at any moment.”
“Nice place to be stranded.” The copilot looked angrily at the broken wing. “We’re in the middle of the friggin mountains. I’ll bet the closest town don’t even have a motel.”
“Closest town is a place called Coal Run Village just north of Pikeville,” the Chief stated, on his way to the side door of the aircraft. “Don’t know what’s there.”
The pilot made his way back to the cargo hold where the passengers were seated. There were a total of thirty-eight passengers. Airlift Command wanted to put more passengers on board but the front of the cargo hold was full of rations destined for Fort Carson. The rations were just as important as the passengers, most of whom were military families.
“End of the line for this old lady,” the pilot stated, getting everyone’s attention. “Left wing is too badly damaged to risk a takeoff. I’ll have to call Airlift Command and see if they can divert another plane here to pick us up. I sent the Chief into the terminal to check it out. I would appreciate it if everyone would remain seated until we know what’s there.”
“Where are we?” asked a woman sitting near the pilot.
“Little place called Pikeville in Kentucky. I’ve never been to the town so I don’t know what’s there. I have dropped people off at this airport before.”
“Holy Cow!” a teen yelled, looking out the starboard window towards the small terminal. The Chief was running back towards the plane as fast as he could. Not far behind him several giant ants were in steady pursuit. The Chief made it through the door just before the ants caught up with him. He slammed the door and jerked his thumb towards the exterior. “Nobody here but… them!” he yelled.
Within minutes ants were crawling all over and around the plane. The C-130 was built to a tougher standard than commercial planes so they were unable to breach the outer skin. The passengers were terrified. They were not aware that the ants could not get inside.
They were trapped!