Frigid Fracas Read online

said absently, testing the ailerons, "We'll make it. Freddy isn'tany heavier than you are, Max. Besides, this sailplane is a workhorse.I sacrificed gliding angle for weight carrying potential."

  That meant absolutely nothing to Max Mainz, so he took it out byawarding the Telly reporter with a rare combination of glower andsneer.

  Freddy said, "Oh, oh, here they come, Joe." However, he kept his headlow, storing away his equipment, and seemingly ignored the approach ofthe three distinctive uniformed officers.

  Joe said from the side of his mouth, "Get that you-know-what out ofsight, soonest." He turned as the trio neared, came to attention andsaluted.

  The foremost of the three, his tunic so small at the waist that hecould only have been wearing a girdle, answered the salute by tappinghis swagger stick against the visor of his cap. "Major Mauser," hesaid in acknowledgment. He made no effort to shake hands, turninginstead to his two companions. He said, "Lieutenant Colonel KrishnalalMajumdur, of Bombay, Major Mohamed Kamil, of Alexandria, may Iintroduce the"--there was all but a giggle in his tone--"celebratedMajor Joseph Mauser, who has possibly reintroduced aircraft towarfare."

  Joe saluted and bowed in proper protocol. "Gentlemen, a pleasure." Thetwo neutrals responded correctly, then stepped forward to shake hishand.

  Colonel Lajos Arpid added, gently, "Or possibly he has not."

  Joe looked at him. The Hungarian seemed to make a practice of turningup every time Joe Mauser was about to take off. The Sov-worldrepresentative said airily, "It will be up to the InternationalDisarmament Commission to decide upon that when it convenes shortly,will it not?"

  The Arab major was staring in fascination at the sailplane. He said toJoe, "Major Mauser, you are sure such craft were in existence before1900? It would seem--"

  Joe said definitely, "Designed as far back as Leonardo and flown invarious countries in the Eighteenth Century." He looked at theHungarian. "Including, so I understand, what was then Czarist Russia."

  The Sov-world officer ignored the obvious needling, saying merely, "Itis quite true that the glider was first flown by an obscure inventorin the Ukraine, however, that is not what particularly interests ustoday, major. Perhaps the commission will find that the use of theglider is permitted for observation, however, it is obvious thatbefore the year 1900 by no stretch of the imagination could it becontended that they were, or could have been, used for, say,_bombing_." He turned quickly and pointed at Freddy Soligen, who,already seated in the sailplane, was watching them, his face notrevealing his qualms. "What has that man been hiding within thecraft?"

  Joe said formally, "Gentlemen, may I introduce Frederic Soligen,Category Communications, Sub-division Telly News, Rank SeniorReporter. Mr. Soligen has been assigned to cover the fracas from theair."

  Freddy looked at the Sov-world officer and said innocently, "Hiding?You mean my portable camera, and my power pack, and my auxiliarylenses, and my--"

  "All right, all right," Arpad snapped. The Hungarian was no fool andobviously smelled something wrong in this atmosphere. He turned toJoe. "I would remind you, major, that you as an individual areresponsible for any deviations from the basic Universal DisarmamentPact. You, and any of your superiors who can be proven to have hadknowledge of such deviation."

  "I am familiar with the articles of war, as detailed in the pact," Joesaid dryly. "And now, gentlemen, I am afraid my duty calls me." Hebowed stiffly, saluted correctly. "A pleasure to make youracquaintance Colonel Majumdur, Major Kamil. Colonel Arpad, a pleasureto renew acquaintance."

  They answered his salute and stared after him as he climbed into thesailplane and signaled to the pilot of the lightplane which was to towhim into the air. Max Mainz ran to the tip of one wing, lifting itfrom the ground and steadying the glider until forward motion gavedirection and buoyancy.

  Freddy Soligen growled, "Zen! If they'd known I had a machine guntucked away in this tripod case."

  Joe said unhappily, "The Sovs have obviously decided to put up a howlabout the use of aircraft in the West-world."

  He shifted his hand on the stick, gently, and the glider which hadbeen sliding along on its single wheel, lifted ever so gently into theair. Joe kept it at an altitude of about six feet until the lightplanewas air-borne.

  Freddy growled, "How come the Hungarians have become so important inthe Sov-world? I thought it was the Russians who started their wholeshooting-match."

  Joe said wryly, "That's something some of the early timers like Stalindidn't figure out when they began moving in on their neighbors. Theycould have learned a lesson from Hollywood about the Hungarians. Whatwas the old saying? _If you've got a Hungarian for a friend, you don'tneed any enemies._"

  Freddy laughed, even as he looked apprehensively over the sailplane'sside. He said, "Yeah, or that other one. The Hungarians are the onlypeople who can enter a revolving door behind you and come out infront."

  Joe said, "Well, that's what happened to the Russians." He pointed."There's the reservation. We'll be cutting from the airplane in amoment now. Listen, were you able to find out who either of GeneralMcCord's glider pilots are?"

  "Yeah," Freddy told him. "Both are captains. One named Bob Flaubertand the other Jimmy Hideka."

  "Bob Flaubert?" Jeb growled. "He's an artilleryman. We've been in thedill together half a dozen times." Freddy was staring below, trying tounderstand the terrain from this perspective. While Joe was trippingthe lever which let the tow rope drop away from the glider, the Tellyreporter said, "Both of them used to fly lightplanes for sport. Whenyou started this new glider angle, they must've seen the possibilitiesand took it up immediately. But you oughta be able to fly circlesaround them, they just haven't had the time for experience with planeswithout motors."

  "Bob, eh?" Joe said softly. "He saved my life once. Five minuteslater, I saved his."

  Freddy looked at him quickly. "Zen!" he complained. "It's no time tobe thinking of that. So now you're even with him. And you're bothhired mercenaries in a fracas."

  "But I've got a gun and he hasn't," Joe growled.

  "Good!" Freddy snapped at him.

  They had cut away from the lightplane and Joe headed for the areawhich Cogswell had ordered him particularly to keep scanned. JackAltshuler was a fox, in combat. His heavy cavalry had more than onceswung a fracas.

  At the same time, he kept himself alert for the other gliders. Itseemed probable, since the enemy forces had two, that they would usethem in relays. Which meant, in turn, that it was unlikely Joe wouldfind them both in the air at once. In other words, if he attacked theone, possibly shooting it down, then the other would be warned, wouldmount a gun of its own, and it would no longer be a matter of shootinga clay pigeon.

  * * * * *

  Joe turned to mention this over his shoulder to Freddy Soligen, justin time to catch the shadow above and behind him.

  "Holy Zen!" he snapped, kicking right rudder, thrusting his stick tothe right and forward.

  "What the devil!" Freddy protested, looking up from adjusting a lenson his camera.

  Three or four thirty-caliber slugs tore holes in their left wing, therest of the burst missing completely.

  Joe dove sharply, gained speed, winged over and reached desperatelyfor altitude. The other--no, the _others_ were above him. He yelledback at the cameraman, "Put that Chaut-Chaut gun together for me. Beready to hand me pans of ammo. And if you want blood and gore on thatTellylens of yours, get going!"

  It still hadn't got through to the smaller man. "What in devil's goingon?"

  Joe banked again, grabbing for a current rising along a hill slope,circled, circled, reaching for altitude before they could get over tohim and make another pass. He snapped bitterly, "Did I say somethingabout poor old Bob Flaubert not having a gun, while I did? Well, poorold Bob's obviously got at least as much fire power as we have.Freddy, I'm afraid matters have pickled."

  The other was startled.

  "Do I have to draw a picture?" Joe said. "Look." He pointed to wherethe other two craft
s circled, possibly a hundred meters above and fivehundred to the right of them. The other two gliders bore a singlepassenger apiece, and were seemingly moving as quietly as were Joe andFreddy, but gliders in motion are deceptive. Joe shot a glance at hisrate of climb indicator. He was doing all right at six meters persecond, a thousand feet a minute, considering his weight.

  Freddy had at last awakened to the fact that they were in combat andeven that the enemy had drawn first blood. The wound taken in theirwing was not serious, from Joe's viewpoint, but the torn holes in thefabric were obvious. But the little man