Yes, but what would I do when I got there?

  That was about as much as I had thought through my plan. Get a Slingshot. Get to Hong Kong. Find out where the Establishment Day ceremony would take place. Take it from there.

  But what about the commotion on the main deck?

  The ship had come alive. Crew surged along the passageway in both directions. A group of twelve Marines carrying PQ47 weapons ran toward the companionway leading down to the deck. I ran behind them holding the alien weapon along my side.

  Somewhere, a siren blared over and over as if the ship were under attack.

  'Stop that guy,' yelled either Gupta or Yiu, but none of the crew members paid any attention. I climbed the companionway with them and burst onto the deck. None of them noticed me. When they pushed forward, I held back, slipped behind a Slingshot and crouched down.

  As I did, the twenty-foot long form of one of the other Slingshots crashed onto the deck beside me and slid along in a shower of sparks.

  Who or what could be behind it all?

  But I already knew the answer.

  45

  HALF ON THE deck, half in the water, was an enormous creature, shining gray and wet in the sun. It looked like one of the horrible animals from the deep ocean: a Goblin Shark or Vampire Squid, with an enormous teeth-lined mouth and great flapping side fins. Water streamed from its head.

  It was a nightmare creature come alive.

  The crew were in disarray. They were undisciplined, afraid, and unused to firing weapons. They ran like civilians. They were more a danger to themselves than to the creature. They were brave only when it was easy to be brave, facing the non-existent enemies the Accord told them were real.

  Typical, I thought.

  'This thing's gonna sink us!' someone yelled. 'It's gonna sink the Accord Values.'

  In between smashing Slingshots, and flinging people into the air, the creature appeared to be searching for something or someone. It raised its head up to peer along the length of the ship, then down along the deck. It sniffed all the while, which was weird for a sea creature, but this was no ordinary monster from the deep. For one thing, it appeared to be morphing from a sea animal to something with limbs, and a snout.

  Searching for me.

  I had to get off the ship--for the sake of the crew, for the sake of myself. I guessed our location to be still in the AON China Sea somewhere between AONT China and AON Archipelago Philippines, which meant it couldn't more than an hour or so of flying to AON sub-territory Hong Kong itself. And if I could reach the coast, I could ditch the Slingshot and hide while I worked out my next move.

  If only there were more time.

  While the monster snuffled around on the bows, I crept out from the gun mounting, and ducked towards the nearest undamaged Slingshot. The words Gender Fluidity were stenciled on its side. The name could have been worse. The Slingshot beside it was called Patriarchy Smasher.

  I raised Gender Fluidity's canopy and peered inside. There was a helmet on the seat and a J-Pack behind it. The J-Pack was the Navy's small jet pack. It would be good for jumping between buildings in Hong Kong.

  I laid the alien weapon in small stowage space beside the pilot's seat. Then, I put my boot onto the first step and prepared to climb inside.

  Almost there.

  Then a voice said, 'Going somewhere, Burns?'

  I turned and saw the bulldog forms of Yiu and Gupta. Gupta had a pistol drawn, a semi-automatic A19. Like the PQ47 rifle, the A19 had been given a number, not a name. Names, such as Viper, or Piranha, or even makers' names were considered too patriarchal for weapons. So, they were never used. Gupta pointed the A19 at my chest. Yiu was beside him with another set of handcuffs ready. Gupta was breathing hard. His or her face was shiny with sweat. He or she looked mighty pissed off at having been humiliated in front of two captains, an Admiral, and the Accord guy. The A19 shook. 'Turn around and put your hands on the metal.'

  I stood where I was. I told myself no matter what happens, I wasn't going back to a cell--not while I was alive.

  'Weren't you listening?'

  'Weren't you?' I shouted. 'We're about to be invaded and enslaved, cities burning, people killed, the Accord overthrown, and you're asking me if I know what's going on?'

  'Shut it, maggot, and put your hands on the Slingshot,' said Yiu who had put the handcuffs back on his belt and brought out a taser. It was aimed it at my chest. Now I had two weapons to overcome.

  'Come on, guys,' I said. 'What do you think is going on? What do you think that thing on the bows is all about? A fish deformed by climate change? An octopus that's finally had it with misogyny?'

  'Turn around,' Gupta said.

  'Can't you see we've all been deceived--you, me and everyone who lives under the Accord? They have lied to us about everything. You know it, deep down. You know that what they tell you is not what you see with your own eyes. Just look at the aliens.'

  'They're not aliens,' said Yiu. 'They're our galactic friends.'

  'Friends?' I said. 'That thing up there--the one that just swatted someone into the sea. Some friend! Next you'll be telling me that men can be women and women can be men.'

  'Women can be men--if they identify as men. I was born female.'

  'I don't believe it,' I said. 'Neither do you--not really. Come on, just walk away and let me go. No shame in it and it'll be better for you.'

  'You don't know anything about what it's like to be me,' said Yiu.

  'Just turn around,' called Gupta. 'You are going to a nice cell in AONS Schumer. You can tell them all about your gender theories there.'

  'I'm not going anywhere, no matter what you girls do.'

  'What did you say?' said Gupta.

  'You heard me.'

  'Have it your way,' said Yiu. He fired the taser, but not before I ducked way down, jumped forward and flung my right arm up, grabbed his wrist and kept pushing upward. The taser shot over my head, the bolt clanging against the Slingshot fuselage. Then with my left hand, I hit Yiu with three quick jabs, one on the side of his head, then twice on his or her nose, bending it sideways, as mine had been bent. Then for good measure, I leaned back and kick him in the groin. He or she fell back into Gupta who once again had to catch someone.

  Then, I stepped around the falling Yiu and kicked Gupta in the side of the knee, just as I had tried with the soldier on the Roman ship. This time the kick worked. With the extra weight of Yiu in his arms, Gupta's knee buckled straight away, and he clutched it like everyone does who has ever suffered a dislocation--with panicked astonishment. I stepped forward and punched him in the throat. That did the trick. Now both Gupta and Yiu were on the ground like a couple of dogs rolling on the lawn. I grabbed the taser and tossed it over the side into the sea.

  Before they could get to their feet, I turned back to the Slingshot and climbed in. There was a helmet inside. I put it on, adjusted the chinstrap, and pulled down the perspex canopy, sealing myself in. Then, I fired up the engines. The Slingshot slowly lifted upward from the deck.

  Freedom was just a thruster blast way.

  But it was at this moment, that I noticed a development on the bow. The great creature had finally found what it was looking for. Its snout pointed my way. It reached one great paw forward over a rank of Slingshots. It was like a hideous giant predator, its eyes focused on me, unmoving. If it had a tail, it would have been swishing, like cat's before it pounces.

  'Unauthorized Slingshot activation,' said a female voice in my ear. 'State your name.' It was the ship's control tower. It had somehow remained functional during all the chaos. 'State your name,' said the voice again. 'This is an unauthorized Slingshot activation. State your name.'

  I ignored it.

  'If you do not respond,' said the voice, 'we will presume hostile intent and will respond with force.'

  'Force?' I said. 'That'd be a first.'

  Meanwhile, the monster was advancing. It actually bellowed out something that made the canopy rattle, a deep, 'Ahhhhh-llleexx!'

  With the Slingshot engines running, I opened the canopy again and climbed down on the deck, bringing the alien weapon with me. I took a stance to the side of the Slingshot, raised the weapon, looked down the sights at the creature's snout, and pulled the trigger.

  As before the recoil threw me backwards. I fired again and again until the creature halted.

  Then, I climbed back inside the cockpit.

  I throttled up the vertical thrusters, slowly rising. The monster had recovered and was now bounding forward over the deck. With one great fling of its limb it slapped the Slingshot's tail, sending it and me spinning over the side, plunging the eighty feet toward the green sea below.

  The shadow of the creature descended with me.

  'Lieutenant Burns,' said the voice in my ear. 'We are authorizing AON Navy pilots to pursue and disable you. Comply with the orders of Captain Paine or your craft will be shot down. Do you copy? Acknowledge.'

  I throttled up the thrusters again and managed to leveled the Slingshot halfway down. Then, I put my hand on the red lever that fired the jets that would send me forward like a bullet. The green sea swelled ahead of me. The map in the cockpit showed the Slingshot's position next to the AONS Accord Values and AONT China and Hong Kong twenty minutes' flying time away.

  Below me, the monster reached up from the water. On the ship's deck, crew were recovering. Some climbed into the few undamaged Slingshots, preparing to follow me. The remainder took up positions with rifles on the deck. Gupta and Yiu were standing. Gupta had the A19.

  Well, here you are, Burns, I told myself. Your career with the Accord Navy is over. The Accord wants you jailed and probably dead. The aliens are about to invade the planet and there is a monster in the sea reaching up to kill you--a monster that at other times is a beautiful woman.

  I might last another day, or no more than a minute. I might end up dead or imprisoned. But for the moment, I was free to act. I had control of a Navy aircraft, and I had a weapon stowed behind me, and I had glimpsed the truth.

  'Lieutenant Burns,' said the tower in my ear.

  'This is Lieutenant Burns,' I said.

  'Copy that, Lieutenant,' said the tower. 'Return your Slingshot to the deck and step down immediately, orders of Captain Bunyasarn, Captain Paine and Admiral Zhou. Acknowledge your understanding?'

  'Oh, I understand,' I said. 'It's taken me all my life, but I understand.'

  It was then that I told myself that I now had two enemies to fight, the aliens and the Accord.

  'Do you comply?' said the voice from the tower.

  'One step at a time,' I said.

  Then I pulled the red lever and fired the jets.

  Part 4: Excidium

  'WHERE THE RIGHTS of an individual conflict with those of the Accord, the rights of the Accord shall prevail.'

  Accord Of Nations Constitution

  46

  I WAS SOON a mile away from AONS Accord Values, flying low over the sea. For a whole minute, I had the wonderful sensation of flying alone, of freedom, of escape. Just me and my Slingshot. Clouds above. Sea below. No enemies. No Accord. No Accord values.

  Freedom.

  I savored every second of it, even though I knew it couldn't last. Within twenty minutes, I would be back in the thick of it, over the mountains and skyscrapers of Hong Kong. Then, I'd have to work out what to do next.

  Just as I predicted, the moment passed, and new troubles began.

  The Slingshot's radar displayed three objects approaching.

  They were all Slingshots, all from AONS Accord Values, all in pursuit. Each was as maneuverable and fast as the Gender Fluidity, each flown by trained pilots. They could chase, climb, dive, swerve, and fire guided missiles.

  I was a capable pilot. I'd trained right up to the level of aerobatics in Slingshots. I could roll, loop and fly upside down. I could do a Tail Slide, the maneuver where the aircraft falls backwards and then recovers.

  But would these moves matter against Navy pilots of Slingshots armed with guided missiles? The missiles were called A72s. Before the new regulation came in regarding offensive weapon names, they had been called Death Adders.

  The only silver lining to this cloud was that the other pilots had no actual combat experience. They'd never fired a shot in anger.

  I nudged the joystick. The Slingshot responded instantly. The merest caress sent it upward into the thick clouds, out of view. Within seconds, I was coursing along the cotton wool with the sun behind me in the east.

  The three pursuers would know exactly where I was on their screens, of course, just as I knew where they were, but the clouds at least provided visual cover of sorts.

  The speaker in the headset came on to remind me all was not well.

  'Lieutenant Burns, this is AONS Accord Values. You are ordered to descend to one thousand feet and return immediately. If not, the aircraft pursuing you will deploy their missiles.'

  'We've been over this,' I said.

  'Captain Paine has ordered me to convey to you that you will be treated fairly if you return.'

  'Define fair,' I said.

  No reply. Seconds later, the Slingshot's instrument panel came alive with sounds and images. First time I'd had heard the missile warning system. Strangely, it didn't sound like an alarm or a siren. The Navy knew not to use those any more. Sudden and shrill alarms startled pilots and stopped them concentrating.

  Instead, there was a softer alarm, a female voice, calm and encouraging. It spoke gently into my ear, and said, 'MF3,' which meant three missiles fired. The image on the screen confirmed it. Three missile icons appeared. They were displayed ahead of the each of the pursuing Slingshots.

  'IT15,' said the calm voice.

  IT15. Fifteen seconds to impact, which meant fifteen seconds before I would be bits of metal. Not much time when you think about it. But it did allow at least a small time to react. My first three seconds were spent on panic. The next four seconds were spent in anger.

  Not a good beginning.

  The final few seconds were spent contemplating an image from an old movie I'd seen about dog fighting jets from the PEA. The trick to winning a dog fight in those old planes was to get behind your enemy--behind where he was most vulnerable.

  'IT5,' said the woman's voice. Five seconds to impact. With the image of the dogfighting planes in my mind, I pulled back on the joystick. Not all the way, but three quarters, enough to climb the Slingshot into a loop.

  Then, I hung on.

  The Slingshot responded eagerly. It didn't so much as swoop upwards; it turned a vertical corner. The G-force was sharp and heavy. I hadn't buckled my harness, which caused no problem at first because I was shoved down firmer into my seat, but as the Slingshot climbed and looped, I slid out of the seat and up until, my head pressed against the canopy.

  The missile alert spoke to me. 'IT7,' it said, which meant I'd avoided the strike, which was a relief, but apparently the missiles had corrected and were back on the case.

  I pushed the joy stick forward and the nose leveled out. New missile icons appeared on the screen. Now the missiles were in front and below and two of them were coming directly at me.

  'IT2,' said the voice.

  I moved the joystick forward, plunging down, ducking under the missiles. I actually heard them fizz overhead, and I imagined them hitting the three pursuing jets, blowing them up.

  But that was cartoon thinking.

  As I descended, the clouds faded away and the sea rushed up. The white caps winked at me in the green. I pulled back on the joystick and leveled out about fifty feet.

  Then I looked at what lay ahead. Heavy rain. A storm raging. But also, the green mass of the southern side of Hong Kong Island.

  Almost there.

  I urged the Slingshot forward. The screen showed the missiles correcting their paths once more. The Slingshot's onboard warning voice said nothing. Probably it was calculating. The pursuing Slingshots were still on my tail.

  I stayed low and level, rocketing towards the Hong Kong coast. The sea beneath seemed dangerously close. One nudge of the joystick and I would cartwheel to my death along its surface.

  If I could just get to Hong Kong Island.

  The pursuing Slingshots must have seen what I was up to. More missile objects appeared on the screen. 'MF3,' said the missile alert voice. Three new missiles approaching. Then it added 'IT7.'

  Great. I thought. Just great. Six missiles were coming for me.

  Out in the real world, the coast of Hong Kong was coming closer. I could see the village of Stanley. Beyond it, the hill known as the Dragon's Back. Beyond that would be the skyscrapers and the famous harbor with its cluster of towers either side.

  'IT4,' said the voice.

  I fancied I could hear the missiles behind me, straining to touch my tail, straining to explode, to blow me to smithereens, as the phrase went.

  Then, the green bulk of the Dragon's Back raced at me. I saw houses nestled in the trees, a road along the coast, cars driving along it, and hiking trails. A pretty scene that would soon turn deadly. The missiles, gained on me from behind. The voice spoke. I didn't listen. I was wondering just how steep the Slingshot could actually climb.

  'Last chance, Lieutenant Burns,' said the controllers's voice from AON Accord Values. 'State your intention to return and the pilots will detonate the missiles.'

  'It's too late for that,' I said.

  When the first tree branch looked as if it would pierce the Slingshot's nose, I pulled on the joystick. The Slingshot climbed violently. The fuselage cracked. There was an awful clunk like a metal object had clogged the jets. I thought the engines might stall, but the Slingshot surged over the ridge of the Dragon's Back and out over the green forest of Hong Kong Island's high centre.

  Then I shot into the grey clouds, sliding back on my seat. This time, my head cracked on the canopy. But I kept on going up. If the missiles were going to hit, they could hit me way up high where I wouldn't explode near any civilians.

 

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