Eight Tails

I again looked into the cavernous hanger, now hearing a larger wind sound from below. I now understood why they had the railings everywhere, because what looked like a huge section of the airship had simply opened up, and below I could easily see the crashing ocean as a large twin tailed jet was slowly being raised into its position alongside one of the catwalks. There were surprisingly fewer people about, as the entire process seemed to be mostly handled by a woman in a small booth, who merely pulled levers repeatedly.

I couldn't help but notice the solid metal that secured the jet, all attached to what looked like a trapeze of some kind. The Air Brake on the back of the jet looked heavily reinforced, attached as it was to the item, along with a secondary hook that was attached between the nacelles of the twin engined fighter. The last sound of whining seemed to be dialing down from the plane, and the two variable wings were dutifully trundling back into place as the vehicle was lifted, making the whole vehicle look like a tight wedge of metal, with two distinct tails rising from it.

I of course, couldn't help but try to figure out the unit logo, and was totally baffled by the double tailed cat with cape and six shooter. I simply walked along the catwalk, noting that nobody seemed to be stopping me, or even paying me much attention. Near the cockpit of the newly docked aircraft, a long metal gangway extended, settling gently against the skin of the fighter.

Now, some people say they can tell who someone is, from behind and through a helmet. I can't but was really glad that Helen had prepared me for the shock of seeing Charlotte's face looking back over the lip of the cockpit after stowing the helmet she was wearing somewhere.

"Well, look who finally made it up here!" She laughed, looking into the rear seat and addressing a second person who was still working with her harness, it seemed.

"Damn it. I knew I should have spent my free time dusting crops." I remarked, looking around the rest of the large hanger, and noting that there were three other aircraft within the hanger, all of them attached to the same girder system, and seeming ready to go at a moment's notice.

"Oh, Ah'm sure one of tha gals will take you for a dance if ya want. Whaddya say, Beaker?" Charlotte leaned back in her seat and tossed the comment to the woman now pulling off her own helmet. I had no idea who she was, honestly, since I'd never seen the woman before, but she was pretty, I had to give her that. Had the look of somebody who'd been exercising a little to hard. She had definite helmet head, but for some reason, the dark blonde looked really good like that, combined with the dark black flight suit. I couldn't see much more of her from the angle I was at.

"Beaker?"

"Oh, don't ask. Seriously, don't ask." The woman from the back seat commented, rising up and extending her leg onto the metal walkway. Now that I had a better view of her, I could tell that Charlotte had a definite type. Assuming of course that they were sleeping together, and I found with Charlotte that was usually the best assumption to make.

"Ok, so... don't ask her." I tossed back, looking down as the large section of the airship began to close again beneath us.

"Huh? No I meant the nickname." Beaker replied quickly. "Charlie here loves giving them, but don't complain about it or she'll make it worse."

"That's right, I still haven't given him one..." Charlotte took the proffered hand of the other woman happily, and stepped onto the gantry after making a few more adjustments. "Hey Dipstick, what does he look like to you?"

"With that shirt? Elvis." Came the response from a nearby crewmember in a mechanics jumpsuit who took one look at me and carried on with attaching a large fuel line to the side of the fighter.

"There we go. That was easier than ah thought it would be." Charlotte shrugged. "Pretty sure we'll have you on the watch roster before dinner."

"I knew there was going to be a catch." I remarked sharply, enjoying the sight of Charlotte in a flight suit. It hugged her body in all the right places, and having another gal in exactly the same state right behind her didn't help matters much.

The two women walked along the narrow metal gangway, directly towards me. The woman I now knew as Beaker simply walked past, heading towards the exit from the hanger, while Charlotte stopped right next to me, and happily leaned on the railing. I was still admiring the plane a bit, and I have to admit it. It's not every day you get to stand next to a multi-million dollar fighter jet, and have a gorgeous woman giving you pointers on it.

"You lahk her? She's an antique, ya know. Probablah oldah than you are." Charlotte commented, noting my gaze.

"Ah, I like a woman with experience." I replied happily, and was delighted when Charlotte slung her arm over my shoulder and pulled me in tightly for a hug.

"See, I could get used to this. I go on a sortie, come home, and there's my guy Elvis waiting for me with a drink and a smile." Her lips found my cheek, and I slung my arm around her tightly.

"So, do I even want to know what you and Beaker were up to out there?" I asked.

"Unless you're a Neko, it's classified, sorry dahlin." Charlotte smiled, pulling me along the walkway towards the platform towards the end.

"Wait, Nekos? What's that?" I asked, trying to puzzle this out. Ok, throw everything that I think I know out the window. Seemed to be the absolute best thing to do at this point.

"Name of tha squad. Nekomata. Means... kinda like **** cat. It's complicated, but they wouldn't let me use tha one Ah had in mind."

"Ah, hence the Tomcats."