Welcome to the End

Chapter 27: Casting a Net

The forest selected to be the location of the survivor's colony was a few miles from the orchard, so it took less than fifteen minutes for the ship to reach its new anchor point.

Kevin checked the fuel gauges on the bridge and was relieved they'd appropriated extra supplies from the Coral Blade clan as the ship was running on empty. They never would've made it this far without bolstering their stockpile.

As the engines powered down, Kevin looked out at the jungle where they would be going. The lush color of the trees faded off into a greenish-gray haze on the distant horizon. The sun was already descending in the west, and Kevin knew they had better hurry, or they would be forced to find their way around in the dark.

Doing a final check of the controls, Kevin left the bridge and climbed down the ladder to the main deck.

George still slumped against a cargo container, but the golden retriever had changed from sitting beside him to resting its head on George's lap. The priest slowly pet the animal, his actions mechanical.

"George?" Kevin called softly so as to not startle the priest or the dog. Both looked in Kevin's direction.

"We're going to need your help," Kevin informed him.

"I know," George said slowly. His voice was strained as if he'd been deprived of sleep for a week. "You need the helicopter to lay the initial cargo net for the base structure."

"No one else has the skills to fly it," Kevin pointed out. "I was hoping you did. If you can't, or don't want to, we can still get the equipment we need up there; it will simply be a longer and harder job."

Giving the dog a final pat on its head, George stood up.

"I can fly it, but I previously did a check on the helicopter," George stated. "Aviation fuel is different from the standard kind the ship uses, and the chopper is running low. We'll need to be quick and precise about what we're doing because it won't stay in the air long."

"Understood," Kevin accepted. "Once we drop the net over the trees, I'll descend from the chopper by a cable and tie off the net to the trees to keep it stable."

"What about the inflatable life rafts collected from the military base?" George asked.

"Once the net is secured, you can drop them into it," Kevin stated. "We just need to make sure the cargo net can take the weight without slipping."

"If you'll open the hull doors, I'll start warming up the helicopter," George suggested.

"Will do," Kevin consented.

As George vanished through a side hatch and went down to the lower level, Kevin walked over to the helipad and turned the key to power up the control panel on a stand beside it. Pressing the illuminated green button, he activated the doors.

Built into the forward deck, the large doors were virtually invisible until they began to open. Lifting into the air, the huge sections of reinforced metal raised into vertical positions and cleared the way for the lift system in the hold below deck.

The lift system resembled a three pronged fork lift. Two of the metal forks were under the main body of the silver and blue helicopter, and the third supported the tail. The lift raised the aircraft out of its protected hold and extended out over the helipad before setting it gently in place. Retracting the forks, the lift withdrew into the hold once more, the doors closing down on top of it.

George, having made good time to the lower level, had managed to get into the helicopter before its reposition to the helipad on the forward deck. He currently sat in the cockpit, going over his preflight checklist.