Chapter 3

Unfortunately, Transportation proved to be a bigger problem than Customs had been. Those there frowned at us when we arrived. Of course, we did make quite a procession. There were the two cages in the lead, each of which was pulled by a station tug. Then there were the four of us walking along with Bob. Finally, there was the nest. It was sitting on a wheeled flat and pulled by a third tug.

“There is a three hour wait for transportation to the surface,” we were told by the person-in-charge.

“Three hours?” the Colonel asked.

“All of the available shuttles have already been launched. There are several in maintenance, but they won’t be available for another three hours,” the explanation went.

“You can move to the waiting area, if you would like, but the tugs will need to return to work,” we were told next. This was not good news.

“The Eagles are already frantic,” the Colonel stated. “Additionally, Susie can’t leave her cage and the young there. We will need to remain here with our Partners,” she informed those in charge.

The tugs soon departed to return to work, and we all settled down to wait. The wire cover was removed from the nest so the Eagles would settle down. Luther drew food for them from the supplies in Bob’s cage and soon all four of the Eagles were eating. Bob and Susie had eaten before we left the ship, and basically, they and the kits just slept while we waited. Those in transportation ignored our presence and went about their usual duties.

Some three plus hours later, we were advised that two cargo shuttles were available, just before a tug arrived to move the cages and the nest to the shuttles. Susie’s cage and the nest were loaded on the first shuttle. The Colonel, Luther, Bob, and I rode that shuttle down. There weren’t any problems, as apparently a number of teams had ridden with their Partners after arriving here. Miranda went on the other shuttle with Bob’s cage.

On arriving at the spaceport an hour plus later, we were advised that the transportation for the cages and the nest had returned to the motor pool because of the long wait and would need to be summoned along with a vehicle for us. This was not good news either, and we were beginning to feel like poor relatives from the reception we had received. Was this the best that Special Operations could do on its Headquarters planet, we wondered?

Shortly, one of Colonel Royal’s main assistants arrived in a staff car.

“What happened to you? Why are all of you so late?” he asked the Colonel after saluting.

“There was a problem in Customs, and then there weren’t any shuttles available when we reached Transportation,” she told him.

“WHAT?” he asked in shocked surprise on hearing this. “Didn’t you receive word that you had already been cleared through Customs and that there were two shuttles waiting for you at the regular departure point and not at Transportation? The shuttles waited over two hours before being released back into service when you didn’t appear,” he told us.

“No, we never received any message like that. We were told to unload in the normal manner,” the Colonel told him. We could see the shock on his face when he heard this, before a look of resignation settled over him, and he exhaled heavily before shaking his head, back and forth.

“Colonel, I must apologize. I realize now how the error occurred. There was an individual who was entrusted with what should have been a simple message to deliver, and to ensure that you knew what to do. Obviously, that didn’t happen. Rest assured that individual will no longer be a part of this organization after today. He has screwed up for the final time,” the Major apologized before turning to the transportation people.

“Where are the vehicles to move these people?” he demanded.

“We already called the motor pool sir. They should be here shortly,” he was assured.

“I will remain with you until you are settled, as you also never received the directions to the temporary quarters you will be in initially,” he told us, before moving over away from us and taking out his communicator to make a call.

The vehicles soon arrived. There were two low-bed trailers and a passenger van. The nest was winched up on the first low-bed and then Susie’s cage. Bob’s cage with our equipment and luggage went on the second low-bed. Luther volunteered to ride on the low-bed with the Eagles and Susie. This left the rest of us to ride in the van, along with Bob, who had a place in the rear of the van. The drivers seemed to know where to go as no directions had been given.

On leaving the spaceport, we took the highway towards Special Operations Headquarters. It was a number of miles to the headquarters complex, but as we approached it, our driver turned off onto another road, and we soon approached a rather strange looking building with huge parking areas around it. The approach road to the building wound around it so that we saw three sides of the building before moving onto the parking area around it. On stopping, the driver sounded his horn before we exited the van.

The tractors with the low-bed trailers had pulled in with us, and I could see why the parking area around the building was so large ... it was to accommodate the loading and unloading of the trailers. In answer to the driver’s horn, a small tug soon appeared.

“Which cargo do you want to start with, Major?” the tug driver asked, apparently knowing the Major. He turned toward the Colonel.

“Start with Bob’s cage. That way we can move one of the trailers out quickly,” The Colonel told him. The tug driver dropped the wheels on Bob’s cage, hooked the tug to it and pulled it off the low-bed. The driver of the low-bed quickly left the area once unloaded.

“What floor are you on?” the driver of the tug asked next.

“They’re on the sixth floor,” the Major told him, and the driver started moving the cage toward the corner of the building.

“Where is he going?” I asked as Bob and I began to follow the tug and the cage. The Colonel, the Major, and Miranda were following me.

“This building is designed to hold a maximum of five returning teams, one on each floor. There is storage for your equipment, and a room with a shared bath for each of you on your assigned floor. There is also a kitchen and a general use area on each floor.

“Presently, the sixth floor is reserved for teams with Eagles. The lower floors are reserved for teams with Falcons and Hawks. As we get more action Teams with Eagles, the number of Falcon and Hawk Teams will be reduced, as the Eagles have proven to be more reliable. We will also be increasing the number of heavy Teams with Tigers as the light Teams retire their Partners. This again depends on the availability of Tigers as Partners, just as the Eagles do. Yours is actually the first Extra Heavy Team with two Tigers and two Eagles,” the Major told us. It was news to us, but we didn’t have time presently to evaluate the information.

On approaching the building, we had seen the aviary that surrounded a good part of it. It consisted of wire mesh on frames that started about twelve feet above the ground and went up to nearly the top of the fifth floor. It surrounded three quarters of the building, and projected out a good twenty feet from it. There were perches and ledges with small nests at various heights for each floor. It was, of course, closed at the top and bottom so the birds couldn’t escape.

“Are you going to enclose the Eagles?” the Colonel asked in a worried voice.

“No, that’s why we have the aviary. The Eagles will be free to fly over the entire area, but must return to their own nest which will be placed on the roof of the building,” the Major informed us. The tug parked Bob’s cage inside a fenced area with the gate of the cage facing inward.

“He’ll unload your equipment and baggage after getting the cages and the nest positioned,” we were further informed. Bob stayed near his cage while Susie’s cage with her and the kits were unloaded.

“You can take them out for exercise in the surrounding area, but they aren’t allowed to run free without supervision. None of the feline Partners are allowed to run free by themselves. They present too much of a danger to those not used to them, or who are not Enhanced,” the Major told us.

“There are people in Special Operations who aren’t Enhanced?” Miranda asked in a shocked voice.

“There are here on the Headquarters planet. There are many positions that don’t require people to be Enhanced. These people are just employees and are not in the military. They perform many of the mundane but necessary jobs to keep things running. Their children are often employed by us before their parents are ready to retire. Anyone not interested in working for us is moved to a planet of their choice, assuming they are accepted there,” he told us.

Susie’s cage was moved next and parked parallel to Bob’s cage with the gate facing his cage. Both Partners were hungry by now, and I dialed up food for them from the back of Bob’s cage. Susie especially needed to eat a lot to make milk for the three kits, who were getting bigger all the time. After eating, Bob went to sleep on the grass next to his cage, and we closed and locked the gate to the large area that they had to wander around in if they desired to.

“You will need to change the access code for the gate to one that only your Team will know, so strangers aren’t able to access your Partners,” the Major told us. I looked over at Miranda and alerted Luther back on the low-bed.

“Our usual Password?” I sent to both of them.

“Yes, it’s been good in the past,” Luther sent to me and Miranda who just smiled. I turned to look at the Colonel.

“I’ll fill you in on the password later, sir,” I told her.

“That’s fine, Cleve,” she answered before we all moved out after I had changed the password.

“Be sure to remove it when you leave here,” the Major reminded me. “It can be the very devil to go back and remove someone else’s password,” he told us.

“How do we get the nest up to the roof?” the Colonel asked, as we followed the tug back to the low-bed.

“There is an elevator,” the Major told us, much to our surprise.

“An elevator? That nest weights a ton or more,” the Colonel pointed out.

“It’s a very large, heavy duty elevator,” the Major informed us. Luther had stayed with the Eagles and the nest while we had seen to moving the cages.

“Do we need to cover the nest while moving it?” he asked. The nest hadn’t been covered while we moved here from the spaceport.

“No, I wouldn’t think so, as long as you can keep them calm on the move,” the Major told him. Luther looked relieved on hearing this.

“I’ll ride up with them also,” the Colonel volunteered.

“We’ll follow you if there is a regular elevator,” I assured her.

“The freight elevator is large enough for the nest, the tug, and all of you,” we were informed by the tug operator. Miranda and I held the large main doors of the building open while the tug pushed the nest inside, after the operator lowered the wheels of the flat that it rode on and pulled it off the low-bed trailer which quickly departed.

Just the appearance of the elevator doors was enough to convince us that it was huge. The nest was pushed inside before the tug disconnected from it and then parked beside it. The rest of us rode in front of them near the doors. The elevator wasn’t very fast, but the Colonel and Luther kept the Eagles quiet during the trip. The doors opened when we arrived on the roof. Even before the tug could back out of the elevator, Sara was airborne and checking out the area. She had just hopped out of the nest and onto the roof before taking off. Samson remained with the Eaglets.

“Damn, that bird is fast,” the tug driver said in amazement.

“She wants to decide where her nest is going,” the Colonel told him. We could see a number of perches and tree limbs at various locations on the roof. There were also at least three pads where nests could be parked.

“You have a preference where I park the nest?” the tug driver asked before moving it. The Colonel was silent for several minutes while she talked to Sara. Finally, Sara settled on a perch on what would be the east side of the building.

“Put it on the pad near where Sara is sitting,” the Colonel told the driver, who quickly moved the nest to the desired location, and then raised the wheels before returning the tug to the elevator.

Sara quickly returned to the nest once it was parked and the wheels retracted so it wouldn’t move. Samson took flight on her return to check out the area also.

“I’d better go down and get them some food from one of the cages,” Luther told us as Samson flew a wide circle around the building.