Chapter 49

"So where do we go from here?" I asked my three compatriots sitting on the patio with me.

The food Antonia had made for breakfast sat mostly untouched, none of us had an appetite having been up for most of the night inspecting and re-inspecting the weapons. After sorting and inspecting we decided we had five weapons operated using electricity or some type of energy. The last two weapons had firing pins meaning they were similar to current rifles and pistols; we simply lacked the ammunition for them.

The energy weapons were not any better since none of them held a charge. We joked during the night that no one built anything that lasted since they had been here for twenty-five hundred years and nothing maintained their power. While we were evaluating the magazines, Thor suggested the idea that I could possibly charge them myself. His idea was as good as I managed to put a small amount of energy in the weapon but what I could do was short of the amount needed to work the pistol. I tried the other magazines but the results were the same with a small charge in each weapon but not enough to make them work.

Handling one of the pistols, Thor was the first to answer, saying, "If I get a vote I say we stay right here with the people we have. No one knows what is here and I say we keep it that way. You have good people who are loyal to you and have given you no reason to distrust them."

Taking one of the other pistols, Sven followed, offering, "I agree with Thor but I also disagree, if it comes time for us to leave here then we will probably need to leave in a hurry so having some place to go ahead of time is a good idea. Of the countries you visited and in light of recent United Nations elections and votes, I would say the country to most likely protect us and give the finger to the world right now is Israel."

Holding up the pistol in his hands, he added, "Considering the arms embargo they are currently facing, I think we could negotiate very positive terms for the types of assistance we might need."

"What if there is another war?" Antonia asked.

"Unless we are directly affected or attacked we stay out of any conflict," I answered.

"What if they ask you to participate like you did two years ago?" Antonia was not backing off.

"Like I said, my plan would be to stay out of any conflict unless there is no other choice then I would look at the situation and then judge what I might do. Before then there is a lot that needs to be done as there is no agreement at this time. Personally though if there was a need I would not be averse to helping out, I consider them my friends and have come through for me even when they were not asked to help. That is all I have to say on the matter," I finished.

Antonia was not really thrilled with my answer and the four of us talked for a long time before exhaustion took over and after putting the weapons away we called a break to get some more sleep before we all agreed to another trip into the ship.

By the time we regrouped I had made my phone call to Israel, being put through as soon as I identified myself. We talked about inconsequential things for several minutes before there was a few seconds of awkward silence before the Prime Minister asked, "I assume you are calling to inform me that due to the forthcoming embargoes against Israel, you will be unable to continue with your various endeavors."

I could hear the tiredness and defeat in her voice as she had probably heard the same phase, "I'm sorry but we can no longer do business in Israel at this time," from company after company. Now I was just the latest to add on to all the rest.

Before she could hang up on me, I offered, "I did call about the embargoes you are facing but not for the reasons they are on your mind right now. In fact the reason for my call is exactly the opposite as I am looking for a certain piece of real estate in your national inventory and I am willing to pay a premium for it."

"I'm confused; you wish to initiate a major real estate purchase right as the United Nations is placing sanctions against Israel?"

"I know this this might sound crazy, but I have my reasons, the first being I do not have many friends and I have never deserted one and I never will. The second reason is as I stated, you have some real estate that is perfect for me. Finally the embargo works both ways, while I occupy the area I need, I want and need Israel to fly the bird to the rest of the world for as long as possible."

"Why would I give the world the finger, I understand why you would do such a thing and were it just for myself I would gladly do as you ask. Unfortunately I cannot do such a thing because of our need for their supplies to keep our less savory neighbors at bay."

"What I have to show you will possibly eliminate the need for Israel to bow and scrape to any one for ammunition just to protect your country."

"Your promise sounds nice but I would need more than just your word. As it is I remember shipping half the ammunition we found and even with the other half it is still nowhere near our needs if we are abandoned by the world."

"I have an answer to that problem but I cannot say over an open phone line as I am sure others are listening who I am sure neither one of us want involved in what I have. So I am suggesting a visit so we could come to an understanding."

"A visit is always welcome, when can I expect to see you so I can set some time aside?" the Prime Minister asked.

I laughed, saying, "Prime Minister, for this there is no way for me to visit Israel. For this I am asking for you to come here and have dinner with Antonia and myself."

"With everything happening right now leaving the country would be frowned upon."

"Under normal circumstances I would agree as I will always enjoy another visit to your country. For this favor my visiting Israel is not possible. As an idea I suggest a small jet to arrive tomorrow evening then we can have a nice dinner before I show you the reason why I would ask you to give the world the finger."

"Okay, I will make arrangements to arrive tomorrow evening. Then your wife can fix dinner then you can show me why I should consider further isolating my country at this time. Because this will involve more people than just me, may I bring a couple of advisers with me?"

Seeing no reason not to allow her a couple of advisers, I agreed saying, "Bring who you need but in that group I would suggest bringing a military adviser who enjoys science fiction stories."

Mrs. Safir did not ask why I asked for people well versed in Science fiction, what she did ask was what land I was wanting. Taking a risk I stated I wanted the unfinished naval base that was being built out in the ocean off the coast near Tel Aviv. The silence was deafening as she did not know how to respond to such a request and if someone had asked me, I am pretty sure I would say the same thing trying to wrap my mind around such a request. Our conversation ended shortly after that and I was glad as I did not want to give out too much even with the phones we had as I was sure others could listen in if they were determined to do so.

Our exploration of the ship that night was just as exciting as the day before as we spent more time searching rooms and compartments we had missed the day due to the small flashlights we carried. Today lighting was not a problem as compartments were revealed as we carried larger lights that revealed many details we had missed before such as the compartment with twelve metal and glass tubes aligned in two rows.

The tubes looked like what might have come from a science fiction movie with nine of them opened at the far end while the closest three to the door contained mummified bodies. Unlike the skeletal remains we had found on the ship and various points in the facility, these were complete humanoids with skin, muscle, hair, plus everything else needed to tell the difference between men and women. We could see other differences but in the light we carried certain parts looked wrong so we left them for when we could study them better.

Searching the room, each chamber had a closest nearby with clothes inside for the individuals in the chambers. In the closest belonging to the male mummy in addition to the clothes we found what we had been searching for, a set of keys. With the discovery of the keys, Thor was the first up the stairs to the locker we could not get into. Joining him upstairs we all had a good laugh because although he did find the correct key there was still no power in the ship so the door to the locker had to be hand cranked which took him long enough for the rest of us to join him, only he was the only one sweaty from the exertion.

Stepping inside the locker we found dozens if not hundreds of magazines for all the weapons, the energy weapon magazines were all discharged with at least twenty set into some sort of charging station along the wall. The chargers were simple enough with what looked like a plug as well as a catch to remove them from their wall mounts. Along the other wall were yet more chargers and these held the magazines with the smaller slugs. Finally there were cases of ammunition for the remaining weapons all with markings none of us understood. Not understanding the markings did nothing to stop us from removing a number of items from the lockers as well as the rest of the ship so that we could study them in the light of day or at least the light we inside the house which was better than what we had down here.

Working with the chargers we were able to get one of the magazines to hold a charge faster than I could. The problem was the energy draw needed as the charger could take everything I could give while still needing more. With some experimenting we managed to connect one of the chargers to the batteries on the island only to find ourselves working from the backup generator with the charger draining the batteries followed by leaving the rest of the island in a perpetual brownout once the backup generator came on line. Thankfully placing a second magazine in the dual charger did not make things worse. The three of us stayed up well past midnight experimenting with the other chargers. By the time I decided to go to bed we had two more hooked up though we could not start charging power drain was too much for the generator.

The following morning Thor and Sven were still in the shop where we had set up the chargers with both men asleep in chairs, on the bench next to the chargers were the magazines we had brought up all organized by type with the last of them in the chargers, all of them were showing that they were charged. How many shots we would get out of a charge we had no idea but once I was there Thor and Sven were ready to go out to test how many shots each magazine was worth. With the Prime Minster arriving that afternoon, Thor and Sven were both in favor of going out and testing the weapons.

Being more than a little interested myself, we packed the magazines as well as two copies of each weapon and headed out to the range. The range was more of a desire to have one than actually having a range as there were no distance markers or set firing lines. The two things the range had was a pile of dirt Sven and Thor were calling a berm but that was being generous plus a few tables brought out to keep the weapons out of the dirt.

Setting our gear on the table the first weapons were the rifles with the crystal embedded in the barrels. Inserting the magazine our learning curve started anew as the magazine did not start to charge the rifle automatically requiring some fiddling around until we found the correct button that in turn gave a satisfying sound of something being charged with a small whine coming from the rifle. Having no idea what was going to happen with the rifle, all three of us retreated a safe distance until we could no longer hear the sound of the weapon charging. Inspecting the weapon afterwards we discovered other lights on the weapon we had missed before but also the magazine was half empty already.

Not letting that stop him, Thor was first up having won a toss of a coin with Sven on who got to fire the rifle first. Asking why I was not included in their coin toss to go first, Sven stated with a smile, I was excluded because it would not be right if there was a problem with the weapon and their boss got hurt. Neither man could keep a straight face for more than a second before both of them started laughing.

Funny or not, Thor was not going to give up the weapon and with Sven and I standing on the other side of the table, he turned, putting the weapon up to his shoulder and fired at part of the pile of debris drug here to be used for target practice. Personally I was expecting a burst of light and maybe a sound similar to what was in the movies. What we got was nothing more than a small puff of smoke from the end of the board. Looking at the end of the board when we walked up to where he had fired, there was now a hole burned through the wood; no sound no light just a hole the size of a quarter. Not bothering to back up Thor fired several more time and not just at the wood, choosing to hit a couple pieces of metal which burned through the thinner pieces and scorched the thicker ones leaving the area hot enough to burn skin when we touched it afterwards. By the time the magazine was empty, Thor had fired more than a hundred times from only a half empty magazine.

The pistols were just as effective at close range though his first magazines only held ten shots before there was a warning beep. His second magazine held close to thirty shots before it too was depleted. Sven and Thor both reported that there was no recoil and other than a short sharp sound both weapons were silent.

Being engrossed describing the various aspects of their weapons, I got my chance picking up the slug thrower that used a battery. Seating the magazine there were no sounds to give the rifle away that it was being powered up. Stepping up next to Thor and Sven I shouldered the weapon pointed it at the debris and pulled the trigger. First up was the fact there was no recoil from the weapon though there was a satisfying crack as the weapon fired followed by the impact casting up a small geyser of dirt from my shot missing the debris. My next four shots did the same as I tried to get the sights on target with very limited luck. My fifth shot hit the board as well as the next five shots. Adjusting the settings I discovered the rifle had a burst feature firing ten round bursts with zero recoil making subsequent shots very accurate. Moving the selector again put the rifle on full automatic fire, putting the rifle to my shoulder and pulling the trigger had the magazine empty in a matter of seconds and again no recoil. The barrel I used as my target was no more as the slugs had torn the front side to pieces with the backside just gone.

By the time we were finished we had fired off all the laser magazines as those we could recharge. The rifle we limited ourselves to one magazine each because in the locker we had only found thirty loaded magazines all without their battery charge. Now we were down to twenty-seven loaded magazines and I was already planning on using up to five more as my demonstration with the Prime Minister; ammo was going to be in short supply before we could do some type of resupply.

Heading back to the shop to put everything away until the Prime Minister arrived, we had another discovery with the rifle's magazine indicator light; when it showed empty or what we guessed empty it still held a charge large enough to fire several more shots. We found that fact out with the golf cart taking more than just a short burst but had an actual beam cut one of the roof supports clean through, thankfully I was not the one holding the rifle at the time as Sven was more than slightly embarrassed being the one holding the rifle at the time. After the accident all of us were a lot more careful and the day leading up to the PM arriving passed without incident.