SLINGSHOT, page 1
part #1 of The Starchild Saga Series
SLINGSHOT TITLE PAGE
Slingshot
Building the Largest Machine in Human History
Copyright © 2023
by Robert G. Williscroft
All rights reserved
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Edition 4.0 2023
Cover design by Gary McCluskey
Illustrations by Robert G. Williscroft
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Cataloging-in-Publication Recommendations:
SCI098020 SCIENCE / Space Science / Space Exploration
FIC028130 FICTION / Science Fiction / Space Exploration
FIC027130 FICTION / Romance / Science Fiction
Library of Congress Control Number: 2023911575
ISBN-13: 978-1-958922-28-6 Paperback
ISBN-13: 978-1-958922-29-3 Hardcover
ISBN-13: 978-1-958922-30-9 Ebook
FRONT MATERIAL MOVED TO BACK OF SLINGSHOT
To facilitate your reading this ebook, the following elements have been placed at the back of the book. Click on the links to see them. Click the title on the arrival page to bring you back here.
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Foreword to the 1st edition
Foreword to the 2nd edition
Foreword to the 3rd edition
Foreword to the 4th full-color edition
Cast of Characters
Praise for Slingshot
To skip the Table of Contents, click here to go right to the beginning of the story.
TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR—SLINGSHOT
Title Page—Slingshot
Table of Contents
Front Material Moved to the Back of Slingshot
Prologue
IMAGE 1—Amelia Earhart in the cockpit of her Lockheed Electra
Lockheed Electra—Above the Western Equatorial Pacific
Part One—He shall have dominion over the fish in the sea…
IMAGE 2—The Slingshot Space Launch Loop
Chapter One
Equatorial Pacific—Southeast of Baker Island
Chapter Two
IMAGE 3—Diagram of the Western Complex
Western complex—300 km west of Baker Island
Chapter Three
IMAGE 4—Baker Island
Baker Island—Margo Jackson’s Quarters
Baker Island—Airstrip
Chapter Four
Airborne to western complex
Western complex—300 km west of Baker Island
Chapter Five
Eastern Complex—Circular Deflector
Chapter Six
Underway between Baker and Jarvis Islands
Buoy 1528
On the surface at Buoy 1528
Chapter Seven
Submerged on gills at Buoy 1528
Surfaced at buoy 1528
Airborne to Jarvis Island
Chapter Eight
IMAGE 5—Jarvis Island
Surface at buoy 1528
Aboard Green Avenger underway for Jarvis Island
Jarvis Island recompression complex
IMAGE 6—Diagram of the Eastern Complex
Eastern Complex 300 km east of Jarvis Island
IMAGE 7—Cutaway of the tube
Jarvis Island recompression complex
Chapter Nine
Airborne above the Eastern Complex
Jarvis Island recompression complex
Chapter Ten
Eastern Complex 300 km east of Jarvis Island
Jarvis Island Compound
Jarvis Island wharf
Chapter Eleven
Jarvis Island Compound
Jarvis Island tarmac
Jarvis Island Compound
Jarvis Island—Southern beach
Chapter Twelve
Jarvis Island Compound
Eastern Complex
Jarvis Island
Jarvis Island—Southern Beach
IMAGE 8—Wreck of the Barquentine Amaranth
Chapter Thirteen
Seattle—Smith Tower
Jarvis Island Compound
Seattle—Smith Tower
Jersey City—New Jersey
Chapter Fourteen
Jersey City—New Jersey
Seattle—Smith Tower
American Samoa—South Pacific
Seattle—Smith Tower
Baker Island—Margo’s quarters
American Samoa—South Pacific
Baker Island—Margo’s quarters
Part Two—…and over the birds of the air...
IMAGE 9—Amelia Earhart Skyport Illustration
Chapter Fifteen
Equatorial Pacific—Aboard Aku Aku south of Western Complex
Equatorial Pacific—Submerged aboard Alvin
Baker Island—Operations Compound
Chapter Sixteen
Equatorial Pacific—Submerged aboard Wampus
Equatorial Pacific—Submerged aboard Alvin
Equatorial Pacific—Aboard Aku Aku
Equatorial Pacific—Overboard south of Western Complex
Equatorial Pacific—Aboard Skimmer One
Chapter Seventeen
Equatorial Pacific—Submerged aboard Wampus
Equatorial Pacific—At W-1 and W-3
Equatorial Pacific—At W-1
Chapter Eighteen
Baker Island—Operations Compound
Seattle—Smith Tower
American Samoa—Pago Pago
Baker Island—Operations Compound
Western Complex—Control Center
Seattle—Smith Tower
Baker Island—Operations Compound
Chapter Nineteen
Seattle—Smith Tower
Howland and Baker Islands
Baker Island—Operations Compound
Chapter Twenty
Baker Island—Operations Compound
Amelia Earhart Skyport
Chapter Twenty-one
Baker Island—Socket Compound
Amelia Earhart Skyport
Baker Island—Baker Socket
Howland Island—Operations Center
Amelia Earhart Skyport
Baker Island—Baker Socket
Chapter Twenty-two
Amelia Earhart Skyport
Baker Island—Baker Compound
Amelia Earhart Skyport
Baker Island—Baker Compound
Chapter Twenty-three
Baker Island—Baker Compound Workshop
Amelia Earhart Skyport
Chapter Twenty-four
Baker Island—Baker Socket
Amelia Earhart Skyport
Baker Island—Baker Socket
Baker Island—Meyerton Landing
Baker Island—Aboard Skimmer One
Amelia Earhart Skyport
Baker Island—Baker Socket
Aboard Skimmer One between Baker and Howland Islands
Chapter Twenty-five
Amelia Earhart Skyport
Baker Island—Baker Socket
Aboard Skimmer One between Baker and Howland Islands
Baker Island—Baker Compound
Baker Island—Eastern beach
Baker Island—Baker Compound
Chapter Twenty-six
Seattle—Smith Tower
Pyongyang—DPRK (North Korea)
Seattle—Airborne to Boeing Field
Baker Island
Chapter Twenty-seven
Seattle—Smith Tower
Baker Island—Baker Compound
Jarvis Island—Jarvis Compound
Chapter Twenty-eight
Fred Noonan Skyport
Jarvis Island—Jarvis Compound
Fred Noonan Skyport
Chapter Twenty-nine
Seattle—Smith Tower
Jarvis Island—Jarvis Compound
Baker Island—Baker Compound
Jarvis Island—Jarvis Socket
American Samoa—Pago Pago
Baker Island—Operations Center
Amelia Earheart Skyport
Chapter Thirty
Seattle—Smith Tower
Honolulu—Airport Marriott
Baker Island
Baker Island—Control Center
Amelia Earhart Skyport
Chapter Thirty-one
Baker Island—Control Center
Baker Island—Underway on Skimmer Three
Baker Island—Control Center
Chapter Thirty-two
Seattle—Downtown
Seattle—Smith Tower
Baker Island
Amelia Earhart Skyport
Pyongyang—DPRK (North Korea)
Afterword
Near Baker Island—Submerged on Wampus
Near Baker Island—Aboard RV Amelia E
Amelia Earhart Skyport
Hyperchess Rules
Post a review
About the Author
Other books by Robert G. Williscroft
Connect with Robert G. Williscroft
Material moved from front of book
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Foreword to the 1st Edition
Foreword to the 2nd Edition
Foreword to the 3rd Edition
Foreword to the 4th Full-color Edition
Cast of Characters
Praise for Slingshot
Slingshot Glossary
Book Brochures
The Daedalus Files
Operation Ivy Bells
Operation Ice Breaker
Operation Arctic Sting
Operation White Out
Icicle
The Oort Federation
Submarine-er
SLINGSHOT
PROLOGUE
IMAGE 1—Amelia Earhart in the cockpit of her Lockheed Electra
LOCKHEED ELECTRA—ABOVE THE WESTERN EQUATORIAL PACIFIC
“I
‘m tired, Fred. How much farther to Howland?”
She peered out through the Lockheed windscreen at the endless expanse of Pacific Ocean in front of her.
“Three hundred miles, Doll, just three hundred miles more on this leg. How’re you doing up there?”
The lanky, soft-spoken man looked over his left shoulder at the dungaree-clad woman grasping the control wheel in front of her. In response, she rubbed her hand across her forehead and squinted into the reflected glare from the ocean surface far below. She glanced at her watch and then at the array of instruments in front of her.
“Hundred fifty knots, Fred. How do you make the fuel?”
Fred manipulated the circular dials of his navigator’s slide rule.
“Fine, Girl. We got more than enough.”
He twisted around and peered into the periscopic sextant mounted in the cabin overhead. After jotting down a few numbers, he noted the time and checked a volume on the small table jutting out from the bulkhead in front of him. Then he turned, scowling, and took a second sighting of the sinking sun behind them. A few moments later, he laid aside his reference book and said, “Drop down a thousand feet, will you? We seem to be bucking a pretty strong headwind up here.”
The silver bird dipped its nose in response. The altimeter needle spun until it pointed to 11,000 feet. With her right hand, the pilot picked up a pair of binoculars and scanned the horizon in front of her. Fred took another sight on the sun and plotted his results. She turned around and looked at him expectantly.
“We’re goin’ the right way, Doll. But these running fixes—you know the assumptions you have to make...drop another thousand feet, will you please?”
Blood red water astern swallowed the sinking sun as inky blackness spread across the sky before them. She had planned it this way, one last evening star fix to establish more accurately their position before setting a final vector for Howland Island just a few miles north and east of where Equator and International Date Line cross.
July 2, 1937, was drawing to a close; but it would start all over again as soon as she crossed the 180th meridian. Outside, twilight quickly deepened to tropical night. A million stars twinkled to her left and overhead in patterns long familiar, while she had to will the bright points off to her right into recognizable patterns.
“Amelia, Doll,” Fred turned to look at the pretty pilot wearing a leather skullcap, flaps dangling near her chin. “We got a problem, Girl.”
She looked at him with a steady gaze, saying nothing.
“That headwind,” Fred paused to push a pencil back to the center of his table. “It was a good deal stronger than we estimated. There’s still a lot of water ahead of us, Doll, a lot.”
She raised an eyebrow.
“Marginal,” he said. “The fuel’s marginal.”
She pursed her lips and scanned the horizon once again in the growing darkness.
“You won’t find it,” he sighed. “It’s still four hundred fifty damn miles out there.”
On they flew into the darkness—one hour, two hours. On Fred’s chart, their plotline crept closer to a dot labeled Howland Island, but that was countered by the fuel gauge needle creeping toward empty.
Fred took another sighting. This time his fix seemed a bit farther from the last than it had from the preceding one. He turned and said into the darkness, “I think we picked up a westerly. Looks like our luck is holding.” Then he scanned the horizon before them through his binoculars. “But no sign of the Itasca,” he said and began fiddling with his transmitter dial.
“KHAQQ calling Itasca. We must be on you but cannot see you…gas is low….”
Static was the only response.
“Damn fool instrument!” Fred snarled as he tried to zero into the homing signal he knew was being transmitted by the Coast Guard cutter. “I guess we should have brought that new-fangled high-frequency receiver after all. It really didn’t weigh that much.” He grinned at Amelia’s silhouette. “Good thing for the westerly, Girl. We need a kick in the rear!”
“A westerly,” the woman’s voice echoed from the pilot’s seat. In her mind, she could see the warning printed near the chart margin: NOTE 3—Surface winds to 10,000 feet generally easterly in this area. Westerly winds usually signal bad weather.
She glanced at the altimeter; it read 10,000 feet.
Might as well take advantage of the wind, she thought, as she pushed the control stick forward and brought the aircraft down to 6,000 feet. Around them, stars disappeared as they dropped through a cloud deck. The aircraft shuddered as a gust of wind hit it. Amelia’s arms tensed as she fought to keep the plane on course. Rain streaked the windscreen, illuminated by the cockpit’s dull red glow. Outside was like a coal sack. She glued her eyes to the artificial horizon bobbing in front of her.
“Do you think this is wise?” Fred spoke matter-of-factly.
“We’ve got to make up some miles,” she responded, a slight edge creeping into her voice as a strong gust buffeted the aircraft. “We’ve seen worse, Fred.
“Hang tight!” she said sharply, as the plane dropped suddenly in a vast air pocket. She poured on power, pulling back on the stick as the altimeter needle spun dizzyingly. Fred held his breath, hypnotized by the spinning dial. He sensed, rather than saw, the struggling woman beside him. As the needle slowed down, he let out his breath with a sigh.
“Some turbulence!”
She wasted no time answering him. Instead, she used precious fuel, bringing the aircraft back to a safer altitude. At 6,000 feet, she leveled off. “How much further, Fred?”
“Hundred fifty, two hundred miles. It’s hard to tell with this wind and no stars to sight.”
The cockpit lighted up brilliantly. A second flash illuminated a gigantic thunderhead towering in front of them.
“Better avoid that one,” Fred advised.
The artificial horizon tilted right. Noonan’s pencil rolled off his desk as the aircraft banked left. Again, the clouds lit up. From the picture frozen in his mind, Fred could see they were flying through a clear valley between two massive thunderheads.
Suddenly, the whole sky flashed around them; the plane jerked hard enough to clear Fred’s desk. Swerving out of its left turn, the aircraft banked sharply to the right, almost standing on its wing. Inside, Amelia struggled desperately to regain control. She flicked her eyes across the gauges in front of her, already knowing what she would find.
“We’ve lost the right engine, Fred!” She glanced over her right shoulder, eyes big and round. “More than that,” she added through clenched teeth. “I think the wing is damaged as well.” She fought to keep the control stick from pulling forward out of her grip. “Strap in, Fred. This is going to be rough!”
As he struggled with his straps, another brilliant flash filled the sky. Once again, the whole plane shook, but when the flash was gone, the right wing continued to flicker.
“I have to ditch her!” Amelia’s voice sounded shrill in the noise around them; it contained a hint of fear. Fred reached out and gripped her shoulder. She turned and saw his grin in the reflected glow of the instrument panel, highlighted by the flickering from outside.
“You’re the best, Doll!” He winked. “Dinner’s on me as soon as we hit Honolulu.”
The damaged wing prevented her from leveling off. The best she could do was to keep the plane’s spiral from becoming too steep. The altimeter blurred. They both began to hear the sound of driving rain against the aircraft skin; the flickering on their damaged right wing disappeared. Again, the sky flashed. Frozen before them, tumultuous waves stretched several hundred feet below. Amelia Earhart pulled back mightily on her control stick, trying to bring the nose up. She wrenched the wheel to her left, jammed her left foot forward.
