Page 65 - The Perpetrations of Captain Kaga

Settling the Strike on the Plateau

Captain Kaga was proud of his old classmate. The trouble they had
gotten into at the PKU Academy was by now fading into the past,
though Kaga’s career had not followed a smooth course since those
days. He always managed to wind up in messy situations (created, in
his opinion, by PKU bungling and dishonesty) and was forced to
extricate himself by unorthodox means. He was glad that Lugo was
not experiencing the same difficulties. He relaxed into the
acceleration couch as the g-force increased. A slight bump indicated
the ship’s arrival on the landing pad on the plateau.
Lieutenant Lugo did not know who his replacement would be; that
was evident in the surprise on his face when Kaga descended from
the Copernicus.
“Captain Kaga!” he shouted, as he ran across the blast-resistant
surface. “What luck! Are you really here to relieve me?”
“Yes, I am,” Kaga replied. “I’m delighted to see you, Lugo. I hear
this new base location is your brain-child.”
Lugo’s face fell. “That bright idea of mine has turned into a
disaster,” he said bitterly. “I’ve tried everything to remedy it, but to
no avail. There’s probably going to be a revolution here, and it’s all
my fault.”
“Your fault?” said Kaga, stopping dead.
“Yes, mine. But let’s go back to the base building and talk. The
Oolyakooans are airborne, you know, and if there’s any trouble we
don’t want to be caught out in the open.”
Mystified, Captain Kaga left his baggage on board the ship and
followed his friend on foot. “Why didn’t you bring the staff car out
here?” he asked. “We could have loaded all my gear and made one
trip.”
“Well,” said Lugo, taking large strides, “one of the things I found
out was that while walking is a means of locomotion considered
inferior to flying, sitting in a wheeled conveyance is even lower. So I
try not to look any worse than I have to.”
“Hmm,” said Captain Kaga, and cast a glance skyward. High above
them two or three Oolyakooans were slowly circling, their long limb-
to-limb airfoils rippling smoothly. Kaga suddenly felt very vulnerable;
some of Lugo’s anxiety was rubbing off on him already, he realized.
They both breathed easier after they reached the prefabricated
structure and entered the staff quarters.
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