Thereal

They sat in the Eagle at the warehouse door, watching it raise itself into the wall above. They both wore the stiff harnesses and helmets that came with slide slip. A large explosion was heard not to far away as the door shook from the shock waves. Skip had insisted on doing the flying, while John held the controller that activated the guns. Both guns had been mounted on either side of the Eagle on the wing and against the body of the aircar. Sighting for firing them would have to be done visually. The aircar emblem in front had been raised, making for an odd sight, it being a small statue of a gold Eagle in flight

"Now when they are covered by that there eagle, Skip had said. "Squeeze that switch, but only if there're coming head on, otherwise you'll have to lead them when firing; it's called deflection shooting."

Slowly pulling out of the building, they headed down the narrow street to the busy fairway. Raising the car into the air, Skip turned left above the ground traffic and gradually picked up speed, staying about twenty feet above the crowded street below.

"Let's see if we can slip out of here quietly," whispered Skip.

No sooner had he spoken, when a building two blocks away exploded throwing its walls into the street below.

"Damn, just our luck," John said.

Skip pulled the Eagle over to the side and hovered against a building. The traffic below had come to a stop as people got out of their ground cars and stared at the destruction in front of them. The second explosion threw building debris in their direction, as now people began to panic in their effort to escape. An aircar took off from the direction of the explosions, reaching upward for safety. A bright blue beam of light sliced through it setting it into a spin downward, until it smashed into the pavement.

"HANG ON," yelled Skip.

The Eagle exploded forward, slamming them back against their forgiving harnesses. A Fed ship flew out from around a corner directly in front of them.

"Jesus," yelled Skip.

Missing a head on collision by what appeared as inches, Skip banked the car to the right turning down a side street, just missing the wall of one of the buildings. Punching the accelerator forward, John noted the speed gauge moving toward the 100-mph mark. The aircar turned on its side as Skip moved it closer to the buildings.

"What are you trying to do, land on the side of the buildings?" John asked.

Skip yanked back on the control stick, as the Eagle vibrated wildly, while trying to turn upward. A flash of blue light exploded next to John, leaving a hole in their right wing. The Eagle on its side then shot upward, making a left turn down another street, its wheels bouncing off the side of a building. The ship rotated to level, the buildings becoming a blur as they accelerated down the street.

"HOLD ON TO SOMETHIN," yelled Skip, as he pushed the stick to full reverse, slamming them forward. The engines screamed as the car fought its 120-mph forward speed. Then rotating the car on its axis, they ended up flying backwards. Skip pushing the throttle full forward, it felt as if the Eagle would destroy itself, as they came to a complete stop, hovering over the pavement below.

"The next move is yours John." Skip said.

The pursuing Fed ship instantly flew around the corner, heading straight for them. It was instinct rather than thinking it out, as John squeezed the switch. The roar from the guns was deafening as they watched the front of the pursuing ship disintegrate into small pieces followed by a blue ball of fire as it exploded in the air.

"Let's get the hell out of here," John said.

"Where to dead eye."

"Orlando?"

"Sounds good to me." Skip answered, smiling.

Pushing the throttle forward, the Eagle leapt forward flying through the smoke from the Fed wreckage.

"They will have to think a few moments about the lost of one of their ships, which I hope will give us a start. In some ways, computers are idiots. If men had controlled that ship, they would have gone high to spot us. Only a computer would follow on a direct line."

"As programmed," added John.

"Yep, it won't take them long to put three and three together though. We'll stay low as long as these buildings last."

"Ralph take us to maximum speed," said Skip.

They were instantly propelled forward at a speed that John had a hard time watching. The Eagle jerking itself around as the scanners guided their high-speed flight. Within seconds, the high buildings disappeared, replaced by miles of homes.

"We have got two suspicious blips on the screen," Skip said. "Ralph what are the two blips at 90S."

"Can't identify, their flying with deflectors."

"Fed ships, now what," asked John.

"What's their altitude and distance Ralph?" Skip asked.

"Sound likes they have gotten it together," John said.

"Ralph take us to Gainesville," ordered Skip, and get as much speed as you can out of this thing."

"Why Gainesville?" John asked.

"They will eventually catch up, their altitude is their advantage. All they have to do is compute the triangulation with their downward angle, which will give them a speed advantage. The last place you want to be is in the open with a ship closing from behind. If we try to increase our altitude, they will gain on us as we slow down."

"What we need is to be in an area like a city, where we can maneuver or hide behind something."

"Gainesville, how appropriate, the nations monument to the Great War. A city destroyed during the war and never to be rebuilt as a reminder of the horrors of war. Have you ever been there?" asked John.

"Ya, I took the tour like just about everyone else, didn't appreciate it much, too depressing. Had no desire to ever go back."

"Until now," added John.

"Ralph what's our T.O.A. on Gainesville," asked Skip.

"What's the position of the blips."

"Damn," said John.

"Don't be too surprised at anything," commented Skip. "They ain't dumb. After all they have been ruling the airspace all of our lives."

"I never quite thought of it that way."

"Ignore it," ordered Skip, there just trying to get a better fix on us."

"How can it matter now, they already know where we are," John said.

"I still think you