The remaining Japs had time to recover partially2 from the sudden shock, but when the “grim reapers” came roaring back, the Zeros were again swept by a whirlwind of fire.
One wise little brown boy in goggles3, who had climbed high, came swooping4 down on the tail of a plane, but its gunner took care of him with neatness and dispatch.
With their number cut in half, the Zeros faded away.
116
But here were the U. S. bombers6 and torpedo7 planes. They were coming in fast. It was time now to join the covering screen escorting the big boys to their target, and Kentucky wheeled his four-plane formation about to shoot away and join their comrades.
The bombers had been shown maps and photographs of the island they were to attack. “This,” their Commander had said, pointing at a map, “is the air field, quite a distance from the beach. You will go after that first, destroying all planes on the ground. Then you will attack their headquarters here, and their fortified8 positions there.
“I need not tell you,” he had said, addressing all his men—pilots, fighters, bombardiers, torpedo men—“that the life of many a Marine9 depends upon the manner in which you perform your task. I know that to a man we can count on you.”
There had been a low murmur10 in response.
“I might say,” the Commander had added, “that this island is to be a steppingstone to Mindanao.”
“Oh! Mindanao! Mindanao!” had come in a chorus.
“Yes, Mindanao, only a few hundred miles away, in the Philippines,” he went on. “And with this island in our possession we shall be able to soften11 up Mindanao for the final attack.”
117
“Mindanao,” Kentucky thought now as he gripped the controls. “They say the Japs have a prison camp there, where our men are starving and dying. We’ll walk in there some day and take that big island. We’ll free the prisoners. What a day that will be! Then it’s Manila, and after that the China coast. Boy! Will we harvest a sweet revenge for the things those Japs have done to the American prisoners!” He studied his instruments, looked to the loading of his guns, glanced back at his formation, then, drawing a long breath, murmured:
“Well, Tojo, here we come!”
The dive bombers climbed to twelve thousand feet. Kentucky and his fighters kept straight on. As they neared the island he spoke12 a few words of instruction through his mike to his three companions. Words came back to him. Then, opening his throttle13 wide, he set his motor roaring. Coming in fast and low, they took the Japs by surprise. Scores of little brown men were racing14 for the airfield15 when they came in, nearly grazing the palm trees. Some thirty planes were still on the field.
Breaking formation, the “four horsemen” zoomed16 in upon the planes and the racing pilots. With machine-gun fire they sent the Japs scurrying17 for shelter. Then with tracer bullets they riddled18 the grounded planes.
118
Leaving the field in flames, they swung skyward to rejoin the screen of fighters, bombers, and torpedo planes.
Ten minutes more and the air was filled with the rattle19 of machine-gun fire and the island became an inferno20 of bursting bombs.
The torpedo planes discovered three cargo21 ships and two destroyers in the small harbor and, coming in low, released their “tin fish.”
Bursting torpedoes22 added their horror to the general confusion of sound. A ship exploded, another keeled over and sank, and a third was run aground. Jap destroyers streaked23 away, but even their top speed was no match for Kentucky and his followers24.
“After them, fellows!” he shouted. “Remember Pearl Harbor!”
Skimming in over the sea, they peppered the deck of a destroyer with slugs until not a man was left standing26 on deck. Lowering their aim, they began to puncture27 the destroyer’s thin hull28.
A film of oil appeared on the water. “Give it to her!” Kentucky shouted into his phone. “We’ve struck oil. Let’s make it a gusher29!”
Just then a dive bomber5 came screaming down to lay its egg squarely on the destroyer’s deck.
“That got her!” Kentucky exulted30, as the craft exploded. “Come on now. Gas is low. Let’s beat it back home for chow.”
119
It was such a day as a flier would never forget.
As they sped away, Marines from barges31 and small boats were swarming32 ashore33. The stepping stone to Mindanao was now all but won.
“Jeepers!” Kentucky exclaimed into his mike. “I wish Jack34 and Stew—yes, and Ted25 too—could have been in on this. Wonder where Ted is right now? We’ll have to take a look.”
Ted was not faring badly. The balmy breezes had dried out his clothes, and dawn had come, but there was no sign of their task force.
“Gone in for the kill and then the landing,” he thought. “And I’m out of it. Worse luck!”
“But then,” he reflected. “Things might be worse.” He had done his bit. He had helped block the attack of those enemy torpedo bombers, and he had shot down two of them—he was quite sure of that.
He munched35 a chocolate bar for a time. Then he examined the fishline packed in his emergency kit36. “Think I’ll try it out,” he murmured. Taking a strip of pork rind from a small bottle, he fastened it on his hook. Then, paying out the line little by little, he watched the white spot as it sank.
120
“Yes, there are fish!” He became greatly excited as three big blue fellows came cruising in. One of them made a dive for the bait, but changed his mind and shot away.
Ted lifted the line a yard, causing the white spot to shoot upward. A second fish made a dive for it, but before he made contact the first one circled back like a plane aiming at a target, and grabbed the lure37.
“Got you!” Ted breathed, giving the line a quick jerk.
He had hooked him, but the fish was game. He shot this way, then that, then circled round and round.
I don’t want him any more than a little, Ted thought. I’m not hungry enough to eat raw fish, and in this sun he wouldn’t keep. He began playing the fish, trying him out.
Then, all of a sudden, a large blue shadow appeared in the water, a darting38 shadow. No, it wasn’t a shadow—it was a ten-foot shark. Streaking39 through the water, sleek40 and ugly, the shark hypnotized the boy. This lasted only ten seconds, but long enough. Too late Ted realized that he was about to exchange his blue fish for a shark.
The shark swallowed the fish, hook and all. At once Ted felt the line shoot through his fingers. Gripping desperately41, he checked the line. He felt his raft being towed rapidly through the water.
121
The shark went down. The raft tilted42 at a dangerous angle. A hundred thoughts sped through the boy’s mind. He might be lost for days, perhaps weeks. Without food he must perish. No line, no fish, no food. But if the raft went over? What then? Soaked to the skin, he would in the end be obliged to yield his line. Then a happy thought struck him. In his emergency kit were other hooks, and in his parachute many lines. He opened his hands, the line slid through his fingers. The raft settled back. He was safe. The shark was gone.
“Whew!” he exclaimed, rubbing his burned fingers. “This life on a raft is not all it’s cracked up to be. You—”
His thoughts were interrupted by the rumble43 of thunder off in the distance. Or was it thunder?
He listened more closely. “Bombs!” he exclaimed. “They’ve made contact! Hurrah44! Hit ’em hard and often, boys! Hit ’em hard!”
Would they take the island? He knew they would. No stopping the victorious45 Americans now. Island after island had fallen into their hands.
122
Other victories would follow. This island today, he thought. Mindanao the day after tomorrow. If only I can get back to the fleet before we tackle Mindanao, he thought with a touch of despair. “God, send someone to pick me up,” he prayed. “Please God, I don’t know much. Give me wisdom. Help me to get food from the sea and the sky. Send me back to my buddies46.”
After that there didn’t seem to be much left to do but rest, relax, and watch for smoke on the horizon or a plane in the sky.
The rumble from the west died away, then rose again. The battle might last all day. Cruisers and destroyers would move in to shell Jap positions. The carrier would stand by. Perhaps the task force would slip away under cover of darkness. “If it does that, I’ll be sunk,” he murmured disconsolately47.
He had managed to bring along a small canteen. He took a sip48 of water. He recalled that you were supposed to be able to get water by pressing out fish meat. He’d have to try that.
The sun was hot. It had been a tough night. He was tired and his head ached. Finally he stretched himself out and fell asleep.
A little more than an hour later he awoke with a start, clutched at his head with sudden violence, and grasped something hard and horny with each hand. He held on grimly, though his head and shoulders were being beaten unmercifully by something hard and sharp as a crowbar. He let out a gasp49 as some knifelike thing cut at his wrist, but still he held on.
123
At last, half standing up, he gave a mighty50 heave to bring a great bird with a ten-foot wing spread, down upon his raft.
“Oh! A gony!” he exclaimed. “You rascal51! You nearly wrecked52 me! What were you doing on top of my head? Resting? Well, I’ll give you a good, long rest!”
The bird was an albatross, largest of all sea birds. Ted had learned a great deal about them from the old sailors, who called them gonies. They followed ships for thousands of miles, sleeping on the sea, or soaring miles on end, with their long, narrow wings spread wide.
This one, beyond a doubt, had been following their task force, but had been frightened away by the big guns.
“What’ll I do with you?” he demanded of the bird.
His answer was a snap on the ankle from its powerful jaws53.
“I should kill and eat you,” he exclaimed. “You’re worse than a Jap! But I won’t—not yet. Men don’t eat gonies unless they have to. It’s supposed to bring bad luck. I’ll tie you up, that’s what I’ll do. Then we’ll try our luck together. If I’m rescued, you go free. If not, you get eaten.”
124
The gony winked54 as if he really understood. Then for good measure, he nipped at Ted’s ankle once more.
“You’ll be some company,” Ted said, as after binding55 the bird’s feet, he fastened a wide strap56 taken from his parachute about its wings and body.
Late in the afternoon he caught a fairly large fish. After pressing water from its meat, he drank a little. “Not impossible,” was his verdict. He ate some of the meat, then offered a bite to his gony, who, to his surprise, swallowed it.
“You must be a young fellow,” he said. “Friendly and green, like myself.” He laughed, and felt better.
Just as the sun was sinking in the west he saw a dark smudge that soon obscured the sun. “A ship!” He became greatly excited. Another smudge, and yet another. “The task force!” he exclaimed, standing up and nearly overturning his raft. “If only it would come this way!”
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1
reaper
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| n.收割者，收割机 | |
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partially
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| adv.部分地，从某些方面讲 | |
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goggles
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| n.护目镜 | |
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swooping
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| 俯冲，猛冲( swoop的现在分词 ) | |
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bomber
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| n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者 | |
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6
bombers
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| n.轰炸机( bomber的名词复数 )；投弹手；安非他明胶囊；大麻叶香烟 | |
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7
torpedo
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| n.水雷，地雷；v.用鱼雷破坏 | |
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8
fortified
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| adj. 加强的 | |
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marine
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| adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵 | |
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murmur
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| n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言 | |
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11
soften
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| v.(使)变柔软；(使)变柔和 | |
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12
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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13
throttle
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| n.节流阀，节气阀，喉咙；v.扼喉咙，使窒息，压 | |
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14
racing
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| n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的 | |
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airfield
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| n.飞机场 | |
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zoomed
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| v.（飞机、汽车等）急速移动( zoom的过去式 )；（价格、费用等）急升，猛涨 | |
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17
scurrying
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| v.急匆匆地走( scurry的现在分词 ) | |
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riddled
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| adj.布满的；充斥的；泛滥的v.解谜，出谜题(riddle的过去分词形式) | |
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rattle
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| v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓 | |
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inferno
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| n.火海；地狱般的场所 | |
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cargo
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| n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物 | |
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22
torpedoes
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| 鱼雷( torpedo的名词复数 )； 油井爆破筒； 刺客； 掼炮 | |
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23
streaked
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| adj.有条斑纹的，不安的v.快速移动( streak的过去式和过去分词 )；使布满条纹 | |
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24
followers
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| 追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件 | |
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ted
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| vt.翻晒，撒，撒开 | |
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26
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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puncture
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| n.刺孔，穿孔；v.刺穿，刺破 | |
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hull
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| n.船身；(果、实等的)外壳；vt.去(谷物等)壳 | |
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gusher
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| n.喷油井 | |
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30
exulted
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| 狂喜，欢跃( exult的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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barges
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| 驳船( barge的名词复数 ) | |
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32
swarming
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| 密集( swarm的现在分词 )； 云集； 成群地移动； 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去 | |
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ashore
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| adv.在(向)岸上，上岸 | |
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jack
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| n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克 | |
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35
munched
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| v.用力咀嚼（某物），大嚼( munch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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kit
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| n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物 | |
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lure
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| n.吸引人的东西，诱惑物；vt.引诱，吸引 | |
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38
darting
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的现在分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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39
streaking
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| n.裸奔（指在公共场所裸体飞跑）v.快速移动( streak的现在分词 )；使布满条纹 | |
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40
sleek
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| adj.光滑的，井然有序的；v.使光滑，梳拢 | |
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41
desperately
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| adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地 | |
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42
tilted
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| v. 倾斜的 | |
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43
rumble
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| n.隆隆声；吵嚷；v.隆隆响；低沉地说 | |
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44
hurrah
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| int.好哇，万岁，乌拉 | |
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45
victorious
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| adj.胜利的，得胜的 | |
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46
buddies
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| n.密友( buddy的名词复数 )；同伴；弟兄；（用于称呼男子，常带怒气）家伙v.（如密友、战友、伙伴、弟兄般）交往( buddy的第三人称单数 )；做朋友；亲近（…）；伴护艾滋病人 | |
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47
disconsolately
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| adv.悲伤地，愁闷地；哭丧着脸 | |
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48
sip
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| v.小口地喝，抿，呷；n.一小口的量 | |
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49
gasp
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| n.喘息，气喘；v.喘息；气吁吁他说 | |
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50
mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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51
rascal
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| n.流氓；不诚实的人 | |
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52
wrecked
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| adj.失事的，遇难的 | |
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53
jaws
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| n.口部；嘴 | |
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54
winked
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| v.使眼色( wink的过去式和过去分词 )；递眼色（表示友好或高兴等）；（指光）闪烁；闪亮 | |
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55
binding
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| 有约束力的，有效的，应遵守的 | |
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56
strap
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| n.皮带，带子；v.用带扣住，束牢；用绷带包扎 | |
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