Page 51 - Demo

Natch!37reconnoiter. Chance especially seemed to drive Fate %u201cbat shit%u201d.So, they%u2019d persuaded Nate that Destiny couldn%u2019t possibly betrusted in the Archives by herself and that Lucky wouldn%u2019t be upto the task of censoring the propaganda, myths, legends,conspiracy theories, and prophecies she was likely to unearth.Nate could hardly argue. But since he insisted that their side ofthe twist have someone along on the reconnoiter, Fatenominated Lucky to take their place. %u201cWe already know whatthey%u2019re likely to find down there,%u201d Fate declared. %u201cThereconnoiter is just due diligence. I can do more in the Archives.%u201dAnd so it had come to pass that Lucky joined Jinx, Chance, andAce on the newly upgraded Whirlicopter%u2014the Whirly C-5%u2014whooshing toward the Far South. While Ace piloted the craft andChance served as navigator, Lucky and Jinx monitored therecording devices mounted in the underbelly of the vehicle andalong both sides. In truth, they didn%u2019t really need to havesomeone back there monitoring, but Betty never really trustedany technology and always wanted someone from her teammaking direct observations. And %u201cmonitoring%u201d didn%u2019t mean toBetty what it meant to Lucky and Jinx. To Betty, it meantconscientiously observing, documenting, and following up onanything and everything of interest. Lucky and Jinx, if theythought about it at all, took a more laissez-faire approach.Chance the navigator knew where they were supposed to go. Acecould get them there and back. The recording devices wouldrecord everything along the way. Their job was mostly to watchthe bank of monitors arrayed in front of their seats and, well,snack. And to their credit, they had done their due diligencewhen it came to bringing snacks. And the galley aboard theWhirlicopter was surprisingly spacious and well-equipped. It hadpans and utensils that Jinx didn%u2019t even have in his own kitchen.The first leg of the trip went as planned. True to its reputation,the Whirly C-5 made quick work of the Southern Ocean andsoon they were soaring above the Far South. In the Not Too LongAgo, the Far South had been mostly ice. White. White. White. Asfar as you could see in any direction. Frozen white. Bulging white.