757. Chapter 757

After In Plane Sight

Episode 7.21

By

UCSBdad

Disclaimer: It's plane that I don't own Castle. Rating: K Time: See above.

Author's note: These are the further adventures of Lord and Lady Castle in a steampunk 19th Century. This is a sequel to chapters 84, 187, 327,471, 540, 541, 555, 567, 608, 627 and 633.

Famous author, inventor, adventurer, sportsman and humanitarian, Lord Richard Castle, stood on the flight deck of the Lady Katherine, his latest and best electric dirigible and instructed his new electric maid, whom he had named Sir Victoria, on how to steer the Lady Katherine. In the best traditions of Victorian England, Sir Victoria, while constructed entirely of metal, was fully clothed so as not to offend anyone. Alas, also in the traditions of Victorian England, it must be noticed that all of Lord Castle's inventions, books, adventures, and so on were the work of his brilliant daughter, Lady Alexis, and more lately, of his equally brainy and beautiful American born wife, Lady Kathrine Castle. Polite society simply could not allow a woman to be seen as the equal, much less the superior, of a man in any way.

"Splendid, Sir Victoria." Lord Castle said. He looked down at the Mediterranean Sea thousands of feet below them and then at the map. "We should be at Malta soon where we shall meet Admiral Sir Algernon Pussey-Foote, the commander of Her Majesty's Mediterranean Fleet."

He glanced to his right to the figure with his nose buried in the most recent edition of the Times of London, sent to the Lady Katherine over the newly invented aether telegraph. "Isn't that right, Demming?"

Demming, a Tibetan mastiff, had been secretly working in Lady Castle's laboratory to improve himself. He had managed to raise his IQ by some one hundred points and had grown opposable thumbs and had the ability to walk upright. His command of speech left something to be desired, however. "Grrr." He replied and returned to his paper.

"Father." Said that vision of English womanhood, Lady Alexis. "Do look to the north. I fear that a windstorm is approaching. I fear it is the mistral and will blow us south towards Africa."

Lord Castle looked to the north. "Do not worry, my beloved daughter. I'm sure the Lady Katherine can stand a bit of wind."

However, Lady Katherine came onto the flight deck and contradicted him. "Dearest, I fear that Alexis, whom I love as if she were my own dear daughter, is correct. I have calculated the force that the mistral will put onto the dirigible and I fear it will blow us south and over Africa." As Lady Katherine had actually done all of the calculations and planning for the Lady Katherine, there was little doubt that she was correct.

"We can only hope that the wind will be brief," Said Lady Alexis," and not take us too far away from our course."

However, the wind howled for four days straight and blew the Lady Katherine far to the south. However, when the fifth day dawned, the air was clear and still. Lord and Lady Castle used the Castle Patented Electric Telescope, actually perfected by Lady Katherine and Lady Alexis, to try to determine where they were.

"We are well south in Africa. "Lord Castle said. "Below us there is only desert. And even this high in the air, I can feel the heat. That's the Sahara down there. We are fortunate that the capacitors for the Lady Katherine are nearly full and we have plenty of power."

"However, my love, we did not plan for such a long trip. We shall run out of food and more importantly, out of water, soon."

"But, wait." Cried another voice. "I know where we are." It was Javier Esposito, once a member of the famous Legion Etranger, the French Foreign Legion, but now serving as Lord Castle's gentleman's gentleman. "We are but a few miles from Lake Chad. It's is a freshwater lake. We can lower some buckets and get all the fresh water we need."

"Excellent." Cried Lady Alexis. "But what of food?"

"Fort Zinderneuf, an outpost of the Foreign Legion, is quite near, if one travels by dirigible, only a few hundred miles." A stern look came over the hardened veteran's visage. "But if one must march in the heat of the day, through the bled, with foul water and worse food, with the tuaregs constantly stalking you and your comrades….Ah, mes amis, it is not the picnic of the English."

And so, Lady Katherine took control of the Lady Katherine and held her steady only a hundred feet or so above the lake as their fresh water was replenished. The travelers tried to buy fish from local fisherman, but they fled as soon as they saw the giant flying machine approach.

They turned west and, with Esposito's excellent guidance, soon saw Fort Zinderneuf below them. Lady Katherine lowered the vast airship and the legionnaires tied the Lady Katherine to the watchtower of the fort.

Suddenly, Esposito saw a familiar face as they climbed down into the fort. "Caporal Ryan. It is I, your old comrade, Esposito."

"Alas. I am no longer a caporal." The Irishman said. "I was busted by our commander. I'm a private once more."

Esposito was shocked. "What? Kind, compassionate Lieutenant Tyson demoted you?"

Ryan shook his head. "Tyson died of the fever. Adjutant Davidson is in command now."

"Who is this Davidson. " Asked Lady Castle.

Ryan looked around him. "Some say he ran one of the Czar's prison camps in Siberia but was too sadistic even for them."

Another legionnaire spoke. "I was told he went to the Congo Free State, but was too brutal for even King Leopold."

Another legionnaire spoke. "It is said that he worked for the Kaiser in East Africa forcing the natives to gather raw rubber at the peril of their lives, but he was accounted to be too cruel."

"Where is he now?" Lord Castle asked.

"He is out on patrol with three legionnaires." Said Ryan. "Beau Randolph and his brothers LT and Roy. It is said they have a diamond of great worth with them that Beau stole from his aunt. Davidson hopes to get them killed or kill them himself and steal the gem."

"What? Beau Randolph, a thief." Cried Lord Castle. "Why I know the family. Beau may have been a bit avant garde in his youth, what with all those paintings of naked…" Lord Castle suddenly saw his lovely, innocent daughter and stopped, blushing furiously.

"I know the family quite well." Alexis said. "None of them are thieves." But Beau us a great painter. I hope dear father never sees the nude portraits he did of me. She thought, smiling.

"Patrol coming in." Cried a sentry. "It's Davidson and the three Randolphs."

The four made it into the fort just as a horde of heavily armed tuaregs attacked the fort.

"What is this gigantic thing attached to my fort?" Raged Adjutant Davidson.

"Josh Davidson? The most incompetent criminal in all of the British Empire?" Said Lord Castle.

"The same." He said, ramming a pistol into Lady Katherine's side. " Now, Beau, hand over the diamond and I'll make my escape with these two ladies in their flying machine."

However, Davidson hadn't counted on Demming. The brave and daring Tibetan mastiff had been studying martial arts. He bowed to Davidson, then twirled his nunchuks about. Alas, while Demming was twirling the nunchuks, Davidson hit the dog over his head with his pistol and poor Demming collapsed.

That gave Lady Alexis the opportunity to utilize the English martial art she had perfected. She rammed the end of her umbrella, which she carried to preserve her peaches and cream complexion, into Davidson's stomach and then rapped him smartly over the head, knocking him out.

Seeing that the tuaregs were about to overwhelm the garrison. Lord Castle acted quickly. "Quick. Everyone into the Lady Katherine. We'll escape by air."

As the Lady Katherine flew towards Side bel Abbes, Beau Randolph explained what had happened to the famed diamond that had disappeared. "My aunt sold it after her husband spent most of her fortune on wine, women and song. The rest of the fortune I'm afraid, he spent foolishly. Since it was legally half his, she had no right to sell it, so when Sir Eric began asking about the diamond, I fled, making every one think I'd stolen it and so keep dear Lady Tory from prison. My two brothers joined me in the Legion. Now, I'm afraid I must go to prison for a crime I didn't commit."

"Not at all." Said Esposito. "We actually found the diamond on Demming. He must have stolen it from whoever Lady Tory sold it to and was trying to frame you by "finding" it on you, then disappearing."

And so, all was well that ended well.