michael crichton.congo-第23部分

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　Elliot　watched　her　loosen　her　seat　belt；　cup　her　chin　on　her　hand　as　she　stared　lazily　out　the　window。　She　signed；　Amy　want　cigarette。
　She　had　noticed　Munro　smoking。
　〃Later；　Amy；〃　Elliot　said。
　
　At　seven　in　the　morning；　they　flew　over　the　shimmering　metal　roofs　of　the　tin　and　tantalum　mining　plex　at　Masisi。　Munro；　Kahega；　and　the　other　porters　went　to　the　back　of　the　plane；　where　they　worked　on　the　equipment；　chattering　excitedly　in　Swahili。
　Amy；　seeing　them　go；　signed；　They　worried。
　〃Worried　about　what；　Amy？〃
　They　worried　men　worry　they　worried　problems。　After　a　while；　Elliot　moved　to　the　rear　of　the　plane　to　find　Munro's　men　half　buried　under　great　heaps　of　straw；　stuffing　equipment　into　oblong　torpedo…shaped　muslin　containers；　then　packing　straw　around　the　supplies。　Elliot　pointed　to　the　muslin　torpedoes。　〃What　are　these？〃
　〃They're　called　Crosslin　containers；〃　Munro　said。　〃Very　reliable。〃
　〃I've　never　seen　equipment　packed　this　way；〃　Elliot　said；　watching　the　men　work。　〃They　seem　to　be　protecting　our　supplies　very　carefully。〃
　〃That's　the　idea；〃　Munro　said。　And　he　moved　up　the　aircraft　to　the　cockpit；　to　confer　with　the　pilot。
　Amy　signed；　Nosehair　man　lie　Peter。　〃Nosehair　man〃　was　her　term　for　Munro；　but　Elliot　ignored　her。　He　turned　to　Kahega。　〃How　far　to　the　airfield？〃
　Kahega　glanced　up。　〃Airfield？〃
　〃At　Mukenko。〃
　Kahega　paused；　thinking　it　over。　〃Two　hours；〃　he　said。　And　then　he　giggled。　He　said　something　in　Swahili　and　all　his　brothers　laughed；　too。
　〃What's　funny？〃　Elliot　said。
　〃Oh；　Doctor；〃　Kahega　said；　slapping　him　on　the　back。　〃You　are　humorous　by　your　nature。〃
　The　airplane　banked；　making　a　slow　wide　circle　in　the　air。　Kahega　and　his　brothers　peered　out　the　windows；　and　Elliot　joined　them。　He　saw　only　unbroken　jungle…and　then　a　column　of　green　jeeps；　moving　down　a　muddy　track　far　below。　It　looked　like　a　military　formation。　He　heard　the　word　〃Muguru〃　repeated　several　times。
　〃What's　the　matter？〃　Elliot　said。　〃Is　this　Muguru？〃
　Kahega　shook　his　head　vigorously。　〃No　hell。　This　damn　pilot；　I　warn　Captain　Munro；　this　damn　pilot　lost。〃
　〃Lost？〃　Elliot　repeated。　Even　the　word　was　chilling。
　Kahega　laughed。　〃Captain　Munro　set　him　right；　give　him　dickens。〃
　The　airplane　now　flew　east；　away　from　the　jungle　toward　a　wooded　highland　area；　rolling　hills　and　stands　of　deciduous　trees。　Kahega's　brothers　chattered　excitedly；　and　laughed　and　slapped　one　another；　they　seemed　to　be　having　a　fine　time。
　Then　Ross　came　back；　moving　quickly　down　the　aisle；　her　face　tense。　She　unpacked　cardboard　boxes；　withdrawing　several　basketball…sized　spheres　of　tightly　wrapped　metal　foil。
　The　foil　reminded　him　of　Christmas…tree　tinsel。　〃What's　that　for？〃　Elliot　asked。
　And　then　he　heard　the　first　explosion；　and　the　Fokker　shuddered　in　the　air。
　
　Running　to　the　window；　he　saw　a　straight　thin　white　vapor　trail　terminating　in　a　black　smoke　cloud　off　to　their　right。　The　Fokker　was　banking；　tilting　toward　the　jungle。　As　he　watched；　a　second　trail　streaked　up　toward　them　from　the　green　forest　below。
　It　was　a　missile；　he　realized。　A　guided　missile。
　〃Ross！〃　Munro　shouted。
　〃Ready！〃　Ross　shouted　back。
　There　was　a　bursting　red　explosion；　and　his　view　through　the　windows　was　obscured　by　dense　smoke；　The　airplane　shook　with　the　blast；　but　continued　the　turn。　Elliot　couldn't　believe　it：　someone　was　shooting　missiles　at　them。
　〃Radar！〃　Munro　shouted。　〃Not　optical！　Radar！〃
　Ross　gathered　up　the　silver　basketballs　in　her　arms　and　moved　back　down　the　aisle。　Kahega　was　opening　the　rear　door；　the　wind　whipping　through　the　partment。
　〃What　the　hell's　happening？〃　Elliot　said。
　〃Don't　worry；〃　Ross　said　over　her　shoulder。　〃We'll　make　up　the　time。〃　There　was　a　loud　whoosh；　followed　by　a　third　explosion。　With　the　airplane　still　banked　steeply；　Ross　tore　the　wrappings　from　the　basketballs　and　threw　them　out　into　the　open　sky。
　Engines　roaring；　the　Fokker　swung　eight　miles　to　the　south　and　climbed　to　twelve　thousand　feet；　then　circled　the　forest　in　a　holding　pattern。　With　each　revolution；　Elliot　could　see　the　foil　strips　hanging　in　the　air　like　a　glinting　metallic　cloud。　Two　more　rockets　exploded　within　the　cloud。　Even　from　a　distance；　the　noise　and　the　shock　waves　disturbed　Amy；　she　was　rocking　back　and　forth　in　her　seat；　grunting　softly。
　〃That's　chaff；〃　Ross　explained；　sitting　in　front　of　her　portable　puter　console；　pushing　keys。　〃It　confuses　radar　weapons　systems。　Those　radar…guided　SAMs　read　us　as　somewhere　in　the　cloud。〃
　Elliot　heard　her　words　slowly；　as　if　in　a　dream。　It　made　no　sense　to　him。　〃But　who's　shooting　at　us？〃
　〃Probably　the　FZA；〃　Munro　said。　〃Forces　Zairoises　Armoises…the　Zaire　army。〃
　〃The　Zaire　army？　Why？〃
　〃It's　a　mistake；〃　Ross　said；　still　punching　buttons；　not　looking　up。
　〃A　mistake？　They're　shooting　surface…to…air　missiles　at　us　and　it's　a　mistake？　Don't　you　think　you'd　better　call　them　and　tell　them　it's　a　mistake？〃
　〃Can't；〃　Ross　said。
　〃Why　not？〃
　〃Because；〃　Munro　said；　〃we　didn't　want　to　file　a　flight　plan　in　Rawamagena。　That　means　we　are　technically　in　violation　of　Zaire　airspace。〃
　〃Jesus　Christ；〃　Elliot　said。
　Ross　said　nothing。　She　continued　to　work　at　the　puter　console；　trying　to　get　the　static　to　resolve　on　the　screen；　pressing　one　key　after　another。
　〃When　I　agreed　to　join　this　expedition；〃　Elliot　said；　beginning　to　shout；　〃I　didn't　expect　to　get　into　a　shooting　war。〃
　〃Neither　did　I；〃　Ross　said。　〃It　looks　as　if　we　both　got　more　than　we　bargained　for。〃
　Before　Elliot　could　reply；　Munro　put　an　arm　around　his　shoulder　and　took　him　aside。　〃It's　going　to　be　all　right；〃　he　told　Elliot。　〃They're　outdated　sixties　SAMs　and　most　of　them　are　blowing　up　because　the　solid　propellant's　cracked　with　age。　We're　in　no　danger。　Just　look　after　Amy；　she　needs　your　help　now。　Let　me　work　with　Ross。〃
　Ross　was　under　intense　pressure。　With　the　airplane　circling　eight　miles　from　the　chaff　cloud；　she　had　to　make　a　decision　quickly。　But　she　had　just　been　dealt　a　devastating…　and　wholly　unexpected…setback。
　The　Euro…Japanese　consortium　had　been　ahead　of　them　from　the　very　start；　by　approximately　eighteen　hours　and　twenty　minutes。　On　the　ground　in　Nairobi；　Munro　had　worked　out　a　plan　with　Ross　which　would　erase　that　difference　and　put　the　ERTS　expedition　on…site　forty　hours　ahead　of　the　consortium　team。　This　plan…which　for　obvious　reasons　she　had　not　told　Elliot…called　for　them　to　parachute　onto　the　barren　southern　slopes　of　Mount　Mukenko。
　From　Mukenko；　Munro　estimated　it　was　thirty…six　hours　to　the　ruined　city；　Ross　expected　to　jump　at　two　o'clock　that　afternoon。　Depending　on　cloud　cover　over　Mukenko　and　the　specific　drop　zone；　they　might　reach　the　city　as　early　as　noon　on　June　19。
　The　plan　was　extremely　hazardous。　They　would　be　jumping　untrained　personnel　into　a　wilderness　area；　more　than　three　days'　walk　from　the　nearest　large　town。　If　anyone　suffered　a　serious　injury；　the　chances　of　survival　were　slight。　There　was　also　a　question　about　the　equipment：　at　altitudes　of　8；000…10；000　feet　on　the　volcanic　slopes；　air　resistance　was　reduced；　and　the　Crosslin　packets　might　not　provide　enough　protection。
　Initially　Ross　had　rejected　Munro's　plan　as　too　risky；　but　he　convinced　her　it　was　feasible。　He　pointed　out　that　the　parafoils　were　equipped　with　automated　altimeter…release　devices；　that　the　upper　volcanic　scree　was　as　yielding　as　a　sandy　beach；　that　the　Crosslin　containers　could　be　over…packed；　and　that　he　could　carry　Amy　down　himself。
　Ross　had　double…checked　oute　probabilities　from　the　Houston　puter；　and　the　results　were　unequivocal。　The　probability　of　a　successful　jump　was　。7980；　meaning　there　was　one　chance　in　five　that　someone　would　be　badly　hurt。　However；　given　a　successful　jump；　the　probability　of　expedition　success　was　。9934；　making　it　virtually　certain　they　would　beat　the　consortium　to　the　site。
　No　alternate　plan　scored　so　high。　She　had　looked　at　the　data　and　said；　〃I　guess　we　jump。〃
　〃I　think　we　do；〃　Munro　had　said。
　The　jump　solved　many　problems；　for　the　geopolitical　updates　were　increasingly　unfavorable。　The　Kigani　were　now　in　full　rebellion；　the　pygmies　were　unstable；　the　Zaire　army　had　sent　armored　units　into　the　eastern　border　area　to　put　down　the　Kigani…and　African　field　armies　were　notoriously　trigger…happy。　By　jumping　onto　Mukenko；　they　expected　to　bypass　all　these　hazards。
　But　that　was　before　the　Zaire　army　SAMs　began　exploding　all　around　them。　They　were　still　eighty　miles　south　of　the　intended　drop　zone；　circling　over　Kigani　territory；　wasting　time　and　fuel。　It　looked　as　if　their　daring　plan；　so　carefully　worked　out　and　confirmed　by　puter；　was　suddenly　irrelevant。
　And　to　add　to　her　difficulties；　she　could　not　confer　with　Houston；　the　puter　refused　to　link　up　by　satellite。　She　spent　fifteen　minutes　working　with　the　portable　unit；　boosting　power　and　switching　scrambler　codes；　until　she　finally　realized　that　her　transmission　was　being　electronically　jammed。
　For　the　first　time　in　her　memory；　Karen　Ross　wanted　to　cry。
　〃Easy　now；〃　Munro　said　quietly；　lifting　her　hand　away　from　the　keyboard。　〃One　thing　at　a　time；　no　point　in　getting　upset。〃　Ross　had　been　pressing　the　keys　over　and　over　again；　unaware　of　what　she　was　doing。
　Munro　was　conscious　of　the　deteriorating　situation　with　both　Elliot　and　Ross。　He　had　seen　it　happen　on　expeditions　before；　particularly　when　scientists　and　technical　people　were　involved。　Scientists　worked　all　day　in　laboratories　where　conditions　could　be　rigorously　regulated　and　monitored。　Sooner　or　later；　scientists　came　to　believe　that　the　outside　world　was　just　as　controllable　as　their　laboratories。　Even　though　they　knew　better；　the　shock　of　discovering　that　the　natural　world　followed　its　own　rules　and　was　indifferent　to　them　represented　a　harsh　psychic　blow。　Munro　could　read　the　signs。
　〃But　this；〃　Ross　said；　〃is　obviously　a　non…military　aircraft；　how　can　they　do　it？〃
　Munro　stared　at　her。　In　the　Congolese　civil　war；　civilian　aircraft　had　been　routinely　shot　down　by　all　sides。　〃These　things　happen；〃　he　said。
　〃And　the　jamming？　Those　bastards　haven't　got　the　capability　to　jam　us。　We're　being　jammed　between　our　transmitter　and　our　satellite　transponder。　To　do　that　requires　another　satellite　so