Free The Gemini Divergence by Eric Birk

were traversing to and fro over
ice that had been trodden into slush, working hard at their tasks
to build. As quickly as possible, build and disguise their new
home.
    To them it is called New Swabia, a memoire of
their ancient home.
    In under ground docks built to look like
outlets of under glacial rivers there sits docked a small fleet of
German U-boats, loading and unloading their wares.
    Most of the modern city lay hidden beneath
the ice.
    They have labored hard to tow a row of under
water icebergs and anchor them together to build a deadly under
water reef, to ward off any explorer that might find the valley
curiously attractive.
    Only the Kriegsmariner U-boat pilots were
aware of where the safe egress point actually was. The only place
that any information about its location was stored was in the minds
of her captains.
    Suddenly, a blinding light, as bright as the
sun, shone through a gap in the clouds. Dazzling light that cast
dancing shadows everywhere. But the workers paid no heed.
    Any normal person would be frozen in awe, but
these workers give little regard, as if it were something that they
saw every day.
    A small crew of runners dutifully set across
an open field, laying down temporary light beacons in the shape of
a cross. The field was not large enough to land a conventional
airplane, but it was large enough for a vertical take of and
landing craft.
    No modern helicopters could ever reach from
Africa or South America to Antarctica, further ensuring their
seclusion.
    Slowly but straightforwardly the ominous
flaring craft lowered to its specified and now marked landing
space.
    As it neared the ground and dropped below the
hill line, one could finally observe past the bright lights of the
craft and actually see parts of the lumbering vehicle. German
Luftwaffe markings were clearly visible on its hull.
    It hovered momentarily as the landing gear
protracted; three folding hydraulic legs with cleated feet on their
ends.
    It landed with a slight spring in the
suspension, as it adjusted to keep the craft level while sitting
itself terra firma.
    As its very quiet but not completely silent
engines began to wind down, a ramp began to lower from the
bottom.
    Once it touched the ground, hydraulic
outriggers lowered from the ramp in order to firm it up enough to
haul cargo up and down its length.
    The first on to the now lowered ramp were
ground crew running into the craft preparing it for
de-boarding.
    After a brief pause, people began to exit the
craft. All carrying bags and dressed in Arctic gear.
    The ground crew was backing up a truck to
unload all of the ship’s cargo, as the people were disembarking the
shuttle.
    As the last passenger walked down the ramp,
he stopped at the bottom.
    He pealed back the hood of his arctic parka
to more clearly view his surroundings, thus revealing his face.
    It was Schwerig.
     
     
    ~~~**^**~~~
     

The Gemini Divergence
     

     
The Cold War
    (The Late 40s)
     
     
    ~~~**^**~~~
     

     
    The Cold War /
White Sands
     
    From a distance the trucks were barely
discernible from the desert bushes. The billowing clouds that must
have literally been several tons of dust being pummeled into the
air looked like a giant plow laying the desert floor wide open.
    In the middle of the dessert valley there was
a hastily constructed city of wooden shanties and Quonset huts.
    Out of one of the huts emerged two U.S. Army
OSS officers. They walked across the main road in front of the
building they had just exited to find a better vantage point in
which to view the approaching trucks.
    One of them, a lieutenant, lit a cigarette;
clasping his hands and turning away from the wind, then turning
back around while taking a drag of his freshly lit smoke.
    Captain Chet Hanson, the more senior officer,
looked behind himself at his junior, Lt. Mark Mason, who then
silently offered one by holding out the pack in his outstretched
hand. The elder Hanson nodded disapprovingly and turned back around
to view the