The Purple Plain Page #4

- No, thanks.

No, don't touch anything, please.

l want to be sure everything's here.

Well, is there anything

l can fix you up with?

You'll need all the comfort

you can get at Meiktila.

l don't think that's very funny.

lt wasn't meant to be.

Hello, Carrington.

We've got a job to do.

Yes, sir, l heard.

l'll take you over to lntelligence.

You can make out your flight plan.

You think you can

be ready by 12:
00?

- Yes, l think so.

- Good.

lt's only a small trip, this.

lnteresting from your point of view, though.

Are you ready?

Got a hammock rigged up for you

in the bomb bay. Best we could do.

Okay, let's go.

Everything okay?

All okay.

Passenger asleep.

He's lucky.

By the way,

this is Jap territory here--

up to the river.

They're welcome to it.

Over there, Mandalay.

- Where the dawn comes up like thunder?

- That's the place.

Would you like to have a look

after we've delivered the body?

Roger.

Starboard engine.

Starboard fuel off.

- We're going back.

- Roger.

Course 2-0-9er.

Mayday, mayday, mayday.

Kong K Cable to Scuttle.

Starboard engine now on fire.

Cannot extinguish.

My approximate position

is 90 miles southeast of you,

on course 2-0-9er.

Mayday.

- Hold on, we're going down.

- Roger.

Mayday, mayday, mayday.

Kong K Cable to Scuttle.

Crash landing, crash landing.

Kong K Cable to Scuttle.

Crash landing. Crash landing.

Mayday, mayday.

Mayday, mayday.

Kong K Cable to Scuttle.

We're preparing to crash-land.

Crash landing, crash landing.

Mayday!

Mayday! Mayday!

Carrington!

Let's get him outta here!

You got anything to help him?

- l've got some morphine, l think.

- Get it quick.

We'll give him one of these

and then get him into the shade.

Hello, Kong K Cable, this is Scuttle.

Hello, Kong K Cable, this is Scuttle.

Your QDM, 2-0-9er.

l say again, 2-0-9er.

How do you hear me? Over.

- Keep trying.

- Yes, sir.

Hello, Kong K Cable, this is Scuttle.

Hello, Kong K Cable, this is Scuttle.

Your QDM, 2-0-9er.

l say again, 2-0-9er...

How do you feel now?

l'd like a drink.

You got a nice cool

scotch and soda there, Blore?

l suppose you mean water.

We'll have to go carefully with it.

There's only the thermos flask

and the bottle.

How's that?

We were on course.

Now, don't you worry about that.

You just take it easy.

Did they get a fix on us?

l don't know.

l kept calling as long as l could.

They could work out our position

by time alone, l should say.

Parker saw the flight plan.

What time is it?

Four minutes past 2:00.

That's not quite four hours till dark.

Say three.

- They're bound to find us before then.

- You think so?

Certainly. They'll have us

out of here in no time.

Meanwhile, we must organize ourselves,

see what you have with you.

l haven't got a thing.

l was just flying the airplane.

But you must have something.

Even the smallest trifle may be useful

in an emergency like this.

Medical card.

Three rupees.

Handkerchief.

What's that?

Don't tell me you've been buying

those things. They're all phony, you know.

lf they got any kind of a fix on us,

which l doubt...

it's just possible that

they might locate us here.

Supposing they do, what then?

Well, they get us out, of course.

They haven't got helicopters.

Well, they could drop supplies.

So that we can camp out here until

the war is over? This is Jap territory.

Yes, we know that, but...

What are you getting at?

Mind if l use your hat?

Carrington, are you awake?

Yes, l'm awake.

- You heard that, what Forrester said?

- Yes, l heard.

Well, l think we've got

to be very careful.

Knowing him as l do,

well, frankly,

l don't think we ought to place any reliance

at all on his judgment about anything.

He got us down all right.

We wouldn't have stood

an earthly with some pilots.

l'm not saying he's not a good pilot,

but we're not in the air now.

He doesn't care what happens to him.

Well, l do care what happens to me,

and l'm not taking any chances.

lf we keep our heads,

we'll be all right.

l'm relying on you to back me up.

You got any more of those tablets?

There are only a few left.

They ought to be eked out.

What's all this for?

We want some sort of signal

when they come looking for us.

When who comes looking

for us, the Japs?

You know quite well

who l mean--our people.

l think it's time we took a look

at some of the facts.

l don't mind looking at the facts.

They seem straightforward enough to me.

Our people know

we made a forced landing.

Even if they didn't get a fix on us, they're

bound to know our approximate position.

Our job is to give them

all the help we can,

look after Carrington,

keep our heads, and...

- ...hope for the best.

- What's wrong with that?

Nothing, if you know

what the best adds up to.

They could look for a month

and not find this place.

- How long will the water last?

- Not as long as a month.

l've got a quart and what's left

in the thermos flask.

lf we ration ourselves strictly--

and Carrington, too, mind--

l suppose it might last three days.

Though in this heat...

- What's all this leading up to?

- Just this.

l think we ought to forget about setting up

housekeeping here and start walking.

Walking?

Are you serious?

Now look, we're roughly 30 miles

northeast of the river here.

l know this country

is murder to get across,

but we ought to be able

to make it in four days, even without food.

lf we make it,

we'll be in our own patrol area.

We'll have water to see us through.

But what about Carrington?

You don't expect him to walk, do you?

- We'll carry him.

- How can we?

We'll make a stretcher.

There's plenty of bamboo here,

and we've got a parachute harness--

we'll fix up something.

Carry a stretcher all that way in this heat

under this sun? We'll kill ourselves.

We don't go in the sun.

We go at night.

Have you ever carried a man

on a stretcher for any distance?

No, but l'm gonna try,

even if it does kill me.

Well, you can kill yourself

if you like, Forrester.

You've been round the bend for ages

and everybody knows it.

But you're not going to endanger our lives

just because you don't give a rat--

Help!

Help!

What is it?

Dak.

- Anyone we know?

- l can't tell, it's too high.

Blind fools.

Never even started to see us.

You have any idea

what it's like trying to locate

a burnt-out plane

in country like this?

l couldn't even recognize it

from the top of that rock.

lt'll be almost impossible from a plane.

Turbulence, heat haze, odd forest fires--

it's a million-to-one shot.

Blind, stupid fools.

Look...

We've got enough water

for three days, maybe four.

We've got a lot of pills

and no food.

Now either we sit here

and drink the water and hope,

or we drink the water and travel.

Does that make sense?

- lt would if it weren't for Carrington.

- l told you, we'll carry him.

The whole idea is crazy,

and you know it.

lt's still crazier to stay here.

Now let's get to work on the stretcher.

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