Thunderfunk the Superchicken - Pt 5

5. Promotions all around

Night fell, as it often does, as Thunderfunk and Straw Daq made their plans. The next few days were busy as they ventured around Tokyo, gathering supplies and information. Finally, on Thursday night, all was prepared. Under the cover of darkness, Straw and Thunder departed Tokyo, making for the secret location of the Japanese Navy.
Thunder stretched out his wings, flapping them gently. It was completely unnecessary to do so when he was wearing his jet pack, but he had always felt a little jealous of the birds who’s wings actually performed some sort of useful function. The sense of freedom was indeed glorious. He suppressed an annoyed sigh when Straw broke through his revelry on the intercom. “We’re coming up on the location now,” came the crackly voice over the radio. “I recommend radio silence.”
With a sharp glance at the plane flying beside him, Thunder rebuked his younger compatriot. “Straw, I had maintained radio silence right up to this moment. You are the one who has spent the last hour chattering. Recommend your own radio silence.” He clicked off the radio and settled back into silence, reviewing the plan once again.
Japan, it seems, had been duped into believing that Australia was preparing to attack India. Confirmation of this information had sent Japan on high alert and their navy had immediately prepped to sail. The only unclear part was whether they were heading towards Australia or India, and whether or not they were supporting this strike, or moving to stop it. In a practical sense, it made no real difference to Breadbuuter’s plans, or to Thunderfunk’s attempt to halt those plans.
A soft beeping sounded in his earpiece. Showtime. Leaning slightly to the left, he glided over to where Straw was hovering with the helicopter. Carefully he grabbed on the right side door of the chopper and cut the power to his jet pack. Once the pack had fully stopped, he climbed in the side door and quickly changed into his uniform before settling into the co-pilot’s seat.
“Nice to have you with us General,” said Straw as he resumed his course towards the navy’s flagship.
Thunder smiled. “Good work, sergeant,” he replied crisply. “Make sure you keep that up. I am General Takanoka until further notice.”
“Right. General Tamaguchi.”
“No. Takanoka.”
“Tomanoma.”
“Just stick with General.”
“Aye aye sir.”
A moment later the radio burst to life. “Unidentified aircraft. Identify yourself.”
Straw replied in perfect Japanese. “This is Sergeant Hu transporting the General to oversee the naval operations.” The four days that they had spent in Tokyo had been enough for both he and Thunderfunk to learn conversational Japanese. They both had a talent for languages like that.
Silence greeted this response for a solid minute. Finally the voice returned. “We have no scheduled flight at this time.”
Theatrically, Straw sighed into the microphone. “You mean they forgot to tell you. Listen, I have to have this chopper on the flight deck, and soon. Fuel is running low, and I don’t have enough for a run back to the mainland.” By this time they could see the lights of the ship as it sailed full speed ahead.
The silence from the other end stretched on so long that they were beginning to think they were being ignored. A different voice eventually greeted them. “This is Captain Sato of the Shintao. We have no scheduled flights at this time, and as such I am inclined to treat you as hostile.”
Before he could continue, he was cut off. “Captain Sato. This is General Takanoka. I am coming on board to oversee this naval operation firsthand. You will allow us to land immediately, or the death of a General will be on your hands!”
The key to bluffing your way through anything is authority. You must act as though everything you do, everything you say, is not only proper, but is in fact the only way to possibly be right. If you can master that, then many people will be taken in by your deception, and you can many things without hassle. Thunderfunk, the Superchicken, was a master of bluffing.
After only the briefest of pauses, Capatain Sato replied. “Aye aye sir.” Twenty minutes later General Takanoka of the Japanese Navy stretched his legs on the flight deck of the Shintao. Captain Sato hurried over and saluted smartly. “My apologies General. We were not properly informed of your pending arrival, or we would have been better prepared. Please, join me in my cabin.” Together they left Straw behind to see to the storing of the chopper, as well as preparing the room that would be provided for the General. And a little bit of late night skulking and fact finding was probably in order.