The Final Affair

With a quick twist he lifted half his gleaming length out of the pool along with a cascade of water and leaned over the edge peering near-sightedly up at his visitors, swinging his head to scan them intently.

Napoleon gaped in amazement and turned to Illya. 'That's really him?'

'Uhhuh,' said Illya. 'How about that?'

'Can he hear us?'

'Not well out of the water,' said Dr. Kaja.

Ladju opened his glistening snout like a duck's beak and emitted a staccato series of high-pitched quacks before writhing back into the pool, displacing another slosh of warm seawater.

'Open mouthh mean surprizze, yah?'

'Right, Ladju. These are the men who are curious about that island you found.'

'Curreeosity izz a ffuhn zzing. But zzey're noht ahll mehn. Hey you wahnna p'ay taggg?'

'Me?' said Joan. 'I – uh -'

'Now just a minute, buster,' said Napoleon, 'That's my wife you're talking to.'

The speaker erupted in a sputtering cackle as Ladju flipped back and forth in the pool, rolling over and over.

Larry flipped a switch on the small waterproof amplifier at his feet and the sound cut off. 'He scored on you, Mr. Solo,' he explained. 'He's laughing at the moment.'

Joan asked hesitantly, 'Ah – did I misinterpret the tone of his…'

Larry suppressed a smile. 'I'm afraid not. I have no idea how serious he was, but your reaction was reasonably appropriate. Don't worry – Ladju has a weird sense of humor; but he's tremendously honorable:- all the dolphins I've ever known are. Even if he is a little strange, even by their standards; Kanta, his girlfriend for a while, said so. Partly it's his more human characteristics, she said.'

'I see,' said Illya, whose smile had not been suppressed since his partner was looking elsewhere. 'But about those charts.-'

A brass bell began clanging insistently on a post beside the pool as Ladju jerked the dangling rope with his teeth until Larry switched on the hydrophone again.

'Sohrry abou 'zzat›said the speaker. 'You ghoing to the islan'?'

'If it's the island we're looking for,' said Mr. Waverly. 'What can you tell me about it? Do you know where it is?'

'I cou' take you zzeve bu' I cou'n't ttehll you whehre itt -izz.'

'I have that problem on Long Island sometimes,' said Napoleon.

'Actually, we have it pretty well located,' said Larry. 'The last chart we went over – the one showing sincline shifts and minor currents in that area – checked with the bottom contour map you read this morning. And tell them what you saw there.'

'Hlotsss of misstakss on tchartsss.'

'What did you see at the island?'

'Hydrophonezz ahll aroun. I wehn' up c'ose an' tchecked i' toutt.

Zzere'zz a neht across zhe reef 'assage bu' I ssmelled zzubmarinezz inzide. An' I came up to zhe beatch an' zzaw hlotss of houzzezz. Zzome bhig onezz.'

'There are no established military bases in that area,' said Mr. Waverly. 'Where is this island, exactly?'

'It's called Fapa Tui,' said Larry, 'and it's at 122°48' East and 7°31' South. What exactly do you expect to find on this island, anyway? Somebody's secret laboratory or the headquarters of a subversive international organisation?'

'All that and more,' said Mr. Waverly. 'I presume you heard that Thrush had been destroyed?'

'Yah,' said Larry. 'I didn't believe it.'

'You were right. Only most of Thrush has been destroyed. Fapa Tui may be their major hard base, and if it is left in operation they could restore their entire network within three months.'

'I see. What do you plan to do?'

'Invade,' said Mr. Waverly succinctly.

'Far out! How soon?'

'As soon as a satellite photograph verifies that this island is indeed our target, a force of five hundred men under my command will go ashore and secure that island.'

'Just like that?'

'We sincerely hope so, Dr. Kaja. It will not be as simple as it sounds, but two weeks should see the end of Thrush – as we know it – with the help of our handsome and intelligent friend Ladju.'

The object of this flattery twisted with delight and chirped like a soprano duck. 'You Misster Hwaver'y – you p'ay tchehkerzz?'

'Checkers? Heh – as a matter of fact I used to be considered rather good at the game.' Waverly's jowls corrugated as an amazed smile stretched his leathery features. 'Would you care for a game?'

'Sshure. I can bea' Larry. '

'Two out of three,' said Dr. Kaja. 'But I'm improving with practice.'

Ladju's sputtering cackle sounded again and he rolled over onto his back, kicking delightedly amid sheets of water, as Napoleon and Illya stared speechless at him and their commander-in-chief.

Alexander Waverly's communicator chirped discreetly shortly before midnight. He awakened instantly and slipped a hand under his pillow to answer it.

'Waverly here.'

'Good morning, sir,' said Miss Cramer's voice. 'I thought you should know at once that the NASA photograph of the island you specified checks against the map- the buildings area all in the right places, except for three extra quonset huts. I've also had Section Four prepare a preliminary report on it, and they are working on a detailed study which may include a hydrographic report from soundings made in 1886; Thrush has owned the island since 1904. Would you like to hear the preliminary report or shall I send you a hardcopy?'

'Fax it to Djakarta. They can ship it on the jet which will bring the rest of our equipment here. What did you find out about submarine forces available? Did Tadashi Miruko agree?'

'He offered two hundred fifty troops, but his sub fleet is in Manila, thirteen hundred nautical miles from Thrush Island. I took the liberty of calling the naval base at Darwin, which is only about seven hundred. Under the circumstances they were willing to give us four landing subs and two hundred men. With an U.N.C.L.E. Battalion Command Module, you'll have almost five hundred troops.'

'That's not too many. Have you arranged to fly Miruko's army to Darwin? And have you heard from Mike Hoar?'

'Colonel Hoar requires two weeks' notice, but as a personal favor he's offered seventy experienced troops if you'll cover their transportation and the usual per-diem. How soon will you want to strike? I haven't tied anything to a schedule, pending your decision.'

'I will want to strike as soon as all the troops can be brought to bear. How long will that take?'

'Forces can be joined in Darwin within-thirty-six hours, and the subs will take three days to Uffa.'

'To where? We're attacking Fapa Tui.'

'I beg your pardon? At 122°48' by 7°31'? Just a moment… Apparently the Indonesian government gave it a native name in '62. It was Dutch in the earliest records – used as a major transfer point in the slave trade between 1830 and 1865. It was called Uffa then. An English group was there for a few years before it was abandoned in 1887, and Thrush apparently set up there about twenty years later. All this is covered in that preliminary report, along with a blow-up from the recon photo.'

'Hm. I see.'

'The new construction on the island had been tentatively identified by Military Intelligence as a top-secret Indonesian military installation, but they didn't have anything definite, and the Indonesian government denied it. They have refused to participate in this operation, by the way, but the U.N. Security Council convinced them not to interfere as long as you don't carry the battle off the island or bring any forces near the mainland.'