Read Online Magical Mechanications by Pip Ballantine, Tee Morris - Free Book Online

a long, slow breath. He seemed to hold his breath a lot around her. He really needed to just relax a bit, enjoy life. “It would have been shorter had you not retrieved the plans of the Schwarzer Geist, but it would also have been a different world under the Kaiser.”
    “Makes me wonder then if it was worth it.”
    “Now hold on, Little Red, you can’t look at it that way.”
    Scarlett raised an eyebrow. “Oh, really? And exactly how am I supposed to look at it, Major?”
    He leaned back into the grass, propping himself up on his elbows. “Perhaps that come out wrong.”
    “I invited you up here so I could share this experience with you, as a way to say thank you. Don’t make me regret this.”
    “What I meant was, you are helping to find a balance with the way the world works. One of the reasons why war happens usually comes down to what one side has and the other doesn’t. When you think about it, that explains what’s happening right now.”
    Scarlett chuckled. “You make it sound like the Great War is really a group of spoiled children fighting over the same toy.”
    “Maybe,” he said, finishing off his glass of wine. “I just know if you hadn’t taken the chance, hadn’t risked your life for King and Country, right now the Kaiser would have a weapon in their arsenal we wouldn’t know how to combat.”
    “The Hornet did just fine.”
    “Yes, but the Fokker was different. You saw it up close. Hopefully, we can replicate from those schematics how they solved the range and temperature problem of the engine.”
    “And how does that help the war effort again?”
    “Well…” Hemsworth began, but his thought seemed to falter. Finally, he said, “We were able to stop a dangerous weapon from being potentially exclusive to the enemy.”
    “Did it ever occur to you that in a war, there is no hero and villain, no noble knight and mortal enemy? In our Great War, we see Germany as the enemy out to crush us under their boot heel, while Germany sees us as the overbearing Empire forcing our unwanted policies and restrictions on their way of life which was fine…until we can along and told them ‘No, do it this way.’ Being Irish, I can understand how that feels.”
    Hemsworth went to speak, but again, took a long moment before finally replying, “Is this the perspective you wanted to share with me up here?”
    “Actually, no, I just wanted to share a bottle of fine wine with you and I really can’t do it all by myself at present,” she said, motioning to the one arm in a sling.
    “How is the shoulder healing up?”
    “Should be back up in the skies in no time,” she said cheerily. “That being said, pour me another glass.”
    “I’ll have to get the other basket,” he said, returning to his feet.
    She watched as Hemsworth trotted over to the massive Lion and retrieved from behind the “paw” closest to him another basket with a bottle of wine and two freshly baked loaves of bread.
    “Did I ever thank you for coming to my rescue, Major Hemsworth?” she asked, holding up her glass.
    The cork slipped out with a short, crisp pop . He passed the open bottle under his nose and smiled appreciatively. “Actually, no you didn’t, Captain Quinn,” he said, pouring her glass, “and what with rushing you to a hospital, the promotion, and debriefing, I don’t think we got around to it. But if you want to thank me, try this on for size…” Hemsworth poured himself a new glass, and then held it up into the breeze. “Harry.”
    Scarlett tipped her head to one side. “Sorry?”
    “Harry. Please. Call me Harry.”
    She looked him over from head-to-toe, then shook her head. “No, I prefer Hemsworth. Seems to suit you better. What with those broad shoulders, blond hair, and blue eyes, you don’t look like a Harry.”
    His mouth turned into a slight scowl. “I’m not really enjoying this perspective, Little Red, you know that?”
    Her eyes narrowed on him. “You know I’m not particularly keen on