Working on a new collection, and one of the stories is WWII-centric, focusing on Black Thursday, the allies' dual bombing missions to Schweinfurt and Regensburg, Germany. The 8th Air Force suffered catastrophic losses that day...it was brutal. The first half of the story describes the mission from the perspective of one of the bomber crews. The MC is one of the waist gunners. During the mission he is injured and loses consciousness as his battered plane limps back to England. 50 years later he is at a ceremony honoring the anniversary of the end of the war, with several restored planes on hand. One of them is his old bomber, which he is shocked to see. One of his old crewmates is there, and he chalks it up to a reliable aircraft that they survived, but the MC has doubts. He is then approached by a mysterious man who tells him he knows what he saw that day. I'm struggling with what he saw. What happened up there? An angel saves the plane? Nah, that's too cliche. Superman? Thats been done Basically I'm looking for some kind of mysterious thing that happened on that mission that explains not only why the MC survived, but why his plane was one of the chosen to be restored decades later. All ideas welcomed. Thanks
Well, don't do the 'magical donut wheels appear from sketch drawings made by the trapped belly gunner about to get squished when a B-17 with no landing gear makes an emergency landing' because that's been done before. My first question is how could anyone even SEE what happened? This would depend on where it happened. One thought is, if it happened in air, the mysterious guy is the only survivor of the Luftwaffe squadron that intercepted them, and he tells him that whenever he went in for a kill, his guns jammed. He says after his unit dispatched all of the MC friendly bombers, they even took turns trying to down his plane but whenever one started to shoot it, their guns jammed too. Why? I guess only the author knows.
The Luftwaffe pilot trying to down the straggler and having his guns jam isn't bad...but that reminds me of the true accounts of Luftwaffe pilots escorting stragglers back toward home. There's even a famous account of two pilots meeting in Germany decades later, reuniting over one saving the other's life. But there could be something there. Maybe the mysterious guy is actually older and he tells the story then. But there's no way he could've known it was the same plane. Unless he read the nose art? Doubtful he did that in the midst of combat. The mysterious guy wasn't on the plane. He wasn't a crewmember. He just knows "what happened." I don't know if I'll even use him or not. Writing the actual mission scenes isn't the issue. Nor is the ceremony 50 years later. It's the in-between. I want something to happen that enabled them to make it back...and why. Obviously I'm still in spitballing phase
The pilot landed the plane and told the ground crew that the rest of the crew needed help. Except that when the ground crew went into the plane, the pilot was in the cockpit - dead. The man on the runway who spoke to them had disappeared. The mysterious man is one of the ground crew, or one of their children/grandchildren.
Having him be the child/grandchild of one of the ground crew is interesting. There could be something there. The pilot and co-pilot both die during the mission. At the end of the battle scene, the MC is told the navigator is flying the plane - and he himself is critically injured (this part is also based on a true story.) So essentially, it's almost a miracle that what's left of the plane and the surviving crew made it back at all. At least 3 of the 10 crew are dead and the plane is cut to ribbons. The MC has lived in some doubt for 50+ years that he couldn't shake as to just how they made it back to England that day. I want to work in that he "saw something" though he doesn't remember what, and tie it into Mr. Mystery Man at the end. But the more I think about it, the more it feels like a supernatural element is kind of a reach. Unless I make it really subtle somehow.
But making it back isn't "in between." It's part of the mission. And whatever allowed them to make it back also didn't happen in between -- it happened during the mission. So far, other than the mysterious stranger, I don't see anything at all supernatural in the story. During the height of WW2, many American bombers made it back from Germany with wings and fuselages that looked like Swiss cheese. Many were flying on fewer engines than when they took off. It wasn't at all unusual. Obviously, many others didn't make it back. Either way, unless you choose to believe otherwise there was nothing supernatural about it. I'm sorry that I can't offer any suggestions, but I don't see anything at all supernatural about any of this (with the exception of the [optional] mysterious man). That leaves it entirely open to you to decide what supernatural aspect you want to overlay on the tale.
Perhaps my efforts to explain things in this thread haven't been clear. Probably because I'm quite confused with this story myself I'm basing this historical fiction on a specific mission. I'm aware of what the planes and crews went through in the air war in Europe - those harrowing details constitute much of the story. Those B-17's took an unbelievable beating and came home when many times they shouldn't have been able to. Nothing supernatural about it, but what if in this instance, with this one plane, on this particular mission, there was? I'd like to spin my story with such an element that explains the reason WHY, not how, this particular plane and MC survived. I just don't know what - if anything - that would work. Maybe "in-between" were the wrong words, but with that I was referring to the actual writing of the missing part of the story - not the mission details. I already wrote the mission scenes, and I wrote part of the 1995 ceremony, except the only reason I can think of to have the mystery dude there is to confirm the MC's suspicions and explain why he's lived in guilt and doubt for the last 50 years. So I think I can explain the mystery man if I can come up with a supernatural element. If not, that's fine too. The battle scenes are scary enough .
Based on historical accounts, given the sheer chaos and thousands of planes plus flak in the air that day, a UFO probably could've been in there somewhere and damn near hidden among all the other aircraft I'm obviously still spitballing like I mentioned before, but this one is inching closer to the shelf. Just not sure there's anything that'll really fit. I should've mentioned this is a linked collection so the mystery dude could just be there to drop a line or give the MC something that feeds into another story, but that might be awkward.
I'm still unclear as to the issue. I think we have established that, on the surface, there is nothing supernatural about a WW2 bomber surviving a bombing raid and returning to England with significant damage. There is also nothing supernatural about a surviving WW2 bomber being restored. There aren't many of them left, but the ones that remain follow air shows around the country and charge beaucoup bucks for a ride. So, if you want to insert a supernatural element -- do so. It's wide open. I probably still have it somewhere, but I don't know where to look. A number of years ago I bought a small novel (probably would be classified as a novella today) about a modern-day RAF pilot who was trying to return to base while low on fuel, and the base got socked in with fog. He couldn't make it to his planned destination. He was near a deactivated aerodrome but, of course, there was no ILS available -- the base was inactive, but still had a runway. But he couldn't find it in the dark and the fog. As he was about to reverse course and take the plane out over the Channel so the crash wouldn't kill anyone, he looked off to one side and saw a WW2 Spitfire flying alongside. The Spitfire pilot gave the universal signal for "follow me," then led the lost pilot to the aerodrome where he was supposed to land. They did a fly-by, and immediately after that the runway lights came on. He was able to land safely on the next approach. When the pilot reported to his ad hoc quarters, it came out in a chat with the lone attendant that the attendant had been assigned as batman (valet) to the pilot of a Spitfire bearing that tail number, which was lost during WW2, and that periodically lost pilots had reported being led to safety by it. Just an example to show that you can write whatever you want to write.
Well that's the thing - just WHAT supernatural element is what I'm seeking suggestions on. Sure, I could go in all guns blazing and write about how the mystery man revealed that flying clowns with superhuman strength carried the stricken bomber back to base while singing Jingle Bells. But that would be asinine It could be grandiose, it could be something specific - like Naomasa's UFO suggestion, or something real subtle and left to the imagination. The MC knows something happened between the time he lost consciousness on the return flight and he's felt unsettled about it for 50 years. Then when he is surprised to see his old plane restored he believes it's not coincidental. Something is up. The mystery guy either triggers a repressed memory, or confirms there is in fact a reason he survived. But why? What happened? That's what I'm chasing with this... EDIT: Maybe ever since the war he's had a lifetime of nightmares about that particular (his last, given his injuries) mission, which would be perfectly understandable considering the circumstances. Only in his dreams of that day, something else happens that he didn't recall happening in real life. Something that is new to him. Something that frightens him further. And maybe THAT is what the mystery guy confirms...that it was actually real.
We never told you, mate, but, when you were hit, well... you turned into a dragon. I what? You heard me. A dragon. I thought St. George killed them all. Heh. Must a missed one. Damnest thing, like that guy in the comics, the hulk, only you were scaly green instead of muscley. And you flew out there and you just thrashed the hell out of all those kraut planes like it was nothing. We all swore silence, but... I figured it's about time you knew. EDIT: OK, so the hulk wasn't around for WWII. The guy's obviously a time traveler, so he still gets it.
The show NCIS incorporated this bit of history into an episode. The mystery man can be the ghost of the pilot who guided the hand of the navigator , or he can be the navigator who tells the story of being guided by the ghost of the dead pilot.
Can't go wrong with vampires and wearwolves. And if you're feeling extra spicey, Chupacabra (that's a mexican wear wolf ) Just don't make them sparkly with perfect teeth, you'll have hormonally driven teens reading the story for all the wrong unintended reasons. (Joking aside I don't loathe Twilight like I seem to, but I do find it rather unbelievable how crazy it got)
Angels, or ghosts. In the spirit of the book I mentioned in my previous post, your MC's plane might have had the flight crew all shot to pieces but the spirit of a deceased pilot from a previous mission took the controls and landed the plane safely. Maybe the mystery man is a fellow airman who had the same thing happen to his plane, but he was awake enough to have seen it.
Good stuff, all! I appreciate the help. I think we're on to something now. I have an idea of what/who the mystery man is and what he reveals. Given that the name of the bomber is in reference to the man downstairs, he could take a particular liking to it for a bit of ego. And he decides to help.
How about the MC actually being the supernatural thing that happened, but the stress of it blacked out his memory? There are many cases of heroic airman in combat, and many of their co-crew members remember the incidents as supernatural because the person did things/ knew things that nobody expected. For instance: There was an RAF bomber that had been badly hit. A crew member put on a strap, climbed out and across the wing while in flight to fix and engine and then crawled back into the aircraft. His friends on the crew described him as some sort of superman, but he just didn't want to die. Stress after something highly unusual could block a memory. As for the mystery man, I could see a well informed volunteer on a 17 flight experience who was as deep into history as most re-enactors are who knew the story. I've seen Vets and their families when somebody that doesn't know them asks a question about their service, and the answer that comes out of the Vet's mouth shocks his family, as they had never spoken about it before. _Sidenote- nothing is better than seeing a broken, worn out 80-something vet hobble to the door for a flight experience and see "Their airplane". All of a sudden they're 20 again, ramble over, hop up on the wing and toss a leg into the cockpit. After the flight they slowly revert to the old man they were when they came in....
Intervention from a time traveler from the future could explain things. One of the crew of the bomber is the father or grandfather of someone important in the future, and an adversary time traveler is sent back to World War II to remove that person from existence by killing off the bomber crew. This is the plot from Terminator, I know, but still, it would make a good story.
I'm actually using this idea in one of my WIPs. The inventor of the time travel machine is nearly killed by a Japanese pilot during the Pearl Harbor attack. The pilot is not actually Japanese, he is from the future. The woman who saves the inventor later becomes his wife.
