BIGGLES PRESSES ON

More Adventures of Biggles and the Special Air Police

by Captain W. E. Johns

4. MISSION ORIENTAL (Pages 68 – 86)

“There were two men as well as Air Commodore Raymond in the Air Police headquarters office when Biggles, in response to a call from his chief on the inter-com. Telephone, walked in. One was obviously British, a senior civil service type; the other was a small, brown-skinned man with slightly slanting eyes who, although dressed in European clothes, was equally obviously an Asiatic. Biggles thought Burmese, although in this he was wrong”. “Come in, Bigglesworth,” invited the Air Commodore quietly. “Let me introduce you to Mr. Preston, of the Colonial Office, and Mr. Ong, a secretary on the personal staff of the Sultan of Kulang, in Malaya”. (Kulang is fictional but there is a Kluang in Malaysia). Raymond wants Biggles to fly out to Kulang and by explaining the purpose while the men were here, they could answer any questions he had. “Biggles’ expression did not change. He saw nothing unusual in being asked to fly half-way across the world on a special mission, for long-distance mobility was the particular purpose of his department at Scotland Yard”. Raymond intends to ask the Air Ministry for the loan of a Hastings aircraft. Raymond says “Kulang, as you probably know, is one of the smaller sovereign states at the north-eastern extremity of the territory administered by us”. Communist agents, with the purpose of starting “the usual agitation with the object of overthrowing the government”, are presenting a threat. The Sultan’s uncle (his father’s younger brother) ,called Prince Chan, sees an opportunity to seize power. The Sultan has a wife, the Sultana, and a son aged ten called Prince Suba. The boy is due to come to England to go to school. Raymond wants Biggles to fly both the Sultana and Prince Suba out of Kulang. They cannot travel on any overland route as their lives would be in danger. The Sultana and the boy, disguised as servants will leave the palace by a back exit and meet with Biggles at a certain rendezvous. Kulang is hilly and mostly covered with forest, so the only place a plane can get down “is a stretch of sandy beach running for some miles along the coast. The northern end is no great distance from the palace”. Mr. Ong assures Biggles the sand is firm when they arrive at low tide. They won’t have full tanks of fuel as they only need enough fuel to fly to Kuala Lumpur or Penang, where they can refuel before flying home. Biggles is asked how he feels about it. “I see no difficulty, sir, as long as things pan out as arranged”. Biggles smiled faintly. “They don’t always do that when one has to take certain factors on trust. However, we’ll deal with the snags if and when they arise”. Biggles asks Mr. Ong when they should start. “Twelve midnight on the seventeenth – a fortnight today. There will be a full moon and the tide will be at its lowest ebb at that hour” is the reply. Raymond asks Biggles “I suppose you’ll take your usual crew with you?” Biggles says “I think it would be advisable to have them with me just in case we run into trouble. I’ll report progress to you in the usual code, on the high frequency, as often as possible”.

On the night of the fourteenth day following the conversation in London a Hastings aircraft of Transport Command, of the type used for carrying Important Persons, having crossed the Malay Peninsula from Penang, nosed its way northward at ten thousand feet towards its objective, the Sultanate of Kulang. At the controls were Biggles. Beside him at the dual installation sat Ginger. Also in the flight compartment were Mr. Ong, Algy, at the navigation table, and Bertie, prepared to act if necessary as radio operator”. In due course a cluster of lights appear and Mr. Ong says that is the town of Kulang. Biggles remarks that he would have thought more people would be in bed as it was within a few minutes of midnight. Ginger thinks the Mr. Ong is somewhat puzzled. Biggles comes in to land. “No one spoke. It was as if everyone realized that the crucial moment was at hand; that the next few minutes would decide the success or failure of the operation”. (“The next few minutes would decide the success or failure of the operation (page 74)” is the illustration opposite page 80). Biggles lands on the beach and the sand is firm. Mr. Ong’s face, normally expressionless broke into a smile. “Very good, Captain,” he said. “I will fetch them. They will not be far away”. Mr. Ong gets out and whistles. The beach remained deserted. Biggles lit a cigarette. “Well, where are they?” he asked. “It’s after twelve”. “Biggles drew heavily on his cigarette, doing his best not to show his irritation at the delay. Twenty minutes dragged by”. Biggles tells Mr. Ong that he thinks he should do something about this and Ong says he will go and find out what has happened. The palace is two to three miles away. Ong says if they come while he is gone, they are to go without him as he intends to stay anyway and then he sets off. Biggles lit another cigarette. “It’s annoying, but I can’t say it surprises me. If time-tables go wrong at home, and they do, what are we to expect in the East?” Ginger asks how long does Biggles intend to wait. Biggles says until daylight. “We’ve done our part. We can’t do more. If the Sultana doesn’t turn up, she, not us, will have let the party down”. Ong returns running. “We are too late” he announced. “The worst has happened. Chan and his Communist friends have struck. There are riots, and the town in in an uproar. That accounts for the lights we saw”. Ong says the Sultan and his family would be in the palace. “They wouldn’t dare to come out while the place is in this state”. The police can do nothing as they would hesitate to fire on their own people without orders and there was no time to issue any. Biggles asks Ong is he knows a back way into the palace and he does. “All right. Let’s go and get this sorted out,” said Biggles calmly. Ong warns of danger for them all. “Mr. Ong,” said Biggles curtly, “I haven’t flown all this way to go home with an empty machine. Algy, stay here and take care of things. Ginger, Bertie, you’ll come with me. Lead on, Mr. Ong”. They set off at a brisk pace for the palace. Biggles asks Ong if the Sultan speaks English and he is told that he does so perfectly; he went to school in England. Leaving a path and plunging through jungle, they reach a bamboo fence, which they break through without any difficulty. It takes them into the palace gardens. They reach the door where there are guards who know Mr. Ong, who speaks to them. “Let’s not stand here arguing,” he told Ong crisply. “You know your way about this place. We don’t. Take us to the room where you think the Sultan is most likely to be found”. “Certainly,” said Ong, who appeared to be somewhat carried off his feet by Biggles’ brusque orders. They traverse several corridors and come to a room where guards tell them the Sultan is not to be disturbed on the orders of Prince Chan. Biggles pushes aside the guards and opens the door. They all enter “a magnificent apartment, spacious and furnished in a somewhat incongruous mixture of Oriental and Western styles, the East predominating. It was lighted by several ornate lamps, both standard and pendant”. There are two groups of people there. On one side, is a man in early middle age who, from the richness of his dress, was clearly the Sultan. (“Prince Chan (page 80)” is the frontispiece illustration). A man is at his elbow and both look upset and worried. Behind them is a woman and boy. “Facing them, in attitudes that might be described as threatening, was a party of five men, four in native dress and the other wearing European clothes. He had the pale complexion and high cheek bones of a Slav. One of the Orientals, who stood slightly in advance of the rest, was a man of about sixty years of age, and from the richness of his attire, which included a jewelled turban, was evidently a person of importance. Ginger judged him, correctly, as it presently transpired, to be the wicked uncle of the play, Prince Chan”. Biggles addresses the Sultan. “I crave your indulgence, sir, if my intrusion turns out to be unwarranted. But I came to Kulang at your request, and as things seem to have gone awry, I await your instructions. I am at your disposal”. Prince Chan tells Biggles to get out. Biggles asks Ong “From whom am I to take orders”. The Sultan answers “I give the orders here” and Chan says that won’t be for much longer. “My uncle demands my abdication” the Sultan explains, on the grounds of the Sultan’s “inability to rule the country without disorders, such as those now going on outside”. The Sultan says he has no intention of abdicating and will continue with the plan of sending his son to England for his education. Chan says the boy will not go. Biggles’ expression hardened. “All I have to say to you is this. It is a lucky thing for you I’m not the Sultan of Kulang, for if I were I’d hang you on the nearest tree for treason. Since his Highness wishes it the boy will go, and I’d advise you to make no attempt to prevent him leaving”. Chan looked at Biggles as if he could not believe his ears. It is unlikely that he had ever been so spoken to in his life. He glared, but words failed him. His hand went to his hip”. The man in European dress said something in a low tone to Chan, “who must have perceived that his opportunity to seize the throne was slipping away from him, and for that reason would need little urging to make a last desperate bid for what he wanted”. Chan whipped out a dagger and leapt like a tiger at the Sultan, arm raised for the fatal thrust. Biggles shoots Chan dead. The European also had his gun in hand and was taking deliberate aim at Biggles. As he fires, Bertie shot him dead. Bertie adjusted his monocle and looked at Biggles. “I had to do it, old boy, otherwise he would have got you,” he said apologetically. The Sultan thanks Biggles. “You saved my life and I am deeply grateful”. The three other conspirators are arrested by the guards who rush into the room. The Sultan still wants Biggles to take his family to England where they will be safe. Ong goes out to find out what the people outside the palace are shouting about. He was back in five minutes. “I am told the rioting started when a rumour spread through the town that the Sultan had abdicated in favour of Prince Chan,” he reported. “That story, without a doubt, was given out by Chan’s agents”. Biggles says the answer is simple. It should only be necessary for the Sultan to show himself to the people “to squash the rumour”. The Sultan steps out on the balcony and addresses the crowd and it has the effect of raising a storm of cheers. The Sultan returns to say all is well and he intends to stay, but until he can deal with the troublemakers, he would prefer his family to go with Biggles to England. The Sultan said good-bye to his family and brought them forward to Biggles. “I can never thank you enough for what you have done to-night, yet still I don’t know your name”. Biggles smiled. “It isn’t important, sir”. He held out a hand to the boy. “Come on, Your Highness. We’re going for a long ride”. Prince Suba looked up at Biggles with dark serious eyes. “I shan’t know what to call you,” he said. “You can call me Biggles,” said Biggles confidentially. “Biggles,” repeated the Prince. “What a funny name”. “That’s what I think,” agreed Biggles, to broad smiles all round. “Lead on, please, Mr. Ong”. There was no trouble on the return journey to the beach. They reach the rendezvous to hear the Hastings’ engines start up, but that was only Algy moving the machine farther from the advancing tide. “They were soon aboard, and in a few minutes, with Mr. Ong waving good-bye on the beach, the little country where a Communist revolution had failed was dropping away astern as the Hastings took up its course for home”.