Following the direction of the pilot's eyes, Jack perceived a great, gray, pencil-shaped object approaching through the air.

He recognized it instantly--a German war dirigible, sent to help the Austrians. Under it flew smaller forms, aeroplanes accompanying it as guard. And now a second Zeppelin appeared--and then a third.

Swiftly they swept over the sea. A moment and they had pa.s.sed over the broken line of Austrian battleships, and sped on toward the French fleet. The French perceived the menace, and their special quick-firers, elevated for aeroplane defense, came into action.

But the Zeppelins bored on, and their powerful guns fired down macarite sh.e.l.ls. The first French battleship, already stripped by the raking fire of the Austrian fleet, seemed to crumple up, and a moment later disappeared altogether.

The rain of sh.e.l.ls from above found breaches in the armor of a second French ship, caught a magazine forward and exploded it, almost at the same time blew up a magazine aft, and the ship, broken in two, sank.

The first dirigible, having pa.s.sed over the French fleet, now turned and came back. The sh.e.l.ls of the ships burst harmlessly below it. As the torpedo boats had gathered for an attack against the Austrian fleet, so now did the French aircraft gather for an a.s.sault upon these enemies of the air.

But the enemy's airmen did not wait for them. They charged.

Machines met, wing against wing, and toppled into the water.

Others, their propellers crushed, met the same fate. But some of the French machines burst through, only to be met by the deadly fire of the Zeppelins and sent into the sea.

Yet a few survived, and their rifle bullets riddled the gas chambers of the big balloons, but these tiny perforations availed nothing. The French flyers who survived darted beyond the Zeppelins and withdrew. The attack had accomplished little, for, while some of the Austrian aeroplanes had been sent into the sea, the dirigibles were still intact. A mean for successful attack against these giants of the air had not been found.

But now, in response to a word of command from Jack, Pierre nodded his head in understanding. In the meantime the French birdmen had re-formed and had rushed forward in another gallant attack. But the result was the same, and, while they succeeded in accounting for some of the smaller planes' the Zeppelins continued to fight as before, dropping their powerful sh.e.l.ls upon the French fleet below.

But this time there was one plane that did not swerve as it burst through the Austrian line of small planes, and darted toward the first dirigible. Straight on it rushed, absolutely reckless, and crashed into the first giant balloon, head-on-collapse the great forward gas chamber, setting it on fire, exploding it, blowing all the mighty war balloon to atoms.

In this plane were Jack and Pierre. It was Jack's eye that had made out the only means of effective attack against the dirigible. Even as he had ordered the attack, the lad knew that it meant almost certain death, but he had not hesitated. He realized that the French aircraft must be shown some means of destroying these huge air fighters, and knowing that there was time to convey his ideas to the other, had acted at once.

Now, this accomplished, the plane in which Jack and Pierre had performed this success, driven deep into the flaming ma.s.s of wreckage, was falling with the broken war balloon down into the sea.

The wreck fell slowly, for the fabric, yet unconsumed, parachuted and held in the air. Then, finally, hissing and splashing, it fell into the sea.

To Jack's ears, as he came again to the surface, came the cries of men wounded and burning. An arm flung toward the sky sent his eyes in that direction, even as he swam.

He saw the two remaining dirigibles fighting together against another aeroplane attack. But the way had been shown, and no longer did the French sheer off when they broke through the Austrian air line. Two small planes crashed into the dirigibles, one into each, and exploded them.

They fell to the sea, burning, men tumbling out upon all sides.

A form struck the water close to where Jack, miraculously uninjured, swam. The latter stretched out an arm, and grasped the body by the shoulder, as it reappeared upon the surface.

Then a cry of amazement burst from his lips.

The form that he thus clutched so tightly was that of his friend Frank.

CHAPTER XIX

FROM THE DEAD

At Jack's cry of amazement Frank slowly opened his eyes. His const.i.tution was not nearly as strong, as that of his huge friend. He was almost unconscious as the result of his terrible fall. But he recognized his chum in an instant, smiled feebly, and then his muscles relaxed. He lay a dead weight in Jack's arms.

Quickly the lad looked round for some sign of a vessel, or a piece of wreckage to which to cling until he could be picked up.

There was none, so still carrying his friend he struck out in the direction of the nearest ship, which could even now be seen approaching.

The sounds of battle still continued, but they gradually grew less as the Austrian fleet, or what was left of it, retired to the protection of its land batteries.

Four warships sent to the bottom of the sea, three submarines missing, and undoubtedly gone forever, and a half score of torpedo boats sunk, was the Austrian loss. The French had lost two battleships, a submarine and three torpedo boats. The heaviest losses sustained by both sides had been to the air fleets.

Now the approaching vessel drew closer to Jack, and he at length realized that he had been seen. A small boat put off to him.

Strong arms gripped him and pulled him and Frank into the boat, and a hearty voice exclaimed in English:

"By Jove! They're English! Now, how do you suppose they got here?"

Jack was conscious of a pleasant sensation at hearing his native tongue spoken thus, but he was too exhausted to take much interest in it then. He fell back unconscious.

But, if the lad was surprised at thus being addressed in English, there was still a greater surprise and joy in store for him--and for Frank.

When Jack reopened his eyes, he lay in a small but well-furnished cabin. Frank lay near him. He already had returned to consciousness, and even now was glancing curiously about.

He glanced at Jack as the latter opened his eyes.

"By George!" he e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed. "I was afraid you were done for, you lay there so quietly. How did I come here?"

"Why," said Jack, "you toppled into the sea right beside me, and I grabbed you and held on until we were picked up."

"Then," cried Frank excitedly, "you were aboard the first plane that dived into the dirigible?"

"I was there," replied Jack briefly.

"By Jove! I thought so. It looked like some your doings. And, if you hadn't thought of that method of attack, the whole French fleet probably would have been sunk!"

"Well, somebody had to do it," said Jack modestly. "I notice you weren't far behind yourself."

"Well," said Frank quietly, "I am glad we accomplished the task successfully. Where are we now?"

"I don't know exactly," replied Jack. "But, as we were picked up, I heard someone talking in English. I believe that we are on an English ship that happened on the scene just in time to get into the battle."

"Well--" began Frank, and stopped suddenly, staring open-mouthed at a figure now framed in the doorway of the little cabin.

Jack turned his eyes in that direction, and also was stricken speechless.

"Am I dreaming?" muttered Frank at last. "It--it can't be."

"'But it is," exclaimed a well-known voice, and a dignified and military figure marched into the room--the figure of Lord Hastings, whom the boys had so long mourned as lost.

In spite of their exhausted condition, both boys were upon their feet instantly, and each had him by the hand.

"But you went down with the Sylph," protested Jack.

"You were drowned," declared Frank. "I saw you go down."

"So you did," replied Lord Hastings, laughing a little. "But I came up again. I came up near a piece of floating wreckage, to which I clung for more than twenty-four hours before I was finally picked up by a British torpedo boat."