The Devil's Darning Needle -- Adult Thriller

La Aguja del Caballito del Diablo
A counterterrorism thriller by Ben R. Furman.

Western folklore said the dragonfly was in league with the Devil, and in the dead of night while everyone slept, it would enter bedrooms and sew up the eyes and mouths of misbehaving children, scolding women, and lying men. The dragonfly became known as the Devil’s Darning Needle. I use the term to describe the robotic dragonflies that are the attack vehicles in the story. If the government’s cutting edge technology has caught or surpassed that I’ve described, I don’t know. No one will say. But something very similar is “out there.” I did the drawing above to provide a visual for the robotic dragonflies. Click on the picture to take a closer look.

A Department of Defense (DOD) article said the micro aerial vehicle (MAV) project started with a government sponsored forum on future technologies for military operations. The world’s best aeronautical scientists discussed the practicality of producing micro vehicles, including aircraft systems, that were no larger in size than a hummingbird and could be scaled down to less than a centimeter. Primarily the vehicles would be used for surveillance, but they needed the ability to convert to a weapon’s system.

I took literary license with the specifications but these are pretty close to the overall requirements spelled out in the original forum: The aircraft had to be less than six inches in diameter, fly up to thirty kilometers at a top speed of 50 miles per hour, remain aloft for twenty minutes to two hours, and carry a payload of at least three ounces. It should be launched by hand, or by launch munitions, or from a larger aircraft. The operating software program had to be interchangeable with existing military software and hardware to eliminate retrofitting or reprogramming. It had to be compatible with the military ground control stations and software protocols that were used for military unmanned drones and surveillance aircraft. Most of all, it had to be G.I. proof. It would be a one mission, expendable vehicle that had to be inexpensive to produce.

Book excerpt…Luis flipped on the control station, and opened a case that held three MAV prototypes. He handed one to Angel, who turned it over in his hands, examining it from every angle.

Angel hadn’t seen anything that remotely resembled the robotic creature. “Does this little bug really fly, Luis? It’s so small and compact.”

“Five inch segmented body and six inch double wings for stability, and this baby can be used for real time clandestine surveillance or it can be converted to a weapon to deliver plastic explosives. The yield comes close to a military fragmentary grenade. We can link up four of the critters and we’ll have a pound of high explosives.”

“What’s the covering, Luis?”

“Compressed carbon fiber or paper for short. It’s nearly invisible to radar, and if it did pop up on a screen it would be dismissed as a bird. If detection isn’t a problem the skin can be switched to segmented metal that will increase the kill zone by flying shrapnel.

“It’s powered by microwave beams that are converted to an electric current inside the MAV that fuels the electric motor, which in turn drives the wings. The principle’s much the same as a household microwave oven, but instead of producing heat, we’re producing energy for the electric motor.”

Luis showed Angel the control station. It had a large video screen, a scrolling topographical map that ran simultaneously with the video, and a compass overlay in the top right of the screen. The map and the video provided real time geo-referenced information that gave the operator the vehicle position, direction and sensor orientation.

“If the operator’s good, a dozen dragonflies can be flown at the same time,” he said as the dragonfly lifted silently into the air, hovered, and waited for flight instructions.