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A B-17 crew needs a pinup girl for their bomber's nose art. Morale is low, missions are brutal, and every plane on the airfield has a gorgeous dame painted on her side. They need theirs.

The problem? They're stuck in the middle of the Pacific with no women for hundreds of miles.

So they draw straws. The shortest straw poses. But then Eddie Coyle, the smallest man on the crew, volunteers.

I need to say thank you to patron Diana O'Neil for mentioning WW2 pinup girls and sparking this entire idea, and a HUGE thank you to my friend Tim for the incredible amount of research he did to make this historically grounded. The Last Straw was a real B-17 stationed at Port Moresby in 1943, though I've taken liberties with the story.

I know this is a day late, but this one really grabbed me by the throat, which is why it's 8000+ words and has 13 images - far outside the usual snapshot length.

Fair warning: since this takes place during wartime in the 1940s with a character who doesn't have the words or knowledge we do today, it can be a little rough in places. And remember - this is only Part 1.

I hope you enjoy it. 💕

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Comments

David G Eason

As a fan of ww2 history and the us army air corps I love this irl most of the b17s in the pacific never get the respect vs say the b29s or fighter pilots

Tiki D

Emory, I really enjoyed your stories. Especially, Jack and Jill. I was wondering can I share my ideas for your next story in terms of What if or something similar?

Jade Diaz

Tears. It’s entirely too relatable across time, across distance, across circumstances.

Tim

As a fan of WW2 history, David, you might find it interesting to know that The Last Straw was not only a real aircraft, but also kinda famous. It was one of 12 B-17s that arrived at Hickam Field in Hawaii just as the first wave of Japanese warplanes began their attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941,. It even earned a cameo role in the film, "Tora, Tora, Tora" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MruD1FTdf-Q) when it landed in the midst of the attack at Hickam purportedly with a damaged landing gear (actually, a blown tire). Here's a brief summary of the aircraft's career: https://pacificwrecks.com/aircraft/b-17/41-2432.html... and a picture of the real life nose art: https://pacificwrecks.com/aircraft/b-17/41-2432/b17-the-last-straw.html (the nose artists back then didn't quite have Emory's level of talent).

Jenny S

Amazing. I'm surprised it's a part one, it feels very complete, if very sad. Not knowing the way to express these feelings. I look into a lot of trans history, and it's interesting how many of the first batch of trans women to get media attention, Christine Jorgensen and her era in the early 50s, were former military. Part of that is just law of averages, a lot of people served during World War II, but in a lot of ways it feels like that's what those girls won in the war, a peacetime where they could be themselves for the first time.

Kris Greg

I loved this story. I grew up listening knowing that my grandfather worked on American bombers in the Pacific during WW2, & I've always felt a connection to those men. It took real guts to climb into a ball turret. One of my high school English teachers had us read the poem that I've pasted below. How can you not admire their courage? These bomber crews became tighter than any family. The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner By Randall Jarrell From my mother’s sleep I fell into the State, And I hunched in its belly till my wet fur froze. Six miles from earth, loosed from its dream of life, I woke to black flak and the nightmare fighters. When I died they washed me out of the turret with a hose.

Morgyf

I'm reminded here of a certain character from J G Ballard's Empire of the Sun. A long time since I read it! That ended tragically; I hope this one doesn't.

Pet Jeffery

Thank you for this! The artwork is wonderful, but there is too much text for me to read in the white-on-black of the pdf (hard on my old eyes). So, now I need to download the text file and email it to my Kindle library. I'll comment further when I've read it. I'd like to say that the quantity of truly excellent material you produce is amazing, but it also worries me. Are you pushing yourself too hard? Sorry if that sounds too much like your mum, but I do worry.

Ellen Mellor

That is some of the most beautiful prose I've read in a very long time. It was poetic and hypnotic and heartbreakingly sad. The sense of longing that imbues every word was so real and so relatable. While I'm obviously never going to be a tailgunner, I think it really works as a metaphor for the life of a pre-transition trans woman who is stuck in a life from which there seems to be no escape. Forcing yourself into this tiny glass bubble which affords no protection and which you may very well not survive. In a way, it also speaks to the trans condition in many parts of the world today. Kansas springs to mind. The final picture of Edie in her perfect femininity is to die for. And not just because the dress is exactly the style I love.

Ellen Mellor

I really need to read Empire of the Sun. I love the SF of his I've read but never managed to get round to that.

Maggie Heels

When I read first words... "as a fan of ww2", my reaction was a tilt of my head... but yeah... my second thoughts were that you didn't have anything bad in mind... still though... it sounds really weird for a person from a country that ww2 left almost entirely flat... but I am a fan of military stuff as well so... ❣️

David G Eason

I am not a fan of the war like war in general what I meant was the machines and equipment that was created in a engineering sense

Maggie Heels

THANK GODDESS (that's you of course) that this is "PART I" so I assume there'll be at least two parts (wouldn't mind about twenty) ❣️❣️❣️ This is sooo... real... part of this story is hitting really close, really hard...

Tim

I should have phrased my reply to say "As a WW2 history buff..." Few 20th century events are more historic than the Second World War, and Emory uses that setting so well to tell a story relevant throughout human history, yet magnified and made more urgent by the wartime environment Eddie finds himself in.

Maggie Heels

I only watched a movie with very young Christian Bale...

Jade Diaz

We all worry about this beautiful creative woman!

Gemma

Beautiful written slow burning story of self discovered and hopefully movement towards self acceptance. The feelings in his chest so aptly captures the buildings up yearning so often felt in the heart that is familiar to so many. I also love the slow build up also around Eddie’s increasing feeling of romantic attraction to Walt. Will it be reciprocated? Nice turn of phrase in this story both capturing another time as well as colloquialism, “like a sheep dog on a mission.” The cinematography type shift from black and white to full colour captures the magical elements of ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ and obviously also, capturing Eddie’s embracement of joy and connection with his/her true self. Fantastic Emory.

M Fielding

Wonderful story even if you never intended to write more. Brilliant from start to end, Emory.

Pet Jeffery

Childhood intimations of belonging with the girls, rather than with the boys, brought back bittersweet memories for me and, I'm sure, for other readers. Likewise, having those memories brought to the fore in our teens although, for most of us, by events less dramatic than modelling for bomber nose art. I wonder how the story will continue in Part 2. In the 1940s, there would have been less acceptance than there is now, and little possibility of transition. Indeed, when I was 19 (in 1965) transition was not an option. Interesting to see your artwork in intentional monochrome. It works wonderfully. I'd already seen your artwork rendered into monochrome on a Kindle Paperwhite device (Liberation and The Catch) and that usually works well, but not always. But the intentional monochrome really sparkles. Lovely!

Samanda

A beautiful story. I loved it! Thank you.

stacy C

Beatiful work Em....the words, the art...bravo! Can't wait to see how this one pans out x

Sunflower

Heartbreakingly beautiful.

Crewchick

First, thank you so very much for the mention that was quite kind and overly generous. All I did was mention and interest in seeing some of our favorite heroines in WW II style pin-up or Varga Girl type images. I never expected you to create a beautiful whole new story and hero for us to cherish. I waited to read it because things IRL have been a little hectic and I really wanted to invest myself in the story when I read it. I have to admit I was also a little trepidatious. You see, I am quite a history nerd, especially for the WW II period. My parents were part of the Greatest Generation and my Dad served in the U.S. Army Air Corps in Europe during the war. So I tend to be a stickler for authenticity. Glaring anachronisms and inaccuracies can really ruin a story or movie for me. I tend to obsess on the error and lose track of the story. Also, that period of time was not particularly LTGBQ friendly, and I was not sure how a modern trans story might settle in that historical setting, which might also come back to that historical accuracy bug of mine. It was sooo worth the wait! This story is wonderful! First your authenticity to the period is impressive, Especially in a story where the history is not the driving force. You have clearly done your research, and it is appreciated. You have the history correct, the geography, the language both military and period slang. The images , the uniforms, clothing, the hair, the aircraft, it shows not just that you did your research but that you intelligently applied it and did so with an almost reverence and respect. Not over done, sappy, or caricature -esq, but something that was real, that was gritty. A period consigned to history and yet in the moment you crafted tangible. The best part of the story though is its basic humanity. You are a master at writing human stories. I don't even know, at least at this point if I would really even call this a LTGBQ story. It is more a story of self discovery. In this case of a trans awareness, but the way you tell the story and present the characters, it could have been a discovery of a calling to the priesthood, or to a life of public service, or art, or to marry his high school sweetheart and live the idealized American dream. War and those who fight it are often glamorized because of the heroic actions done. Some have mistakenly said it brings out man's best. Lord Moran clarified that saying what war does is simply amplify what whatever character already exists in a man's soul. Much of this focusses on whether a man steps up to be the hero, coward or a villain in that life or death moment. But war is not all dire action. It is in truth brief moments of intensity surrounded by vast moments of captive monotony. For many I think discovery comes not from the combat but in those vast moments of monotony when it is far too easy to think, reflect and obsess over our past and our future. I think that is what we are observing in Eddie. The combat is easy, it is instinctive, it is living in the moment with a sort of warrior stoicism. Eddie is struggling in the monotony when the model contest was able to trigger him to reflect on his sister. on the awkward moments of his life and the imposter syndrome. And until the next mission he has the time to think and obsess. Thank you so much for writing such a beautiful story.

Emory Ahlberg

Thank you, Diana! First of all, your pin-up prompt was the total spark for this whole thing, so I really owe you one! Honestly, I was sweating a little bit hoping the history buffs wouldn't come for me lol. That is so incredibly cool about your dad serving in the Army Air Corps! I went down such a massive research rabbit hole to get the B-17 details, the slang, and the whole 1940s vibe right, so hearing that it actually passed your test is a huge relief tbh. 😅 Yeah, I totally get why you were nervous about dropping a trans storyline into a WWII setting. It was a super tricky balance to strike! I just wanted it to feel like a real person trying to figure her life out back before there was really a vocabulary or a blueprint for it.

Emory Ahlberg

Aw, thank you so much, Sunflower! I really appreciate you taking the time to read it. ❤️

Emory Ahlberg

Yeah, I'm so glad you enjoyed both the words and the art, Stacy!

Emory Ahlberg

Honestly, thank you for reading it, Samanda! So glad you loved it.

Emory Ahlberg

Yeah, you nailed it, Pet. Figuring out how Eddie navigates all this in the 40s and 50s when transition wasn't really a "thing" was a challenge. It breaks my heart a little thinking about how many girls had to just hide that side of themselves back then! I'm so glad those childhood flashbacks resonated with you, though. And thank you for the compliment on the art! Playing around with the intentional monochrome was super fun.

Emory Ahlberg

Thank you, M! I kind of fell in love with Eddie and Walt while writing, so I just couldn't leave them hanging in the jungle forever!

Emory Ahlberg

Yeah, Gemma, the tension between Eddie and Walt was so fun to write! The color shift was definitely an homage to the Wizard of Oz. It totally felt like stepping out of the dreary gray and into a whole new sparkly world for her. Thanks so much for all the love!

Emory Ahlberg

Honestly, Maggie, twenty parts might permanently cramp my typing hands, but I'm so glad you're hooked! LOL

Emory Ahlberg

Thank you so much, Ellen! And you are so right about the ball turret. Hiding yourself away in this tiny, fragile little bubble where nobody can actually reach you just felt so incredibly true to that scary pre-transition experience.

Emory Ahlberg

Things definitely get pretty heavy for poor Eddie, but I always want to make sure there's some hope at the end of the tunnel 💕

Emory Ahlberg

Aren't you glad there was a Part 2 and 3, Jenny? Hehe. (sorry, I was looking back and noticed I never replied!)

Emory Ahlberg

Just realizing I never have you a 🫂 for this!

Jenny S

Oh, no worries. I'm impressed you reply to so many! And yes, I am very, very glad :)

Emory Ahlberg

The comments mean so much to me. I'm so thankful for them that I can't help but want to reply to you all! 💕