Fledgling: Jason Steed by Cooper Mark A

Author:Cooper, Mark A. [Cooper, Mark A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Published: 2010-09-01T07:00:00+00:00

The following morning, Jason joined the rest of the cadets. They had a briefing on the day’s activities. It was an hour’s drive to Dartmoor, where they would hike up a hill and inflate two rafts and then ride down the rapids.

Drill instructor Evans shouted out the orders. “No tomfoolery. We already had one cadet spend the night in the hospital. We don’t want anymore!”

All eyes turned to Jason.

“As for you, Steed, you will have to sit this one out. The doctor doesn’t think you should participate in the rafting. I am sure you can find something to do here.”

Jason bit his lip. He wanted to argue because he felt fine. Plus, he really wanted to go white water rafting, but his uncle Stewart had told him, “You must never question an order—ever.” However, he could not hide his disappointment. Some of his fellow cadets even gave him a pat on the back. Jason watched them pile into two minibuses with equipment stored on the roof racks. As they pulled away, some of the boys sat in the back and gave a mock salute as a friendly tease. Jason hung his head. He couldn’t see the humor in it.

With nothing to do, he shambled down to the center of the complex. A broad smile came across his face as he read the sign: simulator. He poked his head and looked around. Two pilots were using the equipment.

Jason watched for an hour. When they finished, a female controller called out, “Hey, kid, I guess you wanna try?” She was a red-headed Irish lady covered in freckles.

“Yes, ma’am, thank you,” Jason said, climbing in.

“Wait. You need to be shown what to do. You will never get it off the ground.”

“If they can, I can,” Jason said, strapping himself in.

“Look, kid. It’s not a toy. It’s an expensive bit of equipment. Pick an airplane.”

But Jason had already picked a fighter jet and began the sequence to start. The controller stared in shocked amazement.

Jason went through the preflight checklist, started the engine, and took off. Once the simulator was in the air, the controller talked to him on the radio.

“Ha! Okay, kid. How did you learn to do that?”

“Hong Kong, ma’am.”

“Well, show me your stuff then, Mr. Hong Kong.”

Jason spent most of the rest of the day flying all sorts of planes, including fighters and huge cargo carriers. He did crash once when he tried a simulated landing on an aircraft carrier, but apart from that, he performed as well as any pilot she’d ever seen.

“You’re a natural, mate,” she told him, patting his head as he left. “And by the way, I love your hair.”

***

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