An Angel's Fix Pt. 08

"Glad to be here, good day," the pilot responded. Then, "Okay, Ashley! Pressures are good, valves good, weather's clear, looks to be a great day to fly. You ready?"

They were poised at the end of the runway, and Ashley said, "Let's hit it!" It echoed the cadence she'd been taught all afternoon.

"Roger that! I'll take her up to full military power, then shortly after, you'll feel a thump when she gets after it in afterburner. When I say 'ready... Hit it!', tense those legs and buttocks, and start your short exchanges of breath. Here comes military power..."

She was pushed further back in her seat, if that was possible, and they rolled down the runway. There was a thump when some valves opened, and her head was pushed back. He called afterburner, then the rapidly increasing airspeeds. The turbines began a hollow howl that would persist throughout much of the flight.

"I'll get us off the ground, and raise the gear." Just as he narrated, the ride smoothed out and was followed by some short bumps as the landing gear retracted. "300! Tense those legs..."

Ashley was already starting her practiced breathing by the time he called "Ready!" On "Hit it!" the plane pitched up 80 degrees and it felt as if everything tried to fall out her butt. The feeling was brief and she eased up when her body caught up to the momentum direction change.

"YEOW!" she exclaimed in excitement through the climb. As if shattering the bonds of gravity in this manner were linked to her personally, Ashley felt something snap inside her. She broke free of things that held her back; the most evident to her right now was, trying to make everybody happy, and tiptoeing through hoops with Matt at the label. The rage that plagued her seemed to slip away and fall behind her toward the Earth.

The jet leveled off and he asked, "How'd that feel?"

"Freaking amazing!" she cheered. Cursing came to mind, but just felt like it would taint the experience.

"Well, that didn't seem to affect you at all!" He was looking in the mirror and found her grin extending well beyond the microphone that covered her mouth. "Forget the routine. Have you ever been down a runway upside down?"

"Let's do it!"

"We have the airfield for a bit, let's give your posse a bit of a show."

Her group watched the aircraft take off. "Oh my God!" Ashley's mother gasped as the plane rotated to a near right angle and jumped towards space. It wasn't long before it circled back and lined up as if to land. Suddenly, it snapped a roll and cruised over the runway a mere 50 feet off the ground, wheels pointing toward the sky. It rolled upright and raced away.

"She's gonna kill you," Joe said to the commander in a someone's-in-trouble singsong.

"It'll be worth it, if this makes her happy," he said as the jet reappeared above the treeline at the left end of the field.

The plane screamed across view before snapping vertical and rocketing straight up, its wings briefly encased in vapor as the change in airflow pressure chills the air and condenses the moisture. Jasmine spoke from behind her camera, "I think she's gonna kill us all when she gets back."

"Oh my God! This is awesome!" Ashley is giggling now, fully enjoying every moment.

"Glad you like it," he responds while back over the runway, just before performing a couple of snap rolls pausing at each 90 degree mark. On their next pass, he explains that he wants to show her just how slow the aircraft can operate, backing off the throttle and angling the nose skyward to hold altitude. He pointed out the indicator that showed they were traveling at a mere 140 knots. Then he recited the thrust specs of the engines, saying they had enough power to lift the plane, even without wings. He made his point by jamming the throttle to afterburner and the plane accelerated away from the ground. At the top of the maneuver, he radioed the Pensacola tower, requesting permission to operate due south of the base. Permission was granted, and he took the opportunity to demonstrate for Ashley the acceleration abilities, and indeed, they were over the emerald and white of the beaches, running at 900 knots in under two minutes. He backed off to avoid going supersonic, and she asked if they could break the sound barrier. He replied that the FAA prohibited supersonic flight over populated areas, then said that he would do it for her later, once he was 7 miles out over the gulf.

Giving her warnings, he performed the 'squirrel cage', diamond rolls (the Blues' terminology for barrel rolls), and a blood-draining minimum radius turn that built over 7 and a half G's, making Ashley's relative weight a shade over 760 pounds. He flew past the 7 mile boundary, and fulfilled his promise to take her supersonic. Waves on the gulf blurred under them when a very slight vibration marked the moment the needle pushed past mach 1.

"Score!" Ashley called out when the aircraft took another express elevator trip to 15,000 feet. She realized her exclamation sounded much like 'soar,' and she began humming a new tune while the officer found some fluffy clouds to fly around and through. They danced through the sky to her song, the pilot twisting, dipping, and rising mildly in synch with the melody. Her humming stopped when she ended the tune, and he headed back leisurely to land.

"So, how is it your dad's stationed here, when his boat is in Corpus Christi?"

His voice roused her from daydreaming. "What? Oh! He works with Corry Field."

"Corry Station, now I think," he corrected.

"Right, I forgot they don't fly anything out of there anymore."

"So, Corry Station. Cryptography?"

"Yeah. His last mission was a test of a new encryption system...whoa." It suddenly dawned on her that her dad and Joe were more closely tied than she should have realized. "Anyway, he tests things and has to give feedback on how well they work, ease of running them, and so on."

The place they were talking about was hidden behind a business district only a few miles from the main base. Locals knew where it was, but rarely approached the heavily guarded gate. It housed the cryptography school for the Navy, and helped develop future generation protocols in partnership with Hurlburt Field, the Air Force special ops base about 40 miles east.

The lieutenant commander respected what she was saying between the lines, that she wouldn't say more than what she had. "But he's retiring soon?" he asked to change the subject.

"Yes, this Fall," her eyes fretted at him. "But I think you knew that already."

"Yes, Ma'am. This is our retirement gift to him. Twenty years of great service, that's nothing to sneeze at."

They approached the base now and he radioed for a touch-and-go landing, which was promptly cleared. "Okay, Miss Smug," he said to her. "You've done great, so I'll simulate a carrier missed-trap landing. We'll hit the deck hard, the hook will 'miss' and I'll hit the afterburner to keep from falling off the front of the ship, okay?"

"Ready to rock and roll!" She grinned.

"Just sit back and relax, there won't be any G forces on this one. Just a kick in the pants."

He lined up, aiming for the marks painted on a training section of runway that simulated a carrier. The aircraft landed hard, jolting Ashley's spine. Her head rocked back as the afterburner engaged and the last thing she heard through her headset was, "Night-night Angel!" Not only did the plane retake to the sky, but also banked hard to the left. Ashley was not expecting the sudden move, and her blood promptly drained from her head.

Entire dreams played through her mind. She sang before huge arena audiences, she fought and made up with her dad, and she played with dozens of happy puppies. Joe laid next to her in their warm and comfy bed, gently brushing the hair out of her face. "Wake up, Angel," he said sweetly. Her eyes fluttered and a far off voice was asking, "are you with me?"

Ashley looked around her, confused by the screens, glass and safety belts that surrounded her. "What?" she asked.

"Angel, you with me?" To her annoyance, that voice seemed to grin at her.

She got her bearings and couldn't believe she was still in the jet, much less still flying. "What happened?" she demanded.

"Ha ha. You took a nap. Are you okay?"

Ashley sucked in a breath through her nose. "You lied to me," she answered flatly in accusation. "How long was I out?"

"About six seconds."

"Only seconds? Felt like hours."

"Sorry for lying. You did everything so easily, you were sitting back there with such a cocky grin. I thought I'd show you how the other half lives. No hard feelings?" She shook her head. The officer worked on a wide, lazy circle to get back to the runway. "It seemed like you've done this before. How is that possible?"

"Well, I use my diaphragm a lot when I sing, so I'm used to working that part. And I run every morning with my friends." She shrugged. "Plus, I had good instructors."

"Thank you for that. Well, how about a nice, quiet, airline landing now?"

The disorientation of waking up somewhere she didn't expect made her a bit queasy now. "Sounds good to me."

She barely felt a bump when the plane settled back to the ground. He taxied to the show parking area, and stopped at the ground crew's signal. The engines wound down, the canopy slid back and up, and a few clunks sounded from her left as Cordill released the built-in ladder from under the port wing. Seconds later, he was at her side, taking off her helmet and unbuckling all her straps. She followed his instructions on the best way to reach the ladder, and climbed down with him just below, ready to catch her if she slipped.

Once her feet touched solid ground, she ran up to her father and jumped in his arms. "Thank you so much for giving me your seat and changing my life," she cried into his shoulder before kissing his cheek.

Kim went up to the pilots who had gathered around and gave each of them a thank you hug. "How'd she do?" she asked the lead solo pilot.

"Ace," he replied with a grin that mixed pride with disbelief.

Ashley came over and gave each pilot a hug and kiss on the cheek, expressing how happy she was feeling. Captain Cordill asked if she wanted to fly with them at practice on Tuesday. "Oh, thank you! But I don't want to take anyone's opportunity," she replied, knowing just how special and rare such chances are.

"We had someone fall ill, and no one else is available from our Key Influencer program, so either I fly alone in Number 4, or I take you in Number 7. Think of it as our birthday present to you."

"Can my dad go instead? This was his spot originally."

The commander stepped up. "I've been in a Hornet before, sweetheart. Someone took me up from a carrier during drills a few years ago. Besides, they know you can handle it. They trust you."

Ashley weighed her decision for a bit. "I'll come to the practice, but I'm going to watch from the ground. This is a once in many lifetimes event, and I'd like to keep it that way." She felt like her life really was heading in a new direction, and she didn't want greed to be a part of it.

She thought about what all happened today while she was changing back into her own clothes in the restroom. Many people declare an adrenaline-filled moment 'changed their life,' but reality proves old habits die hard, and they revert to the same things they disliked before. Ashley was convinced something had disappeared during her flight, and that was a welcome change. Her fear of many things was gone now, as was the little annoying monster of rage that liked to hide until the worst moments. A shadow had been lifted, and she felt incredibly light and happy. Ashley had always respected those in uniform, both the jobs they do, and their overall attitude. Her respect ratcheted up tenfold, having just experienced the forces that affect them during maneuvers. She couldn't imagine being in combat on top of that.

"That's because we cheat in combat," Boss answered the question she asked after she appeared from the restroom. "In combat, we have suits that inflate during hard maneuvers, squeezing the blood up. We don't use them here, because the sudden inflation could interfere with the precise movements we need from the flight stick to hold formation."

"Still, I wish I had something worthy to give you all in thanks for your service," she said. At that moment, she realized that she was embarrassed with the quality of the album she and the Pinheads recently released.

"The smile that hasn't left your face since you came back is thanks enough," her pilot chimed in. "Besides, Commander Roberts sent us a copy of your performance at the school when he pitched the idea for you to take his place. You're amazing, and we're honored that we got to see that."

"Well," she said, trying to figure out something appropriate to say. She decided to use what she had heard a number of times during her visit. "I'm just glad to be here."

They all nodded with a smile, and reminded her to come back Tuesday.

Her parents and friends took her out to dinner, and got her version of the flight. When they got back to the house, Jasmine played the CD she was given of Ashley's flight from the cockpit's camera. They ooh'd and ahh'd at the spinning ground behind Ashley's head, and laughed at her 'nap' near the end. The excitement and labors of the experience crashed down on her.

She traced a fingernail down the buttons of Joe's shirt. "Joe, you big stud," she cooed with a silly grin. "Take me to bed or lose me forever."

He scooped her in his arms and carried her up the stairs to their room, depositing her gently on the bed. Joe smirked after pulling off her t-shirt and unfastened her jeans.

"What?" she asked when he tugged the denim free from her legs.

"Did you just quote Top Gun to seduce me?"

Ashley smiled. "Seduce, yes. Actively participate, I'm not so sure now. So sleepy."

He undressed and laid beside her, moving a strand of hair from her face. "Well, I'll let you rest."

"Hmm," she purred. "No, make love to me, please."

Sorry for the long absence. Life's plans were interrupted last fall when I had surgery. The end to this story is written, so I'll be posting a couple more parts as soon as they're edited. Please leave a comment and rate according to what's deserved. Thank you!