Author's Notes: Week 5 at Premier Delta has a tragic start.
TRIGGER WARNINGS!! Please note that this chapter has graphic description of a plane crash and the subsequent major character injuries and trauma following. Do not read if this is upsetting or triggering for you. Feel free to message me here or on Tumblr (RealityBetterThanFiction) and I can give you the abridged version to catch you up. Be safe, my dears!
This chapter (let's be honest...every chapter) is dedicated to my absolutely incredible RIOs Bubblymar and CueTheTommo. Without them, this would NOT have gotten finished. I owe this to them for their constant support and handholding as I tore myself apart writing this. So much love to you both! I don't know what I'd do without you, and it has been an absolute joy working with and getting to know you both! xoxo
Mood Music:
Down - Jason Walker: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-upMaXfQTXo
Storm - Lifehouse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QU6AhH2a1cU
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RealityBetterThanFiction's Crash-Course to Aviation:
DNIF - Duty Not Including Flying...basically like probation.
*Reminder to check the trigger warnings in the notes at the beginning of the chapter before reading!
Story starts below...Enjoy!
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If flying was the dream, this was the nightmare. This was the moment where training gave way to blind panic, in veterans and rookies alike. Years of exhaustive practice and relentless sacrifice came down to whether or not you could reach a fucking handle dangling less than a metre in front of your face.
"Eject! Eject!" Harry screamed again, hand trying for the ejection handle, their last hope. The G force was so crushing that Harry was plastered to his seat, arms heavy like anvils. He could feel the edge of his consciousness looming, body desperate for air, lungs unable to work beyond gulping gasps. He squeezed every one of his muscles, trying to keep the blood to his head, trying to stay lucid.
"Engines out! Fifteen thousand. Thirteen. Ten. Fuck! Now! Now! " Niall yelled from behind him, eyes no doubt watching the plummeting altitude meter just like Harry as their chances dwindled with each spin of the needle. The sound of alarms filled the cockpit, filled Harry's head.
"I can't! I can't reach it!" Harry hollered as he tried again for the handle. So close, so bloody close, a promise to end this horror. A mocking reprieve held just out of reach. Harry couldn't tell what direction he was going, couldn't tell up from down, sky from sea. All he knew was that there were a matter of seconds between the chance at life and the certainty of death.
Harry cried out, teeth gritted and eyes closed, as he blindly fought his invisible constraints and reached up for the handle one last time. His fingers grasped it just as Niall screamed, "Six thousand! Oh God! Harry! "
Harry yanked with every last ounce of his strength. Then a bomb blast detonated around him, windscreen blowing off with an explosion of sparks and the squeal of splintering metal. Harry's entire world was being ripped apart at the seams, just like the body of his beloved Georgia Rose.
Harry's seat launched up into the air, and that was it. Harry was out.
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Harry could feel the wind on his face.
It was the first thing he registered after he slowly started to come back to himself, mind hazy and sluggish, body sore and heavy. It was a pleasant kind of breeze, something from a distant dream. A warm, soft gust that reminded him of summer flights with his Dad, pretending he was a Premier Delta pilot before Dad left to train the real ones. Harry didn't think he'd ever forget those endless days spent in his Dad's lap with his head in the clouds and eyes on the horizon.
YOU ARE READING
Take My Breath Away
Teen FictionThere is a prestigious school in the British Royal Navy classified as Premier Delta - or as it is known by its flyers, 1D. These select pilots are an elite set of Naval lieutenants who are trained in the skill of aggressive aerial combat. They are i...
