Before they were the Aces of Razgriz, before they were Wardog, they were rookies. Follow Blaze, Chopper, Nagase, and Grimm as they navigate through their years at the Osean Air Force Academy, where they learn what it means to be a team, and more imp...
"Believe you can, and you're halfway there." ~Theodore Roosevelt ***
I leaned forward and shook Charter as much as I could, desperately praying it would wake her up, but she remained unconscious, and our plane was starting to decline at a rapid pace. Trying to keep the panic in my voice to a minimum, I informed Chopper and Hondo of the situation, adding, "Someone help me find the button to switch the controls to me so I can level out the plane."
"There's a switch next to your joystick," Hondo replied calmly. "It'll say 'Pilot 2 CTRL.' Can you see it?"
"Got it." The plane shuddered when I flicked the switch upward, and I grabbed hold of my joystick in a death-grip, slowly pulling it back and lifting the aircraft up to a safer altitude. "Now what?"
"Now, we need to see if we can get Captain Charter to wake up."
"Would getting a missile lock on them work?" Chopper suggested. "Maybe the alarms going off in the cockpit will get her attention."
"Good idea, cadet," Hondo praised. He slowed down and moved behind me. I took deep breaths to keep my heart rate at a relatively normal beat. The last thing we needed was for me to pass out too. The missile alert blared, and I kept a careful eye and ear on Charter, waiting for any movement or sound to tip me off she was awake.
Nothing happened until-
"What's- my head-" Charter moaned before lurching forward and grabbing a bag. She threw up in it.
"Charter, can you hear me?" Hondo demanded worriedly. "Talk to me, Charter."
"I-I can't-" She threw up again.
"Something's wrong," I said. She can't stop hurling. We need to get her medical attention."
"Charter, listen to me," Hondo continued. "Can you land the plane? You have a first-year cadet that's never flown before. You can't let her down."
"Can't... see. Spinning. Everything's... everything's spinning," Charter murmured.
"Hondo, she's not going to be able to land this plane," I informed grimly, the reality of what I would have to do settling in.
"Shit. Okay, I'm going to fly on your wing, and you're going to do exactly as I say," Hondo instructed. "Understood?"
"Yes, sir."
"Good girl. First thing's first, you're going to gently tilt your joystick to the left and when the plane is vertical, pull up. Continue this until you've completed a 180-degree turn, then stop pulling back and push the joystick to the right until you're leveled out, understood?"
"Yes, sir." Taking a deep breath, I did as instructed, trying to make the movements as smooth as possible to avoid giving Charter an even more upset stomach. She was still dry-heaving into the bag, barely holding it together.
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