Reverie 》Bob Floyd

Chapter 10

It's still a fairly solemn vibe in the hangar the next day for training. There is still a mission to be done, pilots to be trained. But it comes at a cost. 

Cyclone stands at the front of the room, addressing the pilots, not Maverick. Which is the first clue something is wrong. 

"Captain Mitchell is no longer your instructor. And as of today, there are new mission parameters," Cyclone informs the team. The mission clock at the front of the room resets from 2:30 minutes to 4:00. 

"Time to target is now four minutes, you'll be entering the valley level at reduced speed. Not to exceed 429 knots." 

Everyone looks at each other with worried and concerned faces, Hangman especially looks concerned. After the hell that Reyna and Mari have been going through, he cannot afford to give them any more pain. 

"Sir, won't we be giving their planes time to intercept," Bob asks the first one to snap out of his shock. He is also thinking of his own wife and what these new parameters could mean for their overall survival. 

Cyclone, slightly annoyed with the question, answers him anyway. "Well, lieutenant, you have a fighting chance against enemy aircraft. What are the odds of surviving a head on collision with a mountain?" 

He continues with the new parameters. "You'll be attacking the target from a higher altitude, level with the north wall. It will be harder to keep your laser on target, but you will avoid the high-G climb out." Even Warlock is looking wary, observing the looks of the aviators around him. 

"We'll be sitting ducks for those enemy missiles," Fanboy whispers to Payback. 

Suddenly, the screen starts to move and a beeping comes online

"Who the hell is that," Cyclone questions as an F-18 appears on screen. 

"Maverick to range control, entering point alpha, confirm green range." Maverick's voice comes over the speakers. 

"Maverick, range control, uh green range is confirmed, but I don't see an event scheduled for you sir," range controls answers back. 

Everyone in the mission room looks excited to see Maverick let go of all restrictions. 

"Well, I'm going anyway," Maverick says back.  

"Nice," Phoenix whispers.  

"Setting time to target, 2 minutes 15 seconds," Maverick says.  

Payback scoffs, "Two fifteen, that's impossible." 

Hangman looks at the screen with a slight smirk, anticipating finally seeing Maverick show his full skillset. 

"Time set for you," range control says

Everyone is watching the screen, hardly breathing as they watch Maverick fly the course, navigating tight turns faster than they've ever seen. 

The time is 1:30 and he's already halfway there, as everyone watches in anticipation. 

39 seconds on the clock as he approaches the target point. 

"Popping 3,2,1," Maverick counts down as he prepares to enter the inverted climb. 

"Bombs away," as he launches the first missiles. 

The missile hits with 0.16 seconds left on the clock as Maverick hits 9.5Gs. 

"Bullseye," Payback calls out as the missile lands. "Holy shit," Coyote says. 

Cyclone stares at the screen, showing Maverick has just hit 10Gs. 

"Damn," Hangman admits. 

But now, all the pilots know that this mission is possible to pull off, which is what they needed.