FIREBALL

Chapter 1

ON MARCH 3, 1969, THE UNITED STATES NAVY ESTABLISHED AN ELITE SCHOOL FOR THE TOP ONE PERCENT OF ITS PILOTS. IT'S PURPOSE WAS TO TEACH THE LOST ART OF AERIAL COMBAT AND ENSURE THAT THE HANDFUL OF MEN AND WOMEN WHO GRADUATED WERE THE BEST FIGHTER PILOTS IN THE WORLD.

TODAY, THE NAVY CALLS IT "FIGHTER WEAPONS SCHOOL". 

THE FLYERS CALL IT:

TOPGUN

fire.

pain.

bullets flying.

shouting.

crying.

a void.

-----

thalia startled awake in the small bunk on a carrier she called home.

she checked the time- 4.30 am.

"shit."

her mind wandered back to the dream that woke her up, and she wiped the light sheen of sweat off her brow bone.

being the only woman in the unit, thalia had the room to herself, unlike the boys who shared rooms. luckily, this meant she didn't have to be silent as she got up and ready for the day.

her phone buzzed as she pulled on a sports bra and shorts, before sliding on a cropped hoodie. she had planned to head to the on-deck gym, but the message interrupted that idea.

"Come to my office ASAP. -Falcon."

thalia's brow furrowed in confusion. she knew their commanding officer admiral simmons was aware of her sleep difficulties, but why was he awake?

she shrugged, sliding her phone into the pockets on her athletic shorts, before swiftly making her way through the hallways to his office.

she knocked gently before slipping through the door and saluting the man sat in front of her. he gestured for thalia to sit, and she did, her mind racing with possibilities of this visit.

"sergeant jackson, you have flown with us terrifically for this past year. i'm aware of your... troubles, however and opportunity has been presented for you to go to TOPGUN. there is a high-risk mission that is to be flown by 6 pilots on behalf of the US. admiral kazansky called me this morning. i choose you to represent our unit. most pilots and their WSOs there have been to and graduated TOPGUN, however it is not a requirement. you leave tomorrow, however i have no further information. do you accept?"

thalia struggled to grasp the information that had been thrown at her. she took a moment to process, then started slowly nodding. "i accept, sir."

he smiled gently. "congrats lance-corporal. you're going to TOPGUN. you may be dismissed. "

thalia nodded, saluted and left the room in complete silence, before following her initial thought process and heading to the gym. it was, as she had hoped, empty, and she made her way to the treadmill for a 10 minute warm up.

----

the rest of the young pilots day was free, consisting of short goodbyes to her crewmates and mechanics she had worked alongside for the past year.

it passed quickly, as the woman had to go to bed early for the 3 am flight to north island.

her last goodbye was to her wingman, josie, and her WSO jackie. the trio hugged, unsure as to whether it would be their last.

jackie was the first to let go, bringing her hand up to thalia's cheek and pulling her head forwards so they rested against each other. the duo had been inseparable in secondary school, hitting it off instantly with snarky remarks and dreams to join the armed forces. josie had joined them in 6th form after transferring from texas, easily fitting in to their dynamic and being the voice of reason.

"you come home to me jackson, ok? promise me you'll come back." her voice was shaky, fighting to hold back tears. the mission parameters were unclear, and they weren't going together, for the first time in a year. thalia nodded, feeling her own tears rush to the forefront of her eyes.

"i'll come back to you jacks, i promise. but if i don't," she pulled off her necklace, a long delicate silver chain with a sapphire pendant hanging from it, encased in a silver spiral, "i want you to wear this for me. if-"

"-when. when you get home," josie interjected, her texan accent accentuated with emotion. "you have to come home."

thalia nodded. "when i get home, you can give it back to me, yeah?"

jackie nodded, sliding the necklace over her head where it rested gently below her collar. she pulled her best friends harshly back into the embrace, before letting thalia go. the trio smiled watery grins, and josie laughed at how emotional they were.

"we'll see you in a few weeks, fireball."

"see you then, terrier." 

and with her final goodbye completed, thalia walked back to her room, setting an alarm for 2.30.

-------

the jet that was to take thalia to north island was small, enough room for two pilots and thalia and her luggage. she had the back to herself, and thumbed through the files falcon had given to her as she departed. there was everything she needed to know about the others who had the opportunity to fly this mission, as well as the teacher. 

she recognised the name pete mitchell, he was an old friend of her godfather and uncle, and had come second in the class, just behind him. he'd lost his WSO, nick bradshaw- callsign goose, in training, caught in the jetwash of her uncle tom, and as their plane spiralled uncontrollably, he'd hit his head on the canopy whilst trying to eject and broke his neck, but what killed him was the fact the whole back of his head had been smashed in by the impact, despite the helmet he had been wearing. 

the next name in the folder was bradley bradshaw- callsign rooster. the WSO's son. she swore to herself quietly. maverick had also pulled the pilots papers when trying to join the naval academy. there was sure to be some bad blood between the two, which meant problems in the air and in the classroom.

the rest of the flight was relaxing, the papers strewn on the seat next to her. it was only a few hours before she arrived on the base.

thanking the pilots, she exited the aircraft to be met by vice and rear admirals bates and simpson.

"sergeant thalia jackson, callsign fireball," cyclone  saluted and she returned the gesture. "welcome to TOPGUN. you have a room assigned in the barracks- your own personal room, as requested by falcon. here are your keys."

"thank you sir." she nodded at the admirals. thalia went to walk away, however warlock stopped her.

"the other pilots are meeting up at the hard deck tonight, a bar down by the beach if you wish to join. a night to relax before training starts bright and early tomorrow. oh, and your motorcycle awaits in the garage- admiral kazansky sent it over. he also asked me to request the you visit soon."

thalia nodded. "thank you sir, i might go tonight. i'm here for work, and to try to fly this mission."

warlock smiled, seeing the resemblance between her and her uncle. "we have a dramatic entrance lined up for you tomorrow, don't be late, sergeant." he winked at her and the two walked away, leaving the pilot on the airway.

she needed to see uncle tom.

1172 words- not bad for the first chapter. leave a comment and vote if you like it! -C xox