Mayhem || B. Bradshaw

Chapter 16

    LIZBETH SUCCEEDED ONE OUT of two tries.

    She walked onto the Tarmac with Phoenix and Bob beside her, ready to take on the last try for the day. This time around, she didn't have a wingman, since they were the last ones to not have flown three times.

     Instead, they were going to act as if the whole mission could be undergone with one team, and only one missile was needed to destroy the target.

     Lizbeth sank down in the cockpit, buckling herself into the seat's harness, before she pulled on her helmet and secured it. She let out a shaky breath while her hands got the feeling of her console and control stick, closing her eyes as she fell into her focus.

     She drove onto the airstrip, checking with the tower that the coast was clear, before pushing forward the left console, increasing her speed until she could take off.

     The feeling of her stomach dropping as her plane ascended brought a smile to her face, and she let herself have this moment of relief before she strapped her mask onto her helmet, and began communicating.

     "Phoenix, Bob, all clear?" Lizbeth asked.

     "Phoenix clear."

     "Bob clear."

     "Phase two, final attack point. Mayhem inbound."

     "Phoenix inbound."

     "Bob inbound."

     "Increasing speed to 510 knots." Lizbeth pushed forward her left console, feeling the G's take a strain on her body. After two early turns, she felt the tiredness starting to tear on her muscles, but she ignored it. She would be fine.

     "Copy. Increasing to 510." Phoenix replied, and the two planes flew into the simulated canyon.

     The ride was successful all the way to the last turn, and Lizbeth couldn't help but let a smile grow at the thought of finally managing phase one flawlessly. Even if they didn't train with the correct time to target yet.

     "Talk to me, Bob," Lizbeth said, looking at her navigation screen to see that the mountain was nearing.

     "We are 12 seconds late on target," Bob could inform, and Lizbeth gritted her teeth.

     "We gotta move!" She said through the comms, her fingers closing around her left console. "We gotta move!"

     "Copy," Phoenix had the same determination set in her voice.

     "Try to stay with me," Lizbeth said, before pushing forward her console, feeling the speed increase together with the G's.

     Suddenly, her radar started beeping, warning about a bandit detected on their course.

     "Huh? Wait, who's that?" Bob exclaimed.

     "Blue team, you've been spotted," Maverick's voice hit her ear.

     "Maverick?!" Lizbeth frowned, though her speed continued to escalate.

     "What is he doing here?" Asked Phoenix, voicing Lizbeth's thoughts.

     "I'm a bandit on course to intercept," Maverick was kind enough to tell them. Lizbeth let out an agitated breath. Of course he had to do that during their turn. "Blue team, what are you gonna do?"

     "He's 20 miles left," Bob said. "Ten o'clock. 700 knots closure."

     "Your call," Lizbeth told Phoenix, anxiously awaiting Natasha's decision. "What do you want to do?"