A Spaceman

Chapter 33--Harris isn't flight trained

"All right, sit down, in a circle, join hands---"

"Sir, how is this flight training?"

"Do you see a prop and wings on this SBU? Huh? How about a harp? No, Card, I don't think so. I'M NOT FLIGHT TRAINED, I am not qualified to do this, I've got no idea how to do this, so we're sitting in a circle chanting and talking about life and shit," Harris growls at Titus, who sits innocently next to me holding my hand. He got that instruction very quickly. Liesel is on my other side, Logan on his other side holding hands with Harris. Leavitt is in between Liesel and Harris. We are all holding hands awkwardly.

"Yes, sir," Titus says, "Only, sir, I quite like flight training—"

"We all know that, Ebbel, prior to his unfortunate demise, was trying to discover how you had more hours on the flight simulators than we've given you hours to practice, but that's beside the point, today we are having this meeting because you are all doing testing for jobs tomorrow and all of you were supposed to get on the simulators this afternoon but the only person with the code to get in other than Titus---"

"Sir, since you know I have why can't we----"

"Because Card, the thing about the code is you aren't supposed to use it if it hasn't been given to you---"

"Sir, it was given to me by God---"

"Yes, you're very funny, going on, you can't use it if hasn't been given to you by your senior officer and as I said the only person other than Titus on this base to have the code got eaten by a washing machine so we can't go in there till they unlock tomorrow morning so we are sitting here, is that clear?" Harris asks, annoyed. He's really not cut out for caring for large groups of teenagers. I don't really blame him, though, we are annoying. Mostly Titus, but we all have our moments.

"Sir, we could just use the practice, I'm no good at the things," Logan says, sadly.

"I understand King, but nobody else is even flight certified, and you have to be flight certified to unlock the room," Harris explains, a bit kinder.

"Sir, isn't Captain Thorn flight certified? I know he isn't here officially, but mightn't he let us?" Leavitt asks, hopefully.

"CaptainThorn is not well at the moment," Harris says, "He took ill after the discovery of Ebbel's body."

"How so?" Liesel asks.

"I don't know," Harris says, kindly, looking away from her a bit almost like he does know.

"Sir, I do," Card says.

"Why don't you tell us?" Harris asks, more as though he's accepting the inevitable than giving permission.

"Sir, when we were all waiting for the IA to show up to question us about Ebbel's body, Captain Thorn came in, discovered that he was dead and took ill," Titus says, helpfully.

"In what way?" Logan asks.

"In the way that he fell to the floor at Titus' feet, begging him to 'save us from eternal damnation by preventing the fall of the universe, please you're the only one quit saluting goddamn it', and clinging to his legs," I explain.

"And sobbing," Titus says.

"I missed that, where was I?" Leavitt asks.

"You and Stowe were doing the interviews," I explain.

"Why does he think you are going to save the universe?" Harris asks.

"We don't know," Titus says.