It is the day after the first meeting of the cadets and you are thinking about the physical training and what it will mean for you. You are about to enter the library when you are stopped. "Lilly," It's Neil. You turn around to face him.
"Yes, Neil?" You are a little worried about what he is going to say.
"Follow me," He responds. You know he has something planned so you follow him. Five nerve-racking moments later he has led you to one of the old trainers. You are worried because you have heard horror stories of the cadets throwing up. You hear the sound of footsteps which worries you.
"Sorry I thought I was the only one here," It is Kelsey, one of the astronauts from the European Space Agency. You are glad you are not the only one here with Neil. At least someone else can suffer with you. "I was studying," He tries to explain himself because he thinks he is in trouble. You find his subtle German accent interesting because you have never heard an accent like it. You get the feeling it will be fun working with him
"Don't worry. You can give Lilly some competition," Neil remarks as he approaches a control panel. He dusts it with his hand which makes Kelsey sneeze.
"Bless you," you giggle. It doesn't last long because you realise the fact that Neil has taken you to the old G-force trainer. You hope you won't become of the horror stories.
"Ladies first," Kelsey remarks. You timidly approach the seat. You sit down and get yourself strapped in. You move the basic instrument panel into place. You also quietly wish yourself luck.
"Lilly, I want you to do the RCS sequence at five Gs," Neil instructs you.
" roger that," You acknowledge the orders. Neil flicks some switches and you can feel the machine come to life. Three minutes later it has gotten up to speed and you've started the sequence. You are lucky that you were a fighter pilot before your internship. You are struggling to fight the Gs but you are getting the task done. Three minutes later you have done the task to your surprise.
"I think she is done," you vaguely hear Kelsey inform Neil about the fact you are finished. A minute later you have finished. You feel dizzy but not disoriented. At least it was a fun kind of hard.
"Good luck Kelsey," You wish him luck because you don't know if he has had fighter experience. Seven minutes later Kelsey has finished but he is disoriented. He is about to collapse. You and Neil move to catch him.
"Entschuldigung," he mumbles his apology in German. You understand the issues that he is facing. He shakes his head which manages to get rid of the disorientation. You both Let go but you keep an eye on him just in case.
"Neil, what was the point of this exercise?" You ask. You are a little baffled that he would do something like that to you two.
"To demonstrate the risks involved with space flight," Neil responds. It's a good enough answer for you. Kelsey gives Neil a death stare. He goes back to his pile of books and notes. He scoops them up so he can go with you.
"Thank you," You remark. At least you are now prepared for some of the physical training. Five minutes later you have made it back to the library with Kelsey. You start looking for books on the Apollo program. You are interrupted by the noise of chatter. You grab some books and you join the other cadets at the table. They are talking about the physical training and how they are looking forward to it.
"Kelsey are you alright?" Jay asks. He can tell something is off about him. He glances at you to get permission to tell them about what Neil got you to do. You nod.
"Neil got Lilly and I on the old G-force trainer. I'm still a little shaken but I will be fine," He responds. You can tell the rest of them have started thinking about their physical training. Thirty minutes later a loud whistle pierces the air.
"Everyone I need your attention," It's Danny. Everyone turns to face Danny. You are curious as to what he has to say. It will probably be about the physical training. "In an hour we are going to start the physical training but I have been told two of you have gotten a small head start," He is referring to what you did with Neil. he doesn't seem upset about it. An hour later you have made it to the new multi-axis trainer. You glance at Kelsey. He is looking a little better since the first exercise.
"Would anyone like to go first?" Jay asks. A ripple of glances flows through the crowd of cadets.
"Ya I'll go first," Kelsey jumps at the opportunity to get better. Danny gestures for Kelsey to join him next to the machine.
"You are to complete the abort sequence in the fastest amount of time," Danny announces. You are glad that Danny has decided to add an element of competition. Kelsey gets himself ready. hopefully, he will fare better this time. "Are you ready Kelsey?" Danny asks as he pulls a stopwatch from his pocket. Kelsey gives an awkward thumbs up. Danny starts the machine. A minute later it has gotten up to speed. He starts his stopwatch and Kelsey gets to work. Five minutes later he has finished. He is a little bit better than last time.
"How did I go?" Kelsey mumbles. He stumbles out of the chair.
"Five minutes," Danny confirms. You and Jay support Kelsey but you don't need to for long. "Next," Danny calls out. You glance at the rest of the cadets then you step forward. You are glad that Neil made sure you had a go on the old trainer. You set yourself up. You are happy that the seat is more comfortable. You familiarise yourself with the layout as the trainer gets up to speed. You get to work as soon as you notice Danny starts the stopwatch. Four agonising minutes later you have finished. Again you fared better than Kelsey. You shake the disorientation out of your head. Two hours later everyone has had their go and they are waiting for Danny to write the scores down.
"Who do you think won?" Jess asks.
"We will find out," Kelsey answers. You know it will be either you or Kelsey. Danny moves away from the board he is writing on to reveal your name on top followed by Kelsey and then Jay. You are surprised that you came first. Thirty seconds later Danny has done writing. A ripple of congratulations flows through the crowd. It must have been a good thing that Neil made you do the old G-force trainer.
"I'm going to see if I can find Neil," you mutter to Kelsey.
"Do you want me to come with?" he replies.
"Sure," you could do with the company. You both slip out. After five minutes of looking you find Neil who is talking to your dad.
"Hey, dad hey Neil," you remark. Kelsey leaves before you can do anything. You sit down. Michael glances at you.
"Neil told me you started training today,"
"Yes I did and it was a nightmare," you confirm. You hope it will get better.
"If you are thinking it will get better you'd be wrong," Your dad crushes your hopes. You let out a nervous chuckle. He is right but it is good to be optimistic.
YOU ARE READING
Constellations
Fanfiction"I am so sorry Neil" "It will be alright Lily," he responds. Lily Collins yearned to follow in her father Micheal Collins' footsteps but there was one problem. She was stuck serving coffee to people at NASA. One fateful day she ends up spilling cof...
