Free-Flight

Doing Something "Stupid"

Spensa

I sat in the hospital bed for what seemed like hours, listening to the sounds of the battle raging above me. In reality, it was probably only a few minutes before I got up and headed out the door.

"Where do you think you're going?" Asked a nurse that was on her way back to check on me.

"The bathroom," I lied quickly, and the nurse let me pass.

I headed to my dorm on Alta Base and changed into a flight suit. Part of me felt terrible for lying to Jorgen, but did anyone really expect me to just lay here doing nothing while all my friends went out and risked their lives? Other than the headache, I was fine. I longed to be in the sky again, working with my own Flight.

I quickly made my way to the hanger and climbed into a spare Poco. It wasn't M-bot, but I knew how to fly. I took off and flew past Platform Prime and into the vast space above. The pain in my head sharpened as the Krell's orders became more clear. But I bit back the pain and dove into the raging battle ahead.

I quickly spotted a Largo class fighter fending off a swarm of drones. But just as it IMPed, another swarm swooped out of nowhere and began to fire. 

"Look out!" I warned the pilot, blasting the drones to pieces as he finished off the ones in front of him.

"Spensa? What the scud do you think you're doing?" an all-too-familiar voice exclaimed from the other end of the line. Great. Jerkface. Just the person I wanted to talk to.  

"Saving your life, that's what," I retorted, firing on some more drones.

"I told you not to do anything stupid!"

"I didn't realize saving your life was stupid," I said. "I thought we might need our Flightleader." I thought that I might need my Flightleader....Wait, what?

Jorgen let out a frustrated sigh. "I meant, why are you here in the first place?" He clarified, ignoring my teasing. "You had direct orders from Cobb to stay at Alta."

"I couldn't let you have all the fun, now could I?" I hit another drone and watched it tear apart in a flameless explosion. "Besides, he should know better by now than to expect me to follow orders."

"Spin, you promised me..." I could almost hear the hurt in his voice, and I was struck by a pang of guilt. He had trusted me, but I had lied to him anyways.

"Look, I'm sorry," I said, swallowing my pride. "But I couldn't stand it down there, not knowing what was happening. This is where I belong. And this isn't stupid. I could fly this thing with my eyes closed."

I could practically hear the fury radiating from the other end of the line, but otherwise, Jorgen stayed silent. He was furious. Why did it seem like making him angry was the only thing I was good at?

We continued the fight in silence, except the occasional communication between the whole flight.

Despite his obvious disapproval, I noticed Jorgen didn't tell me to drop out of the fight. Maybe he realized he'd be wasting his breath because he knew I was too stubborn to listen. Or maybe part of him wanted me there.

It really felt good to be part of the team again. To have trusted friends that actually knew what they were doing flying by my side, watching my back. To hear Kimmalyn's voice over the com again. To blast those drones to pieces and not have to worry about people finding out who I really am.

After the battle was over, Jorgen contacted me through the private line and my mood dropped. "Meet me by my ship after you're dressed," he deadpanned. Scud, he was angry.

I quickly landed the Poco and rushed to my dorm. I was not looking forward to the conversation ahead.

A/N But I am! *Evil laughter*

Anyways, sorry the ending is a little awkward. Also sorry I was too lazy to come up with battle details. We might have some of those later. Maybe.

I hope you're enjoying this. If you are, please vote, comment, and tell any other Skyward fans you know! Thanks for reading!