HALL OF CONSPIRACIES
RAVEN HANGAR
Isabel Kalishnikov
“Tower, what’s going on?”WarChild asked.
We had a fluctuation in the magnetic pad. Stand by.
“They need to give us a little more warning or just let us go.” He replied sharply into my helmet. But I could hear by the reverb that he hadn’t clicked on just my helmet. The tower heard him too.
Copy that, RVN 07. Safety measures are in place for a reason.
I clicked my helmet. “Tower, my copilot is right. Be advised: We are capable of lifting without magnetic assistance if that would be safer for everyone.”
I took a few deep breaths. My pulse was racing. I looked at him and he at me. We both shook our heads and rolled our eyes. I felt my heart racing. I was so ready to jump off the pad. It was about to happen and then tower yanked the moment away. We sat there for far too long. I clicked the timer. I wanted to see how long this was taking so I could accurately record it in my flight report. Ten minutes went by. I began to hope they would just cancel our flight. I had pumped myself full of adrenaline and then had to repress it. I felt tired. I yawned out loud.
RVN 07. You have the ten count, they suddenly said. Ten seconds! To fire up the boosters and mentally prepare myself.
“Now, they’re pushing us off,” he said to me and then openly, “Copy that, tower.”
“They need to give us a little more warning or just let us go.” He replied sharply into my helmet. But I could hear by the reverb that he hadn’t clicked on just my helmet. The tower heard him too.
Copy that, RVN 07. Safety measures are in place for a reason.
I clicked my helmet. “Tower, my copilot is right. Be advised: We are capable of lifting without magnetic assistance if that would be safer for everyone.”
I took a few deep breaths. My pulse was racing. I looked at him and he at me. We both shook our heads and rolled our eyes. I felt my heart racing. I was so ready to jump off the pad. It was about to happen and then tower yanked the moment away. We sat there for far too long. I clicked the timer. I wanted to see how long this was taking so I could accurately record it in my flight report. Ten minutes went by. I began to hope they would just cancel our flight. I had pumped myself full of adrenaline and then had to repress it. I felt tired. I yawned out loud.
RVN 07. You have the ten count, they suddenly said. Ten seconds! To fire up the boosters and mentally prepare myself.
“Now, they’re pushing us off,” he said to me and then openly, “Copy that, tower.”
Five, four, three, two, one.
I suddenly felt a surge of panic, not feeling ready for the moment. There was a vibration underneath the RavenClaw that was building. We were pushed out into the air. The hydraulics hissed and a cloud of gas blew out of the side as the compressed gas was released. And suddenly we were in free space. The sudden silence gave way to the pounding of my heart. That moment of silence seemed eternal.
The whine of the xitris thrusters gave way to the boom of the main boosters. The RavenClaw dropped a little before I pulled him up. His nose pointed up until we were even with the Capitol skyline. I’d flown simulator after simulator of the Raven series. I’d been copilot on two missions. But nothing until now compared to this superhero sensation of pushing into flight. Speed, it’s the greatest power in the universe. It is a drug.
The buildings and blocks of Capitol City zoomed underneath, giving way to the rural outskirts of the moon. The blackened craters came up over the horizon and floated along. The blinking lights of other sky traffic thinned out. We easily achieved an orbit over the lunar surface of Deimos. We followed the contour of the ground until Mars came up over the horizon.
“Now, let’s see if Rampart Control is a little more helpful.” WarChild radioed to the control of the shipping lanes. “Rampart Control, this is RVN 07 on a heading of 323.”
Roger that, RVN 07. We have you on radar. You are cleared to merge onto M-1. Your authorization is Initiative Alpha. You have the shipping lane. Your pointman, RVN 09, is waiting for you.
Great, TarFace is going to think I made some rookie mistake that delayed us. The cratered shadows stretched below. Given the clearance to enter the sky, I pulled up. The ground pulled away from us. The butterflies in my stomach all began flapping their pretty wings of nausea.With a light growl, I tighten my insides and suppress these feelings. Yes, it’s basically how I deal with love.
The RavenClaw leaps up into space. The ground is gone. The feeling of speed disappears. We are now hanging in space.
I throttle up and the feeling of acceleration pushes at my back. I look into the rear view and see the twinkling lights of Capitol City reduce. Looking forward, I twist the RavenClaw out towards the M-1 Shipping Lane.
This is a short science fiction story from the sci fi cartoon series Ravens of Mars. All content copyright D.S. Meyers 2016. www.RavensofMars.com
I suddenly felt a surge of panic, not feeling ready for the moment. There was a vibration underneath the RavenClaw that was building. We were pushed out into the air. The hydraulics hissed and a cloud of gas blew out of the side as the compressed gas was released. And suddenly we were in free space. The sudden silence gave way to the pounding of my heart. That moment of silence seemed eternal.
The whine of the xitris thrusters gave way to the boom of the main boosters. The RavenClaw dropped a little before I pulled him up. His nose pointed up until we were even with the Capitol skyline. I’d flown simulator after simulator of the Raven series. I’d been copilot on two missions. But nothing until now compared to this superhero sensation of pushing into flight. Speed, it’s the greatest power in the universe. It is a drug.
The buildings and blocks of Capitol City zoomed underneath, giving way to the rural outskirts of the moon. The blackened craters came up over the horizon and floated along. The blinking lights of other sky traffic thinned out. We easily achieved an orbit over the lunar surface of Deimos. We followed the contour of the ground until Mars came up over the horizon.
“Now, let’s see if Rampart Control is a little more helpful.” WarChild radioed to the control of the shipping lanes. “Rampart Control, this is RVN 07 on a heading of 323.”
Roger that, RVN 07. We have you on radar. You are cleared to merge onto M-1. Your authorization is Initiative Alpha. You have the shipping lane. Your pointman, RVN 09, is waiting for you.
Great, TarFace is going to think I made some rookie mistake that delayed us. The cratered shadows stretched below. Given the clearance to enter the sky, I pulled up. The ground pulled away from us. The butterflies in my stomach all began flapping their pretty wings of nausea.With a light growl, I tighten my insides and suppress these feelings. Yes, it’s basically how I deal with love.
The RavenClaw leaps up into space. The ground is gone. The feeling of speed disappears. We are now hanging in space.
I throttle up and the feeling of acceleration pushes at my back. I look into the rear view and see the twinkling lights of Capitol City reduce. Looking forward, I twist the RavenClaw out towards the M-1 Shipping Lane.
This is a short science fiction story from the sci fi cartoon series Ravens of Mars. All content copyright D.S. Meyers 2016. www.RavensofMars.com
