Tailspin, page 69
“What?” he said. “You can’t.”
“I know. I’m only touching four, but I see twelve windows.”
I flicked to the general channel. “Drone doors opening. Ren, guns steady. Silao and I will try to not let them get in close enough, but if we do…”
“Copy,” Ren said. “Walter is on gun two.”
“Copy.”
I focused on the drones, each camera view igniting something inside me. I watched all of them. I reacted with all of them.
“All green,” I said. “Drones away.”
Each of my drones hovered, exited the helo perfectly, and then the rest flittered out. Silao’s matched him, flowing all around him and Justin in perfect harmony.
Excellent job, Apex said.
Are you watching them?
Of course. They are moving in but are not in any known attack formation.
Yet, I replied. If you see anything, let me know.
“Two up, two down,” Silao said.
“Copy.” I moved two drones back and up above our helo like he did. They were programmed to circle. That gave us a better view of everything and a living shield.
“Hold,” Justin said. “They’re not moving in closer.”
“Seems they’re tailing off,” Malaki added.
“Why?” Ren asked.
“I learned everything I could about them,” I said. “They’ve more than likely got nests, with young still.”
“No need to attack as we moved out of the area,” Mage Baron confirmed.
“All drones are keeping pace,” I said. “We’ll stay live till we’re out of their area and over the water.”
“Rus, that’s a long way off.”
“It’s okay. I’ll be good.”
“If you feel any fatigue, you bring them in.”
“Copy,” I replied.
It was hard work, keeping four drones up and live. But I needed the practice, and so did Silao with his. There wasn’t enough of it. Even on shifts, we never risked them to this extent or ourselves. Here they might be needed, and I would do this.
We stopped to pick up Jim and Alba. Literally down and up, with Justin hovering at our side. I held on, and landed the drones as we settled back toward the ocean.
Silao stayed operational for us and then also brought his drones in. The water would be safe, and we would be safe here.
I had started with a headache. I didn’t want to tell Malaki or anyone. If I couldn’t handle four drones, how was I ever supposed to climb the ladder and do this for real?
Don’t put too much on yourself. You’ve been practicing with much smaller, less responsive tech. These are top of the range, and they let you know it. You’ve had a lot of information coming in.
It still felt like a failure.
***
The ocean winds whipped spray up into our descent, and I relished being back home, even if the circumstances were not the best.
“FC to Dizzy101, landing pad seven is clear.”
“Dizzy101 to FC, copy,” Malaki said. “Bringing her down now.”
Red lights flashed once, and the almighty screech of blades ripping apart the shafts above us would be a sound I’d never forget.
Malaki’s face went white. I didn’t need to hear her. “Fuck, not again.” Nor Ren’s scream, but I did.
“FC, we have full blade jam,” Malaki said. “Cutting engine.”
“Locking on trackers now, Dizzy101, do not bail. I repeat, do not bail. There are other incoming helos in the sky.”
The SAR 17 dropped, and my stomach was left somewhere above us. The belts holding me in place cut into my legs and neck. Bile rose in my throat, and I forced it down.
OOF was coming into view fast, and other helos were flitting about. They’d been ordered to clear out, but they were struggling. We were coming in faster than we ever should be. If we hit that helopad like this, we’d destroy it and several others on the way down.
Malaki grabbed for my hand, and I held onto hers tight. The panic inside her eyes threw me, but I squeezed her. “Trust them.”
We had little choice. It was clear if we bailed here, we’d be dead.
It was too easy to imagine our bodies being chopped to bits by the blades of the other helos, sending a cascade of crashing vehicles down.
A beam of light hit us a moment later. It lit up the helo cockpit in luminous green that made me flinch. Great, all the better to see our impending death.
The helo shuddered as the crash mitigation tech kicked in, pushing back against gravity. Our descent slowed, but it wasn’t anywhere near enough.
“Impact protocol,” FC said.
The nose of the helo struck first, metal crushing, sending us jolting forward, and the world spun. The blades shattered along with our protective glass, sending fragments spraying around us. It felt like forever before we stopped moving, even though my X1 said it was only two seconds. It was the longest two seconds of my life.
The green light contained everything, then went dark.
I still had hold of Malaki’s hand, and she squeezed it. “Sitrep?” she called.
It was magic to my ears as the fireteam behind us called out “Here.” Everyone was conscious.
“Here,” Mage Baron said.
Drones surrounded us, and fire-retardant spray was everywhere.
The helo, though, was dead.
“FC to Dizzy101, you all okay?”
“All okay,” she said and looked around. “We might need a hand getting out.”
“Team is there now. Hang on.”
We literally were upside down, and Malaki laughed. “Hanging in here, FC, get us out.”
It took them only a few minutes when a hand, and then a head came into our cockpit. The young lady just smiled. “Not our first crash, FA Canlas. Come on, you’ll be shaken. I got something for you for that.”
“Hope it’s alcoholic,” I added. Though if I drank anything with alcohol, I would probably throw up.
Malaki was cut free, and then I was, and we both shakily stood on the broken deck.
Mage Baron looked at me, a cut above his eye, but other than that, everyone else seemed okay.
Justin was running over a moment later, the panic inside his eyes something I knew we’d repeatedly have to deal with going forwards.
What shocked me was he put his arms around her, hugging her tight and she let him in public. “He said it would fucking hold!” Justin said. “He promised us.”
“It did,” Malaki replied, patting him on the back and giving me a nod. “We’re here. We’re all okay.”
Mage Baron put a hand on Justin’s arm. “We were lucky.”
“Two crashes almost identical in less than a few months. I’m not sure that has any luck involved in it,” Justin said. “I’m calling that sabotage.”
“This wasn’t,” I said. “The others, maybe, but no one knew we were getting in those helos.”
“I need to get to your friend,” Mage Baron told me. “You will be escorted down after you’ve all been checked out.”
“No,” I said. “No way, we’re coming now.”
He dipped his head, and we followed him down and into the lift to the underground facility where Lacy and Niko would be.
My head pounded even more now. Malaki edged in closer. “Are you okay?”
I shook my head. “I’ll get one of the docs to run some tests. I just need to see Niko.”
“Same,” she said but she looked worried for me.
When we reached the lower decks, Mage Baron, Jim, and Alba rushed away, and Justin and his fireteam were taken to another side room.
Declan, Walter, Ren, Malaki, and I were escorted to where Niko paced up and down like a caged animal. He saw us and came rushing at me. Malaki and I wrapped him up in our arms and held on tight. Ren was next, then Walter and Declan.
Quite a while later, he stood looking at me, his whole body shaking. “No one’s saying anything.” His voice was such a whisper, croaky.
Ren moved away, picked up a bottle of water, and returned with it, opening the top. “Here,” she said. “You need to drink.”
Niko took it and gulped it down.
“Mage Baron is here,” I said. “We’ve done everything we can for her. We have to wait.”
“Waiting is super hard,” Declan said. “I’ll see if I can find anything in their systems.”
“No,” Walter added. “We need to know from the doctor, not some AI that can’t tell us anything other than facts and no feelings.”
“Facts would be good,” Niko said. “Anything would be good.”
“No.” I put my hand on his. “Not always. If my mom had heard the things I’d broken, how broken I was, without speaking to me…that would not have been good. We wait.”
The clock ticked—
— and ticked.
The wait was horrendous.
Three nurses checked us all over, but it didn’t take long. They gave us special drinks which helped ease the aches, and our thirst.
One paid me a little more attention. “You’re in pain?”
I rubbed the back of my neck. “It’s a niggle, headache.”
Malaki glared at me. “The eye’s supposed to have eased that off. Hasn’t it?”
“Mostly,” I said. “That was some heck of a flight here. I’m at capacity, mod-wise. I could do with some upgrades so I’m not always pushing it close to the edge.”
She couldn’t argue with that at all. “Yeah, let me know if it continues or worsens. Okay?”
I nodded at her. “I will, I promise.” I was given pain relief for the headache, and the nurse clarified for Malaki there was nothing wrong with me, just plain old strain from overusing my brain. I wasn’t used to it.
My legs hurt standing for so long, so I made a move to the couch and sat. Malaki sat next to me and leaned her head on my shoulder.
We talked about the crash internally for a while, but I was exhausted, and so was Malaki.
Niko sat on my other side, and I took one look at him. “Come on,” I said and lifted my arm up. “Room in here for the both of you.”
Niko tucked into me and closed his eyes. “I feel so useless,” he said. “What medic can’t help his fiancée out?”
Malaki put her head to his on my chest, and I let them both rest. I closed my own eyes for a moment. Exhaustion and the drugs took effect.
Can you tell me anything? I asked Apex.
Not this time, I’m sorry.
Can’t expect a win all the time. Helicopters and their components are a hundred percent, or they fail. There really is no in between. You can push the boundaries, but you’ll come down hard if you keep doing it.
Do you mean someone’s going to die?
The door opened, and both Malaki and Niko jumped.
“Jim?” I asked.
“You can go in,” Jim said to Niko.
Niko didn’t hesitate, and he left me feeling cold. Both Malaki and I stood to meet him.
“How is she?” Malaki asked.
“She’s fragile, but we managed to get the baby out safe and alive.”
“Why the complications?” Malaki asked. “They could have just operated, no?”
“The connection between her and her child differs from being a mage. The baby essentially just wouldn’t let go.”
“So Mage Baron?”
“Persuaded her it would be okay so we could operate in the end, help both survive.”
Mage Baron stepped through to us then, collapsing on the couch. “Airman Ruslan Korolyov,” he said. “If you ever think you need me for something—”
“Don’t?” I asked.
There were tears in his eyes. “No, son. If you ever need me, don’t hesitate. That little girl in there, that young mage, is as special as her mother. Thank you for asking me here.” He wiped the tears from his eyes.
The door went again, and Niko stood there, a tiny bundle in his arms. His face. I’d never seen such relief and joy and love all at once.
“I’ve got special permission,” he said. “Lacy said without you, she wouldn’t be here. So you get to meet her first.”
Malaki was there in a second, cooing and awing over the bundle. My stomach churned.
“Rus,” Niko said, and he moved towards me.
“I—”
“She won’t hurt you.”
I stared down at her.
“This is my best friend, Ruslan, but we often call him Rus. Rus, meet Jasmine.”
Her eyes, they were mesmerizing. I was sure she was staring right at me, that she understood me. “Jasmine?”
“Jasmine Aspa Kata,” he said.
Malaki gasped, and tears burst free from her eyes right away. “Niko, you—”
In a split second, Niko held Jasmine out to Malaki, and she took her.
Aspa, Apex whispered in my mind.
Her sister…
There was no greater honor.
Watching Malaki go goo-goo-eyed all over a baby, though, then look at me, I swallowed. “Mal—”
“I know,” she said with a hint of sadness as Jasmine took her finger in her whole hand. “I don’t have time for this.”
“You’ll be Aunty and Uncle, though, right?” Niko asked.
I wrapped them both in close and held tight.
Jasmine’s face pinked, and she cried. “I’ll take her back,” Niko said.
Then they were gone, and so was Jim.
“I need a drink. I think we can find somewhere,” Mage Baron said and looked at Ren, then he looked at me. “You coming?”
“Never thought you’d ask,” Ren said.
They linked arms once again, and Malaki and I exchanged looks. Do you really think?
I do, Malaki replied. I’ve never seen Ren flirt like that before.
How old is he?
Doesn’t matter, does it?
I shook my head. I guessed not, but still. He must have been older than Tsomak.
Walking behind the two of them, it was nice to hear their talk. Genuine talking, sure, a little flirting, but that came from the both of them. When we’d reached the nearest bar, Ren and Mal headed off, leaving us to order the drinks.
“I get the feeling this was a bit of a setup,” I said.
“Always is,” Mage Baron said. “But don’t worry, this one’s on me.”
“A real drink, please.”
Mage Baron ordered, then looked at me. “Would you be upset if I asked Ren on a real date?”
I choked. “Ren’s her own woman,” I said. “You both deserve happiness. We all do.”
“Feeling a little broody?” Mage Baron asked.
The barman put a glass down for me, and I stared at it. “Never really thought about kids,” I said. “Never really found the right person.”
“You will,” he said. “You will.”
81-Janet/Shay
Deep in work, Janet jumped when John spoke. “Call’s coming in that several units are being mobilized out to the new wall build.”
She looked up at him, stopped typing, and caught his eyes. There was something inside them that made her cringe. He never looked like this, this worried. John wiped the sweat from his lip. “What kind of units?”
“Firefighters,” John replied.
“Hook me in,” Janet said. “This is early for fires, no?”
John nodded, flicked his wrist towards her, pushing the details and numbers of the stations he monitored over to her.
The view of her room changed, and Janet was instantly inside her favorite place, the world of tech, and John’s favorite place, their monitoring room.
John moved in to stand beside her, his arms crossed. “The fact you don’t mind jumping into AW like this always freaks me out.”
“We watch all channels,” she said, waving at the screens before her. “Wouldn’t be where I was now without the HUB.”
“You built it. I helped monitor it.”
Behind her, Janet looked at Nowell and Gabe. Her team was more than needed. The two other men in the room would be at home or watching from their day jobs. Their eyes, their faces were blank.
“Send them a message. This looks like we’re in for a ride.”
Janet stepped forward and swiped several monitors, zooming in on several sections out of Artem’s central area. Out and over to Shore Farm, then Grange Foods. If that fire crossed over new wall, towards the dam and power plant lines. Janet shook her head. It wouldn’t, they’d stop it way before then. Janet zoomed back out a bit, taking in the entire north landscape, her ocular implants working overtime. “I’ve never seen anything like this,” she said, as she focused on one spot. “Have you?”
“No, the regular fire crews have been there a week already. This is spreading fast. If it carries on for a few more weeks this will be beyond the wall and towards the power plants. They’re calling in helos from OOF and the wall.”
“What?” Janet felt her body tremble. “They can’t do that. They’re…”
John stood beside her. “I’ll get us on the next shuttle I can out there.”
“Thanks, I’ll have to message Anada.”
“You might not be coming home tonight.” His tone was as worried as it could be.
“No. If they’re calling people off the wall for that, people need to know why and be kept up to date. There’s no one better to be out there than us. Someone they know who will tell them the truth.”
“Agreed.” John tried to smile, the corner of his lip turning awkwardly upwards. “We’ll tell them the truth. We always do.”
“I’ll get the gear ready,” Janet said. “We might be out there a while.”
***
Shay had Pim’s eye socket open, skin splayed back, and several tiny connectors exposed. He’d worked connecting and testing everything one by one over the last few hours. Making sure each one was put in right.
He paused only to wipe his brow, take a drink, then he focused back with the light on full and carried on.
“You sure you know what you’re doing?” Pim asked.
“If you don’t chill out a little, I’ll miss one of the connections, and that eye I just paid top whack for will be ruined. Stop talking. Internally…”
“Sorry,” Pim said. Nervous.
You and me both. I’m almost there, though. I promise.
He was, but that last one was in the most awkward spot, almost out of reach.
