Three Strikes [✓]

Revelations

Chapter Thirteen: Revelations

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444th Air Base, Zapland.
July 14th, 2019.
1330hrs.

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Avril carefully looked over the F-15Cs that belonged to the surviving pilots of the reconnaissance team. They were in good condition, save for a couple of bullet holes that knocked out a necessary component or two. Avril looked around the hangar, expecting to see the usual mothballed planes that she'd fixed up for the Spare pilots, but instead saw the rest of the F-15s lined up. McKinsey had the con artist guy, the anarchist, and Avril's dumbass cellmate, Trigger, move the planes they and the ex-intelligance officer flew outside and park Cyclops and Strider's planes inside instead. It would only be for a couple of more days if Avril had any say in it, though. The Cyclops pilots had been breathing down her neck the entire time.

Cyclops 1, who Avril had been introduced to as Wiseman, was standing with his wingman, Fencer. Wiseman was a well-built, extremely tall gentlemen with a friendly, cheerful demeanor. Fencer was tall as well, only about an inch or two shorter than Wiseman, with a much more prickly and serious attitude. Avril could tolerate Wiseman, but she could barely stand Fencer. Maybe their personalities clashed too much, or maybe she just didn't appreciate the fact that he was so obsessed with his plane. You'd think it was a family pet undergoing some sort of risky operation with the way he treated it. In fact, he and Wiseman were chatting a just outside of the hangar while she was working, and Avril was well aware that Fencer kept looking inside to see what she was doing.

Outside, the roar of several engines told her that some extra supplies were being flown in from an allied base. Unfortunately all of the fighters were grounded since most of them were still in and out of solitary, so Avril rarely got a chance to see how well the planes she built held up in an actual combat situation. After Erusea suddenly quit bombing the 444th, McKinsey only sent Spare Squadron up when it was necessary for missions deeper into Usea. Avril didn't mind not seeing them fly that often, though. It only made her remember that she was stuck on the ground with a bum leg that kept her from pursuing any career in flying, however short-lived it would most likely be. Damned Osean aviation laws...

She limped across the hangar and through the hangar doors to finally speak with the two pilots. "Your planes are in a pretty decent condition, for the most part. It should only take a day or two to get 'em fixed up again," Avril told them. Both men nodded slowly. Avril realized she now had a chance to speak with them about the last mission. She wasn't friendly enough with the other pilots on base so they rarely told her about what happened while they were out. Avril had almost expected Trigger to talk about it when she came back to their cell the previous night, to try and make conversation, but Trigger had just climbed onto her bunk and gone to sleep without so much as acknowledging that Avril was there. Not that Avril was bothered by the lack of attention, and she couldn't blame Trigger for not sharing, either. "I am curious about one thing, though. I noticed that there's only four of you...how'd you managed to make it out? I heard the guards mention it was bad...apparently there was one hard-ass flying for the Eruseans."

Wiseman and Fencer both looked at each other before Wiseman answered, "There was. The Eruseans have a couple of great pilots in their midst, along with the with the drones. Without the support from your guys, we might not have made it out this lucky."

Avril raised an eyebrow. "Really? It looked to me like most of our pilots bailed on you as soon as things got rough. They aren't exactly renowned for their courage and it wouldn't be the first time they chose solitary over actually putting in an effort."