I know, I know. I'm late in getting this one out. Sorry about that. I'm going to try and not have that happen again if I can help it. Anyway, for those of you that still care, here is chapter two. I hope it fulfills your expectations, and could seem possible real... (Hahaha, like that is possible.)
As always I enjoy reading your comments and critique, all are welcome, whether or not you want to butter it up with things I did well.
Thanks Again!
Daniel
Chapter 2
Ryan heaved a sigh, relaxing in the comfort of his leather pilot's seat and trying to calm his hands which had only recently started to shake. “Cursed Sims,” he muttered out loud, shaking his head in slight amusement. “I could've used the adrenaline boost during the actual mission.” No matter how hard he tried to pretend that the computer generated graphics were real or that he was truly in a life or death situation, that extra shot of adrenaline never came. After all, if it was not a matter of life and death, who needed the Fight or Flight reaction?
He hit a button, powering off the internal systems aboard the simulator, and pushed the swinging hatch open.
“Anderson!” Fiery words attacked him as he scrambled out of the machine. “I swear, the next time you disobey a direct order in the simulators, you will find yourself looking through bars until your stay with the Tranquility is up. Do you understand me?”
Ryan silently looked at his commanding officer's cherry red face, attempting not to burst into laughter. “You're joking right? I'm the best pilot you got, good luck suspending me.”
“I don't care,” Commander Hugh replied, “you're a Wing Leader and I've got rookies specifically watching you in the Sims, what do you think you're teaching them, eh? That it's okay to walk all over orders? No, I will not tolerate this. I will-”
“Sir, with all due respect, I was just helping out my comrades in-”
“No!” Commander Hugh cut Ryan off, his voice raising to a deadly quiet tone, “These are simulators for crying out loud. No one dies. So, I don't care what selfish reasons you have for disobeying orders, especially in the Sims., but they will stop here. Now get outta sight before I change my mind!”
Ryan stepped past his commanding officer, shaking his head. They were only simulators, how could one ignored order lead other people to believe it was okay to disobey other orders? It was not like actual lives were at stake in the simulators. Besides, he reasoned with himself, I would've done the same thing had it been an actual battle.
He took a quick glance around his temporary home, the Tranquility, noting, for the hundredth time, the difference between a Terran-style home and a Corvette. None of the warmth that new crew members expected to find, the soft colored lights, the quiet times during sleeping periods, and the difference between night and day, were here. Instead, the Corvette's dull, metal plaid corridors offered no protection from the hanging light fixtures, and the bustling noise of crew members could be heard throughout all periods of a standard, twenty-four hour day.
Ryan made a right turn, heading off towards the pilot rec room. Though the Tranquility had an intricate crew member guidance system, he did not need to use it. The hand held device, known as a Corvette Positioning System, or CPS, was too complex to use for the short journey from the simulator room to the sleeping quarters. Like its sibling, the GPS, the CPS relied on internal tracking devices to pinpoint the exact location and to guide the user to his or her final destination.
“Hey! Ryan! Hold up.” A voice snapped Ryan out of his thoughts, causing him to turn. The brown-blond hair of Davin Theros came into view as his slightly short body rounded the corner.
“Hey,” Ryan attempted his most serious face without crackling into laughter, “that's Captain Anderson to you.”
“Hahah,” Davin said sarcastically, “that's only in public, just so I don't get hanged for defiance. Unlike you, I don't show my hate for authority out in the open.”
“You heard my conversation with the Commander?”
“All of it man, but he did have a point.”
“He was like, 'people watch you and then think they can get away with the same thing and blah, blah, blah...' and... Wait.” Ryan swung his head towards his friend, a frown plastering his face. “Did you just say he had a point?”
“Yeah, he did. He is right, you are looked up upon by the rookies, and they do follow your actions. Besides, we all know what happens to soldiers who decide to disobey orders during war. Just be careful, okay?”
“Fine,” Ryan said, his voice increasingly sarcastic. “I guess I won't disobeys order in the Sims. anymore. I'll be a nice pilot and-” Ryan was cut short as his mouth seemed to open on its own, in a yawn.
“Tired much?” Davin asked mockingly, nudging him slightly with an elbow.
“No, you try getting five hours of sleep each night, and then tell me you're not tired after a full day of working around a ship.” Ever since joining the Air Corps, Ryan had noted that the human body could not survive on five hours of sleep alone. After all, they were mortals, not machines.
Ryan cut across the narrow hallway, entering the pilot rec room. Comfort had obviously not been the top priority for the Tranquility's manufacturer. Like the rest of the Corvette, the room followed the same stainless-steel, metal finish and was lite by the overhanging light fixtures. In fact, the only difference was that the walls, instead of being coated with computer terminals and wires, were cut inwards and hollowed out, allowing for sixteen, human-sized lockers and beds, enough for every pilot stationed on the Tranquility. Since the beds were inset within the confines of the wall, a curtain had been draped next to each bed, allowing for at least some privacy for each pilot.
“I may actually get some decent sleep since we don't have anything to do for another ten hours,” Davin commented as Ryan strode towards his semi-concealed, cave-like room.
“No kidding. There hasn't been this much activity aboard the Tranquility for a while, it'll be nice to take a breather,” Ryan replied, sliding the curtain completely open and taking a seat on the unmade bed.
“I think something is up,” Davin said suddenly, amidst the unusual quiet of the rec room. “They wouldn't be throwing us back into the Sims.—or even real ships—unless our Air Force has deemed these times treacherous enough to start back up the military program.”
Ryan tossed his head back, laughing uncontrollably. “You've always been the suspicious one Davin. I think that if we were going to head into bloodbath with another empire, Command would let us know."
“I don't know... We are informed on a need to know basis.”
“Yeah, that doesn't matter,” Ryan responded, immediately cutting off his laughter, as he realized that Davin was being more-or-less serious. “This'd obviously be something we'd need to know about. After all, who can we shoot at if we don't know who'll shoot at us?”
“Fine.” Davin gave a sigh, falling back into his bed that was across the cramped room. “I'll let it go for now, but if I'm right, can I rub it in your face forever?”
“Yeah, go ahead,” Ryan said confidently. There was no way command would hold back something as important as this was. “Now go to sleep pilot and I'll see you in the briefing room in ten hours.”
“Aye sir,” Davin smirked, “just wait until I get promoted and you get demoted. I'll show you then.”
“Sure you will Davin,” Ryan mumbled, already half asleep, “sure you will.”
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