..
Chapter 1: Yellow Prints
A rough vibration rippled through the transport, sending a shock through Lance’s
bones. Clenching his jaw, he grimaced from the sharp jolt to his joints. He checked his watch;
they’d been in flight for nearly two hours now. Grunts of discomfort rose from the others sitting
around him. The soft whirring of engines rattled the craft.
A young man, sitting across from Lance, leaned forward with his elbows resting on his
knees. Being nearly seven-foot tall and built like a tank, he invaded the personal space of
everyone around him. A stomach-churning groan left the teen, followed by a belch that filled the
stale air with an acidic stench.
“Not one for flying?” a soft voice teased to Lance’s left.
“Shut up, dwarf,” their airsick companion replied.
“Actually I’m a midget, and clearly my compact size makes me a more suitable candidate
to be an officer over you as I do not get airsick,” the four-foot-five man countered.
“Justin, lay off the big guy; not everyone resists motion sickness like you do,” Lance
muttered as he tossed an elbow into his childhood friend’s arm.
“Are you mocking me?” the giant snarled before letting out another acidic burp.
“Calm down, big guy, he’s just trying to keep the peace,” the young woman sitting next
to their nauseous companion countered as she rubbed his back. “Please forgive him; he gets testy
when he’s not feeling well. I’m Stephany Briggs; this is Dexter Conners.”
She offered out her free hand to Lance, who took it, giving her delicate yet firm hand
shake.
“I’m Lance Warder; this is Justin Cooper. Please forgive him; he’s just nervous,” Lance
replied before tossing a stern glance at the midget.
“Wait, Warder, like...” Stephanie started.
“Yep,” Lance interrupted with a nod. “Like THAT Warder.”
“Well, you’ve got some big shoes to fill,” she countered before locking eyes with Lance.
A dedicated fury raged under the surface of her violet-hazel eyes. Lance ran his hand
over his newly shaved head, the soft bristles of what was left tickling his palm as an unsteadiness
settled in his gut.
“Please, don’t remind me,” he muttered.
“And I mean no offense, but aren’t you a little short to be a pilot?” she asked Justin.
“That’s what they said to Robert Geyer,” Justin countered. “But he went and flew in three
wars as well as saved countless lives when he flew air ambulance missions at the end of World
War Two. He was five foot two and a half inches tall, which is nearly five inches taller than the
height requirement now.”
“You’re stretching if you’re going for something from that long ago,” Dexter muttered
before flashing a sneer at Justin.
The transport shuddered again, causing him to duck his head once more. Lance reached
into the pocket of an old leather flight jacket he’d been gifted and held out a small chewable
tablet encased in plastic.
“I’ve got some Damextrapine,” he muttered as he handed the pill to Dexter. “It should
help.”
Dexter took the packet, ripped it open, and devoured the pill. Within seconds, his
symptoms subsided as he sat up straight. Next to him, Stephanie’s petite frame made her look
like a toothpick.
“First time in a TT-33A?” Justin asked as he sat back in his seat.
“While it’s flying, yes,” Dexter replied. “What about you, short stack?”
“No, I would like to fly one, though,” Justin countered.
“That’s a tall order,” Dexter teased.
Stephanie elbowed the giant in the ribs. Lance shot Justin a pleading glance. Several
other of the sixteen candidates all stared at them, anticipating a fight to break out. With some
quick thinking, the short-haired young man leaned forward, putting his weight to one side and
partially blocking Justin from Dexter.
“What postings are you hoping for?” he asked to change the subject.
“Electric engineer and communications officer,” Stephanie replied with a cheery bounce
in her voice. “I think being part of the Perseus Observatory Station would be a fun posting.”
“I’m hoping to be put with the I.M.G.,” Dexter added. “And any place that isn’t Mars.
What about you?”
The transport turned left, giving off a violent shudder. A deep, distant rumble added to
the course vibrations of the craft, sending a blend of numbing vibrations and pins and needles
jostling through Lance’s lower body. A crackle emanated through the windowless box.
“We apologize about the rough ride. Due to a headwind, we were a little behind
schedule,” the tinny voice said. “Today’s shuttle launch is taking place two klicks south of our
location with last month’s graduates aboard. We will begin our descent shortly. In the meantime,
stay buckled in, and if you don’t D.O.R., you may get to see next month’s launch.”
Lance’s heart raced at the mention of a shuttle launch. He’d watched them on TV and
seen them from miles away, but never from as close as boot camp was to the launch site. Closing
his eyes, he leaned back against his chair, pressing his back into the uncomfortable leather layer
that stood between him and a sheet of metal.
The deep vibrations and rumble of the distant engine overpowered that of their transport.
Adrenaline surged as he closed his eyes and flashes of exploration, discovering new star systems,
planets and maybe even meeting an alien species flashed through his mind.
A peace washed over him as he opened his eyes. The shuttle’s vibrations dissipated after
several seconds, leaving only the trembling transport to continue its rough flight to base. Leaning
forward, he rested his elbows on his knees.
“Well?” Dexter asked impatiently, waiting for an answer to his question.
“Put me on a ship,” Lance replied. “Send me to Perseus, Carina, Norma; I don’t care, just
get me out there.”
“You sure you want to go that far out?” Stephanie asked. “Cryo’s good and all, but you’ll
be an old man before you even get to see them.”
“Not if we had faster-than-light travel,” Justin muttered as he picked at his fingernails.
“FTL?” Stephanie scoffed. “That kind of technology can’t exist; textbook Newtonian
physics.”
“Can’t exist from our point of view,” Lance countered with a shrug.
“Exactly,” Justin added, pointing at the young man. “It’s all about having a different
perspective than those around you. Isn’t that how we still speak of Newton even almost a
thousand years later?”
“I don’t think having a clear view of the bottom of most tables counts as a proper
different perspective,” Dexter taunted.
“That may be true, but it’s better than having brain damage from slamming my head into
every doorway I walk through,” Justin countered. “Is that why you’re so aggressive? All that
trauma?”
Dexter snarled, unstrapped his restraint, causing a red light to flash, and stood up. A soft
hiss came from the front of the craft.
“SIT DOWN, BOY!” a voice boomed from the cockpit.
Sitting halfway back Lance’s ear still rang as the others winced and held their hands to
the sides of their head. Everyone followed the source to see a man of average size sitting in the
third co-pilot seat. He wore a grey jumpsuit with a pointed logo that held a small star in its center
and a set of wings spreading behind it.
“You will sit back down and fasten your seatbelt or you will be dismissed to hitchhike
back home to mommy and daddy like the worm you are!” the officer barked.
His voice rattled the dropship almost as much as the engines did. Dexter let out a
frustrated snarl and sat back down before strapping himself back in. The light stopped blinking.
“Do not, I repeat, do NOT remove your harness again. Next person that does will be
removed from the program before it even begins,” the pilot barked.
Through the cockpit, Lance caught a glimpse of an exhaust trail stretching from the
ground to the sky, the outside light nearly blinding compared to the dark internal transport. With
a hiss, a door slid sideways, sealing off the pilots from their cargo.
Lance blinked as his eyes tried to readjust to the dark. Leaning back in his chair, he
glanced from Dexter to Justin then back. Both late teens glared at each other. The larger of them
crossed his arms like a pouty child while the smaller picked his fingernails with a familiar look
in his eye. One that calculated twenty steps ahead and planned for countless eventualities.
“Eh, it doesn’t matter,” Dexter huffed. “It’s not like you’re going to get over the wall
anyway.”
“If you say so,” Justin muttered back.
“Okay, guys, that’s enough,” Lance and Stephanie said in unison.
A high-pitched whine whirred from the engines as their forward momentum slowed.
Excitement mounted within the young man as he and the others all turned their attention to the
outer hull of their transport. Like a rough elevator ride, the transport rattled faster as it entered a
vertical descent. The overhead speaker crackled once more.
“We’ve begun our descent; prepare your packets and wait for the bay doors to completely
open before exiting,” the voice commanded. “Once you’ve left the craft, fall in line and your
drill instructor will take you from there.”
Lance reached under his seat and pulled the manila envelope he’d slid under after he’d
sat down. Several others grabbed similar containers as others pulled up their information on their
watches to double check their validity.
Opening his envelope, Lance checked his birth certificate, his hemisphere I.D., and
civilian class ranking. Closing it back up, he held the papers against his chest. His heart raced
and throat tightened as his nerves finally got to him. What if he was cut from the program, or
worse, D.O.R.ed? What if something prevented him from being able to proceed with the rest of
his class and he had to redo basic?
NO! Lance thought to himself. Don’t think like that; keep your mind clear. You’ve been
training for this your entire life. You have a plan, stick to it. You’ve got this!
After his little internal pep-talk, he looked around. The others looked just as nervous as
he felt. All except for Stephanie, who brimmed with excitement, and Dexter, who tapped his foot
in eager anticipation.
A shudder shook the transport as the whirring of the engines died, leaving only the
creaking hull and phantom engine blasts ringing in Lance’s ears. Everyone fell into a tense
silence. The air was so thick, if someone managed to sneak a knife on board, they’d be able to
cut the tension.
The young man held his breath. His eyes locked on the door near the bow of the craft, as
did everyone else’s. Several clicks and metallic thuds echoed through the flying metal can. A
hiss followed with a seam giving way.
Light poured in as a portion of the craft lifted up and away. The chants and rhythmic
foot-falls of those outside poured in. A series of snaps clattered throughout the hull as everyone
unclasped their restraints. With a flick of his fingers on the metal, Lance freed himself as well.
One by one, everyone rose to their feet. In silence, they shuffled out of the craft. Lance’s
nervousness transitioned once more to excitement as he reached the door and emerged onto the
black tarmac. Humidity hit him like a hammer. Accompanied with the heat, he felt beads of
sweat form on his back almost instantly.
As his eyes adjusted, he followed his group, guided by yellow lines, almost a hundred
feet from the dropship. Its engines kicked on once again. Lance looked back. The boxy
dropship’s door shut. It lifted off by four bulbous thrusters on its bottom. Once it reached
building clearance height, the thrusters on the back kicked in and it flew away.
The group slowed to a stop. Each individual jostled and found a position to stand. With
Stephanie and Dexter to his right and Justin to his left, Lance looked down. A half a step ahead
of him were two yellow footprints painted into the ground. His heart raced; all he ever wanted to
be, everything he’d focused on doing for most of his short life led to this moment, his first steps.
Eagerness overwhelmed him as he positioned his feet onto those legendary spots where
countless heroes stood before him. His heart pounded like a war drum as pride swelled within
him. ...
We hope you are enjoying the book so far. To continue reading...
Copyright © 2024 All Rights Reserved
Please log in to recommend or discuss...
