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Captain Pete "Maverick" Mitchell had expected his day to go quite differently. Though, he couldn't say he was surprised to find himself in his superior's office being reprimanded; it had become a regular occurrence over the past thirty years.
Today was simply supposed to be the mach nine test for Darkstar, a program Maverick and his team had been working on for some time now. However, before the test could begin, the team received word that Admiral Cain was on his way to shut the program down. Maverick's heroic nature refused to let that happen, so he did what he did best: break the rules.
He suited up and took off in Darkstar right before Cain's arrival. The official mach nine test was a success, but to keep the program alive, Maverick needed to reach mach ten. And he did. In fact, he exceeded mach ten until he blew it, quite literally. He crashed landed in a nowhere town in the middle of the United States.
On base, Admiral Cain was waiting for Maverick's return, so he could officially ground the captain permanently. Except, a call came in with impeccable timing that would keep Maverick in the air just a little while longer.
Now, Maverick was being reassigned to the North Island or what's better known as Fightertown, U.S.A., the home of Top Gun. Since his graduation in 1986, he had tried his luck as a Top Gun instructor, but he quickly realized he was a pilot, not a teacher. After two months on the job, he quit.
Upon his arrival, the U.S. Navy Fighter Weapons School was just like Maverick remembered. The halls were decorated the same, but each year new memorabilia was added from the previous graduating class. One wall still held the photo of Iceman and Maverick after their first mission together. Then, behind him, was a photo of U.S. Pacific Fleet Commander, Tom "Iceman" Kazansky. Maverick stared at the photo of his friend with honor and gratitude. Without him, the Navy would have quit on Maverick years ago.
Maverick was escorted to a room where Admirals Beau "Cyclone" Simpson and Solomon "Warlock" Bates debriefed him on his new purpose at Top Gun. A uranium plant was violating a NATO treaty, and the Navy was tasked with eliminating it.
The mission would be difficult. Satellite imagery showed the enemy had surface-to-air missiles, fifth-generation fighter jets, and GPS jammers. However, looking at the recon before him, Maverick easily devised his plan of attack.
"You misunderstood," Cyclone said after Maverick explained his plan. "We don't want you to fly it. We want you to teach it."
"Teach, sir?"
A handful of the best Top Gun graduates had been selected to be trained for the mission. After the three-week time period was up, Maverick would be forced to choose a team leader. Cyclone and Warlock displayed an array of candidates and Maverick recognized a familiar face, one that haunted him. It was Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw, the son of his former RIO, Nick "Goose" Bradshaw.
To this day, Maverick was still guilt-ridden over the incident. He tried to be there for Bradley, tried to be the father he lost. But after delaying Bradley's naval career, the two men stopped seeing eye-to-eye.
"Is there a problem?" Cyclone asked.
"You know there is."
"I want to make you aware of another problem, Maverick," Warlock intervened.
Warlock pulled up the file of a female aviator, "Emerson Raye Blackwood, call sign, Raven."
Maverick stared at the screen before him. It was like seeing a ghost; there was something so terrifyingly familiar about her. "And that is, sir?"
"You need to watch out for her. She's a lot like you, Maverick."
"Dangerous is the word I would use," Cyclone finished.
