Lilah had listened patiently while Maverick explained the exercise. 6 teams, two against one, except for Lilah's own team. In her case, three on one. Payback, Rooster, and herself.
"Let's get this show on the road." Lilah said through the comm as she sat waiting in her jet. She was getting antsy.
She heard a Bradley snort.
"Sit tight, you're not even going up first." Payback responded with a chuckle. "You've got two jets going in front of you."
"Why can't I go up first?" she whined.
"Because," she heard the whoosh of Payback's plane taking off. A second later, she saw it in the sky. "You're an idiot who would do some stupid shit while waiting for Maverick to set up the exercise."
She watched Bradley's plane take off. It made her nervous, them being up their together. They'd never flown together.
"I'm flipping you off." she told him.
"Love you too, baby." and then he was gone off of her channel.
The marshallers signaled her to move into position.
"Confirming takeoff." she said.
"Takeoff confirmed." Warlock's voice came through.
She gave the good to go signal and then she was off. She felt the sinking sensation, the adrenaline pumping through her veins as the jet moved faster and faster. She pulled back, sending the jet soaring up. She was whooping.
Then she was in the air. She pulled up next Bradley and Payback, both who were sitting patiently. She waved to both, before searching the air for Maverick. She switched channels a few times to make sure she wasn't missing anything, but there was nothing.
Where the hell was Maverick?
They all must've sat for another five minutes before Maverick finally come over the comm.
"Good morning, aviators." Maverick was happy. Too Happy. "This is your captain speaking. Welcome to basic fighting maneuver's. As you were all debriefed, today's exercise is dogfight. No missiles. Guns only. And no going below the hard deck of 5,000 feet." Lilah was positive that Maverick was talking to her. "Work as a team to shoot me down, or else."
"Or else what, sir?" Fanboy asked through the comms.
"Or I shoot back."
Lilah rolled her as at the grin she was sure was plastered on Maverick's face. Sick asshole, embarrassing the pilot's on their first day.
"If I shoot any one of you, you all loose."
"How 'bout we put some skin on the game?" Payback countered.
Lilah almost opened her mouth to warn him that making a bet with Maverick was the worst thing that he could've ever done, but where would the fun in that be?
"What do you have in mind?"
"Whoever gets shot down first has to do two hundred push ups."
Lilah groaned aloud. Maverick was going to enjoy this.
"That's a lot of push ups."
"They don't call it an exercise for nothing, sir." Fanboy replied, too cocky for his own good.
"You've got yourself a deal. Now, let's turn and burn!"
Maverick's jet soared between Rooster and Payback's, catching them both completely off guard. Both jets spun, coming dangerously close to Lilah's. They shot different directions, trying to follow Maverick.
"Shit, do you see him?" Payback yelled. "Rooster, respond!"
"Where they hell did he go!" Rooster shouted.
Everyone was screaming different commands. Lilah tried to block it all out and focus on getting herself out of there with getting shot.
Lilah followed the two, dropping underneath them. 1,000 feet from the hard deck.
"There he is!" she screamed, watching him bolt out of the covers of the mountains. He was flying straight at them. She zoomed up, saving Fanboy and Payback.
"Hurricane just saved your life." Maverick shouted. "But it's gonna cost her."
"That's what you think, old man." she said, breaking left.
Maverick was on her. Shit.
"Where's your wingman?" Maverick asked.
"Yeah, where the hell is my wingman!" she grunted, struggling to say out of Maverick's range.
"Coming!" Rooster piped up. He put himself in between the two, giving her time that she didn't need to break downwards.
Then it was a dogfight between Rooster and Maverick. Rooster engaged, immediately, screwing himself over. Lilah watched him get dangerously close to the hard deck.
"Rooster, pull up!" she yelled.
"Oh, shit!" he slammed upwards, making him loose all of his momentum. He was dead in seconds.
"That's a kill." Maverick said.
"Fuck!" Rooster shouted.
"Go home." was all Maverick mustered up to say.
The game field was now two to one. Lilah dipped down lower.
800 feet from the hard deck.
"Hurricane, do you see him?"
Payback was flying the same direction Maverick had last come from, giving him the perfect shot to take him out if Maverick was still around.
"Negative." Lilah replied, scanning the sky.
And then she saw him. Under Payback and Fanboy.
"He's under you!" she yelled, but it was too late.
The beeping filled the comm. "That's a kill."
One on one.
She'd given Maverick her position when she'd tried to save Payback and Fanboy. She swooped down lower.
500 feet from the hard deck.
She streaked across the sky, trying to find Maverick. He'd disappeared again.
And then she saw him. Out of the corner of her eye. Coming at her from the side.
"Dammit!" she shrieked, pulling up quickly.
She shot straight up through the cloud, before leveling out. And then they were chasing each other. Once she had some distance, she hit the control stick down.
600 feet.
450.
300.
150.
She had him then. He hadn't see her
"That's a kill, Mav." she said softly.
She knew that this would mean. She's killed him. Bradley hadn't.
"Shit." he cursed quietly.
She heard an explosion of cheers from the other side of the comms. She switched channels. She didn't want to hear it.
When she landed her the fighter jet, she jumped out and ran to the ready room faster than she ever had before. She ignored the shouting in the distance.
Bradley. Doing his two hundred push ups.
"Down!" she watched him struggle. "109!"
The rest of the round one flights was a blur. She overheard Phoenix having a conversation with Fanboy and Payback. All were staring at Bradley through the window.
"It should been us down there." Fanboy told her. "Hurricane jumped in front of the missile to save our asses, and Bradley took the kill for her."
"But it's not, right?" Phoenix asked in a hushed voice. "You just learned a little about Rooster and Hurricane."
The rest of the round one flights were a blur. She was aware that Maverick kept yelling, "That's a kill." at every other pilot.
When Phoenix was up, Payback tapped her on the shoulder.
"Phoenix and Hangman are up there."
"How's about we tell everyone that Bob stands for something other than Robert." Hangman was saying.
"I'm in." Bob responded.
"Don't take the bait, Bob." Phoenix said, "Wanna know why we call him Hangman?"
"Oh wait, I got it. Baby on board." Hangman started to die of laughter at his own joke.
And then she heard a whoosh of air. Maverick.
"Shit!" Hangman yelled.
"Greetings aviators, fights on." Maverick said.
"Alright Phoenix, let's take this guy out."
Lilah watched Bradley walk over to the radio. She hadn't even caught him coming inside. His flight suit was tied around his waist, the black t-shirt he wore underneath now drenched in sweat.
"Watch your back, Phoenix."
Hangman started yelling orders at Phoenix which she did immediately, and then his voice was gone.
"Where's he going!" Bob screamed.
Phoenix cursed. "That's why we call him Hangman, he'll always hang you out to dry."
"Leaving your wingman," Maverick chimed in. "There's a strategy I haven't seen in a while."
"He called you a man, Phoenix." Hangman picked. "You gonna take that?"
"So long as he doesn't call you one." Phoenix shot back.
Lilah smiled softly to herself at the pilot's quick reflexes.
"Talk to me Bob, where's Maveirck?" Phoenix questioned.
There was a bunch of screaming, and then Hangman's voice came through.
"For all you folks at home, this is how you bury a fossil."
"Alright, Hangman, time to teach you a lesson."
And then there was beeping. Who'd just been shot?
Maverick's voice through. You're out Phoenix."
"Son of a bitch!"
Then it was a dogfight between Mav and Hangman, Lilah blocked most of it out, only hearing a little of what was said.
"Phoenix, I can't see! Where is he?" Hangman was shouting.
Phoenix chuckled. "I'm dead, dickhead."
"See you in the afterlife, Bagman." Bob backed up Phoenix.
Another smile from Bradley.
And then beeping.
"That's a kill."
★★★
"Captain Hollis!" someone was yelling at her. "Earth to Captain Hollis."
Hangman.
Hangman was yelling at her.
"We're all flying together."
Bradley was right beside her. Hangman was by the door, moving his fingers in a spiral, signaling them to hurry up.
Lilah just opened her mouth and then shut it, deciding on a slight nod of the head. She couldn't bear to glance up at him, knowing what she would be met with. Emotionless green eyes and a hard face. Just like a year ago when he'd seen her at the base after the call.
"Hurry up." Hangman yelled from the door. "I'm ready to put that asshole in his place."
None of them spoke as they did checks. Takeoff was a blur, but she went up first. Hangman followed and Bradley brought up the rear.
"Say Rooster, mind if I ask you a personal question?" Hangman asked.
"Would it matter if I did?"Rooster already had his comm strapped onto his helmet and kept his moving his eyes in every direction.
Hangman glanced at Lilah, smirking. She couldn't hurt him up in the air.
"So, what's the story with you and Maverick? Seems like he's got you a little rattled."
"Mind your own damn business, Hangman." Lilah growled through the comm.
Rooster glared at her.
"But there is a story with him?" Hangman chuckled.
"It's none of your business." Lilah said firmly.
"Now where the hell is he?" Rooster asked.
"Been here the whole time." Maverick turned sideways and floated up between Rooster and Lilah until he was inverted.
Once Lilah was positive that he could see her, she flipped him off. He returned the favor and drifted to be above Rooster.
"You see me now?" Maverick gritted out. "Come one, let's get it over with."
"Guys, let's not do this." Lilah tried to intervene.
Rooster was breathing hard, staring up at Maverick. "Fights on."
And then the two were spirally downwards.
"What is with these two?" Hangman yelled, sending his jet to the right to get a better view.
"Motherfucking stupid ass male egos!" Lilah fumed in response. She flipped her plane around and went down with them.
"Alright, Rooster, you put us here, how you gonna get yourself out?" Mav asked.
"You can bail out anytime." Rooster snapped back.
"How low you wanna go?"
"I can go as low as you, sir." Rooster spit out, "And that's saying something."
"Hate to break up this little dominance thing, gentlemen, but there's a hard deck of 5,000, and you're about 2,000 feet from breaking it." Lilah shouted.
"Stay the hell out of it, Hurricane!" Rooster sneered at her.
"Pardon me, but the sky isn't the best place to be sorting out your problems." she barked back.
"What's past is past. For all of us!" Maverick stated, rejoined the conversation.
"You'd like to believe that, wouldn't you?"
"Reminder, hard deck is 5,000 feet, fellas." Hangman screamed at them. "You are running out of room!"
The systems in their jets had started to say, "Altitude, altitude."
"Your strategy to fix this shit is about to run you into the ground, Brad!" Lilah called out. "What's your move here?"
No one spoke, their breathing the only sound. Lilah watched Rooster. He kept glancing at the altitude and then at Maverick, as if deciding if it was worth it.
"500 feet!" Hangman screamed.
"Jesus Christ, someone pull up!" Lilah grunted, almost losing control.
"You first!"
Maverick pulled up first. Rooster and Lilah stared at each other. She wasn't going to let him win this one.
"Always have to be better, don't you?" he sneered before pulling up and shooting after Maverick.
Lilah followed, breaking left to follow them. 100 feet from the ground.
"You're the one that's so fucking stubborn you almost just ran us into the ground!" Lilah snapped back.
Lilah entered a ravine. Rooster was about 50 years ahead of her.
"You have him Rooster!" Hangman was above them. "Drop down and take the damn shot!"
"It's too low!" Rooster told him, pulling up.
"You had your chance." Maverick said.
Lilah heard him yank the controls back.
Beeping filled all of their ears.
Lilah's finger left the kill button.
"You're out, Mav."
"Damn it!" Rooster banged his hand against his canopy.
"Same old Rooster." Hangman drawled.
"Everyone back to base!" Maverick order. "And Rooster, you go see Hondo about your pushups."
"I killed you." Lilah argued back. "He doesn't have to do shit."
"Now you get to join him." Maverick snapped. "And here's today's lesson, you hesitate you die."
BEFORE:
I ABSOLUTELY HATE THIS CHAPTER.
DID IT TAKE ME ALMOST FIVE DAYS TO WRITE? YES, YES IT DID.
DO I LOVE IT? NO, IT'S LITERALLY TRASH.
UGH LET ME KNOW HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT IT.
POV: ALSO WENT TO SEE TOP GUN AGAIN FOR THE 8TH TIME TODAY!
AFTER:
OKAY IT'S A LITTLE BETTER. LOVIN' IT A LOT MORE NOW!
PRETTY MUCH THE SAME, BUT LIKE HEY, IT'S OKAY!
FOLLOW ME ON TIKTOK: MADELYNNHUTTON