My dear and cherished Sparks.
Welcome to my heart.
I don’t like to share personal stuff on the internet, because you never know where it will end up, and last week I did precisely that, going completely out of character, something I have been doing more and more these days. Anyway, I’m experiencing something akin to buyer’s remorse, hoping that last week’s post does NOT go viral. I suppose I could take it down, or edit it… Maybe at some point. Then again, they say you only grow when you’re outside your comfort zone, maybe it’s growth that I have yet to realize.
I just want to say again how grateful I am to each and every one of you. You make my time here joyful and special and I am likely to go crazy without the grounding
As for where we are now in the story…
INDEX | Chapter 7 | Scenes 1 & 2 | Scenes 3 & 4 | Scene 5 | Scene 6 | Scene 7 | Scene 8 | Scene 9 | Next Scene → Coming soon.
Previously: After six months of being locked up by the PG in a tiny cell, with nothing to do but train and only Cathy Morgan for company, Misty is allowed supervised access to the gym. As her privileges grow with time and good behavior, she starts to build relationships while sparring with the other soldiers.
I inhale deeply, looking at intrinsic gray, and wrinkle my nose. The air in here smells like fuel and oil, metal and sweat. I exhale, thinking about how I ended up sitting in a winged death trap, five kilometers above the ground, on my way to another continent. My heart is racing in my throat, and my palms, slick with sweat, are slipping on the shoulder straps of the harness they made me put on.
It all started when Cathy asked me to join her on a training mission.
* * *
“Yes, you heard me correctly. A training mission. My dad wants to see how you do in the field.” Cathy says, excitement bubbling off of her as I stare in disbelief. I’ve been a prisoner for over six months. Every aspect of my life has been regulated. Now they offer me a field mission?
I think it over.
Cathy starts smiling before I do.
* * *
There is rattling equipment and muffled conversation all around me. The aircraft shudders slightly as it hits some turbulence, and my stomach lurches but I manage to swallow it down. I wonder why I am even here. They know I can fly. They haven’t implanted any tracking devices that I know of. Why would they risk me going free?
I have been afforded many privileges since I’ve been training in their gym. Maybe they think I’m one of them now.
I’ve been careful when sparring these past few weeks to avoid seriously hurting anyone. Even though the soldiers have stopped going easy on me, and I can see they are well-trained and capable, it is getting tedious not being able to test myself properly. I’ve resorted to making up silly handicaps to make it more of a challenge, but that can only close the gap so much. I almost miss Logan and Tom.
* * *
Cathy’s smile is mischievous, her head tilts a little just before the smile turns to a grin. “So you’ll do it?” She asks and I nod, and then her smile threatens to split her face in two.
Everything changes in the next few days.
I am led to a large bedroom, just for me, with a proper private bathroom attached, just like I had when I still lived with Luke. The smooth white walls and standard-issue grey bedding oppose a whole wall of glass cabinets in which to unpack my large box of treasures.
After I move, I am taken to the quartermaster and fitted for a set of grey and green camouflage fatigues just like Cathy’s minus the lieutenant’s insignia. I pull on the jacket and pants and spin around and smooth it down my body, and grin.
* * *
My name tag reads Elle. Cathy convinced the General to drop the ‘Jenina’ right quick once she saw how uncomfortable it made me.
I run my hand down the coarse fabric on my legs, smelling high thin air and remember how it felt that first time. I love it. I love the fit. I love the texture and the color, and I love most of all that it makes me feel like I’m part of a team. I’ve been on my own all my life. Even when we went on field training exercises at TTH we were pitted against one another or everyone for themselves against the environment.
The aircraft shudders again, then evens out. Thinking about all that’s changed in my life since I left TTH is enough to distract me for a while, but when Cathy calls the company to attention and we all stand ready to drop off the ramp, my heart starts to race again and it takes all my willpower to go and stand in front of her while she gives her final address.
“Remember, this is just training, so don’t worry if you feel lost and bewildered. Your TO is there to take care of you.” She makes eye contact with each member of our squadron, officers and trainees alike, then points to a large map on the cockpit wall, with a glowing red spot.
“This is your goal.” She says indicating one nondescript blob after another. “We will be dropping here, just before dark, then it’s a twenty-mile hike. You have 12 hours which is plenty of time if you move quickly. All you have to do is make it to the complex within the time limit. Easy peasy. Extraction will be waiting to collect us all by dawn.”
The officers and their trainees shuffle their feet, assuming their positions as the ramp starts to lower, and Cathy has to raise her voice to make herself heard above the roaring wind. “Remember the forest is hostile. There are dangerous plants and large predators. Stick to your officers and you’ll be fine. These guys do this every year. Medevac is standing by, keeping track of telemetry in case of poisoning, snake bites, or serious injuries. T-minus thirty seconds. Good luck.” She shouts past my ear and I close my eyes again while she clips my harness onto hers for the tandem parachute.
I am panting, fighting to keep my cool, but the wind is deafening now and Cathy is too focused on the mission to notice. She has chattered non-stop since she invited me. Even though she’s been a lieutenant for four years, she’s never been in charge of a mission before. If something goes wrong here, her position is at stake. I try my best to stay calm, reminding myself that every other trainee is in the same boat, and none of them are panicking.
I’m not afraid of the drop, but being strapped in has never ended well for me. I remember too many times that I was tied down that ended badly, and with my back against Cathy’s front, staring into the clouds below us, all those memories come flooding back. I can’t do this. I can’t do this, I can’t…
Cathy shuffles us forward as the other officers drop out of the plane and disappear into the clouds. The hole yawns and Cathy’s reassuring words are lost to the wind as she pushes me that final step over the edge and we plunge into the blast.
The wind hits me full in the face, making my eyes stream and taking my already labored breath away. I can’t get control. Cathy’s body behind me should be comforting but all I feel is the weight, the straps, and the air rushing past me, past us, as we spin and I have no control.
* * *
I’m not sure exactly what happened. Cathy and I were tumbling wildly through the air. The clean crispness of altitude assaulted me. Cathy told me to close my eyes and tried to breathe through it. She held me close and tried to stabilize our descent and my mind kind of cut out.
My harness is in tatters and now suddenly I’m falling freely. Cathy is gone. There is no more parachute. The forest below me is approaching fast. I need to do something. Blinking, while my heartbeat slows down, I take a deep breath and quickly summon as much energy as I can. I struggle against the wind, flipping over and over trying not to think of how long I have. It’s going to take more energy than usual to save myself, a lot more.
Usually, when I fly, I start grounded in normal gravity and air pressure. Controlling my body from the ground upwards is second nature, but up here there’s no air pressure to speak of and gravity’s pull feels altogether different.
The energy surges through me like an electric shock, lighting my body up in a heartbeat and setting my uniform on fire. At last, I feel gravity release its hold and my control stabilizes. I breathe a sigh of relief when I finally feel the zoom, slip from fall into flight and slow down, a silver-green streak hurtling across the rainforest canopy, almost close enough to touch.
There’s a clearing over there, probably from a fallen tree. I make my way down.
The musty smell of decaying plant matter envelopes me as close branches tug at what’s left of my uniform, tearing its singed and blackened edges. As I force my energy level back to normal, kicking off smoking boots, I take stock, cursing when I realize most of my equipment is fried, from that energetic surge. My compass, tracking tags, radio…
More than half of my uniform is gone, singed to shreds and pockets. I quickly adjust what’s left of the fabric and tie it around me to cover the necessary parts. It’s a good thing I am so small, and that this rain-forest place has a tropical climate that doesn’t get cold. Breathe.
I sit down in the undergrowth of ferns and creepers, feeling more than a little lost, wondering what I am going to do. I’m on my own again. I am free and clear at the moment. I could disappear, no one will look for me here, and there's plenty of places to hide if they do. This is exactly what I wanted when I ran away from Luke, to be alone in the forest. There’s fruit everywhere and animals to hunt, plenty of fuel for fire, and material for building a shelter, and according to the map there’s even a river close by.
I look around at the wild variety of plants and wonder what they are all called. There are thin sharp leaves and wide flat ones, and flowering bushes and vines, in between trees and trees and trees. It’s getting dark.
Cathy said her whole career hinges on the success of this mission. If it goes well it opens doors for her. She could get a medal, maybe even a promotion, and it would make her dad so proud. I wonder what will happen to her if she goes back without me. It can’t be good.
A hissing sound behind me draws my attention. I spin around but can’t see anything in the deepening gloom.
My stomach grumbles. No time for indecision. Figure out what’s next. I pat down my shredded uniform to find the pocket I want and huff out my disappointment, the candy bars are melted and gooey. I tear one corner of the wrapper off and tilt my head back, letting the liquid chocolate and nougat dribble into my mouth.
What I can see of the sky is still blue but the light on the ground is fading fast. If I am going to do something it has to be now. I don’t even know if Cathy made it to the ground okay.
I pluck the map out of what’s left of its pocket, it looks like it survived by some miracle, and then take a moment to orient myself. The sunset was to my left, and the tree moss is growing thickest on this side so that means north is that way, and the way to the goal from the drop zone on the map is north-north-west, with the river behind. I’m probably way off from the tumble and flight but if I can get above the canopy I might find a landmark to figure out where I am relative to the drop zone. Something rustles to my left and I jump up as some kind of rodent scurries over my feet. That’s it. Let’s do this.
Next Time: Misty goes looking for her lost team and runs into some trouble.
Thanks so much for reading! If you like, please:
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and as always, I love hearing what you think so, feel free to:
Very well done! I felt like I was falling with Misty-great job!
Well, this is interesting and I can't stop myself from putting on my speculation hat... I don't believe for a moment that General what's his name would risk losing 'Elle'. And there was one true statement from Lt. Cathy as she sets up this scenario; the General wants to see how she performs in the field. And I believe Cathy is truly giddy at getting to setup this exercise. Because, if this isn't an elaborate charade specific to getting Elle to demonstrate her full capacity, 'I'm a monkey's uncle' to use an old expression lost to your generation! That she is tandem with Cathy and then abruptly separate and in a uncontrolled freefall. And that she is surrounded by a large contingent of likely special forces to keep track of her! She is in unknown territory, off balance and influenced by a sudo loyalty to Cathy. Hmmm, will she figure out the deception before the experiment can yield the details that Cathy is looking for? As Elle is thinking, it will be quite the boost for Cathy's reputation if she pulls it off, but not for the reason Elle thinks. Anyway, that's my theory, sink or swim...fully expecting the zipper of course! 😁