Oh Captain! My Captain!

Death, Douglas thought moodily, is something that you always think about happening to people that weren't your friends… He'd been in the MJN office for the last few hours manning the single phone as he had nothing better to do except sit at home and watch the TV. Carolyn had taken Arthur to the Zoo to see the new Polar Bear exhibit as a reward for not spilling coffee over any passengers for a month.

"Douglas?" the quiet female voice on the other end of the phone spoke once more.

"Hmm…? Oh, er.. Yes! Thank you for letting me know. I'll let Carolyn and Arthur know as soon as possible. If there is anything I can do to help, let me know?" he ended it as a question but knew it would have sounded hollow however he did it.

"Thank you Douglas. I would tell them myself, but I don't know how to handle a depressed Arthur" Theresa said. There was silence for a good half a minute before she put the other end down without saying a word. Douglas did the same before picking it up and dialling Carolyn's mobile number that was to be used for emergencies. If the death of their former Captain and good friend did not count, he really did not know.

"Carolyn? Its Douglas – where are you?... Ah, well I'm going to have to get you back to the office… Why?... Yes, its important but I can't say why because you'll have Arthur to deal with… Yes, very important… Right, see you then…" and he put the phone down and leant back in the threadbare chair and looked at the fly splattered ceiling with the flaking bits of paint and condensation on the windows. Death, Douglas thought moodily, is something that you always think about happening to people that weren't your friends…

#

He had the opportunity to have a few days off to get to grips with the death of the one person he was honoured and proud to have called his Captain. Instead, he put every hour he wasn't flying into fixing up every last problem the way Martin would have done it – aided by, it seemed, half the airfield's staff. Karl, who Douglas had met only a few times, proved a great help in fixing a couple of Gerti's electrical issues.

"Ah, Douglas, there you are!" Carolyn's voice distracted Douglas from his thoughts. "I have a job for you tomorrow"

"Sorry, Carolyn, but I happen to be busy"

"I'm sure it is unimportant. After all, Douglas, what can be more important then a flight?"

"Martin's funeral is tomorrow" he said simply.

"Yes, yes… I heard all about that. Now, about this flight to Germany…"

"Carolyn, I feel as if you may not have heard me correctly. I'm going to Martin's funeral"

"And yet, oh mighty sky god, you have a flight tomorrow"

"I suppose I could do the flight to there and then try and catch a helicopter lift" Douglas mused, glancing at the NOTAMs sent to their portacabin by Karl.

"You will do no such thing. After you get to Germany and unload the cargo, you'll pick up Herc who will fly as the Captain with a cargo of German wines to Scotland"

"No"

"Yes"

"No" Douglas spat out with such fury that Arthur was sent hurrying outside.

"And pray tell why not"

"Because that man will never be my Captain, he is not qualified in a 3-12 and I am going to that funeral" Douglas said before getting to his feet. "If you'll excuse me, Mrs Shipwright, I have an aircraft inspection to perform" and he stormed out the door, slammed it behind him and then walked in a fit of anger to his waiting plane. He could not believe how cruel Carolyn was being… He knew she hated Martin for being always in a bother about something, making her spend money when it was truly needed, not paying him wages…

"Still, one would have thought that five and a bit years working for her company would mean something" the Captain, though he really hated that title now, stomped up the steps and went inside Gerti – making his way to the cockpit to power up for a taxi to the engine test area. "Golf Tango India"

"Go ahead" Karl came over the radio.

"I know this isn't strictly procedure, Karl, but can you find out what the weather is like over Lichtenstein for tomorrow?"

"You flying over there?"

"In a manner of speaking" Douglas started running his mind through what he would need to do.

"I'll see what I can do"

"Roger… Golf Tango India is ready for taxi"

#

"Douglas, are you alright?" Arthur had been worried about his friend after his other one had died.

"Yes, Arthur"

"Only… Only you don't seem it after Skip died – you even yelled at Mum"

"Yes, well she was kind of asking for it"

"To be yelled at?"

"No, Arthur" Douglas sighed and checked the dials on the instrument panels in front of him. He wished, not for the first time, that Carolyn's son was a bit faster on the uptake. "Your mother, though a good business person, is not entirely a good person"

"What do you mean?" asked Arthur.

"Well, Arthur, I had planned to go to Martin's funeral"

"Brilliant… Well, maybe not so brilliant" Arthur looked at the floor of the cockpit. "Couldn't you get to the funeral by plane?"

"A great idea, Arthur, but for two small issues"

"What are they?"

"First, Liechtenstein has no airport and, secondly, Liechtenstein has no airport"

"Oh come on, Douglas, I know I might be slow, but even I know that is the same thing" Arthur laughed.

"Yessssssss…" Douglas checked a map and listened to the radio for a moment. "I thought it was such an important point, I had better make it twice"

"Oh, right" Arthur was silent for a few minutes. "Do you want some coffee?" he asked at last

"No. Now look here, Arthur, I need you to go back out for a few minutes until I call you. I have to do something complicated and need to concentrate" Douglas winced at his tone, but Arthur just passed it off as his way of coping with Martin's death. Once he was alone, he double checked the controls before reaching down for the SatPhone. "Hello, Theresa… Yes, the dragon herself has organised flights for me so I miss Martin's funeral. No, I have to turn around as soon as I offload… Look, I'm not exactly happy about it myself, but can you try to get me what the weather will be over the funeral at the right time?... Lets put it this way, Your Highness, I suspect this will be my last flight – so I should really make it a good one for all time… No, I am not going to fly Gerti into the ground. If you really want to know, why not look up when he is being lowered…? Golf tango India, out. Arthur, prepare for landing"