As Flora sat in the exam hall for the written test, she took a breath.

'If you know the answers drunk, you know them perfectly well...' Douglas' words echoed in her mind. She'll be fine. Mike might have the ability to fail her, but that didn't mean he would. He had been more of a father figure than a cousin after her parents died; he felt so guilty...

As the examiner called a start to the test, she shook herself out of reverie.

They were multiple choice and easy, in her opinion. She used Cousin Sherly's method of remembrance to revise, so almost everything was ingrained.

There were a few generalised questions, made to catch out cheaters. She looked for the facts in what she called her 'mind-plane'; modelled on an oversized GERTI. She had them in the flight deck along things that were distinctly Martin. He'd talked about those facts enough to indicate that they were important to him.

As she checked boxes, almost on autopilot (excusing herself for the unintended pun), she thought of the captain. It hadn't been quite the same between them since Japan; it was her fault, she had made it awkward; but she had come to a decision to just work through it because Martin didn't need help to be anxious and awkward. She felt so guilty...

'Caring is not an advantage, Flora...' Shut up, Mike - now is not the time.

The crew were in Uskerty today and she hated to be left behind, but she knew she had to complete her test -

'But do you want to leave MJN?' She ignored the question and finished her exam. She wanted to fly...


After all was said and done, the exam and simulations finished, she picked up her bag to leave.

As soon as she was out in the corridor, The Baseballs' 'Umbrella' began to play out of her phone in a pixelated ringtone - cousin Mike.

She clicked the answer button. "Hello Mike; how are -?"

"Operation Lazarus is go. You and your friends are under threat, cousin mine," Her cousin interrupted. Sherly had been on Lazarus for one and a half years...

"But... Mike -"

"I'm sorry Flora, but you know this is necessary..."

She thought of Martin and the others briefly, but knew what she had to do. "Lazarus is go."