Occupational Hazards
By: Embers of Inspiration
Kevin Michelson could hardly believe his luck. Out of his class of thirty-five they had chosen him (dare he say it again?) him to go to New York.
Ever since he was seven, Kevin had always wanted to fly helicopters for the police force. At the ages of thirteen, fifteen and sixteen he could remember trying to broaden his horizons (maybe he wanted to be a car mechanic, a professional baseball player, or even a chef) but in the end he always returned to his childhood dream.
And New York! He'd been accepted into the New York police force. A while ago, New York City had taken to accepting only the best of the best rookie pilots. Come to think of it, that had started happening shortly after Spider-Man appeared… Kevin hummed tunelessly as he got ready for the morning.
Spider-Man! Now there was the real reason he was excited to go to New York. Who didn't want to work in the same city as a superhero? Plus the pay was better, but that was beside the point.
He opened his apartment door with a huge smile on his face. As he walked down the street people stared at him. Maybe I should've driven, he thought. No, he concluded just as quickly, I got this apartment so I wouldn't have to drive. The department is only a few blocks away. So he kept walking, but he tried to control his excitement – well aware of how ridiculous he looked.
In all honesty, he hadn't thought he would be chosen to go to New York. He'd been only second in his class, always just a bit behind Mr. What's-His-Name who was a walking, talking, textbook example of how to handle a copter. He had been a bit more creative, more adaptable as the instructor had told him.
He hesitated a minute before the steps of the station, watching people go by. These were the ordinary citizens of his new city. These were the people he was going to help protect. He was proud to be –
"Oomph!" he stumbled forward as someone bumped into him.
"Hey man, watch where you're standing," came an agitated voice.
Kevin blinked in surprise. "Sorr–" but his unintentional offender was gone. He sighed, and then shrugged. Maybe he should just go inside now before he managed to get himself plowed over.
The lady at the front desk gave him a level stare as he approached her. "Well?" she asked after a moment of silence.
Kevin found himself blinking again. "What? Oh, I'm the newest academy recruit. I was hoping you could point me in the direction I'm supposed to go?" The cross look he received was enough to make him back up some.
The woman's gaze held him until he was fidgeting and uncomfortable. "Um, that's okay actually," he finally blurted out. "I'll just go find it by myself." He turned around feeling extremely foolish and walked away quickly, but not so quickly as to appear rude (it was entirely possible that he would be seeing her every morning after all). So he was surprised when she finally said: "Go left ath the end of the hallway. It'll be the third door to your right."
Kevin paused and turned briefly to give her a small smile. He was full of them today anyway, maybe that was all the lady needed. Everyone could use a smile once in a while, right? "Thanks."
She nodded. "The name's Sylvia newbie, use it. And for God's sake don't forget it."
While Kevin didn't appreciate being called a newbie, he could appreciate that tat was probably the best he was going to get out of her. "Thanks Sylvia." He paused again. "I'm Kevin."
Sylvia nodded absently; already busy sorting through paperwork at her desk.
Today is turning out well, Kevin thought wryly. Perhaps I should just turn around now and go back to bed. It feels like one of those days.
However Kevin was never one to run and hide from a daunting prospect of any sort, so he squared his shoulders, adjusted his hat and reached for his revolver…
He shook his head to dispel the illusion. He really shouldn't have watched that Western last night. He was too hooked on those things. But the tumbleweeds would be a nice effect right about now, he reflected.
He found the door he was looking for and pushed it open, hoping fervently that he would not make a fool of himself on his first day. To his relief, a group of friendly people greeted his eyes. Five men and two women were milling about, busy doing nothing.
His entrance immediately drew everyone's attention. "Hello everyone," he said, trying to sound cheerful.
"You our new pilot?" one guy asked.
"Yes."
"Oh good," said a girl sitting at the table. "I swear they've been overworking our shift."
The other girl smiled. "My name's Channel, what's yours?"
"Kevin."
"Well Kevin," the first guy commented, "my name's Ryan and you get to be my partner for today."
"Partner?" Kevin wondered. Why would they need partners?
The girl who wasn't Channel giggled. "We'd hate to throw you out into the city unprepared. We've got a few more obstacles to deal with than your usual large-name city. Name's Alyssa."
Ryan nodded. "She's right. Kevin, do you know why you were chosen to come here?"
"No," he admitted. He'd honestly never thought about it before.
Ryan smiled sympathetically at his puzzled expression. "It's because your superiors at the academy all got together and agreed that out of your entire class, you responded best to different environments."
"What?"
One guy rolled his eyes. "Why don't you just show him Ry? It's enough that you're confusing the poor kid with your bad riddles and crap."
Ryan looked affronted. "Okay one: that was not a riddle; and two: my riddles aren't crap."
"Well Ryan," Alyssa said earnestly, "some of them really aren't that good."
"Not you too!" Ryan exclaimed dramatically. "But Tom is right, we mustn't place our new recruit in suspense. Shall we get ready?"
"Way ahead of you chief," Tom winked and hopped off the table he was perched on.
Ryan turned to Kevin. "Just follow me."
Kevin nodded, relieved that something finally seemed to be going right for him.
Up in the air Ryan began pointing out remnants of large spider webs on skyscraper. "Because of the way Spider-Man gets around, he usually leaves traces of webs on the buildings."
"The way he gets around?"
"Have you ever seen him on TV?"
"No, I've only heard about him on the radio."
Ryan grinned. "You're in for a surprise then; but there' one more thing I need to show you." He guided the helicopter around a few corners where they came face-to-face with a gigantic web. IT was five stories high and stretched across the street between two of the taller skyscrapers.
Kevin's jaw dropped. "What's that for?"
"Sometimes Spider-Man has airborne enemies. A few days ago he caught one of them in this web. As great as that is, it also makes an excellent copter trap. So it's best to avoid them."
"Is it really that strong?"
Ryan was obviously enjoying himself. "Sure is."
The radio chose that moment to turn on. "Police are requesting air support in a high-speed chase on N Street and 14th."
"That's our call," Ryan announced cheerfully.
for the next two hours, Kevin watched eagerly while Ryan responded to call after call.
"You won't usually be this busy," Ryan told him. "But a majority of calls are being redirected to us for the time being."
"Why?"
"They're waiting for a chase that involves Spider-Man."
"I don't get it."
"Just wait, you'll see." Then the radio turned on again and they both became silent.
The next radio call they received said, "… please take note that Spider-Man is on the scene."
Kevin leaned forward with interest. This was, apparently, what everyone was so eager to show him, so he wasn't going to miss it. He gasped suddenly as a thick white rope shot by them, narrowly missing the blades. Five seconds later another rope appeared, but this time not as close as before. "What is that?"
Ryan shrugged. "Spider webs."
"What?" he seemed to be saying that a lot today. Then he noticed something attached to the end of the web, swinging? "That's Spider-Man?"
"Sure is," Ryan grinned. "He never actually hits the helicopter, but it's nerve-wracking the first few times you experience it."
Kevin nodded as he watched the superhero progress down the street.
At the end of the day everyone met up in a lounge room. Once they were settled in with a drink and snack they all converged on Kevin.
"Well?" Alyssa demanded.
"How'd it go?" Tom asked.
Ryan laughed and answered for him. "You should've seen the look on his face. It was priceless."
"What did you think Kevin?" Channel said.
Kevin grinned sheepishly. "It's definitely not something they teach you at the academy."
Everyone laughed.
Five Years Later
Kevin loved his job, he loved working with the people he did; and he especially loved his mornings. Everyone was so relaxed.
Today a different kind of energy ran through their group. They were getting a new member. I wonder if this is what it was like when I first came here, Kevin thought. He turned to Channel to say something but the door opened.
A girl stood on the threshold, looking nervous. No doubt she'd met Sylvia on the way in. "Um, h-hello, my name's Lacie. I'm the new academy recruit."
Kevin smiled kindly at her. "Lacie is it? My name's Kevin and I'm your partner for today."