A trail of dust follows close behind a large green truck as it dashes down a dirt road. The camouflage tarp covering its cargo flows in the wind as the truck hits bumps. Every rock and pothole the vehicle runs over causes its tires to lift from the ground and the occupants of the vehicle to lift from their seats. For a brief moment the two girls inside of the truck are lifted into the air only to be held down by their seatbelts. The two are then suddenly shot down back into their seats. The seats were already uncomfortable for the passenger of the truck, and now having slammed her butt into it was not feeling any better. The girl sitting in the passenger seat was rubbing her thigh as she tried to ease the pain.

"Shirley, do you think we could slow down?" The brown haired girl shouted over the roar of the engine as they hit another bump. Again the girl was lifted from her seat and quickly thrown back down.

"Come on Yoshika, we need to get these supplies back to the base. And I love going fast down these roads, you can really push the trucks speed" She shouted back as her orange hair whips around thanks to the wind flowing through the open window. After saying this she grips the steering wheel with her left hand and grabs the shifter with her left. Pressing down on the clutch she shifts the truck into a higher gear and it begins to go even faster. Yoshika grips her seat belt and squeezes it as hard as she can.

"Why do I always agree to come with you" Yoshika shouts and closes her eyes. Before she knows it she hears the engine become quieter. Yoshika slowly peeks to see the truck had begun to slow down as it goes around curves. She looks over at Shirley to see that her hair was very messed up and she was casually driving with a smile on her face. Yoshika breathed a sigh of relief as she sunk into her seat.

"Thanks for slowing down" Yoshika said as they pulled around bends.

"I only slowed down because these turns can't be made by this thing at such high speeds unless you want to flip it. I think Minna would get mad if I did that again." Shirley laughed as they drove over a hill and saw the base in the horizon. The large building was like a castle on the water, its runway extended from its side bringing a modern touch to its classic look.

"You sure know a lot about cars, I have been learning a lot about my striker unit but haven't learned a thing about car engines. You can take a car apart and put it back together, I don't think I can change a tire" Yoshika laughed as they approached the base.

"Don't worry about that, you are a good pilot. I'll teach you about cars someday. It'll be fun" Shirley said as they drove through the gateway and towards the hanger. She drove the car into the hanger and came to a stop deep inside of it. The two opened the doors and stepped out of the car, slamming them behind them. Francesca came running to see her friend followed slowly behind by Captain Barkhorn.

"Shirley! You're back!" Francesca shouted as she jumped into her friend's arms.

"Hey, sorry we had to leave you behind. We couldn't find you this morning" Shirley told the girl who didn't want to admit she had spent the morning hiding in a tree to avoid running laps. Barkhorn quickly corrected that.

"She thought she was cleaver enough to skip out on this morning's training, but she would have to wake up a lot earlier to fool me" Barkhorn said proudly.

"She made me run extra laps" Francesca cried.

"Well if you followed the rules you wouldn't have had to do that" Barkhorn scolded back.

"Alright, alright you two." Shirley said as she walks to the back of the truck and opens the tail gate. Yoshika hands her the paperwork from the delivery and she looks over the boxes.

"Has Commander Minna returned yet? We need to give her this paper work." Yoshika asked.

"She should be arriving soon." Barkhorn said.

"Why did she have to leave so suddenly?" Francesca asked.

"She didn't say. I don't think she even knew what command was calling her down for." Barkhorn replied as she heard a slight hum in the distance. She walked over to the entrance of the hanger and saw a dark object approaching from the horizon.

"That's her now" Yoshika said as the others walked over to where Barkhorn was waiting.

Aboard the plane

Malcolm fixed his gaze out the window of the aircraft as they approached the base. He was beginning to feel nervous as the plane began to descend towards the runway. It dropped its landing gears and its tires touched down on the long tar mat. Minna stood up when the aircraft came to a halt and walked over to Malcolm. His gaze was broken and he looked up at the girl.

"Stand up" she said and Malcolm quickly followed orders.

"This will have to be a quick crash lesson. You will need to be presentable when you meet the others." She said as she straightened his tie.

"Presentable?" Malcolm asked

"Captain Yeager needs to see you as someone who is worth her time. When you see her you will address her as Captain. You will refer to the others by their rank unless otherwise instructed" Minna said to him sternly.

"And I refer to you as?" Malcolm asked.

"Commander" She said not breaking her tone.

"Alright, I think I get it" Malcolm responded. Minna walked over to the door of the plane and turned its handle.

"Just try to stand up straight and don't get distracted by Captain Yeager. I can understand you are a fan of hers but you are here to learn from her, not to get an autograph." She said opening the door, allowing the light to pour into the airplane. The two step down the ladder onto the runway. Malcolm follows Minna towards the hanger but stops behind her as they approach the girls waiting in the doorway.

"She's back, but who is that guy with her?" Yoshika asked as she saw the boy stop far behind Minna. Barkhorn approached the commander and shook her hand.

"Good to see you are back safe commander. I suspect your meeting went well, we did not expect you to make a side stop in Liberion." Barkhorn said as Minna smiled to her friend.

"Yes, it was a little out of the way. I will explain everything in time. Ah Shirley, just who I wanted to see." Minna said looking past Barkhorn and waving over the Liberion officer.

"What do you need commander?" Shirley asked.

"This may be a little sudden but I would like to introduce Sergeant Campbell of the RAF." She said turning around to see Malcolm was far behind her. She ran over and pulled the stiff boy over quickly, he dragged his feet along the ground trying to prevent his motion. She puts him front and center between her and Shirley. Malcolm is finally face to face with the person he had been trying to beat for so long and couldn't say a word.

"uh… hi I'm-" Malcolm stuttered out finally before Minna elbowed him in the side. He looks at her to see she is shooting him an angry look and it reminds him of what she just told him. Malcolm salutes the Captain and stands at attention.

"Sergeant Campbell of the RAF. Ma'am" Malcolm shouted as Shirley laughed and patted his head.

"At ease kid, at ease." Shirley said, Malcolm was confused by how unlike a captain the captain was acting but he did put his arm down. Minna just shook her head and rubbed her temple in annoyance. She only had a few hours to teach him the basics of being a soldier and he was already messing things up, Shirley wasn't helping either.

"So what is this about?" Shirley asked.

"He is your student now." Minna said.

"woah! What?" Shirley shouted.

"Command has ordered this fighter wing to train an elite pilot. Create a neuroi killer out of a regular civilian. I believe you will be the best for showing him the ropes seeing as you have a background in not only piloting striker units but also modern aircrafts." Minna explained.

"Wait! Sure I may be able to teach him to fly but there is no way I can teach him to fight the neuroi. That's a whole different thing!" She said pulling Minna aside so Malcolm couldn't hear what they were discussing.

"Come on Minna, This kid is going to get killed. How can command pull him into this? I don't want this on my conscience" Shirley said.

"Captain Yeager, This is not your choice. And command did not pull him into this. I chose him for this mission." Minna shot back.

"Why him?" Shirley said looking over her shoulder at the boy who was now talking with the others.

"He's a dare devil like you. He races cars like you. You'll get along fine, it won't even be like you are his teacher." Minna said as Shirley crossed her arms.

"So he's a racer, is it a name I would know?" Shirley asked.

"Does the face ring a bell?" Minna asked.

"No, never seen him before, but he's young so he could have come up when I was over here." Shirley responded.

"His name is Malcolm." Minna said.

"Malcolm Campbell?" Shirley said as she took a moment to think to herself. "Never heard of him. *Sigh*, I guess there is no arguing this to you, I accept the mission" She said as they begin to walk back over to the group.

"Alright Malcolm, from now on I'm taking you under my wing." She said extending her hand to the boy. Malcolm reaches out and shakes it.

"Thank you Captain" Malcolm said as she waves for him to follow her into the hanger.

"You can lose the formalities Campbell. I'm not as up tight as the commander." She said.

"Alright. Sounds like something I can get behind" Malcolm said.

"So have you ever piloted an aircraft before?" Shirley asked him.

"No. I just became part of the air force a few hours ago." He admitted.

"We have a lot to go over. But you do drive well? Correct?" Shirley asked.

"Yes! I am a good driver. I can do that. I'm actually relived you knew that" Malcolm said. He was worried that Shirley did not know who he was.

"Maybe we can have a race some time?" Malcolm asked.

"Sorry, I don't race amateurs, Better not waste the gas on it" Shirley said as they approached the truck.

"Alright. Seeing that we don't have anything for you to fly yet you stay here and unpack this truck. I'll head to the Commanders office and fill out the paperwork to get you a proper fighter. Those crates are a bit heavy, you can ask Barkhorn for some help if you need it. She can take you to my room when you are done. I'll probably be through the paperwork and waiting for you there." She said walking through the doors and leaving him with Captain Barkhorn who had been following close behind.

"But… I'm not an amateur" Malcolm said in a depressed tone but she was already gone.

"Man that was harsh. I don't think she meant it kid. She doesn't like thinking before she speaks" Barkhorn said. Malcolm didn't respond. He was clearly deep in intense thought as he lifted the heavy crates.

"Let me give you some help with that" Barkhorn said.

"I have to refuse that Captain. I'll do this on my own." Malcolm said.

"But why, it will be so much faster if I help." She said.

"Because Commander Minna said I need to be worth Captain Yeager's time. Clearly she doesn't see me as that. I have to prove that I'm no amateur." He said as he put the box down against the wall. Barkhorn just watched as time went by and Malcolm continued to move the boxes. She didn't leave just in case something happened and he hurt himself. When he was finished Barkhorn patted him on the back.

"You are pretty headstrong kid. Let's get you to Yeager's room." Barkhorn said and promptly escorted him down the halls of the base. They came to the door of her room and Barkhorn pushed it open.

"Took you a while. I thought you were helping him, Barkhorn." Shirley said.

"He didn't want any help. I'm going to get some dinner. You two wrap up here and come down." Barkhorn said as she leaves the room.

"I filled out the paper work for a fighter for you. I will teach you how to fly a mustang because I have the most knowledge of that aircraft. How does that sound" She asked him.

"Sounds good. I look forward to it" Malcolm said.

"Malcolm, take a seat. I need to ask you something" She said patting the bed.

"What's up" he asked sitting next to the girl.

"Are you sure you want to go through with this. It can be very dangerous trying to fly with us. We are constantly in combat. You can easily die." Shirley said.

"Don't worry about me. I chose to come here on my own. Minna gave me an offer I couldn't refuse." Malcolm said.

"What was that offer?" She asked.

"It's…" Malcolm was about to say when he remembered her saying she doesn't race amateurs. It echoed over and over in his mind.

"Nothing… never mind" He said looking down.

"Alright. I guess you have the spirit for the job. I'm not going to go easy on you though. Tomorrow we will start your training. Even though you don't have a fighter we can start getting some laps in and I'll teach you about aircraft controls." She said.

"Alright, sounds good" He said as she got up.

"I'll meet you down in the dining room. Your bag is already here in my room. You can sleep here since we don't have any other open rooms. Unpack when you get the chance. And… Welcome to the team." She said but Malcolm just nodded. She closed the door behind her and walked away.

"Yeah… welcome to the team." He mumbled to himself before dragging his duffel bag over to him with his foot. He opened it and began to pull his clothes out.

"Fitting in?" Malcolm heard from the doorway. He looked to see Minna had cracked it open and walked in.

"Yeah right. I'm fitting in like a square peg in a round hole." He said harshly to her. "You said I would get a race, I only followed you because you said Yeager would race me." He said.

"Why wouldn't she?" Minna asked.

"She said she doesn't race amateurs. I'm no amateur. I'm the fastest boy on earth. And I'm going after her record." He said.

"I don't think she meant it like that. She was probably fooling around." Minna said.

"She doesn't even know who I am. I have no record that proceeds me. Every time I'm in the news reporters never bothered to get my name. I was never taken seriously, even the other day that man announcing me had no idea who I was. How do you think that makes me feel?" He asked her.

"Shirley didn't even know who you were… I should have explained it to her." She said feeling bad that he set the boy up for failure with the girl by accident.

"I can go straighten everything out." Minna said.

"Don't bother. It doesn't matter anymore. She is on a whole different level from me… its better she think I'm just some other guy… some amateur." He said sadly. He tossed the shirt he was unpacking onto the bed and walked out leaving Minna behind.

"Come on Malcolm, don't do- what's this." Minna asked herself as she looked down at a scrap book that was on Shirley's desk. She picked it up and opened to the first page. It was filled with news articles from all of Shirley's races. Minna had seen Yoshika and Lynne looking through the book once before but never looked through it herself. There were a large amount of pages with articles about herself but after some time the pages went blank because there weren't any other photos to fill them. Minna didn't think much of the book and skimmed through the empty pages to be sure it was finished. As she did her eyes caught a glimpse of something among the empty pages. There were more articles on a farther page into the book, as if they were hidden there because people normally wouldn't look that far. She opened to it to see a familiar sight. There were clipped newspaper articles about the blue bird in the papers. Stories about how fast the vehicle was able to go and how it was used to break so many records. Sadly as she read over the articles there was the lack of Malcolm's name among the stories. For some reason the reporters showed a lack of interest in who the driver was. Shirley on the other hand was very interested in who he was. There were scribbles in pen circling images of the car. Footnotes about where she might be able to find the driver and who it could potentially be. It was like Shirley was trying to solve a mystery.

"You can't be serious. She has been looking for him this long and he comes right to her looking for a race." Minna says to herself. She sees that this could be her chance to make things right with Malcolm. She rushes back to her office and grabs the paperwork that Shirley filled out. The paperwork was a vehicle request for liberion about a P-51 mustang. She filled out another set of documents and attached it to the letter.

"Now all we have to do is wait. Malcolm will need this if he is going to race" She says to herself as she puts the paper into an envelope.