Flight

"Yahoo!" Sam caroled as he threw the drone onto its side, banking away from the Avenger. He did a full roll and then another, exulting in the sheer freedom of unfettered flight.

"Sam." A calm voice sounded and he went rigid. He resumed the course and slowed to the speed he had been instructed to assume.

"Yes, Firebrand." Sam said politely. "I was checking the responsiveness of rotation in the Z-axis."

"Sure you were." The other pilot said with manifest disbelief. As the only actual rated pilot aboard the Avenger, she had, by necessity, been dragooned into helping Sam prove that he did actually know what he was doing. "Be very glad we live in the world we do, Sam. That stunt would have gotten you grounded at the very least before the aliens came."

"I don't think that I can be glad for that at all." Sam said after a moment of checking the drone's systems. "That was inexcusable, Ma'am. I won't do it again."

"Sam,..." Firebrand had a frown in her voice as another drone moved to match his course and speed. "You did not hurt anyone and this is a shakedown both for the drones and for you. Lily is very good, but no one is perfect. Thing is, if you are going to be flying these things for us, you need to obey orders." Sam did not respond and she continued in a lighter tone. "That said, yes. They are fun. Oh and by the way?" A light traced from her drone to Sam's and hers shot off on a divergent course at high speed. "Tag! You are it!"

"You..." Sam broke off and his drone flashed away, chasing the other.

Not that far away at all in aircraft terms

"I don't think I have ever seen our esteemed transport pilot so happy." Lily commented as she and Central Agent Bradford watched a display on the bridge of the Avenger.

On the screen, the drones were darting here and there, effortlessly pulling of maneuvers that would have made even the best fighter pilot of the time before the aliens came black out. Neither looked quite like a human built aircraft. The twin exhausts did not exhaust anything that any aviation engineer prior to the aliens' arrival would have recognized. The sleek curves were oddly sharp in ways that Lily promised would allow for hypersonic flight. They would not be testing that today. Also, the four weapon bays were empty except for a single targeting laser which Sam and Firebrand were jousting with.

"She was always a fighter pilot at heart." Central agreed. "This is a good idea, Lily. But I dislike the ultra tight connection that Sam slid into so easily."

They both turned to another screen that showed the small room where Firebrand and Sam sat on form sitting seats connected to the computers that allowed them to almost literally become the drones that they were now putting through some serious paces.

"It worries me too, Bradford." Lily said after a moment. "I mean, I know my tech and it will do what we need to it. Dad's initial design wouldn't have worked for this, we would have needed a lot more Elerium and alloys to even begin building the thing and even then, Firebrand is the only pilot we have and we wouldn't have space for a full size Firestorm aboard unless we ditch the Skyranger, which we won't do. This is a good compromise until we can get a land base and secure it."

"Working on that." Central grunted as Sam drone slid around Firebrand's drone in a complex maneuver that left him in perfect firing position. His targeting laser flashed, but Firebrand had somehow altered course and slid to his right, neatly evading the low power beam. Sam slid after her and the fight was still on. "Kid is good, no question. But Tygan is worried about his readings. He seems almost to need the connection."

"An addiction?" Lily asked carefully. Central shrugged and Lily sighed. "The only ones who would know would be Advent and we cannot trust anything they say. But I wouldn't put such past them." She shook her head. "Nothing we can do except keep a close eye on him. Well, him and Reverb."

"Yeah." Central grimaced. "That I did not expect. But the other seems to be playing straight with us."

"She wants to save her kids." Lily replied. "After that? We need to keep a very close eye on her. One thing. The other. This Slither that Sam talks about. Tygan has been making noises about a live Viper to study. Please tell me you said 'No' about bringing it aboard."

"Not a chance in hell, Lily." Central replied with a quirked smile and Lily relaxed. The smile faded. "One reason I think the aliens hit us as hard and fast as they did in the last war is Dr. Vahlen wanted live aliens to study and interrogate." He shook his head. "I can't prove it, but I would be willing to bet those 'prisoners' led them right to us. Won't take the chance again."

"Good." Lily paused and then smiled wide at the display and Central turned to see Sam and Firebrand twisting and turning all over the sky. "Those two are really having fun." She looked at various readouts and shook her head. "Sam's readings are close to Firebrand/s. No anomalies detected."

"We need to check them both." Central blew out a breath and hit a control to activate his mike. "Firebrand, Base One. Looks like a draw to me. Terminate exercise and return to base. Both of you have dates with the doc."

A muffled masculine groan was cut short as Firebrand replied. "Roger that, Base One. Firespark One and Two returning to base at this time." Both drones turned and assumed a close formation as they approached the Avenger. "Firespark Two, the crosswinds are high. Let the systems land you. That is what I usually do when I am flying the Skyranger and the crosswinds get bad."

"Roger that, Firespark One." Sam's voice was clipped and professional now.

Lily and Central shared a glance as Sam's drone followed Firebrand's onto the landing grid that the crew had laid out near the Skyranger's landing area. The drones landed without incident and shut themselves down even as the main lift was bringing them down into the hangar for examination. The mismatched pair of X-Com's high command turned to the screen where Sam and Firebrand were rising out of the chairs that they had been in. Sam was grinning widely and was all but bouncing in excitement. Firebrand, by contrast, was cool and calm, but she too was smiling.

"Firebrand?" Central as after he keyed the com again. Both of the drone pilots on the screen stiffened and turned towards the camera that was watching them. "Status?"

"When do I get one of those, sir?" Firebrand had a wide smile on her face as Sam smothered a laugh beside her. She ruffled his hair and he beamed. "The telepresence systems worked like a charm. I don't think I could multi-task well enough to fly the Skyranger and one of those, but it was very cool."

"Any problems at all?" Central asked. Firebrand looked at Sam, who took a step forward. "Sam?"

"The com systems worked very well." Sam's tone was a far cry from any normal little boy now. It sounded completely professional. "I did sense a bit of feedback with the port drive system. I am not sure if it was me though. I was pushing the drives as hard as I could." Lily looked at Central and then started scanning readouts again. "I am also not sure about the weight distribution with only one bay filled."

"That is for later." Central promised. "For now, no odd feelings?"

"None that I can sense." Sam replied after a moment's thought. "I will report to the doc as directed." He didn't want to, but Firebrand smiled at him and he relaxed.

"Tygan will take care of you, Sam." Firebrand said with a smile as she ruffled his hair again. "Go on." Sam nodded to the camera again and started for the door where Central knew an X-Com security trooper was waiting to escort the boy to Tygan. "He is a good kid, sir. And good pilot."

"That is your assessment?" Central asked. Firebrand nodded.

"I have real world experience he lacks." The transport pilot made a face. "Without that? He would have had me at least four times. When he gets bit of experience under his belt, there will be no stopping him. I hope he is on our side, sir."

"Me too, Firebrand." Central said gravely. "Me too. Better go get the Skyranger ready. Shogun and her team are prepping for departure."

"If it is not already humming, sir, I will have my crew chief do a thousand pushups." Firebrand smirked at the screen and Central nodded. A military pilot was often only as good as the ground team supporting him or her. "Full squad?"

"Shogun wanted to go alone or just with Syndrome." Central admitted. "I nixed that idea. Yeah, full squad of six." He glanced at Lily. "Including Duke."

"Thanks for the warning, sir." Firebrand made a face, but it wasn't serious. "Bucket of bolts always throws the weight distribution off." This was to Lily who gave a sniff.

"The teams appreciate you going above and beyond." Lily said from where she was working. Firebrand and Central both groaned at the pun.

"One thing you should know, Firebrand..." Central said quietly. "Reverb is not going with them." The pilot paused as she started for the door. "The other is not confident in her ability to keep him controlled in field conditions."

"Then how are we going to find the kids?" Firebrand asked slowly.

"I understand that is under discussion."

Avenger armory

"No, Hollywood. We are not shooting on sight."

Jane was checking her armaments. It was a familiar ritual and it helped calm her nerves. For this, she didn't bother with the politically correct loadout she had assumed for the peacekeeping mission where Sam had found her. No, this time she was arming up for alien. Or EXALT.

Standard kit of every X-Com soldier was Warden armor. Light enough to look formfitting but strong enough to turn a heavy plasma bolt if it hit at an angle, the armor was now X-Com's default look in the field. Instead of Warden Armor, Jane wore her Wraith suit. It provided unparalleled mobility and for her? Mobility was life. It also allowed her to shift phase with reality for short periods of time and literally walk through walls if needed. A wrist mounted grapple also increased her mobility. The helmets were essentially an aesthetic choice. Every one of X-Com's helmets had a force field built in to protect the very important bits of human anatomy that were covered. Jane preferred the simplicity of a wrap around visor that allowed her to see the Head's Up Display in any lighting condition and did not obscure her vision. Others went for more garish solutions. Hollywood in particular wore a gas mask emblazoned with the X-com logo that was utterly useless against most forms of gas that X-Com might encounter. Most of those worked by skin contact, not inhalation. Jane didn't say anything. Her team could wear whatever they wanted as long as it did the job.

For this mission, Jane wasn't holding back. She had signed out the bolt caster. It was an odd weapon. It looked like a throwback to an ancient human crossbow, but it acted anything but ancient. It was single shot, requiring a reload after each bolt, but it did insane damage. The downside was despite Lily's best efforts, X-Com had not been able to duplicate the tech that went into it. They could improve it a bit, but not duplicate it, so the one that the teams had was the only one. Every time she took it out, she worried that she might lose it. But for a situation where there were a lot of unknowns? The stopping power and stunning power of the caster were priceless. She had never been good with the axes and she left them where they sat on the rack. Her Fusion Blade would serve well enough.

"Tell me we are not actually going to talk to an alien." Hollywood groused for the fourth time as she checked her Plasma Lance. Utter overkill in most situations, the heavy weapon would throw a bolt of plasma as far as the sniper could see. On a dare and with some help from Lily's automation, the sniper had hit a target in orbit. That derelict satellite hadn't had a chance.

"We are not." Syndrome sat as he always did before a mission. Still as a rock, but poised, ready to move at a moment's notice."Shogun is. No one else. We here to cover her back and nothing more."

His plasma Scramgun and Amp would be spotless, Jane knew that without bothering to look. Off duty, the man might find solace in a bottle a bit too much of her taste, but on duty? There was no one she would trust more. His skill mask was bit off putting, but nowhere remotely as bad as some headgear she had seen. One nut had actually worn an Advent helmet. Until his first firefight when he had drawn friendly fire a bit too much. His team had focused on the shape, not the IFF on their HUDs. Advent had been known to spoof their HUDs. He was lucky not to have been killed. When he got out of the hospital, he had ditched the helmet to the team's everlasting gratitude.

"Am I the only one who has a problem with this?" Hollywood demanded as she slung her Lance and started checking the rest of her gear. A plasma pistol that was rarely needed and a hopefully not needed medikit were standard for her. She glared around but the other three on the team remained silent. "Feedback? Beta?"

The medical specialist and tech specialist did not respond, checking their own plasma rifles and Gremlins. They both carried specialized gear as well. Feedback's Gremlin was set up for battlefield medical care that would rival most pre-alien hospitals and her pack was filled with additional medikits. Beta, the tech, was carrying a lot of electronics. Scanning gear, jamming gear, hacking gear, his pack was full of stuff. He wasn't -quite- a nerd as Jane understood the historical word. But he was the closest she had ever encountered. He wasn't comfortable with people, just with tech. With tech however, he was unmatched in Jane's experience. He could make Advent computer networks literally roll over and beg. Both specialists ignored Hollywood's rant with the skill of long practice. She was a bit excitable when not in the field. In it? She was a long range killing machine with about as much emotion. Speaking of machines...

"We all have problems with our orders." Duke's mechanical voice had everyone pausing. "They go against our core values. We see aliens, we kill them." Jane turned to scrutinize the mechanical form that stood nearby. His weapons and equipment would be in perfect order. Lily wouldn't let him out of her bay otherwise. "That is our usual job." The robot said calmly. "But in this case, our usual job is precluded by our need to do our primary job. To defend humanity."

"That is right, Duke." Jane had to smile. Lily was very closemouthed about how her father had managed to make an artificial intelligence. The first attempt hadn't worked out so well and Lily was still dealing with the emotions from discovering her father's final gift to her. But Duke was a solid and dependable force that verged on the irresistible, on and off the battlefield. He was not ruled by emotions, which was both good and bad. He also could not be mind controlled, which had saved a number of teammates' lives. "Our information says that eighty six human children are in danger. Not from aliens, but from a twisted and evil human. Such things have never been our primary focus. We never had time with everything else going on. Now we have time. I for one think it is a good thing. Maybe my passenger softened my edges. Maybe she twisted me, is leading us all into a trap. I don't know. We need to know."

"And getting information is a lot of what we are for." Hollywood slumped a bit and nodded, mask not quite all the way on. "Message received, Colonel."

"Don't start, Colonel." Jane said to a series of snickers as Hollywood grinned at her. They were the same rank, but Jane had taken advanced training and led the team in the field. Hollywood was much better in her own element. A clear field of fire and a full magazine were her only desires. Jane shook her head as she finalized the checks on her Storm Gun. "Team?"

"Syndrome ready." The psi reported. "Locked, loaded and stable." She looked at him and he nodded. "Blood alcohol level is well under limits."

"It better be." Jane snapped repressively, only to smile as the rest of the team minus Duke snickered. "Hollywood?"

"Fully armed and mostly ready." The sniper said with a sigh. "That is mind stuff. I will deal with it." She promised. Jane nodded to her. Hollywood wasn't prone to exaggeration. If she said she could deal with it, she could.

"Medical ready." Feedback's quiet voice was calm and Jane smiled at her. The medic was a solid teammate. She paused as Beta wasn't looking at Jane or listening. "Beta!" She hissed.

"What? Oh. Ready." The male specialist said with a distracted air and focused on his tech again. Jane and Feedback shared an exasperated look before Jane focused on the final member of the team.

"Unit within parameters." Duke reported even as Jane's gaze landed on him. "Ready for mission, Colonel Kelly."

"Okay. Game faces." Jane took a deep breath and activated her HUD. Beta and Feedback did likewise. Hollywood slid her gas mask into place and Syndrome just stood up. Duke simply turned his robotic head to watch her. Jane smiled at her well honed packets of mass destruction and nodded.

"Menace 1-5 ready to board." She reported to Central who was quick to reply.

"You know the mission." Central's tone was calm as always. "Get in, get the kids, get out. Oh, and if you see that EXALT scum? Feel free to use excessive force." Hate sounded in his tone and then was gone.

"Wow." Syndrome muttered sotto voice. "I don't think Central likes EXALT much."

"You will learn why." Jane said with a grunt as she started for the bay door that led to the Skyranger. "Frankly, from what I saw? He is being restrained."

"Well, good thing we have you here to restrain us." Syndrome's words were not really funny, but everyone chuckled anyway. Jane though met his eyes and he nodded, just a little. She relaxed just a little, knowing that if she did turn out to be a threat, he would act.

"Let's go, people!" Jane barked as the ramp for the Skyranger came into sight. "You want to live forever?" She waited for the required response and was not disappointed.

"YES!"