Chapter 7
Merlin quirked an eyebrow and appraised the simulator. As much technology as he was used to, he was a little shocked that this was a virtual reality simulation, complete with headset. Not only that but there was also a very large projection screen that Merlin assumed showed the onlookers what the person in the simulator was seeing and doing. The controls themselves were numerous, although nothing he couldn't handle. Overall, incredibly impressive.
He was jumped out of his thoughts by a loud, and purposeful, clearing of the throat.
Merlin knew that sound anywhere, and his chest tightened merely in response to it. He turned around, knowing that his father was the source of the obnoxious noise.
"Any day now, Captain," the man said.
Merlin frowned, "Tech manual, sir?" He didn't even bother to turn his glaze to the Colonel.
This question evoked a reaction Merlin never would have thought it would. Stares. Everybody was staring at him. General Hammond included.
He thought to himself, 'Surely asking to see a tech manual isn't so strange.'
The Colonel took a few steps forward, putting his hand up to his chin increduously, "Tech manual?"
Merlin frowned more deeply, just a little confused, "Surely asking to see the tech manual is SOP for any pilot, sir. Why would I attempt a simulation, when I have no understanding whatsoever how it works. Especially seeing as this particular craft, as I understand it, isn't just some normal jet."
Although the Colonel did not let it show on his face, he was more than a bit surprised that Charlie asked to see the manual. Six pilots before him had not asked to see it and seven WSOs for that matter. He glanced over at General Hammond, who seemed interested in seeing what the pentagon had sent them this time. Just that one glance had told the Colonel that General Hammond had noted the irony in Merlin's request.
Merlin briefly looked over the manual, noting what the controls were for, the dimensions of the aircraft, and the maneuvering capabilities.
Merlin's eyebrow went up again, with a sense of enjoyment, "Compensates for the force of gravity, but does not compensate when pulling negative g's. Hmm," he thought.
Once he was hooked up to the simulation, his adrenaline was cooking. Immediately, he was up in the air cutting some moves to get used to the controls. A few roll outs and he was more than ready to go. He gave the thumbs up to start in well under the five minutes he was allowed to adjust.
His body could feel the turns and drops he was making even though he wasn't really in the air, which spoke to how advanced the simulation was. In the first few moments of the simulation, before things started to demand his full concentration, he smirked and decided that he could not wait for them to make the real thing and let him loose with it.
In was very strange to have an automated WSO in his backseat and not a real person that he could talk to, but he still managed to fool himself into making everything feel real. As he went through the program it went from him and computerized compatriots fighting down five target aircraft within the atmosphere, then out of the atmosphere, and then him getting chased by two through the empty void of space.
As he made slight noises of victory or frustration, completely lost within the simulator, the rest of the room was watching the spectator screen in rapt attention.
Colonel O'Neil found himself touching his chin with his eyebrows raised, not realizing when he had become so focused on the screen. Charlie was doing remarkably better than any of the other pilots, which was perhaps why he was chosen.
One of the other pilots pulled off his hat and walked up closer to the screen to get a better look, his mouth slightly agape. "Fuck, he's good!" He muttered.
Colonel O'Neil shot him a sharp glare.
General Hammond, who was standing next to O'Neil, said, "He's scoring rather well, Colonel."
"Yes, sir," the Colonel answered, althought he response was rather lackluster.
The General stared at Jack for a few moments, and Jack stared off into space, pretending to look at the screen.
When Jack pulled himself back to look at the screen, he felt a light growl go through him. Charlie was far into the simulation, much farther than any of the others had gotten. In fact, Charlie was at least a level from where the others had gone on their first runs. The room had very suddenly gotten very quiet.
Within minutes a light came up across Merlin's field of vision and on the spectator screen. The big green letters spelling out "PASS".
Merlin was just taking off the VR helmet when a young lieutenant took the piece of equipment from him.
"You passed on your first run, Captain," he said, surprise lacing his voice.
"Sir, you did better than Colonel O'Neil did on his first run!" said another.
Merlin looked around the room as he took the VR sensors off his body. All the other pilots were nodding at him. He smirked slightly.
"Well done, son. Apparently the President made a very good choice, besides the other road bumps."
"Thank you, sir."
Colonel O'Neil raised an eyebrow at him, sarcastically, "Tech manual."
It was posed in a questioning tone, but it was much more of a statement than a question.
Merlin frowned slightly before answering with perhaps more attitude than he normally would have, "The tech manual wasn't hooked up to the simulation, sir."
The comment earned quite a few looks from the others.
They stared at each other before General Hammond saw fit to put it to an end, "Well, gentlemen, that's all for now. Captain O'Neil will be taking it from here. Colonel," he said, inclining his head to the door.
Once they walked out, Merlin leaned against the wall and appraised the group standing before him. They were still staring at him with equal interest.
One of them walked up and reached out his hand, "Look forward to working with you, sir."
Merlin shook it thinking, 'To bad I don't feel the same way about my CO.'
Daniel drove him from the base to his grandfather's house, where most of his belonging were. As they pulled in the long drive, Merlin saw his big, yellow, Nissan Xterra sitting in the open garage perfectly kept and clean. Pops only drove it every once and awhile so that it didn't sit while Merlin was overseas.
"Thanks, Daniel, we still on for dinner later, right?"
"Of course, although you may want to give me a call to remind me... I sometimes get a little engrossed in what I am doing and forget that I need to eat."
"Will do."
He watched with a quirky smile as Daniel pulled out. At least there was something enjoyable about being back in good ole Colorado Springs. There were probably a few things now that he really thought about it, and he was getting to one of those now.
Not wanting to give Pops a heart attack by simply walking in the house and going looking for him, Charlie knocked on the door. He waited a few moments, but when no answer came, he opened the door with his key.
"Pops," he called.
There was some rustling in the living room and a baritone voice called back, "Charlie!"
The tall man appeared at the end of the hallway, his eyes pulled open in surprise. He grabbed Charlie by the arms and looked at him.
"You look good! You aren't injured?"
"Err, thanks, and no I'm not injured," he responded, grinning softly while his eyes conveyed his confusion over the odd question.
"They didn't send you home because of an injury then."
Suddenly it click, "Oh no, no, not at all. I was reassigned."
"Reassigned here? Not..." Pops said, hoping that Charlie had been reassigned to the other local base.
"Yup, 'fraid so, but lets not talk about that."
Pops looked at him and like a traditional Irishman said, "And why not? The two of you have to work things out. I've told you before. It's as much your fault as it is his, the way you two get on. You aren't a child anymore, Charlie, you're as much of a man as any man can claim to be."
Charlie rolled his eyes, "Come on Pops, not now," he said, his voice almost sounding whiney.
"I've been telling you for a long time now, and it's about time you make an effort. Perhaps you'll have to be the adult and suck it up, but I'm sure that you've sucked up much worse things than this in the past years. Your mother would not have wanted it to end this way, Charlie."
"Pops..."
"Don't you Pops me. She was my daughter as much as she was your mother and Jack's husband. I don't like to think about it either, but the only thing that is going to give any of us peace about it is if we all move on, and to do that you and Jack need to mend things."
"He still blames me!" Charlie yelled.
Pops raised an eyebrow and put a hand on his shoulder, "He doesn't blame you, Charlie, not as much as he blames himself."
Merlin quirked an eyebrow and appraised the simulator. As much technology as he was used to, he was a little shocked that this was a virtual reality simulation, complete with headset. Not only that but there was also a very large projection screen that Merlin assumed showed the onlookers what the person in the simulator was seeing and doing. The controls themselves were numerous, although nothing he couldn't handle. Overall, incredibly impressive.
He was jumped out of his thoughts by a loud, and purposeful, clearing of the throat.
Merlin knew that sound anywhere, and his chest tightened merely in response to it. He turned around, knowing that his father was the source of the obnoxious noise.
"Any day now, Captain," the man said.
Merlin frowned, "Tech manual, sir?" He didn't even bother to turn his glaze to the Colonel.
This question evoked a reaction Merlin never would have thought it would. Stares. Everybody was staring at him. General Hammond included.
He thought to himself, 'Surely asking to see a tech manual isn't so strange.'
The Colonel took a few steps forward, putting his hand up to his chin increduously, "Tech manual?"
Merlin frowned more deeply, just a little confused, "Surely asking to see the tech manual is SOP for any pilot, sir. Why would I attempt a simulation, when I have no understanding whatsoever how it works. Especially seeing as this particular craft, as I understand it, isn't just some normal jet."
Although the Colonel did not let it show on his face, he was more than a bit surprised that Charlie asked to see the manual. Six pilots before him had not asked to see it and seven WSOs for that matter. He glanced over at General Hammond, who seemed interested in seeing what the pentagon had sent them this time. Just that one glance had told the Colonel that General Hammond had noted the irony in Merlin's request.
Merlin briefly looked over the manual, noting what the controls were for, the dimensions of the aircraft, and the maneuvering capabilities.
Merlin's eyebrow went up again, with a sense of enjoyment, "Compensates for the force of gravity, but does not compensate when pulling negative g's. Hmm," he thought.
Once he was hooked up to the simulation, his adrenaline was cooking. Immediately, he was up in the air cutting some moves to get used to the controls. A few roll outs and he was more than ready to go. He gave the thumbs up to start in well under the five minutes he was allowed to adjust.
His body could feel the turns and drops he was making even though he wasn't really in the air, which spoke to how advanced the simulation was. In the first few moments of the simulation, before things started to demand his full concentration, he smirked and decided that he could not wait for them to make the real thing and let him loose with it.
In was very strange to have an automated WSO in his backseat and not a real person that he could talk to, but he still managed to fool himself into making everything feel real. As he went through the program it went from him and computerized compatriots fighting down five target aircraft within the atmosphere, then out of the atmosphere, and then him getting chased by two through the empty void of space.
As he made slight noises of victory or frustration, completely lost within the simulator, the rest of the room was watching the spectator screen in rapt attention.
Colonel O'Neil found himself touching his chin with his eyebrows raised, not realizing when he had become so focused on the screen. Charlie was doing remarkably better than any of the other pilots, which was perhaps why he was chosen.
One of the other pilots pulled off his hat and walked up closer to the screen to get a better look, his mouth slightly agape. "Fuck, he's good!" He muttered.
Colonel O'Neil shot him a sharp glare.
General Hammond, who was standing next to O'Neil, said, "He's scoring rather well, Colonel."
"Yes, sir," the Colonel answered, althought he response was rather lackluster.
The General stared at Jack for a few moments, and Jack stared off into space, pretending to look at the screen.
When Jack pulled himself back to look at the screen, he felt a light growl go through him. Charlie was far into the simulation, much farther than any of the others had gotten. In fact, Charlie was at least a level from where the others had gone on their first runs. The room had very suddenly gotten very quiet.
Within minutes a light came up across Merlin's field of vision and on the spectator screen. The big green letters spelling out "PASS".
Merlin was just taking off the VR helmet when a young lieutenant took the piece of equipment from him.
"You passed on your first run, Captain," he said, surprise lacing his voice.
"Sir, you did better than Colonel O'Neil did on his first run!" said another.
Merlin looked around the room as he took the VR sensors off his body. All the other pilots were nodding at him. He smirked slightly.
"Well done, son. Apparently the President made a very good choice, besides the other road bumps."
"Thank you, sir."
Colonel O'Neil raised an eyebrow at him, sarcastically, "Tech manual."
It was posed in a questioning tone, but it was much more of a statement than a question.
Merlin frowned slightly before answering with perhaps more attitude than he normally would have, "The tech manual wasn't hooked up to the simulation, sir."
The comment earned quite a few looks from the others.
They stared at each other before General Hammond saw fit to put it to an end, "Well, gentlemen, that's all for now. Captain O'Neil will be taking it from here. Colonel," he said, inclining his head to the door.
Once they walked out, Merlin leaned against the wall and appraised the group standing before him. They were still staring at him with equal interest.
One of them walked up and reached out his hand, "Look forward to working with you, sir."
Merlin shook it thinking, 'To bad I don't feel the same way about my CO.'
Daniel drove him from the base to his grandfather's house, where most of his belonging were. As they pulled in the long drive, Merlin saw his big, yellow, Nissan Xterra sitting in the open garage perfectly kept and clean. Pops only drove it every once and awhile so that it didn't sit while Merlin was overseas.
"Thanks, Daniel, we still on for dinner later, right?"
"Of course, although you may want to give me a call to remind me... I sometimes get a little engrossed in what I am doing and forget that I need to eat."
"Will do."
He watched with a quirky smile as Daniel pulled out. At least there was something enjoyable about being back in good ole Colorado Springs. There were probably a few things now that he really thought about it, and he was getting to one of those now.
Not wanting to give Pops a heart attack by simply walking in the house and going looking for him, Charlie knocked on the door. He waited a few moments, but when no answer came, he opened the door with his key.
"Pops," he called.
There was some rustling in the living room and a baritone voice called back, "Charlie!"
The tall man appeared at the end of the hallway, his eyes pulled open in surprise. He grabbed Charlie by the arms and looked at him.
"You look good! You aren't injured?"
"Err, thanks, and no I'm not injured," he responded, grinning softly while his eyes conveyed his confusion over the odd question.
"They didn't send you home because of an injury then."
Suddenly it click, "Oh no, no, not at all. I was reassigned."
"Reassigned here? Not..." Pops said, hoping that Charlie had been reassigned to the other local base.
"Yup, 'fraid so, but lets not talk about that."
Pops looked at him and like a traditional Irishman said, "And why not? The two of you have to work things out. I've told you before. It's as much your fault as it is his, the way you two get on. You aren't a child anymore, Charlie, you're as much of a man as any man can claim to be."
Charlie rolled his eyes, "Come on Pops, not now," he said, his voice almost sounding whiney.
"I've been telling you for a long time now, and it's about time you make an effort. Perhaps you'll have to be the adult and suck it up, but I'm sure that you've sucked up much worse things than this in the past years. Your mother would not have wanted it to end this way, Charlie."
"Pops..."
"Don't you Pops me. She was my daughter as much as she was your mother and Jack's husband. I don't like to think about it either, but the only thing that is going to give any of us peace about it is if we all move on, and to do that you and Jack need to mend things."
"He still blames me!" Charlie yelled.
Pops raised an eyebrow and put a hand on his shoulder, "He doesn't blame you, Charlie, not as much as he blames himself."