“I don’t want to be a part of one of your schemes.”
“Oh, don’t be so self-righteous, Jenna. That’s exactly why I can’t stand you. Actually, I don’t know how anyone can!” Andie retorted hotly. For a moment both girls glared at each other. Then Jenna dropped her eyes.
“I really don’t want you to hate me, Andie. I wish we could get along better.”
“Then don’t tell Mom and Dad, Jenna!” Andie pleaded. “This is what I’ve always dreamed of doing! What if Dad was going to make you drop out of the University? Wouldn’t you want to go anyway?”
“I guess so,” admitted Jenna. “But it’s not the same thing. What’s dangerous about architecture?”
“Why does it matter so much?” argued Andie. “This is my life. I think I should be able to make my own decisions about what I want to do.”
Jenna sat silently for a moment thinking about it. Andie hoped she could see it from her point of view. Finally Jenna sighed. “All right, I’ll keep your secret. But you have to promise to tell Mom and Dad yourself. Before they get home.”
“I will, I promise.”
♦
As it was, she didn’t have a chance to keep her promise to Jenna. Somehow her parents found out before she could say anything. Two days later, Andie got a very angry live comm from her father.
“Is it true?” he demanded as soon as she answered. “You are at the Academy in the flight program?” His voice seemed to get louder with each word. Andie winced and held the flipcom away at arm’s length.
“Yes,” she said in a small voice.
“What are you thinking?” he thundered back. “I’ve told you again and again, Andie. No daughter of mine will ever be a pilot! How dare you go behind my back like this!”
“I’m an adult!” Andie argued hotly. “I can make my own decisions. I’m not a child anymore!”
“Then it’s time you acted like it!” her father demanded. “You’ve lied to us and betrayed our trust in you, and you keep making such stupid decisions. Enough of this! Grow up, Andie!”
Andie felt tears stinging her eyes. Her decisions weren’t stupid. Just because she didn’t obey his every command didn’t mean she needed to grow up. Her father was so unfair!
Her father stopped for a moment to catch his breath. “I want you to withdraw from the program and go home,” he directed in a calmer voice. Still, it was his authority voice, the “I’m-used-to-everyone-following-my-orders” tone. It irritated her to no end.
“I’m not going home,” she refused, her voice steely. “I’ve made my decision in this, I’m paying for it myself, and you can’t make me quit.”
“I’ll have you expelled,” her father threatened ominously.
“Fine!” Andie shouted, goaded beyond endurance. “Ruin my life then! But I’m never going home again!”
There was a click and her father disappeared from the screen. For a moment she thought he had disconnected from her, but then her mother appeared.
“Andie, you’re pushing your father to the limit, can’t you see that?” Obviously her mother had been listening to the whole conversation.
“Only because he refuses to listen to me,” countered Andie, her voice trembling. “Why is it that when Jenna dreams of being an architect, you and Dad bend over backward to help her, but when I want to become a pilot, you tell me my dreams are stupid?” Her voice cracked on the last word.
Her mother sat silently for a moment, apparently at a loss for words.
“We never said your dreams were stupid,” her mother finally answered.
“Right,” Andie muttered, wiping her eyes. “I think Dad just said it.” Suddenly the door opened, and Kelly strode into the room, tossing her latest study packet on the bed. “Look, Mom, I’ve got to go,” Andie said heavily.
“OK,” her mother said hesitantly. “I’ll comm you in a few days though. I love you.” Andie flicked her flipcom shut and tossed it on her bed.
Kelly’s eyes went from the flipcom to Andie’s face. “Bad news?” she asked as she pulled her shoes off.
“You could say that,” muttered Andie darkly. “My father’s threatening to have me expelled from the program.”
“What? You’re kidding!” Kelly was shocked. Andie dropped heavily onto her bunk.
“Yeah, well, my parents had in essence forbidden me to become a pilot, and I came to flight school anyway. I’m tired of them treating me like a child.”
Kelly smiled a little, but said sympathetically, “That’s hard. What do they have against you becoming a pilot?”
“They think it’s too dangerous a job,” Andie complained bitterly. “They just can’t stand the thought of something happening to me.” She picked up the study packet Kelly had brought and flipped through it for a moment, then tossed it back down. “It just makes me so angry I can’t think straight!”
“I suppose it’s natural for parents to worry, but yours do seem to be taking it a little far,” mused Kelly. “I wonder why?”
“Oh, I know why,” admitted Andie heavily. “It’s because of my brother. He died in an accident when he was just nine. Ever since then, my parents have been horribly overprotective.” Andie stared at the ceiling, unable to push the memories away.
It had been an unusually hot summer that year, and most of the older kids spent all day at the creek that cut through an undeveloped area on the eastern end of the base. Technically, it was in an area off-limits to civilians, but since it was so far away from any of the important operations, none of the adults seemed to pay much attention to it. Andie had never been specifically forbidden from going there, so she and Casey had gone there almost every day. The banks were lined with trees, and anywhere the water got deep enough, enterprising teenagers had tied ropes to the branches so they could swing into the water. A little farther down the creek, the water grew narrower, heading into a ravine before sharply falling into a deeper pool. At the top of the drop off, a lone tree towered over the rocky outcropping of the waterfall. Some extremely adventurous soul had tied a rope swing to this tree, and the more daring of the teenagers would swing out fifteen feet over the pond and fly off into the water. If you didn’t time it just right, you would land right on the rocks, so many of the kids never tried it. For Andie, however, being just a tad thrill-seeking even at thirteen years old, it was one of her favorite things to do.
She never dreamed that Erik would try it too.
She wasn’t there the day it happened. That particular day she had talked Casey into sneaking off to see if they could find a way in to the landing pad area so she could get a look at some of the ships up close. Once or twice in the past, she had let Erik tag along with her to the creek, and though she couldn’t remember for sure, he must have seen her jump from the waterfall rope. According to his friend DeMarco, they had decided to head for the creek on their own, and Erik had insisted on trying out the waterfall rope, but he had panicked and let go of the rope too soon. As Andie later learned, he had hit his head hard enough to fracture his skull and then fallen into the pond.
Andie’s life had never been the same afterward. Jenna reacted to Erik’s death with ferocious anger and blamed it all on Andie. She was convinced that if Andie had never taken him to the creek and shown him the swing, the accident never would have happened. Andie had felt her share of guilt strongly enough, but she resented Jenna’s hurtful words and accusations. The normal rivalry between the two sisters had escalated into all-out war after this.
As for Andie’s parents, they were so deeply shaken by the loss of Erik that they clung ever tighter to their daughters. But the stricter they got and the more they tried to control Andie’s life, the more she had rebelled against them, chafing at all the rules they made to keep her out of harm’s way. They were so determined to keep her alive that they weren’t letting her live.
“I’m sorry about your brother,” Kelly spoke, interru
pting Andie’s brooding memories. “I didn’t know.”
“Yeah, well, it was four years ago,” Andie said morosely. “You’d think our lives could get back to normal by now, but I guess it doesn’t work that way. And now my father is going to end my dreams over it.”
Kelly thought for a moment. “Well, even if the worst happens and you get expelled, I wouldn’t give up on the dream just yet. Maybe your parents will relent in time. Or you could even try going to one of the other flight schools that isn’t sponsored by the Armada,” she suggested.
“I guess if I have to I will. You’re right, I don’t need to give up so easily,” said Andie. “I’ll still find a way to do this somehow.”
♦
As it happened, she didn’t have to do anything. On the following day she received a text comm from her mother that told her after some discussion her parents had agreed that she could finish the pilot program. Andie sighed in relief and got straight back to work. The miracle had happened; her parents knew she was becoming a pilot and they weren’t going to fight her on it. Yet. The battle was probably not over though, since if she became a skiff pilot it was bound to start all over again. But she would deal with that when it came.
There was little time to focus on anything else. The academic portion of her training had wrapped up, and she was now starting what they called the flightline. At this point in time, she was still spending a lot of time in the simulator, but soon it was time for her first flight.
In a way, it was kind of a disappointment. Her first time was actually in an old cargo transport. It was mostly a matter of programming the computer correctly and making sure you communicated correctly with flight traffic control. However, soon she moved into getting experience with all kinds of different ships, and that was much more interesting. Even a shuttle wasn’t nearly as boring to pilot as she had first believed. However, she was disappointed to learn that she wouldn’t even get to practice flying a skiff at this stage in the training. That was reserved for students who were accepted into the Advanced Pilot Training program, those lucky ones who were going on to be Armada pilots. Still, it was something to look forward to!
Before she knew it the term was ending and she was sitting for the last time in the flight study room. All around her were her fellow classmates, people she had come to know so well. It was their final written exam, and after, they would take their in-flight examinations. In a few short hours it would all be over, and if it all went well she would be granted that pilot’s license she had coveted for years.
The written exam was not easy, but when Andie answered the last question on her terminal screen she was sure she had done reasonably well. At least it was good enough to pass. And a few hours later when she finished her in-flight exam and knew that she had managed a nearly flawless flight, she knew she had clinched that license. Casey was going to have to pay up on that bet.
But that wasn’t all that mattered.
She was also applying to continue into the Advanced Pilot Training, and more things than just the basic pilot’s exam would be included. Her daily maneuver scores, her weekly academic test marks, and her flight instructor’s report would all be compiled and she would be ranked against everyone else who was applying for the Armada. Out of the 120 students in her flight program, only 30 would be able to go on as Armada cadet pilots. Even more intimidating, whether or not she got to train as a skiff pilot would all depend on that ranking.
In the evening, many of her classmates hung around together in the nearby rec lounge, nervously chatting and trying to pass the time until the rankings were posted. Kelly gave up early and headed back to their room. Andie joined in a couple of the conversations with some of the others but soon found that it was making her more and more edgy. Finally, she retreated to a quiet corner and pulled out her flipcom. Within a few minutes she had Casey live.
“Hey,” he greeted with a smile. “Look who’s finally returning my comms!”
“I’ve texted you back,” Andie defended herself. “I just haven’t had much time to get you live. Besides, with the time difference you’re never around when I do have the time.”
“Excuses, excuses,” Casey teased lightly. “I said you could comm me in the middle of the night but you never took me up on it.” The screen flickered.
“Where are you at?” Andie asked curiously. His background was all smoky. It didn’t seem like he could possibly be on base.
“I’m in a tavern in Rhindhol. One of the locals I helped build a house for invited me to his wedding,” Casey explained. “The ceremony was over a few hours back but the party is still going on.”
Andie shook her head disapprovingly. “I hear those off-base parties can be rough.”
“Well, there is a lot of drinking going on, and people are starting to lose their manners a bit,” Casey agreed. “I probably won’t stay much longer.” Idly, Andie wondered who he was hanging out at the party with. Probably not the groom, since traditionally the new couple left straight after the ceremony. The party was to raise the spirits of the newly-bereft parents, friends, and bachelor buddies. For the first time it occurred to Andie that Casey might be there with a date. The thought made her a little uncomfortable. Of course, Casey had gone out with different girls before—Andie had heard all about the girls he had liked ever since he had started getting interested in the opposite sex. But somehow, he never stayed interested in any of them for long. She had always liked that just fine—if Casey had ever had a real girlfriend he wouldn’t have hung out with her nearly as much.
“So what’s up, Andie? This is your last week of training, right?” Casey asked.
“Yeah, we had our license exam today. I’m just waiting around to hear the results.”
“Oh, the big moment! So what do you think, am I going to win the bet?”
Andie laughed. “Nope. Sorry, but I’m pretty sure I’ve got the license in the bag. I’m mostly just waiting to hear if I got accepted into the advanced training program.”
“I still can’t believe your parents came around to that.” Casey shook his head in disbelief.
“Well . . .” hedged Andie.
“You mean they don’t know you’re applying to continue on?” Casey asked incredulously. She had sent a text comm to Casey telling him about her fight with her parents and the result, but she hadn’t fully explained.
“I’m sure they know,” defended Andie. “I mean, why else would I go through the Academy’s license program? If all I wanted was just a license, I could have done any old program. It would have been a lot easier, probably.”
“But they don’t know you’re applying to be a skiff pilot.” It was a statement, not a question. Andie reluctantly nodded.
“Good luck with that,” Casey said. “And here I thought you had really carried the day!”
“I know what I’m doing,” muttered Andie. Suddenly they were interrupted by voices on Casey’s side.
“Hey, Morten! Why are you hiding in here? Come on, the party’s just getting good!”
“Who’s that you’re talking to?” asked another voice, too loudly. “See if she wants to come join us!” Casey looked off to the side.
“I’d better go, Andie,” he said. “But good luck with that list! Let me know what happens!”
“Sure,” she responded. “Take care, Casey.” He signed off, and she flipped her communicator shut with a sigh. For a few moments talking to her friend had actually distracted her from the wait. Now what?
Fortunately, it was only another few minutes before a fellow student poked his head through the door.
“The pass list is out! Check the class link,” he instructed excitedly. Andie immediately pulled her flipcom back out and typed in the address for their class link. Scrolling down the list, she was relieved to see her name.
“I passed!” she excitedly told the guy next to her who was still fumbling for his own flipcom.
<
br /> “Here, let me look you up,” Andie offered. “Lum is your last name, right?”
“Yeah, Damien,” he told her nervously. She scrolled down the list.
“Look, there you are! Well done!” she congratulated. He heaved a sigh in relief. “Now if I can just make it into the Advanced class.”
“Well, I’m in,” announced another student behind them.
“In?” shrieked several voices. “You mean you got into the Advanced Training?” clarified someone else.
“Yeah,” he replied, his voice bright with excitement. “Check your inbox, everyone!” he added loudly. “If you’re waiting to hear about going on in the program, your letter should already be there!” Andie snatched her flipcom back from Damien, and he was digging in his pocket for his own again. Hastily she opened her inbox, holding her breath.
Nothing.
“I’m in too!” shouted Damien, too close to her ear. She winced. All around her students were cheering and talking loudly, celebrating their licenses, and a few were already gathering to compare their acceptance letters for the Advanced Pilot Training. Andie offered her own congratulations but inside she felt numb. She had been so sure that she would get in! Now what was she going to do?
As soon as she could, she slipped unobtrusively out of the rec room and headed back to her bunk room. All the way back, she periodically checked her inbox. Maybe it was just late . . . or it had been misdirected. But nothing new showed up.
Inside the bunk, only Kelly was around. She was flat on her bunk, her eyes closed while the tiny buds in her ears were playing music loud enough that Andie could hear it across the room. She slowly crossed the floor and touched Kelly’s shoulder.
“Hey, Kelly,” she called. Kelly’s eyes flew open and she popped out the music buds. “Is the list in?” she asked breathlessly.
“Yep, and the Advanced Training letters have gone out too,” Andie informed her, trying to be upbeat. Kelly scrambled from her bunk and snatched her flipcom from her desk. “Did you pass?” she asked Andie as she tapped on her keypad.
The Legend of Sirra Bruche (Roran Curse Book 1) Page 3