Loose Ends: Flight School

[Halbarad]

Rich grins at that. "Me neither. Hell, even FINDIN' the Moon again from that far out would be a near miracle. But I don't expect any equipment failures - this ship's been through three times the testin' that most normal new ships have. She'll hold up for you, I'm sure."

[Carthrat]

"Who was in charge of the design?" asks Arkian, curiously.

[Halbarad]

"Think it was Doc Kawashima who came up with the initial design, although I've heard practically everyone in the tech branch has had their hand in it somehow, from Doc Mizuno right on down the line."

[Carthrat]

"With a lineup like that, it's hard to think of anything going wrong," replies Arkian, grinning.

[Halbarad]

"Damn right," the pilot replies. "They've really gone all out for this survey thing." He glances over at you curiously. "Why'd you sign up for it, anyway?"

[Carthrat]

Arkian turns to look at Rich, and there's a flash of excitement in his eyes. "Can you imagine?" he asks, smiling; "Can you imagine being one of the first people on an uncharted planet? In a world nobody has seen in thousands of years? To put your foot down on the surface, and know that because of you, men may tread this ground in the soil?

A natural landscape beyond anything Earth or the Moon has to offer. I could learn volumes just by standing there for a few hours. It's like a dream..."

[Halbarad]

He chuckles at that. "I can see you're ready to get goin'," he replies. "I guess it does sound pretty excitin' when you put it that way. I applied for it myself, but didn't make the cut - what I got told was that I didn't have the right skills for the mission." He snorts a bit. "Seein' this ship, I know why. But at least I've been able to help get it ready for the rest of you."

[Carthrat]

Arkian chuckles. "I'll treat you dinner when I get back," he says. "Least I can do."

[Halbarad]

"You've got yourself a deal," he retorts.

The two of you chat amiably for about an hour, and the next time you look up, you've already settled into an Earth orbit.

"Didn't take long at all, did it?" Rich says with a grin. "I'd offer to let you land her, but we don't have clearance for a berth on Earth at the moment."

[Carthrat]

"So now what?" replies Arkian, pulling the ship into a curve. "Should I put it into orbit, or just turn it around?"

[Halbarad]

"Just take her back to the Moon,"  Thibodeaux replies. "If you want to try putting her through her paces yourself, go ahead - your call how much you want to do here. You seem to know your way around a cockpit well enough."

[Carthrat]

Arkian turns the ship around to fly back to the moon, but instead of taking a direct route, he goes through a series of turns, dives, rolls, spins; getting a feel for the ships more in-depth piloting rather than intersteller flight.

Once that's done, however, he heads back to the landing bay.

[Halbarad]

The rest of the trip is fairly uneventful, although Rich does give you a few pointers on aerobatic techniques. The two of you say your farewells and part once the ship is back in its hangar, and you proceed on to your last weekend of rest and relaxation.