File 159: A Cadet's Story

Fynn

23. 1. 5023   09:21

How the Craft Designers make the crafts are really amazing. The way they all work together, like AI robots is just so synchronized it makes me wonder what sort of perfection I’m watching. The parts they’re using too is pretty cool – I’ve never seen them before, but granted the Academy’s crafts were only made from the HybridAbility brand.

I met one of the heads earlier – she was the one who brought me to the viewing room to watch them. I think her name was Yrenea Silvius? I think the spelling is Y-R-E-N-E-A though it’s pronounced ‘Ree-nee-ah’. Anyways she said they were making a new Probe Craft for some pilot named Graece something who crashed her last one when it glitched. Look, if future me is listening, I may have a photographic memory but that don’t mean I hear what I didn’t.

Wowzers, it would be kinda awesome to join Craft Designers. I know one section of them that does the hammering, fixing, nailing, sculpting and metalworking or whatever it is they do to make crafts isn’t something I would be good at, but there are other sections like the coding and making designs for better crafts. Except now I have to make a choice whether to join Craft Designing or the IT department.

Oh well, I can decide after a few more months. I have until the sixth month which is half a year to decide what I want to do at the ESA, like everyone else. That also reminds me I’ll be meeting the Board of Commanders and having my first trial run of craft piloting this week…

Speaking of the trial run, everyone did it last week. I’m slower, I guess, since unlike every pilot wannabe I got offered the internship and everything. It’s really lonely to be the only one, hanging around by yourself.

Ryder is becoming more energetic as time goes by, you could say, but he mostly just wants to play gambling games with Codix and Cyrix. He does talk to me, but mostly sentences like ‘hullo’ or ‘you’re going to be late, better be quick’. I still doubt that he’s going to change out of his emo fashion sense any time soon.

What I said about Codix and Cyrix to Dad was partly true, and partly not. I just don’t really hanging out with boys like them. All they ever did was make fun of me not wanting to be a pilot. Also they like starting food fights, which is also why I started eating in my room to not get involved.

Fyonae and Haeleigh, I don’t see them around. They’re always with each other and Lorlea, much as I’d like Fyonae to be alone for once. Why is it girls are always travelling packs?

Also, Lorlea keeps trying to check up on me and invite me to socialize. Ack to that, I say. I’m perfectly happy without her dragging me off to those…things. I swear, I’m older now. I don’t need her to babysit me two-four-seven. Twin tuition is telling me she’s just guilty that she forgot about me, but I’m fine, Lore.

Actually, I take that back. I’m not fine. But I’m not going to tell her that. All my life it had been Lorlea taking charge, taking responsibility and taking care of ME. Sometimes it’s great to not be in charge and be saved, but there’s always the times where I can and want to handle things myself, but she just jumps in and does it. 

Coming to the ESA, I was excited secretly. I wanted and thought it would be my chance to prove to everyone, Lore and myself that I could take care of things, that I didn’t need someone hovering all the time. 

So if I tell her, she’s going to tell Dad, and then I will have not one but two people being helicopters.

Thus I shall shove away all my loneliness and this need for friends I never had before and all my insecurities into a drawer in my mind and proceed to lock it for the sake of my pride.

Ugh, I can’t even convince myself.

I just wish Lorlea can take the hint. But no, she had always been terrible at picking up those. Back at the Academy everyone clearly thought she was good-looking and a whole lotta boys looked her, but she didn’t even realize. How thick-headed can you be to not understand a love note?

Not even saying things like ‘yes I can handle this myself’ and ‘no go hang out with your friends’ get her to understand.  I locked the door, she asks for the key, I hide my work, she wants to see it, I change my password, she wants to know it. Tell me, how am I supposed to show everyone I’m older and mature and don’t need babysitting with her doing all this?

Like, ack, I mean, I do love and appreciate her, but would it kill Lore to just-

Oh hey. I didn’t know anyone was supposed to be here today. You’re Fynn Hendrix, right?

Yeah…and you’re…?

Right, you probably haven’t met me yet. Vaughn Kelemonia, Fighter Craft Pilot.

OH WOW, YOU MEAN THE FASTEST PILOT IN HISTORY?

Nah, wouldn’t put it that way. I’m just good at flying, I guess. How come you aren’t with the others? You have a sister right?

Twin, actually. And yeah – I get my own schedule since I’m the only one who indefinitely wants to pursue a career outside piloting. 

Nice. I remember a really long time ago that everyone wanted to get into the techies, not be pilots. You’re probably the version of me back then, when I was in the only one who wanted to pilot, haha.

Really?

Yeah. Everyone’s parents wanted them there, but now every kid wants to be a pilot. They think its fun, but trust me, you made a smart decision.

I don’t really think so, but I’ll take your word for it. 

It’s dangerous, y’know, never knowing when you’re going to die every time you go to battle. But the adrenaline and how you feel after winning makes it worth it, I suppose. Back then no one wanted to experience that.

So I guess you were the odd one out? Did anyone make fun of that?

Oh yeah, plenty of times. They mostly just hurled verbal abuse at me, since I was one of the best at Physical Education they didn’t really dare to hit me or anything. Basically I was cut out of everything for wanting to be a ‘adrenaline addict’.

That’s harsh.

Mm, but at least it’s worth it now to see the looks on their faces when they realize I’m top level pilot now, hah. 

Rub it in their faces? I wish I could do that.

Why? Anything wrong?

Well, I mean, I am doing what I like best, but its bad when everyone makes you feel like you’re making bad decisions. 

I can relate. Made quite a few in my life.

Yeah, and how the people who don’t worry about you ruining your life. I just wish they would give me a chance to prove myself.

You will get it, don’t worry. Everything works out in the end. Most things, at nay rate. 

Bah, wish I could believe that.

I’ll let you decide. By the way, have you seen Wylo? I’m supposed to go check up on something with her, but I can’t find her anywhere. She isn’t in her office, or at the Tech department, or anywhere really. I thought she might’ve gone for a ride on a craft but the flight log didn’t have her name in it.

Sorry, but I haven’t seen her all day.

Oh, it’s alright. I guess she’s just avoiding me again.

What now?

Nothing – Wylo and I just aren’t on good terms right now. Actually, for approximately the past five years.

Why? Did you guys fight or something?

Complicated story. Sorry, I gotta go now. Catch you around.

(thump thump thump)

Well, that was weird. Egad, I think I better go get dressed nicely for the meeting with the Board of Commanders now.  I hope they won’t mind if I record the entire meeting – but then again I’m probably going to do it in secret. Ack, I hope they won’t think too badly of me if they find out.

 

So, no, apparently you can’t record meetings without express permission from a senior Board member or you’re one yourself. I did try to sneak it in, but oops, Wylo caught me. She didn’t seem to mind much, thankfully, but said I shouldn’t sneak things in – consequences of being found out are ‘something you should never face’.

Anyway, for future reference in case I ever need to greet the Board members or something, I better record down was in the Board. 

Basically all the leads in all apartments were there, like Wylo. Yrenea is the head Craft Desinger, so she was there, as well as the head of the Internal Affairs department, Byenca Maronian and her assistant Scarlex Embarallister, and Leeroye (boo-yah people, I got to meet him again!). Aaand, turns out there is no head Healer or Flight Controller, but usually one of them would be there as an ambassador. Same thing for the pilots, but usually one of each kind would be there – today Vaughn was there, along with Danirel and Karsyne, some lady who according to Lorlea was the one who assessed her pilot skills. 

Funny, I didn’t even know all the other cadets would be there. Lorlea told me to close my mouth or some bird would make its nest there, which naturally annoyed me. I was glad at that time not to sit next to her –Vaughn and I have something in common now, not being on good terms with a certain person – but that didn’t mean I was very happy to sit next to FYONAE.

Okay, sue me, I’m lying, I was over the moon about it. But I swear, I think my face resembled an inflated tomato trying to not to be happy about it. Ack, I hope she didn’t see it.

I could definitely see some friction between Wylo and Vaughn when she waved to me. Vaughn gave her a look, and she glared at him back for whatever reason. But I can’t deny that the looks on their faces when they realized they had to sit together were terribly funny.

The beginning of the meeting was awfully boring, with the attendance and stuff. I got a little afraid I accidentally brought in something I wasn’t supposed to when the Guards frisked us down for illegal or prohibited items, but thankfully no.

Codix and Cyrix were just as bored. Byenca told them off more than once for being too loud, but hey, all arguments are bound to get loud, right? Wait, am I taking their side? Oh no, what’s wrong with me?

Ack, anyway, Ryder seemed pretty chill through it all, but I suspect he was sleeping – his hair was partially covering his eyes, so it was hard to tell. Haeleigh and Lorlea were giggling about something. Mostly I just tried not to stare at Fyonae too much.

After that the pilots – except Vaughn, since he was my examiner and I hadn’t done the trial yet – made their report on us cadets. Lorlea’s was pretty satisfactory, and I’m happy for her, even if she’s being a big pain in the butt right now. Fyonae sounds great too – two in one, smart and pretty. The other boys were as expected, only just scraping through. Karsyne said very pointedly that if they had put in more effort to behave better they would have scored better. 

I also found out that being at a Board meeting wasn’t as exciting as I thought it would be. Just a bunch of people making reports. I started picking at the thread on my clothes but then things really got interesting, and not in a good way.

 Apparently Leeroye asked Vaughn when he was going to get the papers, whatever that was, from Wylo. Vaughn got defensive and said he couldn’t find Wylo at all. Man, I can still hear how shout-y everyone got at the moment, everyone taking sides, us cadets just staring in shock. 

I wasn’t entirely sure what everyone was yelling about, but we didn’t get to stick around when it started, because Byenca shouted for everyone to calm down and said they would deal with this later. She even told Scarlex to take us cadets out.

Scarlex took us out, alright, but everyone kept pestering her with questions. She assure us this usually didn’t happen. I don’t think I really believe her though – from the way Byenca phrased it this probably happened once in a while. Figures. Politics rarely agree on anything, even thousands of years into the future later.

She admitted that Wylo and Vaughn often fought, but then again nearly every Lead fought about something. Why they were fighting, she wouldn’t say, but guessing from the way she pursed her lips it was something none of them were proud of. 

But I’m never going to forget what she said when she dropped us off at the dorms to Lore and I.

“You know, the only time I can remember Wylo and Vaughn agreeing on something after so long again was choosing both of you to enter the ESA.”

I couldn’t believe it, and I thought my ears were blocked with wax or something. Lore looked just as stunned. We were told that we managed to get in because they needed more cadets, and we had the second-best scores, but I had always thought the entire Board had agreed on it. It kinda hurt to know that the only reason we were here at all was because only TWO people, who didn’t even like each other, managed to persuade everyone about it.

Egad, look at the time! Wylo’s going to kill me if I’m late again to another meeting with the departments. I think I better get going.

Logging off, Fynn Hendrix.