Flying Home
One
✈ 2 Years Later ✈
"I've been hit, I repeat, I've been hit." Maddie screams over the radio, trying to control her teetering plane. She looks out her right window and sees flames licking the sides of her plane.
"God please don't let me crash," she prays. She's flying directly above enemy territory and if she goes down right here, right now, she'll never make it out alive.
A light shoots through the sky and hits her plane with a sickening crack. The plane shutters and tips to the right and drops more altitude. She's flying too close to the ground and she knows it. More flames begin engulfing her plane. If she can just make it ten more miles, she'll have a better chance of getting out alive.
"I've just been hit a second time." Maddie shouts, readjusting the microphone around her head. Smoke begins to fill the cockpit and she begins to cough. She pulls the oxygen mask from under the control panel and attaches it to her face. She flips a switch and oxygen begins to flow through the mask and she takes in a deep breath, clearing the burning smoke from her lungs.
"Where are you?" the operator asks her through her headset.
"About twenty miles south from base."
"How much longer can you stay up?" Another bomb thunders into the side of her plane and she drops even closer to the ground. The plane goes into free fall and she turns the steering device to a hard left and stable the plane.
"Not much longer, I was just hit a third time. The right wing in completely engulfed in flames and as soon as it falls off I'm gone." She hears a crack and sees the right wing begin to bend.
"Find a clearing, land. Run north. Run as far and fast as you can north, don't stop. I'll send a resue crew your direction, I've picked up on your coordinates. They'll meet you. But you have to hurry, you're close to enemy base."
"Roger that." Maddie is just barely able to spot a clearing in the darkness when she hears a crack. She looks out her window just in time to see the remains of her right wing, burning bright red and orange in the darkness, fall to the ground. Her plane shudders and goes into freefall. Her stomach drops and she falls the ten thousand feet to the ground.
Jon I love you. she screams in her mind before the plane hits the ground.
✈✈✈
Her mind is fuzzy as she opens her eyes, it’s still dark outside, but it’s foggy from the smoke. Remains of her plane lay scattered around her and small puddles of fire still burn. She takes in the scene but she’s only thinking one thing.
Run.
She removes the oxygen mask from her mouth and immediately chokes as she inhales the smoke filled air. She breaks free from her seat and forces her way out from the twisted metal. She hears voices and knows people are coming. A look from her compass tells her they’re coming from the south, which means they must be the enemy.
Without another thought she takes off running into the darkness. She hears gunshots in the distance and a pain rips through her shoulder. She lets out a scream and topples to the ground. She reaches her hand up, pressing it firmly to her shoulder, clenching her teeth. When she removes the hand, it’s covered in blood. Behind her she sees flashlights and the faint silhouette of people.
She fights back the pain, picks herself up and runs.
✈✈✈
She’s not sure how long she’s been running for. It could have been minutes or hours, she wouldn’t be able to tell the difference. By now she couldn’t feel the pain in her shoulder, it was just a dull throbbing feeling, but she could feel the blood, now soaked through her uniform, which was the only thing telling her that what happened was real.
She looks up ahead of her and sees headlights. She stops and squints her eyes, trying to figure out if it’s a hallucination or real life.
She stops running and all of a sudden the pain and fatigue overcome her and she crashes to the ground. The hard desert ground does nothing to cushion her fall. She prays the headlights are her comrades because she knows if they aren’t, she doesn’t have the ability to get up and run anymore.
The headlights get closer and come to a screeching halt in front of her. She hears doors opening and closing but she can’t focus her vision. Someone picks her up and carries her into the back of the car.
“Just hang in there Maddie.” Says the person. The car begins to move again and she can feel people poking and prodding her.
“Just promise me you’ll come home.” She hears his voice echo through her head as her vision blurs.
“I promise.” Maddie whispers, not loud enough for anyone to hear, right before everything goes black.
"I've been hit, I repeat, I've been hit." Maddie screams over the radio, trying to control her teetering plane. She looks out her right window and sees flames licking the sides of her plane.
"God please don't let me crash," she prays. She's flying directly above enemy territory and if she goes down right here, right now, she'll never make it out alive.
A light shoots through the sky and hits her plane with a sickening crack. The plane shutters and tips to the right and drops more altitude. She's flying too close to the ground and she knows it. More flames begin engulfing her plane. If she can just make it ten more miles, she'll have a better chance of getting out alive.
"I've just been hit a second time." Maddie shouts, readjusting the microphone around her head. Smoke begins to fill the cockpit and she begins to cough. She pulls the oxygen mask from under the control panel and attaches it to her face. She flips a switch and oxygen begins to flow through the mask and she takes in a deep breath, clearing the burning smoke from her lungs.
"Where are you?" the operator asks her through her headset.
"About twenty miles south from base."
"How much longer can you stay up?" Another bomb thunders into the side of her plane and she drops even closer to the ground. The plane goes into free fall and she turns the steering device to a hard left and stable the plane.
"Not much longer, I was just hit a third time. The right wing in completely engulfed in flames and as soon as it falls off I'm gone." She hears a crack and sees the right wing begin to bend.
"Find a clearing, land. Run north. Run as far and fast as you can north, don't stop. I'll send a resue crew your direction, I've picked up on your coordinates. They'll meet you. But you have to hurry, you're close to enemy base."
"Roger that." Maddie is just barely able to spot a clearing in the darkness when she hears a crack. She looks out her window just in time to see the remains of her right wing, burning bright red and orange in the darkness, fall to the ground. Her plane shudders and goes into freefall. Her stomach drops and she falls the ten thousand feet to the ground.
Jon I love you. she screams in her mind before the plane hits the ground.
✈✈✈
Her mind is fuzzy as she opens her eyes, it’s still dark outside, but it’s foggy from the smoke. Remains of her plane lay scattered around her and small puddles of fire still burn. She takes in the scene but she’s only thinking one thing.
Run.
She removes the oxygen mask from her mouth and immediately chokes as she inhales the smoke filled air. She breaks free from her seat and forces her way out from the twisted metal. She hears voices and knows people are coming. A look from her compass tells her they’re coming from the south, which means they must be the enemy.
Without another thought she takes off running into the darkness. She hears gunshots in the distance and a pain rips through her shoulder. She lets out a scream and topples to the ground. She reaches her hand up, pressing it firmly to her shoulder, clenching her teeth. When she removes the hand, it’s covered in blood. Behind her she sees flashlights and the faint silhouette of people.
She fights back the pain, picks herself up and runs.
✈✈✈
She’s not sure how long she’s been running for. It could have been minutes or hours, she wouldn’t be able to tell the difference. By now she couldn’t feel the pain in her shoulder, it was just a dull throbbing feeling, but she could feel the blood, now soaked through her uniform, which was the only thing telling her that what happened was real.
She looks up ahead of her and sees headlights. She stops and squints her eyes, trying to figure out if it’s a hallucination or real life.
She stops running and all of a sudden the pain and fatigue overcome her and she crashes to the ground. The hard desert ground does nothing to cushion her fall. She prays the headlights are her comrades because she knows if they aren’t, she doesn’t have the ability to get up and run anymore.
The headlights get closer and come to a screeching halt in front of her. She hears doors opening and closing but she can’t focus her vision. Someone picks her up and carries her into the back of the car.
“Just hang in there Maddie.” Says the person. The car begins to move again and she can feel people poking and prodding her.
“Just promise me you’ll come home.” She hears his voice echo through her head as her vision blurs.
“I promise.” Maddie whispers, not loud enough for anyone to hear, right before everything goes black.
7/6/13