Alpha One - Chris Burton [104]
He dressed, took breakfast and made ready for his morning at the Academy. He had classes today up to one p.m. with his afternoon free for private study, giving him the opportunity to prepare for his trip before concentrating on the Top Gun Final tomorrow.
Chapter Forty-Five
The Final Top Gun Event
Steve was in a determined mood. This is what he waited for; the opportunity to prove once and for all he was the best pilot in the Academy and no one else even came close. He woke early and took a short run, before carrying out some warm down exercises, showering and partaking in an energy max breakfast. He prepared as he always did for the Top Gun event, thoroughly. No one would have an advantage over him because they were more fit or had greater stamina.
The main threat was Jake, but he knew Jake’s weakness: conformity and the avoidance of risk. This would be his downfall today as each candidate went that extra mile to achieve their competitive best. That meant Jake would stop short of over-exerting his ship and crossing the ship’s maximum boundaries. Steve knew how to go beyond the theoretical limits, and today he would show everyone just what that meant.
If he was driven today, it was not just the Top Gun which drove him. Steve was worried, very worried. Carla had involved herself in something far too big to comprehend. She was so entrenched that she broke off their relationship because, somehow, this Winterburn got to her.
He knew Jake would follow her, and Jake’s potential intervention presented Carla with her best chance to break free from whatever power Winterburn had over her. Steve knew Jake wouldn’t stop until Carla was free.
He knew he must be there, because ultimately Carla needed him and not Jake. He would go with Jake and bring Carla home. It was as simple as that. He didn’t consider the consequences of his plan or what impact it could have on his graduation. At this moment, he cared only for two things: Carla and winning the Top Gun tournament. Jake pushed him all week for an expression of emotion. He knew if he let on how he really felt that Jake would try to dissuade him from coming. It was best if he pretended he didn’t care, even if he still yearned for her.
The twelve Rapiers stood side by side on the wide take-off strip on the far side of the space port, some two kilometers from their usual take off pads. It was important today that no-one had an advantage over any one of the finalists. They would all start together, at exactly the same time. The agenda for the final was simple. One event with a projected duration of over seven hours, a race over twelve laps covering the landscapes of Mars, the asteroid belt and some of the toughest and most dangerous terrain on Earth. The course was a one-off, designed for this race only. The Top Gun supreme and his team created a unique course for the final each year, and this year was no exception. It was fast, dangerous and testing to the extreme.
The finalists awaited their signal. It finally came, and all twelve lifted off simultaneously. They achieved minimum cruising height and immediately changed course heading for North America. Their first challenge was to clear the salt plains of Oklahoma. They were required to keep low to avoid radar detection and to fend off any bogey assault, individually and as part of a team. Steve was ready, and assumed a ground-hugging altitude of less than twenty meters and commenced his first run in earnest. Jake slotted in behind Steve; he began to set out his stall for a chasing strategy. Right, Steve was too fast. Jake pushed on in the knowledge that there would be other opportunities.
The jump ships left the desert and accelerated briskly into the stratosphere. The twelve Rapiers cleared Earth’s defense systems immediately and headed towards