Halo_ Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe - Eric Nylund [44]
Usually we didn’t fraternize with the flyboys (or in this case, flygirl), but Allison could get you into the city, outdrink you, and get you back as long as you picked up the tab.
But to night the four of us found the Warthog pool empty.
“The officers cleared us out,” Felicia said.
Eric kicked a large rock. “Or they’re escorting supplies.”
“Where?” I asked.
“Doesn’t matter. How do you think Innies get UNSC explosives or weapons? Spare parts?”
I hadn’t thought much about that. “Black market?”
“Black market still has to get that stuff from somewhere,” Eric said thoughtfully.
“Don’t care what’s going on,” I said, “we’re still standing here with no transport.”
Allison folded her arms. “I have a solution, if the guys here have the balls . . .”
“And what is that?” I rose to the challenge right away, even as Felicia laughed at my predictable response.
That was a Hornet. A small, one-person cockpit with a pair of engines perched high overhead and behind it, and a chain gun on the nose. It looked, appropriately enough, like a gray metal insect.
“You want us to ride the skids?” Eric asked, stepping up onto the flanged wings under the cockpit that the Hornet sat on.
There was barely room for one person to ride the sides, it seemed to me.
“Hey, UNSC Marines ride the skids all the time,” Allison said as she opened the cockpit and clambered in. “Combat insertion. Training. You name it.”
That sealed it.
But who was going to pair up on a skid?
Eric, Felicia, and I squared off with a fast round of paper-rock-scissors, which Felicia and I lost.
Eric walked to the other side of the Hornet. “See you on the other side!”
I made a show of allowing Felicia to get on the skid first, and she shoved herself against the skin of the Hornet. There was a bit of a recess behind the cockpit where the skid joined it.
“It’s nice that they standardized the controls,” Allison said, flipping switches as the engines kicked on behind us. I watched the sequence from my position just behind her, until it suddenly dawned on me what she meant.
“Wait,” I protested. “You haven’t flown one of these?”
“It’s straightforward. You got your stick, your collective throttle, yadda yadda. We’ve been doing this ever since we invented VTOLs.” The Hornet jerked upward, and I crouched, wondering if I should jump now.
But I didn’t, and I had to let go of the lip as Allison yanked the glass down and sealed the cockpit shut.
“You getting ideas there?” Felicia asked as I shoved up against her, grabbing for handholds on the Hornet.
“You wish.”
She laughed, then swore as the Hornet tilted.
I thought I could hear Eric whooping from the other side as the Hornet climbed up over the trees and headed toward the bright lights of Elysium City.
The target was a flip music club on the outskirts. Allison flew in low over a residential area, then flared out over the parking lot, dropping us to the ground with a thump.
Felicia and I tumbled off the skid, our knees somewhat shaky as we gratefully staggered on solid ground.
Eric also stumbled around the Hornet, laughing wildly. “I hope we’re stuck on idiot duty by the UNSC forever!”
“Come on.” We offered Allison a hand out of the cockpit.
We bounced inside to the raucous beat of flip music. Allison struck out with me and Felicia for the bar.
“Hey, how are you going to account for taking the Hornet?” Felicia asked as we waited for drinks.
“Training,” Allison shouted over the music. “NCO’ll sign me off.”
I laughed. “Does he even know it’s a lost cause?”
Allison grabbed her drink. “Sweetie, if you don’t tell him I’m not into men, I certainly won’t, and this little arrangement,” she waved her glass at the club and pulsating lights and dancing crowd, “this can keep going.”
She danced her way off into the crowd as I paid. “Keep the tab open, I’m covering whatever she drinks,” I told the bartender.
“You’re not going after her?” I asked Felicia, who’d dragged Allison into our