Chapter Five - part four

   Once approved the pilots were ordered to report. Now the real work began. James and Jeremy spent the first couple of weeks getting to know the pilots and watching them fly. They didn't actually do much flying with them during that time though. Those last four were among the very best pilot's they had ever seen, but they were almost impossible to control. James watched them disregard orders several times to fly the way they wanted to fly. Oh they were good enough to accomplish the mission, even without following orders. But they put not only the mission and themselves at risk, but put others at risk too. They were even worse on the ground, if that was possible! Jeremy was ready to quit on them after two weeks, but James wasn't. The start of the third week of training together as a squadron everything changed. James walked into the morning mission briefing as usual. That was the last thing that went as usual that day. James turned to face the assembled pilots who were all standing at attention, waiting for him to allow them to resume their seats for the briefing. Instead James just stood looking out at them.

   Finally after several very long minutes he spoke, but he didn't release them. His voice was calm and steady, but it cut like a knife. "Ladies and gentlemen, you will remain at standing at attention for this entire briefing. It will be very short, but I want to be sure that every one of you hears every word I say clearly. I have watched all of you fly. You haven't disappointed me with your ability to handle your planes. However some of you have shown yourselves to be complete idiots and fools. You seem to think that because you are so good at flying the rules don't apply to you. You also don't think anybody can beat you. You are wrong on both counts! I can and I will beat you! When I call your name I want you to step forward and turn to face the rest of the squadron, Captain David Gregg, Captain Janet Prindlot, Major Brandon Wheat, and Major Samantha Clark."

   Once they were in position James smiled for the first time. He turned and walked past them stopping for a moment to study each one directly. Then he returned to the podium and continued with the briefing. "These four are among the best pilots I have ever seen. They have the ability to fly their planes beyond what they were designed to do. I think they are also the biggest fools and idiots I have ever seen. Today I am going to give them a chance to prove me wrong or prove me right. These four will be loaded up and assigned to defend a target from attack. That target will be the rest of you when you are scrambled to respond to my attack. I will be flying an F/A-48, but I will turn on a radio beacon, so that I will be clearly visible when I come within range. I will still be well out when I turn it on. They should have ample time to locate, and stop or delay me until you can get airborne. Jeremy will finish your briefing while I get ready to fly." He turned to face the four who were all looking at him. "There are four of you and if you can decide to fly together and follow orders for a change; then you should be able to at least delay me until some of your squadron can get in the air. I don't think you are that smart or that good. I will be alone and I intend to destroy every plane in the squadron today, including all of you. Good hunting, may God help you."

    James walked out of the room. Jeremy hadn't been in favor of any of this at first, but James had shown him how those four had always reacted when pushed. Without fail they forgot about everyone and everything except themselves. That was the key. James knew they all thought they were too good to not be flying an F/A-48. They were too good, but they were also too proud. Pride could kill a great pilot faster than almost anything else. James intended to show them that. There was a chance that they might win this battle, but even then they would lose. This was a last chance before they were dismissed for conduct unbecoming. Brigadier General Holt had the papers waiting and she had made it clear that unless their attitudes and behaviors changed... they were gone! They would have been gone now, if not for James selling this last chance. Nobody except Jeremy knew about any of that. Not even Jeremy knew why James thought this might change them. It was the only thing James had left though. Those four really were among the best he had seen, but unless they learned to fly with the others they were worthless to him.

   James was in the air and flying well out and away from the base before the others were even starting to their planes. They knew when he was coming back. He had even told them which way he was coming in, though he was betting at least some of the four wouldn't believe it. Jeremy had designed the defense plan and he was the only one who knew what that plan was. If James knew Jeremy, his plan should take James out before he reached the target... if they would only follow it! James had stacked the odds in their favor. They should be able to take him out before he got close to the base, if they would just work together. Four F-35's were a very formidable force when they worked as a unit. James was betting that at worst he might be facing a pair. The time arrived and he headed back in towards base. He came in on the exact course, altitude, and speed he had told them he would. The results were exactly what he had thought they would be. They were out of position, so they couldn't work together against him when he switched the beacon on. They were in pairs, but they had spaced out far enough so that one pair could reach him fast no matter which way he came in.

  The result was that one pair was on him almost as soon as he went active with the beacon. Even that pair didn't work as a true pair though. One of them charged in and one hung back as if suspicious. James literally flew past the charging Major Wheat. He was on Captain Prindlot before she could react and he effectively toasted her with a long burst from both lasers and his pulse cannons. Then James opened up and screamed on into base at top speed. Major Wheat was left behind. James arrived at the base well ahead of the other two. The pilots on the ground were barely to their planes. In fact some hadn't made it into them yet. James stunned them when he opened up. He had tracer rounds loaded in his 20mm revolving cannons. James laid down a line of fire well in front of the entire row of jets. He had targeted all of the jets with his pulse cannons at the same time. Then James switched over to his laser as he pulled out of that first sweep. He locked one each on Captain Gregg and Major Clark.  They were both toast before they even knew they had been targeted. Major Wheat was still charging hard trying to get back into the fight when James suddenly seemed to switch directions of flight in the blink of an eye. Wheat took a burst from both pairs of lasers and he was out too! James was able to lay down a second strip of tracers on the other side of the planes on the ground while targeting them all with the pulse cannons on a second pass at his leisure. There was nobody left in the air to challenge him!