"We'd like you to become the operator for Tiger."
There were four people in the room with Caspian. The first was 2IC, vice marshal Ares Gauthier, Marshal’s right hand and the person in de facto charge most of the time. He wasn’t known for his jokes and many seemed to think that outside his job, he had a tendency of predictable dishonesty for his own advantages.
Thankfully this situation was well within his job, otherwise Caspian would already have started laughing.
Sitting at the table were the Marshal himself, and Captain Creed. Two men with solemn expressions and an intense aura of authority that immediately made Caspian think he had to be in the wrong place, somehow.
He glanced towards the last person sitting right next to him, a confident and smug expression hiding behind the thinnest possible veil of politeness.
They’ll do it if I tell them to, Nova had stated, and had apparently been correct.
"Well, that's surprising," Caspian chuckled and turned back to Ares, "I hope you do realise that I am only an analyst, right? I haven't ever operated for pilots."
"But you do have basic training for it. There are people in the base who have vouched for your skill. Your future pilot, naturally," Ares gestured towards Nova. "And one of the other operators said that you have extensive knowledge in different mecha models.” Kieran’s face appeared in Caspian’s mind.
Son of a bitch.
"I guess that isn't inaccurate," Caspian admitted slowly. "So... you would really let me become the operator for your star pilot? What about the current operator?" Ares’s smile twitched ever so slightly - whether in annoyance or amusement, it was difficult to tell.
"Nicky is currently being transferred to another pilot who is currently brushing up her skills to get back to the field. You don't need to worry about him, it's not like we want to let trained and educated personnel away that easily." He cast a slightly sharp glance towards Nova who returned with an authoritative smile.
Apparently many people at the base didn't tell Nova 'no'.
"And they found a new pilot for Tiger? Have they finished repairs yet?" Caspian placed his fingertips against each other. The questions were genuine, but they had nothing to do with his answer anymore - he was just buying time, trying to form the big picture in his mind.
He had already decided to say yes. There was zero reason to turn down the offer.
"They found a new pilot, yes - a man in medical who is in a similar situation with you, in that both of you only have basic training," Ares noted, unable to hold back a slight sigh. "Due to these uncommon circumstances, we'd like you to start going through simulations immediately. There is a certain amount of flight hours we need all of you to log, both individually and as a group, before we can legally allow you to participate in missions."
"Sounds like no time to waste, then." Caspian turned to look at Nova. Nova looked back, eyes gleaming with anticipation. For a moment Caspian considered withdrawing his answer or asking to think about it - for no other reason than just to let Nova know that not everyone would dance to his tune and whatever he happened to want.
If he was being entirely honest, Nova’s attitude pissed him off.
But it was a really good opportunity.
And with Tiger gone, their chances of repelling a larger attack were smaller.
"All right," he said with a smirk, turning back to Ares. "Hell, I'll do it. When can we start training?"
"Today. I've already reserved the rest of your afternoon off," Ares declared, handing over a key card used in both simulations and at the command centre. "Nova told us to have a key card made. He said you wouldn't refuse."
Motherfucker.
Caspian smiled tersely and felt his pulse rising when he held the keycard in his hand. Nova stood up and headed to the door, looking at Caspian in anticipation as he excused himself with a salute. Caspian followed the suit and Nova out of the room and down the corridor lit by pale led lights.
"I'll need to let Anders know that we have an operator now," Nova said when they came by a set of stairs, "get your stuff packed at the analyst side and meet us at the simulation room twelve sharp. I want to get to work."
He stopped at the base of stairs and placed his hand on Caspian’s shoulder so heavily that Caspian thought he was going to get punched. This was still the same person who had been drinking with him at the boiler room, but his demeanour, his expression, his eyes - those had changed. They had a smouldering intensity about them now.
“I want to pilot Phoenix,” Nova said, and there wasn’t the slightest hint of light in his tone. “So I’m going to work the two of you down to the bone. I got this opportunity for you, so don’t let me down.”
Without waiting for an answer, Nova disappeared to the stairs, jumping three of them at once as if going one by one had been way too slow.
Caspian looked at the key card and turned it in his hands, before heading towards the analyst floor with a heavy groan. His mind was flooding with possible snarky responses, but apparently he would have to get used to Nova dictating the pace.
This was not what he had expected when he had started seeing Nova coming down to the boiler room to join him for drinks.
It wasn't like he had expected Nova to mean anything with the off-handed comment about wanting Caspian to become his operator. It was just the alcohol speaking.
But as it turned out, Nova didn't say things he didn't mean.
The clock was something past ten, which meant he would still make it in time for packing and eating if he hurried. He was excited. He was nervous. A part of him felt this was a colossally bad idea. Another kept repeating like a mantra or a chant how he should not fuck this up, no matter what.
He was fairly confident that he could do it. Even with all the eyes on this sudden newcomer of an operator, who the star pilot of the base had demanded to be trained for him.
A small stubborn voice in his head stated that he would definitely fuck this up.
The analyst room was never empty or silent. Downtime may have been a privilege the pilots got between their fights, but for the analysts, there was always something to do: data patterns, base logs, developing new simulations or fixing old ones.
‘Analyst’ was a glorified umbrella term for a jack of all trades digital, just like ‘mechanic’ was a glorified umbrella term covering those who repaired the mechas, those who built them, those who worked with the cars and those who worked on the hardware of the simulators.
Someone working in the analyst room could have been an analyst, a programmer, data inserter or even a researcher. Caspian was only an analyst. He didn’t write anything for the machines, he just saw patterns in what came out.
"But doesn't this strike you as odd?" Hadrian's low, measured voice was the first thing he registered when he approached his own table. Hadrian, a data security programmer, was looking at a tablet and showing it to Sarah - a former analyst and a current operator, a career path that had been very similar to what Caspian was currently facing.
"Oh my god, get your shit together," Sarah laughed with a voice that was loud enough to feel like a papercut. "You always worry too much over the little things, it's not good for you. You're going to die of a heart attack at the ripe age of twenty-three." She emphasised her words with a firm slap at Hadrian's back, a gesture that lured out both coughing and awkward laughter from Hadrian.
"I can see that the two of you don’t have enough work,” Caspian stated cheerfully as he sat down at his table and started opening the drawers.
"Everyone, look sharp, it's the genius kid," Sarah announced without turning. Caspian grimaced at the nickname; the three of them had studied together, both basic training and data analysis. Caspian had not been the best at the physical examinations nor following commands, but he had picked up faster on the quirks of snap judgements related to data and numbers.
It used to be a friendly nickname. Over the course of the months it had turned sour.
"At ease, my fellow analysts," he replied with a faux suave voice as he started to pile up the contents of his desk to one corner. "I am only here to announce that my workload will be moved onto your desk."
"You finally did it," Hadrian stated and leaned his elbows at the table. “You pissed off the Marshal or 2IC. Which one?"
"Well, it was a matter of time,” Sarah echoed Hadrian's words, offering a heavy pat on Caspian's shoulder as he promptly provided an empty box from underneath the desk and started to fill it with paperwork and folders. "We'll always cherish the time we had with you."
"Actually, you'll get to cherish that time in the future as well," Caspian replied and tossed a few pens to the mix before turning to Sarah. "They're making me into an operator."
Hadrian and Sarah stared at him in silence, before both moving closer - Sarah with a step, Hadrian by rolling his chair in.
"Are we getting new recruits? Why haven't we been told anything about new pilots?" Hadrian demanded. Caspian paused for a brief moment. He didn't want to flaunt his new role, but neither did he know how to put it in words without it sounding like a poorly veiled brag.
"No new pilots," he started slowly. "They are making some rearrangements for the operators."
"Wait," Sarah interjected, frowning deeply, "I heard Tiger's operator was put to work with Marshal himself. Does that mean that you're going to operate for Tiger? You?" Caspian remembered Ares mentioning Nicky operating with a pilot in need for warm up exercises. They had mentioned a woman, but nothing about Marshal himself.
Must be his partner then.
Caspian wondered who Marshal piloted with.
"Yeah," he admitted and lowered his voice. "Don't make a big deal out of it, though. I don't know why they wanted me in particular, but I'm going to try and do my best." Hadrian turned to Sarah and leaned over to pat her on the shoulder.
“Good luck, and my condolences,” he said solemnly. “At least now he’ll make the operators look bad and not us.” Sarah scoffed and rolled her eyes, but turned to Caspian with at least a faux neutral expression.
“So what is Nova like, then,” she asked with a conversational tone and elbowed him playfully in the shoulder. “Is he actually that conceited, or is it just an act?”
“Not like he’ll be able to tell yet,” Hadrian replied with a sigh instead of Caspian as he rolled back to his work station. “Ask him again in two months. If he’s still an operator at that point, that is.”
I know already, though, Caspian thought to himself but didn't say anything, I know that it's both an act and the truth. I know what he's like - an asshole.
That's what he himself wanted to believe, at least.
His nights of drinking with Nova had given him a newly-found respect for him. Earlier Caspian had been more than satisfied to join any kind of poking fun about Nova, the person everyone knew, the hero of all.
Now, he had gotten to see behind that role, and how much work seemingly went to just keep that facade up. Not that it was a role that didn't come naturally for Nova: he enjoyed the attention, relished in it. But at the same time he felt its weight and the responsibilities it brought.
All of that with the knowledge that Nova expected obedience and commanded his whims on others, with seemingly no regard to them.
Seeing all of that didn't make Caspian any less attracted to Nova. It did the contrary: in some drunken moments he relished in the warmth of Nova's attention, of being the one Nova chose to spend time with. Hell, being the one he opened up to, even if it was only because Caspian just happened to be there.
He was also careful to not let any of it show, because the thought of chasing after attention or being ridiculed would be painful for his pride. He'd take what he could get, some nights of drinking together, a role of a listener.
And apparently now, the role of an operator.
“Hey, there you are. Listen, I wanted to run through some data with you,” Hadrian turned to talk to someone else. Caspian picked up his box and turned to leave, and saw Lonan staring directly at him.
It wasn’t exactly a hostile stare, but it was very sharp and so obviously unveiled it was difficult to not take it that way. Caspian didn’t know a lot about Lonan: he was an analyst, formerly an operator, and before that, a pilot. He was cheerful and witty and smiled around almost everyone. Everyone who wasn’t Caspian.
Lonan did not like him, and the reasons for that were completely unknown to Caspian, because as far as he had heard, Lonan liked everyone.
The biggest reason why Caspian cared was that Lonan had the best prosthetics in the base, and Caspian would have given a lot to be able to look at the log data of mundane daily activities they saved. Eating, writing, typing, moving.
But, as things were, he would do best to focus on doing his best as an operator.
“So anyway, I think there might be a data breach,” Hadrian continued his explanation to Lonan as Caspian passed them by. Lonan turned to Hadrian and took the tablet from him.
“So is the troublemaker out?” The words were lowered, but not lowered enough to be out of Caspian’s hearing range.
“No, they’re making him into an operator for Tiger,” Hadrian replied, not even bothering to lower his voice. Caspian glanced over his shoulder just in time to see Lonan mirror the gesture to turn to look at him. This time, the stare was full of open contempt.
Caspian lifted his middle finger in a cheerful gesture, before continuing with brisk steps. If he would take the box to his room, he would still make it in time for eating and simulator training.
Lonan wasn’t the first nor the last person who would have problem with him, nor would Lonan be the first or the last person to not let Caspian explain himself.
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