fandomhigh | Flight and Flying [Tuesday, May 11, 1st period]

Anakin stood in front of the door of the flight shed and waited for the workshop students to arrive, his hands tucked into the sleeves of his dark robes.

"Welcome," he said, giving them a nod. "I'm Master Skywalker, and I'll be your instructor for flight this session. I'm from a space-based culture, so my expertise is primarily in those sorts of aircraft, but we'll also be working with the way people fly on this planet. We'll begin with simulators and if you convince me of your attention to detail and your ability not to die in stupid ways, you'll eventually be allowed to fly the real things. Before we begin in the simulator, though, you need to recite the following pledge: I solemnly swear, upon threat of detention and possible bodily harm, to listen and follow Master Skywalker's instructions, not to bring food or drink within ten feet of the simulators, and to absolutely never start a fight anywhere inside the flight shed, as Master Skywalker will let my head get cracked open on something metallic, like I deserve, and then throw me into detention for the entirety of my time at Fandom High."

He was dead serious, too.

After the pledges had been recited to his satisfaction, Anakin waved a hand lazily at the doors and they slid open to reveal two podracing simulators sitting side-by-side.

"All right," he said, pointing at the controls, "everything you need to fly a podracer is located on the handlebars. You push them forward to go faster, pull back to slow down, and pull one or the other towards you to turn." He pointed at the buttons in the center of the console. "That controls the engines," he said. "You push the big button to light them up, and on these two models, you can push it again for an extra burst of speed." He looked at the class. "Which burns your fuel very, very quickly, so save that until you need it."

He raised an eyebrow. "Normally, these are attached to enormous engines--6 or 7 meter long engines--but these aren't real, and the simulator won't really give you the noise that's normally associated with the podracer. But the simulator has been programmed to go very, very quickly." He pointed to the simulator on the left-hand side. "This one, properly piloted, can get up to 950 kilometers an hour. The other can get up to 900. To put that in perspective, many spacefaring ships don't get that kind of speed in atmosphere. To fly a podracer that quickly requires iron nerves and split-second reflexes."

The sort that weren't generally found in humans. Anakin left that part out.

He clasped his hands in front of him. "Today you can take a turn learning how the simulators work, then pair up to fly against each other." He gave them a slightly predatory smile. "If you choose, you can fly against me. I built the real version of this podracer," he patted the left-hand simulator, "and used it to win a race when I was nine years old. And I won't give you a head start."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"I solemnly swear, upon threat of detention and possible bodily harm, to listen and follow Master Skywalker's instructions, not to bring food or drink within ten feet of the simulators, and to absolutely never start a fight anywhere inside the flight shed, as Master Skywalker will let my head get cracked open on something metallic, like I deserve, and then throw me into detention for the entirety of my time at Fandom High."

Ah, possessiveness is such an attractive characteristic.

Calvin recited the pledge, not like he was going to start a fight anyway.

Bobby recited the pledge, and even managed to not roll his eyes at the "head cracked open" part.

"...you have got to be kidding me," was Leia's response.

"I'm not," Anakin replied, narrowing his eyes slightly at her.

"Isn't that going just a little bit overboard?" Leia said. At least she stopped herself from saying "completely ridiculous." The key word being "saying."

"No," Anakin, giant drama queen, declared.

"A simple statement and acknowledgment of the rules would be just as sufficient," Leia said stubbornly, crossing her arms.

"This is a simple statement," Anakin said.

"A simple statement," Leia said dryly, "would be to say that I have read the rules and understand them. Or do you really want to hear me say 'as my father will let my head get cracked open on something metallic, like I deserve'? It's comforting to know that you care for my welfare so much."

"I wouldn't leave it cracked that long," Anakin muttered.

"Can I just say I understand the rules and promise not to break them?" Leia offered up as compromise. She wasn't going to make that ridiculous pledge.

"No, you can be just like the rest of the students, do as I ask and not end up in detention," Anakin countered.

"You're being ridiculous," Leia bitched. "Melodramatic doesn't suit you."

"And stubbornness is only going to lose you a Saturday," Anakin warned.

Leia rolled her eyes. "I promise to behave and not bleed all over Daddy's precious simulator?" she said sarcastically.

"Or spill anything on it," Anakin added.

"Am I allowed to breath on it?" Leia asked sweetly.

He scowled. "You're mocking me."

Oh, well spotted, Anakin.

Re: Recite the Pledge!

likes_scoundrels - 2010-05-11 22:50 (UTC) - Expand

sith_happened - 2010-05-11 22:53 (UTC) - Expand

likes_scoundrels - 2010-05-11 23:07 (UTC) - Expand

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likes_scoundrels - 2010-05-12 01:41 (UTC) - Expand

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likes_scoundrels - 2010-05-12 03:03 (UTC) - Expand

Goose recited the pledge, well he had promised Commander Walsh that he wouldn't do anything that would get him into trouble, or at least try not to do anything.

Jak didn't look particularly impressed, but recited anyway.

Asuna recited the pledge. Boy, Skywalker-sensei sure was cranky and here she thought he was kind of attractive but he didn't hold a candle to her Takahata-sensei.

Even though she was the TA, Anemone recited the pledge along with everyone else. She was setting a good example!

Mostly.

"I solemnly swear, upon threat of bodily harm and revocation of flight privileges to listen and follow Master Skywalker's instructions, not to bring food or drink within ten feet of the simulators, although I am allowed to bring cookies to share with the class so long as THEY don't then eat within ten feet of the simulators, and to absolutely never start a fight anywhere inside the flight shed, because that is stupid and a waste of flight time and I'm not supposed to beat up the students because I haven't even bitten anyone in the last year and Master Skywalker would give me the frowny face and not let me play with his toys anymore."

...close enough.

Anakin shot her a slightly amused smile as he listened to her pledge.

Bruce recited the pledge, even making an attempt to follow Anakin's pauses and breathes precisely. He probably didn't get it exactly right, but it gave him something to entertain himself with for a moment.