Flight and Flying- Monday- 2nd period

[solo_sword]

Class was back in the flight shed today, with a whole new simulation. "Last week we tried out X-wings from our universe. This week we're back in the same area, but we're going to be flying TIE fighters."

"Those were the ones who shot at you in the trench last week," Anakin said helpfully, winking at Ahsoka. "They behave differently in flight than the X-Wings because of the structure of their wings. They're faster, but have no shielding, so any damage you take is going to have an immediate effect."

"Their other big detriment is that they're not equipped with hyperdrives," Jaina added. "If you can get away that way, you can shake them." Which… might not be entirely true now, but at least in Jaina's timeline it was soooo there was that?

Anakin nodded. "They're short-range, which means that if your cruiser feels threatened and hyperjumps away, you've just had a really, really bad day. They also have the navigational ability of large rocks when confronted with gravity--it's like flying an entirely different craft when they're planetside."

"Which is what you're going to be dealing with today," Jaina smiled, because they were mean. "You're going to be flying in the desert, trying to navigate yourself to a town programmed into the computer. Sooo… have fun with that."

"Don't crash and die too many times," Anakin added, nodding. "The other option is the same trench run in space that you did last week, only this time you'll be trying to shoot down the pesky X-Wings."

Comments

Talk to the teachers

[solo_sword]

The big bad laundry strike is over, and let's all be grateful.

Re: Talk to the teachers

[sith_happened]

Anakin was there, ready to listen to all TIE-related ranting.

Re: Talk to the teachers

[snipsnspecks]

"Grandchildren!" Well, it wasn't the TIE-related ranting.

Re: Talk to the teachers

[sith_happened]

"Yes?" Anakin said, trying to look innocent about it.

He failed completely.

Re: Talk to the teachers

[snipsnspecks]

"You!" Anakin, there were people, somewhere, maybe, who might have been taken in by that, your Padawan was not one of them. "Grandchildren!"

And she didn't even know about Jaina, yet.

Re: Talk to the teachers

[sith_happened]

"The Order and I had some philosophical differences about the 'no attachments' thing," Anakin said, which probably wasn't a huge surprise to Ahsoka.

Re: Talk to the teachers

[snipsnspecks]

No, she had managed to figure that much on her own. Also not what had her unable to speak in whole sentences, which he knew.

"You said 'long story', not 'by the way, Ahsoka, my grandkid has younglings, watch out for that'." To be fair, by the time he had a graceful opening for that, she had already posted in last weeks class all unknowing. "When did you two even find the time anyway?" There'd been a war on, and unless numerous people had lied to her over the years, humans didn't lay eggs.

Re: Talk to the teachers

[sith_happened]

Anakin coughed. "We got married after the Battle of Geonosis."

Re: Talk to the teachers

[snipsnspecks]

Ahsokas mouth worked silently for a moment, she'd figured out there was something going on by the end, but...wait a minute.

"That was before we even...the entire time? You lectured me about Lux!" Who had never done more than kiss her. Once. As a distraction!

Re: Talk to the teachers

[sith_happened]

Anakin shrugged. "Didn't say I wasn't hypocritical," he mumbled.

Re: Talk to the teachers

[snipsnspecks]

For her part, Ahsoka was covering her face with her palm and saying "Master" in a very familiar, very aggrieved tone of voice because some habits died hard, especially when you'd never really had the chance to change them.

Somewhere, Obi-wan was so sad he didn't have an audience to make a pithy comment to.

Re: Talk to the teachers

[goforthe_optics]

Oh, there would be TIE-related ranting.

"No, seriously, I need to know. Who came up with these things?"

Also there was flailing.

For the record, Tali would feel largely the same way about the M-44 Hammerhead in a year or so.

"Keelah, I think this made me actually miss the Mako and I can't believe I'm saying this."

Tali, no one here but you was actually familiar with them.

Re: Talk to the teachers

[sith_happened]

"I don't think I've ever flown the Mako," Anakin said. "And yeah, the TIEs are absolutely terrible. There was no value placed on the life of the pilot at all."

RE: Re: Talk to the teachers

[goforthe_optics]

"That much is obvious," Tali said, shaking her head. "Lack of FTL capability is one thing, I can understand that, and I can see how it would be a lot more maneuverable in vacuum, but no shielding? Disregarding the pilot's safety just seems . . . Fundamentally wrong somehow."

She trailed off for a couple of seconds, just because if she didn't she'd really go off on a rant.

"Oh, the Mako isn't a spacecraft, it's a tank -- that spent more than enough time airborne the way my former commander drove it."

Just because it was equipped with micro thrusters and the capability to climb steep inclines didn't mean you should drive it off every cliff just for fun, Shepard. At least not with the rest of the squad inside.

Re: Talk to the teachers

[sith_happened]

Anakin blinked. "He made a tank fly?"

This was Anakin's kind of commander.

RE: Re: Talk to the teachers

[goforthe_optics]

Tali groaned and put her hands over her faceplate, shaking her head at the same time. "Not exactly? It's got thrusters, and it's built to climb, and she just liked to drive it over mountains. It's a little bit of a ridiculous vehicle."

Which maneuvered like a drunken rhino.

Re: Talk to the teachers

[sith_happened]

"That sounds amazing," Anakin said. "We should do that in class."

Re: Talk to the teachers

[goforthe_optics]

"I'd be more than happy to get you the specs for it," Tali offered. "Though no, I'm not sure what the engineer behind that one was thinking either."

Re: Talk to the teachers

[sith_happened]

Anakin gestured at the TIE simulator. "Clearly that hasn't stopped up so far."

Re: Talk to the teachers

[goforthe_optics]

"Well, there's not much point in only learning to maneuver when it's easy, is there?" Tali said with the kind of rueful tone that said she knew that, but she would probably have Things to Say when it wasn't easy anyway. "It's definitely giving me clearer ideas about my own design concepts, though."

RE: Talk to the teachers

[solo_sword]

For the record, Jaina had repaired and flown one of these at fourteen. Just saying.

RE: Talk to the teachers

[halfaclink.livejournal.com]

"So they're called TIE fighters because they look like bow ties, right?" Frank asked. He was wearing a bow tie, for the record. "Do people in space even have bow ties?"

RE: Talk to the teachers

[solo_sword]

"It's because of their twin ion engines. TIE," Jaina corrected. "And no bow ties, but we do have a lot of capes."

RE: Talk to the teachers

[halfaclink.livejournal.com]

Frank gave a thoughtful look. "So we're pretending that it's just a coincidence that it looks like a bow tie. Fair enough."

RE: Talk to the teachers

[solo_sword]

"It's really much easier that way," Jaina confirmed.