Passing on the Legacy

[James Justice]

James--knew he was a failure of a father on so many levels. He had no idea what girls liked these days. He was overly protective. He was strong-tempered. He was an alcoholic. He was a huge cigarette addict. He was wrapped up so much in his work that his idea of family bonding generally involved being in the line of fire.

But damn it, he was trying, and he would keep trying.

So when Jessica, his oldest daughter, had told him that she was interested in him teaching her to be a pilot, well, he would try. He decided he was going to do this the right way; the way he had learned. Though he couldn't remember a specific time he had been told how to fly a freighter, he knew that he had learned over time, with so many small things adding up to him ultimately becoming the ace he was today.

You name it, he could and had piloted it; everything from fighters to capitals, he had put his hand at its helm. But, he learned on a freighter, a classic Dynamic-class freighter, the one his father had owned. With relish he personally had spent several days looking through the Outer Rim for one. At last he did, and in working condition. The moment he climbed aboard the dinosaur of a vessel, he knew he needed it. If for nothing else than nastalgia, he needed it.

Hauling it from the scrapyard, he flew it to over Degobah. This world he knew they could crash on without anything too bad happeneing. That was if worst came to worst. But he knew his girl; she was a Justice. This would be natural. She wouldn't crash it. She would make it sing. Or--he hoped so dearly. The ship had no escape pods. Of course, he didn't tell her. That would put more pressure on her than was needed. Instead he pat his lap as he sat in the pilot's seat, "Commere, love, let's teach ye how this thing works."

He felt a quiver of emotion; This is what dad would have wanted. How I wish he would have been able to see this day.

Was his dad proud of him? He hoped so. A tear welled up in his eye, behind a screen of smoke, he wiped it away. Damn it, it was time to do this. No crying. Be a man. Be a man who is proud of your daughter without crying.

James wondered if he would have been able to do that......

[member="Jessica Justice"]

 

[Jessica Justice]

Giddy is so not even close to how the Young Justice was feeling today. She was going to learn to fly! From one of the best pilots she'd ever heard of! Her own father! She'd been preparing mentally, and physically all day. She even dressed for her lessons appropriately. Full length slacks, more sturdy, less-heeled boots, and a proper flight-jacket zipped up over her tank-top. Her hair was pulled back today, in a ponytail to help keep it clear of her face. No distractions!

Accompanying her father aboard the ship, she was using all her willpower to keep from visibly bouncing too much in her seat next to her James. Then, he beckoned her over to take a seat on his lap. Her enthusiasm in getting out her seat and approaching him was similar in strength, but vastly different in nature, to most women who receive the request to sit in the spacers lap. A slight squeal of excitement was restricted in her throat as she gave a quick clap of her hands. Her hands tentatively reached once, twice, and three times, before awkwardly folding in her lap, fingers fidgeting the whole time.

"So... so.... so what's first, eh da?!" Jess would ask, her excitement impossible to restrain. So many buttons, toggles, and switches. Knobs and levers. And the flight control handle. She was trying to visually take it all in, but it was all so foreign and alien, and she loved it!


[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

James took his cigarette from between his lips and settled his girl on his lap. It was like she was a toddler, almost. He wondered if part of him was doing this to help make up for her lost childhood.

And he knew the answer; he was. Its not like that wasn't an obvious tell.

He waved with his cigarette-weilding hand at the yoke, "This here be the joystick. Or the yoke if ye want. Now first thing ye needs to know is that these things handle pretty damn different in space than they do in atmos. Even each ship will handle a bit different mind ye; star destroyers dun't turn like fighters and freighters of their different styles each generally have their own pull," he gave that a moment to sink in. "Now, this is where things get fun. Those levers over there," he said waving to the ones over the co-pilot seat, "are the hyperspace controls. These here are ye guns, maneuvering and the dials.

"Now see those green lights right there?" he said pointing at a readout, "They be from top to bottom; fuel, hull integrity, and shields. We want those to stay high. To the left of the yoke, that number be our missiles. We got 12 on hand. Don't press to launch, last thing we need is some poor fool getting his face blow off like that," he laughed at, "When I were five, I launched me first torpedo. Dad and I had landed on some backwater arse and I got off his lap and hit the fire button on accident. I blew half the port away, including our buyer."

James shook his head laughing, his dad had only laughed and told him to try harder next time to blow the whole thing to bits. Back to business, James thought.

"But we will cover combat fightin' later," he said dismissing the fighting intel, "I'm just givin' ye a basic run down of the controls. This lever here next to the yoke is ye trust. See how it goes back and forward? Ye push it to the top here and ye will gun the engines, ye ram it to the base and we will lurch in reverse. So what I want ye to do," he said pointing to a nearby satellite, "is get us to go to it and around it. Ease into the gas, love, remember, don't ram it. And take ye time."

It was a relatively simple maneuver, one that would give her confidence and a basic understanding of how this ship handled. Still..... he buckled in.

[member="Jessica Justice"]

 

[Jessica Justice]

Okay, this didn't see that hard.... Right? Right?! She trembled, from the adrenaline and the excitement of it all. She'd nod emphatically as her father gave her an objective. Okay, she could do this... she's a Justice for kark's sake! She'd go through everything he just told her, just to make sure it was committed to memory. "Yoke... Hyperspace.... Missiles.... Fuel, hull, shields.... Trust...." Nodding to herself, she'd look over her shoulder, giving her father a winning grin. "Okay da! I'm going to try!"

Facing forwards, and biting her lip lightly, she'd ease forwards on the throttle, just slightly, causing the ship to start oh-so-slowly forwards. She'd frown slightly, knowing that she was babying it at that point, so she'd push a little further.... Accidentally going a little father than she'd wanted too fast, causing her to back track down a bit, causing the iconic lurch of vehicle controlled by a student-driver.

She'd fan her hands, slightly from the brief moment of being flustered, but also from realization. Unbeknownst to Jess, the Force shed light on insight from her minor mistake. She perceived as a simple realization, not a supernatural divining, a working understanding of the ship's controls. "Ooooh! Oh! I think I understand! Let me try again!" She'd say, eagerly looking back at her father with a twinkle in her eye, much like James likely possessed when he first discovered his lust for flying.

Grasping the yoke in one hand, the throttle in the other, she'd steadily pour on the speed, flying the ship significantly faster than James would have liked for her first time flying. She'd then crank the yoke, dropping the speed simultaneously to cause the ship's tail end to start to kick out wide. She'd then pour on the speed again, causing the vessel to do as close to a space-approximation of a drift around the satellite. Coming to a halt facing where they came from, Jess would clap her hands excitedly, the adrenaline pounding through her veins. She'd look back to her father grinning broadly. "So!? How did I do da?!"

[member=James Justice]​

 

[James Justice]

As her maneuver went wild and she gave the tale-tell first lurch of the first time driver, James was glad he had an iron stomach and a history of himself making very risky maneuvers. Still it felt like his innards were swimming inside. Her brief moment of panic was nothing if not totally adorable. He suppressed the urge to laugh and hold her close. She needed to find this out the only good way any one would learn and the only way that any Justice would ever learn; the hard way, tossing in the water head first.

Then she did what he knew she was capable of and took to it like a fish to water. The spacer was quite pleased as she managed to find her way into a fishtail and fly in a pretty strait line. She had a lead foot and James did too, he was totally ok with that. When she looked at him, beaming with delight, he said the first word that came to mind, "Perfect, darling."

Speed was what he liked, and the fact that she had kept both hands on the yoke the whole time, she was actually three steps ahead of him already. Now for the next maneuver.

"Alright darling so ye are gonna have to circle now," he said carefully, 'When ye in combat, keeping ye nose at the enemy and barraging into them as ye circle 'em is one of the best tactics ye can do. So I want ye to keep ye to do that with the satilte, darling. Stay looking at her as ye spin. And dun't get dizzy love, it's the hardest part, but ye can do it."

He gave her forehead a fatherly kiss of pride and a squeezing hug. He couldn't have been prouder today. He may not have been there for her first steps, but he was here for her first flight. And that, for him, was a hellva something.

[member="Jessica Justice"]