Revealed: Parables From The Apocalypse - Dystopian Fiction by Norman Christof

supposed to be at the chopper."  Alex pulled the soldier’s corpse off the colonel.  "Who's at the chopper?  I can still hear it running; did you take out the men in the chopper?"
    "Yes, it's done.  I saw this guy firing into the ditch.  Looked like you needed help, so I came over.  I was sure you'd both be dead when I got here."
    "We're in better shape than you right now.  You look like hell." Christa watched from behind Alex as he pulled out a med kit from his pack.
    "We don't have time for that, boy. We've got to get that copter in the air.  Time is running out."
    "Yes it is, but having you bleed to death en route is not part of the plan.  I've got to at least stop the bleeding before we go.  Give me a minute."  Alex pulled back the colonel’s sleeve, dumped a bunch of antiseptic on the wound and wrapped it tightly.  He then wrapped and bandaged Chaz's side.
    "That should hold.  Can you get out of this ditch on your own?"
    Getting to his feet, Chaz noticed the second soldier’s body near the sewer tunnel.
    "I'm not an invalid, kid, I can climb."
     
    With much boosting and pushing from Alex, Chaz was able to make it out of the ditch.  Next came Christa, and finally Alex climbed out on his own.  They headed straight for the copter, moving as fast as they could in the dark.  Alex directed Christa into the rear of the copter. 
     
    "Get in, and buckle up.  This could be a rough ride."
     
     
     

 
     
    Water Hazard
     
    Alex grabbed the door to the copilot’s side, but Chaz stopped him before he could swing it open.  "Nope, you're gonna have to take the pilot’s side, son.  There's no way I can fly this thing with one good arm."
    "No way, Colonel.  Last time I tried the simulator, I crashed the damn thing every time."
    "Here's to hoping you learned something from your past mistakes.  I'll step you through what I can, but you’re gonna have to be the pilot today.  It's not that far."
    "It's not the distance I'm worried about, Colonel.  It's the ending.  I've never landed anything like this."
    "You've only got to put it down once.  As long as we can walk away after touchdown, I won't harbor any hard feelings."
    "Jesus, Colonel, this is serious shit.  I could kill us all in this thing."
    "But you won't; I won't let you.  You get to be the hero today.  The copilot and pilot controls are mirror images, so I can pitch in if you get into trouble."
     
    Chaz and Alex both strapped themselves in, and took a good look at the controls.  Alex's right hand shook as he reached for the control stick.  Chaz noticed, but didn't comment.
     
    "Alright, Alex, I'm sure you remember some of this, but here's your quick refresher.  That stick between your legs is altitude control, and controls our direction.  The throttle is that grip over on your left.  You're going to need that for takeoff, but once we get high enough, the copter’s automated governor will control that.  At your feet, you've got your pedals that control the tail rotor."
    "I do, I do remember most of this stuff.  It's just been a while.  The simulator exercises were tougher than normal flying, so maybe this won't be so bad."
    "Today won't be that tough.  We're just flying in a straight line for a short distance.  Just remember, we want to hover, then go straight forward till we get up to about 40 knots of speed, then we'll go for height. We only need to get high enough to land on the roof of the depository.  We'll bypass all that fighting on the ground.  The roof should be fine for landing on."
    "Should be?"
    "We'll radio ahead to make sure they're listening.  Alright, let's go.  Get us off the ground before any more of those freaks show up."
     
    Alex applied some throttle, and adjusted the altitude controls to get the copter off the ground.  He angled the copter’s tail section down the runway, gaining speed before gaining altitude.  He had plenty of room; this runway was designed for planes more than