As it turns out, a beach day was exactly what was needed. The detachment was working like a well-oiled machine now.

A few more runs had been attempted, all ultimately failing. But they were getting closer and closer to the time goal.

Soon enough, the final run of the day was up. Little did anyone know, this run would end in disaster.

"Talk to me, Bob," Phoenix calls back to her WSO.

"We're 12 seconds late on Target. we gotta move, we gotta move!" he replies.

"Copy, try and stay with me," Coyote says over the radio.

"Uh, wait, who's that?" Bob asks after seeing a boogie appear on his radar.

"Blue team, you've been spotted," Maverick says over the radio.

Coyote curses. "Shit, it's Maverick.”

"What the hell is he doing here?" Phoenix questions.

"I'm a bandit on course to intercept, blue team. What are you gonna do?" Maverick asks.

"He's 12 miles left, 10 o’clock and closing," Bob informs the others.

"Your call, what do you want to do?" Coyote asks Phoenix, as she was team leader for this particular run.

"Continue, we're close," she says. "Stay on target."

"He's swinging around to the north," Bob says.

"Stay ready for the pop-up," Coyote advises.

"Be ready with my laser, Bob!" Phoenix tells him.

"Copy, I'm on it," he responds.

"Blue team, bandit is still closing," Maverick informs them.

"Popping up," Coyote says as he pops his plane up.

"Talk to me Bob, where's the bandit?" Coyote asks.

"He's 5 miles out. He's coming fast," Bob responded.

"Targets in sight," Phoenix confirms.

"Where's my laser, Bob?!" Coyote asks.

"Dead eye, dead eye! It's no good, sorry I can't get a lock." Bob calls out.

"We're out of time, I'm dropping blind," Coyote says. He sends the missile. "Damn it! Miss!"

They start the steep climb out of the canyon, but Coyote goes into GLOC.

"That's tone," Maverick says as he locks onto Bob and Phoenix. 

"Shit, we're dead," Phoenix says.

"Blue team, that's a fail," Maverick informs them. "Level out Coyote " Coyote doesn't respond.

"Coyote, talk to me," Maverick tries again. "Coyote, come in! Coyote level wings."

Still nothing.

"Oh my god, he's in GLOC," Maverick realizes. "Coyote, Coyote!"

"He's gonna burn in!" Phoenix worries.

"I'm going after him," Maverick says, punching his speed. "Come on, give me tone, give me tone, give me tone."

He gets a lock on Coyote, using the sound to wake him out of GLOC. "Snap out of it, Coyote, come on, come on. Break right, break right!!!"

Coyote wakes up just in time to steer away from the mountain.

"There we go, kid, you ok?" Maverick asks him.

"Yeah, I'm ok," he replies. "I’m good."

"Good, good. That's enough for today," Maverick releases a breath.

"That was close," Phoenix says as she flies up to Maverick's wing. 

"Too close," Maverick agrees.

"Bird strike, bird strike!!!" Maverick yells. Phoenix and Bob pull away, but it's too late.

"Phoenix, left engines on fire!" Bob exclaims.

"Climbing!" she responds. "Shutting off fuel to left engine, pushing fire."

"Right engines out!" Bob calls out.

They are still spinning, trying to restart the engine.

"Phoenix, it's on fire!" Maverick tries to warn her.

"Oh god, we're on fire!" Bob yells out.

"Igniting engine," Phoenix tries to remain calm.

"Phoenix, Bob, punch out! Punch out!" Maverick yells.

"Hydraulic failure," Bob informs.

"I can't control it!" Phoenix calls to him. "We're going down!"

"You can't shake it, eject, eject," Maverick insists, not wanting to lose anyone else like this.

"Eject, eject, eject," Phoenix says as she and Bob grab their ejection handles. They manage to eject just before the plane crashes.

☽☆☾   ☽☆☾   ☽☆☾

Reuben called Jia as soon as they got the news that Phoenix and Bob were okay.

After the beach day prior, Jia had gotten close with many of his teammates, but more so Natasha and Bob. There was just something about their demeanor that drew her in.

So Reuben knew she would want to know what happened.

"Hey, what's up? You on a break?" Jia answered the phone.

She heard Reuben sigh. "Reu, what's wrong?"

"Ji, there was an accident. Phoenix and Bob had a bird strike, and they had to eject."

Jia's hand went straight to her mouth, covering her scared gasp. "Are they okay?"

Reuben nodded, even if she didn't see him. "Yes, we just got word. They are both okay, just being kept in the hospital overnight for observation. But they are okay."

Benji had seen her face, stopping to grab some water. She shook her head at his questioning glance. She'll fill him in later.

"Ji, this was a freak accident. Birds are something all pilots need to contend with and watch out for. Unfortunately, there was nothing Phoenix could do to save the jet. But they made it out. That's what you need to focus on."

Jia nodded her head. "I know. And I've known about all the potential dangers of flying. It's just really hitting me right now, is all."

She takes a deep breath, holding it for a few seconds before letting it out. She had work to be done, work she needed to be in the correct headspace for.

"I'm good. I'll be sure to send messages to both of them after I'm done for the day." She reaffirmed, both telling Reuben and herself.

Reuben's attention was caught by Mickey nodding his head to the doors. He nods to him, finishing up his conversation with Jia.

"We've been dismissed early, so Mickey and I are heading back to the house. Why don't you bring Benji back and we can have a night in?"

Jia liked that idea. "Okay. I'll see you once we wrap. I love you."

Reuben smiled on his end of the phone. "I love you too. Be safe. Finish strong."

And with that, the couple hung up, both with many emotions just running through their bodies.

Unfortunately, the days wouldn't be getting better for a little while.

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Word count: 1,003

The birdstrike has happened, everyone is okay but Jia is still nervous.

Sadly, Iceman's Funeral is next although Jia isn't involved, the reality of Reuben's job and danger will be hitting hard.

Keep those tissues ready. Bye guys!!

(Gif by me)