Chapter 24 Chapter 24 Flying Dragon

Lieutenant Jimmy Peck is the most junior officer aboard Endeavor, and this is only his fourth space mission.He's ambitious and overdue for an upgrade; he's committed one serious breach of discipline.No wonder he spent a lot of time making up his mind. It was a gamble, and if he lost he was going to be in big trouble, risking his career and his neck.But if he succeeds, he will be a hero.It was not these considerations that made up his mind in the end, but his conviction that if he did nothing this time, he would regret the missed opportunity all his life. Even so, he was a little hesitant when he asked Newton to give him a private interview.

What's the matter this time?Newton thought as he looked at the young official's hesitant expression.He couldn't help thinking of that interesting conversation with Boris Rodrigo.No, it won't be that kind of thing this time.Peck is by no means a Christian.His amateur hobbies are just sports and sex, and he combines them well. This time it was unlikely to be the former, and Newton hoped it was not the latter. "Come on, Jimmy, what's the matter?" "I have an idea, Lieutenant Colonel. I think I can go to the southern continents and even Antarctica." "I'm very interested. How are you going to get there?"

"Uh, fly over there." "Jimmy, I've had at least five of these suggestions—many more if you count the nonsense from Earth. We considered using the space suit's jet propulsion, but the drag of the air made They are so inefficient. They run out of fuel before ten kilometers." "I know that. I have another idea." Watching Peck's strange mixture of utter confidence and nervousness, Newton was blindsided.What is the child worried about?He knew enough about his commander not to laugh at a reasonable suggestion. "Okay, let's talk. If it works, I will take care of you to make up for your promotion."

The half-joking, half-committing answer didn't have the effect he expected.Jimmy returned a morbid smile, hesitated to speak a few times, and then talked about this topic in circles. "You know, Lieutenant Colonel, last year I participated in the Moon Olympics." "Of course I do. It's just a pity you didn't win." "It's all due to equipment failure. I already know what's wrong. My friends on Mars have been working on it in secret. We want to surprise everyone." "On Mars? Why didn't I know..." "Not many people know about it. The sport is new there, only tested in gymnasiums. The best aerodynamicists in the solar system are on Mars, and if you can fly in that atmosphere, you can fly in that atmosphere." Fly anywhere. You can have a really good show on the Moon because it has half the gravity of Mars."

"That sounds applauded, but how does it help us?" Newton began to guess, but let Jimmy go on his own way. "Here's the thing, a couple of friends on Mars and I organized one. They built a human-powered aircraft perfectly suited for aerobatics, with some improvements that no one had seen hitherto. In the gravity of the Moon, it would Stealing the camera in Olympic stadiums." "And get your gold medal." "I hope so." "Let me see if I can follow your train of thought. A sky bike for the Moon Olympics, where gravity is one-sixth of a gravity, will be more nimble to drive in La Marie. You can ride along the axis Flying all the way from the North Pole to the South Pole - and back again."

"Yes, very easy. One way, if you don't stop, it takes about three hours. You can stop and rest at any time, as long as you stay near the axis." "What a clever idea, I congratulate you. It's a pity that the air bike is not included in the regular equipment of the Space Mapping Agency." Jimmy couldn't find the right words to express it for a while.He opened his mouth twice, but still couldn't speak. "Okay, Jimmy. Just for my own personal interest, no recording. How did you smuggle that thing onto the ship?" "Well... as a 'personal recreational item'."

"Well, you're not lying. How much does it weigh?" "It's only 20 kilograms." "Only! It's not as bad as I thought, though. In fact, I'm amazed that you can make a sky bike so light!" "Some weigh only 15 kilos, but are so fragile that they tend to fold up in sharp turns. The Wyvern doesn't have that danger. As I said, it's best suited for aerobatics." "Wyvern—good name. Now tell me in detail about your plans to use it, and then decide whether you should level up or court-martial, or both." -----------------------------

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