The Secret Escape

"ARA"

-SPOTLIGHTS blasted Ryan as he squinted to try and see.
"ARA it's me girl!" He had a feeling she flipped on her taxi and landing lights.
"Ryan?" She said in her soft yet concerned voice that of which was of a early 20's female.
"Yeah girl its me, please if you would shut the lights. I'm not like you ha" as he covered his eyes until she finally turned off her lights.
"I'm so sorry Ryan. I just haven't feeling safe anymore here. Yeah the crack helps but to be honest, I'm afraid and scared of who's here when you aren't." That didn't make sense, she was a multi million dollar fighter jet who was way the hell bigger then a human. And she was scared????
"Ara, you know that doesn't make sense right? You are massive compared to myself. I've known you since the start and you know you can trust me. What's wrong girl?"
- Her glowing red eyes moved to her nose and down just like a person would when they sigh.
"Ry, ry" - which was the nickname she had given him around the 2nd year of knowing him.
"I just can't help but feel I'm useless. I know I'm a test bed for the future. But that was five years ago when I 1st became aware. Now there's newer tech and hell a newer airframe. You know, the lightning. On top of that the crew that comes in at night. All they do is connect their cables and run simulations. And every single time I either lose or crash. And two nights ago they muttered something about how I would be taken up for a flight and just blown up. And i .... I ... Really don't want that to happen!!!"
-He looked at her unmoved eye as a very slight small leak of hydraulic fluid came out. He raised his hand to pat her on her nose and look her into her eyes.
"Ara! Look. I'm the program guy. In a way, I am in charge of anything that happens to you. I know you have laws that I've unfortunately have had to give you. But if you ever feel unsafe or scared. You high tail it out of here and hide and be free. Got it?"
"Got it ry ry".
"By the way girl. Sammy say hi".
"Aww.  I miss sam".

-ARA was a very sick looking F-16.  She may have been technically built in 1989. But she was more technologically advanced then even a F-35.   Before she was sent to the lake.  She was a WA or Weapons Aggressor. AKA she was the best of the best in the USAF fleet.  She was known to the entire Air Force as "Wraith". But since she was a program in the black budgets, she was given the acronym of ARA (Attack Ready and aware Aircraft) and the name kinda stuck.  She was one very sexy jet.  Being predominantly black but with accents of red.  Everything on her was either in development or upgrades from years past.  However what she was is the entire reason she was at the base in the 1st place. Although rarely seen in the open.  Five years ago when a meteorite lit up the night sky and deposited tiny flakes across the desert. No one took a second thought of what it might be.  However when certain things like the camo dude's raptors and jeeps started mysteriously moving and even some of the smaller king Airs on the north ramp started to act up.  Then some attention came to it.  She was a "Dire" as now it was commonly known.  Basically she was thousands of tiny robots or nanites all joined together to make one entity. A entity and one that was alive.  And the whole idea for the Air Force was to use this new "Self aware fighter jet to fly deep into hostile places and not be afraid to die.  Which was sad for Ryan to think of yet his purpose was to make her feel patriotic if that's what it had to come too. 

"You know, I don't know how you two
Ever got to know each other. But she likes you girl. And I can't tell her if you are real or not.  You know that right?"
"I know ry, I know. But still I miss her.  I wish she would come back. It's been five years and not a day goes by that I don't think about her."
"Well hopefully you get cleared and then you can fly back to Nellis and I'll bring her over so you can officially see her"
"REALLY RY!!!!!   That would be splendid!"
"Ha hahaha.... just for you my princess"
- Rumor had it that Sam was one of her last Pilots. In fact that Sam was the one who flew "wraith" to the lake and of course never saw her again.  And due to the fact she knew where she took the jet is the reason she was the dispatcher at the terminal.  

"Okay girl!  What's on the agenda today?  NAV light installation, ECS sock replacement, 180 hr inspection..... hold it didn't we do that last week? Meh it's easy, CDU calibration and pencil light requires R squared.  Really? That's out?"
" Yeah, look".
-as she flipped on all her external lights on
"Huh...., could have sworn we took care of that. Well my queen!  Let me knock out as much as I can before the rest of the dudes show up and hopefully you can fly today. Also, I do have to break something to you about me later in the day."
"Really ry, better not be something bad!"
"It's not babe!  But I will be a little sad"
"Um Ryan!!! I thought you didn't want us to be that close when....."
"Look ARA.  When it's just you and I. We can be us, but when the rest of the nerds show up.  Then yeah professional.  Love you!"
"Love you too honey".