Careless

Chapter 1

Risky. Unpredictable. Unsafe. Reckless. Dangerous.

All words used to describe one Captain Pete "Maverick" Mitchell. Everyone knew the captain solely through these descriptions, but why is he described like that? Why do the higher-ups in the Navy refer to the man in such a way? A way that could possibly tarnish his reputation. And why doesn't the captain do anything about it? These are all questions the Dagger Squad – as they had been dubbed around the base at Lemoore – have been wandering ever since they got to know Maverick, got to know the man behind the callsign, got to know the real Captain Pete Vincent Mitchell. Not "Maverick", not the unpredictable pilot, not the unsafe, reckless, dangerous pilot, and definitely not the man who was cocky.

"Good morning," Maverick greeted as the team entered the mess hall, nodding to them over a cup of steaming black coffee. Rooster cringed at the idea of drinking pure black coffee with no additions to it, but Mav either didn't notice or ignored him. "What's your plans for today?" They all shrugged. They still had a bit of leave to recover from the mission, so there wasn't really anything for them to do in the meantime. Mav hummed, taking a sip of his coffee.

"Hey, Mav?" Jake "Hangman" Seresin – a cocky young pilot, though Maverick could tell his cockiness was beginning to fade out – asked as the group began to eat breakfast. Well, the younger pilots did. Mav just drank his coffee. Humming as he looked up from his phone, Hangman took that as his cue to continue. "Could we do training today? I know we're on leave, but I think we should keep on top of our training."

Mav paused, thinking. It had been a while since their last training session, and it wouldn't be a bad idea to see how much the team had progressed since then. Smiling, the captain nodded as Admiral Warlock came over, looking at the captain with an icy look. Maverick noticed him immediately, and bit back the urge to sigh when he was handed a folder. Great, a new deployment. Am I not still on leave?

"Captain." Warlock greeted coldly, watching the man in a calculating manner. "You are being deployed today to Ukraine. Russia is on the offensive again. Help out where you can." And try not to come home. That bit went left unsaid, like most times when he was given a mission, but no one ever picked up on it. Namely because they didn't know... or they did and never bothered to say anything.

"Yes, sir," Maverick nodded, standing, and saluting the admiral, before opening the file as he headed out of the mess hall, biting back a groan as he noticed the length of his deployment – six months. I'm gonna have to leave the kids, and Ice, for six months... fuck. Picking up his phone, Mav was quick to open Ice's contact and send him a heads up.

Iceman

Being deployed again.

Where to?

Ukraine.

How long?

Six months.

Are you serious? Aren't you still
on leave Pete?

Yep.

Good luck. Call me when you get to
Ukraine.

Will do.
Look after the kids for me?

Of course, Mav.

Thanks Ice.

Turning off his phone, Mav groaned, collapsing onto the bed. Six months... the Navy really didn't want him to come home, did they? Ignoring how it hurt him to think of that painfully obvious truth, he began to pack a bag. It was small, nothing more than a couple pair of clothes, his toothbrush, toothpaste, and a charger for his phone. If the Navy didn't want him to come home, what was the point of taking so many things?

A knock on his door pulled him away from his thoughts, answering it to see a rather concerned looking Payback. "Payback, what can I do for you?" He asked, stepping out with his small bag, beginning to walk towards the flight strip. Payback was quiet, making Mav stop and turn towards him, head tilted. "Payback?"

"Why..." Payback bit his tongue, struggling to find the words. "Why did Warlock talk to you like that? Back in the mess hall." Mav sighed, leaning against the wall but he didn't answer. "Mav?"

"Look," he said, "the Navy aren't too fond of me and... I don't blame them. I have way too many citations in my file that I could be dishonourably discharged. Hell, after this deployment I might be, but that's beside the point. Admiral Warlock and Admiral Cyclone aren't too keen on me specifically because of those citations, that's all. That, and I don't follow orders well, especially if it hinders the idea of everyone on the mission coming home." Payback still remained silent, feeling as if there was more to this story. Mav glanced at him before shrugging. "That's all the ideas I have for the Navy hating me, sorry to disappoint you, Payback. I better head over to the flight strip. I'll see you later."

"When?"

"Hm?"

Payback took a deep breath, looking at the end of the corridor where Maverick stood. "When will we see you again?" Seeing the hesitance, Payback nodded in understanding. "It's a long time, isn't it? Well, see you when you get back, Captain."

Maverick watched the aviator leave before turning back towards the flight strip and heading off. He had a deployment to focus on, and he couldn't get distracted. Not if he wanted to come home. Arriving at his plane, Mav placed his bag in the back and got into the cockpit, placing his helmet on. He went through the flight checks, glancing up at the communication tower where Warlock and Cyclone were looking down at him. Saluting the two, Mav got the canopy to come down and prepared to take off. Taking off, Maverick sighed heavily. Six months... Only six months, Maverick.