This is a filler chapter in which Yoel Angsana was sent into the Indonesian equivalent, storywise, of the US Navy's Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center and USAF Weapons School.

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"Ladies and gentlemen.."

"..You're the few fighter pilots who have been chosen to attend this course. You're the top five percent of aviators from your respective communities and branches.."

".. The elite, the best of the best we have, and here, the SEKSENUD TNI (it's Indonesian abbreviation, Sekolah Kesenjataan Udara TNI), we will make you even better.."

".. every day, you'll fly at least two sorties with your respective squadrons, attend classes, and evaluations.."

"You will be able to fly your birds much better and beyond what you can imagine. Especially as we are at war. So, act as you are in one, at all times!"

My eyes focused on plaques with photographs and names below the frame as the JAWS Commander, Commodore Reynald Gunawan, once the first commanding officer of KRI Berdikari, introduced us to the program.

"Those plaques you see is the best overall graduates from each class with their names on it along with best drivers from each community." Commodore Reynald continued. "They had an option to come back here and teach the next generation of Indonesian aviators."

Then he closed at me and looked at my eyes sharply.

"Do you think your name will be there?"

"Yes, sir!"

"For those who already have kills, especially aces. I need to tell you something. Here, your kills don't matter. This school has many ways to root out any sign of arrogance in your soul. As remember, just one mistake, and either you turned on your wings... or you're history."

His warning was expressed in a manner that I think, could freeze hell. Especially his looks, in particular, towards my medals so far, notably Bintang Jasa Yudha, Satyalancana Dharma Dirgantara (Distinguished Flying Medal), Distinguished Flying Cross by the Americans, Distinguished Flying Cordon by the Japanese, Vir Chakra by India, and even Medal of Nesterov by the Russians.

"We are at war, and there is no point for second place in combat, always remember that, Dismissed."

---

"Who's that guy?" I asked my buddy, Bala, which to my joy was also sent to JAWS as we are enjoying ourselves in the Officer's club inside the base complex.

"You don't know him? He's one of the best in the 109 Dolphins; Callsign, Snow. His flying is methodical and coldly efficient. Virtually no mistakes. Furthermore back in the Academy, he got Adhi Makayasa (1). Got himself 8-kills and has been a flight lead. Keep an eye on him." He warned me.

"Thanks for the reminder, and no wonder, because we never got a mission with him in the close proximity with us the 120."

"So, you're now flying with Snow, now, Stone?" Bala greeted Juan "Stone" Lumbantoruan, as Snow and Stone approached him and his best friend.

"Well, just for this assignment," said the Bataknese. "Anyway, Aris, this is Yoel Angsana."

Snow shakes my hands. "Aris Muljono". I can feel that his handshake was crushing even for a pilot.

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It's time for my first sortie.

"Fishnet, you're clear to take off"

The jets that you're flying against are unstealthy but nimble, like the Sukhoi. But here you will also train against stealth fighter like virtually all of you fly!

Yes, some planes in which the school operated are ex-Russian land-based Sukhoi Su-27SM4s equipped with thrust-vectoring. For fighting 5th generation fighters the school acquired stripped down and modified KF-25A/Bs from the South Koreans.

Before I forget those planes come with both manned and unmanned versions.

"Damn, this guy is good" I cursed as I almost gain a lock on my opponent today, a Su-27 which executed a Kulbit and I had overshot him. Only with one J-turn using the F434 thrust vectoring that I am able to avoid his lock and soon I am behind the Sukhoi. To my disappointment, however, the pilot immediately climbed up.

I lost him.

Show me what you've got, kid. A voice whispered inside me. Soon at Angels 18, I acquired the Sukhoi on my sight once more. However the Sukhoi driver, Air Force Major Sandy Malik, callsign "Foundation" soon rolled and went back on my tail again.

Fuck, he's closing in.

You can run, but you can't hide.

Well, alright Foundation, I'll give you the run for your money here.

As the Sukhoi and mine flew over the Papuan mountain jungles, the computers help us control our position to avoid slamming into the mountainside.

Time to end this! At the right moment, I pulled the airbrake and the Flanker flew past me.

Allahu akbar!! "Foundation" shouted.

You're mine. I barely managed to stay out from the hard deck, 10.000 feet, as the tone that I want to hear from my sight finally kicks in. Lock-on. I won.

"Just what I expect from aces. Good flying." He called me before we are heading back to base.

As I positioned my Flying Fish for landing, I called. "Permission to buzz the tower."

"Negative, Fishnet, all patterns are full."

"It's time to buzz the tower," something in my head said, and...

"Damn!" the controller swore loudly on the radio as I drive my IF-34 almost too close to the tower. Sure enough, upon landing, I got chewed out by my instructor, Lt. Col Ngurah Bayu Sentosa, callsign "Laser".

"On the first day of your training you're already breaking the rules with that circus fly-by, what on earth are you thinking, Fishnet? Do you want to be charged in destruction of military property if you decided to go faster than that?" he bellowed at me using my callsign for some time before dismissing me back to my quarter.

"You won, buddy?" asked Bala on the changing room after the flight and the scolding from Colonel Ngurah.

"Yes," I said.

"Good for you, not like me, I get shot down with that Sukhoi diving at me." He replied.

"How about Snow?"

"Well, he won as well," Juan replied.

Soon the said pilot comes and immediately said to me.

"You're just like a cowboy today, Fishnet. You almost get yourself killed near that tower."

"Problem for you?" I replied.

"Of course, You're flying unsafe with your pass near the tower. Thank God you aren't breaking the rule of engagement, otherwise, you might just like Pete."

"Well, Snow, you're right. You have a right to call me dangerous." I said proudly upon he mentioned a fictional US Navy aviator played by Tom Cruise in the eighties.

"Alright then, if you want it. But remember, no point for second place."

---

Soon the training and classes went almost uneventful.

But one day we are going to have a special guest who will show their fighting skills against us. Sparring, if I want to use martial arts terminology. The guests are in the form of a group of American jocks and their drone companions from the newly-commissioned, according to our commanders, Gerald R. Ford-class Flight II USS Intrepid (CVN-85) which is slated to relieve her sister ship Saratoga in the ITO, which are now positioned in Papuan waters.

To be honest I hope it will be Russians with their Su-65s who'll come this time and play with us, still, mock-dogfighting with the experienced and hardened Americans along with their two East Asian allies with carriers; Korea and Japan, still excites me.

Not for long, I'm now in the air with seven other students greeting those Americans from the Intrepid. The rule is generally the same, anyone who got lock first, wins.

"Tense already, Fishnet? Remember, no place for the second place." Snow called me on the radio inside my IF-34. Both he and I are element leaders in our respective home squadrons.

"Hm... Let's do this, Snow. Remember, the last among us both which managed to lock owed the first one a can of cold beer. " I replied. He might try to mock me, but I will keep myself cool and focused on my task ahead.

"Here we go, bandits at nine o'clock, Angels 8. Engage"

The Americans below had read our move and soon climbed and ready to engage us, aboard their, to our surprise, F/A-40 Hellcats instead of the more common F-35C/Fs.

"Cakra leads to all Cakra callsign, spread out and engage!" said our mission leader, Air Force Lt. Col. Ferdi Kirana.

Immediately I got myself a Hellcat behind me and I rolled right, before engaging the air brake to allow me to get behind it. To my disappointment, the American immediately went into Kulbit and I'm once again the hunted.

"Not bad, my friend." said the American who is pursuing me. The voice is clearly a female.

I then climbed, the faster F/A-40 resorted to spiral climbing, a risky maneuver that costs the fighter doing so airspeed and energy. Soon the American decided to went down, but I feel that she's baiting me, so I decided to level my plane and stayed at 25000 feet. After some time, I decided to went down too, and as I expected she executed a Cobra and is now behind me again. But not long, as I countered her move with a high yo-yo.

"Damn, he's good, very good." The American naval aviator by the name of LT. Diana Hultgreen said to herself. Then after three minutes of turn and burn, a familiar warning went across her cockpit.

"I got you" Yoel called her on the radio.

"Damn you, Fishnet." She replied. "But you've proven yourself deserve a title as an ace."

"Thank you very much, ma'am," upon the transmission I broke off to regain visual on Snow.

"Fishnet calling Snow,"

To my chagrin, he replied with a laugh. "You're doing good, but you are the one who owe me the beer." It means he's the one who locked his target before me.

"Well, thanks for the hell of a fight, Snow. One day we gonna fly sixth-gen. Side by side." I replied. First place no longer matter to me, somehow.

With the said can of cold beer I finally looked at him as a friend, and vice versa.

We also trained extensively with degraded situations like the loss of satellites from cyber or physical attacks such as ASAT missiles, which remained a credible threat despite the deployment of laser-armed satellites able to protect unarmed ones from it.

Months passed, and soon we graduated. All of my batch, except two who chose to quit the course for some reason, are successfully passed courses in JAWS. Both flying units and non-flying units such as information warfare students standing in attention, with vice chiefs of staffs of the branches put the JAWS graduate brevet on the graduates.

Proud? Definitely. I might not obtain the first place in the fighter department, it belongs to Snow. But I have more friends, not just in the flying department but also boys and girls in other roles which have their roles too in mid-21st century warfare.

---

After my graduation, I got myself an R&R in Jakarta which means that I can be closer to Gloria, even if it's only for three days as I am to be deployed to the carrier Sriwijaya after that. In fact, my parents have asked me when I will marry her. So the first order of business before duty started, is to go on a date with her.

Soon I messaged her, via hologram as I organized my belongings in the Navy's inn near Tanjung Priok Port. "I'm back, honey! Want to meet in Excelso, Mall of Indonesia?"

Her reply "I'm waiting for you, and you're here at last! Thank God I've got no job today so, let's just a two of us!"

Me. "So, this is a date, right?"

Gloria. "Come on, you asked it first, what do you think it is?" I can see her hologram's movement definitely indicating she's laughing.

Me. "Well, meet me at Excelso Mall of Indonesia at 4 o'clock. Let's get reacquainted with each other, shall we?"

"Yoel!" She called me, already sat on one of the tables inside the Excelso coffee shop.

"Want our usual?" I asked as I sat.

"Of course!"

I ordered my favorite, Papuan blend while she prefers Kalosi Toraja.

"How's your job today, hun?" I asked her about her job. Yes, while studying for her postgraduate she also worked for Wijaya Karya also known as WIKA, a state-owned construction company.

"We may be at war but projects must go on. Especially as we are going to have our first Maglev train." She refers to one of the national projects launched in 2040 to build the first Maglev train line between Jakarta and Bandung, along with a planned extension to Semarang.

"Good to hear that. Besides the draft is limited, and furthermore, those are essential workers that were exempted, right?"

"Indeed, Yoel." She replied with a smirk.

Then we also talked about her preparation for her thesis. After that, we ordered two beef tacos, as we both liked it. Soon we take turn spoon-feeding each other just like in our old times.

Suddenly Gloria felt her phone shaken.

"Oh, I've got an e-mail."

"Who?"

"Paul" I nodded, knowing that she refers to a certain Sukhoi driver.

"What does he say?"

"42nd are still fighting in Iran. Heavy resistance, but thank God he's okay and still be able to carry himself out."

I nodded in understanding about her reference to Paulus' condition that he carry since childhood. Anyway. I badly missed the battlefield. As much as I love being with her, my sense of duty still reminds me that many of my countrymen and women are still fighting to roll back the UCC including her said brother in the Air Force.

Then I said. "Gloria, you must remember this, out there, many people are looking for you and want you to be theirs. Especially as I am going to be deployed later. It's also my case, anyway, as many women either ours or even from our allies might have a thing with me. So you must be strong and keep praying for us who are fighting." I patted her head.

"You too, honey." Her eyes are focused on me, and me alone. A sharp-looking gaze that has hope in it but also love, and a streak of not-baseless jealousy. But overall she's happy to see me back even if only for some days.

"So, after this, let's go to Timezone, I missed it too since the war"

"That's what I want to say to you before, Captain." She smiled at me, before continuing. "But if you lose, all of your tickets will be mine!" Her voice soon changed into a threatening one but pretending. I burst to laugh hearing that before replying. "On the other hand, if you lose, you should kiss me!"

We soon went into the said place and have a good time together, and to Gloria's embarrassment, she got the short end of the stick. But she is more than willing to kiss me. I will remember that, as the said kiss is probably the most passionate that I ever had. Even when I am first deployed her kiss isn't like this, if I must compare...

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(1). A title bestowed to the best overall graduate in Indonesian service academies.