Sick day
A short story about Dwight getting sick, based on this post by @the-great-old-grump (sorry if u didn't wanna be tagged) :3 (there's also my headcanons and those are here :33)
1275 words under the cut, enjoy <3
Echo snapped awake, flaps wiggling nervously. He didn't know what shook him out of his sleep, but he feels his pistons pumping harder than normal. Everything seems quiet, the sounds of Dwight's breath and engine rumbling through Echo's little hangar/quarters. He sighs softly, listening to the steady beat of Dwight's pistons. It's a sound he grew quite fond of over the few weeks he was stuck in his room, after... what happened... He squeezes his eyes shut, forcing down the mental image of Delta's drowning face. C'mon, Echo... Focus... count his pistons... One... two... three...
As Echo started counting the beats of Dwight's engines, he slowly calmed down from the panic threatening to overtake him. And that's when he noticed it. Dwight's breaths getting lower, harsher. His pistons pump a little harder than normal. Maybe there's rough sea? He'd have to ask tomorrow...
⫷▣⫸
The next morning, Dwight woke up with a loud yawn and a splash of water flooding over the deck. He always did that to help him wake up, but he hadn't expected his crew to scream and run.
"Dwight! What on Earth are you doing?!"
His captain, a forklift called August, snapped him out of his confusion.
"You shoulda' been awake for an hour! There's no place for lazy asses in the Navy, damnit, and you know that! Now, get on with it! We've gotta get two in the air stat!"
Dwight couldn't answer, instead sighing with a "aye, cap'n." before activating his catapults so the deck crew can start loading them up. His head feels weird, the sun stinging his eyes painfully. Despite that, he keeps a stoic expression plastered on his features, and moves on with the day.
⫷▣⫸
By the time his crew's asleep, Dwight's head feels like it's filled with angry choppers. A throbbing pain that doesn't go away, whatever he does. He can't sleep either, because his hull feels cold. Or hot? He doesn't know, it fluctuates between them constantly. He sighs softly, engine rumbling a little faster than normal despite going the same speed as usual.
"...'S nothin'..."
He mutters softly, before closing his eyes to rest a little.
⫷▣⫸
He wakes up in a cold sweat, his entire body aching. What the hell is ging on... He shudders, squeezing his eyes shut for a second after making sure no one's on the deck yet. It hurts...
He stays awake until the crew comes out, doing his tasks a little slower than normal. Talking hurts, his voice a little hoarser than normal, but hey, who cares. He probably swallowed a bit too much sea water in his sleep again. Up until he has to call the ball for the jets, he's doing fine. Sure, he coughed a few times, but it's probably just a little wave going into his mouth again.
It's only when a few crewmembers enter the tower that they realise something's wrong. It's hot in there, like his heating's completely through the roof. And his instruments and readings show problems with his engines and tanks, and basically every single part of him. Dwight swallows softly, but doesn't admit anything when they ask him about it. After all, he doesn't feel that bad, right?
...Right..?
Wrong.
That night, when his crew is all asleep, Dwight wakes up with a painful jab in his head. It feels like he's getting shot all over, his eyes bleary and unfocussed as he tries to see what's attacking him. He can't see anything...
"Alarm! E-everyone to their posts, w-we're under attack!"
His voice cracks weirdly, and he lets out a choked noise. There's a ring in his ears, drowning out the sounds of potential gunshots. Why isn't anyone here to protect him? He's blinded, for Pete's sake!
"...M-mayday..!"
He coughs, gritting his teeth. he looks around, activating his canons and shooting a few rounds into the air. He hits nothing, obviously, and the pain only gets worse.
"August!"
⫷▣⫸
Everyone's worried. Stoic, no-nonsense Dwight is shivering with a thick grimace plastered over his features, eyes squeezed shut. Some brave volunteers went down on ropes to stuff a few painkillers into his mouth, but they don't seem to help. Dwight's miserable, teeth clattering as a little club of forklifts checks his engines on damage. They find nothing, and neither do the ones inspecting his electrical systems.
They all woke up from Dwight's pleas for help, rushing out at the sound of his canons going off. He didn't sound scared, more... desperate for help. He'd been shaky, certain something was shooting at his hull. There were no dents, no scratches, nothing, but he insisted he was hit. That was the first red flag. The night that followed was the second.
The highest ranking officers had taken turns to keep Dwight company, feeling him tremble with fever under their wheels as they talked to him. The entire fleet swarmed around him, the smaller boats pressed against his hull to keep him warm. He was delirious, not crying but he sounded pretty close to it. When the sun came up he whimpered. He whimpered from the pain as the light hit his sensitive eyes, and his crew got more worried. That's the moment August realised his ship was sick.
Now, Bravo and Echo are getting ready to use the catapult, the loud blasts of their engines drawing a shuddering breath from Dwight's mouth. The pain in his head is getting worse, the high tone in the jets' engines striking him right where it's worst. His tanks churn, and he shudders.
Bravo's shot off, flying off the deck with a loud "WOOHOO!". Dwight squeezes his eyes shut, tanks lurching. Is that nausea? Is he gonna throw up? Can he even throw up? What'll ha-
"...H-hh... hu-uhg... ughu-URK-"
A wave of oil splashes into the waves, and Dwight's eyes snap open. His breathing's raspy, engines hammering in his ears. A second wave comes out, leaving him panting. Echo immediately gets off the catapult, shutting off his engines and rolling back.
"...That's... not good."
Bravo lands again, skidding to a stop next to Echo. Deck crew come rushing out, a few choppers quickly swooping down to stop the oil from spreading too much. The noise is enough to draw a laboured whimper from Dwight's trembling lips, warning lights flickering in his cabin right before he passes out from exhaustion and pain.
⫷▣⫸
Dwight opens his eyes with a soft groan, the pain finally subsiding a little. He shudders a little, then focusses on the soft pats against the side of his head. It's August, smiling softly.
"...There you are... You know the Jolly Wrenches motto, right, Dwight?"
Dwight lets out a soft noise, throat still raw.
"...Yeah... V-volo pro- p-pro veritas, I f-fly for truth..."
August nods, stopping his soft pats. It's quiet for a bit, the only sounds the jets quietly chatting with each other on Dwight's deck. Finally the forklift speaks again.
"...You shouldn't lie about illness, Dwight. We're both grown men here, you should know hiding injuries is a major violation in the Navy."
Dwight's eyelids droop, glancing away.
"...Yes, sir... I know, sir..."
August sighs, and starts patting again.
"...Stupid idiot..."
The last part didn't reach the carrier's ears, as he'd already fallen asleep again.
⫷▣⫸
This time when he woke up, he felt better. His body didn't ache, his engines ran normally, and his head didn't throb when he opened his eyes fully while in the sun.
"Hm-hmm... Much better."
He threw a wave water over his deck, and started activating his systems. The jets smiled up at him as they got up to the deck, the other crew cheering softly.
And Dwight? He held a small, stoic smile, ready to start working another day.
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💙Charlie Lopez💙
Yes, another Lopez, as I told you before, the Lopez family is very long 😁😄❤️
This is one of my old OCs which I had not drawn for a while
A little about him:Funny, sincere, loyal... Sometimes he can be serious or reserved
Family
Emily Lopez
Nick Lopez
Richard Lopez
And more...
Squadron: The Blue Diamonds. On other occasions, Jolly Wrenches
Abilities: He has powers like his cousin and his cousin...
Friends: Victor, Bravo, Echo and others...
Model: F-18 Hornet (Hornet (wolf)/Harrier hybrid)
There are a lot of things, but for now I will only tell you this
PS: I forgot to draw the helmet logo, which was a wolf's head 😅
Charlie & Art © FCLM-HunterTruman
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