Lieutenant Wilco

As you cut the engine a voice from a speaker on the control panel says, “Congratulations, Plonk. You’ve completed your first flight. Now for phase two of your mission. Can you see a bridge of wood and metal construction? Over.”

You look around the clearing and identify the bridge. “Roger,” you say in your best radio-speak.

“Do NOT address me by my Christian name, I am Lieutenant Wilco. I repeat, can you see a bridge of wood and metal construction? Over.”

“Affirmative.”

“On the left hand side of the bridge support there is a bunker. Place your package in the bunker, then resume flight on a bearing due south. Further instructions shall be issued once airborne. Over.”

“Affirmative. Over and out.”

“Recruit? What do you mean? Are you over or are you out? Over.”

“I’m over the clearing, but not out of the cockpit,” you answer.

“Don’t come the raw prawn with me. There’s a war on, you know. Have you forgotten the basics of your radio training? Over means it’s my turn to speak. Out means you’re signing off. So are you over or are you out?”

You wait.

“I repeat,” comes the voice from the control panel, “are you over or are you out?”

“Sorry, Sir. You ended your sentence with ‘out’, so I assumed you’d signed off. Over.”

“What insubordination! It’ll be latrine duty for a week when you return. If you survive your mission. Is that understood? Over.”

“Yessir. Out.”

You clamber out of the plane before the irate man on the other end of the radio berates you further and locate the bunker on the left hand side of the bridge support. You place the tanbark from your pocket in the bunker and reboard the plane, flying south over the bridge in front of you and along the path to the next bridge.