13686/Hopping from the Hellicarrier

Hopping from the Hellicarrier
Date of Scene:	29 December 2022
Location:	Quinjet (SHIELD)
Synopsis:	Natasha and Yelena go skydiving for Yelena's Christmas present. And the younger Widow enjoys herself.
Cast of Characters:	Natasha Romanoff, Yelena Belova

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Natasha Romanoff has posed:
They had come to a middle ground of agreement. Going up in a Quinjet from the Hellicarrier enough to avoid the immediate updraft (as well as Fury yelling at them for going over the side just out of the sake of paranoia). So here they were, another kilometer or so up in the air, getting ready for a long, long jump. Not just the type that one would need a flight suit for and wings, but oxygen. Even for those that could handle the extreme temperatures and hold their breath, they were up high enough to need the insulation and oxygen. To avoid being torn apart over by the winds so far up, up and above the clouds and skyline. Natasha Romanoff was getting ready for it, checking her equipment.. The things she did for her sister.

Yelena Belova has posed:
All the way up, Yelena kept grabbing at the controls to see 'what this baby could do'. Way too many pilots take the 'safe' way, and thus never truly know and understand limitations so they can be pushed through. Perhaps that'll be her next job: test pilot? One, two, perhaps three other people could truly understand her position on the matter, and if they are in a room together one day?

Watch out!

Still, Yelena isn't stupid crazy. Just crazy, crazy. Part of this is 'new found freedom' and part is perhaps part of her life-long training, and that is, one day it may be necessary. Practice in safety, though not sure how this trip would qualify, just in case it's needed in emergency.

Train. Train. Train. So what if it's fun?

Flying high, Yelena can't help but look up from the cockpit as is measuring by view the potential ceiling of the aircraft. They're already VERY high, and as they track up and up, the blonde is getting chattier and chattier.

"You know, this is going to be one for record. Do you think that Guiness or whatever will know about it?" Who hasn't heard of the Guiness Book of World Records? Even in Russia. "Do you have everything? This will go back on autopilot, yes? I think that is so very cool. Next time, I get to program where it goes." So there.

As they get closer to their deployment height, Yelena unbuckles from her seat and rises. She's in a close-fitting, white flight suit, and as she begins to walk into the back, the packs are there for the women. "Are you kidding me? So much stuff. I might as well have suit of armor or something." The tones carry that scoffed 'bah' in them, though she's not refusing to go through it one last time quickly.

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
Natasha is there to monitor and get in the exercise herself. This high up isn't normal even for her. Or for anyone in SHIELD that can't really fly. So it's a good way to monitor herself. From this high up, parachutes are even tighter to use. No matter what material they're made out of and if they work perfectly, going in wtih this level of velocity essentially requires unique materials and technology. So she's justifying it over if anyone bothers to check as a field test of the eqiupment. IF neither of them survives going down.. Well, then they know that it doesn't work!
    Natasha goes to glance over at Yelena, "I couldn't say on that one. I do think that therea re higher ones, at least. Though you tend to get more.. Specific equipment loadouts for it." That's in the vein for those like Falcon who do have the toys to dive that far. And of course she's not counting those over that are in power armor like Stark or Toni that the duo had spent time with.
    "I do hope that this is fun for you, YElena. Consider it your Christmas present." That seems a fair enough way of handling it. She's bending the rules some on something that rather excites Yelena. That makes it worth it. And hopefully this will take the edge off Yelena's adrenaline junkiness for a tleast a few days!

Yelena Belova has posed:
"Fun? Of course it is fun." Yelena is almost breathless in her acknowledgment and agreement. "And, it works as training. Assuming we are falling from space." That last bit is added with a broad smile, and with the last of it, she's hefting her equipment onto her back and strapping it all on. "You are not afraid, right?" After all, she's more of the adrenaline junkie than her sister. "You can still back out. I will not say bad things about you in public, I promise." There's that gleam in her eye, however, that absolutely says otherwise.

A chuckle exits the woman even as she begins the safety checks that are in place. The O2, the sensors.. the wiring and the tubing. Everything specific to the freezing temperatures of the altitude. "Best Christmas ever. Even better than when I was child." In Ohio.

Her voice lowers, however, soon after, and she sounds a more serious note. "If we get separated, I will meet you in Swordfish. Okay?"

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
Natasha Romanoff would mm, "Unfortunately, not quite that high. We'd have a few more kilometers to go up. I can't quite get enough pull for that. Or the equipment being standard issue. That you normally need a spacesuit that breaks apart for. And those tend to be quite expensive. They're made out of titanium and heat shields need to be custom fitted." That's something even she's rarely seen SHIELD do. Far easier to just go for orbital reentry in a Quinjet or drop in someone like Stark to handle the job. Or just some of the agents that can fly through space. Even SHIELD could be about cost efficiency sometimes.

"I'm going along with you. I could stand the exercise myself. Make sure I can still do this. Next time w'ell try for the gliders as well as the landing." Because dropping from high and then going in with stealthed gliders was a completely different experience. And more dangerous in it's own ways. "I'm glad that the experience is meaningful for you. And that sounds good. Last one there has to pay for the rounds?"

Yelena Belova has posed:
Yelena narrows blue eyes as she studies her sister briefly before nodding, "Avenger friends. I have not met any of them, I think. Would Stark build custom suit for space jumps?" Exactly how much pull does Natasha have? Hmmmmm?

"One day, I will meet them. Perhaps at party. Or large fight. Sometimes, that is one and same."

She nods her acknowledgment of Natasha going with, and reaches over to hand her the gear meant for the redheaded Widow. "Is hard to keep fit when you live in lap of luxury. Uncle has unkind words for that." The bear. Yelena laughs soon after, "He approves of my apartment, though. And the fact that I buy him potatoes and beets." And berries. And vodka.

Once again, Yelena bobs her head, and the smile is closed but thankful. There's a pause before, "You are so good to me." It's absolutely heartfelt, but she doesn't linger there. She moves easily to the next, finishing up with, "Okay. Last one there pays. At least first round." She lowers her voice, "I hope you have money."

Hah!

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
Natasha Romanoff would nod, "Yes, but he tends to not let the rest of us use them." If Natasha would even ask for one. Stark makes amazing toys.. That doesn't quite mean that Natasha trusts him. OR what he makes. At least, to that extent. Or she doesn't like having to rely on outside technology to that degree. It makes it feel like she's working wiht things out of her own hands and her own grasp. It makes her feel somewhat helpless to be wholly reliant on something like a crutch.

She would grin, "WEll then.. It sounds like we're ready to go." She would smile and dip her head. "And I'm interested in as to how you're able to afford so much drink for your uncle. Do you have a secondary source of income I'm not aware of?" She would smile over. "And I do hope you have enough to pay for me as well. I might invite Zinda along."

Yelena Belova has posed:
Right... the moment is swiftly approaching, and with the rig strapped on and the oxygen in place now, Yelena takes a couple of test-draws. Finding it to her liking, she pulls the mask up a little, "He has lots of good toys. Just the ones I know about." That last bit could, of course, mean anything.

With the mask back on her face and secured, Yelena rolls her shoulders to be sure of a safe and secure fit of the parachute/glider. "It sounds like it." With the last word, the blonde punches the button that will open the back of the Quin. A rush of cold air swirls around them, absolutely enough to pull the breath away from anyone not prepared for it. (Of //course// Yelena waiting for Natasha before doing it!)

"As for affording? I still get work here and there," and it's almost thrown away in the delivery. Missions? For whom? When? "Nothing anywhere near as fun as this, though."

At the thought of Natasha bringing Zinda around to partake has her uttering a complaint, even as she //leaps// from the back. Of course she can't help a 'Whooooo!' on the onset as the frigid air and light atmosphere surrounds her, and gravity begins its pull.

"This is amazing!"

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
It's time. Natasha goes for one final eqiupment check, makes sure that everything is ready, and then waits until they're at the target height. And she goes to let out a sigh over as she would look over at her 'sister' and then goes to take a jump over the side of the Quinjet away and off! Ther'es no more talk now even though the two are on the comms wiht one another and can hear one another.

Now it's all about saving breath, maximizing control of their body, calculating the exact amount of time they've spent falling.. Adjusting for height, wind, anything else remotely that effects their descent! It's all a matter of exact timing, instinct, and climate. Go off a second too early, the chute will shatter. Go off a second too late, and one impacts the ground fast enough to turn into vapor.
    Even when everything works perfectly, it's as much an art as it is a science. There's only so much technology can do for you when you can go up to hundreds of kilometers per hour right towards the Earth below!

Yelena Belova has posed:
The jump and subsequent fall, or rather, controlled plummet, is a thing that comes with training and time. There are things the two can do during a fall that a novice cannot. There are subtle movements that can cause exponential results; just have to know and understand them. At any time, she can speed up, slow down, move to the side, or effectively 'chase' someone. All of that is reliant, of course, on atmospheric conditions. That right there, Earth's chaos system, is the difference between life and death to any who are not 'experts'.

Yelena tucks in, getting herself past the intial drop before she begins to fan out her body a little, giving herself a little more drag. The wind against her body is pressing against her chest as well, making it a little more difficult to draw a good breath, but she's still able to breathe. It's the cold bite through her suit that she feels, and, not for the first time, thanks whomever that she's Russian. She can stand a good cold, a good Siberian winter. She comes from good stock.

Still, it's cold!

In those moments in the air, though, even though she's falling, it feels as if she is hanging in space with the clouds. It's difficult to judge exactly how far up, or down for that matter, she is, unless using the rapidly approaching ground as a reference point. The girls were smart. The LZ is away from trees, away from the general public, and most importantly, away from busy air traffic. (Who wants to get sucked into a jet engine?)

As Yelena falls, she's letting herself just 'go' with it, and another 'whooop' exits from the young woman. One can only imagine the smile on her face.

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
She's aware that this is bringing joy to Yelena. It's a life experience. And something done because she wants to do it. Not as she's been told to. Not as she's required to for a mission. Not as she's programmed to. It's something she can do out of her own sense of joy and wonder. So that's all the reason that Natasha has needed to pull the strings for it.

Natasha is likewise going by instinct. She's done this before. Several times. Very rarely from this high up. Almost never when she doesn't have to for anything other than training or readiness. So this is her going out of her way to try and do something for someone else. An alien feeling and maneuver for her. Certainly one that she's almost never done for anything else.

The cold hits her as well too. Even at her age, even with her experiences, even with the Soviet version of the super soldier serum in her veins. It still pushes her hard and taxes her. Her teeth don't chatter - at least, not that can be heard against the screaming of the wind. From this high up, the landing zone is more of a guideline than a target. If they get within a few hundred meters o fit they call it unerring accuracy. THey give it a very wide buffer zone to give them a margin of error to not kill themselves or anyone else.

Yelena Belova has posed:
No, not a mission, not from a requirement of her programming, but as fun as it is, and it IS a lot of fun, Yelena isn't stupid enough to do something like this and NOT think of its uses and practical applications in the world of 'what if?'. So many different agencies either have flying ships, and that if she's //ever// stuck on one, at least she'll have the sky diving time in to understand and deal with the nuances. At least right now, there are no explosions happening around them, nor is there anyone trying to shot them from the sky. So, 'next time', and if it's under a battle circumstance, at least //more// attention can be brought to bear on defense and fighting back, even at this altitude.

BUT!

<<"Mother of God, it is cold.">> is the only allowance Yelena is willing to give for the frigid air that wraps around them, pulling them towards the ground. If her teeth are chattering, like Natasha, it's not being broadcasted across the com.

As they continue to fall, and they get into the more familiar of levels, Yelena flips her feet over backwards to do a flip in the air before righting herself. Her head turns towards Natasha, both checking on how her sister is doing and, of course, to see if she'd noticed her acrobatics. Or is that aerobatics?

Soon enough, it's getting closer to the time when deploying their 'chutes would be a //good idea//.

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
It's the type of thing that while adrenaline fueled, you can very easily die at. Even when you're paying strict attention. eqiupment can fail. There can be an unexpected crossbreeze. There can be something else in the air you impact with. Even when you do everything right, you can have just a small thing go out of place an dthat's all she wrote. Not the msot dignified way to go out - launching, hitting a bird, and hitting the ground and looking like a human pancake from the impact.

As they go low enough where they're going horizontal to start to have better control of their momentum and slow their descent, Natasha laughs <<Da, it is. Why you want to pakc on more layers. Next time you do it, think about wearing a couple more insulated things. I have something from unstable molecules on. It's much more effective>>

Natasha isn't doing what Yelena is. This is for the young girl to enjoy herself with. She wants to do the acrobatics? She's skilled enough to pull it off and handle the landing. Natasha's not going to take that away from her.

Yelena Belova has posed:
It's true. Now is the time when one should be paying even //more// attention. The change of atmospheric pressures, winds, weather events that can crop up... anything could interfere with a textbook dive. And what is Yelena doing? Backflips. Still, it is good to know in terms of where the body is in space, and it may come in handy in, again, defensive maneuvers or offensive.

A Widow is always prepared.

Doesn't mean the outcome can't be a little more painful than expected, of course. Another quality of Widows; like Timex, they can take a licking and keep on ticking.

Yelena pulls the cord the moment she determines the level is correct. In the next second, she's yanked up by the draft. If she wasn't ready for it, it'd have been alarming.

<<"Unstable molecules? You cheater.">> It's said with warm humor hanging below. <<"Who gave that to you? Stark? I bet it was. I heard he likes redheads.">> Teasing!

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
There would be a slow laugh along the comms as Natasha would evaluate her own position, her own posture, checking all of the electronics and sensors and making sure that everything is going as close to the way it's supposed to as she can. She's spreaidng her arms and her legs now to maximize her drag and inertia, to get her descent slowed enough where they're approaching the point it's time to deploy the hcute. Going through the amount of bracing in her body to make sure that she's notgoing tos nap her limbs like a twig when she parachute deploys. All of the basics.

As soon as she's within a couple dozen meters of the target drop, she goes to deploy the chute. THe primary one goes to respond perfeclty to the snap, even as she goes to rachet slowly and making sure she's not going to get whiplash, and she's yanked off course.

That's the way it's expected. A sudden change in tension does that. <<Of course I'm a cheater. And if you're a good girl maybe you'll get your own sometime>>

Yelena Belova has posed:
"Hah!"

It's a familiar exhalation from the blonde Widow, one filled with amusement. "Such a cheater." Is there a 'tsk' in there somewhere? Absolutely. Very judgey, this Widow!

The jump goes from pure concentration and more than a little elation at the brace of frigid air and thin atmosphere, to the known, to the familiar in the span of minutes. Here, it's a matter of tracking the wind, pitching and yawing with the 'chute, gliding it in with practiced ease. She's careful not to entangle the lines and barring any sudden updrafts, she'll be making landfull like an expert.

As she hits the ground, Yelena shoulder rolls, keeping her legs bent before she gains her feet quickly. It's pure training that has her cutting her lines; no one like to get dragged by their parachute for any reason!

Tearing off her mask, Yelena searches the sky for Natasha, not declaring a victory until the other Widow's feet are on the ground.

"We still have to get to Swordfish before we are done. Last one pays!"

Natasha Romanoff has posed:
There's a low chuckle from Natasha as she goes to land down over. "Yes, we do." She would grin over at Yelena, "And do remember that if she can join us we have to cover Zinda's tab as well. And if she can't join us then the loser has to cover her tab next time we go out." Zinda was one of the few that Natasha would consider a challenge to keep up with and to respect. And that Natasha didn't mind being horribly out-drunk by. And so as she lands, she goes to cut her chute off,and then still in her landing outfit she grins.

"So then, what are you doing standing here and waiting for me to see how much of a chunk of your paycheck goes to my enjoyment?"

Yelena Belova has posed:
Yelena stays put because she cares. Checking and doublechecking to be sure Natasha's okay. The redhead is the closest thing she has to 'family', and she's not willing to walk away from it, even for a night of a drinking at the Swordfish. She'll posture all day long, however, and she simply replies in a soft grunt before turning around and running. Time to hijack a car, a motorcycle, and the great race is on to the bar in the city.

Regardless of who pays, it'll be a good finish to a good day!