It was a really big decision. All pilots are allowed 3 probationary partners to ensure that they are still able to pilot a Shine even if they were in danger of being mothballed by their base. On one hand, Henry had a White Pulse of 46. His highest Black Pulse was 48. He was below average, but that was not the end of the world. He just had to find someone that he had good chemistry with that had a pulse in the 60s or higher. On the other hand, what were the chances that he would run into a 3 separate pilots at the random base he would be sent to? The pilots had no say in where they would go. They only got to choose their partners once they got there. Even then it was a mutual agreement. He asked what the alternative was. The commanding officer just sighed. "It's top classified. Not only do you need to sign a waiver to know, you cannot talk about it to anyone that doesn't already know." he said. Henry took a deep breath and then nodded. He went to the officer's office and signed their waiver. That was when the officer closed the big door. "We got our hands on some real experimental shit." he said.
Henry was listening. He had potentially signed his piloting career away after all. The officer went back to his desk and took a file out. Now Henry got a real chance to look at it. Flipping through it all took some time. It certainly was amazing. Using Radiant One technology, they were able to make an android that could pilot. This would make things very productive with the U.N. There would be a influx of Shines that could be deployed. It would also cut down on human casualties. If it worked, this would be a massive breakthrough for humanity. And, if it worked, Henry would be made the official partner of the prototype. That was his ticket to be a Glowie. Of course, he had waived his ability to try synchronizing with the 3 pilots on the next base already. If it failed, he would simply be dropped from their Pilot Program. This was a really large gamble for Henry. "The prototype will be arriving here from Bern Airport in 2 days. You'll be here to look after it. After gauging it's abilities outside of the cockpit, you'll then synchronize. Day 1, it will be a Top. Day 2, Bottom. Day 3 is your choice." Henry was dismissed.
Waiting was for the android was hard for Henry. His fate was tied to a robot. Since there was nothing that he could do about it, he decided to visit Brett. He was still doing his physical therapy. He was close to being cleared to return to service. His record had remained 1-1. Henry's ultimate result was 2-8. Henry had periodically stopped by to see what he was up to. Brett seemed to really appreciate it. No one else had bothered to show up to see him. To be honest, Brett was not Henry's highest priority either. However, they had bonded in an intimate way. "Are you leaving?" Brett asked him. Henry shook his head. "No. I've been chosen for something else. Classified so don't ask. I really can't answer." he said. Brett looked concerned. "It's not something crazy dangerous, is it!?" he asked. Henry did not know. What would actually happen to a human that tried to synchronize with an android? That was what this experimental program was going to find out. He might actually just die or be disabled. That was included in the damn waiver that he signed too. He gave Brett a tight hug goodbye before leaving.
