Air Chase

"Simon, are you still thinking about Chuck?" Meg suddenly asked, gazing at the brightly lit city below.

Simon nodded, his face tense. "Yeah, I can't shake the feeling that Chuck and the others are in serious trouble."

"Maybe we should call the police," Meg suggested.

Simon considered it for a moment, then shook his head. "I'd rather not. Let's go check on them first."

He'd been planning to help them all along, so he hadn't flown too far. The helicopter was still hovering over the coast.

Before Meg could respond, her phone rang.

"It's Sarah!" Meg waved her phone at Simon.

"Sarah? Wait a second, why do you have Sarah's number?" Simon asked, suddenly noticing something important.

Meg shrugged. "You should know, girl friendships are formed easily."

"Ha! Sorry, I don't get it."

Meg laughed and plugged the phone into her headset.

After a brief conversation with Sarah, Meg handed the phone to Simon.

"She's looking for you," Meg said as she passed the phone.

"Looking for me?"

Simon took the phone and connected it to the headset.

"Sarah?"

"Simon, listen up! Chuck's been kidnapped. We need your help," Sarah's urgent voice came through.

"Got it, I'll be there in a second." Simon didn't waste time, immediately agreeing to help.

He swiftly adjusted the helicopter's direction. Within minutes, Simon and Meg were back on the ground.

The moment the helicopter barely touched down, Casey and Sarah rushed over.

"Simon, Meg, get out. Chuck's been taken. We need the helicopter to chase them," Sarah ordered.

"Meg, you get out," Simon instructed.

Meg nodded and unbuckled her seatbelt, getting out of the helicopter.

After Meg left, Simon turned to Sarah and Casey. "I'll fly. I have a license, but do you guys?"

Sarah and Casey exchanged a glance, then Casey spoke up, "Fine! But if you mess this up, I'll kill you."

"Don't worry. My flying skills are as good as my driving," Simon grinned.

Casey didn't respond, but he made his way to the door of the copilot's seat and grabbed hold of the skid.

Once Casey was ready, Simon powered up the helicopter and took off.

The helicopter carrying Chuck had been airborne for a few minutes already, and Simon needed to catch up. He pushed the helicopter to its maximum speed.

The speed and wind resistance were harsh on Casey, who was standing outside.

"Are you sure Casey's okay?" Simon asked, glancing at Casey, who looked uncomfortable.

Sarah smiled. "Don't worry, he's a tough guy. He'll be fine."

"Okay," Simon shrugged and focused on flying.

After five minutes, Simon finally spotted the target helicopter.

"So, what's the plan now?" Simon asked, eyeing the target.

Taking down the helicopter was not an option — Chuck was aboard, and that would be too dangerous. Getting too close was also risky; a collision between the two helicopters would end badly for everyone.

"We need to get close and board their helicopter," Sarah said.

"This is tricky! Unless both pilots are perfectly coordinated, a collision is almost certain," Simon warned.

"Can you do it?" Sarah asked, staring at Simon intently.

Simon smiled slightly. "Of course."

"Good! Let's do it!" Sarah said, undoing her seatbelt.

"Wait!" Simon stopped her.

"I have another idea, but it's a bit dangerous," he said.

"What idea?" Sarah asked.

Simon pointed to the target helicopter in the distance. "I'll fly the helicopter so close that I can fling you onto their skid."

"Are you kidding?" Sarah's eyes widened in disbelief.

Simon remained calm. "My instructor believes I have exceptional flying talent. Trust me."

Sarah didn't respond, but Simon could see her hesitation.

"Look, I know you don't believe me, but I'll get the helicopter close. We'll figure it out," Simon said with a sigh.

Finally, Sarah nodded in agreement.

Once they settled on a plan, Simon accelerated the helicopter and quickly caught up to the target.

As soon as they were side by side, Simon started narrowing the gap between the two helicopters.

The pilot of the target helicopter noticed and immediately tried to avoid Simon's approach.

Simon didn't hesitate. He adjusted the helicopter's path, getting even closer.

Seeing this, Casey had an idea. He quickly communicated it to Sarah through the comms.

"Got it," Sarah replied.

After finishing the conversation, Sarah turned to Simon. "Casey wants to know if you can force the helicopter back toward the shore."

Simon thought for a moment, then nodded. "I can! But I'll need Casey to come in, because I'm going to have to make some sharp maneuvers."

Sarah relayed the message, and a few moments later, Casey entered the cockpit.

With a 180-pound man crammed into the copilot's seat, the space became a lot more cramped.

Once Casey was settled, Simon kicked into high gear. He accelerated the helicopter ahead of the target and then made a sharp turn, positioning the helicopter directly in front of it.

The pilot of the target helicopter immediately stopped and hovered in place.

Without giving the other helicopter any chance to adjust, Simon kept closing in.

The pilot of the target helicopter was left with no choice but to back off.

From that point on, every time the target helicopter tried to escape, Simon closed the gap, preventing any chance of escape.

Before they knew it, the two helicopters had reached the port.

Once they were over the port, Simon pulled the controls and hovered above the target helicopter, preparing to force it down.

"Sarah, Casey, shoot the engine. Be careful, don't hit the fuel tank," Simon instructed as the helicopters descended.

Casey opened the copilot window, extending his arm out with a pistol in hand.

A series of gunshots rang out as the bullets struck the target helicopter's engine, causing thick smoke to pour from it.

The engine was damaged, and the helicopter was forced to land.

Seeing the helicopter touch down, Simon quickly followed suit and began his own descent.

But before Simon could land, Sarah and Casey jumped out of the helicopter from just a meter above the ground.

As soon as Simon set the helicopter down, he saw Sarah and Casey had already rescued Chuck and handcuffed a middle-aged man.