“My mom,” Ava replied without taking her eyes off the panel. Her voice was steady, but there was a distant sadness in it. “She used to tell me stories. She was a pilot before…before she wasn’t.”

Ava’s mother, Captain Sarah Morrison, had been an ace pilot in the Air Force before a freak accident had taken her life, leaving Ava with little more than memories and whispered tales of the skies. Those tales had not been mere bedtime stories; they had been lessons in disguise, imparting knowledge that Ava had absorbed like a sponge.

On the ground, the Air Force was scrambling. Ghost Rider was a failsafe, a codeword that triggered a cascade of protocols designed to deal with hijackings, espionage, and other high-stakes emergencies. Yet here it was, invoked by a child who, against all logic, was piloting a commercial airliner.

As the military liaised with aviation authorities, fighter jets were scrambled, taking to the skies to escort the civilian plane, now a modern-day ghost ship piloted by a child prodigy.

In the air, Ava’s fingers danced across the controls with growing confidence. She acknowledged the fighter jets as they flanked the plane, a reassurance that help was near. With each passing minute, the tension in the cabin below began to ease, passengers unaware of the miracle unfolding above them.

As the horizon began to reveal the distant sprawl of Chicago, Ava felt a wave of relief. The autopilot would guide them to the runway, but the landing—one of the most challenging maneuvers in aviation—would be up to her. She remembered her mother’s words: “The plane is an extension of you. Feel it, trust it.”

With Marcus acting as her copilot, reading out instructions relayed from ground control, Ava guided the massive aircraft down. The landing wasn’t perfect—a jarring bounce and a skidding halt—but it was safe. The passengers erupted into applause, unaware of just how close they had come to disaster.

As the plane came to a stop and emergency crews swarmed the runway, Ava sat back in the captain’s seat, her small hands trembling for the first time. She had done it. She had brought them home.

The aftermath would be a whirlwind of media frenzy, investigations, and accolades, but for Ava Morrison, the moment was simple. She had honored her mother’s memory, proving that even in the darkest skies, there was light to be found.