Ace Combat 6: Fires Of Liberation
Chapter One: The Heart Broken
My name is Talisman, at least that's what I call myself without placing myself and my family in danger. A long time ago I was a key player in the end of a brutal war that tore a country apart and almost brought it to destruction. This has unfortunately made a target by those who were….unhappy about the wars outcome and would love nothing more to kill me out of shear spite. This is my story, as well as the story of those caught up in war and the evil plans of those who seek ultimate power and glory. What follows has been assembled from radio transcripts and actual testimonies from those who were there.
I live in a country called Emmeria and my home is our capital of Gracemaria a lovely city built on the waters edge. Across our bay spans the Kings bridge a large bright red steel structure that is the pride of our great city. On the other side lines the old quarter where a ancient castle still stands filled with ancient treasures and artwork. In this castle sits The Golden King which is a statue dedicated to a king long ago. Small in stature this king built a huge suit of armor made of pure gold that dazzled his enemies into surrendering before ever fighting. When they meet the king face to face they were so touched by his warm smile that they bowed down to him in humility. That smile was crafted into a golden statue wearing the proud and glimmering golden armor of that famous king.
So the legends go, and these legends have brought pride to our city and countless visitors to the steps of the Golden King. One such person was a young girl whose class was going on a field trip that would take her across the Kings Bridge to the old castle. As this young girl boarded the yellow school bus she turned to her mother and said "Dance with an Angel Mom".
"Yeah maybe we'll tango instead of Waltz today" her mother said with a small laugh. This was their way of saying goodbye, well it was actually her mothers way of saying goodbye to her fighter pilot husband when he was forced to go away on a mission. She would say to him in frustration "Go dance with your angels" before he would leave her, not knowing if he would ever return. The girl had overheard this and not understanding it's true meaning began to use it all the time. She was the first but she would not be the last.
Sun blazed down from the blue sky above and glittered off the water in the bay and off the Kings bridge. All was quiet and calm, when several ferocious roars tore through the sky above. A spear of flame shoot from something high above and dragged a trail of white cloud behind it and charged towards the road deck of the Kings bridge and exploded in a fireball that tore girders and shattered cables. Those who looked on watched in horror as one section of the road deck fell no longer supported by once strong girders and cables and plummeted into the water, taking countless souls with them.
When the alarms blared through our base none of us knew what has happening or why all aircraft were being ordered into the air at once. At first we thought it must be some kind of drill, but then to our dismay we heard over the intercom that it was not and my heart sank. I had been in combat before, several times actually but anything that caused this much confusion and panic could not be good.
I climbed into my fighter a beautiful F-15 Eagle painted crème white with a blue triangular stripe along its top. The F-15 Eagle was a twin ruddered, twin engined fighter with sharp triangular wings that to me felt like home. I loved the way it handled, feeled and even appeared and this one had severed me well in the relatively light combat I had faced so far. Now it was time to see what we could in serious combat.
As I taxied out to the runway aircraft all around me were jocking for position to get to the runway first. It was so disorganized it was almost disgusting. Furious chatter filled the radio as pilots and ground staff were trying to figure out exactly what was going on. Even as I pushed forward the throttle my engines roaring into life I did not know what was waiting for me in the sky above.
I joined up with the other scrambling aircraft while a AWACS (Advance Warning And Control System) was trying to organize the pilots.
"Lets see.." GhostEye the AWACS said studying his radar screen "Garuada 1 you're with out a wingman. Huh Shamrock are you alone too?" GhostEye didn't wait for a answer and assigned Shamrock to my wingman as Garuada 2.
"Gaurada 1 I'm Gaurada 2 now I've got your back" Shamrock said confidently over the radio.
"Thanks. But keep a eye on your six O clock. We don't know what we're getting into here"
"Roger that let's do this Gaurada 1!" he said confidently
We passed through the clouds and before us were fighters streaking through the clouds fiercely pursuing our fighters. In the city heavy bombers were pulverizing everything that lay beneath them.
"They took out Kings bridge!" a voice cried over the radio and my eyes turned to it and shock and sadness filled my heart. Our once great bridge now lay broken, pieces of it still falling into the water from parts of the road deck that were still suspended.
"The poor fouls" I thought as imagined the unfortunate drivers who couldn't imagine what was about to happen to them, and as my eyes filled with flame turned towards their murders, what a foolish mistake they had just made. They would pay, pay with their very lives.
I dived my plane after the bombers that were killing our civilians by the hundreds and locked onto them with my missiles and fired two straight into it's fuselage. Another flew beside it and I barraged it with blazing rounds from my machine gun. A third lay before me and another two missiles charged from underneath my wings and straight into the black wings of the bomber. As I flew past all three bombers exploded taking their awful payloads of death with them, as well as the unfortunate souls that had manned them.
A brief sense of glory and accomplishment drove away the darkness at destroying three bombers in a single pass but quickly it was replaced by the realization of what had happened, of what I had done and what I would have to do. These were the first I would have to kill today, the fiery remains of their planes would never leave my mind, but they would not be the first. Some called me weak for having these moments, but I did not think so. Life even the life of a enemy was precious especially on a day like this when life could so easily be taken away. There are only two truths about war, People die, and it hurts all that are involved in it.
But I was a solider and I would pull that trigger to defend myself, my comrades and my country. So in these brief moments between kills I grieve for life, and then my eyes turn to flame in search of the next kill.
With Shamrocks help we destroyed the bombers quickly and turned our attention to the skies above to the swarm of fighters that waited for us. Unknown to us a large black aircraft with wings like daggers emerged from the clouds and signaled to twelve black fighters. Hatches opened on the top of the aircraft revealing the deadly missiles inside.
"Nimbus Launch!" the commander of the black craft shouted as the missiles screamed out into the sky and turned towards their target.
The missiles shot right above the black fighters and followed towards their target, the skies of Gracemaria.
"All Strigon team members engage at will following Nimbus Impact. Finish them off" a older voice with a think Russian like accent instructed his fellow fighters before breaking formation and charged into battle.
"What's this missiles?" GhostEye said confused. Before me the sky exploded and the warm blue was replaced by hungry devouring flame. I quickly rolled my plane over and dived toward the sea bellow the heat from the explosion scorching the brilliant white paint of my plane. As I turned to look back I saw one of our jets trying to turn away from the explosion and was thrown away from the ball of flame a cloud of shattered metal. I had been lucky which is why I had probably why I earned the name Talisman, I seemed to bring luck and fortune where ever I went. But I don't even my luck, would get us out of this.
Around us more missiles exploded releasing spheres of pure destruction into our skies that evaporated after consuming everything they could touch.
"Attention ALL planes you've been ordered to give up Gracemaria. Head West to leave the battle zone." GhostEye called over the radio.
"What are you crazy!" Shamrock cried "What about our city, what about Gramaria!"
"Listen the plane is to escape, regroup then join up for a counter attack. We can't afford to lose you" GhostEye explained.
Tactically I knew it was the right thing to do, but in my heart it was not. There was so much more to do, so many more people who needed defending I could not just leave. But the part of me that was a solider ordered my heart to do so. My hand pushed the flight stick away from Gracemaria my home and the throttle pushed to full afterburn made Gracemaria only a found memory as it dissapered behind me.
Until twelve black fighters dived from the clouds above and began swarming me and the other planes trying to escape. One of the planes was unfortunate enough to pass in front of me while I was in a tight turn giving me just a second to adjust my aim and pull the machine gun trigger. As the bullets left the gun and pierced the black killer in front of me I got a good look at it, good enough to remember the Reaper like Emblem on its tail and it's wings tipped with strips of dark blood red. 009 was written right beneath the cockpit in pale yellow.
The plane burst into flame and disintegrated as it's remain flew past. Another black plane was attacking one of our allies and I quickly locked on and sent two missiles to destroy it, which the black plane swept aside with a sharp turn with ease.
"Hmm these guys are good" I thought to myself as I banked and dived my plane so sharply that it threatened to black me out. After what seemed like forever I got right behind him and for the one second he was straight and level sent two missiles into him exploding his plane from the sky. Another shot from below me and streaked into the sky above and I chased after it.
After more intense maneuvering I got the plane where I wanted in my sights and as I pulled the trigger I thought "You'll kill no more of my friends today". He banked away from my bullets saving his life but not his plane. Several of the bullets had pierced right where the cockpit was followed by near one of the engines.
"Strigon leader you've been hit!" one of the enemy pilots called over the radio to his fallen leader.
"I'm all right. I didn't know Emeria had pilots of such skill" the old Russian commander replied his voice trying to hide the pain of his wound "Strigon 2 you are in charge" the leaders plane then banked away trailing clouds of black smoke. The other Strigon planes turned to attack once more but then decided to follow their leader and head back to base.
Perhaps they were out of fuel, or perhaps they were cowards or perhaps I had wounded them enough to make them run home with their tails between their legs. No matter the reason I was not sad to see them leave. They were definitely the most difficult enemy I had ever faced. Something told me I would face them again. After flying through a sky of fire we eventually escaped to the West to a uncertain future for us and to the homeland we had abanodened to its fate.
"Just hold on a little while longer. We'll be back for you" Shamrock said as the last glimmer of Gracemaria disappeared beyond the horizon skies of fire still blazing above her.
On the ground a mother cried for her daughter Matilda as she feared for her child's safety while starring at the broken Kings bridge. The roars of fighter jets overhead could not silence her cries that would go unanswered. She and other civilians fled the city before the enemy could come and take Gracemaria on the ground.
That enemy had a name, which was Estovokia our neighbor to the East. Years ago asteroid named Ulysses entered our orbit and broke into millions of pieces that created shooting stars over our skies, and devastation in Estovokia. Their impacts ruined their cities, their economy and their very way of life. Civil war erupted from the craters and was only silenced when the "Generals" came to power. Now these Generals had decided to seek power in their own land, but ours as well. They had succeeded in breaking Gracemaria the heart and soul of our country, but they had not succeeded in breaking the hearts and souls of those that would fight to take it back.