In the year 2007AD, a group of extremely talented pilots made their first sorties against an organization determined to destroy them along with all of Erusia. These pilots, known officially as the 7th Combined Squadron Unit and unofficially as the Freelance Alliance, began an invisible war that began in early March and lasted until the autumn of that same year. These units – The 145th "Temnota" Tactical Fighter Squadron, the 9th "Air Ixiom" Fighter/Bomber Wing, the VF-2 "Thanatos" Special Forces Unit, the famous 118th "Mobius" Task Force Squadron, and finally the VFA-23/25X "Barracuda" Naval Air Arm – fought against an enemy that became to be known as the Slaves of Ouroboros.

The Slaves of Ouroboros were unlike anything ever faced before. They almost always used unmanned jets to combat the Freelance Alliance. These jets were first encountered in Operation Perimeter, and had since been seen in combat engagements with the FA. These "Aura" fighters dealt heavy blows to the FA; most prominent of these being the complete annihilation of the FA navy.

After a series of engagements, the Freelance Alliance eventually found and attacked the SO forward base. It was a long and deadly battle; many good men died, and though in the end the Tempest, the SO super-jet, was heavily damaged, and their ace, Mark Galanodel, was defeated, it was a Pyrrhic victory at best. Many good men had died in that great battle in the sky that day, and their names would never be forgotten.

At least… they would never be forgotten by me…
"At least… they would never be forgotten by me…"

Exile Studios Presents

"Primary lock bolts, released!"
"Secondary lock bolts, released!"

From the depths of the hangar, it began to awake.

"Tertiary lock bolts, released! Begin the activation algorithms!"

A great steel behemoth, released finally from its prison.

"Primary reactor online!"
"Secondary reactor online!"
"Rudders active!"
"Computers active!"

In the hangar, pinpoints of light began to illuminate the shadows.

"Catapult 1, active!"
"Catapult 2, active!"
"Put power into the engines!"
"Power into the engines, roger!"

In Conjunction with Freelance Productions

"Cut off the anchor cords!"
"Anchor cords severed, roger!"
"…Bring her out!"

Slowly, the great ship began to pull out of the hangar designed for it. Unlike most ships of its kind, its modified appearance was obvious.

"FAS Sealance launching from port!"
"Move away, guys; give us some room!"

Project ACES: "To Live Free and Fly Again"

The modified Enterprise-class Super Carrier known as the FAS Sealance pulled out of port slowly, it's heading directly out, where multiple gray spots of steel on the horizon signified the presence of the rest of the Sealancer battle group.

On the front of the catapult deck, his feet hanging on the edge, a man stood. His gray eyes stared out into the ocean as he leaned on a black and red-handled cane in his left hand. The cold winter wind of the ocean tugged at the long jacket pulled around him, causing it to billow out behind him along with his long, straight hair.

Glen Galanodel let one word echo from his lips.

"Sealancers…"
---

Episode: 00
---Sealancers

---

The Year 2010 A.D.
December 10th

The dark room that was the office of Glen Galanodel was an unnerving place to be for all but the said officer. The walls were adorned with pictures of far off places, of jets flying in formation, and, behind the pilot's desk, a poster for the Freelance Alliance: an F-4 Phantom with Bronze Gate One below and behind it, the red-and-blue FA insignia placed on both the fighter and prominently placed on the top right of the poster.

Jack David nervously paced in the room, flitting from one cabinet to the other and admiring what he saw there. On one table, a perfectly balanced brown-hilted katana rested in its sheath, held up on a stand upside-down in the fashion of samurai of days long gone. Next to it, a model of an F-14D Super Tomcat rested, painstakingly hand-built out of both plastic model parts, the aluminum of actual jets, and then detailed with the old look of the Barracuda Navy.

On another table…

"What's this?" Jack wondered, holding up an old picture frame. In the picture were two boys, both of them smiling. One had short blond hair and blue eyes while the other had brown hair and green eyes. Both of them had set two jets at their feet; an F-4G Phantom II and an F/A-18C Hornet. Jack noted the facial features of both boys, neither of them older than ten. Something about the blond-haired boy drew Jack's eyes to him, something familiar…

"Prying into other's lives is not admirable, Master Chief Petty Officer," came a voice from behind. Jack whirled around and hid the picture behind his back, making something akin to an "eep" sound as he did so. Standing in the door's light, Glen leaned heavily on a cane, watching Jack through his gray eyes, before limping around and sitting down at his desk. "Have a seat, Officer David," It wasn't a request.

"Yes, sir," Jack replied, sitting in the cold and hard seat placed opposite the table to Glen. He tapped his foot nervously as silence fell over the two, Glen filling out a report for Erick. Jack had brought the picture from behind him and again stared at it. "Permission to speak freely, sir?"

"Go for it,"
"Who are these kids? Are they yours?" Glen paused in his writing for half a second before resuming.

"They are… old friends, from long ago,"
"The green-eyed one looks familiar,"
"You've never seen him before,"
"Oh…"

Glen looked up at the nervous pilot before sighing and putting away the paperwork. He leaned forward and placed his elbows on the table, cradling his hands in front of his face. He watched Jack over his hands before speaking.

"That's not why you asked for me, though, is it?"
"…no, sir," Jack responded honestly. "I was going to ask you about… Operation Killswitch," the pilot flinched and expected an angered retort, but Glen's only visible movement was a shifting of his body as he lowered his head.

"Operation Killswitch was a disaster, Chief," Glen said, his voice lowered. "I would advise you not to remind me of it,"

"But sir," Jack pressed. "I want to know what it was like from your view. When Sempai appeared, I…" he paused, looking for the right words. "I remembered the fight against the Tempest, and remembered how you did then. Why was it so different this time, sir?" He almost dropped the picture, his hands fumbling so badly it was sad.

"I told you not to speak of it, Jack," Glen repeated, his voice lowered to a dangerous level, his eyes smoldering with fire. "I mean it this time,"

"…I apologize, sir," Jack mumbled, his head lowered. Glen watched him for a second more before lowering his hands and reaching for his pen; a black and gold object tipped with a flag Jack couldn't remember off the top of his head. "Forgive me," Looking up, Glen was waving him off.

"The Avenger's first flight begins soon, Jack," he told him absently. "I would suggest you be there. This is also the maiden flight of a new Navy flight," he paused. "Ghostriders will be in the air, as you know… I also want you in the sky,"

"Sir?"
"Just as a precaution, Jack," Glen explained. "Twelve fighters are better than eleven, and this time we're well-equipped. Just be in the skies above when my jet launches,"

"Yes, sir," With that, Jack stood, saluted, and turned about-face. He pushed the chair back toward the desk and set the picture down on its original resting place before walking out of the door, closing it softly behind him. Glen watched him go before resuming his work on his report. The desk lamp cast a soft glow on the paper, but Glen found himself distracted. His gray eyes focused on the cane to his right; it helped him walk, like any other, but it was a sad reminder of Operation Killswitch. Glen sighed at the thought.

"God Damnit," he muttered, switching off the lamp and grabbing his cane. Limping to the door, Glen opened the door and shut it, locking it with his keypad number and cardkey.

And the black-and-gold pen, capped with Belka's flag, fell from its resting place on the table to the floor.

-

Walking down the halls and decks of the Sealance was a bit different from the smaller Urd that Glen had been accustomed to before it had been destroyed. Much of this ship was different from her Enterprise-class counterparts in the Erusian and Osean waters, from the outer hull to the inner workings of the vessel. As he passed by the hall that led toward one of many hangars, Glen turned to stare down it. He saw at the very end of the hall, past some navy officers, Jack's form slip through a door. Glen stared after him for a second before turning back and continuing his trek down the hall.

Officers and crew alike, even some of the new pilots, gave their Captain (though in truth he was a Rear Admiral, Upper Half, he was still referred to as "Captain" or "Kanchou") a wide berth. He appeared indifferent to the voices that whispered around him and the space he was given, but the truth was that Glen was both embarrassed and slightly annoyed at the thought of people reacting the way they did. Even Jack, the Thanatos transfer, acted frightened and nervous just around the Captain.

A set of stairs leading downward appeared off to Glen's right, which led down toward Engineering. Unlike most carriers, the lower three or four of the Sealance's fifteen or so decks had been converted to a modified version of the standard nuclear power plant, along with a complex system of something that could only be described as lateral and reverse thrusters for a carrier. The props of the carrier had been modified to be something akin to a submarine's; they were faster and quieter, but in turn they took more power. The jets rigged onto the side of the lower carrier decks was designed to rapidly move the ship in one direction sideways, allowing it to keep its heading. The forward jets were made to give the Sealance a rapid stop.

The biggest innovation - and one personally suggested by Glen himself – was that the lower deck could be run effectively by a skeleton crew of men and women. Using some of the technology found in modern-day Nimitz-class ships and some of the experimental X-class carriers in development, advanced computers ran most of lower decks, reducing crew necessity and reliance. A crew of 100 was all that was needed to run the lower decks, and even without those the ship could run at 60 effectiveness.

Glen stared down toward the lower decks before turning about and heading down the deck he was on, known as Deck 11 by the crew. This deck composed of the offices and rooms of the ship's officers. Anyone with a rank of Chief Petty Officer or above had their own personal room to use – another innovation made by the modified ship, as the reduced crew meant that there was more room for individual rooms. As Glen peered down the narrow deck corridor, he watched the faces of the men and women.

But there were those others there.

Rubbing his eyes, Glen washed away the ghosts of dead crewmen as he found a flight of stairs that led upward. Holding his cane to his side, he used the railings as support, making his way up to the new Deck 10. Like the old Barracuda carriers, Deck 10 was a special place for the flight crews and carrier crew. It was essentially a glorified mess hall, situated between the officer deck and crew bunks. Even now, people were running around between the ten or so large rooms of the deck, which, although only half as big as the other decks (the rest was used for storage), seemed the biggest.

Glen ran a hand down one of the walls as he limped toward the other side, cane propping him up as he leaned on both it and the wall. The hustle and bustle of crewmen as they ran about brought back fond memories of times past, and if Glen closed his eyes he could feel the jostle of his old comrades, ignoring his dark demeanor and trying to convince the then-Lieutenant to a drink. "How my old policies were notoriously lax." Glen mused as he opened his eyes, their gray orbs taking in the crew. A flashback of his old crew screamed before the pilot's eyes, and again he had to shake it off.

Instead, he looked at the new crew of the new Navy. People waved cheerily to each other and walked from place to place in droves. Officers and crew alike played on X360s and PS3s situated along the back wall, flying futuristic jets and using the Force while at the same time hurling plasma grenades and clashing steel. A crowd gathered behind the gamers both cheered on their favorites and eagerly anticipated their turn.

Glen had personally never found interest in any kind of games, and so passed them up, though he did note the reaction timing some of them had when it came to game mechanics; a narrowly dodged missile here, a Force-powered leap there, and a well-aimed SPNKR rocket were the orders of the day. The crew wasn't alcohol-fueled as the old ones, instead finding a way to pass the time through gaming… and flight maneuvering.

Looking about, the pilot noted some faces that he recognized from the old Barracuda; survivors from the carrier that launched the three jets toward Thanatos. He nodded at them, and they in turn nodded back. It was something curt and solemn, a brink of sanity among the cheering of eager young men and women from around the world, chosen to be in the greatest Navy of all time… or so the ads said.

Glen glanced back at the crew before turning and limping out toward a flight of stairs that would take him to the launch deck. Gripping one hand on his cane and the other on the railing, he stared up the decks. Above him, the next corridor beckoned. Sighing with pain, he made his way up the stairs to the next deck.

-

A popular misconception about ship decks is their arrangement. Since designers deemed that a 1000 foot long deck would probably be unstable and ridiculous, the decks are arranged in a side-to-side pattern, organized by usefulness. These decks are in turn modified by the nature of the Sealance. These decks are not solid all the way across; elevators, vent shafts, and gun emplacements dot these decks and provide intrusions.

The top three decks, which run under the launch deck and take up the entire top layer of the ship. Deck 1 was the preparation deck at the aft of the ship. These had the multiple locker rooms that both pilots and crewmen changed in. Deck 2 was under the island of the carrier, and functioned as an extension of the bridge itself. Deck 3 was the hospital and sick bay of the ship; situated near the top and forward third of the ship, it was easily accessible, and under the thicker armor of the catapults was harder to damage.

Decks 4 through 8 were also arranged similarly, with 4, 5, and 6 in sequence from aft to forward of the ship. These consisted of barracks for the crew of the ship, which includes basics for life, not just bunks. Deck 7 and 8 consisted of third-shift crew, who slept during the day and worked during the night. Deck 9, situated all the way on the opposite end of the ship from the hangar, is where the two flight wings of the Freelance Alliance rested, along with extra bunks for any visitors. Accompanying them were various other squadrons; E-2Cs, S-3 Vikings, and so forth.

Deck 10, situated under decks 2, 5, and 8, is one of the largest decks, going two-thirds the length of the ship – meaning that, while our Kanchou was walking, he only maneuvered a small portion of the deck itself. This deck is the mess hall and recreation room of the vessel; it's a big resting place. Deck 11, under the forward third, is the last habitable space of the vessel, consisting of officers' quarters.

Everything else is taken up by the refitted Enterprise-class vessel's components. Nuclear reactors, storage, and of course, the hangars of the very jets in which the ships of the Storm Fighters and Ghostriders rested.

It was here, from an entrance through Deck 7, that Glen Galanodel looked down into the hangar. The vast area of the ship he lived on was filled with ten jets, each one with the new color scheme of the Sealancers, along with a couple of variants. The original Ghostriders had been replaced with a new group of rookies, since all the rest had died in the Barracuda disaster. The jets were a dark gray body with a lighter gray color on the wings. The trim of the jet was a stripe of blood red, running down the side of a fighter's fuselage. Behind every jet's canopy, two violent triangles, back to back, were placed.

By contrast, the much dimmer shade of color the second flight of the Sealancers made even the colors of the Ghostriders seem bright. The jets of the Storm Riders were black as coal with a stripe of blood red, with Thanatos' jets merely matching this color. Also, unlike the Ghostriders clear canopies, these seemed to be a gold color, though no reflection returned to the viewer. It was as if it were a hole straight into the cockpit rather than a canopy.

Glen's eyes traced the hangar until it lay on a particular F-14. Painted in a mix of black, white, and red, it was both noticeable and blended in with the rest of the jets in the hangar. It sat on one of the deck elevators that would take it to the top of the carrier; the elevator itself was half-raised, giving the Tomcat a lordly appearance over the others. The jet by all appearances was a mix of Ghostrider and Storm Fighter; the jet had a black angular body, and the wings were black until the halfway point, where they merged with the white seamlessly. The sides of the fighter were stained with red paint at the back of the white nose, and faded into the black. The tail had a special design on it; the Wolf of the Storm Fighters. The jet itself was also taller, longer, and wider than most, giving it a super sized appearance.

More intriguing than the paint job, however, was the design. Situated in between the two tails was something akin to a hump that blended into the jet; closer inspection revealed a third engine nozzle on the back of the hump. Closer to the front, halfway down the wings where the black and white merged, two gun pods peered out like extra pylons. On the pylons themselves, AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles rested, black as the jet themselves.

Glen watched as one of the pilots, Jack, walked up to the jet and climbed the ladder next to it, opened the black-glass canopy, and sat inside. A mechanic climbed it behind him and helped the young PO work some of the systems; a few pre-launch checks on the jet's maiden flight. Glen watched silently, and nodded acknowledgement when Jack's eyes met his, causing the PO to wave fanatically.

Meanwhile, in other parts of the hangar, the Ghostriders' jets were also being prepped for launch; already a few were loaded onto the elevators to the deck. The pilots were confused; they were to launch in the event that something happened with Glen's fighter, though they didn't know what to do in that situation. When confronted, Glen said nothing only that his orders stood: in the event that something bad happens (which was partially why Jack was going into the sky as well; to help judge "something bad"), shoot down the jet with no remorse.

The entire ship was on full alert and readying for the takeoff of Glen and his fighter. The pilot watched the gatherings below, and as two fighters were lifted to the top deck, he walked around to the other side of the hangar. He swung on a ladder pole before landing his feet on one of the rungs and began to rapidly descend. As he hit the bottom, however, he landed on his hurt leg. Pain shot through his body, and it was all Glen could do to not double over in pain as he leaned on his cane toward the jet.

Jack waved from below to him. The trepidation he had felt from earlier while being in Glen's office had faded; in fact, he felt wonderful now. Though he loved working on his beloved JSF, there was nothing like working on the custom controls of Glen's new fighter. As the so-called "Beta tester" of the jet's controls, Jack had made sure that controlling the jet and all its newfound abilities would be simple to the touch. Though he could never fly it himself – the jet was too different from any he had encountered before – he was certain that the test run would prove successful.

"Sir, all checks are complete!" he shouted from the cockpit seat. He stood and flipped out of the jet, landing clumsily on his feet. "I've recalibrated the left rudder controls to be easier on your leg, but you'll have to deal with less left yaw, among other problems. I've also set a max limit on the components slaved to your HUD; there's no since in breaking parts on the maiden voyage," Glen nodded consent.

"Very good," he replied. He walked up to the Master Chief, then past him. He gripped one of the rope ladder rungs and looked back at the officer. "Hurry up and get your bird in the air; we'll need the air cover," believing the conversation over, he began to climb up the ladder. However, Jack flinched and raised his head.

"Sir!" Glen stopped. "Sir… just what are you afraid of?"

"…The wrath of those…" Glen whispered. "Of those…" turning his head toward the cockpit, he climbed up the ladder and jumped into the pilot's seat. He looked over to his side and nodded at a nearby sailor. The enlisted man snapped to attention and shouted a "Ryoukai!" before turning and giving the command to raise the elevator.

Glen finished the pre-flight checks before flipping the necessary switches to turn on the jet. As the elevator began its slow grind upwards, the turbines in the back of the jet turned, and slowly it came to life. A hundred lights flickered before coming on and casting a blue/green hue onto the Navy leader's face. The flight stick in the middle jerked around a second while computer screens switched on, and a series of binary codes flashed across them before stopping suddenly with their necessary info – settings, speeds, and whatnot.

"Clearing pressure!" shouted a comm. officer as Glen put on his flight helmet; a different version of the standard, as instead of coming out tightly against his head around the front, a point jutted out and down, like a Hawk's beak, toward the bridge of his nose. "70, 80, 90! Ready the primary catapult!"

Glen glimpsed the electromagnetic catapult that ran its way across where the steam catapults once rested. They crackled with energy before shooting two Hornets into the air. He watched a second and listened to the radio chatter.

"Charging primary catapult! 80, 90, 100! Move her toward the back!" Glen was almost led by the nose as his jet moved toward the catapult where his jet was to be launched. Two men scattered while a third directed him toward the proper launch point. Pushing a button in concert with strapping himself in, the black canopy closed automatically and he locked the straps in place. His vision only slightly obscured, Glen reached to the side and pulled a small cord out of his seat. He looked at the cable before inserting it into the slot on his helmet.

A green holographic screen came down over Glen's eyes like a visor. They flickered before bringing up a HUD that was similar to one used by a conventional jet, but moved with Glen instead; slaved to his helmet, the HUD gave constant up-to-date information. Not only was there speed, height, and heading graphs, but the Angle-of-Attack, hit-location display, missiles remaining, rounds remaining, current mode of attack, gun piper, radio transmissions, and many other displays that had to be accessed by voice command; lesser pilots would have crumbled.

The HUD quickly ran through each check until stopping to flash words in red.

SYSTEM XEROS HEADS-UP DISPLAY ACTIVE

Glen opened a channel.

"Storm Wizard here," he said. "The F-14X Avenger is ready to launch."

-

Sky's Angels: Angel Squadron
Episode:00 – Avenger

-

"Ready to go!"

A crackle of energy shot down the catapult, and a split second later the Avenger was in the air. Glen shot out at almost 1000kp/h as his three thrusters came online, pushing the jet beyond the speed of sound. He twisted the stick right and, with vision clear as day, looked to the Sealance to watch two jets prepare for launch. He also noted the two SH-60 Seahawks as they geared to launch. On external pylons, pods were mounted and loaded with special MQ-3 Challenger Unmanned Aerial Vehicles.

"Sir, we have a special course set up for you," reported one of the Ghostriders. "The island will relay to you a set of coordinates that will take you through a nearby chain of the Twinkle Islands and put you within view of Bronze Gate One near the halfway mark. The course is a series of twists and turns on the first half before becoming a straight shot back toward the fleet,"

"Ryoukai," replied the calm pilot. "Give me the coordinates,"

"Yes, sir,"

A fraction of a second later, a set of blue rings appeared on the HUD. Pushing his throttle up, Glen twisted the large fighter into a loose roll that eased the heading into the first ring.

"Oh, by the way, sir, we forgot to mention something," continued the Ghostrider.
"…"
"Um… Erick has sent over Angel Squadron to shoot at you… with live rounds,"
"…very well," a shrill beeping sound echoed in Glen's right ear. His HUD radar reported four contacts; enemies. He twisted to look toward Bronze Gate One and activated his radar. As he cleared the first ring with relative ease, the radar contacts were revealed one at a time.

SU-47M "Yukikaze"
F-14D/S "Viper"
X-02T "Crystal"
XF/A-27A "Blade"

Glen's eyes lingered on the last jet.

Snapping back to attention, Glen scanned for the second ring, which rested on the other side of an island off his jet's left side. He nodded.

"Glensather, engaging," he reported, putting on his face mask. A gloved hand rested on the throttle while the other gripped the flight stick. He nudged the throttle forward and twisted sideways, beginning a very loose left turn that took him around the island. The ring came into sight moments later. Pushing the throttle a bit harder, he leveled out facing the ring and felt a change in his fighter's air resistance as the wings pushed themselves backward.

The Avenger flew through the ring and activated Number 3, off to the right at a near impossible angle. Glen would have to fly around one of the Arleigh-Burke Destroyers toward the left and loop around. Anyone with a brain knew that would give the Angels more than enough time to achieve radar lock as soon as they got in range. He chanced a glance and saw that the Wyvern and Tomcat-D had chosen to fly low while the Berkut and Nephilim went high.

"This is Angel Leader," reported a voice calmer than Glen's. The voice belonged to now 1st Lieutenant Rei Fukai, leader of Angel Squadron. "I see the target on radar now. Too far out for missiles at this height; Angels 2 and 3, it's up to you at this moment,"

"Ryoukai," replied a shaky voice; Juan Septiano, the third pilot of Angel Squadron and formally a Ghost. "We'll take him out after he gets around the Aegis cruiser,"

"My fighter's got Phoenixes," said a confident voice; Captain Jonathan Anderson, formerly Glen's wingman, now an Angel as well. Though he was technically highest rank of the pilots, Erick deemed Angel Squadron an Air Force flight, and thus an FAAF officer had to lead it. "I'm acquiring tone now,"

Glen grimaced but kept his cool the best he could. He flipped the fighter even on its belly and ducked lower, skimming the water. The Aegis ship was beginning to turn left; obviously blocking Glen's current trajectory and attempting to force him up.

"We'll see to that, then," he whispered. He nosed up slightly and pushed his throttle completely up. Behind him, three powerful jet turbines put out enough exhaust to melt a man as their Afterburners ignited, propelling the jet forward at an incredible rate. He could hear the ship's Captain call for evasive maneuvers, but it was too late for them to react.

Two seconds before coming upon the Cruiser, Glen slammed on the airbrakes and twisted the jet on his side. The jet slid meters in front of the island of the Cruiser and he pulled the jet into a hard right turn, pulling up more than right on the stick. The jet "slid" in midair, its heading one direction but its momentum carrying it in the direction he was heading. The pilot's head swam as the G-forces acted gleefully on it. He shook his head and saw the ring behind the two Angels as they came for him. He set the throttle to attack speed – just under afterburners – and continued forward.

"He's coming right for us," Juan muttered.
"It doesn't matter," Jonathan replied snidely. "I've got tone. Angel 2, Fox One! Fox One!" From the underbelly of the Tomcat-D, two AIM-54 Phoenix missiles streaked from their resting place and barreled on the Avenger. Suppressing a smirk, Glen armed his Vulcans, releasing their locks. He watched the smoke trails. He opened fire on one missile and blasted it out of the sky, before barrel-rolling to avoid the second one.

"Damnit, I missed," He heard Jonathan spit as he blew by the two fighters, flying through the next ring and activating #4, through a set of nearby islands. He angled the fighter to fly over one island and around the next, passing through the ring – assuming it was just on the other side.

"The Wizard has dark magic…" Juan whispered to himself. "But we have light to counter it," Glen narrowed his eyes and immediately began to scan the area above him. There was no sign of either the Berkut or 27 in the sky, meaning…

The shrill sound of the RWR and his HUD flashing "MISSILE ALERT" in bright red letters clued him in. The lower-right corner popped up an "Unidentified" target approaching from less than a kilometer, and closing fast.

"Damnit," Glen growled. He switched angles and pushed up the throttle, skimming behind one island before quickly flipping to the other side and flying around another. The three engines of his Avenger roared with anger as the missile also evaded the island formations, and closing fast. Narrowing his eyes in annoyance, Glen pulled a hard right and up, hoping to evade the missile with a deeper turning angle.

Glen turned and rose, but the missile kept mirroring his every move. At the apex of his climb, he picked an island and dove for it, the missile screaming behind him. His HUD updated and revealed the target as an "AA-11B Backfire"… the perfect kind of dogfighting missile. The best way to get rid of it would be to blast it out of the sky with a wingman; unfortunately, he didn't have that option.

It was do or die; he had to find a way out. He tapped the flare button on his joystick and pulled up while pulling back on the throttle, killing his afterburners in the process and reducing his engine output to zero. He fired off two flares before the Avenger began to slow down, then turned off the power completely. The airbrake deployed, further slowing the jet's momentum. As the Backfire chased after the flares, the Avenger twisted suddenly and faced the sea below. It quickly began to gather momentum downward.

There was precious little time. Glen retyped the activation code, then reached over and flipped the three engine switches down, then up again. He used his other hand to push up the throttle, while with both feet pushed in the rudder pedals, causing the flaps to flare out. Meanwhile, the sea loomed ever closer as the Avenger continued its decent.

Glen alternated hands, resting one on the flight stick and pulling back while flipping the master engine switch up. The engines coughed once before the turbofans came to life, blowing out hot exhaust before producing thrust. Pulling his feet off the flaps, the jet strained against its own momentum as it began to level out, the sea ever closer. The HUD came back online just in time for Glen to read the rapidly ticking numbers as they neared zero.

Come on… come on… he thought. A little bit more…

The jet's momentum stopped pushing down as Glen continued to nose up the fighter. The three engines had their limits pushed as they brought the jet to a near-stop in mid-air. His RWR came online just in time to go ballistic as he looked ahead to the two AMRAAM missiles bearing down on him. He quickly unlocked his Vulcans and opened fire. Tracers streaked through the sky before impacting with the missiles, detonating them prematurely.

Forward momentum quickly came to the Avenger, and it propelled itself toward the ring in question from earlier. Glen glided through and began to round the next island, toward the next ring. However, there was a surprise lurking in the shadows of the island. As he came around the side of the landmass, a hail of gunfire greeted him. Cursing, the pilot opened his airbrakes and reflexively pulled up, opening fire on nothing. Hovering within the shadows of a cliff, the MQ-3 Challengers and Seahawk control copters had taken position. The MQ-3 was a rotary-wing drone made specifically for target practice. Cheap, slow, and armed with a 20mm machine gun, they were only deadly in large numbers.

And there were 12 of them.

"MOTHERFUCKER!" Glen yelled rather uncharacteristically, the tension within himself releasing all at once. His fighter flared as bullets peppered him, damaging his wings and weak underbelly. He swiveled, tapping a few buttons along his console as he struggled with his fighter. He regained control and propelled rapidly upward. Switching channels, he considered praising the Seahawks on their surprise, but paused.

"This is Angel 4," a female voice called; it was a soft, quiet voice, but her words were at the same time firm. "I have him on radar… Blade, Fox Two…"

The RWR went crazy, but the missiles weren't in immediate sight. Glen's HUD brought up "AIM-120 AMRAAM" and pointed toward his right. Swiveling, he marked the missiles as about 20km away; the very edge of the AMRAAM's built-in terminal guidance range, but it was closing fast.

Glen flipped the fighter and began to divebomb the Challengers, dropping off a few pops of chaff in the process. He suppressed a smirk as a thought came to his mind, however. 15 Kilometers.

"Attention Sealance, this is Storm Wizard," he called, switching to FLEETCOM-1; everyone would hear. "Switching to Avenger Configuration,"

"But, sir, that hasn't been tested yet," one of the High-flying Ghostriders complained.
"No matter," Glen replied, pushing the necessary code. "This is good a time as ever,"

The letters "AVENGER Configuration, Active," popped up on Glen's HUD… and a transformation occurred. 10 Kilometers.

The Avenger killed its engines and leveled out, using its flaps to prevent any gained forward momentum. The AMRAAM missiles on the Avenger dropped from their positions, and the two top-mounted Phoenixes also detached, flying off in random directions. The fighter nosed down a bit when suddenly a loud "POP" echoed around in the air… and the bottom of the jet fell out, falling toward the sea.

"What the hell is going on?" he heard Jonathan shout. To his left, the F-14D/S watched from a distance.

5 Kilometers.

From where the bottom of the jet once was, two long, reverse-kneed, steel legs unfolded, like a bird's legs. Three-toed "feet" lay flat, and the whirring of turbofans could be heard. Two hot jets shot out, slowing the fighter's decent toward the sea and causing its stance to change slightly.

The gunpods on the Avenger's wings lowered, becoming guns attached to arms. They swiveled about for a second before setting themselves forward.

1 Kilometer.

"AVENGER Transformation, Complete," popped up on Glen's HUD. On the sides of the jet, two green lights, shaped to resemble eyes under and behind the canopy, flickered on.

AMRAAM missiles bore down on the jet. At the last possible second, a burst of energy from the bottom engines moved the jet back and up, causing the missiles to scream past and plummet into the ocean. Glen grinned to himself as he swiveled, looking down and to the right. He heard a whirring sound as the arm guns moved, matching the direction he was looking. He opened fire, the GPU-8/A cannons opening fire on the UAV units below. One was blasted out of the sky and forced the others to evade, but were unable to point up.

"MISSILE ALERT" flashed on Glen's HUD again. Looking up, two Sidewinders were closing in.

"Activating eXperimental Enhanced Resonance Operating System," muttered the pilot. He keyed in five buttons on the side on his console.

X
E
R
O
S

There was a flash of yellow light within the cockpit as it became active.

-

The Sidewinders missed by millimeters. Guns pointed down and blew away the offending objects. The Avenger dropped from its place in the sky, flying backward and down before stopping a kilometer from the Challenger UAV units. Covers popped off the gun pods, revealing eight AIM-9X missiles. On the HUD Screen, each one locked on to a separate target.

In a flash of smoke and fire, all eight Sidewinders launched, twirling around each other in fury as they came down on the MQ-3s, blasting them out of the sky. The Avenger rapidly flew forward, tucking its legs under itself much like a bird-of-prey, and flew forward. It opened fire and destroyed three of the remaining four before suddenly kicking out its legs. One engine activated and shoved the fighter into a hard left jink, circling the last Challenger before bringing both Cannons to bear. It blasted the UAV out of the air with a stream of gatling fire.

"Amazing…" Jack whispered. "Less then 12 seconds…"

Jack had joined up with the Ghostriders and flew point, looking down at the Avenger as it seemed to slow.

"Kanchou!" he shouted. "Are you okay?"
"…"
"Kanchou?"

An alarm went off in the F-35's cockpit.

"Angel 2, Fox Two!"
"Angel 3, Fox Two!"
"Angel 4, Fox Two!"
"Angel 1, going in hot!"

Three missiles streaked by the nose of Jack's fighter, causing him to lose control and snap roll right. A Berkut followed the missiles as they plummeted toward the stationary Avenger.

-

Inside the Avenger cockpit, the only sound was the RWR and Glen's heavy breathing. Blood seeped out of his nose. His ears were ringing as on his HUD a thousand targets seemed to flicker in and out of existence. He blinked and pushed the hallucinations away, but they returned just as swiftly.

"Targets, everywhere…" he muttered. "I can't… can't fight them all…" Gasping for breath, Glen slumped forward in his seat as he took in a deep breath. Pushing in both rudders, now leg, pedals, he pushed his fighter backward to evade the missiles and fighter…

Glen looked up and opened fire with his Gun pods… but he couldn't maintain lock.

Shaking his head, Glen tried to regain his thoughts again… but this time...

-

Just as the missiles would impact, the Avenger pulled an impossible hard right, evading him and spinning on one leg. It whirled around rapidly before bringing a cannon straight up.

Rei hadn't anticipated the sudden change in movement as he dove with the missiles, and was thus greeted with an unwelcome sight. As the Avenger whirled around, it pointed its gun straight at the Berkut's nose. Rei screamed and rolled, twisting right and leveling out. Behind him, the cannon opened fire, glancing bullets off the tail of the Berkut and giving it a pockmarked look.

"Holy…" he whispered. "That was wicked fast…"

-

Glen slumped over in his seat.

Three words appeared on his helmet's HUD, though his closed eyes showed no signs of comprehension…

And a cry, like a wolf's howl, echoed into the darkness…

-

The Avenger pushed itself up. In mid-rise, the lights on the side of the fighter went from green to red. Behind it, the other three jets of the Angel Wing unit came around, flying as one, and rejoined the leader in the Berkut. It stopped and swiveled, turning to face the fighters, but made no other movement. Down and behind it, the Seahawks retreated, heading back to the Sealance as quickly as possible. Jack had slowed down and was descending toward the island below. He typed in a few key commands as his jet entered VTOL mode. He unlocked his weapons.

"Angel 1 to all Angel Units," Rei called, unlocking his remaining two Backfire missiles. "Arm all short-range IR missiles. The thing is too fast and too evasive for anything slower than Sidewinders, and can swivel too easily for us to avoid the gunfire," On the outer wing pylons of the Su-47, two fuel tanks dropped. "Drop all tanks; let's try and get him on one pass,"

"This is Angel 2, Ryoukai," Jonathan replied.
"Angel 3… yes, sir," Juan whispered, his internal racks opening to reveal four AIM-9X ASRAAM missiles.

"This is Angel 4… do we really have to do this?" Rena asked, dropping her tanks.
"Yes. It's what both Colonel Long and the Admiral wanted," Rei answered, bringing the wing of jets around to face the still-unmoving Avenger as it glared at them.

"I… see…" Rena said softly. A few seconds later, six more ASRAAM missiles came online. "I wonder… if we all fire at once… can he stop them?"

"I doubt it," Jonathan said, grinning. "If we can just get in range without being blasted, we'll be all right,"

"Cut it," Rei suddenly ordered. "I've got us about 15 klicks out; it looks like he's watching us," indeed, as the Berkut and the others leveled out, the Avenger still had her guns trained on the unit. The computer in the Berkut cockpit zoomed in on the Avenger as it swiveled, its tail fins moving to rotate the jet. "On my mark…"

"Wait," Juan interrupted. "The Wyvern's picking up signals from the jet… it looks like its moving…"
"I've got a visual," Rena confirmed. "Unless my systems are malfunctioning, it looks like he's moving… backwards?"

The Avenger slowly seemed to back up from the incoming Angels as they made their way closer to the jet. It started to rise into the sky and seemed to begin turning up, looking on-high as it seemed to search for an escape route.

"Is he running?" Jack wondered, looking up at the Avenger from his JSF.

However, as if on cue, the Avenger rapidly turned and looked downward at the JSF. Jack blinked at the sudden change of movement, and continued to stare as the Avenger dropped from the sky. It at first started lowering itself from the sky, edging closer to the F-35, then suddenly, as if the bottom fell from it, it fell like a rock.

The Avenger's feet crashed onto the sides of the JSF, and Jack screamed as his jet fell from the sky. The fighter on top pointed its cannons down at the fuselage and fired twice, rupturing fuel lines and control units. Jack's engine died, smoke shooting out the top of the jet. Just as suddenly as it started, however, the Avenger cut its engines back on and rose higher before tucking in its legs and activating all three engines, heading straight up toward the Ghostrider flight watching from below.

The six fighters broke and scattered as the jet appeared amongst them, opening fire in a wide circle. One of the fighters were caught in the left wing while another had its canopy blown off, but otherwise the flight remained undamaged as they retreated and prepared to fight back.

"He's lost it!" one of the pilots shouted.
"Don't worry," Rei called. "We'll be in range in ten seconds!"

Below, the Berkut and other Angels continued to rise rapidly, their engines shooting out fire. The unit headed straight for the Avenger as it continued to fire upon the Ghostriders, as they vainly attempted a counterattack. Rei gripped the controls of his jet tightly, watching the twin squares converge slowly. The first one connected, the radar locking on to the high heat output of the jet. The diamond took longer, but at the end of ten seconds…

"Mark," Rei said, opening a channel. "Angel Units, we have tone! Missiles away!"

"Angel Wing, Fox Two!" Jonathan shouted.
"Angel 3, Fox Two! Fox Two!" Twin ASRAAM missiles shot from the racks of the Wyvern, advanced targeting systems helping the AIM-9s.

"Angel 4… Fox Twin!" Six missiles streaked from the underbelly of the XF/A-27.
"Angel Lead, Fox Two!" Two AA-11 missiles screamed from the underside of the Berkut.

As if noticing them for the first time, the Avenger looked down on the others. The twin gatlings and nose Vulcan rotated for two seconds before opening fire upon the encroaching missiles. The ASRAAMs twisted to avoid the gunfire, but for many of them, it was too late. GPU fire, coupled with Vulcan fire, sent hundreds of shells shooting from the sky like rain, three guns cutting loose with more hot lead than any of the Angel jets, who watched their missiles streak upwards toward their target.

Over half the missiles were blown out of the sky. But there were enough, it seemed, as the first ASRAAM ducked under one last burst of GPU fire and slammed into one of the legs, tearing it off at knee with its explosion.

A second one hit the adjacent gun arm, blowing it away at the "shoulder".
A third one detonated on the left wing, shearing it off at the base and causing the fighter to lean unnaturally to the right.

A fourth flew between the tails and hit the third engine, causing it to rupture and send jet fuel into the sky as it billowed smoke, consuming the fighter and her wounds.

The Angels burst past, their engines straining at the height. The jets leveled out and looped around, looking down at the smoke cloud as it cleared.

The jet was still there.

"No fuckin' way…" Jonathan whispered as he looked at the wreckage of the Avenger.
"It is as if… the devil controls it," Juan said, suddenly crossing himself.
"…" Rei and Rena were silent as their in-flight cameras zoomed in on the jet itself.

"…Storm One, this is Angel One, come in," Rei called out as the silence permeated the air. "Come in, Storm One,"

There was a hiss of static.

"…This is Storm Wizard… is that you, Yuki?" Rei breathed a sigh of relief.
"Yeah, this is me, Admiral," he called. "You had us worried…"

-

"...we didn't think you were going to make it for a while there,"

Glen stood on the deck on the Sealance. Behind him, the hulk of the Avenger was taken under, into the hangar for a serious bit of maintenance. He leaned heavily on his cane, and he listened to Rena as she explained what had happened to the Sealancer pilot; her own jet was resting comfortably near the island.

"So… the Avenger went berserk?" he concluded. "After it knocked me unconscious?"
"Yes, sir," Rena nodded, looking back toward the island of the Sealance. "According to the guys watching you from the island, they said you went out shortly after activating XEROS… it seems that the sudden infusion of electronic information into your brain caused you to – for lack of a better term – short-circuit," she chuckled. "Oh… I'm sorry, sir,"

Glen looked down for a second, his gray eyes searching the sea, before he looked back at Rena and nodded. He limped past the girl, patting her on the shoulder in a cold recognition, and headed for the island of the carrier. Next to the door, a confused and beaten-looking Jack David leaned, his eyes searching his mentor for a better answer to the event. As he opened his mouth to speak, however, Glen silenced him with a raised hand, whispering something to himself as he stepped through the threshold between worlds. Jack only stared after him before looking back at Rena, who stared after the dark-haired pilot briefly… before grinning at Jack. Jack smiled and waved, adjusting his Oakley's and stepping inside the ship himself.

But one thought demanded to be spoken.

"…Oniichan?"

-

Hours later, under the cover of night…

Glen stood in front of the Avenger, a hand placed on the nose.

"Can you really bring forth… a conclusion to the Scenario presented?" he asked the jet. Silence was his only answer, however, and that was all the pilot desired. Turning away, he glanced back briefly at the jet he questioned. Then, looking back ahead, he walked off, his cane tapping against the floor rhythmically.

However, inside the jet's open cockpit, the helmet HUD suddenly came online.
And one word flashed.

...yes.

-

Now its time, I fear to tell,
I've been holding it back so long,
But something strange deep inside of me is happening,
I feel unlike,
I've ever felt,
And its making me scared,
That I may not be what I (think I am) …

What of us, what do I say
Are we both from a different world?
Cos every breath that I take, I breathe it for you
I couldn't face my life without you
And I'm so afraid.
There's nothing to comfort us…
What am I, if I can't be yours ?

I don't sleep, don't feel a thing,
And my senses have all but gone,
Can't even cry from the pain,
Can't shed a tear now
I realize,
We're not the same and it's making me sad,
Cos we can't fufill our dreams (in the life)…

So I must, let us break free
I can never be what you need
If there was a way, through the hurt then
I would fight it
I'd take the blows.
Yes I would fight it
But this is the one.
Impossible dream to love
What am I, if I can't be yours…
Thanatos, If I Can't Be Yours

-

"So this is how it all starts for us. The beginning of a conflict, written in blood and tears. Our journey begins soon…"

"In Episode One of Angel Squadron, the Angels must fight on the ground as they seek out the answers to a transmission sent to Erick. The location? Grunder Industries main base in Sudentor. The time? December 30th, 2010… the night four black jets took the fight to their true enemy…"

"Next on Sky's Angels: Angel Squadron – Yukikaze and the Super Sylph"

"And I promise to try and throw in a little fanservice as well…"