Chapter 1
"Linda's Rebirth"
PROLOGUE...
I'm designated with a rank of First Lieutenant, Williams, Melinda F. of the Carrier Fighter Wing VFA-534 "Twin Reapers". I was around as a Super Hornet team partner with my boyfriend Hawke Yeager, even during the Korean war since 2014. However... Things got bad when we were escorting bombers on our way to captured Seoul as we were covering them. Eventually, our fighter was shot down, and together, we bailed out, but we landed behind enemy lines. Soon, they found us thanks to the crashed F-18. And we were captured afterwards as prisoners of war.
Hawke was my boyfriend since we graduated at the Force Academy in Colorado. We were together after some dating and were assigned to the 'Eisenhower.' Dreamy, huh? I wished it couldn't be over, but as all things go, they don't last... Even relationships are broken, and in my case... Death.
Inside the cell of a POW camp in Seoul, Linda was wiping Hawke's wounded face with a cloth. The two of them silently laughed after having a conversation, until a North Korean major along with several men have visited the cell.
And with no doubt, the North Koreans, show their hospitality by beating my boyfriend senseless until he was almost out. And I even wiped the wounds on his face just to have it hurt again. The two of us were separated as I figured of the horror they do. And with no doubt, they stripped me. I was resisting them, but they beat me up too just for me to stop, and they tortured me, and violated me... It was unbearable, seeing my boyfriend watch as he was being restrained... If only anyone could have helped us... But I knew it will never be the case. Both of us have gone through hell...
After they raped me...
She was finally released from her piece of hell before they were somewhat close to each other while she's on the ground. Hawke was helpless and was still restrained. "I'm sorry... Linda. I'm sorry..."
"It's... It's fine." Linda said while she reached his cheek with her hand. "I just wanted to say... I love you." She cried out silently as tears came out from her eyes, which happened with Hawke afterwards.
"I... I love you too..."
"Oh..." The major said as he held an AKM rifle. "Such a touching scene. Typical American." After cocking the rifle, he kicked Melinda once more in the gut before he stepped at her chest with his boot before he aimed at her head. "I could use you as a sex toy, woman. But... Now you're not worth it..."
"W-wait...! No...! No, NO!" Hawke shouted as she stared down the barrel of the AKM...
I knew what I signed up for... And unfortunately, this is the end of my road. He took that shot and the first one was at my head, killing me instantly. When they thought I was dead and gone, I was only there with a small trace until I felt I was shot more times at my body. They not only violated me... But they destroyed me too. I knew that my rage would climb if I'm alive, but I can't let it be, because it wouldn't change anything. I died, and they didn't. It was only after a month that we were somehow rescued. They gave me a good disposal via the sea... But I'm sure he felt so sad when I left his side. That's right... They never disposed of my body while we stayed in the same cell together, even with me as a corpse. I call them barbarians, but at least it's over. Still... I'll miss Hawke.
And so... I knew the next thing is: the afterlife...
Melinda - ...or so I thought. As soon as I finally left my own planet... I wasn't aware I got into another.
March 12, 1963... 0718 hours...
The faint sound of wind rushed on her face. The environment was still black because of her eyes still closed. 'Wait... Is this... Wind?' She thought before she stirred completely. However, something came out of the darkness of her vision. Numbers have come up like a heads-up display to her, and the first thing she saw was the altitude on the top left corner of her display which showed the altitude. '13,000 meters off the ground and dropping?! WHAT THE HELL?!' Her eyes shot up open as she was seeing the clouds, the earth below her, and eventually she turned her head to see the sky almost dark blue, signalling she was at a high altitude. "What the...?!" And she felt she had no parachute. "Oh, shit!" And she screamed as she realized she was falling to the earth in panic.
'Okay, okay I gotta calm the fuck down... Shit!' She thought before she fixed her position. Eventually, her chest was faced front to the earth and her back to the sky while her arms were spread apart. 'Okay... This should slow down my fall. I should figure things out. How the hell did I end up in the air when...' She gasped at the next thing she remembered. She was shot 29 times, and remained that corpse in the POW camp before her body was taken to the seas. After that, rushing lights were coming past her and saw a bigger one like it was the end of the endless void. The next thing she saw was darkness. 'Of course... I died... And now I'm... I'm here? But... Where?' Then she felt a rush of energy inside her act and she glowed blue around her body. Then feeling something came out from above her butt and at her head, she felt herself. "Ears... And a tail?" Then her HUD has shown the familiar. "A Golden-Plover... A bird. A familiar?" Then she saw different things in the HUD that came to her assistance. "It's a Heads-up display in my eyes..." 'Of course! It's magic! How didn't I think of it? Damn it... I must be crazy, but it's the only thing I should believe now! I'm dead on another world, and I should expect living in this one! Alright, the faster I fall, the more scared I should be... THE FASTER I REMEMBER WHAT I SHOULD KNOW!' "Uggh... I HATE THIS!" And with no doubt, she angled herself until she flipped forward few times before letting her body straighten as it was angled towards the earth.
Then Melinda kept checking her altitude. "8000 meters and dropping." 'I better figure things out faster. There's a reason I'm dropping out from the sky with magic in me.' "Alright, let's see..." Then with focus, she accessed more things like her abilities. And when she checked them. "Air Arsenal... And I also have... Attire Imitation." She looked at herself, seeing the fatigue uniform she always has when she was training in once. "Maybe I could change my outfit?" She concentrated before she glowed white the whole way. "Whoa!" She shouted before the white glow turned into fragments, then flakes as it revealed her now current black pilot's suit. "More like it. But Air Arsenal..." Then she heard internal bleeps. She then checked her altitude. "6000 meters..." 'Damn! Better hurry. I'm falling fast!' Then she focused more with her Air Arsenal ability and accessed an aircraft database and she only has one. "The Super Hornet?" She sighed. 'Typically, yeah. It's the only aircraft that seems to have my soul in. I know it top to bottom. Max speed at Mach 1.8, Service Ceiling 50,000 feet... Yup... I got good spec background. And it seems I could get more spots if I learn more of the other aircraft I come across here too.'
Linda was finally reaching the 4,000 feet line and she smirked. "Alright, better make it good! Magic Air Arsenal, ACTIVATE!" She spread her arms before she glowed a bright white glow before her shape changed into an aircraft. The white glow became flakes and was taken off the now current shape: The F/A-18 Super Hornet which is colored black. She opened her eyes and saw screens around her in the dark room. It gave her information she needed about the aircraft integrity and status. "This is awesome!" 'I feel it too... The speed, the feeling in my wings... The empty burns of the my afterburners...' And that took her attention somewhere else. 'Wait a minute... I'm still falling!' And an alarm rang before she saw the front view, seeing the patch of desert she's coming to. "Shit! Okay, focus..." 'Let's pull this baby up!' She focused and closed her eyes. Soon, the engines were started and immediately, she raised her elevators up, and soon got the nose to raise. But with the speed she now lost, it'll take time before she'll go forward. The body was facing the ground downwards and it was nearing it. "Uggh! FOCUS... Get me a boost, NOW!" She shouted before her afterburners went on to act on full power. Soon, she flew forward and stopped her descent, and suddenly slammed forward with a sonic boom and climbed fast with a steep angle. "YEAH!" Soon, she got to a good altitude of 5,000 m and immediately got to a proper straight angle and lowered her throttle and made sure the aircraft is steady.
With her excitement and safety finally achieved, she jumped and cheered. And finally, she noticed something else as she covered her mouth. 'My voice... It's...' She gasped before looking at herself. She was glowing white, but she was able to let it fade for a while to look at her body. "I'm almost a 6 footer but..." She then examined her hands. "My hands... They're younger." Then she looked around, only seeing screens about her aircraft. "If only I could..." Then with her wish, a mirror appeared. She then walked to it and saw herself... That short brown-auburn hair with her green eyes. And to how she looked... She's... "A teenager?! No freakin way!" She face-palmed for this. "Oh... This is nuts. I died as an adult in my world and I come out as a teenage girl? Are you kidding me? Mirror, just get away." And the mirror faded from her presence. "Ugh... This is unbelievably bullshit."
The aircraft was still flying up as it was already getting to the clouds. "8,000 meters. I should maintain this altitude. I gotta know where I am..." And she heard her radio...
"This is Charlie Six!" An American voice came out. "Mayday, mayday! I'm hit!"
"CHARLIE SIX!" A teenage girl's voice rang next. From that voice, she was an Asian.
"We're losing effectiveness, Julie!" Another American-accented girl said. "We gotta start calling for backup!"
"We can't! The backup won't be able to get here in time especially with the drones keeping them busy! Besides... The five of us are the only ones to defend the damn base! We got no choice but to stick here!"
"Damn it they're resilient!"
Linda analyzed the communications. "So more teenage girls like me, huh?" 'I can't argue. If they need assistance, and badly... Someone's gonna have to get there!' "Alright..." She focused and started to look around. Immediately, she was able to spot red lasers in a distance. "Lasers? Just my luck. From the looks of it... It's 112 clicks from here." She smirked. "Better than nothing." She then turned her aircraft to the direction of the lasers from afar and increased her throttle. 'Now let's see how this baby flies!' She immediately got a real boost before her speeds reached more than Mach One, giving her a clue about a recent sonic boom she heard. 'Past Mach One... Now making my way!' But then she remembered something else. 'Oh yeah. I'm new here. I don't expect to be recognized, so I should make my own callsign. Reaper... Should I use my old callsign? Oh well... It's attached to me at least.' And in no time at all, her long-range radar was able to get a signal of multiplecontacts. 'So...' She looked forward and definitely saw what she seemed to be a battle between flying black ships with red lines and hexagons, and girls in contraptions to make them fly while they fired weapons at their enemies. "I'm sure the rest of them are teenagers like me. I shouldn't make it too complicated."
"Julie...!" An American teenage girl's voice rang out.
"What is it?"
"I'm reading a contact and getting visual fast. There's a fighter jet approaching us!"
And finally, she knew she wanted to respond and did so. "This is Reaper One... Coming in to lend assistance. Sorry if I'm late for the party."
"Identify yourself!" The Asian girl demanded.
"Right now... I'm a nomad. But all the same... I help save lives."
"Not good enough!"
"Oh? Then don't try stopping me anyway. Guess what? I'm new to this world. And you don't want my help? Fine with me. I just came here to do that ANYWAY!" Linda said before she pulled her throttle down and rolled before diving down to 4,000 meters above surface. She then detected bogeys that are considered to be the black aircraft. 'There are large type and medium-type bogeys. I should go for the medium types since I'm new to this. Then again...' She then started to zoom towards a medium-type bogey at its 4 O'Clock. 'I'm afraid, but FACING MY FEARS!' "Reaper One - GUNS, GUNS, GUNS!" She fired her MG's before she got a tone for a missile. 'Better try out my sidewinders. There are four of them and four sparrows too. This should be good.' "FOX 2!" And she launched a Sidewinder as it makes for the medium-type bogey as it detects its heat while she still fired her MG at it. The missile hits and it makes a big damage on it, equivalent to three rocket explosions.
And this had Julie stunned as she hovered seeing what the nomad pilot could do. "She's crazy!" And a green-haired witch hovered beside her while carrying a Thompson SMG with a drum mag.
"At least she's on our side!" Gina said in reply. "And she's got quite the weapons too. Should we support her?"
"She's only doing this because we have no choice. Let this be, but after this... We should talk to her. Don't let your guard down, Harley."
"Aww!" Gina whined, but then giggled. "You're a killer and I like it."
"Shut up. Now let's give them a piece of our mind!" Julie ordered before she sped forward for their enemies followed by Gina.
Linda released an MG burst at the same medium-type bogey and eventually, revealed a big red gem. 'It must be the thing powering it up!' Then her current MG burst hits the gem, shattering to pieces. Soon, the bogey was able to shatter to white flakes and she got past it. Then as she was about to celebrate, her reflexes were faster as she saw a bogey with the same patterns as that medium type. She pulled her throttle down before she raised her nose and fired a burst of her MG before the bogey passed above her, getting into her path of bullets. She pushed her throttle and banked to pursue the now damaged neuroi, but she saw an explosion of white flakes. "Hey! That was supposed to be my kill!"
"Don't be greedy, nomad." The Asian girl responded. "Besides... They're the neuroi. They don't choose targets. You just took out a drone neuroi."
"Neuroi? And you took my kill."
"I have taken the kill, but I'm doing it so you'd be enlightened a little." The Asian said before Linda leveled. She was then able to see the Asian flying with a broadsword behind her and a machinegun held in her hands. "For now, call me Major."
"Not Julie?"
"Shut up. You're of lower rank if it's not defined. You can fight and not leave rank, so expect you're just a sergeant if you come across witches as a nomad."
"Witches?" Linda muttered. 'So that's who I am... A witch.' "Anyway, I'll accept, Major. A sergeant I shall be."
"Good! Now focus your attack on the nearby large-type neuroi!" Julie said before Linda saw the target was attacking defending AA boats. "We'll lose defenses faster if we don't defend them."
"I'm engaging to protect the boats. Copy! Should I form up?"
"Gina's gonna need a wingman. Gina Harley's a Flight Lieutenant." And just as Julie said it, a green-haired witch came into view at the right side of Linda's plane. "Harley, you know what you must do. Right now, the other three pursued the faster jet neuroi. So you and Reaper One should protect the patrol boats!"
"You got it, Major!" Harley said before she flew to see the cockpit, but didn't see it due to the intense tint that was on the glass of the canopy. "I can't see your face, Reaper One."
"Oh." Linda smiled. 'I thought this would happen, so what if...?' Then she saw a function in Air Arsenal that was useful. This raised her hopes higher. 'No kidding!' "Let's try it!" Soon, her Super Hornet glowed white. And then as it lost its glow, it turned into flakes in which piece by piece, it was removed quickly to reveal the human-form of Melinda, now flying forward with her feet giving out an afterburner propulsion. Her arms were spread that time, but with confidence, she put it to her sides and flew straight. "See me now?"
Harley's expression was jawdropping. "Um... Ahh..." She couldn't answer, and instead, she looked at the nomad's feet. "You're flying without strikers?"
"Strikers? So you fly with them, huh?"
"Of course we do... But you aren't!"
"That's because I got Air Arsenal as my ability. It lets me fly with an aircraft as long as I have an extensive background of it and its detailed specs. It also lets me fly in human form... And it's something I discovered just now."
"Whoa! So you just started?"
"Yup!"
"Quiet!" Julie said and both heads turned to her. Then she looked at the nomad's face. "What's your name, sergeant?"
"Designation... Williams, Melinda! Happy to be of service, Major!"
"Major Mao." Julie replied. "Call me as such."
"Roger."
"Good response. Though you don't have any weapons."
Linda then opened her hand and shown Julie her palm that was giving a yellow and red glow from within. "From within my palms, I could fire my manipulated aircraft's machineguns with ease. It won't let me spend magic, but transforming to another model aircraft does. I only have one aircraft right now and at this instant, I'm using it. Like guns, I also have ammo limits, but I'm plenty so don't worry." She winked afterwards.
Julie winced while Melinda lowered her palm and flew forward. "You're amazing." Then Julie looked forward. "Enemy's dead ahead! We have to split from here. The other three need my help. The two of you can handle it, I suppose?"
Harley then cocked her M60 MG. "You can count on us!"
"Good. Make every round count!" Julie shouted before she made a hard bank and sped away from the two.
Gina then looked at Melinda. "Mind if I called you Linda?"
"Nice to see a fellow American here."
"American? I'm a Liberion!"
This made Linda wince but shook her head. "Never mind. We'll talk after this."
Gina shrugged and finally saw the large-type neuroi as it fired a huge ground beam and hit two patrol boats only three are remaining. "They're taking a beating so..." She aimed forward towards the neuroi contact. "...We should give it a beating too!"
Linda smirked before she put her hands forward. "I couldn't agree more. Weapons hot?"
"WEAPONS HOT!" Gina shouted before she fired first, followed by Linda, now introduced to more combat in the new world she was in. This was her re-birth, and her beginning...
Finally done! And, guys... THIS IS MY FIRST CHAPTER! This is actually a story relating to the adventures of Melinda Williams, once a fighter pilot, now fighting as a witch once a nomad but stepped into Julie Mao's squadron, the 45th JFS "Flash Squad!"
So here's my OC details by the way:
[MELINDA WILLIAMS]
Birthday: July 18 (Currently 14 in 1963)
Height: 5 feet 9 inches
Hair: Brownish-auburn hair (noted to have a light-green tip at the right side of her head)
Eye color: Green
Skin: Fair to pale complexion
Body Shape: Lean
Rank: 1st Lieutenant
Nationality: United States of America / United States of Liberion
Affiliation: Carrier Fighter Wing VFA-534 "Twin Reapers"
Aircraft / Striker: Primary - F/A-18 Super Hornet
Familiar: Liberion Avian Golden-Plover
Weapons: Aircraft armaments depending on aircraft used, Five-Seven
Intrinsic Ability: Air Arsenal (Can transform into any aircraft. She can shift into human form with traits from that aircraft and fire its guns with ease.) Attire Imitation (She can copy off the clothes of any person and become her own as she views them.) Ammunition Stock (Depending on her desired weapon, if it releases projectiles, she can supply herself the ammunition for the weapon. If it's for bullet-projectile firearms, a belt will be available for the magazines. But if it's a bow, arrows will appear in a quiver at her back. This uses magic.) All abilities spend magic, but she can only regain magic once she disables Air Arsenal.
Oh well... May as well update my War-Torn reboot now. ;) Stay tuned for updates on this one!