" You must not fight too often with one enemy, or you will teach him all your art of war"- Napoleon Bonaparte
We called them "Reavers". I don't know who coined the term or decided that is what they were to be called. That was well before my time. Centuries ago they came for us. No communication. No talks of peace. Their weapons spoke for them and our colonies fell like leaves before the storm. All we could hope for was to hold our ground. In space, your "ground" is the amount of planets under your rule.
This was a war of attrition, we were losing.
"Hey Lovino!" Well, so much for that moment of blessed silence. I turned to meet the amber eyes of my brother. He was a pain in the ass. Always that ray of sunshine on a cloudy day.
"Yes?" I grumbled. There was so much to do and the Paladin armor was always in need of repair. I think he was covertly trying to test my patience.
"Aren't you happy we have a day off?"Feli said lightly. Feliciano was always given to love rest and relaxation days. I wish I could share that. I haven't been able to sleep in months. Always some new fire in need of fighting.
"I haven't had time to even think about it!" I admit that I snapped and Feli stood with that damned frozen smile plastered on his face. Stupid!
"Ve Lovi" Feli said as he reached in to hug me. "Don't always be so down."
I shot him a look of feigned hatred. He knew better. Feli always knew just what to say. We were partners. My job was to blast bad guys out of the sky, his was to fix the mecha. We were both damn good at our jobs. He did have a point though. I wouldn't get very far if I continued to let myself get run down. My friends would each be taking their time off, so why couldn't I submit to the same philosophy? I stared at my brother for a moment.
"Sure, why not?" I said with a lighter tone. The Armor could wait until tomorrow. War makes you take each moment and make it as precious as you can. I think that is the lesson Feli was trying to make me see. I was always vulnerable to that smile. And the bastard knew it too!
Icarus Squadron had it's own assigned lounge. Which was a bit of a luxury if you were to ask me. The higher ups had us pampered when we weren't off doing their dirty work. Which was all too often the case. There was a bond between each pilot and his or her mechanic. It wasn't telepathic like the damned Reavers were so often accustomed to having. Ours was more Empathy. Bonds of blood often stood high in that factor, but not always the case. Some pilots and mechanics were related like Feli and I. Others had stumbled on such ties in different ways, like friendship. Sometimes we choose who our family is.
Feli opened the door to the lounge and ushered me in. Gilbert's loud electronic music was pumping in the background and voices were raised, not in anger but in laughter. I often held myself back from fraternizing with my men. Every commander does that I suppose. Not that we hate our people, no it is more of the "I want them to take me serious" attitude.
"Hey Feli! Who is this stranger you bring to us?" Gilbert's voice sometimes set my teeth on edge. His laughter was beyond annoying. He was a fine wing man though. I guess we all have our saving graces.
"Shut up you bastard!" I wasn't ever going to be the cuddling type. Yes, he knew I was kidding. He knew my ways and I knew his. In the thick of battle, he has saved my ass numerous times. Too many to count. I turned to look at the people now staring at me. I felt a bit out of place.
"Hey dude." Alfred was the first to speak. They had been playing cards. I was interrupting the game. I liked his easy going manner. He was sitting with Matthew,Roderich and Ludwig. I have no idea what game they were playing but I could see that Matthew was winning by the amount of credits sitting on his side of the table.
The others were playing some sort of multi player video game, which was now on pause due to the open stares I was getting. I forced a smile as Feli handed me a beer. Vash sat with a bored expression on his face as he watched Lily play. I glanced at the large screen. Emma had the high score. But there wasn't much of a serious competition.
I felt like an intruder. The awkward silence was almost palpable. I tried my best to become part of the background. I don't know why I was so afraid. These were my people after all. I should be at my most relaxed around them. Instead I felt like the stern father that came home to a teenage party.
As if he could read my mind, Feli cleared his throat. I knew the look. He was about say something.
"Ve guys" Feli said clearly. He could raise his voice over the music when he chose to."Lovi had something he wanted to say to you."
Wait...I did? I never said I had anything to say to anyone. Damn you,Feliciano! Of course I just stood there with my mouth open. I said nothing for a moment. Feli knew me too well. I cleared my throat.
"I just wanted to say that I appreciate all the hard work each of you has done." It immediately sounded lame as the words left my throat. I turned to Gilbert, who had a mischievous smile on his face. "Gilbert Beilschmidt, you are now officially Beta Commander to Icarus Squadron. I know you have acted the role for months. Since Ivan..." I let it hang. Everyone was still mourning Ivan in their own way. His mechanic, Katya was still in tears. Losing one's partner was devastating, often resulting in retirement. There were a few cases of second pairings but that was beyond rare. I noticed that everyone slightly bowed in their own way. Nothing formal."It's official now. I just figured you would want to know."
Gilbert had a funny look on his face. It was an internal struggle. Part of him wanted to be happy, the other half remembered Ivan and his sacrifice. Ivan's death hit us all really hard. He was the first of us to die. We were invincible, unstoppable, fresh from the Academy and ready to kick some Reaver ass! How wrong we were.
"Thank you, Sir." Gilbert spoke quietly. "I am honored."
"As are we all." I put my hand on his shoulder. It was the only comforting thing I could think to do. "Keep up the good work."
"Aye" Gilbert smiled. I think he may have smiled for that fallen Russian brother of ours. And I hope that, where ever Ivan was, that he would be smiling back.
"Do we have room for a fifth player?" I stared at Alfred." I would really like to get some of those credits from Mattie before he has enough saved to retire!"
"Sure dude." Alfred smiled broadly at me.
"Oh the boss man is gonna try to stop me,eh?" Matthew winked at me.
"I assure you, Mattie, there will be no "trying" I smiled at him."Deal me in."