Heaven's Blitzkrieg

"GET DOWN!"

No sooner had the words gave command before the scientist suffered a searing blast ahead of himself, his arms offering a feeble cover as wood splintered and shattered all about him. A cry of frustration left him as his eyes shut by reaction, the bronzed goggles adorned as protection nearly forgotten. Every side of himself was littered with debris, making his escape seem all the more helpless.

"Carlos, over here!"

The night sky enhanced the attack with limited visibility, dark smoke swirling about the zeppelin as it writhed pathetically in flames. Accompanied with the whirl of the propellers had been gunfire shooting about in seemingly every direction, forcing Carlos to scurry along the unsteady deck. Wind aided his limited visibility as it whirled thick, curled waves of dark hair over himself. Shakily he reached up, pulling back the wild strands as he squinted, legs unsteady in his haste.

"Rachelle? I can't see you!" he retorted, shortly before a cry of agony caused him to flinch. A quick glance behind himself revealed a crew member with a sizable gaping wound exposing brain matter to the raw elements. Their lips remained parted wordlessly as they surrendered themselves to their knees, and soon slumped forward with a pathetic, lifeless splat. The sight immediately sickened Carlos, feeling bile raise within himself from the sight.

"To your right!" Rachelle cried out, her voice caught amongst the warfare. "Grab my hand!"

Blindly outstretching his arm, Carlos' fingers spread widely in as he felt for another. Traveling at such a high speed rendered his fingers numb, having been exposed from the gloves suited more for style than practicality. Luckily another hand grasped his firmly, and soon began to pull the scientist towards themselves. A screeching iron ball blazed past the two, the deck slammed upon with a deafening boom. Carlos found himself blown back by the impact, yet he still held tightly upon Rachelle's grip. He fell with an abrupt yelp, the air briefly knocked away from himself.

"Rachelle! Ah, that was close-" he began, coughing all the while. Pulling himself up, Carlos' gaze widened as he peered down; although he still clung dearly to Rachelle's hand, the sudden weightlessness of it confirmed the absence of Rachelle as a whole.

Lips remained parted silently as Carlos stared at the appendage he held, the bloodied stump revealing exposed bone. The tissue had been ripped to shreds, which bled profusely in front of him. Feeling all color drain from his darkened features, Carlos found himself beginning to scoot himself back from the severed arm, despite still holding it firmly.

"R-Rachelle!" he stuttered, "Rachelle!" Words were lost to the battle as Carlos finally willed himself to drop the hand, hearing it land with a dull thud against the wood. His heart had long leaped into his chest, threatening to suffocate him from the sudden shock. Already he could feel his airways beginning to tighten, his eyes remaining fixated upon the fallen limb.

"Carlos!" he heard another voice call to him. "Come here!"

Despite the command so close, Carlos was unable to draw himself away from the arm that belonged to one of his team members. They were all supposed to depart together, stay with each other and continue their scientific studies amongst themselves, though all that remained of Rachelle was the pathetic reminder of the cost of their studies. Finding his mouth dry and his throat beginning to burn with the bile threatening to rise, the individual called out to him again.

"Carlos! Quick, come here!"

Still lost within his daze, a firm hand abruptly took hold of his shoulder, forcefully jerking Carlos back. Stumbling upon the deck in response, only a pained gasp left his parted lips. A series of bullets speeding past him, close enough to feel the force of their velocity whisk against his hair, pulled him further away from his brief daze. Swallowing back the lump in his throat, he peered down to the man before him. Carlos himself had always towered above most others, having been granted the gift of height.

"We have to make this quick boss," said the man, his own worn lab coat tattered at the ends, complimented with ash and soot. Reaching up to take hold of Carlos' upper arms, he affirmed eye contact and spoke loudly, nearly shouting, amongst the gunfire and whirling wind. "There's not enough time to get everyone and their equipment on board, so it's just going to be you, understand? Rachelle already brought your case – we're going to steer close and you're going to jump-"

Although the other's lips were moving, Carlos hardly registered his words until he stated Rachelle's name. A faint, barely audible repeat of her name left Carlos, before his companion continued. "It's gotta be quick though, we don't want to lose you or have either of us take anymore damage! Once you're on board, we're going to turn straight away and leave-"

A blaring canon blast from below deck caused the zeppelin to jerk, the sound drowning away the order. Seizing the moment, Carlos then found his case thrust against his chest, immediately wrapping his arms around it in response. "C'mon, you have to go!"

Retaking a single hold on Carlos' upper arm, the other man guided him across the deck. All about the two commands were screamed and cries were heard. Gunfire and another canon from the opposing ship blared as they clumsily made their way, the stench of gunpowder, soot and smoke overpowering the crisp, night air. Boots clicked loudly against the wood as they ran, Carlos clinging his equipment to himself in a strong enough grip to whiten his knuckles.

"Dave, wait-" Carlos finally stated, the pair making their way to the edge of the deck. "Will you a-and the rest of the team, ah, be able to arrive eventually?"

"Wish I could tell ya' boss," Dave retorted, halting their sprint just before the wooden railing of the ship. "We'll do our best, but I can't guarantee anything!"

Upon the edge, the wind rushing past seemed all the more fierce. Though night had befallen their journey, the brilliant moon easily illuminated the thick, swirling clouds that surrounded the battle scene. Curled locks jeopardized Carlos' vision, causing him to silently curse the fact that he neglected to tie his hair back on the journey. However he reasoned that he wasn't exactly planning on getting attacked on board in the first place.

"Look, there they are!"

Squinting behind his goggles, Carlos spotted a rather small airship quickly making its way just underneath the zeppelin. It proudly displayed an array of violet sails, may of which held the repeating emblem of a single eye silhouetted within the center. Piloting the ship, barely visible from where he stood, was an individual with black hair messily pulled back into a ponytail. Donning a black cloak with a similarly colored face mask, the person pulled one hand from the wheel and waved towards Carlos and Dave above.

"Do your best, boss! If there's anyone that can help our situation, it's you!"

Before Carlos had a chance to reply, Dave moved his grip to his shoulder instead. Without warning, he suddenly swung Carlos forward, the rails immediately breaking upon impact. The scientist tried to scream or yell or curse or make any noise at all, though the sudden pressure crushing his lungs in midair made even a gasp impossible. Wind rushed past his face, the cold temperature and velocity stinging his skin as he was plunged to the ship below. Arms remained tight upon the case as the world flew past him, and soon, he felt himself crash into another wooden deck. Pain bolted throughout his form, what little air remaining in his lungs so callously forced out of him.

"Hang on tight!" the pilot cried out, their voice feminine yet commanding. Carlos hardly had a chance to register the command prior to the ship giving a violent jerk. Canons continued to boom in the air, accompanied with the offending gunfire; it was difficult to find focus on anything else.

Remaining on the deck, Carlos kept his hold on the case, feeling his stomach turn as he felt air pressure raining down upon his slender form. Making himself roll to his side with a strained groan, a single eye peeked open to show him the warfare taking place. The zeppelin suffered another hit from a canon, just before the hull caught fire. A resounding blast echoed in the sky, and Carlos saw a vast explosion. Opposite stood another zeppelin, a faint emblem of a mimicked sun marked sat upon its golden mast, catching the glint of moon light.

"3000 meters," a soft, higher pitched resonated on the deck. A surge of panic rushed through Carlos once again, his fingers curling all the more tighter upon the case as he stared at the battleground.

"3500 meters," it continued. The airship was rapidly ascending, keeping Carlos pinned to the deck from the sheer force.

"4000 meters." Despite the acceleration, the pilot merely kept their grip on the wheel, hardly bothered from both the ascension and the pressure.

"4500 meters." Below themselves, the sound of the battle gradually began to dull. Both eyes closed tightly as the pressure continued to force Carlos down, feeling his very breath frozen in his chest.

"5000 meters." Nails began to dig into the case, curling up his body around it all the more. His heart hammered heavily in his chest, the mix of adrenaline and anxiety coursing through himself nearly as quickly as the ship ascended.

"5500 meters." Thoughts of Rachelle and Dave and the rest of his team fleeted from himself, his attention heavily tied and knotted upon his immediate situation.

"6000 meters." Seconds seemed like hours to Carlos, despite everything happening far too fast. The enemy ship seemed to manifest out of nowhere, its strange emblem appearing familiar, though he was unable to pinpoint it by memory just yet. Who would have sabotaged such a secret arrangement?

"6500 meters. All hail!"

So suddenly was the pressure relieved from Carlos that he hadn't realized he was still holding his breath. The pilot laughed, their heels clicking loudly on the deck as they cheered. "WOW! Almost thought we wouldn't make it out of there, right Fey? Ahahaha, what an adventure!"

Only when Carlos realized he was listening to the pilot and not the wind beating him onto the airship's surface did he exhale that long held breath, however shakily. His digits felt frozen onto the case itself, though he steadily peered his eyes open. The sky was brightened by the clouds reflecting the stunning moon light, clearing his vision. Gradually, Carlos pulled himself onto his side, feeling his stomach threatening to rebel and his head still spinning wildly. Despite, he willed himself to reach up and remove his goggles, propping the pair upon the top of his head.

Before the airship stood a grand town standing upon a floating landscape. Aged buildings and sand adorned the environment, the former scarcely. Cacti stood proud amongst the outskirts, but with better focus Carlos saw that there were multiple floating islands with similar habitats, all seemingly harmless and quiet in the night. The moon itself seemed to envelope the town with its luminous rays, contrasting greatly against the void which was speckled with brilliant stars. Unmarred by a cloudy sky or steam that often cluttered his view upon the surface below, Carlos couldn't help but gasp in sheer awe.

He finally found it. He finally found it!

"Welcome to Night Vale," the pilot greeted.