Today was the day of the big move in. Finn was in his room, collected necessities for his stay in Aerrow's room. Gazing around, he pondered what he would need, and began to gather them in due time. He could always come back to his room for things like his razor or toothbrush, but he did want to bring a few things that he would keep at his bedside. These consisted of: a C.D. player, headphones, his C.D. wallet, several pocket reference books, and of course, his nighttime reading books (non-condensed versions of the pocket references).

Just down the hallway, Aerrow was also working in his quarters to prepare the arrival of his new roommate. Being the clean person that he is, there wasn't much in his room, and not a spec of dirt to be found. Climbing up the slightly rusted ladder of the bunk bed, he pulled himself up onto the top bunk. There were some boxes with their logo on them, filled with random assorted supplies that were moved along with the bed, and a fluffy blue sleeping radarr. Aerrow crawled over the boxes and stroked the furry animal on the back, taking the in the warm furry feel. Thinking he was being attacked, the blue creature woke up and immediately punched Aerrow in the nose.

"Radarr, what's gotten in to you?" Aerrow tried to ask, holding a bleeding nose in one hand and radarr by the scruff of his neck in the other.

His answer was a growling protest. Aerrow let the animal go, which then scampered off to some random place on the ship. Now that there was nothing else alive on the top bunk, minus himself, he could move the boxes out of the way. They had been there for a while, judging by the contrasting square imprints on the mattress where the boxes had been.

While he was moving the boxes to his closet, a picture fell out of one of the boxes. It was of him and his family when he was six. Everyone looked so happy, and everything was perfect. At least until the day when the Cyclonians had invaded.

Flashback

A lone terra broke above the clouds, Terra Atmosia. Outside of the main town there was a large neighborhood where nearly everybody on the terra lived. The houses on the street looked mainly the same, with a couple of subtle variations in color and texture. It had been planned that way, trying to bring everybody to an even level. In front of one of the houses, there was a pile of boxes, mostly labeled as "Family" in big permanent marker. Along side his father, who was dressed in his squadron's uniform for a sense of pride, Aerrow was helping to carry some of those boxes. His father had been sorting through the boxes, and finding

"Hey daddy, what's in these boxes?" a six-year-old Aerrow asked.

"Oh just some old stuff from when your mother and I were children," his father said.

Soon after saying that, his smile disappeared, a tear forming then rolling down his cheek.

"Daddy, are you crying?"

"No, I not… alright, I'm crying. It's just the though of your mother. Didn't I tell you," the father tried to get out, although it was visible that it pained him.

"What about my mommy?"

"Never mind, I tell you when you are older."

It started like the sound of a hundred bees in the distance, slowly growing. The sound got closer and closer, louder and louder. Off near the horizon, a huge fleet of Cyclonian skimmers and several cruisers was coming their way. Aerrow's dad dropped the boxes and ran back inside the house. Aerrow just stood their petrified. Among the ranks was the Dark Ace, now just a talon. He himself was much younger then he is now, then very low in the ranks.

Bursting out through the front door, Aerrow's dad came back out bearing and energy staffs and two energy blades. He handed his son an energy staff and took the blades for himself. He had trained his son in the use of such a weapon in case the Cyclonians came, and this was just the time to use that skill. Aerrow's father wasn't the only one to prepare for battle. All along the street, the men of the city readied them selves for battle. The red headed kid took up a position in the tree outside their house, while his father stood out in the open, without a hint of fear. He would soon learn to regret that decision. From his vantage point in the sky, the Dark Ace picked out his target, aimed, fired, and hit his mark. Aerrow's father was blown back from the impact and fell to the ground, unconscious, but alive.

Sever meters away, still hidden in the tree, Aerrow looked on in shock, barely able to comprehend what had just happened. Landing and dismounting their rides, several other talons picked up his father and flew him back to the ship as a prisoner of war. The rest of the talons, on the other hand, continued the invasion. The now fatherless child looked on as his home terra was slowly destroyed. His house was the first to be hit, destroyed in a second by a blast from a cruiser. When the town had been flattened, the force left as quickly as they had come. Aerrow jumped out of the tree and came over to where the spot on the ground where has father had stood. There was a couple of burn marks on the ground, some spattered , and a torn patch of clothing. He rubbed the patch. On it was part of the squadron's logo, burned from the blast. He set than down and looked around the area for anything else. Amongst the grass were his father's two energy swords, in better condition. He picked them up, deciding to keep them as something he could remember his father by. After thinking about what happened, a sense of grief that no child of his age should have to feel fell over him. Even though he was only 6, he now understood what had happened, and vowed he would spend the rest of his life doing whatever he could to defeat the Cyclonians. The town would slowly rebuild, but not when Aerrow was there.

End of Flashback

At tear rolled down the face of the sky knight. Just then, Finn burst through the door, laughing about a joke Junko had told him. The leader turned to face Finn, tears still in his eyes. Their eyes met, and Finn stopped right in his tracks, a look of concern and rarely seen sympathy on his face. Aerrow set the picture down on his nightstand, then looked at Finn with an expression that conveyed the message of grief between the two.

Nobody knew it, but Finn really did have a sympathetic side. He had been told what had happened before during story night on the condor, and felt for Aerrow. Knowing what his leader had been through, he walked over and placed his hand on his friend's strong shoulder. Looking around the room for something to Cheer Aerrow up, he gaze fell upon one of the walls.

"See that?" Finn asked, pointing to the gigantic metallic Storm Hawks insignia welded to the wall.

Aerrow would sometimes look at it for courage or motivation before a battle. Stork, in his free time, would sometimes do projects, and that was what he had picked for his first one. It was not his best work, but I showed that the merb really did care. The sky knight's attention was soon drawn to that spot.

"That's proof that we're doing something to defeat the Cyclonians. That's proof that we're honoring your vows," the sharp shooter testified, his voice smooth like glass.

Never before had the sky knight felt such a deep connection to a crudely assembled piece of metal.

"Thanks Finn, I needed that big time."

"Hey, what are friends for?" Finn answered, very upbeat.

The two teens shared a mutual smile.

"So, you ready to move in," Aerrow asked, recovered from his minor episode.

"Oh Yeah, I'm ready."

"Alright, then lets do it"

END OF CHAPTER

Hey, Kudos to my reviewers. You're the wind under my fingers. Thanks again.

- Icy Rage -