Time Struggle - Part 1
T minus eight hours…
When she walked away angry yesterday, Stith never thought she would set foot on the Spirit of the Way again. That woman, Kendra, made her so angry. Insulting her race, acting so superior, taunting her until she lost her temper. How she managed to carry all that ego with her dazzled Stith. The problem however was that she needed Kendra. Now she just had to convince Kendra that she needed her. According to the guy who sent her in the direction of the training hall, Kendra was about to start training with her rookies. When she turned around the last corner and entered, it turned out he was right. Trying to make herself look even taller, she put her attitude aside a little for now and walked up to her.
"Kendra, can I have a wo-"
"I don't have time for this now," she said curtly, turning her back on her. Stith felt a stab of anger but decided wisely to ignore it. "Everyone listen. I'm afraid I'm gonna be absent for today's training. There's something important on the surface that requires my attention. Crusader Laika will be your Commander for today. I expect you to follow her orders."
"Yes ma'am!" eleven voices bellowed through the room.
Apparently after she left yesterday, two more warriors had left the game. The rookies saluted, after which Kendra turned around with a tug and left the room, ignoring Stith completely as she walked by. Stith however didn't let go and followed her into the corridor.
"Kendra, can I have a word with you?"
"You had your chance. You tossed it into the fire."
"Please!" She had trouble getting the word over her lips. She had firmly resolved not to beg for anything but she wouldn't even listen to her. It did work however as Kendra stopped and turned around, raising a brow. "Listen, I think you and I got off on the wrong foot. But I wanna do this."
Kendra stared at her with her intense blue eyes and sighed.
"It might be better for you to go back to the surface. Things are under control now. We've got enough of these guys. You've got your children to care for in a couple of days. I'd really hate to see you get hurt."
She started walking again but Stith was not planning to give up so easily.
"You said I had one more chance."
"You had one more chance then, not now."
"What do you have against me?"
She was now really starting to get angry again. She couldn't stand her.
"Oh quit it. I don't have time for this, kangaroo girl."
"What's your problem?"
"My problem? What's your problem? Didn't you hear me? It's over. Done. Go home."
"From the start you've done nothing but insult my people! My race! And you did it again!"
"You're undermining my authority in front of the entire group! I'm not letting anyone make some kind of fool of me!" They were now standing opposite to each other, both breathing heavily, their eyes piercing into each other's. The sparks were flying off. A member of the crew who stood by had seen what happened and didn't move, until Kendra noticed him and her professionalism returned. "Carry on," she snarled, after which he quickly disappeared. She heaved a deep sigh and shook her head. "All right, I'm giving you one more chance. But I want you to follow orders. Now I won't be here to follow your progress but if I hear from Laika-"
"All right, I get it!"
Kendra led her back to the training hall.
"C'mon, I'm late already."
"Thank you. Eh, Kendra? Where's Akima?"
"You just missed her. She's down on the surface for an important operation. She told me she's fighting for you."
Akima. Stith couldn't believe it. That human was really the best friend she ever had. She really cared for her and that thought made her feel even guiltier.
"Kendra could you do me a favor, if it's not too much to ask?"
"All right, make it quick."
"Please tell Akima I'm sorry. And that we're gonna do this together."
"You're doing great Tucker. Your left flank seems a bit vulnerable though. Better get some extra point defense up or they're gonna roll right through it."
I was getting there. Clenching her teeth, she moved her ACU along her line of defense to strengthen the area designated by Faulkner with a group of engineers. He was there with her for support on the frontline along with several other rookies. They were the first line of defense and it was their task to cover the area at the entrance of the large peninsula and the nearby city. The city had been precautionarily evacuated as were the tribes living in the surrounding forests and jungles, the inhabitants moved to safety before the battle began. But that was no reason for letting the city be destroyed. It was covered by several shield generators and protected by multiple defensive turrets which were in turn covered by engineering stations. These small support structures housed a small set of repair drones to perform repairs during any moment when needed. A couple of air squadrons were constantly patrolling the region, to keep the enemy from getting close. It was better to avoid an attack on the city if possible.
The large piece of land that extended into the nearby ocean was the perfect area for a naval base. It was flat, with enough room for shipyards and it was easy to get rid of any trees with the ACU instantly converting them to usable mass. Three Commanders were building the base, one from each faction, to combine their technology and increase the effectiveness of their defense. If they succeeded in getting the base fully up and running and holding this position, it could serve as a staging area for future operations. Multiple factories were up and producing units and the whole half-island was heavily fortified with shields, turrets, floating torpedo launchers and patrolling submarines and ships. It bristled with activity and that was a necessity. The Seraphim would be on them soon.
Akima's role in this whole plan was simple. She was commanding one of the frontline outposts and served as a warning system and first line of defense for the base. If there was any sign of trouble on the move, they would know through her. For this mission she was commanding an Illuminate ACU with all of its units, structures, weapons and upgrades. For some reason she preferred Kendra's faction and had a better feeling while commanding it. Her small base was up, producing large amounts of tanks and assault bots, the sturdiest of all Illuminate units. She would need those together with her gunships and superiority fighters to hold them off.
Suddenly her com chimed and on the panel on her left, Kendra appeared. The general transmission, directed at anyone was automatically put through.
"Good morning everyone, if you could call it that. The stink of Seraphim is in the air today and it's blowing in this direction. Now listen. We know the Seraphim have set their eyes on this position and I don't think they like us sitting here right now. Be advised, we've already spotted enemy forces within the twenty kilometer range. That means they're close. Secure the perimeter and get ready. Remember, losing is not an option. Natal out."
Great start. She was ready though, at least she thought she was. The other rookies of their group were here as well. However they were all still green in the eyes of their superiors and that's why Faulkner coordinated them during this mission. A few moments later she was contacted on a private channel by Lynn. She did well in training just like she did and had proven to be capable.
"Are you ready for this?"
"I've got your back."
Lynn smirked.
"And I've got yours. Don't worry. We'll get through this. You and I have been training like crazy."
"That may be true, but Kendra taught us that every battle is different. You can never really prepare for what's coming." Another transmission came in, on a private channel and it was from Kendra as she could see. "That's Kendra, gotta go."
She broke the transmission without waiting for Lynn's reply and put Kendra through.
"Akima, are you ready?"
"I feel ready Commander."
Kendra smiled.
"I've got a message for you. A friend of you wants to let you know that's she's sorry. She promises that you're gonna do this together."
"Stith" it flashed through her mind. She didn't know what to say. After she heard what happened between Kendra and her alien friend yesterday she thought Stith quit. It wasn't like her to let others tell her what to do but it wasn't like her to give up after one try either. Kendra however wasn't the forgiving type so she wondered how Stith had managed to convince her to give her another chance. Maybe these two women, though from different worlds, weren't as different as they both thought. "Tell her, that I'm waiting for her."
Kendra scoffed.
"There's no time for waiting. In fact, time is a luxury neither one of us has." The cheerful expression on her face was suddenly overshadowed by seriousness. "And stop talking to Patterson. I can see that."
"I just wanna make sure someone has my back."
"We've got your back. By the way, you might wanna change that engineering suite for something more useful in battle. Take a look at your ACU upgrades. You're fighting on the front line. You might wanna equip some shields and upgrade your weapon. It can make quite a bit of difference when you're fighting on your own. Good luck and keep an eye on your radar."
She broke the transmission and suddenly she was all alone. The calm before the storm. All she could do was wait. Due to the constant pressure applied on her she hadn't even noticed how beautiful the Mantrin homeworld actually was. Her HUD allowed her to see much more than the naked eye alone. The city they were protecting was built on the top of a low hill surrounded by large outcroppings of rock. The terrain was very rough and reaching their perimeter by ground would already be difficult for their enemy. The dense forests and jungles of Sogowa were growing on anything accept flat terrain. Hills, cliffs, waterfalls and rivers made up the landscape making it an extremely challenging battlefield. But Kendra was right. If she were here for sightseeing she wouldn't be piloting this machine. Selecting the Back Personal Shield Generator from the upgrade menu, she began to enhance her ACU with the new system. It would offer a much greater protection in the heat of battle. In the mean time she just sat and waited, her thoughts drifting off to her husband. I wish you were here with me Cale. Figuring he was probably thinking about her too at this very moment, she upgraded the right arm of her ACU with the Quantum Accelerator. This upgrade would rapidly cool down her main weapon, allowing a faster rate of fire. The last upgrade replaced her engineering suite with an enhanced version of the Quantum Disruptor, nearly doubling its range and effectiveness. Now she was almost ready. In the distance, large avian creatures dominated the skies. Sogowa had a huge diversity of flora and fauna and the planet's most intelligent inhabitants lived in harmony with them. Zooming in using her HUD to study the phenomenon her breath suddenly caught. Those animals were no animals at all.
"This is Akima to all other Commanders. We have incoming hostiles; range five clicks. Repeat, incoming hostiles. Check you radar!"
It was Faulkner who replied and took action.
"Copy that Tucker. I'm intercepting."
A large squadron of interceptors and fighter bombers broke off from their patrol and changed course to intercept the enemy air squadron. The robotic fighters were lightning fast and engaged in a wild dance for domination of the sky, making maneuvers that would crush the life out of any pilot, if they had one. Their linked rail guns were effective at taking out the enemy gunships and fighters. If she were real honest to herself, their craft were as beautiful as they were mysterious, with the unusual asymmetric design and shining armor. Two large craft, identified by her HUD as Vishala Tech 2 air transports were shot down by Faulkner's strike force before they could drop off their load of tanks and bots, hitting the ground with an earth shaking explosion. But this was just a scouting party. One of Akima's radar installations detected a large scattered group of tanks and assault bots fighting through the forest, using their weapons to cut down everything in their path. Large columns of dense black smoke from the burning forest swirled up into the sky, causing a rain of ash to fall down in the surrounding area. She was completely frozen for a second but snapped back into the battle when she was warned by her ACU about the increasing number of red dots on her radar. They were coming at her by the dozens and at the other side near the base they were doing the same. A large fleet of Seraphim naval ships had been spotted and their long range weapons could severely damage the base if not taken out in time.
"All right, let's get this over with," she muttered to herself.
But before the enemy reached her, a transmission came in and before she knew it, her com was hacked and it was put through without her unable to do anything about it. Her heart skipped a few beats and her breath caught again when the green-yellowish eyes inside the angry lizard-like face pierced right into hers. His skin was a dark shade of gray which made the eyes stood out even more. They glittered malignantly, reflecting his evil intentions. She had seen pictures of the Seraphim from the database but in real these creatures were even more frightening. She wasn't sure if he could see her directly nor if this transmission was only directed at her but to be sure she didn't move a bit. Trying to come over the initial shock she kept her mouth firmly shut, taking short breaths through her nose. The voice of the alien was a sharp as a blade and he lisped when his native tongue was translated into English.
"Welcome my Coalition friendsss. My name is Quan-Thanamow and I pity you. Your lassst momentsss are near. This planet will be part of our new Order and there'sss nothing you can do about it. Every single human will sssuffer the same fate as those of usss you killed on Seraphim II. No one can ssstand against usss."
He laughed malevolently. A cold emotionless laugh, which made the shivers crawl up her spine. But his laughter was cut short by Kendra who broke the transmission. The alien's face made place for hers and apparently Akima wasn't the only one who received that transmission.
"Don't listen to that hideous creature's crap! Concentrate on defending the base! It was a stupid move anyway cause now we have his location. There's a modest-sized base about forty clicks from here from which he's launching his attacks. We have to take it out sooner or later or we'll risk being overrun."
In the mean time Akima was having her hands full. Tanks and bots dashed out of the forest, firing their high-powered energy weapons against her shields. Suddenly the air between the enemy and her draining shields was filled with bolts, beams, missiles and bullets. In this total chaos she had to keep her head cool. Her life depended on it. She had about seven hours to go.
The Valkyrie was back in space dock around New Earth late in the morning and the crew had never been so eager to leave the ship. Most of them had family living down there and wanted to make sure they were all right, but none of them was as eager as Cale. Poor Iji. They had been forced to leave her alone; orders were orders. Fortunately a Vusstran couple living at the same level as their apartment had agreed to take care of her. They had left their polluted world, trying to find a better place and had found it on New Earth. They were very nice people, liked Iji very much -probably because she was their race- and had no problem with that since they had children of their own, though they were much younger than Iji. She could resume school and do stuff at home normally and she could eat with them or stay with them if she wanted. It had all been arranged quickly. Still, despite all that, Cale was still worried about his younger alien sister. They didn't tell Korso on what part of the planet the Seraphim commander set down. What if it was close to one of the cities and in particular the Heliopolis?
"Cale, I'm gonna find out what happened. I'll contact you when I know more. Go and find your sister."
He thanked Korso for being so understanding and stepped on the transporter pad. Korso had no living family. He wasn't bothered by such things and he was a Captain. He had to report to his superiors. When he materialized on one of the pads in one of the cities busy lobbies, his heart was suddenly racing in his throat.
"Iji" it flashed through his mind.
He still didn't know what happened but some damage had been caused to the city. In the middle of the lobby where he was standing a holo billboard had come down, destroying part of the information center and undoubtedly killing people in the process. He didn't doubt that more incidents like this one had happened all over the city and he couldn't help but pray that Iji wasn't among the victims. Cursing the Seraphim he rushed toward one of the transparent elevators with only one thing on his mind.
When he arrived at the level of his apartment he was glad to find everything intact. The apartment was still there and the door was closed. Still he was already pushing against the door before he was identified by the bioscanner. When it unlocked he immediately dashed inside. The living room however seemed untouched. Something wasn't right. Was Iji really that neat? Most teenagers turned the house upside down when they had it for themselves.
"Iji!"
He did a few steps, taking a quick look in the other rooms. No Iji. He checked his chrono. Normally she would be at school but it was the weekend. She had to be home. Maybe she was with Mr. Qre and his wife Nyt. They had promised she could drop by whenever she wanted. He was just about to leave the house and check when something hit him hard in his stomach area. It was Iji with her arms wrapped around his waist, so glad to see him that she nearly crushed the life out of him.
"Cale! Am I glad to see you."
He softly stroke her head, her leathery skin feeling rough to his fingertips.
"Iji, are you all right? I heard there was an attack. You're not hurt, aren't you?"
She wasn't crying or sad all, as he first thought. She was just terribly glad to see him. Lifting her face off his chest she looked at him, her beak-like snout curving into a smile.
"I don't know what happened. I was at Mr. Qre's house and then there was an explosion of some kind. I was scared at first but I had to be strong for their children. They're so young. They were terrified so I protected them until I was sure we were safe."
"That's very courageous of you. Did they take good care of you while you were there?"
She nodded.
"Nyt really likes me. They've been like a mom and dad to me. I like 'em very much."
Cale gently rubbed her head. He didn't want to leave her alone again but he had to.
"Iji, I'm sorry. I'm gonna have to ask you to stay with them for just a little longer. You know Joe Korso? My Captain? He'll contact me as soon as he knows more about what's going on. We'll probably get reassigned where we're needed at the moment and-"
Iji shook her head.
"You don't have to say anything brother. I know, you're very busy and don't have time for your little sister."
"No Iji, that's not it. I don't wanna-"
She smirked and flared her nostril slits.
"I'm teasing you dummy. Now go get 'em!"
He pulled her into his arms one more time, tightly hugging her against his chest. She hugged him too, her arms wrapped around his waist.
"I love you Iji. Be careful okay?"
"I will" she mumbled.
Since he had to wait for Korso to contact him, Cale decided to pay a visit to The Lighthouse. It was crowded of course and a free spot was almost impossible to find. The little snippets of conversations he picked up mostly had the current situation as a subject. Of course it was hard to ignore. New Earth was no longer the safe haven it used to be. He heard a father talking about his wife and three children. The alien was obviously considering to leave the planet. Cale shook his head and sipped from his drink, shooting a quick glance at the people he was sharing this end of the bar with. A drunk Tetsarian sat on his left. On his right sat an Akrennian, talking to a friend from a race he didn't recognize. Harry was too busy pouring drinks to have a chat and he didn't recognize anyone. Eventually he got caught up so much in his own pool of thoughts that he didn't notice someone had recognized him.
"Didn't expect to see you walking in here."
When Cale looked up and turned to around to face the person the voice belonged to he was surprised and not entirely unpleasantly. Ayko placed her stool next to him and 'asked' the other Akrennian to move up. He shot her a dangerous look at first but quietly did as she said.
"Oh, hey Ayko. How's it between you and Preed?"
The tall Akrennian woman laughed, revealing her glistening fangs. She sat down and emptied her glass of ale, putting it on the bar with a bang.
"Good actually. You wouldn't recognize the guy."
"I'm glad to hear that. D'you know what's going on by the way?"
The look in her eyes changed. He had never seen her like this.
"I'm sorry, but those darned aliens attacked your world. And you're not the only one." The look in her eyes changed again, this time into anger. "Those filthy creatures have set foot on my world as well. I'm gonna go back tomorrow. I hope they'll kill every last one of them and dissect them and make their entire race pay for what they're doing."
She rammed her shaking fist on top of the bar, grinding her teeth in anger.
"My God, I didn't know it was that serious."
"Oh, but it is. They won't stop."
He could feel her fury. It was contagious. He began to feel just like her. He wanted to make them all pay. They were killing millions of innocents here. What could they do? Their technology was highly advanced. If the Coalition weren't here to help, those worlds would have fallen one by one. Before he could reply his wristcom chimed. It was Korso.
"Tucker here."
"Cale, meet me down below. I've got a new assignment."
"I'll be right there."
He looked at Ayko who waved his apology away with her hand before he said it.
"Just go. Duty calls. See ya later."
"Thanks Ayko."
She had already lost interest in him as she opened up a conversation with the guy next to her. He stood up to leave and suddenly Preed was standing next to him. They merely exchanged looks but he patted the Akrennian on the shoulder nonetheless.
"Keep it up Preed. You're doing great I heard. I saved a seat for ya."
"Why thank you Cale."
He smiled wryly and let Ayko know he was here. In the mean time Cale was already on his way out. He had more important things to do than chat with a guy he still didn't like.
"There you are."
"What's up Cap? You look serious."
Korso sighed. He began walking toward the lobby's exit. Something was on his mind, Cale could feel it.
"Apparently it's more serious than I thought. New Earth and Sogowa are no longer the only worlds."
"Yeah, I've heard it from Ayko. I met her just a moment ago."
"Ayko? That female Akrennian who's in love with my good old friend Preed? Are they still here?"
"Yeah but she won't be for long. Akrennia's fallen prey to the Seraphim as well and she's furious about it."
Korso nodded.
"Not just Akrennia I'm afraid. Vusstra, D'amara, hell even Indar Prime's been attacked. Plus they're using several uninhabited worlds as staging areas as well."
"What about the Coalition?"
"They've requested reinforcements and they're doing the best they can but the Seraphim are spreading like fire through a dry forest."
Cale was speechless for a moment and followed his Captain outside. What did this race want from them? Were they so driven by their anger and thirst for revenge that they just killed everyone who happened to be in their way? This was madness.
"What happened to Starfleet? Where's Jason?"
Korso sighed. He barely looked at him when he answered.
"Starfleet has its own problems right now and they're not that different from ours."
"You mean?-"
"I'm afraid so."
"Can we still expect their help as they promised?"
Korso suddenly stopped walking. His face had turned into a mixture of concern and agitation.
"Cale, I don't know. You're asking all kinds of questions I can't answer right now. Command has given me a special assignment. It'll be temporary but here on Earth we can make a difference. Akima's doing the best she can to do her part. Now we're gonna do ours."
"All right, all right, settle down. What've you got?"
He smiled mysteriously.
"Follow me."
When they left the city Cale had never expected to see what he was seeing now. The Coalition had a Commander guarding the Heliopolis. The massive vertical city was now surrounded by defenses. A base had been built around the superstructure to defend it from enemy attack. A series of special shield generators had been built around the Heliopolis to protect the vulnerable city. These shields could be instantly raised in case of an attack. Cale could feel the ground under his feet shaking and when he looked to his right, a massive ACU walked over the plains. The giant machine was there to protect them but it reminded everyone of how close the war was to them. But what Korso had in reserve surprised him even more.
"Dominators?"
Two of the sleek flying wings were standing on one of the runways of the nearby spaceport. He had flown one before and it was the fastest thing he ever flew. Agile, lightning fast, armed to the teeth and capable of flying completely on its own. What was Korso planning to do with them? Two small fighters wouldn't make a difference against the Seraphim.
"That's right Cale. These are Mark two's. The Coalition modified the craft, increasing its combat capabilities even further. Their armor's been reinforced and it now has a small shield system."
Cale was amazed. The main assault fighter of the Republic fleet was already top of the line. But the Coalition managed to enhance it even further. A shield generator in such a small craft? It made him realize how far they were still behind in technology in comparison to the Coalition.
"Hop in. We're gonna take 'em for a little ride to an air base. They wanna test the landing systems again since there was an accident on the runway yesterday."
"All right, I'm in for a little flying."
When he climbed into the cockpit and put on the light-weight helmet he was met by a strange feeling. What in the universe was Korso up to? He was talking about a new assignment and an air base. Were they going to fight on the front lines just like Akima did on Sogowa? He decided not to ask questions and simply followed Korso. Things would undoubtedly explain themselves when they got there. Closing the cockpit he fired up the small ship's systems. The layout of the controls had been slightly altered, a few extra options added but it was practically the same as the Mark one. Grabbing the stick in front of him, the pilot feeling came back. It was invigorating, giving him strength and confidence.
"Ground control to Dominator squadron, do you read?"
"We read ya," Cale heard Korso reply over the open com channel.
"You're free to go Captain."
"Thanks. Cale did you hear that?" Cale acknowledged and fired up the engines. He could feel their power beginning to flow as the small ion reactor jumped to life. Let's fly. Pushing the throttle forward, the craft responded just as fast as he remembered. He was pressed into the seat with considerable force as the craft gathered speed on the runway. It didn't need much distance to get airborne and could even takeoff and land vertically if necessary. The moment the landing gear retracted he blasted off into the sky. "Cale, hold back a little. It's not far from here. I'm sending you the coordinates."
"Sorry Korso, I guess I got a little excited."
Korso laughed. A moment later they were flying side by side. He raised his thumb from behind the cockpit window.
"This is actually my first time flying this baby. It's different from anything I've ever flown before."
Cale chuckled.
"It's a beast in a small cage." The coordinates were marked on his tacmap and as they adjusted course to intercept them Cale noticed something odd. That can't be right. "Eh, Cap? You might wanna check those coordinates again. Fifteen hundred meters is a little high for an air base, don't you think?"
Korso let out a laugh.
"Oh no, the coordinates are correct, you'll see."
The undertone of his voice had something mysterious to it. Cale was getting curious.
A few moments later it became clear what he was talking about. Korso took his fighter straight into a cloud formation with Cale on his tail.
"Brace yourself."
When they broke through the white fluffy-looking barrier on the other side it became obvious what he was talking about. Cale was staring at something that only existed in people's fantasies, yet it was floating here before his very eyes. Hovering on four pairs of anti-gravity engines was the base. It was a flying aircraft carrier. Two control towers were placed on each flank and three flight decks were stacked on top of each other. Gun emplacements protected the flanks and a couple of large cannons hung from the bottom, capable of bombarding any ground based installations. And this whole massive installation was just hanging there, defying gravity itself. Cale blinked a few times to convince himself it was real and not some trick of the mind.
"I-Is this real?" he brought out.
"If you keep flying straight, you're gonna find out how real it is," Korso joked. Banking to the right, Cale kept staring at it, unable to tear his eyes from the sight. "It's a Thunderstorm class Sky Carrier. She's called the Icarus. You wanna take a look aboard?"
"You bet."
"This Joseph Korso calling Icarus. Icarus do you read?"
"Good day Captain, this is Icarus. Runway two on the upper deck is clear. Welcome aboard."
"Thank you. Korso out."
Extending his gear, Cale made a half circle and banked sharply to the left, lining his fighter up with runway. Hitting the brakes he brought the Dominator's speed down to a safe and steady level and slowly brought the stick down. Being this close to the runway, he began to notice how big the whole platform actually was. It was astonishing. He began to wonder where they had built this thing and in such a short period of time. The Coalition and their technology kept surprising him.
"Cale you're coming in too low."
"Eh, right."
Pulling up the stick a bit to keep his altitude, he made a promise not to let his thoughts drift away again until he was standing still on the tarmac. When the wheels touched the deck, he hit the brakes as hard as he could, stopping the fighter in no time. To his surprise, the computer took control and taxied the fighter off the runway, lining it up on its own spot behind a row of Dominators.
"Looks like the landing systems are working perfectly now," the voice of the man in the control tower said.
Opening the canopy, he took off the helmet and leapt out of the cockpit. Deciding to have a look around first, he walked toward the runway. A small squadron of fighters took off on the deck below, the tarmac under his feet trembling. They exited the hangar on the front of the carrier to start their patrol. A few people walked around. They didn't need many. As with all things lately, most systems were automated so they didn't need maintenance crews or pilots. In fact, three drones had seemed to come out of nowhere to take care of the fighter he just landed. It was strange, standing on a giant flying air base one and a half kilometers up in the sky. The sound of the carrier's massive anti-gravity engines pressed on his ears. It was a deep low rumbling, like thunder and he suddenly knew where the name came from.
"Amazing isn't it?" It was Korso, suddenly standing next to him.
"Yeah, but what're we doing up here exactly?"
Korso smirked.
"We're gonna assist the Coalition in their fight against the Seraphim. They're a little short on crew and since the Valkyrie is not exactly designed for in-atmosphere battles we can be of more help here. And the best thing is, I'm sharing command of the Icarus with a Coalition officer. Shall we?"