Sorry for the long wait, have this low quality chapter again. Please read the Author's Note for my late update.
Neuroi.
They are unknown beings that have appeared since ancient times.
Nobody knows whether they have existed since the creation of earth but the farthest record of their existence was written in the ancient Egypt scriptures.
They were known by many names. Kaii, Ratsel and eventually, humanity called them Neuroi.
The Neurois consumes land to breed more of their kinds. Hence, they can replicate themselves endlessly.
Mankind was terrorized with their existence.
Even so, humanity fought.
That was until Neuroi evolved.
Neurois are not just mindless beings, they are smart. They are fast learners and quick to adapt to their nature.
And so, Neuroi was able to break every mankind's plan.
Not even the strongest weapons or machine could defeat them.
Humanity was doomed.
That was until humanity was gifted with the blessing of the god themselves.
Witches
Maidens gifted with extraordinary powers.
Humanity lost the first Great War but with these maidens help, they managed to repel the Neuroi from consuming the land further.
However, the moment Neurois returned for the second time they were merciless.
Large tracts of land were taken and humans were driven out. Humanity was pushed back over and over until they were cornered.
Yet, they fought their hardest and with every effort they could, Gallia was free from the Neuroi's grasp.
Hope was ignited once again.
Humanity will fought to their last breath and blood to reclaim what was theirs.
With the powers of the young maidens, the Neuroi will stand no chance.
This time, humanity will win the war.
"Do you understand now, Captain Wolfe?" Adolfine asked.
Trigger remained silent after hearing her story. His jaw was wide open, speechless, the only reaction he could make after hearing the story. He had no thoughts or words to describe the story.
Earlier, Adolfine agreed to explain the entire thing that was happening in this land. Adolfine brought him to her assigned office and was served with a cup of hot coffee. She also somewhat only allowed the angry Major to accompany her instead of normal MPs. Not that he cared but the Major's angry piercing glares are disturbing him. Even so, it wasn't disturbing as much as the story that the General had told him.
After a long silence which seemed to be forever, he finally spoke.
"OK, so let me get this straight…" Trigger stood up and started walking in circle. "I'm in the year of 1944 and not 2019."
"Yes, that's correct." Adolfine nodded in affirmation.
"And you're telling me that I am might be-possibly-maybe-with the chance higher than 50 percent-for real that I am in…" He paused and cleared his throat, "Another world?"
"I'm still skeptical about this theory but yes. You are in another world, Captain Wolfe."
"Wow." Trigger sipped his now warm coffee with amazement. He walked towards the board where the map of Europe was pinned. Several divisions and squadrons were plastered across the map including their current location, Aachen. "This is nuts…"
"I'm sorry?"Adolfine perked, not understanding what he meant.
"Oh, it's just… This whole thing is just… crazy." Trigger fumbled, he couldn't find the right words to describe the current situation. "The Neurois, the Witches and dimensional crossing… All of this is just crazy. This is literally sci-fi and fantasy mashed up together in a single universe."
"Zi-fy?" Greta cocked her head with question mark popping over her head.
"Science Fiction, they usually shortened it 'Sci-Fi'." Luckily, Adolfine explained it allowing the angry Major to understand.
"Oh, science fiction genre… right."
Trigger exhaled deeply and wiped his face before giving a thousand yard stare onto the map. No words could describe his current feeling that was dwelling in his heart. Apart of him feels funny for getting himself into one of the most popular trope in any entertainment medium as of recently while the other side of his heart was a sense of despair. Surely, this is still some dream that he was still speculating, right?
Adolfine noticed his silence including his thousand yard stare. "Are you okay, Captain Wolfe?" She sensed the man was somewhat facing some difficulties.
"Ah? Yeah… Yeah. I'm fine. Just…" He looked on the map again before picking up the newspaper nearby. His eyes quickly locked at the date printed at the top right corner which was dated 7th October 1944. His mood drops further by just glancing at the contents as well. Everything was old school. "Just don't know how I should feel... "
"It must be hard for you, Captain."
"Yeah…" Trigger replied solemnly before putting away the newspaper. "This is just bizarre…" but what bothered him the most was this war, "This… War that your people have been fighting, how long have you two been fighting these Neurois anyway?"
Adolfine exhaled deeply, a hint of frustration was visible on her face. "Since the war started."
"When did the war started?"
"1939." The General's brief and nonchalant reply surprised the Osean.
"Five years?" He was completely shaken by the revelations. "Five years against those monsters?"
"Though, if you counted in Fuso Sea Incident and Hispania campaign… You could say both of us have been fighting since 1936."
Trigger holds his breath and wiped the sweat off from his face before staring back at the Europe map in disbelieved. "Eight years… Fighting the same thing?" He couldn't believe that these beautiful women have been fighting against these aliens for eight years. And then there's the first war where it took place around 1914 to 1918.
He fought the Lighthouse War for short amount of time while these girls have been fighting the same enemy for eight years. Trigger just couldn't imagine the stress and experience build up within these two women and the fact that they fought against those aliens with no aircraft but propeller leg machine and only armed with simple light weapons and portable cannons was enough to earn his respects. It was way dangerous than any MOS he had seen in his entire life.
If only they could at least wear some pants…
"Damn, this couldn't get any crazier…" Trigger shook his head as he sipped the coffee. Aliens, Witches, crossing into another world, this felt like a dream but his taste buds are telling him that this is reality. 'Well, at least the coffee is good…' he nodded while continue to examine all the information on the board.
While the Osean was looking at the newspaper and other notes on the board, the two Karlsland Witches were gazing him with interest while discussing in their native language.
"General, are you serious about this?" Greta asked, still glaring at the man suspiciously. "Another dimension? This is ridiculous."
"I still have my doubts but you've seen how he reacted to my story, it was genuine. In fact, he even questioned about Witches and Neurois yesterday. Anyone in this world wouldn't bother to ask about Witches or Neuroi but yet, this man still asked as if he lived in an isolated nation. He's acting like a lost child."
"I get what you're trying to say but he might simply put an act. He might be pretending to lower our guard."
"Oh? Then what about his equipment? You've seen his jet fighter. It is way beyond advance than any of our current developments. Even Hartmann acknowledge it as well."
Greta was stammered, she forgot about the jet. "W-Well, I have no arguments about the plane itself. I agree that the plane is ahead of our current development, even the construction of the aircraft is much complex than anything we have in our inventory."
"Then, why do you still doubt his origins?"
Greta turned her sight towards the man, looking at the pictures of Neurois curiously. "Isn't it normal to suspect someone of unknown origin? In this case, I don't see any evidence to support his claim or this case, YOUR claims that he might be from another world."
Adolfine smirked, as if she was ready to use her trump card. "Oh, then how do you explain this?" She pulled out a map out the same pocket she kept yesterday and exhibit it in front of the Major. "This map belongs to Captain Wolffe himself."
"His map?"
"You wanted answers, don't you? Ask and you shall receive. Take a look at it and tell me your thoughts, Major Lutzow." Devious grin was stretching across Adolfine's face.
Greta was slightly worried as her devilish grin might be a hint of a prank but her tone however, sounds like she was asking her to challenge the truth. The Major didn't question further and took the map away from her hand. Once Greta had unfolded the map, she reviewed the map. It didn't take a minute for her to react instantly as she turned the map multiple times before exclaiming.
"Wha-?! What is this?!" Greta's exclaimed shocked Trigger prompting him to look at the two.
"Surprised, Major?" Her eyes darted instantly to Adolfine who had wide smug on her face. "Even I had the same reaction."
"Wha-?! I… How?!" Greta stammered as she was unable to find the right word.
"Your thoughts, Major Lutzow?" The General awaited her verdict. Her tone sounds like she was enjoying it for some reason. At this point, Trigger was looking at their general direction watching as the scene unfolds.
"This… This could be a falsified document."
"Maybe… Maybe not… That's why I met him personally last night in his cell."
"YOU WHAT?!" Greta's fist tightened, her heart was pounding harder every second. Trigger who was watching from sidelines knew something was escalating between them. "DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT YOU WERE DOING?!"
"Confirming the truth, what else would I be doing?" Adolfine braced herself, she knew that Greta was gonna have another outburst any seconds.
"EVEN SO, IT'S DANGEROUS! He might assault and do questionable things with you before turning it into a hostage situation!" The major couldn't imagine just what kind of disgusting things the wretched intruder would do to Adolfine.
'There she goes again…' Adolfine shook her head, "Calm down, it was a short visit and it's not even official either. Besides, even if he attacks me he can't do anything. You do realize no man can harm us when we activate our powers, correct?" true enough, if a Witch activates her powers it was enough to overwhelm a single company of soldiers depending on their power but that doesn't mean they're not vulnerable. They still have to take account into their magic flow and reserves as well to keep using their powers. "Plus, he was behind bars anyway. It's not like he can do anything to me. And also, why did you keep imagining me as 'Damsel in Distress'? How did you come to that conclusion?"
"It doesn't matter if you're a 'Damsel in Distress' or a strong woman, the thing is you compromised our security by meeting him secretly." Greta pointed at Trigger while keeping her sight on her friend. "You should've asked for my company, Adolfine. Who knows, what could've happened?"
"Sheesh, you're worrying too much. Besides, I don't want to ruin your beauty sleep. You look cute when you were snoozing last night!"
Taken aback by her statement, Greta blushed instantly. "Wha?! You went into my room last night?!" The Major stomped her feet in anger.
'Damn, it's getting intense between them…' Trigger didn't understand their language but he knew that the discussions between the two are getting heated. Unbeknownst to him, it was just typical teasing between two girls.
"That is so creepy! And didn't you wake me up at that time?!"
"I tried too but you kept babbling about 'beating those trios' in your sleep. I do wonder what kind of nightmare you had to the point that those three invaded your dream." Adolfine giggled. She couldn't help but held back her laughter as the image of Greta sleep talking last night plays in her head. It was the cutest thing she had ever seen from the angry and stern lady like Greta.
"Do I?" The brunette was shocked, "That's weird…" even Greta was wondering about that as well.
"I thought you're aware of this."
"How would I know? I was sleeping alone in my own room, it's not like I'm sharing a quarters with one of the girls…"
"Huh… Well, let's just leave it at that…" Though, Adolfine is still wondering why those three would appear in her dream though. "Let's get back on track..." she interlocked her fingers as her eyes locked onto the Major sharply, "Aside from his map, his reactions are quite different."
"How different?"
"He seems convinced that he is still somewhere in this map. In fact, he even asked me pinpoint Karlsland's location on the map as well. For sure, you can argue the story and map was falsified but it takes a lot of effort to build up such story and construct such accurate map. But to believe that Karlsland might have been on this map means that he somewhat proved himself from another world. I was thinking of asking him further but I may have been too harsh on him last night." The general regretted that she let the emotions affected her and the fact that she left the man in the middle of questioning was quite rude as well. "So tell me, Greta. Are you still doubting him?"
The brunette glanced between Trigger and her friend before sighing deeply, "Honestly? I'll trust his story about coming from the future but from another dimension? I don't think I can accept that idea yet, unless Hartmann can prove it." She dropped the map directly in front of her friend.
"Well, that concludes this discussion then. Although, Captain Wolfe's presence and identity will remain anonymous until we're relocated to somewhere safe. I expect not only this base but your girls as well, Greta."
"Jawohl."
With the discussion ended, Adolfine focused on the Osean in front of her. "I'm sorry for that display, Captain. It was quite rude of us to ignore you."
Trigger shook his head, "No, it's okay. I'm sure it was something important between you two."
"It was." And she was happy to see Greta flustered once in a while. "I've been meaning to ask this, Captain. Do you remember anything that might have caused you to be sent off into our world?"
Trigger scratched his chin, trying to recall every moment that happened yesterday. Everything going smoothly until the flight encountered the storm. And then, he was ambushed by that little drone before being struck by the lightning out of nowhere.
"I did mention about getting ambushed in the storm and struck by the lightning yesterday, right?"
"Yes, you did. Why?"
"I'm not pretty sure but my hunch is telling me the storm might've played the role in transporting me here."
"What makes you think that?" Greta raised her brows and crosses her arm.
"During briefing, my commander informed that the storm would be dispersed somewhere around the Spring Sea according to our weather specialist squadron. But, by the time we arrived the storm was still present."
"So? It's normal that the weather report would be wrong at certain times."
"Yeah, except that it's funny. You see, two squadrons flew before us at the same spot and they reported that the storm was long gone before we arrived."
"Wait…" Greta raised her hand, interjecting the conversation. "You're saying that those who went ahead of you claimed it was long gone but when your squadron arrived… It was still there?"
Trigger shrugged, "Believe me, even I asked the same thing. Though, it didn't stop there. That storm, it managed to catch up onto us as soonest we turned around heading back to Farbanti. It was… It's as if... It has its own mind. Seriously, I've never EVER seen that kind of storm."
Greta and Adolfine glanced at each other as worries were clearly seen in their eyes. From his reaction and his tone, they knew that this man was shaken by that event. Fearing another possible threat, Adolfine implored Trigger for more in-depth description.
"Can you describe this storm that you were mentioning?"
"Black fluffy clouds and red lightning, it looks exactly just like the one that I popped out of… And then, there's that little bastard that ambushed us. Initially, I thought it was a drone… But I was wrong…" Its performance, its shape and its weapons, there was no doubt that the drone he encountered yesterday was no man made. After seeing arriving into this world, he knew what ambushed him back then. "Turns out… the one that ambushed my squadron was… A Neuroi."
The room fell into a brief silence; Greta was the first to react.
"WHAT?" her face paled instantly, the brunette's jaw dropped after hearing his word. "You're kidding, aren't you?" Trigger remained silent; he was dead serious about it.
"Are you sure, Captain?" Adolfine followed suit.
"Black and red hexagons all over the body and shoots laser in multiple directions? Definitely a Neuroi." It was dark at that time but he can still remember how the seam of the drone was glowing at some parts and the how bright the red hexagons were. In fact, the ability to split a laser into two directions was beyond Grunder's capabilities. "Heck, I'll remind you again that Neurois don't exist in my world."
"If it doesn't exist in your world, how can it be there to ambush you?" Greta questioned.
"Funny, I was gonna ask the same thing. I thought you girls might have any idea about this."
"No, we aren't aware of this at all. This is my first time about this matter." Adolfine replied firmly.
"I thought you girls knew everything about Neuroi?"
"We do but Neuroi are always adapting. We've seen what they're capable of to catch us by surprised." The General vividly remembered of the X-11 class humanoid Neuroi on the picture that she saw while reading through the file. No one would've expected that the Neuroi take the shape of a human being, more precisely, a Witch at that. She shakes off the thoughts, focusing back into the discussion. "Anyhow, that's when you pursue that Neuroi deeper into the storm?"
"Yeah, but I didn't expect to get struck by a lightning again…"
Greta tilted her head, "Again?"
"Ah, nothing…" Trigger quickly composed himself and continued. "And the rest of the story… You know what happened. I got out of the storm, encountered more of those Neuroi bastards and then, met you guys. But I didn't expect to get out of the storm in another world…"
Adolfine remained silent, her eyes staring deep as soonest the Osean finished. She was pondering deeply with all the clues given by this man. From his story, not only the storm is identical to one another even in different dimension but also inhibits small types as a defense mechanism. From the way it acts, she could only deduce it as possibly another hive but that remains a speculation. Adolfine wondered if it was the time to get permission from the top for a plane or a Witch to scout inside the storm. Not knowing the inside of the storm is just waiting to be attacked later. Just as the General was deep in her thoughts, Greta's voice brought her back to reality.
"General?" The brunette called, both her colleagues and the out of place pilot were staring at her.
"Nothing, just wondering if the storms are connected in a way…"
"Connected?"
"It's just a guess but you encountered a similar storm to the above Stuttgart, the location that you appeared and the fact that both storm have the same properties makes me wonder if this is truly connected."
Trigger understood what she was trying to say, "So, you're saying it's possible that it might be some sort of a portal?"
"Between two worlds? Possibly, but like I said, it's just a wild guess."
"Then it means I can fly back home." Hope lights up at the corner of his heart, the Osean knew that there was still time to return back to where he came from.
"Maybe but I wouldn't recommend you to do that, Captain. Flying into that area is obviously a suicide." Greta replied with her arms crossed. "That storm is directly in the Neuroi occupied territory. As soonest you entered their airspace, dozens of Neuroi will intercept you. If not, hundreds."
'So that explains why I get swarmed instantly as soonest I got out of the storm…' Trigger was immediately reminded of what happened yesterday. Thanks to that, his F-15 was all battered and beyond repair. Trigger scratched his head, "Well, I never intended too anyway…" the fact that the storm was located behind enemy lines also posed a problem as well. "Guess I'll be sticking here around for a while, huh?"
"Don't worry, Captain. I'm sure we'll figure out a way somehow." Adolfine assured. Though, even she was uncertain about it whether there was a way for him to return.
"If the theory was proven true that is…" Greta' remark was enough to warrant a side glance from Adolfine. The Major simply shrugged as if she knew that her friend was going to retort her.
"Anyhow, we can't overlook this. We know that Neuroi are planning something behind that storm or whatever that is." the atmosphere around Adolfine changes, "If it's true that the Neuroi have the ability to teleport between dimensions, this might be bad. It's still mysterious as to why they would go to another dimension…"
Even Trigger was wondering the same. Why would it teleport to his world? Why attack his squadron? The Osean gets more questions than answers that he would imagine.
"Either way, we should get permission from the top to send a recon team into the storm. The longer we wait, the more time Neuroi gets to reorganize its forces." The brunette suggested.
"I was thinking the same; I'll bring this up to the top as soon as possible."
Suddenly, the discussion was halted immediately with a knock on the door.
"Come in." Adolfine ordered.
The door opened revealing a man in the usual Karlsland military uniform. The soldier stepped in for a moment and spoke in his native language.
"General, the staffs are ready for debriefing."
"Understood, I'll head there in a minute." The soldier saluted and left the room before closing the door. Adolfine stood up from her seat, "It seems we have to cut the discussion short."
"Already? I was about to ask you girls some more questions."
"You'll have your chance next time, Captain. We are quite busy especially with what happened earlier..." The General gestured towards the scenery outside of the office where thick black smokes are still puffing around the airfield and several responders running around the damaged airfield. "Duty comes first, I hope you understand."
"I understand." Trigger nodded. With her ranks higher than any of them, he'd expect that there would shit ton of jobs and paper works she need to deal with especially after this sudden ambush.
"Good." Adolfine turned her head towards her friend, "Major, inform your girls to standby. The Neuroi might be acting up again soon."
Greta saluted and prepares to leave. However, Adolfine called her again.
"And one more thing, Major." Greta stopped and faced her again. With an innocent smile, Adolfine said "Please escort Captain Wolfe back to his cell."
Trigger's eyes widened, he froze at the spot. "Wut?"
"Jawohl." Greta approached the Osean and tapped the pilot's shoulder. "Alright, Captain. Let's get you back to the cell."
Trigger quickly resisted and begun throwing another question, "E-Excuse me, what- what do you mean 'Back to his cell'?" he was visibly shaken and confused as hell with the sudden turn of events. Surely, he misheard what she said.
Adolfine blinked as a question mark floating over head, "Isn't it obvious? We're busy with handling the damage around this airfield. In fact, we're lacking sufficient personnel to monitor you."
"Yeah, but sending me back to the cell? Don't you have at least any spare bunk? That's just unfair! I helped you repelled those Neurois!"
Adolfine grinned toothily, knowing that he would say that. "May I remind you, Captain Wolfe, that not only you escaped our custody but also stole our asset in attempt to flee this complex? On top of that, all previous accusation on you remained standing. Hence, you're still our prisoner."
Trigger was speechless. If he tried to retort he would countered easily since he DID attempt to escape. Now, he truly regrets about not taking the chance to escape back then. The Osean gave up any attempts to continue the argument. In the end, he sighed deeply with defeat clearly seen on his face which was the exact reaction she was expecting.
"It's good that you understand, Captain." Adolfine's cheerful innocent smile doesn't make the atmosphere any better for the depressed Osean. "But don't worry; we won't let anything happen to you. I'll find a way to clear up your accusation."
"You'd better be, staying in that cell is starting to kill me with boredom."
She chuckled, "If that's the case then. You can ask for some reading materials if you ever need one."
Trigger shrugged, "Eh, still better than doing nothing. I got a lot of questions to ask, especially about this world and Witches as well. I still don't get how you get powers though…"
"Oh, if that's the case then… How about a deal?"
"I'm listening."
"In return for telling you about our world… We would like to know about your world as well. How does that sound?"
'Huh, that sounds fair to be honest.' Trigger thought, it wasn't a surprising to say at least.
Of course people from the past would be interested in how the future would be like. It like the usual trope for time travelling stories except in this situation, he came from another dimension. He's fine with telling them how the future was like including how military tech has advanced as long as it doesn't compromise his OPSEC.
"Fair enough." Trigger nodded in agreement. "As long it doesn't breech OADF's security policy, I'm willing to tell."
"Then, we have a deal."
"I hope the next meeting would be sooner."
"One can simply hope, Captain. I'll see you around. It was a pleasure to talk with you, a shame that it was about to get interesting."
"It was a pleasure to me as well."
With the formalities done, the Osean was cuffed and taken away from the room with Greta in tow. The room fell into silence instantly. Adolfine had to admit, she had never felt so relaxed after talking to someone such as Wolfe. As soonest she thought that Osean, his flying skill flashed in her mind. Such flying was mediocre and simple but yet, he managed to outrun and destroy the Neurois. Not a lot of pilots can become 'Ace in a Day' even for killing a small fry. Not only had he destroyed more than 5 small types but 4 medium types as well. Not even Karlsland's skilled pilot can achieve such victory in a day.
"Lighthouse War…" she muttered.
Her eyes darted onto the map that Greta had dropped earlier; she picked up the map and looked into the contents once more. She gazed onto the country named 'Erusea', a country which name was straight out of fantasy on the continent of Usea. In fact, it sounded similar to Eurasia which initially she thought it was a dumbest name for an imaginary country including the continent itself which was a rip-off from 'Asia continent' but that soon changed when she reviewed the map and confronted him.
Now, she was interested in this war than ever. The mention of newer technologies by the Osean was intriguing enough to her and the fact that advanced jet fighter came into their hands at the right time means that she can learn more how the battle is fought in the future. To be able flying like that means that he had honed and sharpened his skills in that war.
"Just what kind of war did you fought, Wolfe?"
It wasn't a particularly long day for the Witches. They had just ended their long awaited confrontation against the Neuroi. Everyone was eager to fight them ever since they went quiet for several weeks. However, with the sudden ambush and attack on the airfield, the progress on marching into Rhineland was significantly delayed with all the damages sustained on this airfield. Not only that, some Neurois managed to cross into Gallia and Nederlands attacking observation outposts to nullify the allies' ability to communicate to their central command.
For the elite Witches of the JG3, the girls rested after a long engagement. With everything finally back in control, the young maidens gathered in the recreational room until their commanding officer was done with her meeting. Nevertheless, the girls knew that they wouldn't keep their guard down just yet. Not after what happened earlier.
"I'm beat…" Gunila throw herself onto the sofa. She could feel the strain weighing down her body like a soggy wet sock.
"Oh please, you're such a child!" Frida bantered, "We're only flying for hour and a half and you already whined like a baby."
"I'm no baby!" The blondie retorted but her face remained stuck on the armrest. "And I'm tired! That damned decoy squadron wasted my magic power just to fly all the way and back!"
"Oh, you poor child!" Karla said sarcastically as she pat her head. "Do you want some warm milk before sleeping?" The rest of the Witches giggled at the scene.
"Hey, stop it! I'm not a kid!" Gunila brushed Karla's hand away. "I'm just tired, okay?! Though… I do want some cookies too…" the blondie muttered silently at the end, but unfortunately, someone caught the wind of it.
"What was that?! You want some cookies too?!" Frida said loudly with a wide grin on her face.
"HEY!" Gunila screamed.
"YOU HEARD THAT RIGHT? SOMEBODY, GET A MILK AND SOME BISCUITS FOR THIS GIRL!"
"STOP IT! STOP IT, RIGHT NOW!"
The rest of the Witches burst into laughter much to Gunila's chagrin. The blondie's face was starting glow bright red from all the teasing and laugh she gets while screaming and rebuking everyone at the same time trying to shut them up. Though, she was taking too much heat at that point. The whole room was filled up with laughter. Seeing that she was the current plaything and the star of the session, Gunila assaults Frida… by groping her breasts.
"WHAT THE?!" The chestnut haired Witch was caught off-guard by Gunila's counterattack. "Gunila?!"
"It's payback time!" Gunila's hands were moving weirdly enough to give Frida an unimaginable sensation.
"AHN! THAT HURTS!" Frida tried to fight back but to no avail as the blondie was hidden well thanks to her small stature. "STOP IT YOU IDIOT!"
"NEVER!"
And so, Gunila continues to knead the dough roughly as Frida screams in pain. The other members of the JG3 simply laughed as they watched the scene unfolds. The two became the center of attention as the common grew larger every minute. For JG3, this is usual sight. Sometimes they would prank each other and at some point, they would pull dirty surprise action only to be scolded by Greta. While the rest of girls are enjoying the two jesters fooling around, one of the Witches doesn't.
The witch was none other than the anti-social twintail, Sophie Altmann who was minding her own business by staring off into distance out of the window. Her face remained solemn and her eyes were droopy like a dead fish as she stares into the horizon.
'So noisy…' she thought while glancing at the two jesters. Looking through the window, her eyes saw all the effect of the attacks. Some flames are being putout and the injured are hastily brought to the field hospital. 'Fucking Neurois…' she clicked her tongue as the scene reminded of her hometown blazing in ashes.
If she stayed behind, none of this would happen.
"Sophie…" the twintailed tilted her head and saw a familiar figure holding two cups of hot coffee in her hand. "Here's your coffee." It was none other than Kathe.
Taking the coffee, she sipped it slowly before staring back to the view.
"Not very talkative, are you?" Kathe pointed out.
"Eh, there isn't a lot to be talked about anyway…"
Kathe giggled before turning to the desolate scene out of the window, "Quite terrible, huh? The Neurois got us fooled this time."
"Those fuckers had planned this for a long time. They could've hit us back as soonest Gallia hive fell but they didn't. Instead they waited for several weeks before hitting us hard today. Why?"
Kathe shrugged, "Who knows? Probably just to lower our guard down. Or maybe, they want us to waste all of our resources at the frontline by attacking over and over again until we're thinned. Nobody could come up with their objectives, you're guess is good as mine. Plus, all that recent attack means our posting here will be quite longer than expected."
"Of course we would, not that's a bad thing."
"What makes you think that?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Sophie tilted her head with her face as dull as ever. "I get to kill more Neuroi bastards, still better than being permanently stationed at Brittania."
"Nein. With Gallia reclaimed, I doubt we'll be stationed in Brittania anymore. Besides, allied forces needed to push through the Rhine and I wouldn't be surprised if we were posted somewhere in Gallia closer to the Fatherland or maybe Nederlands or Belgica."
"Sounds better than I thought." Sophie smirked.
"Don't celebrate it just yet, that's just my wild guess. I would be more surprise if they send us straight to Southern Gallia." Her words made the twintails clicked her tongue. Kathe chuckled upon her friend's annoyed reactions. "Geez, you're quite obsessed with killing Neuroi. How about you take a break?"
"And do what? Grope other Witches' boobs like those two clowns over there?" Sophie thumbed at the duo that were still wrestling and trying to assert dominance onto one another. "Besides, I have no intention of making friends… Not anymore…"
Kathe felt a sharp knife stabbed through her heart when she heard those words. "I see."
"If it's one thing I'm here to do, it's to kill Neuroi. Not to socialize or making friends. I don't need that cheap bullshit."
"I know… Chill out." The veteran could only give a wry smile, hiding her painful emotions away.
Kathe wanted to soothe her but feared that they might end up fighting. It truly hurts her but she knew why Sophie acted like that. Everyone in Karlsland has lost something important to them since the Neuroi attacked but to Sophie, it runs deeper than that.
Sophie's hatred for Neuroi was beyond than a single land or even Karlsland's pride, she lost far more important to her in this war. Perhaps, maybe it's time for her to talk about it. Kathe knew that the girl can't keep acting like this forever.
"Hey, Sophie…"
"What?"
"You know, maybe it's time for…" Before she could end her sentence, a figure approached them and halted her speech.
"Altmann." It was a cold tone and it wasn't friendly either.
Turning their head, they met with three figures standing by their side. The most prominent was the girl standing ahead of the two, a bob hair cut with her left side bang placed behind her ear, gold emerald eyes looking down on Sophie and radiates out authoritative aura out of her which was fitting as she was crossing her arms while glaring at Sophie with hostile intent. Though, it was different than the two Witches at her side that harbors no ill intention. At that moment, Kathe could only sigh knowing what's about to happen.
"What do you want, Retz?" Sophie shot the same icy glare in response.
The Witch named Retz huffed, "That was some crazy display you pulled back there."
"Well, thanks… I guess?" The twintail gulped her coffee. Her nonchalant behavior ticked off the girl.
"I'm not here to praise you, Altmann!" The witch hissed, "What you did back there could have killed some of us! Your 'extreme' maneuver caused the Neuroi to launch multiple rays onto other Witches around you; do you have any idea how many injuries or casualties that you could've caused?"
"I only use the best method to finish them off quickly."
"YOU!" the girl stomped her feet hardly enough to attract some girls in the room.
"Now, now, Hilda… Try not to raise your voice." One of the girls by her side cautioned.
Hilda instantly stopped knowing that this would create commotion. Instead, the bob haired girl straightened acting all neutral. "You should change your methods, Altmann. Who knows how many Witches you're going to hurt next time?"
Sophie narrowed her eyes, both trading glares towards each other as the atmosphere is getting intense between them. After a full minute, Hilda walks away approached the two jesters to break them up. Sophie scoffed at she maintained her glare onto the girl as she sips her coffee. Kathe can clearly see in her eyes that she bore no ill intent but rather, quite annoyed by Hilda's attitude.
"Sorry, Sophie…" one of the two Witches said. "She didn't mean to say that. Hilda's just worried about you."
"Yeah, who wouldn't freaked out after seeing you pull that stunt earlier?" the second Witch interjected. "You were cool back there but she was right you know? Some of those rays nearly hit the Liberions and Brittanians as well. Heck, I was close from being wiped out of existence, you know?"
"Yeah, yeah, I get it."
"See that attitude? No wonder Hilda's always throwing fit at you."
"You need to fix that. At least listen to everyone, you're putting everyone at risk here."
The twintail ignored their words as she pretends to not hear a single thing. She had been told off multiple times already and Sophie had enough about them yapping about her doing crazy and dangerous maneuvers. Hearing this same thing over and over again boils her blood.
"Yeah, yeah… I get it now, so stop talking already!" Sophie waved her hand telling them to go somewhere else instead of this therapy session. "If you guys have nothing else to add, get out of my face."
"Sophie!" Kathe quickly called her out, "I'm sorry about that, girls."
"Nah, it's okay. I mean, she loves being grumpy as hell. Just like Major Lutzow herself!"
"Don't lump me together with her!" Sophie retorted. "At least I don't scare everyone off with her constant angry face."
Kathe giggled, "But you do tell everyone to scram, isn't that just basically the same?" the two Witches hold their laughter after hearing the joke much to the twintails' annoyance.
The conversation have started to annoy Sophie so much that she was grinding her teeth. "Shut up. I'm not talking anymore…" in the end, she decided to drop the matter and shut her mouth. Sometimes, being silent is better than continuing meaningless talk. Her eyes were glued onto the desolate scene outside of the airfield again in which the two Witches followed the same suit.
"Wow, good thing the airfield wasn't leveled entirely." The first Witch said.
"Yeah, I mean if it weren't for that pilot this place would've been gone."
Kathe nodded in agreement, "Indeed, I never thought that the intruder helped us in fending off those Neurois even though he was attempting to escape in the midst of the chaos."
"Speaking of the pilot, why do you think he helped General Galland in the first place?"
The Witch shrugged, "Beats me, I was wondering the same thing as well."
Sophie, who decided to remain silent, voiced out her thoughts. "Who knows? Maybe he was trying to cut a deal with us?" Everyone tilted their heads at her with a slight hint of interest, "I mean, he got caught in our airspace and try to get on our good side by helping us. Probably trying to get us indebted to him sort of thing."
"Heh, what happened to the 'I'm not talking anymore' part?" Kathe teased.
"What? Is it wrong for me to state my opinions?"
"No."
"Then it means I'm free to do so, right?"
"Now, now… I'm just teasing." Kathe giggled.
"But seriously, that pilot?" the first girl giggled as her face was turning bright red. She even looked at her partner who had the same reaction who began giggling as well. "He was so CUTE!" the girl squealed.
"Huh?" Kathe and Sophie were confused. The two glanced at each other wondering if some bad spirits had taken over them.
"Yeah! Have you seen how he smiles?! He was so charming!"
"Oh my god, his hair looks so smooth! He's like half Fuso, half Karlslandian! How come there are no men like that in our country?!"
"I know right?!" The girl's squeal attracted some of the girls in the room which prompted some of them to join the discussion. Soon, some of them joined the discussion.
"Eh, you're talking about that pilot?"
"The handsome one?"
"Who else would it be?"
"There are no handsome pilots stationed here at all, nothing but old skanky men!"
"But there are handfuls of handsome soldiers from the army though…"
"Pfft! They're already claimed by ground witches!"
"Really?! Is that true?!"
"I don't know. I'm just assuming…"
"THEN DON'T SAY IT!"
"But seriously, did you see how he killed those medium types?"
"Yeah! It was crazy!"
At this point, the two girls watching at the side were not amused. They even wondered how the discussion went from the reason 'why that intruder helped them?' to 'do you agree that the pilot is hot?' sort of question. Kathe even wondered if they even trained to be caution of any strangers that might possibly be threat to their own. Then again, they are still teenagers after all. It wouldn't be surprised to see how they react to handsome men. Ever since the war started, they haven't interacted to any men around their age.
"The hell is up with them?" Sophie spat out.
"Just normal girls reaction when they see some men with good looks. Besides, I do have to agree with them. That pilot does have the looks though. " Kathe had no reason to deny, he was attractive as they said. Initially, she doubted their words but after seeing him for the first time, she quickly understands why the girls are fond of him. "But damn, I've never seen any attractive pilot like him. Wish we could have more men like him in our air force."
"In terms of what? Looks or… his skills?"
Kathe thought for a moment before giving an answer, "How about both?"
"Really?"
"Oh come on, the Luftwaffe is lacking someone like him right now. Plus, his appearance is boosting our girls' morale."
"Don't tell me you've fallen for him." Sophie groaned.
The auburn haired girl chuckled from her friend's statement, "I haven't fall for him yet. I'm just admitting he has both requirements for a pilot. After all, you've seen how he killed those Medium Types. Am I right, Sophie?"
Sophie was silenced instantly; she was instantly reminded of the pilot's insane maneuver. To think that a mere fighter pilot and an intruder at that was able to perform similar extreme movement as her and managed to kill two Neurois in a single pass was truly insane. From her experience, no fighter pilots would dare enough to get close and score a kill especially against Medium type. But this man, he weaved through the hail or heat rays like it was nothing. If it were a normal pilot, they would've break and stay as far as they could. Not to mention, he weaved through the lasers like it was nothing. Again, even the most skilled Witch had to calculate their timing while this guys just fly in and pray that he doesn't get hit. It takes a lot of guts and skill to do so.
"Just what is he?" Sophie muttered under her breath as the pilot's face flashed in her head.
"So?" Kathe was awaiting her answer.
"I'll admit that he's good."
"That means you agree that he has the look, right?"
Sophie shot a glare at the auburn haired girl, "The hell? I was talking about his flying skill."
"I thought you admitted his look as well."
"His look?" Sophie scoffed as she turned away, "He's mediocre at best."
"Jeez, is that how you view all men?"
"Nope, I just don't want to think about having relationship right now. Not when this war is still going." The twintail straightened her back realizing her back is starting to hurt from bad posture. "Besides, I haven't thought far about what kind of boys I'm looking to date."
"Heh, I didn't you had a cute side." Kathe poked her squishy cheek in which the girl brushes off.
"I'm just stating what I think, okay? Not because I wanted to."
Before they could continue, the door opened revealing Greta.
"Alright everyone, get into your seats. We're going for a little debriefing."
The twintails sighed as she thirsts for more battle. Little did she know, her little prayer will soon come true.
Christopher grabbed her arms and pulled Christina closer to his embrace. She could feel the warmth and the smell of his cologne. She could feel the hardness of his muscles through the thick suit; it was hard as marble. His breath was taking her breath away and Christina couldn't break free from his grasp.
"Christopher, what are you doing?"
"Christina, come." He gazed deep into her amber eyes, "Follow me, let's leave this place and live somewhere else!"
Christina was mesmerized by his charm and his will to take her away. But alas, fate was not on their side.
"Oh Christopher, my love… I would love to but sadly…" She pushed herself out of his embrace and looked away in shame. "My parents wouldn't allow it."
"Why? They won't be able to find us anymore!"
"My father has connections. They will find us."
"No! I will not let you leave you alone! I will-!
"LAME!" Triger closed the book. He was cringing hard at the contents. "Seriously, what is up with this novel?"
The Osean had never thought this kind of novel exists. In the end, he had to stop and review it.
After reading four chapters, it gets worst every paragraph. Despite being structured well, the story was all over the place and the pacing was uneven. That's just only FOUR CHAPTERS! He has no idea if the story gets better since there's another two hundred pages of this novel. Plus, why the hell did the author choose Christopher and Christina as their MC's name? Can't the author choose something else? Sounds like the author tries to make it rhyme or something…
He threw the book at the side of the bed and quickly lied down facing the boring ceiling while sighing deeply.
"Heh, at least they're kind enough to give me a radio…" Right at the corner of the room placed on the floor, a small radio was playing an old classic song in which he had never heard of. The song had been playing ever since he started reading chapter 4, at least the song is good even though its classic. "And it's even sung by a Witch, huh. What was her name again? Minna… Dietriech? Dielinde? Duminde? Damnit…"
Since the name was almost close to that of a Belkan, he had a hard time to memorize the longer ones especially the singer's name. Though, he did get the gist of the song's name at the least – Lili Marlene. It was quite good for a classic piece that he had never heard back in his world. Speaking of names, he somehow was able to remember Mihaly's name for a reason. Not that its easy either.
"Maybe I should meet the singer and ask for an autograph…" Trigger chuckled. Turning at his side, three more novels are stacked neatly. He just felt nauseated just from looking at it and even the title and illustration at the cover was literally telling the novels are romance. "God, I ain't reading any more of that shitty romance. Give me something else… I really need to watch one of those downloaded clips from UToobe." Or even an old school comics would do to kill his boredom.
With the cell being accompanied with the song, he couldn't help but feel like he's back at Tyler Island. Kinda relives another moment where he gets to play a gaming console even in the solitary. The other convicts literally thought he was ahead of himself. But hey, that's what you get for being the only Ace that works hard. Trigger couldn't help but starting to miss his old world.
"World, huh?" he couldn't stop thinking about the Neuroi that ambushed them in the storm. 'Those aliens somehow figured a way to teleport into my world. Just how did they do it?' he wondered, 'The lightning? Sounds possible but in scientific aspects? That's just illogical. Then, how did arrived in my world? What are they seeking? To invade my world?' that was the last thing he was afraid of.
Trigger could only pray that his squadron manage to return to Farbanti safely. At least that's the only thing he could do. If those aliens do manage to make a long presence in his world, then not only Osea is in big trouble but the entire world might plunge into chaos.
"Neuroi bastards… You'd better don't fuck around at the other side."
18:00 p.m
19th November 2019
Bastok Peninsula, Yuktobania
Captain Mikhail Aranev
Another relatively quiet day for Yuktobania, not a lot of conflict is brewing around the country anyway. Ever since the initiation of START program and Yuktobania's policy focusing on humanitarian aid, the country didn't send any troops abroad for a while except for peacekeeping missions. For Captain Mikhail 'Orel' Aranev, he had never felt such peaceful flight ever since he came back from peacekeeping missions from abroad. Now, he spends most of his time taking patrols along the domestic airspace from any intruder.
Flying in his Su-35, he flies along the coast with his wingman, Lieutenant Hektor 'Yenot' Breznev as they make their final pass along the designated route. After all, their shift was about to come an end.
"Red Herring, this is Sokol Team. Sector 3 is clear, no bogeys detected in radar. Proceed to RTB, how copy?"
"Roger that Sokol Team, all area is confirmed clear. No signs of intrusion and bogeys. You're clear for RTB. Another great flight today, Sokol Team."
"Copy that, Red Herring. Sokol 1 out." Mikhail looked into the sunset with a breath of relieve. "That is one heck of a view."
"Yeah, you don't get to watch the sun setting down most of the time." Hektor replied through the radio. "Hey, how about snap a pic and send it to Selene. She might like it you know?"
"Shit, why didn't I think of that!" Engaging the Autopilot mode, Mikhail quickly pulled out his smartphone and activated the camera. After changing some settings, he snapped the pic of the sunset with some part of the jet's canopy in the frame. "There we go." He smirked as the picture was mailed to his wife.
"Did you get it?"
"Yeah, I already sent it to Selene."
"Good, now send it to me."
Mikhail furrowed his brows, wrinkles formed on his forehead as he questioned his wingman's request. "Why? Why I would need to send the picture?" he looked to the trailing aircraft right next to him where Hektor was.
"Bro, I didn't bring my phone with me. So do some goodwill and send it, will ya'?"
"Fuck off! Do it yourself!"
"Come on, I need that pic!" Hektor begged but it was half-assed begging.
"Oh, so you can brag to some girl in a bar telling that you happened to take this pic during sunset?"
"What? No!" the veteran can already smell bullshit coming out of Hektor's mouth.
"Fuck off!" "No, that's just a baseless accusation!" and so, the radio was filled with their mouthful arguments which filled the network much to the other listener's dismay. As if a god had heard the operator's prayers, they were quickly notified.
"Sokol Team, this is Red Herring." Hearing the ground team's voice, the two stopped bickering instantly.
"This is Sokol 1, go Red Herring."
"Sokol Team, vector to 270 and head into Sector 2. ASAP!" The operator's voice was full of distraught. Mikhail and Hektor also wondered if something had happened.
"Uhh, we just passed Sector 2 forty minutes ago. No signs of absurd activities over there, over."
"You need to head there, now. Kakorin Naval Base lost contact with Ivan Tuvariz at Sector 4, 2 minutes ago. They went dark and went off grid after they reported an unidentified aircraft was flying above their radar."
'Ivan Tuvariz? The destroyer?' Mikhail was baffled, how come a destroyer went dark and off grid? Beating that destroyer (Based off Udaloy-Class) was already tough thanks to its heavy armaments and top of the line sensors. Did the ship have been sunken by a submarine? "Any other flights in that sector?"
"Negative, Sokol 1. You're the only one who has passed that area forty minutes ago."
"Roger that, Red Herring. Vectoring to 270, ETA 3 or 4 minutes… We'll notify when we made contact. Sokol Team out." Mikhail deployed his flaps before making his turn towards the indicated sector in which his wingman did the same. "Sokol 2, reheat our engines. Let's see if those sailors are doing fine."
"Roger that, Sokol 1. Just when we're about to land…"
The two Su-35s quickly slices through the sky as their engine roared louder than ever. The twin jet engine was building up more speed and it drives the jet fighters faster than ever as the two pilots knew that the lives of the sailors are at stake. It took them less than few minutes to arrive at the sector and flying out towards the coast where the destroyer was last located. Following the coordinates, the two pilots scanned the area with their eyes.
"Any visual Sokol 1?" Hektor asked still looking around the waters and into the horizon.
"Negative."
"Weird, this is their last known position."
"Let's head near the international waters. Who knows we could find something."
"Roger that."
As the two jet fighters starting to leave their national coastline, an object was seen floating a few kilometers away from their position. It was burning brightly due to the sky starting to darkened.
"I have a visual on burning object. You see this, Sokol 2?"
"Affirmative, I say we fly low and confirm what that is. Let's just pray it's not Ivan Tuvariz."
The Su-35s lowered their altitude and began passing by several hundred meters above the water. As the sight of the burning object approaches closely, they get to see the shape clearly. The silhouette was no doubt signifying itself as ship including the bow and the radar mast despite the fire consuming the ship. But what shook them the most was the fact the ship had several cannons mounted and including recognizable CIWS installed along with missile cells on board. Just as they prayed it wasn't theirs, they caught of the ship's designated number at the bow – 179.
"Confirm sight on the numbers! Its 179, Ivan Tuvariz's pennant number!" Hektor cried as he passed for the second time around the ship, he confirmed that the number was painted at the other side of the bow. "Both sides confirm its Ivan Tuvariz!"
"Any survivors?!"
"Negative. No visual on lifeboats or even a sailor in the waters, I don't think anyone would've made it." Hektor replied in a broken tone, even he was depressed from this revelation. As they circle above, the wreckage slowly descends into the bottom of the sea which leaves burning flames floating from its leftover fuel. "Sokol 1, we have to contact command."
"Damn it. Red Herring, this is Sokol 1. We made contact with Ivan Tuvariz. She has sunk from enemy attack. No survivors. Over."
"Sokol 1, can you confirm that there are no survivors again, how copy?"
"Negative. No signs of life boats or sailors in the water near the coastlines. I don't think anyone would've survived that one."
"Roger that, Sokol 1. We'll notify the Naval Command and have them send their team to the site. You're clear for…" Suddenly, a paused was heard. "Sokol Team, we have something on the radar!" The two pilots were alerted and quickly glanced at their radar. "We have a bogey flying into our coastline 2 clicks from your position, vector 80 at 7000 meters high. Probably the same aircraft that Ivan Tuvariz reported. Intercept it now."
"Roger that, Red Herring. Heading to pursuit, Sokol 1 out."
"You think that have something to do with the ship's sinking?" there was a hint of anger within Hektor's tone.
"That's what we're going to find out." Mikhail leveled his plane and headed towards the direction with Hektor following suit.
The two jets climbed up further using their afterburners. The engines roared louder as they climb into the skies beginning to turn black. They could only pray that this bogey have something to do with Ivan Tuvariz's sinking. The two continued to climb while heading towards the direction of the unidentified aircraft. After flying for a few minutes, they managed to catch up with the unknown flight only to surprise them.
"What the fuck?" Hektor said under his breath after witnessing the bogey's aircraft.
It was a weird looking plane that was a hybrid of Lindwurm, C-17, IL-76 and some others. None of them were able to tell what that plane actually was. What's even weird was the plane had black and red hexagon plastered all over its body and somehow it lacked a cockpit for some reason. The two even speculated if this is a heavy bomber drone due to the absence of cockpit. But that was all speculation until they made proper contact. It might possibly that the cockpit was tinted but wouldn't that hinder their visibility especially when it's about to turn night?
"Uhh, Red Herring?"
"Go, Sokol Team."
"We have visual contact on the intruder but uh… it's a weird plane…"
"Copy that, what's the marking?"
Mikhail scanned the 'airplane' again; he was baffled with how to describe it. "I don't know. I only see red hexagon on the wings, tails and fuselage. I don't know whose it belongs to though. Permission to make contact?"
"Permission granted. ROE as follow - warning shots only. If its hostile, you have full permission to bring it down. Refuse to comply, notify us before shooting it down."
"Roger that." Mikhail glanced at his wingman, "You wanna do the honors, Yenot?"
"Sure do, Orel." Hektor flew ahead of his wingman, setting his plane by side of the aircraft's cockpit… That is if someone actually flying the plane. While his flight lead, maintained his nose towards the plane's tail following the standard intercepting procedure. With everything in set, Hektor began hailing the aircraft. "Unidentified aircraft, you are trespassing Yuktobanian airspace with no legal authorization! Identify yourself or we will use lethal force!"
Silence. Not a single word in the radio.
Hektor hailed again, "Unidentified aircraft, comply or we will authorized to use lethal force." Again, no response. "Unidentified aircraft, this is your final warning! Comply or we will authorize lethal force!" not even his stern tone was enough to scare whoever was in that aircraft. "Sokol 1, he's not responding. Proceed with warning shots?"
"Affirmative."
"Roger that, Sokol 2. Firing." Lining up his HUD, Mikhail kept his gunsight towards the wing and squeezed the trigger. Several 30mm rounds passed by the aircraft's wing, it was his intention from the start as the first short was meant to scare the pilot into changing their mind. "Let's see if that changed their mind."
"Unidentified aircraft, comply or we will shot you down. This is your final warning!" Hektor was starting to lose his patience. Just why aren't they responding? "Sokol 1, they're still not responding."
"Copy that, Sokol 2. Red Herring, permission to shoot it down."
"Permission granted." With that order, Hektor breaks away from the unidentified aircraft and returned to his flight lead's wing. Their weapon safety was instantly disengaged with the IFF marked the unidentified aircraft as hostile. "Aircraft has been marked as bandit. You're clear to engage, Sokol Flight."
Mikhail locked the aircraft in his HUD, "Master arm, HOT. Target locked. Sokol 1, Fox 2" The missile flew off from the pylon.
"Sokol 2, Fox 2." Hektor did the same as both of their missiles flew towards the aircraft.
The two missiles slices through the sky and impacted the aircraft's fuselage causing a large explosion. Just as they thought the plane was going to spiral out of control, the smoke cleared away as the wind blew revealing that the plane receive minor damage such as a small hole and scratches which shocked the pilots. But what surprised them more was what happened next – the damaged was being fixed and sealed up in front of their eyes.
"Are you seeing this, Yenot?" Mikhail had his eyes glued to the damaged that they inflicted. Even Hektor had the same reaction.
"Oh, I'm seeing it… But not believing it! The fuck is this thing?"
"Nanomachines?"
Just as they were discussing, the plane suddenly makes a weird sound. Out of nowhere, a loud screech deafened the two. It was so loud that it forces the two fighters to fly further away from the weird airplane. Only when they distanced themselves that the sound disappears into thin air. Hektor was the first to react.
"WHAT. THE FUCK WAS THAT?!" He could feel his ear ringing from that effect. "That was some loud ass sound! What the hell?!"
'Loud sound?' Mikhail thought of only one object that fit the description. "Did they fit an LRAD on that thing?"
"No way! That's way too loud for an LRAD especially in the middle of the sky!" Suddenly, Hektor caught the sight of the red hexagons beginning to shine brighter. "Wait, what the fuck?" He observed but it was a terrible decision as the plane greets back with a strong red beam shooting from one of its panel. "INCOMING! INCOMING! BREAK! BREAK! BREAK!"
The two planes quickly evaded at the right time as the laser slices through the sky. They quickly distanced themselves right at the plane's blind spot hoping that it won't attack again.
"WHAT THE FUCK?!" Hektor exclaimed. "THAT THING HAS A TLS?!"
Mikhail refused to believe it but it was definitely a TLS, "They fitted on that plane? Is that a gunship?" before they could deduce further, the plane charged up another blast. This time, from its vertical stabilizer which instantly catches them off guard, "FUCK! BREAK, SOKOL 2! BREAK!"
Another bright shot phases through the air forcing the two to evade once again.
"Holy fuck!" Hektor could feel all the Gs pushing his body as he dive down. But luckily his training and his G-suit managed to keep him awake from getting G-LOC. After a long evasive maneuver, the planes leveled out. "The fuck? How can it shoot laser from the stabilizer?!"
At that point Mikhail had enough of this bullshit, "God damn it! Red Herring, requesting immediate support! Unidentified aircraft have engaged countermeasure! I repeat, bandit is armed TLS and is engaging us!"
"Say again, Sokol Team. Did you say TLS?"
"Yes, they are armed with TLS! They might be possibly the one behind Ivan Tuvariz's sinking! Send- FUCK!" Mikhail quickly rolled off to the side as another hail of laser flew towards him. The bandit began letting fiery hail of lasers towards them forcing the two to use any evasive techniques they have in their mind. "FUCK! Yenot, break!"
"I'M BREAKING, DAMN IT!"
The Su-35s danced through the lasers like a ballet dancer as they evade it.
"Red Herring, just get any squadron on the air! We can't stop this thing from going further into the land!"
"Roger that, all squadrons on standby have been mobilized. ETA 10 minutes."
"We don't have 10 minutes!" Hektor retorted before breaking away another hail of laser.
"Then we just have to hold out as much as we can!" Mikhail looped into the air and quickly aligned his sight onto the behemoth once again. As soonest his HUD locked, he launched his missile. "Sokol 1, Fox 2!" This prompted his wingman to do the same.
"Sokol 2, Fox 2!"
This time, their missiles flew straight towards the stabilizer hoping to make the plane lose control. However, just as the missile was approaching closer several meters away another unexpected situation happened. The red hexagon on the stabilizer fires the laser from both side but not before it turns direction towards the projectiles and blew up the missiles before they could even impact. The scene shook the two Yuktobanians instantly.
"WHAT THE FUCK?!"
"HOW IS THAT EVEN POSSIBLE?!"
But the plane wasn't even dome yet, some parts of the wings opened revealing more red parts on it. Without even a single warning or notice, a stream of laser blasts off towards the Su-35 trailing the plane from behind forcing them to climb higher but it wasn't safe either as some parts of hexagon on the topside was waiting to hit them.
"What the hell is with this thing?! The whole plane is a fucking TLS!" Hektor looped around the lasers and fired some 30mm onto the fuselage followed by Mikhail as they bypass the plane before the plane fires the lasers. "There's no way you can fire TLS continuously, what kind of PSU they're using?!"
Everyone knows that the TLS needs to be recharged to allow the internal cools down or it will break down from overeating. With the advancements and creation of Pulse Laser system that the YAF also adopted, this allows them to fire the lasers continuously albeit in a low power and low firing rate. But this, this way beyond what TLS and PLSL can do. The amount of lasers fired from this plane alone could deplete the energy and overheats the weapons.
"Is this plane generated by a freaking reactor or something?!" Mikhail rolled again avoiding a laser that almost burns his wingtip off. "Fuck it, switch to R-77. We're going to put a hole on this bitch!"
"Loud and clear, Sokol 1." Hektor smirked under the mask as disengages the safety on his remaining missiles. "Master arm, hot. All missiles ready to fire, Sokol 1."
"Roger that, break and engage. Try not to get zapped, Sokol 2." Mikhail could hear Hektor chuckled from the radio as he breaks off to engage from different angle. Climbing and zooming away from the beast, Mikhail flew as far as he can before making a sharp turn towards the plane at 9 o' clock. With several kilometers away, he received a radar lock and launches his missiles. "Fox 3, Fox 3!"
Two missiles flew off from his pylons and zoomed ahead of his aircraft with incredible speed. The monstrous plane could barely keep up with the missiles' speed and couldn't estimates its trajectory as the missile was traveling at Mach 4 causing the missile to impact on its fuselage. The two missiles slammed hard on its fuselage followed by another two missiles impacting on the right side. The plane screeches louder as if it was pissed.
"Missile hit." Mikhail climbed higher as he passes above the plane. "Yenot, is it going down?"
"No, not yet. Jeez, what the hell is this thing made off?"
"Then, let's give everything we got. We can't let it reach the shore."
"Don't have to tell me twice." Hektor dives down, keeping his nose and speed controlled as the plane descends in high speed. As the target market light up, the bandit was locked. "Sokol 2, Fox 3! Fox 3!"
Two more R-77 missile flew off from his pylon and speeds off towards the plane's top side. Two explosions blew several chunks of armor from the plane. As if acting on its instinct, the plane fire several more streams of lasers brightening the now darkened sky. The two weren't equipped night optical devices but thanks to the plane's constant bright red hexagons, it's easier for them to attack. Just as the beast was distracted by Hektor, Mikhail fired two more missiles onto the plane this time from the head on.
*BOOM*
The missile blew right at the plane's nose near the supposedly cockpit or so, what they thought to be.
"Damn, that bastard is still flying? Even with that impact near the cockpit?" Hektor knew that no one would survive from such explosion especially when the shrapnel would penetrate the cockpit and killing the pilots. "Did they set an autopilot or something?"
But Mikhail could deduce a better reasoning, "Or maybe it's a drone. A remote controlled aircraft."
"By who?"
"It doesn't matter, we can think about that later." Mikhail dives down and fired another burst of 30mm onto the now smoking intruder followed by his wingman while being rained with hails of lasers. Just as he passes, Mikhail caught sight of the white flakes breaking from the damage that they inflicted earlier. Just as they flew to safe distance, only then he asked his wingman. "Hey, Yenot. Did you see that?"
"See what?"
"Some white flakes breaking from that plane."
Hektor turned his head and focused to the plane, "Affirmative, Orel. What do you think is happening?"
"Who knows but I can tell you that it doesn't look good for that plane." Mikhail keyed in into the radio, "Red Herring, this is Sokol Team. We're low on reserves and bingo fuel, we only 40 minutes worth of fuel. Where's the god damn back up?"
"Sokol Team, be advice that Okhotnik Squadron and Fakel Squadron have entered your sector bearing 230."
Since it was already dark, he can't see the support team. "Roger that, we'll try-?! SHIT, BREAK! BREAK!" the two planes narrowly evaded another charged blast which forced the pilots to taste some of the worse Gs in their entire life. "Fuck, Sokol 2. You good?"
"I'm good, Sokol 1. But my bird is bent. I got warnings all over my cockpit."
Mikhail flew by his wingman and scanned the exterior, "Yenot, I see the damage." His right vertical stabilizer was gone with minor burnt marks on his left. Despite the damage, it was still flyable and he doesn't need to bail the plane. Though, circumstances might changes. "Head back to base, ASAP. I'll wait for the reinforcement."
"Negative, Orel. You won't last long!"
"We both won't last long anyway! Now get your ass back to base! You won't make it with that damage!"
Hektor was reluctant but with the damage he sustained, the plane started to wobble midflight and there's a possibility that he might crash any time soon.
"Fuck it. You'd better come home safely." Hektor keyed the ground controller, "Red Herring, this is Sokol 2. I've sustained damage, request for RTB."
"Request granted, get over quickly as you can."
"Roger-?! SOKOL 1, INCOMING!"
"WHAT!?" Mikhail turned his head and saw the red beam of death.
Just as the beast was about to fire its charged laser shot, an unexpected happens.
*BOOM**BOOM**BOOM*
Several explosions covered the plane causing it to screech as it was covered in thick smoke. This baffled the two pilots in the distance. Then, the network came to life with familiar voices.
"Sokol Team, this is cruiser Admiral Gorkov. Return to base, we got this covered!"
"This is Fakel 1, heard you boys got your asses getting kicked."
"Sokol Team, this Okhotnik 1. We got some good grubs ready to be served."
It was their reinforcements; nothing could describe their feelings other than feeling joyful and grateful for their saviors. If they haven't arrived on time, then both of them would end up zapped out of the sky. The squadrons comprise of 4 MiG-31 and 6 Su-30SM began their attack as they launch their powerful missiles towards the beast that was still firing its lasers. Though, the anti-air missiles launched from the cruiser, Admiral Gorkov (Slava class) wasn't giving any chance to the enemy to retaliate. The plane takes too many blows after blow which decimated most of the airframe apart and its auto repair was starting to fail. Just as the plane fires more shot to defend itself, it was useless as the planes and the cruisers launch their entire missile onto the behemoth causing the explosion to reveal its red ruby core which was instantly destroyed by a follow up hail of R-37 missile from the MiG-31 causing it to shatter.
Slowly, the plane shattered into million pieces of white flakes in the night sky. Truly, it was beautiful sight. But for them, it was an absurd sight.
"Confirmed intruder aircraft destruction, airspace is secured." Red Herring tweeted in the radio which was followed by several cheering and also questions.
"Thank god, they arrived." Hektor said with a sigh of relieve.
"Yeah… But seriously, what the fuck was that thing? I've never anything like it."
"Who knows? It might be strayed Eruseans drone from the recent war…"
Mikhail felt something was off and his heart was telling him it was much worse, "Yeah, let's just hope it that way."
Unknown to the citizens of the Strangereal, a far worst threat than Ulysses was about to come into their world.
As you can see, the quality drops as you read till the end. Even so, it had to be done since I've been putting this off for a while. Also, sorry for not updating this story few months back. My computer keeps crashing and I had to repair it but still crashing. Plus, with volunteer work I barely had time to write this. I thought that I could finish it but man, how wrong I was. Computer keeps crashing and in the end, had to do it on my family's computer instead of my laptop. I had to finish as fast as I could and barely don't care about military procedure accuracy. Fuck it, as long as this one is done.
Anyhow, onto the story. I was thinking of adding some scenes involving the Witches and Trigger in the cell revealing something about the young maidens. But of course, BSoD turned the original script into corrupted file and so you get this instead. And also, we get a glimpse of what was happening at the other side while he was missing in action. It wouldn't be fair if it only affects the World Witches universe, gotta shake this event up and have Strangereal face this unknown threat as well.
Other than that, expect another late updates next time. Maybe its shorter in the next chapter, who knows?