Directus, Ustio, 14/05/1995, 9:00, Weather: Clear with high stratus.
All pilots, mercs, resistance fighters and soldiers had been convened to the town hall. In other times they would have used other governmental buildings, such as ministry sieges, but as many were requisitioned, used by the resistance fighters or as place of last stand by fanaticized Belkan soldiers, only the town hall was available right now, the day following the victory. And among them were all the personnel of the sixth Unit.
The building in front of which they were waiting for their shiny tiny piece of metal was quite an old one. It was a medium-sized one, created by the merging of two house of medieval bourgeois, resulting in a building with two sloped roofs of slate. It was ornamented with a nice balcony on all its width, with the latter having ornamented pillars linked by some vaulted arches featuring leaves sculpted in white limestone. Cutting the balcony in its middle, a massive marble staircase was today covered by a red tapestry. And falling from each parts of the balcony there was an Ustian flag, composed of a black triangle with its base on the left side and its peak on the right side, with white above it on the right side and red below the black triangle.
In the end they did not wait that long. Only five minutes upon arrival their commander and some high-ranking allied forces officers walk out of the building and went on the balconies on each side. Koenig was amongst them in a fresh and ironed uniform, yet still of greyish green. Osean official wore some greyish blue while Sapins wore greyish ochre yellow and Yukte were just in grey with a red tie. Some soldiers were carrying some cases behind them.
Speakers had been set on some pillars of iron, way above the crowd. Below each they strapped small flags of each country, with the red one of Yuktobania, the blue and white with six stars of Osea, the one of Ustio and the Sapin one, comprised of one band of white and two band of blue separated by golden lines, with some blazons and a crown in the white. Koenig was the first to deliver his speech, being the de-facto leader of the Ustian army for now, the majority of Ustian official having been arrested and sent to Belka in the hope that it would reduce the likelihood of resistance.
" Soldiers, pilots, resistance fighters. Today, we celebrate our liberation. Our liberation by the hands of our sovereign people and our allies at our side."
The crowd cheered, especially the very numerous Ustians. They would be not considered as victims or defeated, but as victors.
" We have seen many people fall in this war: friends, fellow citizens, unknowns who died as free men, fighting for their freedom. And now that we have won back our freedom, we will keep fighting for the freedom of all peoples involved into this conflict."
New cheering of the crowd. Now Koenig was a bit reluctant to say the last part of his speech. He knew it would be considered as controversies.
" We would gain nothing by going into Belka with only the Idea of destruction. Belkans are men too. Yesterday some Belkans showed us that they still had some bravery to fight for the liberation of their Homeland." He kept saying his speech while looking a bit at Hervin, who was a bit uneasy being surrounded by Oseans and Yukte officers who were not very friendly toward him for obvious reasons.
" If we had to cross the Belkan border and thus the Glatisant, we will not go as conquerors. We will go there as liberators and I hope that once this war will end, a new era of peace and prosperity will emerge of this chaos." Koenig finished explaining his mind on what he was fighting for: to liberate his fellow citizens from this far-right Rald Partei, who aimed to restore stability and pride but would only destroy Belka if they stayed in power.
This time the cheering was less intense, but still numerous. Obviously, this point of view wasn't shared by the Osean officers nor the Yuktes. They had cut downs, but their industrial might allowed them to withstand them. But not for Ustio or Sapins, who suffered massive losses during the invasion. Thus, the latter wished some idealists and free thinkers like Hervin could help them end this war without them having to scorch the Belkan territory all the way from the Glatislant super fortress to the walls of Dinsmark. Yet war is never this straightforward.
Therefore, Osean and Yukte speech were way more passionate than Koenig's, calling all belligerents to take arms and fire on everything that would be standing between them and the Belkan leaders. During all this time Hervin was more and more uneasy, having the feeling to be a traitor even if he just did what was morally right for him. Yet all those speeches filled with hatred and anger were now making him wonder if the allied forces would respect human's right when they would cross the border. Until where would they go so far in what their politician were displaying to their credulous people as some holy crusade against Belka painted as some dark forces of evil? Hervin could not have certainties today. But he knew history. And in history those glorified holy crusade were more than often filled with unholy facts.
" Now the medal ceremony will begin with the Ustian Air Force, our liberators of the sky." Koenig said, after all speeches ended.
" Foulke, Larry, receive this medal as a mark of eternal recognition from the Ustian people." Koenig solemnly said, while pinning the medal on the greyish green uniform of the merc.
Then it was Iskanda's turn. It was the first time she was receiving shiny tiny pieces of metal. And to be honest it was a nice one. The band of tissue pinned to her flight suit was a horizontal depiction of Ustio's flag. Yet the medal was very Belkan-like, as it was a greyish, maybe silver painted or silver plated Belkan cross. In the middle of it there was what was now the symbol of Ustian victory: a bell. She heard them ringing all night, even the twelve strokes of midnight. In other times she would have found it annoying, but now she was quite pleased to hear them.
After the Galm team, the Komyeta and Halo Squadron received their medals. Koenig made sure he called the twelfth and fourteenth by their TAC name. Following them were the very lucky members of Claw squadron who survived the engagement against Gelb, then rows and rows of Ustian resistance fighters, with Herr "Børnsted" amongst them. And finally, it was the time for the Abweichler Soldaten to be rewarded. For Hervin especially it was a very solemn moment. He only looked at Koenig's eyes when walking toward him, unable to look at the Osean and Yukte glare full of hatred toward Belkans.
He left as soon as the medal was pinned on his Belkan uniform. In the street he later met Iskanda as the crowd was pulling them toward the Sainte Victoire cathedral. She noticed his embarrassment, as he was nervously touching his signet ring.
" I guess the Osean speech weren't easy for Belkan ears?" She asked, a bit inelegantly.
" It was indeed. Damn those Oseans. The falsified economic operation of Mt Schirm almost allowed the Rald Partei to take power, and it was their doing." He spat venom on his now de-facto allies.
Then he explained the situation: these mines were built with Belkan money but following Osean hypothetical assumptions of raw stuff in the area. And when Belkan geologist found nothing, the Osean who set all of this deal vanished, leaving the Belkans with only massive debts and unused overpriced crawlers.
" There was some dispute between me and this arrogant weakling that this Weeker admiral is." She added to the talk, pronouncing Weeker as "weaker".
" I heard of it after the allied forces victory in Futuro canal. It's awful how they treated you afterwards." The former Belkan major responded, before saying with a slightly happier voice, while putting a comforting hand on Iskanda's shoulder: " But we shouldn't have so many bad thoughts in this moment of celebration. Besides I know some nice shortcuts to Sainte Victoire, if you want to avoid the crowd."
" Well show me the way then, Hervin." She accepted with a somewhat rejoiced face, and the two turned between some old medieval building, going down some old stairs.
But they were not the only ones speaking of dispute between the Sapino-Ustian point of view and the Oseano-Yukte ones.
" Koenig, your speech was good, but a bit biased toward your own people." An Osean Major said with great disdain.
" Threatening my mens, spreading hatred throughout the entire continent. This isn't how you will get their loyalty, Major Orson." Koenig retorted, recalling what he thought was morally wrong in this Osean propaganda speech. Because if his was of hope and rewards, Oseans and Yuktes were pure propaganda and hatred.
" Us Oseans want results over loyalty and pride." Orson snapped back, and the two officers with opposed minds kept their unfriendly bickering all the way to Sainte Victoire.
Parvis of Sainte Victoire's cathedral, Directus, Ustio, 14/05/1995, 11:30, Weather: high stratus.
Despite all her comrades entering in the cathedral, Iskanda preferred to stay outside. She was always ill eased when in religious building when ceremonies were happening. Instead she decided to go for a walk around it, while listening a bit the sounds of bells, organ and songs which seemed to have victorious oriented meaning, such as "Song of Freedom", or others celebrating victory of good over evil.
Her assumptions of the cathedral's shape she had from up there were quite similar to what she was seeing right now. Still, from here she could see the few colors that subsisted on some outside sculptures, the thine divide between the well assembled blocks of limestones, or from some angles, the colored lights effects induced by the stained glasses. It was gothic art at his finest, with the high double vaulted arches and high windows. The more beautiful light effects were the ones produced by the highly colored rose windows, with Sainte Victoire having one between the two massive bell towers, and one on each ends of its transept.
And now, finally, the organ and bells were playing the after song. Yet this time it wasn't a calm music just sending people to the civilian life. It sounded like trumpets of war, and the overall music as it had been taken from some war movies, at a point between two important battles.
Now the crowd of soldiers and civilians was emptying the massive building. Iskanda quickly reached out her squad mates, as they were leaving the flow of people on Sainte Victoire parvis.
" You should have entered, Iskanda. I mean, even if you aren't a believer this cathedral is a marvel of architecture." Viviane said, not fully understanding the Erusean's reason for not following them to this ecumenical ceremony.
" And it sounded very well. Nice mechanical resonance." Valentin judged from his physical point of view.
" Fine, I will have a look of the inside." Iskanda agreed with a bit of reluctance.
Sainte Victoire cathedral, Directus, Ustio, 14/05/1995, 11:45.
She had passed the monumental ten centimeters thick oaken doors. Some pieces of metal were embedded into the wooden structure, resulting from the SPKs and SAMs destruction on its parvis. These new pieces of metal were adding themselves to the old nails from the medieval era that were holding some leaf-looking metallic ornaments. The other print of war was one missing stained glass. But today it wasn't that bothering, she guessed, as it was an easy and sunny day, far different from the cold and snowy day of Valais Air Base.
She admired the gigantic cylindrical three-story chandeliers, each holding dozens of harmonically set light bulb, as a way to replace the candles of before the electric age. But what caught her attention the most was the vast stained glasses below the rose glass in the southern transept. There were six high stained glasses, each separated in four vertically. And in the rose glass above those twenty-four glasses there was a winged female figure: a glorified Sainte Victoire, holding a spear with a laurel blade and some double cross guard near the blade, with the first guard longer than the lowest one. Furthermore, a long white triangular flag was hung on the two parts of the guard. "Primo Victoria" was written in black gothic letters on it.
Yet, a single person entering in the cathedral after everyone exited it caught a bit the attention of some priest. Thus, a man in white frieze skirt approached her silently.
" Interested in the story of our patron saint, my sister?" The priest asked her with a peaceful voice.
" I do. She was a great warrior after all. But I'd rather you just said miss to call me." She confirmed her interest toward this historical figure. But another print of her past was that she didn't like the way clerics called laics.
" It is fine, miss Rayien. May I begin her history?" He just read her name on her shoulder plate.
She answered by a bow of her head.
" Well, begin the story."
" The person now known as Sainte Victoire is born in 1565, in Farbanti. She was from a wealthy family of local drapers and met her husband the future Kaspar VI as he was with his parents, which were buying drapes for his sister's wedding." The priest described the picture on the top left, where two adult and one girl were seen buying drapes, while two younglings were looking at each other's, our future Kaspar VI and Sainte Victoire.
" Her husband become Margrave of Directus at 20 when his parents died by poison. He was a good Lord, and historians have judged him as a fair ruler. But he didn't outlive his parents for long." He kept describing the glass, one of dead and one of golden field of corn.
" Historians are still dithering on which poison killed him, as they found multiples in his remains, thus they cannot know precisely which rival was seeking to kill him. For once she mourned him. But not for long. People and especially the said rivals began to think that the territory of Directus was weak as it was led by a lone widow."
" She then began to arm massively her subjects, all who could wield weapons were given. But even she knew she couldn't resist her rivals' armies in Directus where there was no efficient defensive structure. Directus was an open commercial city after all."
" I understand how it is simple to take it or to take it back now." Iskanda added, as the priest described a glass with a crowd of fleeing armed people.
" There weren't many places to go. Valaisian Alps were too cold to survive in winter. So, she headed Northwest. Some of her older councilman gave her the way toward the fortress currently known as Glatisant on Mt Ivrea, having heard stories of it. The place was indeed an old medieval fortified city that spread on kilometers. In her time, it was only a semi-destroyed city populated by smugglers, thieves, exiled of the Northern territories. But she wasn't alone to go either. In a few weeks they pacified the area, and began to modernize the fortress, giving Glatisant its current shape, with the rampart to defend, the garden to produce their means of subsistence, a polygonal castle on the South-East, a central strengthened dungeon and two other towers in the North-East, slightly less armored than the central one, but easy to defend while hard to take." The priest described the fortress she was very likely to attack in the incoming weeks or even days. And even if it was modernized in the sixteenth century and weapon had become much more powerful since then, this fortress seemed to be ready to receive them with very warm Belkan hospitality.
" But how did they find the stone or the raw metals in this area?" Iskanda asked, not understanding how such a massive Fortress could be self-sustained.
" There were old stone quarries and iron mines bored through the mountains. Now they must surely have been turned into bunkers and such facilities." The priest answered, with a bit of sadness when he realized these structures would surely fell some days later to the very person he was talking right now.
" But back to the story. They began raiding territories of the Schayne plains. Yet they weren't the only ones doing it. The "Skin Hers" as they were named because they usually skin their victims alive were already doing such raids. Using mobile cavalry Ste Victoire didn't possess at that moment, they dealt much more trouble to the counts leading those territories. Yet for an unknown reason one count decided to ally with the most fearsome Skin Her leader, nicknamed Herr Geier (vulture). This man was supposed to lead a third of his Skin Hers as a scouting cavalry while the main forces would stay behind, waiting to attack the weaker forces of their opponents."
One stained glass was displaying the Man in his atrocious activities, with a shield and banner decorated by a double-headed vulture.
Then the priest went through a description of a quite colorful glasses, bearing a great number of flames and burning men and horses:
"This was named by historians as the battle of burning plains. Mislead by ruses of the future Ste Victoire, they thought she had set her camp in front of some great lake in the Schayne plains, a strategic mistake for any commander. Yet they took foxfire for campfire. The Skin Hers who thought they weren't spotted stop at the lake while the main forces were thinking they were charging through their opponents' camp. Yet the only thing they find were some clocks linked to barrels of black powder and others flammable stuff. Historians are still wondering how they manage to detonate this with an almost perfect accuracy, but as this place was swamp filled with many pockets of methane it didn't need that much to burn."
" I definitely like her strategy." Iskanda fully approved this smart yet very destructive approach. After all, exploding black powder in an area filled with methane should have produced similar results than a FAEB. Of course, with a bit of incertitude but still.
" Only a tiny part of the Skin Hers, those who were the closest to the lake survived and managed to swim to the other side were Ste Victoire forces were firmly entrenched. Most of them surrendered. Even Herr Geier was defeated by Victoire herself according to writings of this era, but it wasn't very hard to defeat a man who was quite tired after swimming half a mile in. At this moment the rearguard of the soldier who were supposed to simply marched into a camp said that hell was opening itself, or that the flame of holy spirit was burning them for their sins. The truth is that they just outsmart."
" And what did she do with mister Geier?"
" To his greater surprise she spared his life. He was waiting for death, but it didn't come. She explained to him that death had a meaning. His at this moment would have had none. But after what he saw in this battle, seeing soldiers being burned and obliterated, he might have realized the horror he submitted people to."
The next stain glasses were indeed depicting the man kneeling with his shield broken and his soul being submitted to fire.
" After his defeat, he became one of his most trusted lieutenants, uniting a great number of former Skin Hers as a mercenary army, walking by the side of Ste Victoire. Many other time she obtained victory through unchivalrous tactics, but in a few months she occupied all territory from the Glatislant to the Schirm mountains, which with the Waldreich mountains at the East nearly cut Belka in half, even if Schirm ones are mostly low mountain plateau while Waldreich are way higher."
He kept describing other victories, taking of cities through disguise and ruse. Despite having to fight side by side with some of their former tormentors, the people she recruited through her victories quickly reached the dozens of thousands. By this point her mother country was now openly helping them through the port cities of North Belka they took, near Anfang for example. However, the retaking of Directus had unforeseen consequences.
" The roof of Directus cathedral burned that day. But by luck it was heavily raining that day, and thus the worst was avoided. This is why the stained glasses are somewhat recent. At this point in history nearly ten years had passed since her husband's death. She could have chosen to rule the united Belka, which now would include Belka and its former oriental part, the great Lakes, a bit of the North of Sapin, for all her life but surprisingly ended her reign at fifty."
" And what did the Skin Hers she recruited become?" Iskanda was curious to know how she dealt with them once the conflict ended.
" Well, surprisingly many become farmers. For example, Chateau Geier is now only a great winemaker, not as good as a Chateau Beauloise but a fine wine." The priest answered to her astonishment.
The next stain glass was of what seemed to be some chamber of parliament, with below each member his territory's blazon. It was the beginning of the confederation of Belkan counties. One of the first unperfect try for modern democracy.
" She created this confederation before retiring in the convent where Herr von Hervin was yesterday."
" I guess that if this whole continent is plunged into chaos right now that this confederation didn't last until now." Iskanda stated the obvious of the confederation's demise.
" You are right, Söldnerin. The dishonored knights and other rivals she chased out of her newly established boundaries slowly united to face her or the confederation of Belkan counties. Her enemies slowly became the Osean federation, while the principality of Belka which succeeded to the confederation faced centuries of economic struggle due to its neighbors. This has already led to numerous wars, already two in this century and many others before. In the end Sainte Victoire's history explains a bit why there's such hatred between Osean and Belkans."
" Even if war is not as simple as in her era. Thanks for the history lesson." Iskanda was grateful toward the cleric for explaining his patron saint history.
" I know you weren't there in the ceremony, and it doesn't matter to me if you aren't a believer. Still, sometimes I hope the messages of peace and kindness the ones who were before us could guide a bit this world toward harmony."
" I won't say I would like to be workless. Yet I agree I would like one day to be able to retire like Sainte Victoire did in her time." She agreed with the partially biased and idealistic mind of the cleric, but everyone could be a bit idealistic, even with mind filled of thoughts of fratricide.
" And one final thing before you leave, don't worry about the stained glasses your fight has destroyed. Maybe its replacement will evoke this second liberation of Directus. Go in peace, Söldnerin."
" That's a bit absurd for my point of view but thanks again." She finally let the priest to his religious thoughts and exited the building to retrieve her wing mates outside, as they had planned to make some tour of the city with them. Yet being in a church reminded her of a time where she was indeed at peace. But it was long gone now.
Military barracks of Directus, Directus, Ustio, 15/05/1995, 13:00.
Yesterday had been a perfect day. And the morning too. Meeting Viviane and Morgana's husband, respectively a baker and a clockmaker, were a good pause in the middle of the Belkan War. But the message of peace and kindness she took from the priest was quickly forgotten after one event.
None of them had seen the event coming. It came from just some misbehavior, and it had consequences they did not imagine as it was taking place. Consequences that would change many things at short and long term.
But back to the event itself, it all began after some officers' meal. Yet in all of these almost daily festivities there might have been a bit too much of Zäckermann to drink. And more than often drunken men or women had the tendency to lose control of themselves.
During this meal the Erusean merc received some inappropriate comments on her body or simply lack of femininity from some Oseans who forget to restrain themselves in those time of victory. Pixy managed to restrain her from rushing straight forward, but even while doing so he saw her with her right arm clenched under her shirt, around her jade blade maybe. Being a bit older than her, he was for a time successful in persuading her to let go those comments. But when at some point in the end of the meal he was distracted by some pictures of his former leader before her demise he recently managed to get, everything happened.
Iskanda had seen for some seconds the same Osean officer who make sassy comment toward her bothering a bit too much a waitress of their barracks, trying to play the overly loudly seducer, as they made their way to their room. Pixy went to his deceased girlfriend final stand registration, while Iskanda decided on a hunch to stay a bit behind, not liking what she was seeing -in other words ready to intervene to help this girl-. The Ustian waitress wasn't going to receive any help from other Oseans around the place either. And as the Osean try to grab the arm of the Ustian women after she repeated him to leave twice, and threaten to report this incident, Iskanda's blood only made one turn.
She grabbed the other arm of the Osean, helping the Ustian to push him aside. And all of this could have ended here. But no. The Osean raised a hand to strike at Iskanda, yet he never had the time to. Iskanda was quicker to draw her blade after avoiding a clumsy strike from this slightly drunk Osean. And her strike was successful, slashing at the open palm of the Osean, with the blade slightly embedded between some bones for a glimpse before she pulled it out. Then she did a strong armlock to the Osean before pinning him to a nearby wall, cursing at the Osean who was now feeling a bit unlucky to have been take down so easily. Yet it took all the patience of Pixy and some resistance fighters, which had been transferred in their barracks as MPs to separate the two of them.
And obviously when Koenig was interrupted in the middle of some meeting to plan the attack on the Glatislant for this reason, he wasn't really happy to say the least, and this was the understatement of the year. Of course, Iskanda had acted in self-defense, but Ustian law was quite specific about what was or wasn't self-defense acts.
" Admiral, you really need to watch your gun-for-hire!" The injured Osean pilot said. He was of the Foxfire squadron according to his shoulder insignia.
" According to the witnesses and the person you try to molest, she was only defending herself when you try to strike at her." Koenig harshly replied. What he feared happened: some of those Osean soldiers thinking they could walk like in conquered territory had cross the line. Hopefully for once the odd were with him.
" Lieutenant Feltson, I can do nothing but agree on the Ustian point of view here." The major Orson said, being forced to recognize that the Foxfire squadron member wasn't telling the truth when he tried to turn this incident in a murder attempt.
" Foxfire 3, if I truly wanted to kill you, I would have sliced a bit deeper so I could have kept your carpal bones to play jacks." An especially angry Erusean mercenary retorted, hoping to scare a bit the Osean.
" What? Your Sixth Unit pilots are just a bunch of f.." The wounded began to complain but his Osean superior made him shut up.
" This confrontation was useless, admiral Koenig. I will take this man and he will be punished for his fault. Maybe this way I will gain a bit of loyalty from our new Victoire of yesterday." The Osean cut the talks shorts while trying to flatter Iskanda by giving her this Erusean sounding name.
" I will make sure these kinds of incident will not happen again, Major Perrault." Koenig ended the brief meeting, thinking to which solution he could apply to solve this dilemma. Iskanda wasn't fit to live in barracks amongst Oseans who disrespected her due to the prior events of canal Futuro.
" You cannot win right now against the winner of yesterday and Directus' liberator, Foxfire 3. Not now." Perrault said to his subordinate as both of them had left the meeting room in the Airport of Directus, with this time Osean MPs escorting the pilot instead of Ustian ones.
" Now we need to find a new flat for you until next mission." Koenig added, as the two Osean were out of the room. He truly hoped no other incidents would be sighted. It was something you could be expecting from an occupying enemy force, but not an allied one.
" Sir, I have maybe a solution. My sister has quite a big house here in Directus, and thus I think she could maybe house the Galm team for a few days." Johnson intervened, now back in touch with his relative.
" Why not? It will only be the matter of a few days indeed." Koenig seemed to agree with this a bit out-of-the-box solution. But unorthodox people causing unorthodox problems required unorthodox solutions.
" I guess I can live with some civilians until we attack Glatislant too." Larry agreed to follow his flight leader. He could follow her through hell and heaven in the sky, so living with some civilians would be fine.
" Then it's good. I will call her, and we will all meet to go join her around 17:00, will it be right to get your stuff you need to move girls and guys?" Johnson set the schedule for the oncoming hours, to which Iskanda and Pixy agreed mutually with a little bow of their heads.
Outskirts of Directus, Ustio, 15/05/1995, 17:00, Weather: clear.
Magdalena's house was quite a big one to the standards of both mercenaries who for most of the time had only their hangar or their small prefabricated flat to sleep in. At least it was what Iskanda was thinking when she saw the house from the jeep Philip Johnson used to drive them. From the outside it was a simple two-stage house with a roof in a sitting dog form. Just to avoid anything, Johnson introduced a bit his older sister before ringing the bell.
" She's quite nice to me, and usually welcome me with open arms the few times I came here. I think you'll have the same treatment."
" Good luck and Godspeed, then." Iskanda replied, as her AWACS operator was ringing the bell, wishing him luck when it was most of the time the other way around.
Five minute later, a young brown-haired woman wearing a blue skirt and light-yellow blouse opened the door, before rushing toward her uncle and pulling him into a soft embrace, calling their AWACS operator "Phil". An older voice came from the open door, from which was coming a nice smell of cooking.
" Lana, who is it?"
" Uncle is here, Mutti." The young lady replied, pulling out the latter from her embrace.
" Well, I've almost finished the baking. Make then come errein (inside)." The older female voice said, while some noise linked to her activity could be heard.
The two mercenaries and their operator entered the house, preceded by the young Ustian. Of course, the smell of cooking was stronger inside, and now they were trying what was expecting them, as the young lady make them seat on a leather couch.
" I guess Axe and Hammer pay well their engineers, judging by the quality of the furniture." Iskanda said, as she sat comfortably on it.
" I don't know if mercs gain more." The interested walked into the room, wearing a slightly flour-covered coat over a thin blouse and a pair of grey jeans. Following their blond-haired hostess, another brown-haired young lady wearing black pants and a green hoodie came in the room too. " But there's maybe a bit more job security. Magdalena Johnson, nice to meet you folks. And this young lady behind me is my elder daughter Eva."
" Nice to meet the big sister of our AWACS operator." The two mercs said while standing up to shake the hand Magdalena was offering them.
" The honor is on me. If you folks didn't save my brother's guts at Valais I... I cannot think what would have happened." Magdalena stammered a bit as she was imagining herself explaining the death of his brother to her daughters.
" We don't have to imagine what is not. Only to enjoy what is now." Pixy replied with a peaceful voice to the Ustian woman.
" Ja Herr solo Wing ist recht. Less mourning, and a bit more drinking." Eva said, only to be reprobated by her mother, which with her rectangular glasses had quite a stern face.
" It's not because you just hit eighteen last month that you need to have your first hangover."
In the following minutes, they talk about their youth a bit, the youth of her daughters and their progress in this new Ustian scholar system. It was a bit closer to the Erusean lycées, as consequences from the strong Erusean influence in this part of Belka after Sainte Victoire era. Both had a bit of mixed and good grades as they were only entering this system since December 1994.
Of course, the daughter could only drink Radler as the pilots celebrated once more Directus' liberation, when the grown-ups could drink beer with a bit more of alcohol. But it was good for all them to celebrate victory once more when some people thought they should be locked away for their misbehavior. The mind of Magdalena on this point of view was quite franc:
" It could have happened or not. This kind of incident usually happened when you have a big army of young men persuaded that they have some moral high ground on their foes which they hadn't. I won't say I would want Belkans to come back obviously but being liberated is not trading a master for another."
" This is going way too much philosophical for me." Iskanda commented, not a great liker of great flight of philosophy.
" I guess Iskanda only did what she thought was right. But in such a prolonged conflict, concept of good and bad is not always a key factor. Yet we all need to act, as apathy mean death if no one act." Pixy said while elegantly taking a sip of wine, a fine Muscat Magdalena served with the main course.
" I will try. Sometimes we think we are doing the right thing. And then we realize our acts have consequences we would have never imagined." Iskanda tried to get philosophical for a bit, as all were going.
" My, my, that was some great quote. I should write it down for the test of philosophy next week." Eva said joyfully.
" If you need to learn these abstract concepts, stick with Herr Denker at my right." Iskanda pointed out Pixy skills in this field.
The meal was finished by a Sachertorte. As Magdalena had to bake it, this was the reason why she was slightly flour-covered, and why the kitchen was now filled with the smell of chocolate. And it was slowly dissipating throughout the house. Even if to Iskanda's nose the metallic smell of blood was a bit more exciting than this smell of baking, it wasn't uneasy.
Magdalena's house, Directus, Ustio, 16/05/1995, 10:00, Weather: high stratus.
For the two mercenaries it has been a very different night to what they were used to. Sleeping on real mattress, without the fear of being bombed during the night, being assaulted by Belkan Kommandos, or being awaken just by a very painful to hear alarm. Sometimes civil life clearly had its advantage.
But sometimes it was the civilian who had their life slightly changed by the mercenaries they were currently housing. This is why Magdalena had to go knock on the entrance door of the main bathroom, finding that this Pixy guy was taking too much time - even more than her elder daughter when the latter had hair who were going below her shoulder line-.
" Pixy, why are you taking such time for one shower? Are there water shortage at Valais?"
" Well, no. But Iskanda has locked the switch on cold water there. Sorry if I didn't see the time pass." The Belkan merc had to acknowledge. Indeed, Iskanda only took cold showers. He could recognize it was good to help waking up, but when the external temperature was always negative, it was quite hard to bear it for nearly two months.
" So now I know who has taken her shower this morning and let on cold water when I took mine. See you in five minutes, some friends in the resistance have reported to me that they were trying to get all the video footage from Directus' fall together at the Technical Museum." Magdalena used this argument to have Pixy finishing his shower quicker, as the latter said yesterday evenings that he was looking forward to finding such stuff.
And this argument revealed to be quite efficient, as Pixy was ready four minutes later. The schedule for the day was already set up: Iskanda would be guided by the two young Ustiano-Belkan ladies, while Pixy would go with Madgalena at the Museum. Then they would choose some restaurant in the vicinity of it and enjoy the rest of the day before they had to go back at Valais at 18:00. Iskanda was left with a mysterious journey with those two teenagers, but she had mentioned at the end of the meal that she was a bit with a loose wardrobe, due to her forced escape of Farbanti two month prior.
Technical Museum of Directus, Directus, Ustio, 16/05/1995, 11:30.
Madgalena had pulled Pixy out of the Museum so he could cool himself at a nearby Kaffeehaus. Why he needed to be a bit cooled was coming from the footage he saw inside the Museum. Obviously, they found the last stand of his deceased leader, as she allowed him to leave, with him having a wing ripped off by a SAAM launched from a Su-47. This squadron of Su-47 had a camo which like some snakeskin, precisely an Adder. This vicious snake was the symbol of the Grabacr squadron after all. And what Pixy said when he realized that wasn't something cool to be honest. No, it was filled with hatred.
" Ashley, du bewusstlos Mörder (reckless Murder)! We fought side by side in Wieldwakia. I could have spared you a painful death. Aber der Adler wird den Adder bald zerstören, vertöten und vernichten (but the eagle will soon destroy, kill and annihilate the adder)!" Pixy shouted at the footage he just saw, emphasizing the last three destructive words. He was not recognizing himself in this sudden burst of anger, which was something that Iskanda was more likely to do if she found one of her relatives in Belka for example. She would scorch all of its territory without a single doubt with the fire of her hatred.
" Damned, you can be scary when you want, mister Foulke." Magdalena said, as they were taking a mug of some cooling red tea.
" I don't know why I went so passionate, Mrs. Johnson. Guess I just understand what the lust of vengeance that burn in my current leader's heart is." Pixy tried to explain his act rationally. But passion and logic were two parallel line that never meet.
" You know, since I divorced, I prefer just Magdalena, or Maggie for my friends." Magdalena responded, moving to another subject than Pixy's sudden hatred for one of his former brothers in arms.
" So, I can consider myself as a friend of a great and brave mother now. Mines usually called me Larry or Pixy." The interested added, suppressing the formalities between them.
" Well, I know you cannot talk about next missions, but as a soldier, do you think that this war's gonna end?" Maggie changed another time the subject. Still, she wanted not to go full political with this one.
" Honestly I don't know for sure. Just one RTLS was enough to almost fail the landing operation over Solis Ortus. Or just one hypersonic missile in the Futuro canal when we took it." Larry tried his best to express the likelihood of a prolonged conflict, that would cost many lives in both sides, and could even saw the use of WMDs or nukes to end it.
" I see. This area has always known war anyways: in the middle age, the Renaissance, before and after Sainte Victoire's era, and now it will make three times in only one century, and only counting the major conflicts." The engineer she was recalled, having obtained her Abitur with a major in science and history -which was only an everlasting list of conflict in the area-.
" I guess it's human nature. Where man goes, war follows they said." Pixy went a bit philosophical, but right now it was more fortune cookies philosophy than anything, even if there were no fortune cookies with their red teas.
" Maybe it could change if peoples have enough will, don't you think?" Maggie asked, hoping that this merc was open-minded enough.
" It would need politician who could sit down and really discuss the problems of our world and decide what the best for all. Like what they would do for that damned sword of Damocles over our head that the Ulysses fragments are. But it would need men without corrupted minds which could watch over those politicians, and it will never happen if Osea win this war, and they will win it anyway." Pixy again went full political, spitting venoms on this country of corrupt traders.
" Yeah, but who could make them act, or who could make Osea change?" The Belkan Lady wondered, letting an unknown question in the air.
" We would need someone wise. Someone with a good tactical set of minds. Someone who could trust people and be entrusted with the power the people would give him without being corrupted by it." Pixy tried to set up a final answer, even if it was a pretty vagueness one.
" Great response master Yoda." Maggie laughed a bit after this final answer of Pixy, and then they spent the time speaking about aeronautics, with Maggie presenting the next upgrade the Eagle family would receive, derived from the F-15C, F-15E and most of all the research aircraft F15S/MTD, which come into action in the Belkan air force for its top aces, while Pixy was commenting them from a pilot point of view. Of course, there were other projects running, such as inclusion of stealth composites in the cell of the plane, of more advanced weapons, like weapon bays, or even energy-based weapons. But right now, the latter were way too heavy, and would be limited to heavy bomber, railway based or ship-based platforms, such as the RTLSs of Belka or the Osean Death Star squadron.
They would meet Iskanda and Maggie's daughters a few minutes later, with the Erusean one being wearing something vastly opposite to what military pilot would wear but was definitely getting well with her. She was wearing a dark red, nearly bloody three-fourth leather vest, with a black linen blouse underneath, a pair of dark blue leather pants, and military boots in a black matter.
" Did you go for the biker look only?" Pixy joked a bit about his leader new swuit.
" Just one thing, Iskanda. Tell me that you didn't go to the second under-floor of that leather clothes store?" Maggie asked, arching an eyebrow, a bit worried due to what this level was housing for her two young daughters, even if they were now late teenagers.
" Why, what could it contain that could be disturbing and leather-made?" Iskanda retorted to her interlocutress with a bit of cunningness.
" Yes, what does it contain, Mutti?" Eva asked with the same cunningness, as Iskanda was beginning to understand and laughing about it.
" Oh, nothing… Really nothing that matters so much." Maggie stammered, being a bit reluctant to explain what those specific leather clothes were.
This slightly awkward situation was finished by Iskanda too, displaying another bag of clothes behind her back. And of course, the bag was from a tailor company that was for men only. Being used to wearing only male clothes, she had lost the habit to wear skirts or dresses. It was the same thing for all her clothes, even shoes, or underwear. She recalled how disturbed the vendor was when she clearly explained to him that no, she wasn't buying clothes for her husband, boyfriend, friend, brother or any linked men, but for herself. Of course, he didn't show any sexism, but all people in the shop were staring as this strange androgyne which was using mens dressing room in this precise shop for men only. The recalling of this story caused Pixy to facepalm himself, while Maggie was wondering if male underwear were more comfortable to wear than female ones. At some point she could maybe agree they could, for people wearing anti-g suit regularly.
Valaisian Alps, Ustio, 16/07/1995, 19:00, Weather: low fog, risks of freezing.
And now all were arriving back to base. Francis would not participate in the next operation, he knew it due to its caster, but he wanted to follow his brother anyway. Philip promised him he could follow them onboard the AWACS. Some soldiers in the logistics surely found the new stuff of Iskanda to be unusual and asked if there were bikers in the air when flying close to their escort fighters, causing some laugh to emerge over those iced mountains.
" I'm not a biker. It's just that I love that stuff. Find it suiting me. By the way, I do have a Motoraddführerschein." The concerned one responded.
" A what?" Claw 3 asked, his knowledge of Belkan being limited to some bad words.
" A license for a motorbike. I find the Belkan designation sounding better." Iskanda traduced.
" So, we are back in the war." Pixy stated, almost regretting those three days outside of Valais, especially the one with Maggie. She had definitely raised some wondering in his mind about the finitude of this war. He didn't like to show it, but like many of his Ustian comrades, he was a great idealist.
" Yeah. And the next stop will definitely Glatisant. Damned, Sainte Victoire could have left it in ruins." Iskanda exclaimed, now knowing the role of this lady in the upgrade of this fortress, and above all its continuous improvement throughout the centuries. Of course, they surely updated the crossbows and the musket since her era, but with Belkan and Ustian resistance fighter modernizing old weapons, they could be expecting anything.
" I have a historian teacher college who made a thesis about the resilience of old defensive structure to modern weaponry." Thesermeister intervened, thinking to all those lines -about more than one thousand for sure- he read at this moment when this college asked for some check about some physics in his research.
" And so, what's the more resilient, mein lieber Thesermeister? Modernized castle like Glatislant or geometric ones like the one at Bayes?" Koenig asked for some scientific viewpoint on their next obstacle.
" Does it require more than two FAEBs to go down? I mean, it was enough to trash Bayes, a hypersonic missile and Gelb 1." Iskanda guessed, even if the Glatislant was way more stretched than Bayes.
" Definitely I do not think FAEBs would be enough to take it down alone. Or you would have to make them detonate in the inside of the walls to shatter them." Valentin gave his final analysis. Soon this talk would end anyway. The lights on the pylons leading to Valais Air Base were now in sight.
" From the inside you said? I will remember this." Iskanda promised to herself, if some crazy scheme needed to be set in motion to destroy the Glatislant.
" I hope it's not what she means." Pixy mused, looking at the quite numerous formation that would accompany then for the assault on Mt Ivrea. There was the Komyeta and Halo squad obviously, along with the Osean Claw squadron and another squadron of Osean fighter, the Falchion team comprised of eight F/A-18Cs with the said weapon as their symbol and a light grey two-tone camo with black ailerons and dark grey wingtips. Surely other Osean, Yukte and Sapin squadron would join the fireball tomorrow, he guessed.
A few minutes later, all pilots landed. Due to the lack of place in Valais Air Base, the Hornet's wings had to be folded in their respective hangar, like it would be done on carriers. And if they were welcome here by the cold weather of the Valaisian Alps, Belkans would without any doubt welcome them with very warm hospitality.
Thus, end the bit of tourism I allowed my pilot to make. After all, merc are humans too (#belkanarehumanstoo) ...About the long passage about the cathedral, I see it a bit as a way to pay homage to Notre Dame de Paris. I hope you won't find me too long in my descriptions or in my flights of philosophy. And of course, our allies have problems, but who hasn't in war? All have. Feel free to comment, subscribe, follow, review... (And enjoy vacations for the ones having them, like I do) …
16/01/20: some grammatical mistakes fixed