Tonight, the mess hall was serving juicy steaks, loads of mash potatoes, buttered rolls and steamed vegetables.
After assembling a large platter, Raven took a seat alone. He didn't mind the lack of company. Although he wasn't able to socialize, he could brainstorm strategies, tactics and dogfight maneuvers.
As Raven was drifting away in thought while chewing on a piece of steak, he noticed someone sit down in front of him. It was Belfast.
"Good evening, Mister Raven. How is your dinner tonight?"
"Delectable," Raven responded brightly. As he scooped some mash potatoes on his fork, he asked, "So what can I do for you, maid?"
"Oh, nothing," Belfast said calmly. Raven stopped chewing, knowing she truly didn't mean it. She targeted him for a reason.
"Ping Hai and Ning Hai told me what happened. So I'm just giving your daily reminder to take care of yourself and not to push yourself too hard," she continued.
Raven groaned. "That's what Enterprise told me."
Belfast giggled with a smile. "You don't know it, but in fact, you and Enterprise are very alike in many ways. Headstrong. Stubborn. But willing to fight and put yourselves in the way of danger for your comrades."
"What? I'm nothing like her," Raven retorted.
"I can read you like an open book, Raven. And although I may not understand the desire for revenge, I do understand the desire to protect, and to fight for who and what I care for. And deep down, I know you want to protect us and our world."
Raven stayed silent, signaling his answer.
"But remember, if you keep pushing yourself like you did today, you won't just be hurting yourself, but hurting us, as well. We care about you, Raven. Please don't let us down." Belfast held Raven's hand on the table. She looked sad, and Raven hated himself for it.
"I won't." Raven grabbed her hand tightly.
Belfast sighed in relief. "Good. Now, if you'll excuse me, I must return to my duties." She got up and left.
That night, Raven laid in bed, curled in his wings. He was conflicted. How could he afford to take care of himself? He was a warrior, a fighter, a proud ace. He was supposed to place himself last and his comrades and the mission first. Was he really being selfish by fighting long and hard like this?
He drifted to bed and woke in the midst of a raging inferno.
"You will be ours soon," a voice called out. It was that of a woman's, but it sounded distorted. Robotic. Full of malice.
Raven looked behind him to see five Sirens floating above him.
"What do you mean? Explain yourselves!" he demanded.
"Oh, my, no need to be so rough," the lead Siren teased. "But if you insist…"
Raven felt an intense pain coursing through his body. It felt sharp and dull. Burning and freezing. He could do nothing but scream.
"Look at yourself, now," the Siren commanded.
Falling to his knees, Raven saw his reflection in the water below. His eyes, veins and uniform glowed a bright yellow instead of the normal red.
"Now do you see? You'll be ours soon enough."
Raven stood and walked towards the Sirens. But it wasn't of his own will. They were controlling him. The strange thing is he was euphoric, full of bliss. The last thing he saw were the Siren's tentacles extending out towards him.
Raven gasped, awakening from the nightmare. It was already morning. After getting dressed, he headed down for breakfast.
Breakfast consisted of fluffy pancakes, yogurt, bacon and milk. After getting his plate, Kaga walked by Raven's table.
"Hey there, Raven," she called. Raven wiped his mouth and looked up.
"Hey, Kaga."
"Enterprise told me to tell you that she wants to see you after you're done eating. She'll be waiting for you at headquarters."
"Did she say why?" Raven asked.
"From what I heard, you'll be going on your first mission today. Good luck, flyboy." Kaga then left to sit with Akagi at another table.
Raven was excited. Finally, his first mission. What would he be doing? Fighter escort? Bomber raids?
"What? I'm doing reconnaissance?" Raven asked, disappointed with the result.
"That's right," Enterprise affirmed. "We need to discover where those Siren planes came from. How many there are. Are they within range for another attack on our base."
Raven grumbled. "Fine, I'll get it done."
Raven was in the air, heading in the direction the Siren planes came from. In order to assist, he deployed two smaller UAV aircraft from within his chest and back.
"Hugin. Munin. I need your help to find the Sirens. They were last seen from this direction." He pointed south. We'll all split up and search. The second you find them, contact me and report your position."
The drones chirped and went in different directions. Meanwhile, Raven continued straight ahead.
For Raven it was just blue sea and silence. After a few minutes, however, Munin reported a Siren fleet 20 miles to the west. He ordered both UAVs to return to his body and headed in the direction.
Sure enough, seven Siren ships below. Meat on the table, but Raven remembered Enterprise's instructions. His job was to find them, not attack or destroy. But they were so tempting. Due to his stealth, they were not aware of his presence, meaning he had the element of surprise.
"Ah, what the hell?" Raven asked himself. He transformed into his aircraft form and dived down. Firing two heat-seeking missiles, he quickly took down one ship.
The Sirens were caught off-guard. They scrambled desperately to counter, but were not fast enough. Flying just above the water, Raven lined up three ships.
"Activate EML."
A large railgun opened up in his nose. Firing a shot, the blast was strong enough to puncture the hulls of all three vessels. They sank within seconds.
"Four down, three to go."
Climbing, Raven chose to finish with the ADMM. Diving back down, he locked on to the remaining ships. Four missiles flew to each ship, causing three massive explosions.
With the vessels sinking and on fire, Raven climbed and headed back to base.
He arrived back at headquarters in the late afternoon.
"Report, Raven." Enterprise ordered.
"Well, there's nothing to report…"
"Enterprise turned her head.
"…because I destroyed them all."
"Whoa! You took on an entire Siren fleet alone? Wow, Raven! You never cease to amaze. I'm impressed," Cleveland remarked.
"I'm not," Enterprise glared.
"Why not?" Queen Elizabeth asked. "He has once again shown remarkable power."
"Because he disobeyed orders. I told you to find the Sirens, not destroy them. My original goal was for you to locate the Siren fleet so they could lead us to the main force. But since you sunk them, that's going to be much harder now, isn't it?"
Noticing Enterprise steaming, Hornet and Belfast rushed over to calm her down.
"So what? You expect me to stand by and not take out the enemy when the golden opportunity presents itself? I'm here to wipe every Siren off the face of the planet, and I'm sorry if that's not how you ladies wage war, but I was built to kill and destroy."
Raven flew out of the room, leaving behind an uncomfortable silence among the present ships.
