So, I didn't want to get into the next part of the main plot just yet so I have one or two filler chapters just to get a break from the insanity that is happening. Anyway, I wanted to look into Starling as all this stuff was going on so here's that chapter.
Oh, and sorry for not having any discussion or anything last chapter. I was lazy.
Chapter 15: Headaches
Starling rubbed the bridge of her nose as she drummed her fingers on the bar of the Harbor Heights Sky Port, one of the few sky ports that hadn't been overrun by rogues. Resting at the now popular rest stop, she was frustrated to say the least. She had once again been forced to save yet another clumsy group of children who were trying to play Sky Knight.
Honestly, she had been reduced from a great Sky Knight to babysitter these last few years. After the "Storm Hawks" showed up so did the rogues and, more annoyingly, new "squadrons" who didn't have a clue as to what being a Sky Knight or a squadron meant. These kids probably envisioned a glorious picture of fame and glory while beating "bad guys" like a cakewalk. They did not understand the sacrifice and effort that comes with the responsibility of being a Sky Knight Squadron. So when these kids try to go up against vicious rogues, the end wasn't very pretty.
She took a sip of her wine as she contemplated the situation. She was by no means a drinker, but the situation of the rogues and other unofficial squadrons were really starting to get out of hand. The rogues were acting up more and the kid squadrons were constantly getting themselves into trouble. What was worse was that rumors of Cyclonia's return to the field. Now was the worst possible time for them to come back into the picture, with all the chaos that was going on.
Starling sighed angrily. If those blasted imposters hadn't shown up, this wouldn't be nearly as much of a problem. It was because of them that these children were getting themselves into trouble. When the real Storm Hawks had been around, they encouraged kids to become Sky Knights but not like this. These "Storm Hawks" were actually telling people to go ahead and start their own squadron without the Sky Council's approval. Such the Storm Hawks were unofficial, but had followed the proper guidelines and only were unofficial because the council members were so stubborn and blind that they refused to let them become official. Even after being unofficial, they were still recognized as a legitimate squadron. They followed the terms of being a squadron, granted rather loosely, but clearly understood the risks and consequences of their actions.
Starling took another sip of her wine, a little bit more than she was use to. The "Storm Hawks" were also getting on her last nerve. They refused to leave her alone, continually pestering her to help them and recognize them as the real Storm Hawks. She denied them every time. They were far more annoying than any other. First, the ringleader "Finn" could be summed up as a blatant, manipulative twit. His egotistic manner was far worse than the real Finn could even been. He was also quite the coward; he would use any one of his "teammates" as a human shield if he had to. At least Finn would (eventually) admit his flaws.
Then there was "Aerrow". The very idea of someone trying to pose as the greatest Sky Knight she's ever met was an insult. The boy could act high and mighty in front of crowds, but as soon as a fight broke out, he'd be the first to hightail it out of there. To think that this boy was sullying everything that her friend had no doubt trained and strived for years for was repulsive. Aerrow hadn't worked so hard for so long just to have his work be reduced to a child playing pretend.
The others were just as bad. "Piper" was a snobbish girl who loved to point out her "genius talents", not the clever and caring girl she had known. "Junko" was nothing more than a blockhead fool, good for nothing but smashing things, instead of the kind, tender Wallop that she had come to love. And to think that they would pass off Stork as dead. The Merb may be pessimistic, but he was an irreplaceable member of their team. Even Radaar was reduced to a mere pet.
She sighed again. She missed the Storm Hawks so much, not just because of the troubles the Atmos was facing. She respected them. Sure, they were a bunch of crazy kids, but that was made them so special. They were insane enough to do the impossible. They infiltrated Cyclonia through the Wastelands. They broke out an entire Cyclonian prison. They took on the most powerful empire in the Atmos head on. They were crazy, but she loved them for it. They brought a new vigor to the slowly declining standards of the Sky Knight Order.
She looked sadly into her glass. While she tried not to get too close to anyone, she couldn't help but to grow fond of those kids. It wasn't that they were naïve to the state of the Atmos and the dangers that it carried; they simply didn't let it bother them. They were willing to fight for the Atmos, or go down trying. It was as simple as that. No fame, no glory, nothing to deter them from their mission. They did what they were supposed to do, their way. That's why even now, despite the sadness that lingered after the fate of her team, she regretted not taking their offer to join them. They cared for her. They helped her. She wanted nothing more to do the same.
She thought about her last encounter with the fake Storm Hawks. Her headache growing more painful as she did.
-00000-
She was flying close to Terra Neon when she had received a distress call coming from the "Storm Hawks". She groaned mentally as she turned on her communicator. How in the blazes they managed to get her personal communicator line was beyond her. She had tried several times to change the number and line, but somehow they kept finding it.
"What is it this time?" she asked, regretting it as she did.
"Good, Starling, you picked up!" the fake Piper shouted, "Listen, we need you to come towards Terra Ray immediately! We have a bit of a situation!"
"And why would the Storm Hawks need my assistance?" she asked, thick with sarcasm.
"Look, we don't have time for your backtalk!" Piper shouted, a twinge of panic laced in her words, "The entire terra is being overrun by rogues. We need your help! Now!"
Starling sighed, choosing to ignore the comment, "Fine, I'll be there." It not like she could just let them be killed. She was a Sky Knight after all.
Approaching Terra Ray, Starling rolled here eyes at the scene. "Overrun by rogues" was quite an exaggeration. In truth, it appeared to be a mere handful of rogues terrorizing the terra below. She leaned down and entered the battle, kicking a man off his skimmer before meeting up with the "Storm Hawks".
"Overrun by rogues?" she stated back to the team.
Finn scowled, "Look, these aren't normal rogues. They are ridiculously strong."
Starling eyed the rogues. None of them appeared to be any sort of challenge, but she did notice the insignia on their rides: the Predators. She glared at the symbol. If there was any rogue that she considered a major threat, it was they. They were, if possible, as bad as Cyclonia was. They were strong, with plenty of numbers. Also, their leader, "Hawkeye" Drake, was someone that she was very wary of. Though she had yet to face him, she knew he was a very dangerous man. He, himself, had taken out the entire Third Degree Burners within minutes. They said that none of them stood a chance. And worse, he killed them merely out of boredom. Within the span of a couple of years, the man had earned himself a reputation almost equal to that of the Dark Ace's, which took over a decade.
Anger building up in her of that fact, Starling said, "Leave them to me." She then charge the group, leaving the "Storm Hawks" confused.
It took less than five minutes. She defeated all of them and already called for prison transport. She made to leave when "Aerrow" called out, "Thanks, Starling!"
"I didn't do it for you," she said, curtly. When their faces were question marks, she continued, "I did it for Blister and the others."
"What? For a bunch of losers?" Finn sneered.
Starling stopped and gave a look towards them that froze their blood. "Never. Say. That. Again," she hissed darkly, "You have no right to say such a thing. And furthermore, they were more than you could ever dream of."
With that, she left the team wallowing in fear of her.
-00000-
Starling sighed at the memory. She knew she shouldn't have let her anger get the better of her, but those ingrates had crossed the line with that comment. If it had been the real ones, they probably charge straight into Terra Drago and take down the entire army.
The bartender came over to refill her glass, which she just noticed that it was empty.
"You look like you could use another one, Starling," he joked.
"I'm fine," she said rather too coolly.
The bartender shrugged and refilled her glass anyway. As he did, he said, "It seems that you were right, Starling."
"About what?" she asked, not making a move to stop him from refilling her glass.
"About them Storm Hawks," he said, "There's stories going around that the real ones have come back from the Far Side."
This caught Starling's attention, "What?"
"Yeah. They say that the ones we've been use to these last few years were a bunch of posers. And that the real ones are already causing a commotion with them still fighting that Cyclonis girly."
"Cyclonis is back!" Starling said, aghast.
"That's what they're saying. Makes sense. There's been numerous of sightings of Cyclonian activity lately. But the worst rumor that's been going around is that the Dark Ace is back as well."
"He's back!"
"From what I've heard, yeah. The stories that I've heard also suggest that they're not just rumors. Also, they say that him and Aerrow still have one hell of a grudge against one another. They nearly took out an entire square in Atmosia."
"What?"
"Apparently, those two got into a fight in Terra Atmosia. According to a friend of mine, the Dark Ace looks about the same, but the Aerrow kid sure as hell didn't. From what he said, no one would have known that that was Aerrow if the Dark Ace hadn't recognized him. Says he looks a hell a lot older."
Starling tried to grasp the new information, not daring to believe it. Suddenly, a voice behind her started, "You're right about that!"
Starling turned to see a young woman glancing over at them. The bartender asked, "So, it's true?"
"Well," she began, "I can't say for Atmosia, but judging from what I saw on Terra Rex, I wouldn't doubt it."
"Terra Rex?" Starling asked.
"Uh huh," the woman nodded, "I was there to watch the Storm Hawks challenge the Guardians. I was a huge fan of the Storm Hawks, but I didn't realize that they were fakes."
"What happened?"
The woman told them what happened in great detail, starting with beginning of the challenge, "… then suddenly there was these loud noises coming from the sky. The Guardians were about to got up and check it out when the cloud cleared a little and were saw this massive battle in the sky. There was a large Cyclonian ship and the Condor as well. We had no idea what was going. They fight was the most intense battle I've ever since in my life. Then there was this big blast and two figures were falling from the sky. One had a pair of wings, but the only somehow use the energy from his blades and flew down into the stadium. The other came down and they fought. The way they fought was just ridiculous, I mean, no one could move that fast. Their fight was interrupted when the Cyclonian ship starting to fall towards the terra, but someone managed to push it away with some type of energy. They then just opt not to fight and the Dark Ace left with the rest of the Cyclonians. The Storm Hawks came down and talked with their leader before he collapsed from exhaustion. But the Dark Ace did say he was Aerrow."
Everyone in the bar, who were all listening to the story with great interest, were absorbing the story that she just told. If anything, that sounded just like the Storm Hawks, before their "return". Starling's mind was reeling. They were back! They were really back! Of course, Aerrow used some crazy stunt to save himself. That was just like him. But she was worried by what she said at the end about Aerrow collapsing. That wasn't normal. Aerrow could fight for days if he had to. But, the woman did say that the fight was pretty intense. Maybe the fight really did wear him out.
Starling was brought back to earth when the woman said, "But that Aerrow is one good-looking guy."
"Excuse me?" Starling said without thinking.
"Aerrow is probably the hottest guy I've ever seen. I'm mean he was pretty cute three years ago, but man, did he grow up to be one fine man. He's totally ripped, shirtless, and has that cocky smile," the woman sighed dreamily, "He's definitely at the top of my hit list, if you know what I'm saying."
"Right," Starling trailed off, not knowing how exactly to respond to that. It's not like she ever thought that way about Aerrow before. She liked him, but in a warrior-to-warrior way. Sure, she thought he was cute, but she never meant anything by it. But why did the woman's fawning irritate her so much. It was as if she was jealous or something. She shook her head. Now was not the time to be thinking of stuff like that. The fact remained that the Cyclonians were back along with the real Storm Hawks. She couldn't help but smile at that fact. Way to bring their troubles back with them. They were persistent. She wondered just how much they changed in the last three years.
She couldn't wait to see them again.
So, one filler chap down, probably one more to go before I get back into the action.
Disclaimer- I don't own the Storm Hawks.