Cloudfall Air Base
Yakutia, Federation Mainland
March 29th, 437 AC
11:57 PM Local Time
Natalie let out a shaky sigh, brushing a few loose strands of hair out of her face before letting her head fall into her hands. It had been over a week since Allessia fell, and Cap along with it, but she couldn't get her mind off it. All she could think about was what would've happened if she'd stayed there with him if she'd done more to save him and the others. Her mind was racing at a million miles a minute, thinking about all the ways she could've saved Cap. Then, her mind went to Jay. If he hadn't left, if he just stayed with the Federation, with her, then the two of them could've easily saved the rest of their squadron. Instead, he chose to be a coward. He put his ideals over her and the rest of the Federation. Not only that, but he ran away like a coward. The more she thought about him, the more anger started to build up inside of her. She needed some way to let it out. Her hand tightened up into a fist as she looked around for something to unleash her pent-up rage on. After a few seconds of not finding anything, she eventually settled for the wall. Her fist tightened, even more, bracing itself as it slammed into the wall, sending a wave of pain through her knuckles and up her arm. As much as it hurt her hand, though, it made Natalie feel much better, so much so that she considered doing it again. However, she stopped herself when she saw Wires pass by, then promptly stop and backpedal back to her room.
"You okay?" he asked, not in an antagonistic or facetious way but with a look of genuine care.
Despite the disagreements that Natalie and Jay were having before he left, she still cared for him, which made it all the more painful when he left with virtually no warning. She felt miserable after he left, but Wires was the one who stuck with her and helped her feel better. It made her appreciate him as a friend, and it brought them closer together in the sky. There was a trust between them that she didn't have with anyone else.
"Does it look like I'm okay?" she finally asked, laying onto her bed and rolling over to face the wall.
Wires smiled, trying to lighten the mood a bit. "Yeah, you're right. That was a bit of a dumb question on my part." He sat down on the bed next to her. "You wanna talk about it?"
Natalie didn't say anything, but she nodded without looking up. She hoped he would ask that for days since he was the only one that she felt comfortable opening up to. "I just… I can't," she said softly.
"What do you mean?" Wires asked, looking over at her. He paused, looking down for a moment before finally speaking again. "You missing Cap?"
Natalie nodded again, finally rolling over to face Wires. "I keep thinking about what I could've done differently to keep him from dying. I should've done more, but I guess what I don't get is why he decided to put so much trust in me to lead the squadron."
"You nervous about it?" Wires let his eyes drift around the room, so she didn't feel like he was staring.
"I'm just looking at our situation, and it's just… we're so screwed right now. I don't know how I'm supposed to lead us out of this. I'm scared that I'll do something to royally screw up and get you all killed," Natalie admitted. "Like I did with Cap," she added hesitantly.
Wires's gaze snapped back to Natalie. "Listen, Winter. You didn't get Cap killed." He was about to continue, but she cut him off.
"It's my fault he's not here anymore!" she snapped, sitting up. "I could've gone back to help him, but I didn't."
Wires paused, thinking about what to say before eventually taking a deep breath in and out. "You didn't go back because he ordered you not to. He sacrificed himself so that you, me, Hammer, Doc, and all those other pilots we helped escape Allessia, could live. He wouldn't have done that if he didn't have faith in us, in you," he pointed out.
"But why?" she asked, looking up at Wires. "Why did he put so much faith in me? Why did he think that I have what it takes to lead this squadron?"
"You're a way better pilot than you give yourself credit for, Winter," Wires told her. "You care about us, and when push comes to shove, you're not afraid to take control of the situation to protect the ones you care about." He put his hand on her shoulder, giving her a reassuring smile. "I'd say that makes you more than qualified."
For the first time, likely since Cap died, Natalie smiled, and she wrapped her arms around Wires. "Y'know, you really are good at this," she told him.
Eventually, Wires broke off the hug and smirked. "Maybe I should be a therapist or something after all this is over, eh?"
Natalie laughed. "You'd be good at it," she said.
A few seconds later, a young Federation soldier came into the room. "Excuse me? Captain Page?" he asked.
Natalie stood up, still feeling weird about being promoted. "Yes? What is it?"
The soldier straightened his posture. "General Myers is requesting you come see him at once. He's in his office," he reported.
"Alright, I'll be right there," Natalie said with a nod. She turned back around to Wires. "I'll talk to you later, I guess."
"Sure. Catch you later, Winter."
Natalie broke out into a light jog as she made her way through the halls of the barracks and outside for a brief moment before coming into the main base. At that point, she slowed down to a brisk walk as she continued up the stairs and over to Myers's office.
She reached out and lightly knocked on the door before Myers responded with, "Come in."
Natalie opened the door and saw General Myers at his desk, with another man sitting across from him. He was dressed in a lab coat and had thick brown hair that went no further than his ears.
She stood at attention and gave the General a firm salute. "You wanted to see me, sir?"
Myers smiled, which was a rare sight. "Ah, Captain Page. At ease, at ease. I'd like you to meet Doctor Halsroy." He gestured to the man sitting across from him. "He's the Director of Research at Icarus Armories."
"General Myers has told me quite a bit about you in the short time I've been here," Halsroy said as Natalie sat down next to him. "He says you're one of the finest pilots he's ever had the pleasure of meeting."
"Well, she's the leader of the last Peacekeeping squadron in the Federation," Myers explained. "She's got to be good to fit that position." He paused before finally looking up at the doctor. "A suitable candidate for Project Wingman, no?"
"Sir, Project Wingman isn't even close to having a working prototype," Halsroy said.
Any semblance of happiness on General Myers's face instantly vanished. "The project was reactivated two years ago. Are you honestly telling me that in two years, you haven't gotten to the point where you have a working prototype?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
"We've had to essentially start from scratch," Halsroy defended himself, raising his voice. "Although, we wouldn't have had to do that if the Federation didn't allow a mentally unstable Peacekeeper to steal our only prototype five years ago and used it to level an entire city before getting it destroyed by a mercenary."
Myers stood up and glared at Halsroy as if he had reached across the desk and slapped him. Already, Halsroy was regretting what he said, but Myers didn't stop there. "I think it would be wise of you to watch your tone, Doctor. Need I remind you that you're on my base?" He leaned in close, putting only a few inches between himself and Doctor Halsroy. "Quite frankly, Doctor, I don't think you want to know how I keep everyone in line."
"I- Sir… I didn't mean any disrespect," Halsroy fumbled over his words as he tried to explain himself. "It's just- er, we've run into a complication."
"What kind of complication?" Myers asked, eyeing him with suspicion.
"One of the improvements we've been making to the mark two is making it run leaner," Halsroy explained. "We've managed to reduce the fuel input into small cordium rods, which we had being delivered from the Asean Republic, but it apparently got seized during their civil war."
"So, you're telling me that the only fuel for our advanced fighter prototype has been stolen by rebels?" Myers demanded, raising his voice.
Halsroy flinched at Myers's anger. "We sent one of our security teams to try and retrieve it a few days ago, but we've heard nothing from them."
"Doctor, can you tell me if there's anything- anything at all that you have to tell me that would make me not want to drag you off my base?" Myers asked. "Or did you request this meeting for the sole purpose of convincing me that you're useless?"
Doctor Halsroy took a deep breath, averting his gaze from Myers for a moment and collecting his cool. "General, I requested this meeting because I have good news, fantastic news, as a matter of fact. One of the reasons developments with Project Wingman has been so slow is because we've been focusing on another project, and that project has finally been completed."
"And what is this project, then?" Myers asked. He maintained his stern expression on the outside, but on the inside, he was intrigued. "What is it that makes it so much more important than the advanced fighter that we've spent years developing?"
Doctor Halsroy, clearing feeling a lot more confident than he was a minute ago, took a sizeable rolled-up piece of paper from inside of his coat and unrolled it over Myers's desk. "Behold! The Hydra!"
Natalie looked over the paper and saw a complex series of blueprints. "What is it?" she asked, not understanding what the writing on the blueprints meant.
"This is the key to victory for the Federation. More specifically, though, it's a one-of-a-kind air cruiser," Halsroy explained. "It's by far the largest air cruiser ever built, and its size is attributed to one of its main features. The Hydra is actually three identical air cruisers that can connect or disconnect at will. Each one is built with exactly the same features, which I'll get into in a moment, and is perfectly capable of winning a battle alone or with its other counterparts."
"You have my attention, Doctor," Myers admitted, leaning back in his chair. "Go on."
"As I said, each Hydra cruiser is built identically. First and foremost, they're all equipped with the standard weaponry you'd find on any air cruiser: AA guns, SAM launchers, CIWS, railguns, etcetera. These alone would make each of them a formidable threat, but that's not all we've equipped them with. All three of them are fitted with four burst missile launchers, allowing them to take out dozens of targets, air, and ground alike, in a single salvo. Finally, they all have an ECM defense system onboard, which will repel incoming enemy missiles. Individually, they're a formidable weapon, but together, they're unstoppable."
"Hm… I must admit, you certainly have outdone yourself, Doctor," Myers admitted. "Quite frankly, you would've been better off leading with the Hydra rather than pissing me off with Project Wingman."
Halsroy rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "Yeah, that uh… might not have been my best approach," he admitted.
"So then, when will the Hydra be ready for use?" Myers asked, impatiently drumming his fingers against his desk.
Doctor Halsroy smirked. "It's already on its way."