Rouen Air Base

Normandy, Europe

May 16th, 437 AC

8:43 PM Local Time

The flight back felt like it took forever. The worst part was the silence. Everyone had something to say, but nobody uttered a word. This just gave everyone in Paladin, especially Jay, time to let their anger bubble and boil. He knew something was off, he knew the Coalition wasn't telling them everything. He could've stopped them from coming here in the first place, and now Tux and Ritari might be dead because of it. He was so lost in his own thoughts that he barely even realized that they had landed and were taxying into their hangar. Only plane was missing, but it still made the whole room feel empty.

"Is everyone okay?" Eagle asked as the pilots gathered near the center of the hangar.

Shades scoffed. "That depends on your definition of okay," he said, folding his arms across his chest.

"We're all alive, at least. That's something," Jolt pointed out.

"No, we're not all alive!" Shades snapped. "In case you hadn't goddamn noticed, Tux and Ritari might be dead."

"Don't say that. The fact of the matter is we just don't know anything," Jolt tried to assure him.

"Yeah, no shit we don't know anything," Mustang joined in. "We can thank Verreaux and the rest of these stuck-up assholes for not telling us a damn thing!"

"Will you all knock it off?" Nyx said, getting between them. "I think it's pretty clear that we're all pissed off because of this, so why don't we save it all for Verreaux instead arguing with each other."

"You know what, Nyx?" Cyborg said, finally speaking for the first time since Tux went down. "I think you're absolutely right." His hands clentched up into fists. "If this asshole thinks he can screw us over- put my people in unnessecary danger- then he's in for one rude awakening." Without another word, the group's leader stormed off toward the briefing room.

Jay hustled to keep up with him as he walked. "So, what are you thinking we should do from here, boss?" he asked in a low murmer. "You think we should get outta dodge while we still can?"

Cyborg's eyes were locked on the path in front of him, narrowed into furious slits. "It all depends on what this god damn weasel has to say for himself," he growled, pivoting on the balls of his foot around a corner.

In all the years Jay had known Cyborg, he had never seen the man this furious before. It was actually a bit unsettling. Still, the thought that they might be abandoning this contract- the fact that he might not have to fight Natalie again, clung to his mind. The more he thought about it, though, the more it made him feel uncertain, and he hated it. Here he was, being given a golden opportunity to finally put all this behind him, and he didn't think he would be able to take it. The thought had been driving him mad ever since he fought Natalie above Silesia.

Cyborg burst through the door to the briefing room, his mercenaries following right behind him. He didn't say a word. Instead, he just stormed up to the front of the room where Colonel Verreaux stood. The Normandic officer opened his mouth, as if to try and defuse the situation, but Cyborg wasn't having any of it. Before Verreaux could get a single sound out past his lips, Cyborg's fist made contact with his jaw, sending him sprawling to the floor.

"You bastard!" Cyborg spat. "You set us up, you son of a bitch!"

Coalition soldiers trained their guns on him, and in turn, the Paladin mercenaries pulled out their sidearms to defend their leader. Nobody dared to move a muscle, fearing the slightest movement to set one another off and turn the briefing room into a bloodbath. Jay kept the barrel of his pistol fixed onto what looked like an MP while occasionally glancing toward Cyborg to see what he would do. Cyborg, on the other hand, didn't seem to care that he had about three guns aiming right at the back of his head. He just stared down at Verreaux with narrowed eyes.

"I have good men and women that might be dead because you kept us in the dark. What the hell do you have to say for yourself?" the mercenary demanded.

Verreaux steadily got to his feet and raised an assuring hand, signaling for the Coaliton soldiers to stand down. "I didn't have a choice," he said in a low tone as the soldiers under his command gradually lowered their weapons. "Trust me when I say, I didn't have a choice. We went to five of the best mercenary groups we could find. As soon as we told them about that beheamoth, they all turned us down. If we had any chance of getting the help we needed- of ending the threat that the Federation poses for so many, we needed to keep you in the dark."

"What the hell was that thing anyway?" Jay asked, slowly holstering his weapon. Before long, the other mercenaries followed his lead.

"It's an advanced cruiser made by Icarus Armories called The Hydra," Verreaux explained. "Well, actually it's not a single cruiser, it's three that can attach and detach at will. Each of them is specialized in a specific area." He pulled up a blurry image of the Hydra on the screen. "The top one is built for anti-air combat, the bottom one is built for anti-ground combat, and the middle one is built for commanding and ECM. Even one of them on their own can dominate an entire battlefield. We were just days away from capturing the Federation's leaders and forcing them to capitulate when they unveiled that thing. Ever since, they've been using it to not only push us back but to recruit and build back their numbers."

"Do you even have any plan whatsoever to take that thing down?" Nyx asked. "I mean, we couldn't even get close to the damn thing. How are we supposed to kill it?"

"That's why we're recalling all of our forces here to Rouen. We're going to overwhelm that beast with the full power of the European Coalition and take it down," Verreaux assured them.

"That's your plan? To just throw as many people as you can at that monstrosity and hope you manage to kill it?" Mustang asked in disbelief. He scoffed, shaking his head. "Unbelievable."

Cyborg locked eyes with Verreaux. "Give me one good reason why we shouldn't just pack up and leave- to cut our losses and head back to the Periphery."

Verreaux didn't flinch. In fact, he smirked at Cyborg's question. "We both know the answer to that." He paused before saying, "Lieutenant Watts," in a tone low enough that only Cyborg could hear the use of his real name. "Your record isn't as hidden as you'd like to think it is. I know why you didn't stick around after the Cascadian Conflict like most other mercs did- why you formed a mercenary group focused on having honor and not just working for a paycheck. You need to assuage your guilt. That's why you're here, and it's why you won't leave. I don't blame you for wanting to right your wrongs, but don't try and make threats you won't hold to, Cyborg."

Jay found himself surprised to see both Eagle and Stallion's gazes waver. 'Guess I'm not the only one with skeletons in my closet,' he thought to himself.

Everyone kept their gazes on Cyborg, who stood unmoving from the spot where he first punched Verreaux. The silence in the room was all-encompassing, and it felt like everyone was frozen in time. Finally, Cyborg turned around and started walking out of the room. "We don't go back up there until get news on our people," he ordered before slamming the door behind him, leaving everyone there to process what the hell had just happened.

Cloudfall Air Base

Yakutia, Federation Mainland

May 17th, 437 AC

11:15 AM Local Time

"Sorry I'm late. I had to finish some paperwork," Natalie explained as she shut the door behind her.

Myers nodded. "Captain Page, excellent. Now we can begin." He motioned for Natalie to join him and the other squadron leaders, who were standing around a map on the table.

Natalie looked down at the map showing the Federation's advancements against the European Coalition and the West African Concordat. "Have we heard back from our forces attacking Audessum?" she asked, looking down at the city, which remained unmarked.

Myers nodded. "The Coalition put up quite a fight, and unfortunately they were able to evacuate all of their air cruisers, but yes. We managed to secure the city, thanks mostly the Hydra's aid." He updated the battle lines on the map to appropriately reflect their new gains.

"And the Samurai?" Natalie asked almost immediately. "Did we get him?"

"Unfortunately, no," the General replied with a scowl. "The Samurai was there, but he managed to escape the trap we laid out for him. Some of the pilots at Audessum said he fought like a caged animal to get out."

Natalie huffed. "Typical merc scum. That bastard has gotten away from us too many times. We need to do something about him."

"I'm aware of your frustrations, Captain Page, but there's only so much we can do- so much we can put on the line- just to take out one fighter." He started pacing around the table, stroking his chin as he thought. "Perhaps the solution to this problem isn't to kill him outright, but rather to find an… alternative way to get this dog out of our hair."

The Peacekeeper raised an eyebrow at him. "Alternative way?" she echoed. "What other solutions would there be besides just killing him?"

Myers smirked. "You see, Captain Page, there's all kinds of ways to take a piece off the board; sabotage their equipment, let them get bogged down on some secondary front, give them a deal they can't refuse, the possibilities are endless."

"And how would we go about doing any of those things?"

"You need not worry about that, Captain. Rest assured, though, the Samurai won't be an issue for much longer." Myers looked down at the front lines on the map. "Now, with Audessum under our control, we need to think about what our plan will be moving forward."

"Well, the Hydra basically has free reign wherever it goes, so I say we have it do most of the heavy lifting on the European Front, while we divert most of our conventional forces down to deal with the Concordat," Natalie suggested.

Myers nodded approvingly and smirked. "Yes, excellent, and with the jammer going up in a matter of days, the Concordat will be cut off and disorganized. We can roll right over them." He let out a low chuckle as he looked down at the map. "Yes, let's begin making preparations for our forces. We've got a busy few weeks ahead of us."

Rouen Air Base

Normandy, Europe

May 23rd, 437 AC

6:35 AM Local Time

The days since the fighting at Audessum and the subsequent confrontation with Colonel Verraux had gone by exceedingly slow. Paladin hadn't gone up since, mostly due to their insistence to wait on any news about Tux and Ritari. Although, there wasn't exactly many sorties that they would've gone on anyway. The Federation had been unusually quiet, which had a lot of people at the base even more on edge.

For the most part, Paladin spent their time in the flight simulators, trying to hone their skills by even the smallest margin. Even Nyx was getting quite a bit of practice in. Mustang and Eagle had their friendly duel, and as everyone expected, Mustang lost. He took his defeat in stride, though, as he always did. That had been the highlight of their time spent waiting. After that, it was back to more of the same.

Jay gradually crawled out of bed and prepared himself for another day of idling. As he threw on his clothes, he nodded to Eagle, who was already up and going through his morning routine as well.

"Hey, Eagle, if you don't mind me asking, what was Verreaux talking about with Cyborg when he threatened to leave?" Jay practically blurted out as he tied his hair back.

"It's…" Eagle's voice trailed off as he failed to come up with the right words. "It's a long story. A lot of shit happened in Cascadia- things that some of us would rather stay in the past. Everyone's got regrets; Cascadia is mine."

"I see," Jay murmured. He was about to ask another question, but he stopped himself when a new sound entered his ears- a low rumbling off in the distance. "You hear that?" he asked his wingman.

Eagle nodded. "Yeah. Let's check it out." He grabbed his sidearm just in case and started toward the outside of the base.

Jay did the same and followed him out, all the while thinking about what could be awaiting them. It didn't sound sound like more fighter jets, but whatever was making the sound, it was heading for them. Along the way, Jay and Eagle ran into the other pilots from Paladin, and by the time they were out the door, they had everyone with them. Then, they all stopped as they saw what was in front of them.

The low rumbling they all heard was the sound of tanks heading for them, and walking alongside them was all of the ground forces from Audessum, including Ritari and Tux. Everyone rushed forward and the now re-united mercenary group all embraced one another, relieved to see that everyone had come back alive.

"Thank the Dust you're all here and safe," Cyborg said, sighing in relief. "How did you you…?"

"I'll tell you right now, boss, it was a long way back from Audessum," Gray said. "As we were leaving the city, we found this young lady wandering around by herself," he explained, gesturing to Tux. "Turns out she's pretty handy with a rifle," he added with a smirk.

"I gave their unit the woman's touch. It was sorely needed," Tux joked.

"Well, it truly is glad to have you all back here safe and sound," Cyborg said, smiling more than Jay had seen him smile in a while. "Now come on, why don't we all head down to the mess hall and you guys can tell us about your adventures to get back here."