The airspace around Prospero was particularly busy when Locksmith got back. All kinds of aircraft were coming and going from the airbase to the point that they barely had any room to taxi once they were on the ground. Even when they did, the hangar that once been occupied solely by them was almost completely full now. Suffice to say, the war was now in full swing.
"Seems to be getting awfully cramped in here," ASH remarked as she and the others climbed out of their planes. "Honestly, I didn't think that'd be possible considering just how massive this place is."
"With Presidia under the rebels' control, Prospero is the biggest Federation-controlled port in Cascadia, especially for our airships," Cutter replied. "This place is probably gonna be where the bulk of our air force is at until we retake the capital."
"Which hopefully won't be too far away," Shepard added. "With Presidia cut off, we should be able to put them to siege pretty easily. From there, it's just a matter of keeping the pressure on until they break."
Avery nodded along with the conversation but didn't say a word. She was too busy focusing on other things; like the dirty looks her comrades gave her as they walked by, the way North Star cast suspicion on her from the moment he met her, or even the fact that Padlock had yet to even speak to her since the war started. No matter where on this base she went, she felt like an outsider- and not just because of how new she was to the Air Force. This felt damn near close to total ostracization. She remained silent as her squadron carried on their conversation while they made their way to the briefing room. Her mind, however, was busy as ever.
'Surely…' she thought to herself, silently. 'Surely, I'm not the only Cascadian in the entire Federation Military. Why am I the only one getting these looks?"
For a brief moment, she almost questioned whether or not she had done the right thing in siding with the Federation. At least, the rebels would've treated her as one of their own. Then, she stopped and realized that Cascadian or not, she was still part of the Federation Air Force. To them, she'd be nothing more than a lowly deserter. It was like Shepard said just before the war started; she was stuck between a rock and a hard place, but she was confident that she made the right choice.
"We're back, sir," Shepard announced as he led his squadron into the briefing room where they all took their usual seats, looking up at Grayson expectedly.
Grayson looked up from his computer and nodded upon seeing the pilots filing in. "Locksmith Squadron, excellent timing," he greeted them, dipping his head slightly before letting his gaze shift across the room. "We should just be waiting on one more."
Avery raised an eyebrow at him curiously. She was mere moments away from asking who else they could be waiting for when, as if on cue, the door to the room opened once more, and a man no older than 30 stepped in with short, dirty-blonde hair and brown eyes. "Sorry for being late, sir- we had to wait for another flight to take off," he apologized as he sat down. Avery's heart sank as she recognized his voice immediately. It was North Star.
"That's quite alright, Sergeant Ivo. Locksmith Squadron only just arrived," Grayson assured him before returning his attention to his computer. "Now, let's get this underway, shall we?" He brought up a map of Cascadia on the big screen and stood in front of it. "The last few hours have been busy and particularly chaotic. Pockets of resistance have been engaging with our forces up and down Cascadia, but excluding Presidia, most of the rebels seem to have concentrated themselves further north. Most of our forces there have already been lost, so the fact that you were able to get Major Ackers and her men out of rebels' reach is going to be crucial for the coming weeks."
"Dagger Actual made contact with me just before we landed," North Star chimed in. "They said they got everyone out safely, and they're back in Federation-controlled territory."
Grayson nodded toward the AWACS operator. "Excellent, I'll have to reach out to them to see if they gained any useful information about the enemy's tactics. With any luck, they'll be able to help us turn this around quickly and keep putting pressure on Presidia. In the meantime, though…" he paused, shifting his attention from North Star to the pilots of Locksmith Squadron. "How would you five describe the air cover that the rebels had during this operation?"
It took a moment for them to respond, but ultimately, Shepard was the one that spoke. "Well, sir, to be honest, it was pretty underwhelming- only a handful of Accipiters that didn't exactly put up much of a fight."
"They were rebels, correct?" Grayson asked.
Cutter eyed the Commander curiously. "What else would they be?"
He shook his head. "That's a problem for another day. For now, though, Locksmith Squadron, you've all done great work today. Go ahead and get some rest. However, we may end up needing you for another operation later this evening, but that's not set in stone. You're all dismissed."
The six people all stood up and saluted Grayson in unison before making their way out of the briefing room. Avery was about to start toward her room when she heard Cutter's voice behind her. "Hey, you!" he demanded. Avery turned around, unsure of what to expect, only to see Cutter glaring daggers at North Star. "Lemme offer you some advice: ease up on Glade, or else things won't turn out well for you."
"Sir don't…" Avery pleaded weakly, but it was too late. They'd both gotten going now.
North Star scoffed. "With all due respect, Captain, do you have any idea how many men and women are under my responsibility when I'm up in the air? The answer is hundreds- literally hundreds. Hell, if they weren't out of country, I'd even be working with Crimson Squadron. And whether she's your wingman or not," he paused, pointing to Avery. "She's a security liability. If Grayson were smart, he wouldn't even let her near a plane- let alone on a sortie. Because whenever she's in the air, she puts the hundreds of people under my responsibility at risk."
Shepard opened his mouth to speak, but Avery cut him off. Her brain told her over and over not to say anything- to just let it go- but she couldn't. "Tell me, then; when would it be enough for you? How many of my own people do you want me to kill before you're satisfied? While you're thinking on that, I'll ask you another question: would you rather me fight for the rebels instead? Would that make you feel better?" If she were wise, she would've stopped there, but she was too far in to stop now. "Ever since this war started, people I don't even know have been looking at me like I've offended them by merely being here. Well, I'm sick of it! I'm here, fighting for the Federation, and I'm going to stay here fighting for the Federation whether you like it or not."
North Star was silent for a moment. His face held an expression that was unreadable to her, but it was quickly replaced by an expression that she did recognize: annoyance. "I don't have time for this. I need to get back up in the air," he grumbled, shouldering past her.
Shepard let out a heavy sigh. "Glade, I-" he started before she cut him off again- another decision that she questioned in retrospect.
"Don't… say anything- just don't," she replied in a tired voice. "I know you're gonna tell me that you're sorry I have to go through all of this, or that I'm so brave for putting up with it all, but I just don't wanna hear it right now," she said before turning around and walking away.
The Major took in a deep breath, watching as his youngest pilot walked away. Just before she was out of earshot, though, he called out to her, "Thank you, Glade."
She stopped for a moment, turning to look around at him, but she gave no other reaction beyond that before continuing on toward her room. Once inside, she made sure the door was firmly shut before letting out a heavy sigh as she paced back and forth. She undid her ponytail, letting her hair fall to its natural resting place on her shoulders and then stopped when she heard the door starting to open. Her head quickly snapped toward the sound to see ASH walk in, shutting the door behind her.
Avery exhaled sharply. "I said I'm not in the mood to talk," she insisted, doing her best to look away from her wingman.
ASH shrugged her shoulders. "It's my room too, y'know," she replied with a playful yet gentle smile. "Besides, you forgot something."
"What? What'd I forget?" Avery asked, looking up at ASH curiously.
"This," ASH said, taking measured steps toward Avery before wrapping her arms around her in a tight hug. "I know telling you that 'I know what you're going through sucks' isn't gonna help, but you're not doing it alone. All of us are right here with you, and we're all gonna do our damndest to help you get through this. I promise."
Avery wasn't sure what to say. All she could do was return the hug. It felt… nice- like something she didn't even realize that she was missing until this very moment. "Thank you, Amber. I… it means a lot to me. This has all been so frustrating, but…" she trailed off and let out a sigh filled with so much of the stress she'd been feeling. "But it feels good to know that I've got all of you with me."