It took Avery a full day to steel herself- to work up the courage to do what she needed to do. After all, she reasoned with herself, she was only one pilot. And now that they'd been properly reinforced, missing one pilot would hardly be the worst thing in the world- a setback, maybe, but nothing an entity as power as the Federation Military wouldn't be able to recover from.
She took a deep breath as she stood up and began making her way toward the command building where Vita spent most of his time when he wasn't in the air. With each step she took, her anxiety grew that much more. The thought of finally getting to see her squadron after two weeks made her ecstatic. She missed them all more and more with each day, and now she was so close to getting to see them again. As she approached the command building, she spotted K-9, minus Driver, loitering around the entrance. She put on a smile and approached. After all, a 'thank you' and a 'goodbye' were the least they deserved.
Brick was the first one to notice her. "Hey… Glade, right?"
She nodded as she closed the remaining gap between them. "Yeah. With any luck, now that we've got proper reinforcements I'll be headed back to Cascadia soon."
Cobb scoffed. "Lucky you. Been trying like hell to get Vita to deactivate us, but unfortunately, we've actually become somewhat important to them." She trailed off, letting off a tired sigh. "It's always the same goddamn story."
"Hey, at least you guys actually get to be doing something and not just sitting around all day," Eye Tee protested.
"Ah, don't worry, Eye Tee. I hear Driver might be taking you up in that Tomcat on the next mission," Bookie assured her.
"Look, I just wanted to… y'know, thank you guys," Avery said. "Not only did you guys save my life, but you've also been doing most of the heavy lifting around here," she explained. "We… I would be way worse off if not for you guys, so… thank you, truly."
Brick waved his hand dismissively. "Don't mention it. We're just doing what they brought us here for. Good luck out there, kid. I hope you get back alright."
She nodded. "Who knows, maybe we'll even see each other in the future."
Avery heard Cobb mutter, "I sure as hell hope not. If they send me to Cascadia, I might go AWOL," as she walked away and continued on into the command building.
By now, the route to the ready room had been burned into her brain. With how small the building was, it didn't take very long. Although on this walk she hoped would be her last to this room, she couldn't help but notice that it almost felt as if she was having a harder time imagining Presidia AFB in her mind. Although, to her, that was just one of the many reasons why she needed to get out of here. Finally, she stopped at the closed door in front of her. Despite the feeling that her heart was trying to break free from her ribcage, she raised her hand up and gently taped her knuckles against the door.
"Come in," came Vita's voice from the other side of the door.
'This is it,' Avery told herself as she pushed open the door. "Vita," she began, swallowing hard as she stowed away her fear as best she could. "I've got something I wanna ask you about."
He looked up from the screen of the computer he was typing at. "Alright, what is it?"
Avery took a chair from the front row and moved it closer to the desk he was sitting at. "Well… lately, I've been thinking…" She began to feel the words leaving her mind, and she tried so desperately to keep them in her thoughts. "And I was wondering if, now that we've got reinforcements in country and K-9 is doing as well as they are, I'd finally be able to go back to Cascadia."
"No, I don't think we can do that at this time," Vita said without hesitation before turning back to this computer.
"What? Why?!" Avery demanded. "Magadan is fully reinforced, and we're finally going on the offensive against the rebels. Is one pilot going back to Cascadia really the worst thing in the world?"
Vita sighed, looking toward Avery once more. "Lieutenant Finch, I'm not sure whether you're doing it intentionally or not, but you are drastically underselling your abilities. Not just anyone would have been able to do what you did last week, holding off an entire Cascadian advance alone. Quite frankly, I'm not even sure if any of the other Beiring Strait survivors- barring Crimson, of course- would have been able to do it," he said. "You may not be quite on the same level as someone like Driver or Crimson 1, but you are still an invaluable asset in the defense of Magadan."
Avery wasn't sure what to say for a moment. She never thought of herself as being more than just a regular pilot, but if that's what others saw her as, then it only underscored the importance of her getting home. "I need to be an invaluable asset in the defense of Cascadia, Vita- of my home. It's been two weeks since the Beiring Strait, and we still haven't even been able to get in contact with Cascadia. I need to get back there."
"You aren't going anywhere and that's final!" Vita rebutted. "Consider it an order- at least until our problems in Magadan are resolved." He looked up at her. "Now, if that's all, you're dismissed."
Avery wanted to say something- to have the last word- but she just couldn't. Scowling, she turned around and stormed off out of the ready room. However, she just barely made it out of the room, closing the door behind herself, when she felt one hand cover her mouth while another grabbed her by the collar and pulled her behind a corner. She tried squirming free until she noticed the one pinning her up against the wall was Crimson 7.
"Don't say anything!" the Peacekeeper hissed in a low voice. "Do you truly want to get back to Cascadia? No matter what it takes?"
Her hand didn't move away from Avery's mouth. All she could do was nod, but she did it without hesitation.
Seven paused for a moment, looking around to make sure nobody else was listening in before returning her attention to Avery. "Good, then meet us tonight on the tarmac. Midnight. Come alone, but most importantly: Don't. Tell. Anyone. Got it?"
Once more, Avery nodded.
"Good. We'll explain everything there. Don't be late," Seven said before letting go of her and vanishing into the halls of the command building.
Avery wasn't sure what to make of the encounter. She returned to the room in the control tower that she had made her own in these past two weeks to think about it some more. And yet, no matter what answers she had for herself, they all prompted more questions. One thing was clear, though: they seemed to be trying to get out of Magadan- against Vita's wishes. If that was the case, then they were her lifeline. Her only chance of returning to Cascadia anytime soon was with Crimson Squadron, and she wasn't going to let this opportunity slip by.
Time seemed to barely be moving while she waited. With the anticipation of actually leaving, Avery couldn't keep still. For a while she tried to get some rest; after all, it was likely the last chance she was going to get before going up into the air. Ultimately, though, she just couldn't do it- not when it carried the risk of oversleeping and missing her window.
Eventually, though, the sun disappeared behind the horizon, and darkness swept across the country. There wasn't a single cloud in the sky, and the cordium interference in the air was so minimal tonight that she could even see the stars perfectly. It almost felt like a sign that this was what she had to do, and now was the time to do it. After collecting her flight gear and putting it on, she began making her way down the steps of the control tower. Just one flight of stairs remained before she found herself frozen, wide-eyed as she remained at a standstill with Duncan.
"Avery…" was all he could say at first. "What, uh… what's all this?" he asked, gesturing to all the flight gear she was wearing.
Avery let out a heavy sigh. He, at least, deserved the truth. "I'm sorry, Duncan, but I just can't keep doing this. I can't be over here fighting in Magadan while my squadron is off dying for my home," she explained.
"And so, what, you just decided sod on the rest of us?" Duncan asked. "You weren't even going to tell us goodbye? After everything we went through?"
"I tried getting Vita to see reason, but he just… won't. He doesn't understand what he wants me to do," Avery defended herself. "This was the only way. I- I'm sorry, but I… I had no choice.
Duncan was silent for a moment that felt like it lasted for an eternity. His expression was unreadable. Finally, he let his head hang low. "Alright, Avery. I understand. Go on, I won't tell anyone- promise."
Avery smiled, and she couldn't help but throw her arms around him. "Thanks, Duncan. You're a damn good friend, y'know that? I hope we see each other again, someday."
"We will. I know it," Duncan assured her as the two broke off the hug.
"Goodbye, and… thanks again- for everything." She slipped past him and continued down the stairs toward the tarmac.
"Avery!" Duncan called out behind her, causing her to stop and turn around. He smiled. "Give 'em hell."
Avery nodded. She was going to give them more than that, but hell was a good start. Without another word, she went down the last of the steps and stepped out onto the tarmac. It didn't take her long to locate the three Crimson Squadron pilots, all circling their planes with hers right next to theirs.
"Good, you made it," Seven said as she approached them. "I was starting to wonder."
"Wouldn't miss it for the world," Avery responded solemnly.
"And you're sure about this, now?" Five asked her. "Technically speaking, you'll be disobeying direct orders."
"If it means that I'm able to get back home, then I'm sure," she answered.
One walked up in front of her, towering over her by almost half a foot. He looked her up and down, as if inspecting her before giving a satisfactory nod. "Missiles are over there," he said, nodding to the racks that they had rolled out from the hangars. "You'll need them."
As the Peacekeepers helped her load up, Seven began explaining the situation. "So, after the first ten days we started to get suspicious as to why the mechanics were taking so long with our planes- especially after everyone else's was all ready to go," she began.
"We asked the mechanics a few days ago, and they gave us some bullshit excuse about how they're not used to advanced planes like ours," Five continued as he helped Avery feed the gun belts into her plane. "Only, the thing is, our planes aren't that new anymore. These things have been around since just after Oceania."
"So yesterday, while you lot were out on that mission, we snuck into the hangars to get a better look at our planes, and sure enough, they were completely fine. By the look of things, they had been for some time," Seven continued.
"Long story short: they lied to us about our planes still needing repairs because they knew once our planes were combat ready, we'd try to go back to Cascadia," One summarized. "So, we're doing just that."
"Alright, so what's the plan?" Avery asked as she took the pins out of her missiles.
"Simple: we punch right through the Beiring Strait," Seven told her. "After two weeks, the rebels' presence at the Strait has no doubt been scaled back since the furball- even with the invasion. Now is our best shot it getting through."
Avery paused for a moment after making the final adjustments to her weaponry. She was ready. Looking around at the Peacekeepers, she finally said, "Well, what are we waiting for?"
Five smiled. "My thoughts exactly. Let's kick some tires and light some fires."
"Once our engines are on, this whole base is going to wake up," One explained as he began climbing into his plane. "We're gonna have to taxi fast, so get ready."
Avery climbed into her cockpit, and took a deep breath. This was it. It was do or die. After putting on her helmet and fastening her oxygen mask over her mouth, she looked over her instruments and began flipping them on one by one. The systems in her plane came to life with beeps and hums, and finally, it was time to ignite the engine. All four of them did at the same time, although she barely heard her own plane's engine over the roar of the three SK.37s.
"Hot damn, listen to that!" Seven cheered. "She's purring like she just rolled off the factory floor."
"Y'know, if they didn't lie about it to us, I would've probably hugged those mechanics for the job they did," Five agreed.
"Everyone focus up!" One barked. "The clock's ticking, so let's move!"
Avery brought up the rear as they began to taxi to the runway. She looked around and saw lights all over beginning to come to life. Their window was quickly closing. Her heart raced as she watched the Peacekeepers take off one by one, and finally she sat at the edge of the runway. A few people had come out onto the tarmac, and Avery could've sworn that even in the darkness, she recognized Vita's figure, but it was too late now. There was no going back now. She slammed the throttle forward and her plane lurched to life. She felt herself sink deep into her seat as her Viper got faster and faster until finally, she lifted off the ground, leaving Anadyr AFB behind her for the last time. Avery hurried to catch up with Crimson, but once she did, she looked over her shoulder, getting one last look at Magadan before she left it behind.