The Celestial Way

Chapter 11 - Rushing the Way

"Cloud, can you fly this?" he asked, musing how cramped the cockpit was.

"Certainly, Commander."

"Then start the engines and take off. Be expedient, as I expect resistance once we are airborne."

"Destination, Commander?"

"The Shard, wherever that is."

The stormjet lifted silently on electromagnetic repulsors, and launched from the hangar. Once outside, its main drive fired with a thunderous boom, shooting forward with bone-crushing acceleration. Immediately, the stormjet banked sideways in a wide circle around the area. The power armor's interface lit up with messages, commlink requests, and warnings. Airo was sure the Radiant Knights' base had gone on full alert at his sudden departure.

"Cloud," he asked through gritted teeth, "why are we not leaving?"

"I'm doing a pattern search for the fractal subregion's exit, Commander. Remaining ETA is two-point-eight seconds."

The stormjet abruptly righted itself and sped toward the wide, dark tunnel which led away from the hidden base. Yet no light was visible on the other side as the stormjet entered the tunnel, and approached the sheer darkness with terminal velocity.

"Cloud!" Airo shouted.

At the last instant, the tunnel entrance melted away in a curtain of blinding radiance. The stormjet rushed past, and launched itself into the crystal-clear morning sky of Terra Para. Airo let out his breath, and slumped in the seat.

"Did you have to wait until the last moment to open the way?" he asked mordantly.

"I had no control over the subregion's exit, Commander," Yeoman Cloud said nonchalantly.

Airo balked for several seconds. "Why the bloody stars did you rush at it then?" he demanded.

"You instructed me to be expedient, Commander. I assumed you had secured a means to control the subregion's exit. My mistake! It won't happen again."

Neither of us would have made any subsequent mistakes if we had smashed against that... barrier, Airo thought. He contemplated who actually had let him leave the Order's stronghold. None of the options which came to mind made much sense, and soon he abandoned that line of thinking. Instead, he focused his attention on the readouts on the stormjet's dashboard and the regular stream of data scrolling on his power armor's HUD. The stormjet quickly reached hypersonic speed and began to cruise at an altitude of forty kilometers, well away from orbit, yet high enough to diminish many of the paraworld's anomalous effects, or negate them altogether.

The flight was a static, boring affair as Yeoman Cloud unerringly guided the stormjet toward its destination. The twin suns, white-blue and crimson-red, blazed low over the distant horizon, creating an ephemeral, purple afterglow. The vast frozen expanses of the planet below gleamed like a mirror. Airo gazed at the raw cosmic beauty, blind to it. His thoughts were subdued, as he honed his vengeful rage into a blade of diamond determination, preparing mentally to face Ferrtau again. He wasn't surprised the stormjet flew straight to the elusive energy pillar that constantly overshadowed the landscape.

"Why are we going to the Shard?" Veralla suddenly asked, her head looming as she rose from the cockpit's rear end.

Airo would've startled if anger didn't overcome him first. "What," he said, slow and harsh, "are you doing here?"

"I wanted to come with you!" Veralla said, bobbing her snout.

"How did you find me in the first place?" Airo demanded.