Iron Empire

Sixty-Six: Before The War Ends

The mood onboard the dropship was festive. We had nothing to celebrate with, but lots to celebrate.

Lucas' radio cycled through an endless mix of his favourites as we sat in the cockpit and passed around a bottle of water, taking sips to ease our dry throats and chatting amicably.

Draco Fisk hadn't spoken a word since we left but had accepted a drink from the water bottle with a gracious nod. In a strange way, it was disconcerting to see him acting so civilly.

Dropship 13 had been the last to leave the crash site. We would soon be home, bringing up the rear on the victorious return of the dropships.

I couldn't wait to sit down, have a nap in my bunk and a meal in the Firmament's mess hall. After all that we had been through, it was going to be good to relax, at least for a little while.

***

The hangar bay was filled with personnel, from pilots to mechanics to maintenance staff, all celebrating our victory in unison. They crowded the hangar bridge and swarmed the levels below, waving and shouting.

Of the forty pilots we had brought with us into battle, thirty-five had survived with only minor injuries. The five pilots who had suffered serious injury had been rescued and were expected to recover in time.

The remaining thirty-five pilots stood on the mezzanine, celebrating our win. Sojwa's squadron of Korean pilots mixed freely with our own, hugging and cheering like we had known each other all our lives. We had been united in victory, and in hope for the future.

The next twenty minutes were a blur. I shook hands with more people than I could count. It was all quite overwhelming, but I welcomed the chaos. We had earned it.

Draco stood at the edge of the crowd, surrounded by four armed soldiers. After the crowds cleared the way he would be transported to the brig for interrogation.

A firm hand fell on my shoulder, making me jump.

"Twitchy, commander?" Kedrick laughed. "Follow me, we have to go." Kedrick had peeled off the top of his jumpsuit in the heat of the desert and now stood in a white undershirt, seemingly unaffected by the cold ocean breeze.

I turned to notice that the crowd had parted behind me, and that most of the thirty-five pilots were making their way away from the crowds.

"Mallet wants to debrief us on the bridge downstairs," Kedrick continued. "Let's go brag about our awesome win, shall we?"

I smiled and nodded.

Kitt and I marched across the bridge, wandering toward the elevator. The crowd slowly dispersed, chatting amicably. We were celebrating a win, but tomorrow would come whether we liked it or not. Mechs would need repairs, dropships would need refuelling.

We had a lot to do before the war ended.

A rhythmic clicking noise told me that Dan was close. Sure enough, two arms were thrown around my back as both Stonewood brothers caught up to Kitt and I.

"We were hoping for a stupid idea," Dan informed me, his crutch clicking against the tile floor.

"You didn't disappoint," Lucas finished. He laughed heartily.

Both Stonewood brothers looked run ragged, sweaty and dishevelled. Dan's traditional lab coat was nowhere to be found, and his skin was soaked with sweat from his time in his Hazmat suit. Lucas' aviator jacket was wrapped around his waist and I could see dark circles under his brown eyes. Both brothers carried relieved smiles.

I wondered how I looked.

A familiar hand reached past me and slugged Kedrick on the shoulder, making him wince. "Speaking of stupid," Alyx chimed in, "Kedrick took on a Titan with a Regiment!"

I turned to see that she had joined our procession, marching towards the elevator together. Her hair was matted and deep purple bruises lined her arms, but Alyx had the most energy out of any of us.

Kitt grinned like a child at Christmas. "You should've seen that Titan run. I scared that pilot so badly!"

We were halfway down the hangar bridge now, and well on our way to the elevator. I could see the tower through the hangar skylights. Mallet was waiting.

Martin, who had been walking slightly ahead of the group, dropped back with a smile.

"It's been a hell of a day," he laughed. "We all did some stupid things, and they paid off."

I could see that the bridge was almost completely clear ahead of us, save for Sojwa and the rest of Fisk's entourage. The elevator would be quite full with all of us, so we would have to take multiple trips.

I couldn't wait to take the elevator down to the brig to visit Fisk. I would let the armed guards take the lift first, just to enjoy watching the doors close in Draco's face.

Hearing our chatter, Sojwa dropped back to stay with the group. After all we'd been through, we wanted to stick together for a little while longer.

"The definition of stupid was running toward Fisk," she laughed. "I agree with Alyx-if I'd had the chance I would've just smoked him and called it a day."

Everyone laughed, and it felt good.

The elevator was close. The doors to the lift slid open, and Fisk's entourage stepped aboard.

As we waited for the next elevator, I turned to face one of the mezzanine's windows. Outside, the afternoon sun was just leaving its apex, beginning its drift downward through the summer sky. Below it, the water shone.

A distant flash of movement caught my eye, level with the horizon.

What was that?

An instant later, there was a blinding flash. I felt a rush of burning air and I was thrown across the hangar.