Ace Combat Zero: The Aether Guard

[Kaskasero_Kunai]

She selected a sealed, disposable bowl of cereal and a single-serving carton of milk for breakfast, taking the time to stuff a number of granola bars into the various pockets of her flight suit for later. The cereal was one of the commercial brands marketed towards kids, which she found amusing, considering the military personnel who were eating it right now.

There was a regular rotation of pilots through the mess hall, usually those about to relieve the pilots currently on the racetrack, pulling perimeter patrol. Luisa thought it was unusual to see so many air crews at this time of day, together, and suspected a mission was about to start. I wonder if this is related to my flight plan?

She seated herself at an empty table, peeled off the top of the plastic bowl and poured in the milk, eating leisurely, certain she'd make it to her plane well before she needed to take off. From across the room she noticed the entry of the base physician, professionally dressed in medical scrubs. The loose-fitting garments in no way detracted from her physical assets and Luisa suddenly felt a bit self-conscious of her own.

 

[Katamari Roller]

Miranda zipped up the flightsuit to her chest, midway up her breasts. Under it, she whore a white top. Nothing too fancy, but comfortable. The cigarettes went right into the breast-pocket, jutting out to a side of her left breast, as she exited her room with one already on her mouth and the lighter working on it.

She hurried into the mess hall as already, the first squadrons roared down the runways to carry out the morning patrols. Once inside, the warm air enveloped her and Miranda grinned, enjoying it. Now, time for some breakfast...

And that was when she spotted Kayla. Miranda was a bit nervous about confronting her now after breaking her promise to meet her last night. She just hoped Kayla wasn't too angry, as she moved to greet her.

"Hey, Kayla, good morning... uuuhhhmm... about last night... sorry. I kinda..." Miranda shifted uneasily on her feet, trying to find the correct words. But it was difficult to find something even remotely appeasing after what she had done. "Look, it's just... I was talking to Mayana, and we are both Ustians, and you know... most people I talk to in this base are foreigners, I can't relate to them too well... so sorry for dumping you last night. Still, if you want to, we can meet after the mission. And this time for sure! Dinner, the two of us, and whatever you want to do afterwards..."

 

[Wyldfire]

"Hey, Kayla, good morning... uuuhhhmm... about last night... sorry. I kinda..." Miranda shifted uneasily on her feet, trying to find the correct words. But it was difficult to find something even remotely appeasing after what she had done. "Look, it's just... I was talking to Mayana, and we are both Ustians, and you know... most people I talk to in this base are foreigners, I can't relate to them too well... so sorry for dumping you last night. Still, if you want to, we can meet after the mission. And this time for sure! Dinner, the two of us, and whatever you want to do afterwards..."

Kayla had caught a glimpse of Miranda just as she was heading towards her. The woman looked a bit nervous as she approached. Kayla just watched her as she spoke at her. As Miranda finished Kayla smiled at her and said "I'll hold you to that Miranda. You have to come back from this mission intact to keep your word though. And I do trust you keep your word."

Kayla laughed a bit as she said the last so Miranda would know she wasn't mad at her. "And about last night, don't worry about it. I did a little research with an experimental medication that I am in the process of recommending to Command to reduce medical expenses."

She was too old and hardened to let being stood up for drinks hurt her. Besides Miranda had needed a homelander last night, not a drunken grope and that was probably what would have happened last night if she'd come to Kayla's quarters. No, last night had been spent well for Miranda and it had been a fine time to try what the nearest locals produced for it's potency. And God save her Kayla had hit a jackpot.

 

[dragonrazor]

9.00 AM

Jack Grimm had been awake since before the sun came up. Not an easy task when you're used to an entirely different schedule. He hadn't checked his watch when he woke up, but it had to have been six at the latest when he pulled himself out of his bunk, slipped quietly outside, and started doing calisthenics. The base was mostly quiet at that time of night, though an MP had stopped for a few moments to watch him. Jack hadn't even noticed, as he had been in the middle of pushups at the time, counting out loud. Eventually the MP had just gone on his way, but not before logging it in a notebook. After all, they had to keep tabs on any activity on the base between operating shifts. Two and a half hours and over three thousand reps of a variety of exercises later, and drenched in sweat, Jack forced himself to his feet, mostly exhausted. He immediately headed for the showers, taking a quick, cold one to wake himself up and clean himself up. After getting dressed, he headed for the cafeteria for breakfast. He almost didn't expect it to be open, but the cooks were there, and had give him a rather exceptional meal for a war zone. At the end, he belched loudly. He always ate with the motto of the old world. "It's not bad manners, it's good food". It was one thing that set him apart from most of the soldiers that had surrounded him back in Osea.

Now, at nine in the morning, he stood outside, waiting for his new wing commander. She had promised a more indepth briefing about tactics, and he didn't want to miss that.

 

[Dynosius]

Mayana was a bit disappointed. She really wanted to drink some wine with Miranda... Alas, time had caught the better of them and Mayana wasn't really for keeping Miranda busy any longer than she wanted. If the pilot wanted to talk with the doctor, then so be it...

Mayana caught no night rest. She needed to prepare the planes for the upcoming mission. Her eyes met the crack of dawn, sleepy yet determined to get everything ready. She rubbed her temples, getting some of her hair away from her eyes. Mayana stretched, yawning deeply. Checking her watch, it was almost flight time...

 

[Kaskasero_Kunai]

Luisa caught sight of Miranda as she finished her bowl of cereal. She sighed as she compared the other woman's body to her own. She's got much better curves than me, she thought, ruefully.

She left the cafeteria, stopping briefly at her room to brush her teeth, then headed for her Viggen. It was fully fueled and armed, Luisa noting the pair of Sidewinders among the weaponsload, along with external tanks. Combat recon today.

I wonder if Uriem's going to be on this mission?

Luisa was startled by this random musing. She didn't consider herself the sentimental type, especially over a guy she'd only just met.

Thinking about him brought back her memory of his kiss last night. What is it about him?

It wasn't her first kiss; that one was an awkward affair at high school prom, behind the bleachers in the auditorium, with a fumbling hand in her dress doing nothing to make her feel comfortable much less romantic. That "amorous" rendezvous resulted in a slap in the boy's face and nothing more.

She'd never seriously gotten involved with anyone during her military career, but she'd never really thought about sex, much less a meaningful relationship. Why would Uriem bring out such feelings in her now? At his age, he probably has a woman at every air base, she thought, trying to make herself believe that.

She placed a palm against the fuselage of her craft, followed by her forehead, its reassuring solidity steadying her mind.

 

[RedMageNeko]

Uriem

Wiping my hands off with an oil rag, I sighed, stretching hard enough to pop the joints in my back. I had done all I could to prep myself. Now it was Lady Luck who would decide my fate.

As I started walking to the mess hall, I spotted Lusia coming out. Watching her silently, I frowned softly. She was an ........ intriguing one to me. She had intelligence, she had skill, but more then that, she still had ... innocence, hope. That was something I rarely saw anymore. Most people had become so broken by war they couldn't see beyond it. It was a sorry state of affairs.

Slowly walking over, I knocked lightly on the hull above her head. "Hey there. Sleep well?"

 

[Kaskasero_Kunai]

"Kyah!"

Luisa very nearly jumped out of her skin at the light rap on the skin of her plane.

Twisting around at the waist, she placed her hand against her chest, relieved to see Uriem there. "Relieved?" Why "relieved?"

Leaning back against the Viggen, she calmed herself, caught her breath.

"I see your plane isn't the only stealthy thing about you," she said in greeting, smiling at the older pilot. She shewed her lower lip, weighing the benefits of lying to him, but decided against it.

"Not really, no," Luisa admitted.

"I think you shouldn't be kissing fellow pilots the night before they fly," she teased him.

 

[RedMageNeko]

Uriem

Laughing softly, I looked down at the young woman before me, grinning. "What can I say? Its what I do and I'm very, VERY good at it."

Smiling lightly, I lean against the cool metal of her plane, watching the patrols coming back in. Not much longer now. "Remember what I said about regrets? I don't want to leave any if its my number that gets called today." Looking over at her, I smiled lightly. "And I would have regretted it if I hadn't done that at least once."

 

[Kaskasero_Kunai]

Was that the very slightest hint of melancholy she detected in his otherwise nonchalant tone?

"You have a mission today," she said, though it wasn't really a question. Most pilots at Valais left either on a mission or for safer airspace. Uriem didn't seem the type to quit in the face of adversity.

Her emerald eyes locked with his, awaiting his reply...

 

[RedMageNeko]

Nodding softly, I continued to watch the skies, the drift of the cloud's. "In less then an hour. They need me and a bunch of the other pilots to clear the roads. Suppose to be quite the ground party down there."

 

[Kaskasero_Kunai]

So he was leaving. So what? He's a pilot, same as you. You knew all about this from movies before you signed up.

That point had been driven home at the start of the war, the long list of people lost to her. It should have been easy to think of them as statistics, but not when she could remember their names and faces.

And now she might have to add another person to that list.

"About last night," she said, eyes downcast in regret. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry I didn't... That we didn't..."

 

[RedMageNeko]

Looking over at her, I smiled lightly, shaking my head. "No your not. You weren't ready for something like that and your still not. Don't worry about it." Reaching out to brush her cheek gently with my finger, I smile, looking into her eyes. "Just have a good reason to come back, don't I?"

 

[Kaskasero_Kunai]

Luisa closed her eyes, tilting her head towards his finger, ever so slightly. She found herself relishing his touch, needing it, She was surprised to feel this way for another human being.

Luisa reached her hands up to chest, leaning forward to rest her head against him, her shoulders hunched, as if warding off a chill.

"You'd better come back," she replied softly, "or I'll kick your ass."

 

[RedMageNeko]

Smiling down at her, I nodded softly, reaching down to stroke her hair gently, letting her rest herself against me. "Well, I certainly don't want that." Cupping her chin gently, I tilt her eyes up to look at me. "Tell you what. If I make it back, we'll grab dinner together, alright?"

She looks so soft, so young. She doesn't belong in a place like this, not a smart young thing like her.

 

[Katamari Roller]

"Yeah... you can be sure I'll return alive." Miranda smiled at Kayla, reassured. She felt pretty lonely in this base, and having a shoulder to lean on was so rare a thing... Miranda couldn't take letting Kayla down like that. "And we'll see if we can't try a different medicine later on."

Miranda winked, and turned to get some food with a brief wave of her hand. She felt her spirits soar up. Now she knew she could take this mission head-on without worrying about anything back at the base. It was just a matter of surviving, and that she could manage.

As she exited the mess hall munching hurriedly on an energy bar, Miranda saw Grimm standing there, apparently doing nothing. Nothing but waiting, she guessed. He looked rather fresh now, better than when he was just in from wherever he came.

"Hey there. So, ready for the meeting? We will be heading to the ammo storage, where the other teams will also meet, and we can discuss the weapons loadout all together."

 

[dragonrazor]

Jack looked up, and smiled. He nodded, bowing slightly. Then he stepped away from the building, and stretched slightly. "Lead the way, Ma'am. I've been up since...well, I'm not sure when I got up. It was before dark though. I did some exercises, took a shower, had breakfast. Now I'm ready to face the day." He turned towards the building in question, and started walking.

 

[Kaskasero_Kunai]

I was an odd feeling for Luisa, that she had heard such words, such sentiments before, but hearing the words now, from this man, they seemed more sincere.

"Sure, Uriem," she said, stepping back and trying her best to sound jovial, throwing a friendly punch into his bicep. It was a good bet Ventril could tell from her eyes that it was all merely a brave facade. She opened her fist to hold his arm for a moment, then let her hand slide down and slip away.

"I've got to start pre-flight checks," Luisa smiled up at him, jerking a thumb in the direction of the Sidewinders under her Viggen's wings. "I guess Command wants eyes up when your group makes their move."

 

[Wyldfire]

Kayla looked at the time after Miranda had left and realized she needed to get movinig herself. She hadn't checked out the O.R. here yet. She tucked the bacon she was working on into the two slices of toast and took her breakfast with her as she headed to the O.R. thinking to herself that she was probably overreacting about this mission but she did want to be ready just in case.

She entered the room and looked about. It was ready to go. She went to the phone in the room and called Cindy's number to make sure she was ready to go out with the rescue copter if it was needed. She spoke briefly with the girl making sure that they had their proceedures in line and then she left Cindy to get to her station.

This was the worst part of her job. The waiting. It gave her time to wonder who would be coming back and who might end up on her table. It also gave her time to wonder as she always did if she still had the skill for this. This assignment wasn't quite the meatball surgery she was used to but Kayla knew that this was what she lived for now days. Putting people back together was her specialty, not giving shots and making sure these kids were healthy. All of the pilots were in a sense her kids, in that she would fight to keep any and all of them alive.

Kayla had been asked a few times why she had so many vices. That was a dumb question in her eyes. She had so many vices to cope with the stress that her job placed on her. She'd lost her fair share of soldiers during the last big war and she would probably lose more. With each loss she had she lost another small part of herself. She had to wonder what would happen when she finally lost the last of herself with the loss of a patient. She'd probably end up in a room with matress wallpaper.

 

[RedMageNeko]

I was an odd feeling for Luisa, that she had heard such words, such sentiments before, but hearing the words now, from this man, they seemed more sincere.

"Sure, Uriem," she said, stepping back and trying her best to sound jovial, throwing a friendly punch into his bicep. It was a good bet Ventril could tell from her eyes that it was all merely a brave facade. She opened her fist to hold his arm for a moment, then let her hand slide down and slip away.

"I've got to start pre-flight checks," Luisa smiled up at him, jerking a thumb in the direction of the Sidewinders under her Viggen's wings. "I guess Command wants eyes up when your group makes their move."

Smiling softly at her, I nodded gently, looking over the craft. "......" Looking back at her, I brush my hand over her cheek gently, my voice soft. "I'll be counting on you to make sure I got a place to come back to. ....... You be safe up there, alright? I'd hate to have to fly all the way up to Heaven to bring you back."

 

[Katamari Roller]

"Ready to face the day... say, you got any experience in combat? These skies are not the friendliest to learn..." Miranda started going over her thoughts about Jack. Had he said something about being a veteran? She couldn't remember that now, so he probably had not said anything about it.

"Still, don't worry. We have good cover with Crow Team, and Brigand will deal with the ground enemies. We are short of... the in-between." Miranda grinned, out of necessity more than out of honesty.

In front of them, in the hangar, Brigand Team was getting their attackers ready for action, loading up on bombs and missiles. The A-10 Warthog was getting a long string of machinegun ammunition pulled in. That thing's firepower was impressive. Mirand remembered seeing one fire at an F-4, and the old piece of crap turned into an old piece of scrap as the ammo tore it away. It was horrific.

Crow Team and Brigand Team were already discussing around a table, and it was there where Miranda headed. The group rose their heads to look at her and Jack (but mostly her), before bringing their attention back to the map on the table, and opening a space for the two of them to join the discussion.

 

[Kaskasero_Kunai]

Luisa couldn't help but laugh aloud at the corny line, though she appreciated the sentiment behind them. The laughter helped disguise the thrill his touch sent through her body.

On her tiptoes, she kissed Uriem's cheek, then climbed up into her Viggen's cockpit, not the least bit self-conscious of presenting her behind to him, any thoughts of her percieved inadequacies of her body banished for the moment.

 

[dragonrazor]

"Ready to face the day... say, you got any experience in combat? These skies are not the friendliest to learn..." Miranda started going over her thoughts about Jack. Had he said something about being a veteran? She couldn't remember that now, so he probably had not said anything about it.

"Still, don't worry. We have good cover with Crow Team, and Brigand will deal with the ground enemies. We are short of... the in-between." Miranda grinned, out of necessity more than out of honesty.

In front of them, in the hangar, Brigand Team was getting their attackers ready for action, loading up on bombs and missiles. The A-10 Warthog was getting a long string of machinegun ammunition pulled in. That thing's firepower was impressive. Mirand remembered seeing one fire at an F-4, and the old piece of crap turned into an old piece of scrap as the ammo tore it away. It was horrific.

Crow Team and Brigand Team were already discussing around a table, and it was there where Miranda headed. The group rose their heads to look at her and Jack (but mostly her), before bringing their attention back to the map on the table, and opening a space for the two of them to join the discussion.

Jack grinned. He always wondered why people looked at him and simply assumed he didn't have any experience. And yet he had a very highly modified Harrier. Most of the modifications were done by himself, though he did have the help of his previous base's chief mechanic. He simply shrugged, and followed her to the table. At the table, he noticed the halfhearted glances the others gave him. He paid them no attention, he simply walked up to the table, and looked down at the map. He studied it, committing most of it to memory. Then he finally spoke. "Jack Grimm, callsign Reaper. Pleased to meet you. What can you tell me about the situation that I haven't already heard? Wouldn't want to get Rika scratched up too badly."

 

[RedMageNeko]

Smiling as the beautiful young woman climbed into her craft, I glanced down at my watch absently. My eyes instantly windened. "OH DAMNIT!!! THE MEETING!!!!" Looking back up at Lusia, I quickly appologized and took off at a run to the ammo bunker, ducking under the nose of a F-17 and nearly barreling over a technician, making him yell curses after me before I skidded to a stop just outside the ammo bunker. Brushing my fingers though my hair, I took a deep breath, then walked in, my face calm. "Sorry I'm late. Did I miss anything?"

 

[Kaskasero_Kunai]

Luisa had a leg over the side of the cockpit when she heard him raise his voice in alarm. Thinking she had an embarrassing stain on her derriere or something, she reflexively looked back to him and watched in mild fascination as he beat a hasty retreat out of the hangar. Shrugging, she slipped into the Viggen, secured her five-point harness and her helmet before going over the preflight checklist. Once that was done, she waved to the crew chief that she was ready to taxi out.

She had the canopy open as the Viggen was backed out, and the smells of the air field easily reached her nose. Now clear of the hangar, she waited for the crew chief to unhitch the big fighter and move a safe distance away. As her Viggen trundled down the taxiway, Luisa could see all of the planes in open hangar doors, Eagles, Falcons, a Thunderbolt II; the red flags attached to various weapons and panels fluttering in the light breeze. At the end of the runway, Luisa joined the queue of aircraft ready to take off.