A Dance Of Crowns & Thrones | Book I

Chapter 8 | Departures | "Isadora's Daily News"

The soldiers on the Osiris Ace aircraft braced themselves as they took off from the academy base, ready to embark on a mission to the moon where the Palace lay in ruins. The thought of the potential violence they were facing weighed heavily on their minds.

The tense air filled Toni's lungs, if only momentarily, before he let the anxiety filter through the rest of his bones. He knew he had been hovering over the two pilots assigned to them for this mission, old habits dying hard after the fall of one of the most secure places between Earth and the moon.

As he gazed at the monitors, he saw multiple ships prepare to leave for the chaos on the moon, while others, loaded with medical personnel, headed to other bases to handle the influx of wounded and dead.

"On route," the pilot confirmed, breaking Toni's chain of thoughts. The female's head swung, reaching her shoulder, past her brunette locks. She noticed the way the man stood in his black fitted uniform rigidly to his spot. "ETA is fifteen minutes for the departed regiments, sir. Osiris Ace will make landfall in twelve minutes."

Toni nodded to the younger, experienced pilot, and the pixie-white-haired co-pilot that had everything in order. The Osiris Ace left the atmosphere of Earth, followed by ships of the elite soldiers on their tail, which meant he could head back to where the others were debriefing.

Leaving the two pilots, Toni made his way along the aircraft haul and entered the small room where his friends had been hauled up. He sat in the small meeting space, leaning back into his chair around the six-person table.

He watched the multi-panromantic viewed screens, which highlighted in different sections the current decayed structure of the Palace. The Commanders and Elite staff on the ground had re-laid the information.

What they knew from the current intel told them that the moon had practically been levelled with the attacks. A vast number of casualties were slowly dying on them, while the mass of the dead reached vast numbers. The four crammed bodies had been trying to gauge what a plan of attack would look like when they landed on the moon. The bodies shifted between the tablets in front of them. The filtered reports were endless, and understanding where to begin left them at an impasse. 

The group was interrupted by a quick knock on the door. "Come in," Matthew called out. Immediately a younger male soldier appeared, an almost excited look on his face.

"Commander, Sawyer sent me. There's news from one of the reporters in Isadora. The feed is being broadcasted as live coverage over the network," the soldier announced.

Matthew nodded to Richie, who was nearest to the tablet, and he began to search for the feed on the channels. The soldier then left the room.

"What do you think it's about?" Jesse inquired, inquisitive at why Sawyer thought it was necessary to watch.

The screen changed from its standby feed to show a rough, grainy feed from a camera in the hub of the business district of Isadora. A dishevelled single male reporter displayed on the screen, his camera crew behind him. They were standing amongst an immersed crowd of screaming protestors and rioters, waving the Isadorian flag.

None of them were prepared for what they saw on the screen when they saw a mock-up doll of Ezra being burned by the protestors, with posters being waved between the camera to show their distress.

"This is Douglas Frydenberg, Isadora's Daily News, live in the heart of Isadora's Business precinct! Reporting directly from the scene of this widespread manic chaos that has just begun amid the news on the attack on the Palace and royal family." The reporter quickly shouted, ducking as one of the set alight's fake doll bodies flew past his head.