The Celestial Way

Chapter 13.5 - Warrior's Way

Leaning on the transport shuttle's frame, Airo gazed at the horizon. Craggy mountains towered to the west. Waves lashed the coast of a primeval sea to the north. To the south, an endless expanse of barren tundra. Finally, the Shard's anomalous energy pillar, its violet-white radiance dominating the east. The frozen landscapes of Terra Para always looked distant and harsh, no matter their topological appearance. The presence of the Reality Vortex lent them an ominous quality.

Airo shifted his vision to his immediate surroundings. Besides him, Veralla, and Zuckeroff, there was also Captain Riley with a squad of soldiers, all waiting around the shuttle.

"How come a Consortium Paladin became the head of the Radiant Order?" Riley broke the silence. Airo had told him the cover story he had presented before to Kiana and Zuckeroff.

"Circumstances, mostly. The Revenant hit the Knights first, and devastated them. When I made contact with them, we entered in an agreement – their resources in exchange for my influence."

"With respect, Commander, but I find this an unlikely story. None of my business, though." Riley shook his head. "Damn, it's the Starblaze all over again. I didn't survive that fubar hell just to be plunged into another one." He sighed. "So it's true the Radiant Knights still keep dragons around?"

"Yes," Airo said.

"A few dragons would've been mighty useful at the moment. We would've not taken any losses, even. No offense to the little one here, but she's a whelp. I don't think she can make any difference once the fight starts."

"It was her choice to come," Airo said, and the conversation died down. He checked again the heavy rifle in his hands. It was a particle bolter, a powerful beam weapon with near-zero recoil, which served as the standard armament to modern infantry. Airo's crystal-bladed katana and veronite blaster – both more potent weapons – were poor choices in protracted combat, the former being unusable at range, while the latter had limited rate of fire and ammunition, so he had decided to rely on more conventional arms in the coming battle.

Once the Radiant Knights had departed, Airo and Captain Riley had formulated a plan how to assault the Union blockade. Both agreed it would be best to load the shuttle with a strike team, then make landfall at the enemy's position, creating a diversion while the rest of the Consortium troops stormed the front. This required both forces to time their arrival on the battlefield. In the case of the strike team, that meant waiting.

The hours passed slowly. The twin suns went low on the horizon. Gradually, purple afterglow deepened to twilight. All small talk had ceased long ago. Tension rose and with it, anticipation.

And then, an encrypted commlink signal came in. It was a short text message. The ground forces had arrived. Captain Riley gave the order and the strike team boarded the transport shuttle. Airo, Veralla, and Zuckeroff followed.

Yeoman Cloud took control and the shuttle ascended on its powerful thrusters. The flight to the mountain lasted another half hour. By then night had fallen. The shuttle's interior was dark, only the helm's screens emitting a muted cyan glow.

As the shuttle approached its destination, Yeoman Cloud asked, "How do you want to proceed, Commander?"

Airo examined the telemetry. The mountain pass was very large, surrounded by high, steep cliffs. A long strip of heat and electronic signatures came from the southern side, marking the outlines of a bunker complex carved along the length of the cliff. A small artificial plateau rested above, where a mobile communication array was placed – and still enough place was left for several medium-sized aircraft to land.

"Go in hard and fast," Airo ordered. "They probably have anti-air weaponry. We take out the comm array first. Then we pin them down until the wizardry arrives."