The Last Knight (An Awakening the Lightforged Novel)

Chapter 13: Take Off

Joining the Imaia, or surrendering, isn't an option, either. Not after all we've done to them, and all they've taken from us. C. 7 days, 21 hours since the assassination of rebel leadership

Uuchantuu busied herself with checking the multitudes of georaural fixtures on Frozen Phantom's salvaged and stolen Imaia fighters and transport ships as she waited for her team to arrive. There were a few of them on the other side of the ship, their conversation lost in the multitude of echoes in the large stone chamber, but Uuchantuu wasn't entirely certain how to start this off yet.

Do I just go talk to them while we wait for the others? Or should I wait for everyone, then address them all at once? Darkness, should I have prepared something?

She wasn't as bad with people as Estingai, but she usually had Koruuksi to help smooth over any awkwardness, and she rarely took the lead, especially of groups that hadn't worked together before. In the past, she'd been part of teams with Koruuksi and some Knights, and on a few occasions, she and Koruuksi had taken over leadership of squads of regular soldiers who knew each other and followed her orders without question.

The Remnant factions didn't have the luxury of trained soldiers. Sure, they followed a military command system and style of living because of their circumstances, but most of Frozen Phantom's fighters weren't soldiers trained in a formal army.

Trying to shake her nerves, Uuchantuu bent a few wires back into shape, then tightened a few of the screws that held the housings of the wireframes that connected controls in the cockpit to the georaural mechanisms.

Darkness, I wish Koruuksi was here. What would he do?

Uuchantuu heard the footsteps of more teammates arriving, and saw a few more join those standing and waiting before the ship out of her peripheral vision, but she held back until five or six had arrived before she performed one last check on the emerald georaural that would help keep the ship in the air while hovering and walked forward to meet her team.

As she did so, she saw a few more filing in from the back of the small hangar, walking from the tunnel entrance, deeper into the cave they'd modified to be able to fit their transports. Before her, Luuhuuta, Wemba, Naruuna, Araana, and Oka'ada had gathered. They studied her with heads cocked and arms folded over their chests.

All except Naruuna.

Auroras, she's pretty.

The Samjati woman was unusually petite. Even her antlers only reached a head higher into the air. Given her role on the team as a georaural specialist, however, that wouldn't matter too much.

While the others studied Uuchantuu with expressions ranging from curious to bordering on hostile, in Araana's case, Naruuna kept shifting her weight from one foot to another, hands folded before her as she looked between Uuchantuu and the transports with a grin that exaggerated her already cherubic features.

Uuchantuu swallowed, and had to take a deep breath to clear her head. She forced herself not to stare at Naruuna. Not at her silvery-gold eyes, or her violet lips, or her—

Uuchantuu cleared her throat, shaking herself a bit. "It looks like everyone is here, so let's start."

Auroras, that was... ugh.

Taking a datapad from her hip, Uuchantuu glanced over the names as she listed off the teams. They were sixteen total, including her, with seven in each transport, and one on each of the speeder bikes they would use for ground cover. The other eight—led by Edendo and Jaran, Koruuksi's friends—would come from Ironpeak to meet them before the raid. The faction's new leader didn't care much for Estingai, but Koruuksi was well liked through all the factions.