Nautilus 'Skywalk'
It was the beginning of summer. Libra had aligned perfectly with the closest star to from weather conditions of pleasant warmth across the major hemisphere. However, while summertime brought feelings of delight and surges of energy, it was also the busiest season for the soldiers of the United Defense Force. Spring had recently passed and with it the spirit reincarnation that happened every year during that time. This always caused a tremendous amount of Mordrem activity around the world over the summer, especially in the beginning of it. As such, the U.D.F. was eager to put the new recruits of the year to work. Selene and her friends belonged to a fresh batch of Guardians graduated from the prestigious Oakridge Military Academy. It had only been a week since the graduation party, a wild festivity not soon forgotten. And now they were stationed on the grand flagship of the U.D.F., a dreadnaught class called ‘Nautilus’ that orbited Libra’s atmosphere. There, the friends had been assigned their own tiny bunks in preparation for the assault on a city of Cetra called ‘Astral’. The city had been under siege by the Mordrem and devastating earthquakes for six hours. This was not unusual, but the sudden emergency of securing this particular city rose a bit of suspicion.
Selene strode along the metallic halls of the airship, which was teeming with life. Various personnel and soldiers were running around and gearing up for the assault. Pilots were strapped into the standard issue U.D.F. Mechs and subsequently directed to the dropships. As with most invasions of this caliber, the soldiers were calm and collected. The sheer numbers of the force inspired such states of mind. However, whenever anything of less grandeur was to confront the Mordrem infestation, the men were shaking in their boots and barely able to stand up straight. Such was not the case for Guardians. Selene rarely felt herself afraid any kind of threat. One could question whether or not this was due to her arrogance or due to the fact that she could, as a Guardian, punch through a wall without a scratch on her hand or take a bullet to the chest without dying. It was probably a bit of both. However, it did not mean that certain odds were not in Guardians’ favor. A single Guardian against a hundred Mordrem monsters was a certain defeat. But, that was Selene’s specialty; to inspire people with her indomitable will of force to face impossible odds.
The girl paused by the Skywalk to gaze upon the fleet accompanying the Nautilus. Such presence of readiness was required as some of the Mordrem spawns were capable of flight and the larger ground monstrosities capable of producing anti-air projectiles in the form of bio-plasm. The escorting combat ships also had the color patterns of the primary strike force of the U.D.F., as did the soldiers and Mechs inside the Nautilus. There were plenty of color schemes within the military to distinguish different specialized groups, but the primary army had a plain white on black. Guardians distinguished themselves by rarely wearing any U.D.F. issued armor. They either had their own armor or wore their regular clothing, as Selene did. “Ma’am,” a soldier by a control panel saluted. Selene simply gave him a subtle nod, and then she vanished into her thoughts again. She had come a long way from Tenebra to this moment. Not only had she spent thirteen years at the academy, but she had gotten to know the bravest Guardians to ever exist according to her. All of which she could proudly call her dear friends.
And then, suddenly, a butterfly was flapping about around Selene. She was slightly startled at first, but soon realized that it was nothing but a harmless insect. Aviation animals had by accident made it inside Nautilus before, mostly birds, but tiny creatures such as butterflies was a rare sight. “How did you get in here, little one,” Selene said and allowed the tiny one to land on one of her fingers. The moment and the insect itself reminded Selene of what one of her trainers at the academy had once said. He said that ‘what we do in life echoes in eternity.’ She thought about that statement for a second. “Whose eternity?—mine or someone else’s?” The girl mumbled to herself, as she let the butterfly away. “Did you say something?” The soldier beside her grunted slightly. “No, carry on,” Selene dispelled her own mesmerization.
…humpf… the ‘butterfly effect’…that cannot possibly be real… can it? ...superstitious nonsense… that’s what it is…
Selene flowed back into the heart of the dreadnaught, navigating herself through the maze of metallic tunnels and hallways. After a few minutes, the girl found and stumbled upon the bunk to which she had been assigned. It was a humble abode, but it had everything you needed: a bed and a bathroom. Dining and such was done in a mess hall close by. However, Selene was only on her way to acquire her weapon. The preparation alarms had sounded just moments earlier, urging all combat personnel to report to the hangar and the assigned dropship. The rest of Selene’s squad had their bunks in the same hallway as her. They were mere seconds apart. She briefly visited them all and gave her friends a heads up to gather by their dropship, 01RT-2 “Dan”, in the hangar. However, and unfortunately for the regular army, Selene and her squad was not on mission with the assault force. They were members of the U.D.F. Special Warfare and Reconnaissance Group, or WARG for short. Their mission was to retrieve sensitive and valuable information and assets in the city of Astral. Selene suspected that whatever they had to bring back was the reason why so much resources had been invested into this assault.
Nautilus amongst the clouds
Selene was the first to arrive by the dropship at the hangar. However, the girl knew she would not have to wait long for the rest of her squad. An elderly Sergeant was waiting for them. He did not seem particularly pleased with being assigned baby-sitting duty. His mission was to amply secure the delivery of Selene’s squad to the target drop location. As such, there were five or so regular soldiers with him, and two fighter planes on standby in the air outside. The Sergeant was chewing tobacco and spat a hefty chuck of dirty saliva on the floor as Selene arrived. Her eyebrows tucked themselves together and she frowned at the repulsive act.
“Well, well, here comes the prima donnas of the U.D.F.—WARG. How come you people can never keep on schedule?!” The Sergeant mockingly looked at his wristwatch as he expressed his disapproval. “You’re half a minute late and where is the rest of your squad?!”
“The world has been like this for thirty years, Sergeant, and I’m sure another thirty seconds won’t make a difference,” Selene said, closely inspecting the soldiers nearby.
“I know! I was there when everything went to shit, long before you were born, little girl!” The Sergeant exclaimed.
“Well then, perhaps I should write to the administration and request your early retirement? I’m sure one of these young lads beside you would love to knock you off of your high horse,” Selene said, frowning.
“I’ll have you disciplined for insolence!” The Sergeant was ready to slap Selene before two of the soldiers grabbed him.
“Whatever…, just shut up and do your job,” Selene said and entered the dropship. “Tell my squad to meet me inside,” she shouted. The Sergeant was boiling red from anger at this point.
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