"I don't like this." Grant chewed on his MRE and frowned. "Ever since we got back on the path we haven't heard any birdsong or seen signs of animals at all."

"I'm more concerned about the rain," Nimma said. The detour they'd taken to get uphill of the river had taken a day and a half but in that time the rain hadn't stopped. Everything was soaked so no fires could be made and they were relying on small candles inside the tent for warmth as the night temperatures continued to plummet. Whichever one was keeping watch now sat in the tent holding the candle while the other slept. "I know we're supposed to be out of danger from the river now if it floods but if this rain keeps up..."

Grant scowled into the darkening night. "I know but hopefully it'll stop soon. If it floods it floods and all we can do is head for higher ground. Even in this weather there should be animals around. It's not natural. Can I stand watch with that pistol of yours? There's got to be a predator around for the woods to be this silent."

"Shadow cat?" Nimma asked as she handed over the holstered gun.

"Maybe but I can't be sure."

"You know how to use that?"

"I'm not an expert but yeah I've got it."

🌺

"Command Pilot Rigel." A Basic Airman ran up to Nimma as she was descending the ladder from her fighter jet. She'd just come back from leading a dead reckoning training exercise and wanted nothing more than a hot shower. The Airman saluted her as she hit the ground. "Report to General Ryan's tent immediately."

"Thank you Airman." Nimma handed her helmet to the young man and told him to put it with her bunk. General Ryan was the highest ranking person on base at the moment and Nimma had only ever seen him from a distance. His tent was on the north side of the base with the Myrasian flag flying over it. Nimma ran in that direction not wanting to keep the man waiting.

There wasn't much wind today so the purple, blue and green flag hung limply from the pole.

"Command Pilot Rigel reporting in as ordered, Sir." Nimma called from outside the tent. The two guards said nothing.

"Enter." One guard held open the tent for her as was his duty and she nodded in thanks.

Nimma entered and stood at attention before the desk of General Ryan. He was a gruff man both in voice and appearance. A cigar sat burning in an ashtray as he went over a mountain of paperwork.

"At ease," he commanded.

"You wanted to see me, Sir?"

"Yes. I want you to fly a mission bringing aid to a village on the north side of Fangborn Forest. The Rebels have hit the area hard and the villagers and our men are in desperate need of supplies. The plane is being loaded now and you will leave at 0500 hours tomorrow."

"Yes, Sir." Nimma was confused. While this was an important mission it was hardly worth a face to face with a general.

"Come closer and look at this Rigel." A map showing troop movements both of their soldiers and of the enemy was open on the desk. "We've received intelligence that a force of three thousand is heading for this base. I don't have to tell you that our numbers have been spread thin the last four months. We believe that they will attempt to take the base. Because of this I have decided that instead of going around the forest you will fly the most direct route to the village over the forest."

Now it made sense. Fangborn Forest had a reputation for being haunted among the locals. Strange things went on in that place and more than one group of soldiers had disappeared when sent on missions that cut through the forest. Not everyone who went in disappeared but the phenomenon was common enough that early on in the war it had been decided that unless absolutely necessary no one was to be sent in.

Strangely enough the disappearances also extended to air traffic. Draconia had been dealing with the problem since the beginning of aviation. The number of aircraft that had disappeared or were confirmed to have crashed while over the forest was so large that the area had been designated a no fly zone since 1910. When the war started Myrasian pilots would often fly over the forest but just as with the ground a significant number were never seen again.

"I wouldn't do this if we had time for a normal mission," the General apologized. "In addition to dropping those supplies off you will be there to collect soldiers from the northern front and bring them back here. The base is readying for an attack we expect to come in one week and we need those men. This position is too important to fall into Rebel hands."

"I understand," Nimma told him.

"Get some sleep Rigel. You'll need it."

🌺

"My God this place is spooky," Justin Ailoth, Nimma's co-pilot muttered. Aside from him there were five men in the back waiting to unload when they reached the village. It was so quiet that she could hear one of the men in the back coughing. It was very isolating as they were flying radio silence. Fog was rolling in over the trees as the morning sun began to rise. Another two hours on this heading and they would reach the village.

"You're not getting superstitious on me, are you Ailoth?"

"No, Sir. There's just a feel to this place I don't like."

Nimma side eyed her co-pilot. He couldn't have been more than nineteen; fresh from basic training if Nimma had to guess. He'd been in the training exercise Nimma had led yesterday.

"Focus on our mission." Nimma couldn't tell him she felt it too. As the most senior on this mission it was her job to keep her head and everyone else's in line. The farther they flew the worse the feeling got. It was a deep freezing chill running from her spine and over the back of her neck. It made her want to squirm but her discipline kept her still.

The fog was so dense they never saw it coming until it was too late. A huge purple fireball shot up out of the fog and took out the tip of their left wing. Alarms that should have sounded before the fireball got that close now went nuts. Nimma had just enough time to dodge as another suddenly appeared out of thin air.

"WHAT THE HELL?" Ailoth screamed.

"Get on the radio tell them we're receiving enemy fire from an unknown source." Nimma ordered as calmly but sternly as she could while keeping the fear from her voice. Nimma was struggling for control of the plane as two more bright fireballs launched at them. She was only able to dodge one. The other took off another chunk of their already damaged wing.

Nimma hit the button that would allow her to talk to the men in the back. "Gather gear and bail out of plane," Nimma spoke with gritted teeth. She needed to keep the aircraft level so the others could escape. This plane was an older model with no autopilot so she wasn't going anywhere. Even if there had been autopilot Nimma wouldn't have trusted it with this. "Ailoth gather gear and bail out."

The boy looked conflicted but followed orders leaving Nimma alone in the cockpit.

"Others away." Ailoth's voice rang over the radio. "Jumping now."

Nimma watched as a fireball she knew she couldn't dodge tore through her uninjured wing and sent her into a spin she couldn't get out of. Ground proximity alerts screamed shrilly as the force of the fall squished Nimma back into her seat. Her breathing became more and more rapid as the green treetops came into view. A scream ripped from her lungs as another fireball crashed into the cockpit sending metal and fire flying onto her skin. The last thing she remembered was hearing a huge crunch as the plane began to hit the trees.

Nimma woke from the nightmarish memory with a jolt. Cold sweat poured down her face as a scream echoed through the night. She sat up and saw that Grant was no longer in the tent. He was outside sweeping a flashlight through the darkness.

"Where are you? What's your name?"

Nimma pushed through the lingering panic from the memory and joined him as another scream rang through the trees.

"I've been trying to wake you up for ten minutes!" he said angrily.

"I'm sorry. Where is she?"

"I don't know it's hard to tell where the sound is coming from." They both flinched as the unseen woman screamed again.

"Where are you?" Nimma yelled into the darkness. No response just another scream.

"Stay within eye distance. I'll go left you go right."

"Okay." Nimma took to her direction as the woman screamed again.

**Term Glossary**

MRE(s)–Meal Ready To Eat

RPG(s)–Rocket Propelled Grenade

DEAD RECKONING—a navigation technique without the use of celestial aids. It is used on planes or ships. You need a confirmed starting point, an accurate compass, an accurate way to keep time such as a watch, and an accurate map. You also need to be aware of your speed and any forces that effect your speed such as head winds, tail winds ect. By keeping track of all this information you are able to determine your position. The basic equation is distance(D)=Speed(S) x Time(T)