Thanks to all my reviewers!  I just realized that I have four more missions (including this one) until the actual game part is finished… holy blonde cheerleader batman! (Supernatural quote, couldn’t resist, sorry).  Alright, read on.

Quote of the Chapter:
“Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.”
~Napoleon Bonaparte
__________________________________________

Heartbreak One

Grimm 

It had been a while since I had seen Blaze so upbeat, so… cheerful.  It was hard not to be, even if you didn’t know Bartlett personally.  The guy had a rep in the military that would put Charlie Sheen to shame… okay, that might be a bit far-fetched but you get the idea.

Nagase was so ecstatic that she had been up since four in the morning.  It was six right now.  Blaze, Nagase, Snow, Genette, Cassie, and I were in the briefing room, waiting impatiently for the briefing to begin.

Finally, at six-fifteen, the briefing started.  All of us were fidgeting at the anticipation.

“Captain Bartlett has rescued Prime Minister Nikanor of Yuktobania.  He plans to attack an airfield in northeast Yuktobania, steal an airplane, and then escape with the Prime Minister.  First, go to the directed area and wait for contact from Captain Bartlett.  He’ll likely have you support him as he forces his way into the airfield.  More mission details will be supplied to you upon arriving at the local airspace.  Threat status in the area of operation is unclear, so prepare your flight for the possibility of threats from both the ground and the air.”

Operation: Crossroad
Location: Pobeda Peninsula
Date: 2010/12/22
Time: 2100 HRS

Blaze once again already had our planes picked out: the F-14A for her and Nagase and the F-14B for me and Snow.  It took us barely fifteen minutes for us to get set and take off… however, we had to wait until nine-forty-five to actually take off.  Since we were going to be taking a night flight, we got our rest.  It didn’t take us long.  None of us really got sleep on here because we were always so busy.  There was one day we had all been allowed to sleep in but only Blaze had taken advantage of it, sleeping in until eleven or something.  The rest of us had gotten up at eight or something.

However, once we were wide awake (thanks to lots of caffeine we had after we woke up), it hit us that we were going to be flying through the night.  Thankfully, there was going to be a mid-air refueling on the way there (how Andersen had pulled that off, I have no idea) so we didn’t have to worry too much about fuel and the Kestrel was going to meet up with us on the way back.  My worry was that we weren’t going to be able to stay awake.

I do believe at one point during the trip over to Yuktobania that Blaze and Nagase put their planes on autopilot and slept a little bit.  When we were nearing the operation area, Snow and I tried to wake them up but they were pretty heavy sleepers so we tried a different tactic.  I got behind Nagase and Snow got behind Blaze and we had our planes get a missile lock on them.

Blaze swore colorfully as she woke up and quickly took her plane off autopilot and pulled evasive maneuvers that I didn’t even know existed; Nagase did likewise except Blaze’s maneuvers were more psychotic.  No wonder no one was able to shoot her down.

“Son of a bitch,” Blaze mumbled. “That was not funny you two.”

I was trying not to laugh, and I could tell Snow was attempting to do the same.

“Sorry, you two, but neither of you were waking up by conventional means… and it’s not like we could poke you awake,” I said. “And I can’t believe Blaze just cussed.

“I think my hair just took on a gray streak from that scare.  Thanks a lot you two,” Nagase snapped.

“Sorry, but we had to wake you.  We’re almost at the operation area,” Snow apologized.

Blaze started to say something when Bartlett’s voice came over the radio. “It’s me… I’m okay so far, and the car’s hidden under a bush…”

I heard Blaze say something really quietly; it sounded like, “That’s one big bush.”

Bartlett continued. “Other resistance members are hidden all over the place… but I still got a bad feeling about this.  We’re storming the gate at zero-seven-zero-five hours.  Keep us covered.  I’m countin’ on you.  I think there’s gonna be an ambush waiting for us… it’s good to see you all again.”

I held back from saying the fourth man he thought was Chopper wasn’t Chopper.  He’d figure it out sooner or later if he hadn’t already.

When Bartlett appeared on my radar, the briefer updated our mission. “According to Captain Bartlett’s information, the resistance has already infiltrated the airfield and is currently awaiting his arrival.  The road to the airfield is covered with checkpoints and defensive positions.  We anticipate stiff resistance.  Provide close air support for Captain Bartlett’s charge, give him aerial assistance as necessary, and guide him to the air field.  The resistance has already agreed on a time to begin operations with Captain Bartlett, so the timing of the mission cannot be changed.  If you do not arrive in time, the resistance will be suppressed by the airfield defense forces and the mission will end in failure.  After arriving, the resistance will load Prime Minister Nikanor onto a captured transport plane, and Captain Bartlett will attempt to escape.  You must help Captain Bartlett arrive at the airfield on time, no matter what.”

Once again, a long and lovely briefing… I do hope you caught on with my sarcasm on the ‘lovely’ part of that statement.  We flew in standard formation until Blaze gave us the order to disperse.  There was really nothing so far so we just flew in a straight line.  Blaze on the other hand seemed to want to greet Bartlett.  She flew down so low to the ground I thought she was going to crash, but of course this was Blaze so she didn’t.

“Blaze, you remind me of me with that arrogance in flying,” Bartlett pointed out.

“I learned from the best,” Blaze countered casually, as if she talked to Bartlett all the time.  I had a feeling that if Bartlett had said that to her when she was in his squadron for the first time, she would have been embarrassed, not countering with witty remarks.

“Glad to see someone besides Chopper has the ability to have witty remarks; speaking of Motormouth, where is he?  He’s awfully quiet.”

“Wrong question to ask Bartlett,” I thought.

I couldn’t seem to find my voice to explain, and neither it seemed could Blaze or Nagase, but Blaze didn’t really surprise me.  No matter how hard she tried, I could tell she was still upset over the whole ordeal.  She wasn’t the only one to be honest.  I find myself reliving that nightmare in my dreams over and over again.  I’m sure Blaze did, too.

Thankfully, Snow said what we couldn’t. “He’s dead.  He crashed in November Stadium after a flyby.  They were ambushed and were completely outnumbered.  No reinforcements came until it was too late.”

Snow said it in a gentle voice, something I didn’t know he was capable of.  I think the gentleness was for us.  Usually, he was all professional in his tone but not this time.  Even though he and Chopper hadn’t necessarily gotten along real well, he was still kind in his tone explaining.  I appreciated it because it was still hard to say Chopper was dead aloud.

“Damn…” Bartlett muttered.  We elapsed into an awkward silence.

Finally, Bartlett broke it, sounding unaffected but even I could hear the tinge of sadness that lingered in his voice. “This is Heartbreak One.  The jailbreak tour starts here.  We’re counting on your escort from the air.”

“Yes, sir,” Blaze said.  It amazed me how calm she sounded after Chopper was mentioned.

“I’ll be witnessing your bravery from down here, everyone,” A woman said.  Who on earth was that?  However, she acted as if her position was a high-ranking one and in all truthfulness, she intimidated me… funny considering I was in the presence of Blaze and Nagase and Cassie all the time and they made boys and men quake in their shoes.

“Y-yes, Ma’am!” I said.

“Um… is there someone else in the car?” Nagase inquired cautiously.

“Me?” she inquired before chuckling. “I’m Mystery Woman Number One.”

“Nice to meet you Mystery Woman Number One,” Blaze greeted.

“You too,” Mystery Woman Number One replied.  God that’s a mouthful to say.

“Razgriz, engage!” Blaze ordered as she started to chase a plane.  I knew it had no hope the minute Blaze got behind it.  I noticed that whenever Chopper was mentioned, Blaze seemed to fill her role as a Demon of Razgriz even more.  Today was no exception.  She shot that plane as if it were flying in two feet in front of her.

“Archer, engaging!”

“Edge, engaging!”

“Swordsman, engaging!”

“There’s a fork up ahead.  We have two choices,” announced Mystery Woman Number One. “Take the shorter way and face heavy attacks, or take the safer route which takes more time.”

“Hey Kid, which route looks better to you?  Should I take the shorter one?” Bartlett asked Blaze.

“Yes, sir.  The quicker we get out of here, the better.”

“Okay, I’ll bust through the shortcut,” Bartlett declared.  I glanced down in the dim light, but it was enough to see the heavy defense that would be blocking them.

“They’re going through there?” I asked dubiously.

“That’s why we’re here Grimm.  We’re supposed to kick these peoples’ asses if they try to stop Bartlett,” Snow pointed out.

“I see where Blaze learned her insanity from,” I admitted jokingly.

“I’ve always been insane; I’ve just learned how to hide it and I believe I’ve done a fairly good job of it.  At least I haven’t been compared to Charlie Sheen like Chopper was,” Blaze said, laughing.  It was the first time I had heard her laugh while mentioning Chopper at the same time.  It gave me hope that she might just be okay without him…

“Only Chopper could pull that off,” Bartlett said.

“You’re next on the list of people that could do it Bartlett,” Blaze told him mischievously.

“That’s more of an insult to be compared to Charlie Sheen,” Snow said.

“I said something of that degree to Chopper,” Blaze replied.  Changing the subject rather quickly, Blaze asked, “So Mystery Woman Number One, has Captain Bartlett told you about us?”

“He told me all about you guys,” Mystery Woman Number One answered. “Kid, Chopper, and… umm…”

Nagase cleared her throat, something she had never done before.  I think Mystery Woman Number One was sort of pissing her off.  She did seem kind of hoity-toity come to think of it. “Nagase… Kei Nagase.”

“I’m Grimm, callsign Archer, but call me Grimm,” I introduced myself politely.

“And Razgriz Four is Captain Snow, callsign Swordsman,” Blaze added.

“Nice to meet you,” Snow greeted.  Mystery Woman Number One returned it.

An enemy plane got a missile lock on me but not for long.  I evaded it easily with a slight turn of my joystick.  I got behind the enemy plane and fired.  It was an easy target, and I quickly shot it down.

“Kurseli, is the Prime Minister all right?” Bartlett demanded.  I watched him navigate the terrain.  It was a pretty impressive sight.

“He’s regaining consciousness.  They injected him with some kind of drug,” Kurseli told him.

Blaze was flying in circles above Bartlett as we waited for more targets.  Nagase and Snow had both shot down enemy helicopters.  Nothing was on radar so far.

“Hey,” Bartlett warned, “don’t be showing those legs too much.  It’s distracting.”

“Don’t think I need to know what’s on your mind right now,” Blaze said.

“Hey now,” Bartlett protested.

“I mean, I think it’s pretty obvious,” Blaze added with amusement.

“You have a warped mind, Blaze.”

“And I wonder where I got that from?” Blaze remarked sarcastically.

“Yeah, yeah.  Now get ready to fire,” Bartlett commanded.  Finally, ground targets appeared.  Blaze allowed me to use my special weapons so that’s what I did.  But then I realized it might hit Bartlett’s faction and I decided against using them.  Instead, I used my guns to fire.  I wanted to save my missiles for enemy planes that I was sure we were going to encounter.

“Keep away from the enemy’s eyes.  If you can’t, stab ‘em in the eyes,” Bartlett said.  It was sort of a random quote but since I didn’t know the guy too well and I wanted him to like me, I kept my mouth shut.  Blaze meanwhile…

“Thank you for that oh-so lovely image.  It’s not as if I have nightmares of eyeless people already,” Blaze muttered.

“You have dreams of eyeless people?” Nagase questioned curiously.

“Yes, and they are no picnic, that’s for damn sure.”

“Kid, you developed a mouth on you,” Bartlett noted.

Blaze harrumphed. “This is nothing.  Believe me.  I don’t think you ever told Thunderblockhead to go screw himself and then add he already has.”

Bartlett whistled. “I was hoping someone would have the guts to say that to him but I never expected it to be you.”

“I didn’t expect it to be from me either,” Blaze replied sheepishly.

Blaze did a rolling dive, firing missiles at the two remaining targets.  They weren’t necessary to destroy but we weren’t going to take any risks.

“Yee-hah!  We’re bustin’ through!  Hey Kid, break down the front gate for me!” Bartlett shouted.

“I’m way ahead of you, Captain!”

In fact, she was.  Well, we were.  We had all destroyed something of the ‘front gate’ as Bartlett called it.  However, howitzers were there to greet Bartlett up ahead… and they were within firing range.

“Uh oh, here they come!  They’re firing at us,” Bartlett informed… as he drove straight towards them.  I grinned.

“Nice!  Now there’s a real man!” Snow approved.

“Wow, they actually made it through!” I acknowledged in a somewhat shocked state.

“Damn!  They’ve got cannons,” Bartlett griped.  Then with a more humorous tone, he added, “How’d they pass training with that kinda aim?  Get ‘em, Kid!”

“My pleasure,” Blaze replied.  She was already on top of the howitzer.  It only took two missiles to destroy the thing.  At about the same time Blaze destroyed the howitzer, more ground enemies appeared on radar.  The four of us headed over.  Since Bartlett wasn’t near the area yet, I released a special weapons missile, and apparently Snow had the same idea.  We smoked half the enemies in one swift swoop.

“Bearing one hundred, range five thousand.  Fire!” A Yuke G yelled.

“Evasive maneuvers!  I’m gonna try weaving through the anti-aircraft fire,” Bartlett told everyone.

Nagase dipped down to fly about a hundred feet above Bartlett.

“Nagase,” Bartlett began, sounding droll. “You fly like that and you’re still not dead.  You’re really something!”

If I hadn’t heard stories about Bartlett from Blaze and Nagase and Chopper and Pops and Genette, I would’ve found his statement criticizing, but with Bartlett, that was most definitely a compliment.  You always took a compliment from Bartlett.  He was like the Chuck Norris of the Air Force.

“Thank you, Sir!”

“That you Grimm?” Bartlett queried.  He didn’t give me a chance to say yes. Apparently he already knew it was me. “I was planning to promote you to the squadron on the next evaluation.”

It was shocking to hear but at the same time, it was a pleasing idea to know that this legend thought I was good enough to be promoted at the next evaluation, even though he never got the chance to do it. “Thank you very much, Sir!”

I started to trail an enemy plane but Blaze got there before me.  I still went up and flew behind her in case she needed help, but I didn’t think that was going to be necessary.

“Captain Snow from the Naval Air Force?  Sorry I haven’t introduced myself.  I’m kind of shy, you know,” Bartlett admitted.  He actually seemed serious in saying that.

“So I hear, Captain.  Greetings.”

The enemy plane went up in a loop and so did Blaze and I.  It didn’t take much longer for Blaze to get a missile lock and shoot the enemy plane down.  Seeing an enemy helicopter off in the distance, I headed out and shot it down.  I liked those things.  They were easy to destroy.

“Incoming from the left, right… and from the middle!  We’re in the middle of a crossfire!” A resistance member yelled.

Blaze swooped down in a loop, destroying two helicopters in the process.

“And I gather that’s your brightest student?” Mystery Woman Number One said.  There was no question as to whom she was referring.

“You mean Kid?  Well, that goes without saying,” Bartlett answered.

“You mean I’m your brightest student even with my kamikaze stunts?” Blaze asked in mock surprise.

“As you said, you learned from the best,” Bartlett replied.

“You have no idea,” Blaze said.  I didn’t know at the time how true that statement was.

“Watch the car ahead,” A resistance member cautioned.

“I don’t like not being able to move in three dimensions.  Cramps my style,” Bartlett admitted gruffly.

“Well then, I suggest you hurry up Watson,” Blaze said seriously.

“I’m trying Sherlock so shut up,” Bartlett snapped lightly.

“You’re the one that has the fiancée,” Blaze said.

“How’d you know?” Bartlett asked in shock.  Apparently even he could be caught off guard.

“I was joking when I said that…” Blaze admitted.

“Hell of a joke,” Mystery Woman Number One said with a chuckle.

“Please tell me you did not propose to her under that abnormally large bush where you were hiding earlier,” Blaze pleaded.

“No, I did not.  I proposed to her on the way there.”

“I think the bush would’ve been better,” Blaze acknowledged.

“Make up your mind: car or bush.”

“Bush.”

“You’re impossible…” Bartlett muttered.

“I-”

“Learned it from the best, I know,” Bartlett finished.

“No, actually.  I was going to say ‘I know’ but what you said applies too.”

Bartlett groaned as Blaze did a little satisfactory sigh.

“I’m sick of all this driving!  Get me up in the air already!” Bartlett shouted as ground enemies showed up on radar.  Blaze was naturally the first one there.  It made me wonder if her plane was equipped with teleportation because she appeared seemingly out of nowhere all the time.  It probably helped that it was still dark out but even when it wasn’t dark out…

She wiped out two of the targets but not the important one.  I aimed for it but the checkpoint was pretty solid and I only halfway damaged it.  Nagase finished it off while Snow and Blaze finished off the last three targets.  This seemed way too easy to me.  Surely the Yukes had better defenses than this… or maybe we had just gotten really good?  My guess was the former.  I had my bets that the Yukes has something up their sleeves.  They always did.

“I don’t mind all these attractions, guys, but next time pay for your own tickets!” Bartlett snapped gruffly.

“I hear that voice again…” Nagase murmured, “All that useless chatter.  I missed that voice.”

“Me, too,” Blaze agreed.  They were really the only ones that could say that since neither Snow nor I had flown with Bartlett as a wingman.

“These guys are incredible.  It’s as if the Razgriz are flying up there!” a resistance member declared.  I heard Blaze snort.

“Does he not see the emblem on our tails?” Blaze asked amusedly.

“With how fast you’re flying, it’s damn near impossible to find you let alone see the emblem on your tail,” Bartlett pointed out.

“I didn’t think I was going that fast,” Blaze admitted.

“You’re going past Mach 1.  You’re going wickedly fast Blaze,” Nagase told her.

“There are planes with jet back coloring flying up there,” A Yuke said as I flew through some gunfire.  How my plane wasn’t hit I’m not sure but I looked up to see it coming from a helicopter.  I didn’t even bother going to get it because Blaze was already there.

“We’re almost at the next fork in the road,” Mystery Woman Number One informed. “We either take our chances with the shortcut, or take the long way with less risk.”

“Hey Kid, which route looks better to you?  Should I take the longer one?”

“Nah, take the shortcut sir.  The quicker we get you out of here, the better,” Blaze answered.

“Okay, let me find one,” Bartlett said.  Barely a few seconds passed before, “All right, a shortcut!  I’ll twist through here!”

I watched as Bartlett and his entourage drove right between enemy tanks and howitzers.  Blaze and I took care of those quickly while Snow and Nagase took care of a couple enemy planes lingering about.

“They ran right through!” I exclaimed.

“Gotta love Bartlett,” Nagase said with a chuckle.

“The Prime Minister’s life will be in danger if this keeps up!” A resistance member babbled out of anxiety.

“Just get him out of here safely and quickly, and everything will be fine,” Another member consoled.

More ground targets appeared.  I happened to be right over them so I went upside down and dived straight for the ground, shooting missiles at the targets; I destroyed two.  I pulled up with enough time to level out without crashing into the ground.  No way was I dying today or any mission. 

Blaze, Nagase, and Snow finished off the targets.

“I assume you fly your plane the same way you drive?” Mystery Woman Number One teased. “But no loop-the-loops, please!”

Bartlett chuckled slyly.

“There are layers of enemy firing positions spread around the area,” Snow said.

“Clean ‘em and fry ‘em,” Blaze ordered.

“Top Gun, really Blaze?  Still with the Top Gun?” Bartlett groaned.

“It’s a good movie, sir.  Besides, I remember you liked it.  Might I add because of a certain woman whose callsign was Charlie.”

“All men were in love with her.  Besides, it was years ago.”

“Excuses, excuses,” Blaze said with a sigh.

“No one gets past here.  Got it?” A Yuke growled.

“We’re going through a checkpoint!  Keep your heads down!” Bartlett ordered.

“Enemy fighter overhead!” A resistance member announced.  I had already seen it and was high-tailing it there to shoot it down.  The plane was an AC-130, a ground-attack aircraft that is a variant of the C-130 Hercules, which is a transport plane.  It took about three missiles to shoot the sucker down.

“Every time we go on a date, you bring along these great adversaries,” Mystery Woman Number One said.

“Stop that.  You’re making everyone jealous,” Bartlett bantered.

“Bartlett, when this war is over, you’re taking her on a real date,” Blaze said with a ‘don’t-argue-with-me’ tone. “And giving her a real proposal… with a big ring.”

“I like her,” Mystery Woman Number One admitted. “She has style.”

“She learned it from the best,” Bartlett replied.  I had the strange image of him giving Mystery Woman Number One a wink.

“There’s a helicopter, too.  They’re coming!” A resistance member yelled. “We can’t fight them off with these weapons.”

“Not on my watch,” Nagase mumbled.

“Don’t let the enemy shoot.  Keep firing!” A resistance member ordered.

“There’s an idea,” Blaze said.

“That’s quite a strategy, busting right through the middle!  I might not know him well but I do know I can say this: That’s Bartlett for you!” Snow declared cheerfully.

“Airfield operations will begin in five minutes,” Mystery Woman Number One warned.  I really needed to find out her name because calling her ‘Mystery Woman Number One’ was getting old.  However, since we had more important things on hand, I would ask her when we got back to the Kestrel.

Blaze was far ahead of us, going out to ‘greet’ enemy helicopters.  Hope you get the gist of what I really mean because I know some really naïve people, and that’s a completely different subject so before I go on a rampage about all the naïve people I’ve met, I’m going to stop here.

“Is Baranov behind us?  I hope he doesn’t make a mistake like last month,” Bartlett said.

“I heard that,” Baranov replied sounding mildly offended. “I’ll be all right.”

“Snow, get a missile lock on the AC-130 from behind while I fire at it from below.  They will have their sights focused on you and won’t see me coming,” Blaze ordered.

“Roger that,” Snow answered, turning his plane to meet up with her.

“Not bad at all.  Creating diversions is the first step in espionage,” Mystery Woman Number One approved.

“Just having them up in the air is diversion enough,” Bartlett acknowledged. “You should hear some of the radio chatter I’ve heard.  You guys scare the hell out of them.”

“Well, apparently we are demons and I’m pretty sure demons don’t come from heaven so it’s only natural we scare the hell and not the heaven out of them,” Blaze countered at the same time another hit of ground enemies appeared on my radar.  Thankfully, Bartlett, along with his group, wasn’t near them yet so I fired two special weapons.  It destroyed all of the targets in one swoop.

“Nice aim, Grimm,” Blaze praised.

“Tracer rounds are nothing more than pretty fireworks if they don’t hit,” Bartlett noted, seeming to be talking to himself.

“I could use a good fireworks show that didn’t involve exploding planes, tracer rounds, and bullets,” Blaze said thoughtfully.

“It would be nice.  New Years is just around the corner.  We’ll watch them then,” I said.

“Sounds like a plan.”

I flew up to meet an AC-130.  It took three missiles to bring it down.  I checked my missiles reserves.  I had a fair amount left but I knew I would have to use my guns to save some of them.

“We’re being attacked from the air, too!” A Yuke shouted in fury.

“No, really?  We’ve been flying up here for a while you know and I know our planes are black but I don’t think any of our ground forces have the ammo to bring down an AC-130 or blow up a howitzer a thousand feet away,” Blaze rambled.

“Nice speech,” Nagase commented.

“Thank you.”

“Baranov!  Get as close to me as you can!” Bartlett commanded impatiently.

“I’ll try!”

“Airfield operations will begin in four minutes,” Mystery Woman Number One cautioned, her tone sounding more anxious.

“This road has a lot of tollbooths, but we’re gonna bust through all of ‘em!” Bartlett declared.  I didn’t doubt him.

“We still have enough time.  Let’s take the long way to be safe,” Mystery Woman Number One suggested.

“No, we can keep you covered.  I want y’all out of here as quickly as possible,” Blaze argued.  Her tone told everyone there would be no arguing with her.  I vaguely wondered if Bartlett was surprised by Blaze’s attitude now.  Compared to when she was just a wingman, she was somewhat shy in what she said, at least to people who had a higher status than her.  But now, she acted as if they were her equals.  Nagase, Snow, and I were hesitant to argue with Bartlett and Mystery Woman Number One, but not Blaze.

“Don’t turn sharply like that!  We’re gonna fall out!” A resistance member snapped.

“We’re almost at the next fork in the road,” Mystery Woman Number One informed.  How many times had she said that?  It was getting kind of annoying. “We either take our chances with the shortcut or-”

“Take the long way with less risk,” Blaze finished, sounding exhausted.

“Correct,” Mystery Woman Number One said.

“Kid, you watchin’ this?  Will we be okay with the shortcut?” Bartlett inquired.  For some reason, I found it semi-amusing that Bartlett, an experienced war veteran that had so much more experience than Blaze, was asking her what to do.  It seemed it should be the other way around, but our whole lives had been turned upside down so it was taking a lot to surprise me nowadays.  You could tell me pigs were starting to fly and I might actually consider it to be fairly plausible.

“You heard me earlier; we can cover you.  Take the shortcut,” Blaze replied.

“Okay, I’ll bust through the shortcut.  Kid, you take care of providing top cover!”

“Please don’t start that, Bartlett,” Blaze moaned.

“Start what?”

“Stating the obvious.”

Even Bartlett seemed lost for a comeback.  Only Blaze…

Watch out for small-arms attacks,” A Yuke helicopter warned.  I watched as Snow and Nagase went to shoot down some helicopters in the distance.  Blaze and I stayed above Captain Bartlett, making sure we were there if we were needed immediately.

I could now see the airport.  It was a sprawling area enclosed within a fence, probably electric.  There were three runways that I could see, possibly a fourth.  Hangars were scattered all over, and I’m pretty sure I saw some Yuke soldiers running all over the place.

“Okay, it’s time.  Begin operation!  Seize the hangar!” Bartlett barked.

“Hurry!  Get to the hangar while they’re still holding up!” Mystery Woman Number One urged.

“This will work,” A resistance detachment member said a little breathlessly. “We got ourselves a plane.”

“Have the Oseans penetrated this far in?” A Yuke copter demanded.  I could just hear how pissed he was.

“All right, we’re starting up.  Pull us out,” A resistance detachment member said.

“Grimm, Snow, we need your special weapons.  We have a group of ground targets at the entrance to the airport,” Blaze announced.

“Roger,” Snow and I replied simultaneously.  Snow was closer than I was, but I was already speeding over there so when we reached the targets, we each fired two special weapons; most of the targets were easily blown away.

“I’ll play spectator here on the ground and watch you all fight,” Bartlett said.  I imagined him looking up.  Just in case he was, I did an extremely unnecessary maneuver, doing a three-sixty spin and firing a special weapons missile at the remaining targets.  Snow did likewise save for the three-sixty.

“Captain!  You’re taking too many risks!” Nagase exclaimed.

“Hey, Nagase, you’re starting to sound like my mom,” Bartlett replied jokingly.

“Harsh,” Snow said with a laugh.  I could just see how furiously Nagase was blushing.

I found Bartlett’s car as he drove at a maniacal speed towards a hangar.

“He keeps doing this, and I’m gonna get an ulcer just watching them!” I admitted.

“And flying through natural tunnels while getting chased by BAF Aces doesn’t?  That’s incredible,” Blaze joked.

“Planes don’t bother me but fast driving?  Count me out,” I said.

“Okay, full throttle!  We’re breaking through at top speed!” Bartlett hollered.

“It’s almost dawn, but those guys are keeping the sky dark” A Yuke mumbled.

“Here they come.  Do you see them?” A Yuke questioned.

“Thanks for the navigation Kid.  That was a fun drive for all of us,” Bartlett told Blaze with a droll hint to his voice but being completely serious at the same time.  I couldn’t help but smile.  Only Bartlett would be serious about saying he had fun driving through enemy territory.  From what I had heard from Genette, getting to allied front lines wasn’t a first for Bartlett.

“This one, Mr. B.  Use this plane!” A resistance detachment member insisted.

“Hey, I’ll take any plane you got.  Anything’s better than a car,” Bartlett claimed.

Curiously (and hesitantly might I add), I queried, “Hasn’t it been a while since Captain Bartlett flew a plane?”

“This platoon doesn’t know when to shut up.  Go on, return their fire!” Bartlett snapped.

“I do hope you’re not talking about my squadron,” Blaze grumbled.

“No, I’m talking about my group.  They keep squawking like a bunch of parrots.”

“I don’t think they’d like that analogy.”

“I wouldn’t have had to use it if they would be quiet and return fire.”

“They stole a plane from the hangar!  Right out from under our nose!” A Yuke nearly screamed for infuriation.

“Bartlett, hightail it out of there.  The Yukes had figured out y’all are getting planes,” Blaze warned.

“What is this?  I haven’t seen a plane like this in ages,” Bartlett observed.

“It’s a little dusty in here,” Mystery Woman Number One said with a certain amount of distaste.

“Get the safety belt tight on the Prime Minister,” Bartlett directed.

“C-1 moving towards the runway,” A Yuke announced.  That must be the plane Bartlett had stolen.

“I want to get airborne before the runway is blocked,” Bartlett said.

“Don’t worry.  Anyone who is stupid enough to block will be sorry,” Blaze told him.

“You have turned ruthless, Blaze,” Bartlett said. I couldn’t be sure, but I thought I detected the slightest twinge of sadness in his voice.

“I’m not ruthless.  I just do anything I can for the people that are special to me… I’m flying above you Captain.  See you up in a few seconds.”

“All right, I’m taking off.  Hellooo, sky!” Bartlett hollered. “I’m comin’ home!”

“Edge to Heartbreak One.  We’ll fly past our allies’ front line and head for the ocean.  The Kestrel will meet us on the way.”

“Roger that.  Just hope we don’t run into any bad guys,” Bartlett replied.

He spoke too soon…

At that instant, I received a hit of four enemy planes on my radar.  My blood boiled but I knew once Blaze found out who it was, my anger would be nothing compared to hers.

Grimly, I informed, “Incoming aircraft.  Looks like bad guys to me.  It’s the 8492nd.”

I was right about Blaze.  Although she didn’t scream like a banshee, she made a growling sound that chilled my bones.  In fact, she was already racing off to face them… and she was completely alone.

“Ah, the long-lost Belkan Grabacr Fighter Squadron, eh?” Bartlett said.

I thought Blaze’s reaction was bone-chilling enough, but apparently, it wasn’t, because right then, the 8492nd spoke. “Is that really them?”

“I saw those planes plunge into the ocean along with the Colonel on my radar.”

“It’s them,” another member growled.  My guess was the leader.  He just had that superiority in his voice, “the ‘Ghosts of Razgriz.’”

“They were the ones that attacked the mine, too,” an 8492nd member added.

“All right,” The one I guessed was the captain said. “Let’s find out for ourselves in battle.”

When they came into my view, the captain was flying straight ahead while the wingmen were sideways.  I never understood that.  Maybe it was to intimidate the enemy.  If that was the case, it wasn’t working.  Blaze in particular had a burning desire for justice that was driving her forward.  Those guys stood no chance against her when she was like this.  If they hadn’t been the reason Chopper was dead, I would’ve felt sorry for them.

“Kid!  Get the Grabacr!  Don’t let a single one escape!” Bartlett told her.

“My pleasure,” Blaze said menacingly.  She had been itching to shoot those bastards down for a while.  I remembered when she did the reconnaissance mission all by herself and how she hadn’t been armed because Pops was positive that enemy reinforcements would come up after her.  I knew he didn’t doubt her abilities but he didn’t want to risk her getting shot down.  I was glad when he had said she would be unarmed, because Blaze being Blaze would’ve shot every plane down.  However, at the same time, it was horrible to know that she had a chance to shoot down Grabacr but was unable too.  I know she would’ve won that battle.

“The 8492nd is here.  This will be the final showdown!” Nagase declared heatedly.

“No; if we shoot them down, they’ll only bail out.  Believe me, shooting them down will just piss them off and slow them down…” Blaze mumbled.

“Blaze-” Snow began.

“Enemy fighter on your tail; I’m on it,” Blaze said, cutting him off.  Whatever Snow had been about to say, he had decided otherwise.  I think he could tell Blaze didn’t want to be patronized.

“How can they attack from that position?” Nagase inquired with an annoyed interest.  Blaze had shot down one of the Grabacr, the one that had been tailing Snow.

“Impressive.  These fighters are definitely the Razgriz,” the Grabacr leader said.

“Go to hell,” Blaze snarled.  I wondered if Bartlett knew Blaze’s determined intentions to shoot down the Grabacr was more than order, that it had now become personal.

“Don’t make the same mistake as Ofnir,” another Grabacr member warned.

“Are you okay, Captain Bartlett?” Nagase questioned.

“Don’t worry about me.  You just concentrate on dealing with the Grabacr.  I can slip past these guys all day.  I can’t fire back, but I got you for that now, Kid.  They’re all yours.”

“With her obvious determination, they’re not gonna be here for long,” Mystery Woman Number One said, pleased.

Snow cautioned, “Don’t let your guard down!  These guys are tough!”

“Hey, why are there only two on radar?  I know Blaze shot down one but what happened to the second one?” Nagase asked.

“I shot it down,” Blaze said nonchalantly.  She acted as if she fought them every day and won.

“You were just lucky.  We’ll decide who’s better another time,” a Grabacr sneered.

“We’ll be ready.  You can count on that,” Blaze replied, sounding calm, cool, collected, and completely terrifying, all at the same time.

“I won’t be shot down.  No one’s going to take my place as Blaze’s wingman,” Nagase stated.

“Wingwoman,” I corrected. “You are a wingwoman.”

“Shut up Grimm,” Nagase chastised, but I knew she just said that because she didn’t have a better comeback.

Frustrated, Nagase said, “The enemy’s everywhere!”

“I see they’re still just as annoying as they were when I fought them.  Some things just never change,” Bartlett observed as Snow managed to shoot an enemy down with Blaze.  They had each fired a missile.

“We’ll just wait for the next opportunity to meet again,” the Grabacr pilot assured.

“See you then, putz,” Blaze answered casually.

“Putz?” I repeated.

“Out to Sea,” Blaze explained. “It’s a really good movie.”

“You and your movie quotes,” I said, chuckling.  I was trailing the last enemy plane.  Blaze joined me and her movements were so graceful and unpredictable that it was almost beautiful to watch.  I couldn’t help but compare her to the Grabacr.  Their flying style was similar: calm, graceful, fast, unpredictable, and deadly.

“Look at the way Captain moves…” I said. “So that’s how an ace pilot flies.”

“Blaze just keeps surprising me.  She’s getting better every second,” Snow admitted.

“I’m no ace,” Blaze said with a harrumph.

That made me, Nagase, and Snow snort.  And, to my surprise, there was another snort… from Bartlett.

“You always were too modest, Kid,” Bartlett said.

“I am not!” Blaze protested.

“Name a time when you bragged about something,” Bartlett challenged.

“I can’t think of one right now.  I’m too busy trying to shoot down Ofnir,” Blaze wrangled.  Bartlett merely laughed because he knew she didn’t have an answer; we all knew.

Apparently, Blaze had been focused enough on the Ofnir plane we had all been trailing to shoot it down.  I didn’t think the shot was good but somehow, both her missiles hit.

And she said she wasn’t an ace…

I snorted.

“Grimm?  Why are you snorting?  Please tell me you didn’t hide drugs in your plane.  That would put a new meaning to the quote ‘high in the sky,’” Blaze told me.

Laughing, I said, “No, I’m just snorting at the thought of you saying you’re not an ace.  It’s really funny how obstinate you are about that.”

“I’m not going to argue.  I’m not in the mood,” Blaze muttered; I wasn’t offended by her statement.  Her soft chuckle at the end of it told me she wasn’t angry.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

“They moved just like those enemies we fought before,” Nagase noted.

“My guess is they trained together,” Blaze said.

“Looks like you got ‘em all, but the bastards all bailed out,” Bartlett told us. “I gotta admit, those guys are true fighter pilots.”

“We’ll be back,” the leader of the Grabacr snarled. “You can count on it.”

“Hope you bring us a real challenge next time,” Blaze countered.  I heard a growl of fury before the Grabacr’s line of communication was cut off.

“‘Hope you bring us a real challenge next time?’ Really Blaze?” Nagase demanded in exasperation.

“It’s fun to infuriate them.  Belkans make mistakes when they get pissed.  It’s almost always the reason for their demise… that and overconfidence,” Blaze added.

“Aren’t you part Belkan, Blaze?” Snow inquired.

“Yes.”

“You say that anger is the reason that they make mistakes.  So are you fighting them because you’re angry too,” I said.

“No.  I fight them for Justice,” Blaze corrected softly. “There’s a difference between anger and justice.”

“Then why do you always sound angry when you fight them?” I inquired.

“I’m not angry at them… okay, maybe I am but that’s not why I sound angry.  I’m angry at someone else.”

“Who?”

Blaze didn’t reply.
__________________________________________

On the way back to the Kestrel, we were debriefed. “The 8492nd Squadron… or the Belkan Grabacr Squadron to be more exact, has been annihilated.  Yuktobanian Prime Minister Nikanor is also safe.  Mission accomplished.”
__________________________________________

December 23, 2010, Ceres Ocean, 1319 hrs…

Genette

As I stood behind Bartlett, video camera in hand, I hit the record button.  I hardly ever went anywhere without my camera now, afraid I’d miss something if I didn’t have it on me.

Blaze was standing next to me, with Nagase, Snow, and Grimm down below with Pops taking care of the planes.  Nikanor (when he had woken up), had requested to meet Blaze.  My sister had blanched when she had been told this after she had landed.  Pops offered to take care of her plane.  It was funny to see my sister in such a frazzled state.  Blaze hardly ever got like that.

Bartlett…  He had returned once more.  He brought Nikanor, the Prime Minister of Yuktobania with him.  And surprisingly, he had brought one more person.  A female Recon Major in the Yuke Army… the one who broke his heart fifteen years ago.

I zoomed in on Bartlett, panned over to Nikanor, who gave me a smile and a nod, and then I panned over Mysterious Woman Number One (I had listened to the radio chatter).

She had jet black hair in a pony tail; her hair was the color of the Razgriz planes.  A bizarre thought occurred to me that it would be cool if she had red streaks in her hair, because then her hair would be the colors of the Razgriz.  Hastily, I pushed the thought out of my mind.

Mysterious Woman Number One was just a tad shorter than Blaze, but not by much.  She was lean and pale, but she was really pretty.  Her aviators were extremely reflective, and I could see myself filming her in them.

I trained my camera back on Bartlett; he turned around to face my camera.  He had a pleased, mischievous smile on his face.  He gave me a two-fingered salute.  I grinned at him.

It became clear why nobody could find him in the POW camps.  The very first POW of the war, he had escaped before they could even get him into the camp.  That’s Bartlett for you…

Yuktobania’s situation was just like ours.  Their leader, who espoused reconciliation was imprisoned after a silent coup d’état, and the country proceeded to march right into large-scale war.

I backed up as I took a picture of Andersen shaking hands with Nikanor.  Bartlett was behind Andersen and the Yuke woman behind Nikanor.

When Blaze and I walked up to the foursome, I stopped the recording.

“You are the Captain of the Razgriz?” Nikanor asked Blaze.

“Yes, sir,” Blaze replied calmly. “It’s an honor to meet you, sir.”

“It is an honor to meet you, Miss…?”

“Elizabeth Banks, but please, call me Blaze.”

“It is an honor to meet you Miss Blaze.  I have heard many things about you.”

“I hope they were good things,” Blaze said with a sheepish smile.

“I heard about your great prowess in battle.  I must say, for the few conscious moments I had on the way to the plane, and the few glimpses of what I believe was your plane, I must agree with my soldiers.  You are a demon… one that fights for good, though.  You certainly are a Demon of Razgriz.”

“Thank you, sir.” Nikanor held out his hand and Blaze shook it.  I took a picture, naturally, because it wasn’t everyday that your sister shook the hand of the leader of Yuktobania.

After taking the picture, I turned to face the Yuke woman.

Curiously, I asked, “What should I call you?”

“Just ‘Major,’” She replied, taking off her aviators and doing a small hair flip to get some hair out of her face.

“What’s your real name?” I prodded.

All she did was return a smile as I took her picture.  Now that I could clearly see her eyes, I noticed they were a chocolate brown, full of slyness.  I’m sure that’s part of the reason Bartlett was attracted to her.

Major remained faithful to the Prime Minister and to his vision of peace.  And that faith had brought her here.

She was carrying a single disc.  She told us the disc contained the secret plans of the Belkan “Gray Men.”

Instantly, we had Geller start helping us with the cracking of it.  So far we have been unable to decipher the encryption code.  Even Geller was having issues, and he was the one that had ultimately created it.
__________________________________________

Blaze

After politely excusing myself from the conversation between Bartlett, Major, Nikanor, and Genette, I headed off to my room, not in the mood to talk to anyone.  Cassie, Grimm, Pops, and Snow were talking to Nikanor and Bartlett and Major.  Geller was busy trying to decipher the disc.  I was glad everyone was preoccupied.  That feeling was short-lived when Bartlett called out my name.

I turned around, masking my moodiness.

“Hello, Captain Bartlett,” I greeted cheerfully.

“Don’t try and fool me Blaze.  What’s going on in that head of yours?” Bartlett demanded.

Furrowing my eyebrows, I asked, “What do you mean?”

“Chopper’s death hit you hard, I can tell. Is there something I’m missing that happened between you two?”

I held up my left hand to show him the engagement ring.  I felt my face fall emotionless as Bartlett did a slight, sharp intake of breath.

“It’s not your fault Blaze,” Bartlett said seriously.

“Yes, it is.  All of it is my entire fault.”

“Yes, because you could control Hamilton backstabbing you and having the whole Sand Island Base turn their backs on you.  That’s out of your control Blaze,” Bartlett chided.  I knew he was serious because he wasn’t using his nickname for me.

“I failed my squadron,” I said.

“They certainly don’t think that.  Why do you think that?”

“It’s getting the crew back alive that counts,” I repeated Bartlett’s motto quietly.  He blanched slightly, which unnerved me.  I didn’t know Bartlett could be shocked by anything, let alone by something I said.  What was happening to me?

“Throwing my teachings right back in my face,” Bartlett said with a humorless chuckle.

“It’s been my motto ever since I was a captain.”

“When you said you’re anger isn’t because of the Grabacr, but someone else, you meant you, didn’t you?” Bartlett inquired, but it was more of a statement.

“I could’ve stopped it.  I know I could’ve.”

“You can’t predict the future Blaze,” Bartlett told me.  Something must’ve flickered across my face because he asked, “Or can you?”

Hesitantly, I replied, “I had dreams of him crashing into a stadium over and over again.  It never occurred to me that it was a vision.  I just thought it was a fear of mine, which him crashing was one.  And then when we were flying of the stadium, it hit me that that stadium was the one in my dreams.  So you’re saying I couldn’t have known he was going to die, but I did.”

“But you didn’t know it, Blaze,” Bartlett said, pronouncing the last four words carefully.  I didn’t know what to say.  I pushed down the lump in my throat.  I wasn’t going to cry, not in front of Bartlett… not anyone.

“Get some sleep.  You’ve had a hectic day,” Bartlett said.

“Bye, Captain,” I said as I turned around and headed to my room.
__________________________________________

Bartlett

I watched Blaze head towards her room.  She had changed so much it was frightening.  The last time I had talked to her, she was outgoing and cheerful and spoke her mind.  This Blaze was quiet and reticent and serious… although she still spoke her mind.  No matter how much she joked with her comrades, I could always tell her heart wasn’t in the joke.

I hated seeing someone so young with such a bright future ahead of her so… mature.  She wasn’t even twenty-five and she had the mind of an experience war veteran.  She had experienced more tragedy and heartbreak and deceit in the last few weeks than most people did in a lifetime.  She reminded me of me when I was her age… and that wasn’t a good thing.
__________________________________________

0900 hours…

Genette 

I walked up to the launch deck, not anticipating anyone to be up there.  To my surprise, two people were up there, gazing at the stars: Major and Blaze.

I think it was Blaze who surprised me the most.  She had left the conversation with Nikanor and everyone else pretty quickly.  I was worried about her.  I was always worried about her now.

They were both silent as I walked up to them.  Blaze looked at me and gave me a smile.  When she returned her attention to the stars, she looked really young.  I couldn’t help but give a smile.  Major didn’t look my way, but merely pointed to a star in the sky and said, “The SOLG.  A military attack satellite that your country began building in the war fifteen years ago, then abandoned in the peace that followed.  The Arkbird was reborn partly to resurrect that dreadful star.  Now ever after the Arkbird was destroyed, the Space Center’s mass driver is still launching supplies into orbit.  What is that ‘star’ receiving from them?”

Then we fell silent as we watched the ‘star’ in the sky.  If you focused on it enough, you could just barely see it moving.
__________________________________________

Oh dang, long chapter.  Well, I hope y’all enjoyed!  Review if you’re glad Bartlett’s back! I know I’m glad the firebrand is back :P  REVIEW!!!