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Standoff in the Skies II: Leasath Side
The Story of the Fall of Gleipnir




Inside the bridge of Gleipnir
"All SWBM launchers have been destroyed!"
"Power decreasing, we can't maintain altitude!"
"The 6th engine has caught fire!"

The roars of the crew echoed inside the bridge. The giant hull of Gleipnir got caught in shockwave from the explosion.

"Damn you Nemesis..."

Gleipnir Captain Frank Burlington murmured, irritated. But his voice faded in no time into the chaos prevalent inside the bridge, and was never heard by anyone.

Saving Leasath. It was the reason why Burlington became a military officer. Leasath had been put under precarious circumstances ever since he could remember, and his homeland finally got into the Civil War that lasted for a long time. Now that the Civil War was over, if the war against Aurelia is won, then people of Leasath will be able to enjoy normal lives. The means to realize his hope, or rather, his faith, is now about to be snuffed out by a tiny aircraft with the emblem of a Southern Cross pecked by Gryphus, flown by a pilot they called Nemesis.

For him, neither optical camouflage nor SWBMs made a difference. I, and the Gleipnir, couldn't stand a chance against him. I was no longer able to close my eyes to that fact. But I couldn't let it end like this. Being irritated, Burlington voiced out his determination.

"HQ, it doesn't look like we can hold out any longer. We will teach that Southern Cross what Leasath is made of. Prepare for firing Shock Cannon!"

Indiscriminate attacks on Santa Elva with the Shock Cannon, the last remaining weapon of Gleipnir. Attacking civilians and ordinary people. I don't care if my name keeps condemned by the future generation. I've been delegated the Gleipnir, Leasath's hope, by Commanding Officer Navarro.

That day, one week before the announcement was made to all forces of invading Aurelia, Burlington was summoned by Navarro and asked, "Do you wish to save this country?"
Burlington was struck with astonishment since those words were simply what he had been hoping to achieve. Navarro's powerful voice dominated Burlington's consciousness. "To do so, we must regain what Aurelia has taken from us."

Aurelia has been capitalizing on the Civil War and exploiting Leasath.
What have been taken from us must be taken back by us to rebuilt Leasath.

Burlington never believed these rumors which started to go around around the end of the Civil War. He believed that Aurelia was a friendly nation. But now that these were uttered by Navarro, the hero who put an end to the Civil War, these rumors proved to be true in Burlington's brain. He was then inaugurated as Gleipnir Captain. Navarro said to him that "the Gleipnir is in your hands now. I'm counting on you."

To live up to his expectations, and to take back what should be ours, this must be done to make them pay the price. I don't give a damn how many lives of disgusting Aurelian civilians will be lost. I don't give a damn how this will end up in stripping me of honors. Nothing can prevent me from doing this.

The Gleipnir has taken course to Santa Elva.
"It's about 10 miles between the Gleipnir and the city!"
A voice of an Aurelian communicator is monitored on the radio. Nemesis has penetrated the barrage of Leasath aircraft, and appeared right in front. A missile was fired from his plane, and it landed straight on the Shock Cannon. The impact and explosion jolted the bridge and the crew.

But that missile shot wasn't fatal. Nemesis changed course to avoid crashing into the Gleipnir. He is being pursued by Leasath fighters and getting far away from the Gleipnir. All Leasath escort planes are now heading to down Nemesis.

Just keep this ship in the air while they are buying time! For just a little while longer! All Burlington could do was just pray. The city of Santa Elva is diplayed on the screen. It's drawing near. The tone of the Aurelian officer's voice monitored on the radio is becoming desperate and sorrow. "2 miles left! 1mile! It's too late..."



All of a sudden, an even greater shock has jolted the huge body of Gleipnir. When I came to, I found that the sky was sanitized of all Leasath planes. An alert signal has started to go on and off on the screen. What it means is that the Shock Cannon is out of commission. "Can't be..." Burlington can't turn his eyes away from the screen.

The screen captured the emblem of Gryphus for just a short while, which just finished dealing the last attack. A condor wearing a fearless smile. That smile belongs to no other than Nemesis, the pilot who is sneering at the huge airborne fortress Gleipnir.

"I'm counting on you." Navarro's words just flashed by in his brain. Burlington, now stripped all functions of Gleipnir, has revealed his last, sorrow thought. "As a man in charge of Gleipnir, I was about to go down with one last shot... I can't even do that!"

Leaving the Captain's voice unheard, the Gleipnir sank itself into Lenal River. The damage caused on Santa Elva by its crash was, astoundingly, almost zero. Many people called it a miracle, but it was later denied by Gleipnir crew when they were called to testify. All of them testified that it was Nemesis's maneuver that was a miracle.




Gaiuss Tower : Navarro's Room
"Call up Alect Squadron standing by in the mainland." After his aide finished reporting in, Commanding Officer of the Leasath Forces Diego Navarro said so. Looking at the aide doing his job, he started to calculate the possible merit in the future. The fall of Gleipnir was an unexpected event, but it's a verified fact now. It's time to move on to the next step. The inflow of materials from southern Aurelia was cut off, but that's not a primary focus. I'm going to do business with the whole world from now on. I am partly offended, but in large part excited about the future business.

Come to think of it, I probably have the pilot they call Nemesis to thank for that. If the Gleipnir had launched an attack on Santa Elva, the impression of my precious merchandise would have been terribly defiled. He didn't let it happen. "What is unfortunate about our Leasath is that we are short on excellent human resources." His men took no time in consenting to his words.

Before long, the screen showed the Alect Squadron pilots under the immediate control of Navarro. Let's take all possibilities into consideration and get ready to dispatch them. As his pilots solemnly salute, Navarro speaks up to them, knowing what kind of effect the words of a man called 'Hope to save Leasath' or 'Hero who put an end to the Civil War' have on them.

"Do you people wish to fight the pilot they call Nemesis?"

Yes, manipulating other people is easy. All you have to do is just stir up their wishes. It's clear even through the screen that they are there with sparkling faces. Navarro was reminded of the face of a naive military officer whom he inaugurated as Gleipnir Captain.

END~




Source:
PROJECT ACES: ACX WEBSITE

Accreditation:
yellow26 for translation