CHAPTER 20
FINAL TEST
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“Scramble! Scramble!”
At Iswahyudi Airbase, four pilots ran to the hangar after a brief series of strange missions. Several ground crew members prepared four F-16 Block 72 single-seat fighters from the 3rd Squadron. Aerial threats on Portal Break became so big that nearby nations made a love call. The Air Force had to guard national airspace before everyone's lovely neighbors knocked on the door.
“Hydraulic fluid, check.”
“Electrical, check.”
Military birds needed more strict preflight protocols than commercial airlines. Several ground crews were going back and forth, checking each side of the fighter. Various devices had been installed on the hard point. They put sidewinder missiles, tactical bombs, sensors, and external fuel tanks. Aircraft crystal was so expensive that the Air Force kept using old-fashioned fuel.
“Fantasy style mission, LT?”
“Kinda.”
“Is dragon real?”
“Don't have idea. Wanna ride one, lol.”
Four pilots chatted with the ground crew while doing final checking. They walked around their fighter jet and rubbed every part of it. All of them entered the cockpit and started the taxiing process. Following the marshal's signal for the final preflight evaluation, all instruments have been checked. The marshal gave the code a thumbs-up. The fighting falcon was ready to fly. The situation in Surabaya was too dire to mobilize expensive defense equipment.
Believe it or not, the operational cost of an F-16 reaches the equivalent of three brand new family cars in just one hour.
“Runaway clear, Falcon one is ready to take off.”
One by one, multi-role fighters ascended to the sky. Three F-16s were assigned for bombing sorties, while one of them flew solely for air superiority. The enemy remained unidentified. The pilot flew without knowing what he was fighting for. And after arriving at the designated airspace, the nearest ground control made a call.
“Falcon One, ground control, BRAA, two zero five, for two, at angle six, hot!”
“Falcon One, bogey, contact.” He replied when he saw a blinking dot on the radar.
“Visual range?”
“Negative.”
“Copy, continue dry.”
He pulled the throttle lever to gain more speed. The afterburner was clearly visible on the exhaust, along with a conical mist covering around. The mission was so important that he broke the speed of sound. The dot on the radar display was getting closer until a small blackish object could be seen under the clouds. The UAP had been visually discovered. Radioing ground control, he pushed the throttle back.
“Falcon One, tally, bandit verified.” More pilot-thingy term he spouted.
“Fast mover?”
“Negative. Propeller.”
“Weapon hold, Identify.”
“Understood.”
The fighting falcon slowed down, diving through a thick cumulonimbus to identify an object up close. Its wingspan was roughly the size of a C-130 and shaped like a gigantic bat's wing, gliding quietly with an unusual infrared sign. The AN/APG-83 AESA radar had measured the object from miles away, including its speed, which was about 200 mph.
So slow to be called an airliner.
“Jesus ....” The pilot was surprised when its wings began to flap.
No matter how he looked at it, the object was an organic creature with reptilian traits. Its form was clearly identified up close and showed the eye-catching silhouette of a popular creature in medieval fantasy stories. There was no way to mistake it. The object was a dragon.
“Shit!”
The dragon spat out its breath as it realized a metallic object was following behind, bursting a long line of inferno that formed a thick wall of smoke as it swept the sky. Its prey, the F-16, rolled swiftly to evade any damage. The dragon tried hard to catch the fastest thing it had seen in its life. 200 mph versus 1300 mph was like Usain Bolt racing with a baby. Escaping a close call, the fighter's speed touched Mach 1 and left a loud boom all the way up.
“Jesus, that was close.”
Fighting a dragon was like fighting a World War II bomber without any machine guns. So easy. Even a first-generation fighter was superior in speed and firepower. However, the pilot could not stop his trembling. This was definitely the first time he fought against an enemy that had never shown up on earth. Calming himself down, he radioed ground control with a slight panic.
“Object is a dragon, repeat, object is a dragon! Hostile, verified! Permission to engage!”
There was no change of green dot's position on the radar when the F-16 was climbing rapidly, flying in a circular path to get the dragon's tail. The pilot locked it up from miles away with a trembling hand and uneasiness when he watched a green square on the HUD. A long-range attack was the main course of modern war. A dragon's infrared signature was nonetheless completely different from that of any flying machine. The pilot was unsure if a $300,000 modern arrow could hit it.
Placing his thumb on the top of the side-stick, he rubbed an TMS analog and browsed the SAM option. The locking process was finished. An air-to-air infrared missile was ready to be launched at any time.
“Falcon One, cleared Hot, Weapon Free.” And the command had come.
“Understood.” He pressed the red button and said, “Fox two!”
Bzzzzztttt!
An AIM-9 Sidewinder was unleashed from the hard point.
***
Grand Cathedral of Lumina, Crocosela City
A sweet smile from a charming face illuminated the cathedral's aisles. The Holy Maiden walked cheerfully on the last day of her togetherness with the Saintess. Her mother always brought her into a good mood. An uneasiness in her heart was lifted. However, she returned to her cold face when she was picked up by a sly-faced nobleman.
“What do you want?”
“Meeting an old friend. What else? We are the first generation walkers, after all.”
The Holy Maiden gave him a cold glance. She walked away without saying a word, as if the nobleman was a trash. Rather, she chose to enter the carriage and sit majestically on the soft seat. Followed by a nobleman who was spouting bullshit, she didn't care at all.
“Be logical, Hornietta. This plan has been a long time coming.” He called her by another name, then bowed elegantly in a sarcastic manner. “Pardon me, Your Holiness. I was a fool for asking logic to a woman.”
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
The Holy Maiden did not reply. Her eyes remained fixed on the edge of the window, unmoved, even though her partner kept acting like a big deal. As the third strongest walker in the world, she knew by heart how disgusting a walker was if they were involved in politics. They would indiscrimanately backstabbing everyone for their interest.
“You have no choice, Hornietta. Do you think that old priest can help you?”
“She's my mother. Watch your mouth.”
“Tsk! You're getting carried away with silly drama of this world. Religion is just an asset, Hornietta. Make the most of it.”
The luxurious carriage moved slowly towards the grandest building of Crocosela City. Hornietta remained at the window, steadying herself for the plan the association had laid out. The brains of the plan was the man next to her, the great nobleman of Armin Kingdom, who was also the CEO of Indonesian Walker Association.
“We're one step away from taking over this kingdom.”
“You, not us.”
“Us, because you have no choice, Your Holiness.”
Hornietta squinted. She felt something sinister from his tone. The holy maiden glances to the fox-looking nobleman, asking the meaning of his threatening remarks.
“Your Holiness, you have sent dragon army on earth.”
Her cold expression suddenly changed. “What?” She said with a slight tremble on her tone. “Watch your mouth, Hart. I could easily kill you here, and no one would blame me.”
“Oooo, I'm scared. I told you, Your Holiness. You've accidentally sent dragon army to earth. Thousands of people would die because of you.”
A cold sweat moved down slowly from her majestic mitre. She recalled every step of his grand-sealing holy spell that was supposed to trap the dragon army in an eternal-dimensional maze. No matter how hard she recalled it, there was no probability of failure. Unless more than tenth of the 2000 holy crystals brought by the Four Kingdoms were defective. And it was almost impossible.
“Imagine, Your Holiness. Imagine thousands of wyverns hunting Indonesian citizens as their dinner. Imagine several dragons burning the city down. And even if Walker could use their power on earth, the casualties would be hundreds of millions. What will happen if the Indonesian government knows that you're the one who sent them all? Poof! You're the most hated person in the world. Thousands of orphans you raised will be mentally shacken. They will bullied at their school. Ugghhh, so sad.”
After contacting her personal portal mages, Hornietta could not speak anymore. The news was true. The dragon army had attacked the earth. And it was her responsibility that trapped them all in the maze of luminosity.
“Well, I can clear your name, though. Half of the Indonesian TV stations are mine. And I could easily feed stupid society out there to believe any bullshit I've made. This is how politics works, Hornietta. Trust me. I can save you.”
The holy maiden remained silent until chariot arrived in front of the castle. All soldiers knelt respectfully to welcome the two most powerful heroes in the Armin Kingdom. The protocol was getting grander after they entered the corridor. All the knights stood proudly with their hands in front of their chests, lined up neatly on either side of the red carpet.
“We welcome you, Your Holiness Holy Maiden, My Lord Duke Hart.”
A dozen people were waiting in the meeting room. They were nobles from Walker's side. All of them knelt in submission before Hornietta, including the prince who had just arrived from Renouil.
“I welcome you, Your Holiness.” An early 30-year-old man jumped from his chair just to bow.
Hornietta smiled sweetly when the prince prostrated himself. After a long period of coldness, she asked Ramones to take his seat. She also sat on the throne without saying a word, which made the sly duke give her a whisper.
“Hornietta, for the sake of the thousands of orphans you've raised, do your job.”
***
Holy Maiden was the real deal. Even King Armin always put his hand on his chest whenever he met the holy virgin. Let alone just the prince. In front of Hornietta, Ramones remained prostrating like a dog.
“What?” The Prince spoke with a trembling voice.
“Yes, Prince Ramones, you didn't hear it wrong. I am willing to marry you.”
Marry Holy Maiden?
What the curse was this?
Ramones was indeed a petty womanizer. And Hornietta was the most beautiful woman in Armin Kingdom, which meant the dandy prince was supposed to be attracted to her. However, the facts said otherwise. The prince didn't even dare to think about that because he knew very well who the heck holy maiden was. Her nickname was not without reason. She had to maintain her chastity for the grace of Goddess Lumina. Let alone marriage, she could not even make any skin contact with the opposite gender. Any man would die on the spot if he couldn't keep his distance. The prince trembled even more because the plan was more like a curse.
“It's okay, Prince Ramones. Our marriage is just a formality. You don't need to touch my skin. And you're allowed to touch every woman you like. I will help you get the throne. As long as Prince is willing to listen to Duke Hart.”
“Everything, Your Holiness, everything you want, I'll give it.” Ramones even kissed the ground and raised his buttocks as he prostrated in fear.
Yes, it was like that. The prince didn't even dare to watch the beautiful face of the incarnation of the goddess, although the conversation had long ended. His fear was real. The atmosphere became more tensed when the Duke approached him to whisper something.
“Prince, steady your heart.”
Steady, what?
The prince nodded slowly, even though he didn't understand what Duke Hart was talking about. He also didn't understand why his forehead was somehow covered in sweat and his face was pale. The prince's feelings were sinking into uneasiness. In the end, a tear dropped from his eyes when someone delivered the shocking news.
“It's terrible, My Lord! King Armin III and Prince Asedes have been killed! And the murderer was Valoran.”
That was how it had begun.
The war with Valora was unavoidable.
***
Somewhere in the Sky
“Commander, five of the eight portals have been engaged. One has been completed by the Marines and Navy. And... We lost contact with the 7th portal.” Captain Nadine reported.
Bullhead stood bare-chested and girded at the waist. Observing the war from the helicopter door, he pointed down and gave a clear order.
“Contact 5th platoon Mechanized Infantry. Form any ZoAs at 3348 2066.”
“Yes sir!”
Varg was dumbfounded. Even though they flew at an altitude of thousands of feet, the commander could see it without using binoculars. He didn't even use the military grid to pinpoint a location.
“Humans have one trillion brain cells, boy. And what they use is less than a billion. No need to wonder.”
“Valoran like me?”
“Even demon have braincells.” Bullhead's tone sounded calm in the headset. “Prepare your gear. You have a mission. Don't forget what unit you're in now.”
The prince examined his uniform. He became more aware that every piece of gear he wore was of top quality. All of them didn't follow Indonesian standards. Instead, it was based on International Ethereal Management and Security, which was closed to experimental stuff. His clothes are made from rip-stop fabric with layers of carbon nanotubes and anti-stab material. His hard armor is made from a confidential recipe. Even his ridiculous skull mask is made from alien-like technology. No wonder regular soldiers hated the DOME unit so much. Not to mention his weapons, which are all top-tier.
His main weapon was the Berret M82-ME3, the latest variant of the 50-cal anti-material rifle designed for DOME operators. It had more weight and length than regular berrets. The feed system also had more bullets, whooping 12-round detachable box magazines. And the scope was a prototype everyone hadn't heard yet. Lieutenant Colonel also handed him a Desert Eagle and a KEL-TEC KSG. There were also piles of C-4s, frags, claymores, and white phosphorus grenades. One backpack contained explosives and ammunition. His current luggage was probably 80 kilograms.
“Don't forget your machete.”
“Uuff, smelled like homesick.” Varg sniffed his own tactical machete, a Valoran weapon made from mithril.
“Miss your homeland?”
“Yes, Commander. I miss my cute little sister. I can't wait to bring her here.” Varg acted like a child every time he thought about the one he loved most.
Booom!
Suddenly, a couple miles away from their helicopter, a loud boom sounded, followed by a huge winged creature falling from the sky. The mighty dragon died from a $300,000 arrow from an iron bird that just passed by. Varg stood in awe. After almost seven years on earth, he understood that there was something that hindered Ethereal from being more developed.
“Why is human civilization here more advanced?
“Because there's no magic. Living here wasn't as easy as in Ethereal, so humans used their brains to survive.” The bullhead answered with pride, as if he were human.
The helicopter flew low. Varg stood beside the door with all his gear and a rope. The eighth portal was so isolated that he was obligated to fight it alone. He had to withstand an onslaught of large monsters. As the new member of the Detachment of Monster Eradication, his mission was beyond hardcore.
“Your code name is Butcher One. Finish them off. Captain Nadine will accompany you.”
The prince saluted when he jumped from helo. His first mission as a member of DOME had begun. Despite his womanizing attitude, Varg completed an assignment from his father to study Earth's civilization. Especially the modern military. Today was his final test. Once he had landed, Bullhead contacted him by radio.
“Show me what you made of.”