My fellow Belkans.

At this point in time, many, if not all of you, have come to learn of the unscrupulous and unjustified assault on one of the two most revered idols, Miss Elysia, by the Sardegnian Papal State. You may have heard rumors, you may have heard hearsay, yet no matter which source you get your information from, it has left you all speechless, frustrated, and outraged. Many have come to receive the aid rendered by Miss Elysia, even before she becomes an idol alongside Miss Eden, and countless more others have received the miracles they performed together. For you all to feel justified anger on behalf of the woman who can best be described as a beacon of all that's pristine in the entire world is an understandable matter. For I too, as the Reich Marshal, share your very flame of fury.

In my short, but nonetheless eventful military career, I've come to deliberate many hard and questionable decisions for the betterment of the Reich. Some of these would have dragged me to the deep end if it wasn't for the shining beacon of morality that is Miss Elysia herself. She has suddenly inserted herself into my life and dedicated her very being to ensure that I will never be led astray by this chaotic world, making it so that the Marshal you all have come to know will be a figure of stalwartness and infallibility. I've come to cherish this brave pink elf ever since, and she has then become an integral part of the Imperial family.

As such, an affront to her is not just an affront to the Belkan people, of which I am already obligated to give an adequate response, but also an affront to me and the Imperial family. Its citizens are incensed, the two Empresses are not pleased, and its Marshal is clearly riled... Belka demands righteous retaliation, and that she shall receive it in full.

I, Yukia Rosetta de Venusian, Reich Marshal and Crown Princess of the Belkan Reich, with the power invested into me by Empress Lucifer de Venusian and Empress Hel de Venusian, blessed as the Champion of the Primordial Goddess of Space, Creation, and Life, henceforth declaring the initialization of a Special Military Operation against Sardegna as punishment for the wrongdoings they have committed against the Reich.

This Operation will be codenamed Rolling Thunder and while specific details won't be given to maintain operational secrecy, let it be known that this is strictly a retaliatory strike. Belka is not going for a war of invasion with Sardegna but will do everything she can to cripple Sardegna's military and economic power. We will make sure that Sardegna will regret ever, ever, trying to lay their hands on our proud citizens.

This grudge of ours must be vindicated!

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"Control to Blaze, you're cleared for taxi to runway 1. The weather is clear and the wind condition is minimal. We're expecting smooth flying all the way to Angel 25."

"This is Blaze," Said the pilot sitting inside the cockpit of a black-bodied aircraft with the shape of an arrowhead. "Taxi-ing to runway 0-1. Giving her some gas now."

With a sharp intake of air, the engines of the black aircraft push it forward under the guidance of the pilot. Soon enough, the plane is positioned at the start of the runway, preparing itself for another sortie.

"Control to Blaze, reiterating mission objectives before take-off. You're to hit Angel 25 before making your way to Waypoint 1. Once there, you're to scan and record the development progress of the Ustian Loyalists' defensive line. Once those are done, you're to head for Waypoint 2, refuel if you're in need there then cut a straight path to Waypoint 3. We're estimating that Waypoint 3 will be a long one so make sure you and your co-pilot take care of yourselves."

"This is Blaze, copy all. I'll make sure Edge gets cooking when we get to Waypoint 2. Permission for takeoff, Control?"

"Granted. Bon Voyage."

"Affirm, Control." Blaze, the pilot, turns and looks over to his right. "All right, Edge, you ready?"

Edge nods at him while picking up her helmet, putting it on, and making sure it's sealed with the rest of her pressurized flight suit. "Good to go, Blaze."

Much like Edge, his co-pilot, and WSO, Blaze is draped in a heavy-duty pressurized suit with built-in life support. "Good, I'm calling it in. This is Captain Lucas Schmidt, callsign Blaze, engines are hot and we're a go in 3... 2... 1..."

Pushing the throttle, both Blaze and Edge can feel the powerful jets strapped beneath the airframe coming to life, inching the aircraft forward on the tarmac. As the speed kicks up and the markings of the runway start zipping by indiscernibly, the black arrowhead finally achieves enough speed to lift off. Blaze pulls the control stick towards himself, pointing the nose of the plane up and seconds later, all of its wheels leave the ground when they have crossed half of the runway.

Blaze reports as he can feel himself sinking into the cushioned seat. "Darkstar, airborne!"

Darkstar, the name-giver of a class of hypersonic strategic reconnaissance aircraft, fielded by none other than Belka herself. Capable of reaching Mach 10, the Darkstar can cover more than 3 kilometers in the blink of an eye. Right now, such an aircraft is under the control of a known Speed Devil who is itching to take his pride and joy out for a spin after an entire week of servicing after her last trans-Europe tour.

"This is Control confirming a good launch on the Darkstar. Status is green across the board, Blaze."

"Good." Blaze said, not hiding the smirk beneath the visor of his helmet. "Any of you brought a camera?"

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

Edge, hearing the mischievous tone of her fellow pilot, sighs knowingly. "Well crap, here we go again." Before going to work and activating the Darkstar's on-board imaging system, both optical and many more.

"Yggdra damn it, Lucas! If you dare buzz the Con again, it won't end in just a paycheck cut!" Ground Control warned immediately. It shames them to admit it but they're getting too used to Blaze's antics whenever he gets behind the stick of a Darkstar.

Blaze turns his aircraft around, before flying closer and closer to the ground, and by extension, the air traffic control tower by the left of the Darkstar. Blaze smirks when the Darkstar buzzes the Con at transonic speed.

"Well fuck you too, Lucas! That was my favorite hat you asshole!"

Blaze laughs. "Put it on my tab, Thunderhead! I'll be sure to print the ones with your best face on them when we return. Gotta get to work, be seeing ya!"" Turning to Edge, Blaze asks unsurely. "You did get the pictures, right?"

"Caught it on full High Definition, Blaze." Edge said before sending over a short video clip to Blaze's MFD screen. It's a slow-mo clip of the tower occupants when they flew by them.

"Nice!" Blaze nodded. "Gosh, I love the look on their faces whenever we did that."

Edge comments with a shake of her head. "If I hadn't been flying as your wing-woman all this time, I would have thought that you're doing this just to fuck with Control."

Blaze smirks. "As if! I am proud to say that I am the fastest man alive and I won't give up this opportunity for anything. Besides, I know when and when not to push some buttons. They may be mad now but it's all in good fun, bastards will get back at me by doing some sort of a prank."

Edge sighs. "I will hold you to that and don't come crying to me when they put something in your meal. You're an adult for crying out loud."

Blaze opts to wisely not comment on that. Rather, he chooses to point the Darkstar's nose vertically. "Let's head for Angel 25." Edge just looks at him critically.

With the impressive powerplant the Darkstar is holding, he can just ascend vertically and the Darkstar will still be accelerating and climbing at a blistering pace. If not for himself witnessing the science behind the aircraft, Blaze would have thought the plane was being powered by dark magics from another world.

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Waypoint 1, above the Ustio-Erusea Maginot Defensive Line.

Flying at Angel 25, 25000 meters above the ground, it takes kilometers in radius for the Darkstar to complete a turn at Mach 5. Yet, the Darkstar has to complete many such turns around Ustio-Erusea hotspots. The time taken by the turns is used for Edge to acquire and record real-time intelligence in regions that can't be monitored by satellites. Coincidentally, Darkstar's full designation is Strategic Reconnaissance 72. The craft has come through 72 revisions, hence the loving number designation as a reminder of the arduous design phase. It is equipped with the best detection suite, signals intelligence sensors, and radar available in the Belkan arsenal. This enables the Darkstar to function as not just an aerial recon platform but also that of a battlefield AWACS if need be. One of the many touted features of the Darkstar is the ability to construct highly detailed holographic maps of an area, above and below ground to a certain extent, thanks to a combination of optical/infrared, laser scanning, and magic-enhanced detectors.

A Darkstar also employs stealth technology and electronic warfare to protect themselves against future threats. Not to mention the fact that with a top speed of Mach 10, the pilot of a Darkstar can just kick the paddle to the metal and nothing would be able to catch up with them.

With such powerful tools at their disposal, how come the Darkstar hasn't taken over the role of aerospace command for the Belkan Air Force? Well, because the Darkstar bears the stigma that every military fears, extremely expensive and hard to maintain. Despite the industrial capability of Belka, only 32 Darkstars have been made, and so far, there's no intention of fielding any more than that.

Having said that, just a single Darkstar can change the terms of the future battlefields to suit Belka's vision. Their ability to penetrate deep behind enemy lines and to draw near-perfect maps of the battle zones prove to be invaluable for strategic planning. Right at this moment, Edge is using the powerful camera she has available to film the ongoing construction of Ustian radar sites along the country's Eastern territories.

Edge comments. "The quality of the image is wonderful despite us being so high up. It seems those eggheads improve the targeting pod again. Do you reckon we will be detected when those radar installations are up and running?"

Blaze asks back. "Will it ever get to that though? Eruseans help Ustio build those things to predict our future air raids. I don't think the suits upstairs will like it that much so I think those sites will be swept away soon enough."

"Point taken." Edge nodded. "Do we need to refuel at Waypoint 2?"

"That won't be necessary. I've checked the gauge and it's more than enough to finish Waypoint 3 when we still have daylight. We can hail for a tanker on our return trip if need be."

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Waypoint 3, circling above Taranto harbor.

"It's a beautiful day." Blaze mused as he watched the shared feed from Edge's point of view with the targeting pod. "The water of the Med would have been nice for a swim if it wasn't winter right now."

"While you're enjoying the view of the sea, I am busy identifying targets of interest for the data package. So either you offer me good observation or just keep your musing to yourself, Blaze." Edge pointedly said that.

Only for Blaze to smile knowingly before saying. "Turn your camera back, and point it down directly Southeast, ten kilometers away from Taranto. There's a hollow-out cave there, check it and tell me what you see."

Edge pauses her action for a few seconds but ultimately follows after Blaze's instruction. The man may be laidback but he's never said a lie to Edge before.

After a moment of checking, Edge spots the cave that Blaze pointed out. "Well, I'll be damned." Edge commented. "That's not a cave anymore, it's a hidden naval base built into a cave formation. Judging from the size of the entrance, it can house upward of some destroyers and submarines to even a few cruisers."

Edge looks up at Blaze. "I think Thunderhead will spare you any prank with the contribution you made today. This is a prime target for the new bombs those Bear pilots are eager to try out."

Blaze snickers and wink. "What can I say, I try to impress."

The rest of the recon tour is eventful. Once darkness has befallen Sardegna, Blaze kicks the Darkstar to Mach 10 and heads back for Waypoint 2. The aircraft then lowers its altitude for a refueling approach above a Belkan Carrier Strike Group before finally making the trip back home. By the time they touch down, Edge and Blaze are in the queue for the late-night snack bar at the base. Control gives them the permission to de-stress and take the rest of the week easy until their Darkstar is done servicing next week.

By that time, the world will be less calmer than the chilly night atmosphere at the airbase right now.