I told them everything about the dream I had and the message the Master had said. As I was explaining it all, I could see my father’s face gradually beginning to pale as his eyes widened with fear and realization.
As my aunt and uncle poked their heads into our room to see what was going on, my father said, “The airport; they’re going to strike the airport soon.”
My mother was in the middle of explaining everything to my aunt and uncle when she heard what my father said, and she turned to him. “How in the world would you know that?” She asked.
My father turned to her and said, “Because that’s what I would do.”
“Excuse me?” My uncle said it tiredly, though my father ignored him.
“Think about it,” he said to all of us as he looked over each of our faces. “The Yankys are landing their troops and supplies right now, and most likely more are coming in later today. If I were some big-shot Rusivite leader, I’d be salivating at the idea of sucker punching my enemy when they hadn’t even unloaded everything.”
Varis whimpered and tightened his embrace around me, and my father noticed this and bit his lower lip. Realizing he was just scaring my brother even more, he sighed and shook his head. “Sorry,” he started to say, but my mother held a hand up.
“No reason to be sorry, dear; we can discuss this in our room.” She turned away from Father, came over to my brother and me, and kneeled beside us. “Hey, it’s okay.” She cooed softly as she lightly hugged Varis from behind and reached around to pull me in as well.
My brother choked a sob and turned to nestle into my mother. I simply leaned into her while my arms loosened around my brother. I didn’t know what to say or do, for that matter. My mind was running a mile a minute.
He’s right. I thought as worry began to settle in. At least, tactically, it’d make sense. The Rusivites, as we know them, can practically strike anywhere they want with those massive pods, and the airships they have built look way more advanced than the brief glimpse I had of the Yanky ship. If the Rusivites knew the Yankys were here, if I were in their position, I’d attack as well.
My mother released Varis and me and pulled my brother close. She cooed softly to him and whispered in his ear for a few moments as he began to calm down. Meanwhile, Isa and my father came over to me and helped me up off the ground and back onto my bed.
“How’re you feeling?” My father asked in a hushed voice.
“I’m okay,” I said. “Just scared.”
My father nodded and glanced at Isa, who said nothing, and went over to my aunt and uncle, who were still confused. “It’s okay to be scared,” Father said. “But I need to know, Luna, was there anything else that you can remember?” He asked.
I shook my head. “No, everything I told you is all I know,” I said, and he took a deep breath.
“You and Isa were planning on going out today, were you?” He asked.
I blinked. How would he know that? I hadn’t told anyone.
As if reading my mind, he said, “Isa told us yesterday. I bring this up because I want to come with you now.”
My eyes widened. “Don’t you and Momma have work?”
My father shook his head. “No. Yesterday and today are our off days. I want to come with you in case something happens. Your mother will be with Varis. Besides, three people searching is better than just two.”
I pursed my lips and asked, “Do I have a choice?”
“No.” My father said it flatly before giving me a shit-eating grin. “Your mother is capable of taking care of Varis far better than I can, but unlike your mother, I like to think I’m a pretty good tracker. So if we need to find something, I’m your guy.” He winked.
I smiled a little and shrugged. "Well, if I have no choice, then I might as well bring you along.” I rolled my eyes playfully.
My father scoffed. “Hey, you don’t need to sound so reluctant. I make great company.” He chuckled and tussled my hair.
I was thankful my father came over when he did. He proved to be a nice distraction from the worries that plagued my mind. I just hope this premonition was a dream and nothing more. Based on my prior dreams, The Man in Black has never fully predicted the future one-for-one, everything has been vague predictions, if that’s the right word. Which means there’s a possibility an attack may not happen.
As for my father’s prediction, I hope there isn’t a Rusivite commander gunning for employee of the year.
----------------------------------------
“It could be anywhere at this point!” I groaned as I flopped back on the sidewalk bench as Isa sat beside me and Father leaned against a nearby lamp post. We had just recently gotten off a tram; today we chose to use Johanneson’s public transportation rather than take Ruby out, as Father wanted to leave the strider behind with Mother and Varis in case they chose to leave the house. Since Mother can speak Draconian, Father thought it’d be best since the two could more easily communicate.
The tram system wasn’t so bad. Hell, it was kind of great. So far, walking and using transportation have been very reliable and surprisingly quick. It was a little past noon, and the sun sat high in the sky above us. It was a mostly clear day with hardly any clouds in the sky and continuing with the weird weather this past week, it was chilly. Not too cold like how last night had gotten, but if I had to guess using freedom units, I’d say it was about fifty-five degrees Fahrenheit, give or take a few points.
Sweater weather is what my old mother used to call it in my past life. Which is honestly my preferred climate. At least it used to be. I wasn’t a big guy anymore, nor did I have a hoodie I could throw on. Nope, instead I had the body of a small child, which a simple breeze could whisk away at any moment. Every time the wind blew, I was practically shivering.
Thankfully, my father had brought a small blanket I could bundle myself in, and as I went out, my aunt was kind enough to lend my father some money just before she left for work. So while we were out searching for this “heart of the city," we also took the opportunity to do some clothes shopping. Mainly, outfits meant for cooler weather.
Which was hard to find, mind you, because it was technically summer. Most shops around here that sold clothes were only stocked with warmer weather options. Most places we stopped at stated that they’d either sold off the remainder of the stock elsewhere or had donated it. Knowing my luck, one hundred percent lines up.
Anyway, what was I going on about?
Oh yeah.
We were looking for the heart of the city. After I had told my parents and Isa what I had seen in my dream, There was no way in hell I was going back to sleep after that. None of us could, except for Varis. The poor kid was so terrified by me waking him up screaming and then hearing what I said that he just couldn’t handle the stress. At some point, he cried himself out, and Isa tucked him back into bed while myself and my parents hung out in the living room.
We discussed in great detail what we had known so far.
The Man in Black, who wishes to be called the Master, is the Dark Lord. Or at least, that’s who we expect him to be. Secondly, he has chosen me for some reason because of someone I once was to help with stopping “God” from destroying, claiming, or doing whatever he wants with our world. However, due to his having possessed my body, his powers have been greatly weakened, and he needs to rest. To speak again, I must reach the “heart of the city” to find a place of power to speak with him. He also mentioned that the construction needed to be finished and that I should keep an eye on my aunt.
That’s everything we know so far regarding what the Man in Black wants. The issue is that “the heart of the city” isn’t as straightforward a location as you’d think. Having taken a ride on the wagon with my father and Isa, we traveled to the city’s core, just below the Oberstein. I should mention that was the apparent name of the gothic castle atop the large, central hill in Johanneson. It’s the most center the city could get, and yet I got nothing.
It could be that the Master wants us to go into the castle, yet Oberstein was possibly the most heavily guarded place in all of Johanneson. Two blocks around the city had been cordoned off as soldiers dug in and fortified streets and buildings in preparation for a siege. A sight that did little to calm my already fraying nerves.
When seeing this, my father made it certain that we should avoid this place unless absolutely necessary. None of us were in the mood for pissing off the local government.
The second place we had gone to search was the construction site near Trentonville. In the same place I had witnessed the accident when we first arrived, however, there was a problem. Just like the Oberstein, the construction site was heavily guarded, not to the level of the governor’s manor, but constables and lightly armed soldiers patrolled up and down the blocks that surrounded the site, and Isa pointed to the rooftops of buildings housing just barely visible snipers.
Whatever it was they were building here, it was clearly important.
Which finally led us to where we are now. Sitting on a bench alongside a busy road. Lost on what to do next. I pouted and huffed as I crossed my arms and sank into my seat. Beside me, Isa took a deep breath and said, “It’s here somewhere, Luna; we were all expecting this “heart” to be in an obvious location, maybe this master was referring to something else.”
“Something a bit more out of the box?” I mused as I leaned back into the bench.
“Excuse me?” Isa said with a blink and a tilt of her head.
“Thinking outside the box,” I said. “It’s a figure of speech.”
“I never heard of it,” my father said, and I pursed my lips.
Oh shit, I thought. This wasn’t the first time something like this had happened, even to this day, seven years later. I still bring up phrases from my prior life that either don’t exist in this world or are worded differently.
“It’s something the Master said before, and I liked it,” I lied with a wave of my hand. “It means what Isa just said. We’re looking for something obvious when, in reality, it isn’t. So instead, we need to think “outside the box.” I think.” I explained, and both Isa and Father nodded understandingly.
Isa crossed her arms and said, “So, you’re suggesting we try looking in places we wouldn’t expect?” She arched an eyebrow, and I nodded.
“Yeah, exactly. Like...” I pursed my lips. “What would the heart of a city be?” I asked.
My father cursed softly and said, “I wish I had brought your mother along now. She’s good at these sort of mind games.” He chuckled. “If we take it literally, a heart is what keeps us alive, right?” My father pondered as he gripped his chin in thought. “It’s what pumps the blood through us and gets us moving--”
“That’s it!” Isa blurted so loudly that an old couple behind us yelped with surprise and scurried away. Even I nearly flew out of my seat as I recoiled and turned to look at her. “A place of power,” she said. “A heart that keeps everything going. He’s talking about the arcanium plant.”
“You mean those generators you taught us the other day?” I asked, blinking.
Isa nodded excitedly. “Yes. Every metropolis has one. A large sprawling plant that powers everything we see and the lights,” she said as she gestured to the street lamps and magical moving signs. She then facepalmed and said, “I’m astonished I didn’t connect the dots immediately.” She sighed and looked at my father. “Slyran, you’re a genius.”
“I am?” He asked, eyes wide with shock, then shook his head and smirked. “I am!” He repeated it more confidently.
I smiled as well, relieved that I had a capable mentor. There is no way in hell I would’ve figured that out. Or, well, not as quickly. “Great,” I said happily. “Where is it?”
Isa’s excited smile faltered a bit. “I...” She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “That’s the problem. I don’t know,” she said, lowering her voice so only my father and I could hear. “Arcanium plants, within the last few blood moons, have started being constructed beneath the surface in large underground bunkers. Mostly for security reasons and as a secondary measure in case the lead lining doesn’t stop Renka from shutting off the generators.”
“I thought you said the lead does stop it, though,” I said, and Isa nodded.
“It does, but paranoia can be a hell of a driver," Isa said. “Most likely, if I had to guess, the plant would be constructed beneath the city or somewhere nearby, and, uh... heh...” Isa nervously chuckled, and my blood ran cold. “Such a place would be under heavy guard and surveillance.”
“Especially with an on going war,” my father added with a groan before muttering, “Wouldn’t be the first time I broke into a heavily fortified compound.”
Well, fuck me, My mind raged. How in the world does the Master expect me to get into such a place?! I’d rather go up against the goddamn castle than an underground nuclear power plant. Not to mention it’d be a plant guarded by Heinmarran soldiers and possibly even mages, or god knows what the army cooks up.
Seeing my concern, Isa hastily added, “This is just a theory, Luna. There’s the chance the heart could be elsewhere.”
I slowly shook my head. “I don’t think so,” I said. “What you suggested seems like the most obvious choice. It’s the place that provides all the power for the city; it alone is probably a place of power. So it makes sense.”
“It does,” my father said, “but, again, we don’t know for sure. Till then, I say we keep our options open.”
Isa nodded as a large truck bounced along the road past us, blaring its horn when a group of oblivious kids ran across the street in front of it. The driver slammed his foot on the brakes, and to my surprise, I saw that the driver, as he stuck his head out to shout at the rascals, was a small, and I mean very small, bald man. Probably no bigger than two feet.
How the hell is he driving that thing? I thought distractedly before shaking my head as I came back to reality. “Uh, maybe we should discuss this stuff in a more private spot?” I suggested it before shivering when a cool breeze came down the street and blew over us.
Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.
Isa shuddered as well and said, “Agreed. Let's put a pause on the search for now and let's go get you a nice coat.” She smiled and patted me on the head.
----------------------------------------
Shopping for clothes, or shopping in general, was hard. For girls at least. Back in my old life, when I was a man, it was simple. I walk into the store and find a simple pack of briefs or a plain, blank shirt. I then checked if they would fit me and then bought them. Simple as that. Now, I will be honest in saying I was no fashionista; my idea of “fashion” back then was really whatever felt comfortable at the time.
I never really went anywhere. I did have like one or two outfits for when I did, but usually, it was some baggy jeans, a loose shirt, and maybe a hoodie. When it came to fashion, time was so much simpler.
Now I had to worry about other things, or really, I didn’t, but those around me did. We weren’t even trying to buy clothes or other outfits. It was only a coat. I only needed a comfy, warm, soft coat. Isa thought otherwise.
For someone who claimed they hated dressing up, she sure as hell had quite the taste when it came to dressing up. Father, on the other hand, shared the same opinion as me. He just wanted to go in, grab something my size, and go.
Isa, no. The colors had to match. The theme had to fit. It also had to be cute, because what I was wearing was adorable, and therefore the coat also had to be cute. I swear, we spent at least as much time hopping between shops looking for a coat as we did trying to find the goddamn heart of the city. At least it felt that way.
In the end, though, around four or five in the afternoon. We finally settled on something Isa thought I’d like, and well, I did. Like a lot. The coat was surprisingly light despite its thickness; it was made out of some kind of wool, or a wool-like supplement of this world, and it was soft. Like, really soft—so soft I could cuddle with it in bed. It was dark gray, almost black depending on the lighting, and matched well with the outfit I was wearing for the day. Which was a nice dark blouse and gray skirt.
I loved it. I was afraid Isa was going to try to make me wear something very frilly and overly cute. Not that I don’t like such things; I’ve tried and worn some super cute stuff back home a handful of times, but I don’t think I have the courage yet to be publicly cute. Besides, mundane can be cute too if worn correctly, and I think the coat Isa got me proves that.
The store assistant, a kind, short-haired half-elf woman, would not stop fawning over me as she helped Isa pick out the coat. Which was discounted due to it being considered “out of season,” which I think my aunt would be happy to hear when we return the change. When we were standing at the desk getting everything rung up, I noticed the small skirt pocket on my dress began to vibrate.
I was startled at first, but I quickly remembered I had stuffed the caster Oscar had given me into it when we left. I had thought about contacting Anne during a quiet moment during our search to talk, but I was so caught up in running around town that I forgot. However, it seemed like Anne was doing me a favor by calling instead.
Excited to speak to my friend, I asked my father if it would be okay to answer, and he smiled and gave me the go-ahead. Eagerly, I took out the caster and flipped it open, and to my delight, I watched as my reflection on the base mirror shimmered and changed into a fiery red-haired elven girl.
“Anne!” I said it excitedly, and I watched as the other girl’s face lit up.
“Luna! It’s you!” She exclaimed.
“It’s also you!” I responded as I clutched the device in both hands and wandered off a little bit away from Isa and Father, though not so far that I was out of line of sight.
“This is so cool,” Anne said as she pulled her caster closer to her face, which to me looked like I was zooming in on her eye. “I didn’t think this would work. We’re actually talking to each other!” She giggled.
To Anne, a device like a caster would seem otherworldly, even magical. Which it was. Having had a smartphone for over a decade, face timing on this device wasn’t anything new to me. Even though I had gone seven years without a cell phone, having this little magic device in my pocket felt oddly comforting. I hadn’t realized how naked I felt not having a phone in my pockets now that I thought about it.
"Yeah, it’s really neat,” I said casually as Anne pulled the... would you call it a camera? Do these things have a camera? Well, no. It’s a mirror, but I guess the mirror acts as a camera. I guess, for the sake of describing it, I’ll call it that.
Anne pulled the camera away from her face and looked at me, and I could see faintly behind her; she seemed to be in a crowded building. I could hear voices all around her, many of which were muffled, and those I could understand were in a language I didn’t know. YYanky, I presumed.
“How is your flight?” I asked curiously. “Or, did you start flying yet?”
Anne shook her head. “No. Uncle and I are still at the airport,” she said, turning the camera on the caster to show me Oscar, who was sitting in a chair beside her with one leg over the other and a book in his lap. He seemed so engrossed in reading that he hadn’t noticed Anne showing him to me. I saw her hand reach over and smack his side, and the older elf jerked as he snapped back to reality and turned to her.
He spoke in Yanky, but judging by his tired expression, it seemed like he said, “The hell do you want, kid?” Though when he noticed the caster in her hands was displaying my little face, his expression immediately brightened up, and in broken Maurich, he said, “Luna! Nice to see you. I hope you’re having a good day.” He wiped his hand over his crusty, tired eyes.
“Hello Osc--I mean Mr. Reynolds--” I stopped when he waved a hand dismissively.
“Oscar is fine,” he said with a big smile.
Hearing that made my heart flutter, and I nodded. “I’m doing okay, Oscar. I’m out shopping with my father and Isa.” I turned my caster and panned over the shop with the camera so he could see.
“Oooh, pretty store,” I heard him say. "Well, I hope you get what you want.” He chuckled.
“Oh, I am.” I beamed. “A nice coat to combat this cold weather.”
The man nodded. ‘It has been chilly. Too chilly, hasn’t it?” I nodded. “Hopefully back home. Things will not be so bad, eh?” He chuckled and glanced at Anne, who took the caster back. “It was nice seeing you.” I heard Oscar's voice drift away, as what I assumed to be some sort of voice proximity was now too far to pick up.
“We’re going to be waiting a little longer before we go home,” Anne said with a small smile. “Uncle said the soldiers needed to unload the... Strella craft, which I think is what he called them.”
I blinked and tilted my head. “What’s that? Some kind of big airship?”
Anne nodded. “Yeah, it’s a Yanky ship; they’re super big!” Anne turned to her uncle, who was out of frame, and began to speak in Yanky. Her voice sounded so different when she swiftly switched from one language to another; it was pleasant. Honestly, the Yanky language sounded cool.
I should probably find some time to learn it when things calm down. I thought, If they calm down.
“Uncle said I can show you,” Anne said excitedly as I saw her and Oscar stand up, and the view vanished as she turned the caster to look at the floor, as I could assume the two of them were walking towards a window. Suddenly the view shifted as Anne brought the caster up and practically pressed the screen against a large glass window, and I had to squint. The sun was right in my eyes now.
The view on the small device showed a large airfield, yet not the kind of airfield you’d expect from an airport on Earth. To my knowledge, turboprop aircraft weren’t something I knew existed at the time, and Heinmarr’s infrastructure wasn’t built to support such long runways. Instead, imagine a helicopter port. An entire airport that is built for vertical takeoff and landing craft, such as airships.
The field outside the airport was cluttered with massive aircraft, some of which seemed impossibly large to be flight-worthy. Most of the airships had the symbol of the flaming bird, which I’m assuming now is a phoenix, on their hulls, signaling them to be Yanky ships. I wanted to say out loud that they looked like spaceships. All of the airships looked like something out of a dieselpunk sci-fi comic I’d seen online or in some video game.
Much cooler than the Rusivite ones I saw flying over my hometown, but much, much smaller. Anne’s finger then appeared and tapped on the glass to point out the one they’d be flying on, which honestly didn’t help. The angle at which her finger appeared on the screen was crooked, and it looked like she was pointing at another craft and not the one she intended.
Part of me wanted to point that out, but I didn’t want to embarrass her, so I went along with the show. “That big ship there, that is the one we’re going to be flying on.” Anne said that and tore the camera away from the outside so that I was looking back at her face. “Have you flown before?” She asked as my father called out to me.
Before I answered Anne, I turned to look at my father and Isa, who were ready to go, as Isa came over to me holding my coat. “Everything’s all set, Luna; are you ready to go?” Isa asked.
I nodded and said, “I am, but give me just a few seconds, please.” Isa nodded politely, though my father looked to be running out of patience, but kept his mouth shut.
I turned back to Anne and shook my head. “No, I haven’t flown... Not intentionally.” I added quickly at the end.
Anne snorted and said, “Neither have I; I’m actually kind of nervous.” She shifted in her spot.
“Oh, I'm sure you’ll be fine.” I smiled. “Those ships look really cool,” I said unhelpfully. I’ve never flown in my past life either; honestly, I was terrified at the prospect of flying, probably because I also had a horrific fear of heights.
Anne smiled. “Yeah, they are; did you know they also have dragons that ride on these?” She asked and turned the camera once again to face outside, and she pointed to a large aircraft at the edge of the field. It was a gargantuan and long vessel that was larger than many of the buildings near it. If I had to guess, the craft must be slightly larger than a Boeing 737, though I haven’t seen a Boeing in seven years, so I wouldn’t be surprised if I’m forgetting.
“Uncle said those big doors on the side of it are where the dragons go in and rest,” she said with a smile. “Then, when they’re needed, the doors open up and dragon riders jump out of them mid-air to fight the Rusimians!” She said it excitedly.
“So it’s a flying aircraft carrier,” I said under my breath, and I gasped when I noticed Isa looking over my shoulder and also watching.
Isa giggled, pulled away, and made a slashing motion in the air for me to cut the call.
“Aircraft carrier?” Anne repeated, and I chuckled.
“Uh, yeah, I just came up with it. That’s really cool, Anne,” I said, trying to cut the call. “I’ll need to go though; Isa and Papa want to get going.”
“Aw, can you walk and talk?” She asked as she began to pull the camera away from the window, and that’s when it happened.
Suddenly, the view on the camera went white. So much so that I gasped and had to yank my face away from the caster as my eyes blinked away stars. There was a loud roaring sound that came through the small magic device, and I thought I could hear screaming.
“What the hell is happening?” Isa gasped, and my impatient father blinked and focused as he rushed over.
“What’s going on?” He asked, having not seen what Isa and I just witnessed.
The mirror on my caster began to come to me, and I clutched it tightly. “Anne, Anne? Can you hear me? Anne?” My heart began to race. The caster’s picture only showed the floor and what looked like broken glass. Over the loud rumbling of what must’ve been an explosion, I could hear screams and panic.
I heard voices and people shouting in the Yanky language. Then came another explosion. Then another.
I heard the man cough and sputter, and suddenly the caster’s view shifted and shook, and soon I was relieved to see Oscar’s face suddenly appear. “Luna?”
"Oh, thank God, Oscar!” I said, “Where’s Anne?”
Oscar winced and flinched when another explosion echoed in the background. “Alive, unconscious. We go, you go!”
Before I could say anything, my father snatched the caster from my hand. “Elder, what is happening?”
“We’re under attack!” Oscar snapped at my father, though probably not intentionally due to the stress, but then he added, “Duh! We rush to cover. You should as well! Will keep in touch!”
The caster’s mirror then shimmered, and soon my father was looking at his reflection. My blood ran cold. I was speechless; I didn’t know what to do or say, yet soon I wouldn’t have to as the ground heaved beneath our feet and the lights within the clothing store flickered. The half-elf clerk screamed with shock as the ground trembled once more as merchandise began to fall from the shelves.
“We need to go!” My father shouted, grabbed both mine and Isa’s shoulders, and pushed us towards the door. “Go!” He shoved us out the front door and onto the sidewalk.
Around us, confused and unaware citizens piled into the street or poked their heads out of apartments and business windows, wondering what the hell was all the ruckus. Those who had a slightly higher level of awareness were quickly rushing past those who had no idea what was happening. We could hear the rumbling explosions from the opposite end of the city, where the airport was, and nearby, maybe even a few blocks from where we were, I could see thick plumes of smoke from between skyscrapers.
There’s no way it’s artillery, no fucking away, I thought. The Rusivites had yet pushed over the river, and the Kenchala was at least a hundred miles or so from Johanneson.
My father quickly ushered us down the sidewalk, briskly walking in the direction of home. I could see on his face that he was regretting not taking Ruby along, though, as we rounded the street corner. I could see that expression change as we saw just how piled up and clogged the streets were now with curious and scared pedestrians.
“Why aren’t they going to cover?” I asked nervously, my fear taking hold despite how hard I was trying to keep it at bay.
“Because they don’t know,” Isa answered for my father. “Word either travels lightening fast in cities or at a crawler's pace,” she said, referring to a slug-like creature. “We should keep moving and keep your voices down; if the streets begin to panic, things will get far, far worse.”
Then I saw it. High above us all, piercing a cloud that streaked across the sky, was a flaming cylinder that came screaming down from the heavens above before plowing into the city. Just a couple blocks away from us. The ground lurched once again as if an earthquake had struck the city, and immediately, everything went to hell.
The people left and right by the dozens began to scream and run in every direction as the horror of what was going on began to settle in. Before I could react, I felt myself being lifted off the ground as my father gripped me tightly. He then grabbed Isa by her wrist and shouted.
“Run!”
My father and Isa began to bolt down the street, dipping around and pushing past those who got in our way while I gripped on for dear life. I couldn’t concentrate, my mind was blank, and the thoughts I did have I couldn’t register as I was once again locked into a state of shock and confusion.
Above in the sky, falling from heaven, I could see another cylinder descending upon the city, but it wasn’t alone. Behind it, by the dozens, I could see black dots and contrails trailing behind them. There had to at least be forty or fifty dots descending from the sky, and I could hear them—a faint buzzing sound getting louder and louder and louder until the cylinder struck the city this one so close that my father was lifted off the sidewalk and fell as windows around us shattered.
The city once again was filled with a chorus of screams as my father turned onto his back to save me from being smashed as he landed on his shoulder with a sickening thud. He cried out in pain before gritting his teeth and rolling on top of me, just as I noticed the wave of shattered glass about to pour onto us.
Without a word, I held out a hand and cast a shield. The invisible bubble wrapped around both myself, Isa, and any lucky individual I saw near us as the shards of broken glass began to rain around us.
“Fuck, my arm...” My father panted as the raining shards of glass finished slamming into the earth around us, and I felt confident in dropping my bubble. Around us, I could hear sirens beginning to wail, some of which were fire engines, others ambulances, yet the worst of all was the civil defense alarm.
“Air raid, air raid!” An emotionless, disembodied voice declared alongside the Klaxon alarm. “All citizens are to seek immediate shelter!”
Oh, thanks; I didn’t know that! I wanted to shout at the disembodied alarm, yet my sarcastic humor dissipated when I noticed that the buzzing sound that was coming from the dots in the sky was no longer a buzzing sound.
Instead, it had morphed into a horrific, shrieking roar.
“By Magron’s Flame, what are those?!” I heard a man shout.
“It doesn’t matter what they are; get down!” Another man shouted as the crowd screamed and everyone around us dove, and I was happy that both my father and I were already lying down.
I threw the bubble up once again for protection just as a massive object came screeching overhead above the rooftops with a deafening roar.
What the fuck was that? I asked myself; it went over so fast, I hadn’t gotten a look at it. It didn’t sound like a monster of any kind. At least, not a biological one of any kind.
“What in the hell was that?” Isa asked the question we all had in a panicked voice as she got to her knees after a few seconds.
“Whatever it was, it isn't friendly,” My father grunted as he pushed himself to one knee while still holding me in one arm. Yet I could see his right arm was limp.
"Papa, your arm--” I started, but he shook his head.
“Not now,” he said. “We can take care of it when we get to safety.”
“It’s coming back around!” A stranger screamed, and all three of our heads twisted to the sky, it was here that I finally got a good look at what it was.
Screaming high in the sky was a machine I hadn’t expected to see for at least another few decades. An airplane. More specifically, a fighter craft of sorts. It was small in size, probably about half the size of a bus, and was a dark green color with yellow symbols on its wings that I couldn’t make out. Yet, to my surprise, I saw no propeller of any sort on the craft, at least not on the front.
Instead, on its rear, I thought I saw something akin to a propeller, and my eyes widened. It was a pusher craft. They can fly now?!
“Down the alley!” My father grunted as he pushed himself to his feet with Isa’s help, and we quickly rushed down the street towards a large alley to our right, just as the aircraft came screaming over head once again before banking hard to the right in the direction of the initial explosions that started the chaos.
My father pressed his back against the brick wall and slid down it as he released me. Isa poked her head out of the alley and watched the sky. “It went in the direction of the airfield,” she said, her feline ears twitching. “I hear more of them that way.”
“They’re bombing it to dust,” Father said with a cough, looking at me. “Luna, can you...” He motioned with his eyes toward his busted arm.
I nodded and crawled towards him.
“Slyran,” Isa said as I began to mend my father's arm. “I take what I said back. I don’t want you to be a genius.”