Captain Azariah headed one of the Battalions under the 7th Division — Void Light.
Unease rippled in the air. All officers present in the briefing room tensed. Captain Azariah sat at the centre. The thirty Wing Commanders under him sat adjacent to the centre. All eyes on the youth.
The dark man with bushy brows next to him, Commander Jafari, cleared his throat as soon as the last person walked in, sitting farthest to their Captain.
"Captain we're all ready. "
"Proceed," Azariah said in a hushed tone.
"Yes sir."
"We've received an order from the 7th Div HQ to charge into the Wastelands. Retrieve the Holy Fragments and evacuate immediately after."
"What, the Wasteland?" Adam, the last Wing Commander to walk in blurted out.
"Yes."
"But we went for a survey just three weeks ago, and we all know the toll it took on us." He frowned.
Jafari didn't stop him. His forehead creased as well glancing at Azariah.
"Captain, w-what do you think?"
"The order?"
"Sir?"
"As the second in command officer, what do you think?" Azariah drawled.
"Ah, I think, I think we should go with another Battalion to the wasteland at least, just in case."
"Yes, Captain. Jafari is right, another battalion should at least follow us to the wasteland. Not after we lost thousands of our men from the last survey." Another Wing Commander with a scarred face chided in.
"Captain, we can still contact the HQ to reconsider their decision." Adam pushed further.
However, they knew whom they were dealing with. All this was for naught.
"Silence."
It was a whisper. Yet, it carried an ominous chill that made them all froze. Mayhaps, they had forgotten whose presence they stood.
"Gather our men, we're heading to the wastelands in three hours."
"Yes sir." They all saluted, scrambling away.
Left alone, Captain Azariah looked through the window — the warm rays of the fuchsia sun fell on his cheeks.
"The wastelands, huh?" He muttered to himself, his expression unreadable.
The clock ticked, minutes passed, hours flickered. Jafari returned to the briefing room, saluting.
"Captain, our men are ready."
Azariah rose from his seat. He walked past Jafari who immediately followed him outside.
The scene outside stirred emotions. Thousands of officers in black uniforms and grey uniforms sprawled out like a baleful sea.
Knowing his taciturn superior, Commander Jafari acknowledged Azariah before facing the massive line-up.
"Soldiers of humanity."
"YES!" The air trembled as thousands of men replied in unison.
"Our mission is simple. Enter the wastelands, retrieve what's ours, and evacuate immediately with the handful of survivors remaining."
"ROGER!" The soldiers roared.
"Fight with your will, your soul, your mind, and your body. Remember, you weren't given this life just to die without putting a good fight." Jafari pushed his arm forward Inciting the battalion of soldiers.
"Yes, yes, yes." The crowd broke out into a pulsating roar.
A few moments later, the light dome enveloping this Sky City flickered out of existence.
"Soldiers, CHARGE!" Jafari cried, watching the soldiers jump from the edge of the Sky City while others leapt off.
Thousands of Wyverns blocked the sky, casting a large shadow on the base. The officers stood firmly on their back as they steer on course all diving towards the wastelands.
Amongst others, some soldiers rode true dragons that soared into the Sky with overflowing pride.
The Wing Commanders followed the soldiers. Dozens of dragons manifested in the air, their regal aura palpable. From the commanders' acrobatic leap to their mounts, one could instantly tell the difference between ranks. They mounted their steeds, each taking control of a Wing.
Azariah and Jafari were the only ones left standing after some minutes. Jafari glanced at his mute captain waiting for his next course of action.
"Captain?"
"Let's go."
Both of them walked towards the edge in a relaxed pace and then fell off the landmass. Jafari manifested his dragon immediately. It was an earth dragon with hazel scales and emerald eyes. Its maws stretched open, letting out a piercing growl.
On the other hand, Azariah was still plummeting. His pace steady — like an angel, parting between clouds. After a while, he sent a mental command to the tattoo on his chest, feeling it crawl out.
It transformed into a pristine alabaster dragon about five yards in length. And a wingspan of seven yards. The silver dragon flapped its seraph wings and the clouds parted. It then dived at a speed that instantly caught up with Jafari before slowing down to match his earth dragon.
Jafari watched his Captain from the side. The corner of his mouth curled into a smile, his eyes beaming with reverence.
"As usual." He grinned.
Azariah replied not. The wind howled as they sliced through the sky. His dragon, like the steeds of other soldiers, broke the wind and kinetic force, but the little that bypassed brushed his hair which flapped like a wind spirit.
"Captain, I just got a report. Some of our men have landed including their Squadron Leaders. "
"Wing Commanders have landed too."
"Two teams already encountered some Shamblers, but they've been neutralized."
"A Flight Lieutenant from Wing three just sighted a C-2 Undead."
Jafari relayed all the reports they got in the blink of any eye from his radio receiver.
"Jeez, it's not even a minute since they've landed."
Azariah was yet to comment on the report. They both remained silent for a few minutes as they dived at a leisured pace.
The wastelands soon appeared in sight as it rushed to meet them. A desolate land shrouded in fog, barren terrains, twisted geological features. And the dwellers of the hollows — the Undead.
Breaking through the foggy atmosphere, the alabaster dragon disappeared, Azariah called it back. His body free fell like a snow ball, his feet landing softly on the ground.
Jafari s dragon landed beside him before vanishing into thin air leaving his rider who landed on the ground with a thud.
"Relay my orders."
"Wing one through four, rescue the survivors. Only Wing five should go for the Holy Fragments."
"B-but, Captain." Jafari s eyes widened.
Azariah looked in his direction for a few heartbeats. Despite his blindfold, Jafari still found his gaze unnerving.
"Yes sir."
From their nine o'clock, a three metres undead split into two. It fell apart, just like that.