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Tyree's Tension


Chapter One – Flyers Beware


The small starfire had little shielding, but it was exceptionally fast and manoeuvrable.

“It's the fastest fighter out there,” Gunmaster Tyree had told the small group of pilots sitting before him, many of them new recruits.

One of the team had flown them before and muttered behind his hand, “Fast and no shielding. It kinda says what corpos think of the fliers on the line....”

A veteran of several campaigns, Tyree had noticed the speaker, Georgeson a natural Earther. He decided not to call the man out; after all they were at war – and, it did men good to sound off, now and then.

His tolerance with his men did not extend to his home life and, within less then three and a half years, he had realized that a married life was not for him, as his time away from Leanne had provided her with the reason she needed, to find a listening ear from another, providing him with sexual favours, in return.

That was how Tyree saw it, whilst Leanne's opinion had been tainted somewhat, by her bestfriend Camia: “Absent without leave to be,” the woman had said to Leanne, describing his presence in their marriage.

'It was almost as though she chose to ignore the fact that we're at war,' he mused, looking at the sea of faces before him, red-hot anger at the pit of his gut.

'That said, we are at war and in the grand scheme of things, problems such as mine mean not a jot,' he concluded, wondering when his commander would arrive to oversee the new wing.

Each battleship boasted six wings of fighters and, the Shield Corp ship Heracle had been without a full complement of fighters since their fiercest engagement yet. Now they were at full strength and with some training en route, the new fighters would be ready, to engage the enemy.

“Gunmaster Tyree, are you in there?” He heard from his right, as his commander approached from the door to the assembly room.

He turned his head quickly and snapped off a salute, “Ma'am, just waiting on you, for handover.”

Genevieve Right was an off-worlder, born on one of the outer colony worlds and carried herself with the demeanour of one who truly believes in themselves and their abilities. She was also one of the few officers Tyree admired, having witnessed her in action himself. Commander Right did not lead from the rear, like many of his seniors. She led from and front and, he greatly admired her for what he had seen of her in combat, having witnessed her bring down four of the enemy in the firefight that had led to the deaths of three wings of nine fighters.

But, she had lived, albeit with the loss of an eye. Now the commander could not fly herself and, her frustration showed, every time Tyree had seen her since. Not that he blamed her, after all she was a warrior and, Shield Corp needed more like her.

The war had become protracted, with a great many deaths on both sides; but their was a just cause, so the conflict persisted, even though both sides seemed evenly matched.

A game-changer was needed, to bring an end to the interminable war and while both sides sought to produce the ultimate weapon, men died.
Even so, Shield Corp hoped the new starfighter might swing the battles to their favour. It was new technology and promised much, the commander informed her pilots, as Tyree stood by her side.

She was tall and fair, while he was neither, yet they shared a common purpose – the desire to look after their crews, prior to, during and after battle. It was their reason for being. Both of them were committed to the fray, the carnage and blood, spilled in the name of the corporate war.

The money paid to them meant little, the cause was just: and, the enemy would fall.

This was what Right and Tyree believed, having fought for their masters for almost ten years apiece, with each of them now battle-hardened and somewhat embittered, with those above them.

Yet, still they fought, as that was all they knew now...

“Alright dismissed,” the commander called out finally, turning to face him as the assembled crews stood and left the room; “Time for a beverage Tyree?”

She smiled, a smile that did not touch her vivid blue eyes. But, Tyree relished the attentions she would soon bestow on him, after the requisite number of drinks had been provided.

“It's always time for, a beverage... commander,” he answered, returning her smile.

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UninhabitedHeart
03:24 Apr 07 2018

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