Kindness Under Fire

In the afternoon after Lt. Ashley and I survived the storm and landed in the camp, the Crescent Sun finally appeared in the sky overhead.  The same winds and lightning that almost made us crash had impeded their progress more than they predicted.  Fortunately, the supply of medicine Ash and I brought through the storm allowed the doctors to treat the Pox patients on the edge of death; most of them children.  In the final hours of the day, the other Pegasi descended with the rest of the camp's supplies.  The crew and I were given the Pox vaccine and protective gear so we could assist the refugees safely.

In addition to supplies, our transports brought down dozens of the airship's medics to both administer the treatment and help teach the refugees to do so as well.  Among them was a good friend of mine, Lt. Abigail Libman.  When she landed in the field beside Ash's Pegasus, she invited me to come help her in the camp.  Inside the critical condition tents, rows of young children lay on cots with open crates of the treatment injectors spread throughout the space.  Although they were recovering, they still looked tired and their bodies were covered in spots.  We gave the children a few doses of an immunobooster our medics used to fight illnesses and accelerate their recovery.  The ones who were awake managed to give Abigail weary smiles.  She smiled back, took their temperatures and made sure they were comfortable before she moved on.  Abigail conversed with the nurses and before long we left to tend to another tent of patients.

"The children seemed to like you, Abby." I said as we walked down a grass lane between the tents.

"Oh, it's nothing really.  I'm not even that good with kids." she replied softly. "Besides, they probably wouldn't even be here if not for you and Ash.  I wish I could be that brave."

Before I could respond, a man walked up to us and recognized Abby as a medic by the red and white cross on her armband.  "Can you help us?  My baby daughter won't take the Pox treatment and we can't get her to stop crying.  Is there anything you can do?"

Abby and I exchanged glances.  She nodded and followed the man toward the wails of an infant.  Inside a tent, the baby's mother was trying to rock the crying child to sleep so the doctor beside her could treat her.  Abby dropped the backpack of medical supplies she carried on an empty cot and rummaged through it for a moment.

"Doctor, may I?" she said as she approached the mother and baby.  She held a jar of what appeared to be apple sauce in one hand and a vial of the Pox treatment in the other.  After she mixed the two together, she gave it to the mother to feed the child.  To my surprise, the baby ate the whole cup of mush without a problem.  "Always works." Abby whispered.

However, the baby began to cry again and refused to fall asleep.  Her mother looked up at Abby, hoping that she knew what to do.  Abby held out her hands, asking for permission to hold the baby.  The mother agreed and gave the child to her.  She cradled the infant in her arms and started to hum a soothing melody.

"Hush now, quiet now, it's time to lay your sleepy head.  Hush now, quiet now, it's time to go to bed…"  She sang for a few minutes more as she rocked the baby to sleep before returning her to the amazed mother.  The parents whispered thanks to her as we excused ourselves.

"That was wonderful." the doctor said as he followed us outside. "I'm betting they don't teach that kind of care in your training."

"Oh, well, I guess I picked up a few things here and there.  Some of it is more instinct than training." Abby said.

"Well, you have a special gift and I was wondering if you wouldn't mind helping us again tomorrow.  Some of the little ones don't respond well to our medical personnel and I think it would be good for them to see a few new faces around here.  Judging by the way you handled yourself in there, I know you'll be perfect.  What do you say, miss?"

She thought about his offer for a moment.  I hoped she would accept it as I believed it would benefit her was well.  "I'd love to." she answered.  

"Excellent!  I'll come and find you in the morning.  Goodnight ladies."

We left the doctor to find our cots in the area the camp had set up for the Crescent Sun's crew.  As I lay on my cot and resisted sleep, I thought about the conversation Abby and I were about to have before we were interrupted.  She mentioned how she wished she could be as brave as Ash, and I wanted to remind her that in a way, she was.  However, the more I thought about it, her strength came from something besides her bravery; something different yet no less important.  The sense of kindness that she carried about her was easily seen by anyone she interacted with.  In a way, those she met or helped always seemed different in a way.  Ever since I met her I had noticed this change in myself as well although it was subtle.  But as I drifted off to sleep I thought back to last days of the war, when Abby's bravery changed my heart for the better when everything around me seemed to only get worse.

Operation Iron Will was our last effort to crush our enemy's ability to continue the war.  Their main force was cut off from their supply lines in the east but they still pushed forward, as desperate as we were.  Their heavy attack bombers had attacked the city in an effort to drive us out in order to clear the way for the main force.  One night, we escorted the Crescent Sun through the darkness, deploying ground teams to silently eliminate the enemy's early-warning defenses as we glided closer to the enemy's camp.  We hit their grounded bombers and whatever else we could before we retreated out of range of their superior armored units.  When they realized what had happened, they launched a counterattack that stretched their forces out and made them easier to fight.  However, as the last battle of the war heated up, there did not appear to be anything easy about it.

Tracers tore through the sky all around my Pegasus.  The dark blue hull of the Crescent Sun stood out against the winter clouds while streaks of gunfire erupted from the hundreds of defense turrets spread around the ship.  The soldiers in my passenger compartment held on for dear life as I dived and swooped through the air in an effort to make myself a more difficult target.  More than once a stray bullet struck my craft with a terrible percussion and each time I was thankful it didn't hit anyone or anything critical.  Although our Pegasi were equipped with advanced reactive armor that could shrug off small arms fire and some heavier ordinance, our enemy's air support was not lightly armed.  As our forward ground forces fell back into the city, pilots like me ferried squads to defensive positions in the fortified buildings.  However, the enemy was hot on our trail as they sent in their own aerodynes to take us down.

My heads-up display flashed a warning that I had two hostile craft behind me.  I banked to the side as their volley split the air where I was moments before.  I advised the squad to hold on tight while I tried to shake my pursuers.

"This is Anvil 1-3; I've got two Griffons on my tail!  Can someone get 'em off me!?" I said into the open radio.  I wasn't far from the city but I knew I couldn't land with hostile gunships behind me.

"Don't worry Anvil, I'm coming!" I was relieved to hear Ash's voice and see her Pegasus appear on my helmet's tracking display.  However, she was flying directly at me.  "Hold still!  When I tell you to, dive!"

Time stood still as I heard a few Griffon rounds connect with my tail.  "Now!" Ash said as I pitched the craft downward as fast as it would go.  Above me, Ash's weapons roared and tagged the two gunships until they fell toward the ground.

"Thanks for that!" I said, breathing a sigh of relief.

"No problem!  I'd never leave my friends hanging!  I'll cover you into the city." Ash said cheerfully.  We lowered our altitude and zoomed over the battlefield.  Friendly tanks and armored personnel carriers took up defensive positions on the ground below while our Pegasi wrestled control of the skies away from our enemy.  Despite the apparent chaos, everything was unfolding as planned.  Our enemy believed to have us on the run and thought we were an even smaller force than we really were.  As they advanced, they would encounter our might embedded in the city and be caught off balance when our allies arrived to assist us.  However, our support was still hours away and it was up to us to hold the line until then.

"We're here!  Keep your heads down out there!" I called to the squad as I touched down on a hotel's rooftop.

"Thanks for the lift, mam!" the last soldier said as he leapt out.  I spun the craft around and brought it into a hover.  My helmet display worked in sync with the gold-colored contact lenses I wore and with a command given by a combination of winks, I told the system to scan for any new threats that may have entered the battlespace.  A notification appeared on the visor and listed three previously unseen enemy craft.

"Ash, we've got one low flying Griffon and two ParaStrike drones making a run for our defensive line.  I'm highlighting them now and engaging." I informed Ash.

"Copy all.  I'll take Thunderlane with me to support." Ash replied. "You get that Thunderlane?"

"I'm low on ammo here, mam." said a second voice on the radio.

"Don't you quit on us now!  Just make your fire count!" Ash snapped back as I moved to intercept the small enemy formation.  The Griffon gunship was flanked by two drone escorts.  With their missile countermeasure systems, they would easily defeat any air-to-air warheads fired at them.  This left me with my twin 20mm autoguns mounted to the wing stubs.  The armor piercing bullets would make quick work of the enemy and hopefully let me take them all down before they could react.  I sighted my first target and opened fire.  The Griffon lost its left rotor pod and crashed to the earth on its side.  There was no explosion as I flew over the wreck and chased the drones.  Just before I could fire on the first drone, it climbed steeply and left my view.  I quickly sighted the other drone and fired.  To my surprise, the drone banked to the right and avoided my deadly volley.  With each new attempt the machine dodged my attack with frustrating efficiency.

"Ash, they've turned flight and defense over to the machines!  I can't score any hits!  The first drone flew off but this one's giving me trouble!" I reported.

"No one's pulling the strings, huh?" Ash said. "Its evasion system can only track one or two threats at a time.  Thunderlane and I will come at it from the side!"

As the drone and I raced over an abandoned suburb, I saw two Pegasi dive towards us.  The pilot we all called Thunderlane lived up to his namesake and unloaded the last of his ammunition at the drone.  Ash joined him and the drone turned to avoid their combined fire only to run into mine.

"Good work.  Thanks for the assistance." I said as the shredded remains of the drone crashed into the ground.  However, before my friends could reply, the second ParaStrike drone pounced on me from above.  It eschewed its missiles for opening up on me with its own autoguns which tore into my tail with horrible shrieks.  "There's the other one!  I'm hit but still in the air!"  Fortunately for me, Ash wasted no time in intercepting my attacker.  Soon, it joined its fellow drone in the dirt as well.

"Guns dry," Thunderlane said. "I'm heading back to rearm."

"Hey Thunderlane," Ash said. "Better take her home too.  That damage looks pretty bad.  You've done all you can do, Anvil 1-3.  Get that looked at 'cus I'd hate to have to save your tail any more today!"

I chuckled and agreed with her.  Although my craft was still flying, I would only do more harm than good in a damaged Pegasus.  However, my participation in the battle was far from over.  As I landed in the hangar to the sounds of a repair crew request on the loudspeaker, I saw an opportunity to get back into the sky.  As I powered down the engines and let the repair crew check on my aircraft, I rushed across the hangar to an idling Pegasus where the airship's medical team was unloading a number of wounded soldiers and a pilot.  The surface of the craft was dotted with small welts and the occasional hole where a larger bullet must have punctured the armor.  On the flank of the Pegasus, behind the passenger compartment door, was the large red and white symbol that identified it as a medical craft.

When I came to the Pegasus, I recognized Lt. Libman as she helped move the last of the wounded out of the back.  As the medical team wheeled the wounded away, I caught sight of a pilot with heavy bandages wrapped around the right half of his body.

"I need more sealant and wraps.  We have enough insta-splints and painkillers but I need you to get me those supplies, please."  Her usually soft voice would certainly not be audible if not for the radio in her helmet.  She gave her request to the other flight medic, a short man who scurried around the hangar to retrieve what she requested.

"Abby?  Is that you?" I asked. "What happened?"

She turned around quickly, her light-green eyes wide. "Oh, it was awful.  We picked up a few wounded soldiers but then something shot a concussion shell at us.  Poor Angel was too close and caught a good portion of the blast.  His armor and helmet saved him but he lost his voice." Her fellow medic returned with a backpack loaded with the supplies Abby requested.  "Isn't that right Angel?" He dropped his eyebrows and frowned, obviously still bothered by his call sign.  "He's still luckier than my copilot though.  As we took off, a ground drone shot at us and just brushed the nose.  I patched him up while Angel flew us home with the wounded in the back."

"Are they okay?" I asked.

She nodded. "The ship medics have them now but we've gotten another request for evac.  It's just that I've lost my co-pilot, Angel can barely speak and I can't make the run unless I get some more help.  I can't believe this.  I'm so frustrated I could just scream."

"I could fly you there." I suggested.

"Really?  Can you do that?" Abigail asked as Angel arranged their equipment in the passenger bay.

"My Pegasus isn't going anywhere soon and you need a pilot.  It's the least I could do." I said. "Just tell me where to go and I'll get us there."

Abby smiled and grabbed a few final items like a collapsible stretcher and hopped into the Pegasus behind Angel.  She took a seat beside me and fastened her harness.  I lifted us off the hangar floor as an explosion rocked the airship.  With a steady hand on the controls, I made it outside as another boom filled the air.

"Ash, are you still out there?  What's going on?" I asked as I left the shadow of the Crescent Sun.

The radio was silent for a moment as I turned my head to analyze my immediate airspace.  Suddenly, Ash's reply came through with the sound of her guns resounding loudly in the background.

"They made a play for the ship!  They sent a squadron to hit the engines.  The drones were jammed but a few Griffons got through!  Auto-defense turrets and I should have the skies clear soon."

I looked up and saw she was correct.  The remaining enemy gunships had broken off and were being scattered by our air cover.  "I can clear the sky in ten seconds flat at this rate!" Ash said confidently.  Her claim would soon be put to the test as once again, I saw orange streaks race by outside my canopy.

"I swear these ParaStrikes keep multiplying!  Hold on!"  I grit my teeth and tried to shake the drone. "Anytime now, Ash..." Afraid that this drone would get lucky, I banked hard to the left and lowered my airspeed.  The faster moving machine behind me zoomed by with Ash close on its tail.  A punishing burst from her guns sent the craft down in flames.

"That was more like eleven seconds." I joked.

"We'll debate that later.  Where are you headed?" Ash replied.

Abby informed her that we had to evacuate the crew of a crippled Ursa tank about to be overrun by enemy ground forces.  She asked Ash to cover us while she loaded the tank's position into the navigation system.  A marker appeared on my helmet display which I headed for at top speed.

"Why are we getting shot at so much?  I thought combatants aren't supposed to shoot at medical units." I asked as I dropped the Pegasus low to the ground.

"Abby, have any Griffons opened fire on you?" Ash asked.

"Now that I think about it, no.  We haven't been attacked by them.  Only drones have attacked me." Abby replied softly.

"It's because you're not a medical craft to them.  They only see another target." Ash said.

"Okay, if you can keep them off us long enough to evac the Ursa crew, we'll be in the clear." I said.

"Copy that." Ash escorted us to our destination without any trouble and I soon realized that we had flown quite far from the battle.  Although the sparse vegetation and low hills seemed void of activity, I grew uneasy.  The tank crew we were rushing to assist was part of our initial luring force that had attacked our enemy's staging camp the night before.  The hit and run operation took out a majority of the bombers that had plagued the city with their attacks.  We also managed to destroy the local drone control rigs which we believed would force our enemy to ground their unmanned platforms.  Unfortunately, we were incorrect as they drones somehow found a way to fight anyway.

"We're way behind their lines now." I said to Abby.

"The marker just indicates the tank's location.  The driver was able to set an augmented reality beacon in a clearing near the tank.  We should be able to see it when we get closer." she said.

Sure enough, as I brought the Pegasus into a hover above the tank, I saw a digital plume of smoke with an arrow inside it guide me to a field covered in long, tan grass.  When we touched down, Abby and Angel hopped out and ran into a thicket with their backpacks and the stretcher.  The longer I waited for their return, the more restless I became.  We were too far behind enemy lines to have not seen any activity and I had a feeling we would not be alone for much longer.

I radioed Ash to sweep the area and report back to me as soon as she had.  Her Pegasus disappeared over a hill as I spotted Abby leaving the tree line.  She and Angel brought the Ursa commander to the aircraft on a stretcher as several of his limbs appeared to be wrapped in regeneration bandages.  They loaded him into the passenger compartment then returned to the trees to help the other two crew members reach the Pegasus.  The gunner and the driver's uniforms were blackened where they had hardened to protect them from pieces of shrapnel.  If not for the tank's armor and their reactive uniforms, their injuries would have been more severe.

"We're all in." Abby said while Angel closed the door and helped the crew get settled.

Curious, I asked the driver what happened to the tank.  "After we hit their camp and fell back, we got separated from the main force.  They sent a couple of APCs after us.  We took them both out but not before one of them launched a TOM at us.  It hit us like a boulder and the commander was the closest to the impact site.  We tried to stop the bleeding but he wouldn't stand a chance if you hadn't shown up!"

"Just lie still now and I'll have you feeling good as new in no time, okay?" Abby reassured the man on the stretcher.  The commander's moans of discomfort were soon drowned out by the rotors as I eased the throttle forward.

"This is Phoenix 0-7, we're coming home.  Ash, fall back because we are getting out of here!" I announced triumphantly.  I spoke too soon as I immediately heard her frantic response blare through my helmet's speakers.

"Hostile ground contacts sighted!  There's too many of them! We have to go now!" she exclaimed.  She streaked above us as a missile lock alarm sounded.  Although I couldn't see them, I knew something out there was about to fire.  I pulled up and raced after Ash as I spotted an enemy personnel carrier crash into the clearing.  To my relief, it did not open up on us as it must have identified us as a non-combat aircraft.  Whatever had us painted was a different story altogether.

The uneven terrain blurred passed us underneath while I gained on Ash.  Abby's patients were silent as the alarm continued to wail but I sensed their tension.  It only became worse as the alarm changed its tone.

"What does that mean?!" the driver said.

"It means they've launched." I said. "Ash, we're taking missile fire.  They've got one in air!"

The missile appeared on my radar and advanced on us at a terrifying rate.  I deployed the last of the Pegasus' countermeasure flares and tried to turn and dodge the incoming missile.  "Here it comes!" I warned my passengers.  It happened in an instant.  The warhead came into view outside and exploded.  However, we were not showered with shrapnel as I had expected.  Instead, I began to lose power and I could hear the rotors slowing down.  I tried to radio for help but the system was down.  With only minimal power, I managed to barely land the Pegasus in the first clear field I could find.

When the dust finally settled, I took off my helmet and made my way into the passenger compartment.  Everyone was shaken but otherwise no worse than when we took off.

"Did you try to tell anyone where we are?" Abby asked.

I shook my head. "Whatever was in that missile knocked out our systems.  We're lucky to have made it down in one piece."

"Well, our patients are stable so we can just wait for Ash to realize what happened and call for an evac." Abby said.

"I could take a look outside." the tank driver spoke up. "I know a thing or two about these engines and I could see about getting the secondary cells online.  That should give us enough power to take off."

We liked that idea and I suggested that Angel go with the driver to inspect the craft.  However, before they could leave, I noticed movement outside the cockpit.  The others saw me become suspicious and grew quiet. "What is it?" Abby whispered.

I shrugged and crawled back into the cockpit where I saw three men advancing towards us with rifles raised.  Angel waved his hands and signaled that he saw two more soldiers through the passenger door window as well.

"Oh no, this can't be good…" Abby began.  I reached for the personal defense pistol strapped to my leg and searched for a way out.  I heard shouting outside.  They wanted us to come out slowly and surrender.  I still held my weapon as I searched everyone's faces.

"I say we take them on." the gunner said as he shakily drew his own sidearm from its holster on his vest. "There's only five of 'em out there."

"Don't be a fool.  You probably have a concussion after that TOM strike and you're a terrible shot anyway." the driver replied quickly. "Plus, we don't know how many more of them are hiding in the trees.  There could be a whole army out there for all we know."

"We put some distance between us and their lines.  They're probably just a forward unit cut off from the rest by miles of trees!" the gunner said.

"Let's just calm down and think about this for a second." I interjected.

Abby supported me.  "Yes, I vote for calm."

Before we could say anything else, the door slid open and we were faced with several soldiers dressed in olive drab camouflage and combat vests.  Up close, I could see that their uniforms were tattered and their equipment was scratched and beaten.  Their young faces stared back at us, unsure of what to do.  Abby and I exchanged glances.  She saw the gunner begin to raise his weapon.

"Wait!" she shouted louder than I had ever heard her before.  The soldiers outside flinched as her call took them by surprise.  I was just glad they didn't fire reflexively.  One of them stepped forward uneasily with his rifle pointed at Abby.

"All of you come out of there slowly!  You're our prisoners now!"  We remained still as he shouted at us again. "Come out now!"

As I stared back at him, I slowly dropped my pistol and raised my hands.  "Easy now," I cooed. "We have wounded here.  This is a medical craft.  Can't you see the cross?"

Suddenly, another soldier walked up behind the one who called us out.  He seemed younger yet he limped as he approached his comrade.

"They have medics.  Maybe they can help us." he said.

"The sergeant would never allow it." the first soldier snapped.

"He is lying on a tarp with severe wounds.  He lost too much blood to wait any longer.  Think about it, they are his only hope!"  The desperation in his voice was all too valid and it was obvious that the first soldier was having difficulty denying his squad mate.

"Excuse me," Abby said as she entered their conversation. "I can treat nearly any type of trauma.  If you'll allow my friend to stay in the aircraft with the wounded, I will treat your sergeant."

"It's not just him," the second soldier said. "There were a bunch of us who got banged up in the crash."

"Then I will need my pilot to come with me to assist." Abby said as she gestured to me.  The first soldier hesitated but finally agreed.

"But no tricks!" he warned us.

"You have my word.  Cross my heart and hope to fly…" Abby said. "Let me just grab a few supplies and we can go."  She ducked back into the Pegasus and retrieved her bag.  Angel placed his hand on her forearm, his face full of concern.  "Relax, Angel.  I know how to assert myself if I have to.  Everything's going to be fine.  Just keep an eye on our patients and I should be back soon."  I followed her outside where the two soldiers led us away from the clearing.  Dry grass and twigs crackled underfoot as we walked for a few minutes.  The air felt cool as it brushed by and if I listened closely, I could hear the faint chatter of gunfire in the distance.  I hoped Ash would return for us with support because if Abby and I couldn't help, our chances of escape were not high.

We came over a hill and could scarcely believe what we saw.  A wrecked Griffon had carved a long scar into the earth and pieces of debris were strewn across the scene.  A short distance from the wreckage was a hastily erected tent with a piece of tan fabric hung over the top to create a roof.  Under it laid the wounded crew of the gunship along with someone who I assumed was the sergeant.

"Who has the most severe injuries?" Abby asked as we came to the tent.  The second soldier explained the type of wounds on each of the men.  After a moment Abby took a syringe of a shimmering fluid from a case in her pack.  She eased her way towards the middle-aged man on a makeshift cot and began to apply the disinfecting and cellular regenerating fluid.  Although he appeared to be unconscious, his eyes shot open when she touched him.

"What are you doing?  Who is this?" he asked with hostility.

"She's a medic, sir.  We brought her here to save your life." the second soldier said.

"She's an Allied medic.  How do you know she won't kill us while we're vulnerable?" the sergeant said between labored breaths.

"Because that's not who I am or what I do." Abby said firmly. "I would heal anyone, regardless of whose side they're on.  Now, you can either let me help you or not.  Whatever you want to do is fine.  Just know that I'm going to move on to the next person who is willing to accept my help if you say no."

I was surprised.  On the Crescent Sun she was always one of the quietest and most gentle members of the crew.  I never knew that when the situation became dire, she was a determined individual who I would not want to cross.  After a moment during which the sergeant coughed painfully, he agreed to let her treat him and we went to work while the two soldiers watched in fascination.

"This is going to be absorbed into your body to clean the wounds and repair the damage." Abby explained as she spread the sparkling fluid over the deep gash in the man's arm.  "It might tingle for a few hours but you'll see that it works like magic."  The sergeant winced as she covered his arm in a sterile bandage and moved on to his leg.  She asked me to get her an insta-splint from her bag and help her affix it.  She had me cut away the bottom half of his pant legs to expose the skin.  As I tore through the fabric with ease, I realized that our enemies did not issue their soldiers reactive armor.  The simple cloth offered no protection from injury and I felt a touch of pity for the man.  Of course, I was shaken out of my thoughts by Abby's insistence for my concentration.
  
Before she splinted the man's broken leg, she took a different kind of fluid applicator and covered his leg in a thin, blue coat.  "Tell me when you can't feel any pain." she instructed.  After a minute, our patient nodded and we immobilized his leg.  When we finished Abby gave me a serious look like the one she gave me back in the Pegasus.  "I need to remove a piece of debris that's in his side.  The painkillers in the fluid should ease the pain but I'll need you to keep him still when I remove the debris.  When I do, there's a chance that he'll start bleeding again so we'll have to treat that as soon as possible."

The sergeant looked up at us wearily, unsure of how to respond to us talking softly to each other out of earshot.  "What are you doing now?  What're you saying to her?!"

"I'm just wondering if it's ok if I hold you down against your will for a little bit." Abby answered casually in an effort to lighten the mood.  "Actually, she'll be holding you down.  I'll be removing this piece of metal from you.  This gel should help with the pain."  Before he could reply I braced him as Abby carefully removed the debris.  He struggled but with his low strength, I was able to keep him still.  After several moments that must have been excruciating for the sergeant, Abby applied the regeneration fluid and patches and told me to let him go.

"I'm done here." she said. "Take this.  It will help you regain your strength but you'll be wise to keep still until your evacuation comes."  She tried to give him an orange and yellow pill but as she put it in his hand she noticed another piece of metal from the gunship in his palm.  The pain from the cut in his arm must have kept him from feeling it before.

"Hold still.  This may hurt for just a second."  Abby pulled the metallic thorn out of the sergeant's hand and he gave one last grunt in pain.  "There you go." she said softly.

As we turned to help the rest of the wounded Griffon crew, the sergeant nodded to Abby and tried to rest.  I helped Abby care for the various other injuries the pilots and the squad they were carrying had sustained when they were shot down.  As we worked we learned from a few of the healthier patients that our attack last night had become almost infamous in their eyes.  They called it the night when their darkest nightmares came to life.  Although I participated delivering ground teams and providing air support, I had no idea what effect I had on them.  The Crescent Sun fused with the night with its royal blue hull and deployed dozens of Pegasi while our armor on the ground tried to lure the enemy away from their temporary base.  One of the pilots described the chaos that erupted on the ground when we struck.  His story both fascinated and worried me as I never thought about the impact we made.  He explained that since we hit the drone control rigs for the area, their leaders were forced to turn over full control of the weapon systems to the machines.

"It is an unspoken rule among our pilots to not shoot at medical craft.  Machines do not care about this.  They have no choice, they just fire at their targets." one of the pilots said as I bandaged one of his minor wounds.

I was quiet for a moment as I reflected on his words.  This was how I referred to the enemy I had battled only hours ago.  I had become like a machine as I had stripped them of their identity as people.  They became dots on a screen and I was all too uncaring as I pulled the trigger.  Then I glanced over at Abby while she checked the co-pilot for signs of head trauma.  The two people even seemed to have struck up a conversation and without their uniforms someone would never suspect that they were supposed to be enemies.  They talked and smiled at each other like they had met once before.  It became clear that the only way to reverse the dehumanizing effect was to show the one thing a drone could never display: kindness.

When we had treated all of the crew and soldiers' wounds, the first soldier brought us back to the sergeant.  "I was wrong about you Miss.  It has been an honor meeting you and I only wish that had been under different circumstances."  He raised his undamaged right hand and saluted us.  We returned the gesture and Abby shook his hand.  He placed his other hand, now slightly healed by Abby's treatment over hers.  "Thank you for helping us.  It must not have been easy.  That was brave in my book."

She smiled at him, happy with her deeds. "You're welcome."

"Corporal, take these ladies back to their aircraft and allow them to evacuate their people."  The soldier seemed about to protest but the sergeant quickly added, "That's an order."

"Yes, sir." the soldier responded.

When we returned to the Pegasus, we discovered that Angel and the Ursa driver had managed to get us enough power to take off.  The corporal explained why they were letting us go to the other soldiers and I brought the engines online.  I even tried the radio when I had the craft in a low hover and to my delight, it worked.  Outside, the squad disappeared into the trees as I checked in.

"This is Phoenix 0-7 to any friendly units in the area; we're back up and coming home."  I said.

It wasn't long before Ash's spirited voice came through my headset. "There you guys are!  I brought Thunderlane and Rapidfire with me to find you.  Heads up by the way, we believe the enemy's got ground units in the area."

Abby climbed into the cabin and we exchanged smiles. "Copy that." I said jovially.

"Whoa!  Something just appeared on the target scanner!" Thunderlane announced.

I already knew what he must have seen as it crashed through the trees in the opposite direction of the soldier's triage tent.  The treaded vehicle unfolded its two targeting arrays like the mighty wings of its mythological namesake.

"Manticore Mobile AA unit!" Ash exclaimed.  From our position a few hundred feet away from the vehicle, I knew that it had to have seen us.  It raised the missile pod on its back and I heard the familiar warning alarm in my helmet as it locked on.  "It has you painted!  Those Stingers will drop you for sure!"  Ash and her wing mates barreled down on the Manticore with the intention of saving us.

"May I?" Abby asked before I let her take control of the Pegasus.  She lowered us until we were directly in front of the anti-air tank and Ash.

"What are you doing!?" Thunderlane shouted.

"Break off.  Trust us.  We'll be fine." Abby said as the three Pegasi altered their course.  Several moments passed but I wasn't worried.  Abby rocked the Pegasus from side to side and dipped the nose in a sort of mechanical nod.  The alarm fell silent as the Manticore folded its array and retreated in the direction of the Griffon wreck.

"That was…I don't know how to describe what just happened there." Ash said in disbelief.

"We'll tell you about it soon enough but for now we have to get this crew some much needed care.  It's been a long day." I said as we followed the others back to the Crescent Sun.  

The battle lasted for two days after we returned to the airship as the enemy sent the last of their unmanned combat drones at our defensive lines.  We dispatched electronic warfare units which disabled the machines and made them easy to shoot down.  Upon seeing how strong our defenses were and with limited air support, the enemy ground forces hesitated to attack.  On the evening of the second day, our reinforcements arrived.  The Quetzalcoatl and the Ahuizotl arrived from the south and surrounded the stranded remnants of the enemy force.  Wisely, they chose to call a ceasefire rather than fight us.  Furthermore, when we heard that the army was malnourished and unable to shelter its soldiers, we came to their aid.  This convinced their leaders that we were committed to rebuilding the relationship between our sides.  The leaders realized that it was pointless to continue fighting and came to an agreement on peace.  At last, the war that engulfed our world reached its end.

When the war ended I thought about all I had seen; the bad and the good.  For the first time I began to actually wonder if we had a chance to make peace last this time.  As I thought of what happened between Abby and the sergeant, I saw no reason why something similar could not play out on a wider scale.  She showed me that the greatest way to defeat your enemy is to make them your friend.  Because at the end of that day, it wasn't force that saved us.  It was an act of kindness.



Dear Lauren,

   There have been times in our history when conflict seems like the most effective solution.  Some evils in our past could not be reasoned with unfortunately and it became the duty of brave men and women to do battle with them to ensure the future of our country.  These battles were difficult and destructive and an idea blossomed from within the chaos.  We began to take the people out of the fight and in doing so we lost sight of reason we wanted to avoid war.  When the human price of war dropped with the rise of machines, we believed that armed conflict was the only way to handle our problems.  The Eastern nations fell into a dark spiral that allowed evil to rise again amidst the destruction.  They saw their enemies as mere dots and numbers on screens, uncaring when harm was unleashed upon them.  They removed the humans from behind the triggers and so lost their humanity.

   When we had to return to the cockpits and cabins and trenches, we still kept this view of each other.  That our enemy was nothing but a target.  This mentality was perfect for war but terrible for our future.  I experienced it firsthand.  Similar ideologies may have been how you won wars but it was certainly not how you secured the ultimate victory: lasting peace.

   Peace cannot be achieved by machines or humans reduced to thinking of each other as such.  Lt. Abigail Libman showed me that what some may consider a weakness is actually crucial to our survival and a powerful strength.  That which makes us human, the ability to show kindness and compassion to even our enemies, is what allows us to keep our humanity.  She did not have to save the life of the sergeant but she chose to, even though it was difficult.  We must always believe that we have the choice to show kindness if we are to truly be victorious.

   That which is easy is not always what is right.  When war became easy, we pursued it at a price we hardly noticed until it was too late.  Only when we realized the suffering and devastation we caused when we lost sympathy did we look for a better way.  Now, as our world looks upon itself and its errors, we must realize that if we want to stand a chance at rebuilding, we must look passed the ignorance of hatred and aggression to find the greatest future we can imagine.  Because although some may believe that violence is always the solution, this is not true of every situation.  There are times, more often than you might think when the path of peace is better for both sides.  Because deep down, we are all on the same side and we all need to be shown a little kindness.


Your faithful friend,
   Ms. Ditzy