On the Wings of Eagles

[Nekuzar]

Prologue

 

     What is time? Is it a construct created by the mind? Is it the mathematics that is developed by the changing of the position of stars or planets? Or is it just a word... to represent the intangible ebb and flow of life? To me, time is an opportunity, a chance to make the most of what little of it there is. When you have lived for thousands of years through the whispers of your ancestors, it is plain to see that time is eternal, but the days are not. Since the beginnings of my family, starting with my ancestral father, 458 years ago, we all have been warriors, protectors, guardians, and leaders. His name is written in books, carved in stone, held dear by those he protected, and burned into the memory of those who rose against him. I was named after him, the name... Razuken Nekuzar.

 

     Lacardis Prime: 7th Day of Taru's Sun - 3:27pm

 

     “Trajectory acquisition complete! Lock! Fox two!†A single pilot, making a demonstration of his prowess in air combat, had effectively dispatched four of the five ‘A.C.E. JACKV2’ drones. A.C.E. Stood for ‘Artificial Combat Engine’. Weapons were hot, and there was no doubt that if hit, the single pilot would go down in flames. A light beeping sound would ring from the blue HUD upon the fighter ship’s screen, growing stronger and higher pitched as it would reach its target, the spider drone. The drone veered hard, and maneuvered to shake the missile, but to no avail. An explosion of colorful lights and metallic shrapnel went flying everywhere. Razuken flipped the limiter switch on his aircraft and did a full 180 degrees in the air. He hit the afterburner and rolled into a lift position, creating small vapor trails in his quick turn.

 

     The sound of an awed crowd clamoring is all that could be heard on the airstrip’s bleachers, just on the outskirts of Sol’s Plain. Razuken was a stunt-pilot and mechanic on his spare time from the Neumean Air Force. Extreme maneuvers and tricks were performed in the air, in his personally-crafted “G-Breaker†stunt airship. Streams of colored smoke trailed off the wings of the aircraft as it came in for a hot landing. The wheels were mere inches from the ground as he threw the air brake lever, releasing the flaps and decreasing speed at a rapid rate as he approached the stands.

 

     Later in that day, just before he was going to take it off, Razuken’s comm picked up an incoming call. It was from Commander Vinek. (Commander) “Razuken, we need you to re-deploy into the field immediately. We have a Class 5 emergency on our hands and the whole planet is being rallied. Get your ship and equipment ready to hit the tarmac. I want you here at base within the hour. Commander out.†(Razuken) “Class 5 emergency… planetary invasion…†Razuken quickly turned to the hangar, from which he came and looked at its figure shimmering off of the sunset horizon.

 

    It was at this point that my ancestral father took up arms with his squadron against an invasion force more than twice the size of our city's defenses. The city of Lorewall had no chance against the sheer numbers, but there was something that the enemies did not realize. My ancestral father was no mere human. Some say he was a demi-god, perpetually tied between dimensions and planes, able to travel through time itself somehow. Luck was his right hand, giving him the uncanny ability to change the tides of the war. A large fortress that floated in the sky, codenamed "Sky Castle" was operated by one of the Carrendar brothers, the leaders of the planet. Razuken salvaged the ship from a wreck upon the surface that killed thousands of civilians, and fired its large solar cannon across the atmosphere and cut the nose off the enemy planetary carrier. But all the while, a greater threat loomed over the universe. An ancient evil was awoken in another dimension parallel to Lacardis, and had created a spacial rift several hundred miles off the surface of the planet. Together, with the will and power of the Carrendar, Razuken, and the enemy force, the evil was driven back into the realm from which it spawned, never to return.

 

     Victory was bitter, for the city was lost, yet the people of Lorewall rejoiced in their freedom as a truce was made with the enemy force. After the invasion force left and peace fell upon the planet once more, the Carrendar family who Razuken had watched over for centuries immortalized his figure in a bronze statue among others that with extreme valor in that peril. Forever afterward, the lineage of my ancestral father would hold the Carrendar name high in honor. Today I carry this, as my father did, and his father after him. Yet today it means so much more... I stand here next to my ship, the Coat of Arms from my lineage emblazoned next to the Crest of the 47th Legion. I have the honor of holding two great names as I travel through this universe. From my home in Terra Prime, I shall fly in the company of great men and women to the end of ends. I shall relive the past in my ancestral father's footsteps by rebirthing the very squadron that he led... and keeping the realm of time and space at peace.