Chapter 1
Holy Shit!
I couldn’t believe my eyes as I scanned the list of specialty groups, and saw an open spot for the Raptor pilot group. My dream to become a badass pilot started to appear, a chance for me to be up there in the sky, like a mighty eagle spreading its large wings. Not wasting a moment, I write down my name in cursive letters, my hazelnut eyes gleaming like that of a child during the morning of Christmas.
Sigma Unit was a military base of mercenaries with groups of rangers who harbored certain specialties; from top engineers, to weapon specialists to medical groups, to the ones who were in the front line, like the lethal pilots who handled these supersonic planes like they were born for it. The group of pilots in the Sigma base was called the Razor Eagles, and I’ve admired them since my first day as a rookie. That was three years ago. Now I wasn’t fresh meat anymore. I was a fighter, and it was my time to choose a faction.
“I cannot believe you chose the pilots.” My friend, Amanda told me in a hushed whisper as we were having breakfast in the cafeteria of the base.
“You could have signed with me for the medical faction. Most girls are there... and I heard that the leader of the faction is a sweetheart!” She tried to make me regret my decision, reminding me how much she had pestered me to come with her to play nurse, but the sight of hospital meds and the smell of antiseptic always drowned my mood.
I brushed my fingers through my wavy blonde hair, poking at my mashed potatoes and beans with my fork while I listened to Amanda criticize my choice.
“Will you stop this? Everyone can choose whatever faction they like. You know I always wanted to have my own supersonic plane... be up there in the sky. I’ve read about plane mechanics since I was eight.” I reminded her about the late nights as rookies when we would talk about what specialty we wanted to be part of, and her expression softened.
“I know... and the biggest reason is because of your father. Seems like the passion runs deep within the family blood.” Amanda’s words made a smile tug at my lips.
“Hey, girls!” A cheerful voice tugged on my and Amanda’s attention, making our gaze land on a pair of sky-blue eyes and a rich, curly mess of warm chocolate-brown hair.
“Hey, Kyle.” Amanda welcomed Kyle, a guy a little older than us in the Sigma Unit, who was a part of the weapon specialists faction. He had been our guide through the Sigma base since me and Amanda were rookies.
“So, you girls signed for a faction yet?” He asked us as he dropped his plate of food next to Amanda.
“Yes, we did. I went for the medic faction.” Amanda told him proudly, flipping her dreadlocks over her shoulders.
“Ohhh, smooth.” Kyle nodded with a grin, and then his attention landed on me. “And you, Jubilee?”
I leaned my forearms on the table and smirked at Kyle as I proudly stated my faction of choice. “The Razor Eagles.”
Kyle’s grin dropped, and his tanned skin turned a few shades paler as he heard my choice. “The... Pilots? Are you joking?”
My smirk dropped, and my confidence faltered like a peacock who just lost their majestic feathers.
“Why is everyone so reticent about the pilots? They are like the VIP faction around the Sigma Unit. Everyone wants to have them on their mission. They are flawless.” Kyle pursed his lips as I praised the pilot faction, then sighed.
“Look, I cannot say they aren’t good soldiers. Hell... They are the most lethal raptor armada and one of the reasons Sigma Unit had been in the top units all these years, but...” A frown appeared on my face, and my curiosity grew, yearning to know what was wrong to want to be a pilot on this armada.
“But what?” I asked Kyle, sensing that he knew something I didn’t. It wouldn’t surprise me since he’s been part of the Sigma Unit before me and Amanda were recruited.
Kyle rubbed the back of his neck, an anxious wave of energy coming off him. “They are assholes.” He simply stated.
I arched an eyebrow. “Any particular reason to support that statement?” I inquired, not wanting to grasp onto gossip without knowing people first.
“They are arrogant, with a superior complex, and think they are the big deal here. It’s one of the reasons people avoid signing up for their pilot group, not to mention they don’t welcome just anyone in their faction... especially... women.” Kyle spoke the last word in a hushed whisper, but I heard it loud and clear.
A deep frown appeared on my face. “What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked Kyle rather harshly, leaning forward, and he offered me an apologetic expression.
“I know it sounds misogynistic and unfair, trust me. I am on your side on this, but every faction has a leader who sets down rules for their group.” Kyle explained, and I had an unsettling feeling about the leader of the pilots.
“And what’s the leader of the pilots like?” I asked Kyle, whose expression morphed into one of displeasure like he just swallowed a sour candy.
“Arrogant, God-complex, misogynistic, sexist, cold, stubborn...” Kyle listed down adjective after adjective to create a picture of the pilot’s leader, and I already could envision someone with whom I would have a hard time getting along.
“Sounds like a great guy,” Sarcasm dripped off my tongue, and Kyle snickered at the bitter expression I made, poking at my food with a lost appetite.
“Told you, you should have come with me for the medic group,” Amanda added as she munched on her food, and I huffed in annoyance, letting my fork fall on the table after I crossed my arms over my chest.
“You choose the toughest faction, Juby. Got to say, it takes balls to do what you did.” Kyle’s teasing smile drops when the doors to the cafeteria open, and his blue eyes land on the entrance. Amanda looks in that direction too, and I cannot help but glance over my shoulder to see what they are staring at.
Tall and broad frames clad in black military tec flight overalls with tactical vests and red patch badges with the Razor Eagles confirmed why Kyle and Amanda’s attention was stolen. Speaking of the wolves. It wasn’t hard to miss the pilots, especially when they were wearing their trademark tactical black goggles. One of the pilots stood out in particular. He was wearing a bomber jacket with a ribbed collar, waistband, and cuffed sleeves. I read something on one of his patch badges.
COMMAND PILOT
He was the tallest among the pilots and walked in the front with confidence most would kill to have. His inky black hair was long on the top and tied back into a slick ponytail while the sides were shaved. Even with all the military gear on, I could make out his milky white skin. Looking more intently, I could make out bold, black dragon tattoos on each side of his neck. I couldn’t see his eyes because of the black goggles, and it made me wonder what color his eyes were.
“Kenji Uasgi,” Kyle whispered, and I glanced back at him with a questioning look. “That’s the name of the leader of the pilots.” He revealed, and I kept watching the pilots walk to the cafeteria bar to grab their plates of food.
“He surely looks arrogant,” Amanda commented, making reference to the way he walked with his chin held high.
“He is Japanese. I heard he was raised in a Yakuza family, and his family was killed by a rival gang. He managed to escape and enroll in the Japanese military flight unit at a very young age under a different name. Of course... These are stories that fly around him. I could be wrong.” Kyle continued to whisper to us about the pilot commander, and I couldn’t help but admire them, already picturing myself wearing their uniform and flying with them up into the sky.
“He doesn’t seem so bad... I mean, yeah... He does have a superior complex, but many chief officers have this complex. Nothing unusual.” I tried to defend my faction of choice, opting for a positive outlook.
Kyle sighed, and there was a glint of pity in his cobalt-blue eyes. “You won’t say the same once you are under his command... That is... If he welcomes you into his armada.”
For the rest of the day, I kept replaying Kyle’s words about the flight faction and their commanding officer, but I didn’t see a reason for them to reject me, considering I had a pilot license, a high understanding of math and psychics, technical information about aircraft, not to mention excellent spatial awareness and coordination. I checked the list of pilot skills from top to bottom. There weren’t many soldiers who qualified for this list. Hell, it was even a rarity nowadays to own a pilot license.
As I was resuming the list of reasons why I should be officially qualified as a pilot, I was walking down the empty hallways of the Sigma base, typing on my notepad. Overly consumed in my mind, I wasn’t looking where I was walking, so I only registered the person walking in front of me when I collided with them. A small noise of surprise left me when I smacked my forehead into a broad chest. Luckily, I didn’t lose my balance too much, but my notepad slipped from between my fingers.
“S-Sorry! I wasn’t looking where I was walking.” I apologized as I crouched down to pick up my writing device; thankfully unbroken. When I raised my gaze, I felt like my heart stopped for a second, because I was looking into the eyes of the Command Pilot. His black goggles rested around his inked neck, and I felt enchanted as his glacial blue eyes looked directly into my light brown eyes. These light blues reminded me of a frozen lake, hiding so many secrets underneath the thick ice.
His expression was neutral, looking down at me even as I stood up, considering there was still an impressive height difference between us.
“Next time pull your nose from that notepad.” He simply told me, before he walked around me and down the hallway, dismissing me as if I was a rookie on my first day.
A sense of shame washed over me, seeing as it was my fault for bumping into him. My eyes were glued to his broad back and black ponytail as it swayed with each step he took until I said something that made his step halter.
“I signed up for the flight faction.”
The moment these words flew from my mouth, the air in the hallway changed, making me feel like I was in the middle of the battlefield with tons of rifles pointed at me, ready to be hit with a rain of bullets. Kenji slowly turned around to face me, and that expression of neutrality turned into a bitter one as if someone told him bad news. His monolid eyes with that unusual shade of blue for Asian people made me feel like a sharp breeze flew past me, making me clutch my notepad to my chest.
“No.” I blinked in disbelief at the simple word, yet so powerful, leaving his pale pink lips. “N-No? What do you mean no?” I asked him, voice shuttering as anxiety nipped at the back of my neck.
Kenji’s lips tugged into a silent snort, rolling his eyes, and walking toward me as he calmly spoke. “It means you are rejected from the flight faction. I am positive anyone in the Sigma Unit knows the meaning of no.” His tone was condescending, and I felt like a petite animal as he stood in front of me with a stony gaze, waiting for my reply.
“B-But you didn’t even see me in action! I-I can handle these supersonic jets with ease and-” I didn’t get to finish my rambling as Kenji slammed a tactical-gloved hand next to my head; his palm connecting with the concrete wall behind me. I was frozen like a deer in the headlights by his out-of-the-blue action. One minute he was a good thirty feet away from me, and the next he was invading my personal space in an alarming way.
“Foolish little girl,” He rasped out in a husky and ghoulish-like voice, almost like speaking wasn’t one of the things he enjoyed the most.
I blinked in disbelief at the Japanese flight officer, feeling insulted by the condescending remark one would tell to a kindergarten girl. “E-Excuse me?” I shook my head, my wavy golden locks flying around as I tried to put on a defensive glare. “Who are you to call me such derogatory names?”
His almond-shaped eyes narrowed, and his onyx-sharp eyebrows tugged into a frown. A knot formed in my throat when he leaned his face closer; so close I could taste the faint scent of icy mint gum from his breath. Also, I caught a whiff of his cologne, and God, this man smelled mouth-watering. A woody scent coated him like masculine armor. Leather and earthy notes, I could describe his cologne as fresh spicy, like sweet rum.
I snapped out of the mind-twisting spell of his scent when he spoke in that slick rum-like voice. “Considering you signed for the flight faction to become a pilot, I could be your Commandant Officer; Lieutenant Usagi.” There was a wave of superiority as he declared his status in this unit.
“But I won’t be.” He clicked his tongue, and before I could say anything back, he hissed words out like a vicious snake. “Because there is no way I will accept someone so dense and unqualified in my team,” His glacial eyes scanned me up and down, a silent snarl curling on his lips. “Especially a woman.” That was the final seethe making the water boil over. My face warmed up with sizzling blood from the anger coursing through me.
“You-” I was ready to throw a string of sour curses at him, but Kenji beat me to it by pressing a finger to my pink lips, silencing me.
“Save your insults, little bird.” He snorted, and my flaring anger was extinguished by his pet name for me as if he poured cold water over my flames. “Why don’t you go back to the kitchen of the unit and clean up the dishes left after dinner?” My eyes widened, and deep down, I knew his sexist suggestion was meant to rile me up, I could see into his eyes how he tried to dominate me psychically. If I were to let my temper combust like a volcano, then there is no doubt, that I would do something regrettably, like punching a top officer, which could lead to a lower status, or I could even get kicked out. Fights among Sigma Unit weren’t unusual, but I just got recently out of the rookie status. I was walking on thin ice until I settled into a faction.
I swallowed hard, feeling like shreds of glass were running inside my throat as I bit back angry tears. Like hell, I was going to cry in front of this asshole. Kenji arched his pierced eyebrow mockingly.
“Got anything to say?” He inquired, his cold eyes challenging me, but I wasn’t going to fall into his trap.
“No, Officer,” I whispered, maintaining eye contact to show him I wasn’t a scared little girl. I was a soldier, a fighter, a mercenary to be feared.
The Japanese pilot flashed me a bitter smile, like the one the devil shows you when he makes eye contact with you for the first time. Kenji doesn’t say anything and steps back, walking away from me and down the hallway. I was left in a confused mess, finally able to properly breathe. Pressing one hand over my chest, I could feel each drum of my heart.
One thing was for sure, my journey to become a pilot wasn’t going to be an easy one. Not when my command officer was a sexist, walking devil with an ego the size of the Great China Wall.
