Chương 28: Departure, Again

Leaving the GLMB felt stranger than Ray expected. He looked over his team, trying his best to be the observational Captain. Frangle was as he usually was, nervous but determined. Kiara seemed unaffected, like going on a trip to perform a demonstration in front of the most elite System school in the Empire was normal. Jerome avoided Ray's gaze, acting as if he wanted to keep conversation to a minimum. The one person that Ray couldn't get a read on was Phora.

She had replaced the earlier nervousness and despair with a short fuse. She seemed overly agitated and even gave the personnel a hard time about loading her belongings on the aircraft. Every time Ray went to console her, he was stopped by his own nervousness.

'It's none of my business,' he thought.

'Family stuff is rough.' The team boarded the aircraft in mostly silence. Gunther and the others would be following in another vehicle, so Ray and the team would be alone until they arrived at Zephyron. Ray was made aware that he needed to remember that the trio was there to represent the military, not babysit them. The takeoff was smooth, and once they were in the air, Ray felt something welling inside him. A kind of nervousness, like he was going to school for the first time.

The rest of the team was uncharacteristically quiet. The aircraft was piloted by the System itself, so the five of them were the only people on board. Ray was informed the System would have a pilot manual in case of emergencies, but these things rarely happened. - Even with the aid of Mana and the System, the aircraft would still take up to 8 hours to arrive in Zephyron. Ray had expected the trip to feel exciting.

Instead, the first thirty minutes consisted of everyone finding a place to sit and pretending they had something better to do than talk to each other. The aircraft was far more comfortable than the convoy vehicles they had used during the escort mission. It was shaped like a long oval, with two rows of seats along the walls and a handful of small tables between them. Storage compartments ran along the walls and several large windows offered an almost unobstructed view of the land beneath.

The GLMB had already disappeared behind them. There was nothing but forest below. The sight was almost peaceful until Ray remembered most of that forest was filled with Beasts. He looked back at the others. Frangle was staring straight ahead while tapping one of his large fingers against his knee. Kiara had her eyes closed, but the occasional movement beneath her eyelids made it obvious she was using the System. Jerome had taken a seat as far away from Ray as possible. Phora was still staring out the window.

Ray let out a sigh.

"Are we really going to sit here like this for eight hours?" Kiara opened her eyes.

"I was waiting for you to say something."

"Why me?"

"You're the Captain." Ray frowned.

"That has nothing to do with talking." Frangle turned toward him.

"Morale is part of leadership." Ray stared at him.

"Whose side are you on?" Frangle's eyebrows furrowed.

"Yours." Kiara laughed, and even Jerome's mouth twitched for a second. Ray shook his head.

"Whatever. What do you guys think the Academy team is going to be like?"

"Strong," Frangle answered. Ray waited for him to keep talking. He didn't. Kiara looked over.

"Great analysis."

"They're the best Stage 1 team at the Academy," Frangle defended.

"They should be strong."

"That part was already obvious," Jerome said. The Emberfell royalty had finally looked toward the rest of them, which Ray took as a small victory. Phora continued looking out the window while she spoke.

"They'll probably be better than the Iron Five." That got everyone's attention. Jerome sat up a little straighter.

"Why?"

"The Academy starts training people young, especially anyone from a family with a history of producing System users. Most of the better teams have been together for years." Ray thought about how long his own team had existed. It wasn't even close. Ray tried to imagine what years of training together would even look like. His team had barely managed to stop getting in each other's way during their first few days. Even during the escort mission, they had made mistakes the Iron Five avoided entirely.

The only reason command had chosen them for Zephyron was because they seemed to learn from those mistakes faster than anyone expected. That was supposed to be a compliment. It also meant they were being sent somewhere specifically to find more mistakes. Ray wasn't sure how he felt about that. The idea of fighting another powerful team excited him, but the thought of standing in front of the Academy and proving the Recruit program was worth something felt different.

If they lost badly enough, it wouldn't just be Ray looking stupid. Frangle, Jerome, Kiara and Phora had all been chosen because of him too. At least partially. Ray rubbed his hands together.

'No pressure,' he thought. Kiara seemed to notice.

"You nervous?"

"No." She stared at him.

"A little," he relented. Jerome snorted. Ray looked over.

"You have something to add?"

"Nope."

"Then stop making noises." Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. That finally got a real smile out of Jerome, even if he immediately looked away again. Ray decided not to question it. He already had one teammate acting strange. He didn't need to collect all five.

"We've improved pretty fast," Ray said. Phora finally looked at him.

"I didn't say we couldn't beat them." Frangle smiled. Jerome leaned back into his seat.

"That's more like it." Ray was glad the mood was starting to improve. Then Kiara made the mistake of looking back toward Phora.

"So, what is the Academy actually like?" Phora's expression immediately changed.

"It's a school." Kiara blinked.

"I figured that part out."

"Then why ask?"

"Because you grew up there."

"I grew up in Zephyron, not the Academy." Kiara raised her hands.

"Alright." Ray watched Phora turn back toward the window. Her jaw was clenched. He waited a few seconds, hoping somebody else would say something. Nobody did. Ray stood. Phora noticed immediately.

"What?"

"I didn't say anything."

"You walked over here with that face."

"What face?"

"The one you make when you're about to ask something you don't want to ask." Ray wasn't aware he had a specific face for that. He sat down in the empty seat across from her.

"You good?" he asked. Phora stared at him.

"You asked me that yesterday."

"I know."

"And I told you I was fine."

"I know."

"Then why are you asking again?" Ray scratched the back of his head.

"Because you yelled at a guy for touching your bag."

"He was dragging it."

"It has wheels."

"He wasn't using them." Ray paused. That was technically fair. Phora looked away again, and Ray considered leaving it alone. He had already tried. That was enough. Probably. Then he remembered how many times people had left him alone because he looked like he wanted to be. Most of the time he had. That didn't mean it helped.

"You don't have to tell me anything," Ray said.

"You just seem more upset than you did yesterday." Phora was quiet for several seconds.

"I'm not upset about the trip." Ray nodded.

"It's the going home part." Her eyes moved toward him.

"You remembered."

"I'm not completely useless."

"I never said you were."

"You've implied it." That got a small smile out of her. Ray felt his shoulders relax. Phora looked back toward the window.

"My family is complicated." Ray almost laughed.

"Yeah. Families tend to be that way." Phora glanced at him.

"You would know?" The question caught him off guard. Holland immediately came to mind. Then the warehouse. Then another family from another life. Ray still wasn't sure which memories hurt more.

"Yeah," he said.

"I would." Phora seemed to notice the change in his expression and didn't push.

"I'll tell you about it when we get there." Ray nodded.

"You don't have to."

"I know." That seemed to be the end of it. Ray stood and made his way back toward the others. Kiara was staring at him.

"What?"

"Nothing." Ray narrowed his eyes.

"That wasn't a nothing look."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Jerome let out a groan.

"Can we please not do this for eight hours?" Kiara smiled.

"I didn't even say anything."

"You were going to." Frangle looked between them.

"What was she going to say?" Ray ignored him and sat down. A few minutes later, Kiara found a deck of cards inside one of the compartments beneath the table. Apparently, military aircraft came stocked with basic entertainment for long-distance travel. Ray had no idea what Soldiers did when they spent days flying around Gaia, but staring at trees probably got old. They decided on a game Phora claimed everyone should know. Ray did not know it. After the rules were explained, he still barely understood it.

Jerome won the first three rounds.

"You're cheating," Ray said. Jerome looked offended.

"You're just terrible." Kiara started laughing. Frangle studied the cards in his hand with the same concentration he used during combat. Ray looked at him.

"You know this is supposed to be fun, right?"

"I am having fun."

"You look like you're trying to defuse a bomb." Frangle ignored him and placed a card down. Jerome's smile disappeared. Kiara leaned over the table.

"Oh." Ray had no idea what happened. Five minutes later, Frangle won. Ray couldn't help laughing when Jerome accused him of hiding that he knew how to play. The large teen looked genuinely offended.

"I would not lie about cards."

"That somehow makes it worse." The rest of the hour went by much faster. Ray still lost most of the games, but by the sixth round, he at least understood why. The weird tension from earlier had almost completely disappeared. Even Phora seemed more relaxed. Ray leaned back in his chair after another loss and looked around the aircraft. Maybe eight hours wouldn't be that bad. Ray checked the System's map out of curiosity.

Their route appeared as a long green line stretching across a section of Gaia he had never seen before. Zephyron was still several hours away, represented by a bright marker near the end. Everything around their aircraft looked normal. That was enough for him. He closed the map and reached for his cards again. The aircraft shifted beneath them. It wasn't enough to throw anyone around, but several cards slid across the table. Ray grabbed one before it fell. A green System message appeared.

[Route adjustment in progress] Jerome looked up.

"Is that normal?" Phora shrugged.

"Probably." The aircraft tilted slightly before straightening out. Ray looked through the window. The forest beneath them looked the same as it had for the past few hours. [Route adjustment complete] The message disappeared. Kiara pushed the cards back toward the center.

"See? Nothing." Ray didn't think much of it. The System controlled nearly everything at the GLMB. Doors, training rooms, transportation, even large sections of the Nexus. An aircraft adjusting its own route wasn't exactly surprising. They started another game. Nearly forty minutes passed before Ray felt the second vibration. This one was stronger. The entire table shook, and a cup sitting near Kiara slid toward the edge. Frangle caught it before it fell. Everyone stopped talking. Ray felt the aircraft shift again.

[Route adjustment in progress] Phora frowned.

"Again?" The aircraft suddenly dipped. Ray's stomach rose into his chest as Kiara grabbed the table and Jerome braced himself against the wall. The movement only lasted a second before the aircraft corrected itself.

"What the hell was that?" Jerome asked. Ray looked out the window. The forest was closer. He was sure of it.

"Are we supposed to be descending?" Phora immediately looked outside.

"No." The cabin lights flickered and Ray felt his chest tighten as another System message appeared. [Automated navigation error detected] Nobody spoke. [Attempting correction] The aircraft began to vibrate again, only this time the shaking didn't stop. Ray looked toward the front of the cabin as a low metallic sound echoed through the floor. [Correction failed] The normal white lights changed to red. Ray stood. A final message appeared in front of him.

[Emergency Pilot Manual available] For several seconds, he could only stare at it. He remembered exactly what the personnel had told him before they left. These things rarely happened. Ray looked at his team.

'Shit.'