Part 3 — Beyond the Clouds
The transport climbed steadily into the morning sky.
The low vibration of the core engines settled into a constant hum beneath the floor.
No one spoke.
For several minutes...
Everyone simply watched.
The Academy grew smaller beneath them.
Dormitory Building One.
Combat Hall Seven.
The Tournament Arena.
The central courtyard.
The training fields.
Places that had once seemed enormous now fit comfortably within a single glance.
David rested one arm against the window.
"...There it is."
Nyra looked over.
"The Academy?"
David nodded.
"...Home."
No one corrected him.
Because they all felt the same.
Far below...
The eight transports maintained perfect formation.
Dark silhouettes climbing through the morning clouds.
For the first time...
Gamma Squad wasn't looking up at departing transports.
They were inside one.
Leaving.
The Academy slowly disappeared beneath a blanket of white clouds.
Only blue sky remained.
June leaned back in his seat and stretched.
"...Well..."
"...Now we can't turn around."
David smiled.
"Were you planning to?"
"No."
"...Just checking our options."
Lucian looked across the cabin.
"There weren't any."
"I know."
"...I still like knowing."
Mira quietly watched the clouds drift past the window.
"They look different from up here."
Nyra nodded.
"They always do."
June looked over.
"...You know..."
"I've been thinking."
David laughed.
"...That usually worries me."
"It should."
June pointed toward the front of the transport.
"We've got this entire shuttle to ourselves."
David looked around.
It was true.
The cabin belonged entirely to Gamma Squad.
No instructors.
No commanders.
No upperclassmen.
Just the six of them.
June smiled.
"...I'd say we're finally moving up in the world."
Nyra laughed.
"I suppose we are."
Lucian folded his arms.
"Until Commander Vance decides otherwise."
June pointed toward him.
"...Can you let me enjoy this for five minutes?"
"...Four."
"I'll take it."
Even Castiel smiled.
"...Aim high."
David looked across the cabin.
For just a moment...
Everything felt normal.
June was joking.
Lucian was pretending not to enjoy it.
Nyra watched the clouds.
Mira quietly studied the mission map rotating above the center console.
Castiel sat across from him.
Calm as ever.
David smiled to himself.
Then—
The transport banked gently east.
The Academy vanished completely behind the clouds.
Silence settled over the cabin again.
Not uncomfortable.
Just...
Different.
They had crossed an invisible line.
There would be no turning back now.
The holographic display above the center console shifted.
A rotating image of Kharos Vale expanded before them.
The planet slowly turned in midair.
Grid lines spread across its surface.
Dozens of sectors glowed in different colors.
Large portions of the world were now marked as secured territory.
Others remained contested.
Several regions pulsed crimson.
Untouched.
Dangerous.
David leaned forward.
"The operation's already started."
Lucian nodded.
"The military never stopped after we left."
One section of the hologram expanded.
Grid H-09.
The image zoomed inward.
Towering mountain ranges.
Dense jungle.
Deep river systems.
Ancient ruins partially swallowed by vegetation.
Multiple red markers appeared.
One after another.
Commander-class monster territories.
June let out a slow whistle.
"...Well..."
"...There's our vacation."
Nyra smiled.
"I've seen better."
Mira studied the display.
"They're spread out."
Lucian nodded.
"They're territorial."
"Which means..."
David finished the thought.
"...If we remove the apex predators..."
"The lower-tier monsters lose the creatures controlling the region."
Castiel looked at the hologram.
"The military moves in."
David nodded.
"And clears everything that's left."
No one needed to say the final part.
They all knew it.
One grid.
Then another.
Then another.
Until one day...
Kharos Vale would become the next world to undergo Whitefall.
A soft chime echoed through the transport.
The holographic map disappeared.
The pilot's voice filled the cabin.
"Attention all squads."
"We will arrive at Forward Command in approximately forty-five minutes."
"Use this time for final equipment inspections."
The message ended.
Almost immediately...
Everyone moved.
David removed one gauntlet.
Checking every locking mechanism.
Every claw.
Every moving joint.
Perfect.
Across from him...
Castiel drew the Shadow Blade a few inches.
The dark edge caught the cabin lights before sliding smoothly back into its sheath.
Lucian checked the edge of the Bloodcrest Blade with practiced precision.
Nyra inspected both Wind Crest Swords.
Running her fingers lightly along each blade.
Mira unfolded one of her twin blades.
Testing the locking mechanism.
A sharp metallic click.
Perfect.
June extended his Fold-Out Energy Baton.
It snapped open instantly.
Blue energy flowed evenly through the striking channels.
He smiled.
"...Still works."
David looked over.
"You were expecting it not to?"
June shrugged.
"You never know."
"You literally checked it ten minutes ago."
"...I like being thorough."
Castiel looked up.
"...You like pushing buttons."
"...Also true."
Laughter spread through the cabin once more.
Then...
Almost without anyone noticing...
The laughter slowly faded.
Each member of Gamma Squad quietly returned to their own thoughts.
Outside the transport...
The last layer of Earth's clouds slipped away beneath them.
Blue skies gave way to darkness.
The stars appeared one by one.
Then hundreds.
Then thousands.
The transport's core engines adjusted.
The gentle vibration beneath the deck deepened.
Outside the forward viewport...
The Moon drifted silently past.
Earth slowly shrank behind them.
A blue-and-white world suspended against an endless sea of stars.
No one spoke.
No matter how many times humanity traveled between worlds...
The sight never became ordinary.
Minutes passed.
The transport accelerated.
The stars stretched briefly before returning to sharp points of light.
Ahead...
A new world slowly grew larger against the darkness.
Deep green continents.
Wide oceans.
Mountain ranges cutting across its surface.
White clouds drifted through its atmosphere.
Kharos Vale.
A planet that had once belonged to monsters.
Soon...
It would belong to humanity.
The transport continued toward the waiting world.
Tomorrow...
The campaign would begin again.