The Shadows (Story of the Vanguard Elite Fighter Squadron)

“Okay boys, we’ve finished this patrol, let’s head back home.”
An Orbital Spa and Cruise Fighter wing, each equipped with Civilian firepower and DIAMONDBACK Code arms and flying Eagle Civilian Fighters, was heading back from Perth Station to Gaia. They’d finished their routine daily patrol which they’d perform twice every 36 hours.
The three pilots in the squadron were flying in a V formation; the leading pilot at the back, the two escort pilots in front. They were chatting over their radio private channels, feeling safe and secure as any other pilot on a return trip from Perth could be. Their radars were clean and so it seemed they were going to be alright.
The trip back from Perth took approximately 3 hours. There were no tradelanes in Edinburgh, making it a slow journey. The blue suns glistened on the Eagles, almost imbuing the matte scratchwork on their ships. The window reflected the sun clear as day.
All of a sudden, the three fighter engines had stopped. They’d completely powered down, except for their life support. The squadron leader tried his radio. “Spa and Cruise Gold 16 to Luxury Liner Shetland, we’ve made a sudden halt on route to…” He paused. It took him a few seconds to realise his radio was down.
Out of nowhere, one of his fighters had exploded in to pieces. A piece of the wing could be seen slowly floating, drifting away from the leftover debris. The wing commander was alert all of a sudden. His fighter had started up again, his fighter in perfect condition. Nothing was wrong, except one thing.
He was missing his thruster.
The commander futilely tried his cruise engines. He couldn’t move. The other fighter had exploded just as he managed to get them working. They charged up, and then… they stopped. He’d been hit by a Cruise disruptor and had come to a complete halt.
A Sabre uncloaked directly in front of him. It was equipped with Corsair and Nomad guns, and also had mounted a Cannonball Missile launcher. The commander stared in terror as his radar went berserk.
All of a sudden, his radar started flashing. He had a missile coming straight in front of him. He saw his last moments of his life staring at the Missile, scared beyond all belief…
…being consumed by the fog of red crushing through his windscreen.

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