Hello readers! It has been almost a year since I have written anything. But after re-reading your beautiful reviews my imagination came back.

Though I do not know how long this will last, I will write a chapter for you all to enjoy.

Let's begin!

Chapter 11: Starry Night

Eastern Vale, Midnight

The sun's glow slowly faded over the horizon, the waves of the ocean beginning to grow in size. The moon, and all its broken pieces, shining a brilliant white. Hundreds of orange dots sailed across the sky. It would be a beautiful scenery if the noise wasn't so loud.

Tanya turned her attention to the beach in the distance. The muffled sounds of war beginning to make it through the thick glass windows of the command airship. She knew it was almost time for her to do her job.

Getting up from her seat, Tanya walked towards a small hole in the floor of the airship. A ladder lead to the floor below. Tanya made her way down and looked around.

The walls around her were filled with holes, inside each one was ammunition for the many weapon systems of the airship. Making her way down the passage she came across an empty chair, around it were cables and ammunition boxes. Crew members tinkered with things all around her as she made her way to the chair.

"Everything is ready for you ." one of the crew members said.

It seems that Ironwood has kept me separate from enlisted soldiers. Tanya thought to herself as she sat down. Strapping herself in, Tanya reached out to the gun turret in front of her. The turret easily moved towards her. The hydraulic system surrounding the turret making it practically weightless.

She gripped her hands on two handles, in between them, two triggers for her to use. Two crew members grabbed two metal bars from the sides of the turret and connected them to the chair she was sitting on. An audible hiss was heard once everything was clicked into place.

The two crew members have her a thumbs up, the sound of a motor quickly drowning all noise out. Tanya yanked the turret up, her chair followed with it. Turning it left and right the turret and chair moved smoothly. Satisfied Tanya gave the crew a thumbs up.

They nodded and motioned to her, Tanya flipped a silver switch on the turret and pressed the two triggers on the turret. The twin guns of the turret began to spin, rapidly picking up speed. Giving a thumbs up Tanya waited for the next step.

The crew tinkered with a few things and then gave her the thumbs up. Tanya nodded and flipped a plastic red switch on the turret and then flipped a silver switch that was contained within. A red light turned on and then turned green.

Tanya turned the turret down, aiming towards the beach. Around her blue holograms glowed softly. She aimed the blue crosshair and pressed the triggers. The turrets spun up and then fired with a deafening buzz. Tanya waited for the rounds to impact. She could see the small explosions the rounds made on beach.

Reaching within herself Tanya pumped as much aura she could into the turret, as soft golden glow began to surround it. Touching the hologram with her two hands, Tanya moved her hands apart. The image of the beach grew significantly and became easier to see.

Satisfied she aimed at a small bunker that Valerian forces were using to defend the beach. Opening fire the round flew through the air and made impact. Her semblance activating and causing the bunker to be pummeled with countless explosions.

Seeing that the area wasn't safe, Valerian soldiers scrambled to find new cover. They ran into the woods, hoping the trees would make it impossible to target them from above.

Tanya instead fired blindly into the trees, moving left and right. She watched explosions ripping trees apart. She could feel her aura quickly draining so she kept firing into the trees. She stopped once her head began to sway from exhaustion.

Large plumes of smoke clouded her vision of the beach, and it wasn't going to get better any time soon.

Tanya felt the entire ship shudder as the massive laser cannons of the airship fired on the beach below. Massive craters formed as explosions ripped the sand and dirt apart. From the windows of her turret seat, she could see the massive cannons of the battleship fire. Humongous blasts shook the very earth as the massive shell traveled from the ship to the beach.

This shelling continued for ten more minutes before a ceasefire was called. The silence was nerve racking as the minutes clocked by.

Atlas sent out a few aircraft to provide surveillance of the enemy's movements.

?, Valerian Position

Men ran back and forth as preparations were almost complete. Time was of the essence, as Atlesian forces pummeled their defensive positions on the beach.

This was their last chance to strike a devastating blow on the Atlesian military. Or face the reality of fighting on the defense. The upper brass knew all too well their situation would become untenable if Atlas was able to achieve a beach head.

So as a desperate attempt to halt the inevitable invasion, Vale decided to use short range missiles to launch a bombardment on Atlas.

Each missile was ten meters tall and five meters wide. They had prepared to launch over two hundred missiles, their payload, cluster bombs. Hundreds of cluster bombs in each missile.

The signal was given and the order shouted out. Everyone prayed for success as the missiles launched, streaking across the sky.

Eastern Vale

Atlesian forces came in wave after wave in transport boats. The men rushed up the beach and began digging trenches and setting machine gun nests. Others behind them began to build fortifications and other structures.

Their progress was halted however, by the whooshing noise growing every louder.

'sheeeewwwwwooooo'

Then all hell broke loose. Explosions ripped sand and earth apart, bodies were tossed and torn to shreds. This continued for approximately ten minutes. Men ran for the water in a desperate attempt to escape death.

Tanya watched in shock as the smoke cleared, revealing the meaty carnage left behind on the now red-stained beach. Then without warning a second, smaller wave of missiles arrived. Tanya unbuckled herself from the turret and ran down the hall, climbed the ladder, and ran for the Bullhead storage hanger.

Tanya smashed her face on the floor as the airship buckled around her. A single missile had managed to accidentally strike the airship, punching through the thin armor of the airship. The vulnerable roof of the airship allowed the missile to travel all the way to the main deck and eliminate the command center.

Tanya picked herself up and resumed running, not wasting a single second. Her breath began to pick up as the airship began to lose altitude. She ran a fast as she could, but it was not enough. The airship had turned too much for Tanya to continue running up hill towards the hanger.

Accepting escape was impossible Tanya let herself fall. Pushing all her remaining aura into protecting herself she prepared for impact.

The windows she had previously been watching the battle from, shattered. The metal walls crumpled and broke. Tanya closed her eyes and almost by instinct opened her mouth.

"Oh lord, who reigns over all that is and will ever be. Protect your servant so that I may continue to spread your gospel."

Witnesses that day said that a brilliant light drowned out the night sky. As quickly as it had happened, the light vanished. The airship crashed with an enormous boom.

Atlesian casualties that night numbered some 2,347. 987 of which came from the single airship that was destroyed. All other dead and injured was from the desperate cluster bombing that Vale had launched.

On the Valerian side, their casualties numbered some 1,226. The rest of the defending force, numbering some 800 plus, escaped to fight another day. They retreated deep into the lush forests of Vale, regrouping and taking up defensive positions.

The invasion of Vale was put on hold by high command as search and rescue operations were put underway to find survivors of the crashed airship, and survivors of the cluster bombing of the beach.

Over the course of the next few days Atlas would devise a cruel but very effective strategy to defeat Vale.

End.

How was this short chapter guys. Let me know what you think by leaving a review. I read all my reviews, or as many as I remember.