Burden of Sisyphus

electronically controlling up to two large-bore plasma missiles fired from one of the cruisers. Once a missile falls under a fighter’s control, the rocket remains in orbit around your ship until fired using your ship’s internal targeting system. A single Duun carrying two plasma missiles can bring down an uninjured Terran destroyer if struck in the correct locations.”

The image flickered, and the small fighter enlarged. The hull elongated, widened, and flattened, granting space for more crewmembers. Long wings extended from each side, adding stability to the larger ship.

“The Cair transport,” Victoria said. “The Cair is a vital part of the Fleet’s arsenal. Aside from being the main transport for personnel moving from orbit to a planet’s surface, the Cair is also used during combat to deliver an assault team to a disabled enemy ship. The pilot of the Cair ship becomes more than just an aloof loner, instead being fully integrated into a team. You become more than a faceless individual sitting in the cockpit. You’re a vital member of a strike force, infiltrating and clearing enemy vessels. Though not as heavily armed as the Duun fighter, the Cair….”

Though Victoria continued talking, her singing voice drifted into the background, as Keryn stared at the Cair image rotating before her. The Voice inside her grew exited at the prospect of flying a Duun, but Keryn knew its desire was derived more from the Wyndgaart mentality, in which a warrior relied on no one but himself.

Keryn, though, always found a deeper passion being part of something greater than herself. The Duun appealed to her baser instincts, but she yearned to be part of a team. She didn’t want to just be part of a squadron, like a series of fighters, but to be an integral member of an assault force. Her heart ached for the camaraderie her brother, Eza, described in his letters. Though a warrior, he spoke highly of his teammates and the bond they shared.

Keryn would give anything to find that herself, especially the longer she spent as an outcast in the Academy. The constant mocking of Sasha and her friends was unbearable. Every day, it was a challenge not to drive her fist through the fragile Avalon’s face. Putting that behind her and being part of a greater good was just the escape Keryn wanted.

She continued admiring the Cair even as Victoria went on to describe the weapons platform, a bulky contraption that consisted of little more than a cockpit, a single pilot, and a dozen massive plasma missile tubes ready to launch a devastating barrage against any Terran vessel unfortunate enough to get within range. Idly, Keryn switched her image back to the Cair ship, rotating it, drinking in the ship from all angles.

“Finally,” Victoria said, finishing her talk about the weapons platform, “what most of you with real ambition truly desire-I give you the Alliance cruiser.”

The image of the Cair faded from Keryn’s console, replaced by a dominating image of one of the Fleet’s main battleships. Zoomed out as it was, Keryn could hardly make out any details. Still, the cylindrical ship bristled with forward and aft missile ports and rail gun openings.

“The Alliance cruiser serves every major purpose within the Fleet. Transport between galaxies, berth for squadrons, or devastating weapon system, the cruiser offers endless possibilities. Regardless of the ship you’re assigned, every one of you who graduates from this program will be assigned to a cruiser, either as a crewmember or part of the onboard squadron.

“However, for those of you with the ambition to advance far within the Fleet, you’ll want assignment as part of a cruiser’s crew. The openings onboard a cruiser are nearly limitless for young pilots. In most instances, you’ll begin service as one of the navigation officers, piloting the unwieldy vessels. Eventual promotions include communications officer, tactical officer, and, eventually, captain of your own ship.”

Victoria fell silent, as the class examined the cruiser, magnifying different aspects of the ship. Keryn spun it once absently, as she sought the hangar bay doors on the cruiser’s belly. Though she heard Victoria’s advice about the best advancement being through assignment on an Alliance cruiser, Keryn found the magnitude a bit daunting. Since she was from the small communities spread throughout the Wyndgaart home world, it was hard to imagine being responsible for so many lives.

No, she thought. My comfort lies more within the confines of a team.

If she had her way, she’d be a member of the squadron, her ship docked among the dozens of others within the hangar on the belly of the ship. Flipping back through the images, she once again let a Cair transport drift before her eyes.

“All right.” Victoria’s voice broke the silence. “I want everyone to take a ten-minute break. Take this time to clear your mind of all the nonsense about specific ship assignments. When you return to this room, I’ll teach you the basics of three-dimensional combat. If your class is smart enough to pick up the basics, I’ll run you through a practical exercise before we end for the day. Be back here in ten minutes.”

The students filed out the back, many excited conversations erupting long before they left the room. Feeling a tap on her shoulder, Keryn found Iana behind her, her pale face flushed with barely concealed enthusiasm.

“I’m going to be a Duun pilot,” she said bluntly. “To have that much power in my hands….” She gave an exhilarated sigh. “What about you? I have you pegged for cruiser all the way.”

“I’m actually thinking of requesting a Cair assignment.”

Iana was surprised. “Cair? Are you serious? Why not just ask for the weapons platform and be completely boring?”

Keryn laughed. “There’s something indescribable about the thought of flying a Cair, to be part of a team, something that important.”

“I’d start thinking a little smaller,” a familiar, annoying Avalon voice said.

Both turned to find Sasha and her entourage eavesdropping. On Sasha’s arm, a muscular Uligart snickered.

“Then again, I don’t really know if it’s possible to request to be a washout. Oh, well. The result will be the same.”

Keryn scowled.

Just one good punch, the Voice begged.

“Get lost, Sasha.” Keryn’s enthusiasm quickly drained in the face of the arrogant Avalon.

“Or what? You’ll prove that you really are a savage?”

Iana tugged on Keryn’s sleeve. “She isn’t worth it, Keryn. Come on. Our ten minutes are almost up, anyway.”

Frowning, her previous excitement replaced by irritation, Keryn entered the room and took her seat. Biting back tears of frustration, she blindly turned off the image of the Cair ship.

“All right, Class,” Victoria said, as the others took their seats. “Now let’s talk tactics.”

CHAPTER EIGHT

The team sat in the front row of the horseshoe-shaped set of chairs, searching for answers Vance didn’t have.

“Sir, what the hell’s going on?” Yen asked. “You pulled us off leave right when we were getting settled on the beach.”

“Four platoons?” Eza asked. “When have we ever had a mission that required so many supporting infantry?”

“I’d love to give you the answers, Guys,” Vance replied, pacing before the seated team, “but I don’t know.”

“Can’t you ask someone?” Nova asked, jerking her head toward the door behind her.

“I know what you’re eluding to, Queen of Stealth, but Halo doesn’t know anymore than I do. She’s hearing a lot of chatter and a mobilizations of different units right now, but she can’t pinpoint a mission or destination.”

“It’s something big,” Ainj said. “They wouldn’t have the whole warship up in arms otherwise.”

“Just as long as we aren’t second fiddle to another unit.” Yen slouched farther into his padded chair. “I won’t