First Flock

About two minutes have passed since Jone left me alone inside gunner room, i sat on gunner chair patiently waiting for enemy to arrive. My hands pressed gun handle tightly and my heart was beating fast in anticipation for the enemy airships to attack.

Suddenly a voice came out from echoing crystal which was placed on the room's celling, a shiny blue crystal started flashing at each word coming out from it. 

"Everyone get ready, enemy airships are getting closer"

I listened to Captain Jone's words and turned my head to open sky in front of me, adrenaline and my heart started pumping even faster and i quickly calmed myself as much i could. Clear mind is aviator's most useful and important weapon.

Then suddenly Aura fastened her pace and she flied faster and faster each second, then i could hear first explosions not so far from me. A sheer force of explosion shaken the sky and i could see one of ours smaller airship blow up to pieces, ruined wood and burning balloon crashed down a sky leaving nothing but smoke behind it and screams of doomed surviving crew. 

Aura started flying even faster now travelling trough the skies, we passed cloud by cloud until one of enemy smaller i presume scout airships came right at my gunpoint. By the looks of it enemy didn't notice the open gunner room and my gun pointing in their direction, they were focused on another targets and that gave me perfect opportunity to release rain of bullets onto them.

A grin appeared on my face and my fingers pulled the trigger causing huge barrage of bullets to fly in unimaginable speed towards it's target. My hands pressed the gun as it shook from firing force, bullets flied fast towards unfortunate elves who had no idea what is coming at their way. Elven airship at my sight was now getting smashed and cut by every bullet landing a hit on it, piercing the walls, balloon even it's crew making them fly from force of bullets hitting their body.

Fastly after that enemy ship crumbled and fell down leaving nothing but smoke and smell of fire in the air, i looked down to confirm successful takedown and returned to my seat. As i sat down on comfortable gunner chair, voice spoke from echo crystal.

"More incoming"

Sparking crystal stopped at sudden hit to the ship, smaller explosion echoed trough the sky as enemy casted fireball towards us and hit their target. I was about to stand up and grab echoing crystal to ask where we got hit and is everything alright until crystal spoke by itself again.

"Our armor protected us nothing to worry about, keep doing your work people"

Reassuring voice of Captain Jone spoke and i turned my head again towards open sky trying to find new target to destroy. Another elven airship made it's presence to me, it was focusing on another smaller airships who were trying their best to survive this scramble. I pressed the trigger again and another barrage of fast flying bullets poured from the gun right towards enemy airship.

Some of the bullets couldn't penetrate sides of enemy airship because heavy armor placed on them, as i saw that sides couldn't be penetrated i quickly turned my gun towards it's balloon which was unprotected. Bullets quickly destroyed enemy ship's balloon and ship started to crumble down, screams of it's crew could be heard as their voices slowly disappeared down the sky.

Then next enemy ships arrived and there's now three of smaller elven airships, one of them fired cannons at my direction leaving me calm knowing that Aura's defensive systems will protect me. Ten meters before cannonballs hit Aura and my position, defensive crew of Aura released wind barrier magic around entire ship and successfully blocked cannonballs. 

A fireball fired towards Aura breaking it's wind barrier and hitting right side of my gunner room opening causing me to gulp. Although Aura is good against mere weapons like cannonballs, automatic cannons and similar it definitely lacks magic defense since wind barrier can't hold against well skilled elven mages. 

Quickly firing automatic cannon towards the ship who sent fireball at me caused the enemy ship to crumble like ships i destroyed before, leaving only two airships at my sight right now. Leaving two remaining ships surprised i now had a perfect chance to destroy both of them in one single bullet sweep. I grabbed pulled the trigger again and sent final barrage of bullets at two enemy ships before my magazine ran out.

Two ships began to crumble and fall down the sky, some of it's crew jumped down using parachutes trying to escape alive. However i had already prepared couple of magazine boxes right next to me and i grabbed one box of ammo and assembled it into the gun. I grabbed gun again and started shooting at parachuting elves making them fall and scream to their deaths.

"Good job everyone we successfully defeated the enemy, but still be on your guards"

A voice said from echoing crystal, i took a deep breath and exhaled it to ease myself from adrenaline. Adrenaline soon after that stopped and i stood up and came closer to windowed doors and pulled them back, doors closed and i left the room and started moving towards main hall to check our current situation.

"Good job everyone we managed to destroy enemy fleet without many losses" 

Captain Jone yelled to everyone in the main hall, as i walked in i could see bunch of other people standing there and listening to his words. Everyone looked happy for their victory but no one raised a voice or cheer out of respect for their fallen brothers in arms, i got near by one of my colleague startling him a little bit.

"How many men did we lost today?"

I asked somewhat out of blue and my colleague looked at me with cold expression in his eyes, probably a shock from battle. 

"We lost two smaller ships and eight people in total"

I patted his shoulder and told him that every battle has victims trying to brighten him a little bit, he forged a low smile on his way and nodded with his head. Then a Captain's voice spoke yet again and everyone focused on Jone once again.

"By our information the town of Zelos is about twenty kilometers of us, the town is still populated so we will send couple of airships to fly down in order to check town folk down there ."

Town of Zelos is closest town to the elven border and currently most dangerous place to live in this side of country, i've heard that many of our aviators and elves died for the control of it but we still managed to somehow uphold it. 

"Everyone return to this usual duties, we should arrive in half an hour."

With that everyone walked out and returned to their usual duties leaving only me and Jone inside main hall, Jone walked to me looking like he has something for me, a mission perhaps.