We watched another explosion tear the sky. Not a collision this time, as Mizar tracked the hail of bullets that claimed the craft. Perhaps the attack was provoked by boredom, or an ork pilot decided to settle an old grudge. Either way, it did not go unpunished. I heard bellowing grunts, presumably the ork mechanical demanding retribution. As we watched, energy coalesced around the copper dome, and a surge of lightning lashed out like an overseer’s whip. It ripped the sky asunder, the energies tearing a score of aircraft from the sky. Presumably this included the perpetrator, though I struggled to see how they could be identified in the chaos. It reminded me of the worst of Imperial justice, where punishing the crime takes priority over identifying the perpetrator.

‘If we leave them long enough, do you think they would destroy each other? Descend into civil war?’ I asked.

‘Maybe. But we do not have the time.’

‘But what chance do you have? Alone against that?’

She smiled. ‘Oh, I won’t be fighting alone. The Two Thousand Two Hundred and Eighth Expeditionary Air Wing will fly with me.’

Plient and I watched as Mendax Matertera ascended.

I had offered her a salute as she made the final checks. I still held the pose, despite her only response being an eye-roll followed by an obscene gesture. It was Plient who eventually took hold of my arm, gently lowering it to my side.

‘Come on, sir,’ he said. ‘We’ve done all we can. I’ll brew some recaff.’

He was wrong, though. Plient had done all he could by getting the Lightning airworthy. I still had my duties. As he made for the hangar’s miniscule kitchenette, I glanced to Kikazar. The seer-skull’s anti-grav units remained offline, but we had mounted it in a spare hard point, and I had improved the pict quality, albeit marginally. The ork mechanical was ensconced in the sky-fortress’ bridge. I caught the odd glimpse of the craft’s interior, ork warriors stationed at consoles, or intent on the viewscreen. It seemed incongruous that these brutal creatures could play the role of navigator or enginseer.

I looked away then, breathing deeply, seeking to sync my consciousness with Iwazar. We had tested the connection from the ground, but there was no way of knowing whether it would work once Shard was airborne. But I focused, reaching out, ignoring the fractious hissing from Kikazar.

I could not say I saw only darkness, for even darkness is a thing. I just felt nothing, like my hand passing through the void. But she was out there, racing towards the storm. I had to reach her. I tried picturing Iwazar, and when that failed, I pictured her instead, piloting the scrap-plated plane, alone against an airborne armada. Flight Commander Shard: the greatest fighter ace in all the Imperium.