Tool of the Revolution

[LancerZero]

"When I sit down to eat, I remember the starving children of Crete.
When I want for something, I remember the greed of the House corporations.
When I see someone standing alone, I remember those who've lost family in the Bretonia/Kusari war.
When I see someone trying to hide something, I remember Zone 21, and how the Liberty government refuses to tell its people they're one jump away from Nomad invasion.
When I see someone getting beaten down, I remember the brutal fascism of the Rheinland government.
And when I remember these things, I become the Revolution."

Arkady paused briefly, looking down at his voice recorder and considered his next words. "Mom, Dad...we've all witnessed the same atrocities. You know why I'm doing this. It flows through my veins, beats in my heart. The Coalition knows what's got to be done...maybe we'll meet again on a Freeport somewhere. I'll be watching for you, and trying to make all of Sirius a better place." He pressed the stop button and sighed. I should've sent this when I left, but couldn't figure out how to say it. Well, now they'll have an explanation.

He took another look around the underground hangar on Gran Canaria, one of a series of such installations the Coalition had recently built when facilities on Crete became inaccessible. Tools were everywhere. There were a few empty packets of synth paste, an old viewscreen in the corner, a computer terminal sitting on the floor...and his ship in the middle of the hangar. Sometimes, I miss my old Viper. Me and that ship had a lot of history together...but it wasn't a ship for the Revolution. It was a flashy plaything that I got before I knew what I wanted in a fighter.

My new ship...it is ugly. Two enormous engines with an absurdly tiny fuselage and cockpit. But, it has plenty of power and is very easy to maintain...and has more armor than my old Viper. The Revolution is beautiful, but sometimes requires ugly tools to be used. And that's what this ship is: a tool. A fast, fun tool to be sure, but a tool nonetheless. Much like myself...though, I am much better-looking! Heheh. But we are both tools of the Revolution. I'm a crude one still, new to the cause...but the whetstone of conflict is always there to sharpen and refine me. After a brief preflight walkaround, the Coalition Lieutenant strapped himself in and closed the cockpit. With a bone-rattling roar, the engines came to life...and a Revolution nearly a millennium old took to the skies.

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Current Stories
Linus' Lackadaisical Logs(upd.3-1-10)
Archived Logs
In the Queen's Service(upd.4-21-10) | The Finer Things in Life (upd.4-8-10)
Silvy's Story(upd.2-29-08) | Conrad's Flight & Fight(upd.1-14-08)