Savage Tide: Prologue

Bolide
Staring up at the stars, the crystal clear sky gave the two teenagers a perfect view. Lying on the deck of the ship with Orion, River was having a very nice night. It was almost midnight, few people on the Flotilla were still awake apart from them.

"I'm glad I could share this with you Ori."

He chuckled back, clearly still enjoying his time with her.

"Wouldn't miss it for anything. It was good to be with your family too, it felt nice being a part of that."

Twisting her head, she found he was already looking at her. Blushing slightly, River pushed at his face. Her gaze going back to the stars, she noticed one glowing brighter than the others. She didn't recognise it, but it was pretty all the same.

"See that one? Dunno what it is, haven't seen it before. But stuff like that is why I come out here. It reminds me that I'm just a small part of a big world, and it's only a small part of something even bigger."

With Orion shuffling closer to her, he tried to keep up some smooth talk while he slowly scooted up beside her.

"Yeah, you're kinda like that star. A bright pretty light in a sea of lights. You both just stand out among everything, drawing people in."

As he slid his arm behind her neck and around her shoulder, River saw something strange about the star. It was getting brighter. Frowning at it, she missed the first half of his next sentence.

"... and I'd like to be part of that."

"Hey, is it just me or is it getting brighter?"

When he turned, Orion saw the same thing she did.

"Huh, I think you are right."

Both of them just looking up at this peculiar sight, it only took a minute until their curiosity turned to worry.

"Ori it's getting larger. It's not a star."

He was obviously thinking along the same lines as her, because in that moment he stood up, pulling River up with him.

"I don't know what's happening, but we should probably tell someone about this."

Nodding in response, she took the lead, knowing Orion wouldn't be confident walking around the ship yet, even after having been there for several days now. Just as they were about to step inside, the two of them paused. It could be heard now. Two sets of eyes quickly turned back to stare at the sight before them. Instead of the large star like sight in the sky, a large fireball was roaring down towards the sea. River was the first to act.

"Oh no.... Get inside! Now!"

Shoving Orion inside, she pulled the door shut behind them, spinning the lock shut with the precision of someone that had done it thousands of times. Grabbing his hand and taking the lead, they raced up to the bridge of the ship, the night crew keeping things sailing. Running in the door, six heads turned to face them.

"Hey River, in a hurry eh? Nowhere-"

She cut him off, adrenaline mixed into her voice.

"Not now, out there! It's coming down at the ocean!"

They paused for only a moment. Trusting her after many years of River making a name of herself around the Flotilla, they jumped towards the nearby window.

"Oh shit..."

"It that a meteor?"

"It's about to hit! Wake the ships! Get people moving, now!"

Racing off to wake everyone up and get the ships moving, the captain grabbed the microphone for the speakers over the ship, and the fleet.

"Everyone! Wake up now! This is the Home Ship! A meteor has been spotted coming down at the ocean! Move it now! We need everyone we can at the controls moving the ships and making sure the cargo is secure!"

River and Orion were still at the window, and as the captain yelled out orders to everyone, they saw the impact the meteor made as it hit the water.

"Oh shit....."

As it entered the water, the force of the blast pushed up a huge wave. River immediately knew the Flotilla couldn't survive such conditions, not even the smaller boats. With the knowledge that she could do nothing, she wrapped her arms around Orion. He pulled her in close, and the two of them just watched the wave begin taking the fleet and pushing them helplessly. It only took a moment until it started to pull at the Home Ship.

"I'm glad I was with you River."

Washed Out
Humming in the darkness, Noir matched the gentle melody playing through the airjet. The sounds of her maintenance AK-130 working on Vélo Sanglante were mixed in with the soft music, but she didn't mind. It was one of the rare times that Noir truly relaxed and a bit of noise wouldn't spoil it for her. Lying on her bed, her head was moving around slowly with the music, a foot doing the same. It was long past midnight, yet sleep wasn't on her mind. What she had planned for the morning was however.

''Three blocks, 9 AM. Should be people around by then, no matter. Not worth taking the bike, and it's close by all the same. Fourth building on the right, with a clear view of the street. Few hazards around.''

Resigning to the need for sleep, Noir rolled off the bed. Unzipping the combat skin, she began peeling it off her body. A routine and highly practised action, it only took a moment to free her arms. But just as she was about to slide her legs out, she heard something for a split second above the music and metallic clanks.

"Music, off."

Listening carefully, Noir quickly realised something was roaring through the streets of Vale. The volume increasing fast, she made a dash for the cockpit to see what was happening. Not even making it through the door, she was thrown sideways when something slammed into the side of the Aile Cassée. Hitting the side door, she fell to the floor only to be thrown around more as the airjet was pushed into the buildings it was in between. Having slid along the small hold, her head connected with the bed, producing a loud crack. The violent movements at an end, the airjet began to tip over.

"Warning. High structural damage to airjet in progress."

The android said this without emotion, but the words made it to Noir's concussed mind.

''In progress? Shit.....''

The truth of this statement was obvious when the screeching of metal tearing pierced through the roaring sound of what seemed to be water hammering the Aile Cassée. As it finished tilting over, Noir rested on her stomach on the wall of the hold. Having trouble forming thoughts, her hand reached up to the side of her head where she had hit the bed. Feeling her hair slick with blood, she rested her body on the cold metal beneath her. Although she didn't know it, Noir was drifting out of consciousness. The concussion and slow blood loss mixed with the adrenaline of the moment taking their toll on her body.