The N.I.A. Ravage was a beautiful ship indeed. At least,
that's what her commander thought. It was a destroyer, bigger than
the Defiant, plated with shining silvery armor, and armed to the
teeth. Now, if only he was taking her into battle, and not on some
demeaning milk run... Commander Varalis snarled again, as he climbed
the ladder into the sleek craft. Oh well, at least he'd get to
use the Shadow, even if only for a recon mission.

     Once inside, he made his way up to the bridge. The
officers he passed saluted him more crisply than they would a
General. They were the Botoru battalion, *his* battalion. They
were the best, and he was the best of the best. Kyrrel noticed some
of them looked a bit perturbed... like him, they rankled at the
thought of being relegated to a scout mission, when they could be
out there in battle. He stepped onto the bridge, and was met by a
young lieutenant, Ebloa Gorel.

     "We're ready for takeoff, sir!"

     Kyrrel sighed dramatically. "Very well, Lieutenant. Take
us out." He sat down in the captain's chair as the ship lifted off
from the landing pad outside the castle, its metallic hull gleaming
in the brilliant sunrise. There was a slight tingling sensation as the
cloaking effect was engaged, and then the ship was under way. 

     He sank back in his seat. Icy grey eyes stared at the
viewing window over steepled fingers as he pondered his
situation. Here he was, the best warrior in the Empire, the
youngest officer (and the only commander) ever to be given
command of his own battalion... And they had him doing this. He
wondered what he had done to merit such treatment... But, it would
be over soon enough. Before long, they would be at the crash site.
He would make a cursory survey, then..back at Doma before
dinner. In the meantime, however, he supposed he had better check
out the Shadow.

*         *         *         *         *

     The Imperial KrommTech Shadow was the best piece of
mecha (for lack of a better, or more original, word) that the
Empire had to offer. It was just a prototype, but in all its trials it
had surpassed by far all of its Magitek predecessors. It was
lighter, faster, *better*. Even among the dozens of suits of armor in
the Magitek bay, it stood out. It was much smaller than the others,
and less  clunky'. It looked exactly as it should...like a sleek, black
killing machine. Kyrrel smiled coldly as he ran his hand lightly
over the machine's obsidian armor, thinking of how many Returners
he would kill with it.  But not today,' he thought bitterly. Unless,
maybe, there was some stray scum hanging around Jidoor, left over
from the battle... A light came into the commander eyes. There
really *was* a silver lining to every cloud... Kyrrel's thoughts
turned to his favorite pastime, killing returners. Ah, what he would
give to feel warm blood on his hands once more! To taste the fear of
his helpless victims! He grinned viciously, then began to laugh...

*         *         *         *         *

Later, but not ever so...

*         *         *         *         *

     In a somewhat better mood, Commander Varalis donned
his flight helmet. With a flip of his blue hair, he jumped into the
Shadow, while visions of carnage danced through his head. He
grinned again as he closed the protective dome over the cockpit.
Of course, there wasn't any guarantee there would be Returners on
the ground, but he was feeling optimistic. He reached for te
ignition switch, and felt the power of Shade surge through the
mech. He sighed. The Elemental's dark aura was comforting,
familiar... Its bleak, hollow blackness mirrored the emptiness in
Varalis' heart... and soul.

     Kyrrel engaged the Shadow's thrusters, and deftly steered
the craft out of the bay. The fighter was an ominous black shape
against the clear blue sky... Kyrrel would have preferred to be
cloaked, but it was hard to investigate a crash when you were in a
different realm. He looked down at the earth's surface. There was
Jidoor, not too far off. And directly below him, the wreckage of
the once glorious N.I.A. Fury. He seethed at the thought of the one
hundred crew members murdered by some rampaging Returner scum,
who wasn't fit to lick the slime from their captain's boot...

     His mood darkened again as he brought the Shadow in
close for a better look. He had hoped there'd at least be some
treasure hunters poking through the wreckage, so he could get some
target practice in. Alas, that was not to be... But wait, what was
that? A flicker of movement from inside the shattered hull of the
ship... His eyes narrowed. A Returner? His curiosity aroused, he
took his craft to the ground, and hopped out, grabbing a sword
from behind the seat. Slowly, he crept towards the wreck, being
careful not to make any noise. A rustling sound came from inside,
then a cough. Swiftly, the Commander leapt into the belly of the
fallen craft, ready to face his would-be opponent. Instead, he
saw...

     "Captain Brazier?" The man was sitting, leaning up against
the wall. He had apparently seen better days. He was pale and
unshaven, and his clothes were in tatters, singed and covered with
soot. His face bore a peculiar pattern of scars, presumable from
shrapnel, and his right eye was covered by a makeshift patch. With
his one good eye, he stared up at Kyrrel.

     "It's bloody well about time," he said in a low voice. 

     "What happened here?" asked Kyrrel.

     "The last thing I remember, the alert systems had detected
two intruders...I don't know who they were, or how they got on,
but I *did* find this..." Above his head, there were some letters
burned into the wall... "ENYGMA." Other walls (and pieces thereof)
bore what looked like claw marks... "Perhaps Garek will find this
evidence of some use."

     Commander Varalis' eyes narrowed into slits. "Indeed.
Perhaps he will." Meanwhile, Brazier had picked himself up off
the ground.

     "Where's your ship? I've had enough of hiding in this
bloody wreck." Kyrrel nodded in the direction of the Shadow.
"Good. What good is a war if I don't get to kill anyone?" Kyrrel
smiled with the Captain. A likeable man, to be sure...