Commander Richard Vanmarek stood on top of Tower Four, gazing up into the night sky. It was the southernmost black tower, and it offered spectacular views across the city, but his eyes remained fixed on the wispy white clouds that floated just beneath the Dome Shield. The moon was full and the air felt cold so high above the ground. Vanmarek stuffed his hands into his trouser pockets for warmth. His short, copper-brown hair fluttered in the wind.
Commander Jim Parker sat on a black box beside him, looking down at his boots. His white hair was hard to miss among the dark shapes of the equipment boxes that lay scattered across the roof.
'Is he here yet?' Vanmarek said.
Parker didn't look up. He didn't move at all, but he spoke in a clear voice that cut through the wind. 'Twenty-seconds,' he said.
Vanmarek nodded, straining his eyes to stare into the darkness above. When he squinted, he could just make out striae caused by the surface of the Dome Shield two hundred metres above his head. At first he could see little else. Stars twinkled in the darkness. Gradually another ripple appeared to the South. Vanmarek hadn't seen it approaching, but it was there now, a grey patch emerging in the sky until it resolved into sinusoidal, vibrating black wings. He admired the grace of the Albatross as it approached. The thin black lozenge glided towards him, wings rippling in the wind. Its dark, flat hull seemed to throb in the air as it bent the light around it. It moved like nothing Vanmarek had ever seen before, and its path was silent, like the night.
'Let's welcome the new general properly,' Vanmarek said. 'Send a four drone honour guard. Maintain full alert.'
Parker said nothing, but Vanmarek knew that he would be using his neural implants to take control of the four Wasp Drones that sat waiting on the landing pads behind them. The drones had no pilots. They didn't need any. Parker could control them with his mind.
Each black Wasp Drone stood on six thin legs. They clung to their landing pads with sharp clawed feet while they flexed twin sets of transparent wings behind them. The drones had a bulbous heads and long thick abdomens that could carry passengers or cargo. A narrow thorax connected the two sections, and provided the power to drive the heavily veined, transparent wings.
Parker lifted his head, pink eyes shining in the small white lights that outlined the perimeter of the landing pads. His cheek twitched as the Wasp Drones started powering up their systems. Large Perspex bubbles fluoresced green on each side of the drones' heads, giving them the appearance of insects with large eyes, but the bubbles were little more than reinforced storage units, packed with munitions and communications equipment.
The nearest of the Wasp Drones sprang to life as Parker gazed passively in its direction. Flexible white strands tightened around its humming thorax as its wings extended to their full length. The wings had a large surface area, riddled with mesh-like veins. They formed a nervous system that constantly monitored the changing air pressure, temperature and wind speed.
'Hold onto something,' Parker said.
Vanmarek grabbed hold of the metal railing beside him. As one, the Wasp Drones jumped into the air and hovered a metre above their landing pads. Their wings were now little more than a humming blur, beating 250 times per second. Between them, the drones generated a huge downdraught, sending dust swirling across the roof. Parker held onto the box he was sitting on as it vibrated, sliding a few centimetres across the roof. His eyes looked pensive as his spiky white hair fluttered in the wind.
Vanmarek held onto the metal rail, raising one hand to shield his eyes from the swirling winds as the drones rolled sideways and sped towards the South. He straightened his jacket, and stood up once the drones were far enough away. 'Let me know when the Albatross has docked,' he said. He didn't wait for Parker to reply. He walked over to a small hatch in the middle of the roof, opened it, and climbed inside.