They worked closely with international companies to develop innovative, low-cost aircraft-related technologies and improve the capability of new aircraft design for commercial applications, and developing their concept for a future generation of modernized space travels.

E.B is outgoing and highly driven, always looking for new avenues to pursue.
Although being known for all his talent and dedication, he's pretty much an idiot.
E.B's the kind of person who has a reputation for being so self-important and annoying at times. Not to mention the fact that he loves to make bad joke and puns, and even call himself famous when actually all of his “fame” is pretty much based on being a meme on the internet.

Aside from engineering, E.B was a passionate reader. He was especially fond of Sci-Fi books, manga, and anime!!
He could often be found in the café and bookshop of one his friends, scouring through any new releases.
This person was very important to E.B, and his closer friend. Her name was... [______]
E.B had a unique link with this person, it was a connection E.B would want to keep secret for now.
They bonded overbooks, or rather books have bonded them.
[______] was also a poetry writer, and quite well known!

He hides a mysterious past that he claims to have forgotten.
He was rescued by Azer at a young age.
While realizing a flight test, Azer found himself in a vast desert landscape, he spotted a shape in the distance, it was E.B. He attempted to save him from the desert as E.B was disoriented and exhausted.
There were no signs of civilization around this unfamiliar location, and E.B's family remains unknown.
Azer decides to take care of him until the end, and E.B. would soon adapt to life with Azer and his partner Meister, who together would found the Aerospace Stars Administration.
Azer introduced E.B to Aerospace and other aeronautical technology.
E.B began to grow more confident, with so many mysteries left unformed, he wanted to know more, until later work as an Aerospace Engineer, Air traffic controller, Mechanic, Electrician, and many other technical professions, he'd also play the guitar and aspires to become a DJ, there was nothing that could stop him...

In one of the missions to the research station, Azer and E.B, on board of the spacecraft designated for the mission, successfully conducted the flight to the thermosphere.
The mission made way through the space area before entering towards the exosphere where the research station is located, and to a deep space region called Biz-orbit.
Everything was going according to plan, or so they thought.

As soon as they entered into the exosphere, there was an unidentified anomaly, or better said, an entity. Its shape resembled a cube, with a dark liquid body.
They observed it near the Biz-orbit, attracting the attention of both, they took the flight toward the entity carefully.
They believed that this could be a result of a disturbance in the atmosphere causing a disruption to the orbit of the atmosphere at the time, attracting the presence of the entity.

The incident that occurred was immediately followed by a short and fast and unexpected reaction. The resulting phenomenon was a sudden explosion. Before they could even take control of the situation, the entity divided into 8 equal parts, one of which directly impacted into the spacecraft.
It was such the bad luck, that the projectile's destructive impulse broke through the thick layers of glass, soon reaching E.B. This caused a massive impact on him, that he immediately collapsed down.
The spacecraft soon activated the emergency response system, and was forced to initiate an emergency landing.
Azer was able to survive the impact without major injuries, and was able to send a message of assistance.
The spacecraft immediately contacted the space center to arrange a landing spot, and should take about 20 minutes to reach the earth.
Azer, with the last of his energy left, attempted to reanimate E.B, sadly without success.
All that was left was to wait for the help, and only wish to know everything will be okay.

As the spacecraft arrived to the surface, the assistance was taken immediately, and an investigation has been carried out into it.
Everything then changed rapidly, when it was discovered what seemed to be the target of an extraterrestrial threat to Earth.
Different pieces from the entity entered the planet, some of which were spread around into different sections, causing significant damage to some areas.
This event became an extremely dangerous situation for the life on earth, that caused severe panic amongst the aerospace industry.
But the authorities decided to take steps to prevent the situation getting worse.

After a week, Azer was able to recover from his injuries and take all precautions to get back on track. Except for E.B, who seemed to be in an unstable condition, for what seemed to be a case never treated before.
They took extra measures, but still couldn't bring him back.
They continued to investigate it thoroughly, but the situation seemed far worse.
Therefore, Azer came back and went searching every possibility of doing something that could be used to bring him back.

It couldn't end this way...

There had to be something...

I know... T̴͗he̴ ̶s̷olu̸tion..

Ẉ̸̗͈̉͝a̶k̸͚̲̼̽͐͠e̷̡͗̄̇ ̷͙̅͐ȗ̵̔p̷͛

.̴̨̒.̴͕͋.̴͘.̵̦͎͝.̵.̶͔̺̾̃.̶͇̑͝.̵͔̈.̶̙͆.̵̉͊..̶.̶̗̜͌̿.̴̎..̴̖͉̊̌.̴.̶̠̔.̴̆.̴͙̮͗͝..̴͖̗̔..̵͉̽.̵͊...̶..̶.̶̗̜͌̿.̴̎..̴̖͉̊̌.̴.̴͕͋.̴͘.̵̦͎͝.̵.̶͔̺̾̃.̶͇̑͝.̵͔̈.̶̙͆.̵̉͊.

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E.B is back again, and it's a day like any other.
It felt like everything were just a bad dream, almost like his mind were elsewhere, it's hard to remember what happened exactly, but it's time to move on.
The administration came back to its normal routine, more active and more dedicated to making space safe for everyone.
They decided it was better to wait for the proper time as well as take precaution in the process.
On the other hand, Azer and E.B were able to return to the normal lives they had.

It's a big year, and E.B remains busy with just that - designing, researching, and building projects -
They have been developing a new prototype, an exciting project that promises to bring an entirely new class of spacecraft design, technology, and space travel!
It's only matter of time before we look at the future of aerospace, with the attention, passion and determination of Aerospace Stars.
It's been a few years in the process, and they're excited to finally announce their new project. People around the world are looking forward to hearing more about them on the latest developments and the team working together to move on their dream project.

Named the AZ Drive, an interstellar spaceplane capable of creating thrust out of nowhere without relying on any propulsion system at all. This breakthrough has led to an international challenge to determine whether or not the AZ Drive can achieve thrust without the use of conventional electromagnetic thrusters!
It will be the first experimental vehicle powered by propellantless energy technology in history. The drive uses a 'warp' or repulsive force to push against the forward motion of a magnetic field to generate thrust in the opposite direction.
This machine could be a game-changer for space travel, letting us travel further in less time and at greater speeds than ever before.
They hope to demonstrate this soon and make the concept a success!

The long-awaited AZ Drive launch day has arrived!
It will be livestreamed on a wide variety of local media and social networks. It's a wonderful day to witness such a huge and significant change in aerospace history, and look forward to seeing what the AZ Drive brings out of the world.
The main team behind the launch mission will be in charge of captain Azer and Meister on board, and E.B in the flight control center to carry out the launch mission to the stars!
There's only a few minutes left before the flight takes off, and make of it an exciting achievement for the future.

One of the bigger parties responsible for this development is Meister. Here's what he had to say about it:
["This is the moment we've been waiting for years. We are finally at the point where we can launch the first propellantless spacecraft that uses a controversial space drive. It's the greatest milestone yet for this incredibly promising technology.
I am incredibly proud of the teams that worked so hard and for so long to bring this incredible concept to life. It's exactly what we hoped to accomplish.
Well done everyone, it is time to blast off."]

The expectations are high, but they're very encouraging for Azer and the team, to put on a good show!
The test is planned to last one hour, and the mission to be carried out consists of three stages:
Stage 1 is the actual flight where the spacecraft will autonomously navigate in suborbital space.
Stage 2 is the test that has been the source of the controversy and media attention: the test of the ‘propulsion’ device.
It's when the spacecraft fires the warp drive.
If successful, Stage 3 will be to carry the prototype to Mars for a full range of test, and make its way back to earth.

The mission control team reports that everything is ready for take off.
The launch procedure is now taking place, engines are on, and ready to go, the final countdown has begun.
The launch sequence is now underway, the AZ Drive takes off at its full power, and soon arrives to orbit successfully.
All is looking great so far, it’s exactly as they expected!
Great views from outer space are being streamed around the world, as the team prepares for the next stage.
Thanks to its design, the AZ Drive has the ability to adapt to the demands of space.
Everything seems ready to begin with the interstellar propulsion system.
However, the control center noticed slight interferences in the communication system, calling into question whether or not to proceed with the mission immediately.
Azer decides to discuss it with Meister, giving time to the center to regain control on the system.

Unexpectedly, something happens to cut off the transmissions and all forms of communication.
This sudden event created big concern between the control center and viewers.
They tried all they could to regain control, but it seemed far too late, as the ship's transmission system has been sabotaged.
The local news are still reporting the situation, broadcasting directly from the control center.

"The AZ Drive was taken out of orbit by an unknown event, and all forms of communication have been cut off.
The control center are debating what to do.
I guess the long and short of it is that the mission based on the AZ Drive have been abandoned until further notice."
The local and space media were trying their best to push back against their beliefs and fear.

But everything was getting worse by the minute. Upon orbit, it turns out that the drive didn’t actually reduce the required energy by more than about 10%, resulting in a substantial discrepancy. Without warning, the AZ Drive’s performance suddenly dropped off and it experienced a large reduction of thrust, descending back to earth.
On its way down, the AZ Drive was suddenly interrupted by an explosion.
There was a massive shock, and a huge amount of confusion and panic, entering in a state of emergency.

This caused a great impact on E.B who was the main operator for this mission. Suddenly rushed out of his seat, closing his eyes as if trying to shut out the truth.
Despite the dramatic circumstances, E.B took a peek out of the space control center, witnessing the collapse of the AZ Drive.
Soon, it was going to crash, and he would not have any way of stopping it.
He was afraid to see the end of all this.
And then... it happened.
The AZ Drive suddenly crashed back to earth, on a nearby forest. Destroying it. He was gone.
E.B watched as his entire reality collapsed.

Everything suddenly became quiet, no more noise could be heard anymore. No more sounds.
Only the gentle breeze was left as a lasting reminder of this tragic event.
E.B was just looking to the sky, and was feeling regret, for his inaction, for his weakness, and for losing something important.
"Could he... have survived...?"
Amidst his mind spinning with uncertainty, a strange humming sound appeared, a helicopter flew across his line of sight, traveling toward the surface of the forest.
It was the rescue team dispatched.
This was the last remaining hope for E.B, and he refused to lose this chance. He had to chase the helicopter to go after the craft, and possibly save Azer.
He left the control center and followed the helicopter, riding on his motorbike.
As he was approaching the crash site, he got stopped by the search and rescue team.

"What are you doing here, sir?" The rescue team told E.B.
"I am from the control center, I came to find out what happened, I need to know if the pilot survived." E.B answered.
"We don't know yet. The case is still being investigated. We are trying to solve it as fast as possible." The rescue team told E.B.
As the rescue team brought Azer out of the wreckage, they heard E.B's faint voice.
"Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait."
At first glance there wasn't signals that he would have survived the explosion.
They carried Azer out of the crash, and brought him to the hospital for closer inspection.
On the way to the hospital, E.B was hoping for good news. The news which could restore his optimism, and which would make him regain hope for solving the case. But, the good news did not come.
E.B waited in silence for a long time, until finally, realized that it was time for him to let it go.
The medical staff approached and called for his name.
"E.B, right?" They asked.
"Y- yes" replied E.B.
"We have the results from the examination. It seems he has suffered serious damage, he has gone through severe burns.
We detected unusual injuries on the head, which could not have been caused by the explosion.
E.B was barely keeping it together. "How is the internal damage? Is there any chance he will recover?".
After a few seconds of reflection, E.B finally asked
"Is he... alive?".
He immediately realized that the medical staff was holding back the bad news.
"Azer is dead, there is nothing else we can do. We are sorry for your loss." The medical staff told E.B.
"I see." It was all E.B could say.
He left the hospital, with a lot of thoughts flowing through his mind.
E.B spent his night, alone, in his small apartment, not even willing to sleep. He kept thinking about what could have been. All of these questions, and no answers. He spent all night, searching for answers in his head.
But, none would come.
However, during this whole time, it was as if something was missing...


[Azer was officially declared dead.
Over the news, the public were treated to the news of a prototype which had crashed for still unknown reasons, next to Azer's unfortunate demise, one of the most memorable aerospace engineers in the industry. The investigations even cast in doubt on whether this could be the case of a murder.
This event is going down in history as one of the most devastating failures in aerospace, yet the biggest mystery of them all.
"They still don't have a clue what happened", say some.
"It is a mystery", says others.
While people are asking, "What happened?", many of them are also wondering, "What if?"
How can such an important equipment malfunction so suddenly?
No one knew.
Was it the AZ Drive a complete failure?]

It's been a week since the accident, and things haven't gotten any easier for E.B. The investigation was biased towards the company. The investigators became more suspicious as they investigated other engineers.
But there was still no definitive answer.
Everyone involved in the project were questioned, except for one person.
Meister was nowhere to be found.
He had disappeared and declared missing.

The leading expert in the field, Meister, is the only one that appears to have any knowledge of what happened.
He was onboard the AZ Drive during the accident, and disappeared immediately after.
Everyone knew he was a brilliant engineer and was the brain behind the AZ Drive, no one is quite sure what happened to him.
Meister was very clever and made no mistakes in his work. He knew how to detect a flaw in a design.
Did Meister know more than he was letting on?
Or was he purposely hiding some kind of secret?

The future of Aerospace Stars is yet to be decided
The administration closes its doors and stopped working until further notice.
The loss of Azer and valuable technological assets has caused a setback for ASA.
The administration has declared a formal memorial for Azer.
His funeral was held shortly after, and the entire administration attended to pay their respects.
It was a cold and tragic day.
...
E.B continued with his life, but there was always something weighing on him.
He has just begun to get back into a normal routine, when he remembered about something important.
He needed to go back to the administration immediately.
Likewise, he didn't really have the desire to go back there, but it was inevitable.
E.B took his motorbike and headed off to the administration for a last time.
He made his way over the office, and as he opened the door, he felt something but couldn't quite figure out what it was.
He took a deep breath and walked inside.
Everything was as he remembered it.
The whole office was quiet, it was hard to imagine that a few weeks ago, it was full of life and excitement.
But now it all feels empty.
The administration that once was dedicated, passionate, and determinated, has now become a place of broken memories.

E.B went over to the filing cabinet in his office to take out his belongings.
He picked up a briefcase and opened it up and went through the contents.
Everything was in there.
He felt relieved to find everything intact, he wouldn't know what to do without this.
He packed up some other stuff and made his way over to the door of his office.
Right when he was about to leave, he heard the sound of the front office door opening in the distance.
E.B quickly turned around and hid behind his desk.
No one has been in here for weeks. Why suddenly now?
But what was even more unsettling, was the fact that nobody could enter this room without authorized keys.
Only 3 people had keys to this room, it could only be one person.

E.B wanted to take a closer look, as he slowly walked over to the door.
He turned and found the only person standing in the doorway.
No, it couldn't be. Meister?
E.B didn't know how to feel, whether he should feel happy to see him alive, or scared, or maybe both. E.B didn't know what to do, or what to say. Was this actually happening? It was.
E.B stood there for what seemed like an eternity. He could feel the tension of waiting getting worse by the second.
When Meister finally realized he wasn't alone.

"Ah, what a coincidence, E.B, how are you doing? Meister was calm, almost distant.
E.B looked at him with a blank stare.
"Meister? I thought you were dead..."
Meister walked slowly around the desk. E.B slowly came back around, not sure if Meister was going to say something.
"I don't know what to think. But I need to speak with you. I have a lot of questions, and I hope you will answer them."
E.B always had an immense respect towards Meister, he was almost like a brother, and someone to look up to.
But he's starting to realize he may have been wrong.
"Hmm...you're questioning me? Not surprising.
I'm sorry I didn't tell you the whole truth. I hope you won't hold it against me. I didn't want to do this, but I had no choice." Meister replied.
"What are you talking about?"
E.B suddenly felt that he had been lied to about a few things, or maybe it was more like a lot of them.
There was no answer.

His cold eyes stared at E.B, and E.B eventually mustered the courage to walk towards him.
He didn't want to get into a conversation about this with Meister, especially now.
But he wanted to ask him what he needed to hear, even if it would hurt.
"Did you really... kill Azer?" E.B asked, looking straight at him with a cold glare.
"I haven't been paying attention to the news lately, but I'm seeing all kinds of rumors going around. Everyone is saying the same thing.
But what do you think, E.B?" Meister replied, getting closer and closer to E.B.
"..."
"Me... what... what do I think?" E.B tried to hide his anger. He didn't want to get on his bad side.
He felt himself tense up.
"Have you thought about it, E.B? Does Azer deserve to be dead?
Would you rather know the truth, or would you rather have more lies?"

E.B stared at Meister, ready to rip him apart, when Meister pulled him in and hugged him.
"Meister... what... what are you doing?" E.B was too shocked and frightened to even move.
Meister pulled E.B in, and held him close.
"I know I've been doing some bad things.
But I knew what Azer wanted. Can't you really see the truth? We were only being used.
I know Azer is on your mind, and I also know his death made you see me differently.
But believe me, it's better this way."
Meister slowly pushed E.B back.

E.B didn't know what to say or what to think anymore. Meister seemed like he was being honest, but he was a cold-hearted person. He was a murderer. It was hard to reconcile with everything that has happened.
Meister was not only his partner, but someone who was once his friend and advisor.
E.B had no idea what he was going to do.
He gave him a few minutes to think, until he was able to gather his thoughts.
"And now, what?"
E.B asked, finally breaking the silence.
"Well, I've been through a lot over the past few days. Just make sure to do what I'm asking, and you'll be fine." Meister said with a slight smile.
E.B stood there frozen with indecision.
His trust in Meister shattered completely.
His life has been nothing but one wrong move after another, and the only people he trusted were standing right in front of him. He couldn't bring himself to answer Meister. How could he?
"You should know for what I came for.
Give me back 'my' work, that's all I'm asking"
Meister said with a serious tone.

E.B backed away slowly.
"Your work?" E.B immediately knew that he was talking about the AZ Drive's work and all its files.
He couldn't let him take all that, it wasn't just a bunch of papers. It was important information.
He couldn't let it fall in the wrong hands, especially if it would only give more power to Meister.
"You can't have it. It belongs to ASA now, you have no right to it anymore." E.B said.
"Are you sure about that? Meister asked as he reached into his coat pocket, and pulled out a document.
You don't want everyone to know your little secret, don't you?" Meister said with a sly grin.
E.B's nerves began to get the best of him.
He knew exactly what he meant, he knew it all.
He felt helpless, E.B felt uncomfortable by the fact that Meister knew his entire secret. There was no turning back now. E.B saw no point in denying, and knew he had to comply with Meister's orders now.
"E.B, it's time to decide what's right. You can either put everyone at risk, or you keep your secrets. There's no dishonesty in that." Meister said.
Meister held out his hands, and E.B placed the paperwork in them.
Meister smiled and stared down at E.B's hands. "Thanks E.B."
He turned around, and walked out to the door.
"Oh, and one more thing, it's better if you don't let anyone know that I'm here.
Let's just keep this between us for now."
And then, Meister was gone.
While E.B stood alone.

He stared blankly at the windows, and just couldn't comprehend what had just happened.
There was a horrible feeling inside him, he was completely confused, angry, scared...
He sighed and laid down on the ground.
Things could have gotten a nightmare all of a sudden. He thought about what Meister had said, and wondered if he have been right.
Maybe Azer really was a liar after all, and everything he had done to him, now it felt wrong.
It was all over now, he thought, the work was in the hands of someone else.
With a sigh, he slowly closed his eyes.
Hours passed by, and E.B fell into a deep slumber...
...
Meister had kept things hidden from Azer.
Azer had trusted Meister with many secrets.
But he was so caught up in his hatred, and hatred always leads to mistakes, mistakes that can't be taken back.
And yet he refuses to talk about it. He had become obsessed with the implications of the AZ Drive.
It was everything he'd ever dreamed about.
After his initial failure, he continued to work tirelessly on his invention, knowing that the success of the AZ Drive was going to change the world forever.
But his deep desire for success eventually led him to take drastic actions, knowing that Azer would steal all of his spotlight, and deny him all of his glory.

Days had passed since the encounter with Meister. E.B spent his nights thinking about everything that happened, his life was all over the place, but he has been trying to get his mind off things, he needed something to occupy his time.
He had gone back to one of his old works at the Aeronautical Laboratory.
He still had a fair amount of ties within the aerospace industry, and was looking for a way to get himself involved again.
It seemed that he had time for more work now that his life had changed so drastically.
E.B went back to working on a few projects of his own.

His new projects were based on both his experience with ion drive engines and his advanced knowledge of electrodynamics.
They were planned for hybrid aircraft. In theory, they would also work at sub-sonic speeds and produce similar thrust to normal aircraft. E.B's new craft was a combination of an aircraft and an ion-propellant rocket.
The difference was that the ion-propellant engine is only powered by ionized air or gas. It produces a large amount of thrust and isn't limited by the size and power of fuel tanks. This kind of propulsion allowed for more efficient aircraft which could be pushed further for a shorter flight time.
The idea of a working ionocraft was to be the first hybrid electrohydrodynamic craft capable of sustained flight at sub-sonic speeds, great maneuverability and high impulse capability.

E.B spent almost every day getting his project up to speed, trying to reach his goal of achieving the highest speed and lowest cost. He worked to get the project closer to commercial release, wanting to get more people involved.
His new system was nearing completion, and he was anxious to put it to the test. It had been too long, he missed being busy.
They were almost to the point of putting his latest project to a test. E.B had a few more engineering adjustments to make, but then he could start to put his plans into action.
By the end of the month he felt like he has finally reached a solid state, and could make a final push.
It seemed as if everything was finally coming along together for once.
Right?

Unfortunately... it wasn't quite as good as E.B was hoping. That afternoon he was at the lab, putting the finishing touches on his newest project.
But suddenly a report came out to the Aeronautical Laboratory. Someone had been caught breaking into the lab, an electrical short had tripped all the alarms, while an explosion rocked the building causing some of the upper sections to collapse.
Everyone was forced to evacuate.
E.B was able to get out safely, but he still had a bad feeling about the whole situation.
He thought about seeing a face for a brief moment as he rushed out. The face seemed unfamiliar, maybe it was just a feeling, or it was just the commotion of the moment that played him tricks.
When everyone was outside the building, E.B finally put it together. Why was he having such a bad feeling?
He looked up to see the smoke from the explosion spread over the surrounding area, when he noticed someone looking down at him from one of the windows.
The suspect had just managed to get into the facility, specifically at the office he was working on.
E.B could barely believe what he was looking at, the only person who could possibly be such a threat was none other than Meister himself.
He had never imagined that Meister had such a destructive and dangerous side. He felt all the anger and hatred that he had been holding back for months surge out of him, he rushed back over only to find that the doors to the laboratory were locked.

Before E.B could even react, he saw a flash of something lighting up the room.
A sudden crash pierced through the lab windows, and a figure of a plane was fired into the air.
It was just the newly imported prototype, E.B. couldn't believe it.
He had barely any time to react as he looked up just to see the plane he had just finished being built was now gone.
He wasn't going to let this happen
E.B rushed off to his motorbike, deciding to go after Meister.
E.B didn't even know where was he going, but he didn't care anymore. He had to find Meister and bring him to the authorities to expose the truth behind the AZ Drive and all of his crimes.
If Meister succeeded in his plans, the fate of the world would be dire. He wasn't going to allow that, not anymore.
E.B just drove and drove, until he reached the outskirts of the city, but he was slowly losing sight of Meister.

He slowed down to check the surroundings, only to see he arrived to a vast wasteland.
He couldn't see anything other than vast landscapes covered with a thick layer of dust.
E.B felt uneasy, it didn't seem this was the safest place to be alone in.
At that moment, from the corner of his eye, E.B spotted a sudden flash of light in the horizon.
He sped up to get his eyes on it, but it was gone. What had just happened? E.B was sure the light was coming from Meister's direction.
A dark cloud of smoke emerged from the horizon, and concluded that the plane could have just crashed on the ground, there was nothing else to suggest otherwise.
He drove further ahead, and soon, E.B arrived on the scene of the crash.
He immediately jumped off the motorbike, and ran towards the burning plane.
He looked into the interior, and noticed it was completely empty.
He did it again.
He searched around the plane and once again, there was no one to be seen.
E.B knew he couldn't stop, he had to keep searching, Meister couldn't have gone too far.
With a quick glance around, E.B drove off further into the wastelands, hoping to find any sign of Meister, but all he saw was a vast amount of emptiness. In fact, there was no sign of any life whatsoever, only a few debris here and there...

After several hours of searching, E.B wasn't even certain which way to go anymore.
Everything seemed lost..
He wasn't sure how he would be able to get out of this place, but still he continued to search.
As he kept going he noticed a strange path ahead of him.
He turned off of his current path to follow it.
E.B drove down a seemingly long road, when he suddenly saw a red sign that showed an arrow to his left, saying 'Stop'.

A sign!

E.B was happy to see a sign for some reason, hopefully it meant he was almost at the end of the road.
Hoping to find some useful information in this area, he turned in that direction.
After many twists and turns, E.B finally reached the end, he was stopped by in front of an old abandoned city.
E.B was completely bewildered by the sight of it, he had never seen such a city, it looked almost eerie.
All the houses were left in ruins, the walls were cracked, and even the ground was destroyed. E.B took a look around, only to see abandoned cars and pieces of debris.
E.B didn't know what would happen to him in this desolate place. But how come he'd never heard of about this place? There was something strange about this city, but he couldn't quite tell what it was.

E.B didn't waste any time. Right away, he decided to take a quick look around the city.
He wasn't sure whether to find anything useful, until he heard something, a shot rang out. E.B was shocked when he realized, the shot was aimed at him. E.B watched as a man slowly walked towards him.
"Stop, and face me with your hands up!" The man shouted.
E.B hesitated a bit. He knew that he couldn't possibly get away, so he slowly raised his hands up in the air.
"Where do you think you're going, little boy? Are you one of them?" The man said with a smirk on his face.

...
"Who?" E.B couldn't understand what the man was talking about.
"Are you one of them, a spy? Do you know what I'm talking about?" The man shouted again.
"N...no, I don't." E.B said with a confused look on his face.
The man sighed. "I see... so what do you want? You are not in a good place, because if you keep running around in these wastelands, you will never get out. You think you have everything to lose now? No, you have so much to lose, that you cannot imagine."
E.B was frightened, but he still didn't understand where this man was going with his words.
E.B couldn't help but notice how this man wasn't as scary as he initially thought. The man seemed to be terrified, and E.B was sure he would be too if he was in the same situation.
"What is this place?" E.B asked.
The man leaned down and looked E.B straight in the eyes "It used to be a peaceful town filled with people who were like you, happy and free. But now..." He trailed off, E.B waited for him to finish.
"...it's nothing more than a forgotten city filled with darkness. Never thought it would fall to such a fate..."
E.B could only imagine how this place was just like the other cities he had been to over his life. He was completely confused, how did it end up like this? Who are "they"? Why were people forced to live in this sort of place?
The man noticed E.B was completely lost in his own thoughts, "You see, you're not alone. Since the time that they appeared, there are people who were pushed into this place. They were never allowed to leave."
The man made a creepy face. "Like you, they don't have a choice. You're gonna be here forever..."
E.B was still confused, but he didn't seem too worried about the fact. "So, who are 'they'?" He asked.

"XIVIL.
They are an army. They walk among the dead, killing everyone that gets in their way. The undead are their servants.
They have all kind of magic powers under their control. As long as they kill enough people, they will grow and their magic will keep growing.
They are everything that is evil, everything that is soulless. Everything that caused this city to fall apart." The man explained.

There was a brief silence as E.B was still trying to process what he had just heard.
E.B thought this man had completely lost his mind.

"This is impossible. Magic? Zombies?" E.B was just even more confused now, there's no way he could take it serious.
"Yes..." The man admitted, "Magic is very real."
E.B just looked at the man in complete disbelief.
"Alright, I'm out" E.B suddenly shouted.
"So, you think you're brave enough to escape from this hellhole, eh?" The man asked E.B.
"What, is that a threat?" E.B answered back.
"No, I actually hope you succeed in running from all this chaos. But I doubt that will happen" The man said.
"We'll probably meet again, so... my name is Jei, what's your name?"
E.B stood in silence for a moment, suddenly unsure of how to respond to Jei. Was he asking for his real name?
What was... his name?
"I don't..."-
"E.B?" Jei asked while looking at the gold pins E.B was wearing on his coat.
"Yeah... That's me!" E.B shouted, trying to act confident.
"It's nice to meet you, E.B." Jei said.
E.B didn't really know what to say after. He was beginning to get annoyed with Jei's friendly ways, he didn't come to make friends in the first place. But I guess it was nice to know that he seemed to be someone of trust.
"Well, I'm heading out" E.B stepped out of the city as he tried to look for an escape route.

He was close to the edge of the city, but quickly stepped back in as he noticed someone standing alone in the middle of the road.
It was wearing a clean uniform, and some rank insignia.
E.B didn't know whether to approach or keep his distance from him.
Maybe he was a guard, or one of those 'XIVIL' members, but he couldn't tell. He was still in complete disbelief about what Jei said.
Whatever the case, there was no other way out, he needed answers, and just maybe, get some help in exchange.
He slowly approached him, when suddenly the man aimed him with a gun.

"Keep your distance!" The general warned him.
"Well, well, you look like a brave fellow, wanting to leave the city." He said.
E.B stared blankly at him for a while, unsure what to do. Maybe this wasn't a good idea.
He noticed how the general's hands were slightly shaking, it could mean there was something wrong, or that he was just scared.
In this situation, a lot depended on what he did, on how he acted. E.B was able to keep calm and continued staring at him.
The general still stood there, aiming him.
But why was the general so concerned?

"I'm surprised that you're not fleeing away by now, normally people would be begging for their lives, but it seems you're not of that kind.
So, are you going to say anything?" The general said as he put his gun down.
"Well, I'm just trying to escape..." E.B started to explain what had happened, and how it was just a mere coincidence that he was in the city.
The general listened, and smiled. "Ah, that explains your reaction.
Well it seems you came just in time, XIVIL is not far from here. When they come here, they'll come for you."
E.B was shocked, and quickly asked him to wait for a moment. "Wait, XIVIL? Is it real?"
"I'm General Snow, the XIVIL commander of this city. Yes, we are." He replied.
"Huh? you don't seem as soulless and evil as I've heard" E.B answered back calmly.
"The rest won't be as kind as me. Don't get used to it, I'm just in a good mood, as I'm just doing my job." Snow soon exclaimed.
"Hahaha, no way, what will they do? Throw me a 'magic' spell? E.B then laughed out loud.
"Just wait, you will find out soon." Snow warned.
"..." E.B stared at the general for a moment, and eventually asked "So what kind of 'magic' do you have?"
"I can predict future events, I see the future." Snow answered as he got closer to him.
"Oh well, that's...cool..." E.B suddenly lost his voice as he stared at Snow's face.
Suddenly he noticed a faint glow in the general's eyes. "Don't tell me..." E.B said as he slowly backed away.
"Do you want to know?" The general suddenly asked as he got closer.

E.B stared blankly, unsure what was going to happen.
Snow then smiled, and said "Just look around, it's about to get a lot worse. They're coming."
E.B suddenly averted his gaze, as he stared at a tank that was coming to that direction from the distance.
"This can't be happening..." E.B thought as the tank got closer.
"Just run away, let's see if you have enough guts to get away from this city.
You're a lucky one." The general said.
"Don't forget who the strongest force is here" He added.

At this point, that seemed to be the only option.
E.B started to walk away, and ran back to the city.
He had no idea what was going on, but he had seen enough.

He tried to find an escape, when suddenly he heard a voice.
"Hello, E.B!" It was Jei. "Follow me" he said.
E.B sighed, as he did not really want to follow this man, but there was no other option.
E.B did as he was told, and followed him to a hidden doorway.
There was a stairway that led to a dark passage...
They entered the passage and the door closed behind him, E.B had no idea where they were going to...
He walked through the darkness, trying not to trip or fall on anything. He kept looking back, hoping to see a light.
When he finally made it through, they arrived to the end of the passage where there was a large door with a complex lock system.
Jei quickly opened the lock, and let E.B in.
"Welcome to the lair"
"Wow..." E.B looked around the room.
All the people that was trapped in this city were hidden in this place.
Everyone looked calm, minding their own business.
Some were working, while others were talking.
This place was actually quite nice and cozy.
It had a polished hardwood floor, polished wood high tables with seating, and a long, narrow bar with empty tables in the middle of the room.
Jei sat down in one of the tables, and motioned for E.B to sit down as well.

"Look who we have here now! I knew you would come back. Well, your life just got a little harder, boy. Let's start your new life, shall we? Jei spoke to E.B.
"I guess... I... Fine..." E.B replied.
"Good, now, listen closely...
XIVIL is here to get you and take you with them, where you will be tortured until you tell them everything you know or join their army.
When they come here, they come for you, and I can't always be there to help you. So if you don't want to end up on the end of a gun, from here on out, you'll learn all you can about how to survive here." Jei explained to E.B.
"So what do I do now...?" E.B spoke hesitantly.
"Look around, this whole city was taken down, almost all the people in it were killed by this tyrant army. That's why I have decided that I will protect the last survivors until it's all over.
You have a choice, either you can help me in this and work together to fight XIVIL, or wander alone through the wastelands, aimlessly searching for a place to call home. Well, let's go on, what do you have in mind?" Jei asked.
E.B took his time to think about it.
He was unsure of the direction his life was taking. He knew that this was a new beginning, one that he was going to take care of himself and no one else.
As he looked around the room, he could only hope that it was the right choice.
"Alright, I will help you" E.B finally spoke out with determination.
"That's great boy. It's going to be tough, but we will do it together. Let's go" Jei said.
Jei slowly got up from his table, and E.B did the same. "Come on, we have a long journey ahead of us."
E.B's new journey began.

[2 months later...]
It was hot and bright outside, the sun was starting to set and the stars began to show their brilliance. The night was the safest time to move around in this place.
E.B knew that most of the survivors were out looking for food and shelter. With only a small amount of supplies he managed to get by in this abandoned city, he has learned a lot since his first night.
E.B spent most of his time with Jei, he had told him the secrets of surviving in the wilderness and what lay ahead.
He also found a nice little space to set his own hideout.

E.B was on his own now, his survival was relying solely on himself, he was starting to get used to this new life.
Days went by, and he had a plan ahead, he knew that Jei was not the type of person to keep things to himself, so he started talking with him about future plans and what he wanted to do next.
In the beginning he would only help Jei to fight against XIVIL, but now he also wanted to save the other survivors and eventually take them out of this apocalypse.
For that, he had planned to build a plane and fly it out of the city, saving all the survivors.
That's right.
All alone himself.
The idea seemed farfetched, but he was convinced about it and took all the effort he could to develop the plan.
E.B knew he had to fight for what he loved, as he didn't want to get stuck in this city forever, so he took every bit of energy and work he could to make this plan possible.

After a whole month of planning, E.B finally found a place to begin with the plan, which he called E.B's Awesome Plan(E)...
Work was the only thing he could do, he wasn't going to let anything get in his way.
As a successful professional engineer, he knows there will always be trials and tribulations in the life of any engineer. It's just a matter of finding a way around them. In the meantime, he sets himself to work, figuring out all the materials needed to build the plane.
There were plenty of scrap metal and debris all around these wastelands, but there were no concrete resources to create anything, making it difficult for E.B to figure out where to start.
Luckily, he still has his old motorbike, so he went out to find a place that would allow him to find other kind of materials.

E.B looked around the wastelands, which was as barren as ever. There were no flowers or food, or anything useful at first sight. But he decided to be hopeful and not be discouraged by the situation.
A few kilometers from the city, there was the plane prototype that Meister had previously crashed.
Was Meister even alive? E.B didn't even want to think about it, he decided that it would be better to cut all the ties he had with him, and forget about it. All he wanted to focus on was the plane building, helping himself survive the wilderness and helping the survivors all the way.
E.B drove ahead to this place, when on the way he spotted something unusual laying on the ground at the distance.
E.B rode his motorbike closer to it, and noticed it was someone.
He didn't get any closer, as he didn't know whether this could be a trap or a survivor.
He didn't know what to do at this moment, but finally decided to ride ahead towards the crash.
It was not really his job to rescue anyone right now, there was no time for distractions.

E.B arrived to the prototype wreckage and started digging it to find anything useful.
Everything was left intact, it seemed that no one has found this place.
He checked the wreckage. It was badly destroyed, but it had enough pieces for E.B to work on.
He started to get motivated when he found a mechanic wrench, this was useful for making something out of it for sure.
He tried to gather all the amounts of rusty pieces and wire he could, but he would probably have to make a few more trips to collect the rest of it for something worthwhile.
After a few hours worth of collecting, E.B carried it all in his motorbike back to the city.
He passed through the place where he saw the person from before. And to his surprise, it was still there.
This time he didn't hesitate, and he stopped right in front of the person to check on him.
E.B gently poked him a few times with a metal stick, but this person was completely unconscious, if not dead.
No one else seemed to be around, how did this person end up here?
Whatever the case, E.B then decided to look into his belongings to see if there's anything useful he can take with him.
He knew that he was technically stealing, but this person wouldn't need it anymore, right?
It was just laying there, he would probably never know about it.
Well, how unfortunate.
This person wasn't carrying with anything interesting though.
Or that's what he thought, until he picked up his wallet.
He started looking through it, when he finds out a qualified aeronautical engineer certificate and private pilot license.
All this was evidence that this person was highly skilled at flying and managing planes.
There was enough proof for E.B to convince himself that this person wasn't just there as someone random on the ground.
E.B was now convinced that this person could provide him with an important advantage, and maybe get some help on his plan.
But... he's afraid it might be too late now.
He inspected him closer, wondering if he's sure this person is dead. There were no signs of major injuries or wounds, only a few scratches here and there. He was still warm, and was also breathing.
Not that E.B was a doctor, but he could tell this person was still alive!
He decided to take him to the city.

E.B rushed to find a suitable place for him to stay, so that he could keep an eye on him.
In the middle of an abandoned street.
He still didn't know whether this person was someone of trust, so better take the necessary precautions, just in case.
He waited, and waited.. and waited...
He spent the whole night sitting there, waiting for something to happen.
Until the next morning, he finally decided to do something about it.
He picked up a bucket with water, and threw it at him. And quickly ran back to his hiding place...
A few minutes after that, the stranger woke up.
He was startled at first, he stood up, slowly looking around him to see if anyone was around.
But after seeing that it was just him alone in the abandoned street, he relaxed. He slowly started walking around the streets, as E.B was carefully following him from a distance.
E.B decided to move in closer to get a better look at the situation, and quickly hid behind a pile of rubble, when he accidentally tripped on something, letting many objects fall off and make a loud clatter sound.
“Damn it…” He was incredibly nervous now, his thoughts rushed rapidly as he tried to think up a plan, when suddenly he heard some steps getting closer to the place.
This person was already here...
E.B quickly tried to face it with the first thing that came to his mind.
"Oi, what are you doing here?
Answer to my question, or I won't hesitate to kill you. My job is to protect the wastelands."
E.B spoke with an attitude of pure intimidation. He also tried to pass it off as "The Guardian Of The Wastelands" as if that would make him sound as someone important, but he was probably as frightened as this person...
Until the person finally spoke.
"uh.. um, sorry for intruding, my name is Avia."
After hearing Avia's voice, E.B was starting to understand now that the person was probably no different from him.
He decided to come out of hiding and introduce himself
"Well... hi there, I'm E.B, the one that saved your life, you're welcome" he answered with an elegant voice.
They started at each other for a brief moment, when suddenly Avia broke the silence laughing out loud.
"W- why are you laughing?! Do you see me as a joke?!" E.B exclaimed.
"Sorry, sorry, it's just that... you got me by surprise" A quick apology followed from Avia.
After a few moments of hesitation, E.B realized that he had made the right choice to come out of hiding.
"Are we the only ones here?" Avia asked.
"Of course not. Go on, let's move on. There're other ones here." E.B thought this was the opportunity to get to know this person better. It seemed he could trust on him, for now.

He led Avia to the hidden doorway of the city.
He kept silent all the way, until they arrived to the place.
Avia was completely astonished by every aspect of it.
"Welcome to the lair" E.B invited Avia to sit at one of the tables and proceed to explain the situation and get to know each other.
"So what's your story? Why are you here alone?" E.B questioned.
"Well..." Avia started.
He explained to him the better he could, but he was barely able to remember what happened exactly, or how he ended up here.
"I see..."
E.B looked at Avia, with a friendly smile on his face. He decided to start a conversation about something that they both had in common.
"So what do you do?"
Avia looked at E.B with an understanding smile.
"I'm an aeronautical engineer, I have worked for different companies and... that's pretty much it." Avia answered.
"Hey me too! I'm an aerospace engineer, but I have also worked as air traffic controller, mechanic, electrician, guitar player, and aspiring DJ." E.B exclaimed excitedly.
"Oh wow, really? Huh, I'm sure you have a lot of stories to share." Avia replied with an amazed expression.
"Yeah..." E.B agreed.
They started a whole conversation about how their life had been like, and what they did.
Until E.B thought it was finally time to explain about his plan.
"You see..." E.B stared.
He talked about XIVIL, how they had appeared from out of nowhere, attacked this place, killed several people, and now sought to do more.
"I want to stop them" E.B emphasized.
His words unsettled Avia, but he tried to come up with the best way to explain the situation, and convince him.
"I have a plan, but if I want to ensure its success, I will probably need a little help... all the people around here aren't the best to work with unfortunately, but I saw something special in you, so I hope you can help me out. It's totally up to you though, I won't force you to anything" E.B explained with complete sincerity.
Avia thought about it for a few minutes, considering the possibility of helping E.B.
Until finally he decided.
"Alright, I will help you" Avia said firmly.
E.B's eyes opened widely, and said "wait, really... Really really!?"
"Y... Yeah" Avia answered back.
E.B let out a huge sigh, "Hah… It's time we leave then, tomorrow will be a busy day."

They left the place and walked outside, the night was growing, a breeze came and blew the leaves off of the trees.
Avia was still surprised there were a few people within this desolate wasteland.
"Here is my hideaway." E.B pointed to his house that he used to store things.
Which was full of... boxes. Boxes everywhere.
It was a mess. Not just in his own house, but everywhere else.
E.B was kind enough to let Avia sleep in one of the boxes. Compared to how messy his house was, he couldn't complain.

The next morning, E.B would show Avia everything around the city and how to survive.
There were secret passages, sewers, stairways and other secret areas that were only known by very few people.
After a long day's worth of walking, they returned to the hideaway once again.
It was finally time to get started with the real work, his final plan.
"The Aerospace Project"
Or what E.B would call "E.B,s Awesome Plan(E)"
E.B started to explain better in detail everything he had in mind...

Building a plane, with the highest possible control of its maneuverability, one which would be powerful enough to enter normal airspace and withstand possible attacks against XIVIL.
It would also have to have the ability to be shaped by internal pressure as well as the wind currents.
And the propulsion, a jet engine with large thrust would be necessary.
But that's just the first part of the plan.
After defeating the enemy (if successful) the next step would be taking all the people out this city.
That's where the "Airport" part comes in.
Building a second airplane.
The flaws of this plane wouldn't just be the design, they would be the interior.
Since they had the goal of transporting a considerable amount of people, they would need a very large diameter hangar to accommodate the craft. When designing this, they would want to make a heavy aircraft. In the aircraft, in the fuselage, the structural framework and the wings would all be a significant amount of material.
With the great number of components involved, without the help of a forklift to move things around and have it work smoothly would be a real challenge.
...
"So! What do think of the plan?" E.B asked excitedly.
"I-It might be possible. We can build a plane!" Avia confirmed.
"Awesome! I knew I could count on you!" E.B said happily.
E.B then asked the first thing that came to his mind: "We should rename ourselves to something like "AIR FORCE ELITE MAXIMUM!!!" That's a cool name and should attract people to our side." E.B yelled with enthusiasm.
But Avia laughed at that though.
"It's not a joke! Sigh. Alright, what about just... AER?" E.B asked him with obvious resignation.
"That's quite alright... yeah! sounds good." Avia replied.
E.B turned to Avia with a determined look on his face. "Alright then!"

And thus AER arose.
They were starting to see the path their lives would take together. But with that promise came great responsibility. You could only trust the other, E.B thought. This duty came with immense risk. But at least he was not alone anymore, so that he could prove himself to the world and hopefully achieve a brighter future.