Azur Lane: Shattered Skies (Azur Lane x Male Reader)

Charge Assault

"Oh, him? Yeah, I know him. It's going to take a while." A girl wearing a leather jacket, jeans, and combat boots said as she placed the AK-47 in her lap. She faced the camera, while a reporter behind it was holding a notepad and a pen, waiting for the girl to continue.

"Did you know, there are three kinds of aces? Those who seek strength, those who live for pride, and those who can read the tide of battle. Those are the three. And him?" She trailed off, and smiled.

"He was a true ace."

---

Naval Air Station Lemoore, California
June 16, 2019
0935 Hours

The sun had already rose up in the sky, illuminating everything with its bright light. Warm summer breeze washed over trees and buildings, as the birds were chirping and singing to celebrate the new morning. It was a normal day for the other personnel in the base, but today was a slow and boring day for both the pilots and ground crew who were left to entertain themselves.

Some were playing baseball, basketball, football, poker, anything to cope with the boredom. In one of the dorms, a man with (H/c)-colored hair and (E/c) eyes was playing Ace Combat in his PS4. The said man was no other than (Y/n) (L/n), also known as Strider 1 or Grim Reaper, the leader of the renowed Strider Squadron. He was a fighter pilot that brought fear and admiration to both his fellow pilots, colleagues, and Sirens. His combat skills were said to be equivalent to a whole squadron, and could single-handedly destroy enemy fleets and squadrons with ease.

(Y/n)'s life prior to war remain unknown, but many knew he didn't have a great childhood. Those who flew with him during his countless victories often spoke of how it felt as if they were under the protection of some mysterious force flying with him.

He managed to finish the level before the alarms blared off. (Y/n) quickly stood up from the couch as he rushed to his room and slammed the door shut, before getting out wearing his flight suit a few seconds later. Before he could get out from his dorm, the door suddenly bursted open, revealing a blonde-haired man.

It was no other than Count, his roommate and best friend. He was generally disliked by the others due to his ego, but later changed when him and (Y/n) crossed paths ever since (Y/n) was temporarily deployed to the LRSSG (Long Range Strategic Strike Group).

"Spilled your cola again?" He amusingly asked the pilot.

Count grumbled and grabbed the flight suit from the clothing rack. "That's for the 128th time this month."

"You can mourn for your fallen cola later. Let's go." (Y/n) said as he did some final checks on his flight suit and ran out from the room, with Count following right behind him.

---

Upon arriving to the briefing room, the two pilots were greeted by darkness and all of the pilots present in the base. The only thing that was illuminating the whole room was the screen in front of them, showing a map of the whole American continent. The other pilots were murmuring with each other, equally confused on why they were called ever so suddenly.

Ignoring the whispers, (Y/n) walked over to an empty seat and sat down beside his fellow female pilot, Húxian, who quickly averted her gaze away from him with a small tint of pink plastered on her cheeks. Count, who was sitting a few chairs away from them, smirked when he saw the scene unfold.

"H-Hey..." Húxian greeted, playing with her fingers. She could feel her heart beating faster just from his prescence alone.

"Hey." He casually greeted back.