Veritech Down

The warning klaxon was the only sound Roy could hear over the screaming of the turbine engines. Smoke filled the cockpit, acrid and biting, stinging his eyes as he fought with the control stick.

"Guardian mode failure," the onboard computer announced, its voice calm despite the chaos. "Rear stabilizers critical."

"I know, I know!" Roy shouted back, slamming the throttle forward. Below him, the canopy of the Amazon jungle rushed up to meet him—a sea of green that promised to swallow his damaged fighter whole. He checked his radar. Three Zentraedi battle pods were still on his tail, their particle cannons lighting up the sky around him.

He had to make a choice. If he tried to maintain altitude, they would pick him apart. If he went into the trees, he might survive the crash, but he'd be in their territory.

He cut the engines. Silence, sudden and terrifying, replaced the roar. The Veritech dropped like a stone.

(Story content continues...)