Editing Battle of Alta

{{event
|participants=[[Defiant Defense Force]], [[varvax|Krell]]
|world=Detritus
|universe=[[Cytoverse]]
|books=[[Skyward (series)]]
}}
The '''Battle of Alta''' took place above [[Alta Base]] when [[Spensa]] was seven years old.{{book ref|sky1|prologue}} Forty human [[starfighter]]s participated, against one hundred [[Superiority|Krell]] fighters, the largest force the Krell have ever sent against the humans. Of the participants, fourteen survived and twenty six (including [[Zeen Nightshade|Chaser]]) died.{{book ref|Skyward|39}}


== History ==
Prior to the Battle, Alta Base had been cloaked to hide it from the Krell, in an attempt to build up a defense force against the aliens using the machinery that had been found beneath the base in Igneous Cavern.

Chaser and Spensa were in a cave on the surface of Detritus when Chaser spotted dozens of pieces of debris falling through the atmosphere, headed toward Alta Base. He reported it to flight command, and they told him that they had seen the same thing, their radar reports telling them the debris was actually a large force of Krell starfighters.{{book ref|sky1|prologue}}

Flight command told Chaser the Krell were heading straight toward Igneous Cavern, and Mongrel contacted him, telling him to convince Banks and Swing to stay and fight. They wanted to abandon the Cavern, but Ironsides demanded that they stay and fight. Chaser agreed with Ironsides, and said if humans had any hope of having a civilization again, they needed to stay and defend Igneous. Mongrel told Chaser he would beat him to the air and kill more Krell than him, so Chaser sprints toward Alta Base to fight the Krell.{{book ref|sky1|prologue}}

{{sidequote
|Some wounds aren't as obvious as a twisted leg. You found it hard to get into the cockpit today, after watching your friends die? Try doing it after you shoot down one of your own.
|Cobb, to Spensa, explaining why he doesn't fly anymore.{{book ref|sky1|20}}
|side=right|size=225px
}}

The humans flew into the sky in waves, totaling forty pilots, compared to the Krell's one hundred. The Krell ships were poorly constructed, with wires coming out at odd angles and ripped wings. The battle devolved into a chaotic mess, each pair of wingmates fighting to survive against the much larger force of the Krell.

Chaser killed many Krell, at times seeming to know what turns the Krell were going to make before they made them. Him and Mongrel were a well-oiled machine, one of them would fire an IMP on a group of Krell, and the other would pick them off, outside the distance of the IMP.

The battle went on for upwards of an hour. Chaser, Mongrel, Ironsides, Rally and Antique formed up, the last surviving members of Hope Flight, as the Krell seemed to be retreating.
Cobb asked if the Krell were retreating, and Chaser told him they were merely regrouping. Cobb and Chaser returned to Ironsides, and earned a brief recess from the combat. Cobb and Ironsides engaged in some banter about Chaser, then Cobb pointed out a hole in the debris field that revealed the stars. They lost Chaser's attention for a minute, so Cobb asked if everything was alright, while Ironsides asked if it was the defect. Chaser told her he could control the defect, but that he believed he could get through the hole and reach the stars. Ironsides told him to stay in rank, but he told her he could hear the stars like never before. She told him she trusted him, and let him go. 

<!--=== Chaser ===-->

Chaser rotated his ship, pointed his acclivity rings at the ground, and boosted towards the hole. Chaser went above the protective platforms of Detritus, and without jamming technology equipped in his ship, fell under the influence of the Krell, so returned to the fighting, bent on killing the humans.

Chaser returned from above the debris field, immediately going after members of Hope Flight, first activating his IMP, then shooting down Rally and Antique. Ironsides and Mongrel fell in together and went after him. Cobb took a shot at Chaser, which he dodged, but Cobb got another shot off and blew up Chaser's ship. After more fighting, the humans were finally victorious and the Krell truly retreated. The battle ended with fourteen survivors out of the original forty pilots.{{book ref|sky1|39}}

Despite Chaser's actions, the DDF won the battle, chasing off the Krell and saving Alta Base. Following the battle they removed the cloaking from Alta Base and further fortified their position.

== Legacy ==
Chaser's actions led to him being branded a coward. This was specifically engineered by Ironsides as she believed it better he be branded a coward than a traitor. While his flightmates did not know exactly why he had turned on them, Ironsides knew it to be related to his cytonic abilities, known by high level Defiant Cavern officials as the "defect". Her view of the defect changed entirely following the battle and when Chasers daughter Spensa tried to apply for Flight School, she refused her entry, by purposely giving Spensa an exam she could not complete. Spensa was eventually accepted into Flight School, with the help of Cobb, where she was able to rewatch the battle, learning the truth of her fathers actions. 

Those who fought in the battle are called the [[First Citizen]]s, and are given special privileges. This includes special quarters and influence, and their children are given a free entrance into [[Flight School]] should they decide to go.

== Known Participants ==
{| class="infobox" width=100%
! Pilot !! Flight !! Notes
|-
| Callsign: [[Ironsides]] || [[Hope Flight]] || Flight leader{{book ref|sky1|39}}
|-
| Callsign: [[Chaser]] || [[Hope Flight]] || Hope 7, Coward of Alta{{book ref|sky1|39}}
|-
| Callsign: [[Mongrel]] || [[Hope Flight]] || Survivor{{book ref|sky1|39}}
|-
| Callsign: [[Rally]] || [[Hope Flight]] || Victim to [[Chaser]]{{book ref|sky1|39}}
|-
| Callsign: [[Antique]] || [[Hope Flight]] || Victim to [[Chaser]]{{book ref|sky1|39}}
|-
| Callsign: [[Banks]] || ''unknown'' || {{book ref|sky1|prologue}}
|-
| Callsign: [[Swing]] || ''unknown'' || {{book ref|sky1|prologue}}
|-
| Callsign: [[Broken Wind]] || ''unknown'' || One of the best pilots{{book ref|sky1|10}}
|-
| [[Jeshua Weight]] || ''unknown'' || {{book ref|sky1|8}}
|-
| [[Sousa]] || ''unknown'' || {{book ref|sky1|i|1}}
|-
| [[Strife]] || ''unknown'' || {{book ref|sky1|i|1}}
|-
| [[Nightingale]] || ''unknown'' || {{book ref|sky1|i|1}}
|-
| Admiral [[Heimline]] || ''unknown'' || {{book ref|sky1|i|1}}

|}

== Notes ==
<references />
{{partial}}
{{Skyward}}