Death Came from the Sky

Kuskana Dive, the standard bombing maneuver of the Demacian Air Force's Bombing Squadron.

A Dragon Rider executing a Kuskana Dive folded in its wings and took on the predatory posture of a beast swooping down to snatch its prey. It plunged at a nearly vertical angle, dropping from ten thousand feet to around one thousand feet above the ground in a matter of seconds, then manually released its bombs at that altitude.

The maneuver required extensive coordination between rider and dragon.

The bombardier had to endure the intense discomfort of weightlessness as they rapidly lost altitude. Throughout the dive, they had to move in sync with their dragon, releasing their bombs precisely at the lowest point to hit their target.

The dragon, meanwhile, had to control its flight carefully. It had to plunge toward the ground with a rider on its back without actually getting too close or crashing into the earth.

Much of the Dragon Riders' training in throwing their javelins could be done on the ground. But dive-bombing missions required the riders and dragons to train together, so unlike the flight squadrons, which had people assigned to clean the dragons' nests, nearly everyone in the bombing squadron lived and ate with their dragons.

And now, after a decade of grueling training, their efforts had finally paid off.

Before the Imperial Capital Army's air-defense unit even realized who the enemy was, twenty dragons began diving from above the clouds in the standard Kuskana Dive formation.

On their backs, the bombardiers expertly drew out the Hextech Crystals they had carefully stored, even as they were weightless.

Eight thousand feet.

Five thousand feet.

Three thousand feet.

Two thousand feet.

One thousand feet.

The diving dragons let out sharp cries. As the air-defense unit frantically shifted its aim, the dragons suddenly spread