- "Have visual on Three Strikes and Labarthe. Axeman engaging"
- —Axeman a few moments before engaging Trigger
Emeric "Axeman" Pons, callsign Axeman. One of the most experienced senior pilots of the Erusean Air Force, Axeman was a veteran of the Continental War, being one of very few pilots who served from the start of the war and until the day Erusea surrendered, serving as a skilled ace of the Federal Erusean Air Force, although he was shot down twice during the conflict. Despite being known for being a generally silent and laconic man who prefered to act instead of speaking, he was also known for his speeches and rhetorical arguments. He was a fervent supporter of militarism and advocated for a stronger, better equipped and better trained Air Force as a way of securing Erusean dominance in the Usean region. According to the rumors spread by his subordinates, his TAC name came from the tactic he developed in the Continental War of always aiming directly for the cockpit of an aircraft, compared to the axe of an executioner beheading its victim. Whether this is true or just a fanciful story spread among the Erusean pilots is unknown.
Emeric was rumored to be part of the organization called "Free Erusea", which rebelled against the Erusean federal government in 2006. According to this rumor, he was one of the officers that organized this movement and might even have participated directly in the insurrection, being one of the pilots that was shot down by a single fighter ace from ISAF known as Mobius One single-handedly stopped the insurrection, in a military operation known officially as Operation Katina. While the veracity of the claims about operation Katina has been heavily questioned, in particular the fact that a single ISAF aircraft could have brought an end to the insurrection, no official confirmation of a link between this event and Emeric exists, and an official inquiry failed to find evidence linking him to these claims.
Emeric flew relatively little during the war, being in charge of an Air Base near Axel Bay. He demanded a high level of airmanship from the pilots under his command, frequently telling them that he would not order them to do anything he couldn't do himself. He maintained his skills sharp during training excercises with fighters and personally led several sorties to demonstrate his point. Despite being a strict leader, he was respected by his subordinates. Unlike many senior Erusean officers, Emeric supported wholeheartedly the use of drones for war, believing that any tactical edge they could offer was welcome and he often trained his unit in joint operations with unmanned aircraft.
Emeric was convinced that the only limiting factor for Erusea's political ambitions was the weak will of its new King, and that it had been this that allowed Osea to expand its influence into the Usean continent with the Space Elevator, as well as why the war had not gone in Erusea's favor after the success of the initial strikes. For this reason, when the chaos unleashed by the destruction of satellites on September 19 brought a split of factions, he joined the Radical side, believing Erusea could still turn the tide of the war utilizing new technology and aggressive tactics to win. His loyal squadron followed him and he personally commanded his squadron in the air as they tried to conduct operations to hinder Osea and destroy any Erusean forces that did not agree with their cause.
Emeric opposed the policies of General Édouard Labarthe, seeing him as a weak and incompetent leader and his policies as outdated and infeffective. When he learned that Labarthe and his supporters were trying to negotiate a ceasefire with Osea, Emeric and his men immediately saw this movement as that of treason and immediately decided to act upon it. On October 1st, he intercepted radio communications suggesting that Labarthe was in the city of Anchorhead and was attempting to flee from the city with an Osean officer, so he scrambled along with other Radical forces in the area to try to stop him, giving explicit orders to his men to shoot at anything that opposed them, regardless of nationality or allegiance. He realized that Labarthe's vehicle was being protected by air support from the Osean LRSSG. He attempted to shoot down their squadron leader, but was shot down in the ensuing dogfight by Trigger.
Emeric survived the initial encounter, but sustained severe shrapnel injuries during the fight and had to bail out from his exploding Su-35. He landed in the city and get shot and killed by the Conservatives. Despite his role in the civil war, his distinguished career meant his remains were buried with full military honors in a military cemetary at Farbanti.